My New Discovery

    Y'all know I am a wonderful yearly blogger, so I though I would blow your minds with two posts in one day!! This is just something that I would like to share with those who may be interested. I have discovered podcasts!! I know I'm really late to the game, but it is what it is. I actually did share last year about a podcast, Arrows in Our Hands, but I still wasn't fully in to on the whole podcast world yet. Since then I have revisited them and discovered so many more!! My more current phone has made this much easier for me (thanks sis!)
     So here's the gist of it. Listening to these podcasts has helped me so much to keep my mind focused on the things that matter... God and family. It's so easy to slip off to mindlessness, worry, or other unhealthy mental places when you are driving or completing daily tasks, so why not replace those thoughts with encouraging, uplifting, meaningful messages. It's impossible to not grow and gain understanding after listening to these. I have been binge listening since I am late to the game, and it's been great. I rarely turn on my car radio anymore. They are a great addition to your personal bible study. So without further ado here is a list of my current favorites that I really hope you will give a try!

Marriage (for women only):
Wifey Wednesdays
https://thelightnetwork.tv/shows/wifey-wednesdays/

 
Parenting:
Arrows in Our Hand
https://thelightnetwork.tv/shows/arrows-in-our-hand/

Legacy of Faith
http://alegacyoffaith.us/ You can link the podcast through the web site.


General Bible:
Wide Margins
id1352637641

Dig-a-bit (for women)
http://thecolleyhouse.org/dig-a-bit-podcasts


  There are also several others on The Light Network which is where two of these are located. I hope you will check them out!!!! Happy listening!

One Year Catch Up

   Just for good measure, I want to make the official we were chosen post! Most anyone reading this has already read this on facebook, but I feel like it needs to be recorded here :) Our sweet little girl is 4 months old and we are making the preparations to finalize her adoption in the fall. When I say sweet... I mean SWEET! She is the best baby ever! Seriously, ask anyone that has meet her. She is the calmest, most laid back baby. She is all smiles and really only fusses when she is hungry. She has tolerated her milk well from the beginning and for the record slept through the night twice before she was 2 months old! To all you infant moms reading this, I don't say all this to be bragging but to say there is hope for the future! This was 100% not the case with our first child.  
   She is beautiful and already in line for several potential arranged marriages.... just kidding. We shouldn't have to worry about that for at least 25 more years. We do ask that you pray for us as we continue towards finalization. As always we are forever grateful to those who have helped us physically, mentally, spiritually, and financially to get to this point!!

Family Bible Time

   While there is not a lot going on in the adoption arena, I still have some things I want to share with those who may be interested. The thing I want to put in the spot light today is Family Bible Time. It is simply making the effort to have a dedicated time every night to study the bible as a whole family. This particular time is focused on sharing God's word with your kids in many different fun ways. I'll be the first to admit ours didn't start out as the most exciting time. It mostly consisted of us reading a children's bible together, and my little one soon begin throwing a fit when we would mention bible time because he knew bed time immediately followed it. Not exactly the attitude I was aiming for... On the other hand I didn't have a lot of free time to plan all the activities and art projects I came across on pinterest (although I would have loved to) and soon became a little overwhelmed. But then.... I went to a seminar that Cindy Colley spoke at (who by the way is the person who introduced me to the idea of family bible time) and she told stories of her grandson and how they act out the bible stories and that he loves being Daniel in the lion's den and the lame man at the gate Beautiful. It seems obvious to me now that this is the best way to go when your children are toddlers but in the beginning I didn't know where to start. So we got back home and tried our "story time" that way and he loved it! Days later he could still recall that he (while playing Daniel) was telling those lions (played mostly by Daddy) to "Stop, you can't hurt me. God will protect me". Everyone got a turn being Daniel, the lion, and King Darius. It was a hit and he hasn't dreaded it since. We still pull out the children's bible to supplement the story or show him some pictures but it's a total different experience. You can make the stories into games, contests, or songs. The options are endless and we're still discovering ways to incorporate into bible time.

This is Goliath with his armor on

   We are not by any means experts in this area but just learning about and developing the habit ourselves.  I wish we could say we do this every night, but I'll be the first to admit that time, energy, and creativity sometimes run out before we are able to get it done. However, we do make the effort regularly and daily is our end goal. We all have grown to love this time together and I know it's making a difference in all our lives.
    I share all this to try to encourage other young parents to start having a bible time with their kiddos. No matter what they grow up to be in life, being a Christian is the most important. The world is changing so much, and we have to equip our little ones to have faith and know God to be able to get through it. It's the most important job we will ever have. So no matter how old they are get your kids involved in bible time. You can adapt how you present the information to any age. I hope you will be encouraged to give it a shot.  I have attached some links to some wonderful resources to help you get started. I hope they help and don't let yourself get overwhelmed. You'll be so glad you started this!!


