loving my busy days

My days have been busy.  I painted my basement kitchen--the entire thing, including the trim. Hated it with a passion. I'm still trying to figure out what even possessed me to choose blue. Not me at all. So I painted it all over again this weekend. Now it's orange and so much better. As my friend's hubby says...happy wife, happy life.

I am finally starting to feel like my house is becoming a home. We put some pictures on the walls, the downstairs is all painted, and 99% of the boxes are gone.  It's a good feeling to be settled.

I am loving living in the inner city.  Never thought I would.  But here I am feeling very content to be where the Lord has planted us to bloom. He's speaking many things to our hearts and igniting passions in us that we had put on the back burner.  We're in a season of waiting, waiting, waiting on Him to show us His perfect will for us here. We don't want to run ahead of the Lord, but neither do we want to sit back and do nothing when we feel the stirring in our hearts.  It's a balance we're still learning.

I love weekends. Most days include at least one trip to the park.  It has been so hot here.  Like one hundred on most days. Still our kids cannot stay indoors. They absolutely love being outside.

So we take many walks around the corner to our neighborhood park.

Where big boys skateboard.



And shoot hoops with Daddy.



And girls hang out together...just being beautiful girly girls.

Smile Haven, come on Honey, you can do it.  Just one little smile for mommy?  I guess not.



And little boys...well, they hang out in the park with their pants undone. Please oh please can someone assure me that my son is NOT going to become one those teenagers who wear their pants around their knees.  Lord have mercy.  



And baby girls do what they love best--swing, swing, swing.

Harper is coming so close to walking.  She is almost standing on her own.  She stands, falls down, gets back up and tries again.  It is the cutest thing.  She is very determined to get it right.  Because of her very low muscle tone I have no idea how her little ankles are going to hold her up.  Her legs are so squishy and she has no arches in her feet.  She's our little jellyfish. But she sure is doing it.  I figured that every time she gets into a standing position and cruises around the coffee table she's building muscle.

She is growing in leaps and bounds, and has us all wrapped around her chubby little finger.  Harper has got to be the most content children I have ever known.  She hardly ever cries--when she does, we know something is bothering her. 



Hailee has officially gained four pounds since coming home. She is finally starting to feel heavier. Our five year old has hit twenty pounds! We can see that her little face is filling out and her cheeks are definitely getting chubbier. 

She is also standing on her legs a lot more.  She hasn't tried to do it alone yet, but she is pulling herself up onto furniture.  This is HUGE for Hailee.  The little girl I met three months ago could not even sit up for extended periods before falling over.  She was like a floppy doll.  It truly blows my mind to witness what God is doing to restore ALL that was stolen from her.  I feel like I am witnessing a miracle every single day.

Hailee is one tough chick!  She may be tiny for her age, but I tell you, this girl LOVES a bit of wild play.  The higher in the air she is thrown, the harder she laughs.  The harder we bounce her around, the more she loves it.  Harper is so dainty and delicate--Hailee is the complete opposite.  Life is becoming a whole lot more interesting in the last few days since Hailee has decided that crawling onto her sister's back and pulling her down is actually a whole lot of fun. Having her sister on her back is not Harper's idea of a fun game at all. They're too sweet together.  I can tell that they are going to keep us on our toes.

I cannot even begin to tell you how much joy these two little girls have brought into our home.  They make us smile all day long. We cannot get enough of their absolute sweetness. They are such a gift to our family.



Thank you for rejoicing with me that Yuri and Wade will soon experience this same miracle of redemption.  I am not sure if their parents will be blogging their journey. I'll let you know.

So thankful tonight that there is no one else like our God!  May your week be blessed, sweet friends.