It's Been Far Too Long.....

So much has happened since I have last posted. :)  If you remember my last post I was asking for donations for a double carseat/stroller combo.  Well, thanks to everyone that gave, we were able to raise enough money to purchase that for one of our teen moms at Oak House!  She was SO grateful for the gift and it was so fun to suprise her!  Brittany is such a special girl!  She was at GW for about 10 months and in January gave birth to 2 beautiful boys!  Those babies became her world and she is an amazing mom!  It's so fun to watch her be mommy to those boys.  This month Brittany successfully graduated the program and moved back home with mom!! WooHoo!! Brittany, keep doing what you're doing!  You're awesome and I miss you like crazy!

 On May 9th our sweet Paisley Grace turned 2!  I can hardly believe that my baby is 2 already.  Time just goes by so very fast!  We waited to celebrate with Dustin's family until our visit home over Memorial Day.  Erin made her an awesome rainbow cake and she loved every last bite!  She is just getting so big and talking more and more each day!

Then on June 4th we completed our last day as Houseparents at Gateway Woods.  After 5 years of houseparenting, we felt like God was telling us that our time at Gateway was coming to an end.  Back in January we accepted a position at The New Beginnings in Cape Coral, Florida!!  What a change it has been!  I miss GW, I miss Oak House, I miss our friends, I miss our church!  But I know that this is where God wants us and that excited me!  It has been different and hard to adjust to this new life.  We have been going, going, going and now we are kind of just going slow.  And that's ok....it's just different.  And we are a little over an hour from my parents house.  How wonderful is that!!  It's incredible!  

This has been our home for the last 5 years and we have grown so much here!  2 of our babies were born here, birthdays were celebrated, we had good times, we had hard times.  I wouldn't trade it for anything!  :)

I WILL NOT MISS THIS!!!!

But I am missing this girl SO very much!  I would consider her one of my very best friends. My hope is that one day 1200 miles won't separate us!!

This is where we call home now and it's starting to feel like home more and more each day!  Pray for us!  Pray for our kids!  We are excited to join a new mission field and try to reach out to moms that are hurting in the name of Jesus!  What an opportunity we have been given!  

An Opportunity to Serve

Hey everyone!

           

As you probably know, I work with pregnant teens at Gateway Woods. These girls are usually underprivileged and lacking in basic necessities needed to raise children. Other, less tangible things such as financial stability, food on the table, and unconditional love are often lacking as well.

Gateway is able to provide for their needs but many times these girls are thrown a baby shower due to generous families, foster parents, or caseworkers. Right now, one of our residents is expecting twins in February but there is no one able to provide anything for her.  She has done very well preparing for her kids through Gateway’s clothing room and rifling though resale shops but she is lacking some major things.

We would really like to offer her something to make the road ahead a little easier and we feel that she would benefit from a double car seat and stroller combo. The stroller we are looking at is a Graco  amounting to $334.95.

While we never wish to condone lifestyles that led to unplanned pregnancies, we are obligated as members of Christ’s Church to show these girls His mercy, love, and compassion. This certainly does not always mean a monetary gift but right now we would love to show these characteristics in a tangible way.

We entreat you to prayerfully consider donating for this resident and pray that her heart would continue to soften and be malleable in the Potter’s hands.

Thank you living out Mark 16:15 with us!

Paisley Grace is One!!! :)

 
On Thursday, May 9th, our sweet little Paisley Grace turned one.  Oh how the time has flown by!!  I mean...seriously, where does it go!  It seems like yesterday we brought this baby girl home from the hospital.  She has provided us with such joy, laughes, smiles....and sometimes frustrations. :)  This little girl is an ornery one!  Her favorite place to try and sneak to is the bathroom.  She LOVES to play in the toilet.  EWWW!!  She goes to the doctor on Thursday, so we will find out her stats then and I will try to remember and post them! :)  Happy Birthday, baby girl!!  We love you and are so blessed by your life!

Updates

So, alot has happened since I have posted.  I always tell myself I'm going to update the blog, but somehow get busy and forget.  If life would just slow down a bit that would be great!

