Our handsome son, John Mark

We are so very thrilled, and grateful to God, to share this great news…we received the call yesterday that we’ve been waiting for…we have been approved to adopt John Mark! We can breathe a sigh of relief knowing that the boy we have had in our hearts since July will be our son/brother!

Words cannot describe this feeling. It’s just the same as hearing the words “YOU’RE PREGNANT!” from our doctor after months of infertility treatments! Although we are still weeks/months away from traveling to the Philippines to pick up our son, we feel a huge weight lifted just knowing that we are one step closer! I won’t be jumping out of my skin every time the phone rings this week!

It’s funny how it happened, actually. I had taken Sydney, who has been a pretty sick little girl since last Thursday evening, to the doctor yesterday. As we were finishing up our visit, I heard my phone ring but couldn’t get to it in time. As soon as we walked out of the doctor’s office into the hallway, I looked at the missed call number and saw that it was from our home phone. Odd…considering nobody was supposed to be there! I also noticed there was a text message, and that it was from Kevin’s phone. I opened it, and it read, “Vickie just called! We got our match!” AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! I was just a tad excited ecstatic!  Yes, tears immediately came to my eyes, and I pulled the girls to the side and told them that John Mark is definitely ours!  Sydney, the sick one – and I mean, lethargic, not-playing-all-weekend sick – started jumping up and down and clapping!  Reid did a little happy dance and was singing, “YEAH YEAH YEAH!  WE GET JOHN MAAAAAAAAAARK!”  I’m sure the two old ladies sitting on the bench near us thought we were nuts!  I didn’t care, our rejoicing could not be held back!  I thanked Jesus and then called Kevin back!

So now we are preparing to send the remaining funds that are due — orphanage fees, John Mark’s immigration fees, medical check up fees, etc.  His paperwork will be in process and he will undergo his medical check up to clear him for travel to the US.  And while all of that is happening, we wait…some more…until we receive the next very important call…the one that says we can make our travel arrangements to go pick him up!  YAY!!!!!!!!!!

Not only do we thank the good Lord for calling our family to adopt this precious little boy, we also thank Him for seeing us through, for providing encouragement just when we needed it, for allowing this opportunity to grow our faith in a mighty way, and for providing the means to get to this point.  We still need to figure out the financials of this last leg, but we are steadfast in our belief that the Lord WILL provide.  What that looks like at this point is unknown, but He has shown us that the unknown does not need to be scary…we just need to trust in Him.

And thank you to all of those who have been praying for the phone call to come.  Each step of the way we have had an amazing support system of people praying.  That is HUGE, and it means the world to us.  We are humbled beyond words by those who have had our family in their daily thoughts and prayers.  THANK YOU!!!

Monday, the beginning of a new week, and a new hope that we will hear good news from the Philippines Inter Country Adoption Board.  I’ve been told that the Board meets on Thursdays to review cases, but that doesn’t necessarily align with the timing of the round of questions that they sent us before Christmas…so every day is a possibility to me!  Every time the phone rings these days, my heart skips and I am thankful all over again for that little invention called Caller ID that for so many years we did not have (we just recently changed our phone plan for a cheaper one, and lo & behold it included Caller ID!).

I am definitely feeling a little bit like an overdue pregnant lady these days.  I remember well the anticipation of those due dates when we were expecting our other children — how even though in my mind I knew that there was no guarantee attached to them, I couldn’t see past that magic date!  Hale’s due date came and went without so much as a hiccup out of that baby boy! Looking back, it was a good thing…as all things in God’s perfect timing are…because it allowed Kevin and I to celebrate our second wedding anniversary at a fantastic restaurant where they felt so sorry for me (I must’ve looked gigantic and pathetic) that they gave us a beautiful and delicious dessert for free!  Much better than celebrating with hospital food had Hale decided to make his debut on his due date!

