leap of faith

By the turn of the year, Cathy and I will be settled into our new location in California and have started to surround ourselves within a new community.

It's scary, but it's also amazingly empowering. We're taking the proactive road, the one where we are giving up what is familiar and comfortable, in order to shape our future. It's our leap of faith. We're trusting in ourselves to go chase our dreams and not wait for them to come to us.

It's not without great regret that we are moving away as we have made a really good life for ourselves here.

Our church, Trinity Lutheran in Ann Arbor, is top notch. We've been so very blessed to have found a spiritual home there and had created wonderful memories. Cathy founded a sacred dance group and also directed the Loving Casseroles hospitality group, and I brought Financial Peace University to trinity and spent a couple of years as the catechism guide for an absolutely amazing group of guys. I was baptized there, and through Trinity, I learned how to grow in faith and to serve others.

Our town, Saline, is nationally ranked as one of the best places to live. It is small town living at it's best and we've made it a weekly tradition to get apple fritters and pastries at Benny's Bakery, lemon ginger tea and sandwiches at My Favorite Cafe, and fresh and delicious Japanese cuisine at Biwako. We'll miss the quaint downtown with it's summer concerts, trees sparkling with lights lining the street, parades, friendly faces, and relaxed pace. There's good swirl here, and we've loved every moment of it.

Our home. Cathy and I have spent the past 6 years transforming a cute townhouse into a beautiful and cozy home. From the cheerful paint colors, to the gardening, to the cottage style furnishings, we've never felt so settled as we have here. We have wonderful neighbors, and an amazing view. Every evening we're treated to gorgeous sunsets over rolling hills crowned with a stand of trees.

Our friends. We've been truly blessed to have found such wonderful friends! Some we have only recently met and some we have known since we first moved here 11 years ago. My volleyball team, I've played with for seven years or so. We're not the most talented bunch on the court but we know how to play well with each other and have won our fair share of championships. Each of our friends has been a blessing in our lives and we'll feel the loss of their company keenly.

Even these words barely describe the rich fabric of people, places, and things that we have experienced and fell in love with out here. The word 'Michigan' means more than the name of a state or a university. It will forever be a sense of 'home'.

Thank you, Michigan! We'll never forget you, and we will return someday.

why God created spiders

Let's face it. Spiders are creepy. They have multiple beady eyes, skittery legs, and alien-looking mandibles.

If they didn't do such a great job reducing the mosquito and fly population they'd have very little redeeming value.

But why do they have to be so repugnant? I'll tell you why.

One time Cathy and I were driving home after a vacation. It was late and I needed a bathroom break. We pulled into a rest stop where a number of motorcycles were parked to the side.

I rounded the partition to the men's room and started to reach for the door when I stopped cold. There on the door knob was a spider whose legs spanned a good couple of inches.

That moment of pause, however saved me though, because when I stopped, I saw a black boot appear on the other side of the partition and also stop. My hesitation to enter, likely made the biker feel as though I was aware of him. I turned back and he retreated.

Upon reentering my car, and locking the doors, Cathy told me what she saw.

As I walked toward the lighted restrooms, a man stood up and crept toward me. She sensed the ill intent from him. She was willing me to stop and when I did, he turned and quickly went back into the shadows.

I'm convinced that I would have been mugged at least.

This might not answer why God created spiders, but I'm glad that He uses their characteristics to keep his children safe.

Our first adoption

Fall 2009 means we celebrate the 4th anniversary of our 'first adoption' - Sydney the Border Collie / Husky puppy!

To celebrate, we created a little photo album to share. (Hopefully soon we'll be chasing a baby (or two) and not have time to make these!)

Enjoy!

Gaining Momentum

Something I have discovered about myself this year is that I really enjoy gardening. It was never something I had patience for before but this summer I took an active role in growing peppers and tomatoes, and also to prune overextended houseplants and then transplant the cuttings into new pots. It's been quite relaxing and I enjoy the feeling that I have somewhat of a green thumb.

I believe this also reflects my transformation and readiness to become a parent. I look forward to every little adventure - exploring old places with new eyes and new places together as a family.

Another important calling to me is through Financial Peace University. I brought the program to my church in the Spring and have really felt blessed to walk with each family on their journey out of debt and into wealth. It's been a new experience in serving others and one that has been amazingly rewarding.

