Goodwin Family

Coach purse winner!

2010-09-20T08:19:00.001-05:00

Congratulations to Janet Dunleavy! She was the winner of our Coach purse giveaway. Thank you so much to everyone who donated!

Coach purse giveaway!

2010-08-18T21:04:00.002-05:00

WOW!

2010-07-01T09:01:00.003-05:00

Congratulations to Natasha Owens! She won the iPad in our drawing.

Tra and I are amazed at how generous everyone is. We know there was a carrot on the end of that stick, but so many of you just wanted to help us on our adoption. We can't thank you enough. Thank you. Thank you.

As soon as I can figure out how to edit the video to blur out confidential information, I will post a short video I have of the drawing.

Tim and Tra

Want an iPad? Donate and see...

2010-05-27T18:07:00.004-05:00

Really Good News!

2010-05-06T08:37:00.003-05:00

Tim and I are THRILLED to announce…….here we go AGAIN!! We're adopting!! We are praying for what God has and we are praying for this little soul coming our way. AND we want you to be a part of our journey! I'll be posting information here as we make progress along the way. We appreciate your prayers!

"I will not leave you as orphans, I will come to you." John 14:18.

I-Pad

2010-05-04T13:57:00.002-05:00

How would you like one of these??? Stay tuned and I'll tell you how you could win one!

YAY SUN!

2009-04-28T14:24:00.004-05:00

It is an absolutely beautiful day outside! I am so in love with the breeze and sunshine. Which made me think how great it is that sitting outside enjoying it, is always FREE. Those of you on facebook saw my status. We aren't really taking a true vacation this summer; but sitting outside today made me think of all the things that God blesses us with that are FREE.

Some of you were a bit confused on my random ramblings in my earlier post. I'm not here to explain it. Those who understood it or just want to hear more....here is where I am now....

I can't do many things. I do aspire to do many things. I am a dreamer, always have been. I always am the one who comes up with the BIG IDEA. Following through, on the other hand, well that might be a different story. BUT, I am determined to follow through on this. I am praying that God help me figure it all out! This ministry http://amazima.org/ I learned about it through this blog www.kissesfromkatie.blogspot.com I desperately want to do something to help. If I had my way I would be pursuing an adoption right now to give one of these kids a true home and family that could love them. BUT, that is not where God has us right now. So, something I CAN do is cook. Cooking is one of my true passions in life. I am going to be selling some baked goods to try and raise money for amazima. Pray with me. I don't know if this is the thunder God was speaking to me through the other day or not. We shall see. I will post more details as I get things figured out.

Random Goodwin boy stuff: (I know how you all love them :)

Joseph asked me "why Mom?" for the first time yesterday. I know that might sound odd to be excited about, but that is a true skill he has accomplished there. We were so proud and yet so scared at the same time.

Nathan BEGGED me to let him "just get a tardy" at school today so he could watch his favorite TV show this morning. (didn't happen)

Tracy

Great day / Theory of a six-year-old

2009-04-25T20:13:00.004-05:00

Mowed the yard in the beautiful weather.

Went to the book sale at the library and picked up a load of books for only $8.

Headed to Franklin Festival and saw a race car at the BP on the way. Turns out it is some sort of promo car. The boys got to play in it and Nathan got to play this very, very cool racing game. The graphics were so real!

Had a great time and some lunch at the Franklin Festival.

On the way home, we stopped by Tractor Supply for a fundraiser car wash for the niece of a friend going on a misson trip. Car cleaned and gave to a worthy cause. While at the store, we went inside and saw some baby chicks. Luckily for us it was "Demo Day" so I got to take the boys around for some laps in a go cart. They were stoked!

When we got home we chilled for a bit and then headed outside to play in the glorious sunshine. Nathan played in the sprinkler with the kids down the street and I did some more yard maintenance.

Dinner.

After dinner, Nathan and I started changing out the sprayer on the kitchen sink only to realize the old one is a proprietary one and the clip broke when I was taking it off. So, off to Lowe's. No luck at Lowe's so off to The Home Depot. No luck there either. Looks like we will need a whole new faucet in there.

All of that to get to this. While Nathan and I were leaving Lowe's, he says to me, "Dad, you know how Sprout and PBSKids.org work together? Well, Lowe's and Home Depot should work together. I mean, look at all of these supplies! They both have the same supplies so they should just do it. Work together."

I tried to give him a short primer on competition, but he still thought they should work together. Then, at The Home Depot, he goes into a monologue on the company colors of The Home Depot, Lowe's and Target. He does not like the orange that is everywhere at THD. Just do you know, his favorite corporate color is Target's red. Also, he is very against the "THE" before "Home Depot." Nathan thinks it should only be called "Home Depot." He said, "THE before it really doesn't sound right." The kid really likes Lowe's.

That is it. Brought him home and put him to bed.

Great day.

Tim

thinking outloud....

2009-04-23T13:03:00.005-05:00

So many random thoughts flying around my head....not sure if any of them would make any sense to anyone. Maybe not even me. Maybe it's the sun that is out today and the nice mild weather coupled with a nice quite house. Quite for the moment anyway. I just want to say, I'm not sure what God is up to right now in my life. I am sure He is up to something. I can almost hear the thunder softly in the background. I can almost feel the walls start to just barely shake. I feel no fear, only excitement for what is to come. I see God working in friend's lives and I am overjoyed for them. I can't wait to see more of His touch. Okay, seriously I just finished typing that and the loudest clap of thunder just hit the house! With nothing else. One loud clap of thunder. So, as I was saying, God is up to something in the Goodwin house. There is my Joseph, I must go tell him everything is okay.

Tracy

PS- If this has made no sense at all to you, don't worry. My next post might. No guarantees though :)

My new mantra....

2009-04-16T08:27:00.001-05:00

Through patience a ruler can be persuaded, a gentle tongue can break a bone.

Proverbs 25:15

That's it.

wow'd...

2009-04-08T20:26:00.003-05:00

I am so blessed. I LOVE this life that God has blessed me with. It's not always easy. It often seems NOT to be what I would have chosen for myself. Not that I wouldn't choose THIS life, but I would not have chosen THESE struggles. Although, I don't think you can really seperate the two, can you. So I go. I move forward because God gives me everything I need. Right when I need it. I am so in love with my boys. So in love with my husband. So in love with the fact that my job is to take care of them.

As most of you know, this is our BIRTHDAY BLAST month. Joseph turned 3 April 6th, me 30--something April 7th, and Nathan will be 6 on April 12th. It is emotional this year. For 2 out of the 3 years of Joseph's life we weeped and waited and hoped for him to come home. HE MADE IT. I can't really put into words how it feels. I am just wow'd by God. Nathan turning 6 is blowing my mind too. Didn't I just have him?! We are beyond blessed. I am feeling overwhelmingly thankful for all that God has done for me and my family. It wasn't so long ago....for a brief moment I almost wasn't here. God knew that there was a Nathan and a Joseph in my future. Wow. I love you God.

Tracy

Go fly a kite! OK

2009-03-28T14:18:00.003-05:00

This morning we hopped out of bed and headed to Loveless. Love the biscuits! When we got home, Nathan wanted to fly his kite. We had a little wind, but, sadly, it died down too quickly and we had to put the kite away. Well, this afternoon there is a front blowing and so the wind is up! We got the kite back out and had a great time.

Tim.

Getting busy and excited...

2009-03-20T10:54:00.003-05:00

As many of you know both our boys are getting ready to have birthdays. BOTH our boys, that is so great to say this year. We've been saying it for 2 and half years, but this time the 'both' in that sentence is physically with us! They are so pumped up about these parties, and I am too. Joseph talks about his Mickey Mouse cake everyday. Too cute. We have two fun filled weekends of Mickey Mouse and Aliens coming up. Can't wait.

We are having some big milestones at our house. Nathan has finally graduated speech classes at school! He no longer qualifies as ALL his teachers can understand him clearly 100% of the time. YEAH! Joseph is a walking talking mess now-a-days too! He knows how to express himself very well. He knows what he likes and he knows what he doesn't like. I'll take that any day over throwing a fit 'just because.' It's easier for him now, since he can communicate so much better. Along with that comes an adorable little personality too! So we have our baby turning 6!! Going on 12. We have our real baby turning 3, and two very happy parents.

Praise God for his goodness.

A little off topic

2009-03-17T13:58:00.003-05:00

I have posted a little something to my personal blog that some may find interesting regarding our current financial status. Not well researched, but interesting to me. You can find it here.

Tim

when you know it's time....

2009-03-13T13:17:00.005-05:00

to do the laundry!

yes that is a paper towel hanging on the towel rack. Tim is such a genius. This made me laugh out loud when I walked into the bathroom.

2 post in one day....

2009-03-12T10:21:00.002-05:00

Crazy uh? Well I had to share this. I posted some time back about my cousin Jaime who had been in a terrible gas explosion. He is recovering and God is taking care of him. His wife, Natalie is pregnant with their first son. Click the links below and see how God shows us how much he loves us:

http://www.nbcaugusta.com/news/georgia/40761292.html andhttp://www.wrdw.com/home/headlines/40758947.html

why?

2009-03-12T08:55:00.004-05:00

Why is it necessary to have horrible mornings? I believe God has a purpose and plan in everything that happens. Even the silliest of things matter. So, what was God's purpose in me and my 2 boys struggling to make it through the morning rush??? I mean whoow. Maybe He wanted to make sure He had my attention for the rest of the day. He's got it. So, first thing Nathan comes in my bed snuggles up and starts in "my head hurts, I can't go to school." Mom says "sorry your head hurts, we have tylenol, you are going to school." Mom is thinking in her head "oh how I wish you could stay home with me today, sniffle sniffle." Truth is I have a doctor's appointment today so I needed him to go to school. Probably good because I might have caved otherwise. Moving on, Dad is still home so both boys aimlessly follow him around. I look at the clock and realize we are 30 minutes behind schedule! Dad had decided "sure Nathan turn on the TV." WRONG!! So it took Nathan and extra 15 minutes to get dressed. Remember we are already behind. I am frantically making lunch, and breakfast with the last bit of supplies. It's also grocery time. I realize Nathan didn't feed the fish before he came downstairs, I sent him upstairs for that and to brush his teeth before he eats. The whole time Joseph is yelling "mom, eat. mom, eat. mom, eat. mom, eat. mom eat." So I tell Nathan HURRY! As I'm packing the lunch, I remembered Nathan saying he didn't bring home his lunch box because his drink spilled in it yesterday. So now I have to fashion something as a lunch box that I can put an ice pack in, but still have separation for the little crackers that are his entree. The next moment I hear "MOM, COME HERE QUICK!" I yelled up "what happened?" He answers, "ummm I spilled." GREAT. I go up to his room, and yeah almost an entire container fish food is on his floor. To top it off, he had also been looking for his belt so his dresser drawers were open. Yes, the fish food not only was on the floor, but all in his drawers and clothes. So, I get all of that cleaned out. I'm not happy by this time. I finally did get the boys downstairs and fed. Then they wanted to sit in the floor and watch TV. So I decided to let them. Nathan finished first, of course. So he was already sitting in the center of floor watching TV when Joseph went into the living room. Joseph walks in and very bully like says "Nathan MOVE." Nathan moves over. So I tell Joseph, no Nathan is just sitting in the floor you sit beside him. Joseph proceeds with a crying fit. You can imagine how fond of those I am. He finally stops and sits beside Nathan. (well, beside almost on top of :) A few minutes later it's time to get in the car and go to school. I left out the part where I spilled milk all over the kitchen counter while packing lunch. Anyway, Nathan goes to put on his shoes and says OUCH, these shoes have shrunk. We'll shop for a new pair this weekend, just wear them for today. Thankfully he says, "ok, I'll be fine." Ahh a nice answer. I definitely remembered that song about motherhood that lady sang. It's funny, if you haven't seen this TRUST ME it's worth the click. The Mom Song

So now that I've seen it all typed out, I guess it wasn't so bad afterall. It was just not our norm. Our mornings are usually very smooth and peaceful, mommy likes it that way:) Actually like most things, I blame Tim. He forgot to set up the coffee maker last night. That REALLY throws things off balance and the Goodwin house. If I can't wake up to a fresh hot cup of Joe, I'm just ruined!! Ruined I tell you.

Let me try again...

2009-03-11T10:28:00.004-05:00

One more thing about the mom of the octuplets. What I was trying to express yesterday was my frustration with the way people were judging her for the phone call to 911. She did sound 'crazy' on the call. If one of my boys went missing I would have sounded crazy too. I loved getting some feedback from you guys on that subject. I just wanted to make sure everyone knew that I wasn't trying to debate whether or not she had made good choices. Or if she was a good mother or not. I was bothered by the brutal personal attack they were giving her about the 911 call.

On to other things.... I am LOVING the nice weather, HATING the fact that later in the week we'll be in the 40's AGAIN. Tim and I have been joking that we should open a t-shirt joint in Hawaii. Doesn't that sound great?! It does to us. I told him, ya know we don't need much. I'm cool to live in a tiny little place, my kids back yard can be the ocean. So I'm telling you this story to lead up to this crazy dream I had last night. So we have been joking so much about this and talking about it; that I think it crept into my subconscious. I dreamed that we lived in this tiny tiny apartment. It horrible decor, and Nathan and Joseph had to share a tiny old room. It was all run down and dilapidated. YUCK!! Okay, so maybe I do need more than I realized!! Okay God we'll stay put. Thank you for my beautiful un-falling-apart home!

UGGGG!!!

