Follow Up on Blog

Thank you to all of you who took time to comment on the last post. Some people didn't. Not sure why they'd stop by but not make themselves known, but that's okay. The ones who did stop by are from Sweden, Israel, NY, WI (2), Canada (2), England, NC, TX, UT,  D.C., WA and IN.


I have been to some of those places, but maybe only briefly. Like NY. I only went between airports. However, I plan to take Jessica to NYC when she graduates from college in two years. Already saving for that. I've been to Canada a couple of times, but not very far into it. When we lived in Grand Forks we went up over the border and when my sister and I were in MI's Upper Peninsula in the 80's we went on up to Canada. Jessica did a mission trip to Ontario in '07.


I grew up in Elkhart, IN which is basically on the IN/MI border. I moved to FL to teach, then back to IN. Got married and moved to RAF Fairford for a few months. From there we went to GFAFB in North Dakota where Tyler and Jessica were born, but they were 15 mos and 8 weeks old when we left. Went to Okinawa for 9 months. Loved it, but they sent us back to the U.S.A. to South Dakota to get services for Tyler. Looking back, I would have declined the services and stayed in Okinawa because I could have done just as much for him myself. South Dakota was nice in the summer and very cold in the winter. We adopted Adam from Des Moines through Bethany while we were in SD.


From SD we went back to England to RAF Mildenhal. We moved four times in that 3 1/2 year tour. We adopted Jeff from Haiti while we lived in England. Then we moved back to the U.S.A. to Valdosta, GA where Jasmine was born and joined our family as a foster child and was later adopted. Then Rick retired from the USAF and moved to FL. We didn't move down with him initially, but joined him after Jasmine's adoption was final.


Here are some pictures from a couple of the places we've lived.

 England

 Okinawa

 South Dakota

England again




It's kind of interesting that many of you found your way to my blog through Smiles and Trials and a couple of other blogs. I've followed links from comments on blogs to other blogs to in order to see if it would be a blog that would interest me. I think it's great that we can all find support and sanity online where we used to parent and deal with adoption issues pretty much in isolation. I wish blogs and facebook would have been around when I was having pretty serious adoption/attachment issues ten years ago and more. It seemed like no one else was going through it, but only because I didn't know other adoptive parents. Now we don't have to do it alone. Yay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


I do try to answer any questions left in the comment section, but sometimes it takes a day or two for me to get back to it. So check back. It doesn't always work when you subscribe to follow up comments, so you may not know I've commented back to you.


Right now I'm writing this as the kids are at the park running. I was trying to walk while they ran, skate and swim this summer, but most of you know I damaged the ligaments in my left knee. I did a follow up at our family practice doctor yesterday and am going to physical therapy to have them check the knee today. I am able to walk on it if I don't bend or turn my knee. It's slow, but I get there.


Next week I will be in Orlando for the International Christian Retail Show (ICRS). (Unfortunately it requires several miles of indoor walking!!) It used to be called Christian Book Association, but there are so many things others than books that they changed the name. It's basically when all the Christian publishing houses bring all their new products and display them. Then bookstore owners come from all over the world literally to see what's available. Besides books, there are also booths of Christian art, T-shirts, gifts etc. The publishing houses bring in some of their authors to sign books which are given away free to bookstore owners. Most of the time they will also give the books to authors. So I get to go and feel important for three days.


Here are some pictures from past ICRS conventions.

 Ty with the Veggies. One year  Lassie was there. Another year Bible Man. The characters from the Hermie videos were there once. The location changes each summer.  It is most commonly in Denver, Atlanta, Orlando or St. Louis.

Roach Approach.

Karen Kingsbury.

St. Louis (2010)

Ted Dekker

Sweet Pea Beauty from Veggie Tales

Guys from Courageous last year in Atlanta

This post is long, so I'll end. Hopefully I'll be able to post next week. Maybe by then I'll have some of Adam at his project in Trinidad. He arrived Monday night and the team is all doing well.


Hope you are all having a blessed summer!