Prayer NEEDED please!

Here are some fun times we have had in the last week as we prepare for Christmas......







Christmas crafts....and yes my husband is wearing a winter cap in the house
Matthew's Adoption Day home made apple pie that we enjoyed last night.

Our PRAYER NEED: We found out that if we do not receive our USCIS approval before the 29/30th we will have to reschedule our January 1st court hearing in ETH for Naomi! I can't tell you how much this rips my heart out and stomps all over it. Just wanting to be honest!

We are praying that we get APPROVAL ASAP!!!!!!!!!!! We know that we will NEVER STOP FIGHTING FOR OUR NAOMI!!!!! We would do WHATEVER IT TAKES!!!!!!!!! HOWEVER LONG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Because she is our daughter, but we are pleading and begging that we would be able to pass and go pick her up sooner rather than later! Because she needs her family!!!!

We are trying to relax and enjoy our family time, but it is hard when your heart is in pieces.

People are serious when they say praising God in the hard times- is hard, but we will continue- NO MATTER WHAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Celebrating 6 years of Matthew's Adoption Day

This is my little man......ohhh......we were privileged enough to meet this little guy the day he was born. He was very little- under 6 lbs! We took him home from the hospital 2 days later- and he has had me around his finger ever since!
One thing now.....that has me a little sad is that this was my little guy who loved Thomas the Tank Engine- you know all the little songs....awww..... Now it is anything to do with soldiers! What happened. I mean I am not opposed to it, it happens as they grow and have different phases they go through, but how could he have grown that much?
I you haven't seen our previous posts on Birthdays or Adoption Days- our tradition is that we get up early and come out in our pj's and open presents. All presents are theirs for the day with no one else playing with them.......for the day. After that if it isn't in their box (which only holds so many toys) it is a free for all. We of course have a big sign made up on the white board (that we actually use mostly for school work), balloons, and sometimes little gifts of some kind like poppers, or pens, etc. for everyone.
He is loving the see through foam dart gun! He LOVES to see how things work so this was a perfect gift!
Treasuring memories in my heart of all those years that seem to go by sooo quickly! I mean it was 6 whole years ago that we went to court with our 3 child and said- YES!!! We want Matthew Joseph Wright to be our son- FOREVER- THANKS!!! OK so we may not have said those words like that, but that is what we emphatically said in our hearts.

He is ..........funny- loves to make you laugh :), loves to see how anything works- and will take it apart if at all possible- or if not possible too, he is sensitive sometimes, still little for his age- (which is good because most of our children are tall for their ages), loves his siblings, wants to be a train driver when he grows up, hates the "bad" people in the movies, still loves trains & soldiers, loves to play pranks, wants to be just like his big brothers and hates to be left out, loves to cuddle with me, strokes my hair when I tuck him in at night, is sometimes shy (he doesn't usually go forward for children's sermon & takes time to get to know you), and is an incredible little man. I am sooo excited to see God's Plans for you Matthew! I am sure they are amazing!!!!

On the home front- well.....thought we may have some news from USCIS today, but they are keeping us in suspense and said we should know before January 1st- which is our date for court in Ethiopia. We are thinking positive, knowing that the God we Serve- has placed Naomi in our family! We know without a shadow of a doubt that she will be a part of our family, and the fact that they are being silly over technicalities will NOT ruin our season of JOY!!!!

We APPRECIATE your prayers over this situation soooo much because I KNOW that because of those many, many, many prayers We have been filled with HOPE! Hey, isn't that what this season is all about?

Praying you all have a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

More on our England trip....

I want to start with the preface that once again my pics are- BACKWARDS! Well, anyway this is at the end of our first day in London- we ended with pizza at Pizza Hut with the cousins & Auntie Juliette, and my husband's uncle......

Here is my father in love- on the right, and his twin brother (stating the obvious I know) on the left. They are hilarious together. We lovingly say that they share a brain.......I am pretty sure it is true! :)
How come no matter what my eyes shut in pics??? Oh well, Jonathan has a cute face....
Juliette & Brandon
Juliette & Charlie awww...
yep, that's Charlie- it totally runs in the family :)
Elizabeth getting attention from Uncle Ken....
Abigail & Charlie- These girls belong together!!! They were born 11 days apart- we actually met Charlie before Abigail. :) They LOVED being together....this is the times you completely wish that England was a few minutes down the road.
The "boys" table :) OK so all of these handsome boys are all within one year of age- yep!!!! Crazy & True!!!!! They also totally enjoyed each other's company :)
Taking the train back...
Awww......look at those smiles even after a long day in London :)

The tube coming into the station......(Tube is the London underground train station)
We are of course at Oxford Circus station......a lot of signs to do with the tube have the red circle with the blue strip across.......signs like Mind The Gap- which means watch your step because there may be a gap between the train and the platform. :)
Here we all are waiting at the tube station
Here- is Hamley's - this was our last stop on the first day of our trip to London. It is a MASSIVE TOY STORE!!!! 6 Floors of total fun!!!! Everything your heart could desire & much much more!!!
Loved the decorations....
That is one huge gingerbread man!
The car section- the kids are all watching the cars that bump and then flip over. It is a great store because they set up displays- for you to play with them! Gotta love being a kid again :)
Yep, our kids checking it out- this is what I call a great play kitchen!!!

All of us......on the top floor looking at all the fun decor in the middle of the store...
Elizabeth really loved this horse - that was realish- eats carrots, moves, etc. so cute :)
Joshua checking out the police cars.....
Andrew loved the "fur real" huge dog that moved etc....

Abigail- like me of course- loved the whole section of horses!!!!!!! This is totally my dream world!

It was of course fun to see the kids' eyes light up at all the different toys! So great to watch their imagination. One of my favorite parts of being a mommy is seeing the hope, belief, and expression on our children's faces. May we all enjoy our special time this time of year with our kids watching for this in our children's eyes!

Praying to hear more from immigration this week- Praying for our approval to be done quickly!

Fun times, and Praising God

So this cute little man who came home almost a year ago- has got some pretty amazing personality! We were eating and as he was eating his dessert (English chocolates brought back from our trip)- we all busted out laughing because the chocolate covered one tooth- looked hilarious!!! And this is the ham in him coming out when I got the camera.....
Don't know what this is.....busting a move I think..... :)
Yep, this is our cheeky cute little man. You know people ask about bringing home a toddler - how was the transition.......well for us with this little guy- EASY!!!! His personality has really been showing more and more lately and his vocabulary- AMAZING!!!!!
OK so these next pics are HORRIBLE!!! That is what happens when you are not a professional- you have a bright stage and a dark worship seating area......sorry. You many not be able to tell from this, but our girl Elizabeth was busting a move! Big time!!! She of course was joined by some other very cute 3-5 year old hams that always make the Christmas program really fun and special!
Abigail- singing her heart out! She loves to sing!!!
Matthew was a dove.....awww....
Oh yeah, this little beautiful girl was having too much fun as well- too adorable!

Here are Andrew & Joshua who also enjoying themselves.

Now we all know the main event of any church's Christmas Program is how adorable the kids are! Right? Well, I think it all has to do with the fact that in a lot of churches....we take ourselves sooo seriously. I mean we have serious things to think about right? Like bills, relationships, our guilt, possible job you hate, or things that have gone wrong this past week, or sickness......and the list could go on for hours. So we as adults are serious- so serious we tend to not "let loose". We don't want to show ourselves to others...because then they would know something was wrong. We would be ashamed if anyone knew what was really on our minds.....

That I think is why God refers to being like a child....Matthew 18: 2-4 "He called a little child and had him stand among them. And he said: 'I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.'"

It is to remind us to "let loose" our feelings, what we get caught up in, and be honest- brutally honest- like a child. When children are upset, made, angry, happy, excited, thrilled, etc.- you see it written on their faces, in their body language, how they speak - or don't speak, etc. They do not hide it. Praise God for that honesty!!!!

So next time you worship with your family, alone, at church (we should be constantly worshiping in all ways at all times).....remember those cute children that steal the show at a Christmas Program because they want to dance, and sing, and 'let loose' for Christ! Remember that God tells us to be like that- honest, real, meaningful, and not hiding anything from our Lover, Our Comforter, and our Savior!

So.......for those of you wondering.....we have not heard anything from USCIS- Immigration yet. Our social worker sent the updates to them Tuesday.....so......we will probably be waiting a bit yet. Please continue to pray over this situation- for softening of heart, and for us to get our Favorable Determination Letter so we can bring our daughter Naomi home soon!

A miracle happened- our cat after being out of the house (she is an indoor cat) for over 2 weeks- showed up on our porch. Mind you we searched literally for hours and hours and hours and hours....all around the camp, around the house, in the woods that surround our home....everywhere....calling his name. And last night he just appeared. Praise God for small miracles :)

It's ALL YOURS!

More of England pics.....
St. James' Park right next to Buckingham Palace.
The memorial for Diana there in the park....
Love all the trees lining the walkway in the park...
Here is the family- except me at Buckingham Palace.....
The guard outside. The kids loved watching their unique march out front.
Buckingham Palace....the queen wasn't there the day we were- I think she was on vacation?? You can tell because when she is there- they fly the Royal Standard which is her personal crest on a flag. When she isn't there they fly the Union Jack - British Flag.
The guard in his box...
What they call the mall the street that leads up to Buckingham....but a pic taken of the opposite direction. (does that make sense?)
The Queen Victoria statue right outside of Buckingham....
A full shot of Buckingham.....

Couple more shots of the Victoria statue
Us as we are walking up to Buckingham....
The gardens around the circle drive that is public right outside Buckingham.....
Love the London Taxis......aren't they fun- just like Super Nanny :)
Diana's seal in "The Mall" walkway.....
All the gates have gold on them surrounding Buckingham...and the park adjoining....
There's Buckingham as we are approaching- did I mention these pics are backwards yet again?
Here we are walking The Mall .......
Trafalgar Square....... Typical sign in England-
The famous lions around Nelson's column in Trafalgar Square.....
Fountain in Trafalgar Square....
Us all hanging out in Trafalgar Square....
Nelson's Column......in Trafalgar Square....
The Marble Arch........
A view of the Clock Tower- Big Ben (which is actually the bell inside the clock tower) from Trafalgar Square- love the double decker buses......
The kids did really well in London- Only made me scared because sometimes stepping to close to the curb is very very scary- cars sometimes catch the curb- and buses as well!

I have been really focusing on the fact that our family, my life, our ministry here......is ALL GOD's. Steven Curtis Chapman has a song called It's All Yours. In the song it talks about every street in London is yours......and another line in the title is every child in Africa is yours.....

The chorus keeps repeating - And it's all Yours God, Yours God, everything is Yours!

So I have been trying to remind myself as I am frustrated that we are getting grief from immigration, the fact that we won't be able to see our Naomi as soon as we want, that our cat is still gone (given up hope really). That everything is GODS....now that sounds really really obvious, but it is true.

You see sooo much of my stress is when I start thinking something is mine. The finances of our camp- NOT MINE, my children- NOT MINE, myself- NOT MINE, NOTHING IS MINE!!! It is God's and that is where I can find peace when I choose to remember this really simple thing. Every time I take it back and start thinking it is mine.....I stress- fret- cry- worry, but when I carry it to God....I mean mentally in my mind remember to hand it all over to Jesus......I find a peace that is really beyond all understanding.

Praise God it is NOT MINE!!! Because I am sure I do not understand God's Sovereign Plan. I know I would mess it all up big time, but knowing that MY AMAZING GOD has it under control even when I don't think so.....I know HE DOES.

IT'S ALL YOUR GOD!!!! Thank you so much for letting us be a part of your plan. Help us to remember to let go so you can take care of us!

A Familiar Place

King Charles I - statue right next to Trafalgar Square.....
The official plaque from where all mileage is measured from London- right next to the statue above......
The famous Horseguards.....for her Majesty......
A nice policeman who is guarding 10 Downing Street entrance.........he was great and talked to our kids. Of course Andrew was in heaven because he wants to be a policeman when he grows up.
The sign for 10 Downing street....wondering what the fuss is about....well 10 Downing Street is where England's Prime Minister lives. (Like our President, but just a slightly different system)
There it is that common type house with the policeman standing outside. That's it. No real fuss. Anyone know who is Prime Minister at this time? Used to be Tony Blair....now it is Gordan Brown....there now you have learned something today :)
Fun pics with the red telephone boxes you see in England...
Yep, trying to get a pic with everyone smiling and looking at a camera....almost impossible!
This is what the view is as you look down from inside the London Eye "pod". See those huge white beams.....and there are loads of HUGE CABLES too holding that thing up! Because it is literally on the water.
Hello Jonathan....
Our reason for everything.....our babes.....
See this face....
and this one......
Awww...and these.....
and this one...
What about this one.....
and that handsome smile (watch out ladies)...
Beautiful spirit inside and out......
full of fun......
And who could forget how much they are worth? Not me!

So after crying, praying, crying, praying pattern going on in our home.........we are pulling ourselves up by the boot straps. Why? Because we are in that familiar place of fighting for what is necessary. Fighting for what matters! Knowing that God has placed Naomi in our family- COMPLETELY HEALED her, and now it is our turn to deal with whatever is necessary to bring her HOME!!!!

