Ft Augustine

family vaca

Bebi on the Beach

(yes i called him Bebi because thats what Eli calls him)


initial reaction...


but clearly that didn't last long!


the most precious


beach bum


i have ever seen


soaking it all in


dreaming the day away

PRICELESS

so first let me tell you that i am not a reader... i love the idea of being a reader... i wish i were a reader... i wish i had the time to be a reader... but thats just not me... probably has to do with the fact that i have a weird thing going on with my eyes that makes them work against each other instead of with each other so it makes it harder to read and takes much more focus which i just dont have when it comes to the evening after running around with two boys and all the stuff i do all day long...

all that to say i am really looking forward to next week of doing NOTHING but caring for nana and the boys... no cooking, no cleaning, no nothing just watching them down at the beach. im planning on taking a book and actually finishing it.

i have read tom davis' blog for quite some time and he just came out with a new book called PRICELESS i am very excited about reading his novels as they encompass the my deepest heartstrings: orphans, sex trafficking, the needy, the forgotten, and africa. if you would like the chance to win a copy of priceless visit kari gibson's my crazy adoption and simply love blog.

ONE international

3.5 million healthworkers needed
Tell the G8 to give hands-on support for mothers and children living in poverty

For women giving birth and children struggling to survive, 3.5 million healthworkers could make the difference between life and death.

The facts are shocking: Every year more than 300,000 women die in pregnancy and childbirth; 3.6 million children die within their first month of life and 5.2 million more die before they reach 5 years of age.

On 25 June, G8 leaders will meet to sign onto a new maternal and child health initiative. ONE is asking for a commitment to train and support 3.5 million additional healthcare workers in countries where they are needed most.

SIGN PETITION

middle road twist on life

my mind has been a whirl-wind lately. i guess for so long i have known that all the little pieces fit together but just never felt like dealing with them in order to see the big picture. so tonight as my house it quiet and everyone sleeps i sit before the computer ready to be vulnerable and honest.

yesterday as i rode home from a friends house my gaze was out the window daydreaming and in awe of the sky. it was captivating, a brilliant blue, with stark white glowing clouds some wispy others puffy and i could not help but to stare and drown out the music in the background. i was in awe of the Creator God. the beauty of natural revelation hit me like a ton of bricks and i was reminded of one of my favorite verses. i love how the Lord magnificently Created the world so that His handiwork points to Him!

Psalm 19:1-6
The heavens proclaim the glory of God.
The skies display his craftsmanship.
Day after day they continue to speak;
night after night they make him known.
They speak without a sound or word;
their voice is never heard.[a]
Yet their message has gone throughout the earth,
and their words to all the world.
God has made a home in the heavens for the sun.
It bursts forth like a radiant bridegroom after his wedding.
It rejoices like a great athlete eager to run the race.
The sun rises at one end of the heavens
and follows its course to the other end.
Nothing can hide from its heat.


the more i sat and thought the more i started putting the pieces together that there is something missing in my life... there is something more... besides caring for and raising two precious sons (yes i do realize just how huge of a task this is) i feel like my life is empty and that my days are spent checking off meaningless to do lists. as if i were to die tomorrow that there would be family and a few friends who would care and miss me... but that would be about it. that my time on earth was wasted. that there was something more, but instead i wasted it. this is a gut wrenching feeling of hopelessness. the thing is i dont really know where to go from here. so for now i am being still and waiting for the Lord.

i know a few things that need to change is that i need to be intentional in relationships... and the Lord has provided two ladies who work near my house who are from Ethiopia and Nigeria. i have prayed and maybe this is the Lord's way of allowing me to have a little bit of Africa here where i am.

a dear friend posted that her prayer was that the Lord would allow her to see her shattered dreams as grace...

just typing that was difficult... i guess because i am still closed-fisted holding onto my shattered dreams like its a broken vase and the shards of glass have cut my hands. some of the cuts are deep, some have begun to heal, but others are still bleeding. i dont want to give them up. i still have the desire even though my dream has been shattered by people, by choices, by life. my fear is if it give it up, or just get over it like some have told me, then God could use me in other areas. sometimes i hold resentment and it shows up in other areas of my life. i know this is wrong. i know that i have change. i know i have to open my closed-fisted shattered glass filled hands and allow God to show me His grace.

in all this vulnerability... i could really use your prayers

futball = trafficking

human trafficking breaks my heart... as much as the world cup will be on in my house over the next few weeks... my heart will break for all of these girls who were brought in for all of the fans. kind of makes me not want to watch the games cause if it is not on my tv then maybe i dont have to think about it... but how could i just ignore the reality for these girls? Tom Davis does a fabulous job blogging about real life issues from around the world. he is actually taking two of his boys and a team to the world cup to see a few games but to do ministry. i got this video from his blog:

savannah

somehow in the YEARS that my family have been in hilton head or that i would spend the summers in bluffton i never once went to savannah (besides the airport). its such a cute historic town where you walk (or crawl) down riverfront, gaze into the little shops, eat a little salt water taffy as it was being cut and chocolate pecan turtles that were still warm, and indulge in the delicious food at paula deens restaruant. or at least thats what we did! but beware of your mama... she might get hit on numerous times by creepy guys at least that was our experience... sorry mama i had to add our funny moments!

love boat

while walking through savannah eli met a little girl from trinidad... i love that he is not bound by race.