Friends - my heart is full, my head is swirling with thoughts. We had our SDA appointment - this is where we met with the officials in charge of adoption files in Little One's country. At this appointment we talked to a social worker to get the official referral for Little One.
The appointment went very well - we were asked a few questions and given information on Little One. Some of it we already knew but it was the things we didn't know which we found out today, that have left my heart broken for a tiny little child I have yet to meet. I love this baby girl as if she was born right out of my body. Beyond a shadow of a doubt we know God showed us His heart for orphans and for one child in particular. What happened in the past with Little One will remain in the past. We only move forward, praying the Lord will continue to guide us and lead us to the point we can bring her home.
And the cold, hard, harsh fact is - SO MANY CHILDREN have a much similar story as Little One. They ALL need a mama and a papa to say YES we will go. YES we will embark on something that seems impossible and crazy to others but is in perfect alignment with what God has directed us all to do. And that is why we said yes.
He didn't ask us what we wanted.
He has commanded us to GO.
We are not Little One's Savior. He is. We are simply here to bring her into the fold of a family, to love her, to never, ever let her go. To spend the rest of our lives showing her our love for her will not end. We are not here to bring a child home which we hope to change - we accept her for exactly how she is.
As I have said all along - it's not about us. It's about Him. Continually following his commands even when we can't see the road in front of us.
Trust.
We are not "extreme", "extraordinary", or believe what we are doing is a radical thing. So many times I asked God "why" is this happening to so many children - why is there this crisis? So many children unwanted, unable to be cared for. WHY God? Ahhh...but God asked me what I thought people on earth should be doing.
What we need to be doing is continuing to open our eyes and hearts to what He has already shown us is important. It's right there - in words, numerous times in the Bible. He said it over and over - care for orphans, needy and poor.
Its so easy to hear the stories and feel sorry for children then go about our daily lives - until you get here - till its right here in your face.
I have been reading the book Crazy Love and something stuck out today - this passage -
"Lukewarm people are moved by stories about people who do radical things for Christ, yet they do not act. They assume such action is for "extreme" Christians, not average ones. Lukewarm people call "radical" what Jesus expected of all His followers."
Folks...I laugh because Eli and I are the epitome of average.
And we are here. Opened hearts. Opened eyes.
"Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says" James 1:22
I am not saying every single person is in the position to adopt. But we can all do SOMETHING. I pray more will rise up and ask God to show them what He is commanding them to do. I am sorry if this sounds harsh - but it's truth. For too many years our own family lived in a shadow of believing material things were most important and that others who did wonderful things were extraordinary Christians who must have been "called". We were "lukewarm" people. I am thankful God opened our eyes and brought us to this place.
We pick up our referral letter tomorrow and head out to Little Ones region on an overnight train. More to come...keep following! Soon we will have pictures of HER!
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Monday, June 13, 2011
4.000 Miles From Home!
We made it here Sunday afternoon - 12 hours in the air, who knows how many time zones and a plane ride from h. e. double hockey sticks.
Apparently a week 1/2 notice to get half way across the world will book you the nicest seats in the back of the plane on a transatlantic flight.
Can you say HOT. Smashed like sardines? I won't go any further...because...
We are doing GREAT!!! We are truly loving it here in EE. The culture is different but not in a bad way. We got in yesterday afternoon (which was around 5am for us) and hopped (okay so we stumbled off the plane in a jet lag haze...) onto a tram to the terminal. Had a funky issue with customs and thought we were going to get deported (not really) but then got picked up by our driver and took off at a high rate of speed after somehow getting out of parking lot with no rhyme or reason..just a jumble of cars all mashed up together pushing to get onto the road. It was nuts.
We were prepared though and just took it all in. The quirky little things. Just wait ...if you are not here yet..you will see!
