Shannonogans

Galvez with Bethancourts & Pines

2012-01-17T21:14:00.001-06:00

I am 60 photo albums behind on editing. 60. I think I am going to toss Photoshop for awhile and take the good graces of whatever photos I got. I have to get the ball rolling on so many things before life changes permanently and this blog goes down to the ground. Which may be the Lord's intent anyways. Who knows.

I am back in August, the first weekend to be exact. Apparently I wrote this post a month ago and never posted it. I haven't even reread it in an effort to keep going. I just finished my last Photoshop bunch of photos...500 of them from California. It's what set me over the edge. Must move on and live life to the fullest...which is not behind my computer screen....

Started off the weekend (in August, for context) with Justin and I getting to the beach house early. After last minute going to the doctor that morning and seeing another pedo doc that told us he had a nasty ear infection. Load up on meds and get to the house. My house key got stuck in the lock, so I went to find the hideaway key we all know where to find. I somehow in this mess turn off the blower to the AC. An hour after being there the temp in the house gets hotter than when I showed up. Justin trying to nap but hard since the air feels like a blow dryer. Nap aborted even though sick boy needs rest. Propping open windows to let the breeze of the 97 degree outside to cool off the house.

In the meantime after calling an AC repair guy to come late on a Friday afternoon, Justin decides to cool off by cleaning the house.

And the car.

All the while trying not to get his infected ear wet to further aggravate the infection. Hmmm.

Bethancourts then arrive while gasping at the possibility of no AC. What shall we do?

Put on your swimsuits and wait for the AC guy to come and tell you that the fan switch is off. Fork over amount for initial visit, smile stupidly, and be off on your way. Oh, and offer the guys some banana chocolate chip cake as an apology.

Get ready for a boat ride.

Have sick boy navigate the high seas

Went to the beach without sick boy that evening but the trooper came the next day

Leslie came with the kids minus Chris who was under the weather as well. We were a shaky bunch.

Then Derek took all three boys to go putt putt. Apparently it was quite comical as all three firstborn boys were trying to see who won.

We had a fantastic time for our second annual trip. Next summer there will be gads more kids, so we'll see how we work it. Love spending quality time with faithful friends!

2011 Float Trip

2011-11-28T15:14:00.000-06:00

The very next weekend after Galveston I went to float the river with my Houston buddies, or what was left of them.

Jenise planned this entire trip to the very last detail. She booked the place that she and Stephen had stayed at before, told us what to buy, what to bring, and how to enjoy ourselves to the fullest.

Jenise, her sister Julianne, Wendi, her sister Ashley, and Tracy and I were slotted to go. Just days before we left Jenise and Julianne's grandfather passed away. We all grieved for their loss as well as our loss of their presence on the trip.

Tracy and I carpooled from Houston and met the Dallas crew at the River House Tea Room in Gruene for lunch. Delicious! We shopped around for a bit then headed to the cabin.

Wendi and I at Hideout on the Horseshoe. Great place, of course picked out by Jenise.

This place was convenient because we were right on the Guadelupe. Unfortunately, the river wasn't moving, so we headed to the only river I have ever floated, always due to a drought or raging rapids - the Comal.

I brought these chairs to sit outside our cabin in the river. Never happened, but we sure did get a lot of us out of them in the living area.

Right before going to dinner our first night in town.

The gang in front of Gruene River Grill

The next morning we loaded up our snacks, our inflatable rafts from Walmart ($2 more than renting and worth every penny!), and went to work.

Wendi and Tracy with our Walmart hats we bought to float the river. Protect the faces.

Wendi brought a water proof camera and took some photos of us floating. We made some female friends who offered up a pic for us.

Another under some shade. The smaller intimate group was by far by favorite float trip. I think the larger the group the more you have to keep up, especially in the water shoot toilet bowl (where I got stuck this year).

After going in two different directions we ended the float with a blizzard!

That evening we met up with Cabell and Amanda at the Huisache Grill. Delicious way to end the night!

The next day we met up with Paige Murphree at the San Marcos Outlets for some shopping. Wendi and I holding our breath before going into the Pottery Barn Outlet.

One last group shot before hitting the road back to reality. This was the last time I saw Wendi before she flew off the Doha thee weeks later. Bah! Only 3 more weeks before I get to hug that neck again!

And Jenise, raincheck on a float trip ASAP....

Adoption Update

2011-11-27T20:31:00.000-06:00

We finished our adoption classes two weeks ago. Praise the good Lord! No more sitting through long lectures about this and that. Let's move on to the next thing!

I bought our fire extinguishers and thankfully had a conversation with Jen about getting them inspected, which I did this week.

We are moving houses in December. The Lord has been all up in that transition. More on that later. So many people that have previously been adopted have been in the thick of this. The Lord has been faithful to show His Goodness through all of this.

Called the fire marshal to see what I needed to change in our new house before having a fire inspection for adoption.

Still have to get all 3 of us TB shots. Justin said briefly today when I told him that he didn't want to adopt because of the shot. I asked him that he would rather not get the shot vs. give some kids a home who don't have one, point them to Christ, tell others about the gospel and how Christ loved us enough to adopt us into His family, and get him some much needed siblings. To which he laughed. Then he asked if we would get the shot the day we got the kids. I told him how grateful we are that Jesus didn't decide to not get on the cross after realizing how hard it would be. And we decided that getting a shot wouldn't be so bad.

Perspective. We all need a little of it now and then.

Three weeks ago was Orphan Sunday. It started in Zambia, 117th poorest country of 128. There was an AIDS crisis, and a pastor looked at the scriptures and said let's do something about this. I dare you to go and listen to Jay's Sermon on Orphan Sunday. 7-8 families from our class have since come forward to adopt. Jay talked about how we wrestle with why God cares so much about caring for the orphans. And it all comes down to this - it's for the worship of our Great God. God intends for the primary communication to be within the family. So what happens to the kids that don't have a family? Who will take them in if we as the Body choose to make up excuses?

I have been reading a book that Becca Harris recommended called Setting their Hope in God. It has a daily prayer with Scripture incorporated into it that help me to be more focused in my plea for Justin. I have been praying it over our future children. It has made their arrival seem nearer. I am anxiously anticipating them as I pray specific needs for their souls.

I read Jen Hatmaker's blog post about being the village. A great read on how you can be helpful once the dust settles on a family that recently added an orphan to their home.

Pray for waiting children is a blog that shows a child that needs a home and gives you specific ways to pray for them. Check it out and intercede for a child that may not know how to pray for themselves.

With Christmas around the corner, you should check out the Lifesong for Orphans Gift Catalog. It's a lot like Samaritan's Purse Christmas Catalog that has purpose to your giving. Not only can you donate to a family that would have financial needs to adopt, but you can help one learn a trade, get a job, or escalate out of poverty. Make a dent in the cycle of poverty where sin orphans children.

A year and a half ago I would have wanted anyone talking about adoption to stand at arms link. Wasn't ready. But after reading Adopted for Life I knew I didn't have many excuses left.

Challenge yourself this Advent Season to pray as to what it is the Lord is calling you to do with the orphan crisis. And get on it.

Galvez with Midway girls

2011-11-10T17:14:00.000-06:00

Once, and sometimes twice, a year I get the privilege of hanging out with my besties from back home, with the addition of Wendi-loo. This year we went to my grandparents' beach house to hang out. Majority of the girls hadn't been there since 2002. We decided on a Sunday - Tuesday to avoid conflicts on the weekends. Wendi flew in from Dallas and we drove on down to start the fun before the rest of the girls showed up.

When we first got there we didn't waste any time in breaking into our favorite things gift exchange that Caryn had suggested. You brought up to $25 of your favorite thing(s) and we drew numbers to see who would go first.

