When we practice what we preach

How many times have we as parents heard "practice what you preach?" I know I have heard it a thousand time. Well, I realized how wise this saying really is when my son came downstairs to inform me that he wanted to take one of his sick friends dinner.

How many times have I done the same? Had him walk food to the neighbors door for me, made him help me carry food into a friends home? Countless times. It's what I do when my friends are hurting or need some help.

And to have my son model that is unbelievable to me. It shows me that not only is he modeling what he sees, but he is thinking about others with compassion. WOW!

Thank you God for showing me that my work is producing fruit!


Now, of course, I won't write about the "other" stuff he may watching me do....let's focus on the good! =)

Vacation Pictures

Once again, lesson learned

Okay, so this roller coaster ride of selling/buying a house is not so much fun. Actually, when we put our house on the market, we thought it would not sale at all. Well, it sold in 3 weeks! WOW! Then after selling, we thought, uh oh, we should find a house before we end up homeless.

So, the search begins. We actually found a house in this very neighborhood that we liked. It was a nice house, but a little high priced we thought for the neighborhood. We offered, expected a counter and some negotiations, and the agent said, we don't negotiate our price. ????? Well, okay, we move on because we know we aren't paying that price for that house. Not an option.

So, we continue to look. New, resale, anything. Jayson is saying: You promised you wouldn't take me out of my school, Hunter is saying: I like the NEW house and Katie is saying: I don't want to move! So what do we do? Lower our standards and please Jayson, pay more for a house than we want to to please Hunter. OR get sued and please Katie? What's the right answer?

We were torn yesterday. Very much so because our time is running out. Do we bid on this beautiful new construction or go to the one in the neighborhood across the street and "settle" for something we could fix up "eventually"? I was actually sick to my stomach and felt like I could throw up. I have always been excited about buying a new house, not stressed out. This just didn't seem right at all.

I simply looked at Jay and said, now is not the time to make any offer. I needed to talk to one of my wise mentor moms and get some perspective and accountability. So, I called Tammy, btw....I am so glad she is home! =) She lined me out and we decide to pray about it some more last night.

Well, today, we saw the one house that had someone gotten overlooked. And guess what, it was PERFECT! Everyone wins! Yea!!!!! Now we see why we were so sick yesterday. WE were trying to make something happen instead of just allowing God to work it all out. When something/anything is too hard or just doesn't feel right, then it usually isn't. So, I am so thankful that we had the courage to walk away from the "good deal" the new home builder was offering us yesterday and just ask God for peace.

Ah, peace....it is a beautiful feeling.

HOME!

It's a day (well night) of celebration here in Texas....

The Adlers have touched down on Texas soil! My wonderful dear friend Tammy and her husband are home!

The Lord has shown us how faithful He is once again!

Thank you God for bringing Tammy home and for having Ralph right by her side! Thank you for the miracles you continue to show us every day.

A mother's job

Okay, I am not saying Daddy's aren't important....NOT AT ALL! But let me just tell you what a mother can do...

As you all know our house is on the market. Well, we had been having a rather slow week so I guess we have let our guard down just a bit and were thinking we could just "be normal" around here today. Not messy, just lazy. I had told Pastor Kyung I would watch his darling children tonight and the girls and I were really looking forward to it.

So, this afternoon we are off to the Salon to get haircuts and after we finished them up I had about 2 hours before babysitting time. Well, guess what...SHOWING! I call Jay and frantically tell him to start the drill. Our kids have gotten really good at knowing their jobs. Jayson vacuum, Hunter open all the blinds, turn on the lights. Katie....well, Katie just don't make a mess and you are doing a good job! ;)

So, I have to call and arrange for Pastor Kyung to meet me at the park to drop off his kids because the showing is (of course) scheduled for the same time he is bringing his kids to me. However, we are getting good at being spys and saw that the buyers would be gone before he would get here so I called and had him come to the house instead. No need to give me a stroller or car seat, we are in for the night and I can't imagine we would need them.

