Happy quilt makes me Happy!!

My Aunt Twila sent me a message the other day reminding me of Gods gentle mercy in putting me at a base with a coffee shop! Today I am reminded of that same mercy..... Today I found a fabric store!! I took the short 25 minute trip with my friend Kristi and her 3 sweet kiddos... There it was, "Happy Quilt" I could almost hear God giggle as I walked in....My eyes were wide, my heart was beating..... I was ecstatic... It was what I always thought a fabric store should look like... It was beautiful and inexpensive....

I bought 18 yards of fabric for 60,000 won = $51.50 which is 2.86/yard... Expensive stuff like Vera Bradley, Michael Miller, Amy Butler.. all there... I had to walk away and remind myself that I could come back later..... That these were not closeout prices... These were their regular prices..I didn't need to buy it all today..... But oh how I wanted to...

I am smiling as I type!

For my fellow creators... Take a breathe, because these pictures might just leave you breatheless!!

What I purchased.. Take a look Megan,that's OU for Emily's birthday present!!

Long overdue, but a post none the less!

It’s been a few days since my last post and so much has happened, so I will try my best to catch all the family up on what we have been doing.. We have been busy, busy refereeing two rowdy boys who long for friends outside of each other, busy soothing a pained teether, and busy trying to find a church home… So much has happened, where I begin…. This past weekend, Mike had his Hail and Farewell party for his battalion.. We got a sitter for the boys and took Lily for a night out on the town… The party was at a beautiful restaurant in Osan called Blue Opera.. The atmosphere was beautiful and the party was great, Lily on the other hand was a bit fussy, so we headed outside and left daddy at the restaurant… While out, we wandered the main road that stays open long into the night, wandered through shops, browsed the local clothing boutiques, tried on shoes ( which I must pause and say that I felt like a compete ogre simply because the largest shoes in most shops were 9 and I wear a 9.5/10… My feet are apparently so big they don’t even make my size… Talk about insulting! Anyway, off my soap box!) The moment we started out the streets the paparazzi swarmed… Touching Lily’s face, wanting to hold her, making goo-goo faces at my angel… She loved it! No wonder she got fussy in the restaurant, we were surrounded by Americans who paid no extra attention to the beautiful blonde girl.. But outside, she was an original… One of a kind!! After aimlessly wandering for a bit, we begin our trek home…. I looked over and saw a familiar face.. One that I knew was a part of my past… I asked him what his name was, and to my surprise I was looking at a guy that I hadn’t seen for years. His name is Dominic and his mother was my mother’s prayer partner. Our moms were like best friends… They shared their fears, joys, trials, and successes with each other and here I stood, face to face with the memory that my mom loved me enough to give me to God daily…. She was the best! What an awesome way to end my day.. Seeing a face from Modesto, Ca in Osan, South Korea… Thank you God for your daily reminders of your love… You just make me giggle….

On Saturday, Mike’s company was heading up a group of people to go to the local orphanage and play with the children… Mike decided to go and take Kayden along for the experience.. I kept joking with Mike that this was the day he was going to meet his second daughter… He smiled and shrugged off the notion.. But of course, he couldn’t help but find a few favorites in the crowd. He immediately fell for a 4 year old who teamed up with Kayden for the day.. She and Kayden held hands, drew together, played, and even kissed on the cheek a few times…Mike ran around offering piggy back rides to all the children and wore himself out with all the playtime. Kayden and Mike both had a great time there, and were asleep on the couch before bedtime… It is a monthly opportunity, so we are hoping to go again soon and maybe I can meet my new daughter ! (wink wink)

Also, we got our first shipment of stuff this weekend… Our unaccompanied baggage came with toys, clothes, and towels.. We were ecstatic! Like Christmas all over again, only A LOT louder… The kids are adjusting well to the new place and are finally beginning to understand the new rules that come with living above someone and only having hardwood and marble floors..… "No hitting the bat on ground, no jumping from the furniture to the ground, no running before 7:00 am, no being bad when the windows are open and the neighborhood can hear me yell at you, no, no, no"… A long list of things not to do… They are happy though… Happy to have a home, happy to have their toys, happy to see daddy each day… Our joys are too many to count, our trials are making us stronger, and our home is intact… A unit that even language can’t shake….

On to our prayer needs… We tried out two churches on Sunday… One was a missionary church, Lighthouse Baptist, and the second was a contemporary service at the Chapel…Both were great. We loved pieces of each, but need prayer in the decision process… Lighthouse had an amazing service but only sings hymns (nothing wrong with hymns , just not used to them), and Chapel also had an amazing service and worship, but has a few things that leave me uneasy.. Prayer would be greatly appreciated…

Pieces are falling into place.. Our family is back to a regular diet, a regular schedule, and its regular sleep pattern.. Slowly but surely, our home will be back to regular as well… With only a few more weeks until our furniture is supposed to arrive, we are excited to say that we are home and together…. Together is our favorite place to be…..


At the orphanage... saying goodbye....
Kayden and his best friend..

playing

drawingKayden and his best friend again!

