But You Said It Was Spring!

This week I've been reading the book Orphanology by Tony Merida and Rick Morton.  It's about awakening Christians to Gospel-centered adoption and orphan care.  Here's a quote, "Traveling to another country to adopt is one thing, but for God to leave heaven for earth and adopt sinners is an act of amazing grace."  Adoption is the heart of God the Father, after all He adopted us!  

But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman,

born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that

we might receive adoption as sons.  And because you are sons, God has sent the 

Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" So you are no longer

a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.

Galatians 4:4-7

School?  Yes, school!

 Everyday I find Andrii reading his book for school curled up on my bed.  It's precious to me.  The other day I walked in to find Jordan and Slava quietly (yes, amazingly enough, quietly) laying on my bed while Andrii was reading.  He wasn't reading to them, he was just reading and they were in there with him.  I couldn't resist taking a picture.

Teacher Kerri and Student Slava!

 Kerri coming 3 days each week is a huge blessing.  On those days I set out Slava's school work, so Kerri can do it with him.  Sshhhh  don't tell her, but I'm secretly training her so she'll be all set to home school my grandchildren!

Open Wide!

 Jordan went with me to run some errands one day and insisted we go out to lunch.  He knows of this little diner in town where several folks he knows often eat lunch. He was hoping to see "some of the guys."  Jordan lucked out because his Uncle Mark and cousin Cody were just finishing up their lunch.  We enjoyed some burgers and when I went to pay the waitress said Mark had paid the bill.  That's not the first time he's paid for my lunch!  I was blessed.

Say, "Snap Chat"!

 Anna has this thingy on her I-Touch called Snap Chat.  Apparently you take a picture and add some words and send it to your friends.  She's always bugging Curtis to Snap Chat with her and he tells her "no."  Her persistence paid off last night and he took this pic of himself, sent it to her, and then deleted her from his Snap Chat.  Lovely big brother.  I had her email the pic to me so I could get even by posting it on the blog.  So there you have it!

Home School Shenanigans!

The other day Slava was in this mode of collecting items.  He kept going out to the garage and bringing back in the house various items.  On this trip he dragged in a golf bag cart.  Here Sierra is giving him a ride on it.  While I type this Sierra is in bed sick with the stomach bug.  I woke up at 4:30am to the sound of...never mind, I'll spare you the details.  Now it's almost noon, she's running a fever, and has swiftly visited the bathroom several times.  A couple times she's not quite made it.  Poor thing.

This week, even though this was supposed to be my "no appt week," I had a doctor's appt for a physical and our home school group started bi-weekly spring co-op classes.  Over all it was a pretty good week.

Here are some more thoughts from Orphanology:
Adoption involves purposeful planning - to adopt our kids we had to do tons of paperwork, prepare our home, etc....God's adoption of us wasn't a sudden Plan B idea after all,

Even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world,

that we should be holy and blameless before him.  In love He

predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ,

according to the purpose of His will.

Ephesians 1:4-5

Adoption is costly - International adoption is ridiculously expensive.  While in Ukraine for Slava's adoption I often felt like we were all being held for ransom.  At times we were willing to pay anything to just get home (4 weeks in a foreign country can do that to you)!  In the end with all of our expenses, paperwork, travel, lodging, food, adoption fees, "expediting fees" it cost us around $30,000.  It cost us about the same 5 years earlier to bring home 3 kids!  But that's nothing compared to what it cost our Father to adopt us.  It cost Him the blood of His own Son.  There are so many more links between humans adopting humans and God adopting humans.  Adoption saves children from terrible situations.  Out of God's grace and mercy,  He brought us out of our terrible situations into a relationship with Him through the blood of Christ (Gal. 4:1-7).  And so on.  I'll share more in my next post.  

Now I'm off to stock up on ginger ale.  I really hope this sickness doesn't spread through the whole house!