Less than a week after our BIG announcement and Satan has already made his opinion known.
He.Does.NOT.Like.It.
He is VERY loud with his opinion as well. He knows everything that I do that gets on Daniel's nerves and vice versa. Not only does Satan know, but he ramped up the "get on each other's last nerve" button to a 10. And it feels like the switch was turned on literally overnight.
At first, we found it rather annoying since we were having difficulties in accurately portraying our thoughts. I mean who enjoys miscommunication and misunderstanding? We sure don't!
Then we started thinking about it on a deeper level. Satan's involvement in this adoption only validates that this is exactly where God wants us to be. God has and continues to send us numerous signs spelling out, plain as day, that adoption is His current plan for us. Now that we have vocalized it, it's Satan's turn to have his hand in the plan the Lord has called us to do.
But why should we be frustrated that we are having these problems? We shouldn't! Matthew 5:10 states "Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." First we are called to follow God's plan for our lives. Then, we will endure persecution. Persecution is how we know that we are in God's will. God didn't promise us an easy life, but He promised us a fulfilled life. (John 10:10) What more could we need?
Family and friends, thank you for your prayers, and we ask that you continue to pray for us. More specifically, please pray for Satan's attack on our lives. Pray for strength to overcome any hardships and for Daniel and me to immediately recognize that any hardship is Satan's work. Pray that we continue to keep our "eyes on the prize" (the prize being able to bring home our precious little child).
The journey is long, but we are confident that God is in control. Without His blessing, none of this would be possible! (Mark 10:27)
So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 2 Corinthians 4:18
Friday, December 13, 2013
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
Why Adoption? (the Daniel edition)
As written by Daniel...
First and foremost I would like to thank everyone who has given their support to Leslie and me these past few days. Your promise for prayers, your support financially, and your kind words mean more to the two of us than you will ever know.
I told Leslie that I felt like I needed to write a blog post to clear up some of the more common questions we’ve gotten either directly or indirectly since going public with our decision to adopt. (For those who know me, know me writing a “blog” is out of my comfort zone. I would first like to apologize for any grammar or spelling mistakes. We all know Leslie will be in charge of helping with homework in the future.) I wanted to reassure everyone that adoption was something that God has truly put on BOTH of our hearts. Look, I get it. You research “adoption” on the internet and all you see is these lil’ blogs with pretty colors and fancy pictures of their children in fields of flowers for miles to see. The Adoption World is not marketed towards the male world. You might be one to think adoption and then get a picture in your head of mother flying half way around the world to follow her dream of adopting a child. To that I say for every mother you think of there is a father who is just as fired up about adopting as his wife.
Isaiah 1:17 says “Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.” I love this verse. “Take up the cause of the fatherless.” What a powerful declaration for everyone to try and follow. Some might argue that it has taken Leslie and me five years to figure out that God isn’t referring to dogs in this passage.
I know Leslie and I both feel strongly about adoption, but for this post, I am only speaking for myself. I have never felt so fired up to do something than to adopt this child from China. I understand from the outside looking in what it might look like for a couple who has no children to travel halfway across the world to adopt a child. Why in the world would they do that? Why don’t they have their own children first? Can they not have kids? Why not do a domestic adoption? I know you can’t hear my tone in this post but I want everyone to know I am not complaining about these questions. Questions like these are what help me share my faith with people, my testimony. Adoption is something Leslie and I have talked about even before we were married; we just didn’t know when it would happen.
Leslie and I would love to one day have biological children of our own. Leslie has been asked the question “Can you not have kids?” I don’t want anyone to think that this is what our adoption is about. So to go ahead and put it out there, to be honest, we don’t know. We don’t have kids, but we weren’t trying to either. Would it make some feel better if we got “tested” to see if we can or not just to help ease your mind? Let's not be silly.
When I say God has put on our hearts to adopt a child from China, I mean just that. This is something that we put in God’s hands through prayer making sure this was the path He wanted for us, and He has continued to show us sign after sign along with opening up doors that we thought were closed. God has presented an opportunity to not only adopt a child from China, but a special needs child. WHAT. A. BLESSING.
