Many Thanks!

We have been working on our dossier this morning. We are either waiting on the paperwork to be sent or returned to us, or it is complete. I had a secret weapon, Connie has been here all morning helping us. I want to thank you Connie for all your encouragement and help. I know it would have been done, because it has to be, but it was much easier and fun with your help. Thank you for giving your time, and making sure we are completely ready for CIS approval.



Fingerprint appointment is tomorrow, and we will get passport pictures as well. It has been a great day!

Lion King ~ Broadway!

We had a wonderful treat of being able to go to the Lion King ~ Broadway production in OKC. The production was incredible, amazing and awesome. Very hard to put into words to describe the experience. I did find a video that give a sneak peak in the Broadway play. People play the animals and sometimes you have to remind yourself of that. The singing was incredible, very talented people have been chosen to be a part of this. What a special treat, Ashley did not get to go due to softball, so I am hoping that I will be able to take her back before the production ends in OKC. Anyways wanted to share with all of you, if you get the opportunity to go, DON'T PASS IT UP....... Have a great weekend!

Kaylee and Kenzie posing for "MOM"!

The girls standing in from of the very large banner!

Check out a sneak peak of Lion King ~ Broadway!

Remember to turn off my music at the bottom of this page.

Monkeys, Giraffes, Kids and Cars!

We are so fortunate to be a part of a wonderful company that David works for. XTO is all about the people that work for them. They put family first, they even have a grant for adopting families that work for them. We are truly blessed to a part of XTO. This past Saturday we had the company picnic at the zoo in OKC. We have a beautiful zoo that is spread over a very large area of land. They are always improving our zoo, we even noticed that in the upcoming future they are adding an Asian exhibit to the zoo, filled with the animals and culture of Asia. Very excited about that. We enjoyed the weather on Saturday, it was very beautiful day and a lot of fun with my girls, Erica and Kuyler as we hung out and laughed all day long. I hope you enjoy the pictures.

The Gorillas really put on a show for us!

The Giraffes are our favorite of them all!

Oh my RUN, they have spotted a Dinosaur!

Kuyler, Ashley, Erica and Kaylee in the Oklahoma Exhibit!

Kaylee and Erica, apparently Kaylee was tired of walking!



Erica and I just having fun!

On the Carousel, notice the Panda Bears, this was as close as we could get to seeing Panda Bears at our Zoo, all three of them hope to be able to go to China and see for themselves.

Kaylee and Erica, again just having fun!

Kuyler and Ashley on the Carousel

Also on Saturday my sweet, getting older daughter bought her first car. We went down early on Saturday morning so that she could car shop. Our first car on the agenda was a 2002 Ford Focus, unfortunately the pictures of this car were taken strategically, not showing the flaws that were really hard to get by. So after looking at the car Ashley decided to keep looking for other cars, keeping the Focus on the list. We then went to a few dealerships, and ended up at a Mazda dealership. They had a Lincoln LS, that at first sight looked like a "Grandma Car", but after a test drive Ashley was convinced that it was not. She loved it! It is a Maroon 2000 Lincoln LS with some real nice features, that she bought and paid for herself. After much back and forth she even got it for $300 dollars less than the top of her budget. We are so proud of her and her determination and willingness to work hard and save her money to purchase her ultimate dream car. Way To Go Ashley!!!!!!!

Oh my she did, she just bought a car!

Signing the paper saying "yes I accept this price"

Ok whats wrong with this picture, we have a paper tag but no car. Car needed to be cleaned and detailed so we left it to come back later.

Here it is "2000 Lincoln LS"

The proud moment, after handed the keys, ready to drive.

We are done and headed home! What a DAY!

Tag ~ Your It!

Oh my! I have been tagged by my sweet friend Connie...... Now Connie and I have played tag before, but usually in the form of Phone Tag!!!!! I will give it my best!

