Catching lightening bugs with Daddy...

Walking around naked & barefoot...

No...not me! Thank goodness! I'm in the book of Isaiah right now. Isaiah is a tough book of the Bible for me to read. This morning I read the very short chapter 20. When I first looked at it I thought to myself, "This is really short...it won't take long at all to read it & then refer to my footnotes on it." Oh, boy I was wrong! I was stuck on verse 2 for a long time. "the Lord told Isaiah son of Amoz, "Take off all of your clothes, including your sandals." Isaiah did as he was told & walked around naked & barefoot."
I'm like, "You're kidding me right???" Why in the world would God tell him to do that? At first I thought he did it just once in front of the people to prove a point but no...read verse 3 which says, "Then the Lord said, "My servant Isaiah has been walking around naked & barefoot for the last three years. This is a sign-a symbol of the terrible troubles I will bring upon Egypt & Ethiopia."
Three years??? He walked around naked & barefoot for three years! Why??? Because God told him to!
This is what my footnotes say about those verses (from the NLT Life Application Study Bible):
God's command to Isaiah to walk about naked for three years was a humiliating experience. God was using Isaiah to demonstrate the humiliation that Egypt & Ethiopia would experience at the hands of Assyria. But the message was really for Judah: Don't put your trust in foreign governments, or your will experience this kind of shame & humiliation from your captors.
It goes on to say:
God asked Isaiah to do something that seemed shameful & illogical. At times, God may ask us to do things we don't understand. We must obey God in complete faith, for he will never ask us to do something wrong.
Wow!!! That's a lot of "meat" from such a short chapter. And like most times when I read the Bible...it's very timely for my current circumstances. Walking in humility & faith...how am I doing at it? Why is it so hard to do? That's a lot of "meat" to chew on.

30 Days...

WhoooooooooooooHoooooooooooooooooooo! Thirty more days until I get to meet my beautiful Haitian children!!! Thirty more days until I get to hold them in my arms. Thirty more days until I get to wipe the snot away from their noses. I can't wait!

The Voice of Truth...

"I know very well how foolilsh the message of the cross sounds to those who are on the road to destruction. But we who are being saved recognize this message as the very power of God. As the Scriptures say, "I will destroy human wisdom & discard their most brilliant ideas." So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, & the world's brilliant debaters? God has made them all look foolish & has shown their wisdom to be useless nonsense. Since God in his wisdom saw to it that the world would never find him through human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save all who believe. God's way seems foolish to the Jews because they want a sign from heaven to prove it is true. And it is foolish to the Greeks because they believe only what agrees with their own wisdom. So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended, & the Gentiles say it's all nonsense. But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews & Gentiles, Christ is the mighty power of God & the wonderful wisdom of God. This "foolish" plan of God is far wiser than the wisest of human plans, & God's weakness is far stronger than the greatest of human strength." 1 Corinthians 1:18-25

"I have plenty to boast about & would be no fool in doing it, because I would be telling the truth. But I won't do it. I don't want anyone to think more highly of me than what they can actually see in my life & my message, even though I have received wonderful revelations from God. But to keep me from getting puffed up, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me & keep me from getting proud. Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, "My gracious favor is all you need. My power works best in your weakness." So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may work through me. Since I know it is all for Christ's good, I am quite content with my weaknesses & with insults, hardships, persecutions, & calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Corinthians 12:6-10

One of my favorite Casting Crowns songs is "Voice of Truth" which is based on the above Scripture verses. I have been listening to it a lot lately because I need the reminder. I am easily distracted right now & need a constant reminder to focus on Jesus & not all the waves crashing around me as I attempt to get out of the boat.

"Voice of Truth" by Casting Crowns

Oh what I would do to have
The kind of faith it takes to climb out of this boat I'm in
Onto the crashing waves

To step out of my comfort zone
Into the realm of the unknown where Jesus is
And He's holding out His hand

But the waves are calling out my name & they laugh at me
Reminding me of all the times I've tried before & failed
The waves they keep on telling me
Time & time again, "Boy,(or girl) you'll never win!"
"You'll never win!"

