So we have been blessed with some great news in our home. First we found out that we are expecting our next child in May! We are so excited we can hardly stand it. We actually found out before our vacation, but went to the doctor last week and confirmed that there is a little bean in there. I thought I'd answer some questions that we've been getting in this post.
Lots of people have asked us if we "planned" our pregnancy. Honestly after the difficulty of getting pregnant with Jude we earned a whole new insight on the idea of "trying" to get pregnant. The miracle of conception and birth are overwhelming. Because of that we decided that we wouldn't try to "plan" this one. We have just left the timing up to God and we're grateful for each day that I get to carry this child and we are praying for the day that we will bring him/her home.
What about Malik? In case you've missed other posts, we do already have 3 children in our home :-). Malik is still with us. There are lots of emotions that roll around concerning that little guy. As of right now we are still his foster parents and it appears that he will leave our home at some point. (The other day Ellison heard me say that "it looks like he will leave our home" to someone and she said to me later "he doesn't look like he's going to leave our home to me." It's really cute how literal she is.) Our hearts are torn and we are not looking forward to the day, should it come, that he leaves. He really fits in with us so well and we'll have to wait and see what the Lord has in store. The next court date is in mid October. Until then, Malik is our son and we will love him as such.
About the gender? We waited to find out the gender of our first 2 kids. Ian told me that the choice is mine about finding out the gender this time. At first I thought it would be fun but after some thought, I think I want to wait again. We already have one of each and I love the excitement towards the end of the pregnancy and on the day of birth. This child will be delivered through c-section, so we will know the birthdate long before it comes. Keeping the gender a surprise is something special for us so I think I'm going to wait until his/her birthday. As for the nursery, the funny this is, we've been in transition when each of our kids arrived so I've never really done anything super fancy. This time will be no different....
Which leads me to my second bit of good news. Over the past 5 years we have pursued going back overseas. It has indeed been a pursuit. Multiple applications, a trip to Austria, numerous conversations with our missions staff at church, prayer, tears, and more prayer. On our last day of vacation, we finally completed our application to a sending agency that we've had a relationship with over the past 4 years, and last Friday we found out that we are officially candidates! The final step is to become an appointee but that happens a few months or weeks before going to the field. Right now there are lots of details up in the air and we, along with our church, are prayerfully considering where we would fit in. Our hearts have always thought that it would be Austria, but we are not sure that's going to be where God is leading us.
So, there you have it! 2 big bits of news in our home. Please be praying that God will keep this little one safe in my womb and for our family as we earnestly seek God's direction in his will for our lives overseas. We are so excited to see what he's up to!
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Soccer
First of all, hello! It's been a while. I feel like I should introduce all of my posts by saying "This week on I & B +3." (Like John and Kate plus 8) Life is going so fast these days and it feels like the laundry is never done and there is always work to be done. Tonight I have a few free moments (well I'm taking a few free moments) to update so here we go....
For those of you who know our little girl Ellison, this post should come as no surprise at all. Tonight we had our first soccer practice. Ian and I have been so excited. I think Ian has been especially excited since he's really taken an interest in soccer over the past couple years. For about a month now, I've been on the lookout for some soccer cleats and we finally got some shin guards and soccer socks yesterday for the big introduction.
Let's start our story by saying that things were not well on the home front. Ellison had a complete meltdown 5 minutes before we were set to leave (I took away her blanky as punishment for the way she was treating Jude). On top of that, I had to put a "sportsy" outfit together for her which she did not approve of and that led to a further outburst of tears. I mean, I liked the blue on blue ensemble with the orange socks (her team color) but she obviously did not. Through her tears she told me that none of the other kids would be dressed like that. Oh really...and how old are you again??! At just the right time, Ian came home from work and brought some calm to the storm. We may not have made it to soccer had I been doing it alone.