Our driver got us safely to the Hospitality House where Karen greeted us with a welcoming smile. We are so thankful to her for her help and generosity. We are staying in a neat part of town with tons of little shops. The apartment is lovely..really! We have wifi, english speaking cable stations, plenty of utensils to make food, a dvd player and its close to everything. We met an awesome lady and her girls yesterday, Traci with Project Hopeful and they took us on a trip on the metro. Yep...less than three hours here and we joined the chaos and jumped (literally!) onto the metro and headed to the square for dinner. Had the most awesome pizza..Eli and I both ate for less than ten bucks. Incredible! We got to know Traci and her sweet girls better. They are so charming and they even took us grocery shopping afterward. Oh, at the metro stop we used, we had to take a ginormous (yes thats a word!) escalator.
I hate escalators. No, really.
And this one was taller than my house. Its a good thing I was in a jet lag haze. Once I realized how freaking high that thing was I started getting sick. I would rather walk up and down the huge hill than get on that escalator.
When you hear the women are beautiful....believe it. There are many beautiful women and I have no idea how they walk on the cracked sidewalks or the cobblestone roads in the stiletto heels. Its quite umm...interesting. And they make it look effortless. They have 0% body fat...but when you see how much people walk and the huge hills you understand why. We have seen many intersting choices in clothing including completely see through garmets. Its only disturbing if a babushka is clothed in this...but I digress...the women take great pride in their appearance and they are lovely.
We are loving being in EE and all that entails. It is good to learn about other cultures and we are having fun. Even if we have not a clue what anyone is saying. Ha. We were exhausted today after sightseeing and only managed to head to the store for groceries. I have no idea what kind of meat we ate. It could have been ox for all I know. But we made spagetti out of it and haven't died yet. Eli says there is a uniqe odor here but I havent picked it up yet...anyone else ever notice a smell??? My sinuses are so bad I cant smell anything! We got out with Traci and her girls again and they showed us the SDA. We head there tomorrow morning! So, when you guys are sleeping we will be meeting to learn more about our Little One.
We have heard she is a little bit of a wild child and we cant wait to see for our own eyes.
I will end with a few pictures...sorry for the delay in posting....we spent today sightseeing and sleeping. More tomorrow...keep following us...WE ARE HERE!!!!
Little One...we are so very close.
Eli at Independence Square area...I didnt even notice the girl in the high heels in the background...look...there to his right!
The view outside our apartment...its beautiful...the street is very busy and pigeons live in the top of the apartment building.
The pizza place we ate at with Traci...yummy! We ordered pizza with some kind of meat...sort of looked like ham...
The elevator. Teeny. Tiny. Okay...so if you know my husband you know he kind of sticks out...I laughed when I saw this elevator...we can fit in there together but not us, the driver and our luggage. The driver started laughing too when I pointed to the elevator, then to Eli.
Apparently a week 1/2 notice to get half way across the world will book you the nicest seats in the back of the plane on a transatlantic flight.
Can you say HOT. Smashed like sardines? I won't go any further...because...
We are doing GREAT!!! We are truly loving it here in EE. The culture is different but not in a bad way. We got in yesterday afternoon (which was around 5am for us) and hopped (okay so we stumbled off the plane in a jet lag haze...) onto a tram to the terminal. Had a funky issue with customs and thought we were going to get deported (not really) but then got picked up by our driver and took off at a high rate of speed after somehow getting out of parking lot with no rhyme or reason..just a jumble of cars all mashed up together pushing to get onto the road. It was nuts.
We were prepared though and just took it all in. The quirky little things. Just wait ...if you are not here yet..you will see!
Our driver got us safely to the Hospitality House where Karen greeted us with a welcoming smile. We are so thankful to her for her help and generosity. We are staying in a neat part of town with tons of little shops. The apartment is lovely..really! We have wifi, english speaking cable stations, plenty of utensils to make food, a dvd player and its close to everything. We met an awesome lady and her girls yesterday, Traci with Project Hopeful and they took us on a trip on the metro. Yep...less than three hours here and we joined the chaos and jumped (literally!) onto the metro and headed to the square for dinner. Had the most awesome pizza..Eli and I both ate for less than ten bucks. Incredible! We got to know Traci and her sweet girls better. They are so charming and they even took us grocery shopping afterward. Oh, at the metro stop we used, we had to take a ginormous (yes thats a word!) escalator.
