What a wonderful weekend!!!!!!!!!!!!

Despite a yucky cold, and despite Jael's tough week, this week had an amazing week-end!!! My dear friend Jill whom I've known via the internet for over three years but not known face -to-face , flew in for the weekend with her precious daughter Jordan. Her visit was actually two-fold: I was not her only friend-destination, but she was not my only friend -to-visit this weekend either. We've been hoping to meet for so long , she had planned on taking me with her to Ethiopia earlier in the year when she traveled to get her newly adopted daughter Lilly (for whom I had a tee-ninesy bit of input in naming!) but God had other plans and we did not get that longed for February shared birthday-hug. Not then....
..HOWEVER................... a mutual friend was planning a celebration for her 5 year old daughter Abby and we both wanted to be at that celebration. Abby was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of leukemia about a year after being adopted by our friends the Riggs Family. . The last two+ years have been a real walk of faith for them as well as for those of us who are their friends. This past week Abby completed her two years of chemotherapy, was tested and declared to BE IN REMISSION and a big party of celebration was planned in her honor . I've shared about Abby as I 've blogged ; my daughters grew and then had their hair cut to donate it to Locks of Love in Abby's honor, I've shared prayer requests for her over time as well as praises for positive steps. Jill too has been a part of those who love the Lord and who, loving Abby, have prayed and advocated for her during this long stretch of many valleys
.WHAT A THRILL to see Jill at long last , waiting at the curb of the airport passenger drop off and pick up point! I knew that we were truly kindred spirits, but when I saw that she and I were both wearing the SAME SHADE OF GREEN, I just had to smile a huge smile. Of all the hues, shades, tones and tints, we BOTH had selected Kelly green. I knew it would be really good from that moment! Naomi and Jordan struck up a friendship right away as Jill and I just took up side by side in the car where we'd been online and on the telephone. As soon as we got home, and all afternoon Jill, an incredible photographer and the little girl, were in Heaven On Earth on our farm. Jordan got to play with the horses, got to ride, got to pose with new friend Naomi for Jill and her impressive camera as Oklahoma showed us one more of its incredibly beautiful fall days! The tree-house, the rope swing, the big swing set, the kittens, goats and chickens.............all were thoroughly enjoyed by two little girls and the Mammas who love them and took great delight in watching them together.
How fun it was to be able to introduce Jill to my family, little bit by little bit, starting with a quick pass through with my older at-home children as they prepared to head out to a basketball tournament with Malachi,  then picking Jael up from school, picking Sopheak up from work, my husband getting home especially early from work and then finally running clothing out to Gideon. SO many pieces of Calico Ares Farm lore and Smithsoup blog posts all fell right into place with real faces to plug into the written words and to associate with my many photos.
I loved being able to just let the conversation flow with no "gotta go bathe babies" ( read: brb.....) no "phone" (brb) "milk customer" (brb) no short phone call, just awesome sit -and- visit time! The day started so early for Jill and Jordan with a 2:45 AM departure from their home to the airport in Pa, and the time zone change too... for ME it was 8 PM. For them it was 9 PM and a loooooong time since real sleep. Too early we said our good nights and made our plans for Saturday and the ABBY IS DONE WITH CHEMOTHERAPY Party.
As happens with real life my big plans for a whole morning with Jill had to be altered. Jael had a horrible night, a really bad fall, maybe a broken nose, some blood sugars which were definitely NOT in the hypoglycemic ranges , Charlie had morning farm obligations and I just could not leave Jael alone as sick as she was , and Jill's allergies would not allow her to come back to our house. Naomi had a great time with Jill and Jordan while I ministered to Jael and Daniel. Thankfully Jael's boy friend was able to come stay and "Nose sit" I called it so that I would feel safe leaving until Charlie got home again. His hoped -for plans to come to the Party had to take a back seat to helping are for Jael and Daniel (for whom I simply didn't have a space in my car. I WANTED to bring him with is!)
It was still a very special day of being together! Arriving at Abby's house we were able to help mom Michelle with some early party set-up, Jill got to have a terrific ( but all GREEK TO ME) conversation about photography with daddy Brent, the kids all got to run and play together with Abby who was still a bit stressed from all the events of the week AND with the fact that her favorite brother Garret was NOT at the house, but cute as can be regardless. After seeing quite a bit of "Boo Hoo" Abby, it was really good to see her playing dishes and tea party with one of her friends and seeing her run and play and laugh as she relaxed! I can't imagine what it would like to 3,4, or 5 years old and have so much attention on myself in so many different venues as Abby has had to live through. I wondered if she had had any real idea , at age 5 the magnitude of the celebration party her parents had put together in her honor, or if she had a clue as to why all these strangers were all over her house, or why so many people she'd met in so many other settings were now suddenly at her house together and bringing gifts. It was not her birthday, she knew that much. . It had to be a bit overwhelming even without a lumbar puncture and bone marrow aspiration the day before! I can not imagine parenting a post-toddler/pre-schooler through life- threatening illness while trying to teach manners and courtesy along with the other things that parents teach toddler-aged kiddos, in the midst of pokings and proddings , or obedience and respect through painful medical procedures and frequent ER visits and hospital stays. How does one teach a child not to be selfish or self-centered while EVERYTHING, or so it must seem for a little one, IS all about THEM? It's not a parenting skill I envy or desire to have to learn, thank you!! For all that God has given to us, having to figure out all of those kinds of issues is NOT on our plate (at least not now or that I am aware we will need to learn!) I have not asked Brent or Michelle many of those questions, but she and I have talked a little.
Lots of fun meeting other friends of my friends and discovering all of our commonalities as we chatted. There were many people that I met whom I hope to maintain communication with in weeks and months ahead.

