Nine years ago today, the Lord blessed our family with two sons! The God who knows every hair on our head, and every thought before we think it, had a plan for two precious little boys thousands of miles away. Before we even saw their first pictures, or knew their names, our hearts were already inexplicably interwoven with theirs. Then, when we first saw these initial pictures of a sweet dimpled grin and rosy soft cheeks, we knew we would never be the same.
Several months later, and thousands of prayers later, we held these
precious treasures in our arms for the first time. The enormous weight
of first time parenting combined with all the uncertainties of
attachment and language barriers brought us to our knees even more than
before.
Today we were able to celebrate this special anniversary with our boys by taking them out to eat dinner at a local Ethiopian restaurant. It is their favorite place to eat. The owners are beyond kind, and although it has been two years since we have visited that particular restaurant, the owners remembered us and all came over to welcome us back and treat the boys like celebrities! :) They love that the boys still adore the foods of their cultural heritage.
Luke and Ben even got to enjoy some traditional Ethiopian coffee! I don't know if they loved the coffee....or just the idea that they were allowed to drink such strong coffee so late in the evening!
Still, now nine years later, we are still learning what it
means to parent and nurture these gifts, Luke and Ben. We are far from
perfect. We rely on God's grace and model of how He loves us as his
children, adopted into His family. Thank you Lord for the gift of our
sons Luke Mirtus and Benjamin Mihereteb nine years ago today!
I will be honest, this was a tough week! We had rain every day and some really stir crazy kids! The school year is close to finishing and we are all ready for a summer break. I was feeling a bit overwhelmed and down. I felt guilty going into Mother's day, a complete fail for the week! Church this morning was refreshing, and just the reminder this battle weary Mama needed to hear. It's so easy to get focused on the day to day school work, meal planning and prep, and seemingly endless messes, drama, and laundry! I can often forget the bigger picture, the most amazing mission field in the world right in my own home.
So today I celebrate. Not because I am a perfect mother, (hardly)! I celebrate because in 2008 God started my motherhood journey with these two precious little boys. Two sons who have taught me the important lesson of choosing to love, love in a way that God loves us. I celebrate, because despite the heartache and loss of birth mothers, God still chose to make me Luke and Ben's forever Mommy.
I celebrate because in 2009 God chose to allow me the amazing experience of carrying a child for 9+ months, giving me my only daughter, Grace. Again, God showing that He is indeed the giver of good and perfect gifts.
I celebrate because in 2011 God continued to bless my journey as a mother. This time with a round cheeked, gentle-natured son, Jacob.
I celebrate the precious addition in 2012 of my shy, night-owl son Caleb. Remembering that no matter how many times God has blessed me.....this sense of awe and wonder at being entrusted to a guide and protect never gets old!
I celebrate the blessing of my son, Isaac, who's name literally means "laughter." God constantly uses this little one in my life to bring joy, laughter, and light heartedness.
I celebrate the mothers in my life that have paved the way before me, and continue to stand by and encourage me, and cheer-lead me along on the rough days. The mothers that had such a beautiful influence in both my life, and my husbands. We are so grateful for these awesome Moms (ie. Grammy and Grandma!)
Thank you Lord for the humbling responsibility of being a Mother. Help me to keep my eyes fixed on you and not the To-Do List that keeps growing. Help me to remember the bigger picture and the precious mission field inside our own home!
Luke lost his first tooth this weekend! Tooth number two is going to follow suit in the next few days. I can't believe our baby boy is old enough for this already!!
At some point Luke had learned about the tooth fairy. In our home, we have chosen to tell our children the truth about Santa, tooth fairy, Easter bunny, etc. He knows the tooth fairy is not real, and had asked several weeks ago if he would still get something for his lost tooth. We agreed that we could still do something special to pretend, even though he knows it is coming from us.
The night he lost the tooth he was in a panic and didn't want to go to asleep. He was panicked that something was going to come into his room while he slept. I prayed with him and reassured him that Mommy or Daddy would be the only one coming into his room through the night.
One year ago I posted a picture of my (then) three kiddos on the swings with their cousin Tessa. I had at that time mentioned the thought that I was unsure whether I was ready for #4 due in March.
Then....
Now...
What a wonderful year it has been. God knows how much we can handle in His strength, thank goodness. I can't even imagine life without our precious #4 in the bunch! Yes, I do take all four to the park and on walks all the time by myself when my hubby is at work!
This week I had the awesome opportunity to watch a documentary called "The Child". This documentary was made by ParentalRights.org. Here is a video clip trailer of the documentary. I don't usually add things like this to our blog, but this is an issue that is very important to us. Check out the website parentalrights.org and sign the petition if you agree. See how you can get involved on this important issue!
Why do we need a Parental Rights Amendment????
Eighty years ago the Supreme Court declared that “the child is not the mere creature of the State; those who nurture him and direct his destiny have the right, coupled with the high duty,to recognize and prepare him for additional obligations.” Pierce v. Society of Sisters, 268 U.S. 510(1925).
Thirty years ago the Court continued this line of reasoning with the pronouncement that the “primary role of the parents in the upbringing of their children is now established beyond debate as an enduring American tradition.” Wisconsin v. Yoder, 406 U.S. 205 (1972).
Yet in 2000, when the State of Washington gave any person the ability to override a good parent’s decision about visitation by simply claiming that it would be “best” for children to allow the third-party to have visitation rights, in the Supreme Court’s Troxel v. Granville:
• There were six separate opinions and none reached a five-vote majority.
