Water water everywhere...

The Big Exciting Adoption News Update!

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Wed, 22 May 2013 02:29:00 +0000

How's that for a headline?

First, the news I've been very impatiently waiting to share with the world: we got our referral!

That's adoption-speak for finding out who our future daughter is, seeing photos, and learning a bit about her. It's a big day in the process and it has had a major effect on our hearts. We are head over heels.

Someday maybe I will share with you the CRAZINESS that I've been going through over the past couple months. There have been a lot of unexpected twists and turns in this process. I have had to make some super quick decisions, like when my agency coordinator calls as I'm driving down the highway at 65 mph. There have been emotional meltdowns and obstacles and moments when it looked like this whole process might come to a screeching halt and we would end up with no daughter. There has been an enormous amount of prayer.

But for now I'm going to skip that part in the interest of privacy. I'll tell you someday but if I told you all the nitty-gritty details right now, more than one person would be unhappy. Just know that I have witnessed the hand of God directing our steps up close and personal.

Getting our referral call was completely and totally unexpected. Different orphanages have different procedures, so it seems. We got an unexpected window of opportunity from Haitian social services, IBESR, to have our dossier submitted under the old procedures, already matched with a child.

So one night after dinner, Mike was in the process of making beer (as usual) and I was helping the kids with homework or something (that's code for I was on Facebook or reading blogs, as usual). All of the sudden my phone rang and I recognized our agency coordinator's number. She and I had been calling back and forth about lots of stuff, so it wasn't too unusual. But this was long after her office hours, so it was a bit weird.

What Mike was doing when we got the call.

She started to explain that this was our referral call and got all excited, making faces at Mike as I listened. So I made Mike stop what he was doing and we sat down in the dining room with Michelle on speaker phone as she told us she would be emailing over our daughter's photo and info. It was super weird hearing her say "your daughter". For now we will refer to her as Baby R.

We hung up and I opened the email and saw the most beautiful smile I've ever seen on a baby girl. I learned her heartbreaking story, which we will not share because it belongs to her. I felt a profound sense of peace and connection.

And then we had to leave everything and put the kids to bed because it was already past their bedtime. We didn't tell them just yet. Mike had to finish whatever he had started with the beer-making, so we didn't talk about it just yet. I had the job of contacting a doctor to review her file, so I did that. Then finally we sat down and talked about it and prayed together. We accepted the referral and told our closest friends and family the next day.

The next night we took our boys out to dinner and told them the news, showing them photos on our phones. They said "She's cute!" and that was that. No big deal. The only real difference to them is that now they pray for her by name.

These boys need haircuts.

Speaking of her name, we hadn't chosen a name for our daughter in part because we wanted to see what her biological given name was. We discussed very briefly giving her a new first name and keeping her Haitian name as a middle name, but so far we just call her by her Haitian nickname. I think it's going to stick. I believe it is a way to honor her first family.

An aside: On the subject of first families, many of you may have read a LOT of blog posts recently about adoption ethics. We are very aware of the practices of unethical adoption and are treading very very carefully. Mad props to Tara Livesay, who has personally be used by God to help me in our process, and Jen Hatmaker, for sparking a ton of good discussion and thinking on this subject this month. So for the time being, I will use the term "our daughter" EXTREMELY loosely. She is not ours yet and many things could happen that would change that. I won't pretend that I am not emotionally and financially invested in her joining our family, but I will only do that with the utmost respect and care for her first family.

Ok back to the news...there's more big news. This week IBESR finally opened up this grace window to accept dossiers under the old procedures and after what seemed like an eternity of waiting, we received word we were officially logged in. We are celebrating and praising God joyfully around here today. All glory to Him for working a miracle for dozens of kids in Haiti this week.

Now the catch...this is still only the start of the process. I know, you're thinking "WHAT?!!! You've been at this more than a year already!" I know. Now IBESR has to review and approve us. That could take months. Many months. We don't know at all. And then there are about a dozen more steps in the process even after that happens before we can bring her home.

My best guess is we're looking at a minimum of six months and a max of a year from now till Baby R comes home for good. Let's pray for the minimum, shall we?!

The good news is we don't have to wait that long to go see her! We're planning a short trip to Haiti sometime in July or August. Believe me, I cannot wait.

If you're still reading this crazy long post, thank you so much for hanging with us. Thank you for praying for us constantly. God has heard every prayer.

On Not Taking Myself Too Seriously

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Tue, 07 May 2013 13:53:00 +0000

My husband says I would be a lot funnier if I didn't take myself so seriously.

Trying hard not to take myself too seriously.

I'm not so sure exactly what he means by this. I didn't think I took myself that seriously at all. But lately I've been fairly enamored by genuinely funny people, especially writers. I wondered if quick wit was just something some people were born with.

Mike is genuinely funny. Most people don't know it, because he is the quintessential introvert and doesn't often let his funny side show. He's an engineer and highly analytical. I'm an engineer too, but I always thought I was far less analytical. I'm the "emotional" engineer in this family.

Yeah, right.

The other day I was participating in a twitter chat with the Houston Bloggers and we were talking about how to hone your writing voice. I've been writing for a very very very long time so I think I've done that. Lisa threw out some descriptive words for various types of voices and I immediately jumped on one.

Analytical.

I knew instantly that my voice here is not particularly funny, not sarcastic, not sugary sweet or poetic. It's analytical. (This post just confirms it!) Things happen and I reflect on them intently...or rather...I analyze them! Being analytical is not just about math or science, it's also about the kind of self-awareness and observational tendency I have.

Perhaps I do take myself kind of seriously. I work at my life, proactively, trying to be more awesome every day. I don't think that goal is keeping me from being funny.

Mike says I have to be able to laugh at myself first, or I can never make others laugh. So I'm on a mission to figure out how exactly to do that. So far I'm at a loss. Which is super weird.

I'm not a big fan of snark or sarcasm so that's not the kind of funny I mean. Anyone can be snarky, including me. That isn't attractive at all. I'm thinking of a few of my favorite writers in particular who can convey strong messages while keeping me laughing at the same time. Jen Hatmaker is one. Jon Acuff is another. Anne Lamott comes to mind. I would agree that all three are able to laugh at themselves for sure.

What do you think? Are funny people just born funny?

Becoming the Mean Playground Mom

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Mon, 06 May 2013 13:36:00 +0000

You can tell that school is almost over for the year by the flagrant disregard for school rules and adult authority. Or is that a disregard a more pervasive problem?

All I know is that I will be glad for next fall when the current crop of fifth graders at our elementary have moved on to junior high. But then of course there will be a new batch of kids who think they rule the school, so who knows how long the peace will last.

I walk my kids to school almost every morning. I should clarify that they usually ride scooters and sometimes I walk, sometimes I jog, sometimes I ride my bike. Once in awhile I drive them to the sidewalk outside the back of the school and just watch them walk up the long path and onto the playground. I can see them till they park their scooters on the bike rack, then I figure they are safe and sound because usually the bell rings within a minute or two and they enter school.

We like to be there a tiny bit early. It's the strong "J" in me, (I'm an ENFJ) and it's so that we don't have to tangle with a ton of bike and pedestrian traffic on the sidewalks. Not to mention that I'm eager to get back to my office to work.

Well last week was one of those times I let them off at the sidewalk and watched them walk in. When I came to pick them up in the afternoon, I immediately heard the story of how Alex got run over by a bike, ON THE PLAYGROUND, and was escorted to the nurse's office. They showed me where the incident took place, and it wasn't even on the blacktop, it was a grassy spot 50 feet from the school door.

I was astounded that some kid would be riding his bike around the playground when it was full of kids waiting to enter school!

Then the next morning I walked them all the way to school and I saw it...handfuls of older boys riding their scooters and ripsticks and even a couple bikes in circles around the blacktop of the playground despite it being FULL of small kids and a few parents.

I immediately called the school and complained. I heard the excuse that teachers don't supervise the playground before the 8am school bell and the kids "shouldn't" be there before then anyway. Yeah...right. I asked for them to remind the kids and their parents of the rules.

Then this morning I showed up again and saw the same thing. I very loudly reminded my own children to get off their scooters at the gate and walk them to the bike rack (they don't actually need reminding, but other kids obviously do.) I saw a few kids look at me and get off their vehicles. But I saw a few on ripsticks blatantly ignore me. So I said to them "You are not supposed to be on those ripsticks here!" I did not yell, but I was stern. Still they ignored me.

So I walked over to the door of the school where I found a teacher about to let the kids inside when the bell rang. I told her the problem, and that my Alex was the one run over last week. She yelled "GET OFF YOUR RIPSTICKS" from where she was, but they either couldn't hear her or chose not to hear her.

