Saturday, September 29, 2012

Be A Part Of The Story!


You should totally be doing a little dance right now because #1 it is Saturday and #2 I actually did what I said I was going to do and posted a new blog this weekend! And just because I can, I will sprinkle this post with cuteness for your pure enjoyment. :)


I shared with you in my last post how I planned to used Kristian Ogden Photography to help raise funds for our adoption. Beginning October 1st, all proceeds from my portrait sessions will go toward bringing our little girls home. 


I’m hoping that we can partner with a new non-profit organization called Clement Arts in the near future, but we are still working out what that relationship will look like, so I am starting things off this way for now.


Normally, when clients choose to do a portrait session with Kristian Ogden Photography, they are charged a session fee ($150-$225) and then they purchase print products afterward. In the past I have charged $50 for a single digital image. What I’m getting at is these new package prices are greatly discounted. I truly hope this not only helps us raise funds but also helps bless other families.


The Session Packages are for newborn sessions, baby/toddler sessions, children sessions, family sessions and couple’s sessions. I still do not shoot weddings or high school seniors. Here are the packages:

$300
-30-45 minute session
-10 digital negatives

$500
-1 hour session
-20 digital negatives

$750
-2-3 hour session (great for newborn)
-25 digital negatives

$900
-2-3 hour session (great for newborn)
-25 digital negatives in both color and black &white (50 total)


Of course there are plenty more details on my website HERE.


Please consider helping support us in this way, and if you know anyone else who is looking for a portrait photographer, pass this info along. When you support our adoption, you become part of our little girls’ story. That means a lot to us!


I do want to say that if you have a photographer already, PLEASE don’t take your regular business away from them. I have  a lot of photographer friends in the area, and the last thing I want is for this fund raising effort to have a negative impact on their business.


If you have any questions about the photography or how you can help bring our girls home in other ways, please feel free to email me at krisogden@hotmail.com



Until Next time! -K

Thursday, September 27, 2012

Adoption Update :)

Howdy y'all! I have had a busy day with Asher’s field trip this morning, but I wanted to go ahead and post a small update about the adoption process for those of you who are following along. All two of you. :) Ha, just kidding.

This is kind of a random thought that I’m throwing in for free, but just so you know, there is this little box on the bottom of each post that says, “Post a Comment.” It works and it doesn’t bite. Just sayin. Comments = Love in blog world. :)

Ok, so update... For those of you who haven’t read some of my other posts, we are adopting two little girls from [country in Asia]. 

We have settled on an agency. This was a pretty easy decision. We have some friends who are adopting from India through this agency, and I spoke to the director several weeks ago. I felt a peace about it from the first phone call. We will submit our application this week or next (although this really is just a formality). Our next real step with the agency is to complete a contract and throw down $7,250 on the table... sooooo that will probably be within the first quarter of 2013 unless God provides that chunk before then.

We will, however, begin our homestudy process through Lifeline Children Services in January if not before. We only need $1,150 in order to get that ball rolling, and this will be a 3-4 month process, so we are confident we will start this no later than the first couple of weeks in January. I think starting the homestudy will help me a lot with the anxiousness, because I will have something to work on. 


I spoke to a social worker in Georgia yesterday and asked her some questions about our house. We still live in the house we bought after we got married. We have had it on the market for over a year, but apparently God was not ready for us to sell, so it’s no longer listed. It’s a three bedroom and one bathroom house. Of course since our family will be growing by 50% our first thoughts were, “We need a bigger house!” and while we do want a bigger house, we can fit comfortably here and our mortgage payment is way less than rent, so we plan to stay until we are ready to buy or build another house. However, we were concerned putting the two girls in one room might be an issue during the homestudy, but the social worker said it was fine. That is great news since moving into a larger home before we start the homestudy would really delay the process and if we decided to move during or after the homestudy, that would also have negative effects. 


Lots of people have been asking how we plan to raise the  almost $40,000 we need to bring our girls home. Lance and I have talked a good deal about this over the last few weeks and there are about 4 different ways we anticipate using to raise our funds.

