Kansas City Hunter: Part 1

Papa, are you so proud of me!

(Sadly I didn't capture yesterday where she got about 15 ft from the deer! Today wasn't quite as close, but still lots of fun. And she is delighted by her backyard wilderness for sure!)

Emma's Incentive Chart

100 pts.- Emma did ALL of her business outside today!
50 pts.- Emma took the stairs without being carried.
50 pts.- Emma still has not jumped or barked!
25 pts.- Emma behaved well during her grooming session (just a basic bath and trim, we did not spring for the pumpkin spa that was offered for extra- HONESTLY, do people do stuff like that?)


225 pts. in one day! Good Girl!

(side note: Elia got a demerit tonight for removing the poo poo from her wedgie diaper and handing it to daddy!)

You do know I'm kidding, right? Not about the poo poo, about the demerit!

D-O-G spells DOG

Meet Emma, newest member of the family!
Pray for me!

But honestly isn't she sweet. She's got a great disposition and doesn't bark, lick or jump. Now if we could just teach her where to got potty, we'd be in great shape! She was rescued from a puppy mill, so I don't think she's ever lived in a home. The kids are thrilled. Elia adores her. And I, well.....

Silly Girl

Not sure why, but Elia managed to hike her skirt up really high the other day and somehow she just knew it was silly!

Double Wonderful

We are so blessed by the lives of Anna and Mercy already. I can only imagine what we will feel like a few years down the road when we watch in wonder at all that God has in store for these precious little ones. His hand is surely upon them.

We love you sweet girls,
Uncle John and Auntie Tracie

Gotta Wear Shades

Randy and Kelsey Update

Kelsey and the girls will be home tomorrow! I'm so excited.
Please read Randy's post HERE.

Dear HUD, Could You Move Any Faster?

The US Department of Housing and Urban Development owes us $719.39, a refund from our prepaid mortgage insurance from a home we bought in 2001. We refinanced in 2003 and were owed a refund, that they CLAIM they tried to give us. So I find out about this through some internet search group who wants me to pay them $49 to get my money back. I contact HUD directly to get my money because I'm not dumb.

Now they know the date of the mortgage termination, they know the amount of our mortgage, they know how much they owe us, because after all they did TRY to find us to give us our money. BUT I have to get proof that we owned the house they say we owned and that we did indeed refinance when they say we did, and notarize it and mail it with this form they sent me. THEN, they will need 120 to get me my refund!

I shake my head at this. Grateful that we will get our money back, but wishing they could speed it up a bit so we could plop that in our adoption fund.

The Widow

James 1:27 is about caring for the widow and the orphan. I have been challenged even more to consider where I can begin "caring for the widow," as well as the orphan. My mother in law is caring for her mom who has Alzheimer's. Every day is an act of unconditional love and sacrifice. She is practicing true religion every moment of the day. Mom, thanks for setting a beautiful example for us all. We know it is not always easy, but we know you will be rich because of it.



(this photo is of Elia being held by her Great Grandmother McNally- Elia was just one month old at the time.)

I read a post this week that has stirred me all week and I encourage you to check out this beautiful photo journal of another example of true religion.

Great Photography: An Adoption Fund Raiser

Here's a way to help one family bring home their little one!
If you're looking for a great Christmas gift for someone, look no further than Steven Bush's photography.

Dreamer in the House

I've mentioned that my daughter Isabelle is a dreamer. She's 10. God speaks to her in dreams in ways that provoke me and have me longing for dreams of my own. Here's her dream from last night.

"We were all building a brick town with houses in it. Our family was there, the Bohlender's kids were there (Randy and Kelsey were getting the twins), and several other specific individuals and families that we know. I (Isabelle) went up to these guys I didn't know, and asked when Randy and Kelsey's house would be done. He said that the town wouldn't be done when they get back, but their house would be done.

