Friday, December 28, 2012

Goal-setting

I've never been much of a New Year's Resolution person. Like most, I fall off the wagon far too early and beat myself up far too much for something that was probably not realistic in the first place.

Thanks to Money Saving Mom, Crystal Paine, I've been thinking more and more about the possibility of goal-setting this year. This would include setting attainable, measurable goals with time lines and sticking with them. It would also mean re-evaluating frequently in order to be realistic about why they are/aren't working.

I'm interested in your thoughts.


  • Do you set resolutions?
  • Do you do goal-setting?
  • What have you found that has worked in this area?
Help a newbie out...{Leave comments here, on FB, or send me an email @ joskeathley{@}gmail{dot}com



Thursday, December 27, 2012

Grown Up Christmas List

So...even though I don't prefer Amy Grant's music (or voice or...her in general), the Grown Up Christmas List song always kinda got to me.

And now Michael Buble croons it. And my, my, my...my heart both soars and aches at the same time.

I've been working on my Grown Up Christmas List since about the first week of December. It's come together quite slowly, and I have been humbled and happy to learn that I might be growing up a bit. This is the first time in a long time that I didn't really WANT anything for Christmas. I mean, sure, it's fun to open presents. Especially when they're personal and thoughtful. But I'm more of a quality time person, anyway.

This year, though...in light of all that's going on in the world around us and the chaos that just is constantly swirling...I want things that aren't THINGS.

So here you are, friends, my grown up Christmas list.


  • My kids to be happy. And not with the gifts under the tree. I mean...happy. With us, with life, with what we have, with non-tangible things, relationships, each other, and most of all with themselves.
  • My kids to experience joy. Real joy that is not based on circumstances but on the basis that we are so very blessed.
  • My family to have quality time together. Screen-less time. Giggles, stories, and memories made.
  • Us all to be healthy, though I realize this is relative and can change in the blink of a moment. But I don't want to take advantage or for granted these happy & healthy days we have.
  • I want this world to stop selling things to my kids. I want my 6 year old to realize what good he has  instead of seeing what he doesn't have.
  • To fill my children's hearts with compassion. I want them to love without cause, and I want them to give out of a heart overflowing with Jesus.
  • To learn content~ness, which apparently isn't a word. {Contentedness is what "they" want me to change it to, but that just sounds fluffy...}
  • Children to never fear walking into school or a mall or a park.
  • Friends to know they are loved by my actions/words.
  • Marriages to be peaceful and purposeful...not at all revolved around children, but around Jesus.
  • A church that is only concerned with the things Jesus is concerned with.
  • Orphans to be loved and adopted.
  • The unlovable to feel loved.
  • To be generous when we can, as people have been generous to us.
  • To stress less. I want to enjoy days, even when they're rough. {If you know me, you know I REALLY struggle with this.} I want to learn to go with the flow and take things as they come.
  • Ruby's adoption to be final. But yet, I want peace for her birth parents. This can't be easy for them.
  • Broken hearts to be mended. That those that have lost loved ones would savor memories instead of pain...and that there would be no regrets. If there are regrets, may we learn to swallow them and move on and use them as fuel for our current friendships and relationships.
  • Hatred to just...go away. That we would love one another and TRULY be Jesus to our world {instead of trying to be God's judge here on earth}.
  • Families to be whole
  • People to be passionate about things that matter.
  • Peace...in the world, in our country, in our corrupt state, our little village, and our home.
  • Those that I love to seek. Truly seek God. The Word is truly the only way to do this.


And even though my list will probably continue to grow, I will use this as a basis to reliaze what is important...in my family, church, and relationships. And though I don't do resolutions well (who does?!), I will set goals slowly and prayerfully, hoping that a few of these things will be in 2013.

And to tickle your ears...here you go...


What's on your Grown Up Christmas List?

Saturday, December 1, 2012

It's Christmas Time!

I don't know if it's because of my Grampa's death that it kinda snuck up on me. We just kinda grazed over Thanksgiving {believe it or not, I still haven't had any turkey!}, and now that I'm home, I'm READY for Christmas. Everyone's Christmas trees peeking out the windows are making me want to get mine up and going...

