Later that night? This happened.
Sunday, April 28, 2013
Alert! Eliot milestone!
This week we went to the dentist. Eliot was due for a cleaning and had three adult teeth sneaking in behind his baby teeth, heading toward shark-ism. Most kids his age have between 20-24 teeth. He has 27. Our little overachiever.
Dez kept trying to get into the chair with Eliot, so our hygienist put him up there and took a look! He's behind by 8 teeth...
The dentist set up an appointment for two weeks out to remove those baby teeth but told him to wiggle them as much as possible before then. After we left, I looked at each of them and we decided to focus all our time and energy to one on bottom.
Later that night? This happened.
He kept saying how now he looks like a second grader. Which is accurate. And terrifying.
Later that night? This happened.
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Ebenezer.
Samuel took a large stone and placed it between the towns of Mizpah and Jeshanah. He named it Ebenezer—"the stone of help"—for he said, "Up to this point the Lord has helped us!" —1 Samuel 7:12
I don't know if people notice this when they come over. I don't think anyone has ever asked. I don't know what made us start it. Not sure where the idea came from, but we have an Ebenezer.
Each rock was picked up at a meaningful location to represent a meaningful time in our marriage/life. Together they sit in a vase on our mantle, a constant reminder of pivotal moments or seasons where the Lord brought us through something.
2003: Three large flat dark gray stones- from a five year anniversary trip to Seattle/Portland. Celebrating "we made it 5 years!" Two young immature selfish people managed life together for five years. Thanks to God.
2007: Large volcanic rock- From Guatemala. Celebrating the completion of Eliot's adoption and the ending of all the trials that came along with that.
2007: Two stones; one small shiny and sweet. The other rough and underwhelming.- In STL, we went through a Marriage Camp with our church. Leading the camp was Deb and all of her wisdom. She used a kids science toy Rock Tumbler as an illustration of what marriage does (or should do).
2008: Small, smooth dark gray-Cancun, Mexico. Ten year anniversary trip! We made it! Ten years! We still like each other!
2011: Large white rock- STL, from Children's Home Society, to celebrate Desmond joining our family!
2012: Another volcanic rock- from fifth Guatemalan mission trip. God proving over and over that He's always doing more than one thing at a time.
2013: Small, round orangey rock- From Augusta, GA spring break trip as a family. Celebrating a season of rest.
We have so much to be grateful for over the last 15 years. God is, and always has been, good.
Here I raise mine Ebenezer;
hither by thy help I'm come;
and I hope, by thy good pleasure,
safely to arrive at home.
Jesus sought me when a stranger,
wandering from the fold of God;
he, to rescue me from danger,
interposed his precious blood.
—Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing
I don't know if people notice this when they come over. I don't think anyone has ever asked. I don't know what made us start it. Not sure where the idea came from, but we have an Ebenezer.
Each rock was picked up at a meaningful location to represent a meaningful time in our marriage/life. Together they sit in a vase on our mantle, a constant reminder of pivotal moments or seasons where the Lord brought us through something.
2003: Three large flat dark gray stones- from a five year anniversary trip to Seattle/Portland. Celebrating "we made it 5 years!" Two young immature selfish people managed life together for five years. Thanks to God.
2007: Large volcanic rock- From Guatemala. Celebrating the completion of Eliot's adoption and the ending of all the trials that came along with that.
2007: Two stones; one small shiny and sweet. The other rough and underwhelming.- In STL, we went through a Marriage Camp with our church. Leading the camp was Deb and all of her wisdom. She used a kids science toy Rock Tumbler as an illustration of what marriage does (or should do).
2008: Small, smooth dark gray-Cancun, Mexico. Ten year anniversary trip! We made it! Ten years! We still like each other!
2011: Large white rock- STL, from Children's Home Society, to celebrate Desmond joining our family!
2012: Another volcanic rock- from fifth Guatemalan mission trip. God proving over and over that He's always doing more than one thing at a time.
2013: Small, round orangey rock- From Augusta, GA spring break trip as a family. Celebrating a season of rest.
We have so much to be grateful for over the last 15 years. God is, and always has been, good.
Here I raise mine Ebenezer;
hither by thy help I'm come;
and I hope, by thy good pleasure,
safely to arrive at home.
Jesus sought me when a stranger,
wandering from the fold of God;
he, to rescue me from danger,
interposed his precious blood.
—Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing
Monday, April 8, 2013
Check 3/12
Yesterday I ran my 5th half marathon. 
Which is impressive because I still don't consider myself a runner. Not sure when that will happen.
I had three realizations from this run: (Four: if you count the classy idea of using my shirt as a kleenex)
First: The oh-so-hilly course took us through St. Louis University campus. Through that part of the course there were tons of college kid spectators, what with their SLU gear, quick metabolisms and Starbucks cups. I thought about college-me and what she would say if I told her that 36-year-old me was completing her FIFTH HALF MARATHON. She was very impressed. We were both pretty proud.
