The sippy cup

Dear Sippy cup, sitting on the counter filled with yesterdays milk,

     Some people would think you are disgusting and turn up their nose at your smell. But I am looking at you through tears of joy and crying from my hearts deepest well! Oh, sippy cup you are a welcome sight, and it is not because of what you hold. It is because of who holds you! You are only a reminder of many messes yet to come, and I cannot contain myself, thinking of them all. While often moms look longingly for counters that are clean, this mom can only look and wish that it was ok to leave you sitting there on my counter, waiting for the little one that you belong too. Though your stink will soon overtake the house, the reminder that you bring is of family and children that are so dear! I will wash you and put you in the cabinet for the 7 days that remain, until that little one come barreling through the door to find a drink one again.

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Last night, we had our last supervised visit. Our children got to come to see our home for the first time. It was special and we all had a great time. This morning when I woke up to a messy kitchen with plate, forks, and cups everywhere from our dinner, I was overjoyed. I know that sounds crazy, but it is true. I looked at it for a minute of two and had to share with all of you the joy and excitement that having more than two plates to wash brought me.

Next week, we have our first weekend visit. We pick up the children Friday night and then return them on Sunday afternoon! It is only 7 days away, but that seems like forever right now! We will let you know how it all goes!

PS~ Moms out there, please don't condemn me for my excitement. I know that it won't always feel this way, but after you have been trying for 3 years to bring children in your home, it is the little things that bring joy!

God-given work

Over the past month, Brian and I have been searching for a job for him that will show the courts that we have plenty of money coming in and that the money is stable. See, for the last four months, Brian has been working on a business, Kingston Woodwork and Farms (KWF). It has been steady work and we are making enough to meet our budget needs...AND...Brian is able to work from home making signs, building furniture, refinishing wood products, and farming. We have been so blessed by this endeavor that the Lord has laid before us. Because the courts are concerned about the stability of this new business, Brian has gotten a part time job to show them that stability. That hasn't slowed us down at all!!!!

Christmas is coming up and we would love to give you a price on a sign, table, bench, bookshelf, or more! Below are some of our products...just leave a comment, facebook message, call or text to get us started on your quote TODAY!!!

A vanity that Brian refurbished and put
top and legs on.

Our dining room table!

Children

We are proud to announce that we have been able to visit with our children as their adoptive parents!
They are all very excited! Some are even practicing their new last name. We will be having visits until December and then if everything goes well...they will be placed with us!

The adoption process is just that, a process. We have supervised visits, then weekend visits, then they are placed, then we have a court hearing to make that placement permanent, then we have 6 months of life to live to show that everything is working, and then we start the adoption proceedings. It is a long and frustrating road, but it is so worth it!

PS - Because the children are wards of the state until legally adopted, photos are not allowed on the internet. We will be sharing our beautiful faces as soon as the adoption is final! Please ensure that any photos that might include our children stay private for the time being. Thank you!

Truck religion

   A few days ago, my husband came to me and told me he had sold "his" truck. 

While we had been  discussing our vehicle situation for months, we had always shied away from selling it because it was the vehicle that my husband had looked high and low for about 6 months. He loved that truck's sound, build, everything...he worked on it...he painted parts of it...he even CLEANED it (which should tell you just how special it really was to him! hehehe). 

    So naturally, I was flabbergasted when he approached the subject nonchalantly and already had the deal worked out (save running it by his super smart, financially savvy, and extremely charming counterpart! ;) He had made all of the arrangements and the deal was in place, but that is not really the part worth mentioning. It is the reason that he sold his truck.

     Because God has called us to adopt a sibling group of 5, it has required a lot of changes to our live. We needed a bigger house, bigger cars (well SUVs or vans), a bigger budget, and so much more. We haven't had a car payment in many years, and with needing a bigger budget, adding one now wasn't really an option. So my husband, humbled himself, gave up something that he had worked years to get, and sold his truck to get us a vehicle that was big enough for 7, dependable for long road trips, and wouldn't break the bank!

     God gave man a position over woman, but that position was not for man's benefit. It was for woman's! The command was not that the husband rule over the wife to enslave her and use her, but to cherish her and protect her. Just like we guard our country's most prized relics, man is supposed to guard his precious gift in life, the companion for which he has waited, the flesh that embodies the rib taken by God to create a helper, the "crown" (Proverbs 12) who is "far more precious than jewels (Proverbs 31)...he guards her in glory to his King, honoring the plans for his life, allowing God to determine the importance of possessions and make the decisions.