I guess our biggest change is where we are at with Gateway Woods.  Last May, after Paisley was born, we found ourselves a bit overwhelmed.  Having 4 kids and one being a newborn was alot.  As a new mom, it was hard for me to find time to give to my children and the residents like they needed.  We prayed and talked with others about stepping down from the full-time position and becoming alternates again.  We knew that we wanted to get through the summer, because summer is a hard and we have experienced taking over a house in the summer and it is just so busy.  So we wanted to make this transition when school started.  The end of August we officially became alternate houseparents again!  We were still in the Hickory House, so that was nice to be able to be still familiar with the kids.  We loved this new/old role.  We were still able to do what we felt God was leading us to do, but could gather ourselves a little better and learn how to handle it all with four kids.

During our time of alternating again, we had some tough girls.  It was hard.  Seeing how they were so unwilling to accept the help and wanting to help so bad.  Wanting them to see Jesus through us and hoping that they would change.  The months passed and December rolled around and we were on duty for a 9 day stretch....that's a tough one....one of our girls that had been giving us trouble for quite sometime ended up having to leave, and not in such a pleasant way.  It was hard. Hard to see her go, hard to deal with what had happened.  Just plain hard.  A few days after that happened, we received an email from our boss saying that he wanted to talk with us.  Well, I knew what he wanted right away.  The house parents at Oak House (pregnant teen and teen mom house) were leaving.  They had just announced this decision, so I knew that they would be looking for replacements.  Well, let me tell you, that was the LAST thing that I wanted to do.  We had just went back to alternating 4 months before and were loving the alternating life.  I complained to Dustin and said I wasn't going to do it, I didn't want to do double duty (alternate for 2 houses), and didn't want people to leave!!  The next morning, God convicted me.  I just felt the Holy Spirit asking me why I was not even thinking about just praying about it.  Just pray.  I knew that we needed to pray but was scared at what the answer would be.  We went off duty a few days before Christmas and were going to be spending time traveling and being with family.  I didn't even want to think of making a decision until we came back home.  But God had other plans.  I would come up with an excuse and God would say...now is that a reason you should say no?  Time after time, all the reasons why we didn't want to go back full-time was because of selfish reasons.  During our two years of full-time at Hickory House, we had felt a passion for the pregnant girls.  Could this be God's way of leading us where we wanted to go.  It seemed like to be of a coincidence.  We felt this is where we were supposed to serve.  So, we accepted the full-time position at the Oak House.

In late January we moved, again, for the third time since coming to Gateway.  :) That was one of the reasons why I didn't want to take the position and you know, God was with us.  The move didn't seem nearly as bad.  We had so much help from friends and family, that it went so smooth.  We are adjusting to our apartment, which is almost identical to the Hickory House apartment but just a little bigger!  We have adjusted really well to the girls and have the first of 4 babies due in 1 week.  Let me clarify, they aren't all due at the same time.  One is due in April, one in July (twins) and one in August.  But this will be the first baby that is born while we are full-time here.  So....let the adventure begin I guess! :)

Our kids are growing up so fast.  Liberty is 7 and in First Grade.  Oh how time flies so fast.  She is a little smartie pants and loves to learn.  It's so fun watching her learn new things! :) Caden is 6 now, and in Kindergarten.  He love it as well and is learning so much.  Back when he was in preschool, I thought that things were going to come a little slower for him, but then one day, it just clicked.  He loves to learn and learns so quickly.  Josie is 3 and is full of so much life and energy.  She is in love with princesses and is a different princess each week or even day.  She is so excited to start preschool in the fall!  And my little Paisley Grace is 11 months.  I can NOT believe that in one short month my baby will be ONE!  She gets around by crawling and is pulling her self up.  Not really walking around stuff, but I'm fine with that.  She can take her time! :)  She doesn't have any teeth yet, but I can see 2 right under the surface of her gums, so hopefully they will come soon!

I'm on the computer in the Oak House office, so I don't have any of my pictures, maybe later tonight I will put some up on the blog.  But for now, I will have to sign off.  I need to start getting supper together.  Hope you all enjoy the rest of the weekend!

Merry Christmas!! (A Day Late :) )

Merry Christmas!!

Love, Dustin & Mandy

Liberty 7, Caden 5, Josie 2.5, and Paisley 7months

We pray that you had a Merry Christmas and that you will have a most blessed New Year!