Secondly: Running for Erin and Bob's adoption made me notice what other people were running for. Clean water programs, Leukemia foundations, Cultural Leadership, etc. I really liked running for a purpose. If I ever run another it will be for someone besides myself. While the first four were a great accomplishment, this one meant more.
Thirdly: Our roomie agreed to bring the boys downtown to see me since Russ was at church. This was a big deal to me. We see Russ perform literally every week at church, where Eliot is often seen giving an unabashed thumbs up from the front row. We cheer weekly for Eliot during swim practice, homework completion, reading and t-ball. And, lets be honest, we cheer Dez on for just about everything he does. But yesterday? My boys were all really proud of me. They were cheering me on. Eliot was convinced I ran as fast as a cheetah. Which is totally accurate. If you remove most of the cheetah's legs.
A huge thanks to all my pledgers! My team alone raised almost $250. Still waiting to hear about the other runners fundraising totals!
Which is impressive because I still don't consider myself a runner. Not sure when that will happen.
I had three realizations from this run: (Four: if you count the classy idea of using my shirt as a kleenex)
First: The oh-so-hilly course took us through St. Louis University campus. Through that part of the course there were tons of college kid spectators, what with their SLU gear, quick metabolisms and Starbucks cups. I thought about college-me and what she would say if I told her that 36-year-old me was completing her FIFTH HALF MARATHON. She was very impressed. We were both pretty proud.
Secondly: Running for Erin and Bob's adoption made me notice what other people were running for. Clean water programs, Leukemia foundations, Cultural Leadership, etc. I really liked running for a purpose. If I ever run another it will be for someone besides myself. While the first four were a great accomplishment, this one meant more.
Thirdly: Our roomie agreed to bring the boys downtown to see me since Russ was at church. This was a big deal to me. We see Russ perform literally every week at church, where Eliot is often seen giving an unabashed thumbs up from the front row. We cheer weekly for Eliot during swim practice, homework completion, reading and t-ball. And, lets be honest, we cheer Dez on for just about everything he does. But yesterday? My boys were all really proud of me. They were cheering me on. Eliot was convinced I ran as fast as a cheetah. Which is totally accurate. If you remove most of the cheetah's legs.
A huge thanks to all my pledgers! My team alone raised almost $250. Still waiting to hear about the other runners fundraising totals!
Monday, April 1, 2013
Its time. For real.
Remember this post? Well, the race is less than a week away. You have FIVE DAYS to get your pledge emailed to me. (You pay after the race.) Here's the details:
You have three options:
1. Pledge $X.XX/mile of the RACE. (13.1 miles) i.e. $1/mile= $13.10, $10/mile would be $131.00 or anything in between or more or less.
2. Pledge a set amount.
3. Pledge nothing but run it yourself on my "team" and gather pledges from your peeps.
Here's where your entertainment comes in:
If I collectively raise:
$200: I'll wear silly socks
$500: I'll wear silly socks and a tutu.
$1000: I'll wear silly socks, a tutu, and something silly on my head
$2000: I'll wear a full costume of the donor's choice (there will be a vote) (appropriate choices only, duh.)
Contact me ASAP to join in the fun! katie l mohr @ g mail.
I hate to break it to you but we're only committed up to silly socks...(I'm only counting my pledges, not anyone on my team...)
I'm also selling these sweet little numbers at $10/each. Every penny you send me for the race or the bracelets GOES TO THE HANSELS ADOPTION!
You have three options:
1. Pledge $X.XX/mile of the RACE. (13.1 miles) i.e. $1/mile= $13.10, $10/mile would be $131.00 or anything in between or more or less.
2. Pledge a set amount.
3. Pledge nothing but run it yourself on my "team" and gather pledges from your peeps.
Here's where your entertainment comes in:
If I collectively raise:
$200: I'll wear silly socks
$500: I'll wear silly socks and a tutu.
$1000: I'll wear silly socks, a tutu, and something silly on my head
$2000: I'll wear a full costume of the donor's choice (there will be a vote) (appropriate choices only, duh.)
Contact me ASAP to join in the fun! katie l mohr @ g mail.
I hate to break it to you but we're only committed up to silly socks...(I'm only counting my pledges, not anyone on my team...)
I'm also selling these sweet little numbers at $10/each. Every penny you send me for the race or the bracelets GOES TO THE HANSELS ADOPTION!
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Check 2/12.
We did it! We flew south for spring break! Augusta, GA or bust! We spent the week with our dear friends, Bob and Margie who moved last summer. It was the perfect vacation.
I tried not to double up pics from our Instagram feeds and here. Feel free to follow us on IG for a daily snapshot. KatieLMohr and Allpurposecracker.
