I have four coupons for one month free Netflix. We have been using Netflix for over four years and have been really happy with the service. The coupons are for a no obligation one month free trial. First come, first served. They must be activated by October 31. Either email me (through the link on the sidebar) or leave your email address in the comments section of this post and I will send you the activation code and information from the coupons (you can activate it directly online).
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Happy movie-watching!
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**edited to add: Thank you for your interest, these coupons have all been spoken for. There are three that haven't been activated yet, though, so if I sent you a code and you changed your mind and aren't going to use it, please let me know since I have others requesting them.**
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(By the way, I'm officially down 30 pounds!)
I posted a couple months ago about a group that I'd recently heard for the first time. Well, we've had the cd since then and listen to it all the time. The girls each have their favorites - Silly Sally likes track 2, "The Twenty-First Time"; Bookworm likes track 6 "What Soldiers Do". I sing along to every song. There are songs that tug at your heartstrings, songs that make you tap the wheel and bob your head and every song lifts your spirit. .
Monk and Neagle are fantastic songwriters and have a beautiful gift they share in the praise and storytelling of their songs. I hope to be able to work our schedule (and budget) to take the girls to see them on the Mercy Me tour. I know it will be an excellent experience for all of us.
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Please go and buy this cd. You will not be sorry.
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*please don't miss my post below.
For the past four years, it has been on my heart to take care of a new baby. At first, I thought that meant we would have another of our own. And then, after a month of praying about it, I was given a message about other babies. Babies that would never be our own. Did this mean adoption? That didn't really make sense to me, since I knew (and still know now) that if we adopted, that child(ren) would be just as much ours as our girls. But, I gave it some thought and more prayer. And I was led to the Catholic Charities website. Where I read about foster parenting.
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I am not interested in traditional foster parenting, as I am certain I do not have the gumption to put my family through the struggles of other families. When I was in high school, my own family helped foster kids. I shared my room with 4 different girls in 9 months, sometimes 2 girls overlapped. Our experience was mixed - some good, some bad. It isn't something that I would happily do - if I felt called to do it, I think we'd wait until our own girls are about 10 years older. But that's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about fostering babies.
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Foster-parenting babies that are being given up for adoption. Little babies that I would care for and love and hold - and then give away willingly. It seems a bit crazy, to be honest. But, I really felt pulled to this ministry. And after a few months of talking and praying about it, bam, I was pregnant. And we thought maybe I'd misread the cues from God to pursue this baby ministry.
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But then, we lost our precious daughter at nearly 20 weeks. And the thought of fostering was so far from my mind. But, in the past 3 years, it has continued to pop into my mind in prayer. But because we've moved so much and life has been happening at warp speed, we just didn't give it much thought, knowing if it was meant to be (Husband said it wasn't), it would present itself in a way that would be obvious to us both.
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As an aside, I'll tell you why we continue to discern what God wants from us - what He wants from our family. We're surrounded by families blessed with many children. Of course, it happens a lot in the homeschooling culture - it is definitely a culture of LIFE. I have found myself more than once, almost defending that we have "only" two children, explaining that God has chosen a different path for us. One mother gasped when she heard that I've had 7 miscarriages (including the 2nd trimester loss of Gabriella). She said there was no way she could deal with that emotionally. I laughed and told her there was no way I could deal emotionally with her state of 8 children. The reality is, though, I'd love to have half that number of children. And yet...
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God has made it clear that the door is closed for biological children (at least for now). I haven't had a regular cycle in over 3 years. In the past two, I've only had 3 months of something that appeared to be a cycle, with absolutely no indication of ovulation at any time. In TWO years. I've had tests to find the cause, but everything comes back clear. There is no explanation and while it certainly isn't normal for a 30 year-old woman not to possess fertility, it seems to be my case. I've had the offer to use something like Cl0mid to stimulate ovulation, but we agree that we don't want to do something that chemically alters what's going on naturally. We feel like God must have a different plan for us.
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And He does. This summer, while we were on vacation, Husband was praying specifically about our family. Asking God if He wants us to pursue more children. And the answer was a clear "yes". And when I prayed, I was given the message about fostering. So, we prayed together and decided it is time to get the ball rolling - at least to get more information.
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And this evening, we talked on the phone to the coordinator of the program here in our archdiocese. And got information. And I thought, "whoa, is this really what we want to do? I mean, these babies are coming off drugs, most are preemies... what about sleep? and eating in restaurants?..." Husband said, "Let's pray." We finally told the girls what we were thinking of doing (read: "by the way, kids, we think we might turn our family life upside down to take care of needy babies"). We asked them to pray with us. After dinner, we went in the living room and sat together on the sofa, each with a string of beads in our fingers. We prayed a rosary, asking God to guide us, to help us know His will for our family. Afterward, we opened the Bible. We randomly open it and see if God has a word for us. Usually, we do this three times (I don't know exactly why three, but it seems to be our number). God gave us words each time - the first, in 2 Kings, we were urged to "stand in the renewed covenant"; in Ezekiel, we waded deeper and deeper, til it felt like we couldn't make it, yet God pulled us safely to the shore; and in Hebrews 13, Paul urged us to share what we have, for God is pleased by sacrifices of that kind.
