The Forgotten Disciples

" Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,  teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”(Matthew 28:19-20)


What comes to mind when you read this verse? For most of us we think about getting on a plane and going somewhere far away and sharing the gospel with people of an unreached people group, or maybe you think about the young lady in your lifegroup you disciple every week. And while all of those are definitely what this passage is teaching, I do believe there are some "forgotten disciples" out there....

You know them extremely well. In fact, you know them better than anyone because you care for them on a daily basis. As a matter of fact, if you are a woman they call you "Mom".

Over the last few weeks God has really convicted me about this. We are focused on our children coming to faith in Christ (as we should be) and then once they do we check that one off of our list right next to potty training and reading.

Unfortunately, we neglect to disciple our children. I think we figure either they will just "catch on" or, just as terrible, the church will take care of that once they are older.

But this isn't the church's job, this is our responsibility as parents. We are in charge of their discipleship and we as Christian parents should view this as one of our greatest privileges. We should share in their growth and sanctification and challenge them to be a disciple of Christ and teach them how to study the Word. This is parenting, this is discipleship.

So where do you start?


Well for our family we started with the Word of God, a journal, a pen, lots of prayer, and dependency on the Lord.

We have started by teaching them how to study the Word and how to journal about what they have read. Next we taught them about prayer and about writing down their prayers. In a few weeks, we will study fasting and what God's Word says about it.  

My prayer in this is that my children will

learn how to be disciplined disciples of Christ and in return learn to disciple others.  

KatieJoy's Surgery

Today LouAnn and I met with the doctor that will be doing KatieJoy's surgery. It wasn't the news we were wanting to hear but we are trusting in the Lord and His ability to heal and to make things new. Here's what we were hoping for:

1. A closed heart surgery ( repair the Glenn she had done)

2. One year later for her to have the Fontan surgery

Unfortunately, this is not the case. She will still be having the repair but he will be doing it as an open heart surgery in order to see if she has a viable second chamber. Also, she is not a candidate for the Fontan due to high lung pressures.

WE ARE ASKING GOD FOR A MIRACLE!!! And we would covet your prayers. If she does have a viable second chamber then the doctor will eventually be able to do another surgery that will really help her.

If she doesn't then we are looking at some other options that are simply just band-aids and are not good long term solutions.

Her surgery is scheduled for July 16th so please be in prayer for her and for the doctor. Please ask God to work a miracle in her life.

Our New Homeschool "Normal"

Since we brought home our newest addition to our family we have definitely had to find a new "normal". Between bonding, attachment, and the myriad of doctors' visits we have still had to find a way to get all of our school work done. The one thing that has seriously been a life-saver is the ability to switch my teaching days around. And the number one helper is my Homeschooling Family Day Planner, this planner makes it extremely easy to plan out my teaching schedule, keep everything organized, and move things around when I need to without missing things. The planner I use is available at Mardel Christian Stores but you can get this one on Amazon and it will work as well.

So here's what it looks like:

Mondays (Teaching Days)

Any lessons throughout the week that would require a "teaching" or "parent led" portion (for my older children), I do all of this on Monday. All of this makes Monday's a super busy home school day so I try really hard not to schedule anything else on this day. This is also the day we do any big projects or enrichment. For example, we made our edible cells for Anatomy & Physiology on "teaching day".

This is a great day for my younger ones to do any art projects or busy work.

Tues -Thurs.- The older children work independently these days which gives me an opportunity to work one-on-one with my Kindergartner and 1st grader. This method has really enabled my older two (3rd & 4th graders) to work on managing their day.

Friday - Co-op Day

This very simple change has transformed our new "normal" and has allowed Momma to keep her sanity;) This may not work for everyone, but that is the beauty of homeschooling, it enables us the creativity to find what works:)

An Update On KatieJoy-

"Strength and dignity are her clothing and she laughs without fear of the future." Proverbs 31:25

I have always "given" a verse to each one of our children while I was pregnant and KatieJoy was no exception. While "paper pregnant" the above verse seemed appropriate and now that we have had her home for the last 3 months it is even more fitting.

