Lamsam Family Adventures

Merry Merry Christmas

2011-12-26T18:24:00.000-08:00

It is almost impossible for me to believe that Christmas has once again come and gone. I know I am the worlds worst blogger, but one of my resolutions for 2012 is to be more present in life and communicate more with those I care about. So, why not start now.

2011 in a quick look back

January - celebrated the new year at home and then spent the better part of the month buried in work. Everything else seems to come to a stop during January when work gets hectic. We tend to drop out of sight while I get my work done and Paul maintains the kids lives as best he can while working 2nd shift.

February/March/April - sorry to report no fun winter getaways, but it was a nice month work was much slower, the kids enjoyed school and their activities. We spent a bit of time with my family as they live so close. March brought the 1st anniversary of the death of Paul's brother Steve and the 2nd of my grandpas death. Those are tough days for sure, but we were able lean on God and our faith carried us through. Steves' family is doing well, it's tough for them at times, but they are moving forward as best they can. The best thing that happened was in April Paul accepted a new job and moved to Cummins Electric in Fridley. He works in logistics and is enjoying the change. He was still on nights, but now had his weekends free, which was a wonderful change for us all.

May - I took a trip to San Francisco with the kids and my cousin and her daughter. We stayed 5 days at my brothers river house in Sonoma and had a ball. We spent mothers day in San Francisco and touring and taking a harbor cruise. My Brother Lee and Ed treated us to a wonderful lunch and we were able to meet up wiht them again for dinner in sausalito. It was a truly wonderful day. The trip included time in Bodega Bay, inlcuding a stop at the beach where the filmed the birds. All the wonders San Fran has to offer and even a trip to old faithful, yes there is one in CA, I will say a bit cheasy, but the kids had a ball. The highlight of the trip was spending several hours in the ER one day to find out all 3 kids had strep. Okay that was not really the highlight but it was still interesting. Luckily they all felt well enough that night to take a drive into the redwoods, the views were breathtaking. It was a great trip, and one we hope to do more often.

June/July/August - Summer was upon us much quicker then you think it will be. The kids finished 1st grade and although sad to leave their teachers, were excited for vacation and to be 2nd graders. WE didn't get to any trips, but enjoyed our annual rib party at my parents. Where, we are once agreed Paul makes the best ribs around hands down. We enjoyed the Hudson fireworks with my brother David's family on their boat on the St. Croix. I was able to take some time off in August and although we didn't make it out of town, we visited, the zoo, waterpark, saw several movies, had an adventure day where we just went as the day took us and even saw a guy get arrested for shopping at target, that was an adventure all it's own.

September, the kids started back to school and Jacey started up again in girl scouts. She loves these girls in her troop, one of them lost their mom which was tough on the troop, but they have surrounded this girl with love and support which has made it easier for everyone. They also received 2 weeks of swim lessons in school, which turned jacey from a waterphobe into a water lover, she was jumping in the deep end at the end of the two weeks with no fear. the kids also started choir and orff at church again. With their love of music this has been a true gift for them.

October - we packed October with all sorts of fun, inlcuding a Monarch butterfly festival, trip to the raptor center, punkinmain, spookamaga and of course the annual trick or treating. The kids and I also got in a long weekend over MEA to David and Susans in Kansas. We rode down with my parents and had a ball including an early halloween part at Deanna Rose zoo. My mom mad all the costumes again, Alex was Russell from UP and Jacey was dorothy, and they were both cute as could be, but I may be a bit biased. We rounded out the month with some trick or treating and fun was had by all.

We ushered in November by celebrating our 16th wedding anniversary. The night was a blast and included dinner and a movie all with no kids present. That was a gift in itself. I sometimes cannot believe I have known Paul for over 17 years now and that we have shared 16 years of marriage. Like all marriages we like each other some days more than others, but continue to hold true to our vows and our truly enjoying being parents and watching the kids grow up.

We were able to head back to Kansas for Thanksgiving and my family was all together. WE had a wonderful thanksgiving dinner and relaxing day of fun and games. WE managed to get some shopping in on black Friday, and saw the new muppet movie. I do believe the adults enjoyed it more than the kids. That night we headed to the Plaza in Kansas City where a limo picked us up for a 2 hour lights tour followed by dinner at Bucca De Bepa. It was a great night and the kids got a kick out of their limo ride. As always the time went much too quickly, but a good time was had by all.

December has gone by in a blur, work has been busy, lots of holiday celebrations, concerts, school events, scouting outings and just fun. the best gift we got early in November, was Paul was moved to a day shift. For the 1st time in over 10 years paul and I are working the same shift. It's great for us to have the family time each evening and weekend and I am enjoying sharing the evening routine with him. Definitely takes off the pressure when I am busy.

So, here we are almost as 2012, and thinking of what may lie ahead this year. I have so much to be thankful for and not in any particular order, here are some of them.

My job which allows me to work from home and be here when my kids need me.

Paul working in his new job affording him more time with us.

Better financial security for us.

Jacey and Alex the two most wonderful children God could have blessed us with .

My family who are all healthy and active, especially my parents who take such an active role in our lives.

Paul's family, who although far away keep us close in their hearts. Paul's mom celebrated 86 this year and we are so grateful to have her around an that our children are able to know her.

A home filled with laughter and love, although there appears to be sibling bickering some days, we are truly blessed with a home to call our own to raise our children.

We look forward to the blessings and even challenges that lie ahead in 2012.

Of course no post of mine would be complete without a bit of time on my soapbox, so up I hop and here goes.

I have been thinking of politics and faith a lot lately and how closely they are linked. I know that this country was founded with the belief we should separate church and state, but I truly dont' want to live in a place where the people leading have no faith. Other countries clearly show what this can lead too. Having said that, I also know how important it is to lead without allowing ones faith to cloud their judgement on matters that greatly affect our country. I think about healthcare and how so many believe healthcare is some kind of privilege instead of a right. If that's true, then how do we decide who is privileged enough to received it. Should a parent ever have to decide between putting food on the table and getting medical attention fort their child. I have been a tax paying person since I was 16 years old and I believe I am entitled to affordable healthcare. I am very lucky to be covered under my company's policy, so i can take my children to the dr. when they are ill without worry over the cost. But, so many are not so fortunate, and for them my heart aches. I am SICK of the fighting and politicing over this issue. If the people that govern were forced to live on a public healthcare system, I think it would not take long for this issue to be resolved.

As we barrell into another election I fear what will happen to this country. I am afraid that politics have become so dirty and ugly that we are hard pressed to find the good in any candidate. I worry that people who don't have a clear educated view on issues will make rash decisions and elect people that do not have this countries best interest at heart. I also worry that I will not do a good job at making my voice heard and being a part of the solution and NOT the problem. I intend to get involved in the process this time around in a more active and purposeful way. But mostly I worry that people will not be able to set aside differences, meet in the middle and do what it best for ALL Americans, not just the one with the most money or the ones with the most influence. We all have a voice, use them, but also listen and have constructive discussions to help make educated decisions come election day.

Lastly as ask anyone who reads this to pray for those struggling right now. For those that need work to feed their children, or a home to keep them safe and dry. Pray for those who are sick, especially for my friend who has just celebrated her last Christmas and is preparing for the end of her journey on earth. Pray for those grieving the loss of someone that the new year brings them comfort and hope. But, mostly let us pray that we can remember to listen more, talk less and really be present in each others lives in a meaningful way.

Merry Christmas everyone, love joy and peace to you!!!

Helen

Christmas Joy

2010-12-28T23:29:00.000-08:00

I can't believe I haven't updated since the beginnig of the month, I wanted to write about our traditions, but that apparently went the way of most things this month. I dont' have tons of special traditions in my family, but we do Christmas right that's for sure. My mom and I each have wonderful friends, we have baked with for years and this year that was shot down by weather and busy schedules, so that one was out. But, we managed to hold onto the actual Christmas traditions.

Christmas at my parents is well, perfect. Their house is beautifully deocrated, including cute little lit christmas trees through out the house even in the main bathroom. It's my favorite time of year to be at their house. We attend church at St. Andrews, and the last two years have gone early to hear our kids sing in Choristers. It was a great services this year and the kids sang their little hearts out. Then back to the folks for a huge scandanavian dinner of norwegian meatballs, ham, potatoes, lefsa, swedish rye bread, rice pudding (with one almond for good luck in the year to the recipient) and this year we added rutabaga a family favorite, it was wonderfully delicious. I look forward to this meal all year long, it's not the food, but the feeling of that meal and the quiet of the time together. No one rushing to eat adn get somewhere, no tv's commitments, just being in the moment together as a family and creating memories.

The rest of the evening was busy with kids getting to sleep even with all the excitement and then of course the business of getting all the gifts under the tree and filling the stockings. I actually got to bed by midnight and was able to get some good rest, a first for me since we had kids. the morning brought the usual mayhem of gifts, this is quite exciting with 12 people including 4 kids ages 6, 6, 7 and 8. Jacey had almost more fun helping my dad open gifts as she did opening her own. The kids were thrilled with everything, and the adults enjoyed their gifts and the joy of watching the kids. It's great to be in a room full or the sounds of oooh, ahhh, cool, awesome, and the thanks of a truly grateful child.

We then enjoyed a big breakfast, followed by a day full of snacking, soups, games and some good family time. We played a new game called spot it, I HIGHLY recommend this game, you can play with most any ages of kids and it's really for the adults too. WE mad homemade wild rice soup and taco soup. They were both delicious and of course had a buffet of other fun foods to munch on during the day and evening.

I love Christmas day, with no where to be, and the kids loved spending the day in their PJ's playing with new toys and putting together the pieces of the lego sets. There are some pretty cool lego creations out there for kids.

Sunday we had my dad's family over there for our Sutherland Christmas. We played a rousing round of the dice game, with gift stealing. It's always fun to see which items become the thing to have. This year it was stuffed snowmen and miller light glasses. We could also give our items away this year, which also was a lot of fun. You just never know what you will end up with during those games.

