Shining Through

The beautiful sunrise from our window this morning!

Through the clouds and fog we saw this beautiful sight!

Kind of like working through the layers of our littles lately.

We peek, we shine, we push, we pull, and we mostly seek.

For some the start of school brings an abundance of joy for both parent and child.

In our home, with our littles, school is a time of trials, testing, and bright spots, like the picture above of learning and growing.

We have decided we will really use this year to seek some answers for some of our challenges.

But it can look like this---

Caleb giving such varied answers at the eye doctor, that she finally has to test him like a very little child to get to the answers without asking him.

Answer for this question is no vision problems and she believes only some small areas that she showed me some therapy to work on to strengthen some things.

It can also look like this--

Hannah working with her speech therapist (testing so we can get an 'official diagnosis'), she answers every rhyming question correctly!

Oh by the way she can not rhyme at all, she does not 'get' the concept!

Thankfully her therapist has worked with her long enough to know this and score her accordingly.

Answer through 2 of the 3 days of testing--Hannah does have Auditory Processing Disorder (APD or CAPD)

So where does his put us on this road--a few steps in and a few steps back.

We are presently working on finding someone or some group that will do a comprehensive evaluation on Hannah and possibly Caleb.

We are not so much wanting labels, as the knowledge of how we can help her within her limitations and abilities.

So we will be looking at psychological issues (trauma), emotional issues (attachment), developmental issues (malnutrition), IQ issues (educational), and the whole range of learning disabilities.

As you can see it would be helpful to have one evaluation that could take into account all areas instead of piecemealing it.

Praying that God would lead us in the right direction, that we may be able to get some answers, and like the picture above start pushing back the clouds to let the kids shine through!

Jamboree Time

Going after the ball is #20.

OHHHH....#20 getting drilled!

Hustling off the field makes the coaches very happy!

Diving in there again.

Guess Who.....

...is begging for a care package already!!!!

Yep, Drew is!!!

And I am sure Michael would be lovin one about now too!

....and who is on the way home as we speak?

And both the little guys can't wait to see her!!!

Lil' Charmer!

Yep, and all the attitude!!


We may just have hit an extremely important pivotal point in this young man's life!!


For a child with extreme trauma in his background, there is much to work through before you can trust, before you can believe in yourself, before you can find your potential.


We have watched much growth in the last year with all the change in our family and stress in our lives.


This week we found a 'football player'!!

Seriously, everyone, coaches, other parents and us, all saw the potential.


Two years ago when we did tackle football for the first time (on the same team) we did not realize how much abuse Caleb had suffered in his young life. The physicalness of the football brought out the things he needed to work through. He was not such a good player, but the healing that was brought about by being able to finally talk about his past has helped him to move forward.


Last year we took the year off so we could all enjoy Drew's senior year of running.


Fast forward to this year. He is on the same football team, with the same coaches, but let me tell you, he is NOT the same player. As of last week we have a FOOTBALL PLAYER!! He has found the trust in his family, coaches, and players, that they are not out to hurt him. He has found the confidence in himself, and his ability to be GOOD at something. So we are seeing the potential that has always lived there bloom!!


Praise God---His mercies are new every morning!!


Praise God---He chooses to keep working with us, his broken, battered children!!!


Caleb and I had a beautiful heart to heart this morning (God ordained moment)!


Praying for continued healing and growth for this special treasure!!!

What a goofy kid!!!!

We had a great visit with Hannah's speech therapist today. Have some ideas where to head in the coming days as far as testing and evaluation.

Think we have come to the point where we need to know a little more fully what we are dealing with as far as educational opportunities and what her abilities are.

Thankful we have a new place to start.

Saying Good-Bye

Today was the sad day that Michael and Erinn had to say good-bye!

Less than 2 months after their marriage, Michael is deploying to Ir*q for his second tour.

Yes, they knew it was coming. And yes, it is still very hard!

They would appreciate your prayers in the coming year of separation.

Erinn will be traveling back here on Friday and staying here, while she finishes her last year at SOU. We will love having her and being able to support them both in this way.

Lest You Think....

...that my husband MIGHT know how to relax.....

....these pictures are to show you our restful Saturday morning!!!

Yep, he came home with 1 1/2 yards of gravel and 1 1/2 yards of bark.

Nothing like resting with shovels and wheelbarrows and NO big kids left in the house!

