Falling Short.....

Child of God. Daughter. Wife. Mama. Auntie. Nurse. Nursing Instructor. Graduate Student. Friend. Neighbor. Perfectionist. People Pleaser. Sinner.

I've never sat down and thought about all the "words" that describe who I am. But tonight, I find myself doing just that. I am all of these things. And some of them.... aren't so nice. I have struggled this week with really falling short. Falling short as a wife, falling short as a mama, and most definitely falling short of His amazing grace. What a treasure it is to know Him, to know that I will always fall short, to know that He loves me anyway, to know that He loves me so much, He sent His son to die for me, to know that He insists that I am in Heaven with Him one day. What a sweet relief, knowing this , has been to me this week.

While wallowing in my falling shortedness (yes, I know that's definitely not a word!) I came across this today.



WOW. Am I trying to be Super Woman? Yes. And just how has that turned out? UGLY. Why did it take something like this, to help me see that Super Woman is not who I want to be? I don't know why. But I do know that this is a beautiful reminder of who I want to be. This is who I want my Heavenly Father to see me as. This is who I want my husband to see me as. This is who I want my children to see me as. So, I hope, next time I'm beating myself up about falling short, and thinking about all the things I didn't accomplish, that I can be still and remember I don't have to be Super Woman. He knows me....the good and the bad... and He loves me anyway.

Sunday Snapshot (A day late): Weekend at the Mountains

Please forgive me for the late Sunday Snapshot this week, but Blogger was not cooperating with me last night!! So, let's try this again....

We returned yesterday from a great trip to the mountains with Michael's family. I will admit, that I am a beach girl at heart, and the thought of a mountain trip kind of scared me a little. You see, I have a phobia. A phobia, and unexplainable fear of log cabins. I know it's not logical. But, it's real. Something about all that dark colored wood surrounding me on all 4 walls, and being in the dark woods, just freaks me out! I know most of you are thinking... "are you crazy"??? But, what can I say?? In the famous words of my daughter, "I can't help it"!!!

However, with all that said, Michael's parents planned a trip for us and the kids to go and visit Tweetsie Railroad.... you guessed it.... in the mountains.... in a log cabin..... YIKES!!!! And my kids were absolutely, over the top, excited!! So, I took one for the team and we headed up the mountain. And, on an early Saturday morning drive, I was amazed at God's beautiful creation. The mountains were spectacular, with their orange, red and yellow leaves glowing. It really was beautiful. The kids LOVED Tweetise..... and.... the log cabin.... was actually very nice:) After the morning at Tweetsie, my sister and I went shopping in the quaint little mountain town of Blowing Rock, NC, and had a great time. So, all around, a very nice weekend!! Thank you Mike and Shirley for a fun-filled family weekend:))

Here are a few pictures from the trip....

Oh.... and on an adoption note, we recieved our fingerprint notices over the weekend!!! Yee-hah!!!

Sunday Snapshot

In my last post I mentioned there were a few new pictures of our precious girl. Thought I'd share one with you for today's Sunday Snapshot! I fall in love even more every time I see her face.

Want to learn more about Sunday Snapshot?? Click the button below to check it out!!

Happy Birthday to Me!!!

OK... so, my birthday isn't until Saturday, but yesterday I got the best birthday present EVER!!!!!

Every day, I hop over to An Orphan's Wish blog, so I can check out all the wonderful things happening there. If you aren't familiar with AOW, it is an AMAZING organization, with AMAZING staff, helping to make the futures brighter for some AMAZING kids. AOW works to obtain sponsorships for the kiddos they care for on a daily basis, including children with clubfoot, complicated medical issues, and Cerebral Palsy. AOW does a great job updating their blog daily, and yesterday.......... the featured child was none other than our Tulah!!!!!! Talk about a heart that was just about to burst with joy!! There were several precious photos and updates about our daughter and I just can't explain it, but it was a gift straight from God. It is SO unusual for adoptive parents to have so many opportunities to get a glimpse of their child, and we have been so incredibly blessed.

Please go over and take a look at the AOW website and read about the wonderful things they are doing. You will be greatly moved by the love and care that these precious children receive there, and maybe feel moved to sponsor a child to help them receive the love and care that they so desperately need. You can find more information on AOW here, and see a few new pics of sweet Tulah too!!

My Tough Guy

It's not very often that I get pics of my boy. But not for lack of trying. Oh.... I try! The harder I try, the less I get. But yesterday.... I managed to get him outside for a little photo shoot. And.... after 742 pictures of this tough guy with his sword....

I finally managed to get a handful of GREAT ones! I just wanted to share a few of them here.

All in God's Perfect Timing

This is something that I have had to remind myself of several times this week. Even though this adoption has been "in the works" for months now, in reality, we are still in the very beginning stages of a really LONG waiting game. I was expecting our home study approval last week, which didn't come. So , surely we would have it by Monday right?? Nope. Tuesday?? Nope. Wednesday?? Nope. Thursday?? Nope. See the theme here? I really wanted to get started with the next part of this process this week. Why is it so easy to get so down and discouraged when I know that we will have our daughter at exactly the perfect time?

My sweet husband had to gently remind me that we are on a journey of faith. That we have so much faith in God's perfect plan for our family, that we are adding to our family through adoption. He was right. ( Take note.... it's not all too often that I admit this:)) Why was I getting so impatient over just a couple of days? I guess the imperfect person that I am was trying to get ahead of the game... to stay on my own time line. So I admit it, despite God's immeasurable blessings on my family, I was feeling a little down and out.

And what did our awesome God do? He renewed my faith, lifted my spirits, and has shown me once again that His plan is perfect. Guess what happened today? Our home study was approved and ready to be picked up!!!! Praise the Lord!!! And, I had everything ready to go for our 1800 A application, and it was mailed today at the last second!! And as if that wasn't enough, we were blessed with another picture of our girl. God is good, all the time!!

"But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint."

Isaiah 40:31

First Day of Preschool

My sweet boy Grayden has gone to daycare since he was 13 weeks old. But today.... today he started big boy, big time, 4 year old preschool.... like going to Kindergarten next year... gotta have a book bag..... and a lunch box kinda preschool. I would say I was a bit apprehensive (I don't really like to admit that he's not a baby anymore), but he did great!! In his words, "it was totally awesome"!!!!

I love you Grayden Michael Hatley!!! And I think you're totally awesome!! You're gonna have a GREAT year!!