cutest tshirt model ever

And they’re looking fabulous :) If you ordered one you’ll be getting yours soon! And if you wish you ordered one we have a few extra!

I know, frogs aren't that unique... but this cute little guy
was in our back yard along with a ton of other creatures :)

9. So many fun memories with so many fabulous people. From ropes courses that literally made me cry to paintball adventures to camping excursions to fro-yo comraderie to the biggest 4th of July bonfire on the planet to playing cards late at night in the dining room with friends…. it’s been good.

8. Frozen custard. Really, does this exist anywhere else? It’s probably good for me to be far far away from it.

7. Our home (particularly our fabulous kitchen).

6. The Plaza- my favorite place in KC since the first time I visited. It’s got the best priced movies around, my favorite Blanc’s burger joint, and the bestest store on the planet: Paper Source!

5. Five Super Targets within a 30 minute drive. Glory!

4. The farmer’s market. I’m sure I’ll fall in love with the Bellingham one, but I sure do love the Kansas City one. $1 scoop o’ spices!

3. Chipotle. Yes, whenever we drive the hour and a half to Seattle we WILL be eating a burrito.

2. The prayer room. Duh. It’s so gloriously full of talented musicians and heartfelt worshippers. Good thing I have the webstream…. not quite the same but close!

1. Really, what I could have put for every number is the people. I love the beautiful people here and the precious friends we’ve made. It’s sad to leave them. It’s why I claimed when we moved here that I wasn’t going to make any friends… because I knew we’d leave eventually and then my heart would break because I’d have to say goodbye.

How do you choose one picture for all the precious people you love?
I don't know but I sure will miss this lovely young lady...
she's already grown up so much since this picture 3 years ago!

Now that I’ve gone through all my photo albums and reminisced I’m feeling all nostalgicky and sad. Sigh. I will miss you beautiful people.

Many of you receive our newsletter, so rather than repeat what we’ve already told you, we thought this would be a good place to answer some anticipated questions. (If you don’t receive our newsletter and would like to, shoot us an email at jason.kara.ihop@gmail.com and we’ll send you this most recent one as well as add you to our list!) (Also, you can read our latest newsletter just by clicking on the “newsletter” tab at the top of this page.)

1. What will you be doing there?

Light of the World Prayer Center is seeking to establish a 24/7 resting place for the Lord where believers in Whatcom County can come encounter God’s presence and pray for the church to come into maturity and fullness, bringing transformation to every sphere of society and glory to the name of Jesus. We will help oversee the intercessory missionaries, pastoring them and equipping them to be effective in their calling. We will also be seeking to recruit worship leaders, engaging young adults in the area, strengthening the prayer room while seeking to equip churches and ministries in the area to effectively establish a culture of prayer in their communities. Check out their website for more information on the ministry: www.lowpc.org.

The Light of the World Prayer Center

2. What about your adoption? 

We are moving forward and plan to continue with the adoption process. We are just about done with our homestudy and beginning to focus on fundraising and waiting to be matched with a birthmother. When we move we will have to get a “homestudy addendum” to update our new living situation. Other than that, we can proceed as normal! And in case you didn’t see our sweet tshirts for sale, you should definitely check them out! Click on the “super shirts” tab at the top of this page.

3. What about your house? Where will you live?

The Light of the World Prayer Center rents a sanctuary on the campus of Hope in Christ church. We will be living in a house that is owned by the church and is on the church property. Talk about a convenient commute to work! We will be renting our house out here in KC. (Anyone looking for a house to rent starting May 1st? Give us a shout out!)

4. When are you moving?

We will be moving at the end of April and start working with LOWPC by May 1st.

Joshua enjoying Whatcom Falls park in Bellingham.

5. Are you excited to live near family?

Ok, I don’t know if anyone is actually unsure of our response to this question, but just in case, Yes! We are SUPER excited to live near family. We have family in the Bellingham area as well as a short drive away in Seattle and Lake Stevens. We are thrilled that Joshua will get to know his cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents better. Oh, and we like them too.

6. Will you miss ihop and kc?

Of course. We have built some great friendships here and will miss the amazing community, teaching and prayer room. We will not miss tornado season, however.

7. What about the campus ministry you were doing?

This last season has been one of setting foot back on college campuses, seeking to inspire young adults to seek God in worship, envisioning them with the power of prayer.  Jason ended up giving leadership on two campuses: Park University and the University of Kansas. With a team of two others, they pioneered a Luke 18 Project student ministry at Park University that both equipped believers to pray more effectively through a weekly bible study and prayer time and established a conversation program with international students. Sharing our lives and the gospel with students from Saudi Arabia, Russia, Brazil and many other countries was exciting! Jason’s music performance major friend from Russia has read the entire bible in seeking to understand what motivated people like Bach and Beethoven. Pray that the many seeds planted through their conversations would bear fruit in this young man whose heart is so wide open!

At KU, an existing ministry started four years earlier was in need of leadership during a pivotal time of many of the old guard graduating. Going out twice a week we sought to pour into key leaders and give vision and leadership to a weekly bible study with worship and prayer. We saw several new students get plugged in, one a gal named Alex who is in the process of discovering who Jesus really is and what it means to follow him. Pray for her and the thirty other students at KU who are contending for a powerful move of God in Lawrence, Kansas.

