Praise the Lord for He is good!

Where do I start? Allen has a job. He accepted the job closer to home and he starts Monday. He will be about 4 miles from home and 2 blocks from the boys' school. Now for the big news ~ our offer was accepted on a home and we close on Dec. 11th. It is a beautiful home on 6 acres of land. It's 4 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, plus an office. We are so excited to be in a home before Christmas, especially since our household goods were delivered on Tuesday. We now have 12,000 lbs worth of stuff in Allen's parent's barn. I will try to get a picture and post it soon. It may be a few days though since we still don't have internet and are having to come to the library.

Have a blessed day!

God is good!

Well we've been here for two weeks now. The kids have settled in nicely into school. Yesterday Allen had two job interviews and was offered jobs at both places. God is so good. I'll give more information after he accepts one.


Today is Daniel's birthday. We're in Indy at some friend's
house. We went to the mall ~ a dangerous place to go. The Children's Place was having a good sale! Then we took him to Toys R Us. He wanted to go to Chuck E Cheese for dinner, so we'll be there later this evening. Should be fun!!


Now we get to start looking more seriously for a house. We have two more houses to look at next week. Hopefully we'll find something within our price range. Until now, we're thankful for where we are. Hopefully our unaccompanied goods will be located soon. They were supposed to be delivered last week.


Until next time.....

Day two ~ part two

I thought I would tell you just a little bit more about getting Caleb enrolled in his new school.


The basketball coach likes him because he's a Yankees fan and he wants him to come see him Monday to get his shoe size to order his team shoes.

The PE teacher wants him to teach her German.


He has homework in his honors English class.


As we're walking through the gym to see where his last class is, we pass two s who I overhear one of them say "Hey, that's Caleb." The other one says "No way". Oh my goodness, I'm in trouble.

Day Two

We got so much done yesterday ~ God is so good. His hand on this transition is so evident. I spoke with the superintendent of the schools today. The first thing he said was, "Funny you should call. I just got off the phone with the principal at Seeger and apparently there is a lot of talk amongst the s about the new, good-looking student." Oh Lord, help me!!! Anyway, we talked about Joshua and Daniel and agreed that they would go to a school that is actually located in the same building that Caleb is in. How awesome is that? Plus, it looks as though I have a good shot of getting a job in that school as well. So, today I will be taking Joshua and Daniel to their new school to get enrolled.


Today we will also be moving into Allen's parent's trailor. It will be nice to have a little bit of privacy and not be in their way. It was awesome of them to offer it to us. Plus, the school has said that we can take our time finding a house; I'll just need to bring the boys to school everyday. PRAISE GOD for that. We don't have to rush. There are a few houses we want to look at though.


We will be getting cell phones soon. We bought one at Wal-Mart yesterday but can't get it to activate, so I think I'm going to return it. Oh yes, the first first trip to Wal-Mart was yesterday. I that part about moving, especially when you've thrown all your towels away and that is what most of your new bill is. Yikes! Looks like we'll me making another trip soon since we have to get Joshua and Daniel's school supplies too.


Well, I'm off to do some errands ~ I think I need a Pepsi slushie! Oh I mean, I need to get the boys enrolled in school. We covet your prayers. Thank you so much. We give God all the honor in this move and Praise Him for the answered prayers He has given us. Whether you are in Germany or the States ~ we love you!

We're here!

We're here! We had good flights. Our flight from DC to Indy was delayed almost 2 hours which turned out to be a blessing because it gave us some time to get something to eat and relax. Otherwise we may have missed it. We were exhusted though yesterday. It was really good to see Allen's parents, sisters, niece & great-niece, and some friends.


We've already gotten Caleb enrolled in school. I think it's going to be a great one. Next stop is to get tags on Allen's truck and get the other boys enrolled in school.


We miss you all already. I will let you know when we have cell phones. It should be by the weekend. Love you all ~ God bless!

All things considered...