We also got gifts from Jerr-Bear about how super we were...

...that is super tired!

We delved in the gifts, starting with KT. Look at that glow - must be from the excitement of the game.

And look at Ann's glow - must be from the excitement of the prize.

I ended up with this bad boy - Waco in the house!

Also, Wendi grabbed these shoes in every size so I got to buy a pair off of her at the end of the game.

The stash

No, that glow on Katy wasn't because of the thrill of being first to pick in the game but from the news that she was prego! And ironically we found out a few weeks later that Ann had just found out prior to this weekend that she was expecting as well. Our group keeps abounding in babies!

Prior to posing before dinner. Maybe everyone was talking about how lovely their toenails looked or something.

All snazzed up for a night out on the town.

Enjoying a delicious, windy meal at The Spot. There was a live band so we did a bit of shouting as well. My food took awhile to show up but other than that it was a great time.

After driving the scene on the seawall we put on comfty clothes and played a little Whoonu.

Caryn won the game and got the extra gift leftover from the favorite things game.

The next day we slept in, ate big, and went to the beach. Wendi taking one for the team and taking a good photo.

I have to hand it to this crew. I grew up going to the lake with this bunch, learned how to water ski, and always tried to never touch the lake bottom. Except for Katy J, no one else grew up beaching it like I did. And in Galveston, land of the lovely brown water. We had a great time relaxing and chatting.

I stayed by the water the entire time.

We went back, showered, and learned things like the trick to Lauren's curly hair. Cannot remember the name of this contraption, but it blow dries and curls at the same time. Fascinating. And makes Lauren's hair look fabulous!

Sporting our shirts with no makeup. True beach style.

We then attempted a boat ride. Trying to figure out why the boat isn't totally in the water. All my lake buddies giving me pointers and me clueless. Good thing I was the driver, right?

Making a call to my dad about it.

Ann using her free time to fish.

Since the gas gauge is broken (thanks to Ike), my dad advised me to put gas in it. I truly believe this is why we had a hitch a first. The Lord was sparing me from breaking down due to no fuel in the middle of the canal.

We lowered the boat with no problem and were off! High five by the excited passengers.

Ann truly tried to use all the time she could to fish. Wanted to bring back some fresh grub for the Waco fam.

One last fishing attempt. And me washing the boat (that's for my Grandpa to see I was doing my duties).

The spoils of the weekend. Wet, dripping dry bathing suits.

I don't know what made this weekend so special. Maybe our purposeful conversations, our intentional topics, or the sensitivity the group gave me after I went downstairs to take out the trash and stayed in the hammock for a good cry after hearing the joyful news of Katy's pregnancy. What can I say, I still grieve at odd times. We have been through it all with this group of ladies. We have celebrated and we have mourned together through the blood of Christ. The older, and hopefully wiser, I get, I truly start to be grateful for the friendships that encourage me to look to the Lord. This group of ladies fits that bill to a T. Hanging with this crew in the junior high and high school days is half the reason I didn't spiral into many directions of sin. The Lord's grace. The Lord knew I needed a good accountability group...and this was it. Love you all so much. Am savoring the time we get to spend together again in January!

Jaylen's 6th Birthday

2011-11-06T20:56:00.000-06:00

Jaylen, the boy we shepherd from Yellowstone Academy, has truly impacted us in such an amazing way in the short amount of time we have been around him. I called his mom asking when we could see him and was told his birthday was the following Friday. So we decided to take him on his birthday to celebrate.

First we let him ride a bike for the first time. Jaylen is athletic and can pick up on things quickly.

Riding buddies

We went inside to play around with some guitar action.

Then it was time to open presents. Swimsuit and a perplexus. Derek insisted we try to find something to make him think.

Derek showing him the ropes while Justin zooms through his.

Then we went to Kicks Soccer and played around for a bit.

Justin was starting soccer in the fall so this was good practice.

The inner child in me came out and I once again had to run in scoring like my old wing days.

Mid air

Then we went to Rina Forest Cafe. We walked up to the Galleria and of course Jaylen was on sensory overload. He wanted to do everything. We walk up and the hostess asks us for a table for three. I look her dead in the eye and tell her party of four. She apologized profusely over and over. I just saw it as preparation of what was to come. The Lord in His Goodness giving me a glimpse. Letting the world know that just because everyone doesn't look the same doesn't mean we aren't all together.

Jaylen didn't know what to do with the whipped cream.

And we of course had to have the balloon man come over.

As we took Jaylen home I asked him if he had ever had a birthday party. He said no. A cake? No. No gifts, no one has ever sung him happy birthday, no cards, no present, nothing. Now I know heaven isn't made up of people that have birthdays, but how different we would all be if no one celebrated you. If they didn't tell you that you were important and worthwhile having a blast with. It was our privilege to do that with Jaylen.

May the Lord be glorified through our time with him! May his heart turn to love the Lord.

Lunch with Jess & David

2011-11-06T13:00:00.000-06:00

We had the privilege of having lunch with Jessica Lundy and her new fiancee on the Sunday after Galveston. We Smiths were SO BUMMED we had to miss the big wedding in October. Cannot describe the emotion over the phone as we were asking Roland if he was kidding when he told us the date. My cousin Hilary was getting married the same day. Too bad they couldn't have occurred on different weekends. Too much joy in one weekend! But alas, they still would be married anyways.

We met at the glorious Lupe Tortillas. Jess went right into loving on the kids.

Some enjoyed it more than others. :-)

Don't know what's funnier - Shane with a large hat or Aaron's facial expression.

I can't believe we are all getting so old. Jessica is 6 years my junior but now we are all in adult world.

David & Jessica

Sweet Jess - My god sister, sister in Christ, who I still feel like it was yesterday that I was 2 feet taller and loving having a little shadow. I cannot believe you are a beautiful grown woman who is now married! May the Lord be glorified through your witness to the world. Cannot wait to hug your neck in 2012!

Galvez with the fam

2011-11-02T19:13:00.000-05:00

We went to Galveston with all my family in July. It was great for newby parents Aaron and Elise as well as for the Houston crew in terms of travel distance.

Getting ready with lots of fluids.

And trying on Mommy's hat.

And we tried some of the Dohalicious Shani.

Then we headed down south and met the fam at The Spot. Our new favorite place to eat because you can sit up on the deck and watch the crowds on the seawall.

A bit of fogginess on my lens trying to get the practicing surfer.

Fishing. Lots of fishing.

And Aggie golf.

Not liking the crocker fish. Too loud and startling!

Riding the boat in the evenings and watching the sunset.

Boat driver

Lots of shuffleboard

And night fishing. Yes folks, my dad stayed up until almost midnight fishing with the fellas.

One day it was overcast and dare I say a sprinkle of showers. We packed up to go to the junk shops and to play putt putt. Justin and I had fun with faces.

The fat lip pouter

The sass

The yo-yo-yo

The goof

The overly bright smiler

Loving the colored shells of the hermit crabs

And rocking while looking at the ocean

Gimme some putt-putt

Where's Waldo

More shuffleboard

My family has always loved eating on the beach at dinnertime. This trip proved no exception as some of the mornings were clouldy and the evenings were clear and pleasant. I had brought chicken from Derek's favorite place that he found while googling best fried chicken, Barbeque Inn. It didn't disappoint! But let's face it - the legs are always better than the breasts. I believe I ate 4 of them.

Surfing is always best when tried in warm, brown as dirt, water.

The best fans around

Daniel's first beach trip

What else are uncles for unless they bury you in the sand?

We were all laughing until the atmosphere changed to panic when Justin realized the weight of the sand.

Proof we were there

The whole crew

We found lots of creative ways to jump in the canal

And we were never in want for tunes thanks to Shane's waterproof boombox system.

