Sweet Life in the City

Isaiah 9:6 "A child has been born to us; God has given a son to us. He will be responsible for leading the people. His name will be Wonderful Counselor, Powerful God, Father Who Lives Forever, Prince of Peace." A few weeks ago during the election this verse came to my mind and it made me smile. It does not matter who is sitting in the White House (whether it is the person you voted for or not) there is only ONE who sits on the Throne and there is only ONE who is sovereign and in control. There is only ONE that should be leading us. I absolutely love this verse from scripture and it seems I only think about it around Christmas time. Yes it was at Christmas that the Son was given, but it is still true today that he is our Wonderful Counselor, Powerful God, Father who lives forever, and our Prince of Peace! As I reflect over these descriptions of Jesus I cannot help but think that these four descriptions are exactly what He has been for me this year and even this week. No matter...

2 Corinthians 12:8-9 I begged the Lord three times to take this problem away from me.  9 But he said to me, “My grace is enough for you. When you are weak, my power is made perfect in you.” So I am very happy to brag about my weaknesses. Then Christ’s power can live in me. This is the verse I have been focusing on the past few days and I will get back to that in a minute. First a run down of our Thanksgiving. We actually has school all day on Wednesday! Can you believe that? :) We came home after school to get our things and Lucy and we actually decided to wait for a few hours before heading out of the city because we knew traffic would be terrible. We left the house around 6:30 and started to make the 60 mile drive to my parent's house. We hit a little traffic but it was not nearly as bad as we anticipated. The lights of the city were breathtaking. I just stared out the window amazed by the beauty of the city at night. We got to my parent's house and we ate and just visited wi...

Every time I come home I cannot help but notice the changes my mom has made to her house. This time there was new Thanksgiving decorations, new shower curtain, and even a new coat of paint in the laundry room and half bathroom. I cannot help but notice how things are different from when I actually lived here. The truth is there is not much the same since I lived here. There are a few pieces of furniture and a few pictures, but that is about all. Thursday afternoon my mom and I were in the room that used to be my brother's and then became my sister's and is now the office:) looking on the computer for the different online sales. The air mattress was set up because Chloe had been sleeping on it, so I was laying on the air mattress and I looked up and realized that there was something in my childhood home that has been there as long as I can remember. It is something that you see when you are coming out of the bathroom and see it going or leaving any of the three bedrooms. It actu...

Happy Birthday to my sister tomorrow! Sisters is probably the most competitive relationship within the family, but once the sisters are grown, it becomes the strongest relationship.  ~Margaret Mead I am convinced that nobody knows me like my sister. All childhood memories and adult dreams involve her in them. She not only shares the experiences of childhood, but she knows the secret feelings and emotions that are wrapped around those experiences. She has known me through every awkward stage in my life and holds the deepest secrets shared late at night when everyone else had gone to sleep. I like the quote I posted at the beginning because I have to say there were times in our childhood that I do not think you would consider us friends and I am pretty sure there were days my mom was not sure which one of us would make it out alive. I distinctly remember getting so mad at her one time that while she was turned around getting something out of the dresser I ran and jumped on her back and d...

I know it has been a few days since I blogged, but we have been really worn out taking care of three sick kids! Chloe and Emma started to feel better Wednesday afternoon but then Emma's fever had spiked again by bedtime. Jeremy checked his last paycheck and saw that he had some sick time accrued and could take off. Early Thursday morning Samuel woke up and came into our room and he was now running a fever! Chloe and I went to school and the other three stayed home. They still have a terrible cough but they seem to be feeling much better. I think Emma is the one that still is fighting with this cold the most. She goes back and forth with a low-grade fever.  On Friday we ALL returned to school. Friday night my parents and my brother came to our house to celebrate Emma's birthday. My parents stayed the night and we all went to the circus! It was at the United Center and it was really fun despite the fact that it was in a building and not under a tent (do they even have circus unde...

