Caught! With Evidence in Hand!

Yes, those are sissors. Yes, in the other hand there is hair. Today, while I was schooling Leni, Katie drew all over her hands, feet AND shirt with marker. Watching her out of the corner of my eye, I thought "ok, I can handle that". THEN I turned my back for a nanosecond .....turned around and she had cut her hair! Does she look guilty or what? Can you tell where hair is missing?

• Four girls


• One boy


• All four girls have cut their own hair


• Not boy


• Boy wins this one...congratulations Jason...consider yourself honored!

Beating the Body Into Submission! :)

There was an interesting discussion on GirlTalk this week about.....eating. This can be a delicate subject however I wanted to address what God has been doing in our lives in this area. Titus 1:11 says, " For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works."

Every January Scott and I re-read a book by Gordon McDonald called, "Ordering Your Private World". The premise of the book is that you cannot be/ or give away what has not been developed, disciplined, and nutured in your 'private world' (that which no one sees but God). The scripture is clear that all things should be brought under the disclipine of the Holy Spirit. For me I was deeply convicted a couple of years ago about eating, and why I ate, what I ate, and when. I clearly was undisciplined in this area and felt the overwhelming need to change and bring this area under God's order for my life. God made us in his likeness...therefore he cares about our bodies and how we use/misuse them. Scott and I believe that the second half of our lives can be MORE productive than the first...How? Take the wisdom gained from the first half of your life, combine it with stewardship over all areas.....and you have individuals God can use that are strong, fit, and hopefully full of Godly wisdom only gotten by experience thru the ups and downs of life.

Another book that has changed my/our life is Don't Waste Your Life by John Piper. This life is but a vapor. I don't know about you, but I don't want to waste a minute of it on worldly passions.....for me....a lack of discipline with food was a HUGE issue. After sharing with Scott, he agreed, and felt convicted himself. We aren't concerned about the world's view of weight loss. We aren't interested in the newest trends, fads, or plastic surgery. I'm not interested in fitting into "that pair of jeans" that everyone wants. We are both in our mid-forties and want to spend the rest of our lives "running with a passion" for all that Christ has called us to. In order to do that, not only do our private worlds need to be in order, but what's in private is reflected externally. .....how you conduct yourself, your speech, dress, etc. , including your attitudes towards food. 1 Cor. 9:24 says, "Do you not know that in a race all the runners compete, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control IN ALL THINGS. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly: I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified."

I always made sure that I had every excuse possible for "being allowed" to eat what I wanted. I was stressed, I had a new baby, I didn't eat lunch....etc. I also felt like if I was organized and disciplined in other areas, that this wouldn't matter. Boy was I wrong. So........this past summer Scott and I said "game on". No more excuses! He lost 30 (yes, he did.....30 lbs.) I have lost 20. How did we do it? First, it was a conviction of sin....to discipline ourselves for the right reasons so that we are ready to fight the good fight as long as God has us on this earth. You can't do that if you're undisciplined and slothful. (Please, please hear that I'm preaching to myself here....these were/are our issues.......!! I'm not thinking of anyone here at all!! This is what God has taken us through these last few months:)) Second, we did Scott's weight management program , combined with lots of hard work and exercise. And we know this isn't available everywhere. This is simply what we did. AND the goal for us was not simply weight loss so we would "look thin". We want to be healthy and strong in mind, body and spirit so that we function at a level God can use, in a way that is honoring of the body and mind that he gave us.....so we CAN be obedient to all He calls us to. I have to be creative with my exercise schedule. I try to do it everyday, in some way, shape or form. I used to be a mid-long distance runner when the older kids were little, so back to running I went....except not as intense as before because my schedule/kids won't allow. The key here is doing "something" to keep yourself active and moving. Here is a couple of pics of how we "creatively" are beating our bodies into submission with the kids in tow. This way, everyone goes.....I have an I-Pod with speaker playing kids worship and the new Paul Baloche CD so the girls go biking/running with mom and dad and sing the whole way. We load em up with snacks and many times Scott runs while I pull (75+) lbs. behind the bike. (Hey, we make it 5-6 miles like this:) People laugh at us as they pass by, but so what?:))Sometimes we both run.....sometimes the girls ride their bikes and we chase them. For us, flexibility yet maintaining the drive to do something everyday has been the key. It's working. We feel great, our minds are clear, we have more energy than ever, we're staying strong...building muscle in order to work more efficiently, and we're ready for whatever God has for us in the coming years! Do we struggle still? Uh, easy answer....Yes! We're human and this is a daily battle. But I'm willing to fight because I am not my own. I was "bought with a price" and want to in my days here, be a willing vessel....not a self-indulgent one. I pray this doesn't sound self-righteous or that we have it all together. We don't. This is simply taking a spiritual issue, and practically walking it out in our daily life. This is what it has looked like for us recently. Our private worlds needed an "adjustment". I appreciate Girl Talk for taking on an issue that can be difficult communicate correctly. They did a great job! Now go have some ice cream! (kidding, kidding:)) How about some nice yummy lettuce?