Preparing for lunch..

Making friends..

On the zipline

Lily just loved the ball pit... Michael loved wrestling Lily in the ball pit...

Cheese!

Caught off guard!

The kids with Chief the dog...

At the housing park!

Lily showing the kimchi squat!

Michael playing!

Kayden and Michael displaying their sibling rivalry...

Lily sporting her new PJs that daddy bought her.. She likes being a butterfly!

It is definately a girl thing!!

My birthday.....

Proverbs 14:25
25 A truthful witness saves lives, but a false witness is deceitful.

I was greeted yesterday with the stomping of little feet, the patter of Lily crawling, and Mike giggling as the boys jumped into bed and told me I had wrinkles..

Its official, I am 28! I am another year older; another year wiser, or so I like to think! We made a celebration of my birthday by heading to the park with my new friend Kelly, juggling children back and forth in her car, rest time, birthday cake making, and of course an evening out on the town with the children.. We decided to go to AK Plaza for dinner and finish out the evening making tourists of ourselves. We traveled around downtown Pyeongtaek, did some shopping in the local stores, and made our way through the outdoor market. With tons of fresh fruits, vegetables, poultry, and seafood, all of our senses were highly fascinated. We were a bit caught off guard as we turned a corner to see a dog, cut on the butcher block and ready for purchase. Kayden's innocence left him longing for an answer to why someone would want to hurt a pet…. We tried our best to explain that pets are not what people eat, but simply dogs that are breed for food. You could see his mind working as he tried to put the pieces to this mystery together.. He was dumbfounded…

As we continued to walk on, we saw beautiful mounds of carrots larger than any I had ever seen, green onions that varied in size from 4 feet to .5 an inch in length, and large juicy apples that left us hungry as we tried our best to only purchase what we really needed…. Then we were again caught off guard, not by an unusual sight, but by an elderly woman who had stopped us to give a religious tract. She stood, stared, and spoke no English.. We once again were lost in translation. The tract was in English so we searched the words to see if it contained the Word, signs that what she was sharing was our Truth.. I was not large in size, but had a few pages to flip… We turned each one, and spoke to her the only word that we knew she would understand…. “Jesus?” She was frail, but you could see here gentle spirit; brave to share her truth with us….

She nodded her head, pointed to her heart, and walked away…

I tucked the tract into my purse and continued on into the adventure that awaited the market.. As we looked at mini crabs, large eels, and pig heads, I couldn’t help but think of this women…
This morning I woke, not with the joy that usually accompanies a good night’s sleep, but instead with a heavy heart. I went to my purse and grabbed the tract from where it was snuggly tucked! I turned it over to see what my heart had dreaded; this woman does not know my God, she doesn’t know the truth, she is lost…

This tender woman, older than my 28 years, has found a false god… She has not only found an idol, but she is sharing it…

My heart shudders and I hear it break…

The Lord calls me to share my faith, to share Him.. An act of obedience, an act that all too often leaves me trembling with fear.. I am afraid to approach, afraid to impose, afraid to infringe.. I, the one who sings for large crowds, can make friends with a wall, and never shows fear, am afraid of sharing the love of God.. Each day I get better, for each day I grow closer to Him through His word. But even now, I am afraid to do what this woman has done...

In the midst of all the language challenges, I know that one word can break barriers across oceans, because “Jesus” is a universal language. A language that everyone can understand… I pray for strength to share His love, for all around us, lost are seeking… John 14:6 “Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’” NO ONE…. Not one, will enter unless they hear, repent, follow, and believe… For He is the way, the only way!

I pray for the women at the market.

I pray for strength to answer His call.

I pray.

I woke this morning to a bright blue sky, children laughing, a warm home, and food to eat. I made my way to the kitchen to brew coffee, prepare eggs and pancakes, and change the inevitable dirty diaper… This morning, like all the rest, is a great start to a beautiful day… yet, I find myself with bittersweet feelings about tomorrow.. Tomorrow I turn 28…

Some might feel upset about getting another year older, some might fret about where the last year has gone, but I focus on both the joy of health and the sadness that accompanies an orphaned daughter… For today, 28 years ago, was the day that my parents had longed for… They were getting a baby girl.. I share those feelings as I gaze at my daughter… Feelings of completeness. Of a full family. A happy home! Yet, I still think about my parents.. Desiring to see me walk, talk, thrive, and love the Lord. How their dreams for me far exceeded my dreams for myself, how their vision of all I could become outweighed all I saw in the mirror, and how they knew far better than me how to stand against adversity and not fall for temptation.. I long for them.

As I look back at the years since my parent’s death, I see my testimony!

I see my poor choices, lost opportunities, missed chances…. But through all of that I see His grace….