We have been there before....with Abigail there was a possible father that showed up the day of termination of parental rights.....(actually he didn't give a toss it was his parents). We waited a grueling 6 weeks to find out if he was the biological father or not. In the end he wasn't. Then we had to go through an interview process with people saying well we will have to see if there is a family of the right skin color who is interested. All this after she had been in our home for several months already.

With Andrew......his biological mom was released from the hospital (mental ward) to her grandmother's care on the opposite side of the state.....and he was placed in the care of that county's foster care system......with out us! He was supposed to be coming home to us!!! For 7 weeks of agony we prayed and cried, and experienced such a deep depression I still remember it vividly.

With Matthew....a doctor had told biological mom that if she made it so she couldn't have any more children she would get Matthew back. Then shirtale relatives that were only using her for her free housing moved in. Making the foster care go on and on......we did however bring him home from the hospital.....but in the foster care system - NOTHING is certain until the fat lady sings...and you have officially adopted a child. Which we did 2 weeks before moving to Louisiana.

With Joshua, Sarah, & Elizabeth.......where do we start. The sheer torture of having a case that drug on for 3 YEARS!!!!! The biological parents telling them constantly they were coming home, the possibility of them going home- happened several times, them being drug through a horrible relationship between the 2 of them. A Court Appointed Special Advocate (who should have fought for the kids) took one look at us and decided we were the wrong skin color! She then FOUGHT AGAINST US THE ENTIRE LAST YEAR OF THE CASE! I was ripped apart verbally on the stand more than once by both the casa worker and the judge himself. Needless to say there were times when we shriveled up in a corner and cried and cried until we couldn't anymore. The pain was so much we almost couldn't take it any more!

With Jonathan.....well before he even came along we had our Hannah Grace who passed on to Jesus' arms. The loss of a child that you have dreamed about - thought about constantly.....was unbearable! And to have people say- well at least you didn't bring her home.....- wow! Really? Those people need to go to sensitivity training schools! Then we got caught in Ethiopia creating the Central Agency and were held up even more months before we actually were able to go. 4 1/2 months later we finally traveled!!!! We failed court 3 times!!!!!!

So now with Naomi......we will take that stand again, because we are not taking it alone. We are commanded to follow God's Will. God is with us just as He was with Moses when the Isrealites didn't want to see his face again because he went to Pharoah and then the Isrealites had to work even harder, or with Joshua taking down Jericho- he must have been laughed at for walking around the big wall, but he did it anyway- because that is what these men were told to do.

We know we have been told that Naomi is our child. When we saw her sweet face on the waiting list. When we were told her possible medical conditions. When we had to get all our stuff done asap!!! We did it- WHY? Because that was our Calling from Christ! God never says - do this because it is easy. He never told Paul that because he changed his name and now he understood who God was that life would be a piece of cake. THE OPPOSITE happened!

So we have pulled ourselves up- remembering the Facing The Giants quote- when we win we will praise HIM and when we lose we will praise Him! So join us in praising a God who is faithful. Who wants HIS CHILDREN to COME HOME! We have finished getting some great people who are our bosses, and friends to write on our behalf as well as our social worker. We will be praying for a softening of heart. Last year she questioned our ability to have a 7 th child...now she just found a loop hole to say we shouldn't have number 8. It has to do with our non traditional income. We have benefits that far outweigh our actually numbered salary. So she is using this against us. So there you have the it. She needs a seeing Jesus moment! We are praying for it!!!

We can not say Thank You enough to all of you who have commented, written, and supported us in prayer and petition! We completely feel surrounded in prayer warriors who have carried us to Jesus! Thank YOU ALL!!!!!!! The battle for souls of people far outweighs any other battle and we gladly take it on for Christ!

A blessing in the pain

This is Jason writing in one of my extremely rare postings (I think this is the second one). We got home late last night from England and of course we had no milk or fresh food in the house. This afternoon, after a really bad start to our return I told Dawn I would go to the nearest grocery store and pick up some milk and veggies. Just before leaving I took a brief look at the comments in response to Dawn's postings, both on this blog and also on face Book.

I was just amazed at how much love and kindness was being poured out on us. People have been been praying for us, but not just in that "I'll pray for you" off the cuff way, but REAL words of encouragement, REAL empathy, and REAL understanding. The pain is still there, like having a bad headache that just won't go away, but we have been reminded so BOLDLY that we are not alone. You have reminded us that our God is a God of healing and miracles, a God who has a plan for our family, and a God who cares. You have also been to us today "God with skin on" - HIS people, a true body of Christ who has hurt today when we hurt. THANK YOU!

This may sound silly, but in my heart, for me, but especially for Dawn, I wished so much that we were nearby to you all - that was one thing today I cried about as I drove to get the milk - we feel so alone because of where we live. Someone made a comment saying they wished they were close so they could come over and physically hug us and be with us. That would be ideal, but I am still so grateful for you where you are because despite the miles you have been a source of great strength to us today. I know the husbands are usually about two steps behind their wives with the blogging world, but I as Dawn's husband have seen how much she has been uplifted through reading your posts, sharing in your joys and struggles, and being blessed in return, like today, and I am so glad to know you are with us.

If the truth be told I think the husbands are pretty interested in the lives of the other blog families out there - we just don't get much of a chance to sit at the computer!!!! Most of the blogs we read are over the shoulder of our wives! Do I hear an AMEN?!!!!

We love you,
Jason & Dawn

WORSE!

We were just told that we didn't pass court....mom did not show up for court.
New court date is January 1st......I am in a severe struggle here......

URGENT PRAYER NEEDED!!!!

We are home safe and sound, but came home to a nasty letter from someone that wasn't pleasant of course, and our cat has been missing evidently for a few days now (he is an indoor cat), and a letter from USCIS that is wanting to deny our application!

Our court date in Ethiopia is TODAY!!!!! Enough stress as it is with biting our nails and wondering what will happen, praying her birth mom is able to be there- for her strength and sacrifice, that all the paperwork will be in order......

NOW EXTRA STRESS!!!!! My brain is drained from lack of sleep.....(although our children of course did absolutely wonderful on all the travels and flights!!!)....and I .....well.....don't even know where to start! Just know that you all are so wonderful and we really need some prayer warriors! We know it is not against flesh and blood!

London here we come (from Mon/Tues)

So of course these are like normal.......backwards......The above picture was taken from The London Eye- a VERY LARGE ferrise wheel where each pod holds 32 people! The building is a few shops and an aquarium, and offices I believe....right on the river Thames.
This is a view of the British Telecom tower.....fun building.
This is a view of the gurkin (not sure on spelling) building. really fun rounded shape with stripes down the side.
Parliament building (like our congress building).....with the tower that holds Big Ben which is technically not the tower or the clock, but the bell that gongs as the clock chimes.

The pod we were about to get onto......
Closer up view....I think there are over 80 Pods......
Clock tower of the Parliament.....where Big Ben gongs every hour...and there is tune that goes at 15 minutes....a little longer one at 30 past.....a little longer at 45 min....and completely just before the hour.
Our family in London! Yep....got loads of stares trust me!
All of us staring at the London Eye from the bridge.
Good view of the Clock Tower

Background building is Westminster Abbey Chapel
Different view of Westminster.....


Abigail.....on the very crowded train.......
Jonathan and mommy on the train.....
The kids as we were traveling in the rented 15 passenger to London on Monday.
It is a higher top 15 passenger which is nice, but let me tell you my hat is off to dad for driving this thing, because driving a 15 passenger on US roads, and driving it on little English roads- is a WHOLE OTHER STORY!

I will of course post bunches more pics of London and more of our travels in the upcoming week. With more lovely faces (the kids' of course).

Well, we have our last night here.....we had fish and chips- yes off a newspaper...well newspaper without the print on it. MMMMMMMM......great stuff! Yep, we have it with malt vinegar on it too and so do our kids......we have trained them well.

So tomorrow will be the big flying day- over 10 hours with 7 children - YEAH! Always wanting a challenge.

By the way the last post - a merry go round is a round about in England...and cotton candy is called candy floss here as well....so there are a couple of English words of the day :)

Naomi's court date is December 9th!!!! Almost there baby girl!

Last Saturday- family time :)

OK so this isn't even Saturday, but Sunday...he he he...well after church...where I got to speak about camp & adoption- my 2 favorite subjects!!!! We went to a Christmas carnival thing. Where of course mum & dad bought the kids cotton candy! So pop quiz....what is cotton candy called in England???
And they had reindeer there too and the kids could pet them.
Here is Clive (my brother in love) very sweet, and Elizabeth and he hit it off.
Dad, Ken (his twin brother), and some of the kids...playing Pitureka- HIGHLY recommend this game! It is great for those who can and can't read, a couple of seconds to set up, and keeps them entertained for a long time! YEAH!
Jason & his sister Juliette & her daughter Charlie
Ken and the girls playing...still....

Andrew & Brandon (cousin) playing- well....wrestling! What boys do best :)
Yes, that is Elizabeth....taking pictures of me back- with an old camera that broke, but our kids play with it. Anyone else do that? You know an old cell phone or other bits....they break...we take out the batteries and hand it to our kids. Hey, recycling program!
Look at all of those cute heads....playing....and having fun :)

Went to the park as well....and I am not sure who is having more fun the adults or the kids...hmmmm

Awww...Jonathan.....just soo cute.....
Hey, Brandon....you can see his face in this pic.....OK so another English word.....what do you call a merry go round in England???
Dad & Ken......Yep, they basically share a brain...or at least that is the family joke here:)
The boys, competing to see who can swing the highest....
Daddy & Jonathan on the teeter totter......thingy with springs?
Look at that smile!
There is Charlie working her way along the obstacle course..

Come on Auntie Juliette you can do it....yeah...and I will just sit back and watch you.....and take the pics - he he he he
Uncle Clive pushing the kids.....
There is my cutie face!
That is a cheeky face........hmmm...must run in the family!
Handing out our American/Louisiana goodies.....
Yep, candy is universally a GREAT THING!!!! Especially if it is something you can't get here in the UK.
Jonathan is warming up to Auntie....aww
The kids acting like they have known each other forever....PRICELESS!!!
This is what you call CHAOS! A meal with 16 people...and only a smallish sized kitchen/dining area.....but hey, it worked for us!

Well, last Saturday was great because this is priceless. When you don't get to see relatives for a long time....and you don't know when the next time will be......then you make the most of it! That was our plan....and we are sooo thankful for all of those here who made this possible....and we love our relatives from overseas....so much!!!

Check back in to see more of London, traveling, and Andrew who turns 8 tomorrow!!!

ONLY 4 ish day until court- December 9th!!!! Can't wait!!!!!! Praying that we will find out great news soon after, but trying not to get my hopes up. What am I saying....I love our Naomi so much it hurts....and there is no way I can not get my hopes up! I want to travel to see her- tomorrow!!!!

Thanksgiving, Matthew's Birthday, & a trip to Norwich

Happy Birthday Matthew!!! Our little boy who was less than 6lbs. when we brought him home a couple of days after he was born.......On Nov 27th turned 7!
Yummy cake mix brought over from the states, topped with home made frosting, and flake bars from the UK cut up and added on top. A flake bar is Cadbury chocolate in well a flakey type bar? Hard to describe, but they are yummy!!!
A pink double decker bus??
Yep, that's right folks! For all you pink lovers out there.........here is our daughter's dream bus!
Jonathan & daddy on the bus.....we went up to the second level.....
Grandpa & Abigail as we are walking around Norwich.
The "market" in Norwich...
very busy......
The cathedral in Norwich......did you know in England you are considered a village no matter how many people you have....and a city if you have a cathedral......crazy, but true.
Looks like the movies, but here we are...
Look at that steeple...2nd tallest in England.
Looks very crooked?? Not sure what happened here?
Yep, still looking scary to me.
The cobblestone road....oldest in the area....which in England is a whole lot older than anything in the US of course....
Here's our sign!
Here we are huddled under the sign...
The riverway in Norwich...pretty
Daddy & Jonathan....
Grandma & Elizabeth....hey...the kids got balloons when we stopped to eat at McDonalds and it was entertainment for the whole day- amazing and I love how our children are easily occupied with simple pleasures....
Us on the cobblestone road...made a funny noise when a car went by too.
Thatched roof. Yep, crazy, but here it is slate, lead, or thatch- actually the traditional. Fun to see.

our trip into Norwich...as usual my pics are a bit backwards...sorry again. Oh well.
Joshua....hello :)
Jonathan....so excited to be on the top of the bus, but he kept saying buckle, buckle, and I explained that there are no buckles on the bus you just have to trust the driver. Cute for a child that came from a country where you don't ever buckle, now he is just used to it.
Our cutie pie girls......
Matthew working on his puzzle...one of his birthday presents.
Opening presents.....
Happy Birthday our big boy!
Thanksgiving dinner topped with our paper hats..
Jonathan's first Thanksgiving dinner....what is that beside him you ask.....
It is a traditional English cracker. It is a carboard type tube covered in wrapping paper with a piece that when pulled traditionally by 2 people makes a popping noise. What is inside....a paper crown for the children of THE KING OF KINGS of course, a silly joke just for fun typed on paper, and a cheap toy (well if you get the rediculously expensive ones you can get really nice things, but hey, we are not rich!)
The man I am most Thankful for !!!!! Without whom....I have NO IDEA what I would do!
My sweet babes - you are all my favorites!!! No idea why Sarah isn't smiling?? Maybe she didn't see my camera......????