2009-03-10T09:26:00.006-05:00

Okay I just watched one small blurb on the Today Show. I am so irritated, outraged even at these so called 'experts' who think they have the right to judge, or give an opinion on this mom of octuplets. This one lady, who is an author, was VERY judgemental on this poor mother. Then, this author towards the end of the interview says "well I'm not saying I'm perfect either I have the zanex in my purse to prove it." Are you kidding me lady? So we aren't supposed to judge you on your mental instability, but you can judge her? I'm reminded of being a child and having my parents explain to me that kids put others down because they are insecure. They have to make themselves feel better by making themselves feel 'above' everyone else. The only way to do that is to put others down. I see a classic case of bullying from this author. I'm not saying that this mom didn't mess up, but is there any mother on this earth who has done everything flawlessly, perfectly, never yelled at her kids, never lost her temper, never over-reacted? Come on! They were REALLY criticizing her for that 911 call when one of her older sons was missing. The lady was pregnant with 8 babies at the time!!! I'm sorry but until you personally have ALL OF THOSE hormones running through your veins I just don't think you are in a place to judge. I know there are other mothers out there, with far less children, who also have temporarily lost track of their kid(s). I know as a child I personally got lost in a store once. It happens. Even the most conscientious parent can turn around one second, back the next and her child not be where he was. I'm not saying it's okay, but I'm saying don't judge. She was worried about her son, and probably completely realizing she is WAY out numbered with the children she is going to have. Why do people in this world feel it is necessary or helpful to come down on each other? I'm having a hard time putting this into words. It is ridiculous to me that people think they are so high above the rest of us, that they are qualified to say what this woman should or shouldn't be feeling. I would think that it would be very hard to be going through what she is going through, in the public eye under public scrutiny no less. You know she could have chosen selective reduction, but she didn't. She must be terrified. She must be wondering how on earth she will care for all these children. I don't know if this woman is a christian or not, but either way I will be praying for her. God has a plan. I just wish people would get off their high horse, and realize we are really all the same. You don't know what you would do. You can say what you think you would do, but the truth is YOU DON'T KNOW. I am frustrated and worn down with people putting others down to make themselves seem better.

ug.

She was right. Again.

2009-03-08T19:52:00.002-05:00

I enjoy a great bowl of popcorn. Really enjoy it. But, I am not a big fan of the microwave stuff from that old guy with the funny name. I like the loose kernels popped with love. We had had this great popper that was like a hot plate with a plastic bowl on top. It was called stir crazy or stir popper or stir me a drink or something like that. Sadly, it died this weekend. I thought maybe we got a bad batch of kernels so I headed off to the store to get some new ones. It was not the kernels.

Tonight I decided I would just make it on the stove top like we used to do, but Tra brought down the hammer and told me I would make her quite unhappy if I woke the kids with all the noise made by sliding a nice quality, heavy duty pot across the little metal things that sit over the gas flame. Oh, I'm sure they have a name, but I can't think of it right now.

Here is where the different ideas came into play. Tra said something like, "You know you don't need 'microwave popcorn' to make popcorn in the microwave, right?" Well, as I am sure you all know, that is just crazy talk. I mean, how could big companies make millions of dollars off of microwave popcorn if there wasn't some special sort of pixie dust in that bag? After much discussion and doubting, she proceeded to find it on the Internet. Well, there you have it. It is on the Internet so it must be true. Finally, I give in. I take a paper bag, smear one of the inside walls with butter, add the kernels, and add some salt. Four minutes later we had wonderfully smelling, wonderfully tasting popcorn.

When will I learn?

Tim

Boys will be Men

2009-02-19T20:01:00.001-06:00

This is a story from the Associated Press that touched me deeply. I hope it does the same for you.

Amid the grieving, a rare act of sportsmanship

Associated Press

The coach never considered any other option.

It didn't matter that his DeKalb, Ill., High School basketball team had ridden a bus two and a half hours to get to Milwaukee, then waited another hour past game time to play. Didn't matter that the game was close, or that this was a chance to beat a big city team.



Johntel Franklin scored 10 points in the game following the loss of his mother.

Something else was on Dave Rohlman's mind when he asked for a volunteer to shoot two free throws awarded his team on a technical foul in the second quarter. His senior captain raised his hand, ready to go to the line as he had many times before.

Only this time it was different.

"You realize you're going to miss them, don't you?" Rohlman said.

Darius McNeal nodded his head. He understood what had to be done.

It was a Saturday night in February, and the Barbs were playing a non-conference game on the road against Milwaukee Madison. It was the third meeting between the two schools, who were developing a friendly rivalry that spanned two states.

The teams planned to get together after the game and share some pizzas and soda. But the game itself almost never took place.

Hours earlier, the mother of Milwaukee Madison senior captain Johntel Franklin died at a local hospital. Carlitha Franklin had been in remission after a five-year fight with cervical cancer, but she began to hemorrhage that morning while Johntel was taking his college ACT exam.

Her son and several of his teammates were at the hospital late that afternoon when the decision was made to turn off the life-support system. Carlitha Franklin was just 39.

"She was young and they were real close," said Milwaukee coach Aaron Womack Jr., who was at the hospital. "He was very distraught and it happened so suddenly he didn't have time to grieve."

Womack was going to cancel the game, but Franklin told him he wanted the team to play. And play they did, even though the game started late and Milwaukee Madison dressed only eight players.

Early in the second quarter, Womack saw someone out of the corner of his eye. It was Franklin, who came there directly from the hospital to root his teammates on.

The Knights had possession, so Womack called a time out. His players went over and hugged their grieving teammate. Fans came out of the stands to do the same.

"We got back to playing the game and I asked if he wanted to come and sit on the bench," Womack said during a telephone interview.

"No," Franklin replied. "I want to play."

There was just one problem. Since Franklin wasn't on the pre-game roster, putting him in meant drawing a technical foul that would give DeKalb two free throws.

Though it was a tight game, Womack was willing to give up the two points. It was more important to help his senior guard and co-captain deal with his grief by playing.

Over on the other bench, though, Rohlman wasn't so willing to take them. He told the referees to forget the technical and just let Franklin play.

"I could hear them arguing for five to seven minutes, saying, `We're not taking it, we're not taking it," Womack said. "The refs told them, no, that's the rule. You have to take them."

That's when Rohlman asked for volunteers, and McNeal's hand went up.

He went alone to the free throw line, dribbled the ball a couple of times, and looked at the rim.

His first attempt went about two feet, bouncing a couple of times as it rolled toward the end line. The second barely left his hand.

It didn't take long for the Milwaukee players to figure out what was going on.

They stood and turned toward the DeKalb bench and started applauding the gesture of sportsmanship. Soon, so did everybody in the stands.

"I did it for the guy who lost his mom," McNeal told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "It was the right thing to do."

They may not remember our record 20 years from now, but they'll remember what happened in that gym that night.

Dave Rohlman, head coach of the opposing DeKalb team on what his players will take away from this experience.

Franklin would go on to score 10 points, and Milwaukee Madison broke open the game in the second half to win 62-47. Afterward, the teams went out for pizza, two players from each team sharing each pie.

Franklin stopped by briefly, thankful that his team was there for him.

"I got kind of emotional but it helped a lot just to play," he said. "I felt like I had a lot of support out there."

Carlitha Franklin's funeral was last Friday, and the school turned out for her and her son. Cheerleaders came in uniform, and everyone from the principal and teachers to Johntel's classmates were there.

"Even the cooks from school showed up," Womack said. "It lets you know what kind of kid he is."

Basketball is a second sport for the 18-year-old Franklin, who says he has had some scholarship nibbles and plans to play football in college. He just has a few games left for the Knights, who are 6-11 and got beat 71-36 Tuesday night by Milwaukee Hamilton.

It hasn't been the greatest season for the team, but they have stuck together through a lot of adversity.

"We maybe don't have the best basketball players in the world but they go to class and take care of business," Womack said. "We have a losing record but there's life lessons going on, good ones."

None so good, though, as the moment a team and a player decided there were more important things than winning and having good stats.

Yes, DeKalb would go home with a loss. But it was a trip they'll never forget.

"This is something our kids will hold for a lifetime," Rohlman said. "They may not remember our record 20 years from now, but they'll remember what happened in that gym that night."

I want the T-shirt...

2009-02-12T16:48:00.008-06:00

Big news at our house, we are officially OUT of diapers. Joseph is potty trained!! Can you believe that? Me either. I wasn't quit ready for it, but he was. He has been in "big boy" pants all week with NO problems. Thank you God for grace and mercy. I want the t-shirt that reads "I survived potty training, AGAIN!"

So, I'm thinking that means bring on the next one....right?

Other fun things, today at school Nathan got to be a dog. Here is a picture:

Yesterday he also dressed as an old man. 100 years old to celebrate Longview's 100 days of school.

His teacher sent me better pictures of both events, but I can't get them to load properly for some reason. Maybe I'll try again later.

OH and one more thing....if it wasn't inappropriate, I would post a picture of cute little Joseph in his big boy pants!

I've tried everything

2009-02-10T21:04:00.002-06:00

About 30 minutes ago Nathan came down and asked us to start his CD again. He likes going to sleep to music, but has a new CD player and doesn't know where the play button is. The button really is hard to find. Tra and I usually have to turn on the light to find the stinkin' thing. Why, oh why, would the play button on a CD player, geared towards kids, be so hard to find? The thing is shaped like Lightning McQueen! Come on! Put big easily identified buttons on it! But, I digress.

We sent him back to bed on this trip down telling him that he can go to sleep without the music. He said he "really" needed it. I promised him if he would just be still and close his eyes, he would fall asleep.

Well, he just came back down and informed us that he still could not go to sleep. His opinion was that he could just stay up with us until we go to bed. He curled up with me on the couch and told me that he tried everything to go to sleep. "I even tried closing my eyes."

Tim

Click...

2009-02-04T13:25:00.002-06:00

I know there is a better way to put this video on the blog, but I don't know it. So, please click this link and listen. Maybe it is meant for someone to hear today.

http://www.iamsecond.com/#/seconds/Jason_Castro/

I lost...

2009-02-02T10:43:00.006-06:00

The battle with facebook. I'm enjoying it. I finally gave in and signed up this weekend. It has been nice connecting with people from the past. However, I've already had someone say "sorry I don't know you." OUCH! Oh well. It is a cool world over there at facebook.

The Goodwins had a fantastic weekend! Even though we lost the Wii battle to team Forslund. On Saturday, Nathan aired Tim's 'dirty laundry' at the dinner table with the Altman family. I'm sure they enjoyed that. Then on Sunday, we had great food during the super bowl. For me this is what makes super bowl night so fun:) Thanks Rampullas!

I don't have much to post about today. I'm watching Jospeh wonder around the house with a clear plastic box on his head. He does keep me laughing.

Tracy

Here are some photos of the kids we took this weekend....take a look click here

Weekend Fun...

2009-01-30T12:10:00.006-06:00

Doesn't this look yummy?! I can't wait to dig in later tonight! I have to say one of my favorite things about having friends over is the food!! The dessert I decided to go with for tonight is Peach Delight. Oh my, is it ever so delightful! I hope the Forslunds will agree! Lady Forslund is eating for two, so I made sure to make plenty :)

Speaking of weekend fun, one of the great things Tim and Nathan do together is the Saturday morning "build something" class at Lowe's. I don't really know what the thing is called, but they do build something together, and it's a once a month class. Nathan loves it!! So this morning he woke up way before it was time, and this was one of my mornings to sleep in. I told him he could get in bed with us, but he had to lay there still and quiet. He says "ok". Then in his LOUD whisper he says "mom, what are they building at Lowe's tomorrow?" Needless to say I'll be checking into that today! So much for sleeping in. Didn't matter anyway because about one minute later in walks Joseph. Tip toeing and whispering "mom, mom, mom." And off starts a glorious weekend!

On Saturday we get to "play" with the Altman's and I get to enjoy someone else's dessert making skills; yummy again. Can't wait to see you guys!

I hope all of you have a wonderful weekend and enjoy the super bowl! I will be cooking, and half way watching it. If the Titans aren't playing I just don't care that much. Sorry Tim! I will make sure you have something yummy to munch on though!! :)

Pardon our dust

2009-01-28T22:23:00.004-06:00

Tracy has informed me I need to make more posts. Also, that I need to redesign and change pictures. Let the construction begin!

The new picture at the top of the blog is one I took while we were in Guatemala on our first trip to visit Joseph (Yes, I originally had Nathan as the one being visited. Don't judge me.) The mountain had been under a cloud most of the time we were there. Then, there was one lovely moment, and the sun was shining perfectly and the top of the mountain was in view. It was beautiful.

There will be more changes to come.

Tim

It's a miracle!

2009-01-28T11:49:00.005-06:00

Okay, I'm still reeling from that video I posted. I hope many of you were moved by it, and you too want to prayerfully consider what you could do to help. Isn't it great that those children were found and they are thriving now?

So onto the miracleous thing at my house this morning.....Nathan and Joseph have been playing TOGETHER peacefully all morning! I would not have believed it if I hadn't been here to witness it myself. I even heard Nathan say "do you need help buddy?" in the sweetest voice. I have been astonished and so so so very happy! I was in the next room with a huge smile on my face folding laundry, I was so happy to complete a task for a change! They are getting along so well, I've even prolonged Joseph's nap. A miracle in itself. Seriously, I can't believe it. There has been no yelling, taddling, or blood drawn. What a day!! Maybe they are finally learning it can be fun to have a brother. For those of you wondering "why is Nathan home?" school was canceled today. Weather. I am enjoying my boys being with me! I posted this picture of them playing together, it's not a great picture but a spectacular sight!

Have a wonderful day!

Sam and Esther

2009-01-27T14:03:00.001-06:00

I will warn you, this is not easy to watch. You will ache. I pray that the aching moves us to action. Please pray. Pray that we can come together as a people and STOP this from happening. I am only one person, I cannot do much. What I can do, I will do. I can gather people to form MANY, and DO something. PLEASE visit www.sandamianofoundation.org after watching this video. Help me come up with ways to raise money, awareness, and bring help to these people. Thank you God for helping Sam, Esther and Jane.

Yup, Gups

2009-01-18T17:29:00.005-06:00

The conversation started like this,

Nathan: "Mom, am I allergic to fish?"
Tra: "No."
Nathan: "Is Aunt Kim allergic to fish?"
Tra: "No."
Nathan: "Well, Mom, I want a fish."

So, at the dinner table one night, Nathan presented me with the pet solution. Fish. It works for everyone. He was pleasantly surprised and shocked by my immediate agreement to this new aquatic adventure. Nathan wanted one goldfish. I did not want a goldfish.

