Shelton Shenanigans

I've been thinking a lot lately about the kinds of people God chooses to do his work. Last weekend, Steve and I went to Kansas City for a day of GO Exchange ambassador training and a night of rodeo at The BIG Event. We learned about how God is at work in the lives of children, mothers, fathers, business owners, executives, and at-risk kids. All I can say about it is “Wow!” In the room with me were women from all over the country, some homemakers, some in the medical profession, some hairdressers, some designers, some in their twenties, some in their sixties. We were all there to share in a common mission, a common vision, and to “Go big for the little.” As I sat there, listening to story after story of God's leading, I wondered to myself for a moment, “Exactly how did I end up here?” At the moment, I'm the only Ohio ambassador, and I have no background in fashion, design, or even sales. I haven't yet been to Haiti or Uganda, and my sales certainly aren...

Go Big or Go home I must say, that phrase has taken on new meaning in the Shelton household over the last several months. Remember the post back in January where we were overwhelmed and overburdened? I compared our point in the journey to Moses when he needed Aaron and Hur hold his arms up for him, to help him carry the weight of the staff God commanded him to hold to ensure the Israelites would be victorious against the Amalekites. In January, we were trying with all our might to follow God's calling on our lives, to keep walking the adoption journey, but we were battle weary and weak. I asked for people to pray for us, openly admitting we needed them to come along side, to lift us up in prayer, and to be Aaron and Hur for us. Apparently, they did. I decided at that time to step back from fund-raising. All my ideas were starting to sound the same, or like things we'd already done. The boys were in basketball, which would be followed by soccer, and I didn'...

When is the last time you fell in love? Can you remember the day? The time? I don't mean the kind of love when you discover a new favorite ice cream flavor, but heart-pounding, can't stop thinking about it, invading your sleep, and affecting your ability to concentrate falling in love. For Steve and me, it was May 1, 2014, 3:30 p.m., at CAFO Orphan Summit in Chicago, Illinois. We skipped the one break-out session we had intended to attend (one on fund raising for adoption) in order to walk around and talk to vendors. The first table we stopped at, the very first one, stole our hearts and set us off in a new direction. As you know, we've been fund raising for a year and a half to adopt a little girl from Haiti. We've been working diligently to gather up all the necessary documents and get through the home study. To date, we've raised over $17,000.00, just under half of what we need, but that is not actually what this blog post is about. Our journey has a...

When I first told one of the managers in my office that we were going to adopt internationally, she responded with, “You know you’re crazy, right?” While that wasn’t exactly the reaction I was expecting from her, I understood where she was coming from. After all, what kind of people announce that they are adopting an unknown child into the family, from a third world country, when they already have three boys, active busy lives, a bunch of debt, a three-bedroom house, and a Seeing Eye dog? Well, apparently we do. The “call” came for Steve and I in completely different ways, and in case you don’t know that story, let me revisit that instance for a moment. Trenton was a baby, not even one, when I started feeling tugs to open my heart and home to a child from some undisclosed location. We had championed the cause of others who had heard the call and obeyed it, and supported them with words, with money, with hard work and time at their fundraisers, and with prayer. We did secret fundrai...

Just over a week ago, we were invited to an Ethiopian Christmas party being hosted by good friends of ours, their first with their son, Abe, who has been in the States less than six months. I took the time to caution Tyler and Trevor on proper etiquette for an occasion such as this, harkening back to a phrase taught to my college choir just before we left for a European tour. We were warned not to be rude American tourists, not to call things “weird,” or “gross,” but to address uncomfortable situations by thinking, “My that's different; I wonder why they do it that way.” I told the boys to take a similar attitude to this party. We were dressing up a little, because that's what they do in Ethiopia. There would be no gifts. There was a good chance there would be music and perhaps even dancing. And, of course, there would be food made just for the occasion, recipes unlike anything the boys had ever tasted. I told them not to be rude, but to try new things, and that if they d...

What a week December 1-7, 2013 has been for the Shelton family! We celebrated the first Sunday of advent with a trip to get our Christmas tree, and wrapped up the week by selling Christmas decorations at a Christmas craft fair. But that doesn't even begin to tell the full story! Let me break down the highlights for you. You may recall that a year ago this week I underwent surgery to remove half of my thyroid. I wrote an emotional blog post a few days prior to surgery in which I detailed my fears and my hope in God, and ended with a verse from a Christmas carol which had taken on new meaning for me: Be near me, Lord Jesus, I ask thee to stay Close by me forever and love me, I pray. Bless all the dear children in thy tender care And fit us for Heaven to live with thee there. I come to the manger this year with a deeper understanding of the meaning of those lyrics, and unspeakable joy as I have regained the ability to sing, “Glory to God in the highest andpeace to men of good wil...

In case you’ve been wondering if Pilikia has outgrown his adorable little nickname (a fancy word for trouble), allow me to quote that well-known philosopher and deep thinker, Jerry Seinfeld. “Having a two-year-old is like having a blender without a lid.” Little Mr. Trenton is nothing less than a twenty-five-pound tornado! Here are a few things he accomplished last weekend while the rest of us were cleaning for an open house and working on Christmas and Thanksgiving gift baskets. He learned to unlock the sliding glass door, thus making it necessary to monitor him any time he’s remotely close to downstairs to keep him and the dog from escaping. He has spent a considerable amount of time disrobing, making messes of all kinds, and blaming them on the dog. He can point his finger and scold like nobody’s business – even if it’s entirely unjustified! He discovered that if you climb up on the storage tote of the next season’s shoes in the laundry room, you can climb onto the washer, where y...