There's not much new to report from the Kettelkamp household. The kids and I spent every evening last week at vacation bible school. The theme this year was "Avalanche Ranch". The kids learned that God is real, God is strong, God is with us, God is Awesome and that God is in charge. WooHoo!!! Close to 500 kiddos attended. It was a fun and tiring week. You could feel the excitement in the air. To add to all of that fun over $4,ooo was collected throughout the week for World Vision!! The final night we celebrated with a petting zoo, a hay maze, pony rides, a hay ride, and hot dogs! You can't beat that and the kids had a blast.

We are still waiting on our I-171H. We've heard nothing. UGH! I did e-mail Senator Obama's office again about expediting our paperwork last Friday. I'm still waiting to hear back from his office. Please keep praying for speedy paperwork processing.

We took the kids to the drive-in this weekend and saw Evan Almighty. There is a scene in the move that I loved. God (Morgan Freeman) is talking to Evan's wife about something that she had previously asked God for. She had asked God to help her family become closer. God asks her if someone asks for patience, does God give them patience or does he give them opportunities to be patient? If someone asks for courage, does God give them courage or does he give them opportunities to be courageous? If someone wants their family to be closer, does God make them closer or does he give them opportunities to be closer? I think that God is giving me the opportunity to be patient. I am waiting and I know that God is going to do something bigger than I could have ever imagined!

Let The Blessings Rain Down...

So many times it is easy to get caught up in the things of life that don't seem to be going our way. I know that this happens to me way too many times. It always helps me to pause and remember all that God has blessed me with. So today I sat down and made my "top 10 blessings for the day" list. Here it is in no particular order:

1. I woke up this morning to a cute little 5 year old girl snuggling with me saying, "Good morning, mommy!"

2. God gave me another day to make the difference in a life.

3. I have a husband who loves God, loves me, and is crazy about our children.

4. I have the promise of eternal life through Jesus Christ.

5. God has saturated my life with many amazing friends. I've got to say, these women are the best! How lucky am I!?!

6. God has blessed my children with good health and many Christ-like friends.

7. I understand that the "wealthiest" people aren't necessarily the ones who have the most, but simply those who need the least.

8. I have a job (as wife and mom) that I love and it allows me the opportunity to be home with my kiddos. (Thanks, Alan!)

9. I have my mom in my life. That is something that I don't take for granted. I know many who don't have their parents in their lives or wish that they could have them back, if just for a moment.

10. My sister is one of my best friends. Even though there are a couple of hundred miles between us, she is the one I can call to laugh with, gripe to, or get advice from. I treasure the moments that we get to be together. She makes me laugh until I hurt. God has blessed me greatly with her.

So how about you? Do you feel blessed today? What would your list include? I encourage you to take a few moments and pause to see what God has been up to in your life. You may be surprised. I know that I was.

Kenneth Has A Passport!!

We got the call today!! Donna from AOH called today to let us know that Kenneth has a passport! Yeah God! I'm dancing! Here are the details: 1. He has his passport; 2. His visa appointment should be scheduled for next week; 3. If all goes extremely well, we could be traveling 3 weeks after that! That would be the end of August! Hard to believe!

Okay, so here is where it all gets a little complicated. We are still waiting on our 171H approval. This is what we know: 1. Immigration has all of our information needed to process our paperwork. (They had everything in their hands last week. This was due to the fact that our social worker was lagging behind. We had completed our part of this process in January 2007!). 2. According to our social worker after we receive our 171H approval, the state needs to approve us which takes about 2 more weeks. 3. We also do not have our state foster care licensing (something that you need if you live in the state of Illinois and are adopting). 4. Our God is bigger than any of this and with our mighty prayer warriors out there, I believe that God can do amazing things through our state and federal governments. Please join us in praying for a paperwork miracle.

*NOTE: I did ask our social worker about contacting Senator Obama's office again for expedition and she said that in her experience doing so would only slow things down. I definitely don't want to do that, but I feel like I need to do something. We'll see.

August Rush Trailer (2007)

A fellow AOH mom, Jocelyn posted this trailer on her blog page. It made me cry. In this movie, which I believe comes out in October, 11 year old August uses his musical talent to locate the parents who gave him up for adoption at birth. One of the lines in the trailer that impacted me as stated by the mother in the film:

I know it sounds crazy. I hear him, I swear I can hear him.

I know that it does sound crazy, but there are times that I swear that I can hear Kenneth. Okay, so those of you who know me are probably saying, "I knew she was nuts. This just confirms it!" It is something that I feel in the deepest part of me. Any time I'm away from my children, there is always still that connection, that part of me that still feels their presence no matter how far away they are. I know that I will probably always feel that even when they are gone and living their own lives.

Another line in the trailer that I loved was when "August" shares:

Somewhere inside I knew they always wanted me.

I hope Kenneth knows how much we want him. I can't wait to tell and show him just how much. Maybe someday Kenneth will make that statement!

Goodnignt Moon

One of my favorite children's books is Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown. I love reading it to my kids and it's always been one that they enjoy. On most evenings, weather permitting I will steal away a few moments to spend with God on our back deck. I always look up at the moon and think that same moon that I am looking at is also the same moon that Kenneth sees. It makes the distance between us right now seem shorter.
A fellow blogger and adopting mom, Brandi, shared with me today that the same God that is holding Kenneth right now is also holding me. Okay, so I already knew this but sometimes it takes the words of others to get our attention. Thanks Brandi! How comforting it is to know that we share and are cared for by the same heavenly father. That definitely makes the distance between us seem much shorter.