So there you have it all the pics are backwards because Thanksgiving was Thursday, then Matthew's Birthday was Friday, and after opening presents we went to Norwich, but hey...it's all good!

Praying that you all have had a BLESSED time with family and friends like we definitely have! Just wanted to tell you all how much we love your support of our family. It is sooo encouraging to get comments about our family....our blog....our life.....etc. Who knew how much fun it would be to share with others about our journey in Christ. Today in church I was able to share with the congregation about our testimony of working at the camp to spread the GOOD NEWS with all the campers, and also about adoption. Adoption is such a great view into what God really desires. For all of us to be adopted into THE ETERNAL FAMILY of GOD!!! My 2 favorite subjects in my mind go very well together. Winning people to Christ & adopting children :)

We are going to London tomorrow....so if I don't have time before we leave for London tomorrow......I will not be posting until at least Thursday or Friday? I will be putting pics of LONDON though soon.......

Got to see baby seals on Thanksgiving day!

So even though today is Thanksgiving......well since we are in England....it's a bit different. So we decided to go to Horsey- yep that is the correct name. It is along to coast of England. And there are sand dunes all over this particular coastal area.
The kids were just so amuzed that the sand was soo deep! Loved it! Here is Elizabeth showing us how to climb the sand :)
It was pretty windy so we wore hats and gloves- because of the wind. Other than that it was sunny!!! Beautiful day.....and beautiful children to go with it.....
Love that scarf!!!....... and the smile
Matthew & Joshua.....I think Matthew has reminded me at least a 100- no closer to 1,000 times that today is the last day he will be 6 and tomorrow he will be 7! How does that happen???
Here is Andrew reading about the grey seals......
the kids......
grandpa pointing out something I am sure that is riveting to grandma.....
A windmill that is on the historical listing......
And here is the beach....
Bunches of seals.......
Baby nursing....
Enjoying the sun mommy & baby.....There was between 10-15 seal pups that we saw and loads of mommies & daddies too.

At one point there were 2 males fighting.....biting each other on the neck. It got pretty bloody......and the kids were saying how it wasn't nice. I agreed, but it was interesting to see. Of course a nearby mommy pushed her baby out of the way and gave them a strict warning to get out of her area.

Funny how our lives reflect this same thing. We fight all the time....even make each other bleed- by our actions and words....hurtful things that we do. Onlookers probably say look at those two making loads of noise, hurting each other, making each other bleed- for what?

And my favorite a protective mommy! Loving her pup and saying to those around...I love my babe beware!

Praying that we would remember to not hurt each other during our time with family this Thanksgiving. That we would use words to Glorify & uplift, not cut and hurt. That we would turn the other cheek, and not cut deep. That we would heal old wounds and not create new ones.

As the last chapter I read in the Crazy Love book clearly states- You may not finish reading this chapter.....life is short....you don't have time to waste....spend it on what is REALLY most important!!!

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

Hingham.....hanging out

The road my parents live on....by the way...this is their road sign- lower to the ground than ours here....
The town sign.....(actually this is a village technically)
Georgian houses near the village center...
speed limit sign....downtown area...
The kids....sort of looking at the camera (he he he - hey at least with 7 you have a chance that some will be looking, at least one will be upset, and well you know some will be looking anywhere but at the camera)
The kids had fun looking at the sheep in a pasture are as we were walking along. Don't see many in Louisiana....

A very old church in Hingham.....still standing...I guess they knew how to build them. Great lessons for homeschooling!!!

So there you have it today we relaxed.

Praying for all those who have court dates fast approaching. Praying for those in Ethiopia right now. It is always hard to wait, to not know....but praying for all of those in that time now.

Have started reading the book Crazy Love, and I LOVE IT!!! What an eye opener!!! I highly recommend it to everyone.

Planned today for our trip into London next week....watch out London here we all come!!!! We plane on going on the London Eye, seeing all kinds of sights, going to the Tower of London- seeing the crown jewels, climbing the Monument (where the Great Fire of London started), and all kinds of bits and pieces. It will be great!

Trip to Wroxham today.....

So as usual I have posted these pics backwards....sorry....so here we are at the end of the day hanging out at grandma & grandpa's....
This was the toys they got with their allowances the other day.....Matthew loves this trumpet thing. I had one when I was younger....but never realized how much my parents probably regreted giving it to us....hmmmmm....
Abigail....trying to have some peace by herself in this smaller home.... :) Poor girl....she doesn't look worried...
Awwww....whose beautiful children are these? So cute and they did well even though it was raining...no complaints....awww......standing by the statue of a butcher.
The Broads....it is a water way town.....they have load and loads of boats around.....and in the summer this water way is completely packed!!!
Some different signs in England....this one says that it is 15 mph, and you are more than likely going to encounter lines of cars- (queues- means a line).
Our kids sitting in a blow up chair in a toy shop.
cute Elizabeth....
Here is our crew- sticking out like a sore thumb.....well....everywhere, but we are having loads of fun anyway!!!
This....we have been waiting to have for the last 4 years!!! Real fish n chips :) YUMMY!
Mum & Dad....awww...cute
speaking of cute...
and more cute......
Aww......Jonathan, Sarah, Elizabeth, & Joshua's first real fish n chips ever........
So you can't tell in this pic but we took up 1/2 of this tiny restaurant.......and the waitress....couldn't believe our family- size!!! he he he he
YUM!!!
More pics of this traditional town...
The Broads.....

Grandpa and Jonathan......
Driving to get to Wroxham.....look at the signs....that is a roundabout. 2 in a row actually...and of course a bus....there are busses and trains everywhere....
OK......another horrible pic of mum....sorry.....it was Jason's doing I promise.
Dad driving this big bus - yep they drive on the wrong side of the road and the driver is on the opposite side too....and they shift with the left hand- don't think I could get used to that part.
Look....a tom tom just like ours.....
Matthew & mommy.....
Jonathan.....
Thrilled aren't they????
English sign......look at the hedges beside the road. Very common here, scares me because you can't see as well around corners and bends....they sometimes have huge mirrors to help with that.
OOOPPPSSS the pics below were posted yesterday......oh sorry.......


Oh well.....it is the little things that I will remember from this trip....
Fish n chips in that tiny restaurant- very yummy.....seeing Jonathan and grandpa walking along looking at the birds.....seeing grandpa dancing with Sarah (with her princess crown on), Seeing grandpa laughing with Abigail as they have a silly conversation, traveling on tiny roads with this huge vehicle, having mum pretend to be a stewardess saying- your exits are here, here, and here....and before we take off we must clear the wings of ice, and check the flaps- as dad rowed down his windshield, huddling under a passageway between shops because it is raining, seeing all the ducks and swans, and pigeons.....and watching our kids as they experience daddy's culture- his homeland....and not wanting to miss any of it for the world!!!

Please pray for my cousin Heidi & her husband Mark & daughter McKenna. They were to be adopting locally....and the birth mom changed her mind after the baby boy was born. They are experiencing terrible grief. Thank you!!!

Praying you all are doing well :)

The park & Sunday hang out at the church....

Mum & Jason singing as we hung out at the church after church........
The kids singing.....with daddy & grandma.... so today after church we decided to stay & play with the kids. We also sang praises too. It was great to have the room to run around with the kids, and plenty of toys, and we also had a "picnic lunch" at the church too......it was fun.....
More playing....
rainsticks.....are just tooo fun to watch.......
Jonathan having a grumpy moment on the floor- I am sure no one ever has seen this before- he he he he he
Jason, mum, & dad.....and yes that is a YELLOW viola- very serious people here....


OK- I gave her fair warning that I would be posting this on my blog....she is just so serious about - her fun!!! Now you know why we get along so well....



I love our children's faces....I mean seriously.....so beautiful.....ok a little biased.... :)









So the pictures below are from a nearby park we went to the first full day we were here. It had this fun "ropes course" for kids.....it was great!!!








Dad tried it....and it was tough! I tried it too....and fell off....so you know....he did end up finishing it, but it is harder than it looks. Well, until you see the kids zip right through it! Crazy.

sorry.....oops - how do you deleat a pic you already uploaded???













So there you have it....wet, rainy, and cold compared to Louisiana....but we are managing to have loads of fun!!! Yesterday we went to a nearby town and did some shopping...which was fun. We bought loads of sweeties (candy- american term), and the kids got their allowance to spend which they loved.

Have a beautiful Sunday, and enjoy your day. We are making the most of our time here, and relaxing with family........love vacation.......time to slow down........and just enjoy!!! Enjoy God's gifts, family, and being alive :)

Mum & Dad's

So people have asked....so your parents must have a big home......well not exactly.....but they have a big heart, and a cute cabin out back that was built with love - by my father in love. This is a horrible picture of Matthew reading in the "living area". This is why I am not a photographer by trade....he he he...
Better picture this time....our kids do quiet time in the afternoons and have a rotation of things like reading, writing, drawing, playing, and leapster.....of which there are several variances.....like homework in there too (but hey it is vacation).
This is my mum's office where I am sitting right now. My mum loves to make crafts, and facebook, and well all kinds of computer fun too. She raises money for toddler's club, church needs, etc.
The entry hallway......
The 2nd hallway....yes they have 2 hallways that run directly beside each other?? Not sure why?? But hey, it works.
They set up 2 tables to seat us all in the kitchen for meals......
bigger view of the kitchen.......
OK so this little tiny room has a washer, dryer, dishwasher, freezer, and refrigerator........um yeah. Works for 2, but pretty tough for all of us. We are making do, and getting along fine, but the kids were amazed that they had a "toy" washer, dryer & fridge- he he he- no that is a real one, but English sized :) Tooo funny.......he he he he-
Opps pics are backwards....this is the half bath in the cabin....
This is where the boys are sleeping.......
This is where we are sleeping........
this is the outside of the cabin view....... (Sad that the first night we were here the American flags that decorated it....ripped off because of the high winds)
Different angle.......this is sooo cute & perfect for guests!!! My father in love built this for people like us to come visit- A HUGE THANK YOU!!!!! We have always loved cabins. The girls are all staying in a room in the house (They have 2 bedrooms upstairs in the house)- filled with 3 beds (wall to wall)....they have borrowed bedding, beds, pillows, car seats, etc. Just for us! We feel the LOVE!!!! Friends and family have dropped off food for our stay and other various supplies too!!! WE ARE LOVED A LOT!!!!
This is what they normally dirve....ummmm.....not really enough room for our family.......so they had to go Wright Family Style.....and rent ......
This.....a 15 passenger van......he he he he.........AGAIN- what LOVE!!!! THANKS!!! And let me tell you driving this HUGE vehicle here is OH SO DIFFERENT than at home. At home with big roads....no problem. On roads that were meant for horse and carriage.....not so much. You have the feeling of breathing in - a lot. You also have to find places to park. You can't just pull in anywhere because you will stick out way into the aisle!
This is the welcome in their window for us .....aww......
Love the signs......... :)
This is their part of the house (row housing usually has one huge building divided into several houses. They are on the end with a nice back yard, huge driveway, and garage, etc. Note all the little American flags everywhere...... Can you tell they are proud of their American Family :) Well - actually we are very international really....
Grandpa and a couple of the kids.......
Don't tell my mum I posted this pic.....she will shoot me.....or she might post a very embarassing pic of me on facebook..........couldn't resist. You can tell we are very serious people around here....
That is why we love them sooo much. They love the Lord, love us, and we are great friends. They are great role models and there is so much we learn from each other. Thanks to technology we get to communicate more and easier- with skype, facebook, blogs, e-mail, etc.

We are sooo BLESSED to have parents - both mine and my husband's that care, love us, support us, and help us to grow in our FAITH. That is a precious gift we do not take for granted!!! And when we said hey, we are wanting to adopt another child.....they both said- GREAT! Deep down they may think we are a little insane (aren't we all), but really they are excited that we love our children so deeply. In fact last time when we were gone to pick up Jonathan they stayed with our other 6 children for us! Not everyone would take on that responsibility! They really just love on our children no matter how many we have....

........and of course they are very excited about Naomi coming home soon!!!!!!! 18 days away!!!!! Count it down!!!!

Our Flight to England with 9 people :)

We're here!! Our official first day in England and we are all safe! We arrived almost on time yesterday local time (6 hours ahead of our Louisiana time) at 11:40am. My parents and a friend of theirs Peter from church, were at the airport to pick us up. The kids of course were very very excited..... (side note the pic above was taken by Jason while in the plane as we were landing it is Battersea Power Station...which oddly enough is not used anymore...and has been empty for quite some time, but nontheless???)
Here are the girls in a row of 3 with daddy to keep them in line. Look at those gorgeous faces!!!
The "older" kids in a row in between.......enjoying themselves too....
And mommy and the little boys.....hanging together in the last row of 3. That way I could keep my eye open in case there was any trouble. Of which there really wasn't any!
Can we say- Dawn keep your eyes open!!!
Open up thos little fun bits they give children :) They had a pen that had several colors of ink in it- remember those. I had one when I was younger- loved it!!! An activity book, deck of cards all in a neat British Airways pouch. Of course I don't know if they were more fascinated by the headsets, airplane footie socks, sleeping mask, and travel toothbrush with tiny toothpaste or the kids' travel pack????

Either way....between that, eating, watching "UP", and going to the cool bathroom.....it was time (actually well past time) to sleep. Loved the flight and they all just did sooo well. Thank you for all of your prayers :)
I mean really what do you expect from these beautiful children???

