Mercy and her 'natural hair' aka: mommy didn't have time to fix it!!
The little boys and their new 'fort' on the bottom bunk :)
Mrs. L had this cake made for the special day... perfect!!
Fortunately, I had the kids dress in their Liberian outfits on Thursday knowing pictures on Sunday would not be feasible....so glad we did that...I just love seeing them in their traditional dress:) Mercy fashioned her head scarf from a piece of scrap material!
L and Odesco were so excited about this "Century War Day", as they fondly called it. It was hysterical to see the colonists in 'formation' with the order from their captain to get 'shoulder to shoulder' and there were L and Odesco , shoulder to hip with the big guys!!
Daddy and one of his little men~ 
Odesco stoically guarding the colonist fort!
The little men preparing for battle....too cute!
Jenkins K and Odesco... these 2 are becoming such good buddies!!
Here we are...look pretty silly, don't we?! The things we do in the name of education :)!! I don't think any of the kids will forget this day!! Special thanks to Mimi (my mom) who made our skirts, aprons , caps and the haversacks for the men/boys...she also did this for many of the other relieved moms who were so grateful to not have to add costume design to their homeschool curriculum!!
Our little girl is 7!! sigh...where have those years gone?!It has been a busy, busy week around our house!! Last Friday was our little G's 7th birthday... how quickly the years are flying by!! We had a quiet family celebration complete with her favorite meals and a time of sharing encouragement...always a challenge for the boys to 'think' of what to say!!(L's comment was he was thankful G had a birthday so he could have cake (well, muffins.)..ummm not exactly what we were hoping for!!) Mercy on the other hand, thankfully had a few examples to share regarding things she appreciates about her big sister. It was sweet to know she actually does acknowldege the many kindnesses shown toward her.(Unfortunately, today there have not been many kindnesses shown....sibling squabbles abound -we are all ready for some real spring weather and time outdoors again!!!)
Saturday was a big day as well...since last fall, I have been helping to plan a Revolutionary War Day to coordinate with our history studies. Last May I met Cathy Matson at our state homeschool convention from Mass. who runs a family business. She sells all sorts of historical toys,costumes, etc, and also holds living history type days to give the children hands on experience specifically for those studying the civil war. She agreed to hold their first Revolutionary War Day event for our group hosted by our very gracious friends on their spacious property. It was an amazing day...complete with moms, dads, and children in uniform/costume-about 80 people in all...many were families from our church but we were also blessed to share the invitiation with other homeschool families in our region ~ so, we made new friends too. There was the British army of Redcoats and Tories (British supporters) ,and of course the opposing Colonists. This was a family event and almost every child(3 years and older) was able to participate in some way. Most of the girls were 'nurses' caring for the wounds of the brave soldiers. They also handed each downed fighter a card which told them their fate...a minor wound or death...no worries though if one was fatally wounded because if the man/boy was able to correctly answer a Revolutionary War trivia question correctly, he was miraculously healed and able to continue fighting in that battle. Each battle lasted only 20 minutes so no one was excluded from the action for too long. The Lord totally blessed us with beautiful weather...chilly but sunny and by far the nicest day we had in weeks! It truly felt as if the Lord was smiling upon us to show such favor upon our little event. It was to be held in rain or shine and I am so very grateful we were not faced with the challenges of pulling this off in inclement weather!! The day ended with an optional potluck supper which we stayed around for. After dinner, the small kids were noisily frolicking in the yard while the older children played a game of soccer...what a wonderful way to end a great day!
After the trek home and getting the kids bathed and bedded down, my hubby and I needed to finish preparing our home for another special event scheduled on Sunday.
Mercy and Odesco were dedicated at our church Child Dedication. Typically, parents dedicate their children as small babies (as we have done with our 4 homegrown kiddos) so it was a bit different doing this with Mercy and Odesco...they knew it was a special day and it was fun to watch their excitement ...Mercy especially was attentively listening to our pastor's 'charge' to us as parents and she got a few giggles from his words about the sin present even in the hearts of all of our sweet little dressed up children. As parents we are declaring in front of our families and friends our desire to raise our children in the ways of the Lord and our awareness that we can not do this apart from His divine enabling and supernatural grace...because, let's face it: parenting can be quite a challenge!! We are so grateful to be planted in the fertile soil we are in...grateful for the help we receive from others around us in this daunting privilege of raising 6 kiddos to love the Lord with all their heart, soul , mind and strength. For those of you who are wondering is this like a baptism/christening...we believe in having our children baptized when they are old enough to 'own' their faith and their lives are bearing fruit to demonstrate this...none of our children have been baptized at this time but we trust that in God's due time, He will produce the fruits of repentance in the hearts and lives of our children!
