Okay....We'll make time for Halloween.

Pumpkins carved, costumes on, parties attended, cookies made, and finally the trick-or-treating!  We made it through....even though this it is soooo hectic right now just trying to stay afloat while we get closer to our travels.  And as always.......LOTS of Pictures!! 

 do'n some bak'n with cousin Jace.

 

Ta-da!!

Two cuties with complete project.

 Big "Kid" party--Dic is on the right....remember Wayne's World on SNL??

 Me and my girl, Jill.

 this surprised me......this house was really creepy and Luke wanted to go to it.  He's easily spooked--look at the look on his face. :0)

 At the end of the night our "neighbor" from across the highway calls to say she has treats for the boys.  OF COURSE we'll go see Grandma Kathy!  The boys LOVE her.....so do I.

Now on to the next event......

23 Days......and counting

Updating my Blog has rolled to the back burner, but I'm trying really hard to do it!  We leave in 23 days and I am frantically trying to keep up with everything......the kids, the house, the shopping, Halloween, care-takers while we're gone, lists for care-takers, packing donations, packing.  And now I am in the nesting state.  The things I haven't been able to keep up for the last year I want done BEFORE we leave.  We don't bring her back this trip, but we need to be prepared since the holidays are coming up fast and going back to Ethiopia could be right around the corner (hopefully). 

I started washing and hanging the clothes we have been given soo far.  I am in the process of getting her a mattress to put up her bed and arrange her (& brother's) room.  So here are some pictures of what I've done thus far---bedroom picts to come.

Her clothes received from family---looks like she's set!

She's sharing a room and closet space with her brother--it's beginning to get a little cramped--he's soo excited!

Her first baby doll--also her first gift given at referral from our great friends--who have also adopted from Ethiopia.

Her outfit for the plane-ride home....with hopes that it fits :), given by my sister.

And her first snuggly toys for comfort....unless she just wants her mommy--

I can live with that.

I am feeling the adoption-pregnancy in full force right now.  It probably sounds crazy if you've never been there, but it sure feels real.  Finally allowing myself to become emotional about this child of mine who we will meet in just 23 days.  Trying to see past the pictures, into her heart.  What does her voice sound like?  Will she respond positively to us at our first meeting...our second meeting?  How big is she--do I have the right size clothes, or will we need to do some shopping?  Will she attach to us?  Does she think about her birth family and how is she dealing with it?  How will she feel about leaving her friends and nannies?  How long will it take her to understand our language?

Very overwhelming right now.  I hope everyone can try to understand that this isn't just bringing a child from poverty to our cozy home.  There is loss in her life.....lots of loss.  This journey is beautiful and sweet, but it's also overwhelming and emotional for soo many......her birth family (who will have to come to court one more time and may come to meet us during our second trip), her nannies who have cared for her for the last 6 months or more, and our family...going through soo many changes both physically and emotionally.  If you could please lift us all up in prayer we would all be grateful.  

23 days from today before Dic and I leave our boys for one week, in the hands of others, to meet our daughter...

their sister....

a gift, 

the most-precious gift, 

God could give 

all 

of 

us.

A New Day

Today we received new pictures of our little one.  It's what I needed--anxiety, depression, stress, joy, and sadness have taken over this week.  We have only 36 days until we travel to Addis Ababa to meet our little one.  She was just over 2 years old when she was brought to the orphanage and now she is 31 months...3 years old in March.  She has grown soo much, beautiful as ever, and I am overjoyed at the fact that she will be in our arms for the first time.  I am excited to take her cute little photo book with pictures of what she will see when she comes "home". Her brothers, her room, her yard, her play-set, her car, her toys, her very own bed ( I might skip the dog pictures so she really wants to come! :0). All I wanna do is smother her face with kisses and tell her how much I love her.  I have done a really good job of staying detached emotionally....until now.  It will be a difficult trip.  Leaving her will be the hardest thing I've ever had to do.  To tell her that we are her new family and then leave her.  I'm not certain how that whole thing will work. Waiting for other families to tell me how their meeting with their toddlers went.  Waiting to see if any of my adopting friends got to meet her, hold her, tell her Mommy loves her.

There are soo many things that need to be done before we leave November 19th--just 36 days away.  I should start packing now because I am not a "packer".  Just ask my husband.  When we camp I stress.  So I should start now--before shut-down mode.  There is a list of suggested items to pack on a Yahoo board.  Very helpful, yet overwhelming.  This trip will be easier as we won't be packing toys and such to keep little "A" happy and entertained--she stays at the Care Center during our stay.  BUT I am using this trip as an opportunity to take LOTS of donations, mainly clothes for the older kiddos.  We are only required to be in Addis 3 days for the first trip, but Dic and I will be staying for five--pretty stoked about that.  Hopefully more time with our sweetie and also some time to get some sight-seeing in.  