So I have been thinking about.......God's comfort.......in the middle of the night Jonathan got very cranky....just uncomfortable....and was trying to get comfortable. So I pulled him closer to me...into my arms. Into a safe place that is warm and soft....and he grabbed hold of me....and instantly feel back to sleep.

That is how we are as God's Children. As many of you know....we have been anxiously...impatiently waiting for a phone call about a court date. It's not that we know it won't happen, or that it won't be in God's Timing ......BUT you know. I am a control freak! I want to know and I want to know NOW. I was crushed on Monday when Julie called and said we may not know for a couple more weeks....WHAT!!!! What do you mean????

As devastated as I was.....I remember thinking that at least if we had to wait longer.....being with family (which we rarely ever see) was going to help pass the time. God pulled me back into His Arms.....and I started to give thanks for ALL that we are BLESSED with...and I relaxed.

So getting an e-mail less than a couple of hours before leaving about the fact that we had a court date!!!!!! That blew me away! We were thrilled beyond words. What a great reminder that we can relax in God's Arms. That we can trust HIM! Just like our little Jonathan trusted me on that strange airplane.

You know.....what more BLESSED can we get. We have a beautiful family, we are here visiting other family, we had a great flight, we have food, beds, and we get to spend time together without working for a while...as we wait for December 9th to come......as we get closer to bringing home our baby girl. Hey, I thought this morning (well in the middle of the night acutally) that we are actually CLOSER to Naomi while we are here. Only 2 hours time difference.....our baby is awake and playing or eating....or taking a nap......

THANK YOU LORD for our court date, and for your restful arms...even when we resist.

WE HAVE A COURT DATE!!!!

WE INTERRUPT WITH A VERY VERY IMPORTANT MESSAGE!!!!!!

WE HAVE A COURT DATE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

DECEMBER 9TH!!!!!

Only 5 days after Jonathan's was last year, and only 1 day after we get back from England! Praise God!!!!! What a great way to pass the "waiting time" - with family in England! :)

We are just sooo thrilled!!!!!!! Don't forget to check out the post below that I just did a couple hours ago......... :)

Operation: England In Full Swing!

Well in the last week we have had our weekend camp with Junior & Senior high - and it was FANTASTIC!!! We studied Spiritual Gifts :) An real eye opener to many, and such a Blessing because those that were here were eager to learn more! Yeah Jesus!!!!

As soon as weekend camp was done.....we started to huge job of wrapping up all those loose ends at home, for the camp, and packing..... Above and below is Abigail taking off a link on what used to be our LONG chain....but now in the pic a few links left.
Can you tell she is a little bit excited????
Ok so I got out all the luggage.....and this is what daddy found a few minutes later as I was busy trying to do work things.........Were they afraid we would forget them?
Or was it a great hiding place???
Or did they just know they are the cutest children in the world????
Or are our children just cute & very silly too????? By the way Abigail.....you are just growing tooo big to fit anymore. Still can't believe she is already 10! Ok....sorry mom moment.
So here is most of our luggage...in the same spot as it was last year when we went to Ethiopia!!!!!!! All packed to the brim with "stuff" for 9 people to go to England for almost 3 weeks. :) It has been 4 years since we have been back.

The last time we went was very hard for us because we were fostering Joshua, Sarah, & Elizabeth, but couldn't take them with us. It was heart wrenching!!! Because we had already made plans really early in the year well before we even knew anything about them.......we carried through, but it still ripped my heart out. They had only lived with us for 3 1/2 months.

What made it worse is they had to stay with a stranger. If you have to leave your children with someone else while they are in the foster care system - it has to be a certified foster home (unless it is a few hours). The only foster family that would do this...we didn't know. So we had planned to visit them with all of our children a few times....to get them comfortable.

Then RITA happened....you know the hurricane right after the one that hit New Orleans- Katrina....well Rita hit our territory- the other side of Lousiana & Texas too! We had to be gone for 2 1/2 weeks...no electricity here at home (and if you have ever been involved in a hurricane- it gets crazy hot right afterwards!!). Trees down all over the place especially the roads, can't get groceries any where nearby, gas is very limited if there is any available....sometimes no water either. So although we were VERY BLESSED to not have damage to our home....we were gone 3 weeks before our trip to England. So the plan of spending time with this other foster family...didn't happen.

We came back from our evacuation....bought a refrigerator (mental note to self to empty it next time - which we have). Cleaned up some of the damage around camp, and had to pack for England and leave in a matter of a few days.

So blast from the past...it was nuts. And coming back after going to England to our 3 babes we had to leave behind (even though they were not ours at the time- we were fostering) was REALLY HARD!!!

All that to say that NOW- we get to go as a family!!!!!!! YEAH!!! Joshua, Sarah, & Elizabeth have never been on a plane before.
In a couple of hours these toy bags for the flight will be filled (I have already put ziploc snack baggies in each with some yummy snacks for the flight). And in case you haven't picked up on it yet- We are Very Excited!!!! We will spend a majority of the time with Mum & Dad (my parents in love). We love their church family, there little village they live in near Norwich. We will spend a couple of days in London as well, and do some road trips I am sure.

We are fortunate that they are renting a 15 passenger for us all :) Easier travel. They are also coordinating to borrow beds, car seats, and have been stock piling on the food. As you can imagin this is a big deal because you know a family of 9 is a lot of prep work! Thank God our family is Wonderful!!!! Their home is not big, but they do have a "cabin" in their yard that has electric heat, bathroom, and enough space for some beds. My father in love is a builder (or US terms a carpenter) so he has put a lot of work into the "cabin" over the last several months in preparation for our stay. Thanks Dad!!!!!
So just a side note....I decided to do something different with the girls' hair....sometimes I get stuck in a rut. So here it is........


Are they cute or what??? Of course my opinion is a bit biased :)

We will be posting from England....so check back for pics from our fun trip!

Although we had really prayed and hoped that we would already have a court date.....God's timing will be perfect, and hey- it would make a great on vacation surprise!!!!

So I better get moving......there is still a lot to do and we leave for Houston (a 3 - 3 1/2 hour drive from here soon). Our plane leaves at 8:35 pm tonight and we arrive in England at 11:25am local time. England is 6 hours ahead of our time zone here in Louisiana.

The flight is 9 hour flight! Pray for us :) We are excited and this is our "normal" so although it seems huge for some, we just think of it as OUR FAMILY!!! Just think of the stares we will get at the airport....he he he he.....I'm laughing just thinking of it! It is a great way to witness to others about God, adoption, and His Love for all of us! :)

Sometimes Christmas is like......

Thinking this is what is all about....you know the tree decorated pretty, and all those presents you will get............
When really it is
about all the wonderful people you
get to experience life with...
Those beautiful faces...
you see everyday
but really take a closer look........
I mean- really a deep look into their eyes
Ok maybe too close...he he he
Just kiddin' For real take a look at those around you everyday
How much do you know about them?
Do you know what they really want for Christmas?
How about who they really are?
What is their true personality?
Are you a real friend to them?
Do they make you laugh, cry, and smile- all at the same time?
So sometimes Christmas is like- making sure you know what the REAL deal is. We hear this all the time, we preach it, we hear sermons on it, we know it in our hearts, we hear it from others......but do we live it?

So the REAL DEAL is that this Christmas season ( I know it is a ways off yet, but preparing for it should be year round)......look deeply into the hearts of others around you. Get to really know who they are, know who God created them to be. Know them- because they were created by God!!!

What JOY can you share with others this Christmas season? How can you give someone a glimpse of who God is? Remember the journey to Christmas is about people and God showing us the real love so we can share that with others....

***OK Disclaimer. I have already had people say - WOW already- Christmas talk? OK - we have set up our tree BECAUSE we are leaving for England soon. Hey, doesn't bother me!! I love it!!! I love the song by Nicole C. Mullen "365" - she sings - I would love for Christmas to stay 365 days.......

Other things we do......
We don't open presents on Christmas! There I said it. It is true...we open them up anytime in November- January. It changes from year to year...sometimes during Advent, sometimes afterwards. Just not that important when - because the gifts are for fun & the anticipation of that fun is what makes it great.

Why? We don't do Santa. Yep, it is true. Some people may never read my blog again. It's all good. I have had people literally drop their jaw and say- you are crazy. Well, that has happened several times...not all of them to do with this comment. Hey, I have heard people use Santa as the real St. Nick - and that is a great idea. We just don't do Santa. Our kids know we are the gift givers and that we do it because God has given us them as our gifts to share things with.

We also give gifts that are generic. I mean gifts that benefit everyone. They don't get a gift "for them". We give games- so we can play together, we give books- that we can read together, we give Christian movies that we can enjoy together, we give lincoln logs or legos or other toys we can use together. So the focus is not on what one person gets it is how we get to share this with each other.

Wanted to share some fun books that really tell about Christmas.......

Granny Mae's Christmas Play by Bob Hartman Funny story that is fun to do yourself too! Granny Mae has everyone in the family be a part of her story....

God Gave Us Christmas- by Lisa Bergren good for little kids

The Little Spider- by Cindy Morgan made up story of how a spider helped Mary, Joseph, & baby Jesus escape the soldiers.....cute

Clopper The Christmas Donkey & Clopper & the Night Travelers- by Emily King Cute stories told from the donkey's point of view.

The Christmas Miracle- by Mary Beth & Steven Curtis Chapman about the true meaning of giving which has nothing to do with the perfect gift....

The Pine Tree Parable- by Liz Curtis Higgs (there is a series and they are all great) this one is about giving at Christmas

Punchinello and the Most Marvelous Gift- by Max Lucado I LOVE THIS ONE- it talks about what to give God - The Maker on "Maker's Day". Really leads in well to talking about your gifts and how God wants - us.

Series of books: They tell about how these things came to be :) Great for younger & older children!! We love learning more about the traditions- from a Christian perspective. Really opens your eyes and allows you to know more about why we have these traditions.
The Legend of the Christmas Stocking- by Rick Osborne
The Legend of St. Nicholas- by Dandi Daley Mackall
The Legend of the Christmas Tree- by Rick Osborne
The Legend of the Candy Cane- by Lori Walburg

So there you have it. Love hearing more about your favorite song, tradition, or books about Christmas :)

A couple of notes: Great news in that in a few hours we start our weekend camp for Jr/Sr high kids - YEAH!!! We will be talking about Spiritual Gifts- please pray that their hearts would be open to what God has to say to them!

Not so good news on the adoption front- we were told it could be at least 2 more weeks before we even hear about a court date. No good. Sometimes I am ok, and others I feel like I could just curl up and bawl my eyes out (and do). I miss Naomi sooo much. Again...I have never been good at waiting........and yet we have adopted almost 8 children....crazy!

Have a great weekend- we will!!!!

Christmas- For REAL! :)

So one of our Christmas traditions is that everyone gets to pick out an ornament for Christmas. Mine is one that has a star, manger scene, and the word HOPE. (Just so you know that we pick out ornaments that are usually $3-$5 NOT expensive ones- Hobby Lobby has tons that are fun and cheap :)
Jason's is a red mixer....
Abigail picked a horse...
(oops out of birth order) Joshua picked a tiger in a little car with a football uniform.
Andrew picked a football snowman....
Matthew picked a speeding train (not just any ol train)....
Sarah picked a candy cane looking striped lollipop....
Elizabeth picked a ballerina....
Jonathan picked a snowman.....
This is Naomi's - as we think about our baby this Christmas and the fact that we pray we get to meet her in person soon..............
Jonathan got to put on the star this year.....since this is his first official Christmas with us this year....his first time decorating......
Here is our tree....not fancy, but fake, simple- and full of memories of family time!
One of the things we do for Christmas to remind of the REAL Christmas....is to have Mary & Joseph "travel" until Christmas Eve.....
Here is another set.....
Here are some empty mangers......with animals......
Another waiting stable scene....
And another..... (hmmm....don't think I got them all matched- ooops) Anyway this is one of the things we do to have an active roll of the REAL Christmas- we move Mary & Joseph around until Christmas Eve....Then on Christmas Day after we read the Christmas story the kids get to each put in a baby Jesus into the manger scenes.......
**We also have the wise men travel around after Christmas.......they find the manger scenes on Jan 6th! We talk about the fact that Jesus was probably 2 by the time the wise men came....and read about it in the Scriptures and why they brought the gifts...etc.
If you have never seen this.....we bought it last year....and love it. It is called What God wants for Christmas....the 7 weeks before Christmas or the week before (whichever you prefer) you read a couple of pages from the book, some scripture, and open a "present". It is a powerful tool especially for the younger children. I won't ruin it for you what the last gift is, but let's just say it is the best!!!

I was sad to see on other's blogs that they get sad when they see Christmas stuff go up the day after All Hallow's Eve.....well.....although I do not like the commercialism.......I LOVE CHRISTMAS!!!!!!! Why wouldn't we as Christians get really excited- What a perfect opportunity to tell others the real reason for the "holiday season". What a perfect way to describe our faith and why we are sooo excited.

So the above are some things we do... I will be sharing more as the season continues.......

If you have a favorite Christmas tradition or way to witness to others or your family during the season....or a Christmas story.....let me know. I love sharing about how we as Christians keep CHRIST in CHRISTmas.

Happy 1st Birthday Naomi!

