Sign

I think we were all very excited today when Glenn came in with the above sign! Cala stood by it pretending she was at church... I heard her say, "Welcome to Maranatha Baptist Church! We're glad to have you here today!" That's the PK coming out in her for sure! I think at some time or other, ever PK plays "church!" Cala did have a good idea though when she said we need to get our family picture by the sign on Sunday. We'll be sure to do that- of course on Sunday, it won't be here in our bedroom! It will be in front of our new meeting place!

By the way, it's a cream color- not sure how it's showing in this picture- not exactly true to form. And you see where the crosses are? In between there, Glenn is going to make something that will say the room number where we will meet.

I dreamed last night we had 50 show up for our first service there. Now, that would be wonderful! Of course in my dream a cousin of mine from South Carolina was there. When I asked why, he replied, "Of course I'm here!" ha ha

It will be neat to see what God is going to do!

Miscellaneous happenings.....

Staying busy around here gearing up for our church to begin meeting outside of our home for the first time! (this Sunday). We are excited about the possibilities and praying to see many people come!

Glenn and the missionary staying with us have been busy daily and today was no exception. They were able to pass out many invitations today and talk to some folks. Monday, they got our sign ordered and should be able to pick it up tomorrow. I spent this morning making phone calls. I first called one of the local newspapers to see how we can get our church listed in the church directory. I got that taken care of but need to remember to call some other papers tomorrow.

I also made some calls to the school and to the immunization clinic, where Ethan will need to get a shot taken care of tomorrow. I am just sure Ethan will be thrilled tomorrow afternoon! ha I originally thought Seth needed one too, but they said no, so he dodged the needle for a few more months anyway!

It is really nice having the missionary couple here willing to watch the kids for us in cases like this- tomorrow, we will be able to just take Ethan and leave Cala and Seth here with them. They also want us to go out by ourselves so Glenn and I will have a date Saturday night and then again next week sometime. That's a blessing.

In other news: Open house was last night- Cala is excited about school starting again next week, and really enjoyed seeing her friends from last year. Ethan had a good time meeting his teacher for this year and seeing his new room and the other two classes where he'll go part of the week. He's in Pre-school, special ed. AND while we were there yesterday, Ethan's teacher mentioned that there are preschool classes there for even Seth's age. He turns 3 the end of November but would be in the 2 year old class this year. He has no known delays so would be in regular pre-school. I mentioned that while we knew about this class, we simply can't afford it. She explained that we can have the fee completely waived if I'll volunteer every now and then! No problem! It's just a 2 mornings a month class for Seth but he will love those 2 times. The other days, I am home schooling him in K2 through A Beka. He's excited!

Got to go....... yawn.....

Melancholy Day

Today was the last Sunday morning service we will have in our home. Next Sunday begins us meeting in a nearby city, the city we feel God leading us to plant this church. It's exciting to us to see God working! This coming week, Glenn and the missionary staying with us will be super busy getting more invitations out, etc. Tomorrow, they are actually going to buy the materials needed to build a pulpit we can transfer with us to and from the meeting place.

We will still meet in our home on Wednesday nights for prayer meeting. I titled this "Melancholy Day" because I guess I know that this past year will be looked back upon as a special time in the life of this church, a time when God worked in our lives to draw closer to Him, praying for His direction for the church.

This past Friday our neighbors were supposed to come for a cook out but were unable to. They did so last night. We had a really good time! It's nice to be able to get to know our neighbors, something that we have missed. In Russia, I can recall our first apartment, where we knew very well the elderly lady next door whom we called, "babushka" or "Grandma" and the mobster across the hall. Lest you gasp, we lived next to a mobster in each of the four apartment buildings where we were in Russia. It was just expected! ha..... memories.......

And so it continues....

Today (or yesterday really since as I type this it's 1:15 a.m.)- Tuesday, Glenn and our missionary helper spent several hours passing out invitations to our first meeting. They were touched by an elderly man who invited them in his home. He explained he already has a church home, but that his wife just died this past Sunday. Glenn asked if they could pray for him and he readily agreed.