As much fun as all the gift giving and activities were, the real joy for me is just being in the moments. Christmas eve is my favorite service of the year. The music, the message and all the people are a wonderful inspiring combination. The earlier services at St. Andrews are geared for families, so the sermon is very kid friendly. This year the message was about the meaning of Christmas and the birth of Christ as told in the song Oh Holy Night. A woman sang versus of this song throughout the sermon, it was moving and I sat there with chills.

I know Christmas is very commercial and a lot of people focus on getting what they want, spending money, getting that must have item. So, it's easy to forget why we are actually celebrating. I am hoping my kids learn a little more each year about what's really important on Christmas Day and why it is so important to our faith.

As a woman who cannnot and have a baby, I am in awe of the whole birth experience. I am obsessed with friends pregnancies and love to hear the details. So, I can only imagine what it must have been like for Mary, this young girl, to have gone through that process in a stable with all it's unique sounds and smells. It must have been terrifying and joyful all at the same time. I can just imagine those last moments before he was born, then holding him for the first time. What a great moment made even better by the knowledge that this birth was God's true child and the anticipation of what that would mean for the world. Maybe in those moments those thoughts were not even with Mary. Maybe she was caught up in the joy and beauty of her first child. Maybe she was exhausted and overwhelmed. I guess those details are not important. But, thinking of the way we have babies now, in a hospital full of people ready to jump in at the 1st sign of trouble, makes you really admire women over the years and what they experienced just giving birth to a child let alone raising them to adulthood.

So, there sat Mary and Joseph there were no cell phones to call their parents and friends. No digital cameras to record the blessed event and the 1st moments of Jesus's live. And yet, the news of this birth was spread, to shepherds and wiseman and a star was shining so bright to show the way to this child. What it must have been like to have been there and witness that blessed event. One can only wonder what the journey must have ben like for those that came to visit and meet this child.

Today we remembe this event and celebrate what it meant for us. Really it's the crux of our faith, because the birth of this child put into motions that events that would lead to his death, resurrection and ultimately our salvation. I have had people of different faiths tell me, well Jesus wasn't even born in December, so why celebrate. Seriously? We celebrate lots of things even though we dont' know the exact day. I mean do we know for sure it was a thursday that the pilgrims and indians sat down to a meal together. I am certain none of them got up early the next morning to head to Best Buy for some door busters. I don't know with 100% certainty of the days my children were born. But I celebrate with them on the days they gave them in China. It doens't matter if it was actually that day, it's just the day we get to celebrate them, their life and the blessings they bring to our lives.

For me this is what is important of Christmas. Not that I know this is the actual day Jesus was born in a stable, but the fact that he was born, lived and died for us is what matters. I wish eveyone could feel the joy I feel during this seaon. A joy that has nothing to do with gifts, cookies, egg nog or mistltoe, but the true joy of that birth so many years ago. A birth that changed the world, and gave us a gift no one can ever top. Unending love, grace and the promise of eternal life. No, toy, electronic gadget, cooking utensil, piece of clothing or jewelry could ever measure up to that first and most important gift.

May the Joy of Jesus's birth live within you and be with you always.

I will be back with New Years wishes. For now, though I will leave you with some Vacation pictures I finally downloaded.

Smiles & Sunshine,

Helen

At A Loss

2010-12-04T13:46:00.000-08:00

It's not often I am at a loss for words, but I have started this post three times over, and can't seem to decide what to write about today. I have worked hard at my job this week, the kids had school, it snowed and as usual I didn't get enough housework done. Last night Alex got to have a sleepover at my folks and Jacey and I went to see Tangled, loved the movie and especially the music. Beautiful snow fell last night, and we awoke to a winter wonderland. Unlike the last few inches, these are here to stay, it finally feels like Winter. I grumbled as I got up much earlier then usual, braved the cold, cleaned off my car and hit the icy roads at 7:00AM this morning. I have truly become spoiled with no commute.

We arrived at our destination and there was not another thought given to what it took to get there and the work invovled. You see Jacey and I helped at a fundraiser for a friend of hers battling cancer. Yes you read that's right, Jacey's friend has brain cancer. We volunteered and worked at a pancake breakfast to raise money for the family. Their church donated the space and donations were taken at the door to help the family with upcoming medical and living expenses. Jacey's friend is one of the spunkiest girls you could ever meet, and her spunkiness is only made better by how cute she is. We love having her around and her house was the firsts place Jacey ever had a big girl sleeopover with a friend I didn't really know. The family is a great family, with lots of love, faith and hope. This, of course, is a very trying time while their daughter goes through this battle. But, so far she is doing great, and they are very optimistic about the outcome and her future. When we found out about this a few weeks ago, I sat Jacey down to tell her. As hard as it was telling my 7 year old about her friend, I can't imagine telling your child when they are the ones going through it. Seeing her today, other than the lack of long hair, you would never know she is battling anything. 4 brain surgeries in the last few weeks, and she is as bubbly as usual. Jacey and her are no longer at the same school, but were happy to see each other today. We are hoping for a real playdate very soon.

It puts life in perspective to see a family being so joyful in the midst of such a trying time, and makes me realize how all my grumbling was so pointless this morning. After all this kid is going through, my early morning is NO BIG DEAL. I am not mentioning her name, as I have not asked to share her story or details, so I will keep that private, but I would ask if you are reading this to keep her and her family in your prayers. The surgeries were a success, chemo is hopefully over and she is now preparing for 6 1/2 weeks in FL for radiation. Hopefully that will be the end and she will recover and go on to live to be an old lady. I know God is gracing them wiht his love and healing presence, but I know the family will much appreciate any prayers you can offer up for them.

Once again I am updating without pictures, but will do a picture post this week.

Since I have your attention, I am going to do some writing about Christmas cooking and would love for you to share with me a favorite food, tradition or recipe. I am always looking for something new to try.

Smiles & Sunshine,
Helen

Giving Thanks

2010-11-29T16:36:00.000-08:00

This is the time of year we all like to take time and give thanks. sitting around our delicious turkey dinner on Thursday we took some time to all give thanks. The kids even chimed in, it's such a great way to reflect on our lives and truly focus on the good.

Paul's mom, Jeanne, was with us this year and we all celebrated at my parents. I sat there thinking what a tough year Jeanne had with losing her son Steve. But, even through these tough months she had so much to be thankful for. Listening to her speak, I realized how we so often focus on wants not needs. Especially this time of year with Black Friday, Cyber Monday and all the crazy ads, it's hard not to think about what we don't have. A friend of mine and i were talking recently and we was telling me that as working American's making over $25,000.00 per year we are in the top 5% worldwide in wealth. That really puts things in perspective that 95% of this worldl makes less than we consider poverty level and yet we are always wanting for more. We want the bigger house, newer car, latest gadgets, bigger TV and on and on.

Truthfully I am guilt of this as well. During Christmas I dream of all I want to give my kids, forgetting that we have what we need. We are blessed to have a lovely home, with heat and running water. Two cars that are reliable and keep us safe. We both have jobs and in this economy that is saying something. The kids have amazing teachers and are learning every day. We have food on our table, beds to sleep in and enough to have vacations, eat out sometimes and have entertainment. We are so richly blessed. We are by no means upper class, we don't have a money tree in the backyard. We work hard and have to watch our money, but in the end we have exactly what we need thanks to God's blessings and unlimited Grace and Love.

I am thankful for so much, it's hard to even list them all, but here are some of the top ones.

I am grateful for a mother 5 years cancer free. I have learned how to be a mom, a cook, a friend, a hostess and most importantly a good person thanks to her. My mom is oftent the first person I call with good or bad news and I value her opinion more than most. I am blessed for every day God gives me with her.
I am grateful for a father with unlimited support and love for me. He is my voice of reason, my moral compass, and the 1st man I ever loved. My dad has taught me to laugh often, right and wrong and most importantly that worrying never changes the outcome, so be happy and enjoy life. How blessed I am to have him as my dad for 42 years and counting.
I am grateful for my husband. Paul knows me better than anyone, and loves me just the same. He accepts me flaws and all and helps me to be more than I think I can be every day. He puts up with my moods, craziness and lack of organization these days. The day I married him was just the beginning of an amazing life.
I am grateful for my child. As a child my only goal was to be a mother, and never did I think it woudl happen this way. God managed to match me with 2 children that are a perfect fit in our family. How this happens is a true miracle and every day being their mother is a gift.
I am grateful for my friends. I have always had lots of friends, but the older I get the more I treasure my friendships that have real depth and substance to them. I have many good friends, that would be there for me rain or shine. There to laugh in the good times, pick me up when I am down, support during the times that feel unbearable and there to dry my tears. Without them my life would be just a little less great.

Of course I am also grateful for all my blessings, work, home, food, and alike. But, really the things I treasue do not have a pricetag, they are just the experiences, moments and memories of my life's journey. Those are the things at the end of my life I will reflect on and treasure.

So, we gave thanks, then stuffed our bellies with an abundance of good food and of course created some great memories along the way.

Jeanne stayed for several days and it was hard to see her go yesterday. Having her here is so much fun for us and a great opportunity to learn more about her and the life she has led. She is a facsinating person and if you ever have the chance to meet her, spend some time talking to her, you won't regret it. She is a wonderful story teller, a writer and champion cheerleader of all her children, and grandchildren.

Now on to the craziness of the holidays. Working on some new photos to be downloaded, so will update again soon.

Helen

A year in review

2010-11-06T22:08:00.000-07:00

It has now been over one year since I posted on this blog. But, I think of it all the time does that count? I just never seem to do it. I am not going to promise to do better, but I am going to try. I love to write and especially on my blog. There is something so cleansing about. Okay that does sounds dorky, but for me it is a very good thing. I thought about the last year in our life, and how in Christmas letters we cram everything into that little letter, and now here I am trying to do it for anyone, if there is anyone, that still reads my blog. I thought I would go month by month and see what I can come up with.

October 2009

I left off this month. It brought fun for Halloween, Jacey was Pinkalicious from her favorite book of the same name, my mom designed and sewed the perfect replica of her dress. Alex was Harry Potter complete with magic wand and scar in place, plus the cutest glasses I have ever seen. The night was much to cold, but we managed to hit some houses and have a lot of fun. Here is a picture of their costumes. These are from their character parade at school, in my quest to organzie my photos, I have organized the actual halloween pictures away.