My patience is now TRULY being tested!  I guess it has to do with the updated photos and seeing how much John Mark has grown since the first picture we received….and not wanting to miss one more day/week/month of his life.  I want to be taking those pictures from now on — pictures of him playing with the four siblings that ask about him daily and have so many things planned for him!  As much as I look forward to taking my first international trip and experiencing a completely different culture, I also just want to get that part over with and get back to raising my family without this “event” hanging over our heads!  I want to fulfill this calling that the Lord has placed in our lives, and be able to witness to others who may be wondering if what they are considering is a calling or just an idea they came up with…

As we begin this new year and anticipate all that it will bring, I have many things for which I am praying.  Of course, I pray that the Lord would continue to open my eyes and my heart to what He would have me do each and every day, and that I will seek out those things rather than hiding from them;  I pray for my marriage, that Kevin & I would continue to keep God in the center and know that we are not in control, but that we have a choice every day to love each other and work together (and I pray that KJ knows that I think he gets hotter every day, and I’m truly a happy girl to be married to him!); I pray for my children, all five of them, that they would grow in their relationship with their Heavenly Father and find peace in knowing that they are loved and never alone, because sometimes it just feels hard to grow up; I pray for the Lord’s provision, in this slow season of work for Kevin, especially given the remaining expenses of the adoption, and our desire to continue to be a help to others.

Romans 12:12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.

Happy New Year! Wow — 2012! Rolls off the tongue easier than 2011, I think. This year (in just a week and a half, actually), my parents will celebrate FORTY years of marriage! Reid will turn four in a few weeks; Kevin and I will celebrate our 12th wedding anniversary; Hale will be 10 this springs; our big dogs will hopefully make it so see their 12th birthday in June; Mackey the WonderPup will turn 2; I will no longer be able to round down to 30 but rather up to 40 when I turn 35 this summer; this will be the 6th year we have lived in this house; Addison will be 9 years old in the fall; the cats…if they can continue to escape death by coyotes, will have been with us for 7 years; Sydney will turn 6 years old right before next Christmas….and the one thing we’re all a little more focused on than the things previously listed…we will, God-willing, welcome our fifth child into our family — officially, that is! We already feel as though he is part of our family; we are just waiting on everything to be official!

Update: we received an updated medical file and two new up-to-date photos of John Mark a few days before Christmas! It was a wonderful gift and an answer to prayer. I had begun to feel a little like we were stuck in a stalled vehicle going nowhere!  The Inter Country Adoption Board (ICAB) in the Philippines had a list of about seven questions for us…mostly just clarification on some things that were in our home study.  When I finally stopped shaking and crying from looking at John Mark’s new photos, I did my best to answer their questions as thoroughly as possible.  The answers were sent back to ICAB and we continue to wait for a response.  It could be that we receive even more questions; it could be that we receive approval; and yes…it could be that we are denied.  The last one would be the most bitter pill to swallow that I can ever imagine…but I have to be honest with myself and with our family.  And we know that the Lord has a plan, one way or the other, and that we need only to lean on HIM, not our own understanding.  Easier said than done, but it is what I truly believe.

We do have some people to thank for what they have done to support us throughout this adoption journey.  First and foremost, everyone who has prayed and continues to pray for John Mark’s well-being, as well as for our family as we wait. These prayers have been like a warm blanket on a cold night!  We are so very grateful, and we ask that you continue to pray!

Secondly, to my friend Ivy, who is also my hair stylist.  She has sacrificed a portion of the income that she would normally make from doing my hair in order to give me a cheaper rate, as she knows that the expenses that come with the adoption are a little daunting!  At first glance, this might seem minor.  But I tell you, I was moved by the fact that Ivy thought of this and was willing to sacrifice income on our behalf.  That is a good friend!

Thirdly, a thank you goes to the individuals involved with our church’s Global Outreach Team.  This team granted us $500 towards our adoption expenses.  This money has already been applied to the remaining amount that will be paid upon our adoption approval.  THANK YOU to the First Church of God Global Outreach Team for supporting our family, as well as others!  This gift was completely unexpected and humbling!

Of course, there are a lot of other things going on in our family besides the adoption.  Hale & Addi continue to excel in school, and we are so thankful for their capacity to and love for learning.  Sydney & Reid are making great strides as well, making new friends and most notably enjoy their Sunday School lessons like no other child I’ve even known!  It is amazing the details they retain from their lessons, and incorporate the Bible stories into their playtime!  While the real estate auction business has slowed due to the time of year, Kevin continues to work long hours on technology projects.  We give God all the glory for the way in which he enables Kevin to provide, and for the opportunities to earn the funds needed for the adoption.  In fact, it is one of the sweet things that comes up in Hale’s nightly prayers, and it goes something like this: “Dear God, thank you for this day….and please give Daddy work so that he can make money that we need to pay for John Mark.”  Of course, we have explained that we are not BUYING this child, but you can see how it seems that way in the mind of a child!

