A Christmas Prayer

Every year at Christmas
All I can see
Are pictures of the things I want
Around the tree

But this year’s a little different
I’m not thinking of myself
So my prayer for this Christmas
Is for somebody else

So I pray…
Joy To the World
Peace for every boy and girl
Hope when life is hard
Light when everything seems dark

God I know you’re listening
And you can hear
The need of every broken heart
And all their tears

I don’t have a lot to offer
Just this one simple prayer
That this Christmas everyone would know
Somebody cares…

So I pray…
Joy To the World
Peace for every boy and girl
Hope when life is hard
Light when everything seems dark

I pray that every hungry soul
Will be filled and will be warm
That not a single, solitary child
Would suffer harm

And Lord we find their ending
As we take another view
My hope is that this Christmas prayer
Would somehow come true

I pray…
Humanity would rise
And join with me
And together we’ll sing

Joy To the World (To all the world)
Peace (Peace) for every boy and girl (for every boy and girl)
(Talking bout hope) Hope when life is hard (when life is hard)
Light when everything seems dark

I pray that (I pray) every hungry soul
Will be filled and will be warm
(Not a single child) That not a single, solitary child
Would suffer harm

And Lord we find their ending
As we take another view
My hope is that this Christmas prayer
Would somehow come true…

Joy To the World
Peace for every boy and girl

"Joy to the World (A Christmas Prayer)" is the second single from Nicholas Jonas' 2004 debut album Nicholas Jonas. It was released on November 16, 2004.

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

Waiting for Christmas

The kids are chomping at the bit to open their gifts. It will be their first American Christmas and it didn't take much doing to get caught up in the commercialism. My excuse for getting carried away with gifts was that they started out with so little that they need to catch up ... yeah, right!

Never fond of Christmas shopping crowds, we took early Toy-R-Us and Target ad flyers and had the kids go through and mark the things they thought they might like. Naomi marked everything pink or with babies in both books. Josiah didn't like anything - but still wants everything. I'm sure we'll hear words of disgruntlement on Christmas morning. He ended up with circles around any video game that looked like fighting, as well as some nasty looking guns and such. Sigh. Lists were made and shopping completed in just a couple of trips well before the Thanksgiving rush. Whew! I took it all to work for safe keeping and wrapping out of sight of curious eyes (and hands). Once at home they instantly were on to my color-code and counted gifts just to insure everything was fair. Natch!

Most years I painstakingly decorate my tree with many beautiful, fragile, and meaningful ornaments I have been collecting since my teens. It is always a source of much pride and joy for me at the holidays. I had to work very hard to let go of myself and let the kids decorate the tree. Other than the tendency to put everything directly in front of them so there was a one foot swatch about three feet from the ground that was decorated leaving the rest of the tree bare, they did a good job. With a bit of coaching and moving some of those stacked on a single branch, it didn't turn out half bad. And the pride and joy I feel for my children when I look at this tree far outweighs anything felt for past efforts.

GLORY HALLELUJAH! THE LORD HAS COME!!
Come Christmas morning amid the wrapping and surprise you can bet we will be celebrating and rejoicing the birth of Jesus!!!

A Season of Thanks

Words of thanks from my sweet daughter:

"I'm thankful for my family, my mom, my brother, my dad. I came on a plane with my family to America from Ethiopia. My mom and my dad buy me clothes and presents. When Josiah and I came to America my mom and dad were happy and I am happy too."

And Mom is thrilled that her kids are happy!!! A bigger blessing I could not wish for. It is an utter joy!

We had a lovely Thanksgiving in Montana with the whole family - all of my brothers and sister together is not a common occurrence these days. My sister and sister-in-law pitched in to make a great Thanksgiving meal! Nonetheless, my kids ate only the dark turkey meat and a bit of dinner roll, but could not be talked into white meat, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, sweet potatoes, or any of the traditional holiday fare. Not even the pumpkin pie!

We had an uneventful trip home on Sunday despite early road reports of closures in southern Wyoming. Praise God! I am sure it was He who was responsible as we were all sending up prayers for a safe journey.

My love and prayers for all my friends during this blessed season and always . . . 

How to tell your kids really love you ...

I was laying in bed the other night watching the kids hit a balloon back and forth. They were supposed to be getting in bed, but hey! it wasn't a school night and I love to watch them play when they are not inflicting or threatening bodily harm to each other. The balloon came sailing over near my face so I bopped it away. "Mom!" they complained, "Why you hit it? I hit you in the head, I win." Ahhh! I could just feel the love! Ain't life grand?!!

To His Glory!