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Afterwards, I tried convincing Husband of all the reasons we shouldn't do this - disrupt school, limit our flexibility, heartbreak to give away babies that I've cared for since their births, strain on our schedules (particularly for sleeping) and finances (aside from WIC for formula, there is only a small stipend to cover expenses and it won't cover all of them)... What a change from earlier today when I mentioned that I hadn't heard back from the coordinator. Husband was still trying to convince me it was all a bad idea. And tonight we realized we don't have a choice - God has called us to this. And if we are misreading this call in any way, we won't make it through the training process and the state licensing process and home-study.
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So, if you could, pray for us. We are going to be seeking extra grace in the coming months as we prepare our family for this ministry. And we'll be seeking even more grace once we are licensed. We are pretty much guaranteed to have a baby in our home shortly after Christmas. A baby with special needs - a baby who needs special love and care and attention. I just hope that we can be as special as God is calling us to be to fulfill His mission.
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I don't know where I got a link in July of 2006 to the blog of this family. But I have been reading their blog and Amy's incredibly steadfast-faith-filled missives since a couple weeks after her diagnosis with acute myelogenous leukemia. And her faith and complete trust in God, in the face of such suffering touched me, changed me.
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Over the past year, I have rejoiced when I read her first transplant went well. The sacrifice her young brother made was a new humbling experience for me. The one her even younger sister was about to make this week.... That a thirteen-year-old would willingly submit herself to a painful procedure in an attempt to help her sister heal - what an incredible family!
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I have also spent a significant portion of time over the past year praying for Amy and her husband - and their sweet son. When there was an urgent request for prayer yesterday, I called the girls in from playing and we said a rosary together for Amy and her family. I couldn't help but pray for a complete miracle and total earthly healing for Amy. Our last prayers were for God's will be done and that if it was time for Amy to be healed in Him, that it would be a happy and peaceful death. Roughly fifteen minutes later, that's exactly what happened.
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And yet, my heart aches. I rejoice for Amy - she's healed! she has defeated the evil that had broken her body. And she now fully rests, in joy, with her Lord. My heart aches for her husband, that he has fought alongside her and poured his heart into this precious, believing woman. That his future is surely nothing what he'd imagined just days, weeks ago. My heart aches for her beautiful son, her gift to her family. This little boy is a certain miracle himself, as he was born just months before his mother's diagnosis. May he grow up knowing how much his mom fought to stay with him, how her fierce love for him was more important to her than her own suffering - and how the best days of her life were the ones she got to spend with him and his father.
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Last night, as I read the news that Amy had left this world, I was filled with a different kind of sadness. I can't imagine what all of this must have been like for her mom. As a mom, you don't even want to imagine what it would be like to lose one of your children, let alone after watching her fight a beast the last year. Every time the doctors were amazed at the miracle that was Amy's case, I am sure her mother felt an immense sense of relief - that there was still hope she would beat the beast. The heartache I feel now, for Amy's mother especially is surely not even a portion of what her family is going through.
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I ask you to pray with me for peace for the Wilhoite family - the kind of peace that passes understanding. And I encourage you to read Amy's story, in her own words. I guarantee your heart will be changed.
(this post originally published on September 11, 2006)
. (this is the quilt square created in memory of Alicia by one of thousands of volunteers for this incredible non-profit organization: United In Memory).
In my attempts to" build" an accurate and personalized memorial, I failed to find much personal information about Alicia Acevedo Carranza. I learned only that she left her home in Teziutlan, Puebla, Mexico to find a better life in the United States. I learned that she was loved by her fellow students in Mexico, and that she befriended at least one who came there to study from a Central American country. I don’t know how old she was, if she had siblings or a boyfriend or husband...
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But I do know this: Alicia was a beloved daughter. Her life brought light and love to a family. Her smile warmed hearts. Her laughter brought joy. She sought adventure in a big city, she wanted a better life for herself and for her family. She may have sent her family in Mexico the money she earned working in New York. Someone said she had an "angelic face, compassionate mind and a free spirit." She touched the hearts of many. She was a friend. Someone that others loved and appreciated, and still mourn.
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Unfortunately for those who loved her, and those who knew her, her life was cut short at the hands of extremists. That Tuesday morning, she was on time to work - already at her desk? perhaps cleaning the floors? maybe cooking food in the cafeteria? on the phone as a customer service rep? We may never know what she was doing at the World Trade Center that morning when the planes hit.
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But her life mattered. Alicia mattered. And on this day, five years after her death, I want to honor her life. Her unknowing sacrifice has impacted the world. You can see how many people have left tribute messages here and here. People who have never met Alicia, and some who may have known her before she came to America seeking a better life. . Our country is indebted to you, Alicia, and all those who died alongside you on that fateful day. September 11, 2001 is a day that will live in infamy. . On this fifth anniversary of the tragedy that took Alicia home to the Lord, I just want to extend my personal condolences to her family and friends. While Alicia came to America to make a life for herself, you can be certain that your daughter and friend has found paradise with God. Alicia, you will not be forgotten. . God Bless all those affected by this national tragedy.
