Senior Prom 2017

Juan loves to dance (and we are as far from a dancing family as you can get), so he has looked forward to Senior Prom all year long. When he had a job, he had big (and very particular) plans for his attire, his hair, and his mode of transportation for the big event. He quit his job in February due to several issues, and we told him to save the money he had in the bank for prom and also to buy the Varsity letter jacket he wanted. Well, after he bought the jacket and paid to fill up his tank with gas a few times, his money dwindled until he had next to nothing left in his account. It's funny how that made his priorities for prom change quite a bit. He had to make do with what he already had rather than buying a single thing. But you know what? He still had fun, and I think he learned a good lesson about money and priorities through it.

Let's just say I'm thankful there is no girl in the picture for him right now. He's got way too many emotional gaps in his life still to have the right maturity to deal with a girlfriend, and I've watched him regress in his emotional maturity the closer graduation gets (which is to be expected from a child with a background like his). Nineteen years or not, there's still a little boy trapped inside that never got to live out a normal childhood, and it's always a surprise when those childish moments surface. At times they can be incredibly frustrating and annoying, but I have to remind myself that it means he feels comfortable and attached enough to let that little boy out in my presence.

A few hours before prom, I asked if he wanted to go to a photo shoot with me. He readily agreed (to my surprise), so while David and Mike were at a soccer tournament, Juan and I went to several places and had a fun time together taking a ton of pics. It was actually a very bonding experience that I am thankful to have shared with him.

Guess who's 40????

So, I'm a bit late in posting this, but I had a birthday just a few days after my last post. Not just any birthday. This one marked that dreaded 4-0!

We had a lot going on, though, along with some hard news to swallow on that particular day (which I will save for another blog entry), so I never found a quiet enough moment to sit down and share my pics, my thoughts, or anything. This month has included a whirlwind of events and a rollercoaster of emotion that isn't about to stop anytime soon.

I started out the day reminiscing over the fact that it was also our ten year annivesary in our home. We officially closed on our first home on my 30th birthday on May 11, 2007. Now here we are ten years later, living a life we never could have fathomed just ten short years ago. We've come a very long way as a family. We've grown--in size, in number, and in spiritual maturity. We've traveled to Mexico, to Colombia three times, to California, to Pennsylvania, to New York, to Indiana, Illinois, and Missouri. Our boys have been to Oklahoma, Colorado, and California with church teams, and David has gone on mission trips with the church every single year since the fourth grade--as close as Arlington and Austin, and as far as Colorado and Los Angeles, California. We've made a lot of gains financially, and we've been through significant loss that only increased our faith in God's provision and constant presence in the midst of hardship. I dove into ministry teaching Bible studies at my church and writing two books, along with writing monthly stories/articles/blog entries for other ministries. I moved from teaching fourth grade to teaching second grade for six years and have now worked with the youngest students in the school for the last four years. I've been stretched far beyond what I ever thought I could endure, but when I look back on my thirties, I can only think of one word to describe them. Blessed.

So, knowing that I soon get to travel both to Guatemala and Spain, I told Mike that was more than enough for my birthday and that I didn't want a gift. I just wanted him to save that money so I could get my hair professionally done again (straightened) closer to my travels so I didn't have to deal with the headache of my very difficult to manage hair. He honored my request, and yesterday I took advantage of a day off from school to visit his friend's wife's salon. She's a sweet, sweet lady from El Salvador with an incredible talent for what she does. She just traveled to Spain recently to get trained in some of the newest products on the market. I had a wonderful time with her yesterday, and Mike achieved his goal in making me feel beautiful as a new 40 year old. :)

 He told me to start my day off right by stopping at the Starbucks just a few doors down from the salon.

 After five solid hours, here I am at the salon, ready to show off the miracle she performed with my hair. :) The rest of the pics are later after I got home. I am so thankful to know that my hair will be this straight, soft, and easy to manage for the next several (up to six) months.

