Bummer for Shane

Yesterday was the first day of full contact football practice for Shane. Within an hour of practice starting Shane was participating in tackling drills. During the drills he was tackled from the side and ended up hurting his knee.

I took him to the doctor today and we found out he tore the collateral ligament in his right knee. The swelling and pain is too severe to see if the Meniscus is also damaged. He needs to go back in 2 weeks when the swelling goes down to find out if a trip to the orthopedic surgeon is necessary.

At this point it looks like his football season is over before it even started!! He is really bummed but is trying to remain positive. For now he is off his feet for at least a week. Too bad, we just decided to get rid of cable. I guess I'll be buying the new Harry Potter book after all.

Happy Birthday, Sutton!!

Today is Sutton's third birthday. It is really hard to believe that she is 3! She is without a doubt, my most trying child but I love her oh so much! She has the sweetest laugh and loves to cuddle. She is growing so fast and changing everyday. I thank God everyday for bringing this wild child into our lives!! She makes everyday an adventure!

I should also point out that I did not post about our other 2 July birthday's. Carsen turned 19 on July 22nd and Landon turned 4 on July 13th. Both of which I missed. I was leaving for Haiti on Landon's birthday (he did get sung to and had a special lunch before we headed out to the airport). And we left Haiti the day before Carsen's (she also had special meal of lasagna before we left Haiti).

Missing birthday's seems to be a trend this year, I was in Haiti for Shane's in May and I will be in Haiti for Jody's in August! I need to really plan my trips better, don't I?!?!?

Just another day in the life of the Gray's

This post is really for Carsen. She has been missing her siblings. And they have been missing her!! Yesterday (AGAIN!!) Kynsley asked me when Sissy was coming home! Although they miss her terribly life must go on!

Last night after taking Shane to Football practice we took the other kids to Ice Cream. One of my fondest memories from my childhood was going to Thrifty drug store and getting a $.29 scoop of ice cream with my family. Well... it's now called Rite Aid and the scoops are now $.99 but it is still fun.

No time for a picture with the boys! They were way to busy finishing their cones.

The girls on the other hand were all cheese!

Carsen, hope you enjoy the pictures. We really do miss you but know you are right where God wants you!! Love ya' Poohbear! I'll see you soon!

20 years ago today...

... I was a young impressionable 18 year old girl with her whole life ahead of her ...uunmmm that's not really the truth let me start again!!


20 years ago today I was a stubborn, wild, know it all, always looking for trouble, 18 year old woman who was ready to commit her life to an equally stubborn, wild, know it all, slightly older 26 year old man! Despite the many warnings to wait until I was older, to wait until after I finished college, the warnings that it wouldn't last, I knew that I knew that I knew that I was meant to be Jody's wife!





20 years (and 9 kids) later, I still know that I know that I know that I am meant to be Jody's wife!





Jody, Happy Anniversary, sweetheart! Thanks for the last 20 years and I pray that God blesses us with another 20 (or 30 or 40... years that is... not kids!!!!!).

some pictures from the trip

These are pictures of the Livesay's place in La Digue. It is absolutely beautiful there.

Here are a few of Carsen and Brit "packing" an abscess they just drained.

Isaiah and Phoebe had fun "playing" together!

We had fun in the sun at the IboLele Hotel!!

And... a few of the kids at the "O"!! Sorry, there aren't more, but like I mentioned earlier today, I kept forgetting my camera at St. Joseph's!!

we're back!!

Jody and I arrived yesterday afternoon. It was an interesting journey. We had an 8 hour lay-over in Miami so we took a cab to a mall in Miami and just hung out.

Our plane to LA was late departing but the pilot made up time in the air only to arrive at LAX and sit on the runway for over an hour because there were no open gates!!

We stayed at the Raddison (which was very nice) and then caught another plane to Sacramento. We had a problem with one of the tires on the car on the way to the airport so had to stop in Woodland (the city we used to live in prior to moving to Redding) at the local Walmart and get 2 new tires!! The one nice thing about being there was running into Isaac, Christine and Logan!! Jody gave Christine away when she got married to Issac but since we moved we have not seen them nearly as much as we would like to!! Logan is 5 months old and this is the first time Jody and I got to see him!! See... God can use ANY circumstance to create good things!!

We had a great time in Haiti. Isaiah is getting so big! He is so easy going and just so much fun to be around. We had a great time visiting the Livesay's, thanks guys, we can't wait to see you again! And, Brit the college applications are being mailed today!!!!

