Grateful for Grace building relationships and faith through grace

Jubilee Mila is Here! {our adoption story}

August 14, 2015

Eleven days ago my life changed in a way I can’t fully appreciate yet. I became a mother via adoption. I stood in the OB operating room and watched as a dear friend delivered her daughter and my daughter. A squirming, beautiful, and instantly loved baby girl came forth. And I wept. And MH wept. […]

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Why I Will Wait a Few Days to Share Photos and Baby Girl’s Name {our adoption story}

July 23, 2015

The countdown is real. Baby Girl could arrive any day. The estimated due date is August 15, but we know she will arrive before that because the doctors aren’t letting her go past her due date (risks associated with Down syndrome) and that day falls on a Saturday. So, if she doesn’t arrive before the […]

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How the Last Steps of Our Private Adoption Work {our adoption story}

July 21, 2015

I shared nine months ago about how our agency adoption works. I wanted to help explain the process a bit more. The steps are nearly the same, even though we are now on a private adoption path, with only weeks until our daughter’s birth. Still, I hadn’t realized how fuzzy all of this is to those […]

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How I’m Inducing Lactation for Baby Girl {our adoption journey}

July 19, 2015

We are about four weeks from estimated due date for Baby Girl. I am seriously excited. And distracted from all other tasks. It’s party hilarious how much so this is true and partly annoying. Just like when I was pregnant with our other six kiddos. Ahem. And just like our other six kiddos, I plan […]

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What to do in Difficult Time in a Marriage {part 2}

May 20, 2015

Yesterday I shared eight ways Paul and I persevered through the roughest season of our marriage. It was a seriously difficult time in our married life, but we were both committed to staying the course in our covenant and we took actions to demonstrate that. It wasn’t easy. It didn’t feel natural. And it didn’t show any […]

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How to Handle Distant/Difficult Times in Marriage {part 1}

May 19, 2015

I absolutely love being married. I won the jackpot when Paul chose to love me. Seriously. Still, marriage is a challenge lots of the time and requires intentional work to keep the marriage thriving. If couples ignore problems, hurts, or distance, then the marriage can greatly suffer and both parties can find themselves floundering. All […]

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Packing for Holland, Planning for Italy: I Will be a Holland Tourist for a Bit {our adoption journey}

May 14, 2015

I bought this shirt for myself with birthday money yesterday. I can’t wait to wear it. I can’t wait to see Holland. I have known about the Holland analogy of parenting since my time in special education classes in college. I’ve never really lived it. Yes, we foster parented Daniel for six years, but […]

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Why We Said No and then Yes to Chromosomal Testing in Pregnancy {our adoption journey}

May 12, 2015

Baby Girl is due in August and has Down syndrome. How do we know? Ultrasound markers led us to a blood test = unofficial diagnosis. I have thought long and hard about why we have handled our tests the way we have. And I want to share in hopes of encouraging other parents in similar situations. […]

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Yes, There is a K-12 Curriculum You Can Use with Your Entire Family and Not Spend a Fortune

April 29, 2015

Would you like to save money homeschooling? Would you like to have your entire family, whether two kids or twenty, studying the same time period of history? Would you like to have prepared lesson plans, review questions, and maps? Well… let me introduce you to a curriculum that does all of that and saved the […]

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Baby Girl is Fearfully & Wonderfully Made!

April 13, 2015

Oh, how I love Maybe Baby…. who shall now be referred to as Baby Girl here on the blog, since we found out ten days ago that she is a she. Did you see the adorable photo? I love her and have since the birth mom (MH), sent me the very first sonogram photo. Baby Girl […]

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