Christmas Shopping Fundraiser

Christmas in just around the corner - I can not believe it but the decorations are coming out and the shopping has begun.  

Want to bypass all the crowds of busy people or waiting in long lines? 

 

Why not do all your shopping online through AMAZON?  

 

It is a great way to get exactly what you want at great prices AND support our adoption!  A portion of the proceeds from any purchases made through the Amazon link in our sidebar will go directly to our adoption!

Shop till' you drop and help bring Grace home!

Yard Sale Results!

2 yard sales in one month might not have been the smartest thing for us to do, but the Lord provided in BIG ways through them!  We ended up making over $1400 between both of them and still had 2 truck loads to donate to Goodwill! 

 Thank you to everyone who donated items for our sale and the wonderful friends who sorted, organized, priced, and worked the sale with me.  I couldn't have done it without you! 

I believe the sweetest part of the whole sale was my boys desire to be a part of raising money for their sister, Grace.  Jonah was determined to have a cookie and lemonade stand for him and Micah to run and they were AWESOME!

Before the sale, Jonah said to me "Mom, all the money we make is ours right?"  Me: "yes Jonah it is all yours"

Jonah: "Ok good, we will then give it all to you to put in Grace's adoption fund!"

Love love love their love for a little girl that they have never met or seen that will someday be their sister!  

By the way, they ended up raising $33 selling very yummy cookies made by Judy Dobbs and Hannah Vest!

Again, thank you to all who donated or volunteered your time and help.

Paintings for GRACE

I am so excited to announce our next fundraiser - 

Holiday Canvas Paintings!  

Our sweet friend, Molly Spivey, is offering her time and abilities to help us raise money for Grace.

  She is amazing and her paintings are as well.

All Paintings are $25 and all proceeds go directly to our adoption fund.

This will make great holiday gifts for friends, family, or teachers!

Christmas Ornament Painting

Sizes range from 11x14 to 16x20 depending on number of ornaments needed

Fall Thanksgiving Painting

16x20 size canvas

If you are interested in ordering any paintings, you can leave a comment on this post, email, or message me on facebook with your information.

Thanks!!

Words of Life

Have you ever had one of those days or weeks where the enemy takes all his arrows out of his quiver and starts firing one after the other?  And before you can even recognize what is happening, you have suffered some injuries to your heart, some wounds to your mind?


Well I sure have and one day last week was definitely one of "those" days. I was sitting at my dining room table filling out multiple adoption agency applications when the enemy started firing. 


Proof of funds?  Net worth?  Financial Plan?


I could feel the stress mounting and the tears welling up in my eyes.  Satan knows my weaknesses - the spots where I am most vulnerable to his attacks.  MONEY!!


Then enters my Mighty Warrior, my Abba Father, my Shield!  Oh how I love how He fights for me, protects me, and bandages my wounds.


Listen to my truth and hold tight to my promises to you.  What I say I will do.  I am faithful.  I am a promise-keeper.   Trust Me!


And I respond with a Yes Lord, help me trust you.  Help me hold to your promises.  Then He began taking truths that He had planted in my heart over the past year and connecting them all together to show me the bigger picture.


Full obedience.  


"You have laid down precepts that are to be fully obeyed." Ps. 119:4


So many times I try to get away with partial obedience, but that is really only complete disobedience.  God expects me to obey fully what He has called me to do.  Full obedience takes me out of my comfort zone most of the time and gets in the way of My plan for My life!
But I choose to fully obey my Master, my King because I love Him and fear Him.


Walk in expectancy.


Walk in a way that expects the Lord to act on His promises.  Too many times, like this night, I stand frozen in fear of the what-ifs or the mountain in front of me that seems impossible to move.  God says, "We live by faith and not by sight," walk in faith that I can move mountains.


At just the right time.


God's time is always the right time...He is never at the wrong time!  His time is the right time.  He steps in at just the right time, He delivers at just the right time, He speaks at just the right time, He rescues at just the right time, and He provides at just the right time!  Oh if I could only get that truth planted deep deep into my heart and mind, I would be stressed and worried a lot less!