See, we have had a fish before. It was a goldfish named Dora or Dollie or Dottie or something like that. For those of you who don't know, goldfish are nasty little creatures. They are the aquatic equivalent to a garbage truck in use for the past 43 years that has never been cleaned, upgraded, or loved. Stinky. They burp and poop at a remarkable rate. I think I once saw it sit back and scratch itself like a slob on an old couch. I had to clean the tank about every 34 1/2 minutes.

Sadly, well not so much sadly as joyously, Ditto met her maker on a sunny Saturday afternoon. Nathan didn't seem to notice. She was there and then she wasn't. The tank was dirty and then it was clean. I am glad he didn't see her floating in the tank. From what I remember, Nathan never said anything about her abrupt departure from his room. I kept the food, the water conditioner and the tank for months; just in case he wanted a replacement. About six months to a year later, I gave the tank away and Tra threw out the food and other supplies.

Saturday we had the joy of buying all of those supplies again. This time we went for the five gallon tank. We picked out a little plant, some gravel, and other decoration. Then, we headed for the fish! We looked at goldfish - keep moving people! We looked at Mollies and Platies and Tetras and Cichlas and Guppies. Nathan wanted one fish. Then, two. Then, three.

The nice lady at Petsmart told us the rule-of-thumb is one inch of fish per gallon of water. So, in our case, we could have five one inch fish or one five inch fish or a couple of two inchers. You get the idea. We decided to go for the one inch size.

Me (fish tank under arm): "Could you help us pick out some fish?"
Nice Petsmart Lady: "Sure. Is this for that fish tank?"
Me: "It is."
NPsL: "Oh. Well you need to first condition the water and let it sit for 24 hours before getting any fish. This is always tough for the kids."
Me: "OK." - in my head, "Crap."

Today Nathan and I went back and picked out four nice little Guppies. Two males and two females. Flippy (the orange one), Rainy (the rainbow one), Sunshine (the yellow one) and Dot (the silver one with the orange tail with black spots). They are all currently swimming happily in the tank in Nathan's room. Guppies are cleaner, smaller and more active than goldfish.

RIP Darlene or Dorothy or Danielle or Dancy or whatever your name was. Ya dirty girl.

The Creative Soul...

2009-01-17T12:53:00.002-06:00

I am driving my husband crazy. He says I have too many "outlets." I say he doesn't have enough. So what if I jump from this to that, expressing my love hate relationship with all things creative. Alright, so if I were to be totally honest here I drive myself nuts!! I need more hours in the day for loving on my kids, sewing, photography, reading, knitting, violin, cooking, art, and cleaning the house. Although that last one, I would certainly not call a hobby. I can't help it, I have this unquenchable urge to create. There is magic and fulfillment in making something out of nothing. Unfortuanetly I wish my talents matched my desires, as of now they do not! I stumbled upon someone else's devotional blog the other day. On this blog I read about how we come from the ultimate "creator." Maybe this urge within me is straight from above, and I should fully surrender. At least that is the story I'm telling my husband! Maybe that will give me the much needed grace I always seem to need from him!

To all my fellow creative souls, have a wonderful day!

Just had to say it....

2009-01-15T09:32:00.002-06:00

I love my husband. For many reasons, but today a very special reason. HE IS GOING TO THE GROCERY STORE FOR ME! Ahhhhhh, I am so happy. I would say it's the little things that keep a marriage going, but let's be honest, grocery shopping? That's a BIG thing in my book. He's great. Not to mention this weekend he finally gave in and is buying Nathan a pet fish. Nathan also expects his dad to build him a rocket ship, tree house, and a go-kart. Nathan has LOTS of confidence in his dad. Joseph just wants to be on top of him, always. Anyway, nothing much is happening at the Goo house today. I just wanted to say I am getting a break from the grocery store today, and if you can't tell I'm very excited about it!

21 But this I call to mind,and therefore I have hope: 22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;his mercies never come to an end; 23 they are new every morning;great is your faithfulness

Lamentations 3:21-23

Baby it's cold outside...

2009-01-13T08:48:00.005-06:00

Fire up the fireplace! It is cold! I'll be off to get some firewood today, that is FOR SURE. On the mornings when Nathan rides to school with a friend, we stand at the door and wave as he drives away. Joseph says shivering "mommy cold!" Then he hides behind the door softly saying "bye dadan." It doesn't get this cold in Guatemala. He doesn't let it stop him from playing out there though, he just likes to be bundled up! So does Nathan for that matter. Nathan refuses to go to school without a hat on his head. That just makes me laugh. His little face is so cute tucked inside that big ole hat. I don't know about you but the cold weather makes coffee all that much better! I LOVE waking up to a cold house and a warm cup of coffee in my hand, all snuggled up in my robe. That is just the best. Then of course I crank up the heat for the little ones.

Don't get me wrong, if I had my choice I'd be on a beach right now!! I don't think a beach vacation is in our future this summer, too many bills. BUT, you can gaurantee I'll be dreaming of a beach. Luckily, the local pool will get the job done! I can't wait to introduce that to Joseph this summer, he is going to LOVE it! It is so much fun having a baby around the house again. I know I know, he isn't really a baby. But he is a baby to me, especially compared to the 5 year old. I am really enjoying introducing him to new experiences. It's really beyond words. Like when we first got him the foster family told us he HATED the bathtub. Now, he cries because he doesn't want to get OUT of the bathtub. It's been 3 months that we have had him home with us now. Every day things get more simple, if that makes sense. More and more he is just our son. Not our newly adopted son from Guatemala who doesn't really know us or understand us yet. He is just our sweet little boy. I no longer feel the need to explain, we just got him and he doesn't really understand what you are saying to him. That is a good feeling!

Have a wonderful day and enjoy your fires! Well, the intentional ones that is.

Praying for Jamie Moser- if you have a moment please say a prayer for him. He is my cousin, and he was badly burned, the life threatening kind. He was just doing his job and there was a gas leak in the house where he was working. There was a bad explosion. He is hanging in there, and recovering quite well. He has a long road ahead of him, and he is still in the hospital. His wife is expecting a baby in April.

Life does move fast

2009-01-08T12:50:00.002-06:00

I just wanted to say, it's hard to get older. As a matter of fact, I have thought that my whole life. Being a little kid, you always want to be older. However, being older always included extra responsiblities; never been a fan of that one. Now that I'm uhummm....30something, the responsiblities don't bother me too much. Realizing I have limitations because I'm not 20 anymore, that bothers me A LOT. It really feels like yesterday I turned 25. When did I get in my 30somethings? So it looks like I should have "thought things through" in my 20s. I said that just for you Kim. A wonderful sister who finds humor in my ignorance. I'm sulking a bit because I didn't take the time to plan out the rest of my life. Things like what age I would want to be starting new endeavors. Well, it's a good thing that God is always in control even we aren't aware. He knew, He knows, I am where I am supposed to be.

Bottom line, life moves fast.

Tracy

2009-01-04T16:28:00.003-06:00

One of the items Tra wanted for Christmas was a new waffle maker. I felt a bit like I was buying her a vacuum cleaner or a toilet bowl brush, but it was what she wanted. OK. So, Saturday I got up and took the boys downstairs so Tra could sleep in for a while. I then decided to break-in the new waffle maker. I popped open the computer, found a waffle recipe that didn't look to intimidating and off I went. Flour, sugar, baking powder, eggs, oil, milk, and some other stuff. Easy enough. Plug-in the waffle iron. Lights on. Mix the goods and pour it in. We were on our way.

Well, somehow the first round stuck to the non-stick coating. Liars. I figured I would adjust my cooking time and technique and try again. Luckily, the batter was enough for eight and I had only screwed up four. The next group came out wonderfully (as you can clearly see in the picture). A little crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. Just like a waffle should be. I will take a line here to say that I think there are some better recipes out there than this one I found at the Krups website, but they were good none the less.

Here is where the trouble starts. I had to clean the stinking waffle iron. I remember my mom used to have one that had removable plates. They were waffle on one side and griddle on the other. I thought I had searched for that before purchasing this for her, but I must have dreamed that little sequence. I have since searched and found it on some other models. I have to start making notes.

Back to the cleaning. I guess that at most companies, the designers are never forced to try the products they create. Or at least they don't have to clean them. The batter got into places that weren't even close to the plates. But, those little areas had heat. How does batter actually get baked into the handle? Seriously. I wiped and scraped on this thing for 45 minutes and finally put it away with batter/waffle still on the thing. Tra can deal with that next time.

Pancakes. Stick with pancakes.

Two things

2009-01-02T19:41:00.002-06:00

Two great things happened tonight. I will give them to you chronologically.

First, Nathan and I were pulling the cars into the garage after cleaning up the bikes and such. As he got into my lap, Casting Crown's East to West was playing on the radio. He was mid-sentence and chimed in singing, "from the west." He just stopped there and carried on with his thought. I thought it was really cute, kissed him on top of his head, and told him that I loved him. He said, "I love you, too, Dad." (too many commas? oh, well.) It was he usual, without much thought, response. I laughed and asked if he got tired of my always saying I love you. He said, "No because I really do love you." Man, I love that kid.

Second, Joseph pooped on the potty. M&M's were eaten. Everyone cheered. More M&M's were eaten. Keep it up Joseph!

Sorry Tim! I had to post one more time....

2008-12-17T12:58:00.004-06:00

I read this today on another blog. I had to post it here. If you want to see the world in a different way, check it out http://kissesfromkatie.blogspot.com/ After I posted I realized this might need a slight introduction. This is a lady who is in Uganda caring for orphans.

Here is the excerpt:

MONDAY, DECEMBER 15, 2008

I found this story in my journal last night... its fairly old but still has the same meaning. As you hold the ones you love this Christmas, please keep in mind those who have no one to hold them.

Yesterday a sweet little girl named Rita came to my house with two teeth that had been completely eaten through by a cavity and were almost completely rotted away. The holes looked like they were starting to get infected and the nerve was exposed; I cant imagine how much pain she was in. I took her to the dentist, and they said they were closed. The dentist was in a hurry to leave and wouldn't help me, but he said I could use his things and do it myself. Of course I was terrified, but I was more scared to think about the teeth not being removed immediately; they looked so painful. I gave her a shot to numb her mouth, waited about ten minutes, tried to sterilize these tweezer things with a match and dug out what was remaining of her poor little teeth. I don't think she could feel it, but my heart hurt for her.

I took her back home, made her a hot bath and some soup. Then she had ice cream and slept in my bed under a big blanket. As i tucked the covers in around her and kissed her heas she looked up at me with these big, wondering eyes. Unbelievable as it is, she was SOOO happy. She told me that this was the best day of her life, even though her mouth hurt. She said that she would get her teeth pulled every day if she could stay with someone like me. And that made my heart hurt even more.

There are so many children out there that don't feel loved on a daily basis. So many children that don't have a person to hold their hand or rub their back when they are scared and in pain. So many children who don't have the simple pleasures of taking a warm bath or sleeping under a blanket. I would move all of them, ALL of them into my house if I could. I wish I could love them all. I wish more people cared enough that they also wanted to love them all. Sometimes I just can't even believe how blessed I am. I have always been loved, always been cared for, always been warm and well-fed. Its frustrating sometimes, but mostly its just motivating. Sometimes I feel so tired, and then something like this happens and I am reminded that I can give a child the best night of her life simply by naking her soup and kissing her forehead. Simply by love her.

Sometimes I feel so tired that I think if I give away any more of myself I may actually be empty. And then I remember, It is only in giving away the love given to me by the Father that I am ever actually full. And so I keep going because of Rita. Because kissing her forehead and saying 'I love you" actually did change the world for that little girl. Because maybe through my hands she can get just a glimpse of a fraction of the love her Maker has for her. There is nothing better.

Advent Conspiracy Promo Video

2008-12-16T20:10:00.001-06:00

YEP!

From the little lady (that's me:)

2008-12-15T19:17:00.004-06:00

Tis the season.........to be AMAZED. Since my husband hasn't had much time to post, I thought I would post what's been rolling around in my head. Many of you have asked me for updates on how I am adjusting as Joseph's new mother. Here is where I am.....

I am still amazed that Joseph is home. He is learning new things every day. He is getting better and better at learning our language. He is learning the rules of the house, some he likes more than others. He and Nathan are starting to learn to work together and have fun! We are all learning what it's like to be a family of 4. I'm learning that having two kids is awesome!!! Cleaning up after two kids, not so much. It is amazing at how much of a difference it makes in the laundry alone! :) I'm not complaining, merely commenting. How could I complain, I rarely do it! If I open a drawer and realize oops, I have no clean socks, I decide to wash a load. Those of you who know me, know this is not how I normally operate. I can't remember the last time I made up my bed. That's right, I'm admitting it, putting it all out there for the world to see. The funny thing is, it doesn't really bother me. Too much anyway. Now, Tim on the other hand.....well I guess I'll let him speak for himself.

On to more amazing things.....Tim and I have grown even closer over the last year. We have weathered yet another storm of life, lived to talk about it, and hopefully bring glory to God through it. Joseph is a great example of God making the impossible, POSSIBLE. Especially the way Joseph has blended in with our family. That was a big answer to prayer. Not to say we didn't have rough patches in the beginning. On occassion, we still have rough patches. Life isn't perfect, but only heaven is. I also have to say that I have friend who has waited 3 1/2 years to bring home their little girl from Guatemala. THEY ARE NOW IN GUATEMALA picking up their sweet daughter, N----!!! Congrats guys! Again, God doing the impossible.

As we are preparing for Christmas, I feel immensly blessed by our families and friends. I have had the best time getting everyone's gifts. Wrapping them up and picturing their faces when they open them really puts me in the spirit of Christmas! Not to mention all my holiday baking!!! Can you say.....peppermint bark?! This is a big year for Nathan and santa. He is very into it this year, so that has been alot of fun. He has enjoyed helping Dad shop for "his person." Nathan has kept his Dad's secret and not revealed the name of the person he is buying for. I have thoroughly enjoyed that new little tradition this year.

We just can't wait to be with all of our extended family this year!! It certainly is a special year to celebrate!

Who's watching Charlie Brown tonight???

GOD BLESS ALL OF YOU!!

