Learning the ABC's

Lilly knows her ABC's, but like most 3 year olds, she has a few mix ups when she sings it.  Today, during our "school" time, we were able to clear those up a little bit.  Here are the ABC's how my daughter says it:

ABCDEFGHIJKLNOPQRSTUVWXYNZ

During our lesson, I would dot out each letter on the white board and she would trace the dots.  Then, she would sing the alphabet song to tell me which letter came next.  I wish I had a camera for the time when she got to N and I said no, "M".  It was priceless, I guess she thought I was teasing her or something because she paused for a long time.  I finally wrote at the bottom of the white board L M N O P and every time she sang the song to figure out which letter came next, I would point to the letters during that part. 

We got to the end of the alphabet and after Y she said N was next.  Then, she thought and said, "We already did N."  I had to explain to her that it wasn't N it was "and".  To which she replied, "what letter is "and"?"  So, I went through a long explanation telling her that "and" was a word and not a letter. 

In the end, I think she got it, but I do believe she has been saying it that way for so long that it will take some time to retrain her brain. :)

Adoption?

If you don't know, my husband have been trying to have another baby for almost 3 years now.  You can read more about that here.  Before I came to a place where I laid all my frustrations and struggles with this issue at HIS FEET, I had thought maybe we should adopt.  After, I laid all my burdens down before Him and went about seeking God's will for me, I realized that this was just me trying to control the situation and get a baby. 


Recently, I have been following some pretty inspiring blogs about adoption.  Like this one and this one.  And, being curious I have been searching through the pictures of the children up for adoption in my area.  I found out that many of them have medical needs that I don't know if I could handle - I don't do well with blood and medical stuff.  Then, I came across a little girl that I have had interaction with and she does have a few medical issues.  I could picture her in our family.  It makes a difference when you look at the pictures as children who need homes and are children and not just a face with a medical issue.


In my prayer time, I asked God if this is something He would have our family do?  He has begun to move on my heart, but I know it isn't the right time because The Lord hasn't moved on my husbands heart yet.  I know that if it is something God wants us to do, He will place it on both of our hearts and make a way for it.  I just want God to know that I am willing to be used however He sees best.

Enrichment Day at the Zoo

Lilly and I headed to the zoo this morning for Enrichment Day.  A day where they let us observe the animals as they give them new foods, scents, toys, etc.  It was very informative and I learned a lot and I think Lil did too.  Here are some pics from the event:

The children were allowed to paint like one of the animals.  This is Lilly painting like an elephant.  We saw the actual painting that one of the elephants here did paint and it was amazing.

Part of an obstacle course - crawling through tunnels, jumping over hurdles, weaving in and out between sticks and then digging in the dirt to find "food."

The eland waiting to see what they their "enrichment" was going to be.

Pumpkins filled with seeds and other foods.

Warthogs were in the same area as the elands, so they explored the pumpkins as well.

Silly Lilly watching the warthogs.

I know it is hard to tell, but this is a tortoise and they had a sprinkler going in their exhibit.

At the end of the sea lion show, they threw in a huge block of ice with fish in it for them to enjoy!

We had lunch in the park after we left the zoo - this is Lilly enjoying her "enrichment" by dancing in the park. :)

Our view.

Laughing at people in paddle boats getting wet by the fountain.

Running away from the camera.

Art Lesson

I'm not a big "art" person.  What I mean is, when I see a painting or a piece of art, I see it for what it is - I am very literal and I have a hard time determining what the artist was thinking and what they wanted the viewer to feel while looking at it - you know all those questions they ask you in college art appreciation class.  It is just hard for me. 

Well, the other day I took my daughter to a new restaruant that we had never been to before.  It was a place with very colorful decorations and from the moment we got out of the car, she was pointing out various things.  There were birds hanging outside made from tires, so we stopped and felt them and looked at the colors on their wings.  Inside there were colorful tiles on the floor and pretty lights hanging over each table and a colorful string of fish on the ceiling - she was pointing out all of these things and getting so excited about each and every thing.  I couldn't help but begin to stop and notice what was around us. 

