Home Sweet Home

We are back from Branson!! We are home.. it feels so good. I can't wait to sleep in my own bed tonight! The trip back was very long. Within the first 20 minutes of the trip I got extremely carsick and ended up losing my breakfast. It was miserable. Thankfully, I felt much better after that. I guess I need to be really careful about what I do in the car from now on. So for the next few hours I just listened to music, not wanting to risk getting car sick again. I actually enjoyed just sitting there listening to the words, praying, and thinking. My mind has been running 100 mph recently. I've been thinking, reflecting, and musing about life so it was nice to have some time to just be quiet. I'm so busy and constantly running from here to there. I need to slow down sometimes and just listen to God's voice. It's most often in the peaceful moments that He speaks and shows you things. So that was good.

When we got outside of St. Louis I took a turn driving. My parents wanted me to get some more experience on the expressways and they wanted me to know what it's like to drive in a busy urban area. It went very well and I think they were pleased in my "driving skills". I know there will be a time soon when I want to drive out of town and they'll be more open to it because I've had the experience.

It's opening ceremony for the Olympics tonight!!! :) We're taping it and watching it together soon! I'm excited!!

Pure Joy

I will exalt you, O Lord,

for you lifted me out of the depths

and did not let my enemies gloat over me.

O Lord my God, I called to you for help

and you healed me.

O Lord, you brought me up from the grave;

you spared me from going down into the pit.

Sing to the Lord, you saints of his;

praise his holy name.

For his anger lasts only a moment,

but his favor lasts a lifetime;

weeping may remain for a night,

but rejoicing comes in the morning.

When I felt secure, I said,

"I will never be shaken."

O Lord, when you favored me,

you made my mountain stand firm;

but when you hid your face,

I was dismayed.

To you, O Lord, I called;

to the Lord I cried for mercy;

What gain is there in my destruction,

in my going down into the pit?

Will the dust praise you?

Will it proclaim your faithfulness?

Hear, O Lord, and be merciful to me;

O Lord, be my help."

You turned my wailing into dancing;

you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,

that my heart may sing to you and not be silent.

O Lord my God, I will give you thanks forever.

Psalm 30

Exactly one year ago this week, I was in Arizona with my family visiting the Grand Canyon. I had just gotten back from Guatemala and I was DYING for my parents to adopt. I pleaded with God to please give me a little sister. I would do anything for a little sister to love and take care of. I was lonely and hurting. I remember sitting at the computer researching Guatemalan adoptions. Would my parents qualify? Could we afford it (our house was still on the market so of course not!!). How could I make this work? (I thought that it was me that would make it happen) How could God NOT lead my parents to adopt? Why should a child have to be without parents when God could lead them to our home? So I waited... and waited.... and waited for some kind of miraculous revelation to hit my parents and convince them they had to adopt a little girl from Guatemala. But it was not to be. Our family is complete with the 5 of us. Had my parents done things differently when they were younger maybe we would have a little sister. But what's done is done. It's too late to rewind and adopt. My hurting heart could not accept that one year ago. The past year has been incredible, though. The Lord has stretched me and tenderly taught me so many things. He's shown me my new identity in Him- He values me as more precious than gold or silver, He thinks I'm beautiful, He loves me no matter what. He's shown me contentment- with God I need nothing else. He's shown me hope- my future is filled with hope in Jesus Christ. Last but not least, He's shown me what true joy is.

Tonight, I walked into Shorty Small's with the Semlows to be greeted by the Gibsons, who held their precious baby girl from Ethiopia in their arms. As they passed tiny Zoie around I was in awe of how faithful our God is. When she was placed in my arms I felt nothing but JOY!! I was so happy for them, for her, and for the 4 other families with us who are waiting for their children to come home. Last year I would've had trouble handling this dinner party. I would've smiled but inside my heart would've been breaking with grief over my parent's "resistence" to adopt. But not tonight. Tonight I smiled on the inside and out. I was so happy to be able to be there with those 5 families and to hold Zoie in my arms. It was so neat to hear the moms encouraging eachother in their journeys. It was fun to dream about next year, when the group will have 7 new little ones. It was funny to think that in 15 years I could potentially be sitting amongst a group of fellow adoptive parents, waiting for my child to come home (i know, dreaming!) :) lol

He lifted me out of the depths, brought me up from the grave, and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to Him and NOT BE SILENT!! I will give thanks to Him forever for the marvelous work He has done in my life. He didn't leave me in a heap where He found me but picked me up and loved me as a Father. He didn't leave my heart hurting but He held me in His arms and healed the broken spots. He's given me hope and joy. Praise be to our God.

