Madison's 3rd Birthday!

Madison turned 3 last month and I am still trying to figure out how that already happened! Check out my sweet sassy girl in her new "princess tutu" and sassy boots!

Can you believe that this lady joined our world 3 years ago?  I can't...

 The week before her birthday, I found her "reading" this book in bed. My initial shout to Randal was "we have a usurper!" Ha!

Little girl has developed quite a liking for all things princess themed, so for her party, the theme was given!  We had princess crowns for everyone to decorate, along with coloring pages and other fun stuff for everyone to play with!  m had a ball and, of course, loved all of the attention!

For Madison's Acts of Kindness for her birthday, I had all kinds of plans...then I was a horrible human being who let herself get overwhelmed by life and then get sick, so some of those plans got thrown out of the window! One thing that I did manage to plan was for Madison to ring the Salvation Army bell with my big brother, Marc.

They were so cute!  Madison made me hold her most of the time, but did venture out on her own for a little while.  She loved handing out the candy canes that Marc brought for the kids and and we even sang "Jingle Bells" for people for a little while to make Madison feel more at home...she'll do anything while we're singing!

 

I was proud of Madison for actually ringing the bell on her own for a bit and being a trooper even when you could tell she was a little out of her comfort zone.  And I can't even really begin to say how wonderful it was to see Marc in action as a bell-ringer.  He's done this for a couple of years and it was fun to see him do it in person.  The way the people of El Dorado responded to him and chatted with him, it was easy to see that he's loved there - made his little sister awfully proud!

For Madison's other 2 acts, that's where mommy's illness & ill-preparedness comes into play :) We took Madison out on the evening of her birthday to complete these other two tasks and did things that were quick so that we could keep her attention and really help her understand what was happening.  Mason was with us, so he even got to participate. 

He helped sister pick out a couple of toys and we donated them to Toys for Tots.

After we picked out toys at the store, we went and bought some hot chocolate and took it to a bell ringer since it was pretty chilly outside!  She was actually pretty into this and even showed off how well she had learned to ring the bell with Uncle Marc!

I'm so proud of my baby girl and how instinctly caring she is.  She is sassy through and through, but she is one of the most loving people I've ever known and I'm so very proud to be her mommy! 

Happy Birthday Madison Leigh! Love you baby girl!

Schafers Family Year in Review 2012

I was lazy this year (or just horrendously busy) and didn't get around to sending out a Christmas card or letter.  So here it is, folks, the Schafers family year in review! Enjoy!

Randal - Randy (only I can call him that!) started out the the first year of his 30s at 230 pounds and is now weighing in at 160 and that pretty much gives you the highlights of his year!  He has worked really hard at getting into shape this year. He started out with the Couch to 5K running program and kept on going. He started training on his bike again and is now competing in Duathlons (like triathlons without the swimming) and is doing great! He actually came in 2nd in his age group at the Oklahoma State Championships this Fall.  We are all very proud of how hard he's worked this year to get in shape and it's fun to see him having fun at his races. He is still working hard as the Lead of his group at CCH and even earned a spot in the "Acheivement Club" this year, which meant an awesome trip to Alaska for the two of us!  We had a great time eating way too much great food and exploring the beauty of Alaska at a resort right at the foot of a mountain. It was gorgeous and we had a lot of fun on our excursions and just relaxing for a few days!

Randal at the warrior dash in his 80's garb and entering the transition area at the OKC Duathlon

Randal and Beth in Alask on the CCH trip, seeing BB King at the Orpheum, & dressed as older folks for a "senior prom" with our church's youth group 

Randal posing with the pumpkins he helped decorate. He was even prouder than M&m!