Well, all things considered I think I did better than I thought I would today. Those of you who are in the military know what it's like to have to sets of family. And whether it's in deployments or moving, good-bye or see ya later is the hardest part.Thankfully, I know I will be seeing some of these people again. We were blessed with so many great, forever friendships while we were here. We are truly thankful for that.


Most of you know that we have CLUNG to Jeremiah 29:11 with all our hearts since Allen signed his retirement paperwork. It has given us a peace that is beyond understanding. But we believe that God will do what He says He can do. We're believing that promise that He knows the plans that He has for us; plans to prosper us and not to harm us, plans for hope and a future.


So now we pray for His angels to surround the planes we will be traveling on tomorrow. We pray for our pilots and other workers on the planes. We pray that we will make our connecting flight in Dulles. And we pray God's blessing on all of you who are reading our blog. We love you!

Until next time.....

Today is my last day of Protestant Women of the Chapel (PWOC). I can't even begin to express what an important part of my life this has been. I have grown so much through the bible studies that have been offered and made countless friends over the last five years.

Right now we're doing a study called Having a Mary Spirit, taken from the Martha/Mary story in the new testament. The chapter this week was called Fault Lines; yes, similar to fault lines in an earth quake. The beginning of the chapter talks and feeling like God loves each one of us the best; like each one of us is His favorite. The author said she wanted that feeling too. Then she goes on to say :


"The Holy Spirit's diagnosis of my problem? A sinful, self-centered preoccupation with how I was perceived and what other people thought of me. An excessive, deep-rooted need for approval. A desperate hunger for compliments and affirmation, achievement and praise. A tendency to look to people rather than to God for life and meaning."


I wonder if this is why so many people are unhappy in the world. Have we forgotten that God loves each of us so much that we are all His favorite? Have we looked to people rather than God for approval? She goes on to say:


"I must continuously ask the Holy Spirit to make me aware of the snares created by my human weaknesses and my own deceitful desires. Aware. But not anxious or worried. Because the best thing I can do with any of my fatal flaws is to place them in God's hands. Myfault lines and imperfections do not hinder Him - and neither do yours. For He is the flawless one. He sees what we are - defects and all - but He also sees what we can be."


If you are reading this in the States, I look forward to either seeing you or talking to you soon. If you are in Germany, I will miss you and never forget you. You have blessed me over and over again. I love you all! Be blessed and know that you are God's favorite!

Finally some pictures

Caleb's first football game

Yes, It's what you think it is ~ a portable potty for three ~ guys only of course!

I will try to post pictures from Disney and Paris soon!

Good-bye is always the hardest part!

I've said for a while now that I don't really have 3 sons, I have 4. Caleb's best friend, Alec, has been like a son to me for a few years now. Every time I turned around he was always at our house. It's ok though; I truly enjoyed having him there. Anyway, he and his family left today; actually they are boarding the shuttle as I type. It was really hard to say good-bye to him and his family. I am also friends with Alec's mom. We've played Bunco together for a few years now and we even made a trip to Poland together recently. I have no doubt that we will see them again since the are going to the same area as my sister. Plus, we are about halfway if they travel home to Iowa. They know they have a place to stay.

Needless to say, I'm really not looking forward to the "good-bye" part of this week. I'll be sure to have the tissues ready.

Otherwise, Allen has everything done. I think he has one place to go today and then his final out next Tuesday. So until then, we're just hanging around. I'm getting my hair trimmed this morning and I have a massage this afternoon. I have a gift certificate I'm finally getting around to using. We also have the last of our boxes to mail today. Guess I could also do some school work.

I'll try to put some more pictures up soon.

For the very last time

The last box was loaded, the last crate sealed for the very last time. It was a bitter sweet day. We are ready to go back home, but we will miss this life that we have had for the last 18 years. If you aren't in the military, you may not understand. Being part of the military community is a different life; a different culture. We will truly miss it, but we are looking forward to the next chapter of our lives. We have made so many good, lifelong friends along the way. For that, we are truly thankful.