Jehovah Jireh.


I have always known this name to mean "The Lord who Provides" and yes it definitely does mean exactly that but last year He began to reveal more about this name to me.  I came to realize that it also means "The Lord who Sees" which really confused me but after study and the Holy Spirit opening up my eyes I got it.  The Lord sees our needs before they are even known to us and therefore provides what we need.   He sees me!  He sees my needs and longs to provide for me!  


So when He kept saying this name over and over again here lately I knew He had more in this name for me.  I started my study again and praying that my eyes would be open to what He had in store for me.
Well there is more to His name - Jehovah Jireh.  


This name can also be translated "The Lord will be seen."  His provision for me is out of His great love for me but it is ultimately so that He can be seen and given the glory!  


Oh He continues to remind me that it is not about me, but all about Him!  We will be tried and tested, but in the hour of our great need God will see us.  Seeing our need, He will provide for us and He will be seen in the provision He makes.  


"Not to us, Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness." 
Ps. 115:1


Full obedience - Walk with expectancy - At just the right time - Jehovah Jireh


Lord thank you for speaking your truth into my life and opening my eyes to more of you!

Chick-Fil-A Fundraiser

Tonight was our Chick-Fil-A "Fun-raiser" (as Micah calls it) and we did have a ton of fun with all our friends that came out to eat yummy chicken and support our adoption!  We felt God's love through all of the smiling faces, hugs, and words of encouragement that received tonight.  Thank you all so much for taking time out of your busy night to join us for dinner!  Here are some of the sweet faces we saw tonight.

Catching Up

Well, alot has happened in our life since I last posted!  We have moved into our new home and absolutely love it!  It is a huge blessing and so perfect for our family now and as we grow.  The boys are doing awesome sleeping in the same room - they still think it is so cool. 

Micah turned 4 on August 30th!  He is so big now and THINKS he is so big (or at least as big as his brother).  He is one of the sweetest blessings in our life.  God has given him the best little smile that can melt your heart and make you laugh even when you are supossed to be serious as you discipline him :)  Yes...it happened already today!

Even more important than his precious smile, God has planted a love and compassion for others in his heart.  He is my super affectionate one - the one who can't get close enough to you and always wants to be touching.  When he was a little and even now when he hugs us, he loves to be cheek to cheek.  I remember Beth Moore teaching on being close to the Lord - face to face, cheek to cheek.  So everytime Micah pulls me so close to him that our cheeks literally touch, God sweetly reminds me of how close He is to me.

Adoption Update:

Tons of paperwork - check
Fingerprints - check
Homestudy Interviews - check
Boxes removed from Grace's room - not yet (still working)

God seems to be moving us along quite a bit faster than we had planned. 

God Story:  There is a piece of paperwork that has to be sent off to the state that has been taking 3-4 months to get back.  So as soon as we started our homestudy we sent that paperwork off knowing it would be the longest part of the process.  Well we then moved, set up our new home, and put our other homestudy paperwork aside since we had 3-4 months.  God had other plans for us - I got a call from our social worker last week and she informed us that the paperwork came back in 2 WEEKS!!! 

God's timing...I am always reminded of His perfect timing when I am in a waiting period - waiting on a new job, our house to sell, an answer to a long-standing prayer, etc...but this time is different.  God is moving faster than we had planned on this homestudy and I have wanted to say "Lord, wait up..you are moving too fast...we aren't even done with all of our paperwork!"  But of course He reminds me that His timing (slow or fast) is always perfect.  He knows exactly when Grace will be ready for us and us ready for her - He is in complete control and always going before us preparing the way.  I love Him and His ways!

Vacation:

Wes' dad, Mark, is turning 60 this year and we are celebrating with a family beach vacation.  We had an amazing day and I will post pictures/videos hopefully tomorrow.  A couple of hints...crab catching, dolphins, snorkeling, beautiful weather!  Love being at the ocean!



