Christmas Shopping

Well with $$$$ in medical bills lately I've gotten creative for Christmas and www.southernsavers.com has helped me. I've scored great deals at CVS and Walgreens. So much to share, but no time now. Gotta make cookies for tomorrow! Hope to get back to posting soon. We see the ENT 12/23.

What's so special?

Yesterday, at the day surgery "hospital", we heard once again how special we are for having adopted. Giving her a chance she otherwise wouldn't have, so caring, so special, she's lucky... I try to respond, but words sometimes fail me. And at 6am it's even harder to know what to say.
This isn't our first adoption, but it has been by far the most noticed one. Yes, it was expensive to adopt, but God provided what we needed when we needed it. Yes, she is getting a family she didn't have and medical care that might not have been otherwise accessible, but we are the lucky ones. Elizabeth is such a precious girl and blesses us with her smiles and kisses. Now, don't misunderstand, not every minute is great. Life with five children 10 and under, all with some sort of unique need is CRAZY! But even though I am sitting among PILES of clean laundry and have PILES of dirty laundry to deal with and a sink FULL of dirty dishes, my heart is full with thankfulness. Is this where I imagined myself 13 years ago as a prepared to marry Mr. Incredible? No. Is this where I imagined myself after the birth of Mr. Z or Mr. J? No. Do I want to always have these piles of laundry and dishes around? No. But God will get me through this too. Someone once told me some years ago, "God will never give you more than you can bear."- this was said to be well meaning of course. I replied, "But I didn't bear Mr. M!"
Our day yesterday was full of Elizabeth feeling unwell. Yesterday was a result of our decision to adopt again. I can look at it as another chance to promote healing for Elizabeth or a chance for me to be even further behind with all the "stuff" I "need" to do.
Over the weekend our van went into the hospital and wasn't seen again until last night. I could dwell on the fact that we thought it was still under warranty and fight the dealership- I distinctly remember 7 years and 100,000 miles once WE bought it- the contract is ambigious, they were a day late fixing it and we have been taking two vehicles wherever the whole family needed to go or me just not going with the kids anywhere since the loaner was only a five seater. Or am I willing to just pay the $$$$, move on with other more important things- like the kids- and know that God is just and will provide for EVERYTHING we need. Am I happy that the van has required so much this year, or in the last six weeks we have spent $$$$ on medical bills? No. But life isn't necessarily what we expect and we will be further ahead if we pick our battles and trust God. Do my best and let God do the rest. Will this be a Christmas where each child will be lavished with many presents? No. Is that really what they NEED anyway?! Our needs are met and we have many of our wants. And maybe at some point before Christmas we can get some decorations and our Christmas tree up.
We didn't adopt Elizabeth to be noticed by others. We are nothing special or noteworthy. We simply wanted to follow God's heart in providing for the fatherless and His commandment to love our neighbors as ourselves. Our neighbor might be right next door or it might be a child waiting for a family thousands of miles away.

Surgery Day

We, or should I say, I began my day at 4am. Prepped for leaving and we left the house this morning at 5:25. Surgery was at 7:15, but we had to check in at 5:45. There were several other children there to get tubes put in. Elizabeth went through surgery well. She still had a bad infection in her right ear and her adnoids were enlarged. Post op reminded me of the civil affiairs office in China with all the screaming children, but this time Elizabeth was also among the screamers unlike on the day she joined our family. The Tylenol with Codine is our friend right now and we are praying that this is the beginning to getting her ears healed and getting her hearing well.

Tubes!

Elizabeth still has an ear infection, we have been through one round of antibiotics already. Surgery has been set for next week to place tubes in her ears and get her adnoids out. The doctor will also clean out the massive amounts of wax in her ears that remains. In the meantime, she has started a second round of antibiotics. Why suddenly the surgery? Well there's a few factors involved. We don't know exactly how long Elizabeth has had the ear infection (possibly all her life?), she's over two and should be talking (at least some) already, we need to get her hearing as good as possible before being fitted for hearing aids. Part of me holds out hope that she won't need them after all.
I am a little upset the our pediatrician didn't catch the ear infection 2 months ago, but life goes on. What is happening on other fronts?! Lots!!!! We have six doctor appointments this week, a visit with ECI, basketball practice starts, piano lessons and trying to get school done.
I feel extremely overwhelmed and like there will never be enough of me to go around again. But then I am reminded -
Deuteronomy 31:8
"The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."
I know that He placed our children in our home and has equipped me to be able to be the best mommy they need. This is just one of those stretching times :)

Mountaintop or Valley?

