Figuring out Facetime!

 

Last month I  figured out how to connect with Nathan on Facetime.  We use it to video chat with him as well as send messages.  We had not seen him since our family time back in June.  So seeing him on the video was truly a blessing.  For some reason Facetime works here in Belize but Skype doesn't.  

The thing I have not mastered yet is how to.take a screenshot using Tom's iPad.  I had to use my camera to get this shot of the screen!  Thankfully Nathan is coming to visit for Christmas so he can teach us more about what the iPad can do.

So what new things have you learned to do?!

counting the gifts...

Gratitude.  

That is what is on my mind and in my heart right now.  Yesterday was a bittersweet day.  More sweet than bitter I should say.  You see on February 19, 1985 I went in for a routine pregnancy check up and the doctor could not find the heartbeat of the baby I was carrying.  I was sent for an ultrasound to check on the baby's well being.  The technician said not a word about the results... I was told to come back for the doctor to interpret them for me.  Tom and I went to the movies, ate some lunch, and went back to the doctor's office.  When we finally sat down with the doctor we were given the news that our baby was no longer alive.  

We were devastated. 

 It was truly one of the worst days of my life.  I thought I would never be happy again. Never.  The doctor went on to explain that he wanted me to go into labor on my own if possible.  And he also shared that not only had my baby died that day...but his best friend died as well.  He left to attend the funeral and be with his friend's family in a neighboring state for a few days.  I waited from the 19th to the 22nd to see if I would go into labor on my own.  When he returned, on the 22nd, I went back in to his office and he scheduled an appointment at the hospital to induce labor.

Our first child and only daughter was stillborn that night.

It amazes me that we have two sons.  I have been pregnant five times.  Two stillbirths just ten months apart in 1985...then Nathan was born in 1987.  Two years later I had a miscarriage...and nine months after that miscarriage Spencer was born in 1990.  So here we are twenty-seven years after Patricia Kaye was stillborn.  I am so grateful to be able to say that I am the mother of two living children.

Two incredible young men, Nathan, 24, and Spencer, 21, are alive and well.  

2006 Family photo in Krasnodar, Russia

2008 Spencer and Nathan in Dana Point, California,USA

2010 Spencer and I in Istanbul, Turkey

2011 Nathan's visit to Belize

Nathan and Spencer are two of the greatest gifts in my life.  I am so fortunate, so blessed, and so grateful to God for bringing them into being.  My heart is glad.  I am overwhelmed with joy as I realize how far we have come as a family.  Nathan's birth brought us hope and restored our faith.  Spencer's birth was cause for rejoicing and celebration...as our family was now made complete.

So this week I may have times of sadness as I remember and reflect on the days spent waiting for Patricia's stillbirth to occur.  But, I also know that I will spend these next few days rejoicing and giving thanks for the sons that filled our hearts and our home with love and laughter.  

    521.  the gift of Nathan.

    522.  the gift of Spencer.  

    523.  the precious gift of life.

    524.  the beautiful gift of family. 

    525.  the restoration of joy.                                                                                                      

 joining in with the gratitude community:

22? Already?

Today our oldest son, Nathan, is 22 years old. It is hard to believe that the time has gone by so quickly!

Happy Birthday Nathan!! We wish you love, joy, and an incredible year of God's peace and hope. God bless you, we love you!

A tale of two brothers

It starts with Spencer looking over Nathan's shoulder
as he plays a video game!
















Then I get them to pose for a picture...

















Nathan is not ready to let
go of his brother!
















brotherly love?

















yep... brotherly love!!

day three!

Friday, August 31, 2007

Today was day three of no hot water... I used my electric tea pot to heat some water so I could wash the dishes. It took three pots of water to fill the sink!

When Aloana was speaking the other night about what life is like in Dagastan for them she mentioned not having any hot water at all. They have lived there for 3 years and have not had hot water... I won't complain about my three days!

Spencer is babysitting tonight. He is getting closer and closer to being able to buy a slick new cellphone. He already has one picked out. He has been good about calling the new students that are here with kids to see if he can work. He probably doesn't realize how beneficial skills like that will be later on in life. It is not easy to pick up the phone and drum up work for yourself. Since school started he has worked each weekend!

Tom has his bags packed and is ready to go! He is flying from Albuquerque to Washington D.C. and then D.C. to Vienna. In Vienna he has a 14 hour layover. Tom is very resourceful when it comes to down time. I have no doubt that he will find a place to stretch out and rest! His last leg of flying will bring him directly here to Krasnodar! He will get here on Monday the 3rd.

