Ashes to Africa

For those of you who don't already know them, let me introduce to you Josh, Amy, and Silas Bottomly. They are an incredibly adorable family who recently adopted their son Silas from Ethiopia, and are in the process of adopting a little girl.

Here is an adorable picture of their family.... Silas is one adorable kiddo!

Matt and I are so excited to serve along side Josh and Amy as part of the sponsorship group for Kebebtsehay and Moses orphanages, as they are heading up our growing group! We are so excited to get to meet Silas in real life! (and Amy and Josh too :))

They so graciously wrote a book and shared with all of us their story. It's a story about marriage, forgiveness, grace, hope, anger, love, redemption....you name it. Yes, it's mostly about adoption, but it's more than just about that. It takes you on their journey with them, they are real and transparent, and I'm so thankful for that.

I devoured it in one sitting, my Mom already finished it, and Matt is working on it now. It's good stuff people..... For more information on their book or their story visit their blog. They also have a website for their book if you would like your own copy!

Basketball

For those of you who know me, right now you are thinking...."Ali is going to blog about basketball? This should be good...."

Well you are all right, I know very little about basketball, though I'm learning all the time. I now know what a box and 1 is thank you very much! :) This week I've watched something ridiculous like 6 or 7 games, and there's more on the agenda for tonight and tomorrow as well.

This post won't be so much about basketball as it will be about how important it's become to me in the past few months. When Matt and I got married we shared a ton of interests, and still do. We both love being outside, concerts, music, missions, children, family, thrift store shopping, baseball, etc. etc. But basketball wasn't one of those things that we shared. His love of basketball was as foreign to me, as my love of a new pair of shoes was to him. He used to think they are just shoes, and I used to think what's the big deal, it's just a game. And we are both right...they are just shoes, and after all it IS just a game, but to the person who loves it...it's more than that.

Being married has taught me a lot about how to love someone else. No, basketball may not be something that I have loved since I was young, but there isn't very many things I enjoy more now, than watching my husband coach a game. Funny thing happens when you love someone... you start to enjoy some of things they enjoy. By going, cheering, and genuinely participating in this part of his life, I have gained soooo much. I am so thankful that the Lord has helped me to understand this is one of the ways for me to love Matt.

Now after a game he's the one saying, "Babe we have to get up early, can we talk about the game in the morning?" And believe it or not....all I can think about is whether he thinks man or zone defense will work better against his next opponent. :)

bummer....

So the past couple of months or so Matt and I have been pumped. After we commited to sponsor a child from Kebebtsehay, we found out that there would be a possibility for a trip to Ethiopia. We started thinking, planning, and dreaming about what it would be like to get to go and serve and spend time with those precious children. We have been praying for an opportunity like this for quite a while....so it seemed like this was perfect and an answer to our prayers. Fast forward to about 2 weeks ago. We get an email explaining that the trip was in April, the cost, the activities that were planned such as VBS, etc.

April....what a month. Matt is teaching school, and will be in the middle of baseball season. Just a little side note, teachers get 3 personal days a year, and we would be gone 8 working days. I will be finishing up my Master's degree and in a statistics class that I've been putting off for 3 years because I'm so terrified of it, preparing for my national exams which I will take March 6, and to top things off I am suppose to go to a training for my job during that time. Nice.

You've gotta be kidding me right????? As we continued to think and pray, despite what our desires were....God was saying wait. No matter how we tried to ratioanlize, change the circumstances, and work around the hurdles....He kept saying wait. For all of you who know me, you know that I tend to run short on patience. My husband on the other hand is like Job, and puts me to shame with his unending patience. Wait is like a dirty word to me. So after more whining than should have been allowed, and several instances where Matt would give me a look like only he can after I'd created this crazy, absolutely ridiculously impossible idea about how we could make this work.....we resigned that we will do just that. Wait. We'll wait until He says it's time to go....and when it is time we'll be the first ones in line! :)

Here is a picture of Bear and I on Christmas Day...I'm posting it because I'm still being a big whiny baby and seeing his cuteness makes me feel better! He's cute enough to make anyone feel a little bit better! :)

They are loved!

One of the main reasons that Matt and I started a blog was to meet and stay in touch with the other people who have also committed to sponsor a child from the Kebebtsehay or Moses Orphanages in Ethiopia. I figured this was a good time to introduce you to the place on the other side of the world that holds pretty gigantic pieces of our hearts right now!! Please pray for us if you think about it, as a trip to visit may be a possibility in the future....

Kebebtsehay Orphanage

(the majority of this was taken right off of the RLC website, so go here for more info!