Branson Day 6- morning

I'm just blogging for the morning. I have a feeling I'm going to have alot of pictures from tonight (babies, kids, and more cute kids) and they take sooo long to upload here. This morning we went to use up the rest of our credits at the go-cart place and discovered that we could play laser tag for only $3.50 a person!! That is incredibly reasonable. So we all played that as well using the extra credits. It was fun. Then we went to lunch at this place called McFarlains. Good food and a fun waitress. Then we came home and played a game of Settlers while my aunt, uncle, and cousin went to a show. So it was a good morning!!

Branson Day 4

Well I got kind of behind on blogging... I neglected my vacation posts to blog about other things. But I'm glad I did. So now it's catch-up time!! I have to remember what we did yesterday.... all of the days kind of blend together. The boys slept in late and so my Dad and I went with my aunt and uncle to go get pops from the gas station. We decided to drive around a little bit while we were at it and we went and got Krispy Kreme donuts and we scouted out the oulet mall. We came home and I made myself presentable and we started a game of Settlers. In the early afternoon, my aunt, uncle, and cousin went to ride the ducks while we went to the outlet mall. I had fun shopping, though it didn't last very long. As I mentioned in my earlier post, my Dad only lasted two stores. So.... I got to go to Aero and American Eagle. I got a really cute pink sweatshirt for fall that was 50% off so that was good. We stopped at A&W and got root beer floats on our way out. Then we came home, continued our Settlers game, and stopped to go to dinner at this GREAT BBQ place called Danna's. Then we came home, played shuffleboard, and swam in the pool.

10 Thoughts...

10 thoughts from my day- some serious some silly!! :)

1. Krispy Kreme donuts and Diet Dr. Pepper for breakfast is amazing.


2. I don't have very good strategy. I failed miserably at Settlers. I need some training....


3. I'm glad there's not a scale here because I feel like I've gained weight!! I've eaten so much junk food it's not even funny! :) I wanted to go work out yesterday but they don't let 16 year olds in the exercise room and when it's 100 degrees out it's not exactly like I'm going to want to run around outside! How dare they discourage a teenager from wanting to exercise?!!! :) Just kidding.


4. Does my haircut make me look that much older? All of a sudden, people are calling me "ma'm" instead of "miss." It sounds weird to be addressed in the same way my mom is. I guess I'm getting old!!


5. Vacations always make me want to adopt (i always do anyway but it makes me think about it even more). I realize how great of a family I have and how incredibly blessed we are. Our hotel room is 100 times better than some family's permanent homes. I look at our little group of loved ones and am reminded that some don't have a family. It will be the greatest honor if someday the Lord provides a husband for me and allows us to adopt so that we can give a child a family.


6. Anyone who wants to/has/is adopting should read the book I just finished. It's called "Beyond the Blue." It's a fantastic fiction novel by Leslie Gould. Although it's fiction, I think she did an incredible job of making it realistic. The story bounces between these two women, one who lives in the US and one who lives in the Vietnam. Basically, in the end, the American woman and her husband end up adopting the Vietnamese woman's children. It's a heartwarming and heartbreaking story. You feel the emotion of the story and connect with the characters in a remarkable way. I felt the heartbreak and desperation of the birthmom and the true love that she showed to her children by giving them away to live a better life, the joy of the adoptive mom, and the adjustment and turmoil the older child had to go through during his transition from his childhood home to an orphanage to his new home. Anyway, it's an amazing book that I highly recommend.


7. I've been listening to Mark Schultz recently and have really enjoyed his song "Time That Is Left." The lyrics to that song have really inspired and encouraged me to examine my life. What are my priorities? Are my actions and motives pure and Godly? Do I take advantage of EVERY opportunity He gives me to serve?

