This cracked me up...

Caleb is playing with the fan, flicking it on and off - on and off - on and off.

Mom intervenes.

"Caleb, stop."

flicking continues...

"Caleb, no more."

another 3 flicks...

"Stop."

another 2....

"Stop."

another flick...

"Caleb listen to your Mom, I said NO MORE! That's 2 minutes on the floor by yourself now buddy. You did not listen to Mom. This is your consequence."

The screaming begins followed by an angered response of :

"Jesus is bigger than you Mom!!"

What? Oh my word...I just about died laughing. It was hilarious. Even when he's mad he is just so cute I can barely stand it. Jesus is bigger than you Mom? Where did that come from? Priceless. I replied "He sure is bigger than me!"

These make me smile

Caleb at our team's 4th of July party. Held actually on the 5th but hey, who's keeping track anyway? We celebrated at least. That's what counts, right?
We made S'mores over the grill.
You do what you can...Caleb took this small cart and made it into a skateboard in our living room last week. Hello, my way creative son.
It was so fun to watch him do wheelies and crashes!

Just Lookin' for 10...

That's right, I'm looking for 10 people. Just 10. 10 individuals who are willing to find $30 per month in their budget. I know, not an easy feat these days. Possible? Most definitely!
I am setting a challenge before all of you who read this blog...to help me find 10 people who are willing to start a monthly support of only $30 per month. If you click on my financial giving link just the right you will find all of the details.
Will you be one of the 10? Would you be willing to help me find 1?
The goal is to find 10 people by September 1st. I think we can do this!
As I mentioned, just click on the link to the right about financial giving for more details!
love and thanks,
kels

When I get to Heaven...

(As told to me this morning at breakfast by my son, Caleb, age 4).

1. I want Jesus to put me up on his shoulders. He can do that, right? Then I'll be so tall because Jesus is bigger than everyone!

2. I want to play drums for Jesus. Do you think He'll let me? Then I can play the drums and it'll start raining outside everywhere. I want to play drums with Jesus in Heaven.

3. Where are we going to sleep? Do you think Jesus has a big bed - a REALLY big bed that goes "all the way to the shelf" and we can all sleep in it together?

4. I want to play a guitar for Jesus. Do you think he'll have a real guitar for me - a big guitar?
A blue guitar, that's what I want. To play guitar for Jesus.

*note. i have no idea what "all the way to the shelf" means in terms of bed size. we have no shelves in our bedroom. hmmm...*

7 Teenage Boys + Kelsey + Caleb

Going food shopping with some of the transit boys this morning
(Caleb in middle : ))

That was 8am-1pm today! The foundation, FCE, that I serve under here in Marghita has a project they call "Transit Homes." Youth from the State Orphanage we work with are hand picked and come to live in the 3 Transit Homes that FCE runs. They are generally the youth who have the highest probability of being able to live on their own successfully in the future. They live in the Transit Homes with a Romanian family, who teaches them how to take care of themselves in every way possible. From hygiene to food, to chores and how a family runs - and how Jesus is a part of that all. These boys and girls stay in these homes from 2 to 4 years until FCE feels they are ready to move out on their own. When they do move out they then move to the "Final Help" project within FCE. So although they are 'on their own' they are still being emotionally, spiritually and financially supported by FCE.
We have 2 homes for boys and 1 home for girls. The parents of all 3 homes get little or no vacation time per year. As you can imagine, finding fill in families to take care of 7 teenagers is almost impossible. Well this year the families were kicked out for a month for a mandatory vacation/rest time : ). Some of us signed up to help with taking care of the boys while the parents are away. I was on for this morning and will be again Thursday morning with the Transit home that is right here in Marghita. I know those boys the best and Caleb really enjoys being with them as well. I helped them plan out their meals for the day, go shopping on a very tight budget ($3/boy for all 3 meals!) and prepare the food. I wasn't sure if it was going to be a stressful time or not this morning, I have to admit that. But, I am really pleased to say that Caleb and I both had GREAT time this morning with those boys. Thursday morning will be something to look forward to as well! I'm really excited.
Caleb is really confused at the moment why a piece of corn-on-the cob, that he found dried up on the floor, isn't able to be re-planted in the garden that we have. Poor little guy at 4 years old just doesn't get why something that looks like a seed can't be planted and grown! : )
I've tried explaining how if it's boiled it won't work...he's not so happy!

A Very Full Sunday

Going to church and back took us from 8:36am until 2:15pm today. Caleb's good friend, Dani, hadn't seen the new "Hermie and Friends" video that I had brought from the States. So, Dani and his Mom came over so the boys could watch. I then spent the video time going over the VBS material for the 2 mini outdoor camps I'll be running with the Casa Alba kids starting next week. Helena, Dani's Mom, spent the time secretly doing my dishes - yahoo! Helena then tried to leave with Dani but ended up with Caleb as well. That was great because I was able to finish going through all of the material and making the to-do list and need list for these 2 mini camps.
We headed over to Herculane, the Volunteer House, to go swimming and I worked on recruiting some help for finding everything I'll need for these camps. Just before we were about to leave one of the current volunteers who was building a deck and a stone pathway needed help pushing the stone bin up the hill from the stone pile a couple of times. So I helped out with that and ended up irritating a muscle that I've had problems with for about 8 years now. Been to therapy for it, been injected for it, on different medications for it...nothing fixes it. Somehow when I pushed that bin it just twisted it the right way to be super painful. Excellent. Caleb cried a third of the way home, through drinking a cold glass of milk, through a cool off shower, peeing before bed, bed time routine and for 30 minutes after that as well. He is exhausted I think, to say the least. So is Mom. Thing is prayer group meets at my house in 23 minutes and I still haven't finished planning for the team Bible Study and worship tomorrow night. Plus, it's my Cooking Day for the team tomorrow. That means I need to leave the house at 8am and I'll get home at 2pm. Lots to do! Lots to do!

You know you have a 4 year old son when...

1. You crawl into bed and find a Battery Operated Lightening McQueen car 'tucked in' to your pillow space already.

2. You are told "Mom, when I get big we are gonna be married and then after we are big and married we are gonna' buy a car. Kay?"

3. You are reading a book about a donkey named Clopper. Only you can't read 1 page without hearing the following, "Mom, why isn't his name Clopster? Clopster is better. Not Clopper. Clopster Mom, Clopster." Then follows the laughter.
Every page. That's right, every page this happens.

4. You are preparing supper when you are shot with water from a squirt gun down the hall.

5. A 4 wheeler (the only one in Marghita by the way) rolls down the street and you hear "Mom, for my 6th birthday I want one of those, Okay?"

6. You are suddenly aware that there is a Lion living in your apartment that only shows up during the 45 minutes in which Rest Time occurs. And, this particular Lion is, "Really A LOT scary" and makes for being alone in the bedroom at 2pm impossible.

7. Your most powerful disciplinary tool is to take away "the fast cars."

8. You hear "And me" after Mom says "I love you."

Vacation with Grandma, Mom and Caleb!

Some pictures from vacation in Patrahaitesti and Sibiu...both in Romania. My camera battery died in Sibiu and I forgot to take my camera with me to the 100 foot waterfall in Patrahaitesti. I know, I know - lame. We had a really great time though and some of the flowers and scenery in Patrahaitesti I had never seen before. Caleb held up really well and really loved hiking in the mountains!

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