Christmas

2008-12-05T08:37:00.004-06:00

"Jesus is the reason for the season" and "Christ is the most important part of CHRISTmas" are two phrases that get said many times during this season. The best thing about them is they are true! Without the birth of Jesus, we would have no reason to celebrate. Because of our very sinful natures, we would simply be wandering souls without reason. But, due to the gift of Jesus, we know why and what this season is all about.

The more years that pass, the more I am less enamoured with "stuff." Don't get me wrong, I still like my toys and nice things; I just want fewer of them. I understand more why my dad is so hard to buy for. There are some things he would like, but it is more important to him that his family is happy and whole. I understand that one of the best gifts for him is seeing his kids and grandkids. The trouble is we tend to get swept up in the gift part. Spend more money to show your love. At least that is what the retailers want us to believe. If you really love them, you will give a new 60" plasma. Or the latest ipod. Or the hottest whatchamahavit on the market.

Taking the easy way out, I told my parents just to get some clothes for me. Oh, I really can use them (I know my mom read this), but that is simply to fill up some holes in my closet. Seriously mom, I need them.

I have found myself desiring more of the things that shows someone knows and loves me. It doesn't have to cost much. It really doesn't have to cost anything. Just put some thought and love into it. I am happy and thankful just knowing that both of my boys now live under my roof, that my wife is still in love with me and I with her, and that the rest of my family has been spared total devestation for another year.

Don't take this to mean that those who love to give big gifts or get them are bad. That is not what I am saying here. I am just asking you to take some time in the middle of all of the crazy this year to think about the gifts with which God has blessed you. Your family? A job you love? A good friend? The fact that someone one the street took time to smile at you on your bad day? A warm home? Thank God for it and the best gift we have ever received, one that can never be topped by a 60GB super-duper high-speed shiny red phimelfarb, Jesus.

The time has come

2008-11-30T13:11:00.005-06:00

Christmas time is here! I love this time of year. Today we brought home and decorated our tree. This year we went with the ever popular river birch tree. It is a lovely specimen of the variety. We dug it up out of the neighbor's yard. They are out of town and probably won't miss it until spring. Joseph told me I did a "yood yob" of tying it to the top of the car. I know it was only traveling from two houses down, but tying the tree and one of the children to the roof of the car is just tradition. Wouldn't you agree?

Two little elves helped decorate downstairs. They also drank all of my liquor. I have posted their pictures here. If you see either of them, be careful and call the cops. I think one of them is packing. At least that is the only explanation I can come up with as to how they can get anything they want from us.

The frivolity has begun!

Joseph speaky de English good

2008-11-22T16:03:00.002-06:00

Many people ask us how Joseph is doing with English so I think I will take a minute to bring everyone up to date. He is doing pretty well. He has down Dad, Mommy, Nathan, eat, I love you, car, thank you, eat, milk, cookie, eat, hello, yes, eat, and no. I am sure there are many other things I just can't recall off of the top of my head right now. He will also repeat most things we say to him. Some with more success than others, but he always tries.

He loves to read to us. If we get a book out, he can follow the words and say, "A, O, A, O, A, O, A, O." It is quite the site. I really like the gibberish with the very serious faces like we are in some deep conversation. To show is progress, I have added a little video of Tra teaching him a new sentence. Cute stuff.

Tim

Drawing

2008-11-18T12:31:00.001-06:00

This has absolutely nothing to do with the Goodwin family, but it made me laugh.

Below is the complete email conversation that Adelaide man David Thorne claims he had with a utility company chasing payment of an overdue bill.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Wednesday 8 Oct 2008 12.19pm
To: David Thorne
Subject: Overdue account

Dear David,
Our records indicate that your account is overdue by the amount of $233.95. If you have already made this payment please contact us within the next 7 days to confirm payment has been applied to your account and is no longer outstanding.

Yours sincerely, Jane Gilles

From: David Thorne
Date: Wednesday 8 Oct 2008 12.37pm
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Re: Overdue account

Dear Jane,
I do not have any money so am sending you this drawing I did of a spider instead. I value the drawing at $233.95 so trust that this settles the matter.

Regards, David.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Thursday 9 Oct 2008 10.07am
To: David Thorne
Subject: Overdue account

Dear David,
Thankyou for contacting us. Unfortunately we are unable to accept drawings as payment and your account remains in arrears of $233.95. Please contact us within the next 7 days to confirm payment has been applied to your account and is no longer outstanding.

Yours sincerely, Jane Gilles

From: David Thorne
Date: Thursday 9 Oct 2008 10.32am
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Re: Overdue account

Dear Jane,
Can I have my drawing of a spider back then please.

Regards, David.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Thursday 9 Oct 2008 11.42am
To: David Thorne
Subject: Re: Re: Overdue account

Dear David,
You emailed the drawing to me. Do you want me to email it back to you?

Yours sincerely, Jane Gilles

From: David Thorne
Date: Thursday 9 Oct 2008 11.56am
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Overdue account

Dear Jane,

Yes please.

Regards, David.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Thursday 9 Oct 2008 12.14pm
To: David Thorne
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Re: Overdue account

Attached

From: David Thorne
Date: Friday 10 Oct 2008 09.22am
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Whose spider is that?

Dear Jane, Are you sure this drawing of a spider is the one I sent you? This spider only has seven legs and I do not feel I would have made such an elementary mistake when I drew it.

Regards, David.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Friday 10 Oct 2008 11.03am
To: David Thorne
Subject: Re: Whose spider is that?

Dear David, Yes it is the same drawing. I copied and pasted it from the email you sent me on the 8th. David your account is still overdue by the amount of $233.95. Please make this payment as soon as possible.

Yours sincerely, Jane Gilles

From: David Thorne
Date: Friday 10 Oct 2008 11.05am
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Automated Out of Office Response

Thankyou for contacting me. I am currently away on leave, traveling through time and will be returning last week.

Regards, David.

From: David Thorne
Date: Friday 10 Oct 2008 11.08am
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Re: Re: Whose spider is that?

Hello, I am back and have read through your emails and accept that despite missing a leg, that drawing of a spider may indeed be the one I sent you. I realise with hindsight that it is possible you rejected the drawing of a spider due to this obvious limb ommission but did not point it out in an effort to avoid hurting my feelings. As such, I am sending you a revised drawing with the correct number of legs as full payment for any amount outstanding. I trust this will bring the matter to a conclusion.

Regards, David.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Monday 13 Oct 2008 2.51pm
To: David Thorne
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Whose spider is that?

Dear David, As I have stated, we do not accept drawings in lei of money for accounts outstanding. We accept cheque, bank cheque, money order or cash. Please make a payment this week to avoid incurring any additional fees.

Yours sincerely, Jane Gilles

From: David Thorne
Date: Monday 13 Oct 2008 3.17pm
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Re: Whose spider is that?

I understand and will definately make a payment this week if I remember. As you have not accepted my second drawing as payment, please return the drawing to me as soon as possible. It was silly of me to assume I could provide you with something of completely no value whatsoever, waste your time and then attach such a large amount to it.

Regards, David.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Tuesday 14 Oct 2008 11.18am
To: David Thorne
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Whose spider is that?

Attached

Uh?

2008-11-10T13:45:00.002-06:00

Someone has stolen my blog!! I logged on this morning to make a post, amazing I know. Great minds think alike I guess, my husband had the same thought. Only difference is, he decided to "redecorate" while he was there!! The truth is I have been complaining that I don't have enough time to spend on the computer. Tim being the lovely husband that he is decided to go for gold. I'm glad! I will enjoy reading his post for a change. I'll drop in when I can to give you guys my two cents too. Maybe he'll spice up the homepage a little more :) Just so you guys know the picture on the left was taken in Guatemala. ahhhh! Such good memories!

Oh- and yeah he is right on with the NOISE LEVEL.

Tracy

SPEAK UP. I CAN’T HEAR YOU.

2008-11-10T11:29:00.001-06:00

I AM POSTING THIS IN ALL CAPS. AS MANY OF YOU KNOW, THIS IS EMAIL/BLOG SPEAK FOR SHOUTING. THAT IS WHAT IT HAS COME TO AT OUR HOUSE. THE NEW GUY ONLY HAS ONE VOLUME; LOUD. MOMMY! DAD! DAYDEN! HUH?! TAINT TU! DOVE YA! NO!

TRA AND I ARE CONSTANTLY SHOUTING AT EACH OTHER. NOT OUT OF ANGER, BUT OUT OF NECESSITY. IT IS THE ONLY WAY TO BE HEARD. THE NEIGHBORS ALL KNOW WHEN WE ARE OUTSIDE. THERE IS NO SNEAKING UP ON ANYONE! PEOPLE IN PASSING CARS SLOW DOWN PASSING OUR HOUSE TO HEAR THE CONVERSATIONS GOING ON INSIDE. PEOPLE IN AIRPLANES LOOK AT EACH OTHER WITH QUESTIONING LOOKS AS THEY HEAR SHOUTING IN ENGLISH AND SPANISH IN THE DISTANCE. NASA HAS DEMANDED TO KNOW WHAT TECHNOLOGY WE ARE USING TO SEND SOUND WAVES INTO SPACE THAT CAN BE HEARD ON THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION.

MY EARS HURT.

JOSEPH HAS FIT RIGHT IN WITH THE FAMILY. HE SEEMS TO HAVE A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF ENGLISH. WAIT A MINUTE. I JUST HAD A THOUGHT. MAYBE HE IS SHOUTING BECAUSE HE THINKS WE WILL UNDERSTAND HIM BETTER THAT WAY. ISN’T THAT HOW IT WORKS? IF SOMEONE SPEAKS A LANGUAGE DIFFERENT THAN YOURS, YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO SPEAK VERY LOUDLY AND SLOWLY. THAT IS HOW THEY MOST CERTAINLY WILL UNDERSTAND YOU EVEN IF THEY HAVE NEVER HAD ANY CLASSES TO LEARN YOUR NATIVE LANGUAGE. THAT’S IT! I HAVE JUST HAD A BREAK-THROUGH.

BACK TO THE TOPIC AT HAND – NATHAN AND JOSEPH ARE GETTING ALONG JUST LIKE BROTHERS SHOULD. PLAYING TOGETHER SOME, IGNORING EACH OTHER SOME, GETTING ON EACH OTHER’S NERVES SOME, AND FIGHTING. JOSEPH CALLS TRA’S NAME CONSTANTLY. MOMMY, MOMMY, MOMMY…EVEN WHEN HE HAS NOTHING ELSE TO SAY. HE HAS GONE FROM SCREAMING LIKE WE ARE PULLING OUT HIS FINGERNAILS WHEN WE PUT HIM IN THE TUB TO SCREAMING LIKE WE ARE PULLING OUT HIS FINGERNAILS WHEN WE TAKE HIM OUT OF THE TUB. AH, PROGRESS.

NATHAN IS BEING A GREAT BIG BROTHER. HE TELLS ON JOSEPH, YELLS AT HIM SOME, AND MANY TIMES WANTS THE TOYS JOSEPH IS PLAYING WITH. CAN YOU FEEL THE LOVE? ACTUALLY, HE REALLY IS BEING GREAT. I AM VERY PROUD OF HIM. THE GUATEMALAN BAM-BAM CAME IN AND TURNED HIS HOUSE UPSIDE DOWN AND HE HAS TAKEN IT ALL IN STRIDE.

ENOUGH SHOUTING FOR NOW. MY THROAT IS SORE.

TIM

We're home!

2008-10-10T14:52:00.002-05:00

It is overwhelmingly wonderful to be home!

Yesterday started very early, but the boys were really good to have had their "beauty rest" cut short. We got up before the sun and headed to the airport. Luckily, we had checked in at the Continental office at the Marriott in Guatemala City so we got to skip ahead to the business line to check the bags. That was really good for Tracy since she didn't have to entertain for very long.

Your passport and boarding pass gets checked several times before getting to the gate at the airport. One of the guys pointed us to the elevator so we didn't have to fight the escalator. Apparently not all of the checkers were sending people that way. I saw several others heading in towards the escalator. I am glad he sent us. There was a security access point right outside of the elevator. NO LINE! Wahoo! We went through it with no problems. As a matter of fact, I kept beeping when I went through. I kept trying figure out what was causing it, but it kept beeping. Finally, the guy just said, in broken English, "Don't worry about it. Come on through." Great security there in Guatemala!

The plane ride was easy. Joseph fell asleep shortly before we landed in Houston and was not happy that he had to wake up before he was ready. The immigration process was very easy. Tra and Joseph had to go into a second screening area. She looks very suspicious! Actually, all adopted kids and a parent or two have to go through it. The lady told Tra that Joseph is now a US citizen! Wahoo (again)! On the way to Nashville, Nathan and Joseph both fell asleep - much need sleep.

When we arrived in Nashville, family and a couple of friends were waiting for us. Meeting at the airport at 3 on a Thursday is not convienient. It was very nice of them to be there. Chrissy took some pictures so we will post when we get them.

We went to dinner and had a good time with los abuelos y las abuelas. Afterwards we came home to a "Welcome Home" sign posted by our friend Mystie and a repaired mailbox (Thank you James!) Joseph seemed to be at home immediately. He checked out downstairs and played with the ball for a while. Then we came upstairs to check out his room. He seemed to really like it. I had the video camera out, and if I could figure out how to get it from my MiniDV camera to my computer, I would post some of it here. Hopefully someone reading this can give me some tips.

We all went to bed early and slept much better in our own beds!

That about covers it for now. Today has been wonderful. We had a lot of fun when the grandparents came over this morning. We kicked them out around lunch time ;), had a nap, and here we are.

I will post some pics later.

Tim

Leaving

2008-10-08T20:10:00.003-05:00

We are very thrilled to be headed home tomorrow. We leave for the airport at 5AM and get into Nashville about 3PM. We hope to be sane.

Today was fun. We went to the market with Karla and picked up some Tshirts for the boys. Joseph got really excited about a little ball so he also got that and Nathan got a fun little spinning top toy.

This afternoon I got to go get Joseph's visa from the embassy. It was such a great feeling to know it is done, done, done. No more hoops.

I am sure many cute things happened that I should be telling you about, but I am tired right now and heading off to go to bed.