They also visited Wal-mart where they will soon know if they can pass out invitations there. The woman they spoke to believes they'll be able to. They said there was only one woman who literally ran as they were walking down the street towards her house. She was getting out of her car and looked scared by our helper.

*** As for the kids: Our daughter had a very full day as a neighborhood girl showed up asking her to play. She popped her head in for some water, and to ask me if she could now go across the street to some other neighbors' house to play with their daughters. It seems today, she was very popular. She's already asked if she could return there tomorrow, and funny girl- she got a bath tonight and put on shorts and a shirt so she can eat breakfast and be ready! ha! My girl is a mess! ***

Company, Church, Family

We have company here for the next four to six weeks. I really look for them to be here for six weeks. That's great with us! This couple is in their 50's/60's and our kids are already calling them Grandpa ______ and Grandma ________. It's good for the kids having "grandparent" figures around for this long. Of course the kids are really enjoying "Freckles", the dog they brought with them. I've never been an indoor dog person, but Freckles will make you fall in love with her.

The purpose of this couple being here is to help us in our church plant. We have held services in our home since we moved here last year and that's been with limited success. Oh! Folks have been asked to come, but alas, there are many excuses given, blah blah blah. We were recently given the go ahead by a school in our "chosen" city to hold services there. Those begin on September 2nd. We are excited by this!

Glenn and the missionary helper spent the day today nearby our meeting place, visiting businesses, putting up fliers and telling people about church. They were thrilled that every single person they spoke with was very friendly and readily agreed to place the flier. I have said all along that Minnesotans are noticeably friendly! They then returned home where Glenn spent awhile making door hangers that they will use in their outreach next week. Things are getting exciting around here!

**** Family Night: Our Friday tradition is family night. We traditionally spend this time playing a board game, or playing basketball, or in the past we even had a water gun fight, and another time we played "Hide and Go Seek". However, we recently decided that until the weather gets "bad", we will go to a park each Friday following supper. Tonight was no exception. Our missionary helpers decided to enjoy some quiet time (I imagine they were happy to have some peace- ha) and stayed home. We enjoyed the break from home and watched the kids play and play. They had such a great time this evening. Their laughter is infectious! It was cool though. As I write this, it's a nice 54 degrees. Ah.... fall is just around the corner.

Two Years Ago......

Two years ago this past May, this was the boy we saw in Ethan, a small 2 year old happy we were there to show him attention.



He got to spend the week with us and we were all thrilled to have that time together. It was so very hard saying bye after that week was up and leaving not really sure when we would be back for him (and Seth).


It would be in August that Glenn would return for Ethan and August 13th when they flew to the states. This is the night we were reunited as a family. We spent that first night together in a motel to have some down time together.


This is our family picture- before Seth arrived a little over 3 weeks later. I am not sure but I believe this is our only such picture before Seth. Either way, it's precious. Ethan was going through so much at this point, just arriving in a foreign country with foreign sounds, foreign smells, white people everywhere! I would love to know what all was going on in his mind at this time. I am just so thankful that it all worked out and he is now a genuinely happy boy. Oh, we still have our moments, he still is working through some issues, but he's a precious gift and I am so thankful he's "mi papito."

Yesterday, we celebrated his 2nd Family Day. I was in tears as Glenn prayed thanking God for giving us Ethan. I hugged Ethan and he actually said, "Mama, thank you for adopting me!" My heart melted as I said, "son, thank you for being mine". Tomorrow I will post pictures from our Family Day celebration. Tonight, I leave you with a poem I wrote (and posted here) a year ago for the boys' dedication:

THROUGH A WHOLE LOT A LOVE
- Amy Barker McCarver (aka Mama)

We dreamed of a son to call our very own.
By the miracle of adoption, he would come into our home.
Where he would come from, only God knew
Then suddenly we felt Him saying, “not one son, but two.”

Once we were sure Guatemala was the place,
Much had to be done, so we began the paper chase.
Home study to be done, our life stories to be told.
Our sons were now a small baby, and one 2 year old.

We got to meet you both in your birth land,
Got to hold you, look deep in your dark brown eyes, and walk hand in hand.
The day we had to leave, it seemed our hearts would break.
To not have you with us, seemed more than we could take.

