And I Dig Into the Past

 To pull out this lovely picture of Courtney and me, circa 2002.  Right before a big choir recital in December!

At nine years old, I was in the throws of growing out my bangs!  And 11 year old Courtney was wearing glasses at the time.  Choir recitals were a big big deal back then - I can still remember shopping with Mom to find the perfect white blouse.  :-)  And I definitely remember auditioning for that solo - and NOT getting the part, either.  I remember feeling like a squeaking mouse in the huge room full of people; our choir director kept telling me to sing louder, but I just couldn't! 

I was supposed to sing a simple two-sentence liner from the Hansel and Grettel song:

"Sandman is here.  Now let us say our evening prayer."

 Obviously, he moved on to someone that was able to project their voice a bit bolder than my timid little self felt comfortable doing.  :-)  Looking back, I was probably whispering.

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Isaac, Josh, and Special-Needs Teddy

Isaac has always been one to get very upset if things aren't in order, all lined up in perfection.  If something is knocked over, out of place, messed up, tears are usually the result.  He's gotten a little better at being okay with the hard facts of life (i.e. a cookie will break in half when you bite into it, bath water will go down the drain when you pull the plug, etc.) however he still gets quite upset over some things!  If Joshua has been placed on the naughty chair and gets off, Isaac will literally burst into tears telling him to get back on.  It's pretty funny. 

 He got a piece of fried chicken stuck in his teeth the other day and was concerned about it. "Sumpin' stuck, Rachel," he told me. So I looked at it, and told him that we would get it out with floss after the meal. Surprisingly, he was okay with that, and a minute later anounced, "It's all gone now. May I have some more?" So I took his plate, and he added, "Not chicken. Just green beans and lettuce. I not have strong teeth." Strong teeth? When I told him I didn't understand he clarified matters by informing me that he didn't have "healthy teeth". Still don't understand that one!

He's quite emotional and QUITE strong willed.  He's a fighter and has kicked, scratched, bitten and clawed to try and get his way before - my goodness he can be fiesty!  Looking back, it was truly difficult when he first came home; the language barrier, adjusting him to a family vs. orphanage, helping him know there was plenty of food, being comfortable with us and knowing we wouldn't leave him.....wow has it been a journey.  But I can't believe how far he's come since then.  Simple things, like being able to sit in his carseat for long drives, being okay with Mom going to the store without him, feeling comfortable saying "hi" to new people, interacting with other kids, and of course his language.....things are a lot easier now!  We're able to tell him what's going to happen, and he understands.  He can carry on a conversation with us now - he's able to answer questions and verbalize what he's feeling or wanting.  He loves "Winna Pooh" and has jokes he likes to crack.  Some things, however, are going to take longer, simply because of him being a bit emotionally behind, I think.  He's almost five, been here almost two years, and still needs Mom to snuggle him to sleep at night - not considered "normal" for kids of that age, right?  But what's normal, anyway? For a little guy who spent the first two years of his life without a mama, I'd say the snuggle thing is perfectly normal.  :-) 

He has bonded to us SO. WELL.  He always wants to know where everyone is; a security thing, I guess.  He'll ask several times throughout the day, "Where my daddy?"  We'll reassure him that Daddy's at work.  If both Mom and Dad go out somewhere, he does fine but always wants to know "Where my parents?"  He hates it when someone other than Mom has to put him to bed (which isn't very often!) but when Mom's gone, I'm usually the only satisfactory substitute.

His recent puzzling statement has been this.  When he gets super mad about something, he'll say "Bye bye, Rachel!  Bye bye Courtney!  I go far, far away!!"  And then he runs into another room.

Oh dear.  He always gets over it, but he's done it twice - and I'm wondering what's this about?  Is this just little kid stuff or actually something related to his being adopted?  Jonathan told Mom he was running away when he was five - I remember that clearly!  So maybe it's fine.  Who knows.  Other than that, he is just doing great.

Meet special needs teddy - this guy has been the perfect addition to the boy's stuffed animal collection!!  It's pretty funny, because that was Jonathan's stuffed animal he got when he was born.  Somehow or another, throughout the years, this bear got its' arm torn off - it's been armless for probably five years now.  So the other day, Joshua the ever-inquisitive asked "Where bear arm?"  Ah yes, the perfect oppertunity.  Mom explained to him that the bear was born without an arm, and that's how God made him.  It was pretty funny - that bear has been sitting armless for years, and now Josh has a friend that's just like him.  :-)

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I ♥ Scarves

Thank you all for your kind comments on the previous post!  It was nice to see that I do have some readers.  :-)

I have recently developed a fettish for scarves - I don't exactly know where it started - but I just love them!  I love how they can make an outfit just a little more dressy.  

Dad and I went shopping at Beall's Outlet yesterday, and I found it for $4....plus 15% off because it was a Friday.  :-)  We  had such a great time and probably spent two hours there - I was able to get most of my Christmas shopping done!  He and I are both browsers, (Mom is not) so I got to browse and browse and browse.  *Sigh*  It was lovely.  When you browse you are able to find some very good deals.  I found several things on clearance - even a large bottle of Sweet Pea Body Mist for $.90!!  Courtney recently got a job there, so she lets me know if there is something seriously on sale.  We were both able to get some very cute sandals for $.50 - regularly they would have been $8.  I love good deals!