THE PARTY. Oh MY!! ! This mommy and daddy were so thrilled to celebrate Abby being in Remission, they had    A      P A   R  T  Y  !!!  I don't know how many families actually came, it seemed like quite a few, but I can tell you they were well fed and their children were  thoroughly entertained with this amazing church's video game room, sound system ,  a super  blow-up "Moon Walk" house, face painting, candy and more candy!     It was so precious to be part of this awesome kind of  celebration after praying through so many of the valley days when Abby was  very very seriously  ill!
It was also  a  lot of  fun to be together with so many other adoptive families, to hear their stories, share our good and bad memories, make suggestions for future experiences, share learning experiences that made our own subsequent adoptions better, helped us to "adopt smarter"...just seeing the many many blended adoptive/bio families with children was a blessing!
As a mom of no Guatemalan or Ethiopian children, who is used to gatherings of the SE Asian adoptive families ,it was  very different to be the only mom with Asian children present, and  as the mamma of  So Many, it was weird that I only had two of our children with me.  I missed ALL of my wonderful family! Naomi and Rachel had a really great time, and I'm glad they were able to come with me. ( I did hold Daniel and snuggle with him for a loong time after we got home. I really missed him. I've not left him that long before and it was very strange!!!)

All too soon, we needed to leave for the 1 3/4 hour drive back home and it was my turn to be the tired one who called it an "early evening". I knew we'll  see Michelle and Brent, Abby. Landis and Hannah again, but the tears let loose when I started my "farewell hugs" with Jill. We have some hopes and tentative plans; God knows how those will pan out later.we just knew this was THE END of a wonderful but short very full visit for her and me. **** It was so sweet to see her "I'm getting on the plane" text right after worship was over this morning and SO SO good to hear Jill's voice a little while ago telling me that she was down on the ground and all went well. I miss my dear friend already!!!

Photos will not do us justice, but I'll share some. Jill really has the good ones and I will have to wait for her to upload and share  later!!




Jordan, Naomi and Abby with their BABY BE BLESSED dolls. Jordan gave one to both Naomi and Abby so the  three of them could play dolls together!! THANK YOU AGAIN   JORDAN  for your sweet gifts!!



One happy little party girl! This is  definitely not the face Abby had on when  we first arrived at her house

Jill and  Jordan

Naomi. Jordan and Rachel...and balloon animals!

Jordan getting her face painted

Naomi opted for a hand painting of a ladybug

but then decided on an arm vine too

 

Jordan and Naomi and balloon animals. Jordan had the best poodle I have ever seen!!

Brent giving goodies to the party goers!

 TOTALLY  "O T "  but   I had to take a photo of this young girl. Her strawberry blonde hair and its gorgeous highlights were so beautiful!! God  does ALL things well, doesn't He!!



some of the party  children around  Miss Abby



Brent and  Michelle had planned on pinatas but with no where to hang them, he opted to do a huge candy drop instead!!



