Lost? Ask for help

I've been listening to KLOVE radio consistently since the beginning of January, and I've heard this song by Sidewalk Prophets a quite a few times. The song is titled, "Help Me Find It." I finally started really listening to the words and they really rang true as a prayer to God. I For anyone who is going through a tough time and finding it difficult to pray for direction to God, take a few minutes, listen to this song and use it as a prayer if you find it is appropriate for you.

I thought I would post the lyrics (thanks to azlyrics.com) also.

I don’t know where to go from here
It all used to seem so clear
I’m finding I can’t do this on my own

I don’t know where to go from here
As long as I know that You are near
I’m done fighting
I’m finally letting go

I will trust in You
You’ve never failed before
I will trust in You

[Chorus:]
If there’s a road I should walk
Help me find it
If I need to be still
Give me peace for the moment
Whatever Your will
Whatever Your will
Can you help me find it
Can you help me find it

I’m giving You fear and You give faith
I'm giving you doubt
You give me grace
For every step I’ve never been alone

Even when it hurts, You’ll have Your way
Even in the valley I will say
With every breath
You’ve never let me go

I will wait for You
You’ve never failed before
I will wait for You

[Chorus]

I lift my empty hands (come fill me up again)
Have Your way my King (I give my all to You)
I lift my eyes again (Was blind but now I see)
‘Cause You are all I need

[Chorus]

We all go through tough times, everyone is fighting a battle. All we can do is keep the faith, trust God, and let go.

God bless,
Christel

I've missed reading books

Prior to the last few years, I used to read a lot. I was always reading whenever and wherever I could; prior bed, in the car waiting for the train to finish crossing the road, at the doctor's office, outside when the weather was nice. However, it seems life got in the way, and I let my reading time take a backseat.

A few weeks ago, I started reading "Divergent" by Veronica Roth. I got through Chapter 8, then got busy with this thing we call "life." But I've been doing my on-call job this week filling in for the campus manager, so I've had actual lunch time, and I decided to start reading the book again.

I have to say that I've realized how much I miss reading, as I have totally got into this book. I remember how much I like the way books pull me into their stories, and I lose track of the world around me. My visualization of the events being told is so vivid that I can almost smell, see, and feel the world of the story, and I start to feel like a quiet character of the tale.

I need to remember this feeling more and instead of going online and looking at Pinterest and Facebook, I need to pick up a book, read, and get pulled into another world for a short time.

Christel

Where does the time go?

Wow! It's already the end of February! My apologies for being lax in writing a post. I know many of you are wondering what is going with us.

During the holiday season, we were asked quite often by family and friends about our status on adopting. This showed us how many people we know who care about us and hope we get a match. Well, the answer to that question is that things are pretty quiet.

In January, we attended the annual meeting for waiting families with our adoption agency. During this meeting, the agency staff reviewed the adoption process, new regulations, updated fee schedules, and information on the waiting phase. It was nice to see some of the families we saw at this meeting last year, and bitter-sweet to note the families that were abscent because their dream of adopting finally became a reality. To all those families we say, "Congratulations! We are so happy for you!"

So basically, we are still waiting and praying for the right match. This is also bitter-sweet for us because, as much as we would like a baby, we know a birthmom is struggling with the decision to parent or place her baby. We are praying for those birthmoms, too.

Chris' birthday was in December and as part of his present, his mom found some of the baby clothes she had kept from when her kids were tiny. The clothes are so precious, and it was such a thoughtful gesture. It is wonderful to have something like that handed down to us that we can use once we get a baby placed with us. For now, we put those items in a safe place, along with a few other items we've collected.

I am now in a play with our church, and I am so excited! Rehearsals have been fun, and it's been nice to meet other people in our church. The play is called, "Sacrifice of Love," and we perform it on April 11 at our church. It is a modern day parable of the preaching of Jesus, his prosecution, death, and resurrection. The main character's name is Jason Carpenter who symbolizes Jesus. I think it is going to be a moving and beautiful play.

So inbetween the twice a week rehearsals, I am doing a little bit of work as an on-call professional for a local college, and I continue volunteering. This past weekend, I continued my training with American Red Cross by attending the disaster logistics training.

Chris is still staying busy at his office and working at the hospital. Additionally, we are getting ready for dog show season, so he has been spending time getting the dogs' coats in shape. Oh, and Hanna had a litter of puppies in November, so they have been keeping us really busy. Below is a picture of Strider with one of the puppies. This just melts my heart!

 

Nick went back to college this semester and I think he is liking it. He has additionally been going to a ton of concerts in Denver and has a couple of trips planned for concerts in Las Vegas and Los Angeles. He is so independent!

 

Ok, I will end the post at that for now, so you don't feel like you are reading a book. Please keep us in your prayers and we are doing the same for you.