Have you ever seen the movie called "Babies"?  I just watched it with my boys.  AMAZING!  I would love to know if the little African babies are a picture of how our babes lived with her biological family.  It was such a sweet film and I probably would have just oohed and awed over the cuties had we not been waiting for our African beauty.  It made me long for her.  So many questions that I'm sure will never be answered.  She is deep in my heart...in all of our hearts.  I love her soo much.  There go the joy and the sadness fighting each other again.  

It's really tough.  
Soon, though.  

Soon. 
Tomorrow is only 35 days....
Every day.

a new day.

October...time for a great story.

I am starting to get giddy for our trip to Ethiopia in November for our court date!!  Not much has happened since we got our court-date assignment. We purchased our airline tickets. Now we just wait.

At the Pumpkin Fest downtown.

 

My sweet boy on our family hike.

I thought I would share this...in case you may have been wondering, or just needed to read a story about a really BLESSED family. :0)

Our Adoption Story

   We are a family of five, with three boys; Cole (12), Zachary (almost 10), and Luke (7).  Adoption has been on Kendra’s heart for years in hopes of having a little girl.

   A few years ago we started going to a little church…the first time as a family.  We were drawn to a couple whom we became very close with and soon after learned they were adopting from Ethiopia.  For two years we walked with them through their process and the hardships they endured made it seem impossible, leaving us feeling that international adoption may not be for us.  But God kept pushing us on.  Kendra became very involved daily in reading blogs about African adoptions and the missionary work happening there.  In the meantime God was quietly whispering his desires for our family to so something bigger than we were.  Kendra quickly fell in love with Africa, it’s people, and the idea of adopting there.  Dic was still seriously concerned about the financial aspect, which made it seem unreachable.

   In July of 2009, our church hosted the Matsiko Children’s Choir from Uganda.  Kendra volunteered, with honor, to place all of the children in the homes of several different families.  We were blessed with three girls for a few days.  Our family grew from this experience (the boys all began to realize how amazing it would be to have a sister and they began to pray for her) and we bonded with these beauties from across the world.  We still keep in touch with them through the choir and help with their needs when we can.  The day they left we were all heart-broken.  This was the day Dic succumbed to God and finally joined Kendra in her decision to adopt…..from Africa.

   We applied to Holt International in January 2009 and were matched with the most gorgeous little girl we have ever seen (we knew she was ours because she looks like us! :0) with her daddy’s bushy eyebrows and her brother’s cheeks and smile).  This precious baby lost both of her birth parents between July and September of last year.  Her uncle cared for her up until the time of relinquishment in May 2009.  From reports, we hear she is a very smart (200 word vocabulary at 2 years) and sociable child who sings to God every day.  We know we are blessed in every way and can’t wait to meet her in November when we go to Ethiopia for our scheduled court hearing (50 days to be exact).

   When God laid this journey on our hearts we truly believed that He was asking us to do His will by caring for His orphaned children, which we thought meant saving a child.  And the more we pray and ask God for guidance, we have a clearer understanding that He has also chosen to bless US with His amazing gift.  Fore she will be OUR family just as we will be hers.  After all, a FAMILY’S  LOVE is the most important thing we can impart to our children…both from the womb and afar.

   Jesus is continually asking us, just as He did Peter, “Do you love me?”  And we answer “Yes, Lord, we LOVE you and even if it is difficult. We will follow and do as you ask of us.”

written for a grant application....something I will keep forever.................

Women's Shirts in Lovely Colors

OKAY....so I've HAD these shirts for awhile, but the colors were soo sporadic that it was difficult to list them on my blog. 

Here you go....now I have a few colors left in each size and you can buy them all up!! YES, SERIOUSLY......buy them ALL! :0)

 You definitely need to follow instructions when ordering, because the sizes and colors vary, and unfortunately I no longer have the Burgandy, Lt Blue, or Sage Green.  They are listed properly on the ordering column (to the right).

  Wanna see how cute they are?  Here ya go.....

If you likey, please let me know!  If you have any questions, just leave a comment or email me: cholo5@wescomm.com.  Oh, and I still have LOTS of baby/toddler shirts in a variety of colors...soo cute!  

(they also come in red & Lt Blue)

And then the Youth Sizes.....

