New member of the Acosta clan....

And no this time it's not me adding the member!!! Ramon's brother and his wife had there baby son last friday. Here are 2 pictures that they sent to us. He's a big boy!!

Felictaciones Jose y Marleny! Josias Reisab Acosta! June 27th 2008

Just for the record there has been a new baby added to the Acosta family every year since 2005. I wonder who will be next??

Worth Waiting FOr...

As I've been working in my garden this summer, God has been using those moments of quiet to talk to me. I've been thinking so much about where we are in our life right now and the fact that we are not doing alot ministry wise. This has been especially difficult for me right now as I feel like "Ok Lord, you sent us to Bible school for 4 yrs and now here we are! Why aren't we doing anyting?" He has been using the flowers, trees and seeds to show me signficant things. Like one, we have a tree in our back yard that is in desperate need of pruning. It can't really bloom to all it's glory until all the useless branches are cut off from it. God has been using that to show me, that I still have things I need to work on before He can allow me to bloom. I can't be expected to go out and help other quite yet. I just need to focus on GOd and allow Him to prune me in the way I need it. Also when we were planting our flowers we bought some that were already flowers just needed to be planted but the majority of what we bought were seeds. So the kids and I went out and dug holes for our little seeds and planted them. We have been watching them with much anxiety. But it has seemed to take forever for them to produce any flowers! ANd then last night after the kids were in bed and I was out weeding my little garden I looked down and there was a purple flower! From our seeds! I was so excited. I ran inside and grabbed Ramon and forced him to come outside and look. You see, the last couple of months as i've been working out there and not seeing any flowers and was enviously looking around at the nieghbors garden who didn't buy seeds and went ahead and bought the more expensive flowers. I kept thinking "Man I wish we hadn't needed to buy the cheap seeds." God just kept whispering to my heart "The good things are worth waiting for" I felt like He wasn't just talking about the flowers but also about Panama. So you see God can and does use the little things to teach us things and as my little purple flower can attest to there are some things that are just WORTH WAITING FOR!

Transracial Family

I have been reading alot of people's blogs lately who are adopting transracially and it seems to be a big topic among most of them about the world and them adopting children of a different race. And it ocurred to me that my family is a transracial family. I say "ocurred" because in all honesty it is something that I just don't think about all that often. Ramon is alot darker than I am but I truly just don't think about it very much. We do tend to get looks sometimes when we are out and about but not all the time. For the most part I think people accept more than we give them credit for. Another topic is making sure the children stay in tune with there "race" I do want to make sure that my kids realize that they are half latin and half american. I want them to be proud of both sides of them. But at the same time I don't want that to define who they are. I don't think the color or ones skin or where there race generated from should define someone. I want my children to realize that yeah my parents are 2 different colors and yes I do come from venezuela and america but my ultimate family is God's family. I can't really say that my kids are growing up Latino or American because we just kind of do things our own way. We take the best from both cultures and incorporate them into our daily lives. We try to live our lives simply by they way God wanted us to. I'm not trying to make my kids "white"or "latino" I just want them to realize that they are not defined by a race, but that they are defined by God's eyes and in his eyes we are all special! So I guess my point is, that yes we are a transracial family but that is not what defines us as a family. That yes my husband is a different color than me, but he has been the love of my life since I first layed eyes on him and he will be till I die. That yes, my kids are latin and american but they are not defined by either of those races. That we are simply put "All part of GOd's family"

ONe of THOSE moms!!!

Well I've done it.... I've finally become one of those moms!! I have put my kids on a STRICT schedule! I have been so exhausted and irritated in the morning because all 3 kids wake up SOOO early. So Ramon and I talked and we came up with a schedule that we are going to keep! I'm determined. THe kids will not be allowed to come downstairs until 8:00 AM but they are also not going to be going to bed until 8:40 PM. We have chore time, craft time, free time, reading time, all kinds of things. To be honest they are not liking "the schedule" as they are calling it but you know what I LOVE IT! I loved having an hr to myself this morning before I had to be "mom" It is making for a much happier ME! And it is making things around here run alot smoother. So yes I am one of those mothers who do the schedule thing even though I swore to myself I wouldn't be, I have to admit it really is the better way to go!

NO MORE!!!!!

Tonight as we finished the book "A Woman's Heart God's Dwelling Place" by Beth Moore I became completly overwhelmed with emotion. It was by something I had never really even given much thought to before. We were talking about heaven, she brought up the fact thaqt even though we don't have alot of information about what it is we do know something. NO MORE! Oh how this touched me to my very soul. NO MORE, NO MORE, NO MORE! No more watching the people you love die right in front of your eyes, No more loneliness, No more rejection, NO more having the people you love hurt you, No more sadness, No more feeling of self worthlessness, No more fighting, No more guilt, No more pain, No more tears, No more wishing for something more,
I could contine going on here about NO MORE but I think you get my idea. I was truly moved to tears by the thought of No more. There are so many things in my life that I just can't wait for them to be gone.
Not only does God want to make us a beautiful home to live in but He is going to make it a place where there won't even be a thought that will bring us pain! How amazing is that. Wow, we have a truly magnificent Father don't we.
What about you? WHat is your list of NO MORE'S???

