The garden has sadly gotten little attention since we opened Cafe Tesfa. The first summer the big kids were home (2013), we let them each plant one of our raised beds. Both big girls grew sweet potatoes (which if you’re going to eat a carb, choose this one).
Three years ago, we were jumping through hoops, ripping through red tape, and fighting for the right to bring home our sixth child (now 14). Apparently bringing home 3 unrelated adolescents through international adoption is frowned upon. We understood why, but keeping the connection between her and our son, because they were raised together, seemed...
July 1 was our one year anniversary as coffee shop owners. Cafe Tesfa started as a pipe dream. We always loved the charm of local coffee shops and frequented many as college students. A couple years ago, Patrick paired our pipe dream with a vision of helping local foster youth. We put some time, effort,...
The end of our pastor’s sermon yesterday really challenged me. You can listen to it here. It’s the one based on Matt 11:25-30. Start at time marker 21:45. It was about reconciliation. He talked about how reconciliation comes at cost. The cost is great (especially to our pride) but we can choose to focus on what...
Last Friday, I was sitting in the 3rd row of a suburban church for their annual Girls’ Weekend Out. The church we’re currently attending in Southwest Baltimore (the epicenter of the recent riots) had been invited to attend at no cost. While this should sound like a fabulous start to a weekend, I was terribly troubled...
With the end of school in sight, parents may be feeling the need to brush up on parenting survival techniques to get them through the summer. These are two books that I’ve read this year that I’ve been telling everyone I know about. 1. Nurture Shock. This book by Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman covers everything from...
DISCLAIMER: These are last year’s (June 2014) dance recital photos because that’s how behind in life I am. With 6 kids and 2 drivers, we obviously have to be selective to which extracurricular activities we commit. While saying, “no” to the kids can be hard (especially in today’s culture), it has forced everyone to really...
I keep hearing/seeing phrases like “black lives matter” and “racial reconciliation.” I’m sick of them. They are just creating more divisions. I’ll be the first to admit that racism is alive and well, but the problems in Baltimore (or any where else for that matter) are not just about race. Last I checked, ALL lives...