The message I found under the fridge.

 

We have a few random magnets on our refrigerator door, and every toddler that has been in our home loves to play with them! So I was really excited when I happened to find a deal on some unique wooden letter magnets; (better deal here) and even more thrilled that they did not disappoint at home with the little ones. 

We had the magnets a few weeks when one day I noticed a pink plastic "Q" amongst them.  It clearly did not belong and had no obvious origin.  A few days go by and another plastic letter appeared. You would expect these kinds of things to go missing, but they were multiplying!

While doing dishes yesterday I discovered "Z" (our 23 month old foster love) pushing a few magnets under the front of the fridge.  While helping him retrieve the discarded letters I discovered a few things...

A LOT of dust, 

and more plastic letters!!!

We moved into this rent house back in November, {clearly we overlooked under the fridge on cleaning day} and apparently these were left behind from the previous occupants.

In addition to solving the mystery of the stray magnets, I learned a few things! 

These magnets were not unlike the little boy who discovered them.  They had been left behind, abandoned, forgotten.   For months they were non-existent to those walking right by them.  Then a group, a family came along...something that they could be apart of, and then they were finally back in a situation that they could find purpose.  They had to be cleaned up a little bit, some of them nursed back to "health."  Some came around sooner than others, but all were eventually rescued.

Some may have said our alphabet was complete, but it's even a little bigger now; it looks a little different to some...But some of us don't even notice.

How many magnets are under YOUR fridge???

----

May is foster care awareness month. Take this month to learn a few things about this growing need, and discover what YOU can do to help! 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

      

Who has come between us?...Welcome to the World little man!

Not that I was ever very reliable about meeting you all here, but for those of you who have noticed that I nearly completely disappeared for awhile... I thought I might show you just who it is,  that has come between us!

Meet this handsome little man right here...

For the last 4+ months we have been getting to know the little miracle guy we already loved so much!  We weren't able to have any professional newborn photos done, but I knew I had to have something. I thought I would share with you the little mini session we had on the living room floor with my iPhone!

Welcome to the World Knox!

Kudos to the pros at this!  Newborns make you work at photos!  He was very alert from the beginning, even at the hospital (possibly because he was a week overdue); so open eyes were easy.  

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

*Pants & Hat:  Piney Woods Boutique

*Onsie: DIY (Decal from StickersbyStephanie)

*Blanket:  Gift from a friend, from Modern Burlap

Photos taken with iPhone 6s Plus

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

*I wasn't paid to say any of this, I'm just sharing the info!

Who deserves our love more?

 

Having one in our home so close in age as Knox, they have a lot of the same needs...at the SAME time.  Yesterday at one particular time of "need," I felt a tinge of guilt.  I wondered if we were robbing Knox of "love" that belonged to him. Instantly, as I looked into the face of the precious baby girl in my lap, I wondered "where was her love?"  Certainly there was a love that belonged to her as well, And somebody had in fact, robbed her of it.

 Before we ever met him, I began praying that Knox would know how much we love him, but most of all, how much God loves and cares for him. It is up to us to show God's love to all His sweet children, and right now we have been given the privilege to also share the love of a parent to many child in our home through foster care.
 While we will take necessary steps along the way to insure the spiritual, emotional, and physical safety of our biological children; I like to think that our journey through foster care is one way they will witness {and ultimately be a part of} our service to God in carrying out Jesus' commandment to love and care for orphans.
 ---------------------------------
 Do you love the blanket⬆️? Checkout the Little Bee Co 🐝, where your purchase helps provide blankets to children in US foster care.

The Good Father of foster care.

Overnight we became the parents to two sweet girls through foster care.  I would be lying if I said it was everything we were prepared for.  It has been the hardest thing we have done so far, yet I wouldn't trade a minute of it.

On a normal (to us) Thursday we received two separate phone calls that would turn out to be our first two foster placements.  That evening, while eating supper with family, we couldn't help but think about how "normal" and mundane the day/evening was for us, yet our eyes had been opened to the sobering fact that just miles down the road lives were being torn apart and tossed upside down.  In a matter of hours we learned of two separate heartbreaking situations taking place, all while we went along with our everyday lives.  Before the evening was over our household had grown from 2 to 4, when we welcomed a 12 yr old and a 1 yr old into our home.