     Now, trust me, my husband does not always live up to this standard, nor am I always the "excellent wife" that Proverbs 12 says is the "crown" of her husband. But in this decision, for this moment, he got it right. He was selfless enough to put aside a societal standard of a man. He sold his truck and has been busy looking for a minivan or an SUV. Neither will allow him access to the deer woods or get him closer to that mud puddle he calls a fishing hole, but it keeps his family safe, allows them to travel, and has room for all of them (plus one more! LOL)

Praise be to our Father from whom all good things come!

Happy Anniversary, Brian! 

I love you second only to our Maker, whom you have taught me to love deeper. Life has never turned out the way we thought it would or planned it...it has been better because it has been blessed by the Father who orchestrated it! I love you!

Tomorrow

In just 15 hours, Brian and I will find out if we are going to become parents 5 times over. Most people will never experience the emotions that simply cannot be expressed with words. Tomorrow at 11:30 am, we will be in a court room fighting for the children that we already feel are ours. These children aren't just names to us, but living, breathing children with personalities that are infectious and resilience that rivals the moon in size! They are brave and strong, but they are tired and weary. They are in need of a home that will love and protect them while they heal and learn about family and God!
We are so excited about the possibilities that lay ahead. We are learning and growing daily from the path that has led us thus far, and cannot imagine what God has for our future. We are praying for the grace to handle the days ahead and the gumption to remember that no matter what is in store...

Because He lives

I can face tomorrow

Because He lives

All fear is gone

Because I know 

He holds the future

and life is worth the living

Just because He lives

Thank you for your prayer and support! Stay tuned....We will be sharing our new as soon as we can!

The heart of adoption...a waiting mother's perspective

I am "blessed" to have many nights that I cannot or do not sleep all the way through. During this time, God has often encouraged me in spending my time wisely. Whether that is catching up on some needed house work or settling into the quiet with only God as my company. On this particular night, however, the children that Brian and I are working to adopt were on my mind. I often have people look at me in disbelief when I tell them that it is hard to have "my" children out there, but not with me. Some question the attachment because we haven't spent time with them or gotten to know them face to face. Others believe that if you focus on "something" else, it won't be as hard on you.

I understand. They don't have a clue. They are speaking from full arms with noise-filled homes. They are trying to encourage and for that I thank them. However, on this night, God would not let me sleep without writing the words that He was providing, so that maybe some might catch a glimpse into the heart of a waiting mother.

My children are out there

How much more can I take

Not knowing exactly where

A home I must quickly make

Ready and waiting

For them to come in

Loving and caring

Each one our new kin

For these very children I pray

O, how my heart yearns

To hold them in my arms one day

The tears my eyes do burn

My children are out there

Not of flesh and bone

Those my body could not bear

God will make my own

Hoping and praying

God sends others their way

Helping and fitting

For their new home always

Calls of mommy and daddy

Are still waiting to be heard

Everything now is ready

This silence feels absurd

My children are out there

O, God, hear my plea

In the world no matter where

Please bring them home to me

 Written by Erin Kingston on September 18, 2014 at 1:37 a.m. from 760 Hwy 365 as I wait for my precious 5 to come home to me!

My Friday Fall

This is Sabari. He is a 10 year old Arabian gelding that was given to us because his previous owner could no longer ride him. He has been the source of much joy and frustration in our house and this past Friday was no different. I must explain that Sabari has been professionally trained and is a very well-behaved horse, or he was about three years ago. Since then, no one has really ridden him at all, but since we have got him in April, Brian and I have been working with him. He can be very moody and stubborn, but he is recalling his training very quickly.

He does great if you are in front of him,
but if you stand behind his head, look
to do a lot of walking...backwards,
sideways, any way so that he can
see you!

On Friday, I put his saddle on him for the first time (well the first time with us)! He did great. He hates his bridle, but we got that on as well. Up onto his back I went without even a side-step from him! He did amazing. Around our back yard we walked and it was turning out to be such a nice break from laying tile in the bathroom…or so I thought!