November 2009

Of course the highlight of November is Thanksgiving, but this year was extra special. My family traveled to San Francisco where we spent 10 days near the beach, enjoying the weather, sight seeing and most especially just being together. For us the only down side was Paul had to stay home and work. Here are a couple pictures from that trip.

December 2009

Of course we celebrated Christmas. The kids sang in church at the family service, then out to my parents for our traditional dinner. I sang at two later services, and battled some great snow drifts to make it on time. Dad even had to help me out at the corner just to get up the street. The services were beautiful, it was a magical night. Christmas morning was the usual mayhem followed by great food and together time it was wonderful Day. New Years eve we stayed home and quietly rang in the new year. What an exciting life we lead!

January 2010

This my busiest time of the year at work. Yes I went 9 days and did not leave my house at all, except to get the mail. NO, I am not kidding, I had groceries delivered, and my parents picked up the kids from school. As I said it is our busiest time and I about went crazy but survived and learned some valuable lessons on planning better for 2011.

February 2010

This was still a busy month at work, if memory serves, but we got back into the swing of things. At one point I think we took a weekend and headed to Des Moines to meet my brother David and his famil, but as my memory is failing that may have happened in March. Other than that nothing too exciting happened. The kids were settled in at school, but Jacey started showing a lot of anxiety and stress over her teacher, we did what we could and just hoped to get through the year. I headed to Chicago for just one night of fun with my coworkers, we had a great dinner, some craziness and stayed in downtown at a great hotel. It was a great 48 hours.

March 2010

I finally made it a year after losing my Grandpa. I was still sad to think of the loss, but was beginning to focus more on all my great memories instead of the loss. Then bad news found us again. On March 4th Paul's brother Steve was killed in an automobile accident. It was, of course, completely unexpected and devastating for his wife two children and all who knew and loved him. Paul and I traveled to Whitewater, WI to be with Noreen and the kids for a few days right away. As hard as it was to see all the grief, it was great to be there and provide whatever comfort we could during those 1st terrible days. They held the funeral two weeks later, so we traveled back with the kids this time and were able to spend several days with Paul's entire family. We hadn't all been together in many years the time was very bitter sweet. Noreen is a wonderful woman and actually spoke at the funeral, although I have no idea how she did this. There was so much music, both his kids played and I was able to sing, which I loved. There was a full choir, a band and many other wonderful pieces of music during the service. Then we were treated to the BIGGEST potluck buffet I have ever seen. I have to say Steve would have loved every minute. The church was filled to the brim inlcuding people standing everywhere, amazing music and endless food. It was a perfect celebration for a wonderful man.

April 2010

Still working through the loss of Paul's brother and all that brought to his family. Then things fell apart for Jacey at school. She was struggling so much and her teacher was just not on the same wavelength as us. IT finally came to a head one day when she started yelling at Jacey in front of the class and pounded her hand on Jacey's desk. AT this point I was done, I couldn't send my little girl into this situation anymore. I called the school and long story short, she never returned. We opted to enroll the kids in our home school district. Their school is now across the street and they both LOVE it. Alex had trouble leaving his friends, but went from an intense full day program to just afternoons, he loved it right away. Jacey's teacher at Willow was so sweet and loving and just what Jacey needed after almost two years of the intense immersion experience. WE held Alex's postponed birthday party this month and many of his friends were able to join us for a day on the farm complete with pony rides and lots of fun on the farm.

May 2010

The kids were thriving in school and Jacey was not showing any of the anxiety we had seen earlier in the school year. They were still singing in the choir at church and enjoying life to the fullest. Jacey had her birthday party at my cousins farm just like Alex. Her party was a bit smaller, but still lots of fun. It was especially nice to see her making new friends in her new class. I chaperoned her field trip to como zoo and was pleased to see how nice all the kids and teachers were in the 1st grade.

June 2010

The school year came to an end with a revelation I was not really prepared for. The school recommended Jacey repeat the 1st grade. She was just too far behind in the English school system to be able to move forward. Although she had come along way, 2 months was just not enough to make up for the first almost two years in the Chinese school. It was hard for me to hear, but Jacey took it in stride and only concerned that her friends would all go to college the year before her. I pointed out this would give her another year home with me, to which I got an eye roll, yes she is only 7, but has that down pat. Her teacher also offered tutoring for the Summer which we jumped on. Both kids were invited to summer camp at the school for 3 weeks in August.

July 2010

Hot Hot Hot is what I mostly think of from July. The weather was hot but we managed to have some good times. One really fun thing was a trip to the new target field to see the Twins play. IT was a great fame followed by a exceptional fireworks display. We had our annual rib party at my parents, the food was great and company even better. The night was topped off by David and Dad's annual fireworks extravaganza, which Jacey hates, so her and i headed home early and Alex stayed for an overnight. Jacey is not a fan of loud noises, so these are just two close for her to handle. The rest of the month flew by, again work was busy and we managed to keep up with all the kids wanted to do. WE also celebrated Pauls' birthday, but nothing too fancy just a fun dinner out at Red Lobster, it was DELICIOUS!

August 2010

Of course the most important event was my birthday. I had to be in Chicago again for work but instead of coming home to MN I hitched a ride with my sister in laws friend to Whitewater, WI and met Paul and the kids. We left the next morning (my birthday) and drove 10 hours to Pittsburgh with my sister in law Noreen and niece Stephanie. You may be thinking why Pittsburgh in the middle of Summer. Well, it was actually a very big occasion. Paul's sister Grace has devoted her life to God and was completing her vows to become a nun. Once again his family all gathered together. This time was much more of a celebration, but it was hard to be together without Steve. The mass was lovely followed by a wonderful meal and a lovely day of family time. It was WAY too hot, but the company more than made up for that. We headed back to WI the next day and home to MN the day after. So, 30 hours of driving and 12 hours in a non air conditioned convent, top that for a summer vacation storry! HAHA! Actually our kids love to travel and are great in the car, my sister in law and niece are a total joy, so we had a very good time. I took the rest of the week off and enjoyed just hanging with the kids. Sadly after coming home a cousin of my dad's died. I was able to visit him in the hospital before he passed away. It was fairly unexpected, but his wife, kids and grandkids were all there to say goodbye. Tony was a really fun guy that I always enjoyed seeing at family gatherings. His presence will be missed.

September 2010

State Fair, of course we headed out for a day, unfortunately I was having back problems, and couldn't walk much, but we still had a great time. We spent Labor Day weekend camping in my parents yard with the Janisch family. Being able to use their kitchen, bathroom and take nice hot showers is the way camping was meant to be I think. Then came Back to School day. They kids were excited and enjoyed meeting their teachers on back to school night. Alex knew several of the kids already from Kindergarten and Jacey happily learned the names of some new kids. I was worried how it would go for her, but she is loving school and just blossoming. Of course her teacher is a truly wonderful teacher which helps a lot. Alex is also enjoying school and interestingly they are perfectly matched with their teachers, I can't imagine them in the other classes. God truly had a hand in that decision. We had our annual Sutherland picnic, the date changed this year and we had a great turnout. But, it is still hard to look around and realize how many we have lost in just the last couple years.

October 2010

Here wer are a year later, and I managed to remember many things from this year. October was by far the most fun of the last year. AFter many years of planning My parents took our entire family for a 10 day trip to Florida. We spent the first few days at a disney world resort spending time at the parks and enjoying the resort. The kids went from sun up to well past sundown every day and loved every minute. WE then left the resort and boarded the Disney Wonder for a cruise to the Bahamas. We stopped in Nassau and Disney's private Island Castaway Cay. Having never been on a cruise I had no idea what to expect, but as is always the case, Disney does this right. There was more than enough activities, sightseeing, food and beach time for everyone to enjoy. It's hard to tell you how great this vacation was, but we had so much to celebrate together. David's birthday was the day before the disney adventure began. Mom and Dad celebrated their 45th wedding anniversary and most importantly mom is now 5 years cancer free. I am grateful for every day she is here with me, and so proud of how she triumphed over her cancer. She promised me when she was diagnosed that she would not die from it, and thankfully that has turned out to be true. I thank God for that and for the blessing my parents have been in my life. They were my moral compass and shining example of great parents growing up. As an adult I see now and appreciate so much all they gave each of us. They raised us on little money, but I don't ever remember feeling like we didn't have anything. We had each other and made lots of great memories. My parents weren't too busy for us, they attended our functions, knew our friends and took an interest in us as people. I pray often that God will help me be that kind of parent.

So, what have I learned in the last year. Well, quite a lot actually.

I have learned that work is work, but my family has to come first. I have to take the time to be here for my family and be able to balance the demands of my job and my home life. Working from home can at times make this challenging, but the course of this year has brought me a much bigger appreciation of my job situation and more importantly my family. I faced some hurdles at work in the last year, but learned from them and was able to come out even better in the end.

I have learned how fast the kids are growing and how important it is to cherish every minute. Whether it's taking the extra time to read an extra book at bed time, cuddling before bedtime, or a after bedtime pajama dance party on a school night. Each of these moments count and I will never look back and wish I worked more, but I will regret not having these moments with them.

I have learned to be at peace. I am completely at peace in my job and that has never been the case for me. I seem to always be thinking of what elese might be out there, or focusing on what doens't work right. Not this time, I have fully embraced the positive things my job has brought to my life and feel 100% content with where I am. My company is great, and workign from home is a great fit for me and our family.

The most important thing I have learned is to cherish my life and the people in it. I know it is a cliche, and when we lose people we love, we all say it and mean it but then time passes life goes on and we forget. I am working hard at remembering this and embracing the blessings in my life. I may not have a huge house, fancy cars, exotic vacations or tons of money in the bank, but what I do have is this. A family I love, A husband I can't imagine my life without, children that I was clearly meant to have as my own, a job I love, a lovely home, food in my cupboards, and friends that have become my family too.