FINALLY one of the other teachers marched out onto the blacktop, grabbed the attention of the three boys in question and gave them a lecture or something. I stood watching from the doorway as the bell rang and all the kids rushed inside.

I fully expect them to be back tomorrow morning, ignoring the rules some more. But now I'm on a mission. I will keep bugging the school until it stops. I don't want to hear excuses about a lack of teacher or parent responsibility. I shouldn't have to worry about my Kindergarten's safety when he's on school property. I don't want to be the mean mom, but if no other parents or teachers will supervise their kids before school, I will.

The Brotherhood of Running

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 16:00:00 +0000

Today I am bringing you a guest post from John Mckinzie, a friend from my running group, Katy Fit. I ran behind John many times last summer in my very slow start to marathon training with the Red group. (Red = slow, btw.) John is, like me, a late-in-life athlete, who has now inspired his sister and his young son to run as well. He originally posted this on his Facebook page last September.

So I get up this morning for what I plan on being an 8 mile run.

John at Run 4 the Children, photo
by Carter Anderson Fine Portraiture

6:00 at the cop shop on a Friday is pretty desolate. There is only one other runner, and he is coming in from a "God only knows how long" run. He is the typical Elite runner...skinny, not an ounce of fat, no hydration. He makes a pit stop as I start my run, but soon is breezing by me.

I'm pooped. I feel like I've been working out all week long... running, hill work, gym, Body Pump. But I need to get a long run in cuz Saturday it's WPS!!!

After a mile I wanna quit. After two I realize how slow I'm going but forge ahead. At three miles, I'm pissed and I turn around. My 8 miler is now a six.

I'm walking off my frustration, when all of a sudden I hear in an English? accent. "Hey, you are not supposed to be walking!!" I thought, WTF!! leave me the F alone!!! But I said, "Yeah, I really should be running." He said "Well start running and I'll run you in!!"

Yeah right!! No way I was running it in, much less keeping up with him. But I did. Yeah, he slowed down, ALOT. I knew he did. We talked for the remainder. My "story", his anguish over getting his 2:50 marathon pace again, other running topics, runs we had recently done.

What I didn't realize is that I was speeding up...ALOT. We blazed across the park gate and onto the bball courts. We shook hands, I thanked him and asked his name. "Elias from South Africa...and the next time I see you, you had better not be walking!!" I smiled and we parted ways.

Then it hit me like a brick wall. Why was this elite runner slowing down to acknowledge me? I meant nothing to him, nor him to me. I suddenly realized that my thinking had gone all askew.

Running is a brotherhood. We all cross the same finish line, start at the same gun, and none of us is satisfied completely with our time. It's so mental. I was not tired. I was not sore. But I had decided that day that I was. He made me remember that which I had forgotten. The motivation has to come from within.

Don't wait for your Elias to come by. He might not. Great if he does, but we will probably never see each other again. He took time out of his training regimen to help a fellow runner. But that fellow runner must have his inner Elias with him at all times. Now I do. Whenever I slow down and I think it's just too damn hard, I will think of Elias. A complete and total stranger. Helping me when I thought I couldn't help myself. Anyone struggling, just find your inner Elias, he is there.

A Night with Andy Gullahorn, Sarah Sample and Edie Carey

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 04:02:00 +0000

Music is one of God's greatest gifts to humankind. As my friend Jennifer said tonight, it can carry you through the tough times, boost you in the good times, and it can grab your soul.

Tonight was one of those rare opportunities where I get a glimpse into the mysterious creativity that makes up truly amazing songwriters. As usual, I walked away in awe.

After our Boston tribute run last week, Jen and I were chatting over beer and we discovered that we both have a major passion for a wide variety of good music. So a few days later she invited me to a house concert she had put together for a singer friend of hers, Sarah Sample. I love the concept of house shows and have offered to host them myself, though it hasn't happened yet.

Then she told me Sarah was also touring with Edie Carey and Andy Gullahorn.

The same Andy Gullahorn whose music I fell in love with after hearing him on the Behold the Lamb of God tour with Andrew Peterson three years ago.

One call to a babysitter later and we were there, with a plate of cheese and growler of homebrew to share.

All three musicians were captivating. All three with beautiful but unique voices and painfully honest lyrics. I know enough about Andy Gullahorn and his wife Jill to just feel some of the emotion in what he writes and sings.

We could only stay for one set because of it was a school night. During the intermission we chatted about faith blogging and life in Nashville and making beer.

These kinds of nights fuel my soul.

Running 4 Boston #Run4Boston

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 19:16:00 +0000

Yesterday I watched in horror as the bombs exploded at the finish line of the Boston Marathon. *THE* Boston Marathon, I should say. As a runner, Boston is the most prestigious and historic of all races. It is the ultimate goal. We even have the common running lingo acronym, BQ, which means you ran another race fast enough to qualify to run Boston.

Boston is also a city I deeply love. My family has deep deep roots there. My grandparents both grew up there, my grandfather went to MIT and my grandmother went to Boston University. They married there and the house my great-grandfather built in 1928 is still there and now I get the privilege of paying the bills on it. (That's kind of an inside joke.)

Anywho, I've spent a great amount of time in Beantown. Plus, of course, I'm now a runner. So you can imagine how yesterday felt.

The thing about runners though...we are tough. We are incredibly resilient. We know how to punch fear in the face. If the terrorists thought this would deter us from running Boston or any other marathon again? They were wrong.

We are also family. Mainly because we're crazy so we stick with our own brand of crazy.

Which is why my local running community IMMEDIATELY banded together to create our own tribute run tonight, in honor of those in Boston yesterday. We will meet at one of our regular gathering spots at 6:30 tonight and run 4.09 (44) miles (the race time the bombs went off) in solidarity with the runners (and spectators) in Boston and beyond. We apparently are even having tech tshirts made up because our local print shop, Brammers, who sponsors our running club, Katy Fit, is freaking awesome.

But this run isn't limited to Katy Fit runners. All who can come are welcome. And some who can't make it have decided to do their own virtual tribute runs in their own neighborhoods. I'm sure we aren't the only ones with this idea, but we are good and springing into action. I hope the entire community of runners throughout cyberspace will join us.

Join us in person at the Cop Shop on I-10 in Katy/West Houston, just past the Barker Cypress Rd intersection at 6:30 tonight. All are welcome.

Join us virtually by wearing your race shirts and running where you are and tweeting with the hashtag #Run4Boston. Snap a photo and Instagram your group!

It's All About the Race

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Pre-race photo with another Houston Blogger, April.

I've been seriously slacking in the running department. Well, really, the fitness in general department. Since the end of February I would say I have averaged a run once every ten days. It's not so good.

Couple that with my husband's amazing homebrewing and my jeans are a little tighter than they should be. I had been avoiding the scale but I hopped on last week and didn't like what I read. No surprise.

It seems that I really really need a hard and fast goal to keep on the path to fitness. My schedule isn't THAT different lately, but I haven't prioritized the running like I used to. I used to run first thing in the morning after dropping my kids at school. I admit that getting bit by that dog has deterred me from running that time of day...but I should just go a different direction.

Work has been busy. My grandparents have taken up a lot more of my time lately too. I have also been spending a little more time with my adoption community via social media lately. The main thing I haven't been doing is running. Certainly not going to the gym or yoga class either. I haven't done that since I went from working three days a week to five. I knew I would be making that sacrifice but the extra income is really important when paying for a crazy expensive adoption. Worth it, too.

This past Saturday the weather was perfect and my morning was wide open so I dragged myself out of bed at 5:30 am and met a handful of folks from my running club to get some miles in. It was tough but exhilarating. I loved every minute and only wished I had kept it up so that I would be faster and stronger by now.

Fast forward to Sunday night when my friend, Jennifer Patrick, asked if I wanted to run the Green 6.2 race with her in two weeks. Jen only recently started running herself and she has busted through all kinds of personal limits recently. She is fierce and determined and I love it.

I thought about running this race both last year and this year. I forgot when it was until she threw down the challenge. It's very close by, very flat, and has the cool premise of being very eco-friendly. The environmentalist in me loves that.

The more I thought about signing up for the race the more excited I got. There's a neat finisher's medal! It would be only my second piece of running bling. I think two weeks is enough time for me to get ready to run 6.2 miles...not fast but I'm sure I wouldn't die. Ha!

I'm sure I can get some of my other friends to do this race with us too. Running in community is awesome.