Roxy had been diagnosed with a pulled back several days prior to this trip so she stayed at the house the whole trip. Her and Snickers were always on close lookout for fallen debris in the kitchen.

Staring in the distance

Shane practicing his swing across the canal

Blurry fun of the cousins. Justin just loved reading the Daniel, making him laugh, and all the fun things boys that don't have siblings get to do.

Aaron and Elise going for a drive.

And we had a little photo shoot of the new family.

We managed a few smiles. Daniel gets pretty somber when he sees the big camera. Sweet thing these days can't stop smiling!

The happy family, who these days get more sleep.

I loved this trip for so many reasons. Such a blessing to have a family that loves each other and gets along. And most importantly, spurs each other on to love and good deeds to Him that receives all Glory!

Waco in July w/ Junods

2011-10-06T14:13:00.001-05:00

Right after the 4th we drove to Waco for a quick 24 hour trip with with Junods. My in-laws were gracious to share their pool even though they were out-of-town. It was my dad's birthday, and since he had never seen the Michaelis' new pool, he decided to come enjoy the refreshment. And play lifeguard.

Lots of 1, 2, 3, jump! going on.

Then we tried the Three Musketeers.

Love this photo!

We had some visitors for a bonafide playdate. Fun way to see lots of friends in a short amount of time!

There were dogpiles.

And group photos.

Right after swimming we went straight home to a grilled feast by the birthday boy. Then we celebrated with cookie cake.

Cookie cake lovers.

Blowing out the candles. We went to Dillard's a few days before to find something for Dad's bday present. Justin walked right up to a shirt and said that was the one. The Dillard's associate smiled and said it was actually the best quality combo with selling shirt. Justin with the good eye.

Pulling out the old baby toys.

Georgia wondering why she is not on this instead of the JT man.

Tears streaming as we said goodbye as this was the last time I got to see these precious kids until Christmas. Miss all those sweet cheeks!

CBB 4th of July Parade '11

2011-10-05T15:03:00.002-05:00

We started off the weekend of the 4th with a neighborhood parade that the social chair planned very last minute. That would be me.

Thankfully we have neighbors that have been on either side of the parade for years that pulled through with me.

Everyone was sporting their red, white, and blue.

We even had neighbors along the route cheering us on.

As well as neighbors that participated in the ride.

Kids, and adults, followed the firetruck with the siren and the microphone attached to the boombox playing patriotic tunes. Hilarious.

For the record Justin didn't want to participate in this until he heard the Wilsons were going.

Everyone got to hold the water hose.

And then everyone ran into Addie Young's yard and got sopping wet.

And we didn't even want to come in the first place. Farse!

The next day we woke up with strep. So we didn't travel to Galveston with the fam and stayed at home watching Sound of Music, our go-to with the sickies.

Love our neighbors!

Junods stay with us

2011-09-17T12:34:00.000-05:00

The last week in June we had the privilege of housing Wendi and her kids. Justin was in hog heaven. As was I. And so was Derek - we both love having a house full of kids, especially rambunctious boys.

Look what ole Doha conjured up - a Shani drink. Justin and I tried it and it was like a grape/strawberry carbonated explosion. He wasn't a fan but I kept the can. How could I not???

The first morning we all ran out the door for the Junod kiddos to have their photos taken by Chubbyfoot. I haven't seen her in years, not since we had photos in 2007. That's what got me started in all the photography love. And now she is moving to Belgium. What??? Can't you wait until I need you to photograph our new adoptees? :-)

The boys were playing on the train tracks at Hermann Park as we waited.

We celebrated the beautiful smiles with donuts. Yes, first time Justin ever knew there were sprinkles included on these smelly things. Donuts have never been my thing.

We went to cool off at Discovery Green.

Picnic in the shade.

That night we were off to a Rangers vs. the Astros game! Derek hooked us up with some tickets from work and we were on our way, all loaded up with game gear.

We got great parking on a week night, plus the Astros aren't having the best season.

Go team. It was hard to decide who to cheer for, with liking the Astros but Justin's t-ball team was the Rangers. Tricky.

We made it to the play area.

And ran some races.

And got our snacks.

Justin asked so many questions while we were there. I told Derek he had to take him back as he was loving all of it. Gave me an little insight to truly the love of baseball for some boys, husband included.

Derek took over for bedtime duties. All three slept together each night. Like I said, Justin was in hog heaven.

The next day brought Jenise and her boys in from Victoria. We met Tracy and her kids at a neighborhood pool that we basically owned for the afternoon.

Lots of fun times.

I can't remember how many games of Marco Polo we played. I love being a kid in summer.

That night Wendi, Jenise, & I left 5 boys and little Georgia with two sitters at my house to go to Ruggles Green for a ladies' night. Derek spent the night at Shane's and everyone was happy.

This was the 4th of these desserts that we ordered. Yes, the 4th. And I wonder why my summer eating has changed my fall figure.

Jennie, myself, Jackie, and Jenise

Wendi, Katie, & Tracy

I went to biblestudy the next morning and left Jenise and Wendi with the boys to fend for themselves.

The older the boys get, the more I love friendships like these. I loved cramming in all three of our families into our three bedroom house. I loved watching the boys play. I loved catching up with two of my oldest and dearest Houston friends. I don't take it for granted. It only gets better every year. I miss these families...move back!!!

After naps, we went to the Afton Village pool and ate fish tacos. Holla!

I think of the Goonies when I see photos like this. "Hey you guys...."

Can't write it in words what little Georgia did to my heart that week. Carrying around that little weighs nothin' body who would reach up to me. It's good for my soul. Moments like those make me know my mothering is nowhere near being finished.

That smile!

Brooks the daredevil.

Taking a ride around the block in the mini.

We made sock puppets and the boys tried to put on a play. Love me some of Barrett's little voice in this video.

In this season of realizing the Lord's grace, I don't deserve any of the friends the Lord has placed in my path. I know so many people I come in contact with that just want one person to call friend. My cup runneth over with friendships. I hold fast to these dear women in my life.

Until December....

VBS and Cars 2

2011-09-10T20:22:00.000-05:00

Right after Starburst we came back home to chill. Then on Father's Day I finally got Derek's diploma framed. It had only been a decade. And we got him a matching hat with Justin. Go Owls.

The week after that I helped with VBS at our church with 5 other buddies from Logos and 35 kindergardners. So fun, so exhausting. Justin loved it. We would come back to our room for the kids to eat lunch and run around. Here's a video of them singing to one of the songs they learned in music. Get down.

Then the last day of VBS was the day Cars 2 was released. Not a lot of hype in my parts about it but we had been counting down for months. The entire movie theater was ready for Smurfs with not one stand-up of Cars 2.

I can see why. I still give it a thumbs down. Disappointing as to the age range the show was catering to. Not entertaining at all. Justin loved the racing, but there wasn't much of it. I didn't recommend anyone go see it. Big disappointment for Pixar. But a fun family evening as Derek had never been to the movies with Justin.

We still need to go see Winnie the Pooh. There are so few movies we can see these days.

Starburst 2011

2011-09-10T13:34:00.000-05:00

Starburst Junior Golf Tournament. The last one as the honorary photographer. I have the family photos I wanted to share from the event.

First up, Sunday and the fluorescent shirts we all wore. Makes you look tan.
Especially when Shane pairs it with matching shoes.

Uncle Shane and the marshmallow nephew

Can't enough of those sweet cheeks. I kept pushing Aunt Deidra out of the way saying she gets to see him all the time. All in good fun.

Dad with an interview, in the sun, without his glasses on. Squinty.

Monday brought Derek and Justin to play the par 3 at Cottonwood at lunchtime with Shane. Derek stayed in town for all the events this year since it was my dad's last time to be head honcho.

Lefties unite.

Mom, stop taking photos.

Mean green fighting machine.