Kids for Hire

The floors are swept and vacuumed, the dishes are done, laundry is caught up, bathrooms are clean, I dusted for probably the second time since the kids have been home (that always seems to take low priority), backpacks are ready for school tomorrow, and even some growing piles on closet shelves and in the garage have been tidied. How did this happen?

Naomi and Josiah spent Saturday at uncle Sam's helping with yard work - complete with breather masks to keep out the leaf dust - earning $25 apiece (they promptly asked to put their $5 bill in the church offering) - and leaving Mom to some free time alone. Did I take a long, hot bubble bath or leisurely read a book? No! A cleaning frenzy!

And now they are at a friend's house playing. What is a girl to do!?! I think I have forgotten how to relax . . . guess I'll pester ya-all with my persistent blog updates. And I still have an hour to read that book before I pick them up. Our God is an awesome God!

Halloween weekend adventures

Ahhhhh! I've never spent Halloween anywhere warm, and even though it was mild in the beautiful Colorado Rockies this year, we were relaxing in 90+ degree Arizona sunshine. It was the kids first airplane trip since arriving from Ethiopia. They said they were scared - and admitted to being scared when we flew from Ethiopia as well - but did great as always!

My heroic Spiderman and beautiful fairy princess made a killing stopping at house after house where many were sitting on lawn chairs in the driveways or on the back of pickup tailgates. The kids didn't even have to walk up to the door! One neighborhood cul-de-sac had a semi-circle of chairs at the entrance so they didn't even have to go down the street! So not only did they not have to freeze to death, they were spoiled by such laziness and posh treatment. By the end of the evening, which lasted but a brief hour-and-a-half, their bulging sacks of candy were so heavy they were begging for assistance to carry them. And Halloween evening was their 4th haul!!! At home they had two Trunk-or-Treats (going from spookily decorated car trunk to car trunk - for one of the events we waited in line an hour and 20 minutes just to get to the admissions gate - what we won't do for our kids!) and one community event at the soccer stadium. These kids have it made! Luckily they are very generous and gave away all their booty from the first 3 outings before we went on the official Trick-or-Treat soujourn.

Along with their very successful candy trek, we visited the Phoenix Police Museum where they got to dress in police clothes and sit in a squad car and on a motorcycle. We also took to a hot and dusty trail for their first horseback ride. Fortunately we went in the morning before it got too bad outside. Even though they only got to plod along, both enjoyed the experience. We were hoping to see some fun desert critters, but made do with a squirrel and a lizard.

We had gone down to Phoenix to attend the retirement party for my long-time friend and she generously let us stay at her fancy-schmancy condo on a Mesa golf course. The kids love to swim so in the afternoon we headed to the pool. As we arrived one of the gentlemen there said, "Oh, you just missed it." "Missed what?" we asked. It is a retirement complex and apparently the pool is only open to kids from noon to 2:00 p.m. We arrived right at 2:00 on the nose. We pleaded ignorance and asked if anyone would mind we swam for just a little while. You could tell by some of the faces they wanted to object but no one was brave enough to do so. I told the kids to keep to themselves, hold down the noise, and don't splash anyone! But the last straw was when they went to jump in the jacuzzi. No sooner had their little toes touched the water, than the waiting vultures pounced. "You can't go in there!!! No one under 16 is allowed. It is too hot for them!" We made no mention of the fact that they used the jacuzzi all summer at home, thanked them for their generosity in letting us use the pool outside of approved hours, and high tailed it back home. Yikes! Remind me to refrain from becoming thusly tarnished when I hit my golden years.

My Snippets

SNIPPET: –noun
1. a small piece of anything (especially a piece that has been snipped off); a small bit, scrap, fragment, or morsel
2. Informal; a small or mischievous person.

LEARNING LANGUAGE

* Response to a foot rub: "Yummy!"
* Wondering how far we will be driving: "Big minutes?"
* Asked how the sore throat and sniffles are doing: "Finished"
* Wanting to leave early for school: "Mom, today fast go, okay?"
* Are you feeling grouchy? - "You grouch me!" - I'm making you grouchy? "Yes!"
* One of the first multi-word sentences, "Are you crazy?!" Complete with appropriate intonations and facial expression. (Where did you learn that?)

SIT, KNIT, CHIT (CHAT)

* Both kids learned to knit in their after school program. It is such a "warm, fuzzy" when we are all sitting on the couch together in the evening - with no TV - and all three of us are knitting and just talking with each other. We're so "Leave It To Beaver"!

HANDSHAKES, HUGS, & KISSES

* Josiah no longer wants to be hugged in front of other people, and fusses grumpily if I try . . . the other day we arrived at school and didn't get our usual clandestine hug at the car before going in. After storing his backpack he said, "Mom, come outside, Josiah tell you something." We walked back out into the hallway and he threw his arms around me and gave me my good-bye kiss! (Mom's eyes get misty!)