How I praise GOD for friendships that He ordains, for the wonderful bonds we are able to forge in His Name, and for the absolute pure joy of celebrating with friends that their little daughter is in REMISSION of a terrible cancerous disease. Thank you Brent and Michelle for inviting all of us to share your very speial moment . I don't think anyone will soon forget this evening ! God IS good ALL THE TIME, but there are some times that He just lets us see a bit more clearly or deeply HOW GOOD. This weekend was one of those times !

Jill, me and Michelle





My honey and me,

Is there really a caption for this photo???

Yes, one more from THE  wedding!

Hypoglycemia

Sometimes life is just not easy or full of the "fun stuff". Like when your 16 year old daughter suddenly begins blacking out in random places and at random times of the day, begins vomiting most of her meals and starts testing her blood sugar only to discover that at any given moment she is running in the 40-70s when 80 + to 120 is a "normal" random test result. Jael started showing symptoms of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar, sort of the opposite of diabetes: too much insulin production rather than too little as with diabetes) about a  month and a half  ago while  we were  also  starting to get  busier and busier with Esther's wedding and Daniel's surgery . After the first 3 episodes of blacking out we went to our doctor who was very pro-active about figuring out what was going on.  Our doctor made a tentative diagonosis of  hypoglycemia but I suspected that was the problem  since I am hypo; my dad was diabetic as well as is Charlie's mom. It's something that I caution our children about regularly:FAMILY HEALTH HISTORY. I am all too aware of the potential for diabetes in our children and as a result have always promoted good foods and eating habits. TEENAGERS however, just seem to need to figure that out on their own and when disorder rears its ugly head.............teens seem to pledge all the harder to figure out their own way and how to include junk food, no food or dopey big Sonic meals and somehow make it work for them. HA!!!!!!!!!!!


SO, after weeks of glucose monitoring, a Holter monitor test to assess potential cardiac malfunctioning, weeks of glucose results- recording and journal -writing about fainting and vomiting episodes, some days being really good and some being really bad and a few flukey ones in between, Jael blacking out every day for the past 6 days at least once, today we saw the doctor again.  Seeing Dr. Evans for Jael and or Daniel has been a weekly event  for a while now. Jael blacked out right after dinner last night at a restaurant....giving quite the "floor show" to the other customers who saw her plummet headlong and land on her face on the tile floor.  Her brother Gideon and I rushed to her aide as restaurant staff offered all the help we might need as well. Today I had to go get her early from school because she blacked out on the stairs . Fortunately, her boy friend was with her, and he has been with her when she's fainted before . He kept a very cool head when all the people around them , teachers included all were frankly wigging out.. Jokingly I told her that I think her brain is checking out to getaway from her for a while and laughingly she agreed. Our doctor set up an appointment wit h an endocrinologist for December to assess if there could be anything else going on that needs addressing and went over her most recent lab results with us. Its clear that hypoglycemia IS her issue so food is the base line approach to helping Jael for now. I have been trying to promote small frequent meals but she has been a pretty typical teen in that this is "not convenient" or she "didn't' feel like it" but today reaffirmed to her that what she "felt like was frankly in the "tough noougies department" for now and her foreseeable future.

She asked me to go shop for things that she could or would eat throughout the day: protein shakes, beef jerky, cheese sticks, sunflower seeds, nuts, and she promised to stay away from the fries and chicken strips at Sonic.

She is sore from the hard bumps to her head and her shoulders. I am amazed at her spunk and ability to keep a great attitude. I am thankful for that attitude as we forge a new path of dietary changes and modifications . She was in a hurry to get done at the doctor's this afternoon because it's Wednesday night and YOUTH GROUP. About two minutes after she got home from church she fell sound asleep on the sofa and I am going to let her stay there .I think right now she needs a good nights' sleep while her Mamma prays over her!