God is truly working in the lives of Leslie and me. I feel like I should ask this question to anyone reading this blog. What is God asking of you? Is there something that you feel God is putting on your heart but you are afraid because the task seems too large? Too often I make my problems seem so large and my God so small. There is NOTHING He cannot help you do or get you through. (Phil 4:19) I would love for anyone reading this to be glad that God is asking you to do something. Is there any better job then to do work for His glory?
When I was in boot camp in the Navy, we had a final inspection to do. A higher-ranking sailor would inspect each recruit at attention on their uniform, making sure that recruits were “squared away”. When the senior chief got to me, she took her index finger and raised my chin up a little higher in the air and then asked me “Todd, are you proud?”. It wasn’t until then that I truly realized about what it meant to be a sailor in the world’s greatest Navy. I think God does that with me sometimes. Am I proud of Him? Do people see Christ when they look at me? (Matthew 5:16)
I say all that to say I am beyond thrilled on what God is doing our lives. Please take heart and know that this is HIS plan, not ours. I hope everyone continues to pray and support us on this journey. Love y’all!
I say all that to say I am beyond thrilled on what God is doing our lives. Please take heart and know that this is HIS plan, not ours. I hope everyone continues to pray and support us on this journey. Love y’all!
Sunday, December 8, 2013
one of many to come (the fundraiser edition)
First and foremost, let me start off by saying thank you for the overwhelming love, support, and kind words that you expressed to us about our upcoming adoption. We are so blessed to have family and friends such as you. You'll tire of our saying that we are super excited about what God has in store for our growing family, from 2 to 3! (or really from 5 to 6 if you include our dogs) We recognize that God is doing wonderful things in and through us so we do not take this calling lightly. With that being said, let our first fundraiser begin!!!
We are giving away tickets for your chance to win this incredible camera. Daniel and I will draw for the winning ticket on January 1st, 2014 so there isn't much time for your to claim your tickets.
Ticket Prices
1 ticket for $20
2 tickets for $35
3 tickets for $50
Let us know if you are interested in purchasing more than 3 tickets.
How It Works
Upon receipt of your donation (either through our donation website, cash, or check), we will text or email you a copy of your ticket(s). Then on January 1st, we will video (aka GoPro) the drawing and post the results in a blog post and text/email the winner.
Please let us know if you have any questions concerning this fundraiser opportunity. We look forward to January 1st when a winner will be announced!
The Go Pro Drawing
Up for grabs is a brand new Go Pro Hero 3 Black Edition (retail $400). This High-Def camera includes built-in Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi remote, assorted mounts and hardware, rechargeable Li-ion battery, and waterproof housing. This camera is wonderful to use for extreme sports or just regular everyday activities (such as telling everyone you are adopting). We have a Go Pro just like this one that we used to film our Hawaii trip, and it was wonderful! It is compact in size, which makes filming and picture-taking easy. 
We are giving away tickets for your chance to win this incredible camera. Daniel and I will draw for the winning ticket on January 1st, 2014 so there isn't much time for your to claim your tickets.
Ticket Prices
1 ticket for $20
2 tickets for $35
3 tickets for $50
Let us know if you are interested in purchasing more than 3 tickets.
How It Works
Upon receipt of your donation (either through our donation website, cash, or check), we will text or email you a copy of your ticket(s). Then on January 1st, we will video (aka GoPro) the drawing and post the results in a blog post and text/email the winner.
Please let us know if you have any questions concerning this fundraiser opportunity. We look forward to January 1st when a winner will be announced!
Saturday, December 7, 2013
anchored in faith
As I mentioned in the last blog post, Daniel and I got plugged back into church after coming back from Hawaii. After the post-Hawaii blues, we felt that we needed that extra "pick me up" on a weekly basis. Prior to getting back on a regular Sunday morning routine, we finally felt it was time to sponsor a child through World Vision. We have felt the calling to sponsor a child for several years and it was time to stop saying and start doing. We found the most precious little girl in India who was born on our wedding day. She has become such an inspiration to us. In fact, we feel like she is our own child, only half a world away.
Our first Sunday back to church was a doozy of a day. Satan was trying everything in his power to keep us from attending that service. To start things off, we were late, which caused us not to find a parking spot at the church campus. We were headed out when we overheard a parking attendant mention to another car that there was a van picking up the overflow at a nearby lot. Luckily, we found a spot and were able to finally make it to the service. Since we were about 15-20 minutes late, there were no seats in the main auditorium. We were ushered to sit in the lobby to watch the service on a couple of tv's setup there. The ushers brought in chairs for everyone to sit on, but there were so many people that there was only 1 chair for me. Daniel ended up standing for about 10-15 minutes until an usher found another chair for him.