(with a mama thrown in there sport'n her Red shirt) :0)

These shirts have shipped all over the world!!!

Want one? :0)

Coley Boy

My oldest son turned TWELVE on Sept 3rd!!!! 

Wow!!  

So I thought I would finally post about his Birthday....and some other things. :0)

 His two best buddies stayed the night for his Birthday--having Cole's favorite ice cream treat...BANANA SPLIT! 

Celebrating at a water park with his brothers and some of their friends.....

He requested a cake with the design we have on our adoption t-shirts.....so I became an artist for a day...I think it turned out alright! 

The Birthday boy!

 We gave him a gift certificate for some chicks that were due to hatch the next week.....posting about that coming soon. :0)

HIS FIRST DAY OF MIDDLE SCHOOL!!!!  CRAZY!!!

Getting some help from his dad with his locker........

 And then there was THIS a couple of days ago.......

I didn't cry on his first day of school.  I did everything BUT cry.  I had to take the two younger boys to their school closer to home and so Dic took Cole.  It was probably a good idea.  I did everything I possibly could to prepare him...even color printed his class schedule in BIG bold letters to he could just glance down and know where he was suppose to be.  I didn't have to take him that day and feel like I was throwing him to the wolves. 
BUT......
when I attended his first Cross Country Meet and I saw him run I was reminded that I now have a Middle-Schooler. 
The dam broke.  
I tried to take pictures and cheer him on through the tears.  Just wish I would have brought some tissue.  My sweet boy has grown before my eyes.  I am happy and sad.  He is a blessing.  Every day I am reminded of that...

every 

single 

day.


  Coley, your mom needs you to stop getting older now.

Sharing

  THIS I had to share....from Amy's blog.....what my heart is feeling now.  Thank you for sharing, friend.

 

 While we wait...

While we wait for the perfect timing...

they hope they can wait another day.

While we wait for more money...

they wait with nothing.

While we wait for a bigger home with enough room...

they wait for room in our hearts.

While we wait for others approval...

they wait with any dignity they can find.



While we wait for the ideal child....

they wait knowing they are not.

While we wait trying to decide if we can manage another...

they wait trying to manage on their own.



While we wait to see how much we have to give to them...

They are waiting to give us even more.

While we wait for God to provide...

He waits for us to take the first step so He can.

We must NEVER use 'waiting to hear from Him' as an excuse for not doing what He has ALREADY commanded in the bible for us to do... proclaim the truth, care for orphans, serve others, be His hands of justice for the poor, and show compassion.

So, what are you waiting for??

Meet me at T4A on October 2nd in Austin, Texas to learn more about God's heart for orphans!!!

Love for our orphans is contagious

I love when the love for adoption is passed around the world and we all support one another.  OUR orphan crisis is REAL and it's BIG.  And to be able to pass the goodness on to our fellow adopting families is such an amazing thing.  Most people know who Steven Curtis Chapman is.....a Godly man with a GREAT voice.  Well, he began Show Hope many years ago and has adopted himself from China.  This organization provides grants for families who want to bring a child into their home (among many other things), but may be struggling financially to do so.  Well, a couple of weeks ago we were surprised with a letter from them that we have been awarded one of their grants.  What a blessing!!  So we now have the money to purchase our first two tickets to Ethiopia....hopefully within the next couple of days.  Some of the burden has been lifted and we are sooooo very grateful. 

And a couple of weeks ago I was approached when I set up a table in front of my favorite coffee shop in our downtown region.  The woman quickly noticed the poster-sized adoption fliers and told me how she has also adopted....eight children. :0)  She and her husband have many biological children as well.  Anyway, she proceeded to tell me that she and 40-some friends from her church are going on a trip to Israel in October and she would like to see how many people she can get to donate their air miles to us.  She asked "That should buy you a few tickets, right?".  I was teary-eyed and shocked that someone would put forth the efforts for us.  It was definitely a God-thing.  T-shirt sale weren't great that day, but I realized that I had been touched by a woman of God who loves the orphans and that is truly all I cared about.  I am sooo blessed to find the people I have on this journey.  More to come on that later....

In the almost eight months that we have been in this process we have encountered many people we may not have known otherwise.  My husband found out he does business with a driller who builds water wells in Africa to provide clean drinking water. WOW!!  (I REALLY want to be a part of that someday soon).  We have also been in contact with people who live right here in our town, but we may never see--also great thanks to Face Book for this. :0)  And it's crazy how many people have stepped forward to support us while we wait for our sweet baby girl.  T-shirt orders have come in beyond our expectations, donations big and small have been sent and handed to us, and prayers being thrown our way at every turn. We have been blessed. And we are grateful.  And we will pass on that love for the orphans forever.  Because this love is contagious..... 