It was great getting to see the "Indiana crew" again (as well as meeting some of them for the first time). We did not spend as much time at the "O" as we usually do, between looking at houses, visiting the Livesay's, celebrating our anniversary and Jody meeting with people from the UN, we hardly had time to!! I also, did not get as many pictures as I would have liked to. I kept forgetting my camera at St. Joseph's!! I will post pictures as soon as I can.

As far as our move goes.... we still do not know anything! I really hope God reveals His plan to us soon! This waiting is driving me nuts!! Patience is just not a virtue I have learned yet!

What Am I Afraid of?

Hey there, it's Jody again. No this is not going to be one of those Blog Posts like last time. I'm over all that. So.....you wanna know what I'm afraid of? I'll tell you but first a little background. I, for a living, race towards people with guns in their hands threatening to do harm to the first person they see while the rest of the normal population is running, sometimes screaming, away from the bad people with the guns. No fear. I breech, (that means "force open" for the unfamiliar with that term) sometimes with explosives, locked, barricaded doors where I KNOW there is someone on the other side waiting to harm me. No fear. I VOLUNTEER to be the first one, of a ten man team, through the door on "High Risk" warrant services. (Unless you're the lead dog, the view never changes). No fear. I'm the first onto the helicopter, standing on the skids, (the things most helicopters land on) waiting to either repel or "fast rope" off of the skid 100 feet above the roof of some building where there are bad guys we have to go search for and arrest. Again, no fear.

So what AM I afraid of? Flying. Normal, every day commercial jet flying. I hate it. I've been grumpy all day because I know that tomorrow I have to fly if I want to go to Haiti. What bothers me? Follow along here. What do they call the building where you wait to board your flight? The Terminal. Hmmm. Then they announce "This is the FINAL boarding call for flight........" Real comforting. What does the pilot tell you via the loud speaker when you are about to arrive? "Please prepare for our FINAL APPROACH" Does he know something we don't? He is, after all, flying the flippin plane. There is a reason they have bars serving alcoholic beverages right next to the gate. I'm one of those reasons. Liquid Courage is sometimes a good thing for me. I once flew to Minnesota in the dead of winter on a big jet. Gail and the rest of the family neglected to tell me that once at the Big Airport, we were going to have to change planes to some little 10 passenger turbo-prop plane to take us to Peoria Illinois, our FINAL DESTINATION. I walked out of the airport onto the tarmac, saw the plane we were headed for and immediately dug my heels into the ice on the ground. It took Gail, my Father-in-Law and my Brother-in Law all of their strength to load my shivering, angry 'frady cat 225 pound butt into that little plane. I then had to help the pilot with both the take-off and landing. "Little more rudder, little more flap" I'm sure the death grip I had on the armrests of my seat is the only way that plane landed safely. So, there you have it. Flying. It is going to be a joyous day tomorrow. The only thing that keeps me going is that I get to see 3 of my children, meet some new people, see some old friends and visit a place that I have truly come to love. So pray for me. But more than that, pray for Gail. She has to put up with me on planes and in airports for the next 24 hours. She is going to need all the help she can get.

Just a few more days...

And I will get to see 3 of my children and be back in the place I feel is my home!! I was just there 3 weeks ago but it seems much longer.

Jody is going with me on this trip and he is so anxious to get there and love on his kids, meet with the people from the UN and hang out with the mission's team.

This trip will be a little different for me though. I recently took a "leave of absence" from the board of directors. This trip, I will go simply as an adoptive parent. No meetings to attend, no government official to deal with, no responsibilities at the orphanage except helping with projects and loving on my kids! I'm actually looking forward to spending time with all the kids, taking a ton of pictures (which I never seem to have time for any more) and relaxing at St. Joseph's with the team.

Jody and I will also be house hunting on Monday. I found a house on my last trip and I'm hoping it is still available for rent. And that Jody will love it as much as I do.

We will go to La Digue to visit with the Livesay's (http://www.livesayhaiti.blogspot.com/), a family from Minn. that moved to Haiti a few years ago with 5 kids! We are hoping to get some great insight and idea's from them to help make our move easier.

We are also hoping to spend one night at the IboLele Hotel for our 20th wedding anniversary.

http://www.ibolelehotel-haiti.com/

Hhhhhhmmmm.... it is sounding more and more busy!!! But, I can't wait!!

