I haven’t felt like myself lately.  I wake up tired and achy, I’m unmotivated to do the everyday things that once brought me joy and fulfillment, and I haven’t had a period since April.  I guess my hormones could be messed up; or maybe my thyroid levels are off.  I just have’t felt right.  It’s not a feeling of depression, just a severe case of blah. I haven’t even had the energy to dry my hair and put make-up on.  Isn’t that crazy!?  I’ve never felt like this before.  I’ve taken a few pregnancy tests over the past few months just to make sure and they’re all negative.

My mom and aunts have always taught me to try everything natural first and if it doesn’t provide relief, then go to the doctor.  So, I picked up a month’s supply of SAM-e; a natural supplement.  In case you’re not familiar with SAM-e, here is what I found online:

In a nutshell, SAM-e helps other molecules in the brain do their jobs making you feel like your normal self. When SAM-e levels run low, those other molecules can’t do their jobs as effectively, and you can feel out of sorts from a mood standpoint.  SAM-e also plays a critical role in cartilage formation and has been used to treat fibromyalgia patients.

Imagine my surprise when I started to notice a tremendous difference within just 48 hours of starting the supplement.  I got my house clean, and I mean really clean (with a big smile on my face), I wake up with energy, and I’ve lost almost five pounds in the last week.  I think the weight loss has been a result of having more energy.  As I keep myself busy with good things around the house, I don’t eat until I’m really hungry, and even then my body doesn’t seem to be craving the bad things that once made me feel better (temporarily of course).

Yesterday I woke up at 6:00am without an alarm clock.  I made the boys’ breakfast and realized I had a few hours before we were suppose to meet some friends at the pool, so I decided to paint my bathroom.  Just like that, I got out my supplies and had two coats of paint on the walls before 10:30am.

To top it all off, the severe pain I’ve experienced in my left knee for the past several months is almost gone.  The anti-inflammatory that the doctor had given me left me feeling sluggish and drugged.  I stopped taking it the day before I started SAM-e and my knee began hurting again in less than 24 hours.  However, within two days of starting SAM-e, I noticed a significant decrease in my knee pain.  I’m sure the pain will be less and less as I continue to lose weight.   I once read that every pound of weight you lose takes four pounds of pressure off your joints.  I believe it!

Lastly, I’ll update soon on the adoption progress.  Things are moving along at a nice pace now.  We’re getting fingerprinted this week and will begin our home study in the next week or two.  We have many balls on the court at the moment as we try to get several things accomplished simultaneously in order to have our dossier ready to be sent to Immigration and Ethiopia by the time our home study is complete.

I’ll write more on that later.

Happy-super-hot-Wednesday!

~audrey

Christmas is already six months away.  School will be starting before we know it and suddenly we’ll all be stumbling around saying, “I can’t believe Christmas is only four months away!”

As we work hard to get our dossier to Ethiopia before the courts close in mid-August for six weeks.  That being said, I’m praying for the best Christmas gift ever (apart from the birth of Christ, of course!):  our referral!!!  If we’re able to get our dossier to Ethiopia before the courts close, there is a very good chance we will know who our daughter is by Christmas.  For those of you who may be wondering about all of this adoption lingo, the dossier is basically just a collection of documents about your family, finances, home, etc that will pass through all the right hands in Ethiopia before you receive your referral.  The referral actually refers to YOUR child.  When your name makes it to the top of the waiting list with your agency/orphanage you are matched with a baby in the orphanage.  You then receive the long-awaited email with your baby’s picture, story, and medical history (all that is available).  You then ‘accept’ your referral and begin the long wait to receive travel dates to appear before the Ethiopian court where, if all proper documents are present, your referral becomes your child, legally.  I can hardly believe that day is potentially as close as it is.  Sometimes this still feels like a sweet dream.  Sometimes it still feels like it’s so far away.  I know that one day we will look back on this process and hardly remember life before Zoe.

We still have $5,000 to raise before our dossier can be sent to Ethiopia, so please be praying for that money to come in.  Please share our fundraisers with your friends and family.  Don’t forget about our puzzle fundraiser!  We still have many unnamed puzzle pieces.  And of course our Bows for Life, which have been a great success.  If you’d like to host a party, you will receive one free bow of your choice for every $20 spent by your shoppers.  The average bow party raises between $150-$200…so that is 7-10 free bows for the hostess!

And lastly, there is still one week left to order a “Bringing Home Baby Zoe” t-shirt before we place our first order.  $25 for adults and $20 for infants and children.