A Thanksgiving Memory Revisited

This week we were visited by an elderly couple who are on the board for our Electric company co-op. The reason for the visit? Knowing that we are a large family with quite a few children still at home,  she asked if first of all we 'd be offended if they asked us if they could give us a turkey for Thanksgiving as the co-op was making a list of families who could use some help over the holidays and second, if they could bring that turkey to us. I gave the woman a hug and thanked her for thinking of us. My response to her question caused her to give me a hug right back. We ARE a very large family , this is true. We are in no way "financially" wealthy, this too is true, we are not financially "poor" either, also true. We are blessed, we have enough, we have enough to share, to plan to share and then to be able to share. I told the woman this and that we really appreciated what they had asked, I had a request of her: to please give that turkey to a family who needed it truly more than we did , in our name since WE were their original "target family". It was not pride and it wasn't turning down a blessing. It was passing on a blessing ...................... THAT stirred a memory of a much different time in our family history.
My husband's business had not been doing very well that particular autumn. We had several clients who had not paid their bills to us, and when you're self-employed, that means a lot of other folks don't get paid either and that things tend to get very lean in the household of the self-employed. In spite of that, I always managed to buy some extra canned goods and staples so that there was something to share with someone who simply could not buy those things at all. Our church was having its annual food drive to put together Thanksgiving baskets for needy families and of course each of our children brought their canned goods to the church kitchen to add to the growing stacks and piles. They were so exited to help and share! They were so looking forward to helping put those gift boxes together out of all that food stuff! Later in that same evening the ladies in charge of assembling and distributing the boxes called me aside from my AWANA Sparks group (K-2nd graders Bible  class).

They both had tears in their eyes when they told me, "we were speechless when you and your children came in with bags of things for the Thanksgiving Boxes. YOUR FAMILY is one that we are doing a box for!" THAT made ME speechless. I had not thought of us as "needy" and it just didn't our to me that anyone else would.
They asked me not to tell my children because the ids were all starting to work on the boxes that night and were having so much fun. My bringing things to share had really touched and blessed them and they wanted me to know that. I was so very blessed by their loving words and our family was beyond blessed by the Thanksgiving Boxes! I had not thought of that for a while, but this morning that memory came flooding back.

With the Apostle Paul I an say that I know what it is to" be abased and to abound", and I am reminded often "in all things to be content" We had plenty when we "didn't have plenty" and this year we have plenty enough to share more of that plenty and to ask a blessing to be passed along.

God has been faithful to us every single day! We have seen incredibly lean times and some that were pretty amazingly "plump" but for the most part we have been quite comfortable.............not "if I need a thing I can go right out and buy it NOW" comfortable, but comfortable. Having been in many places where people have nothing whatsoever, I am  all the more aware of how precious and how huge "comfortable" really is. It reminds me to stay thankful  and to be mindful of when I start to complain about my "stuff" or circumstances.

I am reminded so often by my own children how blessed we are . I will never forget our Isaac's first Thanksgiving in America. He was 8, and had been home about 9 months. We had talked about Thanksgiving being a feast, or really big special meal to celebrate all the things we are thankful for. I tried to explain turkey , as bigger than any chicken he'd ever seen. He'd seen me buy this huge turkey package but it was wrapped in plastic so still pretty hidden away . I roasted the turkey, Charlie came and carved it up, putting the platter of sliced meat into the oven to stay warm while we prepared the other food items for the meal. Isaac came into the kitchen, saw the carcass in the roasting pan, scraps of meat hanging off of it , intended for soup for another meal and his eyes got bigger and bigger as his thoughts raced through his head and words began to sputter out of his mouth. "Mommy?   Is T H A T the feast?" he asked with an enormous smile of amazement stretched across his whole face. I lost it. What I was referring to as scraps was the picture of a feast to a small boy from a very impoverished previous life.

"Give thanks with a grateful heart   Give thanks to the Holy One    Give Thanks because He's given Jesus Christ His Son.........AND NOW let the weak say 'I am strong'    Let the poor say 'I am rich'
 because of what the Lord has done for us       Give thanks!!!"
"Praise God from Whom all blessings flow      Praise Him all creatures here below    Praise Him all ye heavenly host Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost! AMEN!!"

There is life after a wedding!

I am so thankful that Esther' s wedding was LAST Saturday and not today.What a difference a week makes in the climate of a place! Last week we had those odd but -oh-so-welcome 70+ degree sunny days and this week we had more normal 40s and 50 with rain and mud . While its sunny today, it's pretty hilly and rather muddy. It would not have been the awesome setting for a late autumn wedding as last Saturday was.

