Where it all fits.

It has been a long time since I have visited this, what was my second home for such a long time. Part of me misses it, and part of me doesn't give it a second thought. This was my go to place to get my thoughts out, to vent, and to meet others. Now, I find myself not needing it anymore, although I LOVE what I have gained from our time together. We'll see if I continue to post anything, perhaps with new intentions, but at least I have recorded my journey this far. It is always good to look back.

I have a rare moment right now. The baby is asleep, although I cannot vouch for how long that will last. When he cries, it is difficult for me to not go to him immediately because I am concerned that we should not have any attachment issues. I think I am probably over-responding and causing him to want to be held all.the.time! LOL! ;o)

The dogs are quiet downstairs after the baby and I walked them for about 15 minutes. That is more exercise than they have seen in awhile. The walks have to happen early if they are to happen at all in these temperatures.

The class website is down, so I am unable to do any assignments. Poor me. Oh well. [hear the sarcasm!]

Our transition is going fairly well. It has its ups and downs, mostly connected to my mood. I love being a mother. I love my son. I love my husband. It's just this life being so totally different thing that gets to me at times. It's like everything is upside down, inside out, and backwards. I think about our life four months ago. We knew nothing about anything. Life was its normal 15-year married routine. Just the two of us. As much as I love this, I miss that, too. We had given up our pursuit when God decided to move. Now, life has changed in an instant. We don't drive in to work together anymore. I don't go in to work at all. We don't grocery shop just the two of us anymore. Sometimes, we don't even grocery shop with the three of us. It's more like one or the other of us grocery shops alone. I miss shopping together. We are trying to learn how to make it all work with our new normal, and it is coming along.

I LOVE this picture of the three of us together!

We pulled out the Wii last night while the baby slept behind us in his swing. Even though we hadn't gotten on it in a very long time, it felt a little like normal to me. Oh, and I have lost 6.6 pounds, according to the Wii, since the adoption. This is a good thing, and one I am still fighting to continue. I have not forgotten my old goals. This last week, we stopped at the store together to get just one or two things. Not a big trip, but it felt a bit like normal to me. A new normal. I don't even know why I am sharing all this because I don't want you to think I am ungrateful. I feel so blessed by this gift God has given us. With what He has entrusted to our care. I just need to figure out who I am again. Nothing is the same. A few months ago, we went to work together everyday. We came home from work together everyday. We went shopping together. We traveled together. Every day was the same, as annoying as it could be. Every day was the same, as wonderful as it could be. I miss that.

Well, I hope this wasn't a downer. I just needed to get it out like I used to. If there is anything I have learned in counseling, it is the importance of getting it out.

There is lots more I could say, but I will end with two things.

1. Who am I now?

A wife, mother, daughter and friend. A bad cook who is trying to get better. A former employee. A child of God. Still trying to figure it all out and not lose my identity!

2. A few of my favorite pictures! :o)

A morning out with friends did us a world of good! I am convinced that these two would make a great husband and wife someday. Wouldn't their children be BEAUTIFUL?!?!?!? YES, I am a matchmaker! See... they are looking at each other and everything! Ha! ;o)

My new (to me) chair. Sometimes, I like it, and sometimes, I don't. :o)


Daddy and CTC at church.
Praying that God will draw our son to Himself at an early age.
Sharing the blessing of music that God has given to D.T.

Well, I guess that's about it for now. Until the next time...

Living in His JOY, HOPE, and PEACE...

Wow!

He's come a long way in five years! Actually, so has our living room decor! LOL!!! :o)



Doesn't he look fabulous?!?!?




I think he's certainly got some bragging rights of his own! 33 pounds and counting... :o)




Living in His JOY, HOPE, and PEACE...

Meet the new C.C. & D.T.!

We decided to get a new one since we are both... well... thinner than two years ago! :o)

I know. It is just a caricature, but hey, ya know. I like it! :o)

Having a blast! Wish y'all could be here with us. :o)

Oh, and as far as my luggage, an honorable mention kudos to bo, jill, and breanna londagin for their guess of a picture of our dogs. That was a very good guess, but unfortunately incorrect. A winning kudos goes out to "C," another friend of mine who guessed privately via email. We brought our scale. Not the food kind. The body kind. I know. Crazy!!! I just want to be able to catch myself before I am too far gone out of control.

It's not working. :o( My family says it isn't real weight. That it is just all of the salt. Maybe they are right. I don't know. We'll see. :o)

Oh, well. Having a blast! Wish y'all could be here with us. :o)

Living in His JOY, HOPE, and PEACE...

Ordained...

This weekend was very special for D.T. (and me :o)) in our journey to serve the LORD...




I am so proud of my husband and his heart of willingness to be used by God to minister to others...


Embracing His Joy, Hope, & Peace...

Super long time... no see!

I can't believe how long it has been since I have regularly blogged. Sure, I have posted a little something here and there, but overall, it has not been on my list of top priorities. I've noticed the same thing with some of the bloggers I follow. Perhaps, this thing is dying down a bit?

