The Fey Family

“He commanded the multitudes to sit down on the grass. And He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke and gave the loaves to the disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitudes.” Matthew 14:19 Many of us are familiar with the passage this verse comes from; in fact, the feeding of the 5000 shows up in all 4 gospels. We can imagine the throng of people, sitting and listening to Jesus for hours, but now their tummies are starting to feel those familiar pangs of hunger. We can hear the disciples grumbling to Jesus “Send them away. We have nothing to offer.” We can see Jesus, I always imagine Him with a bit of a grin on His face as He asks them, “Really, nothing?” and they pull out the paltry offering of a few loaves of bread and some fish. When you do the math, 5 loaves and 2 fish divided by 5000 is like total nothing-burger. Is it even worth showing such a little bit of food to Jesus? This food, this small snack really, was an off...

Lately I have been thinking about things that I have done that I never, ever would have imagined myself doing 4 years ago. Here are a few that top the list: Driving a stick shift Not only were my attempts at driving a manual transmission in the states dismal, they were laughable. Ok, only laughable looking back, but at the time there were many tears and small children yelling at their father from the backseat “Don’t make mommy cry” and “Stop yelling at our mom”. Now, not only do I drive a stick shift all by myself like a big girl (I even went to the mall in Pretoria without Darin a couple weeks ago), but I can drive the combi, which is like in a category all by itself. As you can see from the photos below, the gear stick of the combi is laid out all nice and normal, however, what you see is not actually what you get.  In the combi, reverse is the only gear properly labeled and the rest you just have to remember as you go along. Not only that, but 3 rd gear on...

This morning, I woke up early, got myself all ready and headed off to a meeting at the Department of Social Development. I was WAY excited about this meeting as it was going to be with potential foster parents for one of the children that we love and care for at Tshepo ya Bana. I was thinking of all the things that I would tell this couple, about the child’s temperament, his likes and dislikes, his love of life and some potential pitfalls. I was thinking about seeing his social worker, someone who I have had a great difficulty working with and trying to decide what I would say to her and how I would say it. I was thinking of my role and what I needed and wanted to convey to get things moving quickly so that we could get this child into a family ASAP, assuming they were suitable and appropriate parents that is. My mind was spinning for the whole 30 minute drive to the office. I parked the car, signed in with security and went inside to the registration desk to let them know I was h...

It is Wednesday night. I am sitting at the computer with a fan blowing at my fingers as the internal fan in our computer stopped working and blowing a fan at the computer is now the only way to keep it from frying up inside. It’s all good for now, but I think I’ll need to find some fingerless gloves before winter as even without a fan blowing on my fingers in winters past, typing with frozen fingers has been a challenge. My parents left on Sunday. We had a great time together. We spent almost a week in St. Lucia (South Africa, not the island) and it was fab. Really, one of the best holidays we’ve had; a great location, lots to see and do and a perfect fit for all ages, including the old folks. Just kidding mom and dad!! We also had fun just hanging out, playing cards, eating dessert, and talking, like really talking and being able to share some things that we’ve been working through and being able to bounce ideas off of two people much wiser than us. Darin also left on Sunday ...

Pics are up. See them here . LAURIE MOLAN, CHECK THEM OUT!!! Ha ha. They are for everyone to see, from way back in August. I'm just teasing my sees-ter as she isn't on facebook or what's app and usually misses all the fun. Having a great time in St. Lucia, South Africa with my parents. Lots of time at the beach, enjoying the sun, fresh fruit, walking to town, hippos and more. Will try to write a longer post before we go while we still have fast internet!

Mom. Mother. Mama. Mommy. For most of us, these words evoke feelings of happiness, warm thoughts and good memories. When I think of my own mom, my heart is filled up. I love my precious mama with all that’s in me. When Jori runs out the door for school and yells “I love you mom, have a great day today”, I can’t keep the smile from my face. Yet these words, that for me are so full of good thoughts and happy feelings, have been giving me a lot of sadness lately. A little boy I love so dearly was angry yesterday. I said “I think you need a hug” and we sat down together on the steps. He let me hold him for a bit then said “I can’t wait for my mommy to come”. This was not said with excitement and anticipation, but with desperation and sadness. This child was abandoned by his own mother and his heart is crying out to be loved. He is sad and angry and literally hurting at the thought of having to wait for a mommy to come and claim him. He has seen many of his friends return to their biol...

Earlier this week, I had my phone stolen right out of my hand. I was at a red light looking at a message that had just come in (I know, shouldn’t do that) and just like that, my phone was grabbed. I yelled and yelled “Hey, I need my phone! Please give me my phone I need those numbers! You can’t take my phone!” and other stuff like that. I was just about to get out of the car when I sensed a presence at the passenger side window; there were 2 men looking at me, one who had my phone in his hand. My very first thought was “Oh, they were just trying to teach me a lesson about having my phone out in the open.” That thought lasted a split second and then I was yelling again. The thief kept saying “Sorry, ma’am, sorry. I shouldn’t have taken your phone. I won’t take from you”, while the older man, who I am assuming heard my screaming and made the younger man do right said “You should pay him R10 ($1)”, to which I replied “I am not paying him, he just stole my phone!” The would be thief staye...