Some days, I really suck as a parent. I mean, I really suck as a parent.
I lose my temper.
I have adult-sized expectations of my toddlers.
I repeat myself because I am angry, and it fuels my anger to say the same thing over and over and over.
I don't want to hear one more whiney voice tell me why they want apple juice instead of water.
I don't want it to be bath time or bed time or story time or time to brush your teeth or any other "times" other than "Can Mama just please have a hot bath and glass of wine time?"
I confess it. Some days, I want parenting to be easy.
I don't want to have to hold my breath as I open the take home folder to see if my special needs child hit the teacher or scratched a friend or had a meltdown because someone accidentally got blueberries on their favorite shirt.
I don't want to have to think about atrocities like child abuse and neglect and a lifetime of mental rewiring that will be in our future.
I don't want to argue with Social Security about why our children need new identities or explain to the hospital where MY CHILDREN were born as to why I need their medical records and why I have the right to have them.
But most days aren't those days. Most days are filled with barbies and cars and mud and flowers and chasing mosquito hawks through thick grass.
Most days are tiny little feet running into my bedroom and crawling into bed for a few stolen moments of snuggling before the day beckons.
Most days are reminders that God's healing power is at work and that our lives together are not a bleak future but a blessing.
All that to say, most days, most days are good days.
Showing posts with label Adoption. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Adoption. Show all posts
How Many Aggies Does It Take?
UPDATE: THE WINNER IS TRACI SAMFORD! THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU HELPING TO GET THE WORD OUT!
1. Because I love people who step outside the boundaries of comfort to relieve the burdens of others.
2. Because I have an obvious heart for orphans and the people who help them.
3. Because I have gotten to watch this couple's story unfold in real time. And it's awesome.
A little background. I met Matt Hemberger a LOT of years ago at a church where he was serving as an intern. During that time, he talked about a girl he'd met that he was pretty sure was "the one." I remember thinking, "Oh Matt." But sure enough she was "the one" and they not only married, but have since had a baby and gone on to do some incredible things in the world.
A few months ago, I started noticing this organization, Ags for Orphans, on all my friends' walls on Facebook. Then I saw a picture of Matt with a sweet little Haitian boy, and something about Ags for Orphans. Really, I didn't give it much thought, just thought Matt must have taken a mission trip to Haiti or something.
So imagine my surprise when I discovered that Matt Hemberger and his wife, Meghann, were not only the Executive Directors of Ags for Orphans but that they were the FOUNDERS. Seriously, have I mentioned that I love it when people step beyond the boundaries of comfort to relieve the burdens of others? This is a young couple. And even though I'm not all up in their personal business, I know this. They are young. They have a baby. They have a mortgage and cars and jobs and the stress that comes from all of that. Managing that alone would be enough. But it wasn't enough for them.
Because there are orphans in this world. ORPHANS.
I asked Matt why they started Ags for Orphans (which he totally downplays the part where they are the FOUNDERS) and he said, "We started it out of a simple desire to adhere to God's call to care for the orphan - and make a lasting impact on the world we live in. "
Yeah, they started an organization that is BLOWING UP (for my older friends, that means getting big in a hurry) because they, you know, just had a simple desire to adhere to God's call to care for the orphan. That blows my mind. I'm sorry. It does. Heck, they could have just gone on a mission trip. But NO. They founded an organization, leveraging the strength and the passion of the Texas Aggies, and are partnering with Coreluv International.
Did I mention how EXCITED I was about today's post?
There is plenty, plenty, plenty of information about Ags for Orphans on their website. You know you're going to be on the Internet clicking around for awhile, so instead of wasting hours deciding what to pin next, click on over to their site and read about what they are doing.
But before you do that, I want you to read about a few simple things that you can do to help. (Keep in mind that "simple" to Matt and Meghann was to start an entire organization . . . this is way simpler than that!)
- Go to their facebook page and like it. (For real. You probably "liked" Grumpy Cat. This is way better!) Do this right now. But come back. I'll wait . . .
- Go get you some gear!
- Donate. $1, $10, $10,000 Whatever you have that you want to give. But give something.
- Go on a trip! There are three or four to choose from.
- Check out their site for all the really great ways you can get involved.
And lastly, just to really entice you to get on board with something that is totally awesome, I'm giving away one of these. (Yes, there's a catch. Deal with it.)
Here's what you have to do to enter:
- First off, pin this. If you aren't on pinterest, I forgive you. But get someone else to pin this to their board.