 

Take care,

Christel

Captain's Log: Stardate 91406.79

Ok, ok. You got me. I'm a Trekkie! No, that's not a bad thing. My favorite chore is to fold laundry and watch a Star Trek series on Netflix. Right now, I am watching Voyager, and I am in season two. As I just finished folding laundry, I'm still in the process of finishing an episode of Voyager, so I decided to write a blog entry while I finish the show. I seem to consistently be in the middle of one Star Trek show or another. For our second wedding anniversary, I made Chris a quilt. Every time I was upstairs cutting or sewing, I watched Stargate: SG-1, which was on Hulu at the time.

So, now that you know that about me, I figured I would write a little more about me. It's been about three months of not working now. While I've kept pretty busy with volunteering, doing things around the house, and job searching, most of my time has been occupied with trying to figure out the next direction of my life. It's been difficult and a bit stressful. I'm trying to put a lot of faith in God knowing that he will lead me, but I some times think that I may be missing a sign He is giving me.

As I contemplate my next steps, I think about all the other steps I've taken in my life that have led me on so many paths. I've taken on the role of quite a few things including:

• A CDC research assistant
• A waitress
• A U.S. Navy Aviation Electronics Technician
• A Naval electronics instructor's aide
• A lifeguard
• An audio repair technician
• An electronics tester and repair technician
• An equipment lease broker
• An account manager and collection agent
• A Petsmart sales clerk and cashier
• A college student
• A financial aide records manager
• A technical editor
• An administrative manager
• A digital photographer teacher's aide
• A newspaper reporter and photographer
• A wedding photographer
• A project assistant
• A doula
• A SharePoint administrator
• A proposal manager
• A software trainer
• An event planner
• A dog handler, groomer, and breeder

I have had quite a few dreams, a few I've actually accomplished, and some I didn't. I remember one of my dreams as an adolescent was to be an astronaut. I think that dream came about after watching Space Camp. I loved that movie and watched it quiet a few times. I even wrote NASA for information on what I needed to do to be an astronaut. Unfortunately, I found out that my eyesight was too bad to be considered.

Then after watching the Shamu show at Sea World in Orlando, I wanted to be a marine biologist so I could become a Killer Whale trainer. Then I realized I had a fear of deep water and because of a perforated ear drum, I would be unable to swim to deeper depths anyway.

Once I started going to college, I decided to major in journalism because I wanted to a photographer for National Geographic. I've since realized that is something I no longer want to do, but I still enjoy photography.

So, now that I am an adult, here I am again at crossroads trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up. But one thing I am realizing is that I don't think I will ever stop learning and growing and changing. I enjoy being challenged and mentally stimulated. Maybe that's why I've been so many different things in my life. Maybe I will never settle for one career my whole life. But there are some things that I will be for the rest of my life and will never stop being. These roles bring me immense joy and fill my heart everyday: a daughter, a sister, a wife, and a mother. Thank you, Lord, for giving me these lifelong, fulfilling roles!

A lot has been going on this summer

I can't believe it's been so long since I've posted. I kept thinking about it, but never got around to it.  Well, this summer has been crazy to say the least. Some bad things have happened to us, but some good things have happened, too. One thing we've learned through what we've been through is that our relationship is strong and our faith has continued to strengthen us.

Yes, we had a few moments when we asked, "Why us?" But we tried to not let them last long. We reminded ourselves that we can't change what has happened and dwelling in the past won't change anything. We knew we had to keep moving forward and learn and grow from our recent experiences and continue to love.

During this time, our family and friends have been so supportive and encouraging. We want to thank them so much for their kindness, understanding, and prayers.

Chris is getting settled in the new office, and they are slowly rebuilding their practice after they lost everything in the fire. Their previous landlord is rebuilding the burnt building, so Chris and his partners think they can be back there by April (I think I'm remembering this correctly). Despite the loss, Chris is busier than ever, so we can count our blessings.

I am no longer working, but find I am busier than ever still. Isn't it funny that no matter how much "free" time we have, how quickly it gets filled? I volunteered with the Front Range Exceptional Equestrians (FREE) once a week this summer and fall. This is a therapeutic horse program Colorado State University runs. The program is on a break for a couple of weeks. It was very humbling working with the students and learning how they persevere through everything they endure everyday. Despite their physical and mental disabilities, they are still able to smile and laugh with joy when riding.

I'm also finding time to help my grandma. She's been dealing with a lot of pain from a pinched nerve in her back. It's so difficult to see her in pain and moving so slowly and hunched over. I can see in her eyes how difficult it is for her having to be dependent on others when she has been taking care of others her entire life. With grandpa being gone for about a year and a half now, I sense her loneliness and my heart aches for her grief.

As for the adoption, not much has changed. We are waiting for the phone call saying we've been matched. We did hear that another adoption agency in the state closed, so most of their clients are getting referred to our adoption agency. We also know that they have several mothers they are working with now. Some, our case workers feel the birth mom will parent, which is great! After all, that's what we want; if a birth mom feels she is in position to parent, that's the ultimate goal. But if she would like to place her child with a family, then at least she has that option working with an adoption agency.

We hope all is well with you. If you get a chance, drop us a line and let us know how things are going with you. Until next time... Keep moving forward!