~audrey

We spent the last week in Nashville, TN at Worship Encounter 2011.  It is a small, intimate conference for worship leaders and their teams.  There are always an incredible number of “big name” people in the music/worship industry there to teach the mentor sessions and make themselves available to us.  It was a sweet time of refreshing.  Many times, it is a chance to leave our everyday cares behind and get alone with God, focusing only on Him while allowing Him to breathe life back into our battered sails.  Let’s just face it:  life is tough.  It’s hard enough on a really great day to stay wholly focused on Him; on speaking life and living in thanksgiving.  When the hard times come, we can often feel swept away by the waves of our circumstances.  But there’s such hope!

God doesn’t ask us to stay five steps ahead.  He doesn’t expect, nor often allow, us to know what lies ahead.  Nowhere in the Bible are we told to seek His will.  2 Chronicles 7:14 tells us to humble ourselves, pray, and seek His face. When we seek His face, we will know His will.  2 Peter 1:3 says, His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us to His own glory and excellence.

Remember always, that worship is not about music, it is a lifestyle.  Everything I do is an act of worship to my heavenly Father.  Everything I do should bring glory (great honor, praise, and distinction) to Him.

I hope that encourages you.

~audrey

Our first yard sale for Zoe was a great success!  We didn’t send out emails for item donations or ask lots of people to help.  We simply wanted to get our feet wet and make a little money for Zoe.  Well boy oh boy did ya’ll surprise us!  So many people called me the day before the sale and asked to drop items off to be sold.  Then Kelli came over for several hours to help me sort, run errands, and pick up the goodies from Panera Bread.  We were blown away with how much food Panera gave us!  We received half of their unsold bakery items (pastries, desserts, breads, bagels, etc!) and a local church received the other half.  Even half was THREE large trash bags full!  We took them home, individually wrapped/bagged each one (there were over 200+ items!) and put them out the morning of the sale.  When we got home from Panera and Walmart, it was already after 9:00pm.  Ali surprised us and came by around 9:15pm to help us finish sorting through the breads and kids’ clothes.  It was so fun sitting on the kitchen floor talking and laughing.  I can’t thank you ladies enough for all of your help!  Ali is due to deliver baby Caroline one week from tomorrow and we are so excited about her arrival!

Josh and I got to bed a little after midnight on Friday night.  We set the alarm clock for 5:30am which came far too quickly.  We got everything set out and somewhat organized by 6:45am when the first shoppers showed up.  It was a long hot day filled with visits from friends, my sweet sister-in-law brought us coffee around 7:30, and Kelli came back to help around 8:30am.  It was a great day and we ended up making just under $700 for Zoe!  We were worn out and a little sunburned, but elated with God’s goodness.

Thank you for your prayers.  We’re $700 closer to our sweet baby Zoe!

~audrey

Our first ever Adoption Yard Sale is a little over 24 hours away and I’m so excited and a little overwhelmed.  We didn’t want to kill ourselves with the first one so we didn’t really ask for donations.  We were so excited at how many people offered to donate items or their time to help us prepare.  Tomorrow is going to be busy but I think we can pull it off.  A local coffee shop donated all of their unsold pastries and breads for us to sell Saturday morning, I have lots of bows made to set up a Bows for Life table, we’ll have furniture, lots of kids’ clothes, home decor, appliances, electronics, etc.  Jesse even asked if he could sell his Nintendo DS for $50.  I expected him to ask to keep the money, so I asked him, “Do you want to sell your DS for Zoe?”  and he surprised me with, “OF COURSE! AND MAYBE SOMEONE WILL BUY MY GAMES TOO!”  I sure hope it sells.  He’ll be thrilled.

I had better get off the computer so I can continue making my to-do list for tomorrow and get in bed at a reasonable hour.  Please be praying for BIG success Saturday.

WE’RE COMING BABY ZOE!!!  WE LOVE YOU!!!

~audrey

As many of you know, my father is currently working in a military hospital in Iraq.  He called me the other day with a heart-breaking story of tragedy, loss, and hope.