SO............... what did we do today , a week after THE  Wedding and all the busyness involved therein??

Our dear friends who live in Tulsa have a Khmer daughter who is right between our youngest daughters' ages and she got to visit for the day while her parents were doing other "grown-up"stuff here in Stillwater. We don't get to see any of the Gillispies often enough but when the girls get together, excitement mounts for days and fun is non-stop when they are together! Taevy got to visit with Naomi and Rachel today and it was a fun day!

They went to assess the goats and the kittens (who were born when Taevy and her sibs spent two weeks with us in late spring) gather eggs from the hens, they rode bikes, they ran and played, inside, they ate our usual friend Ramen lunch with cabbage and sliced meat and we baked white chocolate hip macadamia nut cookies. I assigned measuring duties to each of the three girls and we added and added to my industrial strength Kitchen Aide mixer until we had an incredibly delicious cookie dough which made a wonderful bath of cookies! Granted the girls lost interest in the spooning of dough onto cookie sheets and waiting for cookies to get done, but we had a great time with the assembly process, at least I "think" we did!

\Naomi and the afternoon's  gathering of eggs




Taevy going to gather eggs with Naomi



Taevy and Naomi



Sweet Taevy brought me a new piggy for my ever-expanding collection too. SO cute!!! A pair of piggies side by side who immediately got the place of honor on my kitchen window sill .

I got another unexpected piggy gift this week too! My cyber -friend Kerry whose little boy Teddy I got to meet when I went to go get Daniel sent me a wooden plaque which simply states WHEN PIGS FLY. That new addition is now parked in front of my cookbook collection.

THANK YOU TAEVY and KERRY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Daniel was having a really good day today and while its hard for me to hold him, coax a smile or two out of him AND get those smiles and laughs on camera, today I really DID IT!!!! AS my spaghetti sauce simmers for family dinner later tonight, I will hopefully get some photos to upload. Face Book and my slow computer just could not get them uploaded. I hope Blogger has better "luck"



Taevy, Rachel and Naomi enjoy the fruits of our labor



Blue bow  Pink bow  Piggies from Taevy

"  WHEN PIGS FLY  " from Kerry!



 

Something made Daniel just burst out in loud laughter!



Daniel and I were talking; he was smling and telling me all kinds of things!

"Love is Worth Fighting For."..my song for the wedding

MORE wedding photos!

Jael, Maid of Honor



Hannah walking in

Leah walking down the aisle

Amy, Esther's forever dear friend





Terri , another good friend




MR and Mrs Rogers






Esther and her Ring Bearer



Esther and Hannah



Jael gives a "High 5" to someone......

Groom and a pal

 

The Groom was having a  VERY good time!





More photos, more fun!

AS Esther walked down the aisle, her groom was  waiting

Jael sang for the first two step
"Imagine Me  Without You"
She was  lovely!

Bride and groom leaving together. Esther did NOT  go side saddle!

The Wedding Table

on top

Had to share another one of the  girls and Lady

the wedding again, a different view

Esther's "other man"

Will you..............as long as you both shall live? WE WILL!!

Jael, Hannah, Amy , Linda  and

Colleen

line dance together

Wedding Photos

Ok my 'puter is not letting me move the photos to where I really want them so, in no really pre-planned or desired order...  

 THE cake! Isn't this amazing?? The frosting really looks like tooled leather designs, the tier separator is cowboy boots and there is real rope around the bottom tier of the cake. Casey's aunt Shelly did an incredible job!

Oh the things fondant frosting (an do!



Flower girls and Lady



Bridesmaids and Groomsmen



Esther and her  Daddy arrive



The walk down the aisle begins





Daddy and daughter



 





THE Wedding, go get your coffee, its a long post!

WHERE do I start? What a beautiful wonderful, fun -filled, God-blessed wedding!! Our dear friends :mom Debbie and daughter s Colleen and (bridesmaid) Amy got in from Louisiana Friday afternoon . Its always too long between visits with them but so nearly perfect when we an be together! Debbie did so much to help me get things done for the wedding when all my regular "life stuff" would not slow down or allow itself to be sidelined for a day or two and for that I am so eternally and publicly grateful! The rehearsal was a lot of fun. Not knowing how the horses were going to respond to the bridesmaids sitting side saddle added an element of uncertainty, having borrowed several horses who really didn't know any of us at all, added another element of the same. My husband and sons and son-in-law-to-be had worked hard on dismounting platforms for the bride and her maids so that getting on the horses and perching side saddle would be hopefully modest and simplified as well as dismounting nicely too. Practice went well, but there were no dresses involved to test it all out. We'd have to wait for the actual wedding for that!!


