Sarcasm in the Sanctuary

As much as I would like to say that Kyle and I thought through every aspect of fostering before we started...yeah, right. I know that I personally didn't think past our first placement. I was hoping it would be our only placement and we would be able to adopt. Obviously, this has not been the case and we are now in the position where we need to choose what is next for us.  Let me start by saying that Kyle and I both love our jobs. This summer will make ten years that he has been the student pastor at Heritage Park, and I am finishing my sixth year teaching. When we got Mark he was two and able to go to our church's pre-school program four days a week. Kyle has Fridays off, so he was able to stay home with him. Our church was so flexible last year and allowed him to work from home so Mark could nap after school. We definitely didn't plan it that way (go re-read the first sentence of this post), but God knew what He was doing. Looking back, I have no clue what would have ...

Here is a timeline of the past couple of weeks: Friday 12/11: We said goodbye to Mark Saturday 12/12: We stayed home and wallowed in our sorrows Sunday 12/13: I told Kyle we should go somewhere over Christmas break for a vacation Monday 12/14: We booked a cruise Friday 12/18: We flew to Miami Saturday 12/19: Bon voyage Saturday 12/26: Disembarked and flew back home "Spontaneous" is not really a word I would use to describe myself, but desperate times call for desperate measures.  Our cruise ship was aptly named the Norwegian Escape, and we did just that.  Our first port was in St. Thomas. I could say it was beautiful, but that would be an understatement. We did an excursion where we snorkeled and got to do these underwater scooter things. I had never even heard of these before, but this was what I was most excited to do.  The inside of the helmets were pressurized so once you put your head in, you brea...

I would like to apologize in advance for the lack of witty and sarcastic humor you have come to love me for. This is an incredibly emotional subject for us. About this time last year, I had the following-ish conversation with students in my 7th period when I told them we are in the process of becoming foster parents: Student 1: Why are you doing this? Me: My husband and I feel like this is what we are supposed to do. Student 2: That's gonna suck. Me: What? Why? Student 2: It's gonna be so hard. Why don't you just have your own kids? *sidenote: doesn't the bluntness of teenagers just warm your heart?* Me: This isn't about our kids. It is about kids who need someone to help them. Student 2: Yeah but what about when you have to give them back? It is going to be so hard. Me: Just because something is hard doesn't mean it's not worth doing. Student 3: Woah Mrs. Jackson, that's deep. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!! Oh Kacee!!!! You're so funny!!...