I have said this verse over and over again as well as a myriad of others since Wednesday. Our cardiologist from Cooks called us personally to discuss the meeting he and his team had regarding the results of KatieJoy's heart cath. I knew it wasn't going to be good when he asked that my hubby be there for the next appointment so we could discuss our options. Basically, in a nutshell, the team of doctors (including the surgeon) agreed that as of now she will not be able to have the 3rd surgery. They do not believe, at this time, that she would survive it, they fear she would either not live through the actual surgery or that her body would reject the new flow of blood shortly after surgery. There is still a lot up for discussion with the team of doctors and so far this is one of the decisions they made.

So whats the next step?

The team has decided to do a less risky surgery in April or May going through her back under the left shoulder blade to access the heart. Depending on how well she does with this one they will decide what to do next. I think there will be some discussion of heart and lung transplant for the future (this is definitely the most risky of all the surgeries).

They are hoping this next surgery will buy her some time and possibly strengthen her heart/lungs.

So why the sudden change in plans?

Well what they saw on the cath is that left side of her lungs do not look so good. Blood is not flowing properly and there is a great deal of concern with her left side. They believe it needs to be taken care of quickly and that how she does with this surgery will be very telling.

We were told to enjoy her, take some time as a family, and let her enjoy life.

We know that God has a perfect plan for her and He is still a miracle worker and that HE can do great and mighty things!

Some may think this is easy because she isn't our biological child, but I am here to tell you that its not. We love her as if I gave birth to her and we will continue to pray for a miracle and for God to sustain her. We are trying to plan a little trip with her to Galveston (so we can be close to Texas Children's just in case) and we are also being encouraged to apply for Make -a -Wish for her.

Does this mean we have given up and resigned to the fact that she may not make it through the upcoming surgeries?

No, we know and are well aware of how fragile her life is, as well as how fragile all our lives are, but we also believe that she can live for another 30 years if that is in Gods plan...but we want her to live her life to the fullest...as should be true for each one us.


How can you pray?

-for the team of doctors as they make decisions
-for our appointment on the 30th .
- pray for strength for KJ
- pray that she will come through this upcoming procedure

We appreciate all your prayers and we know these prayers have helped get her through so much!

Embracing The Changing Seasons Of Homeschool Life

Over the Christmas break our household experienced some major changes. We had the joy of bringing home our adopted daughter!  With all the joy and excitement that this blessed occasion brought, along with it came some major changes.

I knew with the newest addition to our household things would be different; more laundry,more dishes, diapers(again) but I actually never thought about how it would change our homeschool schedule. I hope you will join me over the next few days as I share with you some of the major changes we have made to our homeschooling day and how implementing these changes has been a sanity saver.

Memorial Day

                                                                 

                       
 "For I will go through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments-- I am the LORD.The blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live; and when I see the blood I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.This day shall be for you a memorial day, and you shall keep it as a feast to the LORD; throughout your generations, as a statute forever, you shall keep it as a feast" (Exodus 12:13-14)


On several occasions in our family we have stopped and recognized days as days of "memorial"....We often sit the children down and explain what God has done and we have moments throughout that day, week, or year we stop and give thanks to God for the incredible work He did and reminisce on the " memorial" day. Often times we've remembered God's provision, His faithfulness in a situation, or His asking of us to step out in faith in a situation and each time we marveled  over His goodness and love for us.

Yesterday was one of those days...We sat the kids down and shared what God has done and we told them to remember this day...as a day of God's kindness, mercy, and faithfulness in KatieJoy's life.

We met with the cardiologist yesterday to discuss the surgical plan for KatieJoy's heart condition. First let me TRY to explain her condition as best as I can.

Her Condition:

1. Complete Atrioventricular Canal defect (CAVC)-A large hole in center of the heart affecting all four chambers where they would normally be divided. When a heart is properly divided, the oxygen-rich blood from the lungs does not mix with the oxygen-poor blood from the body. A CAVC allows blood to mix and the chambers and valves to not properly route the blood to each station of circulation. (American Heart Association)

2. Endocardial cushion defect (ECD) is an abnormal heart condition. The walls separating all four chambers of the heart are poorly formed or absent.

3. No spleen

4. Dextrocardia- is where the heart is pointed toward the right side of the chest instead of the left.

5. Left side of the heart does not function.

6. Double Inlet Ventricle- ok!!! Stopping here....by now you are probably hearing Charlie Brown's mom... Whah!Whah!Whah!Whah! And honestly I don't know what this is...