I hate escalators. No, really.
And this one was taller than my house. Its a good thing I was in a jet lag haze. Once I realized how freaking high that thing was I started getting sick. I would rather walk up and down the huge hill than get on that escalator.
When you hear the women are beautiful....believe it. There are many beautiful women and I have no idea how they walk on the cracked sidewalks or the cobblestone roads in the stiletto heels. Its quite umm...interesting. And they make it look effortless. They have 0% body fat...but when you see how much people walk and the huge hills you understand why. We have seen many intersting choices in clothing including completely see through garmets. Its only disturbing if a babushka is clothed in this...but I digress...the women take great pride in their appearance and they are lovely.
We are loving being in EE and all that entails. It is good to learn about other cultures and we are having fun. Even if we have not a clue what anyone is saying. Ha. We were exhausted today after sightseeing and only managed to head to the store for groceries. I have no idea what kind of meat we ate. It could have been ox for all I know. But we made spagetti out of it and haven't died yet. Eli says there is a uniqe odor here but I havent picked it up yet...anyone else ever notice a smell??? My sinuses are so bad I cant smell anything! We got out with Traci and her girls again and they showed us the SDA. We head there tomorrow morning! So, when you guys are sleeping we will be meeting to learn more about our Little One.
We have heard she is a little bit of a wild child and we cant wait to see for our own eyes.
I will end with a few pictures...sorry for the delay in posting....we spent today sightseeing and sleeping. More tomorrow...keep following us...WE ARE HERE!!!!
Little One...we are so very close.
Eli at Independence Square area...I didnt even notice the girl in the high heels in the background...look...there to his right!
The elevator. Teeny. Tiny. Okay...so if you know my husband you know he kind of sticks out...I laughed when I saw this elevator...we can fit in there together but not us, the driver and our luggage. The driver started laughing too when I pointed to the elevator, then to Eli.
Our breakfast and snack! Cherry juice (suk), bread, eggs, cheese, butter, chocolate (of course), water and that's a beer in there! (no thats not breakfast..or a snack!)
water...a big thing it seems for our american friends...if you dont get the right one it will have "gas" in it. We get the bonaqua with the light blue cap. No gas! When you buy you can just ask for no gas...
Okay..its late here and we have a busy day tomorrow.
Praising God for placing us here at this exact time...when Traci was here and getting to meet her and her beautiful girls Sveta and Hannah. We are in awe of the Heim family and admire all the work they are doing for Project Hopeful. Their family is beautiful.
Stay tuned....
The best is yet to come! oh...sorry if there funky words...the spell check wont convert to english...so its saying all words are all wrong...!
Friday, June 10, 2011
Kindle and MORE GiveAway Ends TODAY!!!!!
We're leaving on a jet plane TOMORROW to travel halfway across the world.
Following the path God placed us on just seven months ago.
A journey we never imagined we would be on.
To Bring Little One HOME.
Our friends have a "Love Takes You In" Giveaway going to help us with airfare which is SKY HIGH!
Sorry, couldn't resist. I am giddy with being excited and nervous.
The giveaway ENDS TONIGHT at MIDNIGHT!!
Go HERE to donate and be entered in the giveaway! For each $10 donation you get a chance to win! Be sure to leave a comment on Michelle's blog so she will know how many times to enter your name!
Not everyone is in a position to adopt but there are still ways to help.
Every $10 donation gets us a little closer to Little One!
Up for grabs:
Following the path God placed us on just seven months ago.
A journey we never imagined we would be on.
To Bring Little One HOME.