8 Things I look forward to:
~The moment when we see and hold our daughter for the first time
~Sharing Christ with someone who doesn't know Him and they see that and accept Him
~Falls Creek - who doesn't look forward to that!
~What God is doing in my life and I see it unfold
~Spending time with my girls, doing whatever
~Spending time with my husband, no distractions!
~Summer in general - it is my favorite season
~CHRIST'S RETURN

8 Things I did yesterday:
~Went to David's company picnic at the zoo (post to follow)
~Experience the excitement through Ashley when she bought her first car (post to follow)
~Laughed until our (Ashley, Kaylee, Erica and me) stomach hurt coming home.
~Hung out with Erica, love those moments
~Had lunch and spent time with Kuyler
~Crashed when we got home, long day!
~Prayed for a friend ;), and my family
~Thanked the Lord for the many blessings He has given us

8 Things I wish I could do:
~Play the Piano and write a song
~Organize my home and schedule
~Recognize a need and meet it before it is too late
~Spend more time with everyone I love
~Take my girls to China with us when we go
~Teach with confidence
~Give back to all who have given to us in so many ways
~Write a book

8 Shows I watch:
~American Idol - love it!
~Survivor
~HGTV
~Extreme Home Makeover
~Jon and Kate plus 8
~Dancing with the Stars
~The View
~Wheel of Fortune

Now Tag your it! Share with me what you did yesterday, or what you wish you could do, or shows you watch, or things you look forward to ~ Love to hear from you!

Two Hands

There is a song on the radio called "Two Hands" by Jars of Clay, that is really speaking to me. I have shared with my mentor, even this week that I feel that my life sometimes is so busy that I am not stopping and listening for Him, and what could I be missing because of it. A quote from "Two Hands":

"I have one hand pulling you closer and the other to push away, If I had two hands doing the same thing, lifted high, lifted high."

I do feel that I am pulling Him closer and the other hand in the since is pushing away, because it is so busy doing doing doing, that I am not seeking Him with my whole heart. I want two hands doing the same thing, worshipping, reading my Bible, praying, and teaching. It takes both hands to do this, and although I am doing them, but my other hand is busy doing something else. Every time I hear this song, it speaks loudly to me!

I would like to share this as well:

"We need not fear what our obedience will cause to happen in our life. We should only fear what our disobedience will cause us to miss."

With this statement from a book "What happen when women say YES to God" is goes right in with my scripture this morning:

"And I will give you treasures hidden in the darkness - secret riches. I will do this so you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, the one who call you by name"

Isaiah 45:3

May you seek His will and direction, just as I am striving to do each and every day, so that you do not miss out on what He has for you. These things are far better than anything we can imagine.

Inspiration

I have been inspired by my friends Tammy, Connie, and Linda. I have checked on Tammys Monday Menu, and would think wow I wish I could be that organized. Then Connie tells me about this web site called e-meals, and how wonderful it is. My friend Linda signs up and raves over the recipes. So today I have signed up for this wonderful menu planner, that does all the work for you. I am very excited, I even showed my husband the menu and asked him if there was anything that did not sound good...... I know risky!!!! He said "No, everything looks really good". My friend Linda said "My youngest daughter even likes it", and Connie has said "one meal said it would take 30 minutes to prepare and it only took 23" E-meals plans the menu ~ including side dishes ~ makes the grocery list for you and tells you how much it will cost...... Totally worth $5 a month. I will have to let you know what my family thinks when the first meal is prepared and if my youngest daughter likes it as well ;) Looking forward to enjoy the cooking time instead of the time it would take to figure out what we will eat. Enjoy your Thursday!

Kaylee's Special Treat

What a treat for Kaylee......... By very dear friends own a very beautiful 1959 Corvette. This corvette was restored to its original show room floor quality. (Down to every little bolt) This corvette was featured in Corvette 50th year celebration parade, also including an article in "Corvette" Magazine. I will say that I am afraid to touch this Corvette, more or less ride in it. I would love a ride, but would be scared the whole time. The treat for Kaylee is she DID get to ride in it during a Corvette show in Enid. She was so excited and loved every moment of it. Riding with my friends granddaughter "S", they lived in the moment, and enjoyed the looks from many people. They were only in the Corvette for about 5 minutes, but Kaylee said it was the best 5 minutes ever! Thank "A and R" for giving Kaylee this great treat!

1959 Corvette

Kaylee, A, G, R and S right before the covenant ride

Kaylee and S just seconds before the ride

Here we GO

Look at the smile on Kaylee's face

Happy Easter

I hope you had a wonderful Easter, celebrating that He is Risen! We had a wonderful Easter, starting with David going to Sunrise Service and having breakfast with our community. As a family we went to Services and caught up with many guest we have not seen in awhile. Pastor Brian gave a wonderful sermon on Matthew 28, and we focused on Jesus was not there, He is Risen, just as He said He would. After services we were able to have lunch with Matt and his wife Jacque. They are here for about a week, and it was a real blessing to be able to spend some more time with them. Jacque is a very sweet lady, and Matt loves her very much. We wrapped the evening up, by sitting on the couch and watching the sadest "Extreme Makeover, Home Edition" I have ever seen. I hope that this Easter created memories for you to remember forever!

