Entry for January 07, 2008

Wow, it is amazing to see how far we have come and how much life has changed in the past year. My family, my home, my job have all changed. Even my health has changed. Most of the changes have been good.

Jenalyn has been here now for six months. We are preparing to finalize her adoption, just getting the paperwork done (including the third and final post-placement report) so we can get in to see the attorney and she can schedule a court date. We will also re-adopt Alex and Kati at that time to get them Montana birth certificates. We have never done that and still have only their Russian birth certificates.

We have been in our house now for two months and are enjoying every minute of it! The storage units are empty and everything we own is finally back in our own home in our possession. Unpacking things that have been in storage for the past four years is like Christmas all over again! It's cool finding things you forgot you even had!

I am loving my job! What's not to love? Flexibility in scheduling, being able to work in my pj's, not going out and driving to work in the cold and snow, beimg able to work on things in the house between jobs when it is slow. I love the accounts I am on. I am still doing the ER account I started out with , plus another ER account when they need us (though they haven't for a couple of months now), and the medical office account I have worked on previously. But I am now also doing a psych account. I really enjoy that one best of all, and it pays better. It has been slow over the holidays, but I did help out a lot over Christmas, as most of the MT's on that account were not working over Christmas. This next paycheck will be my nicest one yet! And we are supposed to be picking up, adding another account, this week, so there is supposed to be plenty of work to go around. I am ready for it. I would prefer to be busy, and since I am paid by the line, the more work I do, the better my pay!

My brother Joel is back in the area, living in Livingston. He came by to visit a few weeks ago. It was really nice to see him.

My little brother Ben is still here in Bozeman in the pre-release program. He has his ups and downs, successes and failures. I do not think he is ready yet to totally surrender to God, and utnil he is, he will not succeed in the way God has shown me he will. Ben still has too much pride in the way of really surrendering to God. He has not yet reached the stage of brokeness and nakedness before God that he needs to reach. We just keep praying, knowing that God WILL have his way in Ben, and that He will keep him right where he needs to be until His will is accomplished.

My niece turned a year old on Thanksgiving day. She is an absolute doll and a sweetheart. I wish I could see her, and her mommy, more often than I get to! My nephew is now 7 months old, and since he is here in Bozeman, I do get to see him more often.

Oh, yeah! And we got another dog. This one is a deer-legged chihuahua. We got her the Monday after Christmas, 9 months old at the time. Daphne is very pretty, chocolate brown with tan coloring. She is as affectionate and sweet as Shuba is obnoxious, loud and full of himself. We love both of them, though, and they really get along well. Shuba knew she was here to stay, was very curious, playful, and protective from day one. It took her a little longer to get used to him, though! She is such a timid little thing!

God is still good, still continues to bless us immensely. As we enter a new year, I am hungry to know Him more, to soak in Him, to spend the precious time with Him that I miss. I am excited to see what He has for us this coming year!