- Secondly, go to facebook and "like" their page. I told you to do that already, but some of you were so anxious to keep reading my incredibly well written post that you skipped that little step earlier. I forgive you. But do it now. (I'm incredibly forgiving today).
- Thirdly, Tweet something about Ags for Oprhans and use the hashtag #AgsforOrphans If you aren't on Twitter, I forgive you. But ask someone you know who is on Twitter to tweet this for you.
- And finally, comment on this blog and let me know that you did all of these things. And just because I'm being so incredibly nice today, I will give you an entry for EACH of these things that you do. But you HAVE to comment or you won't be entered!
All that to say, how many Aggies does it take to help an orphan? One more.
Now go on. Help an orphan. Even if you're not an Aggie.
(And don't forget to comment!)
(And don't forget to comment!)
All That to Say: A Little Distracted
Quite some time ago, over 2.5 years ago to be exact, we unexpectedly became foster parents.
It wasn't our first time to be foster parents, as we had fostered two sweet little girls when our boys were much younger. Zack was three at the time, and Jacob had just turned two, when a family member needed help with his two year old and 13 month old daughters. So our family of 4 became of family of 6 overnight, and we found ourselves parenting a three year old, two two year olds, and a 13 month old. (Not an easy task to say the least)
Fast forward a whole lot of years, and once again our family of 4 became a family of 6, only this time it would be permanent.
We never set out to be foster parents (in either case). It just happened. Maybe because we made ourselves available, but most likely because God had ordained it would be so.
Once we realized that the short-term fostering of our daughters was going to become permanent, we knew we would no longer be able to be a rescue family. At times, the longing to help children in crisis situations would pop up in our hearts and minds, but then the demands of twin toddlers, jobs, schedules . . . life . . . would distract us from those desires (which was probably a good thing for those days!)
Fast forward 2.5 years and once again we find ourselves as foster parents. We had a sweet little boy in our home last week, quite unexpectedly, but thoroughly enjoyed every minute with him.
Imagine my surprise when just 4 short days later I received a phone call asking if we would take a newborn for two weeks. A NEWBORN! She had just been born that day! We gulped a few times and then readily said, "yes" and began the process of preparing. (Thank God for facebook and facebook friends who jumped in with all the baby paraphernalia we needed!)
I gotta say, it does come back to you, much like riding a bike, but for a few days it's more like a distant, vague memory. But we're in the swing the things now, sleeping (or not sleeping as the case may be) bottles, schedules, the lot.
And then I realized, I FORGOT to post a weekend giveaway! Oops!
All that to say, sorry. I've been a little distracted. I wish I could post a picture of the beautiful loveliness of this baby girl. But privacy laws and agency policies say that I cannot. So you'll have to take my word for it. She's a beautiful distraction though. :)
It wasn't our first time to be foster parents, as we had fostered two sweet little girls when our boys were much younger. Zack was three at the time, and Jacob had just turned two, when a family member needed help with his two year old and 13 month old daughters. So our family of 4 became of family of 6 overnight, and we found ourselves parenting a three year old, two two year olds, and a 13 month old. (Not an easy task to say the least)
Fast forward a whole lot of years, and once again our family of 4 became a family of 6, only this time it would be permanent.
We never set out to be foster parents (in either case). It just happened. Maybe because we made ourselves available, but most likely because God had ordained it would be so.
Once we realized that the short-term fostering of our daughters was going to become permanent, we knew we would no longer be able to be a rescue family. At times, the longing to help children in crisis situations would pop up in our hearts and minds, but then the demands of twin toddlers, jobs, schedules . . . life . . . would distract us from those desires (which was probably a good thing for those days!)
Fast forward 2.5 years and once again we find ourselves as foster parents. We had a sweet little boy in our home last week, quite unexpectedly, but thoroughly enjoyed every minute with him.
Imagine my surprise when just 4 short days later I received a phone call asking if we would take a newborn for two weeks. A NEWBORN! She had just been born that day! We gulped a few times and then readily said, "yes" and began the process of preparing. (Thank God for facebook and facebook friends who jumped in with all the baby paraphernalia we needed!)
I gotta say, it does come back to you, much like riding a bike, but for a few days it's more like a distant, vague memory. But we're in the swing the things now, sleeping (or not sleeping as the case may be) bottles, schedules, the lot.
And then I realized, I FORGOT to post a weekend giveaway! Oops!
All that to say, sorry. I've been a little distracted. I wish I could post a picture of the beautiful loveliness of this baby girl. But privacy laws and agency policies say that I cannot. So you'll have to take my word for it. She's a beautiful distraction though. :)
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