Saturday, February 23, 2013
Fallow
When a good friend says, "How are you guys doing?" these days, I can honestly answer "Great!". It's weird.
Our world is always full of things to be thankful for but for the last 7 years, there's been a lot of unrest. A lot of risks. A lot of adventures. A lot of hard decisions. A lot of hard conversations. We've had successful adoptions, unsuccessful adoptions, offers that never panned out, a return into infertility, starting jobs, ending jobs, moved back into the city, planted a church, switched to a different church, had close friends move away, started and ended bands and businesses. So...yeah, a lot of unrest.
Within the last year we finalized Dez's adoption, Eliot's IEP was set and he is killing first grade, and Russ was offered his dream job.
We've lived with huge question marks overarching our lives for so long that it feels unfamiliar to have them all answered.
When I taught 4th grade we spent 30 seconds of one social studies unit talking about farming practices in the middle ages (my class was nothing but gripping, I tell you. Edge of your seat kinda stuff.) That was the first time I'd ever heard of fallow fields. We didn't have a lot of those in the 'burbs of Detroit. If you look at the handy graphic I stole from the Internets, you'll see a visual on what I mean. Farmers would leave a designated section of their land unseeded or dormant between planting seasons. That allowed the soil to regenerate its mineral base, keeping the soil healthy and ready for the next planting season.
True story. Bet you didn't know you'd get an agricultural lesson outta me today, huh?
That's where we are. After the last 7 years (number of completion, anyone?) we're set in a fallow season as a family. It feels unfamiliar. The temptation is to stir something up. I hear stories of people fostering. Of people adopting. Of people starting businesses or buying new homes. We feel weird not doing anything risky or uncomfortable. We're not "in the game". We're on the bench.
Being in this season is giving us (me) a chance to catch up on things I've been attempting to fit in to the rest of our crazy life. It's given us a chance to start tying some loose ends that have just dangled for years. Things on the back burner are now actually receiving some attention.
I'm trying to be a good steward of this time so that when it's over, we are healthy and ready for the next planting season. Cuz, I mean, there's still room on our couch...
Our world is always full of things to be thankful for but for the last 7 years, there's been a lot of unrest. A lot of risks. A lot of adventures. A lot of hard decisions. A lot of hard conversations. We've had successful adoptions, unsuccessful adoptions, offers that never panned out, a return into infertility, starting jobs, ending jobs, moved back into the city, planted a church, switched to a different church, had close friends move away, started and ended bands and businesses. So...yeah, a lot of unrest.
Within the last year we finalized Dez's adoption, Eliot's IEP was set and he is killing first grade, and Russ was offered his dream job.
We've lived with huge question marks overarching our lives for so long that it feels unfamiliar to have them all answered.
When I taught 4th grade we spent 30 seconds of one social studies unit talking about farming practices in the middle ages (my class was nothing but gripping, I tell you. Edge of your seat kinda stuff.) That was the first time I'd ever heard of fallow fields. We didn't have a lot of those in the 'burbs of Detroit. If you look at the handy graphic I stole from the Internets, you'll see a visual on what I mean. Farmers would leave a designated section of their land unseeded or dormant between planting seasons. That allowed the soil to regenerate its mineral base, keeping the soil healthy and ready for the next planting season.
True story. Bet you didn't know you'd get an agricultural lesson outta me today, huh?
That's where we are. After the last 7 years (number of completion, anyone?) we're set in a fallow season as a family. It feels unfamiliar. The temptation is to stir something up. I hear stories of people fostering. Of people adopting. Of people starting businesses or buying new homes. We feel weird not doing anything risky or uncomfortable. We're not "in the game". We're on the bench.
Being in this season is giving us (me) a chance to catch up on things I've been attempting to fit in to the rest of our crazy life. It's given us a chance to start tying some loose ends that have just dangled for years. Things on the back burner are now actually receiving some attention.
I'm trying to be a good steward of this time so that when it's over, we are healthy and ready for the next planting season. Cuz, I mean, there's still room on our couch...
Thursday, February 21, 2013
Storage Wars
My apologies to anyone who receives a foster girl...you're on your own. For those who get boy placements, give me a call!
*insert awkward emoticon*
Some details now that this thing is taking off:
*Two families have already taken advantage of our stash! Woot!
*We are now offering donation letters for people to keep for tax records! Woot! #givemeyourstuff
*Eight families have already donated! Woot! Woot!
*Another family has generously offered to build more shelves! Yip yip woot!
What we're taking:
*Clothes! Girl clothes especially! Baby, toddler, kid sizes all welcome!
*Shoes!
*Target or Home Depot gift cards to pay for more tubs! (our basement is gross.)
What we're not taking:
*Toys/books/games/puzzles. Feel free to start that ministry in your own basement.
*Large items like cribs, exersaucers, high chairs, etc.