That was the question posed during worship this morning. Are you on a mountaintop or in a valley? So after I had to leave the worship/service because Elizabeth is becoming more vocal, which is a good thing!, I contemplated that question. This afternoon I realized that I am neither in a valley or on a mountaintop and I am not somewhere in between in the calm foothills. I am hanging from a sheer mountain face, trying to climb the mountain, but with the valley looming ominously below me waiting to swallow me. Now why would I say this?! Everybody has hard times and they do seem to come in seasons of highs and lows. But for us EVERYDAY is filled with peaks and valleys. struggles- Dr. appointments, therapy appointments, cooking gluten free, having a child that's casein free as well!, advocating for my ADHD child, communicating with Elizabeth, feeding Elizabeth, homeschooling a 5th grader and 3rd grader and two in K/preK, keeping the house somewhat sanitized with five children, two dogs and a cat- I am not talking clean freak clean, just livable. victories- Elizabeth is verbalizing more and she is finger feeding herself more foods, my ADHD child is responding to the gluten/casein free diet, our colds didn't last too long, no one else got Mr. M's stomach bug, the generosity of people giving us clothes for Elizabeth, Mr. M is learning letter sounds, long division is becoming less of a laborious task, God provides the money to eat gluten free, Mr. M and Elizabeth are getting the specialized help that they each need, God provided the money for Elizabeth's adoption.
If I stop and think about all that is necessary everyday just for "normal" living, I want to crawl in bed and sleep because just thinking about it makes me exhausted. I feel that I am not doing a half way decent job of anything. One step forward and two steps back. That's the way things have been going. Especially when LIFE happens- a dear friend's marriage is ending, insurance doesn't cover hearing aids, our house didn't sell... But if I can look past my disappointments and look at all that God is doing in our lives, I am overcome with gratitude. I serve a big God who can create the whole world and still cares about even the little things in my life. He knows that I feel like I am hanging on for life and He is giving me the strength to keep hanging on and work my way up to the mountaintop. (the picture is one of our mountaintop moments)

We are SICK

Haven't been blogging because of dealing with sick kids and now Mr. Incredible and I are also under the weather. Hope to be back to posting soon.

Awareness

Today is Orphan Sunday.
The 13th is National Adoption Day.

LOVE

Love is a decision. It is a choice you have to make. There are many days when it is not an easy choice. The object of your love may come in a tiny package that is defiant, deceitful and disobedient. But, you still must make the choice to set yourself aside and minister to that little person and meet them where they are and in a way they can understand.

1 Corinthians 13 (The Message)

The Way of Love

¹ If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don't love, I'm nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. ²If I speak God's Word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, "Jump," and it jumps, but I don't love, I'm nothing. ^3-7If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don't love, I've gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I'm bankrupt without love.

Love never gives up.
Love cares more for others than for self.
Love doesn't want what it doesn't have.
Love doesn't strut,
Doesn't have a swelled head,
Doesn't force itself on others,
Isn't always "me first,"
Doesn't fly off the handle,
Doesn't keep score of the sins of others,
Doesn't revel when others grovel,
Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,
Puts up with anything,
Trusts God always,
Always looks for the best,
Never looks back,
But keeps going to the end.

^8-10Love never dies. Inspired speech will be over some day; praying in tongues will end; understanding will reach its limit. We know only a portion of the truth, and what we say about God is always incomplete. But when the Complete arrives, our incompletes will be canceled.

¹¹When I was an infant at my mother's breast, I gurgled and cooed like any infant. When I grew up, I left those infant ways for good.

¹²We don't yet see things clearly. We're squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won't be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We'll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us!

¹³But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love.

(highlighting is mine)

Mr. M has had some VERY rough days lately. It feels like with every few steps forward, there comes a point where we take those same steps backward. It is in these times that love takes on a whole new meaning and it makes me so grateful for the days that are good. Lord, hasten the good days again.

Ultrasound Results

NORMAL!!!!! Praise the Lord for no kidney stones.

Dr. Appts

We went for the renal ultrasound on Wednesday. Might have results on Friday.
Today we went to the audiologist and he is recommending we see an ENT. She does have significant hearing loss, but she also has fluid in her ears. Lots of details that I don't have time to post about. He thinks she needs hearing aids. Pray that we can get into an ENT quickly (and get hearing aids quickly), she needs to develop her speech. Pray also for peace/timing if she needs tubes in her ears. Thanksgiving is approaching, life is hectic, house showing again tomorrow..... ahhhhhhhh!