Anyway - I love my new scarf.  :-)  Here's a really neat video that provides PLENTY of new and fresh ways to wear them! 

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It's Looking A Lot Like Christmas! (Minus The Snow)

Yes, minus the snow - I will never stop associating Christmas with snow.  I miss that......however, at least we're having some chilly mornings here!  We even have our heat on - just a tad! We put up our Christmas tree about a week ago, and it's as gorgeous as ever. 

Okay.  Well maybe it's not gorgeous. The fact is, this tree is about, um, thirty plus years old. It's the same tree we've put up every year since Courtney was born, and Mom said she put it up when she was little, too.  So might that make it fourty years old?  I don't know.  Anyhow, it holds sentimental value, and is still holding itself together.....however I've been hinting that maybe, just maybe we should get a new one for next year.  You know, start a new family tradition.  :-)

Both Isaac and Joshua love playing with the little nativity scene we put up every year.  Dad built the wooden shed for it when Courtney and I were really little, so it's seen many Christmases!  I have such great memories of getting it out each year!  Usually we just set it up and all the characters stay in the same position the entire month of December.  However.  This year, two pairs of hands have been VERY busy re-arranging the entire set, several times daily!  We encountered a crisis a few days ago when one of the wise men was missing....however I found it later under a couch cushion.  Oh, tragedy!

 David was our Christmas light fixer this year!  We always have to figure out which strands are no longer working, which ones need new bulbs, etc.  I clearly remember being five or so, and Dad doing this job.  His yearly warning about "don't step on the Christmas lights" is one I've never forgotten - now I'm the one telling the little boys that! 

It's always a chaotic time, with so many people trying to figure out which branches go where.  They're color coded, so we always put them in piles, and then do one row at a time. 

I'm not in any of these pictures because I wasn't feeling good!  I sat on the couch and took pictures of everyone else the whole time!

My beautiful mom.  Thankfully she's completely recovered from her kidney stone.  She feels so much better now!

The finished product - with presents underneath to boot!  And notice the train - our grandparents gave us that probably ten years ago, and it still works.  Isaac and Josh LOVE it and are always asking us to do it with them.  They want to know who all the little figures are on the train.  We've already explained "Santa Cwaz" to them; they basically know that he's a pretend man who says "Merry Christmas"!!!

 It's our family tradition to have the youngest child put the star on the tree.  Last year Isaac got to do it, but he's not the youngest anymore!  Joshua did a great job, though I really don't think he had a clue what we were doing. :-)  He had fun and says Merry Christmas all the time, but doesn't even know what that is yet!  He'll soon find out!

 Isaac says hi! 

By way of interest.......I don't get many comments on my blog so I'm wondering how many people actually read it?   I mainly keep it up for grandparents / friends - and I can't exactly blaim you because I hardly ever leave comments on blogs......but if you enjoy this blog, could you leave a comment so I have an idea of how large my audience is? Just curious!!!  :-)

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Preoccupied? Yep, I Am

You know, it's already December fifth.....and I'm already wishing the whole season would slow down.  I always want Christmas to last longer than it does; and not only because I enjoy all the fun and festivities, but because I want to take it all in.  I want Christmas to be really and truly meaningful each year.  I don't ever want to become so busy with activities and traditions, that I gloss over the whole point of the season.  I want Christmas to be even more special with each passing year as I realize afresh the wondrous love of Jesus. 

The miracle of His birth, and the incredible gift He gave me.

It's simply indescribable.

With each day that goes by this month, I want to be constantly aware of how great my Saviour is.  It's really easy to get distracted with all the business of Christmas - I'm reminded of that again this year!  Gift buying, decorating, baking, special events, parties, etc.  It's ironic that the traditions which are supposed to remind us of the birth of Jesus can so easily distract us from that very event.  I don't want to be so caught up in the "stuff" of Christmas that I lose focus and get off track.   I'm learning right now, this very week, to take my gaze off of things, and put it on the Author and Finisher of my faith.   HE is all that matters. 

Easy to say, but oh, so difficult to put into practice.  It's so natural for our sinful flesh to crave stuff.  Things.  Material possessions.  Fads that come in one day, and walk out the next.  Isn't that how it's always been?  Since as early as I can remember I've always had the "if I can only get this or that" mentality.  And not long after finally getting whatever I was pining after, I'd found something else I wanted. 

I still have this mentality to some degree - it's part of being a sinful human.  More more more, for me, me, me.  It'll never stop.  If I get something, I'll want something else.  It's like one of those treadmill wheels for gerbils!  Depending on things to satisfy me is just pointless, because it simply won't.

Needless to say, I've been realizing again this week that "The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever." (Isaiah 40:8)

By His grace, I'm learning to say "no" to every little thing my flesh screams out that it wants.  I am learning to refuse the impulse to buy every little thing that catches my attention.  I don't need everything I want.  I need Him.

So as Christmas approaches in just a few weeks, I intend to make every day count.  I want to make sure that each day this month, I spend time with the One which Christmas is all about - I want to make Jesus Christ the priority of the holidays.  My total and complete focuse.  What I'm really excited about.  Because it's very likely that what I get for Christmas this year (or give, as well) won't be around ten years from now!  But my relationship with Jesus will be.  And that's what I want to spend time celebrating. 

Let's all be pre-occupied with Jesus Christ, this Christmas.

Remember, He is the Reason for the Season!

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