We had a good weekend. Sunday we went to church and then tried out a new restaurant. It is called Sabor a Cafe. It is a Columbian steak house and it is a little place in walking distance from our house. It was really, really good. The kids ordered from the kid's meal and the chicken they ordered came with "special spice sauce" but when it their meals came it was only ketchup. Jeremy made a comment to me about they probably did not give them the sauce because we were white:) I thought he said because "they" (the kids were white) and I agreed with him. It hit me that when I thought he said the kids were white that I totally forget sometimes that they are Asian! After lunch we came home and took a nap. We then watched the Bears game. Chloe woke up Sunday morning with a fever but it did not last long so we still got her out. Sunday night the fever returned and she was just pitiful. I slept with her Sunday night in case she had a rough night. Monday we all stayed hom...

Today I am thankful for my smart, loving, helpful, funny little girl Emma Byul. Today my baby girl is 6 years old and I cannot believe it! I still picture my fuzzy haired little girl that I thought I would never hold in my arms. The waiting for Emma to come home was torture for me. Those who lived through that waiting with me know the struggles we faced trying to get her home and I guess it can be compared to childbirth pains and it is all worth it in the end. Emma is one of the smartest and funniest kids I know. She remembers everything!! (So be careful what you say around her:) The other night she was telling us the differences in the letters from TN and Chicago, such as "A" is for apple ect. She remembered every letter and picture that went with it and she knew the ones in her new school even though they have not covered all the letters yet. You can read a book to her and she can read most of the words by herself the next time. She loves to learn and Spanish is her favorit...

Today I am thankful that it is FRIDAY:) I am thankful that I already got my grocery shopping done today so I do not have to go over the weekend. Getting groceries in our apartment each time is quite a chore. I took a picture of the kids going down the stairs that we have to go up and down every time we leave or come home. It is just so tough when getting groceries because you have to make so many trips to even get them in the house. The door to the outside locks automatically, so we usually have a kid holding the door, but we have to climb the front porch steps then the stairs to our apartment. It is nice when that task is done for the week. I am also thankful that we found out from our realtor that the family living in the house may be able to close on it within 6 months! Our closing date right now is not until the last day of September 2013. It would be awesome to get the house finally out from under us and it would help financially because the rent they are paying does not cover our...

Today I am thankful for coffee each morning. My new favorite flavor... I am also very thankful that we have a half day of school tomorrow:) Monday is Veterans Day so we are all off and Tuesday is a day off for the kids and myself, WOO HOO! It is a much needed break for me and I am looking forward to it! It is supposed to be extremely warm this weekend, but they are calling for a slight chance of snow on Monday. The kids literally jumped up and down cheering at the chance of snow on the news. I think they are in for a rude awakening though when we do get a good snow:) Chloe continues to have good days at school, but we are still working on her bad attitude at home:( I am thankful that every morning I am greeted by this sweet face. Here is a picture of the kids this morning before school.  

So, if you know me you probably already knew from reading my last post that I could not sit on what had happened with the guy I work with. I sent him a text a few minutes ago telling him that I was sorry if I said anything that offended him and apologize for my attitude towards the things that were said this week. I was pleasantly surprised when he texted back saying that he was also sorry and went a little overboard with the things he had said. He said he appreciated my attitude. WHEW, now I can sleep better tonight. I do ask that you will pray for this young man and that he will see Jesus in me.

Today I am thankful that I am in the same building every day with my husband and my kids. Yesterday I was having a rough day because of lack of sleep the past few nights and I have been in a lot of pain. Jeremy brought me a coffee from Starbucks (which is across the street:) during his lunch break. Today Emma had an accident trying to make it to the bathroom:( I was glad I could help her get cleaned up and talk her down from her complete break-down. I am thankful that I am feeling a little better today. Since we have moved to the city I have pretty much been around other believers. Many people at our school are fellow believers and it has been pretty "easy" to be a good witness. I am pretty sure most of my kids in class do not come from Christian homes and I have starting to build some relationships with their parents and hoping to be that witness to them. Well, the past few days I have had to deal with a real pain in the rear (if I can be so bold!) In the afternoon I have a ...

I am always a little timid to write about people who mean the most to me. I am always afraid I will not adequately describe the feelings and memories I have about them, but in honor of my mother’s birthday I will try to describe how much I am thankful for my mom and what she has taught me in life. On November 6, 1950 a little girl was born to Billy and Betty Smithmier. She was the youngest of three children and joined two brothers in the family. Her oldest brother, Mike, was only two years old and her brother, Gary, was exactly 1 years old. Gary was born on November 6, 1949 and so these two siblings would also share this special bond. Karen Jane has wonderful memories growing up with her parents and brothers and it is a joy to hear of her tell of her childhood. When Karen was 13 years old tragedy struck their tight-knit family when in January of 1964 their beloved father was killed in a car accident on his way home from work one morning. Their family of four continued to live on withou...