Beth - It has been a hectic year! I got to take 2 awesome trips this year - the first was Randal & I's trip to Alaska, which was awesome! It was incredibly beautiful and relaxing! The 2nd trip was to Uganda with my friend Melissa's organization Mercy for Mamas. It was an amazing short term mission trip with a group of wonderful people. I posted about it a TON on this blog, so if you want to know more, you can look back on the posts in October & November! I had a fun year of running around donig "mommy stuff" and getting more involved in our church family. I was diagnosed with a VERY mild case of Lupus this past spring after completing a ton of testing trying to figure out what was causing pain in my hands. I had to stop doing as many cakes, etc, but other than that, don't really have any issues that slow me down!  I walked/ran the Color Run 5K in KC with Randal and we had a ton of fun doing that! I'm still working at Ethanol Products and still love being able to see my sister almost every day!

Beth playing Madison's favorite "shocked face" game & with Randal at the Color Run in KC

With the team delivering Mama Kits in Uganda

Mason - Mason turned 4 this year!  He is such a little man and we still call him Benjamin Button pretty often!  He will be officially starting public school preschool in January and is so excited to go to school with his friends.  He is super protective of his little sister, who is still his best friend (thank goodness this has continued!).  They love to rough-house and play together.  This year has brought some definite "boy" tendencies to our house, as we've been overtaken by plenty of super-hero movies and all of the toys that go along with them.  His favorites have rotated between Superman, Batman, & Spiderman, though we've now settled on Spiderman for quite a while.  He makes us laugh all of the time with how much conversation he provides and his hilarious observations on every day life.  He has started saying that things "make him feel fluffy" when he doesn't want to wear them...we still haven't figured out where this came from, but it makes us laugh every time!  He has moved up to the big boy classes at church and is initiating more conversations about God and Jesus, which makes this mama's heart so happy and full.  He has also become increasingly obsessed with being a "Ginger" and how cool that makes him.  He even wanted to make cookies for "His Gingers" for his birthday and we play "spot a ginger" any time we're out and see a random redhead!

Mason as Batman while watching cartoons and rocking out at his birthday party!

Madison - Madison turned 3 this month and is blowing me away with how quickly she's growing up...must be a "baby" thing - I wanted her to stay little forever!  She started speech therapy this year after we decided it was time to address some concerns that we had with her language development.  She worked with Rainbows United until her birthday, when she transitioned to the public schools here in Mulvane.  She has made progress in leaps and bounds and it was fun to see her show off at the holiday get togethers over the last couple of months.  Everyone is starting to notice how much clearer she is speaking and she is getting much less frustrated in her communications, which is leaving her room to grow and learn in other areas now too!  She is super spunky and hilarious and can always make me giggle, even when I'm trying to discipline her!  She has continued to become more girly, which is something that I encourage, but that also makes me feel a bit out of my comfort zone.  She loves princess movies and baby dolls and has even taken a liking to wearing skirts, etc (a big thank you to Pinterest for teaching me how to make a tutu!).   Now, if someone could point me to some tutorials on how to do cute hairstyles, it would be much appreciated ;)

Mason (Batman) & Madison (Super Girl) for Halloween & m at her pretty princess party

There you have it folks!  2012 from the Schafers house!

30 Day Giving Challenge 2012 Recap

I'm behind...on what seems like everything these days, but specifically on blogging. So I'm starting today by posting my follow up for the 30 Day Giving Challenge.

I didn't even consider taking on daily posts about my challenge this year.  I knew that there was no way on God's green Earth that I could keep up with that, so here we are, with a generic follow-up. But, hey, at least I can say I know my limits better than I did a couple of years ago, right?!

This year's challenge was exactly that...challenging.  I tried to think of new ways to give and wanted them, for the most part at least, to not cost any money.  I wanted to focus on opening my heart by giving my time and efforts more than opening my wallet.  I won't bore you with details about every day, especially since I'd like to keep some things anonymous. But I will say that, because it was more challenging this year, my heart was that much fuller at the end of November!

