Min Hao Arrives

Well we made it to Guilin and it was raining AGAIN! just like last time we were there, except this time we got to take Min Hao with us. He had a few minutes of crying after his caqregivers left which is totally understandable. We took him to McDonalds after he calmed down and played a bit. That was a big hit. He loved us from that moment on! :) We have been learning a lot about changing our pace as he has to have AFO's on his feet during the day and then bracing at night and during a naptime. The kids love having him around and he's tremendously flexible which is great. He saw our cats last night and freaked out though so hopefully in a matter of time he'll grow to love them like we do. Will add pics soon!

Random Pics

Guilin Here We Come!

Tonight we leave to go to Guilin to pick up a little boy who we will care for about 1-2 yrs. We cannot wait to see him again and to have him at least temporarily join our family! Please be praying for his transition into our home! Attached are a few pics totally unrelated to this post but just recent fun :)

Overdue!

I just realized I posted very little pictures of our wonderful time in Washington! Such sweet times with family and so many friends. We are very thankful for our time although it was much too short!

My Heart Just Overflows!

So this morning I cried. I opened my email to see that we were awarded a second grant- one by Gift of Adoption (www.giftofadoption.org) and it was enough to cover almost our entire orphanage fee. My heart is just overflowing with thankfulness with how the Lord has blessed us in one week. It's almost to where I'm like "wow, Lord I can't take much more of your goodness- I'm so filled up right now!" But that's how He is and how He delights in showering his children. Oh, but can I just say that wow, I am now so ready to go and get our little girl! Please pray for our LOA so that we only have travel approval to wait on. This LOA has taken weeks longer than we expected and we're trying to be patient. It's been very nice to be so blessed while we wait but now we are also so ready to get her. I hope she's ready to be gotten by us! :)

Joy at just the right time

Well, I have to say regarding the whole adoption journey I was starting to get really dismayed. Some of our paperwork had to be authenticated and so that pushed our time back a bit and then we found out that an adopted chinese girl had died at the hands of her parents in America and it just broke my heart! Of course, China found out about that situation and so we are just praying that they will not delay the progress of adoptions more. I know in my head that God's timing is perfect and try not to get downhearted every time there is a delay of some sort and that He always works all things in His time for His purpose, but waiting is hard. Very hard. Needless to say, I was so pleasantly surprised when I opened an email from Sea of Faces and was overjoyed upon reading that they wanted to support our adoption financially! What perfect timing and what an encouragement! So thank you Lord and thank you Sea of Faces! www.seaoffaces.org

My Aunt Owns My Dream Home!

Yesterday we went to visit my aunt's new home and I instantly fell in love! Snuggled in beautiful Salem, OR she had riverfront property with 20 cows on a farm behind her and hiking trails all around. Down the street about 1/4 mile were shetland ponies and just 2 houses down was a u-pick strawberry farm and just up the road about 3/4 mile is a delightful store with fantastic ice- cream. She better keep this home in the family! :)

Seven Years of Love

Dave and I had the opportunity to return to the park we got married at 7 yrs ago. We wanted to get some pics similar to the ones taken 7 yrs ago. Funny thing was that Dave bought a new shaver so he started shaving his goatee and realized the settings were way different than the one he has at home so he ended up having NO goatee! Cracked me up since he's always had a goatee the entire time I've known him and then we go and get pictures to celebrate our anniversary and I barely recognize him! Enjoy the pics!

Family + Friends= a Hint of Heaven!

I cannot even begin to express how much we've enjoyed our time here in Washington so far. One week down and only one left! Our kids have quickly renewed friendships, we've had tremendous conversations about our home in China and about our Lord, and we've just enjoyed such fun things with friends like BBQ's, life cereal, and trips to Costco. It really is the little things that bring so much joy to friendships! Attached are just a few pics of the past week.