School, School, School

Our family enjoying the art of playing cornhole in Indiana!
Madison enjoys a ride with Laura Johnson on the paddle boat!
Jett absolutely loved the tire swing at Heather's grandmother's house in Indiana.
Kaitlyn loves to be a part of the children's ministry during worship time....she loves the games and helping the younger kids.

Many of you may already know that we homeschool our 3 children. Over 5 years ago, I was the counselor for a local elementary school (and loved it). God specifically spoke to my heart and told me that I was to take my oldest daughter home for school. I specifically said "No, you have got to be kidding..." I argued and battled with God for several weeks. I had mentioned to my husband who thougthfully just said "hmmm." Then, I gave up my battle and obeyed the Father. JT knew it was coming.



At the time, there were several things we didn't know about homeschooling: it is time consuming, people consider you weird, tends to be isolating during normal school hours, there is no break for the parent, etc.... However, there are also many wonderful aspects to it: seeing my children really "get" something; hearing every word they read; teaching a 4 year old to read who just learned to speak English, studying in our pajamas, and so much more.



Right now, we start our school day at 8:30 in the morning. With three children, we have to adhere to some type of schedule (although it fluctuates) so that everyone gets necessary time with Mom and/or Dad. So, we begin our day with the pledges and morning work (checking the temperature, the calendar, the number of days in school, and some vocabulary quizzes for the girls). Then, Madison begins penmanship and Kaitlyn starts math (which has a computer program with it when she gets stuck). I start with phonics and reading with Jett. He is already to say all of his vowels and their sounds as well as most of the ABC's. He can sound out many three letter words by himself. He is SO proud! Then, he begins working on handwriting and I start reading with Madison. Kaitlyn moves on to her penmanship during this time. Once Madison is finished, I allow Jett to listen to one of the school CDs (it either has a book or chart to follow along with ) while I call out spelling words to Madi and let her recite her poem. Kaitlyn always finishes handwriting early so she starts on her computer work (usually finishing it later in the afternoon). Then, Madison heads off to the computer for Bible, science and typing while I lead Kaitlyn's reading, spelling and poetry.

At that point, Jett is finished for the day and plays with either school games or toys in his room. Lately, he's just been "reading" books on his bed.....One of the girls will practice piano for 30 minutes while I lead the other one in the grammar lesson (actual work to be done later) and history. Then, we switch. Before you know it, the day's over...somewhere around 12:30 or 1:00.

Just this week both of the girls planned, preprared and served a full dinner to the family. I was there to help them but they pretty much did it by themselves. On Monday, Madison made a cheeseball with crackers (it was a HUGE cheeseball), steak sandwiches with chive butter and an apple/walnut salad. She also had gingerbread cookies for dessert (she decorated them like each family member). Kaitlyn's dinner was Thursday night, and she had 9 people to serve. She made a tossed salad with a homemade vinaigrette dressing, mashed potatoes, ranch chicken (so yummy) and chocolate mousse. Both of the meals were outstanding! I was so proud of them!

We are now geared up for the next 2 1/2 weeks without Poppa. He has left for Arizona to lead trips there. Jett and I will join him for 4 days next week. The girls are going to stay with their Memaw during that time, but Jett is just not ready for that. We will miss JT greatly but will stay focused on school and getting our house in order while he's gone. Thank you all for your prayers!

Superhero Is On The Move!

Jett's bedhead hair and the many faces of this little man in the morning!
Snuggling with big sister in the morning.
He loves to run around in his superhero costumes!
Right now, he's a big Spiderman fan (though he has never seen a movie or show with Spidey in it) and he is convinced that he can capture people with his webs.
Kinda hard to pretend you have muscles when you are that skinny. Seriously, this boy eats but has only gained 1-2 pounds since we've been home. If he'd stop all that running and jumping, he might could gain weight!

Today is the day that we all will go to Memaw's house. We've been home for over 9 months now, but this will be our first family visit to JT's mom's house. She's been here several times but we will travel this time. What a blessing this has been to not have to travel for a while. Since we travel as part of our occupations, we love to be home! Jett has some issues with traveling and being away from home, so this will be a challenge. Most people don't get to see the ugly, painful and hurtful side of the adoption issues, but just know, that we, like most adoptive parents, have serious issues to deal with that are often intensive and long-lasting.

Jett is doing well - he has started preschool with the family. He usually last about 1 1/2 hours each day. We've spent time learning our letters especially the vowels (or owls as he likes to call them), learning to articulate the ending sounds of words, counting to 20, etc. He can write his name, all of his vowels and even sound out a few words. He'll be reading in no time.