We’ve been blessed with the opportunity to begin leading a new small group of married couples at our church.  We’re blessed by the relationships that have been formed and we pray that the Lord continues to do a mighty work in all our lives and within our group.

That’s about it for tonight…the hour is getting late and I am getting sleepy!

We are officially two months along in the adoption process.  Wow, it seems like it has been WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY longer than that!!  I know it sounds pathetic to say that my patience is being tested, especially considering that we should be good at waiting…experiencing infertility is one HUGE lesson in practicing patience!  But seeing our (fingers crossed) little boy’s face everyday in the photo that we have displayed in our kitchen makes me impatient, because for every day that the process is delayed, it’s another day that he is in an orphanage rather than in a home with a family to love on him, provide his needs and tuck him into bed at night.

We received word last Friday that our home study report is (finally) complete and had been received by our agency.  Today we received word that our background clearance from Illinois had been received (finally!) — background clearances have to be done in any state prospective adoptive parents have lived since the age of 18, and  Kevin & I briefly lived in Illinois.  Now, our home study report is being reviewed for completion.  Our next step is to receive clearance to travel to Indianapolis to be fingerprinted.  After that takes place, our completed dossier will be sent to the Philippines, and then we wait for approval to adopt from that country, and then approval to adopt the little boy that we already feel as though is ours.  We are realizing that it’s silly to attempt a guess at the timeline, but that’s us…silly people.  So we are guessing that our dossier will reach the Philippines by the end of October. And if all goes well, our approval to adopt and our approval to adopt our specific child will occur in quick succession.

I know, that update is not all that exciting.  Most people that ask (and it occurs daily that someone asks where we are in the process!) are hoping we have a travel date and know exactly when we will be bringing him home.  You can’t imagine how much I wish that were true!  I already have our Christmas card design floating around in my head just in case he’s here…but of course, I have the alternate Christmas card design in mind if he’s not here…and at this point I’m quite certain he won’t be.  I am even preparing myself for another YEAR of waiting…because I know that could be the reality.  Hale came to me three days ago and said, “Mom, what happens if the Philippines doesn’t let us adopt him?”  Yeah, even THAT is still a possibility.  Ugh…….

But because this adoption was a calling from the Lord…and we truly believe that…we still have peace about this process.  I still envision this precious child teaching us more than we could ever hope to teach him.  I envision walking into the bedroom that he will share with Hale, every night, to see two brothers sleeping peacefully.  I envision the normal ups and downs of a family, but instead of herding four cats, KJ & I will be herding five.  And I.Can’t.Wait.  I have reorganized Hale’s room and closet; I’ve hung the little clothes that we have begun collecting; my mom has begun cross-stitching a ‘blankie’ just as she has done for the other four (not to mention a fifth stocking to hang on the fireplace!); I’ve even tried to convince KJ, without success, that we will be needing a vehicle with more seating!

So for now, we will continue to pray for our little guy.  We ask that you do the same.  Pray that he is well, that he is being taken care of by people who love him enough to want to see him go home to a FAMILY.  Pray for all of us – that the Lord continues to provide peace and patience throughout this process. Pray that our children will be understanding while we are called to travel to the Philippines to bring our precious child home.

It’s that time of year again when we settle into our routine of a school schedule – which means EARLY BEDTIME for kids – and I feel as though I have a little more brainpower left at the end of the day than I do during the summertime!  I have always had the best of intentions when it comes to keeping up with our blog, but intentions do not always come to fruition!

Back-to-school this year finds our family with a fourth-grader, a second-grader, and as of tomorrow morning….a PRESCHOOLER!  A strange sensation came over me as I hung a third backpack in the mudroom this evening in preparation for Sydney’s first day of school!  A year from now, FOUR backpacks will hang.  Three years from now, FIVE backpacks???!!!!!  YOWSA!!!

Yes, we will be welcoming our fifth child into our family in the near future!  We are in the middle of the adoption process, praying to bring a little boy from the Philippines into our home.  This little guy will be two years old in November.  Of course, we can’t get him here fast enough; but we know there is no such thing as ‘fast’ when it comes to adoption, and so we just pray daily for him as we patiently wait for approval from the powers-that-be!