This year brought some highs and vey low lows. I am hopefull for the next and intend to share my journey as it happens now, no more yearly updates. So get ready for more of the Lamsam Adventures!

Thanks for reading and following me if you have hung in there with me...thanks! Oh and I will share more pictures, I know that is the best part of a blog.

Balloons, Meatballs, Mary Poppins and Storybook Characters

2009-10-24T19:07:00.000-07:00

Well, that title has a lot of things that obviously have nothing to do with each other. Since I haven't updated in over a month (I know shame on me) I am going to catch you all up on what is happening in our world.

I will try to go in order, so we will start with Mary Poppins. My wonderful Friend Mark (my wonderful ex room-mate that announced to everyone at my wedding rehearsal he was the guy I used to live with haha) called a few months ago to tell me that he had 2 tickets to Mary Poppins at the Orpheum, and would Jacey and I like to use them? I jumped at the chances and so we planned a big girls night out. I told her she could pick any place she wanted for dinner, and we ended up at the Capitol Grill, not sure how that happened, but we had a super fun fancy girls dinner and then headed to the theater. The play started at 8:00pm and by the time it finished at 11:00pm Jacey was happy, but completely done for. I let her pick a souvenir and she picked the book, which is quite wonderful and I picked out the CD, so we have been listening to a lot of supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. The play was full of wonderful music, beautiful sets and even a little magic.

Dinner at the Capitol Grill

Outside the theater

Tickets - check, fancy dress - check, excited to see the show, now let's go...

Now for the balloons. My grandfathers 94th birthday would have been on September 22nd. Jacey has been bugging me to send some balloons to him in heaven, so we decided this would be a great time to do it. We headed to my parents for a dinner grandpa would have loved. Homemade soup and bread and some delicious side items. After dinner we headed outside with balloons in hand. it was a beautiful blue sky with clouds at about 20,000 feet (according to my dad the ex airforce weather man) We had 10 balloons total to let go, so we each released two of them. There was little wind that evening, so the balloons literally just went straight up into the clouds. We watched them finally disappear into the clouds. I wish I had brought my camera, it was an amazing sight to see. We ended the evening enjoying some delicious eclairs. It was a wonderful way to remember him and an evening he would have really enjoyed. It is still hard to believe he is gone, I just wish so much to hear his voice again and be able to give him a hug. But that is the selfish part of me, the rest of me knows he is at peace now and free from pain.

Anyway, on to the meatballs. There were no actual meatballs, but mom and I took the kids to cloudy with a chance of meatballs in 3-D. Truly a fun kids movie, great story, sort of sweet, a little romantic and funny. One the whole family could enjoy. Now the kids are anxious to see where the wild things are.

The kids school has an annual storybook character parade in liu of Halloween festivities. The parade was yesterday and Paul was able to attend and get some pictures. Each child can dress up, but they have to be a character in a book and also carry the book. Alex decided on Harry Potter. Jacey had more trouble deciding, but since her all time favorite book is Pinkalicious and purplicious, she decided to be pinkalicious. My mom stayed up half the night on Monday to make her the perfect dress from scratch. The kids were both thrilled and really looked the part. The best thing is we are now ready for Halloween a week early!

Sweet Little Pinkalicious

Handsome Harry Potter

There has been a lot more we have done in the last month including pumpkinmania, horseback riding at my cousin's. sleepovers with friends, playdates and MEA break. OH, we also made it apple picking at a friends orchard, which was a total hoot. We mad it out there twice once just us and one with the Janisch clan. The kids had so much fun and we are all enjoying the fruits of our labor (literally..haha).

I have been sick all week, and Paul is now battling it as well, please say a prayer for me that this dose not become Pneumonia again, I am doing everything I can to rest and take care of myself. Work is super busy, but I am blessed and grateful to have such an amazing job. My coworkers are such great people, I never know work could be so much fun and so intense at the same time.

Two last pictures the kids, got their school pictures back, so have to share. Have a wonderful weekend and I will check in again soon.

Jacey 1st Grade

Alex Kindergarten

A Little Catching up to do

2009-09-11T19:50:00.000-07:00

Just a reminder for my personal ramblings, please check out my new blog mysoapbox

This one is just going to be for family fun from now on.

So, I have some catching up to do. Here is the somewhat quick version and a few photos to boot. Our vacation to South Dakota was absolutely wonderful. I journaled the whole thing, and will find a way to add the file here eventually in case you are interested in reading it. The kids had such a great time, the highlights including, hiking at Devil's Tower, Bloodshed at Mt. Rushmore (I am not kidding Alex bumped his head and bloodshed ensued) witnessing a dynamite blast at Crazy Horse (4300 tons enough to fill 360 dump trucks) a fun alpine slide, camping, hotel rooms, water slides, and a trip through bear country. The best part was being together for all those days and enjoying the company of the Barrett Clan they are not only great friends, but a part of our family forever.

Readjusting to life after the trip was hectic to say the least. We had only a few days to school shop and get the kids ready for the big day. Of course it included some time at the state fair and a family picnic. My dad's family gathers every year for a picnic at my Uncle's farm. It usually fun, but this year was a little bittersweet. It was hard being there for the 1st time without my grandpa and the other family members we lost this year. But, the day was lovely and company great. It really turned out to be a good day. Before heading home we stopped at the cemetary to visit those no longer with us, another emotional moment, but it gets a little easier every time.

This years state fair was as big and crazy as ever. We ended up making two trips, one with my family and another with the Janisch's They are a lively fun crew and everyone had a great time. The kids got to go on the big slide, eat lots of fun fair food and be little farmers. We also watched the lumber jack show, which is a lot of fun, but not as much when you have someone next to you telling you what comes next......JENNY!!! haha! We had never seen it before, and the people were so funny and autographed the kids arms at the end, they were in heaven.

Before we knew it Tuesday was here and it was back to school time. Jacey started Tuesday with Alex beginning on Thursday. Jacey was excited, but the morning of got pretty nervous and anxious. We did our best to reassure her, and I am happy to report she jumped into the car at the end of the day and exclaimed it was her "best day ever" and she loves 1st grade. I was so relieved. Alex just started yesterday and what a bundle of energy he was. He happily hopped int he car and couldn't get to his room fast enough. He ran in greeted his teacher and looked around like finally I am here! Having them both going to the same place, certainly makes mornings easier around our house.

It's now Friday night, I am the only one awake and i am loving the calm. It was a hectic week, but we are settling back into our routine. The kids are starting gymnastics this year and have joined the choir at church. Realizing I don't do enough that is only for me, I joined the St. Andrews Choir, I survived the audition and am thrilled to be among the crazy 2nd Alto women, they are a great bunch. We sing every Sunday and practice once a week, it is a big commitment, but I welcome the time that is just for me. Here are some pics to get you caught up. I will blog again and more often now that I am back to a routine. Please check out my new blog, I am kind of proud of it.

Blessings,

Helen

Buffalo's in the badlands Our favorite "merry" dogs as the kids called them

Jacey and Alex our 1st night out Alex and Monica, his girlfriend and future wife

Setting up the tent at Devil's Tower

The Lamsam's The Barrett's

Alex trying to stay ahead of Josh Josh making his big move

Jacey and Papa Sharing a treat

Jacey's 1st day of school Alex's 1st day of school

Both kids on Alex's first day, they LOVE going to school together

Grieving Again

2009-08-23T15:03:00.000-07:00

We are home from the big family vacation, it was amazing and I kept a journal which I will post tonight or tomorrow, but first I just need to mention something. When I worked at ADP I met an amazing woman named Kate Hunt Mortenson, she worked in sales and took me out on some sales calls with her and I really enjoyed her company. We had such a great visit that day and she told me all about her husband and family and the death of her father. The entire time I worked at ADP she was someone I always looked forward to talking with. When I left there she contacted me about doing daycare for her, but she ended up staying home with her son. When Grant was just 1 year old she found out she had a rare agressive form of cancer. The diagnosis, wasn't great, but she decided to fight and fight she did. She sought treatment all over the world and fought hard for over 4 years. This morning at 11:00am she won her fight with cancer. Unfortunately she had to leave this world to win, but she is not at peace and pain free. She leaves behind a loving husband and 5 year old son and what sounds like an amazing family and friends too many to count. her courage was astounding and passion for life truly inspiring. It's just too bad it all had to come to an end so early. Over 500,000 have visited her caringbridge site, which is a true testament to the person she was and her impact on this world. If you wish to read her story her site it www.caringbridge.org/mn/katehuntmortenson. Please pray for her family as they get ready to say a final goodbye to their dear Kate.

When my grandpa died it was comforting to know that his 93 years were full and he had a great life. But, Kate's life just wasn't long enough, it seems so unfair. I hope that her family is finding comfort in their memories and unending love for her. Even though it seems so sensless I have to keep hope that for them it will someday all make sense.

thansk for reading and be on the lookout for our trip journal.

Where has God gone?

2009-08-09T19:10:00.000-07:00

I thought about starting this entry with an apology of sorts. Not wanting to offend anyone, I thought I should write some sort of disclaimer. I then realized that is the whole point of this post, I should NOT have to apologize or prepare someone that I am going to talk about God in my blog.

God is the center of my life, marriage, family and everything I do. Being a Christian is just who I am. It shapes my life and my decisions. I believe with every ounce of who I am that God has a plan for each of us, and that all our blessings are a result of his grace and goodness. I do not believe bad things happen as a punishment from God, but he is there to guide and carry us through the tough times and help us see the good in difficult situations.

Many years ago on a Sunday morning I was sitting in the waiting room or our fertility clinic waiting to have my blood drawn to see if I was ready for our next round of baby making. The waiting room was full, and instead of piped in fake music, they had an actual radio on a light rock station. Well, this station had a Sunday morning program with John Tesh as the host. It contained pretty much the same music the station always played, but with a mixture of wonderful Christian messages intertwined. The waiting room was packed with anxious couples, most of which included a husband looking quite nervous and a wife looking worn out, but ever hopeful this time would be the one that would finally bring them the baby they were so longing for. After sitting there in this strange portal of existence for quite a long time one woman finally walked up to the desk and asked them to turn off the Christian Station. I was so shocked that she would make such a request. After all it was not only Sunday Morning, but it was in fact Mother's day, and couldn't we have all used a little inspiration and hope that day?!? The receptionist explained it was not a Christian Station and told the woman what it actually was, the woman looked rather embarrassed and quietly returned to her seat. I think back to that day sometimes and remember that I felt sad for this woman that didn't want this religous talk around her, when it was a time we all needed help and hope from God.