Let the packing begin

Today was day one of our household goods packing. We had two guys who were amazing, we thought. One guy was upstairs and got the boys' rooms and our bedroom done. There was another guy downstairs who got my pottery (all 8 boxes which took 2 hours to pack) and the rest of the kitchen and dining room done. Tomorrow they have the closet for storage in our bedroom, Sarah's room, another storage room and the living room to do. I think they'll do the garage the last day. They will easily get done in three days. They are doing an awesome job ~ we gave been pleased so far.

We keep telling each other that this is the last time we have to do this. Praise the Lord!!!

It's Offical

It is now offical. Effective 1 January 2010, Allen is relieved from Active Duty and will now be MSgt (ret) or Mr. Orahood.

Allen's retirement ceremony was today. One more thing checked off. It was really nice. Our friend and former neighbor played the bagpipes at the beginning and Joshua played the American national anthem on his trumpet. Our good friend, who is also a chaplain here, was the officer in charge over the ceremony. It's really hard to explain it all; it was just a really nice ceremony. Allen's speech was just amazing. He did a really good job. I am so proud of him. You can tell he was well liked and respected by his coworkers over the years. How lucky I am to have his as my husband and best friend. God has truly blessed me beyond belief.

It looks like this is really happening. Our unaccompanied shipment was picked up yesterday. We also said good-bye to some dear friends yesterday who got here just 3 months before we did, so we've known them the entire time we've been here. They have 4 boys, three of which are the same ages as our boys. Their oldest two were really close to Caleb and Joshua.

Next, our household goods get packed out next MTW. After that, we just go through the motions really. We have to clean our house, but luckily our landlords are so great; they don't expect it to be white-glove clean. Praise God.

Last Wednesday, we said good-bye to the group that we go to Bible study with on Wednesday nights. That was tough; and it's only going to get tougher.

God has truly blessed us with this assignment though. And we are truly thankful. I will do my best to keep you all updated with the rest of our move ~ God bless!

Home from football camp!

Caleb was at football camp all week. It was so good to have him home. I think he was glad to be home. I know he was glad to have some real food. This picture of him was taken at some point during the week. I thought it was pretty cool.

Finally...

Sarah had a follow-up appointment yesterday for her chronic eczema. The pediatrican had no problems putting in a referral to an allergist. She even gave us one to a dermatologist. Praise God for that! We haven't seen this pediatrican before, but I really like her. Hopefully we will finally find out what is causing this instead of just going through so much lotion to try to keep it under control. There has to be a reason and hopefully we will get it solved before we move back to the States.

On another note, I start school today. I'm really wondering why on earth I thought I could do this. We'll see how this term goes.

Moving update ~ we have pack out dates, a date to ship the van, and we think we've sold the truck. It's all coming up so fast. Only 74 days until we leave.

And today is our 17th anniversary. I'm not sure what we'll do, but we actually have the day free, so we'll do something! We're thinking of going to Trier for a Mosel River cruise. We've wanted to do that for 5 years so we'd better get it done!

Chistmas in July

Christmas in July ~ this is what my friend ,Lynne, calls today so that she can remember it's my birthday. What a great quote! I just love birthdays. Next year we'll have a BIG party for the BIG year (no, I'm not 40 yet). I am ever so thankful that we will be home and I can celebrate with my family and all the friends who have already moved back to the States! I'm sure my family will make today special for me. I got my special birthday cake from Momma in the mail the other day. Since the year we got here, Mom has sent me an angel food cake in the mail (yes, already baked). She's done it every year, except 2006 when we were in Virgina at my sister's house for my birthday. Momma said next year she would come to my house and make it for me. Today, I think we may go eat at Macaroni Grill. We have a gift card that we've been saving since Christmas (the one in December). Anyway, thank you Momma for giving me life. I know I was an "after-thought". In today's society when so many babies don't get the gift of life, every birth is so precious. I can't imagine not having any of my children. God is so good.

