Some of our weekend fun so far....

Swimming and more swimming has been the favorite activity so far... and eating. I shared before how we make the holiday times special by eating and preparing foods that are fun- look at Gracie's face :) Tonite we are watching a movie on the back deck when it gets dark and tomorrow is suppose to be gorgeous weather again.... so we will start with pancakes with strawberries and blueberries with whip creme... Have fried chicken for dinner and lots more swimming and games... a big soccer tournament and croquet tournament is planned. We also have done some special things to remember the wonderful people in our armed services... Thank you to all of you who have served !

We are just "hanging" around here :)

Mary Kate is due in a few weeks now and there is nothing like her sister,Mya and daughter Ava pretending to be just like her :) Mary Kate graciously but grudgingly posed for me ....

These kids are amazing.....what they can do together

What do you do with 20 yds. of mulch that just got delivered ? You have 20 kiddos start spreading it... It has been a few yrs. since we have done all the garden beds but we had a little extra money... and they needed it desperately ( to save us from having to weed weekly this summer). This was our first load and they spread much of it and did it with smiles on their faces....

Blessed Is the Believer...

There is so much peace in simply believing, and just knowing that God will do as He said. Certainly, it is not always easy to simply rest in God's promises. Your mind will strive to think of every obstacle that could impede you.

When we believe--- really fully trust that God will do as He says, we will experience a deep, abiding peace that will truly bless us. We will know His presence and power in a way that will amaze everyone.

Luke 1:45 says, You are blessed, because you believed that the Lord would do what He said.

I know families in the middle of decisions, asking what to do or how to make the next step... Paul and I have experienced the blessings of the Lord fully in our life.. thru our daily walks and thru our hearts for the orphans. He has blessed us more than we can imagine when we have been called to fulfill a purpose that He has given us.... He has always provided... sometimes in pretty amazing ways and sometimes in ways we did not expect and sometimes in ways that we would not choose but, after seeing His hand all over the situation we have been encouraged to go on...

I am often asked this one question, " How do you do it?" My answer is , " I believe simply and I know that the Lord will do what He has said. I usually do not walk in fear or struggle with doubt... I have seen the mighty hand of God too many times....

I suggest to those of you reading my blog to journal. I have been journaling now for over 25 yrs.. I write about my days but for the past few years I write alot of scripture. I share my requests and my joys with the Lord. Paul and I were strongly convicted to walk our life much like George Mueller did. We pray... I express my needs, desires and joys thru my journal and I pray. If God desires to bless us with the provision of what is needed to adopt, feed the family, get something that is needed but we don't have we pray.... When it is written in my journal I can revisit it when my faith struggles and I begin to doubt... I know the Lord's voice and feel his breath on me when I spend time with Him....and He always confirms thru scripture " What we should do or how we should proceed." If it is written in my journal than I have it always in front of me to encourage me... no matter what I am going thru.

Even at a young age, Mary understood that there is so much peace in simply believing and knowing that God will do as He said....

Dear God, I want to have Mary's faith, the kind that believes the impossible....and knows your voice and feels your breath upon our lives.

It is in the 90s and the pool was great today!

We even got Andrew and Gracie in the pool today... and they both loved it. The water temp. is 80 . It was so hot outside that even I got in the pool today.

Just in case your wondering....

If during the summer you see the beautiful, sweet face of this young woman in our photos let me introduce her... No we have not adopted her.. well in our hearts we have... but her last name is not Briggs :) She is Mary our summer intern.

She goes to Moody Bible College and is doing an internship with us this summer. She just started on Monday... actually we have known her and her family for a few years and have been blessed many times by them. She just got engaged to a wonderful, and handsome young man named Peter.

As you can see the kids already love her to pieces and it has been a breath of sunshine to have her in our home just the first few days....

Perfect Love...

Joseph sent this to me tonite from his Iphone...He offered to stay home with Andrew so that Paul and I both could go to church tonite and be there for the Awana closing program...I told you how sensitive he is to our needs...but I LOVE this quote he found and placed beside the picture of Andrew he took tonite.

Guess who gave me these ... and it is not my husband

Almost every week Joseph brings me some flowers :) He knows I love flowers and his "love" language is giving...He does make me feel special. He is such a sweetheart.

I am so proud of my little guy....

Andrew did wonderful for his surgery. He was scheduled for 10 we were there at 8 and he did not go in until after 11... I thought he would be very difficult. He reacts to a change in his environment and gets sensory overload... but he did so well. Everyone was impressed at how well he handled everything . The best part too was he needed only a very aggressive dental cleaning... and that was all. They did xrays, and found all the teeth are healthy - no cavities at all. No gum work was necessary and no extractions. The surgeon was pleasantly surprised as well. His teeth were as thick as about 1/16th of an inch for some- Lots of calcified tartar built up. He didn't like the IV as expected but they were great and took it out very quickly.... actually he would have the way he was trying... thankfully the staff at Frederick Memorial Hospital were sensitive to his needs and helped alot....

Here he is showing us :) He keeps feeling the new "skinny" teeth with his tongue... He is eating the same too which I thought he might not so praise the Lord for your prayers... It is over and was a great day overall.

Pray for my dear, sweet, little Andrew... he is having surgery in the am

In the morning Andrew will be having some major oral surgery at Frederick Memorial Hospital... He will be put to sleep with the mask and wake up with an IV- both things he will not like and then his mouth will be sore... Since this is his first time with general anesthesia we ask for prayers for him.. Also that he will have a peaceful spirit as we wait the 2 hrs before and that he wakes up without any vomiting and recovers quick so we can be going home.... How do you tell him it will be ok, how do you share we will be right there, how do you explain all the medical procedures like a mask, IV and all to him? Thank you for lifting him up in prayer.

Gracie and Andrew love water and the pool :)

We had a warm day Friday and filled the baby pool for the little ones- which really is only Gracie and Andrew because all the rest including Ava swim in the big pools . They both loved it...

Some of the fruit of our strawberry labor...freezer jam for next year- yummy!

Guess what this folder represents...

Our dossier is complete and will be sent off to Ghana... It should get there next week...no translation is necessary because it is an English speaking country. I have been so amazed at how the Lord has opened up doors for these 2 precious ones from Ghana. We ask for your prayers for the next part of the process... and we will joyfully share with you all as we continue our journey to Ghana....

We had a divine appointment with strawberries today...

Today after a quick "school" we decided to go strawberry picking... the weather was glorious and so we went to Orrs Farm market ( a new place for us but one we will be going back to lots). We got a free wagon ride all over the farm, met a sweet friend who was our tractor driver ( who loved the kids) picked over 50 lbs of strawberries ... and ate at least that many....

When I got ready to pay our bill the cashier said someone really loved seeing the kids and they wanted to pay for our strawberries... they handed me 60 dollars cash... It was past lunch so we decided to stop at Mc Donalds on the way home ( something we never do because it cost too much) but thanks to the Lord we had 60 dollars cash - Guess what our bill was for McDonalds ? $ 61.88...

To express how we all felt about our strawberry day Mya said it best," This was the best day ever!"

How many times we are out as a whole group and we have been blessed by a stranger's heart...thank you to the man who loved us today and thank you Lord for another blessing!

When I need to settle my spirit I go outside and look at all the wonders God has created in my gardens....