But the voice of truth tells me a different story
The voice of truth says, "Do not be afraid!"
And the voice of truth says, "This is for My glory"
Out of all of the voices calling out to me
I will choose to listen & believe the voice of truth

Oh what I would do to have
The kind of strength it takes to stand before a giant
With just a sling & a stone
Surrounded by the sound of a thousand warriors
Shaking in their armor
Wishing they'd have the strength to stand

But the giant's calling out my name & he laughs at me
Reminding me of all the times I've tried before & failed
The giant keeps on telling me
Time & time again, "Boy (or girl) you'll never win!"
"You'll never win!"

But the stone was just the right size
To put the giant on the ground
And the waves they don't seem so high
From on top of them looking down
I will soar with the wings of eagles
When I stop & listen to the sound of Jesus singing over me
I will choose to listen & believe the voice of truth. I will listen & believe. Jesus you are the voice of truth.

Most of us...

This is a family picture from Randy's mother's 70th birthday party yesterday. Six of the seven children were there but unfortunately Randy's brother Lynn was "hacked off" in the pictures...sorry Lynn!

Gone...

We're heading to MO this morning to celebrate Randy's mother's 70th birthday. We'll be back Monday. Have a great weekend!

For Jordyn...

Randy took some more flower pictures last night & I thought of you Jordyn.

Celebrating

Here's Phoebe celebrating my birthday. We had a very nice evening. No melt downs although she was a little fussy at bedtime but that's par for the course.

Happy Birthday to me!

My birthday started out on a great note. The sun is shining & there is a cool breeze blowing. My wonderful husband rolled over as he woke up this morning & wished me a Happy Birthday. We had a nice breakfast & then like every other "work" day morning we did a devotion together. Guess what it was about...if you guessed "growing old"...you're right! Here it is from Max Lucado's "Grace for the Moment" book.

"The Oldest & the Choicest"
"Even when you are old, I will be the same. Even when your hair has turned gray, I will take care of you." Isaiah 46:4

Growing old can be dangerous. The trail is treacherous & the pitfalls are many. One is wise to be prepared. You know it's coming. It's not like God kept the process a secret. It's not like you are blazing a trail as you grow older. It's not as if no one has ever done it before. Look around you. You have ample opportunity to prepare & ample case studies to consider. If growing old catches you by surprise, don't blame God. He gave you plenty of warning. He also gave you plenty of advice.

Your last chapter can be your best. Your final song can be your greatest. It could be that all of your life has prepared you for a grand exit. God's oldest have always been among his choicest.

BE STILL...

"Be still & know that I am God." I don't have a problem with the "know that I am God" part. I have a problem with the "be still" part. How do we make ourselves be still? I'm still trying to figure that one out but I figured if Shakira can be still & I know how hard it is for her...than I can too!

Cook Out Pictures

My friend Kristina took some pictures of the kids at our cook out Saturday.

Can you believe it???

I had this AWESOME birthday party tonight with my friends...my neighbors across the street, people from my church, & all the area 3 A's families except for Don & Teresa's (they were driving home from their vacation) & I somehow "forgot" to take pictures! How in the world did that happen??? And I don't think anyone else took pictures either...drats!!!

Everyone needs a grass skirt!

How to eat an ice cream cone...

Youngest to Oldest...

Indy...

We're heading out to Indianapolis this morning for our finger print appt. Please pray for travel safety & "sanity" as we have to bring Phoebe with us, as well as smooth finger print processing.

45 Days!!!

I forgot to mention that we only have 45 days left until we meet our girls!!! We so can't wait!!! Are we there yet??? How bout now??? What about now??? Ok...I'll stop!

DEAD AGAIN...

Two months ago I titled a post called "Dead" & told of how Phoebe's fish she named Samara died. Well, tonight I have to tell you that her other fish Shakira died. I really hope she doesn't name any more "pets" Samara &/or Shakira. I think we're going to put the fish tank up for a while.

This is the day...

the Lord has made! Let us rejoice & be glad in it! Psalm 118:24

Prayer of Thanksgiving!

I want to lift up a prayer of thanksgiving for all of your prayers & God's healing touch. Phoebe didn't not have a fever all night & her temp is still normal now. She is also acting like her "active self" although we're still going to take it easy today.

Prayers for Phoebe...

Phoebe starting running a temp on Wed. & it has continued on & off since then with it getting as high as 105.6 today. We went to the doctor this morning & as I suspected the doctor is pretty sure she has an UTI (urinary tract infection). We will know for sure Sunday afternoon but in the mean time she is on Keflex. She is not herself. She's not eating much & is sleeping a lot during the day & going to bed at night without a fuss. Please pray for healing for her. Thanks so much!