  1. AdvoCare - Lance and I were introduced to AdvoCare in November of 2011 and it has changed our lives. AdvoCare is a 20 year old heath and wellness company, and it has helped us create a healthier lifestyle that has led to us losing a lot of weight. By simply helping others, AdvoCare has afforded us the opportunity for me to stay at home with our boys again. Lance and I also see it as an opportunity for us to earn large portions of the funds we need for our adoption. 
  2. Kristian Ogden Photography - As some of you may know, I am a photographer and I’ve owned my own business for over five years now. In recent years, I have focused mainly on newborn and children portraiture. Beginning this October, I will begin a “digitals for donation” type structure of my business and all proceeds will of course go into our adoption fund. I will post a more specific blog about this with a link to my website probably this weekend. I’m hoping this will not only benefit us in helping bring our girls home but also be a blessing to other families in our community. 
  3. Mountain Majesty Handcrafts - Apparently I’m just flat our artsy. Don’t hate! :) I also make jewelry, candles, soaps and other handmade gifts. Once I can get things established better, I will also start promoting these items and all proceeds will go to our adoption fund.
  4. Grants - Once we finish our homestudy, we can begin applying for grants. Hopefully, since we will be adopting two children, we will be able to get some decent grant money. 


So that’s pretty much where we are right now. I guess that update wasn’t so short after all. 

If you choose to pray for our family, here are some things that you can pray for specifically:


-Pray that God strengthens our faith and gives us peace in trusting in his providence. 
-Pray that God provides the means.
-Pray that things go smoothly and without delay.
-Pray for the hearts of our extended family.
-Pray for our boys that God will begin to mold them into givers/servants and that they would be more grateful and less selfish.
-Pray for Lance and I to be unified throughout this process and for our love and grace for each other to grow.
-Pray for our girls, wherever and whoever they are. Pray for their protection, provision for them and comfort for them.
-Pray for the birth parents of our girls. Pray for God’s grace in their lives. 
-Most importantly, pray that God be glorified through this adoption.

Thank you for your prayers!

Until next time! -K

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

This Old Man, He Played SIX...


Today, my friends, is my eldest child’s 6th birthday. How in the world did SIX years go by so stinkin fast? Did I find a Delorean in 2006? Nah, I think I would have remembered that. 

To convince you of what an amazing mother I am, I am doing the required “birthday blog post” for Brayden. Enjoy the pictures. :)

First, let’s start out with a good before and after picture picture because every mom knows the birth of your first child changes more than your sleep...


See? I was skinny and flat chested before having a baby. 


See? I was not skinny OR flat chested after having a baby... well, at least until 6 years later.

Ok, now that we have the important stuff out of the way, let’s talk about Brayden’s actual birthday. 

Remember how I told you I have issues with control? Well, that was true six years ago when I was pregnant. I had my whole perfect labor and delivery planned out! Literally! I had hired a doula and typed up copies of my very specific birth plan to give the doctors and nurses (Oh, how they would have laughed at that while they ate the goodies from my nurses goodie basket). Guess what? Yeah, didn’t happen... not a single bit of it. 

Brayden apparently takes after his mother in the fact that he is extremely hard headed. He takes after his father in the fact that he has a big head! He just could not swing that sucker around as much as he tried, and yes he actually tried,  I felt it. He was butt first breech. I think they have a technical term for it, but I like “butt first breech.” So, I didn’t get to experience regular labor and deliver... I got gutted like a fish.

At 7:44AM on September 26th, it was worth it...







Being a mom is one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, but it’s also one of the most amazing things I’ve ever done. There are no words to describe how instantly you can love someone until you hold your baby for the first time. I still stare at them from time to time and wonder how it is that these children are mine... that they came from my own body. It blows my mind how creative our God is. 

Happy 6th Birthday to my big baby boy!

Until next time! -K

Monday, September 24, 2012

Sometimes You Need a Spanking


I am on a roll with this blogging thing! Watch, now I won’t post again for a month. ;-)

I wasn’t planning on posting anything today. I’m supposed to be cleaning, but I thought I would share how my morning has been...

First off, I woke up with a lot of anxiousness. Just to be completely honest, I look at the things God has called us to do and I feel so helpless. I see all the mountains that must be moved and I scream, “IMPOSSIBLE!” I’ve already told you guys I have issues with “control”, so this feeling of being helpless is not comfortable. Nope, not one tiny bit. I want so bad to be able to do something to move us in the right direction but  I can’t and I know none of these things will be of our doing. Unfortunately, I have as much trouble with patience as I do control. 

Shortly after waking up this morning, I read a post on FB by a sister in the Lord. I think God was giving me gentle encouragement, and I took it to heart but apparently it did not sink down far enough, because as I got my body moving, my thoughts and fears and frustrations also got moving. I tend to get frustrated very easily (because of the whole patience and control thing), and of course when I get frustrated I do what every normal 3 year old does... I pitch a royal fit! 