TODAY is a very SPECIAL DAY!!!! IT IS OUR PRECIOUS NAOMI'S BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!
Since our cutie pie and daughter & sister of our hearts can't be with us today.......
We decided to celebrate anyway! We wanted to laugh and play and celebrate like she were here with us! It is important- because it is our reminder that we are SOOO THANKFUL that she was born. We are sooo thankful that her mother made the choice to give her life. We are Thankful that God CREATED HER LIFE!!!
So today while our children sang Happy Birthday.....we remember Naomi's biological mother. That she is giving her beautiful daughter to be a part of our family 1,000's of miles away. But, if you look closely at our knit together family....you will see a bit of all the wonderful families that are now a part of all of us.
You can see it in their beautiful faces, in their laugh, in their personalities, and in our family story that has been written by our Creator :) So today we give THANKS for our youngest daughter who turns one ...... Thank you Lord for all 8 of our precious babes that you have knit together in the womb....and then brought into our hearts and home!
Couple of pics of our fun with England week of homeschooling- note the British Flag & British Airways plane......just like the one we fly out on in 9 Days!!!! To go see part of our family heritage - ENGLAND :)
We are soo excited to see family & friends & all the history of England :) It's such a bummer (he he) to have a great excuse to go overseas. We have a very multicultural family- some from Iowa, some from Louisiana, one from England, some from Ethiopia- What a great mix of wonderful people in our family. Ok so I am a little tiny bit biased :)

Abigail's 10th Birthday

OK so our little bit of sunshine doesn't have the best morning face...........
But once she wakes up and pet the cat (Sylvester) who loves Abigail and mommy more than anyone else in the house......she is ready to go....
Of course the first thing you do on your birthday is open presents & cards :)
My girl loves some lip gloss.....
A pink Bible case (of course it is pink- everything is for her)
And a Sea World trainer Barbie.......a book, cards, and lots of love :)
Not hard to see by looking at her face- she is our true "Source of Joy" which is what her name means!
I mean look at that face- you can tell this child is beautiful on the outside, but you can see right through to her heart- which is very beautiful as well!!!!!! The scarf- a home knitted gift from a church friend- She LOVES it!
And.....a girl after my own heart- she loves cheesecake!!! YUMMY!!! So I made her a cheesecake :)
Look at the joy of life..... So my top 10 things I love about my girl....
10) She loves pink (even though I used to love pink....time has changed me and I now love green) and looks great in it :)
9) She loves pets just like me- animal shelter ones, ones that need homes & love
8) She takes her time to do things well
7) She enjoys the little things in life
6) The fact that it wouldn't matter to her if we just gave her a home made card or 30 gifts....she doesn't really care about material things.... :)
5) Her excitement when she learns something new- love her expressions
4) The fact that she loves to kid around, and roll her eyes when mommy & daddy say silly things...or when she fake cries and is sooo good at it others believe her and think we are the worst parent in the world- and then she laughs at us for it.....cheeky girl
3) The fact that she loves be a big sister to 7 other siblings....and would be happy with more children if it means that more children would have a family.
2) The fact that she doesn't mind being last or putting up with doing more work when she is paired with a younger sibling that doesn't do her fair share.
1) That she loves the Lord with all her heart. She really loves reading and being read to from Scripture...and learning more about prayer. I am inspired by her- Thank You Abigail!!!!
Our friends we went to play with at the park....
fun with the wagon time......

Bubble fun is always a hit- note the square bubble in the middle- yep - really cool!!!
Mommy & Sarah going for a ride.....
I have to tell you a little bit more about my oldest daughter. Tonight while I was blog reading....she came up to me and handed me a brown paper sack that she had colored on. She said it was a gift for me & daddy. I opened it up. Inside there was a card - that said she loved mommy & daddy....and then I noticed at the bottom of the bag was some change.

When I asked her what that was- she said it was her gift to bring Naomi home. I am in tears.....knowing how much our children care about each other....how much they truly deeply wish for every child to have a home. How much they want their sister home as much as we want our daughter home.

Our Abigail is not perfect, but she is a shining example to me and others of Jesus. Thank YOU GOD for this precious gift of life that you choose to give to me!

Remembering our first meeting with Jonathan

OK so even after knowing that I should go in reverse order with the pics....I just forget.

So the above pic is my proudest moment........Jonathan is in my arms and isn't screaming after 2 minutes.

So here is a play by play since my pics are out of whack. He wakes up from his nap (from last post)...he screams- probably thinking who are you???

His special mom gets him to calm down and I help put on his shoes.

We walk with him to the swings....he is not impressed........

Then we give him a gummy- food makes everything better- right? NOT in this case...he just holds it in his hand making it hard to swing really.

We talk to him....sing to him.....still not impressed.....eventually he gets off and walks away.....

I for some reason run up the little hill in my sandals and break my foot (didn't know it was broken until we came home, but I did know it hurt- A LOT)

We sit on the curb....bring out the bubbles......that is ok, but don't come to close please

Then he takes Jason's hand......awwww...(not mine? what is that???)

Jason picks him up....no problems...... (I am extremely jealous!!!!!!- really like a big monster of jealous feelings come out!!!)

I try to hold him......he screams............one of the wonderful children at HH scoops him out of my arms and takes him to his special mother.......(in my brain I am thinking- noooooooo.....but I know they were trying to help)

After which I follow closely and she is in the toddler indoor playroom with some other cutie pies. Even though I am screaming on the inside from pain in my foot...I am determined to make this child love me! (he he don't be fooled we have adopted 6 times prior to this, and I know it can't be forced, but you know that instinct inside wants bonding to happen :)

Once next to his special mother- he avoids me like the plague......I stand away from him- snap a few pics, and play with the other children a bit. He picks up a ball......and his special mom- who is very wonderful!!!! Plays with him....and moves closer to me slowly. When he throws her the ball she then gives it to me and says "mommy, mommy"...he was still not impressed, but it helped that she was telling him this lady is fine.

Dinner time.....he still doesn't want me....even though I have his source of food. A boy comes to help, and he keeps giving me the food to give to him, but it doesn't work. He doesn't want any from me!

So I finally after what seems like forever get him to take my hand. Smarter than before I take him around the other side of HH where there are no kids....and then after talking to him for a few minutes....I pick him up........he cries, but there is no one to rescue him....and as I sing and talk to him some more....he stops (probably only surrendering because he has no one to help him :) Poor boy.

Then they offer an official tour of HH....and I carry him the whole time...I am not letting him down for anything in the world. You couldn't have paid me any amount of money to put him down even though my foot was in sooo much pain that if it wasn't for the sheer joy of holding Jonathan.....I would be wiggin out.

**Side note: Jonathan is now a mommy's boy through and through.......which actually happened a couple of weeks after being home.

I love this picture of Jonathan and daddy....even if the green monster of jealousy is roaring inside me at this time :)
Pointing to the gate of Hannah's Hope....
The first time Jonathan holds daddy's hand.....awwwww (he deserves that after the first time of changing Andrew- he got peed on- he he he he.....)
Hey, you...the strange man who woke me up.....want to see my bubbles???
Hey, you make those things come out....they are kind of cool.......they float and then I pop them. I kind of like this game.

So there you have it....our first crazy meeting..............Can't wait to experience our first meeting with NAOMI soon too :)

Tips & Packing for Ethiopia

So these pics are in reverse order....sorry....sometimes I forget. Anyway, this is me making another peace offering trying to get Jonathan to not run away from me :)
I sat down next to him, and slowly got a little bit closer.......
Yeah, clenched in his left hand he has a gummy.....yeah......he thought it was something to hold and not eat- now he knows differently :) He was totally avoiding any eye contact with me at all.
Here I am talking with him, singing to him, and he says- yeah right lady I don't know who you are, but you are free to go away now....thanks.
Yep, that pic from the last post where he is sleeping....hew woke up and instantly started crying! Yeah- who are you? Why are you here? I love my special lady who takes care of me- please leave! Bye,bye.....

So I haven't blogged for a few days..not that unusual, but I did have to take our Joshua into have surgery yesterday. He has had a herniated belly button since before he came to us at age 3. But due to the foster care thing, and the uncertainty of the situation that went of for 3 years.......

So a few weeks ago he was wrestling with Andrew (big surprise)- he said it was hurting him. So we made an appointment, and we did the surgery. So it was a long day involving me getting up at 4:20am to be at the hospital by 6am......getting home around 4:30pm.....and my boy had a hard time especially when they said I couldn't go with him any further.....really threw him for a loop. He is my baby boy- yes I have 4 of them. He bonded to me as we had to go through the trials of 3 years in foster care, and is very attached! So even though we had talked about it, went over everything, it was scary...can't say I blame him at all.

He is doing pretty well, but hasn't gotten his HUGE appetite back yet......and was upset that I wouldn't let him go out to play today....because I know he would try to climb trees, jump off the playground, etc.

So I had a request for packing & travel tips.....so here is a list....which I may add to as I will talk about our last trip. Note I am doing this to pass the time, because as mentioned in the last post - I am homesick for Naomi!!!!!

1) Take the advice of packing a little bit of everyone who is going, and your child or children's clothes in EVERY piece of luggage including your carry ons!!!!! Yep, some of our travel buddies didn't do this and they only had carry ons until a couple of days later. No fun, but hey at least that gave our group the opportunity to share as a Body Of Christ what we had. So that was wonderful, but I am sure not fun for them. In our group of 6 families - 3 had lost luggage!

2) Take those comfort foods- if you like a certain drink- like MT DEW (for me) put it in the checked luggage. Even just a few plastic bottles - which I recommend for those times when your luggage gets thrown around. Not that it happens....he he he. Take some candies, granola bars, etc. Because that will keep you going if you are a picky eater or your body is going through culture shock.

3) Take paper- to journal....even if you don't normally do this. You will want to because this is for your child for you, and for sharing with others later.

4) Take some sleeping med of some kind. I have gone to England a number of times....where there is a 6 hour difference and not had that many problems. But when you are in a time zone with even more hours difference, and the call to prayer happens at 5am, and there are dogs barking, etc. You will have major sleep deprivation. So take something- I hate taking any meds ever, but this is more of a necessity.

5) Take meds for you and your child(ren). Like cold meds, advil, tylenol, anti- diar., tums, anything else you might use- even if not often!!! Oh yeah, on the packing list, and I somehow forgot, but again a travel buddy was able to help us out with cold med for Jonathan. I will be bringing a prescription for Naomi if at all possible too, because Jonathan needed one, and we didn't have anything.

6) Take a list of those you want to get gifts for (don't forget yourself too)- those who have helped you along the way, those looking after children at home, future gifts for your child as they grow up....etc. Maybe I will do a post on items we brought home etc...that could give you ideas. Everything there was really reasonable!!!!

7) Of course you will be taking plenty of items with you for donations!!!! We have already started looking for sales on stuff needed :) Ask your church, sunday school classes, children's classes, youth dept, co-workers. etc.

8) Take games to play, and things to do with the person/people who are with you, as well as things to do with your child.

9) Your Bible of course- since this is a Spiritual Journey that requires you to be armed!!! I'm just saying that this is a Spiritual Battle against a force that is not going to be happy that you are brining a child into a home where they will be loved, prayed for, brought up in the Word, taught about Christ, and given a hope and future in GOD!!!! So prepare your heart and mind for that. God will use this trip in an amazing way to teach you sooo much....take that opportunity! I may be hard, but sooooo worth it.

10) Comfortable clothes. You don't have to impress others, just be you. (without spaghetti straps or that kind of thing of course.)

11) We put a few movies, and tv shows on our IPOD, as well as many pics of our kiddos at home. Helped me because I just don't leave my babes- ever!!! So it was sooo hard being gone so long. Plus my worship music brings me a lot of comfort.

12) Simple things of course- your alarm clock, toothbrush, paste, hair stuff, soap, etc. All of those personal items you usually pack anytime you go somewhere.

13) Camera & loads of extra batteries & Video as well!!!!!!!

14) Hand sanitizer & those sanitizing wipes for cleaning everything....because you can't trust the water to do that.....

15) I would also recommend bringing at least some bottled water in your checked luggage- for the first evening as you want to brush your teeth before going to bed, or just have something to drink, or as you get up and want something before you are acclimated to the whole hotel yet.

I would also write down a list at least a few weeks prior- even if you aren't a list person. That way as you think of things you may want or need while you are there....you aren't panicking at the last minute when your nerves are all over the place :) Then your brain will definitely get lost in the shuffle.

I would recommend a luggage weigher thing- you can get one at Target for $10. That way you know what luggage is overweight and can change things around as needed.....although someone on the listserv for AGCI said something about a letter? I think it was for donations that you are taking- so you can get fees waived etc. GREAT IDEA!!

That's all for now......... :)

HOMESICK!!!!

10 months ago.......we met our sweet angel- Jonathan Caleb Wright. This is the first time we saw him. And our lives have been changed forever because of this sweet boy! You see most people would say that - you already have 6 children why have more? Answer- we felt God calling us to have more children. And when I say Calling- I MEAN a deep yearning put in our hearts for another child from God.

So we saved....planned.....applied.....did loads of paperwork....prayed.......saved.....planned.....did more paperwork......prayed some more........and then we got the sheer privilege of seeing this beautiful face!

How has he changed our lives forever- so many ways.....seeing his giggle, his sweet smile, his excitement, his cute shyness around others, his fun voice as he tugs at my hand saying "come on mommy"....and takes me to the toy room to play or get another book to read. I could list 100's of ways this sweet boy has stolen my heart and that was before I even saw him. If I could give every child in the world two things it would be a family and food. After that things blossom....those two things are sooo necessary.