Some of you might be asking what spurred us into the realm of adoption.  Some of you have a few choice words for our decision!  Some of you think it’s great but still don’t understand why a family of six would choose to add another.  We’re prepared for such reactions, but not by our own power.  I can tell you that one person has suggested to Kevin that I am forcing him into this because I must be regretting not having anymore biological children, and that he should put his foot down and let me know what’s what!  Okay, so those of you who know me well probably take a step back when you read that and expect to hear that my reaction was explosive slightly negative…but it wasn’t…which is WEIRD for me!  There’s no other explanation, other than it’s a total God thing!  Not only has our family been called to walk this path and expand our family in this way, but I have also been called to tolerance and peace for such assumptions.  Wonders never cease, I tell ya!  This is sooooooo not me!  But I am loving *this* me — the peacefulness, the assuredness, and the knowledge that it only comes from one source — my God!

Hale, Addi, Sydney & Reid are all excited at the prospect of a new brother – most especially Hale, as you can imagine!  Sydney & Reid giggle every time we talk about what John Mark (yep, that’s his name — isn’t it sweet?!) will call me….”Mommy,” I reply.  And thus begins the giggling!  Sydney wants to teach him how to play with stuffed animals and all about Jesus!  Reidie wants to teach him how to go pee-pee on the potty (yay!  I’m all for that one!).  Addi wants to introduce him to our dogs & cats and show him how to play nicely with them, and read bedtime stories to him.  Hale wants to teach him everything he knows about Nerf guns and video games!  John Mark is going to be one lucky boy to have such amazing siblings to teach him everything he needs to know (and then some!); and we are all going to be very lucky blessed to have another son/brother who will undoubtedly give more to us than we could ever hope to give to him!

“And anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me.”  -Matthew 18:5

This was the kind of day that I love.  Not every moment was ‘lovely’…but for the most part, it was the kind of day you look back on and say, “Yep, that was a good day.”

Today we had no schedule.  No agenda.  No To-Do list (well, there is a To-Do list, but it wasn’t happening today!).  It was a family day.  Kevin had been away for a few days, and Nannie & PaPo – whom had saved the day by taking care of the little girls yesterday so I could chaperone Addi’s school field trip – left this morning. So what is a family to do with a whole day to themselves?  And a B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L day at that!

I don’t want my kids to grow up with a sense of entitlement, such that they feel as though their every waking moment should be filled with mindless entertainment, catering-by-the-parents-to-the-children, extravagant spoiling…you get the idea.  However, it is rare in our family that we have a day like today…with nothing what-so-ever on the calendar, so to speak.  Of course, there are always things that could be done.  Did Kevin have work at the office waiting on him?  Yes.  Was there a pile of laundry waiting to be done?  Yes…more than one pile.  Was there yard work waiting for us?  Of course.  But today we spent our entire day enjoying each other.  Well, with the exception of the little girls getting a late nap, which meant they were pretty stinkin’ whiney for most of the day.  And then there was the conversation we had to have with Hale & Addi, explaining that when THEY were the ages of Sydney & Reid, they got to do all the things that they try to convince us NOT to let Sydney & Reid do because “they’ll mess it up.”  Other than all that, it was a super day!

We started off by taking the kids to see an animated movie they’ve been wanting to see, called Alpha & Omega.  It’s about two wolf packs who eventually overcome their adversity so that they might be a more effective pack, together.  Hmmm…good lesson for the kids…better together.  BUT…it cost us sixty bucks for our family of six to watch that movie.  Yep.  You read that right.  SIXTY BUCKS for an hour & a half-long kids movie.  It was only offered in 3D, which upped the price.  Did we have to go ahead and pay the sixty bucks?  No.  But we fell into the trap…not wanting to disappoint the kids.  And not only did we pay sixty bucks for movie tickets, we spent an additional fifteen dollars on popcorn & pop!  Grrrrrr!

Exit movie experience, which by the way, was without major incident!  It is so nice to be able to do things as a complete family now, as the kids get older.  As I looked at Hale & Addi on my left, and Sydney & Reid on my right, with their too-big-for-their-faces 3D glasses on, stuffing their mouths full of too-expensive-popcorn, I couldn’t help but smile, and thank God for my family.  And as I often do, I thought to myself (about myself)…”Who would’ve thought?!”