1000 Words...

They say a picture says 1000 words. I wonder what this picture is saying???

Our Adoption Story...

About a week ago a friend asked me about Phoebe's adoption story & I told her that I would post it here. We brought Phoebe home in 2003 but our adoption story actually began 10 years earlier in 1993. We were living in MO at the time & had moved into a duplex across the street from a nice older couple who were raising their 5 yr. old granddaughter they adopted because her mother (their daughter) was strung out on drugs & the father was who knows where. She was the cutest little thing & she immediately became attached to my hip. As time went on she spent more & more time with us. We took her places, she knew our family, she spent the night with us. In my heart she was my daughter. I had told her grandparents who were in their 60's that if something ever happened to them that we would take care of their granddaughter. In 1995 we started making plans to move to WNC. During this time the grandparents made the decision to have their granddaugther readopted by another couple because they were starting to have more health problems. I thought for sure they wanted us to adopt her. We were all like family. I was devastated when they told me that they were going through an organization through their church. I rationalized that they either wanted her to be raised in the same denomination as them or that they wanted her closer to them than NC. She ended up going to a couple that lived 3 hours from where we lived in NC. I had a very hard time with it at first & was not convinced that this was "God's plan." Several years later as she grew into a teenager the grandmother told me the real reason why she didn't want us adopting her. The grandmother said, "I knew in my heart of hearts that she was going to grow up having a lot of problems & cause a lot of distress for her family & we loved you & Randy like our own children & did not want to put you through that." Ironically, she did have a lot of problems such as anorexia/bulimia & cutting her self. She did cause her family a lot of problems. I don't question God any more about his decision where she went even though I still don't totally understand it. All I know is that if we would have adopted her we would have loved her no matter what. I can say that with confidence because I still love her & always will.

In 2001 after been married for 12 years & never getting pregnant, we decided to pursue adoption. We talked to several people who had adopted, did a lot of research on it, & then felt led to pursue a domestic adoption with a local branch of a nationwide adoption agency. We started the paper work in March 2001 & our file was totally completed & available for "calls" in Oct. 2001. During this time the adoption agency saw our preferences for children & asked us if we would consider being placed in the Bi-racial/African American file which means we would only consider adopting Bi-racial or African American babies. There was a need for this & they knew we were open to this. We prayed about it & said yes. It was also during this time that I had a "vision" that there was baby dressed in pink laying on my stomach asleep with a head full of dark, curly hair. We got our first "call" on Dec. 13, 2001 about a baby boy. I was very excited because it had been less than 2 months since our file was completed. I then became very "over whelmed" when I learned that the birth mother was due on Dec. 27th. Most birth mothers who came to the agency didn't wait until 2 weeks before they are due to say they want to give their child up for adoption. This birth mother was the same age as me & knew from the beginning she would give her baby up for adoption but didn't think it was "necessary" to tell anyone about it until she was ready to give birth. So 1,000 thoughts were racing around in my head. Then our case worker said the next thing that I didn't want to hear, "Oh, & she would like to meet you & Randy in person. I know you stated you didn't want to do that but you would consider it if it came up." I asked her why she wanted to meet us if she has already decided that she wanted us to be the adoptive parents? Our case worker said that it's very hard for African Americans to give their babies up for adoption anyway for cutural & family reasons & some of them don't understand why a Caucasian couple would want to adopt their baby. She guessed that this particular birthmother just wanted to meet us to ask us that question & be comfortable with our response. So we told our case worker to arrange the meeting with her but due to circumstances with the birth mother the meeting did not take place until Dec. 24th (Christmas Eve) & 3 days away from the due date. We met Valerie at a restaurant & she was a lovely lady. We felt extremely comfortable with her & her with us. She asked if we had chosen a name yet & we said yes & asked her if she would like to know what it was & she said, "Yes." We told her Jonathan Marshall. She got a little teary eyed & said she liked it a lot. We all hugged & then it was time for her to go. We would be notified as soon as she delivered the baby & then arrangements would be made for us to pick the baby up. We went back home & frantically got some things together for Jonathan & then waited for a call. The 27th came & went & no call but I wasn't concerned about it because most people don't have their babies on the exact due date. We went to work on the 28th (7pm-7am shift) & around 9pm I got a call that sent me into a tail spin. It was the case worker that was working with Valerie. She said, "I don't know how to tell you this so I'm just going to say it...Valerie & Jonathan died Wed. evening the day before her due date. Her mother came home & found Valerie dead on the floor. We don't have the autopsy results yet but they're thinking it was from a pulmonary embolus or something." I put the phone down & some how had to gather myself to make it through the rest of 10 hours I had left at work because the department I was working on at the time only had one nurse on the unit with a tech. There wasn't anyone to take my place. Then I had to deal with telling Randy while he was still at work when he called later to see how things were going. I think that has been the longest night of my life so far. I was totally thrown for a loop. The agency had tried to prepare you for the birth mother changing her mind at the last minute or something happening to the baby but never did they ever present the scenario of both the birth mother & baby dying together. We had just met this person. We gave the baby a name. WHY did this happen? WHY did we have to meet her? I've always been a person who didn't question God much even if I didn't understand the situation at all but this time I did. I grieved...and I grieved hard. We took our profile off at the agency for a year while I "re grouped." The agency gave us no grieving support or counseling. The hardest part of it all was that no one understood how I felt. My mom came the closest to understanding but she was 550 miles away & couldn't be with me during that time. Everyone else didn't understand how I related this as a miscarriage for me. So they either said, "dumb things" or ignored me. During this period of my life I just clung to Jesus. I hung on tight because it was all I could do at the time. I had no energy to pray or praise so I just held on tightly & quietly (when I wasn't sobbing uncontrolably.)