Last year, I was battling new baby-ness {& a bit of depression} and couldn't even imagine decorating for Christmas. So this year, so far {and I only have a few things out} - I am just crying tears of joy over the little things. Hearing Big D sing along to the Christmas songs as we put the tree up as a family, how ca~ute this mini tree is that hangs on the wall in our "eating area," and just SEEING all the things I've collected in my {few} short years as an adult.


We're doing an advent calendar as a family {with activities, service projects & treats}, as well as the Christmas Book idea found here. I will blog more about that when they're wrapped! {Yes, it's Dec. 1 & they're not wrapped! But I do have the 24 books picked out and labeled with numbers...progress, people.} I'm also hoping to do the Truth in the Tinsel project with D, but am not sure it will start today, just for time's sake. The Jesse Tree is an idea, too...


I'm not sure what you're doing today, but I'm listening to great Christmas music & decking my walls with Christmas gear! The Hubs is going to put our icicle lights up later, and we're planning on ornamenting our lovely tree, pictured above.

Have I mentioned I'm excited about the Advent season this year?!

Thursday, November 15, 2012

On Being Sickly...

Doesn't it seem that illness always comes at the worst possible time? I mean, really...is there ever a good time to be sickly? I think not.

But this week? This has been my view...


It's my Mickey Mouse blankey from my childhood. Sharing a room with my sister had 2 perks: 1) Matching Mickey Mouse bedspreads (that are totally rad, btw) & 2) my baby ceester's preggo ET impression. If she doesn't kill me for publishing that fact to the whole world, I'm just going to have to talk her into doing it for "old time's sake" next time I see her...

I digress. I've been sick this week. Sick. Not just one kind of sick, but 12 kinds. And the worst: itching. It started on Monday just after the "stomach bug" attacked. And it's gotten bad enough that I can't sleep now. I won't go into anymore details, but just know...if you haven't seen me since Sunday, this is why. I'm on meds now...hopefully they'll pull me up on outta here, but if not, me & my Micky Mouse Blankey will be on the couch watching reruns on the Netflix & scratching all my itches.

On a lighter note...do you ever have something that smells of someone/something long after many washings and MANY years of storage? This blankey smells like my childhood. And it makes me miss my sister a ton. {4 hours is too far away...}

Saturday, November 3, 2012

Friday Faves {2}

Coming in a little late for my Friday Faves. But here we go...


My favorite trick or treaters: A "army man," Mr. Staples, & Little Red Riding Hood {Aren't her boots just the best? I tell you what...I am blessed. My sister gives me all her clothes from her chillens...and she has impeccable taste!}


What lady doesn't love getting flowers every now & again? I love him. He makes my heart flutter a bit.


Miss R sure has a lot of energy. My favorite thing that comes with energy is all that PURE JOY. This is the best shot I could get of her squealing at her big brudder over something silly I'm sure! She cracks me up.


Can't get enough (nor will I ever) of their bond. He adores her...and she him. We.Are.Blessed.


It's the little things, folks. Getting ready for our church's annual Craft bazaar, where I will be selling customized gifts. I'm making samples of all of it to have on hand. Can I just say? Crafting is just...a healing balm for my soul. {This is my mini rag tag wreath. It's SO cute!}


I leave you with my favorites...Big D & Baby R. How could I ask for more?

Linking up with Finding Joy. Good stuff. Take some time to read every.single.post.
friday favorite things | finding joy

Monday, October 29, 2012

Ruby is one!

Okay, so actually, she's already 14 months old. So this is {already} 2 months late.

Her party was so fun. I'm just gonna share it with whoever cares out there! :)

Of course, I started pinning ideas for her party from the moment I joined the ever-loving time-sucking idea sight, Pinterest. At the end of the post, I have links to where my ideas all came from.



Mister couldn't BELIEVE we were having a party without balloons...but what can I say? I like to be different. And I wanted her party to be classy & chic. I don't know if we pulled THAT off, but I sure loved the outcome! And a bonus - I was able to use all the decorations for her bedroom, which still was lacking in that area.

I should apologize now for the massive amounts of pictures you will see in this post. But...hey...just know that though there are many here, there are MANY more on my computer. :) I did pick out the best ones for you!


 The cake was made by a dear, dear friend {who also happened to make our wedding cake}. We tried to make candy buttons - FAIL. So we used real ones instead!