Brian calls to me to make two more passes and then put him up to get back to work. L Ok, I knew that we had to, but I didn’t want too! Sabari had been doing so well! I finish my first turn without a problem and decide that Sabari needs a little exercise, so I encourage him to pick up the pace. Well, pick up the pace he does! You would have thought we had heard the gun shot for the Belmont because he took off…straight for a T-post! I pulled on his reigns to turn him (oh, did I mention he doesn’t really like his bridle…at all!!!!!). He starts side-stepping, as we are running, and I pull back to reign him in to a stop. He is having none of it and starts to buck, still heading toward the T-post. I decide (because of course there was plenty of time to reason out all of the options on the back of this bucking horse) to dismount before I end up impaled onto the T-post. I slip my right foot out of the stirrup just as Sabari is coming down from bucking and I feel the impact all the way through my spine...talk about pain! Phew…I throw my right leg the rest of the way over and dive off, knocking the wind out of myself.

This was before the "oh, so graceful" 10 out of 10 dive! Doesn't he look good?!

I laid there for no more than a milasecond before I begin to processes the panic in Brian’s voice. I am gasping for my air, but managed to squeak out, “air…knocked…out” and wave my hand to him so that he would know why I wasn’t going to carry on a lengthy conversation with him at the moment. I laid my arm down to my side to rest and touched the cold metal of the T-post. With my arm at my side, elbow bent, I could grasp the T-post that had spooked the horse and propelled me off of the horse. It’s about this time that I feel the need (after having my own little praise service to the Almighty) to get up because of course, someone has to get back on that horse. I pull up on the T-post and my right side feels like I am in prison and someone is grinding a shank into my hip and spine. The pain was intense.

Long story short, here I am on Sunday night in bed blogging when I should be cleaning and finishing the bathrooms floor. Brian took me to the VA Emergency Room that night and, after x-rays, the doctor says that he doesn’t see anything (which worried me because he was supposed to see a hip in those shadows! Come on…a little humor to lighten up the mood here). He told me to rest in bed for the next few days and only do what feels comfortable. The nurse comes in and tells me not to be laying around in bed for the next few days, to go about my routine as normal.

J Truly, one must love the VA! J

So Brian and I have combined the two directions and are trying to listen to my body, which is saying that it needs chocolate and a massage in Hawaii! Seriously, my back and hip hurt extremely badly. However, progress is being made and Brian and I are hopeful that Wednesday will find me up and able to do things on my own. Until then, we are going to be patient and content with the blessings that Christ gave us in such minor injuries!

Life is challenging...take the challenge!

This past week Brian and I have been on a roller coaster! We are so ready to have the children that we are adopting in our home and to begin a new "normal" of changing diapers, doing homework, running around like crazy, and enjoying the never-ending noise. There are times when I sit in my now extremely large, empty home in silence. I dream of the day that I cannot get quiet anywhere. While I know that most moms would say "enjoy it while you can", I have done my best to be content and enjoy my non-child years. My heart now beats adoption every minute.

For the last few months, I have done my best to quiet that beat. I have told myself that Christ is my portion and to want more is wrong. But God is teaching me a new truth. When He is "giving you the desires of your heart", meaning that He is placing those desires in your heart because He is the One in control of your life, He doesn't require us to put them out of our minds. People tell me to focus on what is in front of me right now and let God handle the rest. While I agree worrying is sinful, I think that God lets us dwell on things yet to come to bring us to an ever fresh awareness of just how much we need Him.

At the beginning of this week, I would have said that life is hard. It is full of opportunities that require waiting and dreams that demand focus and attention. It is a struggle to stay consistent and content with the life that God has put before us. But how can I say that life is hard when we all know that it is a precious gift of God? Life is not hard, but challenging. Our society is pushing us to continually be looking and open to challenge. "Don't back down from a punch!" "America Strong" "Push the limits" Why do we view our Christian walk any different?

I challenge you to take us that cross and walk run daily with Christ. Moms, "be all that you can be" (Army) in your homemaking this week. Dad, "Just do it" (Nike) at work and then come home and do it again, but don't just sit down on the couch and veg while your children and wife beg for your attention! Christian, "Impossible is nothing" (Adidas) because Christ is by our side!