8. Outlet mall shopping is fun- however, never bring your Dad or husband along with if they don't like shopping. My Dad announced that he was done after the second store!! :P I told my mom, "Well, I hope that my future hubby likes shopping!! I want someone to go shopping with!!" Just kidding. That's definitely not high on the wish list! But it would be fun! I didn't realize that before us my mom went shopping all by herself for those 10 years. I don't mind shopping alone once in awhile but it's fun to have someone to go with!

9. Branson has incredible BBQ. Great ribs, pulled pork, chicken, etc. YUMMY!! If you're ever here give me a buzz and I'll tell you the best spots.

10. The church family has become SO precious to me this past year. I can't describe how blessed I feel to have them- the cute kids that make me smile, the teens who are so much fun to hang with, and the adults who show me what it means to live a Godly life and have loved me so well through the years. Early on in the week I couldn't figure out what was "missing." I realized today that it was the church! The people, fellowship, teaching, and worship. I love it all. What a blessing.

Branson Day 3

It was another great day here in Branson. It was also in the 100's so it was extremely warm out. We opted for indoor activities today and we finished up the Olympics since my Aunt Linda has to fly out tommorow for work. So we did a cookie creation contest and a nerf gun event. We ate lunch together and then some of the adults took naps while Dad, Uncle Steve, Noah, Caleb, Michael and myself played a LONG game of Settlers (it's still sitting out on our table waiting to be finished). Early this afternoon, we could not get my laptop to work. I was so disappointed, as we tried everything and even got on the HP website to look at troubleshooting tips. We had been downloading all of our pics. and videos onto it and I wouldn't be able to blog, email, or facebook if we didn't get it working. After several attempts to fix it, we finally accepted the fact that it was probably broken and would have to wait until we got back home to take it in. Halfway through our Settlers game I got up and turned it on again, just wanting to convince myself that it was indeed broken. About 5 minutes later, I heard the little chime noise coming from the desk. I came over and was so happy!! My laptop was up and running. So that was just a blessing from God. Of course, He waited to fix it until I had accepted the fact that we wouldn't have a computer the rest of the week.

Tonight we went to Ruby Tuesday's for dinner and then came home and played games.

I've gotten some hysterical videos but Blogger won't let me upload them.... pictures will have to do until I get home. I'm putting together a slideshow of pictures and videos from the week so hopefully i'll be able to post that once I'm finished next week.

Branson Day 2 and the beginning of the Mitchell Olympics

It's Day 2 of our Branson trip and it's a cooker again!! We slept in this morning and then went with my aunt and uncle to go get fountain drinks from the gas station up the road. When we came back, my other aunt, uncle, and cousin had woken up and we started the "Mitchell Olympics." Every summer reunion, we do our own version of the olympics. We even have a trophy that travels from family to family. We're determined to keep it in our family again this year. Every member brings the necessary items for an event that they choose. So today we did a crossword puzzle, ring toss, "guess how many m&m's are in the jar," and a building contest using marshmallows and spaghetti sticks (sounds easy but it really isn't!!). So that was alot of fun. It may sound weird but we really have a blast with it. So far my Dad's winning. Then we ate lunch and my parents went to this RCI presentation. You get free gift cards and special rates at local attractions if you go. We went swimming while they were at that but the water was so hot it didn't really feel that great!!! Tonight we're going out for dinner and coming back to swim again. I don't really know why i'm writing all of this because I think all but 2 people that read this are here with me! :) I have such a large fan club.. not!! Anyway, we're having a great time just hanging with family, playing games, and laughing. When you get my Dad, aunts, and uncles together there's LOTS to laugh about!! :)

Branson Trip Day 1

I am soooo excited to be able to blog while on vacation!! Of course, it's great to email and facebook too. I'll stay so much more connected to everybody back home. Anyway, we're here at our resort in Branson. It was ridiculously hot today- it got up to 100 degrees. We're rethinking our plan for the week..... we'll be spending our days at the pool or in air conditioning!! We had a great drive here. Noah and I played speed and Connect Four for awhile and I listened to music for the majority of the way. Mark Schultz has so many good songs. Frequently, music is kind of part of the "background" but today I focused on the words and let them sink in. The lyrics really encouraged me and got me thinking about life.

The internet connection is slow so I'm having issues with videos and slideshows............ grrrr..