The kids at Kebebtsehay are full of life and energy! The grounds are positioned on a hill so we searched for something to do as the playground equipment is in shambles. The kids make the best of it and we finally settle on playing catch with a makeshift ball made from rolled up socks. Some of us offer to buy balls or toys but Sophia, orphanage director, asks that we buy diapers and formula instead. We wrap up catch and make our way to the baby room to get a better understanding of the origin of her request. As soon as we arrive we realize that the workers are up to their eyes in folding clothes and comforting little ones so we offer to help. Even with four additional sets of hands we cannot keep up with the demands of 20 newborns! I pick up a little girl named Solana as Sophia a does the same with a boy named Abimalech. As I stroke her head I notice that the hair on the back of her head is gone. And I don’t have to ask why.


What they need...
Family. The children at Kebebtsehay need a church family who will offer stability, love them through letters and personal visits, walk with them through life, and be the hands and feet of Jesus to them.



The Basics. Serving these orphans begins with meeting their basic needs for survival. Today, right now, the kids at Kebebtsehay do not have enough food, and the plethora of babies needs a recurring source of diapers and formula. We need to replace the playground equipment and help with furnishing the school. Children’s HopeChest needs to raise $25K immediately to begin providing food and expanding housing facilities while we find a church sponsor. If you would like to contribute, please email daniel@hopechest.org.

Help. Children’s HopeChest is hiring in-country staff to oversee and manage these Orphanage Sponsorships and to identify additional sponsorship opportunities. The field team’s role is threefold: 1) point of continuity, trust, and fun to the kids throughout the year 2) point of financial accountability for orphanage leadership and 3) facilitate connections between the sponsoring church and children in the orphanage. If you would like to contribute to this critical partner, please email daniel@hopechest.org.

Merry Christmas blog world!

The Christmas season is here....finally! I wait all year for this month. I wait for the lights, the suprises, the gifts, the parties, the fellowship, the incredible Christmas songs, the family.....I just absolutely love it!

This year it has been easier for me to focus on the true reason for the season than it has in the past. I don't know if it's because I'm getting older or if it's just where my heart is this season, but for whatever reason I'm thankful for the change.

I fear that Jesus and his birth get lost in the chaos of this season, and the message that the world needs to hear the most never gets delivered. Unfortunately it happens year round, but focusing on His birth and a holiday dedicated specifically to it, is such a gigantic opportunity. We have a fantastic opportunity to give an explanation of our actions, our lives, and the Savior that we choose to worship and why. I pray that Matt and I do a good job of that this year. After all....souls are at stake!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!!

Matt, Ali, and Bear

Baby it's cold outside.....

Today it is absolutely frigid....well, it is for Oklahoma. My parents lived in Alaska for years, if it felt like 6 below there it would just be a pretty spring day! :)

The weekend was incredibly busy, but fun. Friends birthday parties, sister in law's graduation party, and a church Christmas party. If you need a good laugh get a bunch of adults together to play dirty santa that range in age from 23ish to old enough to be the crypt keeper's grandma, and you have the recipe for an entertaining evening!

Last night as Matt and I were getting ready to go to bed, I had this terrible nagging feeling that I'd had all day that wouldn't go away. It just sat on my chest like a huge, heavy weight. It's so strange to me how my mind and heart work. I've prayed for the Lord to make my heart more like his since I have been in junior high, and as he continues to mold and change me, the burdern I carry gets heavier and heavier...... somedays I rejoice in it, and days like yesterday I don't, which I'm not proud to admit. I just wanted to sit it down and take a break from it. I wanted to stop thinking about Ana, and Clara, and the children of Kebebtsehay. I just wanted to enjoy a day with my family and a Christmas party with my church without constantly wondering what Christmas will look like for them this year, and how many hundred opportunities I've missed throughout this season to advocate and love on them from afar. I felt like a fraud. I was sitting here warm, happy, and loved, and have the nerve to be frustrated with a burdern that I have prayed for..... Seems just as horrible today as I type it, as it did when I was feeling it yesterday.

Have you ever been close to tears for hours at a time? That's how I felt yesterday. Like it was almost more than I could bare to carry. When I finally laid down last night, I was thankful. I was thankful that this day of me being selfish and sinful was over, and prayed that tomorrow I would again be thankful that the Lord was molding my heart to look more like his, and giving me an oppurtunity to serve Him through them.

Good news...today I'm thankful.

yucky weather

The hubby has a basketball game tonight, and I would very much like to be the happy wife sitting in the stands, but that's probably not going to happen.

There's this little issue of my driving....my friends and family would say that I tend to be dangerous enough with no precipitation of any kind on the road, and with the addition of snow and ice, well it's a definite no go.

I can just see it all now....Matt would call a time out or come give me a lecture about my irresponsible decision making skills during half time! So I guess I'll just go home and snuggle up on the couch with Bear, and watch a movie.

Just in case the hubby reads this, I have a tiny suggestion of what I want for Christmas for you my dear.....
Pretty stinkin' cute huh??? Juuuuuust in case you are wondering where to find it....I have so kindly provided the website for you right here. Love you! :)