We are only two months into the "parenting" part of the fostering journey, but one thing, and possible the ONLY thing I know for sure is that God is still always in control.  We have both already shed many tears with and for the young lives in our home, and if it wasn't for the peace and comfort of knowing who holds the future, I honestly don't think I could continue this journey.

Recently the four of us were in the vehicle with KLOVE playing as always.  Chris Tomlin's song "Good Good Father" was on and in that moment when I heard the two little voices in the back seat singing along, I immediately was overwhelmed with emotion.  The depth of that moment, knowing that two young souls, who may possibly have never known a "good father,"  were hearing (and singing) the gospel of the greatest Father we could ever have.

I will never forget that moment.  In the moments when this journey seems impossible to endure, I will forever remember those little voices in the backseat.  My prayer is that they to, wherever their path leads, with always remember He is a Good Good Father.

I shall call him my squishy...

This week we reached the half way point in the wait to meet our little miracle.  We had to go for a level 2 ultrasound due to some health history, however little M looked as healthy as can be. 

However, already taking after daddy, getting pictures was a little difficult.  We are choosing to wait on knowing the gender.  We are praying for a healthy baby above all!!! (but we both think its a boy)

Some think we are just keeping it from everyone else, #1 because I usually call it "he,"  I just can't bring myself to call it "It."

However, I have occasionally called him "Squishy."  The story behind that is that when a friend of mine first found out we were pregnant again following the miscarriage  she would always say "just keep swimming" to the baby when I saw her.

This is the best profile she was able to get!  Like daddy much!?

We you join us is praying for a healthy baby!?

Reading Lately...the secret is out!

SOOO, the secret is finally out!  

We're expecting!!!

With everything we went through last year, Brett was understandably hesitant to spread the word too fast.  

We serve a God of miracles and can't wait to meet the latest at the end of August!!!  It's going to be one long hot summer for this mama but totally worth it!!!  

We are so blessed God chose us for this journey and know that it will bring us even closer to Him!

*Oh! and the reading part... the "What to Expect" book is super overwhelming.  I have just been thumbing through it.  It contains a lot of what I would consider common sense but also contains some good "heads-up" tid-bits!

Although exciting, this season in life is a huge reminder of our need for our Lord.  Without a doubt I will need His strength and comfort now and the months to come more than ever!

Holes made Whole: 2 become 3, or 4

If you would have asked us in May what November and December looked like for us we would have spoke briefly of turkey and Christmas parties, followed by an anxious, exciting, nervous conversation about "nesting" and preparing our lives for our family to become 3 around the 17th of December!

But just a month later it would have been a totally different conversation.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Before we ever got married Brett and I talked of adopting and other ways to "care for the orphans."  Brett brought up fostering a couple times but selfishly my heart said no! I didn't think I could handle caring for a child that could at anytime be stripped away from us.  Loving a child as your own for a week or up to year and at any unexpected moment they be removed from our lives.  I wasn't prepared to test my heart in that way.

After we got married and understood the possibility of infertility, my heart was content with that, broken, but content. I knew adopting was an option. 

During a conversation with a particular friend about her health and ability to safely carry a baby, I had even made statements like, "as heart breaking as infertility is, I can't imagine how much more challenging it would be to get pregnant and loose the baby."

So months later when I found myself in the midst of that exact trial, I questioned God, "why would He take a heart content with absence, and tear it with loss?"

Eventually, He would answer that question for me...

My heart was also selfishly content with disobeying a very important commandment... to care for orphans

I was only willing to do this on my own terms, within my own comfort-zone.

My number one reason for not wanting to foster was because those children could be taken from me at anytime.  Through miscarriage, God showed me that even "my own" children, are not my own, and can still be taken from us at anytime.  Children are a blessing, despite how they come to us, and every child deserves a loving home that points them in the direction of our perfect Heavenly Father.  We can not let fear, or loss of control keep us from God's will for our lives.  It was not God's plan for us to miscarry, He did not cause the death of our child.  But, He did allow it, and He used it to bring us to a place of huge blessing!!!

So in May, when we told you how anxious, nervous, and excited we would be with preparation, we were right, it just looks a little different than we thought...

The process has begun for Brett and I to be foster parents! The first couple rounds of paper work & our first walk-through have been done! Our Christmas list has been made, and we are preparing to love on kids who may not know what that looks like, and hopefully point them in the direction of the One perfect Love we all need a little bit more of!!!

So pray for us as we prepare our hearts and home!