I have a favorite parable in the bible, the story of the lost sheep. Matthew 18:12-14 10" 12"What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? 13And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. 14In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost.” For all too often I have been the lost sheep, gone astray, searching for greener pastures… None were found, and yet, I still searched. I searched for answers to questions about my parents passing…. I felt deserving of answers, for I was just a little girl, needing my mom and dad.. A girl who needed to see the bigger picture.. The picture of God coming to seek the lost sheep, the one who strayed away. I didn’t see that all of the loss would lead me to gain Him… Lead me to seek peace that only He can provide. I didn’t see that through all of the pain, my parents prayers were answered… I love the Lord… At any cost, I pray the same for my children, my family, my friends…

Of course I cry at the things I miss about them and about the things that I never got to experience. I miss their smiles, I miss their laugh, and I miss their love because it had no conditions; they gave it freely and never withheld! I miss them because they sought the truth for me…. As I scale the years since then, I see growth! I see my walk with the Lord growing stronger as the days have ticked by.. He has been gracious to me! He has been with me as I chose His way and He has been by my side as I chose to detour from the blessings that He had waiting for me. He has always been my constant! Even when I didn’t choose Him, He chose me.. That’s what is so amazing about Him. He, the Almighty, still wants me after all that I have done.. My sin and rebellion, my shortcomings, He stands knocking and wanting me! I used to look back and see failures. Failed choices, wide roads of temptation and times when my body was crushed with my past… Now I see Him! With wide spread arms and nail scarred hands, waiting for me to come home… At any cost, I choose him!

Daniel 4:35

The last few days of our transition here in Korea have been difficult for me… On our last days in the hotel the kids grew restless, my patience grew thin, and my relationship with Mike grew tension. The space was beginning to cave in on my personal space and the kids were invading everyone’s personal hearing space in the rooms beside and below us.. With the limited area, I could feel the attacks coming from all around.. I felt pressure to make decisions, determine volume control, and entertain the masses in a 500 square foot area.. My vision about what I thought it would be like was fading farther and farther from reality, as we sat waiting in a small hotel room! I read the Word when I could a word in edgewise, and prayed for strength… I thought the season of my pain was in missing my friends, but I was quickly brought to reality that my real test of the season was in my trust for the Almighty.. Mike went to work, organized paperwork needed to move from point a to point b and we sat waiting; waiting for Lily to wake up, waiting for lunch time, waiting for Mike to get home…. Waiting! Life was on hold… Or so I thought… As we got everything situated for housing, Mike organized for temporary furniture to be delivered to our new place…. They told us we were on the waiting list for everything but beds.. I thought to myself … “You have got to be kidding me! You bring my whole family out here and you don’t even have a stinking couch for me to sit on!” (For those who know me, I am sure you can picture me saying these things with a faint “huh” at the end!) I was livid! I was angry! I was restless! I deserved a couch! Well, I thought I deserved a couch until God reminded me of the scripture in Daniel. “All the people of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the power of heaven and the people of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him : “What have you done.” Daniel 4:35 I am deserving of NOTHING! I, little princess, do not even deserve a bed… IT’S NOT MINE! NONE of it is… It’s all HIS! He gives it to me… And here I sat, pouting! Complaining about not having a couch, but he gave me a bed! Instead of rejoicing in the fact that I would have a place to lay my head, I complained! “ Could it be your arrogance that makes you think God owes you an explanation” –Crazy Love by Francis Chan. It was sheer arrogance that left me wanting an explanation, left me feeling like I deserved something. And yet in the midst of my tantrum, God taught me something amazing…. He taught me to be still. "Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth." Psalm 4:10... You know what the funny part is… they delivered our stuff yesterday, and there was a couch… Not only a couch, but 2 lounge chairs, brand new (fresh out of the boxes) LG front load washer and dryers, coffee table, dressers, and night stands! When I was throwing my tantrum, God was shaking His mighty head and wondering when I was going to figure out His greatness! The word of the day is trust! Again, I ask Him to forgive me for my lack of faith, for God calls me to trust Him, even if it is about a place to sit!


Here are a few pictures of God's provision... I just had to take some pictures of how they bring the furniture in.. They brought a lift and brought it all through the window of Lily's room!!
I hope you enjoy!

Michael and Lily in the tub..... They made a HUGE mess with the water, but they had a great time!!

Sweet Kayden ready for bed... I just love this smile....

Starting to move the furniture in...

Through the window it comes!

Our living room with the temporary furniture.. Very roomy!!!

Our new dryer!

Our new washer... Military isnt treating us so bad!! :)

The kitchen... Clean!! YEEAH!!!

For those who have been waiting to see pictures of our new home... Here they are..
This is our new home....

Our new kitchen...

The hallway leading to the kids bedrooms....

And for those who believed all that, I must say, " I love you," for you are gullible.. Here are the pictures to our REAL place... They are a little more up to par for this California mom..

This will be our bedroom..

The boys room... The desk will be removed...

The wall of closets in our room.. I LOVE the closets....

The door to our master bathroom!

The master bathroom with separate vanity area...

The kitchen...

Lily's room....

Guest bathroom....

Guest Shower....

Living room view to kitchen...

Living room to Patio...

The keypad to get into our home... They don't use keys....

Our new front door...

The keypad front door leads to small mud room with floor to ceiling closets.. a nice place to catch jackets and shoes... This is the door that separates the two rooms..... Kayden loves to slide them open!