Tim

Finally

2008-10-07T17:23:00.002-05:00

This morning we got up dark and early to go to the embassy. We got to meet another of the attorney's office staff. Bonnie is the sister of our attorney. She has been great through this entire process. All of them have. It was great to meet her. Shunny, our attorney's daughter who also works for her, was also at the embassy. It seemed like we were there forever. 7:15 - 10:30. Two little boys who love to make noise and a crowded embassy do not make for fun times. Actually, the boys were really good.

The embassy was really easy on us. All of about 1 minute for the first interview and about 2 minutes for the second. Lots of hoopla for little of nothing. Now, I have to go back tomorrow at 3:30 to pick up the approved visa.

Tra wanted me to point out that she is doing much more than I make it sound like in the blogs. To tell the truth, by the time I get back to the room, I can't really remember what I posted on them. So, I tell her some of the stories and they mostly are about my interactions with Joseph. SHE IS DOING ALL THE WORK (she will read this later and that should get me some points).

Tomorrow morning we are going to the market with Karla. She used to work with our attorney, but they have had to have cut backs due to all of the new regulations. The only one still there are family and the entire office will shut down before the end of the year. Very sad. Many people are losing jobs, but more importantly, many kids will remained orphaned.

That is all for today.

Tim

And now some pics

2008-10-06T20:53:00.005-05:00

Today has been a great day. We have had fun around the hotel. The boys have gotten a little restless at times, but, for the most part, have had a great time. Nathan and I went swimming while Joseph took a nap. He loved that!

Joseph fits in so wonderfully. Last night, in the lobby, he saw some ladies walking past, stopped in his tracks, smiled, and said, "Hola." Of course, they thought it was really cute and spoke sweetly to him in Spanish. As many of you know, and those with daughters know first hand, Nathan also loves the ladies. Yesterday afternoon, while we were eating, I went looking for Nathan and found him sitting at the table of a couple of strangers. They were women in their 20's-30's. I said, "Nathan! Get over here. They do not need you entertaining them while they try to eat." They smiled and responded, "Oh, he is fine." We are going to have our hands full.
We are going to be at the emabassy at 7:15 in the morning. We are appointment number 14. From what I have been hearing, that means we should be done sometime between 9:30 and 10:30. Apparently, it only takes about 10 minutes or so with each family, but they make everyone be there at 7:15. Then, on Wednesday afternoon, we will get our visa and we are set to leave the next morning.

I know I am jumping around here, but you guys get to try to follow my stream of conciousness. Tonight at dinner the little guy showed us some of his temper. He likes to throw things when he gets mad and pouts. It is really cute, but we will eventually have to stop it. Tra and I just don't want to put the hammer down during the first week. The kid does love to eat. Juice, several pieces of bread, Cheez-its, water, a bowl of spagetti, and some dessert! We have extremes now! We aren't saying anything to Nathan about it because we don't want him to feel bad about his eating and end up with a set back, but we are hoping that it helps him. Either way, we are going to have to teach moderation in our house.

Tonight we had bath time. We were told that Joseph HATES baths. They did not lie. He cried so hard and so loudly. However, he seemed to get better when I didn't make him sit, but let him stand while I cleaned him. I bathe Nathan that way as I find it easier. I just hope that Joseph gets better once he realizes that he can stand also and he won't melt. He was really sweet afterwards and wanted to give me a kiss.

I am sure there are 100 strories I should be adding here, but that is all that is flowing at this point. Below are a few pictures from you. Most need some post editing, but at least you get to see some of the happenings.

The transition is going well for only two days. We just pray it stays on this path.

Tim and Tra

Tim and Tra

Lovin life in Guatemala

2008-10-06T14:57:00.002-05:00

We arrived with no problems yesterday and it has been great since. Our attorney's daughter and foster family got to the hotel right at 1PM - on time - and brought our wonderful little guy to us. He warmed up immediatly since Tra started feeding him M&M's. Food is certainly the way to his heart. It only took him a couple of minutes to get who we are and off we went. We had a very long lunch with them, and, by the time it was over, he was happy to be along for the ride. He was feeding Tra and having a great time. Joseph got a upset for just a minute when everyone was leaving, but it was very brief, and not very bad. I think it was a big plus that he had been looking at our pictures for so long that he was able to recoginze us very quickly.

We went up to the room and played and then we all went to bed early. Our family had been up since just before 2AM and we were ready for bed. Joseph and Nathan shared a bed with no troubles except that Joseph is a bit of a bed hog.

Today has been great! He loves to talk to us. Calls us Mama and Papa - constantly. He is a big ham so he fits into the family wonderfully. Nathan is LOVING the big brother role right now. Joseph does pretty much whatever Nathan wants him to do. He even wants to mimic him. Last night, we went down for a while to the lobby. Nathan and Joseph were each wearing zip-up hoodies. When Joseph saw Nathan had his hood up, he turned to Tra and started saying, "Mama, Mama" while trying to put his hood up, too. Once it was up, he was happy as could be and chasing Nathan around.

Well, the line here for the computer is long. I was going to post pics, but left the camera in the room. I will post more later.

Tim

Proud Parent Moment...

2008-10-03T14:16:00.002-05:00

I had volunteered to work in Nathan's classroom the other day. Our project was to act out a little skit. They got to choose what character they wanted to be and pick the mask that went with that character. They all quickly decided and agreed on what they wanted. EXCEPT Nathan, of course, and another little girl. I kept trying to get them to work it out with each other. Well, they couldn't. They both wanted to be the hen, and they both wanted it badly. So I did the "pick a number 1-10" thing. The little girl lost that game. (yes it was totally legit) So I gave Nathan the mask he wanted and the little girl the other one. She looked so sad, and just hung her head. She was trying not to cry but you could tell she was upset. Nathan looked at her and said "here, you can be the hen, I don' t mind." I just thought it was great that he was looking out for someone besides himself. It warmed my heart. I sure do love that little kid!!

WE GOT IT!!

2008-09-30T10:14:00.002-05:00

We are PINK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We received our embassy appointment yesterday afternoon, on October 7th we will officially be a family of 4! We are beside ourselves with excitement! Thank you all for your support and prayers! We thank God that this rough journey is over and we look to Him as we start the next one.

As you can imagine things are little crazy right now. We are finalizing travel plans as well as gathering paperwork needed for our appointment. I don't have much time to post. I'll try to post more tomorrow.

Love you all!!

Not yet, but soon...

2008-09-26T13:30:00.003-05:00

Unfortunately I don't have any travel dates to post yet. We ended up having a couple delays getting our DNA results to the Embassy. However, as we speak it is in route to Guatemala City!! The embassy has assured me they have everything they need to process our appointment, they are only waiting for the DNA to arrive. The embassy closes at 1:00pm on Fridays so more than likely we will be receiving our travel date on Tuesday. We can't wait!!

I have to tell another funny story about Nathan. My dad's birthday was just the other day, happy birthday Dad!! Nathan called to tell him just that, and he asked how old he was going to be. When my dad answered him Nathan said "oh, you are getting close to going up in heaven!" My dad thought it was hilarious, thankfully!! crazy kid.

At our house this week....

2008-09-22T17:51:00.003-05:00

I am love love loving this weather!! Tim and I are both so ready for the fall season. We are more excited about Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas than I think we've ever been! We will have another little man to share it all with this year. Nathan is getting very anxious about going to Guatemala, he's a little scared of his ears hurting on the airplane too. He thinks it's cool that he's going to get to chew gum the whole time. He is really loving kindergarten too, he is a little sad that he has to miss school. I think mostly he's just sad that he'll have to be away from all his friends and of course the girlfriends!! He got love notes today from one of his girlfriends. This little girl is a real cutie, she keeps telling her mom she is going to marry Nathan. I have my hands full telling Nathan that he CAN'T kiss these girls. I am dreading the teenage years with him. He just can't resist a pretty little girl.

Let's hope the next time I post it's with TRAVEL DATES!!!

Love you all!

Anticipation and Preparation

2008-09-13T15:00:00.005-05:00

With all this excitement about what is to come, there is also a reality of what is to come. I was reading a friend's post today at an adoption forum. She was sharing about her pick up trip. I asked her if I could post part of it here. This is to give you a little window:

Yesterday we were at the pool with T's foster family on Thursday when they came for a "last" visit. (I put "last" in quotes because we love them and want to visit them again in the coming years). We all spent five hours at the pool playing together, talking together, and just hanging out. It was precious time for T, but it was also precious time for all of us--I think that in those hours we really became a big family.

It was awful and sad when they had to leave. It tore my heart out to watch his foster mother and brother and sister say goodbye to T. All the while, he was crying the kind of cry that you only hear from people who have lost someone they love very much. He wailed and yelled “no,” while they tried to tell him that it was okay and that he would have a good life. I’m crying just thinking about it. There was no comforting him, and really, there shouldn’t be—how do you comfort someone who is losing his whole family and watching them walk away from him? They were crying, he was inconsolable, we were crying. Once we got to the hotel room, he calmed down a bit, but was still sad today. Someday he will realize how many people love him so much.

The other touching thing I wanted to share was about his foster mom. Even though she speaks only Spanish, I am able to communicate with her a bit because I speak enough Spanish to get by. On Wednesday night, she called me at the hotel to ask how T is doing. She asked if he has been happy, and I told her the truth: he is generally a happy kid, but he is very sad without them. Then she offered the one thing that shows beyond any doubt that she is truly his “mama.” She asked me if it would be better for T if her family did not visit on Thursday. She told me that she wants him to be happy, and that she wants to let him forget about them if that would make it easier for him. Only because I’m a mother can I imagine how much it hurt her to make that offer—I’m amazed by her heart and her love for our son. I told her that I love her for saying that, but that it is very important to me that he never forgets them. I want to honor their places in his life, and I want to continue to stay in touch with them. In the long run, it will only do him good to remember them, to know them, and to know how very much he is loved by all of us. In my family's mind, they remain his family.

Like so much of life, this process is bittersweet. In our home, much happiness—in their home, an equal amount of sadness. I can’t do justice to his Foster Mom with mere words. But I hope we honor her by sharing her sacrifices. And, if you pray, I ask that you say an extra prayer for her tonight.

I didn't post this to upset anyone, just to help prepare us for what we could be facing. It is truly a joyous occasion to bring our son home. He will need time to heal though. There is no doubt that God has ordained MY family as the place for Joseph to be. Our family is not our family without him in it. This sweet friend who posted her experience, I hope you will remember to say a prayer for them tonight. She posted this while still in Guatemala.

Lightening Speed....

2008-09-11T09:03:00.002-05:00

Things are really rolling right along! I can't believe it. It has taken so long to get to the end, and now it seems like time is finally flying by! We got authorization yesterday for them to do the final DNA test, this is one of the last steps to get Joseph home. We will know in two weeks the date we'll have Joseph in our arms forever! More than likely, we'll be traveling in about 3 weeks from now. To me, that feels like tomorrow! Lots to do. Speaking of which, duty calls. I wish everyone a good day, and thank you again for all your well wishes. Keep us in your prayers.

Someone has a new last name....

2008-09-09T08:15:00.002-05:00

That's right it's JOSEPH GOODWIN!!! We got the new birth certificate yesterday! Now, from what I'm told, things move pretty fast. The attorney is taking him to get the passport today and tomorrow we will be submitted to the US Embassy for them to authorize the 2nd DNA test to be done. After the Embassy gets the results of the DNA test they issue us our "pink" also known as the pick up appointment!!! I am just floating so high on cloud 9 right now! I need to tie myself down to something so I can get some work done. It's time to start washing all those clothes I've been saving for him!
Thank you to all who have supported me and lifted me up through this whole process. I had some dark days. I never would have made it through this, without the love and support of my family and friends. Thank God for the Long Road Home message board!

I love you all

Nathan is a boy after all....

2008-09-06T13:30:00.003-05:00

We were outside the other day meeting our new neighbors. They have an adorable five year old little girl who goes to Nathan's school. Her name is Macy. I said "Nathan did you meet Macy, and say hello to her?" He said "Yeah..., I can't stop staring at her." (I'm laughing) I said "why is that, is it because she is so cute?" He says "yeah."

He cracks us up.
Tracy

Gray day...

2008-09-05T09:33:00.003-05:00

The grocery game. Several of you emailed me privately to ask about this. I'll tell you what I know so far, keep in mind that I just signed up for it. On her website she said it takes a cycle of about 12 weeks to get the FULL effect of the benefits. On my very first grocery tripping adventure I saved 60+ dollars. I don't know that I'll save that much every time, but it is certainly enough savings to keep at it for a while. I will let you guys know. Also, I think if you do sign up for it there is a place to put in who referred you. If you think of me and want to me in there please do.

Today is gray and rainy. I actually love days like this. Although there is a limit. The sound of the rain and gray skies are so relaxing. Right now though I've got to get moving, because there is a teddy bear lunch at Nathan's school today. He is very excited about it, so I've got to get all the picnic stuff ready and head to the school.

Still no word from the attorney on our birth certificate. Hoping to hear something very soon though.

Musings...

2008-09-04T12:03:00.003-05:00

I am overwhelmed at times by God's goodness. There seems to always be two sides to every story. Such is our life. On the one side, we have so many great exciting things happening. Things that get you up out of bed, with a smile on your face. On the other side, we have some scary things happening. Things that cause stress and make it hard to close your eyes at night. We have friends who are celebrating life, we have friends who are barely making it through the day. As I said, such is life. One constant through the up times and the down times is always God's goodness. It is always there, even in the times that seem so dark and impossible. I am so thankful to serve a loving God.

Happenings at the Goodwin house:
Nathan continues to amaze me everyday with how much he is learning and growing up. I almost hate it when he gets out of the car to go into school in the mornings, because I know he'll come back changed in the afternoon. I am so proud of him. I hope I'm raising him well!!!! I don't want to screw him up!

Tim started his new position at work this week. He is awesome and I know he's going to kick butt!! That's right, I said it I'm not ashamed.