You may be wondering about now where this post is going and if I am ever going to get there. Well, yes I am and here is the point. I do not think that one should ever have to apologize for having a relationship with God or for expressing that relationship. Now, don't get me wrong, I am not that thrilled when groups show up at my door trying to convert me to their way of thinking. However, when someone I don't know well offers me some encouragement and reminds me that God is there, it brings a light to my heart and helps to remind me by whose grace we are all walking this earth.

I am on many listservs for various reasons, most of which are regarding adoption and that type of things. On almost all of my lists you have to mention in the subject line of your email if your post is going to make any type of reference to God so as not to offend anyone. Today I even read a post where the woman apologized at the beginning so as not to upset anyone. This practice just drives me nuts. I should be able to mention God when I write and not have to make ecxuses for it or prepare everyone that some "God Talk" is on it's way. Seriously I don't get offended when they don't mention him, so why does it matter if I do.

Let me be clear, I am not shoving my particular faith down anyones throat. Everyone is entitled to their own beliefs and that is a very personal thing. My expressions of my faith are only ever to share with people my thoughts and love of God. This is not something I should ever have to apologize for or prepare someone to hear. For me someone expressing their faith is natural, whether they are Christian, Buddhist, Muslim, Jewish or any other faith. We are all basically seeking the same thing the love and support of something bigger than all of us. That thing which we can't describe, but we know is there guiding our path and helping us through this journey.

Think about it when you hear these hate mongoring groups that are racist, sexist, homophobic or equally ignorant, they never make apologies for their beliefs or what they say or do. Why should me expressing my faith be any different. I am not asking everyone to convert to my beliefs but respect them enough to be okay with me talking about them without me having to wonder about the outcome. My faith is the core of who I am and honestly I feel pretty darn good about that. I am not a perfect person, I have failings and problems to work on like everyone else, but talking about my faith in God and letting people know how he is at work in my life, makes me feel good and is meant to give hope and courage to others.

When Jesus was alive he made the ultimate sacrifice for us. He not only walked here on earth, but lived his life with full knowledge and expectation of what lied ahead of him. He didn't run from this reality, he embraced it. I am sure he was frightened, but he accepted this path and willingly followed his father. So, for me to not include my faith, such a small request of God, in my every day life seems absurd. God is not asking me to climb up on a cross and be crucified. I am just a vessel for him to show his light and work in this world.

You know every day I see and hear things that make my blood boil. Parents mistreating or even killing their children. People fighting, and killing each other over seemingly unimportant matters. Countries trying to oppress their own people and keep them from having the freedoms we take for granted here. I am so grateful to live in a place where I can share my faith and feelings and not be concerned about the repercussions. I am blessed by God's grace and love and the LEAST I can do in return is live my life with love, grace and dignity. The rest is up to him and I glady follow his path.

God's light is alive in me and I will not keep it hidden or bury it under ecxuses and apologies.
I will let it shine, let it shine, let it shine.

Thursday Blahs

2009-08-06T19:01:00.000-07:00

So, I still have not uploaded any new photos, but do have a few. I thought maybe I will post some interesting old ones.

I still can't believe it is August Already and the kids start school in just one month. They have had such a great summer, but are both excited for school to begin. I am loving every minute of our summer, but being back in our routine will be good for all of us.

I have had a cold and just felt icky the last couple days, so have been taking it easy, but still feel busy. We are anxiously awaiting our vacation in a few days even though I am not at all sure how I am going to get things ready. I am flying into Chicago for a couple days next week, we have some training at work and so everyone will be in the office in our department those days. I am actually really looking foward to being back at the office a couple days and to meeting all my other remote co-workers. It should actually be a lot of fun, even though it is still work.

I don't have much to say tonight, but don't want to go to long without blogging. The kids saw a star tonight and made wishes on it, Jacey wished that she could be red riding hood in Hoodwinked and beat up the bird. Alex wished that mommy, daddy and Jacey woudl never be mad at him. That one is sweet, but I felt a little bad, I really don't get mad much, so need to make sure he knows that.

when I went to upload some pictures, these were in the 1st folder I picked. They are of My grandpa playing with Jacey. He is 90 in these photos, and we were all amazed that he actually got on the floor to play with her. I know both my kids were very special to him, and they just adored him. He was known as the candy man to everyone, because he always had bags of candy for each kid whenever we got together. Needless to say my kids really miss the candy man. I actually have doing pretty good with the grief lately, but the last two days have been tough. We have decided that as a family we need to have a different type of Thanksgiving. I have never celebrated a Thanksgiving wihout my grandfather, so this year will be tough. As a way of mixing things up we are all headed to San Francisco for the week of Thanksgiving. My brother Lee and his partner Ed live there and we will be renting a big house for us all to be together for a few days. Tonight my mom and I talked about what we should do for dinner. We have two food traditions in our family, glorified rice and riced potatoes. The rice is kind of almost a dessert with whipped cream, pineapple and cherries along with rice. The potatoes are just put through the ricer. I love riced potatoes, but have bugged my mom over the years we should just have mashed, she said my grandpa loved them so we couldn't change that. So, tonight when we were talking I mentioned her having to take her ricer along, but then realized, we actually didn't need to have them this year. I told her well we can just have mashed, but that was it, I had to stop the conversation and think of something else. The thought of celebrating all we are thankfull for without him is just to painful to even consider right now. I know on that day it will be bitter sweet, as we will all be togher, but missing an important person. I know in my heart he is at peace now and he is better off being free from his broken body and pain. But, it still hurts just the same. For someone who had nothing to say, I sure found the words. Enjoy the pics, and I will update on more fun things soon.

Garage Sale Blues and Call to Action

2009-08-01T19:38:00.000-07:00

Saturday night is here and I am exhausted. We had a two day garage sale and it has taken everything out of me. I used to love having garage sales and seeing how much money we could make. This time I was ready to give it all away for free! Actually it wasn't that bad, we held the garage sale to raise some money for FCC Midwest . We did raise them some money which always feels good, it's just a lot has gone on this Summer and it was hard to fit this in.

I am sure most everyone who reads this knows I had a very bad case of pneumonia this summer and spent 7 days in the hospital. I won't bore you with all the details, but the recovery is slower than one would think and I am still tired a lot. Of course work and family life keep me busy so that is part of it too I guess.

I was checking my other addition, facebook, today and this is what a friend posted. "has a wish today...I love coming into facebook to see what everyone is up to but I wish people that sit and tweet all day about this political thing or that political thing would use their time wiser and get involved to make something better if they have all the spare time in the world to sit on facebook all day and prognosticate about what every new program will do. Things are getting better....get over it." I LOVED this and it made me realize how easy it is for me to climb on my soap box, but other than the few people that read this blog, what am I accomplishing?

After giving it some thought, I have decided I am going to start doing something about the things that I often complain about on my soapbox. To get he ball rolling I am going to start an email campaign, against, People magazine. I am totally disgusted that EVERY time they report on a the children of a star they mention if the child was adopted. Since, adoption is an event and not a way of life, I think they need to stop this practice. I recently wrote them a letter regarding a headline they ran that some celebrity wants children of her own, but will adopt if she can't. It's bad enough she said it, but then they used it to tease the article. We all know how I feel about this, so it is no surprise that it made my blood boil. I remember reading an article about Milton Byrle after he died and it referred to a son that was his adopted child. Now, this son was in his 60's and I remember thinking at what point in the medias eyes did he get to just be his son! Shameful reporting if you ask me.

It is easy to look at this from my perspective as an adoptive parent, but my younger brother, who himself was adopted into our family has big issues with the media continually referring to Michael Jacksons children as not his children. Now, I am not making any assumptions or offering any judgements against Michael Jackson and how he created his family. That was and is private information. The truth is it makes no difference how those children came into his life and whether or not they share his DNA, they are his children, he was their father, they love him and will always miss him. In thinking about my brothers feelings and the irritation I felt at People Magazine I just couldn't stay quiet.

So, up on my soapbox I got and sent them a long email about my concerns over this article and the practice of always referring to adopted children as adopted. I asked them why don't they mention the labor process of every stars biological child every time they are mentioned, like hours in labor, whether or not drugs were used, natural, c-section, what have you. Of course this would be absurd. But, to families formed through adoption it is just as absurd to metion the child is adopted every time you talk about them. I have of course gotten no response from them, so I am going to take action. As I expected I received no response from them, so I am now going to ask for a little help from everyone else. Please if you feel it in your heart write them and email or send them a letter, or even call. They need to know that all adopted and biological children deserve the respect of just being their parents children, no matter how they came to be! If you would like to help me in this effort, please consider writing or calling you can email them at editor@people.com or call them at 1-212-522-6699 I am still working on their actual mailing address, but I think emails and phone calls are a great tool to let them know just what we are thinking!!!

So, not only am I asking each of you to consider writing to them, but also tell your friends, family email lists and anyone else you can convince to help us in this cause! I know we can make changes as Ghandi said "you have to be the change you want to see in the world" It starts with us and we can do it! I am going to post this on facebook and on every one of my lists if they will let me. I feel so strongly about this and would love to see them at least acknowledge what they are doing and that maybe they could change their ways.

I have also decided I do have a book in me. I am not going to share much at this point, but will say I think they idea I have could be pretty good, now let's see if I have enough in me for a whole book. Writing will be the easy part, but truly I do not know how to go about getting a book published. So, I am going to write and let God take care of the rest. If this is the path he has in store, it will become clear. If not I am going to enjoy the writing just for me.

I think that's it for me tonight. I know I need to get some new pictures up and will do that soon. Thanks again for reading and for helping if you can!