One of my favorite things I did was Ruby's name. I do a lot of letters as gifts to people, but usually initials. If it's longer than 4 letters, it sure is big b/c the letters are quite large. But this time, I spray painted them (new to me). I like them, but I think I prefer painting with acrylic. Surprisingly faster, and I prefer the matte look it gives. But the button clusters are awesome, are they not? {PS - I also spent hours spray painting buttons...it is NOT as easy as it sounds!}


Isn't this display just ca~ute?! I took advantage of the candle thingies and made a 12 month display of her pics. LOVE.


I'm not a big punch person, and I saw this on one of my pins and loved the idea. It was a hit.


You'll have to forgive me for putting THREE pictures of her wreath on here, but they're my new obsession, and this one is the best one I've made yet. Seriously cute stuff. {I'm selling customized ones for Christmas gifts if anyone's interested.}




I found a tank top at a rummage sale and sewed on buttons to it. I made her first tu-tu, which actually wasn't nearly the project I thought it would be. I love that her outfit tied into the button theme.


At first, she was pretty hands off with the cake. But after she got a few good tastes, she dug in....



Ruby LOVES wrapping paper, tissue, etc. We were constantly redirecting her to what was IN the paper. Surely people understood...


One last picture of our birthday girl...she is just such a joy.

Watch for a blog coming soon with how we implemented her bday decorations to make her room look more like...a little girl's room!

As promised, here are the main inspirations:

Tutu - Treasures for Tots {She has a BUNCH of tutorials featured on her blog. Neat stuff.}
Party Theme & Decorations - The Rollins Ruckus, Kara's Party Ideas

Saturday, October 27, 2012

5 Years Ago Today...

5 years ago today, I had quite a day planned. I planned for my whole childhood for this day, but officially had 93 days to execute the details.

5 years ago today, I had all of my favorite people {and then some} in one single room at the same time to witness our words.

5 years ago today, I felt {and kinda looked} like a princess.

5 years ago today, I had so many dreams and wishes and hopes. Some of them have been surpassed; some of them...not so much.

5 years ago today, I had NO idea what I was doing.

5 years ago today, I couldn't WAIT to go on vacation with my sweet man...and then we ended up sleeping most of it away out of pure exhaustion.

5 years ago today, I shared communion with my future {and my niece Kennedy, who insisted on us sharing...oh the memories...}

5 years ago today, this boy...my sweet Mister...he already had my heart. So now, he was giving me his last name, and pledging to love me through thick & thin {and boy, have we had both}.

5 years ago today, I kissed the love of my life in front of a LOT of people. {Can I get a whoot, whoot!}

5 years ago today, I got married. {In case you were wondering.} And so to celebrate, I'm looking back on our 5 years. It's been a time, that's for sure.

5 years ago today, I had this...false reality that I was entering into a state of pure bliss. Those of us who are married certainly understand why I am calling it that. It is great. And awful. And sweet. And hard. And...living with your best friend...it's the best. Living with your best friend who calls you out on all your...not so greatness...not always the best.



5 years later, I am a better person. I am quieter.

5 years later, I am a little softer around the edges.

5 years later, I care about things that I never really did care about before.

5 years later, I still laugh. He is totally hilarious. Basically all the time.

5 years later, I realize many of my weaknesses, which go hand in hand with my love's strengths.

5 years {and many arguments} later, I realize I'm not always right...and I'm okay with that.

5 years later, I am so thankful for who God gave me.


Dearest Aaron,

We made it to 5 years. Can you believe it? We've had some amazing times. Moments in time that we wouldn't trade for anything, learning new things about each other, and becoming parents...there's something you just can't plan for.

I love you more today than I did yesterday...and yesterday's yesterday. And I certainly love you more than that sweet, special day we said "I do."

I still do, though. I do promise to love you through thick & thin. Through days of sadness, and life's greatest triumphs. Through regular, plain old days where nothing major goes right or wrong, and through days when we struggle to catch our breath through the madness swirling around us. I do. I will.

I DO.

Friday, October 26, 2012

Friday Faves

I'm linking up with the amazing blog (one of my new all time faves), Finding Joy.

friday favorite things | finding joy
She is both inspirational and down to earth, and I find great comfort in her words. She encourages her readers to step back on Fridays, think about our weeks, and realize all the blessings that took place.

