A Father to the fatherless

This is a sound bite from Josiah (9) . . .

A news commentator asked, on the weekend of Father’s Day, “What’s the best gift your father ever gave you?”

Wondering how my fatherless sons might answer that question if someone asked them, I posed the same question to my oldest, who was nearby when the commercial came on.

Without missing a beat he replied, “Easy. Eternal life!”

I try to help them understand that God is truly their Perfect Heavenly Father . . . a Father whose attributes are worthy of our study and praise, a Father who cares about every moment of our day. When Josiah was able to answer this question without hesitation it warmed me because I could see in his eyes he wasn’t parroting, he was answering from his heart. May he never forget this truth!

Psalm 68:4-6 Sing to God, sing praises to His name; Lift up a song for Him who rides through the deserts, Whose name is the LORD, and exult before Him. 5A father of the fatherless and a judge for the widows, Is God in His holy habitation. 6God makes a home for the lonely; He leads out the prisoners into prosperity, Only the rebellious dwell in a parched land.

A reunion!

Today my sons and I were blessed to spend the day with the precious girls we fostered since they were newborns and left us in April: B.G., who turns 3 in September and J.J., who turns 2 next month. Their mom, V, was supposed to accompany us today, but overnight her wee one, who turns 1 year old in August, developed a high fever.

After many cancelled plans over the past 2 months, this is the first time we’ve seen the girls (or V) since the second week in April. She called me last night and told me that the girls’ daycare reported that B.G. had signs of a tummy bug all day. She asked if I would mind being around them due to the tummy bug. Without hesitation, I told her we still wanted to get together. I silver-ed up my sons, prayed for protection, and joyfully loaded our car seats into the van to get our girls!

When the girls first laid eyes on me, it was a squealing reunion for B.G, who ran to me for hugs and a where-have-you-been look from J.J. as I came through the door (I could practically see the wheels of her mind turning). But as soon as I asked her if I could pick her up, J.J. beamed her dimpled smile and wrapped herself around me like a favorite blankie . . . until, that is, she laid eyes on my oldest, her big brother, Fisher-son. She spontaneously spring-boarded from my chest into Fisher-son’s arms and grabbed his neck like a pro wrestler taking down an opponent. Yep, the girls were glad to see us and you KNOW the boys and I were praising God for this reunion. I was also moved to tears to see V again, too.

Today was V’s 2-year sobriety anniversary. Three years ago, she was in prison and pregnant with B.G.. A year later she started her struggle to be sober. What a path. Three daughters born in 3 years. A wedding. Sobriety. An encounter with Jesus the Messiah that sent her running headlong away from Him. A series of court appearances to fight to get her daughters back. Fear. Failure. Drug tests. Doubt. Success. Memory-lane journeys that deepen her grief as sobriety clears her head of the 15-year drug and alcohol stupor that previously defined her 30 years of life.

With all of that swirling around in my head as I greeted V for the first time in a couple of months, I marveled at how GOD had brought us all to this day. When I first became a foster mom, I always said that “some children will come and go, and some will come and stay,” but I had no idea how GOD would weave into our family the lives of some of the birth parents of the children He brought to our home.

I confess, I’m not very patient when it comes to waiting out the future. I can see V living a redeemed life, raising her daughters to know and love Jesus, and being used by Jesus to lead other women to the foot of the Cross as she ministers to them through the lessons of her history. Oh the waiting is so hard!

Thank you, Jesus, that today was another day to renew songs of praise in the hearts of our girls, hug on them, play with them, and cheer on their momma.

When you walk, your steps will not be hampered; when you run, you will not stumble. Proverbs 4:12

Review: new SeaLife Aquarium in AZ Mills Mall, Tempe

Hey all,
Today we went to SeaLife, the new AZ Mills Mall aquarium. Many have asked for a review so here goes:

My 10 & 7 year olds said it was a “once in a lifetime” experience (they get their flare for the dramatic from their momma!) and my 3 & 2 year olds were mostly nervous and only marginally impressed.

Things I liked:
Up close and personal with sharks, sting rays, and other exotic sea life. The super-clean tanks allow you to have a very clear view of these creatures from a variety of angles.

The tanks and tide pools are creatively displayed. For example, a couple of tanks are designed to look as though you’re viewing the bottom of the ocean with sunken dinosaur bones and so forth. Way cool for the kiddos!

Several opportunities for the kids to crawl into a small space and stand up in a “bubble” so that the kids are in the midst of the water with sea life swimming all around them and yet staying dry.

There are a couple of thick, Plexiglas (or whatever) floors so it looks like you’re standing on the water. That’s kind of cool, but my 3 year old was afraid she would fall into the water so she refused to walk on it!

The older children were given quiz cards with 8 or 9 multiple choice questions. They were to look for the answers at numbered stations along the way. A completed quiz card earned them a SeaLife Expert sticker. Not a significant prize, but my boys were mostly excited about answering the questions and didn’t care if there was a prize or not.

Things I didn’t like:
You begin the SeaLife journey on one side of the aquarium and then you walk a one-way winding path to the end. This is a real problem if one of your children has to go to the bathroom. You have to go all the way through to the end of the exhibit (side stepping crowds as you race the clock to get your child to the potty on time!) and then ask a staffer to get back into the exhibit, requiring that you start over from the beginning.

Somewhat narrow surroundings with low ceilings . . . not for those prone to claustrophobia.

Poor acoustics. Lots of children were present (literally bus loads of children) and it was very noisy. (I am sure I lost some hearing acuity today!)

Environment is dark so it was difficult to keep track of my children at times. (Maybe that’s just me!)

There is a playground at the end and it is a cute climbing area, but it really stunk inside. We were let into the exhibit ½ hour before the doors open to the general public so it isn’t like it was at the end of the day when sweaty, smelly kids had already played on it.

It took us about 60 minutes to walk through. That time seems too brief when one considers the General Admission price of $18/person for those over the age of 2. (Praise God we got in on a school group rate of $6/person.)

Summary
Based on my current economic status, the entrance fee of $18 would have left me very disappointed. On the other hand, if you can get in on a group rate with a homeschool group or government school outing and it is less than $10/person, it might be worth the price for your elementary-aged children.

Feel free to share this review. Before today, I hadn’t met anyone who had already gone. I wish I’d known someone familiar with the venue so I could have made an informed decision. Maybe this review will help someone else.