In Jan. 2003 we decided to put on our profile back on at the agency. In March we got an "inquiry call" which means that a birth mother is looking at your profile but they have a question like "Can I name the child?" I think that was the question of this birth mother who was carrying a boy. We didn't hear anything about that baby again. Then we got another "inquiry call" in April regarding a birth mother who was also having a boy. I felt in my heart of hearts that this too would not work out because we were going to have a girl. I think that birthmother decided to keep the baby. We didn't hear anything else from our case worker until July when she said we would need to have our homestudy updated in August if we didn't get a call before then. So in August we had our homestudy updated & she didn't say anything about anything "in the works." Three weeks later we go to MO on vacation see our family. Normally when we go out of town we would call the agency & let them know but I forgot this time. We also turn off our answering maching when we go out of town. We had only been in MO for a day or two when on Monday morning my mom comes rushing into my room & is face to face with me screaming at me as I'm still sleeping, "You have to call the agency now!" When I woke up enough to talk I told her to calm down & tell me what's going on. She said that Randy who was playing golf with his brother had called & said that the agency had called his cell phone but he didn't answer it in time & they left a message & asked us to call them as soon as we could so Randy called my mom's house & asked her to tell me that when I woke up to tell her to call the agency. Notice "when I woke up" not "go & wake her up now." I told mom it was probably just an "inquiry call" & it was no big deal. My mom got in my face again & said, "Call now!" So for the sake of her sanity I got out of bed & headed to the kitchen to call the agency. Our case worker answered & asked where we were & I told her in MO. She then asked if that was far away...I'm thinking "Didn't you take US geography in school" but what I said was, "It's a 9 & 1/2 hr drive, why?" and she said, "Because we have a beautiful baby girl waiting here for you." I said,"You have a what???" Then she went on to give the details. She said that the birth mother didn't want to pick a profile & asked the agency to do it. They prayed about it & chose us. She knew about it when she updated our homestudy but after what we went through the first time she didn't want to take any chances. She also said that since the birth mother didn't have a special request for the baby to be released to the adoptive parents straight from the hospital so they had placed the baby in the agency's foster mom's care after the baby was released to wait out the 7 day waiting period that NC has for birth mothers to change their mind. So the 7 days were up & she was ours! Then the case worker said if we wanted to we could just finish out our vacation & get the baby when we came home. In my mind I'm like ,"Are you kidding me?" but instead I said, "We'll be there tomorrow" & we were. On Sept. 16th we brought Phoebe Starr home. It was the most amazing day of our lives so far.