Papa Snuf and dimpled fellas.

Everyone has to be sporting some type of Starburst attire.

Family fun on Tuesday.

Getting ready for the ball drop.

Derek ran into an old high school basketball league teammate. Kevin used to take Derek to his home, one of the few non-white players to include Derek in such friendship. Now Kevin works for a home in Waco that helps troubled kids. One of the many ways the Lord has prepared us for adoption ahead of us.

The helicopter arrives.

Justin helping clean up the loose balls before the 'copter goes back up for a final drop.

Even the man in charge does the grunt work.

The winning ball.

When I wasn't running around taking photos of the golfers, we were relaxing in Grandma's pool.

Even Ryan showed us some tricks.

Goggle mania.

Daniel came to try out the swimming pool for the first time ever.

Don't think Bumbo's are meant for 4 year olds.

Cousin love

Bumbos do float

On Wednesday, before we headed out we went to try out the Hewitt Burger King with some lifelong friends and their kids. Who knew such a great play area, totally quiet and to ourselves, was right on Hewitt Drive. Didn't have a clue what to order as I never really frequent this establishment. I will be back for playdates for sure.

Wyatt, Charlie, Stacey, and Justin doing a boy pyramid. Or dog pile. take your pick.

All the Steen, Smith, Svoboda, and Michaelis kiddos.

Plus these two, of course. Which now reside in Waco with the rest of them. makes for a fun quick stop shop when we come into town.

We stopped by to see this sweet boy before we headed home.

Such a fun week of seeing family, friends, and taking lots of photos. Cheers to Starburst!

Junods back in Texas and pool party

2011-09-08T17:07:00.001-05:00

The Junods flew back in the first full week in June right after Justin finished Warrior Prince camp.

We had the privilege of picking them up at the airport along with the LaRoveres. We headed to Lupes, where we realized the sand pits are being replaced at all locations. Say what? So instead the random guy with an alligator gar was the highlight of the night.

Saturday pregnant Jackie and her husband Mark were true servants hosting a bunch of friends from old to honor the Junods being back in time. Makes. me. want. a pool.

It was a gorgeous day for everyone to swim. And yes, I could take canon ball photos all day.

I offered to bring the cookie cake, and wanted to get a big one. Well, I picked it up and not much icing was on there. Greatly disappointed. So they added some birds. Yes, birds. Still not as much icing as I would prefer. But let's give them grace and say thank you for making our delicious dessert.

Thanks to Wendi for the next few photos. She's good to have around when Shani decides to get lazy with the camera.

At the end of the night the kids were lined up watching a show. We were one of the first to leave as we had to head out bright and early the next morning for Starburst golf tournament in Waco the next day.

The summer of Junods had only just begun....

Summer ramblings

2011-09-08T13:50:00.004-05:00

We have been doing a lot of traveling this summer. A lot of packing, driving/flying, unpacking, washing lots of laundry, then repeat. It's been fun doing things and seeing people we don't do as often. It's also getting a little tiresome, as staying around H-town for the next couple months sounds very appealing. Though both Justin and I were getting spoiled having Daddy around all the time.

We are about halfway through our adoption classes. The only ones we have left are all day Saturday classes. Due to the exciting (yawn) amount of information we keep getting, Derek wants us to take turns and not spend the entire month of weekends in a classroom with no breaks. So it may take a couple more months to finish but we are not worried.

My cousin, Grant, is starting to eat solids and move around the hospital in Ft. Worth. We are still praying that his liver stops draining so the tubes can be removed and he can come to Houston for rehab. His sister gets married in almost a month, so it would be nice for the whole family to be in one place again. Thank you for all your prayers and checking in with me. May the Lord be glorified through my family.

The blog will slowly catch itself up. Hopefully by Christmas I will have finished summer. :-) We had something every single week/weekend for three months straight. Makes for 1000s of photos, an editing system that has been quirky lately, and not a lot of energy left to be on the computer.

The verse I have been memorizing the past week is Acts 4:29-30. "Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders trough the name of your holy servant Jesus." (emphasis mine)

We had Peter Swann sub for our Sunday school class and he talked about how he prays these verses for his family everyday. Sure enough the first day I started memorizing this was in Chicago over Labor Day for a family wedding. I was walking and bumped into a neighbor who said something in passing. I smiled, but then I got the familiar sensation when I can feel the Spirit leading me to do something. I went back, made friends, and eventually told her why I came back along with the scripture to speak boldly to her. I told he that the Lord loved her enough to show His goodness through something like a stranger walking by. We saw each other the next day and continued the conversation. She didn't agree with me, but she listened. Oh Lord, open her eyes.

On the flight home we got our tickets split up. Derek made a passing comment and I smiled and joked that maybe I was supposed to witness to somebody. Sure enough, I was sitting next to someone who didn't buy into the gospel and a Jew. Ha! Sense of humor, Lord. We chatted theology, morality, and most importantly the cross.

I challenge you to pray that prayer and see who the Lord leads your way. I do a prayer journal daily and anyone I talk to I ask how I can pray for them. Sometimes they balk and I reply that if their life is perfect then that's fine. They then smile and say of course not. But I need something to pray for. At Marshall's today another cash register employee came over and asked if I could pray for her as well. So many widows out there. So many people hurting. We need to be the hands and feet of Jesus.

This nice pilot let Justin get in the cockpit. He was also a believer from Houston.

Justin and I have gotten tickled singing the belly button song from Veggie Tales (on the Little Joe video, JT's personal fave). I start in on the rap and say Belly Button. And then Justin reply, "Uh, Huh". It's funny to us. We did it all after lunch today. We might try to make a video.

Justin told me he liked my hair yesterday I got it highlighted. He told me it made me look bigger. Awesome.

Justin is five and now upgraded to a much bigger bike. A hand-me-down thanks to the Rasplickas. It's a mountain/dirt bike and he looks so big boy in it.

He has asked me every day this week when we are going to adopt kids. And can we adopt 5 so we can have 6 kids like the Browns.

Can't think of anything else to ramble about. Off to continue pushing through June with the posts.

#1 Warrior Prince Academy '11

2011-09-06T13:12:00.001-05:00

Warrior Prince year 2. Loved it, especially since they changed the curriculum to talk about spiritual gifts. We were in class with all sorts of buddies - Luke, Jake, Wes, and John. Justin loved every minute of it.

We took turns keeping some of our friends during the week. We tried chubby bunny with marshmallows.

They didn't think it was as funny as I did.

Maybe the marshmallows were too big.

Or maybe there were just too many marshmallows.

On Friday there is a Royal Ceremony that the parents attend. First up were the ladies and Hannah Ashy.

Then it was time for the fellas.

Justin waving to his momma (right behind the blue cross sign).

Love all the music from the week. Purposeful and helps remind the boys of some of God's truths.

Put on the armor of God, and you will win the battle!

Mighty roar

Justin with Avery.

Daddy got to come to the event as well.

With our fearsome foursome.

Loved being able to be around friends all week. Loved learning about love joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, kindness, gentleness, and self control (Gal 5:22). Such great reminders for active little boys!

147 million orphans shower

2011-08-29T13:33:00.001-05:00

I wish I threw more showers like the one we had already scheduled for Ashley 2 weeks after they returned from Ethiopia. We hosted a 147 million orphans shower in order to bring awareness of the orphan crisis and to feed children in Uganda.

Jesus says, "...whatever you did for the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me".
Matt. 25:40

The Browns setting the example for the rest of us by loving the least of these.

We wanted everyone to come find out how they could play a part in changing the life of an orphan.

I had some mighty hostesses who basically brought all the food and left me to clean my house.

We gave away these shirts by coding a sticker on some of the nametags people were wearing.

We had 147 cookies made from Memorial Bakery and attached the website card to each one for people to look into the ministry further.