I went to a prayer meeting this morning for the East-West women who are here in the city. We are going to meet twice a month so that we can support and encourage one another. I have to admit it feels like a such a treat to get together with women who speak English!

Please keep our friend Ann in your prayers. I received an email from her husband, she needs to return to America for medical treatment. Ann and Robert were students at our language school, they are also with East-West. Ann was very supportive of me when I reached out to her regarding Nathan leaving home... she is such a sweetheart and a good friend!

Nathan is now driving solo! He got his licence and is now able to drive himself to and from work!

20 years ago today...

Tuesday, August 14, 2007



I remember very clearly going into labour again! It was our 7th trip to the hospital. Although my due date was not until September 3rd, I was determined not to be sent home that night. When the resident came in to see me I told him very sternly "tell Dr. F that I am not leaving here without a baby!" When he came back in he had a smile on his face and said "Dr. F says that he will see you in the morning!"



I spent the night in labour, got up the next morning and my doctor came by to see me. After measuring me, and the baby, he determined there was no way for the baby to come out naturally so I was scheduled for surgery at 6:30 pm.



Before we were blessed with Nathan in 1987 we had two children that were stillborn. Perhaps knowing that will help you understand why we were eager to have Nathan born while we knew he was alive and healthy.



Two times I was visited by the hospital chaplain back in 1985. Both times it was the same woman. When she saw my name on the board slated for a c-section she stopped in to say how excited she was that we were finally going to have a live birth.



Nathan arrived via c-section and was greeted by name by everyone in the room! We knew he was a boy so everyone was calling him by name even before he was delivered. He was given a bath by Tom and then handed to me to hold.



It is not easy being 9000 miles away from him today. I did speak with him earlier this evening. Since we are 10 hours ahead we actually woke him up to say: "Happy Birthday Nathan!!!!"



Again, Happy birthday Nathan, we truly love you and are grateful that God gifted our lives with your presence!!

Whose life is it anyway?

Wednesday July 11, 2007

Like a mother who so desperately wants the world to see her child shine as brightly as she sees him, I was concerned today about:
His hair
His clothes

I wondered... did he shower? brush his teeth? Would he make a good impression?

We rushed out the door to get him to his job interview, not stopping for me to run back in and get my sunglasses, knowing that it would have only taken a minute but believing that every second counted, we jumped in the car.

He asked me to drive.
Now was not the time for a driving lesson, neither one of us knew the way, we were trusting MapQuest not to fail us, praying that the time we allotted for the drive was enough.

He didn't ask me to worry.
He didn't expect me to take this interview more seriously than he did.

Watching him walk into the hotel where the interviews were being held, I saw his air of confidence. I sat waiting in the car with a Bible and a notebook. Reading, praying and watching the door.

Before this day I thought my mother was silly to worry about her adult children. How did I get from being a confident teen myself to being a silly fretting mom?

Today I saw that my fretting over Nathan is in vain.

He has the type of Godly self-confidence that I have admired in his father since the day we met. Over the years I used to think I had to worry for the both of us since Tom never seemed to.

Now, I can relax... and trust that God has it all under control. Tom and Nathan believe it. And so do I.

stop and smell the roses

Time goes by so much faster than I ever realised possible. It seems as if it was just yesterday I was driving to Seal Beach to get out of the Pasadena smog for play time so the guys would take a better afternoon nap.

Nathan is leaving early Sunday morning to fly to Pittsburgh to visit friends. Spencer leaves the next weekend for camp in Colorado. Neither one of them needs me to pack their bags and decide what they will wear or to plan out their itinerary. In all of our years as a family this is a first for Tom and I.

Last year we left Nathan and Spencer home alone, Tom was here in America and I was in Rome, Italy. They spent their time playing video games and eating whatever they wanted for ten days. We were connected through text messaging and email.

This year both of them are happily leaving us behind.

I, being a mother, have mixed emotions.

I want them to grow, mature and experience life. But, I want to make sure they don't get hurt. And yet I remember when they were little "falling down and getting back up" was part of the process of development each one had to experience. It is the "falling down and getting back up" that leads to growth and maturity.

My heartfelt prayer is that they will both (like Christ) grow " in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men." Luke 2:52

pursuing happyness

Ok, so I remember when a friend posted to her blog back in January using the title "The Pursuit of Happiness" it made me want to go see the movie "The Pursuit of Happyness". At the time we were still in Russia so I thought I would have to wait for the DVD.

