My latest adventure with planning

I like calenders and schedules and plans.  Sure, I can be spontaneous too and jump into something with both feet, with little advance notice. The past month I've been wrestling with a few big-time decisions.  Grad school:  do I plan on starting in August in order to utilize the momentum I've got going right now?  What if I wait and then enjoy not being in school so much that I never start?Or, do I wait until January and enjoy getting Hudson settled into PreK and all the fun fall has to offer?  Plus, I've been hankering for a good mission trip and figured I could go during the fall, then dive into school in January. Then there is the whole school decision--pretty confusing and driving my half-nuts.  I've got that one narrowed to 2 and almost sure of which one.  Anyways, moving right along....
A month ago I was volunteering in a medical clinic that is connected with the homeless ministry in the city(before you think I'm all that and a bag of chips, I'm just doing this to fulfill a requirement for my career advancement ladder at work and it comes with a handsome raise--there--honesty!).  I met a kindred spirit--she had a homemade purse from her trip to Haiti, just like me!!  She wants to go to Nurse Practitioner school to do medical missions, just like me!  She is leading a medical missions trip to Haiti in September, just happened to have the info packet with ther, and......invited me to go!!  I was thrilled and said "Absolutely."  For some reason, I didn't mail in my registration form that week.  I prayed so so so hard that God will please reveal his plan for me and that I would know exactly what He wants me to do regarding school, when to start, the trip.  He was fairly silent for 2 weeks.  I was going nuts trying to make a decision.  You see the trip was awesome and I wanted to go, but, it wasn't orphancare.  I've been really really wanting to go somewhere to minister to orphans.  My mother also. Fast forward to the mail arriving 2 weeks ago.  Our amazing adoption agency, Dillon International, sent the quarterly newsletter.  In it they profiled a trip to Seoul, South Korea in October....serving special needs orphans, ministering to unwed pregnant women, serving meals to elder, teaching English and other such activities.  Instantly, my heart beat faster and my mom was ready to GO.  The only problem was that I was afraid it would be boring.  That sounds crass, but it just doesn't have the incredible craziness of a trip like Haiti.  Korea is developed and I've been there 3 times.  So, I prayed more and more.  In Mike's mind, it was a done deal--Korea all the way baby!  He spoke great wisdom to me.  He told me that if I'm truly passionate about orphan care, then why wouldn't I go to the place that does it best with the agency that basically developed the most quality orphan care in the world???  Dillon International has been ministering in South Korea for 40 years.  Those children are well taken care of and the rest of the world could really learn from them.  Plus, I'd get to snuggle on the children who weren't adopted due to special needs and are growing up in an orphanage. I don't know how to articulate what a powerful connection that is without divulging our 2 youngest son's personal birth stories, but it is feasible that, if not for God's infinite plan and adoption love story, they also would have grown up in that special needs orphanage.What a sweet honor and privelage to give a little something back to the country that gave us 3 of our precious ones. The scales were leaning towards Korea.  Then, I had breakfast with my friend Susie.  Susie always thinks my nutty ideas are great.  I was hashing out all my tough decisions.  When I described the Korea trip, her eyes filled with tears and she was moved in her soul.  I could tell it resonated with her.  I said "why don't you come too?".  She called her hubby and, this is the part I'm sooooo impressed and grateful for, he had zero reservations, was 100% supportive and told her they'd make a wayd to pay for it.  Just like that, she was in.  I called mom, and she was all fired up, she was in.  We gathered our deposit and registration and mailed it off.  We were headed to Korea!!  Then, wait for it, something crazy happened.  We got an email from Dillon.  The Korean airline wanted to give the international portion of the plane tickets(minus taxes) to an adoptee between the ages of 8-15 and a parent.  But, the application deadline was in 3 days.  Dilemna, we had to decide if Abby was going.  Why the heck not, right??  What's another 2 grand when you have a forever memory to make? So, with that, I applied.  Mike and I prayed that if the Lord had a great plan for Abby going, then we'd win, but if it needed to be just me going, we would not win. You guessed it, we were selected.  I also have enough credit card points that we've been saving to purchase a free ticket for me to LA.  It is going to be very expensive--a LOT more than Haiti.  But, good grief, God has shown himself faithful over and over and over---when we are doing HIS will, not our own!  I'm not worried.  I will just keep driving a crappy old car and not spending money on stuff in order to pay for this amazing opportunity and memories with 3 incredible women:  my daughter, my mother, and my best bud.  Hey, it sounds a bit like a chick movie doesn't it?
And as for school, I'm waiting til January.