So as if the movie theater didn’t cost us enough (anyone keeping track knows that we’re already at $75 for the day so far), we stopped at the kids’ favorite Mexican restaurant, Bandido’s, on the way home.  Bandido’s has a small arcade room that our kids go nuts over.  Interestingly enough, they’ve never actually PLAYED any of the games because we’ve never given them money to do so.  They just love to go in and pretend like they are playing.  Sweet.  Chalk one up for the ‘rents…a FREE activity for the day!  But then we were seated, and apparently nobody was really hungry except for Mommy & Daddy. (Fortunately, we’ve learned to find two kids’ meals on the menu and then divide those two meals between the four kids, because on their own, they NEVER eat an entire meal. )  But again, no major incident…just a couple trips to the bathroom for potty breaks and Sydney trying to convince us that the wait staff needed to sing Happy Birthday to her like they did for the girl at the table next to us.

Back home, it was OBVIOUS that it was naptime for the little girls.  So after a quick de-lousing, off to dreamland they went.  Kevin & Hale went to ride in a combine with our good friend, Gary.  Hale has been enjoying this particular activity since he was a year old.  It’s just something he does every harvest.  It is a good way for him to learn a little about the farming industry, get a good look at how the equipment works (which I think is his favorite part), and spend some good quality time with his dad!  While the boys were ‘down on the farm’, Addi & I were making plans for the remainder of our day.  Addi is all about GAMES!  She loves games of all kinds, but especially board games.  So she chose an evening filled with Sorry!, Twister, Go Fish, War and Uno.  Upon the boys’ return & girls waking up from naps, we took to the great outdoors for a game of Twister, PIG (basketball), “adventures” around the property, scooter-riding, sidewalk chalk and playing with our four-legged kids.

Back inside, it was shower time…and while all that was going on, Daddy built the best blanket fort in all the land, down in the basement!  Tonight is the first time that the little girls have slept in one of our ‘famous’ forts!  They were over-the-moon excited!  Rarely do you see them volunteering to go to bed!  I’m not sure that even now, two hours since being put to bed, that they are actually asleep yet.  But this is what it’s all about…making memories!

I know…it was a long description of one random Saturday in our lives.  But I just loves days like this.  Our family.  The kids have their moments when they absolutely drive me up the wall.  They can be whiney, selfish, self-centered, irritating, demanding, and annoying.  Hmmmm…aren’t I that way sometimes, too?

I love my family beyond measure.  I am incredibly blessed.  I will wake up in the morning and thank God, as I do every morning, for what He has given me.  Or should I say ‘loaned’ me.  This life is not permanent.  But while I’m here, I’m going to LOVE days like these.

Okay, I FINALLY remembered to ask Kevin how to add posts to the blog WHILE HE WAS HERE!  I always seem to think about it when he is out of town.  Which is when I’m usually looking for something to do in the evenings.  But tonight he is here, I am here, and I remembered.  YAY!  See, he changed the format or the something-or-other and I no longer knew how to post! So I’m glad to be back because I feel like I have LOTS to share, for better or worse!

Tonight I want to talk about my most recent Facebook status update, which basically said something like “we all need to remember that our actions do not only affect ourselves.”  I am usually not into the ambiguous status updates that send my Facebook friends into a tizzy, wondering what in the heck is going on with me…but that particular update was due to the very heavy heart that I had that evening.  And I wasn’t at liberty to divulge exactly what I was referring to.  Let me break it down for you now…

Those who know me well know that my husband and my children are at the very top of my list of priorities…second only to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who gives me the strength to deal with said husband and children!  So when someone messes with them or their feelings, they are messing with me.  Unfortunately, someone very dear to them  (us) has (seemingly) unknowingly hurt them, and I am doing my very best to pick up the pieces and help them deal.  This is where my Lord and Savior comes in, because I could do nothing for them without His guidance.  And again, unfortunately, my human nature often times gets the better of me and prevents me from keeping my emotions in check in regards to this situation.  So I guess you could say I used that status update as my forum for venting!  Whoops.  I’ve always said Facebook is fun for me because I don’t take it too seriously and I just try to be upbeat and casual with it.  Fail #1.

Fail #2?  Well, I like to think I haven’t made it yet, in this particular situation, that is!  I sat my two older kids down today for a heart-to-heart.  I was honest.  I was transparent.  I was emotional (and so were they!).  But I was NOT derogatory.  I was NOT mean-spirited.  I was NOT persuasive.  And I was NOT sweet.   I let my eight-year-old and my (almost) seven-year-old express their feelings, concerns and emotions.  I learned a LOT about how they are feeling and what they are and have been thinking.  I let them “get it all out” … and boy, did they ever!  There were tears, there were even fists hitting the couch cushions.  It wasn’t dramatic, it was just real.  My kids impressed me with their level of understanding as well as their level of vulnerability.  They were just confused kids who expected more from a person they love.