Me, well it's the same o' same o' still trying to take over the world one dust bunny at a time. I've also started "the grocery game" this week. It supposedly cuts your grocery bill in half. We'll see. So far so good. If anyone else wants to check it out visit www.grocerygame.com

I haven't heard back from our Guatemalan attorney yet on the status of the Birth Certificate. However, we should be receiving it this week if RENAP keeps their word. Big "if" there. I will certainly post as soon as I get updates.
God Bless You All!!

Funny from Nathan's teacher

2008-08-29T17:12:00.002-05:00

I know you guys can't believe I would post twice in one day! I can't believe it either, but this was really cute so I had to share it with you. Here is an email that Nathan's teacher sent me:

I have to tell you the funniest thing that Nathan said the other day. The day that he brought Wall-e to share, when he was finished and I told the kids to put their items back in their backpacks, Nathan said, “Can I pick something from Housekeeping to put in my backpack for Wall-e to play with?” I said, “I think Wall-e should probably take a rest in your backpack for the rest of the afternoon.” He said okay and took Wall-e to his backpack. When he came back out he said, “Mrs. Donnelly, Wall-e said he was not sleepy.” This made me laugh so hard! He was so serious!

For those of you who don't know, Wall-e is from a disney movie that is out right now.

God's arms are reaching...

2008-08-29T09:13:00.006-05:00

We received an email from our agency last night, our attorney is willing to reduce some of her fees! We also have received some help from friends, thank you guys we love you!! Our bill is still large but it is a little more manageable now.
Psalm 27
1 The Lord is my light and my salvation-- whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life-- of whom shall I be afraid? 2 When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh, when my enemies and my foes attack me, they will stumble and fall. 3 Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then will I be confident. 4 One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple. 5 For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle and set me high upon a rock. 6 Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the Lord.

Matthew 6:25-34: 25 "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?

Please Pray...

2008-08-28T11:45:00.002-05:00

We just received our final invoice from our agency. It isn't pretty. There is about $5,000-$6,000 extra that we are not prepared for. I am trying to negotiate with our agency, which she in turn is speaking with the attorney about. However, the director said the attorney more than likely isn't going to back down. I have an amazing friend who just stepped forward and is donating $1,000 to us. WOW! I am so moved. Over the last two years we have had fundraisers, yard sales, sold anything not bolted down, in an effort to help raise the money to give Joseph a home. Last year we had a sweet couple donate money so we could go and visit Joseph. I am so thankful and grateful to have all of you in my life. We never would have made it this far without your support. We could really use the support of your prayers now. Thank you.

Just for fun...

2008-08-27T16:31:00.006-05:00

Things I've learned by "making do"

- chewable maalox, not so good as a breath mint
- bank deposit slips filled out in crayon, make for bad banking mistakes
-a good napkin is a great coffee filter in desperate times
-a car really can make it a ways on fumes alone
-your child will use just about anything as a tissue
-a drier sheet is not a good substitute for tissue paper
-scented lotion as deodorant, it doesn't work no matter how much you use
I've had 30 something years of "making do" so there are many many more than what's listed here. Some have been better than others, like all my cooking substitutions that I won't even go into. These are all the ones that just popped up in the 10 minutes I had to post. I'd love to hear how you've made do in the past. Don't be shy, come on tell me about it.

The Big Day

2008-08-25T10:25:00.004-05:00

There's my official kindergartner! I had to take pictures this morning before we left. I know he'll change so much by the end of the school year. I can't imagine it though, because he already looks so grown up to me. Still my baby though, of course! Today is his first full day of school. He was pretty laid back about it all, since last week he went twice for half days. He did tell me he did not want to stay "all day." Especially when I threw in there that they would have a rest period today. I'm having lunch with him and staying to help out this afternoon, he's excited about that.
And, there's the proud daddy.

This one was Nathan saying "I need to take a picture of you guys too!"

This is him lined up against the wall with all the other kids waiting to go into the classroom. What a cutie!
And, there he goes. And here comes the tears. Well, not really but a little choked up on the inside. ("the crying on the inside kind, I guess") - sorry, just a quote from one of mine and Tim's favorite movies.

Now I'm off to work on all the final adoption paperwork. Someone say a prayer for me today :)

US17

2008-08-24T15:31:00.004-05:00

Last week, Nathan decided he and I needed to build a robot. He started out with some very aggressive plans for a robot built of wood with a brain, a motor, and a remote control. His plan involved an expensive trip to Lowe's. For some of the materials, I think I was going to have to break into NASA. That may be frowned upon. Anyway, since I would like to stay out of prison, I convinced Nathan that we could build one out of some things in the garage.

Here is a picture of US17. Nathan came up with the name. US17 is a top secret, highly evolved, super robot disguised as a low-tech, cardboard box, tissue paper roll, milkshake lid, cut up tennis ball wearing nothing. He is very specialized. He is able to slide gracefully across the hardwood floors on his advanced gliders and is able to hold massive amounts of cargo in his rear holding area. He has experimental padding on his front in case he runs into something or is attacked.

Don't ask me questions about his capabilities. You do not have the clearance.

planning planning planning!

2008-08-23T15:21:00.003-05:00

I am starting to plan for ALL the zillions of things I am going to need to take with me on the trip to Guatemala. Also, we have decided to take Nathan with us!! He is pumped about coming along to bring his little brother home. Tim and I are so excited that Nathan will get to be a part of this process too. I plan to check in with our attorney the end of next week to get the progress report on our paperwork. Believe it or not, it will take me 6 weeks just to make my "list" for travel! Other than that, we've been glued to the Olympics!! I'll be so sad when it's over on Sunday. For those of you who are doing the knitting Olympics, good luck and don't worry you can sleep on Monday! I decided not to do it this time because I have WAY to much else I have got to get done before my little Guat gets home. I'll keep you posted on any new adoption info.

Tracy

Getting ready for school...

2008-08-18T08:46:00.002-05:00

I can't believe that it's time to send Nathan to kindergarten. We're ready though. Well, as ready as you ever get I guess. Truthfully, I would like it if he'd stay little forever. Right now he loves his mom and dad; there is no one in the world he thinks is cooler than us. I know that is about to change! It's nice to be your child's hero. I'm going to try and enjoy the few weeks I'll have at home alone, before sweet Joseph gets here. I keep saying that, hoping eventually it will sound good! I keep thinking about all that knitting I'll be able to get done, and those books I've been wanting to read but haven't had the time. It's only from 8:30am to 3:330pm, that will go by fast, right? I miss him already. I know, I know, I've got to suck it up! Seriously though we are excited about this new chapter in our lives. Nathan is going to have a great time at school and I have plenty to do to keep me busy. Especially preparing for Joseph! I just got the email on all the paperwork I have to take with us, whew that's a lot of work! Thanks for all the CONGRATS that we got! We love you all.
Tracy

Still floating high....

2008-08-15T11:32:00.002-05:00

We are still beside ourselves with excitement about Joseph! We called the foster family last night to talk to Joseph, but he was already sleeping. She said he had played hard all day with another little boy and he was very tired. The foster family said that they are very happy about us being pgn approved. She also said they are sad. I can only imagine how hard this will be for them, they have cared for and loved him for 2 years now. They are such an incredible family. We feel very blessed that Joseph got to wait for his forever family with them. BUT, now he's coming home to us! We couldn't be happier. We are trying to prepare our hearts for his transition. Although we've been waiting and waiting, he hasn't. He's been happily content with his temporary surroundings. I can't wait to get started "attaching" to him and him to me.

Nathan and I called him this morning, he didn't really want to talk but he was listening to us. Nathan got very excited that he got to say "hola" to him. Apparently Joseph said "papa" back to Nathan which cracked Nathan up! I'm hoping 6 weeks FLYS by!

Amazing Grace...

2008-08-14T14:58:00.002-05:00

As I have said over and over through the last two years, God is good all the time. This is a day that it comes easy to say that. After two long hard years of fighting to bring our sweet Joseph home, we no longer have to fight. HE IS COMING HOME!!! We got the call from our attorney this morning, and our file has been APPROVED by PGN! Let me say that again, we have been APPROVED!!! We have final signature and it is officially over. He is our son! So, now we wait for all the necessary paperwork to be submitted to the US Embassy and they will issue our pick up appointment. Thank you all so much for your support and prayers! I'm dizzy with emotion right now. It's hard to put into words everything that is running through my mind. So here are the only other details I have right now. We are looking at being able to travel to Guatemala in about 6-8 weeks, possibly sooner. Also, now we've got to pay the big bucks!! Start praying!

It's True!

2008-08-07T13:34:00.003-05:00

WaaaWhooooo! Our attorney confirmed that our file is awaiting final signature in PGN. So, if the director doesn't issue a kick out, we'll be approved soon! The attorney said she will call as soon as she gets word that we are approved. We are very excited and anxious now. After PGN approval we have to go through steps with the US embassy in order to get our pick up scheduled. Best case sceneiro it will probably take about a month to two months. We are certainly believing we will be the best case scenerio there! How nice it will be to get my baby boy home!!!!! Thanks for your prayers everyone.

Introducing Harvey...

2008-08-06T08:32:00.004-05:00

We have a new addition to the family. For 2 years Nathan has begged us for a dog, and so here we are. We have had him for a month now, but we wanted to make sure allergies and everything else was settled before we made our big announcement. Harvey is really fun to have around and Nathan loves having someone to chase all day long! Nathan helps take care of him and he is so proud to have his "very own dog." He says that a lot. For those who are wondering Harvey is a goldendoodle.
In other news, I spoke with our adoption attorney again yesterday. She said our file was approved by the 2nd reviewer now. This would mean we are waiting for final signature from the director for approval. I am supposed to check in again with the attorney later in the week. We'll see what happens now!
ONE MORE KNITTING PROJECT COMPLETED:

Love these socks!! Now Tim's feet will be nice and cozy, wrapped with love. (ahh)
Now I'm on to a million other projects for a million other people.

More Breath Holding....

2008-08-01T17:35:00.002-05:00

We're not out of the woods yet in bringing Joseph home. I spoke with our attorney today and it's more of the same insanity. Apparently, when our file went from juvenile court to the PGN it went without all the documentation on our investigation. We were approved in PGN by the 2nd reviewer, but when we got to the final adviser he would not approve us without the documentation. The good news is that at least all the work that was involved in getting the documentation, to prove no fradulent activity took place, has already been done. Now it is just a matter of getting papers from one spot to another. The attorney has close friends in both departments and is working on using their help to get these papers to PGN. I know what all of you are thinking, and trust me I'm thinking it too. Why and how would a file go from an investigation to the approval system WITHOUT THE DOCUMENTATION?!!! I don't know so don't ask me! We are all just hanging on the best we can. God has perfect timing and who am I to question that. A good friend of mine is going through a difficult time with her daughter, who is having to be admitted into the hospital for treatment. They have had to play the waiting game a lot too. One thing she said about their waiting, was that it gave her more time to pray and talk with God about the situation. Waiting isn't always a bad thing. Obviously their situation is very different than ours. However, both situations are tough. So, I am taking a cue from her and I will use this time to pray for Joseph and for his homecoming. If you could, would you also pray that he would have a smooth transition into our family? Pray for his grieving and his attachment. Those of you who have already brought home your Guatemalan angels know exactly what I'm talking about. Also about my friend, her sweet little girl's name is Stephanie and she is only 8 years old. Please pray for her and her family, and that the doctors will have the wisdom to know how to proceed.

Thanks!

Knitting project completed!

2008-07-30T07:49:00.004-05:00

Yippie! It always feels so good to actually complete a project, especially when it's a first. This was my first attempt at a sweater. I call it my sweater(ish) project since it's really a tank top thingy. I hesitantly share a photo of it with you. It's not the best picture of me but just look at that sweater, minus the bra straps :) I'm so proud!

Other news in my world:
I have no information from Guatemala, unfortuantely. It could still be a while before we get our OUT call, realistically speaking. I am begging God to get us OUT sooner than later though. I am stalking the internet and doing my best not to call PGN twice a day before they block my number! I am trying to keep my mind busy on other things, which luckily is not hard to do. My obessive knitting keeps me happily distracted. I also have a very close friend who just found out she's pregnant!!! We are SOOOOOOO excited for them! You know who you are, and I can't wait to share motherhood with ya! So, I get to obsesess with her about being a first time mom. I know lots of you reading this are praying with us about Joseph. Thank you, and keep it up! Trusting in Him,

2008-07-25T08:12:00.003-05:00

It's been a while! Life has been full to say the least, and sorry to say the blog had to take a back seat. Things have settled a bit more now. We are now in the throws of getting ready for kindergarten! My baby, I can't believe it. Speaking of my babies, look how cute Joseph is!!! We also have great news from Guatemala. We had a last step interview on our adoption and we are officially in PGN, waiting for final approval. We think this could happen within the week. Which would mean we could be traveling to bring home our sweet boy in a month! Join us in prayer, it's been a long hard journey and we are ready for this one to end and the next one to begin. As with all things, it's Christ that gets us there in one piece.

Growing up

2008-04-28T14:10:00.003-05:00

Kids grow up. I am sure many of you have experienced this, but yesterday was the first time for me that I could look at Nathan and see a little man and not a little boy. It was when I took this picture.

Anyone have any advice on stopping this process?

I have a 5 year old!

2008-04-15T08:13:00.004-05:00

We had a wonderful weekend celebrating Nathan's 5th birthday!!!! I can't believe my baby is 5. I remember holding him for the first time, he was so tiny! He is just the greatest thing and it is so fun being his parents. Well, most of the time anyway! I also have news from Guatemala to report. Soon after I posted on the blog that we had been resubmitted to PGN, I got word from our attorney that we are NOT "in" PGN yet. The lady who answered the phone at PGN was giving out wrong information, she's new. At least I do have direct communication with our lawyer so I was able to find out what exactly is going on. Our attorney is still working hard to get this original document required by PGN to get us resubmitted. Keep praying.

Thanks to everyone who came to the birthday party. Especially all our family members who traveled FAR to come see us! We love you! I was hoping to post pictures with this post today, but I'll have to do it this afternoon.

Have a wonderful day!

Let's catch up...

