PARTIES!!!

Kezia decided that she wanted to have a friends party for her birthday.  She invited 6 of her friends from her class and then on a night after school, the girls came over for supper, crafts and cake.  Carl happened to be gone, so I put on this party myself.  My mom in law and father in law helped by taking the other three kids upstairs so I could host/keep down the fort.  Good thing.....

Wow! 7 and 8 year old girls have lots of energy.  I was totally shocked.  The played and wrestled and shrieked and screamed and laughed and ate the pizza they made in 5 seconds and then did all the hollering and playing all over again.  We did a fun painting craft that the girls loved, but was a bit messier than I anticipated (oops, thanks for painting smocks!)  My red velvet cake turned out pretty awesome (thanks Shana for the bottle of food colouring!).  Kezia had a great time with her friends and they were very generous with gifts.  So that was on a Friday and on Sunday was another party.

There are 4 kids' birthdays in December on my side of the family.  So you can imagine for sanity sake we do group parties. It was a great time to celebrate with everyone and I sure was happy to do it together with my mom and my aunt.  More hands make lighter work so that everyone can enjoy the party.  And that they did!  We made sopa de mani and arroz con leche for our family to try which was a hit.   It's always great to get together with family.  Yeah, we're pretty great with parties.

Piano Playin' Guy

This week, Joel had his first piano recital with his new music teacher.  He has enjoyed the group classes, but at times is impatient with the group pace.  He already had had individual music classes in Bolivia so he's used to the rate of progression only to depend on his progress.  His classes now however not only deal with keyboard, but they do sight reading, theory, percussion, and singing in his class.  So there are pros and cons with both I guess.

Anyways, he prepared two songs for the recital and played them very well.  He was a bit nervous, but despite it was cool.  He also did a percussion piece with his group (5 other kids) and sang a song with them as well.  Experiences like this teach them pose and confidence in front of a crowd.  He looked very handsome, if I might say, and made us very proud.

Interesting Thought

For in this hope we were saved.  But hope that is seen is no hope at all.  Who hopes for what he already has?  But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.  Rom. 8:24-25

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This was something that resonated with me a couple of days ago as I pondered this waiting stage that we are in.    And it also struck me as we are in a season of advent, of waiting for the Christ child's birth.

Sometimes, well almost all the time, waiting is agonizing.  Whether we are anticipating something absolutely amazing or dreading something like going to the dentist.  My prayer has been that in this time of waiting, instead of wishing it would pass quickly, to wait in the timing of the Lord and wait patiently.  For who knows what he has for us......

What I Read Today

The Lord is close to the broken hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.    A righteous one may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all.  Psalm 34:18-19

She's Our Birthday Girl

Kezia is celebrating her 7th birthday today.  It has been such a great year with her.  

This year was a big year of changes for Kezia.  She left Bolivia, her classmates, her gymnastics, her church...but all with eager anticipation of seeing her family in Canada.  I think Kezia was the bravest of us all in regards to the move!

Everything was exciting for her as we started our life in Canada.  The crosswalks, the dishwasher, camping.  She started school with a bravery that most almost 7 year olds wouldn't have.

Not to say that the change this year hasn't been hard on her.  She is introverted and so she needs more time to make friends, especially if she is the new one coming into already established friendship groups.  But sit down one on one with her, and you'll be amazed at what she has to say.  Kezia loves to read so she'll always have a snippet of interesting information for you.  She is wise beyond her years, understanding that there is something different about her in comparison to other kids.  Kezia recognizes her uniqueness.

She is also a terribly thoughtful child.  She received an early birthday gift and decided to save it until her actually birthday.  Seriously, I wouldn't have that kind of patience!  And then a few days later decided to make a thank you card for the present that she hadn't opened up yet.  We made sure to let her know we noticed her kindness.

Kezia is wonderful with Elena, they have a special bond.  She has a way with Asha that is very admirable, and she can almost hold her own when wrestling with Joel.

I'm looking forward to this year with Kezia.  God has entrusted this wonderful lil' gal to us to raise up for Him.  Sometimes I don't think that I'm worthy of the challenge or privilege.  I don't have a healthy relationship with my biological mother, so a positive mother-daughter relationship for me came later as a teenager with Mom Kaylene.  In this new territory in her early years, I'm doing my best to grow a positive relationship with Kezia.  She teaches me things about myself, for which I am so grateful.

So on your birthday Kezia, we pray God's richest blessings on your life.  Continue to grow up for Him.  Keep dreaming and drawing, smiling, doing those crazy gymnastics back bends! and blessing those around you with your kindness.  We love you very much.

It Came, So They Built It

This Song Describes It

Last week was a bit hard as another door closed for us. It seemed like it could be a good fit ministry wise, but alas, no interview even. But before the answer, (which I have to remind myself is what we had been praying for all along), we made some decisions about letting go some of our preferences, our ideas of what will work for our family and flung open the doors of possibilities. God knows, and even right now in the midst of feeling pretty tired, we have to rest in that. My sister in law (bless you!) sent this song to us.