Oh, I have another thing to post. I've been in a Bunco group for the last 5+ years. If you don't know what Bunco is, that's another post. Anyway, this group has been such a blessing to me. Since it was my last Bunco, I got to choose whatever gift I wanted. To my surprise, one of the gifts brought was a picture with a scripture on it. Which scripture ~ Jeremiah 29:11. Since the day Allen turned in his retirement paperwork, we have clung to that verse. That God knows the plans he has for us, that they are plans to prosper us, not to harm us, to give us a future and hope. Praise God! Because of that, we know that there will be a job in Indiana waiting for us. We know that we will get a home. We know that the Lord will protect us. He promised us that and we believe Him! Praise God who deserves all the honor and glory!

Have a blessed Christmas Day ~ in July!!!

Following in Daddy's steps

At the load comp last week, Allen had Sarah on the jammer. One of the base

photographers took this. We call it "Following in Daddy's steps".

There isn't a day that goes by that we can't get over how much she has changed. Everyday she seems to blossom more and more. I can't wait for all our family to hear her talk. She has the sweetest voice. We just can't get enough of her.

Thankful for Indiana

Allen called the other day with a list (a very short list) of the choices we would have had if we were moving in January when our deros is. This very short list only had two choices ~ Holloman AFB, NM and Minot AFB, ND. I know God would have put us where His will was, but I'm so glad we don't have to wait until the 23rd to hear what that would be. Now if Whiteman AFB, MO would have been on that list, it may have been a different story. Or even Luke or DM. But I'm not disappointed that we don't have to choose from that very short list. Just one more confirmation that it was time to retire!

Normal??...

A friend and I went to Ramstein today. We took ALL our children (between the two of us that equals 8, yes 8 children). We decided we were going to eat at the new Macaroni Grill that just opened up a few weeks ago.

Anyway, on the way down there, it occured to me that I find it absolutely normal to drive 90 mph on the Autobahn (interstate). I'm not quite sure what I will do when we move back to the States since I have no idea what the speed limit is on the interstates anymore. I guess I should make sure my cruise control works. I also realized that in our construction zones we drive 60 mph. I'm sure I will feel like a turtle.

The Macaroni Grill was yummy! I had never eaten there before. I really liked it. Guess we will use the gift card that we got for Christmas there before we leave ~ which is only 90 days!!!

Tournament results

I know most of you are waiting to hear how we did in Stuttgart. It was a very hard weekend. The boys played fantastic. But we won't be going on to Poland. They lost the first game 6-2. They held them off until the top of the 8th inning. Both games were at least 3 hours long. That's a lot of baseball.

The second game was really intense in lots of ways. It started off that they didn't want to let Caleb and the two other Spangdahlem boys play (it's a long story). So the game was played under protest. The Ramstein parents and coaches were so great to us. They said they were a team and those three boys were part of it and they would either play with them or not at all. The game was an incredibly great game. We would be ahead, then it would be tied, it went back and forth. Then they scored 5 on us one inning, but the next inning we came back within two runs. Everyone thought we would come back.

It was sad that the reason why the games were so intense was mostly because the other team's coach is such a jerk. We have dealt with him before and even one family who used to live at Stuttgart and is now at Ramstein said so. They just tried to find any and every reason to not let some of our kids play. That was one reason why the game today was played under protest. I told Caleb if we were here, I would not have let him play for that man. I'm sorry, but when you as a coach call your players "freakin retards" there is a problem. One of the moms from the other team told us that he does that. I'm sorry, but it just wouldn't be worth it to me. I've always told Caleb that I would rather him lose honestly than win dishonestly.

So, our season comes to an end. But he played well and is REALLY looking forward to playing high school ball in the States for Seeger next year, the same school his cousin Ryan played for. I will still try to get a picture of his team posted. But until then, Sarah is waiting to go for a walk. Blessings to all!

