Rodeo Time

It's Rodeo time here in Houston and nothing says Texas Rodeo like the cattle drive passing through town.  Oh and only in Texas do the riders throw Mardi Gras beads to the onlookers.  Ruthie loved seeing the horses.  Gotta love Texas.

Chinese New Year- Getting Better at This

Every year we get a little better at celebrating Chinese New Year.  I am still leagues behind most of you, but with the help of some good friends, I am getting better.  I am blessed to have a precious friend from China who is willing to help Ruthie connect with her birth culture.   For Chinese New Year, she came over with chopsticks, decorations, and all of the ingredients to make homemade dumplings.

After enjoying dinner, we released Chinese lanterns in a nearby field.  I did learn that the color I ordered is traditionally used for funerals, but at least I tried. :)  I think some of the adults may have enjoyed the lanterns more than the kids.

I am not sure what next year holds, but I am thinking we have now set the bar pretty high. 

NBA Jam Session

The NBA all star game is in Houston this week so we went on Thursday to the Jam Session.   The kids had a blast playing at all the booths, see the official NBA trophy, and spotting a few mascots and cheerleaders along the way.  

The day became especially exciting when Sam was chosen to play ball with Steve Novak and Carmelo Anthony.   It was definitely a day to remember.

A Boy and His Quilt

Sam loves blankets.  Every few weeks I will notice all the blankets in the house are missing and then I know to look in Sam's bed to find them all.   Recently, his grandmother mailed him his very own quilt that she made especially for him.  He loves it!

Ice Skating Princess

I had the day off on Tuesday so Ruthie and I went ice skating.  She did great and was skating away from the wall for the last hour.  I just love how adventurous she is. 

My Flower Girl

Ruthie was in the wedding of some good friends last weekend.  It didn't occur to me that since she had never been to a wedding, she might interpret the title "flower girl" differently.  It was about an hour before the rehearsal when she asked me about dressing up as a flower.

She was precious and the sponge rollers did the trick on that super straight Chinese hair.

It May Seem Backwards To Most...

...but I am learning to be thankful for hard times.  Let me explain.

Life for the last year has been pretty comfortable.  We have definitely had some heartache with the loss of a precious family member and watching Jack struggle, but for the most part it has been pretty comfortable.   About a week ago, we agreed to take in 2 small children for a family member who was needing some help.  As the situation fluctuated daily I was terrified, excited, sad, hopeful, and a myriad of other emotions.  The big part though was that I prayed like I haven't prayed in a year and worshiped throughout my day as I sought God's will instead of my next obligation.

In the end, the mother chose a different route for herself and her children and we are back to our comfortable position in life.  As I look back on last week and ask "why?" I can trust that even though I don't have the answers, I did see God in the process and was reminded of His sovereignty in my life.   I was also reminded that we sometimes have a backward notion that our goal in life is to be comfortable.   You see, I have been pretty comfortable and I can say the possibility of those 2 precious children rocking my comfort brought me closer to my real purpose of knowing and following God than my comfort ever did.

Are you in a situation where God is rocking your comfort?  This song was my proclamation of truth this week.   I hope it helps.