How To Stretch Your Gallon of Gas Farther + Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 16:08:00 +0000

This weekend I had got the cool opportunity to visit the seventh annual Shell Eco-Marathon in downtown Houston, a competition for high school and college students to see who can build the most fuel efficient car. Hundreds of student teams came from around the US and other countries such as Brazil and Guatemala, along with their Prototype and Urban Concept cars that run on gasoline, battery, solar power, biofuels and hydrogen. One car broke the track record and surpassed 3,000 mpg!

My whole little family of engineers and future engineers had a blast talking to teams, watching the cars race, and playing around at the interactive Shell Energy Lab.

Cars had to be pushed inside the GRB convention center.

The Big Ten was well represented. Engineers galore!

These are high schoolers!

Prototype cars lined up to race around the track.

Geekiness galore. My husband and I are both proud Penn State engineers so of course we visited with the Nittany Lion team and cheered them on from the balcony above the track with a "We Are!"

Penn State only had a budget of $1000 per car, with no fancy corporate sponsors like the teams from other schools such as Purdue and Mater Dei high school.

I was especially taken with the all female "Shopgirls" team from Granite Falls high school. Check out this awesome video about them.

Drive Smarter and Win a Gas Card

Also launched this weekend is Shell's Target One Million initiative to help people become smarter and more fuel efficient drivers. As part of that effort, Shell has developed a quick web-based game that users can play to help them learn how to drive smarter and stretch their fuel purchases farther. Over 300,000 people have already played the game, including me!

At the Eco-Marathon I got to spend some time with John and Helen Taylor, the world's most fuel efficient couple. They are passionate about helping others who want to learn how to drive smarter and save fuel. They shared with me that they receive hundreds of emails from people thanking them for helping them save as much as $1000 a year! Changing a few driving habits have meant life-changing cost savings for some.

John and Helen Taylor drove around the world, 25,717 km, on just 24 tanks of fuel.

Shell's newest research found that Americans, Houstonians in particular, really do want to learn how to drive smarter in order to both save money and environmental resources. Houstonians drive more miles annually than drivers in LA, San Francisco or New York! We waste 118 million hours a year just sitting in traffic...that's 52 million gallons of gasoline!

Blogger Melissa checks the tire pressure.

After spending time with the Taylors, I was inspired to try a few of their tips to save fuel. I tend to be an aggressive driver, trying to get places in a hurry, but my personal values of frugality and stress-free living helped convince me to try taking it easier on the pedals. My car was also due for an oil change so I spent an hour cleaning out the trash and took it in for maintenance and detailing yesterday. It's SO nice driving a clean and well lubricated car!

Shell wants everyone to join the Target One Million challenge and play the smarter driving game, so they have generously provided me with some Shell gas cards to give away to my readers! Yay!

To win one of seven gas cards worth $20 each, head to the smarter driving challenge and play the game. It only takes a minute or so. Then leave a comment here with your favorite fuel efficiency tip!

You can get extra entries for Liking Water Water Everywhere on Facebook, subscribing to the blog, and following me (@MainlineMom) on Twitter! The contest will close this Friday, April 12th at midnight and I will email the winners about where to mail their gas cards. Easy peasy.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: Shell invited me to the Eco-Marathon and provided me with a gas card as well. I am a chemical and environmental engineer and I totally loved this whole event and as always my words opinions are truthful and my own.

A Good Friday In Texas

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 10:00:00 +0000

It's that time of year again. This year Easter weekend corresponded perfectly with the height of bluebonnet season in southeast Texas. Amazingly (given the sacredness of the holiday) both my kids and myself have Good Friday off every year. So I did a little research and got the boys up at 0-dark-thirty to drive out to bluebonnet country in search of great photos.

This year we did not have nice new brightly colored matching polo shirts. In our latest efforts to fight consumerism (hello, our small group is working though Jen Hatmaker's book, 7) I refuse to spend money on new clothes just for Easter or a few cute photos. Even with my vastly reduced shopping habit, my boys still have enough clothes to choke a horse. So I pulled out the cute matching shirts I bought for them last year that still fit. I wish they had been solid colored.

And there are the results! My only regret is that we didn't leave the house earlier, because I saw some amazing morning light on the drive up but I didn't stop because I knew where we were headed. We weren't the first to arrive at the amazing field, but we did beat the rush of families and photographers.

When I Grow Up...

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 15:41:00 +0000

This morning, this sweet little boy looked up at me from the coach with this same timid smile and said, "Mama, when I grow up and get to be an adult, and when I have kids, I'm gonna let my kids do whatever they want."

I smiled and patted his head. "Ok honey, you can do that when you grow up."

What prompted this pronouncement?

Yesterday he got a crisp new $20 bill in the mail for Easter from his Grammy. This morning he remembered today was "school store" day, when the PTA buys a whole bunch of little trinkets (mostly junk) and resells it to kids for profit. I sometimes give my kids a couple dollars to spend and sometimes they spend their own money.

I told Alex he could not take his $20 bill to school and use it for school store. It's just too much money to carry around and spend on pencils and mini erasers. $3 is the max I will let the kids spend.

Alex doesn't yet understand that $20 is too much to take to school. Money tends to burn a hole in Alex's pockets. Nathan knows how to save it and buy something more valuable. He also knows any money he gets goes three places, first to God, then some to savings, the rest can be spent.

After Alex's adorably misguided statement, I decided to give each child a couple bucks from my wallet for the school store. I like to give them opportunities to assign value to goods and exchange money for them, independent of my influence.

Money is something we talk about frequently with the kids. We talk about earning money, banks, tithing and saving and budgeting. I say "No" to a lot of requests in stores simply because I do not want them to believe they are entitled to anything. When I say "Yes" to something, it's usually backed up with a good reason.

They will never hear me say "we can't afford that" about anything, because that would be a lie. I say "we don't need that" a lot, and sometimes I say "that would be nice but it isn't in the budget right now."

Lately we talk a lot about how we are saving money for our adoption. I try to explain as much about the adoption as I can to them, and they know that it takes a lot of money for the people at the orphanage to take care of their baby sister until we can come and get her.

One of my kids, I think it was the older one but I can't remember which, recently made a comment about how getting our baby sister is so expensive but when they were born it was free. I laughed out loud! I explained that the real cost of each of their births vastly exceeded the cost of this adoption. Both boys were born via C-section in a hospital, with numerous prenatal doctor visits and ultrasounds. Nathan spent a week in the NICU. If not for insurance, the cost of each birth would be astronomical.

But with adoption there is no insurance to cover the costs of homestudies and lawyers and fingerprints and then just basic childcare while we wait. I laugh when people say that if you can't afford to pay for an adoption yourself, how can you afford the kid? That's someone who has no understanding of the costs of raising a kid or the cost of an adoption. Both private domestic adoptions and intercountry adoptions cost somewhere between $20,000 and $50,000. Out of pocket, almost all at once. (Well, within a year or three.)

I digress. My goal is not to make my children happy. My job is to raise my kids with a strong work ethic and the ability to view and manage money responsibly, as a tool and not a goal. Accumulating money should never the goal. Being a conduit of blessing is the goal.

Swimming with Stingrays at Sea World

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 16:08:00 +0000

Last year I had the privilege of being selected as a Sea World San Antonio Wildside Blogger and it was a wonderful experience. That's why I'm thrilled that I was chosen once again to participate as a Wildside blogger in 2013. Our kickoff even for the season was this weekend and my family had a blast!

The Wildside Spring Fling was held at Aquatica, the new waterpark at Sea World in San Antonio. My husband questioned the idea of going to a waterpark in March, but it turned out to be a warm and sunny day. Only in Texas!

We decided to drive out to the park and back the same day, so we left before dawn. It was drizzling and very chilly when we arrived around 9:30am but there were no lines. As soon as the gates opened we made a beeline for a warm gift shop where I found a rack of fleece sweatshirts on clearance and promptly bought one for each kid and me. They were cute! Here are the boys in their new sweatshirts posing with Ozzie and Harriet the parrots.

We were the first of the group of Wildsiders to arrive at our private little beach area, but my friend Mason Rodriquez from Sea World was there waiting for us with towels and beach chairs. The boys immediately took to digging in the sand while other families arrived.

It was super fun to see Priscilla again, who I met at Bloggy Boot Camp in Austin a couple years ago. Our oldest two boys hit it off really well! I love watching my kids make new friends.

The highlight of the day by far was our chance to do the Stingray Interaction at Aquatica as a family! Alex was pretty nervous about it, but we encouraged him to pet the rays from outside the tank and then watch the first group as they waded into the pool and fed the animals. So he decided to face his fears and get in the pool with the stingrays!