Lest I paint to calm a picture.....we then headed up to one of David's co-worker's cabin by the lake for an evening of swimming and fishing!!

I don't believe he can sit with any free time!!

God give me strength! LOL

Mini-Vacation

We took our little trip to WSU to drop Drew off to start school this last week.

We started off by traveling through 'no where' central and eastern Oregon--LOL!

And yes, the cattle have the right of way in this 'open range' territory!

This big bull was actually full on in the middle of the road when we saw him, and really looked like he could care less that we wanted to get by!!

We stopped in Burns, Oregon for lunch and ate at the park.

This merry-go-round was supposed to pump with hands and feel, but it was obviously not used much.

Believe it or not, this double slide is as big as it looks!!! And even though it was steep and fast, Caleb found a way to make it go faster!!

On his feet!

And it would launch him off the end! Ahh! Classic Drew!!

Yep, this was fun till Caleb leaned on Hannah and she almost fell off and started crying! One happy girl that can pump the swing, "all by herself!" My college student! David worked with Caleb on his football catch since he was going to miss two practices. A stop at beautiful Phillips Lake for a run before heading into Baker City. Our beautiful treasures.

Sadly the last of the running pictures for a while!

All little brothers want to be just like their big brother!

We spent a day in Baker and visited with two long time family friends, then headed up to Lewiston for the night. Saw this friendly coyote on the side of the road. Got to enjoy the Hell's Canyon overlook area! Sadly we have no picture of dropping Drew off at WSU (I was a little emotional). You know it does not get easier to do this, even when you know they are ready!

Hope he likes wheat fields....that will be his view for the next months! We also took the opportunity to visit a blogging friend, who is now a face to face friend. Lisa, Russ and their family treated us to a lovely lunch and fellowship.

It is wonderful to get a chance to visit with others who understand the special situations that can arise from adopting children who have suffered long term trauma. Blogging has been a wonderful way for me to connect with others who 'understand'. On our way through the 'middle of no where Washington'! One of the highlight of our trip, was the opportunity to visit with some retired missionary friends, Marv and Harriet. Marv is presently battling his 4th cancer. David was in an interesting mood on our 4th day, and was actually willing to stop and see some of the sights!

This is a view of Dry Falls.

Interesting how the world tries everything to hid the obvious. There were signs all over telling how many millions of years ago, during the ice age this all happened. And parents were swallowing it whole, reading it to their children as fact.

Let's see....maybe Noah's flood!!

That would also explain the rhino fossils that were found!

Love to explain to my children the reality of the Bible shown in God's handiwork!

Oh yeah, Hannah and I standing on this overlook about made David sick!

Hannah was pretty excited for the break from the 100 degree weather to go swimming in one of the lakes at Dry Falls.

The next day we stopped at Bonneville Dam on the Columbia River.

That is a HUGE sturgeon behind Hannah! Caleb and the rainbow trout. And we stopped for a quick peek at Multnomah Falls---I have no idea why Caleb looks in pain, but all the pictures were that way! Visiting at some friends hobby farm. Caleb loves animals. Hidden garden treasures. We had a wonderful time. Missing Drew. Hating the quiet without him!

Friends

My friend, Laurel, from over at Our Journey of Faith, stopped by Sunday on part of their long road trip. It was a wonderful time to catch up on what is going on in their lives and let our kids catch up a little too.

Here are Sarah (11), Hannah (7), and Rachel (8)---oh yeah, they are all standing---interesting height similarities!

Josiah (10), Caleb (10), and Elijah (8) picked right up as though they had just seen each other last week!! Gotta love kids.

I am so thankful for the support and friendship I have found through blogging, especially my new cyber-friends and those who have become face to face friends.

Since Some of You Asked

Here is a teaser of some more pictures of Danielle's wedding.

My beautiful treasure, the flower girl.

Aren't they precious?

If you have ever wondered if it is hard to give your daughter away, even to a wonderful man....I think this picture says it all! And Danielle realizes how much thought and prayer has gone into this moment for her dad!

In the beautiful foothills of Medford, this was our beautiful view.

I think they both look content in the moment.

The long awaited document!

A group photo on David's side.

Decisions!

The beautiful cake made by my mom.

They make a beautiful couple!

The first dance!

A daughter is a father's treasure forever!

A moment to remember!

Hold tight to one another and the Lord!