Court date assignment!

Today is a GOOD day!!  We received an email stating that the high courts in Ethiopia request our presence for our official hearing on November 24th!!!  We thought all of the dates for November had been given out, and low and behold......there were more!  Halleluiah!!  We are soo excited--I may be the only one jumping up and down screaming but I do believe there is excitement throughout the house today!  We only need to be in Addis for three days, but considering the cost of travel I think we'll be staying a little while longer than that. :0)  And because our visits with our daughter will be limited this time we may do our extra shopping, sightseeing, etc on this trip.  But we WILL be meeting our beautiful babe!!  I can't even stand it!!  NOW I am thinking about all of those things that I have kept myself from thinking because we know it will be happening sooooo soon!  I always say....after Halloween, it's all downhill from there!  Sorry to ramble and I could sit here and vent my thoughts for hours!!! 

Very soon our Ethiopian babe.....very soon. 

Your mama loves you so.

HER words...but my thoughts

These are my thoughts...spoken from another woman's mouth--

My family, adopting these children, it is not optional. It is not my good
deed for the day, it is not what I am doing to “help these poor kids
out.” I adopt because God commands me to care for the orphans and the widows in their distress. I adopt because to who...m much has been given, much will be demanded. I adopt because whoever finds his life will lose it but whoever loses his life for HIS sake will find it.  ~"Katy"~

 

If you haven't ever read about Katy.....you should.  She is one of the reasons we are adopting.  I followed her blog for at least two years before we made the final decision.  If you'd like to be inspired, amazed, broken, and humbled, you can go HERE to read her story.   

Hold Her in My Arms

Last night, extremely exhausted and never getting enough sleep, I allowed myself to imagine holding HER in my arms for the first time.  I know, you must think I'm crazy....but I have told myself from the time of referral acceptance that I wasn't gonna go there.  I can't be HERE while she's over THERE and wonder what it would be like to touch her for the first time, to smell her for the first time, to kiss her for the first time.  I know, sounds like a love affair, doesn't it?  Well, it is.  And I could very well make myself crazy.  So for the last (almost) two months since we found out who she was I have looked at her pictures a thousand twenty-two times and talked about her non-stop, and replayed the trip to Ethiopia over-and-over.  But I have never (until now) let myself get to that emotional place of meeting her.  Some people may think I just don't care....I just can't.  It could be another 6 months (no, God, please) and I can't bare to be so tied up in my feelings for this beautiful child of mine who I am longing for.  I can't wait to see how she responds to me....will she smile and hug me back, or will she run away screaming? :0) It doesn't matter either way....soon she will be in my arms forever.  Now I am going back to my "place".....it's safest there.

A Beautiful Summer

This summer has, thankfully, been filled with lots of fun times.  We got a chance to host my brother's oldest son for a week and we made the best of it.  We took him camping with us for the weekend.  What a great kid--we LOVE him!!

(Jacob)

Here's the infamous sand castle in the sand box in our backyard......the boys always do this when he comes to visit.  Can you believe THIS?  They amaze me just a little. ;0)  

Camping

Then last week we went to our favorite campground in the Black Hills and stayed for 5 days....thanks to our sweet friends.  It was a beautiful weekend with a day at a nearby lake....

some campfire fun with some of our best buddies.....

and a hike on a trail....always my favorite.....

This time we brought along my other brother's little boy, Jace.  Eat'n his PB&J...always eating.

And then my husband spotted something (big hunter guy) that we always wonder about but never think we'll see....... just a little bit freaky.  These big cats are soo numerous in our hills now that there is a hunting season for them.  They have been found in quiet little neighborhoods.  Made us surely think twice about letting our kids play out of sight.  A first time for all of us--viewing one in the wild--YES, it's a mountain lion!!!  And he was watching us.  Yikes!

After the shock wore off we did some wild-rasberry-pick'n.

 Our hills are such a great place to live...there are soo many beautiful places like this.....

Taking some time to kiss an owie......

Finding horses that were longing to be petted.......

Just a fantastic way to end the week.  
Our last camping trip of the summer. 
I can't wait to do it all again next year with another little one tagging along! 
Blessings are everywhere!

Court case submitted!

Today we found out our case was submitted to the high courts in Ethiopia---now we wait for the courts to open back up in late September to find out when we go for our court-date!!  Is this exciting?  Yes, I should say so.  Hang on baby....it won't be long!!