This current class has really had my full attention, what with all the reading that has had to be done in order to complete the assignments. Some of these books are really life-changing... two things I am learning about myself:

1. I am a people pleaser
2. I am a perfectionist

...and neither one is exactly healthy - emotionally or spiritually. I need to learn how to accept God's strength in my weakness and imperfection and how to set boundaries in my life.

I did discover this last week that I had a few more vacation days available this year that I thought I had already accounted for. So... I took two and got all caught up with my class! Feels good! :o)

***

I am amazed where I am right now in our pursuit to have a child. I guess you really couldn't call it a pursuit anymore. It is more like a ~ if it happens, that would be okay ~ kind of thing. Several months ago, I realized just how much of an idol it had become in my life, and I asked God to please help me to control the overwhelming emotions I had. I've never been the best at controlling my emotions. I don't really know why I should be surprised that He answered my prayer, but He did. The last few months have been filled with few emotions regarding my desire to have a child. It has been nice. Freeing, actually. I have gone back and forth a bunch of times concerning whether or not I think it is a good idea to even move forward at this stage of our lives. I know God is in control, though. Whatever the outcome, HE will do what is best. In the meantime, I am attempting to fill the emotional void I have created in my heart with more of Him. You would think that would be easy, but it is not. It is a discipline.

***

If you happen to think about it today... or the next few days... or the next few weeks... please pray for D.T. He goes to the dentist today at 2 p.m. to have the beginning work for one of his teeth to be crowned. Oh, if that only meant that he was royalty! The one other time he had to have this kind of work done resulted in an incredible amount of pain! Not fun... or convenient considering everything we have going on... right now always! Please pray that God would be merciful to him and alleviate any pain he may have.


Living in His JOY, HOPE, and PEACE...

A momentous occasion!

I could not let today go by without mentioning...

When D.T. was 4 days shy of his twenty-third birthday,
God brought him to the United States...
twenty years ago as of today!

What a step of faith! AMAZING! I'm SO glad God brought him to me!

I wish I had a picture to show his arrival as it happened, but I don't at the moment. It will take me a good, long while to find one among our many, many pictures, so expect to wait a significant amount of time. I promise, I will share one someday.


Living in His JOY, HOPE, and PEACE...

Yikes!

It is oh-so-short!!!

YIKES!

But I love, love, LOVE it!!!!!

***

I have totally been going in the wrong direction with my diet. I haven't been exercising enough at all because I have been crazy busy with work and class. Plus, I increased my calories because I have been SOOOOOOOOOO hungry for the last two weeks! Not tons. Just some. Like, between 1,400 - 1,800 calories or so instead of 1,200. A normal person eats approximately 2,000 a day, but in any case, it's not doing anything for my scale!

YIKES!

Guess I will need to backtrack. More fiber. More protein. Less sugar. Fewer calories. More EXERCISE!!! Anybody have any tips for fighting hunger?

***

In the meantime, I have 4 days left of class, one final exam, and one paper. Oh, and did I mention, we are celebrating D.T.'s birthday this weekend??? Lots to do. LOTS to do!

YIKES!

After that, my next class starts Monday morning. When I am done with that class, I will have completed 24 credits toward the 60 for the program. More than 1/3 of the way there. Woohoo!!! I will be SO glad when, someday, I will finally have the education to do what God is calling me to. :o)

Living in His JOY, HOPE, and PEACE...

Friday Photo Flashback ~ 1978!

Welcome to Friday Photo Flashback,
as hosted by Alicia at More than Words!

For once, I know exactly when this picture was taken! Thanks to family who put dates on their pictures! LOL! :-) Not that I was around when this picture was taken because a.) I had not met D.T. yet, and b.) I was only 2 years + 1 and a 1/2 months old! Ha! Hmm... I wonder what I was doing back then? ;-) Oh, the things that happened halfway around the world before we even knew each other existed.


This was taken after the wedding of D.T.'s older sister. To her left, um... actually her right, your left is D.T.'s beautiful mother. Above her is D.T.'s dad. Groom behind the bride. Groom's mother (I think) to the bride's left (your right). Next to her is D.T.'s oldest sister with her second child. Don't know the two people behind her. On the left side of the picture, as you look at it, is D.T.'s first nephew from his oldest sister, then D.T. above him, then D.T.'s brother above him. He's coming to visit us next week! Woohoo! We can't wait!!! D.T.'s mom came to visit us once about 10 years ago, but this is the first time since then that someone from his family will be traveling to see us in the States! I'll be sure to show you updated pictures of the two brothers later on. :-)

Living in His JOY, HOPE, and PEACE...

Wordful Wednesday ~ Elegant? ...or Ghetto?

Welcome to Wordful Wednesday,
as hosted by Angie at Seven Clown Circus!

D.T. loves putting on his Chef jacket to make really elegant, old-world home style Sicilian food! Ben likes to watch. :-)


Is it ghetto, though, that I use the dog crate in the kitchen to fold towels???


In the restaurant where D.T. used to work at, one plate of this dish would have gone for about $15 - $20!


I think that D.T.'s love language is feeding friends and family!