2008-04-07T09:05:00.004-05:00

It's been a while since my last post. I'm sure you guys are on the edge of your seat waiting for my next post, right? Well, that's what I like to think anyway. I actually do have more good news about our adoption case. Our file was accepted and we are in regular PGN. Now we wait out our time there, praying for no more problems. Unfortunately there is no rhyme or reason as to how quickly a case can move through. We are just very happy to be "in". For those who don't know, once we receive approval from PGN our case will move to the US Embassy side. There, we wait for them to issue Joseph's new birth certificate, passport, and other necessary documents to bring him home. That process takes between 4-6 weeks. Then, the Embassy issues our pick up appointment and we go get our son! We are getting much closer to the end. I can rest in knowing this will be Joseph's last birthday to spend in Guatemala without his "real" parents. He turned 2 yesterday, April 6th. We tried to call several times but the lines just weren't cooperating. Knowing his foster family, I'm sure they threw him a BIG party. I'm hoping to get some pictures soon.

Other happenings around the "Goo" house, our upstairs has been completely turned upside down. Nathan got our old bed, Joseph got Nathan's old bed and Tim and Tracy got a new KING bed. WAAWHOOO! Now our guest once again, will have a place to sleep when they come. Since Nathan's birthday party is this weekend my mom is so relieved she won't have to sleep on the couch this time! The nightmarish story of getting our new mattresses is so long and sorted I don't think I could tell it if I wanted to. Just know it has been a nightmare! We have learned some very valuable lessons in buying over the last week! It's not always best to buy the cheapest thing you see. Let's move on...
My Birthday is today :)
It's not nearly as big of a deal as it used to be! I'm just old and now I'm older. I have to say the best part about having a birthday though is sweet little Nathan coming in sleepily to my bed and singing "Happy Birthday Mommy". There really is no better way to wake up. He is so sweet. I have also been blessed with good friends who make me feel special to remember my birthday. You guys are the best! My nearly perfect husband took me out on Friday night for the big birthday celebration. It was incredible! We went to the Frist in downtown Nashville, I'm still thinking of those paintings. You can see the reproductions all over at any big retail chain. BUT to see it up close and personal is just incredible. We had a very nice dinner after, just the two of us. It was great. Today on the other hand, well, I'm up to my ears in laundry! That's alright though, I've got my best friend coffee to keep me company!

Good News

2008-03-28T12:47:00.002-05:00

I just got an email from a friend who called PGN investigations to check on our case. This girl is quickly becoming my best friend! Her name is Damaris, and some of you reading know all about her. She is well loved! Please take time to say a prayer for her and Nidia, her daughter, who Damaris has been trying to bring home from Guatemala since 2005. She was able to confirm today that PGN investigations has received the original document clearing our attorney of all criminal charges! This is what we've been waiting for! Well us and PGN. They are hoping to have our file "released" from investigations within the next couple of days. This should be ALL we need to get back to regular PGN and hopefully have a fast final approval.

Waahooo!

EASTER EGG MANIA

2008-03-24T08:56:00.006-05:00

Nathan is very proud of his egg that he colored. When you tell him to pose and smile, he just can't do it. He HAS to be goofy, it's involuntary for him.

Tim made one that said "I love Tra" ahhh.

After we colored our eggs of course we had to go hide them!
Here Nathan is telling his dad, you can't look!! Stop taking pictures because then you'll know where the eggs are Dad!
In the picture below it's his turn to find the eggs.

He is KING of the egg hunt!

The pictures to follow are from the easter egg hunt at the local park. We had a blast at that one! 10,000 easter eggs to find.

Nathan actually found a special egg, that said you won a prize! We went up to the prize booth and it was a very nice easter basket with special goodies in it. It even had sidewalk chalk in the shape of eggs, he was overwhelmed with excitement on that one!

We had a wonderful easter holiday. It is certainly a holiday of joy, to celebrate Jesus is risen! At the same time it is a time of remembrance of how Jesus was crucified for our sins. Thank you God for sending your son and thank you Jesus for enduring the cross for the world.

We called Joseph to wish him a Happy Easter! The foster family was like what? So I know they celebrate Easter there, but they call it something else. I've heard "holy week" being thrown around on some message boards. Joseph didn't want to talk, but we talked to him and he listened. Nathan said hello to him too. The foster family has someone in their family who is going to be traveling to Nashville, Tennessee in the next couple of months! Oh how we wish they could bring Joseph with them!!!!

PGN opens again on Wednesday of this week. We are praying to hear good news by the end of the week.

I hope all of you had a wonderful holiday!

Nothing but time...

2008-03-18T10:21:00.003-05:00

Easter is right around the corner. Yippie! PGN in Guatemala will be closed starting tomorrow through next Tuesday for easter week. Maybe next week will be our week! I have a couple of friends who have gotten good news this week! In the meantime Nathan and I are taking full advantage of spring break this week. Nothing to do but pass the time, and sometimes that's pretty nice. Yesterday, we had an awesome PAJAMA DAY! Today, we plan to be outside A LOT. It is very nice here. We are headed to have a picnic with Tim at lunch. Who knows what else we will find ourselves doing. I'm also starting a new knitting project this week, hurray! Speaking of knitting, I'm thinking of doing special knitting projects and selling them. This will be in an effort to finish paying for the rest of our adoption. If anyone wants to talk to me about possibly placing an order of a specific item, email me- tracy.goodwin@yahoo.com I'm thinking baby blankets, luvies, baby booties, bibs, whatever you guys want. Full size blankets are also possible. I know at Christmas I had several happy family members with blankets! If you know of someone who might be interested send them my info. I'm off to picnic!

St. Patrick's fun

2008-03-14T10:42:00.002-05:00

I had the privilege of helping in Nathan's classroom this morning. What a morning! Since the kids are on spring break next week, the school decided to celebrate St. Patrick's day today. Nathan's teacher "trashed" their classroom, and left green paint EVERYWHERE. We pretended that a leprechaun had been to the school and left this HUGE mess for all of them to clean up. He was nice enough to leave gold behind for all the kids. It was chocolate gold, so you can imagine how well that went over! These kids were hilarious when they saw their classroom for the first time this morning. Keep in mind, there are 20 four year olds in this class. We were all having a wonderful time finding everything the leprechaun left behind, until some of the kids got a little freaked out. One little girl cried for a minute, we explained to her that it was a friendly leprechaun and that's why he left chocolate behind. Then she decided she liked him again and all was well. You gotta love 4 year olds! It is such a great season of life.

I had a great time with them! They all put a big smile on my face, I was cracking up.

Trusting in Him....

2008-03-13T14:58:00.004-05:00

Here is the email that I just received from our attorney:
THE STATES ATTORNEY´S OFFICE HAS WITHDRAW THE CRIMINAL CHARGES AGAINST MYSELF SO I AM PRESENTING TODAY MARCH 13 THE WITHDRAWAL TO PGN AND LET` S HOPE THIS WILL BE ENOUGH TO CONTINUE THE ADOPTION CASE.

OH MY LORD!! I pray that this is the good news we have been seeking God for. I pray that this is truly the end of the painful journey. I pray that the rest of the journey to bring Joseph home is smooth and quick.
Join us in prayer, there is power in numbers.

Thanks guys!

New Pictures from Guatemala

2008-03-12T08:35:00.003-05:00

Psalm 139:14-16 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.

Okay, so yes I am shocked he still has a bottle! And, yes I am freaking out a little! He is almost 2!
Adorable

Ephesians 3:
¹⁷ so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, ¹⁸ may have power, together with all the Lord's people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, ¹⁹ and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

OUCH!

2008-03-11T09:04:00.002-05:00

In Nathan's overwhelming excitement to see his daddy coming home from work, he ran right into our dining room column! Full force! If you know Nathan at all, you can imagine how hard he hit the column. His head must have hit the corner of the column and he ended up with a huge gash. When I heard the scream and then saw the blood running down his neck, I'll admit I was a little freaked out. Tim and I were able to get him calmed down enough to get in the car, emergency room here we come! He was totally fine by the time we got to the hospital, he was telling the nurse exactly what happened and how. He's so funny. We finally got back to see the doctor and everyone kept talking about how laid back he was. They all said I wish all the kids were like this! I kept telling them, well just wait. So the time came for the stitches, they decided staples were best for him because it would be the fastest. The laid back Nathan went out the window! My poor baby!!! I have never heard the poor child scream quit like that. It was so painful to watch. Luckily they were right, and it was over pretty quick. Of course, Tim and I had the whole guilt thing going once we got home. We wished we had told him it was going to hurt and we wished we had held him while they did it. In the moment though you just aren't thinking straight and you really are looking to the doctor to guide you! So I'll just be mad at them instead! Anyway, we all survived and that's what counts. He gets to stay home with Mom today and get spoiled. Although, he is very anxious to go to school and show everyone his 3 staples in his head.

Thank you God for being with us last night!

one more day is one step closer

2008-03-10T09:15:00.009-05:00

Sometimes life throws so many curve balls at me that it is difficult to articulate the cobwebs in my head. Instead, I'll let scripture do my talking. Thank you God for your word that is alive and breeds hope!

21 But this I call to mind,and therefore I have hope: 22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;his mercies never come to an end; 23 they are new every morning;great is your faithfulness. 24 The Lord is my portion, says my soul,therefore I will hope in him. 25 The Lord is good to those who wait for him,to the soul who seeks him. 26 It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord. Lamentations 3.

Below is an excerpt from one of my favorite blogs, (www.prayingthemhome.blogspot.com) I met Dawn through a Guatemalan adoption message board. She certainly has a way with words....

I wasn't there when you were born.

I wasn't there to see your first smile.

I wasn't there to watch you tumble as you took your first tentative steps.

I wasn't there to kiss away the tears of your first boo-boo.

I wasn't there as you cut those first teeth.

So many things I missed and so many things I never saw as I waited. Hundreds of miles away.

But in God's gracious goodness,

I saw the wonder in your eyes the first time you rode in a big airplane and realized you got your own juice.

I saw your smile of amazement when you took your first drink of water from a drinking fountain.

I watched your eyes sparkle as you put on clothes lovingly purchased just for you.

I saw your joy the first time you opened the fridge and saw it was fully stocked.

I listened to you excitedly holler the first time you saw a cow, a tractor, a gravel road.

I was there as it sunk in that these were your sisters, your brother, and that this family was forever.

I was there when you cried tears of sadness and I was the one you let gently wipe them away.

I felt your body melt into mine the first night I kissed your tender cheek and told you I would be your mommy forever.

Being your mommy means I missed so many firsts.

But being your mommy also means that I am blessed to see all the firsts for the rest of your life.

It was worth every minute of the wait.

Snow!

2008-03-09T17:24:00.001-05:00

On Saturday morning we woke up to a wonderously beautiful site: snow! It was great. I had been obsessing on the internet watching the radar as it blew in. I was expecting the snow line to fall apart and it be a big non-event. However, it was certainly an event! We had a blast playing in it and having snowball fights. Sadly, it was almost entirely gone by the evening. Now, only the shadiest part of the yard (tough area so we don't go into that part ;)) has any snow left. After we came back in, I built a fire and we spent most of the day playing inside in front of it. We did get out to the new Super Target they have built here in The Hill. Target rocks.

Nathan could not wait to get out into the snow.

Tra and Nathan checking out how deep it is.

This was probably the deepest part around the house on the northeast corner. Weird since the snow came in from the southwest.

Again, on the northeast side of the house.
The monkey and I getting ready to pelt Tra with some snowballs.

I will add a few others later.

Thanks God!

2008-03-06T12:54:00.003-06:00

I'm loving today's sunshine and warmth! I like to think that God did that just for me. He heard my whining yesterday and decided to grant my wish. It's hard to believe that tonight it will be raining and in the 30's; and they are predicting snow for the weekend! Right now I'm trying to be more about "being in the moment". To that end, Nathan and I will be outside until it gets cold again! This weekend will actually be great too, because then I can enjoy a nice fire in the living room.

Off the subject here, but really what is the subject anyway? So, Nathan has these stories that he tells with his dad every night around bedtime. They are hilarious! I am going to have to try and write the one they tell tonight down, and post it. They are always about an elephant named Arnold who loves ice cream. Nathan doesn't like ice cream, but really he doesn't like anything and that's a whole other bag of worms. So, moving on....Nathan is now asking for a baby sister. A what? That's right a baby sister. He said he really wants Joseph to come home so that he can be with his brother and play. Then he said but let's have Joseph and "let's adopt a baby girl". How funny is it that he uses the word "adopt". I found that so interesting for some reason. Of course, my heart's desire is to certainly adopt more, but God will have to move in that area. I will confess that I had been asking Nathan how he would feel if he had another sibling in the house. I'm sure that was on his mind, but the sister part was all him. I'm off to go get the squirt from school. Today is ice day. (you know, the sugar ice)

My private thoughts...

2008-03-05T09:22:00.003-06:00

Alright, so the pictures have nothing to do with the post but I know how you guys love the pics! The other little boy and girl in the first two pictures are Nathan's cousins that came for a fun time this weekend. We loved seeing my brother and my parents this weekend! Nathan and Braddock were too cute serenading us! In case you are wondering, Nathan was singing "California Stars" and Braddock was singing "Jesus loves me". Never a dull moment with little ones.
So, on to the real post. I'm ready for the winter to go. Although, another season changing does represent the passing of time. I'm soon to be a year older, and so is Nathan. Which that is just part of life, right? It is something to celebrate! However, I am overwhelmed with sadness as I'm painfully aware that Joseph is soon to be a year older too. This will be our 2nd birthday to miss with him. The important thing is that we won't miss the whole rest of his life, I pray. It is after all, just a day in the year. I hope I'm not depressing anyone, I think the weather is getting the best of me! I really need some warm sunshine.

All the trust and faith I can muster, I leave in the hands of my heavenly father. I leave you encouraged and anxious to see how God will work miracles for my family in this coming year.

Say Cheese!

2008-02-29T13:01:00.002-06:00

So Nathan and I were playing with the web cam that we have. I just realized that it could take pictures. We were snapping pictures left and right, then Nathan says okay mom now lean back. He didn't want me messing up his beautiful picture I suppose. This kid cracks me up. I decided to post them because I think they are funny, plus now you guys can see the new hair. Now if I can find my regular camera I'll post some pics of the kitchen.