Today I am thankful that it was light outside when my alarm clock went off this morning. It made getting out of bed so much easier. I am also thankful that I am wanting to go to bed earlier because of the time change. Yes, it gets darker sooner, but I can live with that:) I am thankful for yummy beef stew that we ate tonight for supper that was made from leftover roast Saturday night. I am thankful for free cute furniture from friends in Chicago that fits perfectly in my breakfast nook. Here is a picture of the kids from Saturday. Our landlord really needs to rake the leaves, but the kids have fun walking through them every time we leave the house:) Chloe picked to go to IHOP for her Gotcha Day. Here are my sweet kids with full bellies:)

Four years ago today as the nation and probably the world waited and watched to find out who the new President of our nation would be, our family did not have the results of the election on our mind at all. New changes were coming to our country, but we were focused on the change that was coming to our family. On an early Tuesday morning four years ago Jeremy and I, Samuel( who was 4 years old), and Emma (who was one week away from turning two), left Nashville, TN and headed to Detroit to pick up another daughter for the 2nd time in the past 6 months:) I would have 2 one year olds at least for a week!We got to the Detroit airport and my parents and uncle, aunt, and cousin (who live close to Detroit) were at the airport waiting with us for our new arrival. It was not crowded like it was when we picked up Sam, but we waited what seemed like forever! It took so long for Chloe and her escort to get through customs. It was actually cutting it pretty close before our flight back to Nashville...

I know that many people are posting on FB about what they are thankful for each day of this month. My "thanks" may seem shallow on my blog, but I am assuming you all know that I am always thankful for Salvation, Jeremy, Samuel, Emma, Chloe, my mom and dad, my siblings, my nephews and niece, and all my friends and family that I have been richly blessed with in my life. Every day we live our lives and we forget to be thankful for the small blessing each day. So, for today I am thankful that it is finally Friday. I am thankful that Chloe had another good day at school. That makes a full week of not getting her clip moved!! I am thankful that we got our vehicle registered in Illinois and now have an IL license plate. (Even though I will admit it was sad to see the TN plate removed.) I am thankful for Friday night Domino pizza deals and the yummy ham and pineapple pizza I will be enjoying in a few minutes. I am thankful that in my son's words, "Mom, I love you more than m...

So I just spent the past 40 minutes writing about how we moved from TN three months ago today and something happened and I lost every thing I typed. I am also having trouble loading a picture so... On this first day of November I am thankful that we did not get the license plates changed yesterday. This morning while we leaving one of our neighbors was also leaving at the same time and noticed our TN plates. She had lived in Franklin, TN for two years and we made that instant connection with her. I am also thankful that Chloe has had a great day every day this week. On her behavior chart she not only did not move down, she moved up for extra good behavior. We are very thankful for this new behavior. This is the only picture I could get to post tonight.

Is anybody else in complete shock that tomorrow is the first day of November? I sure am! I know from tomorrow until the end of the year will fly, but I LOVE this time of year. I am looking forward to the Holidays in Chicago. Today the kids dressed up as a police officer (Sam), Emma was a chef, and Chloe was the perfect Snow White. The kids all wore their costumes to school and we all had a parade in the gym. It was going to be outside but it was just too cold. After school we went to a Halloween event at the Chicago Parks building close to our house. The kids got candy and were able to play some games. We have had a good month. We had lots of visitors and are finally getting in the swing of living in Chicago. We have enjoyed many letters and cards in the mail from our friends in TN and it justs warms us to know so many are thinking of us. Emma got a letter in the mail today from one of her sweet friends from K4 and it made her week. It has started to turn chilly here in the city and we...