Upon the start of the sermon, Pastor Chris talked about the importance of giving, but not just of your money, but of your time. He mentioned several ways for the church to get plugged in and give of their time around the city. It wasn't until his last point that Daniel and I realized exactly why we were called to go to church on that particular day and why Satan had tried everything in his power to stop us from going. And Satan almost succeeded, because I was this close to telling Daniel let's leave since he didn't have a chair and listening to a sermon in the lobby of a church is rather distracting. I am so glad that we stayed. It was in that moment that Pastor Chris started talking about foster care through Lifeline Children's Services and how the church was going to hold a meeting for the church body for those who felt lead to foster a child. God has called us to give our time, money, and, most importantly, love to a child who isn't as fortunate as we are to have grown up with loving parents.
And so it was settled...
Daniel and I are excited to share that we are adopting a child from China. Isaiah 43:5 states "Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west." There have been many signs throughout my life (prior to knowing Daniel) where I knew adoption was in my future. When Daniel and I were married, we had talked about adoption and felt God leading us in that direction. At that time, we felt we would have a biological child before God called us to take action on this decision, but God works in mysterious ways. With that being said, at this point in time, a biological child is not His plan, at least not right now.
Every child up for adoption through Lifeline Children's Services is a special needs child. These special needs range from minor, correctable needs to severe needs. As you can imagine, this was not an easy decision to make. Adopting a child is hard enough, but a special needs child too? As scary and unsure as we were about adopting a child with special needs, the greater the peace we had that this was a part of His plan. Daniel and I know without a shout of doubt that there is a child who is/will be in an orphanage in China who needs us to love, teach, develop, nurture, and care for him/her. Honestly, I get teary-eyed every time I think about it.
Since returning from Hawaii and attending that one church service, God has sent us daily signs to point us to adoption. Did you know that November is National Adoption month? Neither did we, but we found out after we made the decision that adoption was our calling. Upon our decision, we youtubed other families' adoption stories and one video clip caught my eye. The family was standing at the place in China where you meet your child for the first time (I forget the name of the place, but it happens on "Gotcha Day"). It was then I remembered a dream that I had a few years ago........ Daniel and I were standing in that exact place waiting to receive our Chinese daughter. And where, you may ask, was our daughter during this dream? She was the one running around, acting like a crazy kid. As soon as I saw that place on the youtube video, I told Daniel that I had dreamed of that place before. And in the dream we were there to adopt our Chinese daughter, which is how I knew that China was our calling.
I could go on for the next hour or two recalling signs that Daniel and I have experienced within the last month about God pointing us to adoption. We are beyond thrilled to share this with you! In the coming days, weeks, months, and year, we will covet your prayers. It isn't going to be an easy road and Satan has already started his work in distracting us from where our focus needs to be. Please pray for guidance, direction, boldness to obey, open hearts, and peace about this journey. I don't think it would be normal if Daniel and I weren't a bit anxious about this process, but we are trusting in the One will never leave nor forsake us.
Along with your prayers for us, please pray about how God can use you to help support us: with words, letters/emails, and even financially. We don't want this to turn into a plea for money, because that is not the primary focus of this adoption journey. However, the means to the end result requires money and a lot of it. The total cost of this adoption is close to $35,000 for the fees and travel expenses as outlined by Lifeline's website. This amount doesn't even include the items needed once the child arrives: clothes, furniture, diapers, toys, etc (all of which are dependent on the child's age). Throughout the coming year, Daniel and I will announce various opportunities for you to give through fundraisers, auctions, raffles, etc. If you would like to participate in any of these areas and give of your talents/time/fundraising skills, please let me know. We would like for you to be a part of the journey in raising money rather than just writing a check. Support is key!
For those of you who are called to give, first we thank you. Without people like you, we will not be able to bring our child home. Please visit our fundraiser website to donate: Anchored in Faith. No amount is too small.