So, while I cleaned, I made a point of praying very specifically. I very specifically pitched a fit to God. I told him I was frustrated that he had put all these things on our hearts, gave us a vision, and then sat back to watch as we run around like we are in a corn maze (or at least that’s how it feels too often). I said, “What do you want me to do??? Why does this seem so hopeless???” After getting that off my chest, I continued to pray about different things but that frustration was still there. “Seriously,” I thought, “Why does everything in my life have to be so difficult? Why can’t things just go the way I want them to every once in a while?!?!” Ha, I should know better than to pitch a fit to God!

I decided after I finished cleaning one ENTIRE room successfully that I would take a little break and look for some encouragement in the Word. I found something else... my place! I got spanked! Somehow I wandered into the book of Job and here is what I read:

“Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth. Tell me, if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements—surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone, when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy? Or who shut in the sea with doors when it burst out from the womb, when I made clouds its garment and thick darkness its swaddling band, and prescribed limits for it and set bars and doors, and said, ‘Thus far shall you come, and no farther, and here shall your proud waves be stayed’? Have you commanded the morning since your days began, and caused the dawn to know its place, that it might take hold of the skirts of the earth, and the wicked be shaken out of it?” (Job 34:4-13)

Well played, God... well played.

Have a good week y’all. Until next time. -K

Saturday, September 22, 2012

Questions and Answers


Yay! It’s the weekend! I got to sleep until about 9:00am this morning. That never happens. I use the term “sleep” loosely because I really just dozed lightly between getting drinks, wiping little butts and threatening corporal punishment. Good times.

I’m starting to realize why people who are adopting start to post gobs of blog post about it... you can control blog post. FYI, I’m a type “D” personality, and the “control” factor is a big part of me. God is constantly having to kick my legs out from under me to remind me that I am NOT in control! Knowing what I am, I think that desire to do something... anything, gives me some sort of feeling of control. I'm thankful for a good friend pointing that out to me the other day.

So, with that being said, here’s a post about adoption. :)

I’ve realized that, similarly to being pregnant, adoption comes with a few questions that people ask you ALL the time. When you’re pregnant, the questions are “When are you due,” “Do you know what you’re having,” and “What are you naming him/her?” With adoption, the questions are “Where are you adopting from,” “How long will it take,” and “What made you decide to adopt?” Every time someone asks me that last question, I want to respond with, “God.” I’m not sure that would be the best answer, but it’s the truth. That’s such a hard question to answer, but I usually say something simple like, “We feel God has called us to adopt because it’s such a beautiful example of the gospel.” People usually smile and agree, but y’all, it’s so much deeper than that. The other day I tried to put it into words but I failed (aka another deleted blog post). 

This morning I woke up thinking about our girls. Oh yeah, I forgot to update that we have settled on adopting TWO little GIRLS from [country in Asia]. Anyways, I was thinking about our girls... what they were doing, what they look like, what their personalities will be like... and as I was looking at some articles online about adoption, I stumbled across a video of John Piper talking about adoption.

John Piper is one of my favorite reformed pastors. He is so deep in his teachings it makes my head hurt. I can’t casually listen to a sermon by Piper. It takes way too much brain power and that’s so hard to muster when you have two screaming kids running around! I need that brain power to focus on staying sane.

I watched this video, and I knew I had to post it. It totally explains my answer to the question, “What made you decide to adopt?” I encourage you to take five minutes and watch it. 






Until next time. -K

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

A Tragic Loss (WARNING: Disturbing Images)


Good morning everyone! Hope your night was better than mine. We had vomit fest around 1:30am with Asher. The whole family got involved... it was great. :-/

As I drank my Spark (nice mommy juice) this morning, I began to read all the posts on Facebook about today being the 11th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attack on our country. I remember watching the terrible images on the news in my bedroom because I had stayed home from school sick that day. While I took a moment to remember and say a prayer for those who lost loved ones that tragic day, I began to have a heavy heart for something else...

Almost 3,000 innocent people lost their lives in the U.S. because of this...



It’s horrific and we, as a country, should do everything in our power to make sure this never happens again. The loss of that many lives is tragic beyond words.

They say that the attack on September 11th was the largest loss of life by way of foreign  attack on U.S. soil, but let us also take a moment and consider another horrifying loss of life.