We are MOVING!!

Yes we are moving and in more ways than one! 

First of all we are moving along with our adoption process - we have applied to Christian Adoption Consultants and started our homestudy!  I came across CAC back in May.  I ended up calling one of their consultants, Carlee, to find out more about them and we had a wonderful conversation about the Lord's timing and His perfect plan.  She gave me tons of information and assurance that the Lord would lead us to the child He has planned for us.  As soon as I got off the phone, the Lord brought to mind Isa. 30:21 "This is the way, walk in it." 

So from that point on we knew this was the way to walk and I finally experienced a peace that had been missing.  Up to this point, I had really struggled with the thought that Wes and I would "pick" the wrong country, agency, or path.  God used several wise people to speak His truth to me that there wasn't a wrong decision...He was doing the leading and would not lead us astray.  So it was such a neat feeling to know His path for us and experience His perfect peace.

We are currently "Paper Pregnant" as the adoption world calls it because our lives seem full of sheet after sheet, packet after packet of paperwork!!  But I just keep thinking that the sooner I get it completed, the closer we get to holding our sweet Grace.


Secondly, we are actually moving to a new HOME!  We found a house in a great neighborhood that is perfect for our growing family.  We are all so excited and can't wait to move in.  We close and move next weekend so guess what I have been doing all night? PACKING! Oh how i really really don't like packing - I mean who really loves to pack?!   It would be so much easier if I had someone down here to help me like um... my mom or mother-in-law (hint hint)!!  :)

The boys are counting down the days until they get a shaded yard, a playroom, and a bedroom together!  They both think it is so cool that they get to sleep in the same room - we will see how bedtime goes though.  I am forseeing alot of giggling, playing, and trips into their bedroom to say "it's time to go to sleep."  But I know there will be many nights where Wes and I get to hear them tell funny stories, say sweet things, and one day pray with each other.  After they grow up, their bedroom will be a place full of childhood memories that they will reminisce about around the dinner table.

So as you can probably tell, we are quite busy around here with papework, packing, moving, and of course then there is the rest of our normal day-to-day life!  It's times like these where I am tempted to let my focus shift to my to-do list and it takes over my life and my mind.  And many times, I fall into the temptation headfirst and it starts to feel like I am drowning. 

God was so gracious to me today... I know that I haven't fallen in headfirst yet but I do have at least 2 feet in and my eyes are looking way too much at that huge to-do list.  He gently turned my eyes on Him this morning and showed me my great need for Him...only Him.  I suddenly could feel the weight of all I have to get done start to lighten - He carries my load for me so I don't have to.  I am so thankful that He gently restores His children and didn't wait until I was drowning to pull me out!  So I am choosing to "set my mind on things above, not on earthly things" (Col. 3:2) and to "draw near to God and  He will draw near to me." (James 4:8)

Grace shirts are HERE



207 Shirts - All for our sweet Grace!



The big brothers proudly wearing their shirts!  They are so excited to have a little sister - Jonah keeps praying "God help us get Grace quick."  Love it!



Jonah is 6!

Wow! I really can't believe that Jonah is 6 yrs. old!  Wasn't it just yesterday when I started having contractions while the youth group was over at my house on a late Wednesday night and I left them all there while we went to the hospital? (What was I thinking?)  Wasn't it just yesterday when my mom and mother-in-law flew on a last minute mid-night flight out to Colorado to see their 1st grandson born?  Wasn't it just yesterday when I witnessed God's goodness and love in the sweetest little baby boy?  What a precious gift he was to us and still is today.  Time has absolutely flown by, but I can still vividly remember all the feelings and emotions of that day.  Now I have still the most sweetest big boy who is full, yes FULL of energy and more importantly FULL of love and compassion.  He has been such a blessing to us as we have watched him grow physically and spiritually.  God has used Jonah in so many ways to teach us how to love others, how to give when we have more than enough, and how to give your all in whatever you do.  We love him so very much!