Did our children complain knowing that there would be another child demanding attention, steal their toys, etc. NO- instead THEY BEGGED for another sibling to love!! They couldn't think of anything better!!!!! Neither could I - another child to love, cherish, teach to play, go on hikes with, see them wonder at spider's webs, read Stuart Little too, tuck in at night time, patch his owies up when he needs it, give loads of hugs and kisses too, teach them how to love his family, the Word of God, and others around the World, watch him grow into a man of God.....and so much more!

Can you tell that even though we have 7 children now.....my heart is longing for our next child. Right now she is being cared for by the wonderful people at Hannah's Hope. We have met them we know how loving they are.....but I AM HOMESICK!!!!!
Homesick for .......
unpacking at 3am........... (oh yeah- that is my Mountain Dew on the desk in the corner!!! Hey our agency said to bring comfort foods :)
Homesick for being in a land of beautiful people, culture, and Mountains.....
Being a crazy person- having to unpack- (diapers for a little one) before going to bed......
Being this joyful and this tired.........at the same time!!!!!!
For a plane (maybe not this one exactly).........to take us to see our sweet girl!!!!

I am HOMESICK because I love Naomi soooooo much it hurts sometimes. As a mother or father there is something sooo hard about having a child that is out there that you can't yet hold. To know that YOU NEED THEM & THEY NEED YOU, but you can't be together right now. Maybe not for a few months from now...........

There is a longing so deep and wide in my heart.............for ALL our children........and can only be filled by them.

Until then......we are playing, reading, schooling, loving, praying, and praising God for our little miracle that we will eventually get to bring home......................(couldn't be soon enough)!

Praises all around, and more cheap tricks :)

OK no idea what has happened to blogger???? But my pictures are all gobbly goop- loads of numbers, letters, etc. But I pre-posted and the pics were there. Sooooo I will try to write about the pics, but if they aren't in order or something...just use your imagination. Sorry....

So some random pics of our kids at the park because I know you all love seeing our beautiful children :)

Huge praises because we had 3 AGCI families that passed court!!!! Yeah!!!!
Praying still for baby Zek as he is still in the hospital with pneumonia....no fun for mom and dad back home!

HUGE PRAISES FOR THE CAMP......BUT I WILL HAVE TO SHARE MORE LATER, BECAUSE I AM NOT SUPPOSED TO TELL UNTIL SOME OTHER PEOPLE HAVE HEARD IT.....TUNE IN LATER FOR MORE INFO!

OK so as you can tell from the above pics we had some fun making some home made laundry soap. I was soooo nervous thinking it would be hard, and we would probably mess up the first time, but it was super easy!!! YEAH!!!

Here is the recipie we used.......
1/3 bar of Zote soap- plain wrapper kind of thing. Zote is a pink bar that smells like citrenella candles, but it works and your laundry doesn't smell like it anyway. We got it at Market Basket (local grocery store).
1/2 cup Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda (55oz box) Found at grocery store as well.
1/2 cup 20 Mule Team Borax- 76 oz box found at Wal-Mart.

You will also need a grater or processer of some kind....3 qt sauce pan.....spoon, 2 empty gallons of milk or other container that can hold 2 gallons.

So you bring 6 cups to a boil.....while you are doing that
grate the 1/3 bar of Zote soap- really easy because the soap is really soft!

after you are done and you water is boiling...add the Zote and stir until it is dissolved....

then add you 1/2 cup of washing soda and 1/2 cup of Borax. Stir until completely dissolved.

Then put in a bucket and add water until you have 2 gallons all together.....easy :)

Pour with funnel into containers. *note you will have to shake as you use because it is a gel/thick fluid. But Jason has approved and if you knew how picky he was - you would know that this is a big deal!

COST- hardly anything .01-.02 a load (we have front loaders so you only use 1/4 cup, if you have a regular machine you use 1/2 cup). The Borax is $2.98, A & H was $2.75, and Zote was $0.44 for the whole bar. So really cheap and easy :) Yep, we will be doing this from now on! You can also use all of these products for other cleaning as well....stay tuned in the future we will be trying those too. As soon as I am done using some store bought products that is.....

So there another way we "afford" our large family. Hey, more pennies we can save so we can give more, and save more for our adoption. YEAH!!!

Tag you're it! Here goes.......

The above picture is one we took at the zoo this past week, and if you notice the place we are looking at- Ethiopia where our precious Naomi is right now..... :)

I was tagged...you are supposed to answer in one word, but hey, I am not perfect :)

1. Where is your cell phone? purse
2. Your hair? straight
3. Your mother? FUN
4. Your father? Trucker
5. Your favorite food? pizza
6. Your dream last night? Naomi :)
7. Your favorite drink? Mt. Dew
8. Your dream/goal? Save Orphans :)
9. What room are you in? dining room
10. Your hobby? Children
11. Your fear? something to happen to my children (cheated)
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? God's Will
13. Where were you last night? HERE!
14. Something that you aren’t? Serious
15. Muffins? Blueberry
16. Wish list item? Naomi- home!
17. Where did you grow up? Eagle Grove, IA
18. Last thing you did? movie
19. What are you wearing? pj's
20. Your TV? on
21. Your pets? 5
22. Friends? true
23. Your life? Wonderful
24. Your mood? Happy
25. Missing someone? NAOMI!!!
26. Vehicle? 15 passenger :)
27. Something you’re not wearing? perfume
28. Your favorite store? Wal-Mart (simple person)
29. Your favorite color? Green
30. When was the last time you laughed? today
31. Last time you cried? yesterday
32. Your best friend? Jason
33. One place that I go to over and over? Lake Charles, LA
34. One person who emails me regularly? All God's Children Int.
35. Favorite place to eat? Texas Roadhouse

Watch out bloggy friends you may be next :)

A Child that listened to God..............

Jason & Dawn,

We received your letter and found your story so touching. The world needs people like you that offer a life to these children. We think it is absolutely wonderful that you guys are adopting another child and would like to do what we can to help you.

I wanted to pass on this story to the both of you b/c it touched my heart. When I received the letter last week, my daughter Ella (five yrs old) saw it on the counter and asked me about it - who was in the picture, etc... I immediately began to explain to her that you both had adopted these 7 children b/c they did not have parents and they needed a family. I went on to say that it is extremely expensive to travel to Africa to adopt but that you guys were determined to adopt lil Naomi (she looked at her picture on the letter) and offer her the experience of having a family and all the blessings that go along with it (what your 7 other children have come to experience). I told her that you guys were praying and asking for help from your church family to help with your expenses and she immediately looked up at me and said “I want to send them some of my money so they can give Naomi a home”. Of course – I immediately began to cry b/c it touched me that she would think that way being so young. It is so difficult sometimes to know if how you are raising your children is really “working” and that was the first time I actually realized that my husband & I must be doing something right. I was very pleased and overjoyed that she wanted to give to your cause (and give her own money). Enclosed you will find the envelope that she wrote to you guys it says “I hope your new daughter likes her new home. Ella goes to ICCS. Love” Those are her words and expressions that she wanted to share with you. She went in her piggy bank (enclosed you will see the picture of her with her bank and your letter) and pulled out what she wanted to send which was $12. I know it is not much but it is filled with joy and happiness of a 5yr old. We have donated as well to make a total donation of $50 – I wish we could give more but unfortunately I lost my job in June and am still unemployed.

I hope this will help you guys some – your letter was very touching. Thank you for allowing me and my family to be a part of your adoption and also to experience how Christ works his magic in our little ones lives. It truly is amazing.

Good luck and we look forward to seeing Naomi Caroline in church.

Love,

Kendra, Chris, Ella (5 yrs) & Cora (19 mths) Diedrich

PS - We sent a letter to church family, our family, friends etc. Explaining that we would love prayers, support, money- to help bring Naomi home! We also sent a pic of our family so they could put that somewhere to remember our journey- to pray for us.

I can truly say that I was bawling when Jason read the letter to me. Not because of sadness, but pure JOY! When Jesus said- a child shall lead us- THIS IS WHAT HE MEANT!!!!!! When a child can see a need and does something about it........then we as adults should follow that lead because that is GOD INSPIRED! Not just to give (us) money, but to give to GOD whatever is needed for God's Glory.

Ella- you have touched our family in a way I can not explain, and I can't wait to bring Naomi home to meet her wonderful CHURCH FAMILY :) THANK YOU!!!!

God's Blessings are HUGE!

So the above flowers are from my best friend, the man who has journeyed with me on this crazy road for over 12 years. The man I am excited to be able to spend the rest of my life with! The man who is the best father in the world, and spiritual leader in our home! I love my husband and this past week he reminded me of the fact that he loved me to. Not just with flowers, but with the long hours he pours into the camp ministry, with his love for the kids, with his leadership in our home spiritually guiding & nurturing our children in their walks with Christ, with his patience with me- even when it is undeserved! This is a fantastic Man Of God :) Thanks Baby!!!
Not wanting to be outdone by his father this is a flower picked from a tree outside our home by Matthew.....awwwwwww.....
Here he is.....
and Joshua....
Ooops messed up the order, but this is a pic of all of our kids trying on hats & gloves- pre trip to England preparedness! Because we are whimps- I mean southerners- from Louisiana we need these as we head off to England next month. Oh yeah.......7 children - one 9 hour flight....yep. Trying to prepare- the key word- trying! Can't wait to see all of Jason's family again :)
Awww....Abigail & Jonathan. You can see he isn't spoiled or anything by his siblings (yeah right!). So Jonathan.....just wait until Naomi gets here......yep we will have to deal with sibling rivalry - again :)
Here is Elizabeth petting our indoor dog- Teddy. Awww...
Sarah playing the drama queen- she is really great at it!
Andrew & Sarah being silly of curse
The kids messing around after dancing to the new David Crowder CD!

So other than obviously having a fantastic husband, wonderful children, .....we also have a wonderful church family. Let me clarify what I mean- our church family to me is not only those that go to our church (whom we love very much!!!), but also those out there who are a part of The Church! You have all supported us with wonderful gifts in these past couple of weeks- we are now up to almost $2,000!!!!! We are blown away with your love and the love of God in you - that you would help us bring our baby girl home!

When you have Blessings like that from The Church! YOU ARE BLESSED INDEED! So a shout out to all who are making a reality of bringing our Naomi HOME! You are on our hearts and I know Naomi is feeling your love for her. In fact we got sooo excited today that we started an impromptu praising in our home for all of those who have been praying for us, donating to us, and supporting us in this adoption!!!!! May God Receive the Glory for the Great Things He Has Done!

Cleaning up & pruning...

OK so here is the ugly truth! You can't ignore it any longer. It is staring at you....begging for your attention. Just like our sins do from time to time....they blurt out to us- I'm here and you can't ignore me any longer....you better take action- or else!

So you carefully piece by piece take your broken heart and life....put them all back in order. Some things you have to throw away. Clear out- PRUNE! Well, let me tell you there is a lot of pruning to be done with 9 people under one roof! It has to start with- you guessed it- the parents. You see when our hearts are in the right place we are better able to help prune carefully our children's hearts.

So the real story - our children had gotten a bit well.....lax let's just say. They started breaking toys, shoving toys in places they don't belong, to just letting our nice and neat toy room get out of control! So I took all the toys (minus the books) and dumped them out on the floor. Every single thing (I went through the stuffed toys later too), but it is all here. Now don't be deceived remember we have 7 children in this house right now...so that is a lot of toys over time, and some of our toys are 8 years old at least. The truth still remains though that this was a real mess. Not just of the toy room, but of the heart. Our children were taking things for granted. Thinking it was no big deal, but is it?

I think so. When we who are spoiled in life (yes you- if you have more than a one bedroom house you are spoiled...if you have electricity...you are spoiled...if you have more than one meal a day or any meals...you are spoiled- ME INCLUDED!) start thinking that all our stuff - isn't enough or isn't good enough....that is when our hearts are not where God needs them to be.

Over the last few months we have been doing some real soul searching. What can we give up to pay for this adoption....for another child to have a safe, warm, home with food to eat and lots of love. Pretty important goal! We have been giving up things that are "normal" for us, and pruning our hearts. Now it was time to prune our children's hearts too.

So while this mom was cleaning up the toy room- getting rid of trash...getting rid of things not needed....organizing what we have, and giving everything a place so that we can keep our things nice and in working order....our kids had to go a full day without toys! Yes, the full day! I wanted them to appreciate what they had. Even Jason thought I had lost my mind. You would be surprised what took place. Our children played made up games with blankets and pillows. They talked to each other more. They sang songs and made up songs. They did go a little crazy, but overall- it changed them and me.
You see...the next night as I was checking to make sure all the toys were indeed picked up...I almost missed a sign from our Joshua. Look closely......
Here it is. A sign "daddy mommy sarah joshua I Love You". That is a huge sign! A sign that picking up toys was a privilege not a right. A sign that my children had gotten the message of how we take care of whatever it is that we are given- big or small. Just think I could have just cleaned it all up like I have before and went about my business, but nothing would have changed. Now I feel like things can change- so encouragement to parents- don't let things like this pass you by!
Because when you are taking care of yourself- pruning, and pruning your children. Everyone is a lot happier. We can learn so much from each other.
So my note to God would go like this "Hey, it's me Dawn....thank you for loving me even when I am in constant need of pruning. Thank you for the many Blessings I don't deserve. Thank you for the many many many miracles in my life! I love you God!"