One Month....Already

So, my little Paisley Grace is turned one month yesterday.  Time goes by so fast.  She continues to be such a good baby.  Sleeps about 6-7 hours a night and is content most of the time she is awake.  The Lord has truly blessed us.  Liberty, Caden, and Josie continue to adjust well.  Liberty is such a wonderful help and will run and get me anything I need whenever I need it.  Caden is such a sweet boy with Paisley.  The other day she was laying on our bed while we were getting ready for the day and Caden crawled in bed with her and just gently rubbed her head.  He is going to be such a great big brother.  Josie loves her baby sister too!  Although sometimes she would rather be Paisley than herself. :)  She loves to sit in Paisley's carseat and loves to tell me to call her Paisley.  Life at Gateway continues to go well.  It is now summer, so life gets a little bit busier, but so far things are going good!  Our days have their ups and downs, but seeing small progress in the lives of these teenagers makes all the hard days worth it!  So, for now we will keep doing what God has called us to do and rejoice in each day!  I pray that you all can do the same in your lives.  Doesn't it feel great to serve such an awesome God! :)

PAISLEY GRACE IS HERE!!!!

On Wednesday, May 9th, we welcomed our precious Paisley Grace.  She was our smallest bundle and weighed in at 5lbs 11oz and was 19.5 in long.  Paisley was 2 weeks and 1 day early.  The week before she was born I went in for a regular appointment and my belly was measuring small.  Dr. Kennedy decided she wanted to do an ultrasound to make sure that Paisley was growing like she should be.  To make a long story short, during the ultrasound Paisley needed to do 3 things to "pass".  She only did 2.  So, they brought me in the next day to perform another ultrasound.  They told me that if she didn't pass again that they would induce me right then.  Well, she passed, but barely.  So, Dr. Kennedy told me that she wanted to keep a close eye one us.  She scheduled us to come in twice weekly instead on once, and one of those appointments would be an ultrasound.  So, I went in Tuesday the 8th and had another ultrasound.  Well, little Miss Paisley Grace didn't pass for the second time.  So, Dr. Kennedy said that she would really like for me to be induced the following day.  It wasn't critical, but she didn't want to take any chances and since I was nearly 38 weeks, she felt comfortable with bringing Paisley into this world a little early.  I was excited!  I was so uncomfortable and all these ultrasounds were just making me anxious.  So on Wednesday morning, we got to the hospital at 7:30am to start the induction.  I was dilated to 1cm, but my cervix was still pretty high.  She they gave me cervidal ( I think, or something similar to that) and said that should soften my cervix and start contractions.  They were right! :)  I started contracting about an hour later.  At first they weren't bad, but they were starting to get uncomfortable pretty quick.  So at about 11am they came in and checked me and I was 3 - 3.5 cm and told me I could have my epidural as soon as my first bag of fluids was in.  That didn't take very long and by 11;30 I had my epidural.  And boy was it a strong one!  At first I could still feel the pressure of the contractions, but soon I couldn't even feel that.  So at about 2:30pm they came in and checked me and shut my epidural off for about an hour.  I was dilated to 4cm at this point.  An hour later they came and turned it back on and at this point I was starting to feel more pressure.  At 4pm, I was really starting to feel the urge to push.  They had checked me at 3:45 and I hadn't really made any change.  Maybe a 1/2 cm or so.  Well, they checked me at 4:10 pm and I was complete and ready to push.  BUT my doctor was about 15 minutes away.  YIKES!!!  How was I going to hold this baby in for that long?!  Well, it took concentration, but I was able to breathe through each contraction and hold that baby in! :)  My doctor arrived at 4:25pm and "suited" up!  I pushed twice and little Paisley Grace entered the world at 4:41pm! :)  So, my labor started out kinda slow, but by the end it went so fast!  I am doing really well and have healed the fasted this time around than with any of my other kids!  Which is super nice since I have 3 more little ones to take care of!  So that is the story of how little Paisley Grace joined our family!  We are enjoying her so much already!  Libby, Caden and Josie just can't quite get enough of her!  :)

Happy 2nd Birthday, Baby Girl!!

Two years ago I got to meet you for the first time! We were so excited to have another little girl in our family! You have brought us so much happiness and laughter. You are so onery, but that's what makes you our little Josie Mae! I love how your eyes smile and sparkle! You are such a beautiful little girl! We all love you so very much and can't wait to see you grow this next year! Happy Birthday, my little girl! Always remember that Jesus loves you and will always be there for you! Love you little girl!