We were building houses out of bricks. The houses were for people who were coming back with children to adopt them. Mom (Tracie) was leaving, and I (Isabelle) said, "Where are you going?"
Mom said, "I have to go get them."
Isabelle said, "I don't want you to go."
But mom said, "But I have to go get them."

At the end of the dream Isabelle saw a little girl. She came up to Isabelle. Isabelle asked her name, but the little girl didn't know her own name and seemed all confused.
Isabelle said, "What do you mean you don't know your name.
The little girl asked, "Is there a Mommy or a Daddy here for me?"


Prayerfully asking God to stir the spirit of adoption even deeper in each of us, and lead and direct us all as we work to say yes to James 1:27.
Blessings,
Tracie

I Love It When I Get To Do This

I love it when one of my local couples brings a baby home! It's always such an incredible feeling for me to snuggle up with one of the precious bundles that I get to help bring to their forever family! I'm so happy for Steven and Kristi. Shiloh is just a doll, and they are simply glowing!

I cannot wait to watch this little one grow up and be everything that God created for her to be. After all, her days were written in His book before one of them came to be, and this adoption was a special part of that story!

Nick in Action

This is how we get all the great photos for our blog!

Two of My Favorite Artists

Baby Pictures

Nick had the opportunity to visit Steve and Kristi Cooper and their newly adopted daughter, Shiloh with me last week. Steven and Kristi were one of the first couples to start working with me when I started working for Christian Adoption Consultants. Kristi was Nick's biology teacher last year and she requested that he bring his camera along for some photos. Here are a few shots that I really liked. I'm sure he'll post more on his blog soon.

Double Wonderful!

Check this out!!!

GIVE BIG AND GIVE NOW

Ok, here's the scoop. The Bohlender's need about $15,000 to pay the adoption bill to bring these precious girls home!

I shameless ask you to read James 1:27 and GIVE BIG! It's true religion folks. These girls are literally unable to be raised by their birth mom. Had the Bohlender's not said yes, they would have been in the custody of children's services today.

I need to tell you that this is a family that said yes without a thought to the cost, knowing God would provide. They didn't give a thought to the social/medical history, or the race (they didn't even know the race of the girls til this morning), or the fact that it was 2 more mouths to feed. They said YES because they told the Lord they would be the rescuers for any child He put before them that needed a family.

It's been wild. It's been hard. This is far from a risk-free adoption folks, but they went obediently with a huge YES in their hearts. Let's get behind them, and make this adoption bill disappear today! I'm believing for it to happen. So put your $25, your $100, your $5000 on the table and say YES along with them!

Give to their paypal account or email me at tracieloux@gmail.com for information on where to send checks.

PRAY

Pray for our friends the Bohlender's.

They are en route to Florida to adopt twin baby girls who are two days old. Some days you wake up and the Lord has other plans! I'm so honored to call Randy and Kelsey our friends. Please pray that God will surround them, protect them and arm them with strength. And pray for these little girls who were chosen before time began to be part of their family.

Today as we were praying, John had a vision of Kelsey as a WWII fighter pilot with Randy as the "gunner" flying into conflict with determination, lacking any form of self-preservation, willing to pay the price to make the rescue and fight off the enemy. If you know Randy and Kelsey, you know they are forerunners and they are charting the course for many of us as we run with the spirit of adoption burning in our hearts.

PRAY
PRAY
and GIVE!!!!

Let's gather together and really be the CHURCH. Let's put true religion to practice (James 1:27), and help pay the ransom for these two precious girls just as Jesus paid the ultimate price with His very life adopt us into His family and call us His sons and His daughters. (Eph. 1)

There is a paypal link on their blog or you can email me personally at tracieloux@gmail.com if you'd like to mail a check.

What Happened to My Baby?

Time flies when you're in love. Just look at her! Every day I marvel at the goodness of the Lord. Every day I thank Him for His grace and His mercy in blessing us with this little girl. Every day I stand in awe that He trusted us with this precious life, and I ask Him for strength to love her and raise her well. I feel I am standing before one who will be truly great in the Kingdom of God.