NOTE: Mom and Wendy ... if you are reading this please correct anything I messed up!!! I am a mommy, not a doctor:)

NOW THAT MY BRAIN IS COMPLETELY OVERLOADED......

Here is the exciting part...

In Bulgaria we were told she was in heart failure but the cardiologist believes this is no longer the case. The Lord has healed this!!

We, as well as her stateside doctors, believed we would have to proceed with the heart catheterization and surgery ASAP but were are not!! We are getting to wait until March to have the heart cath because her cardiologist believes she is doing extremely well right now. Depending on what is found in the cath he believes, right now, we can wait 6 months to a year for the surgery!! This in and of itself is a miracle! We were also able to take her off/reduce most of her meds. GO GOD!!!!!!!!!!!

BUT.....

We have a huge prayer request :

1. Please pray she stays well, this plays a huge factor in so many things.

2.We are asking for each of you to pray that when they do go in to do the heart cath they find that she does in fact have two  bottom chambers. (Medical records say no but our cardiologist believes the echos may be showing a second). If she does have the second chamber then the surgery they are going to do (although difficult) has longer lasting effects and gives an extremely increased life expectancy. If she doesn't have the second chamber then they will do a surgery that can lead to some difficulties as she grows into adulthood and it has been known to have shorter lasting effects.
3. Her heart condition causes complications with her lungs and because of this they need to find out if her lungs have been irreparably damaged or if they are fine and just functioning the way they do because of her heart condition. Determining this will be done in the upcoming days through possibly a CT Scan or an MRI on her lungs, they will also be able to see some of this during the heart cath.

We have heard from many doctors that KatieJoy is a miracle.. and we agree! But one thing we are constantly driving home to whoever asks is that SHE IS NOT A MEDICAL MARVEL BUT A MIRACLE OF OUR FAITHFUL GOD!!!!

So this is why  yesterday was a day of "memorial"... 

To God be the Glory!

   

Did That really Just Happen?

Did that really just happen, hours before we were scheduled to leave? Did we really just get the rug jerked out from underneath us? Did we just receive word that our little girl underwent a second open-heart surgery without us even knowing? Was it because they were worried she wouldn't pull through and didn't want to tell us until they knew for sure? YES! Yes it did!!

Did this take God by surprise? Was He taken off guard? Very clearly...NO!!!

Psalm 46:1 tells us " God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble". 

For the past 7 months, since we began the process to adopt KatieJoy, God has shown me so much about Himself ....He has shown me the ugly in myself ..and my need for His grace each day.

As our agency broke the news to us just a few hours before we were scheduled to leave, the only thing I knew to say to them was that we knew this was the risk we took in adopting her and that we knew things wouldn't go as "planned".

As I replay that conversation over again in my head, I wonder why the Lord didn't tattoo the word "duh" on my head. If you know me personally then you know I am a planner...I plan out every meal, every school subject, everything I am going to do with my life. However, as I began processing everything that occurred yesterday the Lord reminded me of this truth:

• "The heart of manplans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps." Prov.16:9
• I am thankful God loves me enough to establish my steps and to be the hope to which I can hold. An amazing thing is, He is the same God here in Texas as He is in Bulgaria!

Please continue to pray for KatieJoy as she has been in ICU since June 20th. Pray for healing for her little body and we will be able to meet her in a couple of weeks!

Calling All....

Calling all crafters, business owners, product consultants (i.e. Mary Kay, 31, ect.) or really generous peeps who would like to donate items for our adoption auction....WE NEED YOUR HELP!!!!

On May 9, 2014 we will have an auction/benefit concert at our church and we are desperately in need of items to auction off. These items can include anything from homemade craft items, products, gift cards, ect.

Our goal is to raise $4,000 for our upcoming "meetcha" trip. If you are interested in being a part of this event please contact me through my blog or Facebook. 

Please Consider Being A Part Of KatieJoy's....

Homeschool Highlights

Our school week in pictures...