Jonah picked Waffle House for his Birthday breakfast and as you can see we made a waffle cake with candles!

Our last day with Kasey with us in Montgomery.  We will all miss her so much but loved having her for the summer!

Jonah showing off his dive at the YMCA. 

We love you Jonah Read Kohring!!



207!

Well our t-shirt orders are in and we sold 207 shirts for Grace!!  I absolutely can't wait to see them!  They will be appearing on so many of our friends and family all over the country - from our town of Montgomery, AL to Milan, TN to Knoxville, TN to Fort Collins, CO to Arlington, TX and even all the way up to Sylvania, OH.  We are so thankful for your love and support!

We are heading out tomorrow for our last summer youth trip to ....! (it's a mystery trip for our teens so I can't disclose it just yet, but it is going to be ALOT of fun)

Then we get back just in time for Wes' 31st birthday and in less than 2 weeks school is back in session.  WOW!  Summer has absolutely flown by!  We have had a blast and seen God move in mighty ways, but I am very ready for some normalcy around here.  I am looking foward to routine, getting back to the gym, riding bikes after dinner, sitting down at the table for dinner, and some laid-back nights with NOTHING to do!! That sounds so good.  And of course, paperwork as we start applying and completing our homestudy - fun times.  

Grace's First Dress!

Wes and I bought Grace her very first dress!

Isn't it BEAUTIFUL?

I can't wait to hug her, kiss her, cuddle with her, and of course dress her in many many cute dresses!

Come get your T-shirts!

 Our Grace t-shirt fundraiser is off and running!  We are so excited to start selling them and ALL the money will go directly to our adoption fund.  

Front

Back 

Ordering Instructions:

We are taking PRE-ORDERS through July 22nd!

If you are live in any of the cities below then you can order directly from the contact person and won't have to pay shipping.  If you don't, then please feel free to order a shirt through our order form on the right of the blog. 

Montgomery, AL - Cristal Kohring

Knoxville, TN - Marsha Kohring

Milan, TN - Peggy Beasley

Arlington, TX - Lacey Franklin

Ft. Collins, CO - Shelli Walker

Nashville, TN - Ryan White

Here is some more information on the shirts:

Adult: 100% preshrunk combed ringspun cotton. Taped shoulder-to-shoulder. Double-needle stitching on sleeves and bottom hem. Fashion fit

Youth:  regular t-shirt fit

 

Adult sizes S-XXL $20

Youth sizes XS-XL  $15

The Kick Off!

Greetings to you in the name of the Lord! We would like to take an opportunity to tell you about God’s movement in our family. Over the past several years, God has impressed on our hearts a spirit of compassion for children in need of adoption as well as a conviction to do something about this great need both in our country and abroad. In the past twelve months, our desire to grow our family through adoption has become something we can no longer ignore or put off. Therefore, we are pleased to announce that we are launching into the adoption process!

We feel confident that God has spoken clearly and has confirmed his desire for us to adopt a little girl into our family. Her name will be “Grace,” a reminder of the undeserved favor of our Lord. When we began getting serious about investigating adoption, we were excited about pursuing an international adoption. However, as we continued to pray and seek the guidance of the Spirit, we came upon the overwhelming need for the adoption of minority children right here in our own United States. The Lord has completely shattered our original picture of what our family would look like and we now joyfully anticipate the arrival of Grace into our home. 

The grace we read of in scripture is an undeserved gift. God showers his favor and mercy on us, his children, when we deserve anything but favor and mercy. As we pursue this adoption, we know that Grace will come to us as an undeserved offering. As we begin the fundraising endeavor, we know that one day we will have a wonderful story to share with Grace about how she came to us through undeserved gifts. We would like to humbly call on you to pray over our continued journey to see Grace here with us.

From this blog you can follow our story as it unfolds. We will do our best to chronicle our journey, update you on our progress, and eventually share pictures. We cannot thank you enough for your prayers and support!

Wes and Cristal