Suitcase of Love Launch

Holy Moly! God is good. People are amazing! So on Sunday we had a short testimony time. I wasn't going to say anything. Standing in front of the church is not my favorite place to be. I felt the heat prickle on the back of neck. It's the same feeling I get each time I feel I have to go to the front to say something. So I did. I talked about Suitcase of Love. I didn't name it. I did say that I wasn't plugging it yet. I didn't have all the details. I just talked about what I wanted to do for the kids in our local foster care systems. I gave the simple facts that I've already told you. Kids leave the system without luggage. They leave with their belongings in trash bags. I want to change that.

Fast forward to tonight at Bible Study. There was a new lady in there. I've never met her, she's never been to study (that I know of). She asked "are you the young lady that talked about the suitcases?" I said I was, but it wasn't launched yet. She said "well I have three brand new large suitcases in my trunk." !!!!!! Then two other ladies started talking. Then a few more. It's pretty amazing. I think this is really going to take off. I'm so amazed. I shouldn't be, our church is great! But wow!

And then there was one.

This is Artie

 Artie the Aquasaurs is still with us. He's the lone survivor of about 100 eggs. I finally caved and cleaned his little pod of water. I was afraid he would die with new clean water, but he's held on with all the stamina of a freeze dried egg on the Toys R Us shelf. He's huge, nearly two inches and he sheds his skin, uh exoskeleton, uh shell.  It's the cross of a horseshoe crab and a lobster with 140 legs and three eyes. The boys this he's awesome. I'm still afraid of his escape.

This is his molted skin. Ewwwww

????

I can't see doing this again. I can't see going through this heartache again. I can't see saying goodbye again. I can't imagine not doing this again. Praying for clarity and a clear path.

What happens when you clean the kitchen.

I have a plan to attack my home. I clean, all the time. But here's where I go wrong. Say I'm scrubbing the kitchen and I see a book that needs to be put away. Well I'll go upstairs to put the book away and then I'll see that the shelves are dusty, so I'll go to the bathroom to get the cleaning supplies, while under the cabinet I'll notice the cabinet needs cleaned out and so and and so on. It's like a bad episode of "If You Give A Mouse A Cookie" I end up with half cleaned rooms and half organized shelves. It's a vicious cycle that must be broken. Help!

The Drawer.

 This drawer. Oh this drawer. Once upon a time we had a small empty room. I was going to turn it into a prayer room, quiet room, no kids allowed room. Somehow it got turned into my husband's office. Hmph. He needed it. That is why this drawer drives me crazy. See he got my room. He filled it with file cabinets and shelves and drawers. And yet, this drawer remains. In my kitchen. Overflowing with all things office related. I had to search for a number. In the drawer. I couldn't find it. I was a nice sweet wife and separated the junk into manageable piles so he could file them in his office. And I could get my drawer back. Hmph. 'Twas not to happen. At least I can open and close the drawer again.

After.

I Should Be....

I should be offended. I went to pick M up. He didn't come to me. Not only did he not come to me, he cuddled into Ms. M. I should be hurt. I couldn't. Her smile was so proud. My heart was so full. His family loves him. His family wants him. He loves his family. How can I be hurt by that. Do I want him to leave? No, of course not. But his staying is just not the case. It makes it finitely easier to say goodbye when he leaps from my arms to theirs. Knowing he'll be loved and kept safe as if their lives depended on it, that makes it easier. So I'm not offended. I couldn't be happier about the outcome of this case. It could have been so bad. So if he has to leave, I'm thankful he's leaving to a house of love. 

Wormy's Return

We lost Wormy. Have you ever lost your child's item? I felt horrible. I've watched too much Toy Story. I felt badly for the worm. I felt badly for the baby I had to send away with a poor substitution. I retraced our steps and begged customer service. We even searched the parking lot. Thankfully today, he was in the lost and found bin. I am so thankful to the person who saw him and turned him in. He's just a tattered worm bought from a yard sale (by Shane). M has way cuter stuffed animals, but this silly worm is what he loves. He holds it so tightly that it has a permanent dent around its middle. So to the kind soul who turned him in, thank you for the bottom of my heart!