Not my time

There is a biblical story about Jesus at a wedding and they run out of wine. Mary says to Him, can't you do something about this? And He says "Woman, it's not my time!". But of course he turns the water into wine anyways, and His great powers are seen. Recently, I've been pursuing some things that have not gone my way. I can't seem to get these folks to realize my talents and all the great things I can do (and have done)! So I'm talking with my Dad about yet another opportunity that has passed me by, and he says "it's just not your time". Something rings extremely raw and true about that statement. Everything happens for a reason, and I'm totally convinced that these opportunities I've been pursuing this past year are simply gearing me up for something much bigger and better...when I'm ready. My time has not yet come, but I will wait patiently and continue to work very hard. I feel ready, but perhaps there are things in my near future that I cannot predict that will need more of my attention...and then I'll be ready.

Disney "Give a Day"

I (Steph) volunteered today for the Disney Give a Day, Get a Disney Day program. Basically I chose a charity that was part of the Helping Hands Network, I give one day of charity time, and they report it to Disney who will give me a free ticket to the park. Alfred already did his charity work last weekend. Mine was to work in a facility that provides clothing, toys and basic needs for foster children and their families. This place was amazing. My first two hours I babysat a couple of foster children while their foster parents attended some sort of training class, so that was fun. The last hour was to "shop" for a foster kid that was recently assigned a family. He was a 3 year old boy. I didn't get to meet him, just had his name and sizes on a piece of paper. They have a specific list of items that each child receives, based on their age. My little boy got one dressy outfit, 6 play outfits, 2 pj's, one pair of shoes, two jackets, 5 prs of socks, 5 prs of underwear, one hat, two books, two toys, a coloring book with crayons and a little stuffed bear. Now this stuffed bear has extremely special meaning to me. I was looking around their bins of toys for something really special. I had something in my hands, and all of a sudden this little white bear poked his head out of the bin at me. It's the very same little white bear that Lily sleeps with every night. I seriously got tears in my eyes. This random little 3 year old has to get a complete stranger to pick out a stuffed toy that might make him sleep better at night. Oh, what a wonderful charity though that they can offer all of that assistance to those children and those families. It really makes me thankful for all that we have (and I don't just mean the physical "stuff"). I knew that volunteering would make me feel grateful, and I'm really glad I did it. I will feel even better now when I'm at Disney World in May! :)

Happy "Back to Normal" New Year!

Christmas was wonderful, but a bit of a whirlwind. We enjoyed Christmas Eve with the Rogulski's, opening a few early gifts is always fun. The Sanalila clan came up from FL on Christmas eve and we all enjoyed a crazy Christmas morning together. Lily got overwhelmed after about 20 minutes when she realized the whole "show" was not about her alone. She walked off into her playroom and decided to watch cartoons...leaving pretty much all of her wrapped gifts still under the tree! Luke was buried in wrapping paper but found a toy he really liked so that kept him quiet for a few minutes. He was pretty overwhelmed as well. I guess we all were! Cousin Isabella enjoyed her "first Christmas" as well. We had Christmas dinner at the Rogulski's. Isabella's first birthday was the 26th, so it was fun to celebrate with her. We went out for lunch, and had cake and presents back at the house afterwards. She is pretty much walking already - pulls herself up and takes a few steps before plopping on her bottom. By the time I'm writing this, she's probably an old pro! Luke was watching closely, as usual, and is now doing the same thing. He's going to be walking by his first birthday too!

Our new year has started off very well. Lily is back at school now, loving every minute (as are we). Luke is happy to have some alone time with Daddy in the mornings before "the tornado" makes it back home again. Steph is super-busy with work, gearing up for the prime selling season in college publishing again. I love this time of year though - everything feels so fresh, so new, so optimistic!