J.Man and SunShine's first CHRISTmas!

WoWW! a lot has happened since my last post. Sorry I have been out of blogger world for a long time )it seems like every time i post i say i'm sorry i haven't posted in so long). We had an amazing time with Cousin's, a blessed CHRISTmas, and a fun time with an Aunt and Uncle ringing in the new year. I would to do this post about CHRISTmas morning and then another about the afternoon and then our visit with the cousins!

We got up at 8:00 and did the usual wake up call (stomping on the floor above Mama and Daddy's room to wake them up and caroling at the top of the stairs).

Then we came down stairs, took the annual "children on the stairs" CHRISTmas picture.
Before we opened the gifts, Daddy read the CHRISTmas story. It was so peaceful.

J. Man was so excited! He didn't know what to do with all his gifts!

Sunshine woke really fast when she saw her first very own doll house!
And just her Mother, she put as many tables in one room as possible!!!

IT was so awesome to see Little Man excited about getting books about animals!
He loves them!

It was amazing to my little big brother excited about getting his new Bible!
This morning it was awesome to sit with him in the foyer and read the Bible.

How many 13 year olds would do you know that would excited about getting a hard, all one, Narnia series?
MY SISTER!!!!! She is so insipiring!

I know, I. AM. CRAZY!
I was so excited to get a pretty apron!
Hope said that I picked out the loudest one!

Hope is so cute when she gets excited!
I got to help Mama do a lot of shopping for Hope! It was a lot of fun!

And MARIGRACE GOT A GUITAR!!!!!!
She was really excited and so were we!!

Thank you all for stopping by! I hope that you a have peace in your soul about the this new year that surpasses all understanding! God has blessed me beyond words and I am so grateful! Thank you again for stopping by!
God Bless,
Leah-Joy.

The Cousin's are coming!!!!!!!!!!!!!

For those you who don't know who the Cousin's are, they are our awesome family who we don't get to see a lot. Well, there are 10 people in our family, already houseful you would think, right? Well, with cousin's there are 24 people in our house and it is an awesome party!!!!

At times there are peaceful moments with Gomer Pyle... then crazy moments with hide and go seek. It is pretty awesome!!

then crazy moments with hide and go seek. It is pretty awesome!!

I am really sorry...bad blogger person!!

I have been the worst little blogger person! I am really sorry. I am not going to make an excuses, I have just been a really bad blogger. Thanksgiving we all had the flu and we are all now getting better. School is going good and Christmas is just around the corner! WoWW!!!! I am so excited about Christmas. I have been able to go in with Baby Girl on a lot of presents and they are awesome!!! I can't wait to give them to everyone! The house is full of Christmas cheer, school is almost over and there are going to be partys!!! HOORAYY!!!!!! I love dressing up and going to peoples houses. This Christmas is going to be really special. This time last year, we were all longing for the little ones to come home and now if youi ask them where they are they will say, "Ome for Christmas!" (they don't say their h's) THEY ARE HOME!!!!!! It is amazing to think about. This time last year Mama couldn't listen to a song about a family going through an adoption and their children weren't home and then its Christmas time again and now their home. And now, that is us!! They are home and we are all together!

The man at the pack N ship we used to mail all our important adoption papers owns a place with blow up toys and gave Mama two tickets for the little ones! They loved it!

This is me and my wonderful *favorite* aunt! I am her name sake which she made very well known at my 16th surprise birthday party! It was great!!

Cody and Sunshine! He came over the first day they were home, stuck his huge hand in her face and she has loved him ever since then! We were all just treating them like they were egg shells but Cody just played with her like any other little kid!

Thank you all for stopping by! I hope that you have an amazing Christmas!

God Bless,
Leah-Joy.

PS. Fun Fact: Merry Christmas! Merry=mighty, Christ is Christ, Mass=celebration, so when you say "Merry Christmas" you are telling them that you hope they have a Mighty Christ Celebration!!

Encouragement!

If anyone is feeling bogged down, like you can't get anything right, or your just feeling discouraged, I would encourage you read this post from my Aunt Renee. It is an amazing and uplifting message from a fellow sister in Christ.

God Bless,
Leah-Joy.

the wind and the rain

Here lately God has really changed my heart. As I read what I wrote a while ago, my cry to God, I realized that He has done what I asked of Him. Isn't it amazing when God does that. That He can do it so gradually that you don't even notice it? I love it when He does that!

Thank you Lord,
For changing my heart. For being patient with me and having mercy on me.