Even though our journey has just started, God has already started to teach us to trust Him fully. During our initial call with our socal worker, we found out that our first payment of $2,775 is due in just a few days. Luckily, we have a couple of months before the second payment of $2,775 is due so that was a semi-relief. However, she asked if this first payment was going to be a problem. I told her that it wouldn't be, because God will provide, but we are next to nothing in our adoption fund. This is when the real test of trusting God comes into play.
Again, huge THANK YOU to you for supporting us through this journey. We look forward to sharing it with each of you!
"For though I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit and delight to see how disciplined you are and how firm your faith in Christ is." Colossians 2:5
Our first Sunday back to church was a doozy of a day. Satan was trying everything in his power to keep us from attending that service. To start things off, we were late, which caused us not to find a parking spot at the church campus. We were headed out when we overheard a parking attendant mention to another car that there was a van picking up the overflow at a nearby lot. Luckily, we found a spot and were able to finally make it to the service. Since we were about 15-20 minutes late, there were no seats in the main auditorium. We were ushered to sit in the lobby to watch the service on a couple of tv's setup there. The ushers brought in chairs for everyone to sit on, but there were so many people that there was only 1 chair for me. Daniel ended up standing for about 10-15 minutes until an usher found another chair for him.
Upon the start of the sermon, Pastor Chris talked about the importance of giving, but not just of your money, but of your time. He mentioned several ways for the church to get plugged in and give of their time around the city. It wasn't until his last point that Daniel and I realized exactly why we were called to go to church on that particular day and why Satan had tried everything in his power to stop us from going. And Satan almost succeeded, because I was this close to telling Daniel let's leave since he didn't have a chair and listening to a sermon in the lobby of a church is rather distracting. I am so glad that we stayed. It was in that moment that Pastor Chris started talking about foster care through Lifeline Children's Services and how the church was going to hold a meeting for the church body for those who felt lead to foster a child. God has called us to give our time, money, and, most importantly, love to a child who isn't as fortunate as we are to have grown up with loving parents.
And so it was settled...
Daniel and I are excited to share that we are adopting a child from China. Isaiah 43:5 states "Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west." There have been many signs throughout my life (prior to knowing Daniel) where I knew adoption was in my future. When Daniel and I were married, we had talked about adoption and felt God leading us in that direction. At that time, we felt we would have a biological child before God called us to take action on this decision, but God works in mysterious ways. With that being said, at this point in time, a biological child is not His plan, at least not right now.
Every child up for adoption through Lifeline Children's Services is a special needs child. These special needs range from minor, correctable needs to severe needs. As you can imagine, this was not an easy decision to make. Adopting a child is hard enough, but a special needs child too? As scary and unsure as we were about adopting a child with special needs, the greater the peace we had that this was a part of His plan. Daniel and I know without a shout of doubt that there is a child who is/will be in an orphanage in China who needs us to love, teach, develop, nurture, and care for him/her. Honestly, I get teary-eyed every time I think about it.
Since returning from Hawaii and attending that one church service, God has sent us daily signs to point us to adoption. Did you know that November is National Adoption month? Neither did we, but we found out after we made the decision that adoption was our calling. Upon our decision, we youtubed other families' adoption stories and one video clip caught my eye. The family was standing at the place in China where you meet your child for the first time (I forget the name of the place, but it happens on "Gotcha Day"). It was then I remembered a dream that I had a few years ago........ Daniel and I were standing in that exact place waiting to receive our Chinese daughter. And where, you may ask, was our daughter during this dream? She was the one running around, acting like a crazy kid. As soon as I saw that place on the youtube video, I told Daniel that I had dreamed of that place before. And in the dream we were there to adopt our Chinese daughter, which is how I knew that China was our calling.
I could go on for the next hour or two recalling signs that Daniel and I have experienced within the last month about God pointing us to adoption. We are beyond thrilled to share this with you! In the coming days, weeks, months, and year, we will covet your prayers. It isn't going to be an easy road and Satan has already started his work in distracting us from where our focus needs to be. Please pray for guidance, direction, boldness to obey, open hearts, and peace about this journey. I don't think it would be normal if Daniel and I weren't a bit anxious about this process, but we are trusting in the One will never leave nor forsake us.