Allgery results

We got the result from Sarah' allergy testing the other day. It's no surprise to us that she's allergic to milk. After a friend suggested milk, I gave it a try and took her off milk. She seemed to do better until she would have a dairy product. So I asked to have her tested. Now I just have to do my research to find out just what she can't have. The list looks long. For Sarah, the results of having dairy products come out in the form of eczema and asthema type symptoms (they haven't diagnosed her with asthema yet though).

At least now we know. Now I can start adjusting her diet. Good thing it wasn't fruit or the poor girl would probably starve. She absolutely LOVES fresh fruit.

If anyone has any suggestions, I'm willing to hear them.

Rock Band - Classic Rock & egg in the middle of the bread

No, the two don't go together, I just didn't want to write two posts.

Allen got Rock Band - Class Rock for his birthday. We like this one because we actually know the songs. What is funny is to hear the boys say "Do you know this song?". Uh, yes actually we do. What is really funny is that Sarah grabbed the microphone and started to "sing" along. How she knew when to say "Yea" at just the right time is beyond me.

And now egg in the middle of the bread. Some of you may be wondering what this is. I grew up with it. It's kind of like an egg sandwich (unless you like your egg runny). You just cut the center of the bread out and fry the egg there. It's really yummy. Caleb's best friend even said it looked good and that he would like that the next time he spent the night.

What have I done?

On a leap of faith (a giant one) I have enrolled in school. Surprisingly, I'm not scared ~ yet! Hopefully I will be getting a few scholarships. One from the university for being a military spouse and another from somewhere else for being a military spouse. I have to take advantage of those while I still am a military spouse (active duty that is ~ I will forever be a military spouse). Anyway, looks like I'm on my way.

Another mishap for Sarah

Well the nurse called today and said that more than likely, Sarah got bit by a bug or spider. Her foot is looking MUCH better so I guess the antibiotics are working. He said I can call him back if it just doesn't look right.

So anyway, I decided to go to bible study today ~ it was awesome ~ and the boys went bowling. Afterwards Sarah and I met they boys and Allen there for lunch. Sarah was sitting in one of their high stools and pushed back on the bar, which of course sent her backwards. I had just stepped away so I wasn't next to her, but luckily Allen had just walked up and was able to partly catch her so that her fall wasn't so bad. She did bite her lip, so now she has a fat lip. She keeps pointing to it and saying "Ouchy. I push". She's so smart. What's next with her??

Our trip to the ER

Ok, so put this one in the "can't wait to be back in the States column". Today we were sitting on the balcony eating some fruit with Sarah when Allen noticed that her foot was swollen, red, and hot to the touch, not to mention rock hard. I called the nurse help line and she said to take her to the ER within 6 hours. Well, our lovely base has no ER and the extended care clinic isn't open on weekends. The nearest ER doesn't do pediatrics, so I took her to the next nearest that does.

The doctor looked at her and said she had an infection of some sort. I made sure she understood that she was allergic to penicillin and she said she had something else she could give her. Then she said to take the RX to the Altstadt Apoteke (which is the German pharmacy). Keep in mind that there are Apoteke's everywhere, but they all have a different name.

It took me FOREVER to find the stupid thing. Every time I would ask someone, they would send me in a different direction. FINALLY I found it and bought the medicine.

Not thinking, I just put it in the stroller and left since I really couldn't remember where I had parked. Oh, I forgot to mention that I'm walking all over this place in FLIP FLOPS!!! I finally found the van and just went straight to the base to go to at least half of the church service.

So before I go into the service I thought to myself that I would give Sarah a dose of the antibiotics. I took it out of the box and guess what? It's powder and the lady didn't tell me how much water to add and I can't figure out the directions because they are all in GERMAN!!!

Good thing our landlord helped us out by reading the directions. I was going to take her to the American doctor tomorrow until my friend reminded me that tomorrow is a family day and everyone has the day off. Just my luck!

Thankfully our little, bitty town that we will be moving to has a hospital with an ER. They may only have 2 restaurants (one of which is in the Amoco station), but at least they have an ER with doctors who speak English.