Our week started off smoothly and we were able to get alot of school work done. However, by the end of the week we were visited by an unwanted guest...he is some sort of unnamed virus and I will be elated when he leaves our family alone. So we brought back the colloidal silver and elderberry syrup and hopefully he will run for dear life and leave us alone :)

We started off our week reading The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats

After we read the book we painted snowmen with snow paint
This was super easy to make and lots of fun to work with.
Snow Paint Recipe

1 Cup of Salt
1 Cup of Flour
1Cup of Water
Put ingredients in a bowl, stir, and now you are 
ready to paint :)

Then we made snowflakes...

We had a great time !!

In History we learned about St. Francis of Assisi and in Bible we
learned about the fall of Jerusalem.

The girls and I are reading The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder
and they are working on a lapbook. 

Jeremiah is reading Robin Hood by Roger Green.
He is really enjoying the book as well as the lapbook I got for free here.


We are learning to celebrate the small victories both in our homeschool days (that don't always go as planned)
and in our adoption. :)

The Ladybug Letters

I have decided I would blog letter/updates to/about KatieJoy so I can keep up with her journey and then have a Blog2Print  book done for her that tells her story.So here goes the first letter:

Dear Katerina,

We got word on Tuesday that you had your second scheduled surgery..although a surprise for us we know it didn't take God by surprise. We were all very sad that we couldn't make our first trip to see you but we know that God has a plan and we trust in HIM. We are praying for you to recover quickly and heal. We hope that you are well enough to make our trip this time.


Dear Katerina,

This week has been a very busy week. We have been working on lots of paper work that will help bring you home sooner. We also ordered  a gift to send to you. Your brothers and sisters have been searching high and low to find you something very special and they finally agreed on a ladybug lovey and as I type this we are waiting on it to arrive. We are planning on mailing it to you soon. :)

 We got word this morning you are now out of the hospital (after a 4 week stay recovering from heart surgery) and you are now in the orphanage. Our lawyer told us your condition isn't perfect but you are doing ok for now. We are trusting in a very powerful God who is able to sustain you through this.We, as well as hundreds of friends and family, pray for you daily. Your big brother Micah prayed specifically for you this week, completely on his own. He asked that Jesus would heal your heart. This was a very special thing, one day we will share what God did in Micah's life!!

Waiting for you!
Love,
Your forever family

Donate to Bring KatieJoy Home

Our family was featured today on Blessed Beyond A Doubt! Please read about our journey to homeschooling and adoption.

Another Update on KatieJoy

We got word today that KatieJoy is still in the ICU, she is not stable enough to be moved to a regular room.On the positive side, she is breathing on her her own and we are so grateful to God for this good news!! We ask that you would pray for healing in her little body and that you would consider buying a t-shirt to help us bring her home!

T-Shirt Fundraiser

We are selling shirts to help bring KatieJoy home...

https://www.bonfirefunds.com/bringing-home-katiejoy

Surgery Update

We received word last Monday morning that KatieJoy was having surgery that day, which means that by the time the email got to us ( due to the time difference) she had already had the surgery. Being that this was a major heart surgery we were on pins and needles for the next two days. On Wednesday we got an email stating that her surgery went well and that she was recovering well but that that is all the doctors are wanting to say and now we must wait and pray. Not the most comforting words to hear but we were very thankful that she came through the surgery. We are continuing to praying for healing and strength for our little girl and we ask that you would please join us:)

"My Little Daughter"

Adoption is not JUST a journey in the rescuing of a child, it's so much more than that! It's a place where our self sufficiency collides with God's sovereignty and we find ourselves broken before a loving and gracious Father who breaks us and molds us and shapes us and takes us to the deep valleys  while over and over again assuring us of His unfailing love....I daily pray for faith like Jarius.."Then came one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name, and seeing him, he fell at his feet and implored him earnestly, saying, "My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well and live."  (Mark 5:21-22). This is the cry of my heart, that Jesus would lay his hands on KatieJoy's heart and heal her... that she too would be made well and live! This is where my faith has to step in and where my worry and fear must turn into praise and adoration. This is why adoption is a journey ... a story ... Not written by me but crafted by a Gracious Father...

Please commit to praying for us during this process.Pray for KatieJoy's upcoming surgery, pray for the paperwork to be handled quickly and for God to provide financially so that we can bring her home.