Sorry for that digression...back to Dedication Day: Mercy and Odesco were donned in their beautiful Liberian garb and their buddy Jenkins K and Felecia were also dedicated . Many other sweet little babies (including one set of twin boys!) were called up on the stage with us and their parents. Our friends the L's also dedicated their precious daughter , Joy who is 3 1/2 (and adopted from China)..quite an international flavor to this dedication. Mercy and Odesco were so self controlled and did unbelievably well standing on the stage in front of a crowded auditorium for several minutes. We had been rehearsing appropriate behaviors (and what was not acceptable) all week so they definately knew what was expected of them :) I will spare you the hysterical mantra they repeated..."When I'm up on the stage, I won't...." Use your imagination to fill in the blanks!! :) Also, a dear friend who does a kid swap with me weekly, motivated both kiddos with the promise of a special surprise if they showed self control... True to her word, she met Mercy and Odesco right after the dedication to give them their special gifts. Nothing like a little motivation (bribery?!) to encourage obedience !! We are so grateful for the many family members who joined us ..they bravely dealt with flooded roads, detours and an overall yucky day due to the Nor'easter which hit early Sunday morning. Our social worker,( who completed not only our homestudy,but also the K's and the L's) , also attended...Susan if you are reading this, thank you so much for sharing in our joy!!
After church we had an open house with the other 2 families, some other friends, and our extended family ...44 people in all and it was as if the Lord expanded the walls of our home...it really was not too crowded and the kids (over 20 of them!!) did so well. In spite of my apprehension with everyone having to be inside due to the weather, the Lord once again showered His grace upon us and blessed the day. Mama K (Jenkin's Mom) and I commented after everyone had left and we were sitting at the table enjoying some quiet (that is a relative term with 10 kids between our 2 families!!), that it almost felt like 'the old days' before the kiddos came home. Our families met together often over the past few years and the older kids always have had a great time. Our impromptu gatherings have not been as frequent since December and of course there are new dynamics with 4 little Liberians in the mix ...but we were marvelling at how well everyone played together. No meltdowns, no major episodes...it truly was a day that prompted me to remember the following psalm:
Bless the Lord , O my soul,
and all that is within me bless His holy name!
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits...Psalm 103:1,2
Though exhausted at the end of our busy weekend, my heart was so full as I recognized His many benefits toward us!!
Some other reasons to forget not all His benefits :
*We decided it was time to allow G to sleep on the top bunk...since her homecoming, Mercy has either slept on our floor (first week or 2) and then in her bottom bunk with G. Mercy was quite put out by this change in routine and truly, I don't think she has ever slept alone in her life. She lived in a 1 room hut with her family and then had a bedmate at AOH so this was all new to her. She was quite fearful but we took time to pray and explain that she was never alone (not to mention that G would be asleep right above her!) We sang the Steve Green song from the psalms," When I am afraid, I will trust in you"... and in spite of initial tears of protest, she has adjusted just fine :) It is also a great opportunity to remind her of the faithfulness of God and how He helped her overcome her fears...this helped her so much at the Revolutionary War Day...see below
* Mercy was quite apprehensive about the guns firing after our field trip to the barracks and the traumatic loud musket blast. We practiced in our backyard with the cap guns so she could hear what they sounded like. Despite this, during the first hour of Revolutionary War Day, she walked around with her fingers in her ears and was very fearful and moody. She went inside the house for a while to play with the other little children and when she saw all the fun going on outside, she decided to join us. I realized the caps sounded like packing bubbles being popped which she and Odesco love to stomp on. Once she thought of that, she began giggling when the caps were fired. Then she proudly declared that she was no longer afraid and sang the psalm again,"when I am afraid I will trust in Him...". A real victory for our little girl!!
* Odesco and L are really becoming sweet buddies. Last nite' while we were at caregroup and the kids were with our babysitter, the little boys were busy setting up a 'fort' in their bottom bunk. They creatively hung stuffed animals from the bar above their bed and fixed a flashlight there so they could turn it on at night. They were so excited to show it off this morning and closed their door in order to surprise me and to straighten their room up and fix the bed up just right before I peeked...too cute!
So as you can see, there are so many reasons for me to Bless the Lord , O my soul and to not forget His benefits!!
Thanks for checking in....sorry to have bored you with our last post/ picture sitting for over a week:)
Love, MamaB
PS: Homeschool moms (or others!) if you'd like to get more info about the Revolutionary War Day go to www.historicalhappenings.com
To read a summary of the day go here: http://www.historicalhappenings.com/RWDScoresheet.html
also you can click on the photo option and you might see a few familiar faces in the mix :)