Helping herself to the lotion

Sarah got into the lotion yesterday. She has extremely dry skin. I guess she thought she needed it. Unfortunately, she got it in her hair so we had to give her a bath afterwards.

Caleb's 8th grade celebration

Learning to do the Electric Slide with his friends.

This is one of Caleb's good friends. They said they were twins becacuse
they shared the same birthday.

Hanging out with two of his friends.

This is one of Caleb's favorite teachers. He had him for seminar and science his 5th and 6th grade years. Unfortunately, he's moving to Italy so Joshua won't get a chance to have him.

Can you believe he's really going to be 15 and in high school. How did that happen so fast?

We're so very proud of him He's such a good kid.

Summer is almost here

I am so behind on posting that it's not even funny. There is so much updating to do, but I'll just put a note that we're still here. The kids' last day of school is tomorrow. I can't wait to be done with this school year.

Our unseasonably warm weather for Germany is gone. We are back to the normal German weather. I really wish it would warm up again. We had a fire in the fireplace on Saturday because it was so cold and rainy. The fire did feel nice, but it was crazy that it was June.

I will try to get the pictures posted soon from Caleb's 8th grade celebration and Sarah's baby dedication. Sorry I'm so slow ~ it happens when you have four kids keeping you busy.

Have a great day ~ God bless!

What a weekend!

We had an awesome weekend full of baseball, baseball and more baseball. First of all, the weather for the entire weekend (and still today) is so unseasonably warm for Germany. We kept wondering if we really were in Germany. It has been awesome and I LOVE IT!

Joshua had a tournament, so we were in Ramstein all weekend. He started off with a Pitch, Hit and Run competition. He won the hitting category with a hit of 180 feet. We didn't realize it until they handed out the awards that Caleb and Daniel would have been able to compete as well. Oh well.

Joshua played in two games on Saturday. They lost both of those games, but were able to play again on Sunday. After Joshua played, we watched our high school boys' baseball team win the championship for their division. It was an exciting game and was won in extra innings. One of the most exciting things about them winning this championship is that this was the first year that our high school has had a baseball team in a long, long time.

Sunday we were back down at Ramstein for more baseball. Again, Joshua's team played two games. They won the first game, but lost the second game. They were just worn out during the second game. They only got a twenty minute break in between games and it was at least 75 degrees out. They played their best and had fun. Caleb also had All-Star practice on Sunday for 3 hours. Needless to say, I don't think we'll be going too far today. We may go to some friend's house for a BBQ later, but that will be about it.

Other exciting news from our area: our high school girl's softball team took second in their division. How awesome for our high school to take first and second! Then the daughter of some really good friends of our set the high jump record on Friday. It's a record that hasn't been broken since 1993. She jumped 5'4" to break the record, but she's jumped 5'8" in practice. She also was selected as MVP for all of Europe in girls track and field. Way to go Kristen!

This time last year....

I took this picture on May 21st. I realized later, that she wore the same dress last year on May 21st.

It was the day we flew into Indy.

I seem to be saying alot of "This time last year.." Here's a little of that:

May 20th ~ We left Honolulu on our way to Indy. Strangely enough, our friends Bill & Lynne, left Honolulu on May 20th this year headed back to the mainland after retiring from the military.

May 21st ~ We landed in Indy for Sarah to meet both sets of grandparents for the first time.

May 23rd ~ Sarah and I flew from Indy headed home to Germany.

May 24th ~ Sarah finally got to meet her brothers for the first time. There were also many friends who were anxious to meet her. Two of my dear friends, Denise and Julie, also met her this day.

So much has changed since one year ago. She's learned to scoot on her bottom, crawl, climb up to furniture, walk, talk, talk, talk. Did I mention talk? She is such a bright little girl. The past year has been such a joy. We're looking forward to watching her develop and grow even more. What an awesome God we have for letting us experience all of this.