Helen

Just Another Day

2009-07-27T22:44:00.000-07:00

I can't find my camera, but my post was going to be about my crazy kids. so, hopefully I will track it down tomorrow and can actually post my original idea. But, never at a loss for words, I will just write tonight.

I did hear back from a few people on my last post and found out I have followers I didn't even know about, so thanks for reading! I have been told numerous times lately that I should really write a book. Let me tell you it is a secret desire of mine to do that. But, it's hard to think of what I have to say that anyone might be interested. I think I am just going to start writing and see where that takes me. Maybe it will lead me somewhere I hadn't even thought about when I begin.

I enjoyed my last post and thought I would share another passage tonight, but my bible has gone MIA and my other is a gideon bible, which is hard to read because the language is very different. So, I am going to see what I come up with, here goes.

This is the passage I opened to the story of Daniel in the lions den. I won't write out the whole thing as I think most people know that story. I actually was kind of happy to read this story again. I often struggle with doing the right thing and truly trusting in God to take control and guide my path. This story is an amazing reminder of what our faith can do and of God's absolute love and power in our lives.

There are times we all face the lions den, maybe it's getting involved with the wrong kids growing up. Or, being the office or town gossip. I am certainly guilty of that one at times. And maybe it is simple things like being persuaded by others to do something you really don't feel good about. We have all had these experiences and know how hard it can be to trust in God and know that he will take care of us.

When Paul and I were trying to have a baby people kept telling me that if God intended for it to happen it would. I used to be so hurt by that because I would think how could God not want me to be a parent, it has always been my biggest desire in life. Looking back I now realize God did intend for me to go through that process, not as a way to hurt me, but in fact as a way for me to see that he had a different path for us to become parents. He was there the whole time and even when it was hard, I had to trust in him and in the end he led me right out of that lions den of pain and anguish into the arms of our 1st child. I mean it is very clear to me that I was meant to be the mother to Jacey and Alex and it is where God wanted me to be all along. Of course it would have been nice not to go through what I did, but actually there were several things that were great about it. It brough Paul and I closer together and made us realize how important it was for us to be parents. It also made me realize what really mattered to me in life and I have made many positive changes because of it.

Before we had children I made the decision to become a Catholic and wen through a year of classes to get ready for my annointing. Close to the end of the process we were asked to write on a piece of paper the one thing we know to be true about God. I didn't even think, just wrote and what came out was this, I believe God is always with me even when I do not feel close to him. I think about that statement a lot becuase it is absolutely true. If Daniel had not believed God was there, he couldn't have faced those Lions and survived. If I don't believe God is with me I can't really believe in the goodness of our world. With all the problems we face and all the lions dens we can fall into, we always have a way out with God.

So, there you have it, some more thoughts from Helen. I hope these posts help someone else, but even if you just read for entertainment, they are great for me and help me to live my faith more fully every day.

Blessings,
Helen

Playgroup, Adoption and Me.

2009-07-23T19:26:00.000-07:00

We finally made it to the FCC Thursday night playgroup at Lake Elmo Park reserve. We had a wonderful potluck dinner and it was great catching up with folks. Of course I always enjoy being among a big group of adoptive families and seeing all the wonderful kids. I was able to sit with Deb Kane and catch up while her girls entertained the kids. Jacey and Alex are crazy about all the Kane girls, but Nadia seems to be extra special to them. She spen the whole time entertaining them. She is sweet, kind and patient. Now we just wish she lived closer so we could make use of her babysitting skills.

I took these when they got out of the water,

I was thinking the other day I have no idea if anyone even reads my blog. It is kind of random and doesn't have a purpose or a theme as it were. I do love to update on our family, but I also love that I can use this as a way to express my thoughts and feelings on certain matters. So, to that end I have decided to try something new. When I was yonger and struggling through difficult times my dad told me a great thing to try. He said to take my bible open it at random and just start reading. Almost every time I could find something that helped me with whatever was going on. Now this also works just as a great devotion at night or a way to just take a breather during the day. So, I am thinking I will do this and just see if it can apply to my life that day or just in general. Feel free to try it yourself and email me if you get something out of it.

I opened my bible to Luke and hade my finger on Luke 9:47-48 "And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a child and set him by him. And said unto them, Whosoever shall receive this child in my name receiveth me: and whosoever shall receive me receiveth him that sent me: for he that is least among you all, the same shall be great.

When I 1st read this I wasn't sure it applied to me, but being a parent, I loved reading it. But I realized after a few minutes of reflection that in fact it does apply to me. I was watching the movie The Women with my friend Tammy tonight. One of the characters has a baby at the end and we were reflecting on the way they portrayed labor and I looked at Tammy and said I am never going to know what that is like am I? She laughed and said I wasn't missing out on much as far as the labor part. But, I pointed out that you leave the hospital with a great gift. No one has to complete a home study, there are no background checks to clear, there is no one telling you, yep you are okay go ahead and give birth. It just happens, women do it all the time, but for some of us we will never know the feeling of a baby kicking us, or feel the movement of life in our belly and know it was created out of love by the person we love most in the world.

After reading this passage I realized God was speaking to me. God gave my children to me, he intended them to be mine and I believe they were both born for that purpose. The chinese believe all children born are connected to those that will love them in their life by an invisible red thread and no matter how much that thread might tangle and pull it will never break. So, God did make them for me and I received them into my life, and more importantly into my heart. They are the air I breathe and the reason I get up in the morning. I think Jesus was telling us that God wants us to embrace our children in whichever way they are brought into our lives, because they are precious to him and that is what he wants.

So, I have jumped off the pity bus and am busy thinking about all the great things about adoption. Here are a few I thought of. No stretch marks, no hormonal changes, no being up all night having to pee and best of all NO labor pains. Of course adopting a child that is not a newborn is also advantageous as you don't have to get up every couple of hours to feed them. I have alwasy said that I believed my children were meant to be mine, but tonight God knew that I needed a little reminding.

There is one more thing I would like to share with everyone. I know several people going through adoption journeys at this time. Two are very good friends and people have been saying things to them that are truly heart breaking. I am not going to go into details, because that is their private life, not to be brought into the open by me. But, I am going to share what I think about all of this. So, get ready cause I am on my soap box and ready to roll.

If you are tempted to say somethign to someone that may be negative or construed as unsupportive stop and ask yourself these questions. 1. Is this something you would say to a pregnant person? 2. Would you want someone to ask you this about your child? 3. Is this something that could potentially hurt this person? If you can answer these and feel good about it, then ask away, but if you are unsure try not to pass judgement. You truly can never know the heartache and pain involved in adoption and infertility unless you have been there. If you still feel the need to say something that might be hard for the person to hear, sit down with them, and hear them out, there may be things you don't know that are driving their decisions.

And for the record here are a couple other little tips. Our children ARE brother and sister, we are a real family and I am really their mother. Adoption is a journey and it is expensive, and the desire to have a child should not be decided by the cost of an adoption, so if you don't support someone fundraising, then don't give them money or attend their events. Don't presume because someone is fundraising they can't afford the child. A typical adoption can cost $25,000.00 or more and most of us just don't have that kind of extra cash lying around. We are raising our families, providing for them in every way possible and thinking ahead to the furture so down the road we will all be okay.

If that seemed harsh, I am sorry, it was not my intention I just feel passionate about this and I hate to seem my friends hurt by mean and thoughtless statements and actions. OH, and no we are not now pursuing another adoption. Paul says we are finished. Although I am unsure if that is God's plan I am trusting in him that he will show us the path and guide us to the right place.

I jumped off my soap box and am ready to close with a prayer.

Dear God,

Thank you for every blessing you shower on me and my family every day. Please hold friends with adoption plans especially close as they make their way on this journey. Thank you for the blessing of my amazing children, and for all the wonderment and joy they bring to my life every day. Please lord, hold those that are hurting close, and stand firm for those that need you nearby. We thank you lord for all you do for us each day.

Amen.

Sunny Days

2009-07-19T15:32:00.001-07:00

Well, finally the sun and warm weather have come back after a Fall like hiatus! We took full advantage by heading out to my parents for some outdoor fun. However, we stopped at Roman Market in Willernie for a bite to eat on our way. I should have taken pics, but wasn't thinking at the time. The kids loved it and I had one of the best BLT's ever. Can't wait to try their breakfast sometime.

After that is was all about the beautiful day. The kids rode their bikes, ran around and had ton of fun with the frog they found and made a house for. Lucky for the frog we went inside to get popsicles and he had a moment to escape, or we might have been holding a funeral for the little creature. Alex just isn't great with being gentle yet...

Here are a couple pics of the kids having some fun in their pool.

Enjoy this weather and have a wonderful week.

Oh, and Rachel, if you are reading, am I doing better?

Fun in the pool!

Time to warm up and dry off!!!

Kids Gone Crazy

2009-07-17T06:00:00.000-07:00

This is the result of Alex borrowing my camera for some "important" pictures, maybe photography is in his future!

Here I am blogging again, it's hard to believe, I actually did this last night, then lost the whole thing! We have had a great week and are looking forward to some fun this weekend. Wednesday we got to have lunch with the Janisch clan again. Then in the evening we headed to my parents for dinner with their great group of friends. I ended up being put to work at the grill, but the kabobs turned out pretty great, even though I didn't have Paul's expertise to help! After dinner the kids and I stayed around awhile and left late, but before we left I taught the kids how to wish on a star, here were their wishes.

Jacey - I wish I could hoola hoop and I wish for a diamond necklace for my stuffed Iguana (shown above).

Alex - I wish when I grow up I can drive a car and for a necklace for my stuffed fish (also shown above)

Priceless!!!

FINALLY BACK!!!!

2009-07-14T15:55:00.000-07:00

Okay I am now officially the worst blogger in history! But, I am back with a renewed zest for blogging and even some new pictures!

Life has sure been busy around here and it's hard to believe we are 1/2 way through July. Jacey finished Kindergarten on June 12th and was very sad to leave her friends behind for the Summer. We have managed to setup a couple of playdates with school friends, which has been a huge amount of fun for her. I noticed when the girls get together they speak a lot of Chinese, so that is great too. Hopefully she is not losing too much over the Summer.

