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Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Boys and Little Girls

We have 25 kiddos that live on our street, it is so wonderful! They are like a posse and they just roam from house to house. Well, it is wonderful 99% of the time, they are all like siblings because they spend so much time together so we do have our moments:)

With that said 2 of the little girls who live on our street came over to hang out with Luke yesterday. We have had a couple of parties to get ready for Sarah May's arrival and so her room is basically full of toys, clothes and books. Luke of course wanted to share all of this loot with his friends. So, enter the little girls into this literal pile of goodies. "Oh my gosh!", they said running around and checking it all out, they were overwhelmed and giddy. My mind went directly to imagining Sarah enter this environment. It is going to be crazy, these are girls who are use to being surrounded by stuff. I am sure Sarah has very minimal right now. I have to work out a plan to dole out all the goodies when Sarah arrives, not just have her go into overload! When the girls were giggling and smiling I could just see Sarah joining in their fun! I can't wait.

Blessings,

Thes 5:16-18 Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Jesus Christ.

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Funny Luke

Just something funny Luke asked me I wanted to share. Our dog Sophie ran around outside today and got a bunch of burrs stuck all in her hair. Luke asked me, "Mom how are we going to get all of these freckles off Sophie?"

Blessings,



Fingerprints

Who knew fingerprints would be such a pain in the rear? I am hopeful that after today I will never have them taken again. Today was our 3rd time over the past three years to have our prints scanned through the homeland security system. Evidently your prints expire every 15 months!

Dave and I headed down to Austin (yeah it use to be San Antonio) to have our prints scanned. We walked in without an appointment because we were told on Wednesdays they take walk ins. We have been waiting for our appointment for over a month. I have been sick thinking these dumb fingerprints are going to be what holds up our trip to get Sarah. Upon arrival in Austin, after a bit of a tense trip because I did not print a map (will I ever learn?), we were asked for our appointment paper:( I explained we were told we could walk in today and of course went into how desperate I am feeling about getting to China. We were told, "have a seat while I go speak to my supervisor." We sat for what was probably only 5 minutes but to me felt like an eternity. Finally, they said yes, they would take them. Yeah!!

I go up to have my prints taken and it is a tedious process. After the woman finishes she informs me I have worn prints. She is not sure if the FBI will approve them, maybe I will have to come back to Austin for a retake. You have to be kidding me! I asked are they going to change and become less worn? She said no. I am erasing her comment from my mind...now. Ridiculous!

I know I posted this scripture yesterday but I really need it again today!

Psalm 46:10 Be still and know that I am God.

Blessings,



Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Seriously!

Seriously, I can't even make this stuff up! We went up to Waco this weekend for Joseph and David to have an assessment done at Baylor in the language department. They are both dyslexic and I found out recently that Baylor has a program to help kids with reading and language issues "fill in the gaps". I have been quite frustrated asking, "Why did take me so long to find this program??? I have literally been searching for years for ways to help Joseph and David." Better late than never right?


As I was filling out the information sheets for Joseph and David, I realized that they were asking lots of questions about hearing. So I asked why all the hearing questions? It was then explained to me that their sister department works with children who have hearing issues! No way! I explained our situation with Sarah and was told they would love to help her. She is now signed up for speech and hearing therapy in the graduate program at Baylor. She can start in the Fall and get help at the same time Joseph and David are getting help. Unbelievable! God is so good.

Psalm 46:10 Be still and know that I am God.

Blessings,

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

A Mother's love

It has been a rough few days. I don't know why I didn't see it coming. Mother's day was very surreal this year. Obviously, I really miss my Mother. What I did not expect was the overwhelming emotion of reflecting on Sarah May's biological mother and her foster mother. All of these mixed thoughts rolling around in my head and trying to keep it together. Three "mothers" who all should be celebrated for their love and selflessness in the lives of their children.

It is so important for me to navigate a way for Sarah to have loving feelings towards all of these women. As far as my Mother is concerned it is a no brainer. Sarah will know her Grandma Jennie through, stories and pictures. She will feel the love and know that Grandma Jennie will be waiting to meet her in heaven. My Mother shared with me in September that she was sad that she would never meet her granddaughter. I know exactly when and where she said this because it was weird to me. I replied, "Mother why would you say that, you don't know that." I now know she did know it, she was preparing me.

As far as Sarah's foster mother, that shouldn't be difficult either. We will have photos of her and she has loved Sarah and cared for over the past year and a half. We will keep her memory alive the best we can.

My real concern is about Sarah's biological mother. I want Sarah to know that she is loved by her too. She has given our family the most amazing gift a person can give. I believe that she desires what is best for Sarah. I am prayerful that in heaven she will be able to reunite with Sarah and tell her all these things herself. In the meanwhile I believe it is very important for Sarah to know that her biological mother is wonderful loving selfless woman. What she did was for Sarah and it was a sacrifice of love.

If you are a praying person please pray for Sarah to feel the love of all of her mothers and grandmothers.

