Do you have...

Carson asked me today if I had a wabby (boys private part). I told him No and he replied what happened to your wabby? Did it break? OMG! I tried to explain to him that girls and boys have different private parts. I could see his little mind thinking and quickly he said--So why did God do that? He is 3 going on 30.

Wordless Wednesday

Really missing Guatemala

For the past week I have been really missing Guatemala. I am going to list a few random reasons why I am missing Guatemala so much.
Can you relate?

1. The beautiful people.
2. Being in the country that gave me my life back.
3. The children. Oh do I miss the children in Guatemala.
4. Their smiles
5. Hanging in central park
6. The smell of Guatemala.
7. Really feeling the Lords presence.
8. The one on one time with Jonathan.
9. The streets.
10. No telephone, texting, computers, demands...
11. The cold showers (LoL)
12. The families that really need our help.
13. Walking around and wondering if "they" are related to Carson.
14. The weather. AHHHHHHHHH!
15. The markets.
16. Looking at the families (yes I said families) riding on a motorcycle.
17. Driving up to the villages and having 20 Guatemalans smiling and hugging me.
18. Walking down a street in the middle of the day and hearing women singing loudly to the Lord.
19. Seeing children peeking through the corn fields.

Bags of Food

On our first day in Guatemala with the group of eleven we distributed food to a few families that live in the villages. As soon as we drove down the dirt road to deliver food we were greeted by a gang of beautiful Guatemalans who were eager to hug each and everyone of us as we exited our van. Each bag of food contained flour, milk, eggs, rice, beans, pasta, butter, a gallon of pure apple juice and cookies (as a treat). Besides giving bags of food we all brought goodies with us i.e. tee shirts, candy, soaps, socks, shoes, jewelry, balloons, snacks. etc. Most of the group were off playing games and exchanging greetings while I was busy holding a beautiful baby who was layered in clothing.

Last day of summer camp

Today was Carson's last day of art camp. Carson attended art camp three days a week this summer. He made a lot of crafts with recycled goods from home with egg cartons, stocks, close pins, etc. In September Carson starts pre-k... did I really type "pre-k" what the heck? where is the time going.....

Why did he say that...?

I over heard a conversation today:
R: Hey How are you?
J: Good how are you?
R: what are you doing today?
J: We are going out to lunch with our Adopted Grandson.
and so on....
Why the heck did he have to label his Grandson?
Why didn't he just say going out to lunch with my Grandson?
What are your thoughts?

recap weekend

Jonathan often calls me a cheap date. Sure I like to go out to fancy places at times, however I prefer low maintenance dating. Friday night Shauna watched Carson while Jonathan and I went out for the night. We started off the night with a great meal from one of our favorite restaurants in Atlantic City, called Mexico. Next we were off for a stroll on the Ocean City Boardwalk. Of course we had some yummy chocolate peanut butter ice cream. The night would not be complete without playing some arcade games. I love a good skee ball and air hockey game. Needless to say it was not my night to win however I did rather well on pac man. lol.
Saturday we traveled to Princeton for Jonathan's sister's birthday. Carson had a wonderful time swimming in the pool while Jonathan and I mingled with his family.
Sunday was a quiet day at our house. We did not attend church as we were all very tired from the night before. However Carson had a date with his "Best" (my sister Tracey). They went to the Sea Isle Boardwalk for pizza and arcade games. Carson had a good time with Best. He told me tonight that, "Best is great!"
The above is just a small recap of the weekend. Tonight as I was taking my powerwalk I realized the nights are starting to get shorter. UH!

Wordless Wednesday

Number 2

Jonathan heard 'someone' in the bathroom last night around 12:30am. Guess who? That's right, Carson was sitting on the throne alone. He told Jonathan in a very excited voice, Daddy, look I pooped in the potty. I can not believe we were all celebrating Carson going poopy on the potty at 12:30am on a work night.

Donde esta el cuarto de bano?

When I asked for the bathroom at our building site in Guatemala this is what I was shown...
When I walked into the "bathroom" I saw a stack of newpapers. I laughed to myself and thought wow they leave the newspapers for others to read. When I told one of my team members about the newpapers left in the bathroom they said "that's their toliet paper." She was right! Needless to say, I passed on the facilities.

I am back and changed!

Wow! What an amazing trip to Guatemala. Over the next few weeks I will blog and post photos of our mission trip. There were four different phases of our trip: 1. food distribution 2. building two homes 3. wheelchair distribution 4. visit to the orphanage. Each of the phases have impacted my life. God was so visible and faithful throughout the trip.

He keeps me on my toes...

In church on Sunday Carson said, "Daddy I think that man has a baby in his belly."
Today Carson told me "Mommy I am sorry for breaking (hurting) your feelings."
"Mommy look an old girl from your work."
We had a bag filled with gifts for the kids in Guatemala so needless to say, Carson found the bag here is the conversation:
Mommy what is this?
Toys for the kids in Guatemala.
Hmm, Mommy can I have one of the toys?
No Carson they are for the kids in Guatemala.
Mommy I am from Guatemala so I can have one.