This is an awesome site that has lots of podcasts and links to helpful website. Be sure to check out their resources too! http://thelightnetwork.tv/aiohs5e6/

Also check out the Colley's site with lots of info from family bible time to a ladies bible study group, "Digging Deep". This link is to the store where you can get CDs with bible verses in song form to  help with learning. http://thecolleyhouse.org/store#!/Children/c/3290300/offset=0&sort=normal

Last one is to apologetics press. This site is full of great information for all ages!
http://www.apcurriculum.com

 Hope you enjoy these!! Feel free to leave comments if you have any other great resources or ideas.

Due for an update

   I am a really great yearly blogger don't ya think? :) I just got to thinking I should probably update everyone, and when I signed in my last post was March of 2016! Guess I probably shouldn't make a career out of this!
   This update isn't because there is a lot to tell but because lots of people have been wanting to know if anything is going on with our adoption. Unfortunately, the answer is no. At least nothing is going on that we know about. We know our agency has been working with several birth mothers since we were first approved in July 2015, but we either haven't matched criteria with them or they chose other couples. Which is why there hasn't been many posts in the last year. I guess the good part is it passes a lot faster when you have a toddler around. So like I said, there's not much to share but I just wanted to let everyone know we are still waiting and still want your prayers. So please remember us as our journey still continues.

On a side note: I did sort of get a kick out of the fact that in the last post we were starting potty training and guess what?..... we still are, lol. We have made a lot of progress though.
 

Time Marches On

    March is quickly passing and before long 1/2 of the year will have gone by!! I never thought time could pass so fast, yet it seems like each year gets shorter than the last! I can't believe we have an energetic, always happy 2 year old :) He is so busy and learning so much right now. His current obsession is trains....Thomas, train table, and real life trains. Boys really are so much fun :) Our next big endeavor is potty training... As weird as it sounds it's kind of bittersweet. It's like the last thing that makes him still sort of a baby instead of a boy :( Plus I kinda was hoping for 2 in diapers....I know I'm such a weirdo, right? But hey I want to be the minivan mom too, so I never claimed to have mainstream thinking.
    As far as the second adoption goes, we have no news other than everything is still the same. We are still waiting to be selected by a birth mother. We have been approved and waiting for 8 months now. I know God has the right child and right time selected though. (We could be paper pregnant right now!) We just have to be patient. In a few more months, we will start having to update forms, paperwork, and our home study...ugh :( Which means we will all be going back to the doctor, vet, and insurance company for updates......UGH! I guess I shouldn't moan and groan though because it won't change anything. The process is what it is, and I do love our agencies!!
   I can't believe what I'm about to say, but I have been thinking about having more yard sales this spring. That's still up in air right now, although I may or may not have started a pile in my garage already. Just keep that in mind before you haul everything off to goodwill :)

How different it is the second time around

   So I think it's safe to say I am not a very good blogger :) But really there's not been a lot to report. We are still waiting to be selected by a birth mother and just as excited as ever. It is so different the second time around though! Last time I knew the exact date we got approved and precisely how long we had been waiting. This time I honestly couldn't remember for sure what month it was! When I saw my approval post was almost 3 months ago I was a little shocked :) That was about how long it was when we got the call about our little man joining our family. I have so much more faith this time around though, because I have seen just how great God is and realize that I need to just let Him be in control. He chose the absolute perfect child and birth family for us!! I can't imagine my life without him, and honestly he has made me a much better person. I guess that is part of it too. I'm not counting the days till a new baby arrives because we are enjoying every moment with him. He is growing so fast and amazing me every day! However, I would be lying if I said we didn't miss the days of holding a tiny baby in our arms :) That time will be here before we know it though. Thanks again to all those who have helped us get to this point and that are continuing to pray for us!!

We've got the stamp of APPROVAL!!

    This week we got what we have been working towards for the past couple months. We got our approval from our placement agency. So we are officially being shown to potential birth mothers and could be selected any time from here on out. I have already been thinking about how we are gonna decorate the bedrooms and rearrange to hold a family of four. Another thing on the list is baby names. It's a whole lot of pressure to pick out your child's name in just two weeks, so this time we will be thinking about that directly. Our yard sales are over but some wonderful friends are having one for us this weekend. If that doesn't say true friends I don't know what does :) We love you Wilkerson's!! Our little man is getting big so fast and I just know he will be the sweetest big brother, and definitely good entertainment! It's been a great week and we're glad to share it all with you. Please keep praying for our family!