Heat, Heat and more Heat!

Well here I am I haven't written in a couple of days. Mainly because it's been so hot here I can't seem to get myself to do anything, except play in the pool with the kids. I have been cleaning and just about killing myself to get it done. But today I have decided to simply not worry about it and just relax with the kids. The pool is busted though have to figure that out. So we are not even going to go outside just hang inside and watch TV. I know there are many mothers out there who consider that completly awful but I just can't bring myself to care. I mean 1 day of mindless TV watching isn't really going to do anyone any harm. Is it????

Oops, just got a phone call from my sister. Looks like I don't have to sit in my non-airconditioned house. She's going to come and get me and kids to go over to her house! Yeah! I'll be babysitting but that's just fine with me! Anything to get out of the heat and into the air!!! So now I'm off to get dressed and ready to go. THank you Lord.

Well it is only 8:19 and I have been up for about 2 hrs already. Oh the joys of young children who wake up at the crack of dawn.
Logan is at his cousins house for the weekend. He was so excited yesterday when he was leaving that he was going to get to stay for 2 whole nights! It's the most exciting that has ever happened in his young little life.
So Jhocy is in the living room watching a Barbie movie. For the mothers out there for have daughters Barbie movies are great for them. Clean and just to cute.
Jesse is running around causing havoc wherever he can. 1 yr olds.... there is nothing quite like them. :)
So not alot on the agenda for the day. CLean the kitchen AGAIN! I swear cleaning the kitchen has to take up at least 1 3rd of our lives! Never ending. Just going to clean up some, boil some eggs, give the kids some nap time and just enjoy the day. At the moment I'm feeling pretty relaxed and up for the day. I'll check back in tonight at let you know how long that feeling lasted!

Jhocy.....

Dirty dishes lay in the sink,
Dirty laundry lay in a heap,
Things scattered here and there,
In came my daughter needing a hug,

Time is going by I remind myself,
3 yrs... they flew by,
I look at her and see a little girl,
THe toddler she was no more,

Now is the time to hold her,
Now is the time to hug her,
Now is the time to build those memories,

So the dishes, the laundry they stayed where they were,
As I layed on the couch and sang her a song,
Twinkle, twinkle little star,
Little does she know that my twinkle is her.

Logan's favorite things...

Ok so I know the dogs eyes are shiny but I haven't figured out yet how to take care of that. But seriously Logan's favorite things are his puppy, his sonic (he got that from a special person in his life Mundo his daddy's life long friend and I have known him as long as I've known Ramon) and his remote control car that he got from his Uncle Darren for his birthday. My 2 favorite boys. Never a dull moment in our house.

Jesse and his favorite things..

Now you might say but he's in the same place in all of these pics how can it be his favorite things? Well the answer is simple. His favorite plase is in his highchair where he can eat! He loves to eat it is his favorite thing so here is Jesse in if he could talk he would tell you the best place in the house. (:

Aren't we cute!

Me and Jhocy!!

Ramon's new Haircut!!!???

Hot summer Days

My Garden

Flash!

THis was Logan's birthday present from his Grandma and Grandpa! He loves to run!

CHAPMAN FAMILY!!!

Please pray for the CHapman family as I'm sure many of you have heard that there youngest daughter was killed yesterday in a tragic accident. I can not imagine what they are feeling right now. Please just continue to pray for them in this time of suffering.

Me and my Man!

Ramon and I took this one day with his cell phone camera in the car just goofing off. We still love to have fun!

Mother's Day Photo Contest

what motherhood means to me ...

(photo entry for 5 minutes for mom)

As the deer panteth for the water,
so soul longeth after thee,
YOu alone are my hearts desire,
and I long to worship thee,

You alone are my strength, my shield,
to YOu alone may my Spirit yeild,


These are the words that brought tears to my eyes today in church. I sing often to my kids, in fact i have several songs that I sing on a regular basis to them and this is one of the songs. It is one of my favorites and theirs. Today as I listened to it being played on the flute and then the voices of hundreds of christians joining in and singing it, I became totally lost in it's meaning. I want to pant of the Lord! I want to need HIm like the air I breath. I have been working on changing my spiritual life, on becoming closer to my Abba father and I think this song describes Him so well. I pray that I will keep this focus on Him and this love for him that I feel.

Jesse's First BIrthday!

Well, I know these pics are late. But my camera wasn't working and we finally got it to work today so here we go. THe first cake is the one that everyone got to eat and then Jesse got his own cake which is the one you see him devouring. As you can see he loved this part of the party. :)

BTW: All my kids cakes are done by my older sister Tami.

My First Garden

Ok so the Rose doesn't look that hot in this pic. BUt it looked really beautiful today. THe Rain was kinda messing up the pictures. BUt these are my first flowers ever I have had to actually bloom. THe rose bush is actually the first one I have ever had and I am completly enjoying checking on it every morning to see how it is coming along!! So far I have 4 blooms and this one is the first to start opening! Oh God's creation I just can't get enough of it.