Esther's future father-in-law brought his huge smoker cooker out to our farm to prepare his awesome feast of a rehearsal dinner. Smells of delectable sorts filled our nostrils as we practiced coming in and going out, ran through the ceremony itself and I worked on my solo. The wind was blowing so ferociously that I found myself competing with it for the sounds coming through the microphone!!

It was hilly on Friday after noon as the sun began to set and we were all wondering about how we'd fare Saturday in sleeveless dresses!! A hard frost was predicted for Friday night and that too was a bit unsettling, but we had all been praying for one more beautiful November day in Oklahoma and trusting that God would show favor.

OH HE DID HE DID HE DID!!!!!!!!!!!! There was frost on the ground at 7 AM. By 8:30 on my last run to Walmart, the frost was gone and warmth was surrounding us! NOT a loud in the sky, not much wind, we were euphoric over the background for the wedding!!

Foods were being cooked, all the decorations and accessory items reached their destinations, the boquets had been made the night before except for Esther's which was assembled and tied in yellow, green and white streaming ribbons right before the ceremony. My bedroom turned into the Grand Dressing Room with boxes of donuts and 2 liter bottles of Dr Pepper filling my bath tub and make up and hair spray from all over the place found its way to my double sink.

Stories and memories, we were forbidden to tell about anything which might make Esther boo hooey and thus melt her make -up, well except me.

I HAD to hug my beautiful daughter and remind her that almost 20 years ago, a baby girl named Esther Miriam was born 5 weeks early and on her due date proper was admitted to the hospital nearly dead from RSV after she'd stopped breathing in our home. I did PR on my tiny daughter and then drove her to the hospital with my hand on her chest to make sure she'd continued to breathe. She had seen the doctor the day before, we'd thought she was croupy, but that next day she just went downhill so quickly. It was right after I'd called the doctor to tell him to meet us at the ER that Esther stopped breathing. My husband was sitting in the next room rocking toddler Malachi and I called to him as I was dashing out the door, "we are on our way to the ER. I will all you later." For the next three days they gave us virtually no hope for Esther. She had gotten THAT sick THAT fast. We had refused allow life support for her because they had told us she would be so brain damaged form loss of oxygen and we didn't want to start something that would keep Esther artificially alive and away from Heaven or that really could not be disconnected at some time later. Our prayer was that God heal Esther: on earth or Eternally. We took a lot of flak for that. A lot. This was the Intensive care Unit where I was working and my co-workers were not supportive of our decision. DAY FOUR was our miracle day!! Esther began to rally and respond to the meds and for the first time the staff verbalized hope for our precious tiny baby girl. On DAY TEN she came home and has truly never been sick a day sine !!!

We knew that God had spared her life in an unmistakable way, for "such a time as this" and her wedding morning called for a re-telling of that story.

THE WEDDING

Was so beautiful start to finish I am really not  able to describe it!! Lots of guests filled our pasture facing the barn, music filled the air mixed with happy voices and the whinnying of 6 horses awaiting their part in the ceremony.

Esther and Casey didn't want a traditional "Unity candle" but instead wanted to signify the blending of their pasts and future by each of them having a Mason jar of sand from their home town to pour into a common container as part of the ceremony.

Cindy, Casey's mom and I carried in the Mason jars of Western Oklahoma sand and Southwest Louisiana sand together and that started the wedding.One by one the bridesmaids rode in from the back side of the barn in plain sight of the guests, to the back of the seated guests. At that point the groomsmen who had led the side saddle-riding maids in, helped them dismount and then walked them to the front of the barn where Casey and our Pastor were waiting. It was so BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sweet Grand baby Charlie was the ring bearer, all decked out in his jeans, boots, wide belt with "dinner plate " buckle and his mini-Stetson , Casey's nieces were Flower girls :each one totally adorable in her own right! The completion of their flower petal scattering duties completed, Esther and Charlie began their approach. She was so radiant, her daddy so proud and so on-the-verge-of-tears...........he helped her off her beloved mare Sugar and walked his daughter down to present her to her groom. The usual question of "Who presents this woman ?" (NOT GIVES...we don't are for that wording) was followed by questions to Casey's parents and to us. We were asked if we as the parents would continue to support and encourage our children to help strengthen their marriage , pray for them and continue to guide them in God's principles. THAT was a cool thing I had not heard in a wedding before.