And though I am in sort of a funk, looking through my IG shots this week {find me @ JosKeathley}, I truly am blessed. We had some great memories this past week. So...humor me. And I hope you're able to do the same.


Saturday was a B..L...A...S...T! We attended a fall fundraiser for a friends upcoming adoption, and they had a REAL LIFE hot air balloon there! I have never watched one come up from flat, and It.Was.Neat. Truly. I was standing there in awe. Like some sort of kid in a candy store. {There may or may not have been squealing, folks.}



And at said event, I had the chance to spend time with a DEAR dear friend. Hay rides? Yes, please. And you can tell Baby R loves Auntie Kristin, too! We all are blessed to have all 4 Pulliams in our lives...


Not much of a spaghetti maker {or eater} here, but found out that {without a doubt}, Baby R loves "sketti" as much as her big brudder & Daddy. Maybe I should make an effort to get it on the meal plan more often...this picture was priceless...as was watching her stuff whole mouthfuls of "sketti" in her mouth at once!


I loved getting back to my first love, crafting, this week. Truly makes me happy.


This is our Jack-o-Lantern. We had one {ONE} night together as a family this week, and I literally couldn't have been happier to carve a pumpkin with my loves. Baby R watched in wonder, Big D LOVED getting messy, and we all worked together to get "Mr. Jack" all set up. And Momma "purged" all our candles, so we're using a huge candle in a glass to light it up...but hey - it works! What a fun night with fun memories had with our punkin{s}!


And that picture...Could.Not.Be.Cuter. Oh my goodness. She is so into everything, including bookshelves. Also, she's officially walking as of yesterday. She still only does it about 1/2 the time, but she understands she can do it without our help and loves it!

We are truly blessed!

Monday, October 22, 2012

Show 'N Tell: Bow Holder

I am totally coming up with a new name BESIDES "Show 'N Tell" for my DIY section. I just hated "Show 'N Tell" as a teacher. Trying to pry information out of children in the name of vocabulary & language development...it was awful. And usually lasted a good 1/2 hour. Anyway - the name must go...If you think of a clever one, please let me know.

Anywho - back to the matter at hand.

I have this box. With a lid. And it holds all of Baby R's hair "supplies." And we rarely use them because
a) it's all mixed together and hard to get to & b) I rarely have time to search for needed item. {Mister just loves it when I speak in "list style."}

So Baby R goes with those little plastic thingies in her hair and no hair "pretties." Pretty much All.The.Time.

We put Faux Wood Blinds up in her room. The plain ol' white ones just weren't doing it for us this summer. We were up with the Sun {and a semi-cranky baby due to lack of sleep}. I digress.

So we had a few of these slat thingies leftover {ya like my technical terms today, don't ya?}. I have been working on this in my head for months, and am thrilled to announce that it is done, after inspiration from this, thank you, Pinterest!  I loved the idea of using ribbon to attach the barrettes easily & quickly. I also love how they used hooks for her headbands. I have a totally different idea for the headbands in Baby R's room {which I'm sure I'll share whether you want me to or not ;-)}.

Supplies:

  • hot glue gun & glue
  • blind slat thingie, though you could use a wood piece, a frame, or anything
  • decorative ribbon
  • optional: ca~ute stickers

And the finished product all hing nice on the wall. Could it BE any cuter?! I think not!


Be blessed!

Friday, October 19, 2012

Looking Fear in the Eye(s)

Fear is a funny thing. I've known people who have just been driven by fear. Driven.

And though we are all fearful of certain things, I have never been much of a fear-filled person. That is...until I had kids.

Adoption comes with so many fears. As parents, we fear doing it right. We fear scarring our kids. We fear them feeling different their whole lives. We fear their possible hurts that are out of our control.

And me? I fear the birth parents.

When we adopted Dillon, we made it a closed adoption. And it was really up to us. The decision to us was a no-brainer. They could hurt him again. Seeing them might make him re-live some of the trauma he's been through. Secretly, some fears that I had were that he might love them more than me...that he would want to be with them. So keeping them at a distance was what we had to do.

Then came little sister. And the realities of "sharing" her for visits every week...the opening up of communication, be it through a case worker or not.