Along with your prayers for us, please pray about how God can use you to help support us: with words, letters/emails, and even financially. We don't want this to turn into a plea for money, because that is not the primary focus of this adoption journey. However, the means to the end result requires money and a lot of it. The total cost of this adoption is close to $35,000 for the fees and travel expenses as outlined by Lifeline's website. This amount doesn't even include the items needed once the child arrives: clothes, furniture, diapers, toys, etc (all of which are dependent on the child's age). Throughout the coming year, Daniel and I will announce various opportunities for you to give through fundraisers, auctions, raffles, etc. If you would like to participate in any of these areas and give of your talents/time/fundraising skills, please let me know. We would like for you to be a part of the journey in raising money rather than just writing a check. Support is key!
For those of you who are called to give, first we thank you. Without people like you, we will not be able to bring our child home. Please visit our fundraiser website to donate: Anchored in Faith. No amount is too small.
Even though our journey has just started, God has already started to teach us to trust Him fully. During our initial call with our socal worker, we found out that our first payment of $2,775 is due in just a few days. Luckily, we have a couple of months before the second payment of $2,775 is due so that was a semi-relief. However, she asked if this first payment was going to be a problem. I told her that it wouldn't be, because God will provide, but we are next to nothing in our adoption fund. This is when the real test of trusting God comes into play.
Again, huge THANK YOU to you for supporting us through this journey. We look forward to sharing it with each of you!
"For though I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit and delight to see how disciplined you are and how firm your faith in Christ is." Colossians 2:5
Sunday, December 1, 2013
the trip of a lifetime
Did you hear? Daniel and I spent 2 weeks back in September in beautiful Hawaii with my sister and brother-in-law. Sissy and Josh are currently stationed on Oahu at Schofield Barracks until June 2015. Let me just say: I do NOT feel bad for their living there especially since it is so beautiful!
The weeks leading up to our trip felt just like any other time, nothing extraoradinary. I don’t think it truly sunk in that I was headed to Hawaii until we were about 3 hours into our last flight over the Pacific from LAX headed to Honolulu. At this point, I was ready to be off the plane and not sandwiched between Daniel and a stranger, which was the story of the 2 of the 3 flights for that day. I spent the evening before our departure cleaning and packing so I didn’t get much sleep…maybe 2 hours sleep? Daniel’s dad drove us to the airport around 3:30AM in order to catch our 5:30AM flight to Chicago from Birmingham. Then it was Chicago to LAX and LAX to Honolulu. We landed around 3:45PM Hawaii time, which was 8:45PM Birmingham time. Yes, over 15 hours of traveling is exhausting.
When we landed, we hustled it to baggage claim to meet Sis. (Josh was back at the house cooking hamburgers. Yum!) It was a sweet reunion, and I wish we had a few more minutes during that time to cry and hug before Daniel corralled us to get our bags. Fifteen months is a long time for Sis and me to not see each other. We were each other’s best friends. We are just 18 months and 13 days a part so I never really remember a time in my life when I was the only child. Living so far away from her has been really hard on me. It wasn’t until after we had flown back home and got back into our daily routine that I began to notice just how great our two weeks in Hawaii really were.
I say this to everyone who asks me how Hawaii was. It was absolutely indescribably amazing and for Daniel and me to spend it with Josh and Sissy, it truly was a trip of a lifetime. Now, it wouldn’t be a Brindley girls’ gathering if there wasn’t an argument or two, because hey, that’s what sisters do. However, there were a lot of laughs, sweating (especially from the “30 minute” hike that turned into 2.5 hours!), picture-taking, shopping, eating (galore! Daniel and I each gained 10 pounds while we were there and not from Sissy’s cooking), and the list goes on. Daniel and I were blessed to see our 50th state like most wouldn’t be able to. We went on a few hikes, line-danced, swam with a dolphin and sharks, paid our respects to the ones who made the ultimate sacrifice on 12/7/1941, surfed the Pacific, attended a luau, and so many more things that I can’t think of right now. We experienced Hawaii like a true local.
Our Hawaii trip taught me more about myself than I have learned since my college days. There are things and certain situations that arise in life where time is the only answer. I’ve always been a person to “fix” things especially things that I could control. God taught me that there is a whole world to see, explore, and discover and I am wasting time by trying to control things that He has already taken care of. He has a plan for my life, which is not a life of worry. Psalm 37:8 says “do not fret- it leads only to evil”. As soon as I read that verse, I almost fell out of my chair. I’ve always heard that worrying is calling God a liar, because I am not fully trusting Him. But to read that verse about worrying leads to evil…wow! That got my attention.