* Naomi still loves her hugs and kisses but we have added our own secret "handshake" . . . an Ethiopian custom is to press thumb pads together with someone and then you kiss your thumb where they touched each other. We added the ASL sign for "I Love You" followed by a high five. So it's thumb-kiss-ILY-high5!

ETHIOPIA IN DENVER

* Here's a link to a Google map of Ethiopian restaurants, markets, churches, salons, etc. in the Denver area, one of the top 10 U.S. cities with largest Ethiopian community, estimated at 20,000 to 30,000.

S P O R T S

* Josiah's soccer team once again led their league with a 7-1 win record. The boys had some tough competition but played their hearts out and impressed everyone. The last week of the season they had a "professional" training session with one of the Colorado Rapids players! It was a great opportunity and they got some good tips.

* Naomi is preparing for a dance recital in December. Her class will be doing a combo ballet and tap routine called "Put Me In Coach." Time to charge up the video camera batteries!!

* Josiah and Naomi both started Taekwondo this week. It was supposed to be an off-season sport between soccer sessions, but I am very impressed with the instructors and the class. The head instructor studied under General Choi Hong Hi, who is considered to be the founder of Taekwondo. The discipline and respect that is taught really reinforces what I am trying to instill in them at home. And I think is better received coming from an outside source. The class is a mixed group open to all ages so I am considering enrolling myself next month! Better than just sitting there on my rear and watching for an hour and 3/4. The instructor says it would also improve the chances of the kids sticking it out. I asked them if they would be embarrassed or didn't want me to join in, and both said 'no.' The funny part is that the hierarchy of the class is structured by rank - first by belt, and then by length of study within the belt level. Since Naomi and Josiah will have started before me, they will be ranked higher than I am. They'll love that!


LA'BRI-UT: -verb/adjective
1. Hebrew: be blessed

“The LORD bless you and keep you;
The LORD make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The LORD lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.”

~ Numbers 6:24-26 (NKJV)


Until we meet again,
Love,
Nancy

Wiki Walking

We took a long walk around Addis Ababa on WikiMapia and found to within a couple of blocks of the house where my kids lived in Ethiopia. We located two nearby churches, the grade school they attended, and a police station that is "very close!" They just couldn't relate the aerial view to the streets they may have walked on or the distance traveled from the churches or school to home. But it was fun to see the general area. Hopefully we will all be able to take a trip there someday. I've told them we'll go once they graduate from high school, but the more I research and learn, the more itchy I get to go sooner.

Mutant Ninja Laundry

How can two small children generate so much laundry? And get it so dirty? One of the first questions I took to my network of parents was "how do I get their clothes clean?" (The answer was OxiClean, and it does work pretty well). I am also so thankful I can do much of this towering mountain of laundry at work. Yes, I did say 'at work.' I work in an appliance showroom and we have a live laundry display. I sort and pre-treat at home, then pop it the washer when I get to work. A couple of short breaks to switch loads and fold and I am done. I still do socks and unmentionables at home ... for one, I don't want our unmentionables spread all over the employee lounge and two, all those small items take longer to fold and I don't want to take undue advantage and jeopardize my good fortune. And yes, that is Ninja Josiah inside the laundry basket. They like to hide under the clothes and then pop out and "scare" me! Or I will call around for whoever is missing, feign giving up, and then pick up the basket and carry it away to dump elsewhere. This elicits many giggles, but is getting very hard to do -- they weigh about 55 and 64 pounds!

Ethiopia Reads Founder Named Top 10 Hero of the Year by CNN

Thursday, October 09, 2008
Yohannes named Top Ten Hero of the Year by CNN

Denver, CO -- Yohannes Gebregeorgis, a native of Ethiopia and children's literacy advocate, has been named a Top 10 Hero of the Year by CNN. Mr. Gebregeorgis was selected from more than 3,000 individuals nominated by viewers throughout the year. Finalists were selected by a Blue Ribbon panel of judges that includes Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Jane Goodall and Deepak Chopra. The Top 10 Heroes will be recognized in CNN's "All-Star Tribute" to air on Thanksgiving.

Mr. Gebregeorgis was first recognized as a "hero" by CNN in May for his work championing children in Ethiopia. A former political refugee who worked as a librarian at San Francisco Public Library, Mr. Gebregeorgis is the co-founder of Ethiopia Reads, a non-profit organization that works to create a reading culture in Ethiopia by connecting children with books. In a country where 99% of schools have no libraries, Mr. Gebregeorgis and Ethiopia Reads are improving lives, one book at a time.