Here is a picture of her with her teacher Fang Laoshi, whom we love.

Jacey's last uniform day this year, my how she has grown up this year.

Alex started the Summer by finally getting the cast off his foot. He often talks about falling out the 2nd story window, but has yet to go near it again. We thought it was a good lesson learned, and with only a broken foot, not too bad. Well, yesterday Paul called me to the kitchen and Alex had a chair on top of Jacey's little wooden play kitchen and was getting some treats off the top of the refrigerator. Good thing we have good insurance, I have no idea what injuries are in our future with him!

Alex and his favorite girl Monika; he insists they will get married someday!

Paul and I are enjoying the summer and have spent quite a bit of time with some good friends and just having fun with the kids. If you haven't heard, I did start June with a 7 day stay in the hospital battling an acute "as they call it" case of pneumonia, but am healed now, I still get tired out but am slowly gaining back my energy. I am opting out of pictures of us, I know that is not what people want to see, it's all about the kids.

We had a wonderful 4th of July weekend. David and his family were up, and we did our annual Dinner cruise on the St. Croix followed by Nelson's ice cream. Paul and my sister in law Susan had never been, so it was quite the experience. Here are some pics for the dinner cruise and ice cream.

Dad and David

Jacey & Alex

Susan, Josh & Kylie - David's family

yes, these are the KIDS cones at Nelsons!

We also got to see The ice age movie then completely enjoyed our annual rib fest, fireworks show with great friends and family on the 4th. The weekend was rounded out by a twins game for the guys on Sunday and a trip to Teddy Bear Park for the Girls. It really was a fantastic weekend and was hard to see my brother and his family head home. Good thing we get to see them quite often.

Last weekend was the dragonboat festival in St.Paul, if you have never attended I highly recommend this event. It is so much fun and kid friendly to boot. The races are grea, amazing food, entertainment and tons of free stuff for the kids. We were able to go with The Barretts and then meet up with the Janisch's a little later on, it was truly a wonderful Summer day.

The Janisch Kids And our crazy two

We are anxiously awaiting our trip to SD in August. I have to be in Chicago Aug 13 & 14 for work, but will fly home the night of the 14th. We leave the next day for a 9 day trip to explore SD and all it has to offer. As Jacey says we all can't wait to see the big faces. It's hard to believe our trip is right around the corner and then it will be time to get ready for the new school year.

Alex is all geared up to be a Kindergartner, he loved round up and has enjoyed shopping for his uniforms. Jacey is looking forward to 1st grade and especially to seeing all her friends again. As for me, it is hard to think they will both be in school full days, but it is time, and they are ready. I would love to keep them little longer, but time does march on.

I have to also say a belated happy birthday to my amazing husband Paul. I fell in love with him 15 years ago and I am grateful for him every day. He has been here through all the really tough times and enthusiastically enjoyed all the good ones. There is no one I else I can imagine sharing my life with and I am truly blessed to be his wife. Paul is also a great father, he has a weekly routine with the kids now on Thursdays they go to garage sales, the park and usually out to lunch. They kids count the days until Thursday each week for their fun daddy day. So, Happy Belated Birthday honey we love you!

One of my favorites! This was taken on our 2nd day with Jacey in China, it is a favorite because it's hard to remember her so little, and I love the look of complete Joy on Paul's face.

For those that followed my parents remodel, it is over and this is the final productl well at least what is now the great room. I think we need to move in, it is really great!

Keep enjoying summer and you WILL hear from me again soon!

Mending Fences

2009-04-10T20:54:00.000-07:00

Okay, I read several blogs daily and always admire those that download pictures regularly and have such funny stories. Well, my camera died and I can't find my charger, so today I am just writing.

Since I turned 40 I have done a lot of thinking and praying about my life and what God wants from me. I am so fortunate to have a husband that puts up with me (ha ha) and has been completely committed to me for almost 14 years. We have two truly amazing little children in our life, that we are lucky enough to be parents too. For many years we have struggled financially, infertility and adoptions are not an easy or inexpensive process. Now that we are finally moving into a better place and phase in our life I have just realized how blessed we are. Yes things have been tough, but we have stuck together, pulled through and God has always come through for us. The biggest blessing I think is my parents, their support is unending, and I can't imagine where I would be without them. Anytime something breaks in our house my dad is the 1st one we call, and more often than not he can provide us the answers he is also my first call when I am struggling with a tough decision. My mom is someone I truly admire, she can turn a simple meal into a joyous celebration, or a little get together into a big event. She graciously gives her time, love and help to me any time I need it, even when she is struggling with her own problems. My parents are just the best people I know and I am grateful for them every day.

I called this mending fences because I have had a chance to mend some fences with people I really care about in the last few months. I cannot begin to tell you how great it feels to put some things behind me. I have learned I can admit my failings and people will understand and most often forgive. More often than I would like to admit I have done things I wish I could undo, but to have the chance to say I am sorry, and attempt to start fresh and make a change is a true blessing. God has given me this amazing gift and I don't intend to let him or myself down!

Mending fences is tricky, you wish you could erase from the other persons memory what you did to hurt them, and even though we can't do this, we can certainly show them how we have changed and knowing future actions will make a difference and help the memories of that past time fade.

I have also had a chance this week to help someone that is desperately in need of a helping hand right now. Helping this person has been so eye opening. I don't feel I did much for this person but for her it has made a huge difference. She actually expressed to me that she feels for the 1st time in long time she has someone on her side in life. Those words have had a huge impact on me, I never realized that my little bit of help could really make such a difference for her. I truly believe we have a voice and have to use that voice for good. I admire those that have come before me and stood up against oppression, and decided they would not back down and use their voice for good. My hope as Gandhi said is that I can be the change I want to see in this world. I am only one person, but look at the people I can impact and help without even realizing. To treat all people with the respect and dignity they deserve. To listen more than talk and to think before I speak out of turn or in haste. I want to start writing more and maybe that will go somewhere for me eventually, but even if it is just for me, it is important and worthwhile.

The last thing I want to talk about is Grief. Losing my grandfather has been more painful that I ever could have imagined. For 40+ years there was this man in the world, that I loved, admired, looked up to and genuinely liked. He was many things to many people, and the 190+ people at his funeral are a true testament to who he was and his place in this world. He loved his family fiercely and loved nothing more than to be in the company of a big group of people. As he was preparing to leave us, it seemed he stayed a little longer than we all expected. My dad said he believes grandpa met someone on the way out he just had to talk to. It makes me laugh to think of this, because he never met a conversation he could easily or quickly walk away from. Grief is such a funny thing, some days I think of him and it is all joy and happiness. Other times, something will hit me and the pain overwhelms me so much I find it hard to breathe. I know it is easy to say a man that lived to 93 had a good long life, and we should celebrate that. Believe me I do celebrate every single minute I had with him, but it still hurts. To know he will never again celebrate here on earth with us, is tough to know. It's hard that he died just before I got my great new job, and I never got to tell him about it. But, I can tell you I said a special prayer on the plane to Chicago the day of my final interviews. I asked God for strength to make it through this day without breaking down. Also, I talked to my grandpa and asked him to stay with me that day and help me, that I really needed him and all the love he could send my way would be a great help to me. Well, that day went better than I could have hoped and leaving that day I knew that I had my grandpa to thank for that one last gift.

If you have come this far with me thanks. I know it is not a fun perky post, but sometimes there are just things to say. We are gearing up for Easter and I have two very excited kids to go Easter basket hunting.

If I can just add one more thing before I am done. Please remember fences can be mended, hearts will mend, loss gets easier to bear and somewhere we all have someone on our side, we just have to look for them sometimes. God is always here waiting for us to lean on him, and he will even carry us if necessary. Just let him lead the way and the rest gets so much easier.

Remodel

2009-04-01T19:52:00.000-07:00

Well, I know I should be posting all sorts of interesting things about my family, but I have to just make mention of this. After almost 30 years in their house my parents have taken on a big remodeling project. I have yet to see it in person, and yes I live 8 miles from them, but I haven't gotten out there. However, Jacey is on Spring Break this week, and so both kids have been out and actually have been helping. Here is a peek at what is going on.

The kids helping pull up the old flooring

This is what the view is now from the kitchen with the wall and entry closet being gone.

Now for some reason I am having a hard time with this change. I think it looks great and my parents are really excited, but it just feels like the house I grew up in is gone. I know it is still there, but my old room is my dad's office and now this. It just seems like a lot. I know once I get there and see it, it will be wonderful, but for now, it seems a little sad.

The kids had a ball helping and can't get enough of the guys doing the work. Lucky for the contractor the kids won't be around the next couple days.

On a different note, I am totally loving my new job. The company seems great and the job is going to be very interesting. I am especially loving working from home. I have my office pretty much setup now and that is a big relief. We even have moved the kids into their own rooms, and are doing a little work this week here as well. Alex's new bedroom is our former family room, so we have to add the 4th wall and door, he is VERY excited to have that done and they have adjusted really well to the change.

Other than that we are just hanging out these days. I promise to blog more, and really would love to write every day. You know me I always have something to say....haha.

Stay warm everyone, and let's hope this odd weather comes to and end and spring can actually arrive in time for all the little girls in their Easter bonnetts.

I'm Baaaaaaaaaaaaaaackkkkk

2009-03-06T15:18:00.000-08:00

Okay,
I know I have been absent for awhile. After screwing around with our internet service, we are now back online with new service, which will hopefully be MUCH better.

A lot has happened in our lives, I will catch you all up shortly, but today just a quick post.

Monday my grandpa passed away at the age of 93. He was an amazing man full of life, love a deep faith in god and an even deeper love of his family. His funeral was attended by almost 200 people, and I think if you can pack a church at 93 you must have done something right in your life. He was absolutely ready for heaven and for that we are grateful. He lived a full and wonderful life and was ready for the end. What more could we ask for. Although, he is at peace we miss him terribly. I feel blessed to have had the chance to say goodbye, but will miss him every day. Things definitely won't be as much fun in our family without him around. But, he leaves behind 3 sons, 2 stepsons, a wife of 35 years, 20 grandchildren and many many more great grandchildren and a few great great grandchildren.