Not only was this trip a self-discovery trip for Leslie, but Daniel and I learned so much about each other and our marriage. I’ve always known that he is the rock, but this trip exemplified it that much more. He pushed me to do things out of my comfort zone and I think I surprised him by doing things that I normally wouldn’t do without his asking. And after we made the long trek back home, he was still there to help me through my post-Hawaii trip depression. As silly as it sounds, I had a rough time getting back to feeling like myself after our trip. For about 2 weeks, I was not my usual "Leslie" self. After days of soul searching, I realized that I was suffering from post-Hawaii trip blues. It was hard to leave a vacation of that magnitude and come back home to our "simple" life again. It was then that Daniel and I decided to get plugged into a church. And that is when the next chapter of our life started to take off…
The weeks leading up to our trip felt just like any other time, nothing extraoradinary. I don’t think it truly sunk in that I was headed to Hawaii until we were about 3 hours into our last flight over the Pacific from LAX headed to Honolulu. At this point, I was ready to be off the plane and not sandwiched between Daniel and a stranger, which was the story of the 2 of the 3 flights for that day. I spent the evening before our departure cleaning and packing so I didn’t get much sleep…maybe 2 hours sleep? Daniel’s dad drove us to the airport around 3:30AM in order to catch our 5:30AM flight to Chicago from Birmingham. Then it was Chicago to LAX and LAX to Honolulu. We landed around 3:45PM Hawaii time, which was 8:45PM Birmingham time. Yes, over 15 hours of traveling is exhausting.
When we landed, we hustled it to baggage claim to meet Sis. (Josh was back at the house cooking hamburgers. Yum!) It was a sweet reunion, and I wish we had a few more minutes during that time to cry and hug before Daniel corralled us to get our bags. Fifteen months is a long time for Sis and me to not see each other. We were each other’s best friends. We are just 18 months and 13 days a part so I never really remember a time in my life when I was the only child. Living so far away from her has been really hard on me. It wasn’t until after we had flown back home and got back into our daily routine that I began to notice just how great our two weeks in Hawaii really were.
I say this to everyone who asks me how Hawaii was. It was absolutely indescribably amazing and for Daniel and me to spend it with Josh and Sissy, it truly was a trip of a lifetime. Now, it wouldn’t be a Brindley girls’ gathering if there wasn’t an argument or two, because hey, that’s what sisters do. However, there were a lot of laughs, sweating (especially from the “30 minute” hike that turned into 2.5 hours!), picture-taking, shopping, eating (galore! Daniel and I each gained 10 pounds while we were there and not from Sissy’s cooking), and the list goes on. Daniel and I were blessed to see our 50th state like most wouldn’t be able to. We went on a few hikes, line-danced, swam with a dolphin and sharks, paid our respects to the ones who made the ultimate sacrifice on 12/7/1941, surfed the Pacific, attended a luau, and so many more things that I can’t think of right now. We experienced Hawaii like a true local.
Our Hawaii trip taught me more about myself than I have learned since my college days. There are things and certain situations that arise in life where time is the only answer. I’ve always been a person to “fix” things especially things that I could control. God taught me that there is a whole world to see, explore, and discover and I am wasting time by trying to control things that He has already taken care of. He has a plan for my life, which is not a life of worry. Psalm 37:8 says “do not fret- it leads only to evil”. As soon as I read that verse, I almost fell out of my chair. I’ve always heard that worrying is calling God a liar, because I am not fully trusting Him. But to read that verse about worrying leads to evil…wow! That got my attention.
Not only was this trip a self-discovery trip for Leslie, but Daniel and I learned so much about each other and our marriage. I’ve always known that he is the rock, but this trip exemplified it that much more. He pushed me to do things out of my comfort zone and I think I surprised him by doing things that I normally wouldn’t do without his asking. And after we made the long trek back home, he was still there to help me through my post-Hawaii trip depression. As silly as it sounds, I had a rough time getting back to feeling like myself after our trip. For about 2 weeks, I was not my usual "Leslie" self. After days of soul searching, I realized that I was suffering from post-Hawaii trip blues. It was hard to leave a vacation of that magnitude and come back home to our "simple" life again. It was then that Daniel and I decided to get plugged into a church. And that is when the next chapter of our life started to take off…
Saturday, November 9, 2013
time for change
Has it really been close to 2 years since my last post? I am slacking...majorly. Time for that to change.