IHOP has great leaders who are carrying on the work on both campuses.

If you answered yes to any (or all) of these questions, you should buy one of our shirts! Not only are they fun but each tshirt you buy brings us a little bit closer to bringing baby bobo #2 home. Who doesn’t love that?

Want one? Here are the details:

• We are pre-selling the tshirts so we know how many to order. Place your order by midnight, March 19. You will receive your shirt(s) mid-April.
• Shirts are $20 suggested donation. Of course, you are more than welcome to pay more than $20 if you want to help us get even further in our efforts to bring bobo #2 home.
• If you live in KC or Seattle/Bham we can get them to you with no additional cost. If you live elsewhere, please throw a couple more bucks our way to cover shipping.
• When you get your shirt we’d love a picture of you wearing it! We’re thinking whole family shots, cute kid pictures, crazy poses, etc etc.
• Shirts are available in adult sizes (S, M, L, XL, XXL) and in children’s sizes (2T and up) in either Royal Blue or True Red.

How to order your very own super shirt:

1. Shoot us an email with the quantity, size(s) and color(s) you want. Email us at jason.karalynn@gmail.com

2. Click on the paypal link to the right that says “donate” and pay online for your order OR mail us a check made out to “Tekoa 211″ for a tax-deductible gift. (mail to: The Kellys • 8204 E 103rd Terr • Kansas City, MO 64134)

3. Once we receive your email and your payment we’ll send you a confirmation email so you know we got it!

4. Share our blog with your friends so you can all sport super shirts!

Now we will set up times to meet with the social worker and work on finishing the rest of our paperwork. We get to do fun things like go get fingerprinted (did you know it’s all digital now? No inky fingers for us!) go to the doctor for physicals and fill out more forms (yay!).

Doesn’t sound too exciting to you? I suppose the tasks themselves aren’t too exciting but when you think of each one as one step closer to holding an itty bitty bobo in your arms and telling him/her how much you love them, how you’ve dreamed about them and how wanted they are… well, it puts it all in perspective.

Want to help us get to the next step? We need to raise about $500 more by the time we have our first homestudy meeting and another $3500 by the time we are matched with a birth mother. Click on the “costs” tab at the top of the page for more information on how to give towards our adoption. And keep your eyes peeled for our fantabulous t-shirts we’ll be selling soon! Oooooh, they’re fun!

{click on the picture to see it full size}

Joshua,

You’re officially one and a half! We are discovering more of your personality each day and you’re a downright happy little guy. Your current favorite activities include climbing (on anything and everything), playing outside (and climbing on things outside),  being tickled, displaying your belly button when asked where it is, going up and down the stairs and chasing the dog around the house. You recently discovered that you can reach the table or the kitchen counter by climbing on one of the dining room chairs. Except for a few tumbles, you are remarkably balanced and talented at this.

Besides your beloved belly button, you also know where your nose, eyes and ears are located. You are desperate to try and do things on your own such as use a spoon, brush your teeth, and walk the dog. At the same time you are becoming just a wee bit more snuggly and clingy, which I personally find adorable.

Joshua Aidan, you are fabulous and we are so proud of you! Happy {belated} half birthday!

This week I’m thankful for the little things:

1. sideways smiles

2. a little one who loves the vacuum

Sometimes when playing with Joshua he’ll get this look on his face and he’ll move his jaw sideways and give you a silly grin. I love it.

this is an older picture but better than the one I took today

Joshua is a big fan of the vacuum. It’s so cute. He’s fascinated by it. This morning I vacuumed most of the house with him following behind me. He’d either be a few feet back holding the cord (which was actually quite helpful) or he was playing with something near by but always close to me (and the vacuum). Whenever I’d stop he would come over and check out the vacuum, try to push it, fiddle with the buttons. I am grateful to not have to add vacuuming to the long list of things I can only accomplish while he’s asleep (like blogging)!

helping with the cord

(And no, I don’t let him play with the vacuum or the vacuum cord unattended.)

attempting to push the vacuum

Don’t worry, little guy… as soon as you’re big enough, vacuuming will be one of your first chores! Seriously, though, I don’t normally enjoy vacuuming (just the results of having done it) but today it was so fun because I experienced it through his eyes of wonder.

1. Joshua started walking. Sure, more mobility means more work for us, but how fun to see him run around and explore the world! One of my favorite things ever about this new skill of his is that he’s recently learned how to hold my hand while we walk together. My heart melts when he reaches up for my hand with his little fingers. Sigh.

2. Lots of time in the great state of Washington = lots of time with both our families. We spent a good chunk of our summer in Seattle and while the reason we were there will not be making this list (Jason’s mom’s heart surgery), it was so wonderful to get so much time there (and with sunshine at that!)

3. Mexico, baby. Not only did we trade in a wintery March week for a balmy week on the beach but we spent a chunk of quality time with “Grandpa & Bubbie”. That’s my kind of multi-tasking! Plus, Joshua had his first beach experience to boot.

Oh, and I PET A BABY TIGER. It’s not every year you can say that.