It's a......

GIRL!!!!

Today was the big day! We had our ultrasound this afternoon and got to see our baby for the first time! At first she didn't cooperate very well, but after moving around and pushing on my tummy a little, she moved enough for the ultrasound tech to confirm her suspicions of a little girl! Baby girl Hodel seems to be growing right on schedule and looks healthy! Praise God! As we prepare a little more each day, we pray that God will continue to be with our baby girl as she grows! Looking forward to meeting her in May!

Updates

I have one question....where does the time go? These past few months has just flown by and looking back I hardly remember what all happened. It has been 2 months since I have last posted! Our life has been busy! The end of October Dustin and I celebrated out 7th anniversary! I can hardly believe it has been 7 years since we said "I Do!" I can't imagine living life with anyone else! Sometimes I look back and think, how did we get where we were are now! If you would have told me 7 years ago that we would have 3 children, 1 on the way, and be houseparents to 5 teenage girls I would have either laughed or cried! Or maybe even both! But I feel at such peace about where God has us! Don't get me wrong, I have my days! Sometimes I get so overwhelmed and just want to go back living my simple life with just my honey and kids, but then one of our girls will open up to me or say something that I would have never expected and it reminds me why we do what we do! Things at Gateway have been going pretty good! We are sharing alternates right now, so that makes scheduling a little different and sometimes stressful, but I am confident that God will provide and I shouldn't worry about something that I cannot change. We were excited when our dear assistant called us to tell us that she was getting engaged! And it gets even better, she is engaged to Dustin's brother! So, she will move on from being our assistant to being our sister-in-law! God is so good and works in so many wonderful ways! Now, we will be losing our assistant soon, but somehow I know that we will get by! (again! last year we went without an assistant for 7 months!) Just another teachable moment for us!

On December 2nd, I got a call from my mom to let us know that my Grandpa Koehl had gone to meet Jesus! This was a little unexpected, but it's what he desired and what is better that your loved one getting their eternal reward! We will miss Grandpa, but know that his aches and pains are now gone! He can run and jump without pain! When I stop and think about what he is experiencing right now, I can get chills. To be in the presence of Jesus! How wonderful is that!

The night of Grandpa's funeral, I had my last session of Dale Carnegie. Now this course had been going on for 13 weeks! It was something that I DID NOT want to do, but am so glad that I was encouraged to take the class! I have learned so much and truly feel like I am a better person, wife, mom, and employee for taking the class!

It's the day after Christmas and we are enjoying a little time in Roanoke. It is good to just spend uninterrupted time with my kiddos and Dustin's family! In a few days it will be 2012 and we will start another year! Praying that I can grow more for Jesus and keep the ultimate prize in sight. Praying that the New Year is a blessing for you as well!

Expecting a Visit from the Stork in May

Just wanted to share with all of you our exciting news....We are Expecting baby #4!!! He or she will making their appearance sometime towards the end of May. I am feeling pretty good. I get a little sick during the day, but nothing big. Praising God! I am starting to pop out. People aren't kidding when they say you pop out more quickly with each baby you have. This belly is growing fast! :) Libby and Caden are super excited! We told our girls in Hickory House and they are equally excited! It's so fun to see them excited! :) Praying that God is with us as we add a new little bundle to our family!

And She's Off.....

My Liberty Joy went to Kindergarten today. She was so brave! Just got on the bus like she had done it 1000 times over. Now this mama didn't do so well! ;) Last night I was laying in bed and just started crying. Thinking, my baby girl can't go to school. She has been at my side for the last 5 1/2 years and now she is going to be gone all day long....every day! And then at the bus stop I held it together before the bus came and even when she was getting on the bus, but when it stated to pull away the tears came again. I am so proud of her! She is so very excited to start this new chapter in her life and I'm so glad I can be by her side as her mommy. Liberty Joy, I love you so much and am excited to watch you grow!