Update:
Over the last 2 years our lives have changed drastically. The person to change the most between the 2 of us is Daniel. He has graduated from college (yay!), earned his Life and Health Insurance license (anyone need insurance?), had jaw surgery to correct his underbite (not fun at all), and led our family to where God is calling us to be. No, we aren't moving, but God is working in and through us.
Since coming back from Hawaii (yeah, did you hear we went to Hawaii for 2 weeks?!), we are starting to get plugged into a church. We aren't the type of people to just dive right in without fully "testing the waters" (so to speak) at the church we are currently attending. We want to make sure that this is where God wants us to be and He will be able to use us there to further the work for the Kingdom. More posts to come in the future about where and how God is starting to use us. I ask for your prayers for us during this time, mostly for clarity, doors to open, and bravery. Thank you for your prayers.
Until it's time to update again....
Update:
Over the last 2 years our lives have changed drastically. The person to change the most between the 2 of us is Daniel. He has graduated from college (yay!), earned his Life and Health Insurance license (anyone need insurance?), had jaw surgery to correct his underbite (not fun at all), and led our family to where God is calling us to be. No, we aren't moving, but God is working in and through us.
Since coming back from Hawaii (yeah, did you hear we went to Hawaii for 2 weeks?!), we are starting to get plugged into a church. We aren't the type of people to just dive right in without fully "testing the waters" (so to speak) at the church we are currently attending. We want to make sure that this is where God wants us to be and He will be able to use us there to further the work for the Kingdom. More posts to come in the future about where and how God is starting to use us. I ask for your prayers for us during this time, mostly for clarity, doors to open, and bravery. Thank you for your prayers.
Until it's time to update again....
Friday, December 23, 2011
10 years ago today
When you are a kid, you never think about your loved ones not being there. It's almost impossible to think about them being removed from this world, because they have always been there. You spend your Saturdays playing in the backyard constantly looking up at their backporch to see if one of them would come out. When they would, you would wave and hope there wouldn't be many questions. There was something about answering 20 questions about school/elementary school boyfriends/life in general that wasn't too appealing espcially on a Saturday.
And those mid-summer/mid-winter visits next door were the worst. Their house was either hotter than blazes or colder than the artic. It was non-stop talking about something that Sis and I couldn't understand. Most of it probably was about Auburn, football, or Auburn football. At the age of 7, I wasn't too interested in football talk. Not appealing...
Something else not appealing: pulling up to the bus stop in the afternoons looking to see if he was standing there to (yep, you guessed it) ask 20 questions and chit-chat for 5 minutes. Did he not understand? We were ready to get home to our snacks and cartoons. We couldn't miss The Rescue Rangers or Saved by the Bell reruns. We were on a strict afternoon schedule before homework had to be done. We didn't have 5 minutes to spare.
Now I would give up a lifetime of tv just to have 5 more minutes with him....
My first grandparent to pass away was my father's father. We called him Popa, but our (older) cousins called him Granddaddy. My dad is the baby of 3 with a brother 17 years older than him and a sister (who passed away in 1996 from leukemia) 11 years older than him. Needless to say, Sissy and I grew up on my dad's side without cousins around our age. Popa and my grandmother, Winnie, lived next door to us. Or rather we lived next door to them since we bought part of their land in the late '80s to build a house.
Growing up, Popa always wanted to see/talk to Sis and me. There was nothing about our lives that he didn't want to know about. Sadly and shamefully, we didn't pay him the time of day he deserved. It was a huge inconvenience to stop and talk. I think that is what I feel so guilty about now.
November 2001 Popa had surgery. Honestly, I can't even remember what type of surgery it was because it was so minor that everything was sure to be alright. I mean how life-threatening could a little surgery be to someone who was 83 and in tip-top shape? Well, the surgery itself was fine, but it was the sponge that was left inside of him that began the downward spiral. When we found out about the sponge, we initally thought something the size of a dish-washing sponge. After much questioning, the sponge was the size of a foot by foot (12" x 12'). Someone in the O.R. was not doing their job because all utensils and equipment had to be accounted for before he was sewn up. It's odd to think that the sponge was causing factor of what was to come. He developed pneumonia in one lung and then the other. He wasn't getting any better. He was put in the ICU. How life-threatening could this little surgery be?
