August Adventures

I would like to say that we had a lazy summer but that would just be a LIE. Instead, we have been packed with lots of things, events, activities, appointments and so on. It looks as if we are going to have the same for this school year. Over the past two weeks we have been in the "Getting Started" mode. We are trying to get a new schedule for the school year and everyone has been working hard trying to get it done. Probably not the perfect time to start blogging but really with 4 kiddos in the house is their really a perfect time to start blogging. Okay so on to some of our biggies these past 2 weeks.

1st Josiah started back to school at The Rise School http://riseschool.ua.edu/ on Wednesday the 18th. O how blessed we are to have this program. This could be a post all within itself. We have gained so much from their support, friendship, work and sacrifice they have made for my family and other families like mine.

2nd Elaina celebrated her 6th birthday on Friday the 20th. It was such a fun time to spend with family. Elaina loved it and I of course (like I do for all of my babies) spent the day recounting the day she was born. What a sweet spirit child we have. She has such a servants heart. I can't imagine my life without that child.

After Korinna's cake disaster I refused to make another one until, Elaina told me she wanted me to make her one just like Korinna's except chocolate with white polka dots. So, I folded and made another one. This time it looked SO MUCH better. Of course we had to sing Happy Birthday to cousin Callie whose birthday was the next day!!

Sweet Laura Hocutt and Josiah. Not surprised that he has a dagger in his hand. He enjoys a good war just like any other boy!

3rd Then Saturday me and the girls went to Atlanta for some American Girl shopping with my mom. Okay I totally blew it in the picture department here. I took my camera just not inside. I am still beating myself up. I missed a ton of moments that I can never get back! Stink! I did get this picture of how Elaina sleeping when we got home. This is Elaina's doll Lanie all wrapped with her own blanket. How Sweet!

4th Back to school again! This week me and the two older girls officially started school. This was a big year because Elaina has been added to the Blankenship Academy roll. It has been awesome. She has been such a joy. She is such a self starter so getting her work done has been easy. Finding time to get everything done has been a new adjustment. I know with time that will come as well as God will give me the strength and energy when mine is running on low.

Those are our big events that have take place over the past two weeks. This weekend we will have some more with Buy for Rise and Josh's wedding. I will post those next week. Plus I have a super cool service project opportunity to post about but first I need to get more info. Keep posted.

I'M BLOGGING!!!

Okay for my first post I thought I would share with you why I decided to start blogging. Just to warn you this one is going to be a long one. Okay get ready!!!
Several months ago a family friend the McPherson's shared with Ethan (aka E) that he had run across a blog about a young lady who was a missionary in Uganda and she had a adopted 14 children. Well knowing me like they do, I was super interested and he shared the address with me, http://www.kissesfromkatie.blogspot.com/. Unknowingly to him, I was currently going through a personal spiritual funk. I was fighting with loneliness and desperate for some sort of "friend". Now please understand me when I tell you that this changed my life. The BLOG did NOT change me but GOD worked within me while I was reading. I was encourage by her attitude, strengthened by her passion and reminded that if we are obedient to our Father then things will be hard, tough, difficult and lonely here on this earth. But, in God we find our best friend the one who doesn't change, never leaves us and has a greater better purpose for us. This was a turning point for me. My mother always says attitude is everything and it was here that my attitude was changed. My joy was back, things were and still are tough and I still find days when I feel lonely but the Holy Spirit gives me what I need to continue the walk and fight the good fight.
Well, after finding this blog I started spending more time with God, read the book "Radical" by David Platt (a must read) and scoured Katie's blog. Along the way I came across http://www.amazima.org/ (this is the organization that helps Katie feed and help the people of Uganda) and http://www.147millionorphans.com/. The 147 million orphan started me down another path. I started reading the blogs found on that page http://www.oatsvallteam.blogspot.com/ and http://www.joiningthejourney.blogspot.com/ which lead to two more blogs http://www.babeofmyheart.com/ and http://www.weloveourlucy.blogspot.com/ and then last but certainly not least http://www.wiphan.org/.
Now to some of you, I know you are thinking that I have lost my mind but please let me remind you that I am a stay home mom with four beautiful children, and homeschooling 2 of them. I was happy to find some encouragement on these pages that help sustain me on my bad days. But I digress, SO I started talking about these people and their families to Ethan and well... he started laughing at me. I didn't take it personally, in fact, it was pretty funny. First he started calling them my stalkee's and I was the stalker and now he calls them my imaginary friends because they do not know I exist. He made a good point. So I decide it was time for me to become the not so imaginary reader and not just start commenting on their pages but allow myself to become a blogger as well and share my story and some of my findings with others so that they might find encouragement. Okay so here we go!!