Taking every moment and utilizing every encouragement, live for Christ, dream and strive for dreams this week. Be content with Christ, but not complacent! Work toward the calling that Christ has given you, even if you know that it is months away.

Confidence in the Caller

When I was younger, my dad would call out to me. “Jump”, he would say, and down I went. No thought of the danger. No concern for what I would encounter should I hit the ground. I wouldn't. Dad was calling, so it was safe. As I grew, I gained more and more confidence in my dad. He was strong, able, and safe. This confidence was big. I would have followed him anywhere he called and done anything he asked. We lived in an area of bluffs my first six years of life. Our family would take walks on those bluffs and dad would walk right up to the cliff’s edge. He would call, “Come here.” Then he would pick me up, turn me upside down, and hang me over the edge. (Yes, even now he thinks he was crazy for doing it!) The view was great, and the rush through your stomach, catching your breath…it was incredible! Why, though, did I know that he wouldn't drop me? Why did I have confidence in him?

     Confidence is a prior experience or knowledge of faithfulness by someone. I had confidence in my dad because he had been faithful to keep me safe in the past. However, I didn't place my confidence in the idea or path that he was calling me to. He called and, because I placed confidence in him, I was obedient to his calling.

     In life, our confidence cannot be placed in the decisions and callings that Christ directs us too.  We can, however, put our confidence in the One doing the calling. Like David said in 1 Samuel 17:34-37,

“But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep sheep for his father. And when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb from the flock, I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth. And if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and struck him and killed him. Your servant has struck down both lions and bears, and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, for he has defied the armies of the living God.” And David said, “The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and the LORD be with you!’”

     The Bible never says that David had confidence in his calling…he wasn't sure how everything would work out. It doesn't say that he wasn't nervous or scared. Maybe he had got the calling wrong and maybe he wasn't sure what the next step was. On his way down to the battlefield, he might have even second guessed the calling. BUT…he never questioned the Caller. He knew of God’s faithfulness because of his prior experience with the lion and the bear. Those were huge problems and events in his life. At that time, he might have thought that they were the hardest thing he would ever do. Looking back, while staring at Goliath, they probably didn't seem that big. They were confidence builders for his battle. David knew the calling and had confidence in the Caller. He completed his portion of the task, which was to kill Goliath, and then stepped aside as God called others to finish the battle.

     We should react no differently when we are feeling called to something. No matter who believes in the calling or who doubts our feelings, we must take that step forward. Knowing that He has been faithful in our prior experiences, we obey the calling with our confidence placed in the Caller.

Food for Thought:

What prior experience gives you confidence in the Caller? What is the Caller pushing you to do to continue building your confidence in Him for those bigger experiences that are coming?

Hello...anyone still out there?

It has been quite a while since our last blog post. Isn't it crazy how life can get so out of control busy? I think that over the last year we have learned some lessons that will stick with us for life.

To catch you all up with where we are today, the Kingston’s have moved!!! Wait…let me back up.

First, to borrow from Paul Harvey, here is “the rest of the story”….

Brian and I are working on adopting from the state’s foster care system. We began this process last September…yes, as in 10 months ago. :0 Since then, our house has flooded because of an A/C leak (who knew that an A/C could produce enough water to ruin three bedrooms!). We got those repairs done…only to find a house that was going to accommodate the number of children we want. So we moved about 20 minutes away from Conway to a town called Mayflower…

Ahh, I can feel the light bulbs going off with just the mention of the name. Yes, Mayflower was one of the towns effected by the recent tornados in Arkansas. Brian and I were extremely blessed to have only minor damage, but God never brings us to a place for our own plans. The tornado created many opportunities to meet people because we began handing out breakfast to workers, survivors, and helpers, which many of you contributed to…thank you! Those relationships that were formed are being cultivated and Brian and I have gotten the opportunity to share the Gospel several times.

          Since the tornado, Brian and I have been working diligently on our home. I have resigned from my position at City of Hope Outreach. It was a hard decision to make. The people that we have met and the relationships that we have formed will be with us forever, but when God directs, we move, no matter how crazy those directions seem to others. We are two bathrooms and one broken window away from having our remodeling done! (We will be posting pictures soon!)

Though this process has been long and hard, God has continued to motivate us with new and unique opportunities. We will be sharing pictures and stories in the weeks to come. Check back soon!

Erin