They Teach Us Every Day

We were working on a project for Andrew's room and it had been a long frustrating day. With sweat on his brow, Steve said, "One day I would just like to hear one of them say thank you for this!" He spoke this in jest....but I heard the Lord say so clearly, "Me too. One day, I would like to hear you say thank you for this!" Wow, it still is so amazing to me how much we have to learn, how simple it usually is, and how often He uses the kids to drive these points home to us. Recently it seems we hear these points almost daily.
Oh yeah, later that evening as we tucked them into bed, Andrew told Steve "Thank you for bringing us home with you."

Before adding these last arrows to our quiver we would often jump in the car or more often on the motorcycle and ride around town for an hour or two. Just wandering.

Well the kids do not like to wander! Actually that is an understatement. Their first question is either, "What we do now?" or "Where we go now?"

The other day we just needed out of the house for a little while. We were driving around town...not going anywhere in particular.... We stopped and bought the kids an order of fries and set out for a little scenic route tour. Immediately the questions began. Where are we going? How long will we be gone? What are we doing? Why are we going? When will we get home? I finally asked them...Do you have somewhere you need to be today? Does it matter when we go home? Can you just enjoy the ride?....and I heard His familiar voice ask, "What about you, can you just enjoy the ride? Do you have to know where I'm taking you?"

We are learning from our arrows each day. Learning to trust like a child, to believe He is who He says He is, and that He is always in control. We may not know where He is taking us, but that's okay, He is well able to get us there and give us some fries along the way.

Believing God

Well we've been home for a while now and have finished with a few major family events, so it appears the time has come to get back in the saddle and step out again. Beginning in March we will be facilitating an adoption support group at our church. Our hope for this group is really multifaceted. We would like to be a place for people interested in adoption to come and seek out information, a place for those adopting to pick the brains of those who have already adopted, and a place for those who have a adopted to receive ongoing prayer and support as they grow into the new family they so quickly have become. It is our hope to be a clearing house of adoption information for anyone interested and a place where those that do not feel led to adopt can assist families that are led to adopt with finances, or activities for the children.

There are still so many children waiting for families. Please pray that the Lord would raise up families for all those little ones. No child should have to grow up without a family.

Please pray for us as we proceed with the readoption process here in South Carolina. It is not necessarily a hard process but all things like this take time, energy and money, all of which are at a premium now. We also added to our schedule taking Grandma for her radiation treatments 5 days a week for the next 6 weeks, so please pray for her health and everyone's stamina.

Have a wonderful weekend.
Blessings!

Is there such a thing as a typical week?

Someone asked me one day what our typical week is like....I'm not sure what is typical...but here goes.

The children have all enjoyed getting involved in various ministries at our church, Christian Life. Lyonya, Pasha and Galia all attend Saturate Youth and Bible study classes, Andrew attends Kid Zone Children's church, Kid's choir and Royal Rangers. They each have begun to make relationship with a diverse group of people.
SITTING BY THE CAMERA AT THE SUNDAY SERVICE
Sunday we attend church at the 9am service so that we can be home in time to fix lunch. Usually someone or several someones come and join us. The rest of the day is usually visiting, napping or hanging out with family and friends.

Monday, Steve leaves for work at 7:30 am so we try to get rolling early too. The kids take turns bringing the paper to Grandma, feeding the cats, feeding and walking Nonah, doing dishes and starting a load of laundry. On Mondays we have a PE class, school work, and I try to schedule Grandma's doctors appointments on this day. She has just been diagnosed with colon cancer and we are asking God for His healing touch, but meanwhile she is undergoing daily radiation treatments for the next 6 weeks, but she has extra appointments occasionally so those we try to get on Mondays. Sometimes Rebekah and the boys come to hang out and do lunch with all the kids, sometimes it's Sarah, and sometimes we all pile in the van and make it an outing. It's amazing how much all the "kids" have helped out. We couldn't do it all without them. Mondays are busy.

On Tuesday we start early with schoolwork and try to get in a good study day. This particular week Lyonya had a dentist appointment. Lyonya was not convinced that this was a good use of money. He said, "I thinks it would be better for teeth to rot than to give money to dentist." Oh well...we went anyway. We made it home by 12:30...just enough time for lunch and off to Galia's piano lessons from 1:30 to 2:00. Then at 3:30 it is Pasha to band practice. Tie a string around my finger to not forget to pick him up on time. OK I confess I did once...but I was only 15 minutes late...not hours or anything!

PASHA ON STILTS
LYONYA WITH HIS TERRARIUM
ANDREW ATTENDS A VALENTINE PARTY


Wednesday Andrew attends the Junior Master Gardener's Program at Riverbanks Zoo. His class is from 10 am until noon. One of the other kid's mother picks him up and has lunch with the boys at the zoo then lets them walk around for a couple hours. At noon, Pasha and Lyonya have an English I and Biology class they attend once a week for 3 hours. They receive weekly assignments that they bring home for us to work on all week. Galia and I work on her school work while the boy are gone. We always want a nap, but try to do good. We did fall asleep during the reading of Little House in the Big Woods....but only for 15 minutes because Grandma came in and wanted her furniture moved and she woke us up to help!

At three o'clock we pick up Pasha and Lyonya and Andrew. Most of the time Andrew either goes home with his friend Harrison for the afternoon or Harrison comes here. Andrew has to be at church at six for kid's choir, while the rest of us don't have class until 7pm.