Then months passed and finally the time came
Papa got to bring Ethan home, our lives would never be the same!
Just three weeks more, and Seth came at last
The heartache of waiting was all in the past.

Genetics? No, but he’s simply your father, I’m your mother.
Cala’s your sister, and you each are the other’s brother.
And today as we dedicate you to the Lord above
May you remember you got here through a whole lot of love.

Photo Show

Ever feel just dumb?

Ever feel just stupid?!

We have been busy this week getting everything finalized with the school where we will soon start meeting. As it stands now, we will begin there the first Sunday in September. It's a requirement of theirs that we provide proof of church liability insurance. Well, it's taken a lot of calling various insurance agencies since most places won't do it for our type of situation since we don't have church property, but will be meeting in a school. We were sort of in a "catch 22" until we got the finalized plans from the school, because we had to provide the exact location (there are of course Elementary schools, a Middle school, and a high school) to the insurance agency. However, to get everything completely set up with the school, we have to provide the proof of insurance. ha

Anyway- Glenn is out when the insurance agent calls that can praise the Lord write an insurance policy for us. He asks if we have a fax number- I say yes but I'm not sure which number our fax machine is set up to! uuuggggh *We have 2 lines- they were offered 2 for the price of 1, so we went ahead and set up a church line.* I felt dumb not knowing which was set up for fax! Glenn's cell phone was dead, as I did ask the man to wait while I tried calling Glenn.

I wouldn't feel so very dumb if it weren't for when I first talked to this same man earlier in the day, I couldn't even remember our phone number!!!!!!! Then when I began telling him, he asked for the area code and I stumbled on that!

We are coming up on living here a year, so pretty soon I can't use the excuse of "uh, we just moved here". ha haaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

Preparing for Company...

We have a preacher and his wife coming to stay with us for a month! They will get here either Friday or Saturday. So, we are going to be busy getting things ready for that. We are excited about them coming as they will be here to help us in the mission work. And about that...

Yesterday, we spent the day researching more about our chosen city and today we await word about the place where we prefer to meet. Glenn has a phone call today concerning that. He's been in touch with them before and today we hope to nail down everything.

In other news: Cala has been spending this week at Brownies DayCamp. We take her at 9 a.m. each morning and pick her up at 3 p.m. She's having a blast, hiking every day in the woods, playing games, etc. etc.

Last night, we attended our town's National Night Out. I sat there thinking how different it was to live in a small town. How different, how neat, how strange, how cool. Guess I haven't completely nailed down which emotion suits it best!

Our Last Summer Hurrah

Thought I would share pictures from our anniversary trip a couple of weeks ago. Cala enjoyed the lazy river although she looks as if she would fall through the float anytime! She was quite the fish that trip, constantly asking when it was time to swim.



Many times when swimming, Ethan is apprehensive, but this time he really let loose! I think he actually enjoyed himself. This place had slides even for the little ones and he loved sliding into the water!




Seth has always loved getting in a pool and this time was no exception!

Tragedy in the Cities- we're o.k.

Please pray for the victims and families of the bridge collapse in Minneapolis. This is a major catastrophe and it just aches our hearts at how many of those folks may not have known Christ. :o/ There are at least 3 confirmed dead... 50 cars at least crashed into the Mississippi River when the bridge collapsed (as 20 construction workers were repairing it!!!!) This was during rush hour... we have been on that bridge a few times. Praise God for His protection!!!!!

We knew nothing about it until my mother in law called from Florida. She saw it on their news and wanted to make sure we weren't out and about in the Cities! Thankfully we answered the phone right as it was to quit ringing, or she would have been frantic!

We had "special" prayer tonight for these folks and the families. Thank you for joining us in prayer. Cala prayed and thanked God we weren't on that bridge! This really touched our kids. We try normally for them not to see the news as I just don't see the point in them having to see such horrible things at their age, but they were in the room when I turned it on. They saw a school bus on the bridge and were worried about the kids who may have been on that bus for summer school, or camp, or whatever reason. We have since heard the kids were evacuated, but there are many injuries.

**For my out of the country readers, I am sure if you go to http://www.foxnews.com or any of the major news sites, you will find the story.**