Nathan was thrilled about the opportunity and waded right in, grabbing the fish and eagerly feeding it to the velvety creatures. Stingrays mouths are underneath them so you have to hold the fish in a fist with the head sticking up and place your fist down underneath where they swim. Then they come along and suck the food out of your hand exactly like a vacuum cleaner! Once in awhile they would come and suck on my feet.

The stingray interaction was an awesome way to create a really cool family memory. We'll be talking about it together for years to come, I'm certain! They even provided us with a couple of family photos...the whole thing made putting on a swimsuit in March worth it.

One great part about coming to Aquatica in March when the morning was chilly but the sun came out and warmed up the afternoon? Way less people to deal with. There were no crowds and we used the opportunity to finally ride Stingray Falls, the signature attraction at Aquatica that often has a very long line. Even Alex rode with us, despite his nervousness! I am not usually one for big, fast rides but being in a raft as a family and zooming down the water slide into the little cove beneath the stingray pond was super fun. The photographer even got a photo of Chico, the big spotted eagle ray, swimming over top of us!

Of course as soon as we reached the end, Alex asked to do the ride again! I knew he would love it. Maybe next time! We left the park just before dinner, stopped for a bite to eat, and drove on home to Katy. Both boys were so tuckered out they crashed instantly, so we had a peaceful drive as the setting sun behind us cast a golden glow along the countryside, including loads of Texas bluebonnets in full bloom along I-10!

Sea World is open for the season every day now and Aquatica is open every weekend until June when it opens daily for the summer. They have some super exciting events and opportunities this spring, including a pretty sweet Just For Kids concert series in April, featuring Laurie Berkner, Imagination Movers and others. We'll be heading back there for sure in June, if not before, and we can't wait!

Disclosure: As I mentioned, I have been chosen as a 2013 SeaWorld Wildside blogger. My family was provided with complimentary passes to the parks as well as other perks. I was not asked to write about my experiences but I will always share what I love with complete honesty and integrity.

Why We Loved The Croods in 3D {Review}

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 02:57:00 +0000

Last weekend my family had the privilege of enjoying an advanced screening of the new Dreamworks family film that opens this weekend, The Croods. Here's the bottom line review: we all LOVED it!

I really wasn't sure what to expect of the Croods at all, but I have high expectations for Dreamworks films and it did not disappoint. The animation is simply gorgeous through. Creativity overflows through all the pre-evolutionary plants and animals.

But the best part are the values and messages the film actively seeks to convey. The importance of the family unit is the first and most key value that comes through in The Croods. They work as a team, the protect each other, their very survival has depended on it. Even despite major flaws, family members are loved and protected.

Another major theme in The Croods is the value of new ideas and that change is something to be embraced rather than feared. The strong plot delivers this message solidly and convincingly. The whole screenplay is brilliant, in my opinion.

But don't just take my opinion, ask my kids! They don't care about the animation or the values, they just care whether or not it makes them laugh. It certainly did!

On a side note, I believe this was the first major motion picture I've seen in 3D. I loved it! Right from the beginning I felt like I could reach out and grab things. I will definitely pay the extra money to see things in 3D in the future.

So I highly recommend taking your family to see The Croods. The End.

The Stuck Film Premieres in Houston

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 14:59:00 +0000

I can't even remember the first time I heard about the documentary film, Stuck. I knew it focused on international adoption and the problems with the process. I knew it followed the stories of three families, one of which was adopting from Haiti. That was enough for me and I signed up as a volunteer audience recruiter.

Then I saw the trailer. I cried the first time I saw it. I shared it with everyone I knew. It looked like it could be a powerful tool to enlighten people on the intense struggles of international adoption that we were going through.

Then our adoption agency sent me an email that the Stuck film city tour really needed a city manager for their Houston premiere. I hesitated to take on what seemed like a huge job, but I was committed to the cause and I figured it was only three weeks till the showing so my work would be limited. So I jumped in.

The campaign staff helped some with reaching out to local media, but got nowhere. I grabbed ahold of that need a bit too late to be effective, but I tried like crazy. We showed the trailer at our local adoption conference and I sent materials and information out to our city alliance of adoption ministries. Plus I plugged the event over and over in social media.

I also asked my friends from the band Forlorn Hope if they would play at the premiere. They did and it was perfect. The day before the film showing I had lunch with Craig Juntunen, executive producer and founder of the Both Ends Burning campaign. He's an engaging, passionate guy with an amazing personal story.

I was pretty nervous that no one but a handful of my friends would show up. Last I checked we had only sold eight tickets. I was totally wrong. Almost two hundred people came! Craig said it was one of their biggest premieres yet. (It should be, in the fourth largest city in the country!) Everything is bigger in Texas, you know.

Craig's kids are adorable. Beautiful, even. I didn't hear a trace of a Haitian accent anymore.

Seven year old Quinn delights my friend Laura with stories.

The Juntunen kids have been living on a tour bus almost two weeks.

Craig, his kids, and my friend Vanessa. (Forgive the lighting, I had camera issues.)

Adam and John from Forlorn Hope sang their songs about hope for the oppressed.

The film, of course, was tremendous. I would love it to be nominated for an Oscar, which is has already qualified for. They are on a sixty city tour to show the movie and gather signatures for a petition to make change in the difficult process of intercountry adoption. At the end of the tour they will march in Washington.

My parents were in town for spring break and they saw the film with us too. I think it helped educate them at least a little about the process we are going through, but also about the community of support we have in Houston.

Meanwhile we wait, as the Senate in Haiti is scheduled to vote on a new adoption law today that would improve a lot of issues and potentially speed our process...a bit.

You can purchase a copy of Stuck on DVD or download and I do ask that you sign the petition as well!

New Things I Learned About Adoption This Weekend

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 15:06:00 +0000

A year ago this week Mike and I volunteered to help with a local adoption and foster care conference our life group was supporting. We listened to speakers talk about the great needs of orphaned kids, the joy of transracial adoption, and how to manage the enormous cost of an adoption. After that conference we talked about everything we'd heard and decided to begin our own adoption journey.

One thing we heard my friend Aaron Klein say has stuck with us through the past year.

Adoption is a story. You are not the author.

Recently my husband heard from a friend of his from high school who is looking into fostering to adopt in part because of how we have very publicly shared our story. That is our goal with being so transparent about a very personal journey. I smiled when I saw Mike pass on those same words to her, "Adoption is a story, and you are not the author."

This weekend Mike and I attended that same conference again, this time as a family much farther down the road of our journey, yet still near the beginning. After checking my kids into childcare I walked into the main room and saw they were playing Aaron Ivey's video for Amos Story, the wonderful song he wrote about the long excruciating wait to bring his kids home from Haiti. Nothing like making me tear up before I've even sat down!

We had wonderful worship led by Robbie Seay and we watched the amazing Dennehy Family video. Watch it now if you haven't already.

First we attended a session about preparing yourself, your marriage and your family for life after the adoption. We sat near a couple we had met several years ago in our Financial Peace class who were just exploring adoption. We also sat next to the son of our friend who taught that same class at our church, along with his wife who were on the cusp of a kinship adoption. They already had three kids under 6 years old and they were the only family members out of forty others asked who would take in a four and six year old who needed a home. God bless them, that's the heart of Jesus in action.

The biggest take away for me from that session was a discussion of tactics for protecting your child's personal story and privacy. A great recommended resource was a book called Wise Up Power Book. It's designed to be read with kids and teaches the four ways of dealing with awkward or uncomfortable questions about their adoption following the acronym W.I.S.E.:

Walk away
"It's private"
Share something (not the whole thing)
Educate

We spoke about the need to gracefully share with our immediate and extended families how to use the right adoption language and how much of our child's story is private information. We had a great discussion among the group about funny or even offensive questions people get asked. Mike shared that he has already been asked "How much does she cost?" and with regard to our sons "Are these ones yours?" meaning did they join your family biologically. Both inappropriate questions that require grace filled answers.

Next we attended a session by a licensed counselor on the techniques of "Theraplay" which are often used for kids from hard places. The speaker was fun and made the talk highly interactive which I liked and Mike hated. I had two lightbulb moments here.

First, I'm going to have to start NOW on improving my biggest weakness...meal planning. I can't have a kid from a food insecure background wait while I sit around trying to figure out what's for dinner. Seriously you have NO idea how bad at this I am. We go out to eat way too often, mostly because I am not prepared for meals. This has to change now, before she comes home.

Secondly I suddenly realized how important preschool movement and music classes are in child development. We never did any of those because my kids were in part-time daycare and they seemed like an expensive waste of time to me, designed mainly for stay at home moms with time to kill. Now I know that these will be VITAL to the actual brain development of my adopted daughter, who will not be in daycare. Luckily my friend Kathy runs Kindermusik classes all over our town, so I know now I'll be signing up.