Ben wants to know, though... is it ghetto to make a really fancy dinner on really trendy plates and then eat it on TV trays in the living room??? ;-)

Living in His JOY, HOPE, and PEACE...

Friday Photo Flashback ~ Hola!

Welcome to Friday Photo Flashback,
as hosted by Alicia @ More Than Words!

I may have shared this picture once before. There are too many posts to go back through to check, and I don't really remember. Even if I did, though, it is worth sharing again! The picture on the left was D.T. when he was little. I don't know how old. Maybe 3? Looks about right. He loved music even way back then. The hat is hysterical, though! Ha! The picture on the right is in the mid to late 90's at a Mexican restaurant up north for D.T.'s birthday. He wasn't super thrilled with the whole sombrero thing, but I found it rather amusing. ;-) I think the picture on the left was perhaps a prediction of things to come. LOL! Yes, now I am remembering. I think I did share this picture once before. Hold on a minute... aaahhh yes, here it is! So what if I repeat myself?!? Sometimes, I just don't know what to post. Plus, that was all the way back in 2008 when we were first working on the album for our adoption! My, my, how time flies!



Have a great weekend, everyone! I may or may not be around much, depending how my group proposal goes. It's due next weekend, but I want to finish it up this weekend.

Living in His JOY, HOPE, and PEACE...

Some things just shouldn't be messed with...

...and I would have to say that our family cooking arrangement is one of them. I may have put on an apron tonight (sorry the pic is so blurry), but Betty Crocker I am not. Actually, I think this might be the first time I've put on an apron and tackled the kitchen in years. Ha! Well, except for baking. That, I can do. Tonight, I tried so hard to chop all the peppers for D.T.'s yummy peppers and onions, but I just made them too big! Somehow, they don't cook down quite the same way.


I think from now on, I will leave things right where they belong...


Oh, yeah! ;-)

Living in His JOY, HOPE, and PEACE...

***UPDATED*** ~ Over the ocean...

***UPDATE to the many, many updates!*** :-)

He has landed in Atlanta,


made it through customs, gotten something to eat, and is waiting for his 8:25 p.m. flight home. Thank goodness, it is a short one. A mere 1 hour and 25 minutes. He should be to our town around 10 p.m., and then a friend of ours will bring him home. I expect he should be here no later than 10:30 p.m. I am SO excited!!!


*** He just flew over a little while ago! Don't you think they could have just opened the door and let him parachute down? Hehehe! ;-) ***


*** Approaching the USA! ***


*** Close-up! ***


*** Check THIS out! ***

I can see his flight data, altitude, and how much time he still has in the air when I float my mouse over the plane! Way cool! :-)


*** UPDATE ***

He is almost to dry ground! :-) :-) :-)


*** Original post below ***

This is where D.T. is right now. Please pray for him. I will be happy to have him home.


Living in His JOY, HOPE, and PEACE...

Tuesday Tidbits...

Hmmmm... is it too early in the year for blogger's cramp?

We seem to have settled back into routine, and by that I mean we go to work each day, come home each day, eat too much, play with the dogs, and go to sleep. Exciting, no?

Oh, I thought I would share with you the pictures we want to add to our adoption album. One of them is kind of cheesy, but I really couldn't think of any other way to represent my MS. I figure the birth moms deserve to hear about the challenges in our lives from us instead of our home study, and that way, they can hear our perspective and how God has used it in our lives.

Creative, don't you think? ;-)

Really, as much as I dislike taking shots day in and day out, God has taught me so much through this challenge about myself and trusting Him each and every day.

Have I ever shown you these pictures of D.T.??? These were taken all the way back in 1990 after he was shot in the Romanian Revolution and spent 2 months in the hospital recovering from his injuries. I can hardly believe it is him, but it is certainly evidence of God's hand upon his life and the miraculous ways God brought him through.

I also can't believe that I was only 14 years old when these pictures were taken! Hehehe! Cradle robber! ;-)

These are all (or at least most) of his nieces and nephews gathered around him at the house. This picture just makes me feel... well... OLD!!! Every single one of these young men and women are now adults, some with children, and friends with us on Facebook. Yikes! Where does the time go???

You know, when we finished our adoption album and turned it in, I said I would never touch it again! Um... watch what you say, C.C. It's about time to break out the scrapbooking supplies again.

Oh, well, time for work. Hey, please keep me accountable to finish this addition to our album! You know me. I am a bit of a procrastinator. :-)

Living in His JOY, HOPE, and PEACE...

Friday Photo Flashback ~ 1990

Welcome to Friday Photo Flashback,
as hosted by Alicia at More Than Words!

This picture was taken of D.T. in the hospital after the Romanian Revolution of 1989. Like many others in the military there, he was shot and wounded, and very lucky blessed to be alive. Many, many others were not so fortunate, and that could have been him. He spent 2 months recovering in the hospital and dealing with blood clots in his leg after having surgery to repair his injuries.


Today, I choose joy in my husband, and I am so grateful that God spared his life.

Living in His JOY, HOPE, and PEACE...


***Don't forget to pray for someone today!

Wordless Wednesday ~ the TRUE meaning of D.T.!