SISTER-IN-LAW BECKY TEACHES KNITTING

THE MOON SEEN HERE THRU DAD'S TELESCOPE


Thursday is usually a repeat of Tuesday's minus piano. Every other Friday Steve has the day off of work. That is my favorite day. He can teach the older boys and I can teach the younger two. I like that ratio so much.

Weekends you never know what you will find....maybe a house project or a birthday party or a friend over for supper. It is never dull and it is never the same.

January BBQ

Today we had a barbeque to celebrate the marriage of JD and Meg. So with all 9 kids and all 7 grandkids in one room I had to have a picture. Someone said that Caitlin our granddaughter was crying in the photo...I said it didn't matter....she was in the picture!



JD (Jeremiah), Matthew, Rebekah, Tracy, and Tim (Back row) and Pasha, Andrew, Galia and Lyonya (Front Row)

MARC ANTHONY,CONNOR, SAMUEL HOLDING CALEB, AARON HOLDING CAITLIN, AND JOSIAH

Great is Thy Faithfulness

THE ELLISOR FAMILY


What a season of change it's been. Only God's faithfulness could have brought us thru into 2010. It's been challenging, at times frustrating, painful, and scary. It's also been exhilarating, happy, joyful and exciting. Most often the problem was going from extreme to extreme with very little notice.


Since returning home with 4 new children, we have celebrated 6 birthdays, 2 weddings, the birth of a new grandchild, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's. Add to the transition that Carol is no longer working outside the home and we are now homeschooling again. Any way you slice that's just a lot of emotions to squeeze into two months.


Andrei who wants to be called Andrew- asked us the night after JD's wedding, What you gonna do with Lyonya's room when he meets a girl, gets married and moves out?" Guess he figures we always move this fast in life around here. We told him we would cross that bridge in a few years since Lyonya is only 15 right now.

All in all, everyone is doing remarkably well.
Tim and Emily (Aaron 5 and Caitlin 7 mo.) are living in Aiken and Tim has gone back to school.
Some of the boys in the family...


Tracy and Ja' (Marc Anthony 2 and Connor 1) are still thriving in Orangeburg.


Matthew married his long time sweetheart Becky on November 21st and they are living down the street from us here in Columbia.


Rebekah and Tim along with Samuel 3 and Josiah 20 mo. welcomed Caleb Simon Cook to their family on December 30th. He weighed 7lbs 14 oz.



Then for a grand finale Jeremiah (JD) married Margaret (Meg) Nelson on January 2nd. They are off on their honeymoon right now.


Lyonya and Pasha are taking English I and Biology, thru a home school co-op, and making friends in church youth group and Sunday School. Lyonya is hoping to sign up for soccer next month and he has a new favorite recording artist, Kim Walker. So glad she is one of our favorites too.

Pasha plays the French Horn with Ben Lippen's high school band and both of the boys enjoy riding bikes all over the neighborhood.


Galia starts piano lessons next week with a sweet lady from our church. She also loved dressing up and being a Jr. bridesmaid in JD's wedding.




We are so thankful to the Lord for His provision of family and for our family being where we are today. There are still many hurdles to cross in this journey in 2010...but we know He is faithful. Please pray for the Lords continued provision as we are still working through some of the property issues in Odessa and we still have the re-adoption process here in the states...(this will provide the children with a SC birth certificate). All of this takes time and money. Then there's the day to day matter of life and loving and learning and living as a family. So this year, just as Kim Walker sings about, we offer all that we have to Him in order to be one with Him. He is so amazing....just look what what He brought us this past year.

Happy New Year Everyone. May He bless you beyond all that you could hope or imagine.


YOU WON'T RELENT
You won't relent until You have it all, My heart is Yours
You won't relent until You have it all, My heart is Yours

I'll set You as a seal upon my heart, As a seal upon my arm
For there is love that is as strong as death, Jealousy, demanding as the grave
Many waters cannot quench this love

You won't relent until You have it all, My heart is Yours
You won't relent until You have it all, My heart is Yours

I'll set You as a seal upon my heart, As a seal upon my arm
For there is love that is as strong as death, Jealousy, demanding as the grave
Many waters cannot quench this love

Waters cannot quench this love,
You won't relent until You have it all, My heart is Yours
Waters cannot quench this love
You won't relent until You have it all, My heart is Yours

Come be the fire inside of me, Come be the flame upon my heart
Come be the fire inside of me, Until You and I are one

Check out the video on You Tube....link below....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9UQxp0YhRuM&feature=related

Christmas? Already??

Yep, Christmas is tomorrow morning. The kids are EXCITED, to say the least!
We will take many photos and post some after Christmas.

Since we arrived from Ukraine, the kids have done odd jobs for friends and earned some spending money. They had us take them to the "magazine" (store) to buy gifts. They had so much fun buying gifts for each other and others in their new family.

Tonight, we went to Christmas Eve service at church and had 10 or 12 extra friends and family over for supper. It was a nice service and evening with the family and friends. The kids are in bed now and I don't know how much sleep they will get tonight!

Well, I will get a post as soon after Christmas as possible, complete with pictures.

Until then, the Ellisor family wishes all who visit this blog a very Merry Christmas.
Remember Who we worship on this day.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JESUS!!

Steve and Carol