When I began this parenting journey, I was full of a lot of ideas and sadly, quite a bit of judgment, but I guess that’s why God takes you to places you never wanted to go…He takes you to a place where you stare foolish judgment in the face and rescues you from yourself with His grace so that you, in turn, can become a grace giver. I often wonder how different this world would be if we doled out less judgment and gave more grace, me included. Up front, I want you to know that just because I homeschool, doesn’t mean I think it’s right for everyone. Just because our family eats organically, doesn’t mean I’d judge you if you don’t. If you parent differently than me…that’s perfectly okay too. Being different is what makes the world interesting and beautiful.
My man and I met and married in 9 months. He gave me $50 and I went out with him, simple as that. (Okay, so there's more to this story that I'll have to write about some day!) There was something about him that I just "knew" in those first few days that if he was not "the one" then he most certainly was someone that I could see spending the rest of my life with. We were instantly kindred spirits. We were young, but looking back I count it a privilege to have practically grow up together--and grow we have! Thankfully we're not the same people we once were.
Our bio kids are each one year apart. Yes, I had four under four at one point and I’m still alive to tell about it. No, that was not the plan, but apparently, God had it on the radar all along. It was hard at first, but now that I’m over the baby stuff, I wouldn’t change it for the world--although I’m really hoping that Jesus comes back before I have 4 teenagers in a row!
We adopted both of our little girls from Eastern Europe in 2008 and 2011. We chose this area of the world because it's a hot spot for sex trafficking. Nearly 30,000 females go missing per year from Moldova alone. Orphans recently "aged out" are perfect prey. Placing orphans into families and alleviating poverty are things I care deeply about, but my true passion is educating people about sex trafficking. Many people think that it is merely an international issue, but the reality is that it exists right here in America—right under our nose—every day. I may just be a homeschooling mom of six, but I’ve got two daughters that could’ve been another sex trafficking statistic had God not redeemed them and placed them into our family, one of them just two weeks before her time was up. Both of their little faces remind me each day that I need to do more.
There's something about Eastern Europe that draws our family. My man and I desire to be fluent in the Russian language, but despite our efforts recently, we don’t appear to have the brain capacity at this point in life. It's a tough language! We know enough to do basic parenting, but that's about it. Our dream is to return to Eastern Europe without the need of a translator and serve the Lord in some capacity. For now, we tuck that away in our heart and trust that God will do something with it in His perfect timing.
Here on my blog is where I attempt to pull out my map and figure out this journey called parenthood. Even if you can't relate to homeschooling, dyslexia, autism, adoption, FASD or even simply parenting...I hope you'll still join me as a place to learn alongside me.