I wrote prayer during a great storm in my life and it has been amazing to listen to God tell the wind to stop blowing and the waves to be still in my heart. Sometimes, like the picture above I have little ripples, but, they aren't ripples of anger like they used to be, they are ripples of sadness and pity. And the amazing thing is, He is there and then they are calm and peaceful again and He lets me know, that I need to pray.

How can I not worry about anything?
Show me how to hide under the shadow of your wings
Heal my heart so that I can hold me arms out open
Help me to forgive and forget
And never look back again

Some say that's just how it is
Why does it have to be this way?
Please let us all be home one day
Don't let us be separated anymore
By miles, burned bridges or wars

Help me to love others and be of help
Use me in a way that your light will so shine
Help me tell others that love is here
That you are Yahweh and always near
That it is okay to mourn and shed a tear
God, I know that this will be tiring, but it must be done.
I do it in hopes that it will inspire a reunion

Some say that it can't be done
That it will always be this way
Please, bring us all home today
Don't let be separated anymore,
By miles, burned bridges or wars.

The the end is in your hands
Please give us strength to stand
Help us, as your children to stand with You in all we do.

Just wanted to let you know I have posted some interesting facts on"Fight For Their Lives" If you would check it out I would appreciate it!

God Bless,
Leah-Joy.

Picture Perfect (post 200)

Buddy is growing into such an amazing young man. He now has cows pigs, and this summer he had an amazing garden. He has become even more of an amazing older brother to J Man and Sunshine and I am now looking up to him. He works so hard and becoming everyday more like our Lord. It is wonderful to see him fill the chivalric code of being trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave,pure and reverent more and more.

Dear Father,
Thank you so much for my brother. Thank you for allowing to look up to him even though he is younger then me.

A Dissater That Needs Your Prayers!

This is a letter from a dear cousin who lives in the Pillipines but is currently in the US. Please keep these people in your prayers. Not only have they had to suffer this horrid flood, but another is expected tonight our time and Friday morning their time.

It has been a tough week in the lives of so many in Manila Philippines. I am currently in the US for work so I am not on the ground first hand to experience the disaster and pain the population is currently living through. On Saturday a Typhoon dumped 30 days worth of rain in just 6 hours. As I write this on Tues evening flood waters still submerge many homes and the death toll is nearing 300. My family is safe but the reality of this disaster is that many who lived in this third world country had little before the storm hit and now they have nothing.I have tried to put the words to the paper to describe what it is like in Manila right now and I just can't find them. It was heartbreaking to see children in the streets with nothing before. Now you see the pictures of them with even less, and no means of improving the situation as the mud and water are still standing. More storms are projected in and they really can't care for the large groups of displaced people as it is now.The stories of what the Filipino will do to survive are phenomenal. Their dedication and loyalty to their family and those in their lives just can't be described. Most Filipinos live on less than $10 a day and the work they do for that $10 is strenuous but always done beyond expectation. On Monday morning with flood waters still rolling my housekeeper, with a house underwater up to the ceiling of the first floor showed up for work. Johnnie took them back to their home, picked up the children and they will stay with us until it can be determined if the house can be salvaged. Her father remains in the second floor, 4 days later with water still standing. Today they will go back, try to convince him to leave with them, and tie what remaining things they have to the ceiling of the second floor in hopes the new rains wont raise the water that high. The father has held firmly that he will not leave, he intends to protect what his daughter owns, as she has worked hard for it.Please pray for the country. The death toll is rising, and the disease has already begun. The mosquitoes will be hatching soon and Dengue fever will increase. Medicines are scare, and dehydration is already being reported in the young and the elderly. Many are forced to drink the flood waters which will result in typhoid most likely.If you would like to make a donation of used clothing, sheets, towels, sponges, soap etc or non perishable food or even small children's toys or books, you may mail it to my US address. A Flat rate Post office box to an APO/FPO address is about $12 to mail. Johnnie will distribute until I arrive back in the Philippines. I am attaching pictures which were taken from a slide show on yahoo. If you type in Philippine floods 2009 you will find more than 300 photos of the damage. I urge caution when viewing. The pictures are traumatic. They are not filtered and they do show death and removal of casualties. The picture I attach called floodchild is a boy in line waiting for emergency food rations to be handed out. In today's paper the article spoke of a 69 year old man who waited and waited in the food line but when they got to him all they had was water. He said he missed the bag of rations for the day. The bag contains a can with 2 sardines, and a pouch of noodles and is the ration amount for the day for a family.The two fish are there…please pray for the five loaves and the miracle to go with them.

With Love,

Kathy and Johnnie Jackson

PSC 500 Box 19 FPO AP 96515