Jay heads to a ballgame, Jayson a play and the girls and I have a 2 1/2 year old and a 6 month old in the floor having pizza and watching a movie. You know what's coming don't you????? The same lady would like to come back! NOW!

So, I grab the baby, put him in the carrier, have Hunter do her job and I clean up the pizza. We grab the dog dishes, throw them in the garage and put all the baby stuff in the car. Fortunately in 45 minutes we hadn't undressed, cooked or done anything crazy to the house. We put Cayden in Katie's booster seat, Zander in the baby carrier which (thankfully) can be seat belted in to my car and then throw the dogs in with us. We got out with a moment to spare! So, where does a mother go with 4 kids and 2 dogs? Well, to be honest there aren't many options. We decided on the park at the end of the street. That way we didn't have to get on the "big" road and endanger anyone and the park is a good place for humans. The dogs, on the other hand, had to sit in my locked car which was running the whole time to give them air conditioning.

Now, I know Dads are superheroes....but Moms rock. It was stressful for me, but quite simply, Jay would have been pulling his hair out. I guess this is why I get paid the big bucks huh? ;)

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to my wonderful hubby! He is such an awesome father. I know my kids won't really grasp what a wonderful dad they have until they are parents themselves, but, boy, I sure get it! I look at my children and see how secure they are in themselves, how my daughter's just know they are beautiful and have value beyond measure. I look at the self assurance Jayson exudes in being the teenage child he is. All that comes from knowing you are loved unconditionally.

I can remember how excited Jay was EVERY time he found out we were pregnant. I can remember how awe struck he was EVERY time he held one of our newborn babies in his arms for the first time. And just last week my heart swelled with gratitude for presence of him in our lives as I watched him cry when our daughters took the stage.

I think that saying "anyone can be a father but it takes someone special to be a dad" really applies to my husband. He is just the kind of man who makes it to everything that is important to our children. He takes time to talk to them, play with them, snuggle them and encourage them. Ah, what a man!

My Jay learned from the best....his daddy. I can't believe this is our second year without VT and he is missed terribly. It's days like today that the scab is ripped off the wound and their is pain again. However, one of the most important things VT modeled for Jay (for us all) was faith...and through faith we hang in there knowing that ultimately we will be with VT again. I know when Jay meets VT in Heaven that VT will tell him what a fantastic dad he was to our children!

Summertime!

Summer Summer Summer! I think we have officially found it here in our house. The kids actually got out of school last week, but with the weekend packed with dance recitals and house showings, it just now feels like we have had the much anticipated mornings of sleeping in and lazy days.

Oh, speaking of dance recitals, the girls were AWESOME! They both brought tears to their daddy's eyes. Honestly, I was so busy running back and forth from behind stage to the audience, I didn't have time to cry. But it was so worth it. They were simply charming.

Summer plans? As Katie would say "Oh yeah!!!!!" In 2 weeks we leave for Cancun. I simply can't wait. This will be a new experience for us all, travelling to a new place. The girls are on major excitement overload and planning daily for our trip. The boys, well, they just do what we tell them to do.
One of the cool things about our vacation is that we will be in Cancun on MY birthday. I told the fam that all I could ask for was a day on the beach with my book, peace and quiet . Well, we will see how long that lasts....not because they won't give it to me, but because I won't be able to stand it....after all, don't they need me around so they can have fun? :o)

I have also given each child a card to write on stating one activity they would like to do with me one on one over the summer. It is my goal that each child have a moment this summer to spend with me and for me to have no distractions. If you are a mother then you know what I mean. I often have the best intentions but....well, you know what I mean. They each asked for something different, and I was suprised to see nothing "over the top". Basically, they just want my time. And I am honored that of anything they could have asked for, they just want ME!

Now, that could get me started on a tanget about raising kids, but I will leave that for another day. Those of you who know me well probably already know what I was going to say anyway!

Happy Summer everyone! Stay safe and have fun! :o)