4. We discovered a beautiful lake “hiding” in our neighborhood. Actually, I knew it was there but why didn’t I ever visit? I love living close to a park with water!

5. A new addition to our family: our housemate Brandi. Ok, so technically she’s not a Kelly but she drinks coffee like she is and we’ve officially converted her to our nightly ritual of eating a bowl of cereal before bed. Plus, Joshua adores her and she’s the one who really discovered the lake and she snagged me my part time job. Come on, let’s give it up for Brandeis!

6. Speaking of my part-time job, that makes the list as well. I am grateful for the additional income, the hours that fit our schedules just right, and the finding of a job that includes down time for things like menu planning and checkbook balancing. (I don’t have a picture for this one… I mean, I guess I could bring my camera to work one day and take a thrilling self-timer portrait of me sitting at a desk, but I most likely never will)

In lieu of a work picture, I will include my favorite daddy & son picture of the year. Working a couple days a week has also resulted in more quality bonding time for Joshua and Jason.

7. While Jason’s mom’s aforementioned heart attack and surgery are not things I would have hoped for in 2011, we are oh so ever grateful that she is still alive and kicking. Not only that but she came to visit us! We have enjoyed having “Nanny” around for the holidays and have loved getting to share our life here in Kansas City with her.

8. Eight years of marriage to my bobo. I hope one day we can say we’ve been bobos for 80 years… I’ll be 106 and he’ll be 109 and we’ll still call each other bobo and we’ll still be best friends. That’s my plan. (And Joshua will be OLD.)

9. We took an action packed awesome 5 day trip to California . We made new friends, stayed on a pomegranate farm, Jason spoke at a children’s camp (which he was awesome at), we saw two of my old childhood friends and I had the chance to show Jason my childhood home and city. So fun.

10. This face. Joshua makes it when he finds something utterly delightful. It might be swinging, sliding, puppies, being tickled, his daddy or a number of other things. He’s such a joy.

I thought of about 8,000 more things in the process of making this list but I’m pretty sure I’ve already overloaded you with photos, if you even made it this far. There are many more family members, friends and events I am grateful for this past year.  So, thanks for being a part of our 2011 and happy new year!

This cute Christmas picture has been on our fridge all year. So maybe it’s because I see it everyday that I felt the need to attempt to recreate the moment this year into one of those “see how much he’s grown” shots. Well, I have to say, there’s a big difference between a 5 month old and a 1 1/2 year old. So even though he’s still as cute as ever and even though he still wears the same cute green diapers, this is the last year of trying to recreate this one!

It seemed like a good idea at the time… until I realized that he is dying to remove all the ornaments off the tree and I just set him so close that he could climb there all by himself. I’m lucky I got any shots that were in focus he moved so fast! (notice he is holding an ornament he managed to get at before I pulled him away)

So here’s our close enough shot for your holiday enjoyment. We hope you all have a fabulous Christmas!

With the beginning of the paperwork comes the beginning of fees and therefore the beginning of another fundraising adventure. I know you were just waiting for us to announce how you can help fund the arrival of the fourth member of the Kelly family! Wait no longer, your chance is here!

We will be planning a couple of fundraising dinners like we did last time as well as other creative opportunities for you to get involved. In the meantime, we need to raise about $2500 just to get the process off the ground. Would you like to help? Well here’s what to do…

Make your check out to Tekoa 211 and mail it to us (The Kellys • 8204 E. 103rd Terrace • Kansas City, MO 64134). Tekoa 211 is a couple of awesome adoption-lovin’ folk who have created a non-profit so that families like us can offer a tax deductible way of giving. All the money you give will go towards our adoption. Also, please do not write our names on the check. And if you want to receive your tax deduction for the 2011 year make sure it’s postmarked by the 31st!

How much will we need to raise total, you ask? Well, that’s a good question and depends on a number of variables we don’t know yet. We are going with Hannah’s Dream, a local IHOP-based adoption agency. Because of this the costs will probably be less than if we were going with a traditional agency. The staff at Hannah’s Dream take minimal to no salary so that they can offer their services at the lowest cost possible. How awesome are they?! They are an amazing group of people dedicated to loving adoptive parents, birth mothers and children alike with compassion and respect. If we had to guess, we’d say the entire process from homestudy to finalization will cost us between $12,000-$30,000. That’s a pretty big range, we know! So, we’re just going to start where we’re at and update y’all along the way. The cost will depend on the state the birth mother lives in, whether she has medical coverage, her living needs, etc. We know no matter how much it costs that Jesus has our back because he loves this incoming little bobo!

We feel like adoption is not only a wonderful way to grow our family, but it is also one of the ministries God has called us to. It’s not just about getting a baby (although we do hope that’s the end result!) It’s so much more. It’s about offering an alternative to abortion. It’s about loving someone in a difficult situation (aka. an unplanned pregnancy). It’s about caring for the orphan before they ever even become an orphan. It’s about compassion. It’s about raising up a lover of God who will impact the next generation for Christ. So, with that in mind, we are inviting our friends and family to partner with us in this ministry and help us make a difference in the life of a birth mom and in the life of a child. Thanks!