After two sessions that talked a lot about the challenges of adoption, Mike was feeling a little discouraged. So I called an audible on the last session we had registered for and we went to hear my friend Aaron speak about How to Build a Global Orphan Initiative. I kind of knew his story about funding a school project in Ethiopia, but Aaron is a terrific speaker so I knew it would be a much more uplifting talk. And it was.

Aaron laid out ten clear steps for launching and sustaining a project to help orphans in another country. He answered a nagging question I have recently had about the use of "vision trips" as part of such an effort. Everything he said applied directly to a new effort our friends have become involved with to minister to some orphans in Zimbabwe. I'm excited to share my notes with those friends soon.

The day wrapped up with more worship, a keynote speaker, and showing the trailer for the documentary Stuck, which is touring the country and will stop in Houston March 13th. I happen to be the City Host for the Stuck film tour, so I was thrilled that they showed the trailer. Watch it now if you want.

STUCK TRAILER from Both Ends Burning Campaign on Vimeo.

You can buy tickets to see the movie in Houston or your city at Both Ends Burning.

Overall it was a terrific conference again this year, attended by more than four hundred people. We have a lot of support for the adoption and foster community in our city, and for that I could not be more grateful. We're going to need it as we continue on what will be a lifelong journey of parenting an adopted child.

Run 4 The Children Recap

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 16:44:00 +0000

A runner's high is more than just a momentary flood of endorphins during a run that make you feel good. It can be an overall sense of increased energy and elevated mood that last a whole day. Especially when you achieve a new goal or break through a new barrier.
That's pretty much how I felt all day Saturday following Run 4 the Children.

Run 4 the Children is the four mile race my adoption group holds each year to raise money. The money goes towards families who want to adopt but need financial help as well as to sponsor a bunch of orphan children in Zimbabwe. This weekend was our third year to host this event and it really is a big celebration of adoption. The race combines lots of things I love: adoption, my church, families and running.

Things flowed very smoothly from packet pickup to sponsor booths to registrations and volunteers. Minimal bumps meant less rushing around and much more enjoyment than in previous years. Also this year my whole family planned to run the race, with Mike and the boys doing the official two mile short-cut. I practiced running intervals with my five and eight year olds a few times last week to make sure they could do it, and that only made them more excited about it.

Over the past few weeks I waffled over whether I would run the full race for an official time or just run with my family. Last year I hit a PR (personal record) of a hair under 48 minutes, or 12 minutes per mile. Since I trained for the half marathon I've been running much slower than that, only hitting about 12:15 on my best shorter runs. So I had it in my head that there was no way I'd do as well as last year.

My awesome husband challenged me on my negative self-talk. He encouraged me to just run my own race and not worry about the time so much. He promised me he'd handle running with the boys.

So I did plan to run the full race, but my mind stayed on everything else. I focused on helping out where needed, which included working the registration table the morning of the race. I even registered Roger (The Rocket) Clemens! That was an odd experience. I focused on the social aspect of the day, excited to see SO many people I know from my running group and my church. Even my friend April from my Houston Bloggers networking group came all the way from Kingwood to run! I was so grateful for such a show of support for our cause.

So I ran. I wasn't sure at what point I would start walking but I knew based on last year that I could start out fast and it would help make up for some walking towards the end. I set my Runkeeper app to target a 12 minute per mile pace, even though I didn't think I'd be able to consistently stay above that based on my recent runs.

I didn't quite as fast as last year, but after five minutes my pace was in the low 11's so I was happy with that. It wasn't long before a million people passed me and a lot of folks turned off for the two mile short cut and I was running alone. I hate that part, but I determined to run my own race and not worry about anyone else.

So I ran and ran and ran some more without feeling the need to walk. It really surprised me. My pacefinder kept telling me I was way ahead of my pace, so I knew I had some room if I bonked near the end. I began to believe I really could break last year's time.

So I kept shuffling my feet and trying to keep my body up tall. The breeze and cool air REALLY helped me. I knew the last leg of the race down Peek Rd was deceptive and agonizingly long. I figured at that point, even if I slowed to running a 13 minute pace I'd PR, as long as I didn't walk. But my legs got comfortable and felt pretty strong. Once in awhile I'd start to feel slightly winded and I'd see that I was running in the low tens or even high nines, so I'd back off and be fine again.

Seeing that clock at 47 something when I crossed the finish line was so exciting. My chip time ended up being 46:35, which means I was about a minute and a half faster than last year. My average pace was about 11:39 min/mile...definitely a new record for me. Shocked and thrilled, I walked around the rest of the day on a cloud. I wasn't even sore...I hadn't even left everything on the race course, which tells me I have faster races in my future.

It was the first time I'd ever run four miles continuously, with no walk breaks except to grab water.

I also beat Roger Clemens.

My family didn't fare as well as I did. They started the race near the back of the pack but only got about 200 yards before Nathan tripped and fell face first on the pavement. He had a huge goose egg on his forehead when I got back, and apparently Alex cried even harder at not being able to finish the race. Poor guys. They decided to fake crossing the finish line anyway :)

I promised the boys we would keep training and enter them in other races in the future. Meanwhile they enjoyed the post-race party with pizza, froyo, water ice, Muscle milk and moonbounces.

I don't have the final dollar amount raised, but the race was a huge success. A slideshow of lots more photos can be found here. Thanks to everyone who came out or sponsored or supported us! See you next spring.

How Marriage is Like Training for a Marathon

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 15:16:00 +0000

As a follow-up to my last post I wanted to let you know that our adoption dossier was not accepted by the Haiti department of social services last week. They are sticking to their one dossier per adoption agency per month quota for now. We are told we should be submitted before June, so now we have nothing to do but wait, pray and trust God.

Thankfully our lives are full of distractions during this waiting period. We have two happy boys who are growing like weeds, jobs and ministry activities and our hobbies. Not to mention my grandparents who still haven't moved. I just took over their mail and bill paying again because they were getting buried.

In the meantime, this weekend Mike and I attended a Marriage Summit at our church this past weekend. It was called Marriage 101, Back to the Basics.

Some might wonder why we would want to attend a class on the fundamentals of marriage when we've been happily married for fifteen years. Let me tell you...having a great marriage is a treasure and something worth investing in. Like anything in the universe, if you don't put some energy into it, it will naturally head towards entropy and that isn't good.

Mike and I have been to a number of marriage seminars and classes over the years and we always come away better for it. We may not learn a ton of new material, but it sparks a lot of good conversation and we usually learn something about each other.

Plus this one was cheap and convenient, with childcare provided. Can't beat that.

Our marriage is far from perfect. FAR far far from perfect. But we are really good at resolving conflict quickly. The more years that pass, the more experience we have, the more quickly we can diffuse arguments and move past them. Having a history of resolving conflicts also makes me increasingly hopeful that when a fight does come up it can be worked through and things will be better on the other side. Looking back at the pattern makes the desire to give up and quit very small.

It's a lot like training in that regard. It took me more than six months of consistent training to run that half marathon strong. Some runs, especially in the beginning, were pretty hard. But after they were done I felt pretty accomplished. Repeatedly struggling and working through a run that seemed maybe impossible or just daunting taught me that it was possible and I was getting stronger and growing new muscles because of it.

Working through conflicts in marriage is the same way...I don't just avoid them now because I know that as challenging as they are, they usually lead to renewed and even stronger connection. I know it's worth the effort, the pay-off is great.

Asking for a Miracle

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 15:38:00 +0000

Seven dossiers headed to IBESR.

It's been an eventful week in our adoption journey and today is definitely the most important day since we decided to follow this call on our lives.

Our dossier was sent to the Haitian consulate in Chicago last week for one more authentication step. At the very last possible minute, after I had given up hope, the dossier was Fed Exed back to our agency coordinator in Virginia. It was a clear answer to many prayers from us and those we asked to pray with us.

Then on Saturday our coordinator, Michelle, took our dossier and six others and flew to Haiti. This morning she has a meeting with IBESR, Haiti's social services, to submit these dossiers for review and referrals under the new regulations. She is also proposing to them America World's orphan hosting program, where older kids spend a few weeks in the U.S. to experience the culture and hopefully find a forever family.

But there's a great big caveat. News from Haiti is that IBESR has implemented a new quota of no more than one dossier per adoption agency per month. There are nineteen approved agencies, but some of them are very small and process very few adoptions, while America World is pretty well known and handles many adoptions. To say that the quota is unfair is...well...the understatement of the century.