Almost 4,000 innocent babies lose their lives EVERY DAY in the U.S. because of this...


It’s horrific and we, as a country, should do everything in our power to make sure this never happens again. The loss of that many lives is tragic beyond words.

Just something to think about as we go about our day today.

-K

Saturday, September 8, 2012

I'm Still Kickin!


Here I am on my knees, begging you to forgive me for not posting anything in forever! Well, I’m not really on my knees. That would make typing really hard, but you get my point. I really have been a horrible blogger and I apologize for that. 

Honestly (ask Lance), I’ve actually written about half a dozen incomplete posts and for some reason or another I just decided I didn’t want to finish them. I guess they just were not meant to be. Says the Calvinist in me. :)

Since it has been sooooo stinkin long since my last post, I will do a random update post for you with lots of little tid bits (what is a “tid bit” anyways?) of things going on in our lives.

Let me start with Luther, because I know you guys probably think I’ve already killed the dog and THAT is the reason I haven’t posted anything about him.

I assure you he is alive and well. See...



Cute as ever! He is a sweet dog and I’m quite fond of him. However, he has not gotten better about getting up during the night. In fact, it’s gotten worse! He loves our German Shepherd, Bella, and while I’m not sure the feeling is mutual, he really likes to go in the backyard and play with her. He REALLY enjoys spending time with her around 3:00am. He chewed up one of my dress shoes, but thankfully it was the pair that gives me blisters so I’m ok with it. He likes cat food more than dog food. He also loves a good belly rub... it’s so cute.

The boys started school a few weeks ago. Brayden is in kindergarten at a public school and Asher is going four days a week at the private pre-school they’ve been at. Both are doing great! Don’t they look all grown up on their first day of school?



I do have one gripe though about kindergarten/public school. NONE of my mommy friends with kids in public school told me all the crap you had to bring or all the hoops you have to jump through to get your kid registered! And while the school sent us a large stack of information (printed on both sides mind you), which I read through at least twice, I still did not have everything that was required. I am going to be a GOOD friend and tell other mommies of the complicated process of kindergarten registration and starting public school. Here’s a few quick tips to start: 

  • Buy three of every school supply available at Target and go as soon as you see the displays. 
  • Go ahead and invest in cases of Kleenex and hand sanitizer. 
  • Send a blank check with your child for all the extra stuff they hit you up for. 
  • Prepare for the guilt trip that is PTA. 
  • Find a good book to start reading while you wait 30 minutes in the pick up line. 
  • Get used to homework... in kindergarten. 
  • Create a red light green light system at home because apparently it causes an angelic effect in children at school.

Asher is FI-NAL-Y potty trained!! Whew! I never thought both of us would come out alive. My bathroom still smells of little boy pee. Do you just have to bleach the heck out of it to fix that or am I supposed to just surrender considering I have two boys? Nothing is working so far. 

I’m really ready for Fall! Fall is my favorite time of year! Lots of awesome things occur in Fall like my birthday, our anniversary and long sleeve t-shirts!

Lance and I got married on October 2nd and a couple of years ago we decided to go somewhere every year, just the two of us, for our anniversary. Oh. My. Gosh. Totally the best pact we ever made! We went to Seattle last year for almost a week. I think that’s my happy place. I mean come on, how can you look at this and not be happy?



Or this?



So... this year, for our 8th anniversary, guess where we’re going? Yeah, I don’t know either. Your guess is as good as mine. :( We won’t be all fancy this year because we have been so busy and now we are cutting it close. I’m a planner, so since I really don’t have time to plan anything, I’m not sure what we will do. Well, I know what we will do but not sure where we will do it at. ;-)

FYI, I am loving being a stay-at-home-mommy again! I don’t have a clean house to show for it yet, but I’m working on it. I just love being home with my boys when they get out of school! 

I’m super excited about Fall... oh wait, I already said that! Ooops!

I went “yard sale-ing” for the first time a couple of weeks ago. I’m pretty terrible at it. My mom and dad have a cabin (by cabin I mean a nice house that looks nothing like a cabin) up in North Georgia, and my mom has recently picked up a new hobby (aka back breaking work) of refurbishing old furniture and selling it in a little consignment shop up there. This is what her garage looks like now...