The vows and message were so personalized to Esther and Casey and the message about the sand was precious. As they blended their sand together, I sang the song "Love is Not a Fight, but its Something Worth Fighting For" from the movie "Fire Proof" to them (occasionally using the lyric sheet to shield the mike from the rushing winds!!) and then my daughter and her new husband were introduced for the first time as Mr and MRS Casey Rogers. They strode out to the awaiting horses, Esther looked at Sugar, looked at herself in her lovely poufy wedding gown , thought for a second and hopped up on that Paint mare as if her dress was a favorite pair of cruel Girl jeans and in a flash was ready to ride! NO more side saddle for MY cowgirl! Casey was beaming and amazed as he watched his bride. He was heard to exclaim, "THAT'S my WIFE!!" as they rode off across the pasture hand in hand, stopping for an occasional kiss! We gathered in the barn for family photos after the horses had all been tied up and put into stalls. The smaller children loved being at a wedding that turned into a petting zoo!!

We all moved from the pasture to the back yard where Gideon and Eddie ( Casey's dad) had prepared pork tenderloin on the smoker along with grilled potatoes and green beans. My dear friend Lynn and her mom Wanda had baked home made rolls for us and those rolls were a super addition to an already wonderful meal!

The wedding cake. WHAT an I say?? Casey's Aunt Shelley did the cake as a gift for the couple and it was probably the most fabulous cake I have ever seen anywhere!! Going along with the cowboy theme, the cake was decorated with cowboy boots as a tier platform separator, the frosting looked like lasso rope around the cake tiers, and the icing which decorated the sides of the cake looked like tooled leather on a very expensive pair of boots. A few scattered sunflowers added to the cowboy theme, and the Groom's cake was decorated to look like staked hay bales. AMAZING cake art!!!!!

I feel like I am using so many superlatives, but this WAS a superlative day!!!

We ate, we danced, we laughed long into the dark hours before the last of the guests went on their way. Later after as much as could be cleaned up , was cleaned up, Debbie and I sat back to bask in the completion of the event. I want to mention here too that Debbie held Daniel for me when I went up to sing. She had noticed that he does not respond to very much, very often, but she told me after I'd come back to my seat, that as SOON as I began to sing, his countenance changed. He began to move, his eyes began searching the air for my voice and he began to sing with me. She was so touched by his response to his mommy who was "out there somewhere" and his efforts to locate me and to join his sweet baby roar with my song.

I also didn't mention that as we were rehearsing Friday, I saw Esther talking on the phone as she rode her horse into the pasture and that she kept talking as her daddy led her down the "aisle". I thought "WHAT IS SHE DOING???" This is her WEDDING REHEARSAL!!" Well, her big brother Caleb who was unable to be with us due to military commitments called to hat with his little sister. That made a phone call in the middle of rehearsal quite all right!!! Oldest big brother Joshua currently in Afghanistan sent his best wishes via Face Book.

My heart is full, my daughter and her new husband are so full of love for each other, its pretty nearly tangible! Something more!!! He had realized at the end of their pre-martial counseling sessions that he had never actually asked the Lord to be his personal Savior. He'd gone to church, been a good person, tried to do what was right.... but had not been taught , and had not realized there was so much more!!! Realizing that this was really imperative and something he wanted to be sharing with his wife, he prayed a salvation prayer and announced to our church the next week that having received Jesus as his Savior he wanted to follow the Lord in baptism BEFORE the wedding. We had a Baptismal service for Casey last week to meet with his wishes.