New York, New York

When our children turn 9 years old, we take them on a special trip. It's a celebration of their last year in single digits. Kaitlyn was surprised with a trip to the American Girl place in Chicago....her bags were packed and ready to go when we told her.....Madison, of course, had a 2 1/2 year wait for her surprise.

Madison is the most joyous child we know. She is compassionate and full of mercy. She loves life and soaks it up. She never gets in a hurry (even when prompted) and enjoys every moment she's given. She gets so excited about little things.

So, we gave her a trip to New York. (On a side note, we lead mission trips for a living and are not a family with much financial means. However, because we lead trips, we have an abundance of Skymiles that we can use for flights, hotels and even meals. This is where those frequent flyer miles come in mighty handy!). A week before her birthday (we would be in Africa on her birthday), we surprised her with a scavenger hunt. She found clues all around the house and then discovered that she would be going to New York. No one could wipe the smile off her face and the excitement in her heart. It was contagious.

After a month of waiting, you'd think the anticipation would have waned slightly. Not so much. She loved EVERY minute of the trip. We had the best time together...it was something neither one of us will ever forget. Here are some highlights:

-Staying at the Fitzpatrick hotel just one block from Grand Central.

-Madison's first subway ride!

-Seeing the Statue of Liberty and hearing the stories of how it came to be....

-Getting in to a great Italian restaurant with no reservations although everyone else had to wait an hour!

-Seeing Mary Poppins on Broadway!

-Visiting the AG place, eating at the cafe and watching the play.

-Holding hands and walking through Times Square.

It was a truly amazing trip and we enjoyed our time together immensely. I loved being able to spend time with a remarkable young girl who just happens to be my daughter!

The Beach Trip!

We have just returned from a week at the beach in Destin, FL, and wow, we needed it! We have spent time with the Lord just enjoying His creation, relaxing from the tiring summer and being rejuvenated. We are so thankful for the blessing of being able to spend time together as a family in such a beautiful place.

There have been many struggles this summer that we did not anticipate and more on that will follow in time. For now, we are jumping back into homeschooling and will post more as we can.

What a Summer!!!

Our oldest daughter on the safari in Swaziland.
Jett and Nondu enjoying a special moment together!
Madison and her friend Caroline at the safari park.
They enjoyed seeing all the animals immensely!
All of the kids making funny faces wtih my friend Alice!

God has blessed us with a great summer...albeit jet-setting! We just returned from a two week trip to Swaziland where God showed Himself in mighty ways. All of the children did so well on the 22 hour flight....thanks Delta!

I've posted some pictures to hold you guys over until we can fully journal about our time there. Ministry is exploding and we are working hard just to keep up with emails, phone calls, etc. We will try to post as often as possible but none of you will be shocked when we don't.

Summer at a glance....

Jett Turner loves fruit.....eating grapes in Arizona!
Madison Grace in Covered Wells during a community block party!
Jett loves Mrs. Sandra and her cooking.....she spoils him and he loves it!
Autumn (Ottaman) and Jett pretend to be monkies in Arizona.
JT, Kaitlyn, Jett and Madison pose in Indiana...what a great trip!

Our summer has been filled with mission trips to Arizona and Indiana. Tomorrow we are leaving for South Africa/Zambia/Swaziland for 2 weeks. Here are a few photos to tie us over until we return.

We celebrated 6 months with Jett while in Arizona and are so amazed by his progress. Here's an update on our little man:

1. He uses big words like suggestion, actually (that's his favorite word) and inquisitive.

2. He just lost his front two bottom teeth (and explained that the fairy teeth came and got them).

3. He has eaten watermelon for the first time this summer and loved it!

4. He loves to tell pilots that his name is Jett and watch their reaction.....

5. He now tells people that his mommy and daddy came to Guatemala to get him from an orphanage and he now lives in Alabaster, Alabama. He's very proud to tell his story to anyone who shows the slightest bit of interest (and to those who don't as well).

We'll catch up more details when we return. Thank you all for your prayers!

Mission Trips Galore!

As I write this entry, I am sitting in the offices of Bible Baptist Church in North Vernon, Indiana. I have Madison and Jett with me here taking morning showers. JT and Kaitlyn are in Arizona taking teams to the airport so that they can depart this morning. We have spent the past 3 1/2 weeks in the soaring heat of the Sonoran Desert in Arizona. What a blessed time we have had. We have seen God show up and show off in numerous ways!

Now, we will spend the next week here in Indiana leading VBS in the morning and afternoons in eight different communities. What a joy to be able to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ in conjunction with a local body of believers.

We will finally be home on July 12th and look forward to a week at home before traveling to South Africa! The kids have done so well during the past month. They have adjusted well and have been so flexible....we are so proud of them. We will post pictures after we return from Indiana....still praying for all of you stuck in the system. We feel your pain and we are eager for your babies to come home!