My favorite part of the month was what I dedicated to do every day. I sent a text or email or made a call to a different person every day.  I chatted and asked how their day or week was going, gave them some extra time that I don't always seem to make, and invested those moments to find new ways to pray for them and encourage them.  By far a worthwhile investment, as I now have 30 new prayer cards in my stash and know my dear friends' needs and can support them in prayer much better. I am determined to make time for those sweet conversations more often.

Some of my favorite giving opportunities from the month:
* Baking goodies for some neighbors and friends (always fun).
* I found a few new places to donate some items that I know will be appreciated. 
* I tried to leave change in the pop machine at work one day, then the extremely honest person that went in there next sent out an email trying to figure out who to deliver the lost 55 cents to!
*Going out of my way one day to give compliments to several moms that I encountered throughout the day on how they kept their cool with their fussy kids and taught them valuable lessons. You should have seen their faces ;)

My favorite moment of the month was one day towards the end of the month when I was running out of new ideas of how to give.  I was standing in line at Chipotle getting something to eat for lunch after running my errands and was racking my brain, trying to figure out what I was going to be able to fit in that day...it was one of those insane days, you know the kind!

While I was caught up in my own thought process and working my way down the line towards the register, the woman paying in front of me started to seem frantic.  She was digging through her purse and couldn't find her wallet.  Finally, she realized she left it in the car.  She asked the woman at the register if she could just leave her food there and run to her car to get her wallet.

She was obviously on her lunch break and a mom (you could tell from the things she was pulling out of her purse). She seemed just as hurried as I felt and was obviously frustrated with the wallet situation.  I knew God was presenting me with an opportunity to bless this woman, so I stepped closer and said, "Don't worry about it.  I'll get it, you just take your food and have a good afternoon."

The woman and the girl running the cash register looked at me like I had lost my mind. She finally agreed to let me pay and thanked me as she grabbed her bag and headed out. The girl at the register was just confused - I had to explain several times that I was paying for both meals - ha! I had never paid for someone in a line like that before.  I've always just done the drive-thru thing and I like that they don't know until I'm already gone, but this was kind of fun - seeing the expression on the woman's face when she realized what was happening!

I went about my business and left thanking God for presenting such an obvious opportunity right in the middle of my own stress.  As I walked up to my car, the woman got out of hers (ironically parked right next to mine) with a tear-streaked face.  She told me how stressful her week had been, that she was at her wit's end and feeling pulled in a million directions.  She told me that she had prayed that morning that God would refresh her and give her the encouragement that she needed to make it through the day.  She thanked me for being obedient to His prompting that day to serve others and be a blessing.  She told me she was determined to pay it forward and was already trying to think of ways to bless others that afternoon in the midst of her craziness.  Little did she know that I'm in one of those seasons myself where I feel run down, stressed, burdened, and searching for answers from God and that hearing how encouraged she was gave me the boost I needed to get through the day with a smile on my face. What an awesome moment!

I am always blown away by how people are affected by small acts of kindness and am so thankful that God can use us in such seemingly insignificant ways to affect so many people!

We're carrying this giving challenge through the year with our Acts of Kindness, and Madison and I will both be completing ours on our upcoming birthdays, so stay tuned for lots more fun encounters that I'll be reporting!

Uganda Post 10 - What God had to say to me.

Now for the really serious post...

What did I learn from God in all of this?

I prayed every day while planning things for this trip that God would use me to reach others and would use my experiences to speak to me. I knew that He would, but tried not to expect too much. I told myself it would be ok if there weren't any earth shattering moments or revelations; that there would still be purpose in what I did there and that He could still speak to me in small whispers even if I did want the big, loud screams to my heart.

And there wasn't a lot of yelling...not a lot of ground breaking…not a lot of surprise. Instead, there was constant pushing & prodding; constant reminders; constant remolding of my self and who I am known as. He renewed the callings on my life and restored my hope in letting Him have His way with them.

I made God a promise a few years ago. 
When I was at the end of my rope, in circumstances that no one wishes for, in a place where I was fully clinging to the only One I had left…

I promised that I saw it for His good and that I would use it for that. 