I’ve gone a couple of times now to help mom find some pieces here in Columbus. I knew I hated having yard sales, but I’m not sure hunting for them is much better. The pros get there like two hours early before people are even set up, but I just cannot make myself be that annoying. Not to mention I don’t think my body functions well before the sun comes up. I’ve found a few things for her, but I get the feeling I’m probably not a huge help. I did find a decent NOT handmade quilt my first go around and I kept that for myself. Ten bucks for a king size quilt... not too bad.

Well y’all, I think I’m out out random stuff to share except for one last thing. I figured I would reward those who make it all the way through to the end of my post with the most exciting (and frightening for me) news. Now when you read it, please don’t gasp too loud. I know it sounds crazy (especially for those who know us and even to those who ARE us) but because it’s so “Say what?” we feel very confident that it’s what God is leading us to do. I promise you, this was not MY idea! When Lance and I talk it over it still sounds so absurd. Ok, ok I will get it out...

Lance and I feel like God is calling us to adopt a little girl... at least... possibly two siblings. 

Wow! That feels so weird to actually type it out!

We never ever considered adoption until about 3 years ago. God began to show us how we ourselves are adopted through the work of grace, and we saw adoption as a beautiful example of the gospel. You can read my other blog about that here. Of course, when all this began we were like, “Yeah, ok God... maybe, but it will be like 10 years down the road, because... well, look at us. That’s just totally impossible right now.” I think God laughs at the impossible!

As I mentioned in a previous post, Brayden began praying for a sister a few months back. That’s really where we began to hear the whispers of God about us adopting sooner rather than later. In July we went to a business conference in Texas and He showed us a vehicle that would help us reach the major financial goals associated with adoption. A couple of weeks after we returned from Texas, our pastor shared a quote that seemed like a very odd quote for him to share. He's not very quote happy and when he does share quotes it's usually very specific to the gospel. I felt it was a confirmation of what we were feeling. Here is what he shared:


There is something inherently inappropriate about cherishing small ambitions for God. -John Stott

Over the course of the last two months, God has slowly began to match our affections to his call. Now, there is not a day goes by that I don’t think about adopting. I wonder what she (or they) will look like and what it will feel like to hold a child that is mine by providence but not by blood. I cannot wrap my brain around it really. It seems so unrealistic, but at the same time something is driving me toward what is totally illogical. Logic says, "You have two kids. Why do you need more? You can't afford $30k for an adoption. You don't have a big enough house or even a big enough car! You've got too much on your plate already. You can't handle an adoption!" but we aren't hearing the logic we are hearing Jesus' words, "I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."

Lance and I decided fairly early that we would want to adopt internationally and from a country where the gospel is not free to be preached... where little ears are likely to never hear the name of Jesus. That quickly narrowed down our selection. I think I kind of expected God to just mystically reveal the country to us, but after listening to wisdom from several friends who are in the middle of the adoption process, I realized that God can use simple ways to reveal his will to us. It doesn't have to be all "thunder and lightening from heaven." We prayed that he would show us the direction we ought to go in and he answered our prayers.

I started here:



This is a map of restricted nations across the world that I found on the Voice of the Martyrs website. I was able to read about the different countries and then cross research the ones that were open for adoption. This process quickly narrowed our countries down to about 5 or 6. After a bit more research, we eliminated all but two because of unstable programs and then from there we feel we have settled on one. While this is not set in stone yet, we feel a peace about moving forward with adopting from [country in Asia]. It seems to be a good match. There are actually several other families in our community who are about half way through their adoption from [country in Asia]. I think that's kind of neat.

We plan, God willing, to officially begin the process before the year is out. Yikes! So, here’s where you come in. We need your prayers so desperately. Honestly, this scares the mess out of me! It kind of makes me feel like I’m in a free fall with no control over anything. We know God will provide what we need to fulfill his call, no matter how impossible it seems, but we also know that we must cover this process with prayer. Please pray for us if and when we come to your mind. 

I will update along the way, but I don’t plan to make a huge spectacle of this. This is not about us, but about the glory of God. As I mentioned above, there have been quite a few families adopting in our church and in our community. I know some will say, "Oh you're just jumping on the bandwagon. Adoption has become popular." Let me assure you there are plenty of bandwagons that I may jump on like skinny jeans or a style of music or a popular book, but when the "bandwagon" completely changes my family's future and cost upwards of $30,000 I will not be "jumping on" for the heck of it. Maybe, just MAYBE God is moving on the hearts of his people and maybe people are hearing and answering the call. Maybe. :)

So yeah, we plan to adopt... please pray.

To end on a less serious note, here's one last picture...



Until next time! Be blessed! -K