It was a good weekend

Friday night we went to see a Phillies baseball game. We stayed the night in Phila as Noah was flying back to New Mexico early in the morning. Carson stayed behind and spent the night with my sister Tracey. They had lots of fun. Tracey took him to the Sea Isle boardwalk to play in the arcade plus he got another hermit crab. Thank you Tracey for watching my sweet baby boy. He loved hanging out with his "Best". Saturday it was a busy day lots of errands and busy work around the house. Sunday was church and then a potluck dinner and prayer send off for the eleven of us leaving for Guatemala Wednesday morning.
My sweet baby boy is going through the "But Stage". If we ask him to do something its 99 percent of the time "But Mommy or But Daddy" Sometimes the "buts" make me laugh however I find myself getting frustrated with his strong will and temper. Thank God Jonathan has a very calm and patient demeanor. I was sharing the story tonight about my thoughts pre parenting, I always thought my child would not act that way. My child will always listen, my child will follow all the rules. Yea Right! What the heck was I smoking?! Once again, I am praying this is "just" a stage...

One week from today

I will be traveling to Guatemala with eleven church family members.

Its been a while.

Its been so long since I last blogged or commented on my fellow blog pages. Life has been a little unnerving for me over the past two weeks. I would truly love to blog about it however its not the correct place nor time. I know the Lord has a plan for my life and he will lead my path. I need to trust him more as he knows what is best for me.
The weather this summer so far has been great. Yes, its hot however I love the HOT weather. With fair skin and light eyes its difficult for me to be in the sun without burning. So needless to say, sun block becomes my best friend in the summer months. Jonathan and Carson both tan just thinking about the sun... We spend a good deal of our evenings outside soaking in the sun light.

last weekend

It was a family weekend. Saturday we spent the day at my parents house enjoying the beautiful weather, pool and BBQ. The evening was rather quiet as Jonathan had a golf lesson and Shauna had to work so the rest of us (Noah, Carson and I) hung at the house. I finished mowing the back yard. There is something about mowing grass that I love. I am not sure what it is but I always volunteer to mow even if its 90 degrees outside. Yes, its a push mower!
Sunday was church and then a wonderful BBQ at my cousin Kim's home. It was great hanging out with my cousins. There is always plenty of laughs when we are all together. Sure there are quiet moments but nothing that would make one feel uncomfortable. I went into my cousin Kim's home which used to be my Grandparents for the first time or maybe the second time since my Grandmother (Greta) passed away many years ago I wanted to see her remodeled kitchen. It looks great! As I was walking around the downstairs of her home everything seemed OK within my spirit. However, as I turned the corner near the steps leading to the upstairs-"the smell, that smell, how I remember that smell" of my Grandparents home was stronger then ever. So needless to say, I had goosebumps and a flood of memories that clouded my mind. Memories that took me back to when I was a child. Memories of ALL the family being together. Memories that I would love to have back. Memories which hurt and memories which make me laugh. It amazes me how a smell can drum up a high tide of memories. A smell that makes me think I would see my Grandmother sitting on the couch doing a crossword puzzle or reading a book. A smell that makes me think I could walk into the kitchen and see my Grandfather drinking his coffee in his McDonald's coffee cup which was white with a faided arch while looking out the window. A smell that can make me see all the family sitting around on a Sunday afternoon for dinner. Life goes by so fast.... But like they say, memories last a life time!

Motives

Everyone in life has motives to why they do and say things. In my life I try to check myself daily on why I do and say certain things. There have been numerous occassions over the past years where I wanted to pick up the phone or write an email telling someone what I really thought about their actions and heartache they have caused. However, when I sat and thought about the reasoning behind it, I knew it was not right and my motives were not pure. As I have said before, I am not miss perfect nor do I claim to be. I have done and said many of things in my life that I completely regret and hope to keep those closet doors closed forever. I truly feel the more I want to do what is right through the eyes of our Lord the harder my walk becomes. What I find extremely amusing is the fact that other people love to tell others why someone is doing something- Like they really know! I am learning not to share with people about what I am doing in my life as there is always a critic. I could go on my soapbox for hours regarding this topic but I will spare you. No wait! One more thing- when we sit at the judgment seat of heaven we will be questioned about our motives. If you think of the latter that will keep you in check.

One Month

from today we will be boarding a plane to one of my favorite places of all...Guatemala. My eyes grow heavy just thinking of holding the beautiful children in the orphanege. I have a few photos of Carson's birthmother. As I walk the streets of Guatemala its not uncommon for me to look at every lady that passes me by...and wonder.