I even sat through the Oscars with our family after we got back to the states and had those thoughts again after seeing Will Smith and his son Jaden. On Wednesday Spencer, Hailey, Tyler, Kim, Paul and I went out to actually see it! Tom stayed home to watch the basketball game on TV.

I enjoyed the movie... I teared up several times. It was inspiring to me that Rich Gardner was able to make his dreams a reality. I am a sucker for a rags to riches story!

Tomorrow is the big reward day in Dallas for the boys... they are going to a mall and to the movies. I am proud of Spencer for working so hard even though he didn't have too. He's on vacation!

I had a short chat with our oldest son Nathan tonight via email, he has actually done some driving and it went well. I am sure he will be happy for us to return the car so he can get in more driving time. We are heading back on Saturday. And of course I am proud of him too!

Nathan can build

Nathan put together his new desk for his room! He said he wanted to do it all by himself and then wanted to know why I was not in there taking pictures because as he said "you love this kind of stuff" I do love to record our family milestones... I was just trying not to get in the way!

Nathan Goes Away Party

This is Nathan












This is Nathan playing Twister














This is Nathan watching Hannah spin the dial













Where is Nathan? This is a Going Away Party... Nathan has gone into the other room!












We had great food, great friends and a great time! Nathan was celebrated and prayed over and questioned about his plans for the future. We are grateful to Joy for pulling it all together. And we are thankful for each guest that came out to see Nathan off on his new life adventure!

packing and cleaning

Today was not much fun... we were cleaning and packing and packing and cleaning. Goar and Katya are coming over on Saturday to check out the apartment. They will live here and take care of the place while we are gone for a few months. Goar is one of our teachers and Katya is the former roommate of another teacher... plus she is a househelper for Tim and Joy so it feels safe to us to have these young women stay in our home. They need to learn things like; how to use the washing machine and how to turn on the TV and DVD player.

Spencer's room is all cleaned out. He has changed his furniture around and it looks a lot bigger than before. Nathan gave a piece of furniture from his room over to Spencer and now Nathan's room looks bigger too.

Tom and I have Nathan's boxes in our room. The guys worked again today to pack and weigh boxes. The plan is to pack his boxes in our suitcases to bring Nathan's stuff back to America.

The reality is setting in for each of us that we are actually leaving next week and it feels as if there is so much to be done!

Nathan's moving day

Nathan taking inventory on his belongings












Spencer and Tom helping Nathan pack











We finally can say that we have tickets purchased for our trip to America.

We were advised not to miss out on a major transition for one of our children... so that means we are all coming back to help Nathan get settled into his new life. He is very eager to learn to drive, his driving lessons were interrupted with the move here. He is ready to get a job and make some money for himself, he didn't have an opportunity here in Russia to work for pay.

We are supporting Nathan in this new phase of his life as much as we can or as he wants us too... although it is not easy for me as a mom but I clearly recognise that I cannot keep them little and dependent on me forever!

New CD's

Nathan made individual Cd's for each one of us. The one he made for me brought me to tears. It has different kinds of music on it. Classical, Rap, Show tunes, Video Game music and more. It is all music that he listens to that he thought I might enjoy. Tom and Spencer each have one tailored to their personalities and what Nathan wanted them to remember about him.

We sat and listened to mine together... the song that brought me to tears is from The Little Mermaid. It is "Kiss the Girl". It is one of my favorite songs from that movie. I sat there remembering that this was the first movie we ever saw together in the theatre. He was three when the movie came out and he absolutely loved being big enough to go and see a real movie!

Where did the years go? How does he know each of us so well?

His gift is one that I will cherish always!

a frightful sight

Today I was on the phone with a friend who was telling me about seeing a dead man on their walk home through the park. I thought what a horrible thing to have happen to you. Especially for the children.

This afternoon Nathan and I were headed out to the mall to pick up some blank CD's. As we were standing at the bus stop Nathan noticed to large pools of liquid. He tapped me on the shoulder and asked "is that blood?"

It was. It was unmistakeable. Two large pools of blood on the uneven pavement. I don't know if I will ever stop seeing them so vividly in my mind. We don't know if it was human or animal. Spencer tried watching the news to see if there was a report of an incident in our area. As of yet we don't know of anything.

Nathan copying photos

Nathan is making a file of family photos to take with him. This one is from three years ago at The Aquarium of the Pacific.


















this is him now...

I am not sure how many photos he is going to take but he is searching through all of my files.

He claims I have all the family photos... well duh! I am the MOM!