1 Corinthians 13:13 There are three things that will endure--faith, hope and love-and the greatest of these is love.

Blessings,



Saturday, May 8, 2010

Soccer Finale

The last two soccer games wrapped up today. David and Luke both had fantastic coaches and a great season. David improved dramatically and looks forward to next season. Joseph opted out of soccer which is fine, it's nice not to do everything with your twin brother:)

Luke really enjoyed making shadow puppets and dancing down the field oblivious to what was happening around him. I have to admit it was painful for me at times. At his soccer party today the coach handed out trophies and as she passed them out she asked the kids if they plan on playing next season. As each child answered "yes" she said she couldn't wait to see them next year. Enter Luke, "Luke, are you planning on playing soccer next season?" Luke responds, "No, I think I am going to try fencing next." Where did that come from??? I am sure the coach thought, fantastic!

Colossians 3:17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.


Thursday, May 6, 2010

Funny Luke

I may have shared this with some of you before but I think it is so funny I will share it again.

Luke and I were listening to the song "He Reigns" in the car one day. After the song was over Luke asked me, "Mommy, what does He reigns mean??" So I proceeded to explain to him that it means God rules over everything. That answer seemed to satisfy Luke completely. We proceeded with the day. About 3 hours later Luke comes into the kitchen where I am cooking. Luke says, "Mommy does He snow too?" Oh those little minds you just never know what's going on in there! So I said, "Yes, Luke actually He does snow too."

Psalm 47 God reigns over all the nations

Blessings,


Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Humbling

If you are ever feeling pretty smart, I have the perfect cure for you! Fill out a government issued form.

While filling out our visa applications today, I think I screwed up about 5 times! I really don't think I am that dense. With fingers crossed that I corrected all of the possible mistakes, they will be in the mail tomorrow.

This entire process has been very humbling. At every turn I am reminded that as much as I hate to admit it, I am not in control of everything. I think one of the positive things that has come out of this experience so far is that I have had to work on my prayer life. I have never really been a very consistent pray-er. However, prayer has been one of the crutches I have honed to keep my sanity. After all it is all in God's hands anyway. Letting go of some control is actually liberating:)

1 Peter 5:7 Let Him have all of your worries and cares, for He is always thinking about you and watching everything that concerns you.

Blessings,



Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Short and Sweet

Well, I got the email today that said it is time for us to apply for our visas. Yeah! What does this mean? Not much really, but we must be getting closer to leaving for China in the eyes of those who plan our travel. Therefore, it is exciting to all of us in the Hermann household.


As we wait, I comfort myself in this scripture:


Romans 8:28 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good for those who love God, to those who are called according to his purpose.

Monday, May 3, 2010

Another Gift

Mourning is one of the hardest things I have had to embrace over these past 6 months since my Mom died. No today is not about adoption it is however about relationships. As Mother's day is fast approaching I am counting my blessings since I did happen to have the best Mother a person could have. Most of you are fully aware of this already.

As I was listening to K-love this morning a song came on that happens to remind me of one of the wonderful gifts my Mother left me. My heart felt heavy with the need to share this gift with all of you. The song is "The Words I Would Say" by Sidewalk Prophets, it happened to be released right around the time my Mom died. The lyrics that I love are:

"Be strong in the Lord. Never give up hope. You're gonna do great things I already know. God's got his hand on you so don't live in fear."

The beautiful thing about these lyrics are that they pretty much sum up what my Mother did say to me on the morning that she died. Knowing that your parents love you unconditionally by there actions is awesome. Hearing those words spoken by your parents is indescribable. It has been a comfort in this stormy chapter of mourning to reflect on the fact that I don't regret that I didn't share something with my Mother and I don't wish I would have done something differently. I am at peace in the knowledge that my relationship with her was all it could have been. Does it make it easy to lose her? Absolutely not ,however, I am so glad that I am not living with the woulda's and shoulda's as well.

With all of that said tell the people you love that you love them. Tell your parents you love them. Tell your kids you are proud of them. Mend relationships that need mending. It is a gift to not have regrets.

Philippians 1:2-3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I give thanks to my God upon every remembrance of you.

Blessings,



Sunday, May 2, 2010

Oh, What a Day!

Usually, I end with scripture but today I think I'll start with one.

Ephesians 2:8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--

Isn't that awesome! God's grace is enough. What an amazing gift.

Speaking of gifts......I was showered with gifts today for little Sarah May. It was a wonderful celebration of another gift God is bringing into our lives. All of the tangible gifts are awesome and Sarah is well outfitted for the foreseeable future. However, the gifts of love and support that everyone has shown are priceless.

Wish my Mom could have been here today (well I pretty much wish that everyday:). What an incredible woman of faith, I know she is enjoying God's grace. Knowing that helps.

Blessings,



Saturday, May 1, 2010

Let's Talk Food

One of the many big adjustments for Sarah will be her diet. I was discussing this with Joseph and David the other day. From the information we have received it looks like she eats something called "congee of noodles" for basically every meal. Upon further research we found that this is simply noodles cooked to death in a broth of your choice. We all agree we can do that no problem.

Fast forward to the next morning......

Joseph says, "Mom you know that noodle stuff?"

Me, "Yes, Joseph."

Joseph, "Well, I'm thinking I'm gonna stick with American food if that's okay."

Me, "Joseph, of course, I didn't mean we were all going to have to eat that!"

Joseph, "Oh, good."

At this point David chimes in, "Mom, what if we are eating pizza and we give Sarah those noodles and all she really wants is pizza??"

Me, "Well, David then she can have pizza too."

David, "That's good, I just think she will probably want pizza."

Whew, I'm glad we have that figured out:)

Isaiah 54:13 All of your children shall be taught by the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your children.

Blessings!



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