ABOUT YOHANNES GEBREGEORGIS

ABOUT ETHIOPIA READS

Still praying for Samuel Phillipson

Please continue to pray for Samuel Phillipson. He is a 3-1/2 year old boy adopted from Ethiopia just 6 weeks ago. A week ago (on October 4) he was critically injured in a tractor accident. He lost both legs below the knee, his right arm is seriously damaged, and he suffered trauma to other areas of his body. He is improving and God has done miracles already in his healing. He has been moved out of intensive care and is starting to interact with family and visitors. Praise and hallelujah!

You can follow Samuels' healing journey and offer emotional support for his family at their Caring Bridge website.

An account has also been set up at the Premier Bank in Sullivan Wisconsin to help the Phillipson family during this time of need. Samuel will need many more surgeries over the next few months and he will have a lengthy stay at Children's Hospital in Milwaukee. The family will also need to make accommodations to their home and vehicle to allow Samuel to be able to get around in his environment. All of this will come at a hefty price.  We cannot imagine what a rough road lies ahead for this family. But we know that our God will supply all of our needs as He promises in His word. Please pray for guidance in supporting the needs of this wonderful family in their time of tragedy.

"The Samuel Phillipson Fund"

Checks can be sent to: 

Premier Bank 

PO Box 38 

Sullivan, WI 53178

Checks should be made to Samuel Phillipson Fund or to Carole Phillipson with 
Samuel Phillipson Fund in the memo portion.

The following was taken from the Phillipson blog

Samuel was injured today in an accident involving the tractor. He was airlifted from the park behind our house to Children's Hospital in Milwaukee. We need prayers.

Currently he is still in surgery and will need many, many more. He has lost one leg below-the-knee and the other they are trying to save to the ankle. One arm is broken near the shoulder but the elbow is more critical - open fractures with tissue damage/missing.

His pelvis is also fractured on one side. His buttocks and back are injured and he needs a colostomy. If he continues to do well in surgery tonight that will be performed now.

His vitals are good. He was awake up until surgery where we were able to kiss him.

Please lift him up. He's such a precious, vivacious, mischievous guy.

Marty and I are good and feeling the prayers and have our faith to sustain. It is the other children (Paul especially and Mary) that I worry about - they are with their Uncle Mike and Aunt Sheryl at our house tonight . . . . all the kids are piled in bed together (Paul usually sleeps with Samuel).

We love you all. We appreciate the power of prayer. We have a caringbridge.org website titled samuelphillipson that does not require a password and will keep all the medical stuff there.

Blessings to all. We praise God that we are His children and that we are in such a place where Sam is being tended to so well.

Family Math Night at school

The kids' grade school has monthly featured events to promote fun in learning. Recently it was math night! There were tables set up around the gymnasium with games an activities all related to math and numbers. The kids moved around the tables playing the various games to earn tickets. All of the tickets then went into a raffle for fun prizes. Naomi won a Farkle game!

Happy Enkutatash!!

Enkutatash is the first day of the New Year in Ethiopia. It occurs on Meskerem 1 on the Ethiopian calendar, which is September 11 (or, during a leap year, September 12) according to the Gregorian calendar. The new current year according to the Ethiopian calendar is 2001.

Literally, Enkutatash means 'Gift of Jewels'. The date traditionally marks the end of the season of heavy rains and is more recently or historically set by the return of the Queen of Sheba to Ethiopia after her visit to King Solomon in Jerusalem. It also marks the commemoration of Saint John the Baptist. Enkutatash is not only a religious holiday but it is also a day for young boys and girls to sing and dance and for exchanging New Year greetings among urban and rural inhabitants.

My kids received a small gift at home and their teachers (whom I told of the holiday) had noise makers and treats. We go out to dinner at an Ethiopian restaurant every Friday night, but hope this one will be a bit special for them -- the holiday made them really homesick for Ethiopia. And we will go to Ethiopian church on Sunday, dressed in traditional clothing, to celebrate.

HAPPY ENKUTATASH!

Getting better at braids ...

This was our first attempt at beads as well ... Naomi loves to swish tham back and forth!

Thanks Snapaholics for the great hair products and gallery of braiding style ideas!

Soccer champs

We finished our church summer soccer league undefeated!!! Josiah & Naomi were a big hit ... of the total 56 goals scored by the team, Josiah made a whopping 45 of them! Naomi saved the day many a time with her strong kicks from the backfield, getting the ball back into scoring position and defending our goal. AND they both won their medallions for memorizing all of their Bible verses. Proud mama! We look forward to joining the kids again next summer.

In the meantime, Josiah will continue with soccer on a fall rec league and Naomi is excited to start a dance combo class where she will learn ballet, tap, and jazz.