No...not done yet!!! Eleven months later we get a call from the adoption agency & our case worker said that Phoebe's birth mother was pregnant again & would we like to adopt this baby as well. Once again I'm thinking, "Are you kidding me?" I told her we would like to but we weren't planning on this & didn't have the money for it. She said she would keep in touch & we would see how things progressed. We knew if it was God's will for us to adopt this child that the money would come. We felt led to put our house on the market in Oct. 2004 instead of the spring of 2005 like we had originally thought we would & move back to the Midwest. We thought that maybe we would make enough from the sale of our house to have a down payment for our next house plus enough for adoption expenses. We put our house on the market on a Monday, had our first "lookers" on that Wed. & accepted an offer on that Friday & closed exactly a month later. We had enough for a down payment for our next house but not for adoption expenses. We moved to IN & just kept praying about it. The agency offered no help at all & ended up adopting out the baby boy to another couple. As frustrated as I was at the agency for not helping us at all in that situation I knew it was God's will for us not to adopt that child. I have no idea why but I don't need to know why. At that point we didn't know if we would ever adopt again...and we all know the answer to that :o) PRAISE GOD TO WHOM ALL BLESSINGS FLOW!!!

New Do!

Most of you that have known me for a long time know that I generally wear my hair short. I don't like "fixing" hair nor wasting time on "fixing" hair. It's been a while since it's been this short but I decided it was time. I call this my "I have 3 children ages 4 & under hair do."

Time for a picture!

I was having picture withdrawals again. If I go too long without posting a picture I go into "picture withdrawals." I really like this picture of Shakira & Gail although on here you can't see much definition of Shakira's face or eyes.

For the Glory of God

This is from our Tony Evans devotion book "Keeping Your Promises to Your Family"

The Christian life is not a life of ease. It is composed of many acts of the will whereby we obey God for the glory of God.
"So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."
1 Corninthians 10:31

Tagged by Michelle..

Okay, so I was tagged by Michelle & I 'm suppose to post 7 little known facts about myself. They aren't anything earth shaking but you may not know them:
1. I've always wanted to be a rock star...now I would choose to be a "Christian recording artist." :o)
2. I like to roller skate & really want a pair of those tennis shoes with the wheels in them.
3. Most people know that my favorite color is purple but don't know that my favorite flowers are yellow roses.
4. I like the smell of the ocean.
5. I like the feel of grass on under my bare feet.
6. I like laying in a hammock for extended periods of time.
7. I won a banana eating contest in college. (No comments please!)

I tag Don, Fiona, Jamie V., Terri, Joye, Elaine, & Larry. (I know you all don't have blogs so you can post them here)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY YOU-YOU!!!

This is the beloved Three Angels Orphanage House Manager & today is her birthday. Hope you have a wonderfully blessed day You-You!

60 More Days!!!

"For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. "They are plans for good & not for evil, to give you a future & a hope." Jeremiah 29:11

My Mom...

is the best mom in the world!!! At least, to me anyway:o) I love her so much & am very grateful that the Lord blessed me with her! She has always been there for me & continues to be a great source of guidance & support. Happy Mother's Day Mom!

PARTY TIME!

It's time to celebrate! I know you're wondering what for so I'll tell you now...our dossier is complete & I mailed it off today...yeah, baby!!! I wish I would have brought my camera with me to Post Net so they could have taken a picture of the cheezy grin that was on my face as we were packaging it up! It's time for the HBWD!

"Gideon"

Gideon has always been one of my favorite stories in the Bible but now that I watch the Veggie Tale version on a regular basis with Phoebe it has taken on even a deeper meaning than before.
For the past few weeks I've been struggling with the possibilty of adopting another child. This came about due to something totally unrelated to Three Angels or Haiti. So last Thursday a week ago I poured out my heart to some friends & told them that if it was meant to be that it would happen & if it wasn't meant to be I wanted God to take the desire out of my heart. Soon after that the desire for this particular child was taken away but it was soon replaced with a desire for another child...one from Three Angels. I spoke with Gail the parent liason about the possibilty of adopting a third child. She said it is "irregular" & that the Board of Directors would have to approve it. She & I decided to pray about it. I knew Randy was not open to the idea but I felt "something" & needed to know if it was God's will or not. So I pulled a "Gideon" & threw out a "fleece." I told God that I would be accepting whatever the answer was. So tonight was "fleece" night. If it was God's will Randy would agree & we would agree on what child God had chosen for us. He said, "I prayed about it all week & do not feel God is leading us to adopt another child at this time." I said, "That's fine. I told you I would accept whatever the decision was."
So now I'm just "processing" all of this in my head & heart & letting God fill me with His peace as I trust in Him.