I have decided not to apologize for the lack of blogging these past few weeks. The weeks are flying by and I had no idea that I have not posted since October 1st! We have had many visitors the past few weeks and it has been wonderful. Jeremy parents were here a week ago and it was nice to have them in Chicago. We were in school most of the time, but it was nice to come home to Bev already having supper ready. The kids enjoyed spending time with them and look forward to seeing them at Christmas. Last Wednesday the kids and I had a half  day of school and it was nice to just come home and get some things done and take a nice nap. Wednesday evening our college friends (who are now missionaries to Spain) Matthew and Brooke Turnbough came over for supper. They also have three kids and it took a few minutes for their kids to warm up to us strangers, but soon all the kids were playing and having a great time. It was soo nice to have another couple our age to just sit and talk and laugh and ha...

Wow, where did the week go!? I am trying to be good about blogging a few times a week, but last week was pretty crazy and ended with a weekend of me being sick once again. Wednesday of last week we had Open House at school for Prek-4th grade. It was a really long day! I was able to talk to the girls teacher for a few minutes. Chloe has been enjoying school but we have had some sort of issue with her behavior every day since we started. I spoke with her teacher about specific issues and Jeremy and I both talked to Chloe when we got home. We had great hopes that she would have a good day Thursday. Well, that did not happen:( She had her clip moved to the lowest animal (Sad Snake). She topped off her terrible day by pooping in her pants 5 minutes before school let out. She lied to the teacher and said her stomach hurt, but it was solid ( I know gross!) and it turns out she was playing blocks and did not want to stop playing to go to the bathroom. Jeremy had to be at school Thursday for Op...

" This child's birth mother did not know her pregnancy at all. In June or July of 2004, her mother and her eldest sister saw her big belly and got aware of her pregnancy. She entered the unmarried mother's home on September 23, 2004 when she was 9 months pregnant and then was delivered of this child on the next day. However, she and her family thought that it would be impossible to raise the child alone because her family could not help take care of the baby in poor condition. Therefore, she released parental right and referred this child for adoption." This is the account of Samuel entering into this world. Every time I read through the accounts of my kids birth experience I cannot help but be saddened. My heart aches for the birth mothers while feeling so overwhelmed by the joy that I have received at the price of their sacrifice and heartbreak. I grieve because I did not experience those first precious days of their lives. I think about what a significant event too...

Not sure where to begin this post. I cannot believe it is already Thursday night! Sunday night after I had posted we found out that the Delegates that needed to vote to end the strike would not be making a decision until Tuesday, which meant we would not be returning to school for at least two more days. This was not the news we were hoping for:( The kids and I crawled into bed early and we were watching a movie on my computer. I thought Emma had fallen asleep so I just let her sleep because I knew she had not been feeling well. Jeremy came into the room and touched her head and she was burning up! We checked her temperature and it was 104.7! The highest temperature any of my kids have ever had. She was almost lifeless and it was one of the scariest experience I have had with the kids. Jeremy swooped her up and they headed to the ER. They got to the hospital and she threw up all over him and they quickly took her back to get her checked out. They did several tests and determined that i...

My alarm went off at 5:30 Friday morning and with the suggestion of Jeremy I did not go into work. I had a rough night Thursday. My head was hurting so bad that I was in tears. As I laid there in pain I knew that this physical pain was coming. We had been through emotional, financial, mental, and spiritual pain, so it only made sense that we would be entering into a time of physical pain (on top of the fibro pain). My principle was completely understanding about me not going in. I hated to lose the money, but I could not imagine being with kids all day feeling so bad. Emma also started to complain of a sore throat and a headache. We rested most of the day Friday and we both seemed a little better Saturday morning. We took the kids to the park because it was such a nice day and then headed to Aldi to get some groceries. We got back home and took a nap. Emma was restless all her nap and when she woke up she had a 104.2 fever! I was pretty panicked. I do not think any of my kids ever had ...

6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. I Peter 1:6-7 I have to admit this has been a tough week on me emotionally, spiritually, physically, and any other "-lly" word. I am exhausted! We are very optimistic that a deal has been made and we could be back in school by Monday. We continue to pray that a contract will be made by tomorrow and the strike will be called off. I have gone to a CPS school every morning this week and then headed to the YMCA for a second shift. Yesterday we found out that the CPS schools would be offering childcare until 2:30 instead of 12:30 so I was able to work extra hours there and not go to the Y tonight and tomorrow. This is a huge blessing! I woke up yesterday with a headache and so...