I will never forget the call: Sunday, December 23rd roughly 5pm. Dad called Sis and me to meet him and Mom at the hospital, because he wasn't expected to make it much longer. No way, I thought. There is no way! It was just a sponge!
There was a whole room full of us there: cousins, my uncle, Mom, Dad, Sissy, my old youth minister, and others. We gathered around his bed and watched him breathe his last breath around 6:30pm on December 23rd, less than 2 days before Christmas.
I was a senior in high school and thought about my graduation without him. In early September, I was accepted to Auburn, which I was able to share with him. Popa was the biggest Auburn fan I knew (even bigger than my dad which is hard to believe if you know him) and I knew he was proud of my accomplishment. I think my degree from Auburn was my gift to him. I still regret my actions of ignoring him and not spending more time with him. Being a kid, you don't think about what the future holds, or who it doesn't hold.
Today on the 10th anniversary of his passing, I remember all of the good times we had. I wish I had more time, but that time will come again.
And those mid-summer/mid-winter visits next door were the worst. Their house was either hotter than blazes or colder than the artic. It was non-stop talking about something that Sis and I couldn't understand. Most of it probably was about Auburn, football, or Auburn football. At the age of 7, I wasn't too interested in football talk. Not appealing...
Something else not appealing: pulling up to the bus stop in the afternoons looking to see if he was standing there to (yep, you guessed it) ask 20 questions and chit-chat for 5 minutes. Did he not understand? We were ready to get home to our snacks and cartoons. We couldn't miss The Rescue Rangers or Saved by the Bell reruns. We were on a strict afternoon schedule before homework had to be done. We didn't have 5 minutes to spare.
Now I would give up a lifetime of tv just to have 5 more minutes with him....
My first grandparent to pass away was my father's father. We called him Popa, but our (older) cousins called him Granddaddy. My dad is the baby of 3 with a brother 17 years older than him and a sister (who passed away in 1996 from leukemia) 11 years older than him. Needless to say, Sissy and I grew up on my dad's side without cousins around our age. Popa and my grandmother, Winnie, lived next door to us. Or rather we lived next door to them since we bought part of their land in the late '80s to build a house.
Growing up, Popa always wanted to see/talk to Sis and me. There was nothing about our lives that he didn't want to know about. Sadly and shamefully, we didn't pay him the time of day he deserved. It was a huge inconvenience to stop and talk. I think that is what I feel so guilty about now.
November 2001 Popa had surgery. Honestly, I can't even remember what type of surgery it was because it was so minor that everything was sure to be alright. I mean how life-threatening could a little surgery be to someone who was 83 and in tip-top shape? Well, the surgery itself was fine, but it was the sponge that was left inside of him that began the downward spiral. When we found out about the sponge, we initally thought something the size of a dish-washing sponge. After much questioning, the sponge was the size of a foot by foot (12" x 12'). Someone in the O.R. was not doing their job because all utensils and equipment had to be accounted for before he was sewn up. It's odd to think that the sponge was causing factor of what was to come. He developed pneumonia in one lung and then the other. He wasn't getting any better. He was put in the ICU. How life-threatening could this little surgery be?
I will never forget the call: Sunday, December 23rd roughly 5pm. Dad called Sis and me to meet him and Mom at the hospital, because he wasn't expected to make it much longer. No way, I thought. There is no way! It was just a sponge!
There was a whole room full of us there: cousins, my uncle, Mom, Dad, Sissy, my old youth minister, and others. We gathered around his bed and watched him breathe his last breath around 6:30pm on December 23rd, less than 2 days before Christmas.
I was a senior in high school and thought about my graduation without him. In early September, I was accepted to Auburn, which I was able to share with him. Popa was the biggest Auburn fan I knew (even bigger than my dad which is hard to believe if you know him) and I knew he was proud of my accomplishment. I think my degree from Auburn was my gift to him. I still regret my actions of ignoring him and not spending more time with him. Being a kid, you don't think about what the future holds, or who it doesn't hold.
Today on the 10th anniversary of his passing, I remember all of the good times we had. I wish I had more time, but that time will come again.
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