So, today is all about grandpa, I love him dearly and will miss him always. May he rest in peace.

There will be more from me soon, I have lots to share, hopefully people may still read this!

Love,
Helen

Oh Christmas Tree

2008-11-29T16:42:00.000-08:00

Today we ventured out to my parents to cut down our Christmas Tree. Our tradition the last few years has been to cut down a real one for our deck and then we have a small artificial one for the house, however this year the kids and I found the PERFECT tree and decided we will have a real one in the house. So, the artificial one is officially being retired......yippee

Here are a few shots of the fun we had out in the woods. This is the first year I can remember that I wasn't wading through snow to get a tree, it was actually the perfect day.

Jacey dragging up a little one for my folks

It's always time to be fashionable

Can't leave out Lao Lao

Our Little Paul Bunyan

What a kid

A great time was had by the kids and adults alike. Although we didn't head back for cookies and hot cocoa, we found time to play outside and the kids drew with sidewalk chalk. Hard to believe they could do this on November 29th!

I realized in reading through my last post I forgot to mention how thankful I am for my parents. I think everyone is grateful for the love and support of their parents, but mine have shown time and again how selfless and caring they are not just to their family, but to friends and strangers too. My mom is a breast cancer survivor and a true hero in my book. She can cook anything, and does, and for as many people as is necessary. Her pantry and fridge is always full and ready to feed an army. She not only watches Alex 3 days a week, but often feeds us dinner. She is now retired and seems to be enjoying her life, and Alex is SO crazy about her, they have a relationship unlike any other and it is great to see them together. My dad is still working, but runs his own business. He is such a great dad and an amazing papa to my kids. They are so nuts about him. It's hard to put into words how much they mean to me, but I will say this, my life is made better with them in it. Their love, support and kindness are never ending. They take my phone calls anytime with even the silliest of questions, they know how to help even before I ask, and they just love us. I am very lucky and truly blessed to call them mom and dad.

Hopefully that is enough sucking up for a great Christmas gift......haha! It is all true and should be said more often. Well, I am off to watch a movie, maybe some popcorn is in my future.

Thanks and Giving

2008-11-27T18:25:00.000-08:00

Well, here we are again the time of year when we pause to give thanks for the many blessings in our life and the year past. It seems this year has crept up on me and the reality of this season finally hit me today

This year the kids are 4 and 5, so I have been trying hard to work with them to have some understanding of giving to others and that this holiday is not just about what they get, but how we can help other people. I have started by ensuring a pocket full of change and dollar bills for each red kettle we come across. I don't know that they completely get why we put the money in them, but they enjoy it. My company asked people to donate money this year and they matched the funds, so we collected $2,000.00 total which allowed 40 families a wonderful thanskgiving meal. I had my dad and the kids come to my office and we were able to deliver food to two of the families. I wish I had pictures of how proud they were, but felt it inappropriate at the time. Suffice it to say, we had a wonderful discussion about giving and they enjoyed the experience.

So, today we have Paul's mom visiting from Rochester and she needs to make her first appearance here, so drum roll please, here is Grandma Jeanne! We don't get to see a lot of her, so it makes our Thanksgiving extra special, and the kids were so happy to have all their grandparents AND great grandparents in one place. Jeanne is a loving wonderful woman full of amazing stories. She grew up in WI, but lived 26 years with Paul's dad in Thailand and raised her 6 children there. At the time she married Limin it was really something to think of her moving across the world with no friends are family and starting a whole new life. But, she did it, became fluent in the language and customs and truly developed a love of the country, culture and people So, yes today were are thankful for Jeanne.

My parents have a neon sign in their house to decorate for all occasions. My dad wrote Happy Thanksgiving and what are you thankfull for? So, I asked everyone and filled the board with the answers. Again, I should have had my camera handy, but I will share some of the answers. Family, health, to be free of addiction, all my people, A husband of 34 years, children and grandchildren, Barack Obama, and many other things. It was a great way to kick off our day and a nice reminder to look at during our time together.

For me I have so many things to be thankful for this year. First and foremost I am thankfull for my faith in God. He is the rock on which I live my life, he carries me when I need lifting, holds me when I need comforting and supports me through it all. He is always there showing me the way and making the hard stuff easier. I am, of cours thankfull for Paul. He has loved me for almost 15 years, and puts up with my moods, demands, crazy ideas, and just when I am generally being a pain in the butt. He is kind loving caring, I love him for his support, unconditional care and love and all the times he helped me through the hard parts of our lives together. I am also grateful for the wonderful father he is to Jacey and Alex. He knows just when they need love and has endless patience, plus lots of silliness. I am also thankfull for Jacey and Alex, with every fiber of my being I know I was meant to be their mother. I know somewhere in this world are two women that gave the ultimate sacrifice so that I may be their mother. When we talk about them, I know that somewhere in their hearts those women knew these children belonged to me. I am forever grateful to them as well.

The list can go on and on, but here are just a few more things. I am thankful for my having a home to live in, and the health of our families. For the jobs we have and stability in our chosen professions. Hey, there will always be a need for people to drink beer. I am thankful for my friends and not to exclude anyone, but I am especially thankful for Deb, Sue, Deanne, Tammy, Nicole, Lisa, Kirsten and Sarah. These women are my family and I blessed to call them my friends. The last thing I want to mention is how grateful I am for the election of Barack Obama. It is no secret I have supported him, but whichever side of the election you were on, it is true that he has brought a great hope and energy to this country and to our view in the world. I look forward to January 20th and the next 4 years with hope, anticipation and excitement.

To end this for tonight, I will post a few more pics and actually a rare family picture, we are not good about taking those, so I was glad to get a couple today. I hope everyone had a wonderful blessed thanksgiving.

Family Time

Little Miss Sweet and Sassy

Alex being Alex

Just a couple other random shots I found on the camera today.

Resting after a big Costco adventure

A face only a grandchild could love or actually enjoy....haha!

Reconnecting

2008-11-21T14:07:00.000-08:00

I am completely addicted to facebook and have had such a great time lately reconnecting with some old friends. It is so much fun to catch up and see how their lives have changed. In several cases it has turned out that our lives haven't been that diferent and a couple of my old friends live near me, which I was thrilled to learn. I also had the chance to make amends with someone I know I hurt several years ago and that felt really good. So, today I am feeling great about my friends, life and the opportunities God gives us for second chances.

Which makes me realize what a great opportunity our country has right now at a second chance. I have been an Obama supporter since day one, so him winning was a great thrill for me. But, more than that I truly believe he will pull together the right people to help heal our economy, our people and our relationships around the world. No, don't get me wrong, he is not perfect and there are always going to be bumps along the way, but i have great hope and more importantly for the 1st time in a while I feel hopefull about what my children will face as adults. Being that my children were not born here, they will never have the chance to become president, but I hope I can instill in them the idea that everyone has a voice and we have to use that voice. One ripple can change the tide, so I hope to be a ripple in the pond and maybe I can help change some things in this world. I know we all wish for world peace, but really isn't that about starting at home. Maybe not cutting someone off on the freeway even if they made you mad. Or, letting someone cut in front of you in line at the store or the bank. Helping someone who is struggling with a simple task. All of these things set an example to our children and those around us and hopefully they will remember these acts and it will change their behavior. The other thing I want to say on this is how powerful words can be, the old addage that sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me, it simply not true. Words are the most powerful weapon we have, they can cut someone down in an instant, but they can also give comfort, hope and support. How many times have you had a bad day and just wanted someone to tell you something nice or give you a compliment, and if it did happen how did that feel. I am SO SICK of people using derogatory terms against people of different colors, religion or sexual orientation as if that is funny. So, I am stating emphatically here, it is NOT FUNNY. Even if you don't hate or think it's a joke you don't know how other people feel and your words may make them believe that you hate too. I don't know if any of this is making sense, but I have children of a different race and a friend of mine also with a child from Chine told me recently that her 5 year old is desperate to change her hair color so she can be like everyone else. What in the world are we teaching our kids that this in any way matter. I am tired people, and I know I can't change people, but if even onen person reading this blog thinks the next time they go to make an off color comment or joke and changes their mind, then I have done my job. I have a voice, I am a ripple, now let's see what happens.

Okay, off the soap box I hop and to end on a happier not here are a couple kids pictures. Stay warm and have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Helen

We were in a store and Alex loved this, so we had to snap a picture.

Jacey just hanging out hoping someone will give her a ride, she even has the carseat ready to go.

FINALLY

2008-11-16T14:58:00.000-08:00

Finally, so much for keeping up on the blog, here are a few photos to catch you up on us!

Finished with a wonderful dinner at Lao Loa & Papas and ready for some treats.

Trick or Treat?!?

The whole gang after the fun.

Jacey's 1st school, I am a little biased, but isn't she cute?!?!

So, in pictures, you are pretty much caught up.

I will wrote more later, and PROMISE to keep up to date now!

Just getting going

2008-10-26T18:17:00.000-07:00

Okay, I set this up awhile ago, but am finally getting around to creating my first entry. I hope to use this to keep people updated on our family and any of our goings on.

So, a little about us. Paul and I have been married 13 years or so and have two wonderful children. The kids are truly the light of our lives and watching them develop is a great joy for us.

We love life and enjoy spending time with family and friends. There never seems to be enough time to get everything done, but we enjoy as much as we can.

The kids are very excited about Halloween right now. Jacey will be a Chef and Alex will be Lightening McQueen. Jacey decided on her costume all on her own, and insists on carrying a pan instead of pumpkin for candy collecting. Alex's favorite thing in the world is Lightening McQueen, but is quick to let everyone know that next year he will be Buzz lightyear. Nothing like planning ahead. We went over Halloween etiquette at dinner tonight, so I think they are ready.

Here are some Halloweeny pics of the kids, you can see how big they are getting and all their halloween cheer!

You can definitely see Jacey's sassy side

Ahhh sibling love!