*Underwear (really?)
Also, if you're in the STL, spread the word to families fostering/adoption or involved in Safe Families. This is open to all, not just Journey Church folks. Otherwise I'm just a fancy hoarder.
Monday, January 28, 2013
Hoarding vs. helping?
If you didn't happen to see it, "Clean basement/create foster resource" was listed on my resolutions for '13.
Here's the thing: we've lived in this apartment for over 4 years and instead of going through the items in the basement and being intentional with them, we've just sort of spread ourselves out and added more crap.
Our basement has lots of space. Our basement has lots of crap.
Or it did, I should say. I've been working a few hours a week down there. Throwing stuff away, adding to the very large donation pile in the corner, selling stuff on Craigslist, giving other stuff away.
I've had this on my to-do list for 4 years. But now I'm actually doing something about it. (that doesn't include throwing a lit match down there and running for it.)
One day it clicked. I could actually use my basement for good (a foster resource) instead of evil (hoarding).
Our church has a growing orphan care ministry that I'm blessed to be apart of. While we don't feel like we're supposed to foster in this season of life, we want to support those that can. Over the last few months I've encouraged moms of young kids to keep their stuff they would normally sell or give away and wait for someone to need it, thinking "If only we had a space we could house and organize it all..."
Captain Obvious reporting for duty!
That's been the magic motivation I needed. I've got plans. I've got dreams. Maybe this is my Space Jam...
NOW!
Here's where I help you, help me, help them!
I need your stuff! Have you and your fam decided you were "done"? Still have boxes of baby clothes?
I'll never forget January of 2011 when we were suddenly readying to adopt a newborn and didn't have anything for him. You guys rallied like no other. I still remember sitting in the nursery going through bags and bags of stuff people gave us and crying. (not because it was ugly, but because everyone was so generous. Just needed to clarify...)
This will *hopefully* be an on-going ministry. So, keep us in mind as you pack up stuff your kids are growing out of. Fo real.
Here's the thing: we've lived in this apartment for over 4 years and instead of going through the items in the basement and being intentional with them, we've just sort of spread ourselves out and added more crap.
Our basement has lots of space. Our basement has lots of crap.
Or it did, I should say. I've been working a few hours a week down there. Throwing stuff away, adding to the very large donation pile in the corner, selling stuff on Craigslist, giving other stuff away.
I've had this on my to-do list for 4 years. But now I'm actually doing something about it. (that doesn't include throwing a lit match down there and running for it.)
One day it clicked. I could actually use my basement for good (a foster resource) instead of evil (hoarding).
Our church has a growing orphan care ministry that I'm blessed to be apart of. While we don't feel like we're supposed to foster in this season of life, we want to support those that can. Over the last few months I've encouraged moms of young kids to keep their stuff they would normally sell or give away and wait for someone to need it, thinking "If only we had a space we could house and organize it all..."
Captain Obvious reporting for duty!
That's been the magic motivation I needed. I've got plans. I've got dreams. Maybe this is my Space Jam...
NOW!
Here's where I help you, help me, help them!
I need your stuff! Have you and your fam decided you were "done"? Still have boxes of baby clothes?
I'll never forget January of 2011 when we were suddenly readying to adopt a newborn and didn't have anything for him. You guys rallied like no other. I still remember sitting in the nursery going through bags and bags of stuff people gave us and crying. (not because it was ugly, but because everyone was so generous. Just needed to clarify...)
This will *hopefully* be an on-going ministry. So, keep us in mind as you pack up stuff your kids are growing out of. Fo real.
What's your Space Jam?
If you haven't watched KidPresident before, it's time. This is a great one to start with and then I recommend his talk on diabetes.
And more Dez faces!
Thursday, January 24, 2013
Check 1/12!
I've had that word bouncing around in my head for months.
Whether it's how Russ and I met, got engaged, taught several years, maneuvered Eliot's international adoption, experienced foster care, started businesses, started bands, experienced the rise and fall of domestic adoption or the constant awkward interactions with people in public, there's always a story being told. There's always a story to choose.
Lisa and I were talking about the fact that the kids in their freshman year of college are exactly half a lifetime younger than us. It got me thinking about 18year old Katie.
18 year old me was shocked at herself for leaving the comfort of home to go away to college. 18 year old me was full of entitlement, uncertainty and a whole lot of fear. I didn't even want to cut my hair. All my "what if"s led to my demise.
At 36, my world is full of "what if's" but they all lead to some pretty exciting results. Maybe. Maybe not. The last 18 years have been hard but they've shaped who I am at 36. They are my story.
And if you haven't read my post over on Wynnes blog and you still don't get why I would put this word on my body for the rest of my life, head over there now. It's linked here.
I know our story isn't done. I know there are going to be hard roads ahead and seasons that will be more simple. For now, in this moment, I'm thankful for my story.
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