Teddy Jess

It is my delight to introduce my nephew, Theodore Jeshua Gaalswyk, adopted into the family of Luke and Anna 2.19.11.
Mom and I had the privilege of welcoming the new lil trio home to their sweet home in Dayton, OH. My two babies were there as well. Oliver and George are smitten with this round little bundle of cousin joy. As well they should be. He's a peach...practically literally. Theo's little peachy, fuzzy head is a downy orange patch of gloriousness.
On the subject of adoption: I grew up thinking it was as natural a means of growing a family as birthing a baby. Now as an adult, I am more aware of that truth. Did you know that when a child is adopted, the birth certificate is re-written? In the eyes of the law it is as if they were always part of this family. It brings tears of joy to my eyes. Then I consider the parallel of entering into God's family...tissue, please. Ephesians 1:4-5 says 'He chose us in Him before the creation of the world...adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ...'

Wait...QUIETLY?!

"Yet this I call to mind
and therefore I have hope:

Because of the Lord's great love we are
not consumed,
for His compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
great is Your faithfulness.

I say to myself, "The Lord is my portion;
therefore I will wait for Him.

The Lord is good to those whose hope is
in Him, to the one who seeks Him;
it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord."
Lamentations 3:21-26

Oh goodness. I need these words today. I cling to the hope promised.
There has been a false accusation slammed on one of my dear siblings, and it's sucking the life out of our family. I want to stand on the roof and shout the truth... but I wonder if that's what God would call me to do? Yes, truth should be known. But am I in too compulsive a state to convey said truth clearly? Probably. Do I have a hard time waiting quietly? Absolutely.
Waiting= feeling like I'm sitting around doing nothing. I think there's something deeper to this message, though. The SALVATION OF THE LORD comes when I give everything to Him. I need to pour out my heart to Him, calling on Him for justice and mercy. It's so hard. I'm not a waiter. But even more...I'm not QUIET.
QUIETLY= holding my thoughts in 'til I could burst. But quietly in this context would probably mean simply not spewing every ill thought I have, infecting everyone else involved.
The salvation of the Lord is a powerful thing. Scratch that. THE most powerful thing. So, if you need me you'll find me quiet and waiting... struggling on both accounts, but expecting something huge.

Disguised

Pea in a pod and stinky skunk.

I remember going trick or treating one time when I was little. My family tried to stay away from the ghoulish side of Halloween, and by doing that, we skipped dressing-up altogether. So this year, since Oliver is old enough to notice other kids celebrating big, we had a decision to make.

The origin of Halloween is unclear. Some say it's an evil celebration dating back to the Druids and Celts in the fifth century, B. C. Other studies link it to a Christian/Catholic fete. The research that I did (not deep, by any means), usually began with, "Legend says..." Conclusion? There is no evidence to back anything up. We've concluded on our own that it isn't condoning the evil of that surrounds the holiday by dressing our kids up and taking them out and about. There's fun to be had in dress-up. Some of my fondest childhood memories were made wearing Mom's old bridesmaid dresses playing make-believe with my sister and cousins. Imagination is lost on most children in this age of videos and video games. God has designed us to learn and grow as we imagine who we could be or how we could accomplish the seemingly impossible. Does that correlation make sense?

That being said, happy Halloween from the Toftnesses!

WEDDING!

Georgi and cousin Lori, my 2 PA assistants.

Sisters.

Jess wearing a t-shirt of Scott at the dance. Hilarious.

Sisters.

Mr. ring bearer

Have you ever seen a more radiant bride?! The groom is looking rather dapper, as well.

Uncle Jimmy and Auntie Susie with Oliver after mass.

Anna's bridesmaid hair. I think it's my favorite ever.

Mom, Cocoa and Scott, Life

I'll start this post with a side note: when you tell your mom your password, she takes liberties in adding pictures to your posts. This advice is given with the voice of experience. I'll add that not all mothers are as slick as mine, so you may get something offensive on your blog. I've been fortunate to be only pleasantly surprised to find my blog has been blogging without me.

Next subject: Cocoa and Scott's wedding. The photo Mom put up was from Friday, October 22 - a day of joyful celebration for my dear cousin, Nicole, and my new cousin, Scott. God gave glorious weather for a most glowing bride and beaming groom. I am so happy for these two lovely people - and they are so happy, too! Oliver and I had the opportunity to have a front row seat at the festivities by way of personal attendant/stylist and ring bearer. What an honor! The morning went swimmingly, with only a few minor glitches in the hair-doing. Pictures went well (even though Olives insisted on carrying a puppy around for most of the morning IN HIS WEDDING ATTIRE...he was never even peed on. Whew.). The more gory excitement started after pictures, before the ceremony. Forty minutes before 'Here Comes the Bride,' I was in the church doing my personal attendant duties, while the wedding party was chilling outside. A groomsman calmly came in to report that Oliver fell down and his head was bleeding. I had just told him to calm down and not scratch his face. An uncle of the bride rushed in, holding my bloody boy at arms length, swiftly hauling him to the bathroom. My dear Anna, nurse on-site, said, "Elizabeth, remember, head wounds bleed profusely even when they're not profuse. The cut isn't very big, but it's deep. He probably will need stitches, but he'll be fine." My first thought was so selfish it's embarrassing. *Nuts, no one is going to see my beautiful son walk down the aisle, and I'm going to spend the rest of the day at home with a crying kid.* Isn't that awful?! However, the next few minutes were an amazing display of think-on-your-feet action. Someone called for the clinic number (the clinic being a block from the church!), while another person punched the numbers. A call was also made to my cousin for another shirt (as Oliver's was dripping red), but the mother-of-the-bride said nah, she could wash that out in the sink (what?!). Mom came to drive us (me holding my three year old in the front seat...shhhh), while my cousin held Georgi in the back. On the way Oliver was crying, not because of the injury, but because he didn't get to carry up the rings yet. Ha! Upon arriving at the clinic, Mom did paperwork with the receptionist and I followed the nurse with my whimpering victim. He had two shots to numb, two pieces of hair cut to clear, and one staple to mend. Done and done. We flew back to the church to find Oliver's CLEAN, dry, ironed shirt waiting for him to slip into and he walked down the aisle. There was of course some funny fidgeting that went on during mass, but for the most part the rest of the afternoon was non-eventful (other than, "I now present Mr. and Mrs. Scott Wacker." YAY!). We celebrated long into the night and even the wee hours of the morning. What a day. Beautiful, fun, crazy, unpredictable, blessed. Tired.

Life continues to take us by surprise at every turn. I guess that's what happens when you have children...well, more so, anyway. But in my humanity I want everything to be expected. I want to control my environment and the influence it has on my family. This was a convicting realization when a friend asked me if I had said a prayer of grace for the day Friday. I hadn't, but God - in His mercy - gave grace when it was needed. I think I spend too much time wishing and hoping things will go well, instead of going to the One who is in control of circumstances. I have a cross-your-fingers, hold-your-breath kind of mentality, thinking I'll jinx the situation if I pre-pray it. Why wouldn't I just give things to God? I can't change His mind or plans anyway, why not just align my thoughts with His will through prayer? I'm learning this more and more as I consider the world I live in. Things will happen to my family that I don't see coming. MOST things are out of my realm of control. Don't fear the future, trust God with it.

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord.
"Plans to prosper you and not to harm you,
plans to give you hope and a future."
Jeremiah 29:11

our little family t