I did not ask for your opinion

Why do so many people feel the need to give me their opinion when I talk about adopting again?. Lately more people are trying to tell me where to adopt, why I should not adopt from different countries, why I am not adopting an American baby., etc. I will listen to their opinion for a few minutes however after I heard enough I either turn them off, change the subject and/or tell them I really do not want to hear what they have to say. I am not adopting again to get others approval, I am not adopting again for the attention, I am not trying to be a celebrity, I am not adopting again to prove a point. Its been placed on my heart to adopt again. I understand I can not change the world however if I can change more than one life--that's what matters to me.

He is with you-

click on the link below and then the orange play button above the lyrics to hear the song.

http://www.elyrics.net/read/m/mandisa-lyrics/he-is-with-you-lyrics.html

There's a time to live
And a time to die
There's a time to laugh
And a time to cry
There's a time for war
And a time for peace
There's a hand to hold
In the worst of these
In the worst of these

Chorus:
He is with you when your faith is dead
And you can't even get out of bed
Or your husband doesn't kiss you anymore
He is with you when your baby's gone
And your house is still and your heart's a stone
Cryin' God, what'd you do that for?
He is with you

There's a time for yes
And a time for no
There's a time to be angry
And a time to let it go
There's a time to run
And a time to face it
There is love to see you
Through all of this

Chorus:
He is with you in the conference room
When the world is coming down on you
And your wife and kids don't know you anymore
And he is with you in the ICU
When the doctors don't know what to do
And it scares you to the core
He is with you

We may weep for a time
But joy will come in the morning
The morning light

Chorus:
He is with you when your kids are grown
When there's too much space and you feel alone
And you're worried if you got it right or wrong
Yes he is with you when you've given up
On ever finding your true love
Someone who feels like home
He is with you

When nothing else is left
And you take you final breath
He is with you

Wordless Wednesday

20/20

We had a family visit to Pearle Vision last Saturday for eye examinations. Carson and I have 20/20, Yea Baby! While Carson was patiently waiting his turn, he modeled most of the childrens glasses for us.

Life

Work has been completely overwhelming. I am going in super early and getting done late. I guess that's par for the course when working in health care. Anyway, Carson's last day of school was today. I can not believe he is starting pre-k in September. For the summer, Carson will be going to art camp three days a week. The other two days he will stay home with Jonathan. I am looking forward to Carson having a break from school and "just" enjoying some summer time fun. If all goes well with the next few Doctor's appt regarding his ear, he will start swimming lessons at the end of the month.
As I have written before my sweet little boy has a wicked temper. He gets so mad so quickly. He will start hitting and calling names. Jonathan and I are really praying that its his age causing this crazy behaviour.

Anyone!?

Does anyone have any knowledge or experience with Morocco or Armenia adoptions?

The blues singer

Thursday night Jonathan and I went to see James Taylor and Carole King in Phila. We were eight rows from the stage. When James and Carole (our new friends ;) ) walked off the stage during intermission they walked right past us. Matter of fact I could touch them. WOW!!!
The concert started at 8:00pm with a 15 minute intermission ending at 10:30pm. It was a non-stop concert. They put on an awesome show... There were a few songs that hit home: Fire and Rain and You got a friend. Some of his songs flood my mind with memories- of course memories that hurt deeply and others that bring me joy. Overall, Jonathan and I had a great night together.

Wordless Wednesday

Happy Birthday MomMom

Today is my Mom's (Essie's) birthday. Carson is so in love with his MomMom. They have a very special relationship. They tell each other silly stories,they have special sayings, and always give each other eskimo kisses. MomMom, thanks for loving me so much. I am truly blessed to have a MomMom like you.... Happy Birthday!

Three years today

I held my sweet baby boy for the first time. More to come...

way back wednesday- last summer

Have you ever broken a world record?

Be Part of Breaking a World Record

On Saturday, June 5th, 2010 (raindate June 12th, 2010) at 11:00 am in the parking lot of Calvary Baptist Church on Route 9 in Ocean View, NJ, be a part of breaking the world record for attempting to yo-yo for 2 minutes. Yo-yos will be provided. No experience is required and there are no minimum age restrictions.

The purpose of the event is two-fold. The 1st goal is to break the world record which currently stands at 536 people simultaneously attempting to yo-yo for 2 minutes. The 2nd goal is to raise money for a mission trip to Guatemala in July which will involve 10 local residents of Cape May County. The money raised from the event will be used solely for building a home for an indigent family, providing wheelchairs to physically challenged children and adults who have no means of locomotion, and for feeding hungry families who have little to no way of supporting themselves financially.

The 10 individuals who will be traveling to Guatemala have been preparing for their trip by performing community service activities throughout the county.

The cost to participate is only $5 per person. Festivities include live music by Ray Seemans and The Prisoners of Love, food (BBQ), beverages, crafts, bake sale, moonbounce, facepainting, and more. Vendors wanted. Advance registration is encouraged, but not required. To register in advance or for more information, please email gretajop@yahoo.com.