There is an Iraqi family who live in the United States but recently traveled to Iraq to visit family.  Mom, Dad, and three sisters (ages 3, 6, and 10) flew into Jordan where they rented a car and headed to meet their grandparents, whom the girls had never met.  On the way to their grandparents, the family was in a horrific car accident.  The father and six year old daughter were killed, the mother suffered multiple injuries including a fractured pelvis, ruptured spleen, and lacerated liver.  The three year old suffered a major head injury which required emergency brain surgery.  Thankfully, the ten year old only suffered a slight fracture of her collarbone.  They were initially treated in the city of Ramadi, where the accident occurred, but were then transferred via helicopter to Balad, where my father met them at the hospital.  The mother is slowly recovering from her injuries and surgeries.  The three year old is awake, talking, and eating, but is currently unable to move her left side.  The ten year old has assumed the role of mother and is graciously taking care of her little sister while their mother is unable.

After sharing their story with me, we thought it would be a great idea to send the girls a package including some Bows for Life.  What better use for our bows than to brighten the lives of two innocent little girls struck by such terrible tragedy.  The three year old had her head shaved before surgery so we sent some headbands in the package as well.  It is my hope that this small token of love and care will put a smile on their faces and assure them that there are many people half way around the world praying for their family as they heal and put the pieces of their life back together again.

Of course, for privacy, we are unable to share their names, but I’m hoping to share a few censored pictures once they receive their package.   Please pray for this family as they continue to recover, grieve, and travel back to the states.  Pray for the three year old, that feeling and movement will return to her left side and she’ll experience complete healing.  I will keep you posted as I receive updated information.

~audrey

Now taking pre-orders for our new Bows for Life t-shirts!!  They will be sold in ladies fit (not “fitted”), infant, toddler, and youth sizes.  We will take pre-orders from now until June 30th and will place the order on July 1st.  Individual shirts will continue to be sold on our website after the first initial pre-order.  To pre-order, simply click the “donate” button and pay through Paypal or by credit/debit card.  Adult shirts are $25 and youth and children sizes are $20.  Don’t forget to make note of what size(s) you need.  Please pass this link along to anyone who might want a t-shirt while also helping us bring home baby Zoe!

I think Josh did a great job designing this shirt!  Every infant, child, and youth shirt ordered will also receive a matching pink hair bow from Bows for Life.

Will you help us spread the word?

~audrey

Coming soon:

An incredible story of tragedy and hope and how some Bows for Life are going to Iraq for two precious little girls.

I have to nail down the details before I post it but come back in a few days for a story worth sharing.

~audrey

We’ve had parent practicum and training this week for Classical Conversations, so it has completely flown by and wiped me out.  I’m pooped!

However, I was sitting in training this afternoon and saw the agency’s number come up on my phone.  Of course I couldn’t answer it but I sure was excited to get out of there and call her back.

We had a nice long conversation and I was able to ask a lot of questions.  In a nut shell, we’ll be able to work on our dossier and home study simultaneously and should be in Africa picking up our baby girl in about 9 months!  The average wait time for a referral in our agency is only 3-6 months and you travel 2-3 months after you receive your referral.  I am jumping for joy!

The ball is finally rolling.  It’s feeling more and more real with each phone call and piece of paper signed and notarized.

God is so good and I am so thankful that we were cautious and prayerful before making a final decision on an agency.

~audrey

Tomorrow is June 1st.  Besides the fact that half the year has already disappeared, I took a glance at June’s schedule of events and realized that I will likely wake up in a few days and it will already be July.  I mean, we have three jam-packed days of practicum this week, VBS next week, adoption yard sale next weekend, Nashville worship conference the week after that, and Owen and Jesse’s birthdays and parties within a week of that….then it’s July!  It’s all good because my Daddy comes home from Iraq in July, but it also means the ’11-’12 school year will be less than a month away.

Okay, now is when I slow down.  I’ve really been enjoying my boys lately.  I mean really!  We sleep in a little later than usual, make waffles for breakfast at 10am, and hang around in our jammies and fold giant mountains of laundry while watching Old Yeller .  We had already been out and about this morning and were just settling back in when one of the boys said, “Can we, maybe, go to the library sometime this week?”

My response, “How about right now!  Get your shoes on.”

We had fun at the downtown library, which is nice and spacious and never crowded, we ate lunch with Josh, and now we’re watching a movie with our sheets and pillows piled up in the living room and the blackout curtains pulled closed.  I just might take a little nap.

This summer will not fly by for a lack of rest and relaxation.  We will enjoy our slower schedule.  We’ll speak life to one another.  We’ll have spontaneous trips to Nana’s and eat dessert before our meals.  We’ll play in the sprinkler and spend some days at the lake.  It’s going to be a great summer and it’s only just begun.

~audrey