Very quick put together gallery from photos from the airport.

Half of the jewelry and apparel purchases go to support one of 8 ministries that 147 million orphans supports.

Yay for hostesses that bring all the food! They blessed all of us with their cooking.

Joel Skaggs put together a video of all the photos from the airport arrival that we put on the computer.

We had computers set up to make a donation in lieu of a gift. 147 sent a video that we played on repeat with photos from Uganda. The computers were completely full the entire time. We were all stunned at how generous everyone was.

Mariana made magnetic prayer cards for every one to take to put on their fridge.

This was the first time all the guests stayed in my small entry way for a good 30 minutes. It was quite comical but endearing at the same time.

People making purchases.

We had a sweet prayer time as we prayed through the prayer card over Ashley and her family.

These ladies lead us all by example...on our knees...

Hostesses minus Devon - Mariana, Emily, Erica, Ashley, me, & Kasey. We all got to sport out 147 million orphans attire.

On the donations website we raised $1863!  Ashley chose for
the money to benefit an HIV/AIDS orphanage in Jinja, Uganda.  More
information can be found at  www.africaourownhome.org/

On the merchandise website, 50% of the proceeds were donated to feed one
child for 53 weeks, or one year.

Praise the Lord for kingdom minded ministries. Praise the Lord for obedience like the Browns. Cheers to all the families continuing to follow in this same obedience. For His Glory!

My cousin Grant

2011-08-21T21:13:00.000-05:00

My sweet cousin Grant. The best manners around. Loves him some burnt orange. Always great to encourage the other cousins to go to church with him.

Some of you know he was recently in a hit-and-run accident that has left him in very critical condition due to a ruptured liver among his internal injuries. The Lord in His Goodness had a med student find him and call my uncle Tim. Got him to a hospital and has had the best surgeon operate on him 4 times in the last week. My aunt and uncle didn't know the severity of it all until they were almost in Ft. Worth, enabling them to drive in sane conditions. Grant continues to be in critical condition but daily the reports get better. My cousin Valerie is a better writer than I and wrote a sweet report here. Please continue to pray for healing from the Healer Himself. That lives would be changed. For His Glory!

Browns return with their newest two

2011-08-09T13:33:00.000-05:00

The Browns and their Ethiopian adoption. What a testimony to the Lord's goodness! How the Lord weaved His majesty to show His Glory.

We went from a prayer vigil on Sunday evening praying for mountains to be moved in the final leg of paperwork of Edil's (and Eyob's) journey to the states. Something that had not been done before in Ethiopia. The Browns went on a flight to Ethiopia and came home on that same trip, versus 6-8 weeks later, with their new children.

Monday morning we got the phone call that they were coming home. That afternoon we were at the Hughes' house with the Wetherells making homecoming signs. Mariana the teacher had the kids set up to make their own signs.

I came dressed as if we were going to get dirty from painting. Lucky for everyone that wasn't the case.

Love this family that Mariana drew~

The kids loved looking at everything on the signs we made.

The following morning, on May 24th, 60 some-odd people gathered at Houston's Intercontintental E terminal to welcome the Browns home. We somehow met up with half of our Logos class in the parking garage.

Justin was showing Braden the egg-head family he made of the Browns. Egg stickers, stick bodies. I loved watching his heart pour into his project.

All the signs. All the love pouring out from everyone as the excitement was building.

So fun to be a part of the masses. If you ever have a chance to be a part of a orphan's homecoming, you will be richly blessed.

Some of the fellas that were able to take off work to be a part of the celebration. Lantz was a servant in keeping our Sunday School class abreast of all the current happenings of all the details.

And then they came through the sliding doors. I was behind the camera lens the entire time, so when I edited the photos later I once again encountered a new emotion while experiencing the day all over again. It was beautiful - and it will be so much better in heaven!

The Brown kids meeting their new siblings.

How deep the Father's love for us.

The new family!

Eyob had never seen balloons before. Or playgrounds. Or an airplane.

Some of the Logos ladies present that day. I love our class for being so committed in sharing in each others joys together.

Kennedy is such a great big sister! Since this day Edil's little body has healed in so many ways, as well as she is walking and smiling huge smiles!

Me and Ashley & Edil.

We have already made so many memories with Edil Ainsley and Eyob Titus this summer. Looking forward to many more! Derek and I were both so moved by this day, which helped stirred us on to desire siblings to adopt. Praise the Lord for the Browns who walk in obedience to what the Lord calls them to do.

Finishing up May

2011-08-08T14:11:00.001-05:00

Let's finish up May (and some forgotten photos from my phone).

Thinking we are getting too big for the ride on toys at Kroger. This was on a Tuesday, our fun day, from this spring.

We took our yearly rodeo trip with the Pines back in March and let the boys do this. I think I would be so claustrophobic in this.

Justin couldn't really get up and walk in it.

Luke & Justin just floating around.

Saw this at a stop light. Brings on a whole new meaning of letting your dog stick it's head out the window. Hysterical!

Shane stopped by in his new wheels to take our boys for a jaunt around the block.

In May I had the privilege of going to Field Day at Yellowstone. Loved seeing Jaylen and all the other kids as well. i did a booth where they threw a fishing pole and "caught" a toy. I loved being on the side interacting with the kids - asking their names, putting my hand on their shoulder or backs, asking what their favorite game was. They were all very receptive to the attention. Lord, may these children see you through our examples.

We de-toyed the entire house and were putting lots of things up in the attic. Justin has had this toy since 4 months old and wanted to keep it out in case we had a little friend over. Sure enough Ainsley was playing with it today. Justin can still play with this one toy almost 5 years now.

Our rainy evening visitor. There is a small gap by the tree and the fence that I assume this fellow came in by.

Everyone wanted to say hello.

We named him Flower, from Bambi.

He stuck around for three days before we let him loose.

I remember my aunt Joannie feeds her turtle, Toby, green beans. Sure enough this little guy finished entire can of green beans in his 3 day stay.

We busted out the washers for a few weeks as JT wanted to play this every evening after dinner.

Derek is of course the master at it. He tried to coach me on how to throw it, but I stuck with my awkward yet successful throw.

Made it!

JT had lots of dry pull-ups at night which led to lots of football stickers to add to his 2011 NFl sticker book.

Last day of school sporting the new attire from Chicago. This might turn into a Halloween costume at the rate we are going these days.

We loved Mrs. Walstead and how she blessed out life with the talents the Lord has blessed her with. We will miss her next year!

Uncle Shane joined JT and I for dinner one night when Derek was working late. We had a basketball game that Shane invented for us that we still play on occasion.

You have to stand on a number and make the goal. Then you have to progress down the numbers until you miss.

Needless to say both were extremely sweaty after the game was finished.

Without the rain this summer these numbers were set for awhile.

Family photo out of focus but showing us wearing out navy before going to the Rice vs. Baylor regional baseball game. So the Bears won but we supported daddy by wearing the home team's colors. And no, Roxy didn't go to the game.

At this rate we'll be in August when December roles around. Pressing on...

Memorial Day Weekend '11

2011-08-07T14:12:00.000-05:00

Memorial Day weekend ended up being a lot of fun. We last minute chose not to go to Galveston and instead stayed in Houston. Friday night we went to Afton Village pool and jumped off the diving board as many times as possible.

This has been the summer of the Canon Ball

Splash

Sunday evening we had over all our immediate neighbors. All but one live on our street, with the other living right behind us (that you can see over the fence). There were people who have lived here 18, 15, 12, and 10 years and had never met the other neighbors! I am so thankful the Lord spurred us on to host everyone in our backyard so that we can know our neighbors!