On the day of my actual birthday, David let me know days in advance that he was treating me to breakfast, so we got up super early, grabbed a bite to eat at McDonalds, and then stopped at Starbucks before I took him to school.

Juan is not working and is flat broke, so I asked him if I could have his artwork that he's worked on all year in his AP art class so I could add it to my collection of artwork from his brother. I will have to take pics of some of those pieces later. He did post this sweet message on Instagram on Mother's Day, though. :) He struggles to express emotion and sentiment, so I am quite thankful for this post.

One of my little girls from my morning class at school overheard that it was my birthday, so she brought me a necklace and earrings. Then when my afternoon class came, my aide told them it was my birthday, and they all sang to me when I came outside to pick them up. One of the parents then came back after school and brought me a cake. Little by little, more gifts trickled in with the kids throughout the rest of the week. 

Mike wasn't too thrilled when I walked in with a cake in my hands that night because he'd already gotten me a cake with strawberries on it (in following with my strawberry tradition every year), so we indulged in both cakes after dinner. :)

I am looking forward to see what this next decade will bring to our lives. For now, my signts are on Juan David's high school graduation this coming Friday afternoon and his celebration party here at the house two days later. 

Naaman Forest Soccer Banquet

Thursday night we celebrated another great year for the Naaman Forest Soccer team. This year's banquet was rather bittersweet, knowing it officially brought Juan's last three years of high school soccer to a close.

About a week or so before the banquet, we got an e-mail asking for baby pictures of any seniors, or at least a few soccer pictures of them in their younger years. This is always one of those requests that make an adoptive parent nervous, and I told Juan I was sad that I didn't have any baby pictures or even younger soccer pics of him. But Juan quickly reminded me that I did indeed have a picture, and he insisted that I send the picture of him and his sister together holding a soccer ball. A picture taken of them when they came to the United States with KidSave. The picture I used to advertise our adoption plans. The picture I held close while I waited to bring them home. The picture that brought such incredible pain and heartache when the adoption failed. The picture I've held onto with longing to know more about that little girl, with hope to see her again and reuinite her with her brother some day. Seeing that picture so huge up on the screen could not have touched my heart any deeper.

Juan received the Defensive MVP award the last two years in a row when he played for the JV team, but this year he didn't get anywhere near the playing time as a varsity player, so we didn't expect for him to go home with any specific awards. His coach surprised us, though, by calling Juan up last to give him the Coach's Award, meanwhile speaking so incredibly highly of Juan's character and dedication not only to soccer and to his team, but to his Coach. He talked about Juan's determination and hard work to chase after what he wants, stating that one day he will be "the boss". After the banquet, Juan said to him, "Maybe I'll be back at Naaman someday." His coach said he'd be more than happy to see Juan come back and take his job. :)

Never underestimate the value of a coach in a boy's (or young man's) life. This man has had a very deep impact on my son, and I will always have great respect for him. We are grateful, thankful, and blessed that Juan had him in his life.

Now we look forward to things ahead. Graduation will be here before we know it. This weekend we worked on getting all the graduation announcements ready to send out next week, along with invitations to his graduation celebration here at the house. We also invited a few special people to attend the ceremony with us.

It's official

#WeareDBU.

Ok, so it was already official when he registered for housing and also registered for orientation next month. But then we got an e-mail about "Signing Day", saying they'd send Juan a free t-shirt so he could wear it, take selfies, and post them on social media to tell everyone about his choice to attend DBU. They also invited us to come to a special come and go celebration on campus on May 1st where he could get professional pictures of him "signing" his commitment to attend DBU.

Thankfully, we're only about an hour away and we didn't have anything going on that day after school, so both boys and I decided to enjoy the rest of the afternoon together hanging out at DBU.

We're thankful for the financial aid he's receiving and the Christian Leadership Scholarship that all helped bring the overwhelming pricetag of a private school look more doable. We're still taking a leap of faith that possibly another scholarship or two will come through or that God already has a plan to help us come up with the remaining cost. We know it's where He is leading Juan, so we are following in faith.