Are you afraid of the dark? Because I am.

I am sort of a scaredy cat. Not so much during the day, but the second my head hits the pillow at night I immediately begin to think of the absolute worst thing that can happen to me and my family. Normally once Mark comes to bed, I am over it. And yes, we normally go to bed at different times. I like to be in bed earlier than most grandparents…I am talking 9:00 or 9:30 and Mark likes to wait until 10:00 or later.

Well this weekend Mark was out of town which sort of presented a problem.  I realized shortly after he left that I have NEVER stayed at home by myself.  Mark has only gone out of town a few times and I always go to my parents’ house.  So needless to say, Saturday night was a little rough.

I have decided that I am a scaredy cat for the following reasons:

1. I am a sissy
2. I like to watch crime shows even though I know I will pay for it later. They are like train wrecks to me. I  know I shouldn't watch them, but I can’t seem to turn the channel. I convince myself that it would be worse to turn it off than to not finish it. 
3. Recently, someone randomly rang our doorbell at 12:15am and then walked away…freaky. 
4. Did I mention that I am a sissy? Because I am.

It just so happens that we talked about fear today at church. It was said that when we fear earthly things, the focus is on us, not Christ. There were other convicting things said that I wish I could remember, but I can't because my brain is shut off for the day (It is already 8:00 in the pm you know).

I would love to say that after hearing this, I am good to go. But like all of us, I am a work in progress.  It was a great reminder that I need to be more focused on Christ…and I should probably stop watching crime shows :)

my baby turned 2

What? My baby turned 2? How do these things happen?

Noah is the MOST fun kiddo to have around. Everything is a party to him and he laughs ALL THE TIME! I really hope that he never loses his love for life because it is absolutely contagious!

(as I write this Mark is giving the kids baths and all I hear is Noah’s chuckle :))

Noah gives me a run for my money everyday, but I would not change it for the world. 95% of the words that come out of his mouth on any given day are truck, tractor, and choo choo.

LOVE THIS KID.

For his special day, I made him what I thought was his favorite meal, mac-n-cheese. The kid never eats, so who knows what he really likes.

Dinner time at the Elliott household normally goes something like this for Noah; we give him his food, he plays with it for a while, he pretends to eat it only to spit it back out, he proceeds to throw it, and then it ends up on the floor. We are working on it.

Nice Noah, nice. 

He managed to eat only the icing on his cupcake, although this was to be expected. 

I love the middle picture...we were singing him happy birthday and his patience level was wearing out.

Happy 2^nd Birthday Noah Bear!

Roller Coaster

Has anyone ever told you that adoption causes you to go through a roller coaster of emotions? Well, if they have, they weren’t joking.

The part about adoption that causes me to be the craziest is the fact that I have ABSOLUTELY NO control.  We are hoping and praying that we bring our child home this year, but we know there is a possibility we won’t. Heck, there is a chance Uganda will close tomorrow and then what? 

Last year at this time, we started our adoption process. (Can you believe it has been one year?) I was SO ready to be on the wait list. I needed to have a number on a wait list and I needed to have a time frame. I was being very impatient and trying to control the timing of our family.

Sometimes I put these silly little timelines out there. I say “well I really would like to have all of our children by age 35”. WHAT? Who do I think I am?

We have these wonderful, sweet friends who are in their late 40’s. They just had a perfect, healthy, little girl and they are GLOWING. I know that does not work for everyone, but what would I miss if I said “no more” after 35?

I am thankful that God has given me a patience that I did not have before. I am enjoying being a family of 4. I still have the feeling that someone is missing from our family; that we are not complete. But I now trust more in God’s perfect timing.

I still get impatient. There are even moments of fleeting temptation to switch to a quicker option.

But there is one word that I have to keep coming back to, trust. God has been faithful and he will continue to be faithful. He has a plan for our family and I have to trust in Him.

Christmastime…Part II

We just got back from Ohio where we visited with Mark’s side of the fam.

The kids got WAY spoiled

We went for our annual trip to the local indoor pool

My favorite 2 pictures!

Mark and I even had a little adult time (thanks Dick and Janet)

at the School House Winery...

on New Year's Eve. and yes that is a garage door behind us. that's just how we roll on NYE

Good times were had by all. The second one is for you Chad. I know you are proud :)

Happy New Year!!

“Road to Home” Adoption Event in Cookeville

If you have not heard (or read), we are adopting from Uganda!!

In order to raise money for our adoption, we are hosting an adoption fundraiser in Cookeville at the First United Methodist Church.

There will be a delicious dinner, silent auction, and Lucy and Woody Adams will present “Our Love Story”. Visit www.52hymns.com to learn more about the Adams.

Details:

• Held at Cookeville First United Methodist Church
• Saturday, February 11^th from 5:30-8:30
• The silent auction will begin at 5:30, dinner will be served at 6:00, and Lucy and Woody will present beginning at 7:00
• Tickets are $12 each and can be purchased on the right side bar or by calling 931-372-8828
• There will be tons of great silent auction items to bid on

For those of you who have not heard Woody and Lucy's story, it is truly inspirational and for those who have, it is well worth hearing again. 

Email me at lindseychenelle@yahoo.com or call 931-372-8828 if you have additional questions.

We are SO excited about this event. Hope to see you there!