At this point we have no idea what priority our dossier will be given except that we know it isn't first among the seven from America World. If we were seventh on the list, theoretically our dossier would stay in our agency's hands until July. That's a long time to wait to even begin the wait for a referral. That would mean no baby girl to come home in 2013.

My emotions have fluctuated a lot over the past few days since we learned this hard news. Of course everyone reminds me that it's all in God's hands and His timing is perfect. We have friends who have been waiting much longer than even we would have to wait. But it dawned on me that we could have a new baby when Mike is forty years old. That feels wrong, even if it isn't.

Saturday I flew home from a business trip in Chicago and felt tears building up just below the surface all day. I was exhausted so after we celebrated Mike's birthday and put the kids to bed I went to sleep myself at 8:30 and didn't wake up till 6am. I knew in my head that God is sovereign and comforter but I wasn't feeling the usual joy I have heading to church.

I asked God for faith, not just for a favorable outcome. I could feel that my faith was weak and I believe that when you ask Him for more faith He will never deny you. I asked Him to show up in church and make Himself present to me.

It took about 3.2 seconds for that to happen. The worship leader introduced the song, which I immediately knew to be Aaron Ivey's "Found", one of my favorites. Two lines in and it was uncontrollable waterworks from me. I think if you read the lyrics you'll see why.

Jesus, healer of brokenness
Savior, the fixer of troubled souls
Redeemer, you’re turning my eyes to thee
Mighty God, you’re just and merciful

Oh God of beauty and grace
You are my resting place
All of my life is found in You
You’ve taken my brokenness
Made me whole once again
All of my life is found in You
I’m found in You

All my security, my destiny
What lies ahead is found in you
All my hopes and dreams, my thoughts unseen
All my wants are found in you
What I dread and fear, all that weighs me down
All my trust is found in You
You’re my sustaining breath, all that gives me strength
All life-giving is found in You

So yeah, my faith has increased. Nothing is impossible with my God. So we pray and wait.

Adoption Update: Next Steps

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 15:46:00 +0000

Lots of people keep asking me if there has been any progress in our adoption or what's new or how is it going. I so appreciate the interest and support, especially in the form of prayer. So I'll fill you in.

Not sure where I left off but before the holidays there was a rush of families who had been matched with kids submitting their dossiers to IBESR (Haiti social services) before they closed for awhile and reorganized under new procedures. We had no referral (child match) so we knew we'd be among the first families to go through an entirely new adoption process in Haiti.

The new procedures are intended to make Haiti's adoption regulations come into compliance with the Hague Convention for International Adoption, which is supposed to prevent child trafficking and corruption. The process is now much more like other countries' processes where you submit a completed dossier, it is logged in and then a referral is proposed by an orphanage and approved by the government before being suggested to the family.

Since October, Haiti has been saying that only certain adoption agencies would be allowed to continue processing adoptions, so we have all waited and prayed that America World would be among them. Last week IBESR published a list of 19 approved agencies and ours was included. We all celebrated, and now our dossier should be submitted to IBESR by our coordinator next Monday, February 4th.

Please pray that can happen, that our dossier gets accepted in Haiti and given an official file number next week.

Concurrently, the orphanage we are working with, H.I.S. Home for Children, has to submit to them all necessary paperwork on any unmatched, available children. I can't share any details but we are hopeful that they can submit the paperwork for child that meets our request in February. Please pray for that to happen, IF it is God's will.

It's so hard, praying for a family who just cannot adequately care for a baby and who will love that baby enough to place her into another family forever. If I had my way there would be no little girls for us to adopt. No children would ever be orphaned. I could live with that situation if I knew it were true.

But I believe there will be a little girl in just that situation who God always intended to be loved by us. So I do pray that all the necessary paperwork gets signed and submitted as soon as humanly possible so that she doesn't have to go any longer without knowing she is loved by a mommy and daddy who are coming to get her.

A Peek Inside the New Whole Foods Store in Katy

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 19:19:00 +0000

I believe my regular readers know that I am totally non-crunchy when it comes to what I and my family eats. I eat fast food and buy mostly non-organic food and we have no known food allergies. So I wondered whether or not I should care that our community is opening a new Whole Foods store next week.

Today I got a private tour of the new store, which opens next Wednesday, January 30th, and I can confirm that it has some pretty sweet features.

The store is very bright and airy with a lot more spacious aisles than similar Whole Foods stores in the area. I particularly liked the decor which featured lots of reclaimed and recycled materials, a specific nod to Katy's rice farming heritage, and a chevron theme throughout.

One of the biggest bulk food sections around.

Loving the chevrons everywhere.

Loads of express checkouts near the coffee bar and prepared foods area.

Coffee and juice bar will be open at 7am before the rest of the store.

They will custom make juices and smoothies any way you want.

Suuuuuuper fancy custom espresso machine. Even had chevrons put on it.

My favorite thing about the new Whole Foods store has got to be the bar inside the store. You may not know that my husband is a major homebrewer and he has turned us both into craft beer snobs. The new store will have lots of local beer on tap and you can even get growlers filled. They will supposedly brew in the store too. You can ALSO get wine on draught, something no other store in Houston has. They even encourage you to grab a glass of wine and walk around the store with it while you shop.

Awesome chevron sign made of bottle caps.

Plenty of bombers available.

A heavy emphasis on local beers.

Beautiful chevron bar.

Beer team lead educating employees about growlers.

Shiny new taps.

They were installing taps while I was there. Two from Karbach so far.

More beer education.

Nice jacket. This dude is supposedly the Houston area beer super-expert.

Lovely cheese shop.

Mmmm cheese!

Mmmm chocolate!

Unique to the Katy store, fresh made daily juice popcicles.

Bakery featuring local company Slow Dough Bread Co.

Daily fresh made pizza on focaccia bread. Pizza Thursday specials.

Lots of prepared foods.

Looks for the Health Starts Here label for sugar-free, oil free foods.

I'm excited about sandwiches made to order.

Lots of indoor and outdoor seating.

Runners loves coconut water.

Organic cotton clothes too!

That just scratches the surface of all the fun facts I learned about the new store. Best of all, Whole Foods Katy is an official sponsor of our Run 4 the Children on Feb 16th!

The store opens Wednesday January 30th with a Bread Breaking at 7:30 am. 1% of all sales that day go to Katy ISD Education Foundation and the day will feature music and cheerleaders from Katy local schools throughout the day, along with Kids Club activities from 9am to 1pm. The next four days will also feature 1% of sales given to local charities including Katy Prairie Conservancy, Katy Christian Ministries, ARTreach and the Katy Family YMCA.

Just FYI, this post is not sponsored in any way but I received a tour and a few product samples.

Parenthood and Adoption Realities

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 14:36:00 +0000

Anybody been watching the TV series Parenthood? There's a storyline about a couple with one child and they decide to adopt a second child, apparently from foster care. I was excited to see a story about adoption in prime time but a little annoyed at some of the realities they seemed to skip over, like the hours and hours of intense training and the long wait and the court dates. It was good to see the struggles this older child was dealing with and how the mom struggled to handle it. I would say it was realistic, except that Julia, the mom, seemed to have zero education that would have prepared her to expect the challenging behavior and at least given her a few resources for dealing with it.

But it is TV-land, where everything is grossly simplified and tied up neatly at the end. In this week's episode Victor, the adopted child, reached out to his sister, she responded in kindness, and they had a ridiculous finalization ceremony in court. You may recall that I served as a courtroom photographer on National Adoption Day and I assure you, the ceremonies were not at all like on TV. They were joyous though! You can bet that when Victor called Julia "Mom" after the ceremony I bawled my eyeballs out.

The truth is that parenting adopted children can be hard, even if they come into your home as babies. The fact remains that these children have experienced a traumatic loss, even if they left their birthmother immediately after nine months in her womb. But responsible parents educate themselves about the potential differences in these kids and smart parents get help dealing with them.

On the flip side, not all conflicts that come up with adopted kids are simply due to them being adopted! Two of my grandfather's siblings adopted, two kids each, and only one out of four of those relationships is still intact. I don't have any idea the history of the children rebelling or abandoning their parents but I know blaming it on their genetics, as my grandparents do, isn't fair. At least two of them were adopted as infants and I'm willing to bet that parenting had a much bigger role in how those kids turned out. One of my grandparent's own children rebelled for a time, is that due to genetics?

I'm looking forward to an upcoming conference nearby called Together for Them, which will continue our education and training on parenting adopted kids. This same conference is the one that finally flipped the switch on our decision to adopt. They even have a session on grandparenting adopted kids and I so wish my parents and inlaws could attend.