Then came a little book:

And a class I felt led to "facilitate" full of adoptive parents wanting the very best for their children.

Then came a few dreams (3 to be exact). Montages of happiness that included my children, older, smiling, content. And it featured my Mister & I, smiling, content. And it featured birth parents...smiling, content.

Then came prayer. A lot of prayer. And just...talking it out with God. And Mister.

Then came a letter that it was time for a case review for Little Miss. SO! I felt it was a perfect, non-obligatory way to meet them without kids present. It would be short & sweet. It would be with others present. It would be non-confrontational. It would be fine.

It would not, however, be easy. We doubted going and starting this process even as we were walking into the room.

But we did it. We faced our fear(s). Right in the eyeballs. And we smiled. And talked about our children. Our children.

And God was good enough to let me see beauty. Even though some ugly things have been done to hurt and scar my child for life, God allowed me to see beauty there. No anger & hurt. No bitterness.

I saw beauty. Those eyes gave me my two biggest blessings. And I literally couldn't ask for more.


For realz.

Monday, October 15, 2012

My productive moments...

I never intended to give her a bowl, fork, and mashed taties. It just...happened. And then I got distracted. And then there was silence.


For you see, like most mommas, my productive moments with a 13 month old are as follows: eat time (sometimes) & sleep time...

And that's it.

However, today, while I was fluttering about putting things away from our weekend of living in the woods, I was missing a BIG learning moment for my sweets. She fed herself with a utensil! Independence at it's best!

And so the rest of my "productive time" was spent cheering her on, telling her how proud of her I was, and giggling with her!

{God, help me to see with both eyes, even though I'm trying to keep a house up. Thanks for not letting me miss this moment. Thank you for my Baby R, and what a gift she is.}

Friday, October 12, 2012

This love

We Keathleys have a lot going on. Just...too much to even think about in a single day, it seems. Sometimes I feel that we will be crushed under the weight of it all.

Thankfully, even in those moments of darkness, I have a whispered promise, directly from God's heart:

"We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexted, but not in depair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed." ~2 Corinthians 4:8-9~

I had to look up the reference, but I KNOW those words. They are hidden in my heart. From years of Sunday School, Bible Quizzing, and studying, reading, reflecting on the Words of Life.

And so...in this moment...


  • I am thankful that I'm not the only one who has felt this way. {Thank you, God, for the words of Paul that help me remember.}
  • I am thankful for this Word hidden in my heart...this silent promise of hope, if only I should listen. {Thank you, God, for your Word. Thank you, Marmi & Daddy, various Sunday School & Bible Quizzing, Small Group, Pastors and Devotional Leaders, for helping me hide it there. I had NO idea how meaningful it would be one day.}
  • I am thankful that I, too, now have this great responsibility to hide Truth into my children's heart. {Thank you, God, for my 2 biggest gifts you have ever given me. Please help me to love them as you would have me.}
And I will...hide truth in them. Because life is hard. And really, it's sad sometimes. But God is good. And this hope we have is all that I have to hold on to sometimes.

I am thankful for something else today.


 These kids adore each other more than I could have ever taught them to. I've said it before, and I'll say it again...Big D just surprises me with his love for Baby R.


While families have to cope with sibling rivalry {I realize it may be coming}, he just...wants to make her happy. All. The. Time. And he'll do anything to make her giggle. And "bubba" is her favorite word.


This love...is what I'm thankful for.



Thursday, October 11, 2012

I know it's hard...

Dear Dillon:

Sweet child of my heart. When I met you, you quite literally changed my world forever. I had no idea what impact your little snotty-nosed, hyper-active, happier-than-happy little self would have on me.

But here I am...4 (plus) years from meeting you, and 3 (plus) years of you changing my name to "Momma."

I ache for you. It hurts my heart that I haven't been there for all your moments. It makes me anxious that I don't know all the trouble you saw before I ever came around. I long to just hold you in my arms and somehow morph it right out of you.

You have so much joy. You have so much sheer excitement. You love people. You love church and church friends more than I could have ever hoped. You surprise me every day by how much you love your sister. I realize it may not always be like this, but you have just really surprised me with your adoration for her.


And now, in the 2nd full month of 1st grade, we're seeing how hard this is for you. I've feared this all along. As your first teacher, I saw you struggle {and yet thrive} with new language and literacy, and I wondered if this would happen.