On My Mind

I think about Aiden all the time. I pray that he is protected from harm. I pray that someone in the orphanage will have a special amount of favor when they look at him, and will give him love and affection. I pray that I will continue to wade through the paperwork and that we will be able to bring our son home by Christmas. I'm asking for a miracle really.

I think about my daughter Elia and marvel at the goodness of God in bringing her into our family. I think about how her life could have been "if..." and I am so grateful that she is sweetly sleeping in her bed right now- loved beyond measure and learning that Jesus loves her.

I think about 4,000 babies a day in the United States alone that are not given a chance to live out the destiny God had ordained for their lives.

I think about the couples who have said yes to adoption. I am grateful for the yes in their hearts, and I ask that God would strengthen them on their journey and give them much revelation about His heart in the midst of it all.


Oh and I encourage you to read THIS POST today.

Family Room Make Over: Part 1

Painting a ceiling and half the woodwork in a room ALL DAY was a lot of work, and at the end of the day does not look like much progress. We're getting our family room ready to actually be a family room before Aiden arrives! It's way overdue. The good thing about the nasty beige carpeting on the floor is that it makes a great drop cloth.

Hint number 1: I have black paint on my toes and John is showering to get the white paint out of his hair.

The Joys of Velcro Diapers

I remember diaper pins and cloth diapers, I tried them for a brief time. I remember sticky tabbed diapers, they were great, but they couldn't be repositioned or adjusted without tearing apart.

Velcro (or whatever that is they used now) is awesome!

One problem I'm having lately though is that even an 18 month old can loosen up those velcro tabs. She prefers to be naked apparently. I put her down for a nap yesterday in a diaper and t-shirt (who wants to sleep in jeans), and sometime between awake and asleep she apparently decided to sleep naked. John came to get me to show me the little miss- sound asleep with her naked bottom up in the air. We let her sleep!

Gotta run and re-diaper my baby!

Politics, Art and Chicken

Today was my day to home school Jackson and Nick. When we found out McCain and Palin would be speaking about 15 minutes from our house we decided to cancel our field trip to the art museum to look at ancient Egyptian relics in order to attend the event.

Doors opened at 8:30AM for a 10:30AM starting time. I dropped Isabelle at school at 8:15 and we (Nick, Taylor, Jackson, Elia, and I) arrived at one of the many parking areas at 8:30. After a 5-10 minute walk to the building where the event was to be held, we continued to walk nearly 10 blocks around the neighborhood following the line to the END. We walked a total of 45 minutes, decided that with the 3,000 only standing room event space, we would not have a chance of getting in. (Our highly uneducated guess was that we passed about 5,000 people in line.) And sadly, Jackson's attempts at shrinking the line every 5 minutes by announcing, "Hey folks, we heard Sarah Palin didn't show up today, it's just McCain," didn't work.

Not wanting to waste a perfectly good field trip day, we headed to the museum after all, only to find out the museum was CLOSED on Mondays!

Not to be outdone, we headed to Hobby Lobby for art supplies for the boys current History assignment, a sculptural expression inspired by the the colors, shapes, lines, and style of Egyptian art and architecture. After Hobby Lobby we headed home after stopping for a "snack" at Chick-fil-a thanks to the stack of free kids meal coupons in Jacksons wallet.

Ode to Jennifer

I just finished hosting a baby shower for Jennifer James who is having her first born son in a few short weeks! In honor of her, I am posting this lovely photo of me at my baby shower for my first born, Nick! This scanned photo does not fully do justice to this lovely blue and white striped ONE PIECE jumpsuit! Yeah for 1992!

Congratulations Jennifer, you are going to be a fabulous momma!
I just

Reeces Rainbow Made the Top 25

Now they still need your comments to encourage the votes in the next round of voting.

Click here to make a comment about this incredible organization.