Adoption junk:
Sorry, but that is an appropriate name for the process right now. I had a friend willing to share some information with our attorney, regarding getting that special letter from the states attorney's office. Our attorney told me thanks, but no thanks. She was gracious about it, but she basically said I am doing everything possible right now to get your case approved. So there you have it! I am just praying that God would pour out his mercy on us, and give us strength for this journey. We are emotionally tired. God is good!

Hooray for snow day!

2008-02-27T13:32:00.002-06:00

Williamson county, you can always count on them for a free day at home! The sun is bright, it is bitter cold, but the grounds are clear and we are happily hibernating. Although we are approaching the boredom stage in this day and it's only 1:30pm. I caved and decided to let Nathan spend some time playing the wii. Hot chocolate and video games, it really doesn't get much better than that! We've read all the new library books, practiced writing his name, exercised together (yeah, that's fun) reviewed some sight words, played monsters inc., and practiced his tennis lessons. Speaking of tennis, when we say prayers every night he always says "and God thank you for my tennis lessons." How cute! Anyway, he'll be entertaining himself for the rest of this snow day! If there was actually snow outside, we could go and play in it. No such luck, stupid sun.

I'm off, I can't let my hot chocolate get cold!

Oh, by the way Tim sold his first t-shirt!!! A big thank you to MIMI, we love ya!!

Notice anything?

2008-02-26T15:37:00.003-06:00

I decided to change up the colors on the blog. A friend told me she was having a hard time reading the post because the background was so dark. I thought maybe she wasn't the only one and I like change anyway. As evidence in the constant changing hairstyles. I hope you guys like the new look!

Happenings in Tracy world today....
Birthday planning, the big 5 is coming! I think a gymnastics party will do the trick.

Cooking, and planning and more planning. You girls know what I'm talking about! I have stumbled upon 'Homemade Gourmet'. After much deliberation I have decided to place an order and go for it. It's basically spices that come with several recipes. It does all the meal planning for you. I'll let you know how it goes!

I started a new book today, Sue Grafton's T is for Trespass. I've only read the first few pages and whew, that girl can write!

Blessings to all,
Tracy

A Parenting First!

2008-02-25T10:09:00.002-06:00

2 words, EAR INFECTION. Not fun. Nathan is only 4, soon to be 5, and has never had an ear infection. Until Saturday that is. It was close to midnight when his ear was hurting so badly that it woke him up. Unfortunately, Tim and I were still up watching movies. So, I didn't go to bed until close to 4:00am on Sunday. Brutal. It's pretty sad when your child is begging you to take him to the doctor. Then, starts begging you to "do something". We did survive the night though. The hero, Dad, thought of putting cotton in Nathan's ear. It helped mentally for Nathan and I'm sure it gave a little pain relief too. We were able to finally go to sleep, although 7:00am he wakes up full of energy like he'd had a full night's sleep. How do kids do that?? We were at the minute clinic when they opened, and yep it was official it was an ear infection. By that afternoon we were all a little cranky. Anyway, we did survive it and all is well this morning. We all had a beautiful night's sleep last night.

Alright, so on to other things....
I got my hair cut this weekend. It's much shorter than before, if you can imagine. It's back to my natural color, dark brown. I like it. Just to give you a visual, it's just below my ears.
So, that's pretty much it in 'Goo' town.

P.S. LOVE LOVE LOVE Tim's t-shirts! Go check them out! I'm going to be getting a few for myself. I'm going to get some of the kid ones for Nathan too. (Maybe Granna and Mimi can get the grandmom ones for him :)

Tim the t-shirt man

2008-02-23T13:51:00.004-06:00

MAY I HAVE YOUR ATTENTION PLEASE. I have created an online t-shirt biz. A nice little outlet for some creative urges. OK, it is not really from scratch, but I do have a gallery over at www.zazzle.com of my creations. You can click on the link in the previous sentence (or this one) or type www.zazzle.com/tgoodwin21 into the browser of your choice.

Right now, they are all sayings, but I might try to venture into the graphics arena soon. I have some adoption related ones, coffee related shirts, and some that are just fun. I plan to create more soon so check back often.

TELL YOUR FRIENDS, FAMILY, AND STRANGERS!

Tim

Phone call

2008-02-21T11:41:00.003-06:00

I did call our attorney this morning. This time I was able to speak with her. What I found out is that our adoption is still on hold. The investigation is over and done with, praise God. Now, PGN is requesting a letter from the States Attorney's office to release our file and allow us to continue. The attorney says getting this letter will be very difficult, as right now the states attorney's office doesn't care anything about adoptions. They do not care to help in any way. She told me that this is a matter of bureaucracy. However, she does have a friend working to try and get the letter for us. In the meantime, she has made an appointment with a PGN judge, in order to get a ruling for continuing our adoption without the letter.

While this might not be the news we were waiting to hear, it's still pretty good news. Things are moving and people are working around the clock to get this boy home. Our attorney is confident it will all work out, it's just another delay. Before I made this phone call, I spent some time in prayer and in the Bible. I found myself in Isaiah 2:4 "He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples." "...come let us walk in the light of the Lord."

God is in control of all the red tape and I am so thankful for that. I am walking in the light of what I know is true.

Ready for Spring!

2008-02-20T12:19:00.006-06:00

I have enjoyed the winter, I have really enjoyed our fireplace. I'm done now and ready to move on to warm weather. We had a tease of what's to come and it was so nice. Nathan is now on his "big" bike. He too is ready to play outside every day, he has been so desperate that he started riding his bike in circles around the garage. That's the good thing about being 4 years old, he's perfectly content doing that. He's just happy to be on the bike. Sometimes I wish I could be that easy to please.

Speaking of spring activities, I wanted to start running for exercise. The elliptical machine is great but does get boring sometimes. So I started the training to run, but then remembered I have really bad knees. I thought, maybe I should look up the ole' knee problem on the internet to see what I can find out. Alright so it looks like I can run, as long as I don't mind not being able to walk. Oh well, that sounded like a lot of work anyway.

I guess as it turns out I'm not so hard to please, uh?

On our adoption:
Thanks for everyone's questions and concerns. I did make the call this morning to our attorney. I was not able to speak with her because she was in a meeting. I will plan to call her later this evening. I also called PGN, I did find out that our file is still listed in the minor's section. Minor's section is where the investigations take place. For as long as I've been able to call PGN, this has been the report I've been given. Finally, today the lady says "you know once your file goes to the minor's section, my system will not reflect any activity until the file as been given final approval." Big light bulb! This is good news, because it does not mean that our file is still in investigation. We could be sitting on the director's desk waiting for final approval. This is the hope anyway. As I said, I'll be calling the attorney again later. I hope to find out more information then.

Just my luck, or rather just his

2008-02-14T19:57:00.002-06:00

Overall I've had a wonderful Valentine's Day. However, I'm spending the night on the couch alone. Channel surfing. Luckily I do have the d.v.r. so I'm sure I have stuff on "the list". Poor Tim. He's in bed with a migraine/sinus headache we aren't sure which, we just know it's bad. He did manage to eat dinner with us and give me my gifts. I got chocolate and the new Jack Johnson cd, I love my husband. Do any of you watch BIG BROTHER? We haven't watched the last several seasons, but we did watch the first couple. We just happened to catch it last night and now we're hooked. Those people are nuts. Entertaining but nuts. Anyway, I didn't have much to say today. Just know that I am thinking of you guys, and hoping you are all snuggled up with your honey tonight.

Hug the one you love!

2008-02-13T15:31:00.003-06:00

So, Valentine's Day is tomorrow. I wish a happy one to all of you. I'll be celebrating at Nathan's school tomorrow with the class party. Around this time I am always taken back to 1992, when I first met Tim. Our first date was the weekend before Valentine's. Actually, we haven't been apart since that very first date. This was the season it all started for us...

In the spirit of valentine's, I think Jack Johnson says it best for us in Better Together:

Verse 1:]
There's no combination of words
I could put on the back of a postcard,
No song that I could sing
But I can try for your heart,
Our dreams, and they are made out of real things,
Like a shoebox of photographs,
With sepiatone loving,
Love is the answer
At least for most of the questions in my heart ,
Like why are we here? And where do we go?
And how come it's so hard?
It's not always easy,
And sometimes life can be deceiving,
I'll tell you one thing, its always better when we're together

[Chorus:]
MMM, it's always better when we're together
Yeah, we'll look at the stars when we're together
Well, it's always better when we're together
Yeah, it's always better when we're together

[Verse 2:]
And all of these moments
Just might find their way into my dreams tonight
But I know that they'll be gone,
When the morning light sings
And brings new things,
But tomorrow night you see
That they'll be gone too,
Too many things I have to do,
But if all of these dreams might find their way
Into my day to day scene
I'll be under the impression,
I was somewhere in-between
With only two,
Just me and you
Not so many things we got to do,
Or places we got to be
We'll sit beneath the mango tree now

Yeah, it's always better when we're together
MMM, We're somewhere in-between together
Well, it's always better when we're together
Yeah, it's always better when we're together

Mmmmm Mmmmm Mmmmm
I believe in memories
They look so, so pretty when I sleep
Hey now, and when, and when I wake up,
You look so pretty sleeping next to me
But there is not enough time,
And there is no, no song I could sing
And there is no combination of words I could say
But I will still tell you one thing,
We're better together

YOU GOTTA LOVE JACK JOHNSON!

I am so overwhelmed at times with the blessings God has given me. I love my children, my family, my friends, and of course my Tim.

I've been tagged!

2008-02-07T08:41:00.000-06:00

My friend from the online yahoo Guatemalan adoption group, Julie, tagged my blog! Thanks Julie! Check out her blog too, just click her name.

So, here's the rules of the game:

Link the person who sent this and leave a comment on their blog so their readers can visit yours.
Post the rules on your blog.
Share 7 strange/weird facts about yourself.
Tag 7 random people at the end of your post and link their blog. Let each person know they've been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

So, here are my seven weird facts...
1. I'm a freak about germs; borderline psychotic
2. I can't stand the sound, or even the knowledge of someone clipping their nails. (toenails to be exact, but I really didn't want to even type it) My husband, being the lovely man that he is, closes the bathroom door and turns on the vent so I don't have to "know" or hear his grooming.
3. I love the smell of gasoline
4. When I was a kid, I hid my bacon under the bathroom scale (my brother and sister love re-living this moment; I got in SO MUCH trouble)
5. If I think about shrimp too much, I can't eat them
6. I can wake up easier at 6:00am than I can at 7:00am
7. I would do just about anything for a sliver of chocolate

So, there you have it. It's now in writing I am a freak. Oh well, it was bound to come out at some point anyway.

Tim adds: These are not even close to her 7 weirdest things! Wanna know? Well, all cash bribes will be considered. One thing that does add to the weirdness of number 2 is if I tell her I am only clipping my fingernails, it doesn't seem to bother her. Now, think about it, how does she really know if I am clipping fingernails or lying to her? Back to Tracy.

Alright, so now I get to tag 7 people.....hmmmmm.....

I'll be tagging Jennifer, my sweet sister in law, please check out her adorable blog. Lindsey, another one enduring the journey of adoption, who has a great blog. Emily, my knitting hero. One more adoption friend, Deb, a lady who has climbed the Guatemalan adoption mountain and made it! Well, that's not 7 but it will have to do. I'm out of time and names! Have fun visiting these blogs as well.

I promise to post pictures of my newly painted kitchen soon! Check back to see.

It's better to keep busy, right?

2008-01-28T19:19:00.000-06:00

I haven't posted since we spoke with our attorney in Guatemala, because I still haven't heard anything. It can be maddening. I do my best to keep my mind occupied with other things. As it turns out, there are MANY things to occupy my brain space. Too much to go into. There are also just as many things to occupy my hands. Which leads us back to why I haven't posted in a while. So, here's a little catch up of what we've been up to the last week:

I have been completely re-organizing my kitchen. Cabinets, drawers, pantry, even the fridge got a revamping. If you've been to my house you understand and our happy for us!

We spent last weekend in Atlanta visiting my sister and her family. We had a blast and LOVED all the snow they got there. Pictures are below. While in Atlanta we visited the Ikea store. I was in awe. We spent the whole day there and I felt like it was only 10 minutes, I was not ready to leave! Really cool stuff there, but I did find out why their prices are so cheap. POOR customer service and God help you if you have to call them. Anyway, off subject there for a minute. While there I bought some new shiny things for my kitchen.

When we got back home, our shiny things looked nice in our kitchen. Just not nice enough. We decided to paint the kitchen. Then our dinning room which is basically in our kitchen, looked awfully bare. So, it got a color bath also. It's amazing what a little (or a lot in our case) color will do. All this to say that this past weekend we spent the entire time painting. I use the term "we" very lightly. Only because Tim says he'll end up in jail if I paint with him. I'll let you read between the lines there. We are just not good painting buddies. I can't wait to post pictures for you guys. Hopefully I can do that tomorrow. I will forewarn you, it's bright! We are colorful people and our house certainly reflects that.

Here are some pictures from our time in Atlanta. Also, please keep petitioning God on our behalf about our adoption. Thank you!

Ginny and I had to "roll"/ push the belly of the snowman up the hill.

Oh it's coming Mike!

Nathan had lots of fun throwing snowballs at Dad!

Of course we couldn't leave Atlanta without Nathan sustaining some sort of crazy 4 year old boy injury! He was running and chasing and smacked the corner of their kitchen island with his eye. It blacked up for a couple days. He's good now.
Ginny and Tim had a lot of fun picking out songs together. Although I really got sick of hearing the same Jack Johnson song over and over and over. Sorry guys! Nathan on the other had LOVED the microphone. He was born to sing and dance. Actually I think he was born to preach! I wish I had it on video. At one point it was just Nathan and Ginny in her room, and Nathan started preaching a sermon. He said "God is the only one who can give eternal life", and he said "God is powerful". Then he started singing praise songs. Ginny and I looked at each other and our mouths were on the floor! I know the God is powerful part is in one of his memory verses at church. The eternal life part, I have do idea, but I'm proud!