Photos will follow. There are SO many really share-worthy ones, I'm not sure where to start. If you happen to be FB friends with my dear neighbor-friend Lori Steffy, you an see hundreds of photos on her face book page!!!

two more days

The weather looks like it is going to great for a wedding and like hats and gloves will not be needed! The bathroom is nearly finished. Only ONE  mishap! As my husband was lifting the toilet to put it on the pipe, it slipped ,dropped and broke.YES   the toilet. So in addition to new paint, new flooring  and new towel fixtures, we have added a new toilet to the list of things we bought  that really had nothing to do with a wedding but had EVERYTHING to do with having a wedding! I know our guests will thank us for having more than just one  working bathroom!!!
Yard is very tidy, no leftover blown get-away garbage along any of the  fencing, garage is swept and very neat, dining room is guest ready too
Tomorrow the rest of the  house WILL be dusted  swept, mopped and  vacuumed. The windows WILL be washed. Green beans are being prepped for my new Paula Deen stock pot and the bacon which will season them. All 70# of meat are smoker ready too. One of our afternoon jobs will be to pierce and wrap 40# of potatoes so they are ready to be baked.  We will assemble flowers  and make little bags of rice and bird seed to throw at the newlyweds. LOTS OF  TEAM WORK stuff to do!!!
I am quite sure that the baked tilapia, rice, and mixed greens I prepared for dinner tonight are a great  THANK YOU for the work done today and  motivator for tomorrow's hard work to be well done!!! it couldn't hurt any way, right??

November 2, 2010

Our weekend was beyond defining. A dear friend told me, "Your life was just like a country song!" Yes it was,  right up to our beloved Golden Retriever , Aslan   being run over  and killed right by our driveway. I just don't even want to talk about it any more other than to say that God is faithful and He was with us every minute! God is GOOD, even when the "Stuff" going on around is does not look "so good". Blessed be the Name of the Lord!!
Naomi's  9th birthday was Saturday and we had a great family time over the ourse of 4 days! Ice cream cake, A Brandon Heath and Jars of clay  concert,  and Chinese Buffet for lunch ! Lots of great fun!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY  DEAR  NAOMI!
 The WEDDING is now less than a week away!! The details are working themselves out, my prayer is for a bit of warmer weather to stay around or return, as the Case may be! Last week it was glorious  70's and this week,  maybe 60's. NOT what we were hoping for an outdoor wedding where the bridesmaids and the  Calico Acres Mamma who hates cold temperatures  and who are all wearing  sleeveless (albeit GORGEOUS!!!)  dresses! The meal is ready to be smoked an grilled, flowers are ready to be assembled into bouquets and sprays and boutonnieres, the barn is neat and tidy, the pasture is guest -ready!!
The bride and groom are READY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Dear  Bloggy  Friends it is the most important day of the year for us: the day we may go out and exercise our right and privilege as citizens of this great  country:its Election Day! 
PLEASE DO GO OUT AND VOTE!   Read the amendments, pray and vote to the best of your understanding of the issues, and  by your knowledge of  God's laws for the people He created . Regardless of your  party affiliation, some  of us  are going to be happy  or sad, satisfied or angry, but this is our Country and we all love her. I know very  clearly  how I want to see things go,  and  I know that  I do not want the "winners"  to get in to their new  jobs and go back to business as usual. Our Country needs to be re-directed  and our economy addressed squarely. We need to get rid of a lot  of  junk  and a lot of junk -makers. Nothing happens overnight , but a lot is possible in less than 2 or 4 or 6  years of blaming the "other guy".
My prayer is that America has awakened  and is ready to engage her politicians and hold them accountable. Ever written an elected official?  called one? Gone to a rally  or town meeting? This might be the year for you to give that some new thought and act upon those thoughts. Your voice  DOES  make a difference!
Today  be the best American you an be!! Pray  and VOTE!!!
Please listen to "Breathe on us again" and read the words here as you listen?   (The song is  from "Promise Keepers,"  if anyone was wondering)
THIS above all is my prayer for The United States of America and The church!! Please Father, BREATHE  ON US AGAIN!!





Breathe On Us Again

O Lord hear
O Lord forgive us
We have lost the awe of You
Have mercy have mercy

O Lord restore

The church that bears Your name
O Spirit send
A revival to this nation
Breathe on us again
Breathe on us again

O Lord cleanse

Our hearts which are divided

Stir the faith that we once knew

We're thirsty we're thirsty

O Lord restore

The church that bears Your name
O Spirit send
A revival to this nation
Breathe on us again
Breathe on us again