In other news, we were thrilled to find out that IBESR (Social Services) in Haiti finally released the list of licensed agencies and America World was on it. They have also started accepting new dossiers under their new Hague-compliant procedures. We are praying that our dossier will be able to go with our agency coordinator to Haiti next week for official submission to IBESR. That's the next step before we can get a child referral.

Meanwhile we are celebrating with our good friends who just received a referral for a 10 month old girl from China. I got to see her photo and she is precious. Someday our little girls will get to play together and walk to school together. I sure can't wait for that day.

Scatterbrained

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 15:45:00 +0000

Have you ever found yourself feeling like you lack any mental focus?

This is what I look like when
I have my head together. Which
is not now :)

That's me right now and it's disconcerting. Some of you mothers may just call it "mommy-brain" but I am no longer in the throws of infant/toddler/preschooler madness so I don't blame it on my kids. Honestly my kids are the least of my issues. They are at an unbelievably easy stage where all I have to do is feed them, ask them to do their homework or clean their rooms and give them plenty of love and affection. Otherwise they entertain themselves.

(I feel like just saying that is gonna jinx it.)

Perhaps this is the post-marathon craziness. I was so focused on that race for MONTHS but mentally I was especially focused the last couple of weeks. Very little got in the way of my mental planning.

Now it seems like each hour of the day brings something else to focus on. Here's an example:

Big projects at work that never seem to go the way I'd like them to.
De-Christmasing the house FINALLY.
Big changes going on in our church.
More hurry up and wait with our adoption.
Filling my grandparent's medication box weekly.
Grieving with my friend who just lost her husband.
Starting a new Beth Moore Bible study.
Visiting with Kristen and Maureen of Mercy House Kenya.
Needing to write my Compassion kids more.
Promoting Run 4 The Children.
Mentally budgeting with $400 less income a month (thanks a lot, taxes).
Planning a trip to Chicago for work next week.

Seriously those things barely scratch the surface. Most of them don't require a lot of physical, blocked out time in my schedule but they do swirl around in my head constantly. I seem to have less ability to compartmentalize than usual.

This probably seems normal for a lot of my Type A friends who always have a very full plate. But contrary to popular opinion, I am not Type A. I like to stay busy and involved with many things but I purposefully maintain a fair amount of margin in my life.

Also I sometimes get distracted by other people's drama. I don't like it but there are some things I find hard to totally ignore. Like when a certain pastor I mostly like tweets something stupid and my blogger friends feel the need to react...poorly. I hate losing respect for people, be they celebrity pastors or celebrity bloggers.

Ok enough about my scatterbrain. How about you guys? Does this ever happen to you and what do you do to correct it? I'd appreciate any advice for helping regain my mental focus so I can really tackle one thing at a time with maximum effort.

Children of the Day

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 15:43:00 +0000

In the past couple of weeks while I've been obsessing over the race, some other not-so-fun stuff has been going on. That's putting it mildly, really. I was grateful for the distraction of race prep because frankly it kept me from sinking in a constant tear-fest over here.

New Year's Eve I was sitting in Sea World waiting for the sea lion show to start when I got a text from a friend that one of my beloved neighbors passed away. Unbeknownst to me, Belva had been diagnosed with stage four lung cancer in October. I suspected something was up when I saw medical equipment trucks visit a few times over the past month, but I didn't want to be nosy.

The Lord had pressed on my heart to pray for her family and even maybe bring them a meal, but I hadn't done that. I had thought about inviting them to church Christmas Eve but didn't. When I got the news I was devastated because I adored Belva and because I felt like I'd missed a great opportunity.

After we moved in almost five years ago, Belva made sure to introduce herself and her husband, Billy, to me. At the time her tween-aged grandson was living with her and I had much respect for her raising him and choosing to live in a great school district for him. When we hosted a Christmas open house that year she specifically asked me what colors my house was decorated in, which I thought a weird question that had no real answer except neutral, and then she showed up with a loving gift of some throw blankets. I was touched at the thoughtfulness.

That's Belva on the left.

Belva had this HUGE smile and warm hug for everyone. One time her grandson knocked on my door selling school spirit cups as a fundraiser. I had been expecting our other neighbor to come babysit so I was surprised to see him and mentioned that. I didn't buy a cup because I had no need for one. Well apparently he thought I was just waiting to buy one from our other neighbor, and somehow got the impression it might be because he was black and our babysitter was white. Not even close to true, of course. Well Belva listened to him, told him she was sure that wasn't the case, and politely explained his feelings to me when I bumped into her later. I confirmed that I didn't buy a cup from anyone and meant no personal offense to him, she smiled and that was that. I admired her frankness and honesty for even bringing it up.

Belva's funeral was beautiful. Many of her family and friends testified to her great faith, something I didn't know about her. Her pastor gave a powerful "eulogy to the living" sharing the gospel as clear as day. I hope I can be a better friend and neighbor to the husband, daughter and twin toddler grandchildren she left behind.

Then just a few days after her funeral I got word from one of my close friends that her husband was in the hospital in septic shock. He went from feeling fine to not feeling good to fighting for his life in a day, and no one knew why. Now this was not just my friend's husband either, I considered him our friend too. I had gotten to know him over the years and liked him a lot.

Turns out he had MRSA of the blood. I still don't know details of how he got it, but after a few intense days he lost his battle with it. To say that I was in shock is an understatement. Chris was young and healthy and they had just spent a wonderful vacation in Colorado. Monica was just about to fulfill her dream of running a marathon. Now she has to raise her two small children without him. It hurts me even to write those words.

Tomorrow night and Friday we will celebrate the life of Chris Brallier and say our goodbyes. It's gut wrenching. I know from my recent study of scripture that God has a particular affinity for widows and commands us to care for them. I will try to figure out how to do that with Monica, not just now but for a long time to come. I trust that our circle of good friends will do the same.

So last night I went with a friend to a new Bible study with Beth Moore. Like, actually in person Beth. I've never been a Beth Moore groupie or anything but she's funny and I always learn something from her so I figured I'd go.

Well let me tell you, God knew I needed that right now. She is so warm and loving and her passion for Jesus and the women she teaches radiates from her. The worship we had first with four thousand other women was breathtaking. The study is called Children of the Day and the songs reminded us of how we have been called out of darkness into celebration and light and lift in Jesus. Beth reminded us from 1 Thessalonians that we are loved by God and chosen. I needed to hear all those things last night.

2013 Aramco Houston Half Marathon Recap

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Mon, 14 Jan 2013 15:24:00 +0000

Well I did it. I finished my first half marathon in under three hours. I feel great about that. I can't say this one was fun, BUT I *might* even do another one someday.

I had been checking the weather five times a day for the week prior and it did not look good. Cold, windy and rainy. I hoped it would magically improve by race day, but it did not. So I had my pasta dinner, drank a ton of water, and went to bed super early Saturday night. Everything was laid out and packed to go at 5am in the morning. I drove to the Cop Shop and bummed a ride downtown with KatyFit head coach, Amy. Our conversation was pleasantly distracting.

Of course when we got there I realized how cold it was, and the wind blew right through me. A drizzle had started up, so I determined I would wear my jacket and my poncho. In the KatyFit team area I handed out four extra ponchos I had purchased and brought with me. It turned out to be a vital piece of equipment.

After a few photos, a banana and a potty stop we moved through the mass of people to our starting corral. It opened up and POURED on us as we stood around waiting in the back of the open corral with the 13 minute pacers. One more trip to the port-o-potty and some stretching. We lost one of our fellow Turtles, the amazing 74 year old fireball, Judy Loy. That was sad, but she ran on her own and finished strong. I determined to stick close to my coach, Angie, and follow her pacing.

It took us nearly 25 minutes in the pouring rain to get to the start line after the gun went off. I had to hold my poncho hood on my head for a long time. We ran up the long hill of the Elysian Viaduct and it was kinda cool crossing the interstate from way above. I don't really like downhill runs in the rain though, I'm so paranoid of slipping that my shins work extra hard to brace myself.

This is how the first half of the race was. Photo courtesy of Randall Pugh on Flickr

The first couple of miles did go by very quickly in the rain. Not so many spectators out for that part. As a group we decided to yell "Go KatyFit!" every time we crossed a mile marker. I saw my friend Stephanie all by her lonesome in the rain around mile 3 and that was so encouraging. She trained with me in the 5k group last winter and again in the beginning of marathon season till she injured her IT Band (sound familiar?) and couldn't continue.