What would your note to God be? Are there other things you can think of that need some pruning? How can you do this? Does anyone else have ideas about how to keep "stuff" from getting in the way?

Naomi is back at HH!!!!

So just a quick post..... We just got a call from our agency saying Naomi is back at Hannah's Hope (All God's Children transitional home in Ethiopia)!!!!!!!! She is doing well- couldn't ask for better news than that!!!!!

Also, Sarah's infection seems to be going away as well!

This mommy & daddy are feeling LOTS BETTER NOW!!!!!!!

Thank you all sooo much for your prayers.....they mean the world to us, and our beautiful children!

Naomi is on our minds....and Wright family silliness

Ok so I put the pics backwards.....hmmm....sorry. So this whole scene in our home is pretty normal if you like. The young lady being dumped from the laundry basket works for us at the camp. She reminds me constantly that old is 10 years older than her because that is how much younger than me she is?

So....when daddy walks through the house with Sarah in a basket.....the kids wanted to come see....notice Abigail in the background rolling in laughter almost falling over herself!
Yep, here it is Sarah in a basket. Notice she is still "playing" with Joshua's foam dart gun. Also note Jason's severe laughing really hard face. So if you lived at our home or hung around us all the time...this would be your fate- watch out! Loads of silliness happens here all the time.

Naomi is still on our brains all the time....not just because we can't wait to bring her home, but because she is still in hospital with pneumonia. Now that great thing is that her "special mom" is with her. So since I can't be there- which is the hardest thing!!!!!!! At least she is not all alone in a hospital. We trust our Healer - miracle maker, AWESOME FATHER who loves her even more than we do- hard to believe, but true! We know that at this very moment HE is with her! So we thank you for your continued prayers.....we cherish everyone for our precious Naomi.

Also, Sarah's infection looks like it is maybe clearing up- without surgery! That is something to celebrate too. We of course are checking on it just to make sure....staph is tricky sometimes.

Praying in the Lord's name for our sweet girls, and for Baby Z & her family- The Anderson's who is also in the hospital with Naomi (in Ethiopia). Praising God for courts opening and a family who passed court through AGCI too!!! Giving Praise in ALL situations!!!!!!!

PRAYER please!

So here is my wonderful husband who cooks with our children :) Great thing because if I tried to cook with children- not a good combo. I get to crazy with too many people around in the kitchen.....probably to do with the fact that I am not a great cook. I can do the basics and I love doing fudge, cookies, etc., but that is about it. My husband on the other hand can do anything- very well!!!! Helps that hotel catering (5 star restaurant type) and management was his 2 year college degree. :) Yeah for me & the kids!!!!

OK so the prayer- we got word today that our sweet Naomi is in the hospital with pneumonia. This is obviously not good. Now, I know there are wonderful people who care about our sweet baby in ETH, but as a mom......I want to be there for her! I want to hold her and make sure the doctors are doing all they should! It is selfish maybe, but I WANT TO BE THERE!!!! So saying that...I know I can't be there. I know that I have to rely on the doctors and nurses that are there to watch over her and make sure she is ok. The problem is she has other medical issues that may be complicated by this too. So that makes me worry even more! I am a worrier when it comes to my precious gifts.

Of course I won't lie, on top of that my mind gets right back to our Hannah Grace. I know the situation is completely different Hannah had severe medical issues, etc. It is hard though....once you have lost a child to complications before.....your mind just goes back. The fears and doubts just creep in. I can't help but think of what if????? So needless to say I have not been doing great today. I have been thinking so much of Naomi.....please pray for our sweet baby girl. We have been so BLESSED to have others who understand and pray with us and for us. I can't even explain what it does for us mentally & spiritually. Thank You!!!!
So here is Abigail rolling out the dough for the biscuits......
and Elizabeth cutting out the biscuits into heart shapes of course :)
She is so proud of herself........and I love to see that smile
MMMMMM.....homeade biscuits from my girls- nothing better than that! (yep it is on a basket platter from Ethiopia- we love it!)
So Friday when we went to pick up our co-worker, and spent time with Nell Ann & Asher......we found out that Sarah's flight was delayed....so we did what anyone would do on a miserable rainy, cloudy, nasty to be outside kind of day..........
We all went plane spotting...... of course. Well you would have to know my husband. He has an obsession over planes.....yes I used that word because it is true!
So here are all the kids lined up watching the planes go by. I am thinking ....I would rather not be in the rain watching these planes....but I love my husband, and our kids didn't really seem to mind. We are getting geared up for our plane trip to England later in November. Yep, you got it we are all- 9 of us anyway- going to England in November! Yes, it is a 9 hour trip, and yes we are officially insane. Of course if you follow this blog on a regular basis you know this already!

We are insane- overjoyed and thrilled to be crazy in love with our Savior who has chosen to give us 8 children ....so far anyway.

Confessions.....and the process of adoption

I have a confession to make......I sleep with this cute teddy bear and pink blanket. Yep, it's true! Why you ask??? Well, one of the hard things for children who are being adopted from overseas is that they are brought to a new country with different- sights, smells, sounds, new people, in this case they travel in car seats now, they fly on an airplane, and the list could seriously go on for a long time.

So one thing you can do through All God's Children is send your child a few mementos to help ease the transition. For very young children you send them a picture book of people in your family, pets, maybe a pic of their room. We are sending one that is if you like- chewable since our Naomi is teething and under the age of 1.

Along with that we are sending a small teddy bear and blanket.....with our "smell" on it. May seem crazy to anyone who hasn't gone through the process, but it helps them transition once they meet these crazy new people who want to be their mommy and daddy!

Of course with older children a more in depth picture book is a great help- so they can see the new things before hopping on a plane with strangers. You can send them different things that can mean something to them personally- a necklace, or bracelet, etc.

So there you have it.....I have been sleeping with this teddy bear and blanket for a few weeks - and to be honest it reminds me that soon I will get to hold my baby girl! A reminder of a privilege......of one whom is in my heart day and night! Soon we will send it off with our picture book- probably within this next week. And she will be shone pictures of her new family as she gums away at them, and smell a new smell....one that she will maybe recognize when we go to pick her up for the first time :)
So.......is this boy cute or what??? His name is Asher, and we met him and his mommy Nell Ann in Houston mall yesterday. They adopted him through All God's Children International too- from Ethiopia! We follow their blog and love seeing their pics on it, but it was soo great to meet them in person.
Look at that smile!
and that one.....
Aww.......
Should these girls be driving a rescue vehicle?????? hmmmm.....
Here is Nell Ann & Asher together as we ate.....
The crowd of children trying to get closer to the cute baby of course....
This is his look of impression over all the fuss my kids are giving him.......
Hmmm....poor little fellow was probably overwhelmed by all of us, but he did really well with it. Our kids couldn't wait to give him his cheerios/puffs. They wanted to touch his hair, hold his hand, help him do things, etc. So hopefully we can visit them again sometime. Although they live a few hours away...it is great to get together with others who have adopted! Very strong bond there. It was great exchanging testimonies of how God brought us our children and they whys and wheres of it all. So if you want to visit Nell Ann's web- gogogalindo.blogspot.com

Now onto the process of adoption. It has really sunk in after doing so many adoptions that there is something that happens every time- hurry up and wait. Hurry and find an agency that is the best.......wait to see what their requirements are and what information they send you
Hurry to fill out your application......wait to see if you get approved
Hurry to start your homestudy.......wait to get if finally done
Hurry to send in your homestudy.......wait until your agency approves it or if you have to do corrections....
Hurry to get your dossier done.......wait to see if it gets approved
Hurry to call and bug your agency about everything......wait for the phone calls and e-mails to come back to you
Hurry to finally get your dossier off to the agency.....wait to get on the waiting list- or in our case accept a waiting child- and you get to skip that part :)
Hurry to get all of your referral paperwork in......wait to get approval for it all
Wait to get a court date........wait some more to see if you actually passed or not
Wait to hear when you may get to travel to see and pick up your child......wait some more for confirmation of those travel dates........wait some more very very very impatiently to finally step through the gates of Hannah's Hope (in our case).....those famous gates that mean you are finally steps away from your precious child.......

This is the moment your breath is stolen away......and all of your hurrying up and waiting is worth every single tear, laughter, excitement, depression, hours spent on that paperwork and training, roller coaster of emotions ride is WORTH IT ALL!!!! When you finally see your child for real....hold them even if they are screaming or if they aren't.......and pray over them as you experience the miracle that no one can really put into words, but the name of it is ADOPTION!

That is the hurry up and wait game that ends up with a gift no one can fathom.....except everyone that has been taken into the family of God and has experienced adoption into His Kingdom as His Child. It is that moment that you say - God I want to be yours and he reaches down after all of HIS sweat, blood, and tears over you.......and holds you in HIS LOVING ARMS!

It's Done!!!!!!!

So last night I was obsessively checking my e-mail to see if our homestudy had been approved.....and I do mean obsessively. :) Well, since All God's Children is 2 hours behind us I though just maybe there was a chance, and it was only some updates and paragraph type changes....so....you can imagine my EXCITEMENT when I saw an e-mail from Emily saying it was good to go! Yeah!!!!!!!

OK so I mentioned this on facebook, but I will review - I was completely bummed- ok honesty strikes- I was UPSET on Monday. Our homestudy social worker called and said that when she checked in with the person in IA who was supposed to do our background check for us....they told her they never recieved it. WHAT????? That was faxed 2 weeks ago!!!! What do you mean??? Now you get the picture my brain was about to explode. Other than some changes/issues that just needed to be reworded or added...this was the only piece missing from a complete homestudy which would complete our dossier!

So after - honesty stikes again- a lot of crying and praying....I calmed down. Jason was saying- you remember it is God's timing right? Yep, I know, but my goal was to get our homestudy and dossier in by Oct 2. So in my world - order was out of wack already! Yes, I am that way sometimes :) Now you have reason to pray for Jason :)

So you could imagine my VERY EXCITED SELF as I read that our homestudy was approved and our IA background check both came in YESTERDAY!!!!! Yep, a miracle that I was given :) Made me happy and I was so excited....that as the clock turned this morning I was bugging our home study social worker- right after she got in the office. Almost yelling in her ear- did you see the great news????? She got to work right away - upon my urging- to get it printed and notarized today. Of course after threatening her life- I mean asking so sweetly- please please please :) Her secretary was more than happy to do that- and put a rush on it!!!

That is why there is a crazy picture of our UPS store, and our dossier being sent off!!! Look at all that hard work - ahhhh.....loads of hours.....loads of online classes......loads of questions from our social worker....loads of ordering documents.....loads of money......loads of dreaming about our Naomi (after we found out about her)................and the list goes on. So there it is......really quite boring.

We also had to send a copy of our homestudy to the USCIS- H*meland Security so they have it to review as well. You know make sure we are ok to adopt a child :) YEAH!

***Side note you notice our baby has her face blotted out.....rules of our agency- and great ones to never post a pic of our sweet girl online until we bring her home :) On the other side of life her pictures are all over our home- and I do mean all over!!!! I just can't get enough of looking into her beautiful eyes :) She is completely amazing, but you will just have to take my word for it.

Pins and Needles & a time that has passed.....

Ok so first for the pins and needles......our home study agency has sent in our homestudy....hopefully/ prayfully this is it! Praying the review can be done asap (since our sweet Naomi is a waiting child), and we can run over to Lafayette soon to get it....send it off with our dossier (the other part of the paperwork to finish this thing off!).

Even after all of that it will be at least a monthish before we hear about a court date. Then after the actually court date - if we pass (different reasons why that wouldn't happen & sometimes you just have to wait), then it would be at least a month-2 months until travel. Saying that it could all happen alot quicker or a LOT slower. Oh, I feel as though I could burst!

One would think that after 7 other adoptions I would feel different, but nope- still nervous, excited, thrilled, estatic, worried, sad- to not be with our baby Naomi of course :), and well you know all over the place. So if someone tries to tell you that being pregnant is different than adoption- NOPE don't buy into it! Soooo not true!!!! My emotions and hormones I am POSITIVE are just as all over the place!!! And the waiting......well that just drives me crazy.

I am a person who likes my ducks in a row. I like to know what will happen next. You know - plan? Well in the adoption process you can do anything - BUT PLAN. I am soo bad at that game. So we are praying- A LOT!!! Praying for God's timing (not ours), praying for continued health for Naomi, praying for the wonderful "special moms" who are taking the best of care for her (outside of being in our arms of course), and praying for God's provision for all of it to fit together like the wonderful puzzle of our lives.

Oh yeah- the pic above has a story too. You see......we found out while at Sea World a couple years back that all of our kids' names were on the cups. So of course being the crazy mom that I am we bought them. A BIG splurge for us. (Jonathan of course came later, and when he came along I found a cup online for him). The significance may not seem important to most, but at the time we were preparing for the adoption FINALLY after 3 YEARS of waiting of our Joshua, Sarah, & Elizabeth. They were all so excited for this big deal- the name change! It meant no more back and forth of emotions every week, no more lies, no more carrying on as if they didn't exist! All of the foster care side was coming to an end, and they had a NEW START! One that they were soooo excited about, and of course so were we!