I leave you with this quote, which is not about food, nor weight loss....but about really, really understanding that Christ exemplified all we are to be.

"There are some who would have Christ cheap. They would have Him without the cross. But the price will not come down." Samuel Rutherford

The King Saves the Day at Disney!

We work really, really, hard all week....our Daddy especially. As a family we reserve Saturdays for fun, family, and friend time....then use Sunday after church to rest and regroup. Well, last Saturday our daddy had a speaking engagement. He addressed the ECA (Early Childhood Assoc.....accreditation for teachers from preschool thru elem.) at their state-wide conference down by Disney. His topic? " The Epidemic of Childhood Obesity and it's Impact on the Brain". (Next month he speaks at the ECA National Conf. in Chicago on the topic of "Sensory Processing Disorders in Children".) Mom here is very task oriented and tries very hard to stay hyper-organized....however, this day somehow escaped my planning. We had been promising the girls a Disney day for a while...so both parents thought....hmmmmm.....can the Mommy take 3 little girls to Disney World BY HERSELF and meet the handsome King there later...after he's done speaking? I have NEVER, EVER, attempted this big a feat without a friend/relative in tow....but I sure didn't want to stay home either :) so......we went. Mom was plodding along through Tommorowland with her princess collection... quite well I must say. Things were going without a hitch.....then it happened. See pic #1. Yes, talking princess suddenly fell silent (!) and when that happens the whole planet stops in amazement. Our blonde ambition was really, really, sick. Her fever was well over 102. Then....it starts to rain....not just rain...but torrential downpours. Got the picture?? I couldn't go on a ride because I had to hold Kristin, and Katie would run wild. I was stuck. So, I let the well girls play on Pooh's Playground (in rain ponchos) while trying to get hold of Dad, without disturbing Dad's talk....and Kristin was very pathetically laying in the baby jogger, not moving, while the other 2 ran circles around Mommy. I also made a feeble attempt to tour Minnie Mouse's House toting sick one, only to turn around to hear Katie screaming, "MOM!! PEE! MOM!! PEE!!" as she was filling up her shoes with....pee.

Wouldn't you know?! My handsome King (promoted to King because he's now over the age limit to be the handsome prince anymore :)) finished speaking......got medicine for sweet daughter, brought it to Disney, found mommy, declared daughter to have virus, dosed medicine, and took other 2 daughters on "Pirates" so they could at least have some fun while mommy stayed with sick one, and the day wasn't a total wash. Yea for Daddy! He rescues us again! Pic #2 is Katie playing in rain. Pic #3 is the King....looking a little stressed, but not sure if he was tired from preparing speech, mad because he forgot shoes and had to stop at Reebok store or wear his dress shoes at theme park, worried about daughter, or really, really NOT wanting to watch the "Country Bear Jamboree" again (which he did....with a great attitude because girlies love it). Maybe some of all of it?! After that pic, Kristin sat up....declared herself fine, began incessant (but cute) talking (so parents KNEW she was ok) and rode Splash Mountain. Yea! Success! The last pic is of Julie and friend Rachel living it up that day (while parents were trudging along at Disney...do they look worried about their parents at all?! Can you say Botox?..kidding people, kidding :)) at the UCF game. And thus ends the tale of our day! And the Princess Collection continues to live happily ever after. Our Daddy is the greatest!! Anyone need a nap?!

















P.S. If you haven't watched the video from the previous post please do so now. Scott swears that I/we say all that on a 2 hr. rotating basis around here. Not a 24 hr. one:)

For All You Moms Out There!

This was sent to me today by my friend Tammi G. We've known each other since the 6th grade....way before we thought about marriage or children. All these years later....we're still great friends and have 9 children between us! Today I was 'heavy laden' with all the Monday stuff...you know...laundry.....dishes....laundry....school....laundry....laundry....did I say laundry?! This gave me a good laugh and I hope it does the same for you! This video is of Anita Renfroe at the Women of Faith Conference earlier this summer. She sings a song about all the things a mom says in a 24 hour period. I think you will hear some of yourself and probably some of your own mom as well!! Enjoy!