Rhonda, Virginia, Shani, Chandrika, Christine, Dawn

Greg, Gary, Big D, Jin, Daniel

Daniel, Allison, Scott, D

Grace, Lily, Amin, Lukie, & JT

What's a Michaelis party without some cookie cake?!

We had such a great time of fellowship and getting everyone to know each other. I am thankful that we finally just did this - it's such a blessing to be able to know and love on your neighbors. Our mission field is right in our backyard. We love our wonderful neighbors!

Memorial day we picked up Jaylen, our fellow from Yellowstone Academy, and headed to Afton Village pool again.

Ironically Jaylen had been swimming by himself at his own apartment pool when we picked him up. he said he wanted to go swimming so after lunch this is what we did. But he didn't want to be anywhere where he couldn't swim because he couldn't really swim. So we stayed in the shallow end the entire time. Lord, protect this sweet boy when he is in a pool by himself unattended!

Derek is so great with Jaylen - he truly has a heart for this situation.

It was precious watching Jaylen swing on the swingset before we left.

My precious boy

Big smiles

I love this photo

If I haven't said it enough, Houstonians need to go get involved with Yellowstone. It will change you permanently! As well as change the heart of a child just yearning for relational love that looks like Christ.

Tyler 05/11

2011-08-04T12:32:00.000-05:00

We went to Tyler in May to hang out with Grandma & Grandpa (aka G.G. & G-pa to Justin). I love Tyler, as do all the Morby grandchildren, so I love that Justin has come to love it as well.

Valerie had a crazy weekend filled with fun and work getting ready for all the Pine Cove staffers that were coming in for the summer. But she managed to squeeze in some time for us.

First game of the weekend - Bingo.

Ping pong with the Tennis master herself.

Carter had a busy weekend and was heading to Houston for Uncle Greg's birthday. He stopped by for some ping pong before heading out. Sweet boy cousins.

The subplot of the weekend is the squirrel catching. At this point Grandpa had caught 88 squirrels that he takes to either Troup Farm or a walking place a few miles away. We think they run back to his backyard to play him.

Justin and Roxy had more fun with the squirrels before G-pa took them away. My mom at this point had caught 36 of them in her Waco yard.

I told Grandpa to not to try and let him win. he looked at me and said no problem. Justin was honestly beating my wise grandfather until the very end when he made one bad move that got three kings jumped at once. It was a close one.

Valerie popped in again. Justin loves him some Valerie as she is always so intentional with him.

Justin begged to learn chess. We didn't finish that game.

Back to the squirrels. Roxy was trying to pull it out with her mouth.

I think the squirrels could have had a minor stroke just awaiting Justin and Roxy's presence much less being in a cage.

Derek spent most of the weekend fishing at the farms and reading. A great weekend had by all. Thanks Grandpa and Grandma for hosting us!

Mother's Day '11

2011-08-03T14:08:00.000-05:00

Back to May. Mother's Day weekend was a blast and a blur. We had Justin's last t-ball game on Saturday then trekked on up to Waco for the next 24 hours.

First on the list was Grandma and Grandpa's new pool. To say we loved it was putting it mildly. We had a blast.

It was the first time Derek had been in a pool in awhile.

Lots of throwing the J-man went on that day.

I was playing around with my 135mm lens that I had just gotten. Makes me want to use it all the time with the crispness of the photos.

Canon ball

Mini-me canon ball

This brings me back to some memories

The fun we had with all the new contraptions on the pool

Even I had to try out the bells and whistles

Next up, the new Wii at the house. We pretty much think Grandma's house is the bomb with the pool and Wii combo. Justin could play bowling all day long.

Sunday morning we had the privilege of going to Daniel's Dedication at Antioch. This was the first time Justin got to be around Daniel due to being sick the previous two times.

G.G. and G-pa came to visit as well.

They had a sweet family prayer time where the grandparents went up with a church staff mentor who prayed for the family to have boldness with their son.

The whole crew

Before we left we needed a quick game of Foosball in the youth area.

My parents hosted a brunch at their house afterwards. Justin got his own little spot next to the rest of us.

After Mother's Day I came home and put little vases of flowers all over the house. Derek came out of the bathroom and laughingly called me Kathy after washing his hands next to a vase of flowers and leaves.

Doesn't Daniel look so excited to have a big older cousin?

4 generations of Morby

Justin and his physical touch love language was getting a little rough for the little guy with his rocking and rubbing of the head. He's learning how to treat the little one. Justin truly is sweet with little babies as he always goes to rub their heads gently.

It's hard to catch a smile on this little face but I got it while his daddy held him.

Sweet cheeks

Elise and her fam

Great grandparents and their latest

It was a treat for both Derek and I to spend Mother's Day with both of our mothers. Mary Beth and Ryan came over for brunch.

Birdie and Papa

The Smith clan

I love this of the three of us.

All the mommas at the house

Corrine and her first grandson

Such a treat to spend a quick weekend with so much family. So thankful in the Lord's grace in expanding our family with Daniel!

HC Spring Show '11

2011-07-21T14:07:00.000-05:00

Justin's end of the year spring program at school. We woke up the morning of the program to find that I didn't have a good outfit picked out. After going through all the plaid shorts, we stumble upon some hand-me-downs that have some sort of red paint on the back of them. I try to scrub the red out and send Justin to school with dampened (and red) shorts. Next comes the shirt. I hadn't switched to the next size shirts, so I grab an XS and decide it fits. Which it really didn't. I cram his feet in his brown "dressier" shoe and send my little man off to school. Not bad considering the boy never wears nice anything anymore.

Justin loves to sing. His tummy looked like it was singing too as often as we got a glimpse of it. Next time I should plan a little better with the clothes.

At VBS this week Justin said his favorite part is the singing. I think he might grow up a choir boy which would make this momma very happy. Sing it for the Lord, sweet boy.

We have started taking classes at Arrow Child & Family Ministries to straight adopt through the foster care system. After having dessert with the Kleins, who are in charge of our adoption ministry at church, we both felt led to go this route for adoption. So we need to take 12 classes, get a home study and a fire inspection (fire extinguishers here we come) and then wait for a call for some kiddos. We would love siblings younger than the J man. So this family photo of 3 will hopefully change in the next year to much larger.

Justin and Jake

Justin & John (lots of alliteration going on here)

Justin was a part of a pre-K basketball team that consisted of 3 pre-K kids and JT. Zachary was on his two-some team and they were fast friends. We will miss Zachary next year!

Our buddy and neighbor, Ellery

Acting like boys with the boys. Jonathan was a role model to Justin as every time he plays pretend his name is Jonathan. As well as he wants a brother named Jonathan.

Mrs. Thigpen has been the headmistress at our school for 37 years. She retired after this year and will be greatly missed! We have a young new face coming in. It won't be the same without Mrs. Thigpen who we dearly loved!

Peace out, Holy Cross. See you for one last year in September!

Shane turns 30

2011-07-20T13:46:00.000-05:00

My youngest brother is now joining the ranks in the third decade of his life. Welcome to life as a 30 year old.

My parents and brother, Aaron, drove in from Waco for the actual day of Shane's birthday. He said he wanted a Furer cookout. We grew up swimming at this family's house that would cook hamburgers, hotdogs, chicken, and some other meat at times for our entire meal. So we had a meat fest. Gourmet hamburgers from Whole Foods, ribs, hotdogs (Shane wanted to try the buffalo ones), etc. Let's just say we ate leftovers for days.

Justin playing Sorry with a football player's cap with Papa & Aaron while Daddy grilled.

Justin and Birdie had a 9 way battle going on. Not sure if the cards were rigged? It was nuts.

We stuffed out faces with meat and then settled in to old faithful.

The proverbial Happy Birthday was sung.

Candles were blown.

Trick candles were blown again.

Elise stayed back in Waco with Daniel and celebrated via Skype as we opened gifts.