My Little Graduate and some thoughts

My Liberty Joy graduated from preschool a couple weeks ago. It's so hard to believe that I will have a child in Kindergarten. Life goes by so fast and sometimes I wish I could slow things down. She attended Grabill Missionary Early Learning Center for two years and had two of the sweetest teachers. I am thankful for what they did for Libby. She was SO nervous about graduating and you can really tell in the picutre of her walking down the aisle. Caden is going to go to this same preschool next year and I look forward to working with them again! And Libby will be attending Cedarville Elementary. So is excited, but says she is going to miss preschool! Mom Hodel was able to come out for her graduation and we had such a fun weekend with her and Dad who joined us on Friday night.

Josie is now 16 months old and is growing and changing everyday. She is starting to really talk and it's so fun to hear the new words she says! Some of them are...oh no, mamen (amen), melmo (elmo), thank you, Love you, and some more that I can't think of right now. She knows what sounds a dog, cat and cow make. She is ALL OVER THE PLACE! By far the most onery one yet! It's fun though, always on our toes!

Caden is loving being able to play outside. The little man would shoot baskets 24/7 if we would let him. Summertime at GW can be hard. The kids love to play together, but I don't always know where my kids are! But I am so thankful for the friendships that they are making! It is also wonderful to know that wherever they go on campus I can feel at ease. I always know that they are with people who love Jesus. And that's so important! It is such a wonderful "community"!

Houseparenting is going pretty good! Each day is different and some days are harder than others, but God is good! We have been without a assistant houseparent since the end of November, so that has been a little stressful. But once again God has Provided. Angie Knobloch from Peoria will be joining the Hickory House team in about a week! We are so excited! There are still openings for assistant houseparents and alternate houseparents, so if you are interested, feel free to ask questions. Like I said, it can and will be challenging, but it is such a blessing. God has stretched me in ways that I didn't know I could be stretched and I look back and say, "Thanks God!" He is faithful and knows the plans He has for us. Sometimes on a rough, long day I think that I just can't handle anymore, and then God shows me that I can and I must! Anyway...I just feel God working so mightly and it's exciting!

So, if you are discouraged or are going through a rough spot in life, be encouraged! God has a plan for YOUR life! You are His Chosen One! (quote from Jami Kaeb! :)) It's so easy to get caught up in the little things in life, but we need to focus on Him! That's why we are here....to praise and glorify Him!

Well, this post has gotten a lot longer than I expected, but I just felt God telling me to type. SO there ya have it! I hope you all have a blessed week!

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11 NIV

Happy 1st Birthday, Josie Mae!!!

Last Wednesday, 1/19/2011, our little Josie Mae turned 1! I can hardly believe a year has gone so incredibly fast! This little girl has blessed our lives so much and we can't imagine life with out her! She is still under weight for her age, but is right on target for height and over target for her head! Why do my kids have such big heads? :) She is walking around stuff and every once in a while will take a few very unstable steps. She is off formula and onto milk and it didn't seem to affect her at all. We are having a hard time weaning the bottle, but I'm not to worried about it. She is eating all table food and does pretty well with it! Her favorite food of all is Coco Puffs! This is like a drug to her! She loves to watch her big brother and sister and they can make her giggle so easily! We love you Josie Mae and are excited to see you grow this next year!

My Wonderful Husband

So, Dustin was reading our blog the other day and complained that I "never" do an update on him. So here is an update on Dustin. I don't know what I would do without him! He is my everything and does so much for me! I could pretty much ask for anything and if he can get it or do it he will! God blessed me with a wonderful man! Our insurance company has a program that he has conquered in the past month. If you qualify for this program and lose 10% of your body weight they send you a check for $500!! He started the program in mid September and successfully completed it mid November! 3 MONTHS!!! He lost 24 lbs. for the program, but has lost more since then! I'm so proud of him and am amazed by his will power! He did way better than I would have ever done! And now if he keeps this off for a year he will get another check. This time for $1000!!!! I'm just so proud of him! So, that's an update on my man! Thank you God for blessing me with such an amazing gift! I love you babe!

Sickness Go Away!!!