Some exciting updates

I know, I know. When it rains it pours. I wasn't sure when I would get a chance to post again, so I thought I would bombard everyone in a day. Some exciting things have happened the last couple of days.

First, Caleb was selected for the All-European baseball team to represent Germany. I'm guessing the American Armed Forces in Germany. I don't know for sure though. Anyway they will play in one tournament in Poland for a chance to go to the Junior division of the Little League World Series in Michigan. They had the tryouts on Sunday and he hit the 310 feet sign in the outfield. I wish I could have been there to see it.

Second, Joshua had a make up game tonight. He pitched four innings and only threw four balls in four innings. No that's not a typo ~ 4 balls in 4 innings. I'm not sure how many strike outs there were, but I know there were several. He also got two really good hits. Anyway, just thought I would brag a little on our boys.

Random pictures of the kids!

Keukenhof in the Netherlands

Keukenhof in the Netherlands

Yes, he really is this crazy!

Look close, he won't be a Cub for long. Their new uniforms are in and he'll be a Yankee again.

Joshua is in the back row in the middle. This is his Little League team at the tournament in Ramstein a few weekends ago.

Random pictures of Sarah

Here are some random pictures of Sarah ~ Enjoy!

These are some big shoes!

Sarah and Emma in the Netherlands!

Our first anniversary

Yesterday was the one year anniversary of Sarah's Gotcha Day. Today is the anniversary of her Adoption Day (or the day her adoption was final in China). It's all gone by so fast and she has changed so much. Did we really wait 26 months from Log in Date to Referral? I just love hearing her say "I love you" first. And her brothers have taught her high five and pound it. When she goes to her daycare provider, she always comes home with hair bow bows in. Below are some pictures of her hair when I took the bow bows out. She certainly has more hair than she did a year ago. What a blessing she is to us!

All finished!

It doesn't even seem possible that one year ago today we boarded a plane in Indy on our way to China. So much has changed in just one short year. We met with our social worker today for the last time. We have to do two post placement reports for the adoption and this was the second. It was really nice to see him again. He was really impressed with how well Sarah is doing. So, as of today, the adoption is offically complete. No more paperwork. Well, I guess I shouldn't say it's complete. Once we get back to the States we will do a readoption through the state of Indiana so that she'll have an Indiana certificate of birth. But that will be easy to do. So for now, everything is done. He asked us if we were really done or if we'd be doing this again. Unless God directs us, I think we're done.

What is truth?

When we can, we attend a bible study here at the house of some friends who have what is called a hospitality house. It's really awesome. They just started a new study about what truth is. I wanted to share some things that really stuck out at me and made me think.

Two of the questions to make us think were: What is truth? and Why did Jesus have to come?

One scholar had this comment to say: Truth is God's reality because God's reality is not distorted. Man, isn't that true. God's reality is not distorted.

Another question for us to ponder was Do you really believe that what you believe is really real?

It makes you think, doesn't it? Do you really believe that what you believe is really real? I can't wait until next week to see what we will talk about. Oh and to answer the second question from above "Why did Jesus have to come?" see John 18:28-37


On another topic: Yes, I have Easter pictures. Yes, I know Easter was more than a week ago. I will do my best to get them posted soon. I can't wait to have fast internet. I'm at a friend's house at the moment, so my pictures aren't here obviously.

Have a blessed weekend. Oh, and can you believe that we will be back in the States in less than six months? Wow! It's coming up fast.

More spring break pictures

We went to the tulip festival for spring break also. A lot of the flowers weren't in bloom yet. The best time to go is the end of April. They were still pretty though. At least we had better weather than we had last time we went. No umbrellas needed this year! It was good to go again. We'll miss being able to do things like this when we leave!

Spring break in the Netherlands

We went to the Netherlands with some friends for spring break. It was a lot of fun. We are trying to get all the trips that we still need to take before we move. I think every weekend will be filled between baseball and trips. The time should go by fast!

She's 2!

Sarah loved her talking Elmo!

Isn't she lovely?