Elise knew that one of Shane's love languages was words of affirmation, so she got letters and words of description from the family and put it together for a frame to encourage Shane.

My mom included this cut out of Shane in her homemade birthday card. Justin was loving it. Shane has never been a quiet golf dresser.

Siblings at their finest.

Growing up I always wanted a sister. But each year that goes by, especially after having a son of my own, I love having brothers. Shane is no exception to the rule. Younger brother, the Lord has great plan for you in this next decade of life. You have been blessed with the gifts of creativity, laughter, encouragement, seeing God's creation in color, and completing our family. Thankful for you and looking forward to a great year ahead!

Easter 2011

2011-07-03T13:12:00.000-05:00

Let's see if I can do something with this blog. What better place to pick up than Easter.

Easter this year was different in many ways. We as a family prepared differently. I anticipated it like never before. It was deeply personal, and Justin was just as excited as we were.

We did the Resurrection Eggs 12 days leading up to Easter Sunday. Justin loved telling his friends when they came over the entire story leading up to whatever egg we were on. He always wanted to peak to the next egg, but we would have him wait in anticipation for what was next.

Good Friday was three days after my laproscopy. I thought I would be jumping around like a little kid. I was very wrong. But thankfully Derek was off Friday in order to help out with Jaylen being at our home. We decided to do an Easter egg hunt. Jaylen had never done this before, and at one point thought a plastic golf ball was an egg itself.

It was fun watching the boys race around, especially since Jaylen had never done this before. He was equally surprised that there were treats inside as well. And he got to take them home - extra bonus!

One of their goodies were cars that changed colors according to the temperature of water they were in.

Justin is always so patient in showing Jaylen how to do certain things that are new to him.

We went inside and talked the real meaning of Easter. Derek then shot hoops with the boys while granny took a seat on the couch to catch my breath. Then we let Jaylen paint.

He painted a picture of me - sweet thing! Jaylen loves me loving all over him - it's good for both of us. Me bending over in this photo was the temporary position I held for the next 3 days.

Derek and Justin went to Galveston after taking Jaylen home and I stayed back an extra night by myself. I went to rent The Passion but instead had to buy it because it was all checked out. I watched The Passion for the first time in years. It was horrific - it was moving - it was true. I cried, I worshiped, I thanked the Lord for His sacrifice.

The next day I rode up with Shane to Galveston with the rest of the Morby clan. Valerie is always so great with Justin. They were just chillin' and looking at the water.

Some of the rest of the bunch sat back and watched the water balloon rally going on in the corner of the yard.

All the cousins in town for the weekend.

Water balloon sling shot. It happens all the time. This time the guys were shooting at the same boat as it went in and out of the canal. On the final lap back, they hit the driver's wife's shoulder, who collapsed to the floor of the boat. The driver gave a big thumbs down as all the fellas ran for cover with embarrassment. Let's just say no more water balloons were shot that day.

Easter Sunday - Amy & Justin looked for Easter eggs. We don't do the bunny at our house (heck, we don't even do Santa), so Derek went to hide the eggs for the big race.

Justin was gracious as an encourager as he would help Amy find eggs versus run and get all of them himself. He sees the value in having a buddy over doing it solo. Though this photo might show otherwise.

I love this photo for many reasons. We are all in purple, casual for the service we were about to attend, and I could barely stand up to take this photo. We go to a Presbyterian church down the road at Pirates Beach. I knew a 1/3 of the church attenders from Houston for some reason or another. They had a new pastor, new music director, and a sense of the Holy Spirit running through the revamped choir. Justin liked sitting up close and hearing the choir really sing.

Me and Aim.

Michaelis meal. So we made some tomato noodles and breaded pork tenderloin and had Shane over for dinner. Then we pulled out the cascarones.

Never can get enough of these things.

One of the ways we prepared as family for Easter was this from Ann Voskamp's blog. It was short, to the point, and made you stop and linger on the Word. I loved it, and we used it as a family devotional every night.

I read about Reliving the Passion on Sit for a Spell. This book changed me. It took the book of Mark and used the the first person as if you were there during the last week of Jesus' life. There were 40 days, all for the length of Lent, and hands down I will read this every year in preparing my heart for Easter. For His Sacrifice, for His Resurrection.

This Easter this year was different for me. I want to be purposeful like this in the future. It's not about giving up chocolate for a brief time in your life. It's about being forever changed and forever grateful for the life I could have lived in exchange for the one I have now.

Let's write a little something....

2011-07-01T07:52:00.002-05:00

So I can't seem to keep up my own blog these days, but happened to help my cousin, Ginger (aka Gingi) keep up her professional blog by writing a guest entry. The assignment was to write to a younger self about learning from the past and looking to the future. So check out my ramblings (and nonsense, let's admit it) here.

T-ball

2011-05-30T15:20:00.000-05:00

T-ball. Come and gone. Surprisingly all of us had such a fun time. We decided to play at the Y with our buddy Jake, along with a whole slew of new faces and families that we got to know this season.

For my sanity's sake, I combined the entire season into one post. For my 2011 Blurb book (still have yet to do my 2010 one). So this crazy long post is for me, the Blurb, and the grandparents. If I ever finish it!

First day of practice. We were on fire with excitement. Justin raced out of the gates to get started.

Coach Chris was fantastic as our first coach. When we had first heard about our team we were told they needed a coach. My hubby, ex-baseball player, gave a firm no on being the coach. Older kids is more his style. And are we glad we got Coach Chris.

Dana and I were busy taking photos as the dads showed up for this first practice.

Ingenious idea of how to teach the boys how to catch fly balls.

But really, all anyone wanted to do was hit the ball.

This photo describes Jake & Justin to a T - Jake with a smile as he runs and Justin with an overly intense scowl.

Enter in game 1. Cold front blowing in. Frigid winds. Super excited children.

Give us a hip, hip, hooray!

Getting their game face on.

My in-laws, bless them, for making this first game. Tom took a flight from Oregon, rented a car in Dallas, and drove into Houston at 11:30pm the night before. Mary Beth worked all day Friday and got into Houston about 9pm the night before. All for the first t-ball game ever of their grandson. That is some dedication!

John and Kyle came to cheer Justin on as well. In the cold. We have dedicated friends!

The family photo after the game. We all then ran to the car for warmth. My hot natured son was fine the entire time, with only 3 kids left playing at the end due to the weather.

My idea for the first 3 games was name tags n the back on the jerseys. Both for the coach as well as the families to get to know all the players. It worked great...and some were washed on the jersey as a permanent fix all season.

Game 2. Pretty day, still had my rented lens from the ski trip.

This lens sold me on sports, school shows, etc. after looking at these photos. Fixed lens are becoming my thing. But none of it's eternal...it will all break someday!

The bats, all in a row.

Ready to run.

Getting a smile at first. The position JT ended up the most.

My family came in for the weekend for the game (which conveniently also fell on my birthday).

There were so many tendencies that JT had that reminded me of his father. Back in the good ole days of baseball games 30 days a month in the heat of summer.

Love this photo. Always running fast.

Justin was one of the oldest on the team. The age bracket was 3 and 4 year olds, with 3 two year olds turning 3 during the season. Big age difference, though the youngest were crazy athletic.

Team meeting after the game. Taking a knee, as Coach Chris always encouraged everyone to do.

The fam, mostly in blue, all of which are supporting different major league teams.

Game 3. Uncle Ryan came in town for the NCAA finals games that he and Derek went to all weekend.

We were the coaches that weekend to fill in for the Coach being out of town. I have room mom in my blood. I loved being a cheerleader/bossy person. The point was to love on the kids, which I hope they got from the encounter.

Justin hit a crazy hard hit on this one. It was fun to watch.

The Bethancourts showed up again to root JT on. Anna, that body language is for shame.