MOTHER'S DAY TEA...

Here are some pictures from the Mother's Day Tea that was held at Phoebe's pre school yesterday. It was really nice.

Making some progress...

Following up with yesterday's post I wanted to let you know that the thing I've been praying about for almost a year now has been Randy's job. He has a good job & he likes it but for about a year now he has been asked to do additional responsiblities in addition to his patient care load. That was fine in the beginning but then the responsiblities kept growing to the point where he was feeling stretched between not having enough time to do them all, & do them all well. I knew something was going to have to give eventually. Well to make a long story short he has an interview Monday in another dept. for a position that his current boss has recommended him for. So we are praying for God's will to be done regarding this.
Thanks for your continued prayers regarding this!

Also...another baby step taken today regarding the adoptions. We FINALLY got our confirmation letter saying that they are processing our I-600a's & we should be getting our finger printing appointments soon. Yeah!!!

Funny Face!

"He will yet fill your mouth with laughter & your lips with shouts of joy." Job 8:21

KEEP PRAYING!

Thanks for all of your prayers yesterday! Please keep praying. We have a couple different things "cooking in the pot right now." I can't go into specifics just yet but there is something that I have been praying about for a long time now & there maybe a possibilty of an answer to it within the next few days, maybe even as soon as today. We want God's will to be done.

Get out of the judgment seat!

"You will be judged in the same way that you judge others." Matthew 7:12
The following comes from my Max Lucado devotion book "Grace for the Moment" & it was the devotion for today which really spoke to me. I hope it speaks to you as well.
"We condemn a man for stumbling this morning, but we didn't see the blows he took yesterday. We judge a woman for the limp in her walk, but can not see the tack in her shoe. We mock the fear in their eyes, but have no idea how many stones they have ducked or darts they have dodged.
Are they too loud? Perhaps they fear being neglected again. Are they too timid? Perhaps they fear failing again. Too slow? Perhaps they fell the last time they hurried. You don't know. Only one who has followed yesterday's steps can be their judge.
Not only are we ignorant about yesterday, we are ignorant about tomorrow. Dare we judge a book while chapters are yet unwritten? Should we pass a verdict on a painting while the artist still holds the brush? How can you dimiss a soul until God's work is complete?"
"God began doing a good work in you, & I am sure he will continue it until it is finished when Jesus Christ comes again." Phillipians 1:6

I would appreciate any & all prayers for Randy & I right now. I can't go into specifics but we need to stay focused on the Lord & hear Him speak to us clearly & do His will.

I'M WAITING...

for Samara & Shakira to come home & play with me. I can't wait! I miss both of you very much!
Love,
Phoebe

YOU WERE FORMED FOR GOD'S FAMILY...

This is what "jumped out" at me yesterday as I looked at my calendar on the wall. It's from the month of May on Rick Warren's "The Purpose Driven Life" calendar. It goes on to say the following: God desired a family, so He devised a plan to create us, bring us into His family, & share with us all He had. "His unchanging plan has always been to adopt us into His own family." Ephesians 1:5
I find great comfort in that as well as knowing that He has known from the beginning of time the make up of our earthly families & He has hand picked each one of our family members for reasons we may never know this side of Heaven.

Get together...

Today we went to a get together for the 7 families in our area that are adopting children from the Three Angels Orphanage. We currently have 13 children coming to our area from the 7 families. We can't wait for the day we can have a get together to celebrate that they are all home with us. Here's some pictures from today.

Something to think about...

These are some beach pictures from the April mission trip to Haiti. This was the first Three Angels beach trip which was a 3-4 hour drive one way. Shakira was blessed to be able to go on this trip (even though she was swim suit less since I didn't know she was going but she didn't seem to mind). Most Haitians will never get to go to this place because they can't afford to. Going to the beach is not high on the priority list when your main concern is where you're next meal is coming from or IF you're even going to have a next meal. Most Americans living in the US can go to a beach if they want to. Most of us don't have to worry IF we're going to have a next meal or not. There are many ways for us to help those less fortunate whether it be by praying for their needs, monetary donations, helping making blankets & sending clothing to Third World Countries, going on mission trips, etc. Will you please consider helping?

Time for some pictures!

I figured since I've gone 2 days without posting pictures it was time to post some more.

WHERE ARE WE???