Sarah and her friend Ashlynn

She's ready for the cake!

We just had a small party for Sarah with a few friends. She had a good time though. I think she enjoyed the clothes she got more than the toys. We may be in trouble there. It's hard to believe she's having a birthday already. It seems like yesterday that we had a party with a cake but no birthday girl. God has been so good to us this past year. She has brought us so much joy!

We have orders!!!

Allen's retirement orders came down. They read as follows: "Effective 31 Dec 2009 you are relieved from active duty, organization and station of assignment, retired effective 01 Jan 2010"

Years of service: 20 years, 2 days

This last part is very important because we get a raise on every even year of service and you have to have 20 years and 1 day to get that pay raise. So, we just made it!!!

We have been looking at houses. There are a few we are interested in, but none like the one we saw last May. God will provide and something will come available.

3 things about me!

A friend sent this to me in an e-mail. I thought I would just blog it. Hopefully you'll learn something new about me.

Three names I go by:
1. Dawn
2. Mom
3. Mrs. Orahood


Three jobs I've had in my lifetime:
1. Substitute teacher
2. Children's clothing at Sears
3. Hotel reservations at Best Western


Three places I've lived:
1. Germany (where I live now)
2. England (where we had baby #1)
3. New Mexico (where we had babies #2 and #3)



Three shows I watch: (this one was really hard because I don't normally watch tv)
1. American Idol (I do watch this one)
2. 7th Heaven ( wish it was still on)
3. Wheel of Fortune



Three places I've been:
1. Soviet Union
2. China
3. Italy



Three people that e-mail me regularly:
1. My sister
2. K-love (with the verse of the day)
3. Whoever I e-mail first


Three of my favorite foods:
1. Seafood
2. Pizza from Italy
3. Chinese food


Three things I am looking forward to:
1. Retirement
2. Baseball season starting
3. Going to Poland next weekend

A little break and some news!

Basketball is over and we have a short break until baseball starts. Caleb's practices start on the 30th and the other two start in April. Their first game is April 25th.

Allen's retirement has been approved. We have tentative dates to leave. It looks like we will be headed back home around the 14th of October. We had been told that Allen could sign his paperwork in D.C., which would be more money in the bank for us. But it seems that is not the case. He will have to do everything from here. It all works out though. We will be able to fly from here straight home.

The other thing that works out very nicely is the boys' school. The quarter at Caleb's new school will end the same week that we get home. That couldn't have been planned any better ~ Thanks, God! So now we are doing paperwork, paperwork and more paperwork. All those last minute trips need to be taken. It has been a good tour, probably our hardest as far as moral at the base though. But we've been able to do so much since we've been here and have met some wonderful friends. We were hoping to be able to take a cruise to Greece before we left, but I just don't see that happening. We would rather go home almost debt free than having that added to our debt.

An amazing sound

Yesterday and today, Caleb was able to participate in Honor Band again. Yesterday they were down in the Ramstein area. Allen went with him for the day. Today I get to spend the day with him. It is such an amazing thing to be able to hear him play. He really is talented with the trumpet. I am hoping Seeger (their school when we move) has a jazz band. I'm fairly sure that they do.

Joshua is also playing the trumpet this year. He is really doing well also. I just love hearing them play.

One year ago today!

These are the wonderful pictures we saw one year ago today. It was a day that was the beginning of our lives to be changed forever. We will never forget the call coming in at 6:45 pm and our coordinator telling us our daughter had the chubbiest cheeks ever. It will be a day we will never forget.

And now, one year later, this is the beautiful face that we see everyday. She is such a joy to all of us. My favorite thing to hear her say is "love you". She's just recently started saying this and it just melts my heart. It still amazes me how perfect of a match she is for us. We know, without a shadow of doubt, that it was a miracle from God. I may not have given birth to her, but I am very much her mommy and Allen her daddy. My heart often breaks for her birthmother and all that she is missing. I am so thankful, however, for the love that she had for her.