Financing our move to Haiti

We still do not know where the money is coming from for our move. Until our house sells we will not have any extra money.



Saturday we are having a garage sale. I put an ad in the local paper that came out this morning. We have already made our first sale!! We had someone come to the house today asking about our bunk beds. They bought them for our full asking price!! God is so good!



We were also approached by our neighbor that is very interested in buying one of our cars. We were not going to sell either of our small cars and keep them in storage, but after a lot of prayer we have decided that we really only need to keep one of them (for Carsen when she comes home in January). With the sale of the car and most of our stuff this weekend we will have enough to fund the move without waiting for the house to sell.



Please, pray that people come to the garage sale. It is supposed to be 110 degrees on Saturday and we live on the outskirts of town so we are not on the traditional "garage sale route".



If we are able to get everything together Gail and the kids will move to Haiti in mid-August. Jody will remain in California working until his deployment (scheduled for November). Pray that Jody is able to stand the 4 month separation without going crazy. Also, that the house we looked at in Haiti is still available when we are ready to move.

Jody pointed out today, that if we sell everything we are planning on selling, we will literally have NOTHING if for some reason he does not get deployed!! Talking about walking on FAITH!! No house, no car's, no furniture, no washer/dryer, only the few items we have put into storage and the few things we are taking to Haiti.

We are stepping out on FAITH and relying on our Father to carry us through. Jody received an e-mail from a friend a few days ago. In it was the saying...

"The Will of God will never take you to where to Grace of God will not PROTECT you!"

We have decided that will be our motto from now on.

Ever feel like you just got a spanking???

That's how I felt after church today. Like my Heavenly Father had personally called me into His room and delivered a much needed spanking!

The past few weeks (maybe even months) my lack of faith has led my life. I've allowed sinful behaviors from my past to creep into my life, I've allowed myself to lead, never once asking God if what I was doing was acceptable or pleasing to Him. God revealed some of this to me while I was in Haiti and has continued to reveal it to me since being home. 3 times today in a 2 hour span!! First during Impact group (kinda like Sunday school), we are currently going through the Love and Respect video series. Today's lesson was really geared towards the men but a few points really hit home. God sent His son to die for us, something I've known for many years. But, today it really hit home that someone else took the pain and suffering for me, for MY SIN!! For my poor choices, for my lack of judgement, for my lack of faith! He did this willingly, without hesitation. Jesus loved me so completely that He paid my ransom!! What an amazing thing!! Even though I continue to sin, even though I turn my back on what I know deep down is the "right thing" to do, even though "I know better" Jesus still took that sin from me and made it His own! He knew before I sinned that I was going to do it, as I was sinning He stood before the Father and allowed me the chance to come before the throne and ask for forgiveness!!

Then during worship today we sang the song "Never Let Go", a song I have song many, many times. But, today it really hit home. The chorus says:

"Oh no, You never let go Through the calm and through the storm
Oh no, You never let go In every high and every low
Oh no, You never let go Lord, You never let go of me

And I can see a light that is coming for the heart that holds on
A glorious light beyond all compare
And there will be an end to these troubles
But until that day comes
We’ll live to know You here on the earth"

As I sang that song today I realized that God has not let go of me or turned His back on me, He is there through the calm, the storms, the highs and the lows. All I have to do is reach out to Him and He will be there. Even when the "Storms" are self imposed, He is still there.

And finally, during our pastors sermon, God spoke once again to this sinner's heart. We have been in the book of Esther and Pastor Bill has been preaching on the subject of "Living large with O.P.C.'s (Other Peoples Craziness)". You can read or see this series by going to www.ncredding.com and clicking on the sermon podcast link. Pastor talked about lack of faith being the biggest issue in our lives. That we need to step out on faith, that's all God asks. We are not responsible for the outcome, that is God's doing. He is the only one that knows the master plan and who are we to question that plan?? We are simply to have faith that God is in control, that He loves us and He will make things work out! The ending is up to Him not us. I can not direct what other people do, think or say. I can not base my faith (or lack thereof) on someone Else's, including my husband and children's. And when I give into the temptation that Satan lays out before me, I am basically saying that I know more then God does so I going to do things my way!!

So.... now that I have had my proverbial "spanking" it is time to ask for forgiveness, accept that Jesus died on the cross for me and live each day in a way that is pleasing to my Father. I will stumble, I will backslide, I will fail miserably but I know without a shadow of a doubt that God will be there to catch me when I fall and I know through faith that He will make it right again!