• Justice Thomas was the only justice to clearly state that parental rights
receive the same high legal standard of protection as other fundamental rights.
• Justice Scalia held that parents have no constitutionally protected rights whatsoever.
Support for a high-view of parental rights has been seriously undermined by the current Court. As a consequence, numerous lower federal courts refuse to treat parental rights as deserving of protection as a fundamental right. At the same time, America is poised to adopt the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. President Obama supports this treaty. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has been a leading advocate of this treaty for over twenty years. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) has “promised” that this treaty will be ratified during this term of Congress.
If this treaty is ratified:
• The laws of all 50 states on children and parents would be superseded by this international law by virtue of a specific provision of the US Constitution which expressly declares treaties to be supreme over state law. Virtually all law on children and parents is state law.
• Good parents would no longer be entitled to the legal presumption that they act in the best interests of their children. Instead, the government would have the authority to overrule all parents on any decision concerning the child if the government believed it could make a better decision.
• Parents could no longer spank their children.
• Children would have the legal right to choose their own religion. Parents would be
permitted only to give advice.
• America would be under a binding legal obligation to massively increase its federal
spending on children’s programs.
The only kind of law that can override a treaty is the Constitution of the United States. State laws or state constitutions cannot override treaties. There is no guarantee that federal statutes could override treaties—moreover, we enter a binding legal promise to obey a treaty when we ratify it. America should not promise to obey a treaty and then claim it is appropriate to obey the treaty only when we want to. America of all nations must respect the rule of law.
There is only one possible solution for the eroding support for parental rights in the Supreme Court that can also stop the encroachment of international law.
We need to place time-honored parental rights, as recognized by the Supreme Court for over seventy years, into the explicit text of the Constitution. We cannot wait until our rights are formally demolished. We must act now to stop international law and protect these two key principles:
• Fit parents should be allowed to direct the upbringing of their children.
• American legislators, not international tribunals, should make the public
policy for America on families and children.
The proposed PARENTAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT
Section 1.
The liberty of parents to direct the upbringing and
education of their children is a fundamental right.
Section 2.
Neither the United States nor any State shall infringe upon
this right without demonstrating that its governmental
interest as applied to the person is of the highest order and
not otherwise served.
Section 3.
No treaty may be adopted nor shall any source of
international law be employed to supersede, modify,
interpret, or apply to the rights guaranteed by this article.
If you agree with this, as we do, go to their website and sign the petition and pray about how God might use you in this important issue.
Each day as I watch our little ones play and interact I am just awe struck by how well they do together, and how much they love one another. That alone makes every stress and struggle worth it. I think it is one of the absolute highlights of parenting! It also makes me homesick for my sisters and brothers BIG TIME!!!
Just as a quick example, each of the kids has a piggy bank with four slots and "stickers" on each slot designating it for spending, saving, giving, and investing. On Luke's "saving" slot he has a picture of a bike. (When we first started the banks he did not have a bike....but now he does thanks to Grandma and Grandpa at Christmas.)
Well, for his birthday Luke received five, one dollar bills. He put one bill in each slot and asked where he should put the last dollar. I told him he could choose. He put it in the "saving" (ie. bike slot). I asked him, "So if you already have a bike, what are you saving your money for now?" His answer, "I am saving my money to buy Gracie a bike when she is big enough to ride!"
Precious, precious. See what I mean? Doesn't that just make getting up early and having limited free time to myself worth it?
"You may have tangible wealth untold: Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold. Richer than I you will never be--I had a mother who read to me." (Strickland Gillian, 1936)
If you can't already tell by our blog posts....we love to read in this house A LOT! I am always in pursuit of good books for our kids to enjoy. It can often be difficult to sort through the abundance of mediocre and downright awful story books at the library, especially if I have children in tow. So, I found a book that has made this pursuit much easier!
This summer I bought a book that is worth it's weight in gold. It's called Honey for a Child's Heart, by Gladys Hunt. It is essentially a book about books! :) What could be better! Here is a favorite quote from this book, "Since words are the way we communicate experiences, truth, and situations, who should know how to use them more creatively than people who are aware of their Creator? The world cries out for imaginative people who can spell out truth in words that communicate meaningfully to people in their human situation....Truth and excellence have a way of springing up all over the world, and our role as parents is to teach our children how to find and enjoy the good and to reject what is mediocre and unworthy."
In this book, Hunt essentially spells out why reading is so important. The best part about the book, and why it is so helpful is that the last 2/3 of the book is an annotated list of children's books that are worthy of checking out. We have already found so many treasures by requesting books on this list from our library!
As we begin our homeschooling adventures, I think I will occasionally post about some of our favorite books.
We recently discovered an author/illustrator by the name of Patricia Polacco. So far we have adored every one of her books (and there are many!) Here are our three favorite so far!
Another recent favorite is this one about a little boy who lives next to a nursing home.(We especially enjoyed the wonderful illustrations in this sweet book):
We also finished our first "chapter book" to read aloud. When I first brought it home from the library the boys kept joking about sending it back or throwing it away because it had very few pictures. I was so discouraged! But, after the first chapter they started begging to read it every night and hated when I would not read another chapter to them before bed! :)
We are always looking for suggestions for books, so we would love to hear about some of your favorites too! Happy reading!