Our friends have a "Love Takes You In" Giveaway going to help us with airfare which is SKY HIGH!
Sorry, couldn't resist. I am giddy with being excited and nervous.
The giveaway ENDS TONIGHT at MIDNIGHT!!
Go HERE to donate and be entered in the giveaway! For each $10 donation you get a chance to win! Be sure to leave a comment on Michelle's blog so she will know how many times to enter your name!
Not everyone is in a position to adopt but there are still ways to help.
Every $10 donation gets us a little closer to Little One!
Up for grabs:
All-New, High-Contrast E Ink Screen – 50% better contrast with latest E Ink Pearl technology
Read in Bright Sunlight – No glare
New and Improved Fonts – New crisper, darker fonts
New Sleek Design – 21% smaller body while keeping the same 6" size reading area
17% Lighter – Only 8.5 ounces, weighs less than a paperback
Battery Life of Up to Two Months – A single charge lasts up to two months with wireless off
Double the Storage – Up to 3,500 books
Built-In Wi-Fi – Shop and download books in less than 60 seconds
20% Faster Page Turns – Seamless reading
Enhanced PDF Reader – With dictionary lookup, notes, and highlights
WebKit-Based Browser – Browse the web over Wi-Fi
Custom Outfit #1
Alina in the flower shirt and Nina in the cake shirt...
too cute girls!
A custom doll
Becky will create a custom doll that your little princess is sure to love...
Check them out...they are precious!
Custom outfit #2
Becky is one insanely talented and generous person...she is offering a second custom outfit
for one of you lucky readers.
Alina is getting good at the modeling thing...she's a natural!
Wait...there's more
A collection of hair pretties
Becky will create a collection of hair accessories for your little lady. Really, no outfit is
complete without a hairbow
White Chocolate Toffee
If you have not indulged in Renee Tam's toffee...you are missing out. It is sinfully delicious and Renee is going to send not one...but two lucky people some of her mouth watering toffee straight from Paisley's Pantry
Yum...
Nope...not done yet
Up next...
A $50 Target Gift Card
It's Target...Need I say more?
And last but not least...
A $25 Gift Card from Olive Garden
Yay...you can take your sweetie out to dinner and no...a babysitter is not included
Here's how you can get in on all these awesome goodies...
1. For every $10 donated...you will be entered in the giveaway
3. Post on your blog, facebook, or twitter and you will be entered into the giveaway 1 time per day
YOU MUST GO TO MICHELLE's BLOG AND LEAVE A COMMENT SO SHE KNOWS HOW MANY TIMES TO ENTER YOU INTO THE GIVEAWAY!!!
Go HERE to donate and remember to leave a comment!!!
Go HERE to donate and remember to leave a comment!!!
The Love Takes You In Giveaway starts today and ends Friday, June 10th at midnight.
Becky's daughter, Alina will draw the winners on Saturday, June 11th
All donations are TAX DEDUCTIBLE through Circle of Hope.
And just in case you haven't seen it enough...
Click HERE to donate/enter through the Chip In Button on Michelle's blog !!
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Everyone Wants A Mama and A Papa
I awoke this morning thinking I need to remind everyone the giveaway some of my incredible friends have set up ends tomorrow. I wanted to scream for joy that we leave in two days.
Then I checked the blogs...you know which ones...the adoption blogs.
The ones we follow from beginning to end. The ones where we see God's handiwork unfolding in living color.
There is one family I have been following which is very important to me because their little boy is so closely connected to our Little One...
You see...last winter God placed us on the beginning of a journey to Little One and through a series of events we were led to a video, a short 20 second clip of two little children singing. The little boy, blonde, blue eyed, the little girl dark hair and big blue eyes. Both bundled as if they were in a blizzard. The little boy sang and sang..to someone. Who we didn't know at the time. What he was saying we had no idea. But there was sadness in his voice. The little girl in the tiny red car sang along quietly, curious about what was going on. She gently beeped the little horn on the red car as the little boy finished singing.