I've also started running again this year. I've only been averaging about 15 miles a week, but I feel energized and balanced through this regimen and my goal is to get back to a sub-7 minute mile. I've got a long way to go though, but I'll put in the time to make this goal a reality. Meantime, it's also helped me lose a few pounds and also perk up my metabolism!

With Summer coming to an end, it's time for me to dust off the backpack and finish that MBA. I've let it sit on the back-burner far too long, and while I've gained a tremendous amount of experience and expertise in my industry, I want every opportunity to reach the next level in my career.

Cathy is working to finish a program in Occupational Therapy and I'm very proud of her diligence and resourcefulness in making this happen. Because of her efforts, she should be able to complete this without paying a dime through grant money she's been able to find and qualify for.

Most importantly though, is my amazing relationship with Cathy. This year we celebrate our 15th anniversary. My how it's gone by in a blink! We have gone through a lot with our journey to start a family and I am so blessed that we share this path together. She is going to be the best mom and I can't wait to see her in action.

2009 has been a great year so far. We are taking the steps to prepare ourselves physically, emotionally, spiritually, and financially for our future, and are looking forward to the next big adventure - parenting!

Bring it on!

Serving others

This past weekend, Cathy and I cooked and served breakfast at Alpha House, a local shelter and support facility. There were a few families staying there at the time and lots of children.

It's always a joy for us to serve others who are facing challenging situations such as this and we always leave feeling peaceful.

The children this time were quite boisterous as there was a family that had 5 kids, 4 boys and 1 girls ages 18months up through 7 years. Talk about a whirlwind of activity, chatter, and energy!

They were very curious about us and asked all sorts of questions. Did we have any kids? Did we have a dog? Do chipmunks live in our yard too? Why are the waffles shaped like hearts? What type of games do we like to play?

It reinforced how ready we are to have our own children and to teach them our experiences, beliefs, and values.

We look forward to that day with great anticipation.

Blue Angels

Since Cathy and I both grew up near a naval base, we became accustomed to summer airshows featuring the Blue Angels. There's something both patriotic and protective in the sound of F-18s in flight for us.

Plus, the Blue Angels are among the elite pilots in the world who make the most difficult precision flying maneuvers look effortless.

It was wonderful to watch them and we cannot wait to share this experience with our future children!

Go Blue (Angels)!

Gone Campin'

One of the best things about living in Michigan is the camping. Lots of shady places and lakes, and you can just relax and enjoy the campfire and amazingly starry skies.

We recently camped out at one of our favorite spots and really had a great time. Our good friends let us borrow some camping equipment (much better and smarter than buying it!) and we set up a mesh canopy around the picnic table and a 2-room tent for sleeping.

Stocked up with firewood, food, books, and Sydney the dog, we were ready for a weekend getaway.

We hope that you are enjoying your summer as much as we are!

Peace,

James & Cathy

Our Adoption Video - Better Together

Hello all!

Cathy put together the cutest video photo album and we're going to post it to YouTube as another way of showing prospective birth parents more about us.

Here it is. We hope that you enjoy!



Love,

James & Cathy

Happy Easter

Happy Easter!

On this day of resurrection and renewal, we look forward to the end of a long cold winter and the beginning of a bright new season.

May you always walk with His grace and blessings.

James & Cathy

Photo books are done!

Cathy finished our family photo books and they look great!

These books are little photo albums to help birth mothers to get a better idea about prospective adoptive families. Cathy spent about a year putting them together on Shutterfly and they look phenomenal!

I'll add some photos of it soon, but it was great to get this final step out of the way. Now it's all up to God to gather us together as a family...

Here comes the sun

It's been one cold winter this year and I'm really glad to see a day above 30 degrees. Of course I had to be sick and pretty much missed it.

Watching the Super Bowl now and pretty much have to say the hardest hit so far has been Bruce Springsteen sliding into the cameraman during the halftime show. It's nice to see that Silvio Dante got a release from the big house to play some guitar as well.

As far as the adoption goes, we've not heard anything yet, but have been given the honor of writing a referral for our friends Brian and Stephanie who are looking to adopt a second child, this time from South Korea.

It's been a long wait for us but we know that God has a very special baby waiting for us, and we're going to do everything possible to be prepared to welcome him (or her) into our lives.

For now, we'll cherish our time together before the next big adventure.

Stay tuned!

Here's looking to a great 2009

Well, it's New Years Day and 2008 has finally come to an end. I have a strong feeling that 2009 is going to be amazing!

May the new year bring you every joy!