On the walls there were paintings ladies hanging - all very different, some of the ladies were old, some young, some were outisde, some just portraits, etc.  So, I began to ask Lilly what she thought about each one - What was the lady looking at in that one?  What was she thinking in this one?  Did that lady look nice or mean?  We did this for each of the paintings around us.

We both had a great time and not because of the food or the service (not that those were bad), but because she caused me to stop and look around and enjoy the art around us.  So, to my little girl, I say, Thank you for the art lesson. :)

Love it!

I absolutely LOVE how God uses people that we think couldn't possibly be used by God to do amazing things.  For example,  Rahab, a harlot - he uses her to protect the spies that Joshua sent and then she becomes the mother of Boaz who is a great, great, great, etc.. grandfather of Jesus Christ. 

I absolutely LOVE how God redeems situations without us ever intervening - that's how He lets us know that we can trust Him fully!  For example, my marriage - at the beginning it was very rocky - neither of us were saved and we were just living for ourselves.  Then, God brings us halfway around the world to Misawa, Japan to allow us to know Him and to begin to realize we need to serve the One who made us.  Amazingly, my husband and I were both saved at the same time w/o realizing it until afterwards.  Now, our marriage is awesome - all glory goes to God! 

Another is an example of a relative of mine who was in a situation that I thought wasn't the best - I prayed and prayed that The Lord would fix the situation - provide a way for this person to get out of the situation or provide a change of heart, something.  And, just recently, the situation has been fixed - all glory to HIM!  

 A third example is a time when I was in a Bible study where I didn't think the leader was acting in a godly way.  I thought I might have been the only one feeling this way so I didn't say anything to anybody else in the group.  I prayed that I might have wisdom to know whether to continue the study or to change to a different group.  Then, I get an e-mail saying that the leader had decided to step down from the position for personal reasons.  This was a Thank You, Jesus moment!  He had it covered.

A lot of times I don't know why I have to go through certain tough situations - not being able to have a baby when I want, being w/o my husband for a month at a time, etc - but I have to remember that God is in control and the plans He has for me are for good and not evil.  I have to remember to be content because what I have right now are amazing blessings and they come from the One who knows best.

Daddy Time

Here are some pictures of my husband with Lilly.  These are from his first month home after starting his new rotation at work.  She absolutely loved having her Daddy home so much.  One of the sweetest sounds to my ears is to hear them playing together - her laughing with him is so great and the smile on his face when she enjoys spending time with his is awesome!

Playing Ants in the Pants with Daddy and Joe.

Getting ready for the 4D movie at the Houston Zoo.

Fun at Jumpalooza with Daddy and friends.

Mark was the popular adult at the place, all the little kids wanted to be where he was.

Jumping with Daddy!

No Pictures, Please!

Recently, I haven't gotten any really good pictures of my daughter because she turns and runs as soon as she sees the camera.  This is really strange since not too long ago, she would beg to have her picture taken. :)  I guess it is a phase, or at least I hope so.

Examples:

Wearing a new shirt that Nana sent, I wanted to show how cute she looked in it.

Yes, she still sits in a car seat, this was her playing in the car while waiting to go downtown to feed the homeless.  She can't wait until she is old enough to buckle up like a big girl. :)

Hiding in Daddy's closet so I couldn't take her picture in her Awana's vest.

I did finally get her to let me take her picture, but as you can see it didn't turn out that great.

We had lunch with Uncle Ben Ben and Lauren - here is Vinnie trying to get her to look at the camera for a good picture.

And again. :)

Remember

I remember exactly where I was 10 years ago today. 

I was engaged to Mark and he was deployed with the US Navy to Italy. 

I was teaching at a school in Jacksonville, FL.  Our secretary came into my classroom, in the middle of a lesson and said, "I guess your fiance' will be going to war now."  Since, I hadn't seen or heard anything being in a class full of 1st graders, this statement had me totally confused.  She then went on to explain what had happened. 

My intial reaction was one of fear and shock - like many others. 

Today, I want to remember all those who were involved - praying for families who lost loved ones and praying even for those involved. 

But, the thing I want to remember most is that the God I serve is in control - no matter how bad things may seem or how confusing things are or how much they don't make sense - He's got the whole world in His Hands!  I want to remember to trust in Jesus - my Savior, my Redeemer, my Rock!