Partners in Crime!

When we were first matched with Ren one of our concerns was for Henry. They are so close in age, (exactly 8 months apart), and he had been mommy's baby.  If you know Henry, you know he has always been my extra hip accessory.  I didn't want him to feel neglected when his new sister came.  Don't get me wrong, there were several weeks of rough transition.  Learning to share mommy wasn't easy for Henry or Ren.  But look at them now.  They are two peas in a pod.  They play, laugh, run, scream, boss, tattle, and get in to trouble together.  They love each other and it is a miracle to see how the Lord  has joined them as brother and sister.

Don't Watch This!

My friend Amie Putnam sent this to me today and it has so challenged me.  I am at a place in my life where realistically, I probably shouldn't add more children to my family.  I have four already.  We have to share bedrooms.  I don't know how they will get a car or how their college education will be paid for.  I do know they will be loved and raised in the Lord.

A lot of people tell me that Tyson and I are good people.  My answer to that is thank you, but on the inside I think, "if you only know".  The Bible tells us the only good that is in us comes from the Lord.  So I know I am not good.  But lately I wonder if I am "safe".  Not really risking anything for the Lord.  Not really sacrificing for the Lord.  I feel so mediocre.  My heart tells me, there is so much more to do.  So many more children that don't need a car or a fully paid college tuition, they just need to call me their mommy. 

Please pray for me as I try to hear the Lord and as I struggle daily to know what I need to do.  Pray for Tyson as he leads our family.  In case you can't tell, he is married to one scary woman!!!

Not ready to adopt, but ready to help????

Dear Family & Friends,


I am so excited because this week, March 9-16, The Levi Circle is reaching out to the Putnam family to help them complete the next phase of their adoption plan!
CoCoMcCain.com is sponsoring the On-Line Shop-for-a-Cause and 100% of profits go to The Levi Circle.

PLUS- The Levi Circle is going to match any funds raised during the Shop-for-a-Cause!
CoCoMcCain.com has beautiful gifts, free shipping & gift wrapping, and a desire to reach out for a good cause! You can SHOP on-line at www.CoCoMcCain.com . Make sure to use COUPON CODE: LEVI at checkout March 9 to March 16.

Thanks so much for your support! I’ll let you know how it turns out!

The Levi Circle?

The Levi Circle



The Mission of The Levi Circle is to provide financial, practical, and spiritual support to families seeking to adopt or foster a child.

 

In November 2009 a small group of families from my church met together to gain more info on adoption and foster care.  Since that meeting, we have continued to meet and have started our support group.  We are called The Levi Circle.  One of our members, Laura Wills, came up with our name.  Levi is the Hebrew word for joined.  A circle symbolizes forever or unending.  So we are The Levi Circle and our purpose to help see children forever joined with their "forever" families.  We became incorporated with the federal government and we are now recognized as a non-profit organization.  We have our own tax ID number and gifts to the group are tax deductible!!!  Pretty amazing.

Psalm 68:6

God sets the lonely in families.

As The Levi Circle, our desire is to work along side the Lord in His passion to "set the lonely into families"



Are you adopted?

1 John 3:1   See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!

I watched this video today.  I loved it!  If you are a child of the King, you too are adopted!

The Griffin's/Griswald's Did Disney

One 17 year old, one 6 year old, TWO 2 year olds!!!!!  What were we thinking??? 

Well, we attempted the impossible and I have to say, we had a wonderful time.  It truly was an amazing trip.  I think the spanking spoon only showed itself a couple of times and for a whole week, with four kids, that is a world record.  I am almost sure of it.  Everyone was so excited to be at Disney, except for the few times that Henry, "Just wanted to go home and ride his tractor"!

Before I had ever taken my kids to Disney I had always heard people talk about how great Disney was.  I have to be honest, Tyson and I went for few days for our honeymoon.  We were convinced that there was no place on earth where you could find more screaming parents and crying kids.  We did not think it was a magical place.  But like I said, that was before we had our children.  (Though I still believe Disney holds the record for most screaming parents/crying kids per square inch!)

I am one of those crazy moms that tears up at all the magical moments.  Here are a couple of pics from our trip.



A very proud Ty with his daddy, just coming off of Space Mountain!



Indiana Jones(Ty) and the two people he rescued!



And my very favorite .....Ren trying to kiss Mulan.  She was not too fond of all the other princesses.  But she loved Mulan.  Precious!

The Story of B

Believe it or not, that is a picture of the Queen B, Shataria, when she was just eight years old.  We just celebrated her seventeenth birthday!  A lot of people think we have adopted Shataria.  We have not, but her story is none the less, amazing. 

It all began on a warm September day in 2001.  Tyson and I had just gotten married and moved to Chicago.  He was a Moody Bible College grad student and I was a second grade teacher at an inner city school on the west side of Chicago.  It was the first day of school.  In walked a screaming and kicking little girl.  If you are a teacher and you are reading this, you know that every year there is usually that ONE KID.  Every year since I have begun teaching I have always had that one kid that improved my prayer life.  My prayer would always be "Help me Lord to see them like You see them.  Help me to love them like you love them".  Well, as you might have guessed, Shataria was that kid!  She had fits.  One day she went a little crazy and called me "A stupid white chick"!!  Hilarious, (now anyway). 

Every day I went home telling Tyson about this kid.  We came up with a plan that was nothing short of bribery.  If she behaved, she got something.  We took that wild woman to McDonald's, to the movies, to church!  Through all of this, we formed a great relationship with her mom.  She ended up staying with us during the summers in Georgia.  Tyson and I had always prayed for her and her family.  We never knew where the Lord would take our relationship.

In August of 2007, Shataria's mom called us and said that she needed to get Shataria out of the environment she was in or she was going to end up ruining her life.  So we were overjoyed to say yes.  Shataria has lived with us for four years now!  She spends Christmas and the summer with her mom and her siblings.  They love her very much.  She is an amazing young woman who hopes to be a dental hygenist one day.  WE love love her and consider her one of our own.

To our Queen B, We hope you had a wonderful birthday. 

Colossians 3:17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.