I spent much of my time running through The Heights looking for my friends Sam and Karen who said they'd be there cheering on his brother. No luck finding them, but I enjoyed passing the KSBJ booth and the Vineyard Church booth where a band was playing Everlasting God. As I ran down Studewood past my friend Christine's old photography studio I got several encouraging texts, including one from Mike telling me where he'd be waiting with the boys not far ahead. I was so glad I'd be seeing them soon.

Also around mile 4-5 the left side of my back started to tighten up very hard. I've never had that happen before. I stretched it out a lot during our walking intervals and after awhile the cramp went away.

I took off my sopping wet jacket to give to him but left my poncho on. My bib had been hidden under the jacket till then, so once my bib was visible I heard a few folks yell "Go Vanessa!" to me. (I was wearing my friend Vanessa's bib!)

I told my group my family was up ahead and I was so happy to see them. The boys jumped up and down and Mike gave me a quick kiss as I handed him my wet jacket. I think the Turtles enjoyed seeing my kiddos.

As we entered Montrose there were a ton more spectators and the rain finally stopped. After awhile I decided it might be done raining for good so I tossed my poncho. It was still cold though as a north wind blew hard through our wet bones. At this point in the race I was passing a LOT of walkers. We still walked our intervals but we walked fast and ran fast (for me). Coach Angie kept slowing us down so we wouldn't burn out too soon. I had a tendency to want to run 11:30 or 12 min/mile but she kept us closer to 13 as much as possible.

I was pleasantly surprised to see Mike and boys again, not too much farther up Montrose! They hustled to be there for me. I figured they would also cross the street so I knew I'd see them again after the turn around.

Some of the funniest and most encouraging signs and spectators were along Montrose. I have to say that the most encouraging to me were the signs and people who said "YOU are SO inspiring to me!" That means so much to me. That's a huge part of why I do this. I want other people to know that they, too, can set a huge goal and work hard to accomplish it.

Right around the 9 mile turnaround is where I started to really feel tired. I saw Mike and the kids one more time around mile 10 and gave the boys a high-five as I ran by. Mike got a photo of that. After that we turned onto Allen Parkway. On the one hand, the downtown skyline seemed so close. The idea that we only had about three miles left was great. But around there I started sucking wind during our runs and I would get light-headed at the start of our walks. Same thing happened during my 14 mile run in training but I had attributed it to the heat and my being off due to injury for so long. Now I think I've decided my sports beans may not be enough fuel for the race. I may need to start experimenting with Gu in the future.

High-fiving Nathan. Coach Angie is in red behind me, religiously checking our pace.

I kept up with Coach Angie and our group until we hit downtown. She mentioned that we were way ahead of the three hours finish mark and that even if we walked the rest of the way we'd beat that goal. She was trying to encourage us to make the right choice and press on with running, but that was all I needed to hear for permission to walk a little more. I let them go ahead and walked and ran when I could. I wanted to save my energy for that final turn towards the finish line, and that's what I did. At the finish I raised my arms up high, smiled wide for the cameras and crossed. I looked down to stop my Garmin and saw 2:55:32, which was very satisfying. According to my stats I actually passed 254 runners in the last four miles. That's amazing.

The second I stopped running my legs and back started screaming in pain. I hugged and congratulated all my fellow Turtles who finished close together and stopped to get an official Finisher photo. I hobbled inside, grabbed a banana, a bottle of water, and a rice krispy treat before getting my Finisher shirt. Mike texted me that he was in the Reunion area waiting so I decided to skip the huge line for a hot breakfast. The pain in my legs was so bad I started tearing up as I walked over to grab my checked gear. I just kept walking, knowing that if I sat down I might not ever get up! I saw my pal Joe (who fell off a bridge during training and broke a couple bones) waiting for his wife and also got a hug from my injured Coach Walter.

I really do owe so much to the support and encouragement of my coaches and fellow runners of KatyFit. I know I would not have done all this without their support and camaraderie. I made a whole bunch of new friends through training.

The boys were so excited to see me and really loved my medal. Alex said "You got a silver medal! Did you come in second?!" They were great. I changed into my warm dry clothes and shoes and we abandoned the race area to walk another mile to the car. I knew that the extra walking would probably do me good to keep my legs from stiffening up and hurting too much later.

So I can't really say that it was a fun race, despite the smiles I showed the cameras. The race and cold made the first half miserable. I just kept thinking how great next year's race will seem, because no way could the weather be that bad again. I am though, totally grateful to God for the health and strength that allowed me to complete it despite multiple training injuries. The glory goes to Him, not me.

I don't think I'm going to run the USA Fit Half Marathon in Sugarland in two weeks, which I thought I might. After today I'm not ready to torture myself that much, that soon. I am thinking about running the Woodlands Half in March.

I want to thank EVERYONE who has been so supportive and encouraging during the training and race. Hanging around so many marathoners makes it seem like no big deal, but then my non-runner friends remind me that it really is. The feeling of accomplishment cannot be beat.

Somebody tell me it gets easier after your first? :)

It's Finally Race Week!

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Mon, 07 Jan 2013 17:15:00 +0000

At long last I have reached the end of my twenty-seven week training program for the Aramco Houston Half Marathon 2013. I've put in the miles, worked through multiple injuries, and I'm physically ready. I won't be breaking any records but unless something crazy happens I will finish strong.

Of course I'm a bundle of nerves. The thing I'm nervous about the most is navigating to and through a race of this magnitude...25,000 runners. I've never dealt with corals or pace groups or port-a-potties or even crowds at water stops. But I've read about a hundred race recaps from Houston and it sounds really well organized. Plus I'm not alone.

The awesome thing about my Katy Fit running group is that we will meet as a group before the race. My turtle pace group will start the race together even if we don't stay together for the whole 13.1 miles. I also may to stick around to see my friends who are running the full marathon for the first time finish.

I'm hoping my husband and kids will find a spot to cheer me on in Montrose where the course goes out and back so I can see them twice. I'm trying to decide if I should carry a little camera with me for photos...I love race recaps with tons of photos. But I can't use my phone for photos because I use the Runkeeper app for music and interval coaching. My point and shoot is pretty bad. We'll see!

The big thing right now is I'm praying for great weather. This past Sunday I ran my six miles in a cold pouring down rain, and I was miserable when I finished. The run itself wasn't awful but trying to warm up afterwards was. I do NOT want the race to be like that. I also don't want to catch whatever bug Mike is fighting off. No kisses from him this week!

Last night I was watching The Biggest Loser and I heard a quote that pretty much summed up my half marathon training experience. "When you start out thinking you can't do something but you push through and do it anyway, you feel amazing." I can totally relate to that.

Belated Merry Christmas

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah Hubbell) — Thu, 03 Jan 2013 15:03:00 +0000

So I took a bit of a blogging hiatus over the holidays to spend focused time with family. It's been nice, but I did lose some of my writing momentum. Funny how that happens, the more I write the more I want to write and the converse seems true as well.

I know this is WAY late but I wanted to share a bit of our home's Christmas with you before I pack it all up for the year. I do LOVE Christmas-ing my house. In my life of pursuing minimalism I have found that one thing I truly love are my Christmas decorations. I may part with a few of the smaller things after this season but my three big trees and all the nativities must remain.

First the outside. We do as much as we can without an extension ladder.

What you can't see very well through the trees is a small blue light Christmas tree in the upstairs window and a white tree in the downstairs office window. The new white tree in my office tree is Penn State themed. Bought the tree and blue ornaments cheap after Christmas last year. A stuffed Nittany Lion sits perched at the top.

What you can see easily from the outside is my smaller gold decor tree on the landing. I love it. Also hung from the landing is a huge wreath my mom's husband made for us and some icicle lights that brighten up the living room.

Prelit garland on the mantle adds even more warmth and glow.

I love my stocking holders, even though they don't sit flush on the mantle and can easily be pulled off and wound someone's head or foot.

I used to not want any Santa decor around the house, but I do like this one. Also things with glitter or sparkle have a prominent role in my holiday decor.

Speaking of glitter, check out the two Christmas ornaments the fine folks at Sea World gave me this year! Penguins are my favorite animal so I love this glittery guy, and the shiny stingray is especially appropriate since they opened Aquatica this year.

One thing I have a lot of around the house are nativity scenes. I love this one my mom bought for my kids when they were much smaller.

Apparently I forgot to take a good photo of our 9 foot Christmas tree, so here's the Instagram I took after Santa stopped by.

So now that I've completely enjoyed my Christmas things for well over a month, it's time to take them down till next year. I bought nothing at all after Christmas this year, a true first for me.

Next year we'll have one more stocking to hang by the fireplace whether she's home with us yet or not. I'm praying for a miracle on that one, and I won't even mind having to baby proof the trees.