So we bought those cups. And although as with everything in adoption.....it took longer than we wanted. Of course, but when it happened oh what a glorious relief, happiness, and a Spiritual high came over our household. Of course it all happened - on EASTER week!!! How perfectly in God's timing it was.

Well, the other day I noticed Abigail's cup had a crack, a leak. It made me sad not because I couldn't order her another one, but as I was looking for the name Naomi- they don't have it. Crazy!!!!! But true. So needless to say I will have to get cups for the kids and put their names on it instead. It's all good, and just looking at those cups reminds me of God's Faithfulness and as I have learned from other Bloggy friends....we should hold onto those important stories of faith.

To be like the Isrealites- passing down the stories, but this time- being FAITHFUL to them. Reminding ourselves constantly that we are HIS CHILDREN! That God is faithful to us even when we don't alway understand the world's ways or God's timing. Clinging to those stories of faith throughout our lives and the lives of our children.

My challenge to you- find and think about some symbols that will help remind you and your family of God's Faithfulness! Maybe it is a cup, maybe a toy, maybe a copy of a piece of paper of some great news, maybe it's a journal of your families story, whatever.....cling to it! When the world seems so cruel- cling to those things you know to be true! We are & Naomi- we love you and can't wait however long it takes....to meet you and love on you!!!!!

*****Some really great news!!!!! We have recieved $750 total so far from friends and relatives- PRAISE GOD!!!! For HIS provision for our beautiful gift of Naomi. We are continually in awe of what God will do for us when we are faithful to HIM.

Fun with Blog Friends!

So this past weekend Thursday night - Saturday morning we had company :) We were thrilled. When you live in the middle of nowhere....your church is 45 minutes away......your nearest family is 16hours away........you live in the middle of nowhere. So we had a fellow blog family visit- with 7 of her 13 children :) Our kind of family- check out her web too!- http://imghanaadopt.blogspot.com/
So here are the kids on the basketball court playing down by the riverside. It's a clapping game that keeps kids occupied, but if overheard by parents too much- you may have to go insane!
Boys.......balancing on the log...
Want to guess what Matthew has in his hands that he is talking about- yep a frog....
Just swinging!
OK this is the kids - the favorite part of the playground is the "glider" you hang on and glide across to the other side.
And the roller.....funny watching them all try to get on without one of them falling off again.
We also have this springboard square type thing. They were all on at one point but I don't think I was quick enough to catch it.
They made up this game of introducing yourself and singing about it....to hilarious.
Jonathan- trying to find his golf ball.....poor babe.
Racing time!!!!! They were both very fast!
Playing more on the basketball court!
Not sure what they are doing??
Jonathan- just too cute!
OK so not sure what happened to my rock wall pics?? I can only seem to find one, and I know I took more than that??? So if you want to see more of the rock wall you will have to go to our friend's page http://imghanaadopt.blogspot.com/

The best part of the visit was actually our visits...sharing testimonies of all God has done in our lives. We have very similar views on our faith, and about raising children. Sharing our adoption experiences.....laughing over our beautiful children and enjoying our time with them. I can't really explain how much it meant to have them visit, but it refreshed me! I needed that!!!

Did I mention that they volunteered to watch after our 7 while we left at 5:30am for our fingerprint appointment at USCIS (homeland security & immigration). THANK YOU!!!!! We just knew from their blog that they were people we would love to get to know- and boy did we ever hit it off!!! I totally love having people in my life that I can look up to- someone to mentor me. Since all my family are far away, and sometimes it feels like we are out in the middle of nowhere- I love blogging!!!!

It was a definitely a treat & our kids have been going on non stop! YEAH! Come back any time bloggy friends!!!! Hey, anyone want to come visit- we'd love it!

Pulling or Transplanting Weeds

Ok so before you read on...yes, we are all wearing matching shirts today :) I can't help it.
No idea what this pic is about....hmmmm....what do you think he is thinking? Hey, come up with something fun.
These are our children looking through our church directory as we mail out letters & pics to gain support for our Naomi. Hey, they look like they are having fun anyway.....
I tell you that all of our children - well almost all (maybe not the youngest 2) helped fold, stuff, stuck labels, put on the stamps.....this is a family ordeal in our home. I love the fact that our children see the value of adoption- gaining a sibling, wanting her to hurry up and come home already, praying for her, and knowing that this doesn't just happen. There is lots of paperwork (although ours is all but done), lots of payments, lots of thinking & praying over all that you do. Asking God's provision for you. Asking others to help. It is a process that our children know pretty well, and ask about too. What a great way to show them Who God is.

So today as I was playing with the kids. Pushing Jonathan & Elizabeth on the swings.... I noticed my other children pulling weeds at the playset area.....they were "transplanting" them and pretending to "garden". I brought a thought to my mind.

You see Andrew has had some temper issues lately. He quickly gets - too angry. There are times when he lets loose before engaging his brain. He is a smart boy! Loves to learn, compassionate to others, and loves to laugh. But, lately especially, he has had some problems.....and as we are working on it with him. I have looked in a mirror to ask myself some serious questions.

Am I pulling weeds or just transplanting them? Meaning am I transplanting my quickness to judge, my quick tongue to my child.....or am I pulling out that weed? I want to be pulling, but I have to admit too often I am sowing more weeds than I am pulling. I have had to apologize on more than one occasion because of this. God Please CHANGE my heart. Help me to be Pulling The Weeds Out & not spreading or transplanting them to my children.

Matthew 13:24-29 Talks about weeds being sown among the wheat, and that weeds are planted in the night by the enemy. When my life is going by I want to be planting wheat- NOT WEEDS. I pray that God will help me be more and more wheat and less and less weeds.

Holding On To Our Blessings :)

So we have been getting out the baby stuff you know those things you whip out when you have had soo many already- and you start to get really excited!!! This is the sling that we bought when we were going to bring Hannah home (of course now she is in her Heavenly Home). I reminisced about the day we bought it.

So when Jonathan woke up from his nap today I brought it out. You see...maybe you have a child like him. When he wakes up he is a little bit clingy and grumpy too. So I put him in the sling and he loved it. I have to say I loved it too. Holding my baby close to me reminded me of my privilege as a mom.

I also thought about how we should hang onto moments like that as long as possible. We are soo quick to have our children do all kinds of activities outside the home. So quick to rush them into all kinds of places where you are not with them. So take each moment and hang onto it!

Tonight as I tucked in our Sarah...who I have to say is a challenge at the best of times. I just laid in her bed with her, thinking of all that we went through as a family to keep her & her siblings. How we fought prejudice, a judge who couldn't care less, and ignorance of a bad situation getting worse. So I just rubbed her back for several minutes and as I felt her body relaxed into my arms I remembered how we had to let go and let God. Relax in His Arms!

Thank you God for all of our miracles, and for any more you have planned for our family. We are soo privileged to have these Blessings. Help us to never take any day for granted...to not waste away any time we GET to spend with our babes - even when our hearts seem not to be in it.


So these are our stacks of letters and photos we are sending out to ask for help with our adoption. We have recieved a few donations...and are soooo THANKFUL!!!! We are trying to figure out how to put those in the button on the side if they were sent in by mail, or before we changed the button. We have recieved $150 and are soooo thrilled. People have blessed us with their time, their prayers, their efforst, and their money. And we pray God will truly Bless them through this process as well!

We of course are biting our nails waiting for our CPS background check still from Iowa......we literally have everything else done! Our homestudy has been approved (except that detail), and our dossier has been copied -all 3 times. So we wait by the phone hoping it will ring soon saying the CPS check has come back and we can come pick up our homestudy and send in our dossier. Sounds really simple doesn't it?

I have to say we are still overjoyed with the news about our Naomi Caroline - finding out that she is doing so well health wise is such a Blessing. So this brings us to the question- why? I mean why did God choose her for us? I don't know....she was on the list as a special needs child. By all accounts her health record appeared to be pretty poor in different ways. We jumped at the chance to be her parents, and now she is healed. Blows my mind every waking moment. All I can say is that God must have a plan! A BIG one! And I am soooo thrilled that we get to be a part of it! Yeah God!!!

Miracles & Explosions :)

Ready..........
generic diet coke & mentos have this reaction...........
And daddy couldn't resist buying this cheap contraption that does this!!!
And ends up like this........
Here is what it all looks like up close :)
So fun exploding things:) Entertainment for less than $2- it's great!

So onto the MIRACLES!!!

Miracle # 1. Yesterday I received a phone call- from my grandma! Now that may not sound like a whole lot to most, but my grandma hasn't been doing as well lately. We went to see her while in Florida in August. She was -well frail, but was doing ok. But when she called yesterday- she was more like her old self (no pun intended- she is older, but she is still with it). I love my grandma and yesterday was a real gift a moment of talking like we used to. A time where she was sooo happy for our family. Happy about our adoption that is in progression. Happy to see pics of all of our kids playing, smiling, etc. Proud to show off all of her- 19 great grandchildren...soon to be more :) Through 3 adoptions (ours and our cousins) both to happen hopefully before the end of the year.

Oh yeah.....she told me of a dream she had of Jason & I in a 3 story home...needless to say we live in a one story home. She was worried about getting up and down the stairs in the home. Then she said- you wouldn't believe it there were lots of children....yep, my grandma knows our hearts for orphans! She loves it! Thanks grandma- you will never know how much your call meant to me!

Miracle # 2!!!!! Today we received a phone call and all the tests that were done on our sweet baby Naomi......came back and they really indicate that she is doing extremely well!!! Another words that the "possible" real urgency to bring her back from Ethiopia & treatments etc. - GONE! Now of course there will be all the retesting when we return home, but that news made me cry with excitement! I was dancing around our bedroom with pure joy & of course couldn't wait to phone Jason (he is on the road at the moment- be back later). WHO SAYS WE DON'T SERVE A GOD OF MIRACLES? OUR GOD IS AN AWE INSPIRING, MOUNTAIN MOVING, HEALING GOD WHO DESIRES THE BEST FOR EACH OF HIS CHILDREN!!!!!!

So THANK YOU for all of your prayers and keep them coming.....we truly value friends online & church & family! You know that often people ask how we do it, and we say loads of prayer & that includes the prayers that are said on our behalf from blogworld too! THANK YOU from the bottom of our hearts. We are doing the happy dance....giving the Glory to God! Celebrate with us!

I just couldn't wait to share that with all of you!!!!!!!!!!!

Here's a preview....and any helpful tips????

So as some may know - you can't post a pic of your precious one until it is finalized..... understandable. So here is a preview of our sweet girl! Amazingly cute right? Oh yeah......let's just say the whole 2 pics we have of here have been stared at for unbelievable amounts of time!!!

So if you read my blog a little while back we posted about things we do to cut our costs- hey large family- one income- we have to be cheap :)
Under the post in Sept- of Adoption, surgery, how we afford this..... I would put a handy link here, but I am not computer savvy- sorry.

A few more tips:

1) We cut our own hair, except me- and I only cut my hair once every 2 years- and donate it to locks of Love. A great organization that makes wigs for children that have treatments that leave them without hair.

2) Scary, but true....when I was younger I was never allowed to wear make up. Literally when it came time for show choir events or plays - my friends had to help me. I really didn't like the feel of it on my face to be honest....so just never had the habit of wearing any make up- saves on that department! Hey, the only guy I have to impress loves me just the crazy way I am- THANKS SWEETIE!!!

3) BUY in BULK- oh yeah. We love our Sam's Club. I have heard you all mention on your blogs about Costco, but we don't have one in our area- or at least not in Lake Charles. So we buy at Sam's or anywhere else that we can get items by the 20lbs. or more :)

4) We do not leave our home (unless it is just to go 5 miles down the road) without a small cooler of drinks- water in containers, a few snacks, etc. That way we are not tempted to get a drink at a gas station, at the grocery store, or anywhere else. Saves tons of money!!! Plus we avoid eating out by eating snacks until we can make it home- most times. Great money saving tip :)

So we would love to hear what other tips you all have! Really, we want to save as much as possible. Not just for our adoption now, but for future. For life changes we are trying to make. You see our hearts are being opened by a devotional book- called "Hope Lives" A Journey of Restoration by Amber Van Schooneveld.

Here are some interesting things we have learned on our journey of doing this devotional together........
The Gross National Income per Capita 2003:
Switzerland $39,880
United States $37,610
Japan $34,510
United Kingdom $28,350
Mexico $6,230
Egypt $1,390
India $530
Bangladesh $400 (where our compassion child is :)
Kenya $390
Ethiopia $90 ( a place of course dear to my heart!)

Anyone see the point in listing this- Oh yeah.....we have really been convicted and with all of our penny pinching ways.....we feel that we are still SOOOOO spoiled, and what if we can open our hearts to what Christ really wants us to do? To be able to help others adopt, to be able to give so freely - and NOT be held back. To give until we really FEEL IT.

"Our mobile society encourages competition and economic aggression rather than contentment. Someone who isn't climbing the social ladder is regarded as a fool and a failure. We're taught to climb to the top of the heap. What we're not taught is that the heap is a garbage heap." Peter Kreeft, Back to Virtue

I am not anywhere near perfect Lord. Help me to live my life soley for You. To really know what it means to be BLESSED. To really rely on You more. To care about others more than myself. To really want to GIVE OURSELVES to HELPING. Engaging all that we are and have to that others may simply live. Lord Help Us to See What You Have Really Given US!!!!

Why are we doing this?

Ok so couldn't do a post without a pic....so here is Jonathan- being completely cute!