I don't mean where are we physically, geographically speaking but where are we in the adoption process? That's what many people want to know. Unless you have adopted before you may not realize that it truly is a "process" (kind of like pregnancy but with out the weight gain & much more paper work). I've also learned that there's a big difference in how much paper work & different things you have to do whether you adopt domestically or internationally. Below is a list of steps that we must go through to bring the girls home.
1. Home study
2. Submit I-600a to DHS. Wait for finger print appointment.
3. Get the following documents ready to send to the IN Secretary of State to be authenticated: Home Study, IBESR Letter, POA letters, Mental Health Letter. Once obtained sent to Secretary of State & they will return them to you.
4. Get the following documents in addition to the ones listed above that will need to be translated into French: Birth certificates, marriage certificate, police reports, bank letter, employment letter(s), medical letters, 3 reference letters. Once they are obtained & you have your documents back from the Secretary of State you will need to mail them to the translator.
5. Get the rest of the documents needed for your dossier (they will be listed on your check list)
6. After you have received your translations you will need to send the following to the Haitian Consulate in Chicago to be legalized: Home study, IBESR letter, POA letters, Mental Health Letter
7. Once you have received them back from Chicago & you have your other documents ready, & you have received an approved 1-171h, you can send your dossier to Haiti.
At this point you can submit your I-600 whenever you're in Haiti.
After the I-600 is submitted, the following happens on the Haitian side:
Adoption steps once Dossier arrives in Haiti
Minister of Foreign Affairs (1st legal)
· Documents notarized and authenticated are now legalized.
DHS· Submit Orphan First Petition and birth parents interview happens, DNA testing is done if requested by DHS officer.
Justice of the Peace
· Judge issues a formal request for IBESR to exam potential adoptive family as permanent family for child.
IBESR
· Family and child’s dossier are examined. 4 signatures required to exit.
Civil Judge
· Issues official adoption decree.
Parquet· Social Representative (similar to a prosecutor in a US court), insures that the above departments have done everything legally.
Civil State Officer· New birth certificate is issued.
Archive
· Verifies all signature’s, certificate is issued. (Similar to being notarized)
Minister of Justice
· Above verifications are now legalized (similar to notary being authenticated).
Passports
· Minister of Interior
Insures all of the above documents have not been falsified.
· Political Affairs
Gives final authorization to issue the passport.
· Passport is issued
DHS·
Take adoption decree to finalize orphan first petition.
Embassy
Visa is issued.
****You get the call to come get your child(ren)!!!

We are currently waiting for our documents to come back from the Haitian Consulate in Chicago as well as waiting for an approved I-171h & finger printing. Please pray that the rest of the steps will go quickly & without any complications. Thanks!

One Word???

A couple of weeks ago a friend of mine sent me an E mail asking to describe her in just one word. She had sent this E mail to several people & then waited for their reply. I had the invitation to do the same. I was very uncomfortable with the thought of doing this. All I could think of was my negatives & thought for sure that every one else would think of them too. I felt led to go ahead & send the E mail to several people & braced myself for the worst. Words such as loud, obnoxious, abrasive, disruptive, mean, volatile, & moody kept lurking in the front of my mind. Within a day or so I had received most of the replies back. I was suprised by two different things. The first one is that no one had used the same word. The second one is that no one used any of the words that I would have used. Instead they used words such as accepting, awesome, dependable, energetic, faithful, fun, giving, lively, & unique. Now I didn't put that out there to "toot my own horn" but to make a point because I think it applies to alot of people including myself. Most people do not think they are God's gift to everyone else. Most of us even if we are secure of who we are in Christ, are not so sure of ourselves. We tend to look at our faults & negatives & not focus on our good traits. I'm not saying that we're suppose to just look at the positives & deny that we don't have any negatives. I think there should be a healthy balance. We should acknowledge the positive traits & gifts that the Lord has blessed us with while we continually strive to be more Christ like. Genesis 1:26-27 says, "Then God said, "Let us make people in our image, to be like ourselves. They will be masters over all life-the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, & all the livestock, wild animals, & small animals. So God created people in his own image; God patterned them after himself; male & femlae he created them."
Other verses to look at include: Psalm 8:3-5, Matthew 10:29-31, & Romans 12:3-8.
Be blessed in the Lord today!

WE ARE FAMILY...

"I've got all my sisters & me!"

UPSIDE DOWN!