I hope the past week isn't a look into what this winter is going to hold for our family. Starting last weekend, Dustin had sinus problems and wasn't feeling the best. Then on Saturday, while we were still in Roanoke, Caden came down with a little stomach bug. It wasn't horrible, but he just didn't feel right all day. He did throw up twice, but it was very small. I think Libby got a small touch of this, cause she wasn't 100% herself on Sunday. We were going to stay for church on Sunday, but when Cade and Libs weren't feeling the greatest, we decided it would be best to head home. Well, on the way home, I started to feel a sore throat coming on. I got a headache that night, but hoped that a good night sleep in my own bed would cure it all. I thought wrong! Monday and Tuesday were pretty rough for me. Headache, sore throat, fever, achy body....fun stuff. Also, on Tuesday Josie came down with what Caden had. She threw up twice, but again it was hardly anything. She was just really tired and cranky that day. By Wednesday mroning we were all feeling better and I was praising God that things were headed in the right direction. Thursday Josie got more fussy and wasn't sleeping through the night and by Friday morning she had developed a high fever. Oh my, does it ever end. We pushed fluids and kept medicine in her, but it didn't really help. On Saturday morning, she woke up and was burning up again. So I thought, forget this, I'm taking her to the doctor. So glad I did!! We found out she has a double ear infection. Poor baby, no wonder why she was so fussy. The rest of the day she was still fussy and probably was her fussiest last night about midnight. Oh, and when all this was going on with J, I had noticed that Libby was very quite all day, but didn't really think anything of it. Well, Dustin felt her around supper time as thought she had a fever. Sure enough she did. So we got some meds in her and she did pretty well the rest of the night. She went to bed about 9 and J finally fell asleep a little after 1am!! Libby slept till 10:45 and J is still sleeping and it is noon! Libby woke up her old talkative self! Praise God! I went in to check on J and felt her and she seems to have no fever. I'm hoping she will wake up a new baby! So, that is all that has went on at our home in the past week. This was also our first week on duty with out our wonderful assistant Abby. We will miss her so much! Please pray for Hickory House as we adjust to life without the help of Abby. God Bless!

Josie Update

Oh how diaper changes and clothing changes have become next to impossible with this little girl! My little Josie Mae is growing right up. She is now almost 10 months and I can hardly believe it. I took her to the doctor about 2 weeks ago and she was 17lbs. 4oz. She is still a little peanut, but has got some wonderful chubby thighs! She is just becoming so fun! She is now the proud owner of 2 teeth. Now these teeth didn't come that easy. Many night were spent up, many tears shed and many doses of tylenol we given, but it's all worth it. She does "so big", claps proudly for herself, started to wave, and dances when she hears music. She loves her big brother and sister and LOVES her daddy! One of the many things that I have loved about working at Gateway is that Dustin is around all the time. He always had to go to work for 10-12 hours a day when Libby and Cade were babies, so he missed alot. He has been around so much more since Josie was born and it has been wonderful. He has got to spend so much time with her and help mommy out! Josie now eats about 50% baby food and 50% table food. She LOVES to eat and loves her bottle. Most of the time she likes to lay on floor and hold her bottle herself. Every once in a while she will lay still enough so that I can hold her and feed her. Doesn't happen often though. Oh well, I'll take what I can get. Well, that is an update on Josie. Maybe tomorrow I will update you on Cade and/or Libby.

Update coming soon

I will post soon....I promise...Life here has been a tad bit crazy!

4 months

Josie had her 4 month checkup today and her 4 month shots. The morning sure tired her out. She is 13lbs. 12oz. (55%), 24 1/4in. (50%), and her head size 16 1/4in. (60%). So, she is growing how she should and is just an average sized baby. The doctor said that she is doing well and looks healthy. She had some problems with a UTI and is on a low dose antibiotic as a preventitive. She is rolling over from stomach to back and almost from back to stomach. When we put her down for a nap or the night, we usually find her in a different spot of the crib. She moves like crazy! It's so fun to see her doing all these new things. I just wanted to update you all on our growing little girl!
God Bless!

12 Weeks

I can hardly believe that my little Josie Mae is 12 weeks old today. She has just been so wonderful for our family and is developing her personality more and more everyday. She has conquered sleeping through the night!!! Woot! Woot! She normally goes down between 9 and 10 and sleeps till between 7 and 8. And she is sleeping in her crib. For the first 10 weeks of her life she would not sleep in her crib. She would only sleep in her carseat, so this is a big accomplishment!! She is just plumping up, too! I just love her little rolls on her legs and arms.....and I love her double chin. Although she has always had a double chin, even when she was born at 6lbs. 7oz.! Just thought I would update you on my little peanut. Have a wonderful day everyone!