We finally load everyone into the van and within 2 minutes our little soccer player is knocked out cold! Mind you the church where she is playing is only 7 minutes away with traffic. So we wake her up and she and Ian run onto the field. Thanks to the little meltdown, we were unable to leave home in time to be there early. Me and the boys arrive on the field to see Ian holding Ellison running from coach to coach looking for her team. He is finally able to find her team and they are already doing drills. NOT GOOD! She immediately clammed up and would not leave Ian's side. All of the kids practiced their dribbling and shooting ...but not our girl. She watched and observed. She sat very close to daddy the entire time. Nearly an hour passed without a bit of action out of Ellison. That is until the snacks were pulled out. This was the only time she actually sat near the team without Ian around.
I can see so much of me in that little girl. I am the same way. Although it's not approaching a soccer field in an outfit I don't like with kids I don't know and a coach who I'm not sure about, I have to feel a situation out before I'll dive in and try something. It's amazing what they pick up! I am so blessed to be complimented by my husband because he is nothing like that. He goes after life 100%. He really wanted her to be a part of organized sports to help her overcome some of her fears. I'm so thankful for his insight and love for his 2 hesitant girls.
Oh and BTW... I cannot conclude this post without a note about the Juder. He had to be pulled off of the field by yours truly, with Malik in the Baby Bjorn, multiple times. He even lined up with another team as there were practicing their drills. If I could have I would have gotten a picture. He was so ready to kick one into the net!
I hope you are all well. Thanks to those of you who keep up with our lives. The fun just keeps on coming. I hope to update tomorrow about our vacation.
For those of you who know our little girl Ellison, this post should come as no surprise at all. Tonight we had our first soccer practice. Ian and I have been so excited. I think Ian has been especially excited since he's really taken an interest in soccer over the past couple years. For about a month now, I've been on the lookout for some soccer cleats and we finally got some shin guards and soccer socks yesterday for the big introduction.
Let's start our story by saying that things were not well on the home front. Ellison had a complete meltdown 5 minutes before we were set to leave (I took away her blanky as punishment for the way she was treating Jude). On top of that, I had to put a "sportsy" outfit together for her which she did not approve of and that led to a further outburst of tears. I mean, I liked the blue on blue ensemble with the orange socks (her team color) but she obviously did not. Through her tears she told me that none of the other kids would be dressed like that. Oh really...and how old are you again??! At just the right time, Ian came home from work and brought some calm to the storm. We may not have made it to soccer had I been doing it alone.
We finally load everyone into the van and within 2 minutes our little soccer player is knocked out cold! Mind you the church where she is playing is only 7 minutes away with traffic. So we wake her up and she and Ian run onto the field. Thanks to the little meltdown, we were unable to leave home in time to be there early. Me and the boys arrive on the field to see Ian holding Ellison running from coach to coach looking for her team. He is finally able to find her team and they are already doing drills. NOT GOOD! She immediately clammed up and would not leave Ian's side. All of the kids practiced their dribbling and shooting ...but not our girl. She watched and observed. She sat very close to daddy the entire time. Nearly an hour passed without a bit of action out of Ellison. That is until the snacks were pulled out. This was the only time she actually sat near the team without Ian around.
I can see so much of me in that little girl. I am the same way. Although it's not approaching a soccer field in an outfit I don't like with kids I don't know and a coach who I'm not sure about, I have to feel a situation out before I'll dive in and try something. It's amazing what they pick up! I am so blessed to be complimented by my husband because he is nothing like that. He goes after life 100%. He really wanted her to be a part of organized sports to help her overcome some of her fears. I'm so thankful for his insight and love for his 2 hesitant girls.
Oh and BTW... I cannot conclude this post without a note about the Juder. He had to be pulled off of the field by yours truly, with Malik in the Baby Bjorn, multiple times. He even lined up with another team as there were practicing their drills. If I could have I would have gotten a picture. He was so ready to kick one into the net!
I hope you are all well. Thanks to those of you who keep up with our lives. The fun just keeps on coming. I hope to update tomorrow about our vacation.
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