It's Official, Ashley completed her driving test yesterday, and now is a legal driver of the state of Oklahoma. I can't believe my little Ashley is driving, it will probably be even harder when Kaylee is driving. So when we break it down, in 286 days, she drove her required 6 months of driving, finished a online drivers ed course, she drove to church, school, Enid, Fairview, Stillwater, OKC, Tulsa, Branson, and Woodward many different times. Oh yea and she also drove us CRAZY..... lol We are very proud of her, she took it very serious, and really learned. Teaching her Drivers Ed our self was a challenge, you have to be careful not teach them your bad habits. It was also a blessing, because it reminded us many times of those bad habits. They do learn by example! She drove to school this morning ALL BY HERSELF (she had Kaylee but no mommy), and I am sure that all she thought about today was going home so she could drive again. A sigh of relief from this mom, because the course, required time, and the actual test is over. But with that sigh, comes many more sighs. A sigh when she drives into the garage, and a sigh when she crosses through our very busy intersection by our home. So much more to worry about, but we will not keep her locked in the home forever, we must let her grow up as much as we want to keep her our little girl. I will end with this...... Congratulations Ashley, we love you and are proud of you! You are a great driver, now when can you go to Richards for your mom?

Seconds after getting her license!

Leaving for school this morning!

How do I look? I say pink is your color!

Fingerprints Appt.

I am so excited to report that we have an appointment for our fingerprints. We were very surprised when we got our letter in the mail on Thursday saying that our appt. was on April 28th. We must start our dossier which needs to be ready to send to China. Our dossier is ALL documentation necessary to put us in line for a referral from the Shared Agency Waiting Child List. We will send our paperwork to Lifeline (Our Agency) to have authenticated then forward to CCAA (China Center for Adoption Affairs) or DTC (Dossier To China). Ten days or so after DTC we will be logged in (LID or Log In Date), which will be an official landmark in the paper process. This means a lot of things for us. Still no timeline in mind, just letting God led us through these steps. We also already started on grant applications. We have almost completed one and we have a application ready to be filled out waiting for us. I know that there is some times when waiting is harder than others, this is the one time that we have so much to do that the days go by really fast and sneak up on us. So I must keep in mind that I am still a mom, but also work on things to bring home our third daughter. It is amazing to me how you can love someone you have never even seen, but trust me it is possible. I do it everyday!!!!!

Grant Application

We are happy to report that our application for Shaohannah’s Hope has been filled out online. All we need now is to get paperwork in the mail. We are waiting on a few letters and we will have all the paperwork ready to be mailed. For anyone who is interested in a grant as well go to www.showhope.org and apply! Thank you Lord for you giving us these resources to apply to. Will keep all of you posted to the outcome of this grant.

Sleepy!!!!

Much sleep needed in the Mueller's home. After a long morning, we headed to 1 of 6 games total yesterday. My girls are both playing softball. With a schedule conflict in the way we had two game to be at, at the same time. We choose Kaylee because it was her first game ever, not just the first game of the season. They lost the first game and won the second game! WTG Lady Devils! Now onto Ashley's games........ In a tournament in Enid our girls were winning......... That streak changed just a little when we played our 4th game of the night, hoping to win, but very cold and probably extremely tired. We lost but it was our first lost, so now we start our 5th game. Playing the same team, who was on a roll, we played our best and took 2nd in the tournament...... Woo Hoo girls I am so proud of you! You played great, and as a team! The night was not over for some girls........ When we pulled into our garage, it was 11:45 pm and Ashley had a good hour of studying ahead of her. This is when I see the determination in my daughter, and desire to do her best. Yes she did stay up and study, I know myself would have went to bed. Congratulations to the Jr. High and High School girls softball teams for many well played games and win's to be proud of!

Now lets hope I can function today!

Jesus said "Come to me all who are weary and carry heavy burdens,

and I will give you rest."

Matthew 11:28