The Michaelis men

JT & Jake

Game 4 - Justin had asked earlier in the week who was coming to watch his game. We chuckled and said no one. Complete silence. He then asked for a sleepover so he could have friends at his game. Enter in John & Luke.

They were troopers coming along to watch someone else play. They went in the outfield with Derek to get some tips on the game.

Here batter, batter

I have so many photos of this same position of his daddy. So many similarities. Same form.

Racing to homeplate. Since we didn't keep score (boo), there were no winners and losers. Justin would ask who won. That time is coming, as we both think losing is a great way to prune an athlete.

All the teammates liked throwing off their helmets as they ran. JT copied on this run.

So serious.

So vicious.

I loved this level of easy play where the parents were in the outfield with the kids.

We as Godly parents have already realized we have our work cut out for us in keeping this child kingdom minded with the sports. Eternity is set in the hearts of men, not winning numbers or stats. Even Derek being a retired athlete sees the value in seeing past the short life of sports. The Lord has gifted Justin in certain ways...so how will he use this for His Glory?

The football tackle. This is how these boys would get the ball in the in-field. At times Derek would tell Justin he couldn't run for the ball just to avoid the tackle and let others get the ball.

I loved the end of the game when the players slapped hands.

Go Rangers!

Coach Chris had asked for a historian to take photos of the season. My hand instantly went up, which ended up being fun to get to know the players as well. I would walk around on the field and make them smile, pose, whatever.

Tongue out of the mouth...just like his momma (and his Papa).

One game Avery was the first base coach. It was a family effort for everyone.

Derek wouldn't let us buy cleats, which Justin eventually quit asking for. Derek will put his foot down and I have learned to not try and figure it out. It's the principal, and I respect it. Cleats won't make anyone better at anything, so let's focus on the basics.

The crew with Coach Chris.

Cheers for a great season!

The Monday after the last game (which was on Mother's Day weekend) I organized a team party to do the trophy ceremony. We met at a park nearby, everyone brought food to share, and we celebrated.

Our first trophy. Long live the plastic men that clutter up a room filled with dust.

Coach Chris had a blurb that compared each player to an existing or retired pro baseball player. It was hilarious and brilliant. Justin was Babe Ruth.

Justin with our favorite coach!

Coach Chris said they got to give a team photo to an honorary member of the team. Then they gave it to me. I was honored and embarrassed to be called Coach Shannon.

That's a wrap, folks! Til next sports season, we are happy to have our Saturdays back!

The Browns are home!

2011-05-27T16:02:00.000-05:00

They are home! It was beautiful to be in the audience at the airport for this much prayed for event. The emotions running through me at the time...God-given. More on a later post. Be blessed by reading their blog entries of how they have been changed by Ethiopia. The Lord has shown favor on this family - to Him be the Glory!

Quality of Life

2011-05-19T13:54:00.000-05:00

What a vague and interesting term. That was what was talked about during my recent laproscopy. My doctor said I should now have a better and improved quality of life. Yet Derek and I both drive cars, live in a safe house, have a pantry with so much food that even my friends' kids comment of the enormity of it. Justin has a closet full of so many collared shirts (all of which he never wants to wear) that I could clothe an orphanage of small boys. We go out to eat every Friday night. We are not in want or need or ANYTHING.

Ashley Brown, one of my best friends, is now in Ethiopia with her husband where they are meeting the children they are going to adopt. To add to their brood of 4 children already. The world says they are nuts. The Word says they are obedient. There's no better picture of the gospel than the act of adoption. If you heart is in the least bit being stirred to adopt, go read their blog. It makes Derek and I want to get on a plane right now!

I am willing to bet that any child at the orphanage in Ethiopia that the Browns are currently visiting would want my quality of life in a heartbeat. Yet it somehow got better for me. Why me? I know there are times we all wish we had it better, but why do we have it so much better than the rest of the billions in the world?

My heart has been aching for human trafficking this past year. Young girls, women, caught up in a industry against their will. Yet if they could get one taste of freedom, wouldn't they want a better quality of life? Don't they deserve it as much as I do?

It's all the grace of God. Pure and simple. It's all about the goodness of God. After an excellent talk Jay Brown gave recently in Sunday School I, as well as Derek and Justin on their own, memorized Psalm 34:8-10: "Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. Fear the Lord, you his saints, for those who fear him lack nothing. The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing."

God is in control. He is Sovereign. Am I living a life where God is enough and His refuge is enough?

I started memorizing Isaiah 58:8-9 the morning of my surgery: "Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard. You will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I." Crying out to the Lord for healing!

I was telling my pre-op nurse about what my prayer for that day was. I recited the verse to my doctor as I was already feeling light headed as we went back for surgery. I tried to get one of my rigid nurses to laugh as we went through the double doors. I don't remember anything past that, so no telling what came out of my mouth.

Apparently I smiled post-op as Doctor Dunn was telling me that he not only found but got rid of my endometriosis. It had spread to my bladder and ovaries, but thankfully the rest of my organs looked okay. One woman had it on her ribs, liver, and her heart. Yikes! No way could I have gotten pregnant with the amount of scarring I had inside my body. Praise you, Father, for giving me a surgery to clear me of my infirmities.

Recovery took longer than expected as I thought I would bounce back instantly. The gas passes from my diaphragm through my right shoulder - that was almost the worst of the pain. The gas the size of a small basketball would roll around in my stomach for days. It was crazy painful. I would move like an old woman. I kept thinking I will have much more compassion on my c-section friends and the elderly. You can only move so fats sometimes.

I had this surgery days before Easter. Anytime I would want to whine about how I felt I kept thinking of the cross. Nothing compares to the sacrifice at the cross. And it's the same God of love who allowed me to have a discerning doctor to rid me of my silent disease, as they call it.

I have never felt better. I can finally eat again! All these foods that would upset my stomach can now be ingested like all the rest of the world. I had a cycle right after the surgery and I thought it was a joke. I wasn't bedridden with my heating pad for days. I am hopeful it continues like this. No wonder people would look at me strange when I would tell them, "It's that time of the month", looking like I had been run over by an 18 wheeler.

It has caught me off guard the desire to want to conceive again. Almost to the point where I wanted to try the shots again. Derek and I had decided to do the surgery and call it quits. I have been prayerful about being obedient to whatever the Lord's desire and will for my life is. To take away anything that is my flesh and only replace it with Him.

As I read the Browns journey through their current adoption I keep asking myself how my heart can be unsure of what to do next. Still desiring to adopt, though equally desiring to get pregnant. Needing discernment!

In case you wondered what I looked like, here is the attractive patient right before gong in to surgery. I had to go to the bathroom seconds before they were all coming to wheel me out. I had to go with my gown tied in the back and my IV wheeled beside me as I kept apologizing as I ran to the bathroom. All the while making sure the gown didn't fly open in the back. Priorities! You had better believe it was the fastest I had ever peed.

Many many thanks to my Aunt Joannie and Uncle Tim for keeping Justin overnight and all day during my surgery. This out-of-the-closet UT junkie was in hog heaven not only sleeping the bedroom with UT decor but wearing it while watching the Rosebowl championship DVD. What can you do? His father and I won't buy him the stuff, but if he wants to wear it then so be it.

Such a blessing to have family to rely on here in Houston! And Justin can't wait to come back and play the Wii. wink wink

So while my quality of life has definitely improved, per se, my heart is continuing to ache for those that have no hope for a Savior. Who have no one to model what love is supposed to look like.

Heal my heart and make it clean
Open up my eyes to the things unseen
Show me how to love
Like you have loved me
Break my heart for what breaks yours
Everything I am
For Your kingdom's cause
As I walk from earth into eternity**

**Lyrics from Christy Nockels' Hosanna