As I saw tears roll down your face yesterday, trying with all your might to read, my heart ached for you. It broke. And all the momma in me wanted to fix it...quick-like. But I can't.

It's hard. I know it's hard. Reading is hard. Learning is hard.

But don't give up. Just around the corner it will click for you. Or you'll remember a word from last week. And your confidence will build up, and even though it'll still be hard, it won't SEEM as hard.

The truth is...I know it's hard. But I also know you can do it. Don't give up. Don't stop trying. And don't stop believing that you CAN do this.

I love you all the way around the world {and then some},
Momma

Saturday, October 6, 2012

Been a While...

Sure has been a while.

I miss blogging. I miss writing. I miss crafting.

I have GOT to get back into the things that bring me joy.

I'm going on my first vacation since I got this job. Missed a couple Sundays, worked a lot from home, but never {ever} made myself {as} unavailable {as a Children's Director can be}.

I have many things planned for my time off. Mostly cleaning (my house is just...filthy in the crevices). Hoping for some thrifting & crafting. Have a few fun things planned with the munchkins and have a few friend moments worked in so far. Not to mention the ever-popular Williamson camping extravaganza @ the end of the week!

Here goes nothin'...one more work day before the big week! Maybe I'll start blogging again...

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

The Hard Questions

As an adoptee, I have a billion questions. Some are deep, some...not so much. Some are important; others are not. But they're still there until they get answered. I love that as an adoptive momma, I know the questions my kids are going to have.

But hear me...as much as I love this, I also dread it. Because I know the hard things they're going to think, believe, go through. And to make matters worse, we know details about certain happenings in Big D's life pre-foster care...and to know it is hard, but to share it with him (eventually, when it's age appropriate and if he cares) will be harder still.

Sometimes I wonder if I'm really cut out for this.

Like recently. Big D's been obsessed with "kidnapping." He's had bad dreams. He's had dreams that his sister was kidnapped. I'm thankful he can talk about these things, but scared to death of where he comes up with it. We don't allow violent/scary anything in our home/tv/video games, etc. He just can't handle it. He can't even watch Scooby Doo anymore b/c he has bad dreams about monsters and ghosts. We don't know the actual evil he's encountered in the 4 years before us, and he just can't handle it. Some kids can. My kid can't.

{And before I get on a soapbox about it...isn't it a blessing that we don't have to raise our children the way "society" thinks we should? Seriously. Why would we put bad images in our children's mind before they're ready for them?}

Back to the kidnapping. For weeks, he's been randomly questioning the Mr & I...usually when we're alone with him, and when it's down time. We have been racking our brains...really puzzled as to where this came from. Who has he been with? What kinds of things were talked about? What images has he seen/heard/played/talked about when I wasn't around?

We have talked about it, prayed about it, and we can't figure it out.

Today, as he asked me a new question...the worst one so far...I realized it was from me. It was me, in my paranoia....which is a story for another day. In short, as I stood up for our rights as a family {not realizing he was even listening}, I relayed some of my fears. One of my biggest fears is my children being kidnapped by birth parents. {It makes me want to move to the North Pole or Australia...as far away as possible.}

But he heard me. And now my biggest fear has been transferred to my son.


As I hid my tears from him today, I realized...this is just the beginning of the hard questions. 

Saturday, August 4, 2012

Days like today...

I've had a couple rough weeks. And by rough, I mean...really r o u g h. I'm going to spare you the details, but it seems no matter which way I turn, it's not finished or working. Or plans fall through (a g a i n). Or all my planning is null & void because of this reason or that. Or the kids are just...not cooperating with the busyness I find myself in (what kid would?).

But today...it tops the cake. Really.

My first draft of this blog was just...complaint after complaint of all the stinky belongings of this day. But after thought and prayer, I deleted it. Cuz who wants to read someone's blog where they just complain? {Not I, so why would you?}

The good news: both kids are in bed. It's 8:33 p.m. Mister is at a concert in town. I have the (hot) house all to myself, and I'm REFUSING to do housework.

So I'm going to go find myself the best Book known to man and settle in for a bit. There's no other place I'd rather be.

And to be clear - I'm so thankful that there aren't more days like today in life...