Goodnight stars
Goodnight air
Goodnight noises everywhere

Goodnight Kenneth, sleep tight. I love you!

Brenda, This One's For You...

Just in case some of you who don't know me are wondering...this is NOT a photo of Alan and me. This is Alan with my very good friend, Brenda. When I took this photo at Chris' birthday party, we laughed about it being posted on my blog page knowing that many would assume that this was me with my husband. It is a great picture,they do make a handsome couple and they are married, just not to each other. So Brenda and Alan, thanks for making me smile and always being there for me. My life wouldn't be what it is without you guys in it. I love you both!

"A man of many companions may come to ruin,
but there is a friend who sticks closer that a
brother."
Proverbs 18:24

Missing My Boy

Here is our latest picture of Kenneth. He looks so happy here. But my heart is breaking. Here is a current photo of my child and I can't hold him. I've never heard his voice, his laugh, or his accent. I've never touched him or held him on my lap while I read him a book. I've never seen him run or play football (soccer). I've never seen him eat or watch him sleep at night. I've never watched him brush his teeth or help him get ready for bed. I've never comforted him when he was sick or hurting. I've never had just the right words to say when he has been sad or tickled him and listened to him giggle uncontrollably. I've never listened to his prayers or heard him sing. But here is where my hope lies. I know that in the very near future I will be holding my little one. No, I don't know when, but God does and right now that is all I need to know. I figure that the creator of the universe can handle this. My job is to keep leaning on him in prayer and keep trusting him each step of the way. Until then, keep smiling, Kenneth. Mommy and Daddy will be there soon.

Orphanage Schedule

Donna from Acres of Hope recently sent out the schedule for the orphanage. Also, Sophia wanted to know why her picture with the big pizza wasn't posted, so here it is for your enjoyment! This is what Kenneth's day looks like:

7:00-wake up

7:30-baths

8:00-devotions

8:30-breakfast

9:00-playtime

10:00-one class meets for school

11:00-another class meets for school

12:00-lunch

1:00-naps

3:00-another class meets for school

4:00-another class meets for school

5:00-dinner

7:00-devotions

8:00-bedtime

It is nice to know what he is doing during certain times of the day. Of course, I'm usually sleeping during his awake times. It is still nice to know.

Baseball And Birthdays...

It seems that the last couple of weeks have been filled with baseball and birthdays. The summer baseball season for the boys ended last week. They both did great and were a lot of fun to watch.

We celebrated Chris' 11th birthday this weekend. He, along with many of his good friends, watched a movie on the big screen and then it was off to the Pizza Machine for a 40" pizza. It was huge and tasted so good. The pizza is brought out to the table on some type of pulley device. It is so cool to see. The kids had a great time.

I usually don't feel older when I have a birthday. It's when my kiddos get older that I feel like I am aging. I can't believe Chris is 11. It truly feels like it was yesterday when I held him in my arms for the first time. He has grown into a sweet young man. I love being his mom. God has given me the best job! Just last night Chris asked me if Kenneth knew that it was his birthday. I told him probably not, but I know that this time next year he will definitely know because he will be at the party!! We thought that was pretty awesome.

I don't have much more information in regards to the adoption. I have been in contact with Senator Obama's office and they are working to expedite our I-600. They need an application number in order to expedite. For some reason we never received that number (and I have saved everything) so they are in the process of trying to located that number in order to proceed. Please pray that the number is found and that the process can speed up!

Kenneth wants to come home!

Happy 4th of July! We have no major plans for tomorrow. My mom and I are going to hit some sales early and I'm sure we will watch fireworks in the evening if it is not raining. There is a 50% chance of rain. We'll see.

I had the opportunity to speak with the founder of Acres of Hope, Patty Anglin, last week. I had called AOH hoping to speak with Donna, the stateside director and Patty answered the phone. We had a nice conversation and I just have to add that Patty is an amazing woman. She shared with me that Kenneth is a very sweet boy (which I already knew :o). At the time of our conversation she had been home from Liberia for three days. She said that Kenneth keeps looking at her with those big brown eyes and asking her when he will get to come home. He is keeping track of all of the older kids and when they get to leave and he wants to know when it will be his turn. Patty said that she told him that grandma (that is what the kids at the orphanage call her) said that he would get to go, she just didn't tell him when it would be. It broke my heart. Please keep praying that a miracle will happen with our paperwork at immigration and that we will have our 171H letter in our mailbox very soon.

I also asked her how his scar was doing. She said that it didn't look too bad. She said that he will definitely need some surgery on his lower lip. Because it is an orphanage he is not able to get the individual care for his face that he needs right now (ie. oil rubbed on his scar daily). They do the best that they can but it is so difficult with so many kids to care for.

Please pray for the entire staff of AOH, in the U.S. and in Liberia. Praise God for their commitment to the children of Liberia and Liberian families. Pray for vision, endurance and rest for Patty Anglin and her family while she is in the states. She is returning to Liberia on August 8th. Thank God for the families who answer his call to adopt these children. Many of these families have willingly and joyfully sacrificed greatly to follow God's leading. May they be blessed beyond measure for what they have offered.

Thank you all for your prayers. I know that Alan and I couldn't make it without them.