Taken JUst Today!

Prayer!!!!!!!

Please pray for me. I'm having some personal problems.

Why I'm a stay at home mom!

Ever since Jhocelyn asked Jesus into her heart she talks about God almost nonstop. She can not wait to get to heaven! She thinks (as she should) that it is the most exciting thing ever. This morning I was listening to some worship music as I was making breakfast and the song that says "People get ready, Jesus is coming, Soon we'll be going home" was on and she came running into the kitchen saying is Jesus coming now to get us mom? And I said once again (she is having a hard time understanding that no one knows when he is coming) "I don't know Jhocy, we just have to be ready for him" and she went running out saying "We just have to always be ready cause He's coming soon!"
That is why I'm a stay at home mom! There are days when I get so stressed and so tired. Like this morning. I was listening to praise music because I woke up in a bad mood and was trying to get my spirit in the right place. And then one of my kids will say something like that. It's all worth it so see my 3 yr old so excited about the return of Christ! To hear her say with complete confidence "I'm going to heaven because I asked Jesus in my heart!"

Thank you GOd for my children! Help me to be the kind of mother that will guide them and show them your love on a daily basis. Help me to remember that I'm reflecting you in the way I treat them and the way I interact with them. Help me when I get angry to remember that the sin has already been forgiven by you and I simply need to teach them the right way to go and not yell at them. Help me to be the kind of mother to Logan, Jhocelyn and Jesse that when I get to heaven I can stand before you and say "Father I did my best" Help me Father.....

To My Son Logan On your 5th Birthday!

Logan, today you are turning 5! I can't believe 5 yrs have gone by already. This time 5 yrs ago you were being laid in my arms for the very first time! Literally you were minutes old and I couldn't believe that my dream of being a mother was finally true. So many things have happened in our lives since you were born. I can not even begin to tell you much I love you. YOu bring so much joy and happiness into my life. YOu are a little boy filled with passion and love for everyone around you. When you love someone you do it with everything in you. You have a spirit of adventure. You accepted Christ into your heart last year and even though you have your days loved one, I can see you growing in Christ. You don't know it yet but your Grandpa and Grandma are getting you a puppy for your birhday. You will get your first puppy today! In august you will be starting kindergarten! I just can't believe how fast time has gone by. YOu are a treasure in my life and I love you with every part of me. I thank God daily for you. My prayer for you is that you will grow up to be a man of God and serve Him with everything in you. I love you my dear son. HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Helping Others

I would like to mention on here once again about my friends the Garcia's. They have a fundraiser going on right now to help with the adoption from Haiti. They are selling T-Shirts. They will also be selling a book of poetry that was written by Stephanie. Those are not for sale right now but they will be soon when they are ready. If you would like to spend a little bit of money and know that you had a part in helping bring a child out of poverty and into a loving home. Please go to www.iansadoption.blogspot.com and help in bringing a child into the arms of loving parents.

To My Dear WOnderful Husband,

Gago, Sunday we celebrated our 6 yr anniversary and it was a wonderful day. I can not tell you how wonderful these 6 yrs with you have been. The day we got married we were still children in so many ways and I have loved growing with you. We have been through so much in the mere 6 years that we have been married. We have 3 wonderful children, you have gone to BIble school and graduated with a Bachelors degree, we have met so many people in those years who are still such a big part of our life. One of the best things have been just watching you grow into the man that God is making you. You are a man, who puts God first and then his family and I love you all the more for that. I love to watch you get down on the floor and wrestle with the boys and then you can go from that to brushing and fixing Jhocelyns hair. You are a wonderful man. We have so much fun together. Not a day goes by that we are not laughing together.

I can't wait to get to Panama with you so we can serve the Lord together on the mission field. Thank you so much for everything that you do for us, for all the little surprises that you give us, and simply for the way you love me. Thank you for 6 wonderful years together and I look forward to the next 60 with you.

Juntos Por Siempre, Nunmacapia!

Lee

My Friends the Garcia's

Please pray for my friends Pedro and Stephanie Garcia as they recieved word that the twins that they are trying to adopt might not be up for adoption now. The grandmother is more than likely going to keep them and raise them herself. Please pray that the grandmother would make the best choice possible for them, and that either way it goes that both parties involved would have the peace of God with them. Please pray also that if the twins do stay in Haiti that as they grow older they would learn the love of God so that one day the Garcia's can see them in Heaven.

Have You Ever Stopped to Think....

Have you ever stopped to think what will your kids remember about you when your gone?
Will you leave behind a legacy that leaves them feeling proud,
Will they think about you and immediately think of GOd?


Have you ever stopped to think what will your friends remember about you when your gone?
Will they think about you and say "She always walked with God?"
Will they remember you and be glad?

Have you ever stopped to think what will your spouse remember about you when your gone?
Will he remember you and know you loved him with your all?
Will he think of you and and know your worth was far above rubies and gold?

Have you ever stopped to think what will your testimony say about you when your gone?
Will you be remembered as a child of the King or one who simply lived?
Will people simply know where you are because of your testimony or will they have a small doubt?

Have you ever stopped to think???