New pictures

I wish it was my hand this cute little one was holding!

I found a great surprise in my e-mail when I got home this afternoon. One of our case workers has been in Ethiopia for a few weeks and she took pictures for everyone. I got about 10 new pictures of our little sweetie. What a way to make my day!!! I can't believe it has been 6 1/2 weeks since I saw her beautiful face. Hopefully it won't be too much longer until it is my hand she is holding! 20 days and counting until our court date!

5 is a magical number

Today is an important day for both my little girls. Today the Bean is 5 years old and our little one turns 5 months.

I am so thankful that God has entrusted me with these two little girls. Although I have yet to meet my littlest one, my heart knows her already. I am so excited to be her mother and every time I think of her tears well in my eyes. They are mixed tears for they come both in joy and sadness. Joy that I have the privilege to raise this child and sadness that she is not already in my arms. I trust in God's perfect plan and cling to that.

5 Things I Love About My Bean
1. She has a beautiful heart.

2. She loves and nurtures her brother. She loves to read to him, teach him new things, and help him however she can.

3. She is a girly girl and would wear dresses everyday if she could!

4. The Bean is pretty quiet, but once she gets to know you that girl can talk.

5. She loves to learn and asks to do school all the time.

the bean's first 5 years in pictures

6 weeks old, with a very tired Mom

3 months old and the light of my life

1 and 1/2 and very much a little girl. pink is already her favorite color

a new hat from her auntie lindsey

2 years old and a new brother courtesy of mom and dad

3rd birthday with the love of her young life "gussie." gussie is a horse she rode at the fair.

posing for mom

this child loves her horse and she loves to dress-up in...interesting outfits

the bean is a big old scaredy cat. feeding these chickens was particularly out of character for her

the bean on the real "gussie." she has ridden him every year at the fair. she wants him for her birthday, but we told her the other kids that love him would be sad if he wasn't there for them anymore : ) i love horses, but my grandparents had them and i know how much work they are. i have three children...i can't take care of horses too!

5 years old now. her beautiful smile that sometimes takes some coaxing to get, but is certainly worth the effort

Photo Tag!

I have been tagged by Michelle and and am supposed to post the 4th picture in the 4th file on my computer and tell about it, so here it is...

Here is the Bug, feeling much better, after two days in the hospital for RSV. He made it out the day before his first birthday!

I am tagging Melissa, Dawn, NellAnn, Erin and Sharon.

P.S. The tags are kinda nice to help keep the time passing : )

My heart is smiling

It is amazing that a few sentences can make my heart soar. When we receive our referrals we get just the facts. No one really gives us any insight into who our child is or what they are like. Connie helped me get a small glimpse of my daughter and I am grateful for the time she took to be with her.

I saw your little girl in Ethiopia! She is so beautiful. She had the prettiest eyes and those cheeks are so fun to squeeze :). She takes in everything, and then smiles a big toothless grin. She has a little more hair now and it is these soft ringlets! While she is a good sized baby, she is STILL a little baby :). It was an honor to get to see/ hold her and touch those beautiful curls. I cannot wait to hear how your case is progressing through courts. Keep me posted! Connie

28 days until our court date...but who's counting???

32 days and counting

until our scheduled court date of December 10th. We are overjoyed to hear news as we continue to move closer to bringing Dora (ha,ha!) home.

We pray that we pass on our first scheduled court date. Families don't always pass through on their first try, because there has not been enough time for their file to pass through all the proper places. If we don't make it on the 10th, we will be rescheduled for a later date. Right now, they are rescheduling about 1 1/2 months out, which would be the end of January. We are joyful that there is a possibility to have Dora home early next year, but are also aware that this may not be God's plan. We will trust in Him no matter what the outcome of our court date, but our hearts long to hold our little girl. Please join us in praying for our heart's desire.

Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:5-7

Also, my dear friend Autumn and her husband Brian have experienced some delays with their adoption. They had some paperwork done incorrectly and although they have had their referral for almost two months now, they do not have their paperwork submitted. Please join me in prayer for them as they wait. May God move mountains for their little guy and may He grant them peace as they wait on His perfect plan.

Praising God for the mountains He has moved

Many, O LORD my God, are the wonders you have done. The things you planned for us no one can recount to you; were I to speak and tell of them, they would be too many to declare. Psalm 40:5

God has been working this week on behalf of some families who have been waiting since early this summer to meet their children. In their hearts they have been the parents of these children from the day of their referrals, but Monday Michelle and Jana legally became the proud parents to some beautiful gifts from God and will be leaving in two weeks to wrap their arms around them for the first time. What a miraculous gift God has given them. What a gift for us to witness their journey. Glory to God!

Shots

My daughter has decided she does not want her birthday. What little kid does not want a birthday? She has one coming up on the 17th. Anyway, after much prying into her little 4yo old brain, I come to find out it is because she knows she will have a doctor's appointment after her birthday and she will have to get shots. She does not want shots and figured if she didn't have a birthday she wouldn't have to have any!

Our health department only does shots one day a week in the morning, so I had to drag the kids with me to get some of my travel shots. I thought this would be a good experience for the Bean to see mommy get hers and live to tell about it. Shots don't bother me at all, but the Bean came and held my hand each of the four times I got poked. I told her I would do the same for her at her appointment. Somehow, I don't think it will help and I am sure when we visit the doctor the sounds of her screams will be heard round the practice.