She was our Little One. The one God had been preparing us for.
But who was he? Was he ours too? We prayed over it and heard No. We prayed for his family to find him. I would cry asking God to lead his family to him. He had waited so, so long.
Danil has the sweetest spirit - you can tell from just 20 seconds of video. We found out he was singing a goodbye song to someone. And that soon after that video, he was transferred out of his safe baby house. We learned details about his life which were heartbreaking. About his desperate longing for a mama and papa.
One day we got great news! His family had found him!!! And without a doubt we knew THEY were the family the Lord was preparing to envelop Danil with love. Yesterday, half way across the world their family came full circle - they met Danil.
When he met them he said "everyone wants to have a mama and a papa"
Reading the account of them meeting Danil had me in tears. Tears of joy and tears of sorrow. There are so many children who desperately need a mama and papa. Who dream of a mama and a papa. Watching the doors everyday wondering if their mama and papa are coming.
Needing to be held, rocked and sang to, wrapped up in love.
So many are little boys just like Danil.
Praising God for bringing one more little boy into the fold of a family here on earth.
Thankful one more family said YES to God's command.
"Do not be afraid, for I am with you;
I will bring your children from the east
and gather you from the west.
I will say to the north, 'Give them up!'
and to the south, 'Do not hold them back.'
Bring my sons from afar
and my daughters from the ends of the earth-
everyone who is called by my name,
whom I created for my glory,
whom I formed and made."
Monday, June 6, 2011
We Leave in Five Days! Love Takes You In Giveaway!
Please click HERE to donate and be entered in the giveaway! The chip in button on my blog is not showing up for some people!
We leave in FIVE days!!
The Love Takes You In Giveaway...
Up for grabs:
All-New, High-Contrast E Ink Screen – 50% better contrast with latest E Ink Pearl technology
Read in Bright Sunlight – No glare
New and Improved Fonts – New crisper, darker fonts
New Sleek Design – 21% smaller body while keeping the same 6" size reading area
17% Lighter – Only 8.5 ounces, weighs less than a paperback
Battery Life of Up to Two Months – A single charge lasts up to two months with wireless off
Double the Storage – Up to 3,500 books
Built-In Wi-Fi – Shop and download books in less than 60 seconds
20% Faster Page Turns – Seamless reading
Enhanced PDF Reader – With dictionary lookup, notes, and highlights
WebKit-Based Browser – Browse the web over Wi-Fi
Custom Outfit #1
Alina in the flower shirt and Nina in the cake shirt...
too cute girls!
A custom doll
Becky will create a custom doll that your little princess is sure to love...
Check them out...they are precious!
Custom outfit #2
Becky is one insanely talented and generous person...she is offering a second custom outfit
for one of you lucky readers.
Alina is getting good at the modeling thing...she's a natural!
Wait...there's more
A collection of hair pretties
Becky will create a collection of hair accessories for your little lady. Really, no outfit is
complete without a hairbow
White Chocolate Toffee
If you have not indulged in Renee Tam's toffee...you are missing out. It is sinfully delicious and Renee is going to send not one...but two lucky people some of her mouth watering toffee straight from Paisley's Pantry
Yum...
Nope...not done yet
Up next...
A $50 Target Gift Card
It's Target...Need I say more?
And last but not least...
A $25 Gift Card from Olive Garden
Yay...you can take your sweetie out to dinner and no...a babysitter is not included
Here's how you can get in on all these awesome goodies...
1. For every $10 donated...you will be entered in the giveaway
3. Post on your blog, facebook, or twitter and you will be entered into the giveaway 1 time per day
The Love Takes You In Giveaway starts today and ends Friday, June 10th at midnight.
Alina will draw the winners on Saturday, June 11th
All donations are TAX DEDUCTIBLE through Circle of Hope.
Click HERE to donate/enter through the Chip In Button on Michelle's blog !!
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