And to help us all, a little reminder...

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

My Cup Runneth Over...

I'm not going to lie to you. 2012 has not been kind to my family (as I had hoped). We've been in what we Christians like to call "a valley."

I didn't talk about it much, mostly because it makes people uncomfortable. And the truth is, we're all going through rough times {at least that's what I gather in adult life}. There's always something to dive into prayer about.

For now, though, as huge prayers have been answered, I'd like to just be thankful.

  • Thank you, God, for loving me {Jeremiah 31:3}
  • Thank you, God, for being my refuge {Psalm 119:114}
  • Thank you for a husband who takes the job of "Daddy" seriously.
  • Thank you that my kids adore each other.
  • Thank you that Baby R cries for me sometimes.
  • Thank you that Big D misses me when I'm gone.
  • Thank you for this adorable little abode I get to preside in.
  • Thank you for our church family, who loves the Keathleys more than we deserve. Thank you for providing for us through some of the saints that go to DFCotN.
  • Thanks for Mr's new job! You not only answered prayers, but you gave me specific things I asked for {no nights & weekends, no retail}! You are good! {Psalm 119:68}
  • Thank you for the memories we have made while Mr was off work. Thank you for special moments and for how close we have become. Thank you for teaching us to rely on You above all else.
  • Thank you for sweet Baby R's giggle.
  • Thank you for teaching us what NOT to do when someone we love loses their job. And thank you for teaching us compassion through humbling experiences that we never dreamed we'd need/use.
  • Thank you for moving my parents closer. {I can't say this enough.}
  • Thank you for all the sweet moments we've had with Mr's parents. We love them dearly, and both kids light up when they see Memaw & Papaw!
  • Thank you for Big D's smile & super-hugs every day. I literally don't know what I would do without them.
  • Thanks for a "job" where I get to love on kiddos and teach them about the Bible!
  • Thanks for strawberries, Watermelon, and corn on the cob. Summertime food favorites! <3
My Mr lost his job in February. It's been rough {and that might be an understatement}. I realize that everything is not going to be better simply because there's a job on the horizon, but I am hopeful that life will slowly turn and become a little more "normal" {If there's such a thing...at all}.

Thank you to all of you who have prayed for us during these trials. Thank you for supporting, encouraging, and lifting us up.

My cup runneth over...

{I will leave you with this song...one of my faves.}

Monday, June 18, 2012

To my baby(s) daddy...

Sweet Mister...
When we were dating, your fondness of kids was a little disheartening. Being a born & bred kid~lover, I wasn't sure what to do with you...
And then 9 month old Isaiah forever changed your view. And for that, I am grateful. When I saw you bonding with him, I knew (without a shadow of doubt) that you were going to be a good dad.
But I was wrong.
You are not just a good dad. You are a great one. Really. The best. It seems you understand exactly what our kids need at any given moment. You don't just "get by" with them. You know them...really know them.
I don't think Baby R loves anyone like she loves you. And anyone that knows Big D will tell you he thinks YOU hung the moon...Not to mention their mother...she falls a little more in love with you every time you interact with them...<3
To not only be open to adoption, but to jump in with both feet (and 100% of your heart)...it's literally more than I could ever have dreamed or imagined.
Thank you, God, for my baby(s) daddy. Thank you for the passion for them you have given him. Thank you for letting him be mine. Thank you for the way he adores our children. And thank you, that each Father's Day (and each day in between), we get to celebrate him as ours!


Friday, May 25, 2012

The last time...

Have you read this book?


It's a book for mommas disguised as a kid's book.

Anyway, bring your tissues if you ever plan to read it, but just know that. It's quite thought provoking while it's at it, too.

I know I've already missed several "lasts," but I sure am more conscious of it now...or at least I try to be. Last night, after several days in a row of Baby R not wanting to snuggle with her last bottle of the day, I lost it. {poor Mr} I lost it good.

I cried. I whined. I stomped my foot. I was unreasonable. I ended up hyperventilating and almost collapsing. All because Baby R was maybe growing out of the snuggle phase and I couldn't remember the last time...

So this, my friends, is a gift.


And I cherished every single second of it...For if this was the last snuggle {God forbid}, this momma will have each breath felt, each love whispered, and each song hummed etched forevermore...