This made me think.  What do my kids expect from me?  What does my husband expect from me?  What do my family and friends expect from me?  And the one thing I kept going back to was…R-E-S-P-E-C-T.  That’s essentially what we ALL except from our parents, spouses, family and friends.  We just want to be CONSIDERED.

So getting back to my point…

I’m sure I learned as much today from my children as they learned from me.  We talked about choices and sin.  We talked about forgiveness, forgetfulness – wouldn’t it be nice if we were all afflicted with forgetfulness sometimes? – and we talked about ‘living beyond yourself’.

My husband is amazing.  He is handling this situation with such grace.  My kids are amazing.  They are resilient and brave and so filled with love.  Me…?  I’m a mess.  I don’t deal well.  I NEED grace.  But I am learning…through their eyes I am learning.

Several years ago I learned something new about myself – I have O-Negative blood. During a blood drive at our church, Jill and I decided to give for the first time. My mother has always given regularly but I’d always had this aversion to needles… Jill and I waited in line and did our part and have been back each time the Red Cross has come to church.

When I started getting letters from the Red Cross wanting to make sure I made my next appointment I started to think that I had a rare blood type – Jill wasn’t getting the same letters.  I couldn’t have been more wrong.  According to this website, it is the opposite!

A long time ago, it was discovered that all human blood is not identical. It turns out that there are two antagonistic factors, creatively called “A” and “B” and whether or not you have them is genetic. People with the A-factor only are Type A, those with the B-factor only are Type B, and those with both factors are Type AB. Those with neither A or B-factors are Type O.

These factors are not distributed equally across the population, they are heavily skewed towards Type O and A. [...] Nearly half (46%) of the overall population will have Type O blood, carrying neither the A or B factors. Type A is the next most prevalent at 40%, and those with Type B blood will make up about 10%. Only 4% of the population has Type AB blood.

The point I came to understand is that the O blood type is the most common in the population and therefore the most in need at hospitals. Not only that, but in a pinch the O blood type can be given to A and B blood typed recipients because it lacks either factor. And to further complicate things, there is an Rh factor in blood (the positive and negative) which restricts matching. Negative donors can give to either positive or negative recipients but not the other way around. Therefore O negative is called a universal donor type. So O negative is a special blood type to have not because it is unique but because it means your gift – my gift – can help the most people in need.

The thing I learned just this week was that, for infants and those with immune deficiencies, there is another factor in blood that restricts matching. That factor is the presence of anti-bodies for Cytomegalovirus, or more commonly CMV, in the blood.

Like Rh Factor, you either have it or you don’t, and roughly half of the population has it. CMV is a ubiquitous [...] virus found in the environment. For healthy adults, and even for healthy older kids and teens, it is totally harmless, and you almost never know when and how you’ve acquired it if you have. Once you have it, you have it for life. The test for it is applied to every donation in the laboratory because, even if you are negative for many years, you can acquire it at some point. [...]

The problem with CMV positive blood occurs for patients with compromised immune systems, and that would include newborns and especially premature infants whose immune systems are still developing. Patients who have received transplants and whose immune systems have been purposely suppressed are another category. For these patients, it is critical that they receive CMV negative blood.

While doing my pre-screen to give yesterday at the Red Cross location at Lutheran Hospital the nurse referred to my blood as ‘baby blood’ which was a new one on me. She was speaking way over my knowledge when she said I was CMV negative but now I understand. About 1 in 17 type O donors are CMV negative. Hopefully that will mean that my donation has a better chance getting to the recipient that I prayed would receive it at Lutheran.

Enjoying the Florida sunset on July 4th.  This photo, which you can’t see much of, is on Crescent Beach just south of St. Augustine.  A great place to be!

Jill and I like to do custom invitations and cards for holidays and get-togethers.  I thought I would post the  invitation we sent out for a Last-Day-of-School Luau.  Unfortunately the party hasn’t happened yet due to weather.

To come up with the design I searched the web for luau and came across a drawing of the luau dancers you see above.  In Illustrator I used the Live Trace function and tweaked the settings to get the look I liked.  There are websites that will do the image-to-vector work for you for free a fee, but Illustrator does the job even better.  Jill provided the party info which was added in Illustrator and a high-quality export was sent to DPS Printing.

We’ve got the process down pretty well as far as working together and it makes our events a little more special… at least to us!