SURVIVOR-CHINA

See this little girl? It's Katie Mei VanLue....already a survivor from China!:) Did you know that the current reality show Survivor-China was/is being filmed only 25 miles NW from Nanchang...the city where Katherine was placed in our arms? Yes, the entire series this season is from Zhelin Lake, a reservoir just "around the corner" from where we met Katie for the first time. Although we don't always agree with the content of this show, the views of the countryside, mountains, and rice fields are amazing, and right where our little Won-ton was born! You can see full episodes as well as behind-the-scene views of production (which I found particularly interesting because they're using Chinese crew as well as American), at CBS.com. It's exciting for us as well because Jiangxi is a very poor, landlocked, province that doesn't usually receive much attention. We stayed in Nanchang for 8 days last year. Some of you may remember the Chinese-man-who-chased-Julie-through-the-Market Story. ...Picture whole pigs chopped up, laying on the street.....fish executed the same way, bags of frogs, bowls of eels (alive and dead) , many vegetables laying in between, dried scorpions, bugs (to eat), huge bags of rice, tucked into a tiny one-lane-street . We were walking through this madness and a man approached Julie with a mesh bag full of SNAKES!!! VERY ALIVE SNAKES!!!NOT SMALL SNAKES!! and began yelling at her in rapid-fire Chinese. She evidently didn't answer him correctly (did I fail to mention that in his other hand he was holding a porcupine??!! ) because Chinese man then chased her....hitting her on the back of her legs with the bag of snakes (they eat them there)! Mom here had Katherine in the "hip panda" baby carrier and was shouting for Dad to come rescue his women. Where was Dad? Waaaayyyyy down the street taking photos:) We found that we can run faster than Chinese snake man....and even got pictures of snakes-in-bag for all to see. We can only gather that snake-man wanted us to buy yummy-polluted-water reptiles for our dinner. We don't know, because nobody, and we mean nobody speaks english.:) You can view these lovely photos by clicking the link on the far right under "Chinese Travel Blog". So you see why it would be interesting to watch this Survivor series! We've already done our own version. :)

The second reason for this post is for awareness of the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church coming up on November 11, 2007. China is one of the focus countries this year. Consider these statistics

The Big Picture: China
Population: 1,298,847,624

There are 201 Living Languages

22 of these languages have New Test. translations

18 have portions of the Bible translated

15 languages have a complete translation

146 have NO biblical translation

China is still a developing nation and has a state-run government. What does that mean? There is no freedom of worship and persecution of Christians is widespread. You are currently not allowed to have your own Bible....so Bible-smuggling is still very much a reality. Please visit the persecuted church IDOP site, and join in the focus on intercessory prayer and awareness for those around the world daily suffering for their faith. Other sites you may also be interested in are Release International, Secret Believers, and Voice of the Martyrs . God is working all around the globe in the lives of believers....please mark your calendars and remember to pray for those facing extreme difficulty and even giving their lives in the call to bring the gospel message to China and other countries around the world! (stats from EPM ministries)

Leni's Birthday Bash!

Because our family is so large now, we have a VanLue rule that you get a big birthday every 'even' year of your age, and a smaller one on the 'odd' year. This was the BIG year for Leni and we had a blast playing golf at Congo River. It really was ideal because everyone of all ages could enjoy it and participate. I said 'participate" because....well, we tried to have some picture of organization.... and rule following......then gave up. It was a major free-for-all with NO ONE waiting their turn....etc. It was plain and simple, hilarious chaos. Way too much fun! We need to do things like this more often because we definitely laughed. AND we didn't get kicked out of the place. The pics just don't do it justice. We definitely made some memories!

Our Leni :)

Today we celebrated the 6th birthday of our Leni. She holds a very special spot in all our hearts as she was our first adopted daughter. We had a great day of celebration and honoring this gift of a little girl. I found the last words penned by Amy Carmichael (are you tired of her quotes yet??:)) and wanted to share them in honor of Leni...... Lying on her death bed, one of Amy's adopted daughters that had been rescued from temple prostitution, was brought in to her. In scrawling letters, Amy wrote these words, "Precious child......if so dear [to me], then what [are you] to Him?" Our thoughts exactly about our little girl. HAPPY BIRTHDAY LENI!!

The first pic is 'the group"....in other words what Dad gets to feed on a daily basis :). The second pic are the 5 VanLue kids...2 bio, 3 adopted (see if you can tell who the adopted ones are:)) and Mr. Cade.

And here is the one we celebrate today. She's awesome!

(The funny pics are coming....oh my gosh!....you'll see! Dad got his camera fixed and went crazy taking pics today ...he's in the editing room)