I promised that I would use my experiences to help other women who might feel like I did – lonely, frustrated, shattered, and without the ability to easily dream of wonderful days ahead like everyone wants to. 

I promised Him I would take what I learned and use it to build other women up, to restore their hearts in His trust and hope.

I promised that I would be different than the world.  That I would shine His light through my obedience to these other promises.

Then life happened.
I did what I could, which was the minimum.  I didn’t ask Him to open doors, I looked for the doors myself…and when I found them all closed, I threw up my hands and patted myself on the back for trying.

I let the still, small voice fade.  I told myself that it just wasn’t the time for Him to use my lessons. I told myself that my life was still a mess and that I wasn’t really in a position to help anyone else now anyway. I told myself that, eventually, the right situation would arise and I would be ready to jump in and get down to business when it was the right time.

I acted like the people I saw around me.  I was bitter and hopeless and said things I shouldn't.  I ignored the proddings on my heart that I was meant to do something different...something much, much bigger.

Then Africa happened.
There, He used my stilled mind to remind me of my promises, and more importantly, of His. He told me I didn’t have to have my problems fixed to be useful; that I’m much more useful to Him when I realize that I don’t have it all together.

He reminded me of how much I longed to know that another woman understood my thoughts, fears, and feelings and could provide hope to me in the darkest moments.

He reminded me how much we women need each other.

He reminded me that I do have beautiful days ahead, here and after my earthly days. And that, even if it doesn't mean that things get better and life is all gumdrops and rainbows, it is worth it to follow Him until the end.

He gave me new friends…who, for the first time in a VERY long time, made me feel understood and not alone in where I am. I will forever be grateful for those whispers into my heart and how much they set me free from my fears and turmoil.

He showed me that I came up with my own plans, and that those needed to be ignored.  He showed me that He can use my experiences in much bigger ways than what I ever had in my head.

He renewed my heart for other women…of all backgrounds, life stages, situations, and locations.  He reminded me of how much I love connecting with other ladies and how much I love to share with them and break down barriers around their hearts. 

He showed me how much it pleased Him and how much good it could do for Him for me to just encourage someone in a brief moment.

It was only a week and a half.  We've been back for a month now and He continues to remind me of these things every day.  It's a slow burning that continues to build.  He continues to show me the path He wants me to follow.  He gives me the freedom to close the doors that I've foolishly forced open in my own efforts and guides me to the doors He's opening instead.

Uganda Post 9 - The Sights & Funnies

These things aren't serious or deep...but I still don't want to forget them :) These are the things that still make me smile when I think of them...

Melissa asking me every 2 minutes if I would still be her friend when we got back home.

I took a Tylenol PM before our flight out of Uganda so that I could sleep. I feel asleep as soon as I sat down on the plane and the flight attendant and Melissa R. had to shake me awake and have me fasten my seatbelt so that we could take off.

On our road trip to Jinja/Mbale, we rode on a japanese bus that said something like "Excuse me....this IS a bus". I REALLY wish I would have recorded it on my phone and made it my ringtone...

How I met Kerri: Becki left her phone charging at our seats at the gate while she ran to the restroom.  She had already told us that Kerri's connecting flight was going to be quick and she was going to have to run through the airport.  So when Becki's phone started ringing and Kerri's name popped up, I felt like I had to answer it.  So I got to introduce myself while answering a stranger's phone to the poor girl on the other end who was running through the Atlanta airport...awkward.

At the Starbucks in Amsterdam, Kerri = Gary.

The kids across the road from the hotel in Mbale shouted "mzungu!!! mzungu!!!" until I acknowledged them every time I came in and out of my room.

Melissa driving the van...thanks goodness we weren't in Kampala.

Melissa's Ugandan sunglasses.

Kim & Melissa taking their Katniss Everdeen bows home for their kids.  Motherly love, meet airport security...