Christmas Eve

As I sit here in my living room surrounded by a fire and the lights of the Christmas tree I can't help but think of a sweet baby girl who is turning 10 months old today.  I woke up this morning with hopes of an update or new pictures but there were none.  Hurry up and wait that is where we are right now.  We did receive our LOA on Monday and for those of you who don't know adoption lingo an LOA is similar to gold!  It was the document that we needed to be able to go on in the process.  So needless to say we turned all the paperwork right around & overnighted everything to Texas on Tuesday so that immigration can do their thing.  This is all very exhausting but I am comparing it to labor pains that you forget as soon as you hold that precious baby in your arms.  So back to the question "What is our little Addison doing today?"  I am picturing her warm, content and filled with a love in her heart that she cannot yet understand.  You see Addison doesn't get to celebrate Christmas today because she is in a non-christian nation that does not recognize Christmas as a holiday so for Addison and many other children in China it is "just another day".  Next year will be Addison's first Christmas and we will have one more little face around our tree.  This year my family and I will be celebrating HOPE.  Not only the HOPE that Jesus brings to us but the HOPE thru Him that we will bring to Addison.

Here are some pictures of all the latest happenings that have taken me away from blogging.

Mike was the top shoe salesman for his company and so that landed us a trip to Vegas and here we are at Hoover Dam.

A limo ride with PaPa Russell and Grandma Glenda.

Paperwork and more paperwork for Miss Addison:)

Baking Christmas goodies with my beauties.

Merry Christmas to you and yours!! 

My Husband, My Hero!!

As we make our way to the end of another week, let me just say it has been a rough one.  Sunday night the stomach flu hit me like a Mac Truck.  Two days in bed with no kids, no TV and no communication. I know to some of you that may sound like a dream but for me it was more like a nightmare.  At one point, I couldn't even pick myself up off the bathroom floor:(  Too much information, I know.  Wednesday, thought I would give work a try only to find myself back in bed by 4:30pm and well today I am finally turning around.  Planning on getting out and joining the real world tomorrow but before I do I just want to give my husband kudos for taking such good care of me.  I have not had to worry about one single "mom" duty this week and for that I am grateful!  Thanks Mike you are awesome and I love you!!!!

How can you be involved???

Mark your calendars for Sat. Jan. 8th 2011. We will be hosting a Trivia Night at LABC to help bring our daughter Addison home. If you are interested in hosting a table of 8-10 players, please let me know. $15.00 per player gets you trivia, food, babysitting and alot of fun!! The money that is raised will go towards Addison's orphanage fee. How do you reach 147 million orphans? One at a time.

Jesus Freaks

 

Our family was able to go see Toby Mac last Thursday night and it was amazing.  Mike was able to pull some strings and get us backstage before the concert.  A good time was had by all.

Why Wouldn’t We…………

 

*travel to the other side of the world to bring home our daughter.

*complete mountains of adoption paperwork to satisfy the government.

*give a child hope for a different tomorrow.

*give up some material things to give a special little girl a family.

*teach my daughters about God’s love through adoption.

The above explanations are answers to the question that we get all the time:  Why would you decide to adopt?

We had the honor of attending the In His Hands Orphans Outreach banquet on Friday night.  We were able to share the special night with some of our amazing friends who have been so supportive during our journey.  By the way if you want more information on how to help orphans you can visit their website at www.inhishandsorphans.org .

Our Friend Jing…..

I don’t believe at all in coincidences, not for one second.  I believe that everything good comes from God and this picture is just one example of many good things that have come lately.  This is our friend Jing.  When we went to Chicago on the train,  my mom and the girls’ Aunt Heather went with us…well guess what that means…mom is the odd man out because everyone wants to sit with grandma & Aunt Heather.  So, I had managed to make it from Springfield to Bloomington without sharing my seat.   When the train came to a stop in Bloomington it felt as if herds of people got on.  Several of them passed up the seat next to me and headed for the back of the car, which was more than fine with me.  However, I was more than excited when a Chinese college student named Jing sat down next to me.  Yes, I thought to myself..a captive audience that I can ask all of my questions about China to and she has no where to go but to Chicago on the train next to me.  Jing and I spent the next three hours engaged in a wonderful conversation about China, religion, adoption and her major which was English.  One of the conversations was “What Chinese name should we give to our daughter as her middle name?”  and of course if was Jing meaning perfect, quiet or calm(depending on which symbol is used to write the name.)  Now you have to know that for several months I had been praying that God would make our child obvious to Mike and I because you know me…I would take them ALL in.  That is why when we received our daughter’s referral and her name was Jing, I knew that is was God making His plan perfect.  Every time I think about the Jing’s in my life, I can’t help but smile.  Our God is so big and I am so glad.

What do you get a couple of Girly Girls for their birthdays??

 

How about a trip to the American Girl Store.  That is just what we did last month!  We had fun visiting but I am glad that I live in the corn field.

 

PROUD SISTERS!!!!

 

Maggie and Gracie could not be more excited about their new baby sister!  Man, I love these girls!

Welcome.....

First of all, thank you for taking the time to read our blog.  It is with great joy that we share our story.

Last March I was afforded the wonderful opportunity to go on a mission trip to Haiti with a group of individuals from Jacksonville.  It was one of the most amazing and humbling experiences that I have had during my time here on earth.  Little did I know that God was preparing my family for something much BIGGER.  Haiti was just a prelude to build my faith and confidence in the Lord and what he was about to do in our lives.  Mike did not go to Haiti with me but what he did do was just as important, which was staying back and taking care of our two little girls and giving me some amazing support.

We began the adoption journey back in the spring of this year and it has been God led from the beginning.  The seed was sown about a year and half ago but it grew into something beautiful this year.

October 23, 2010 was a day that my family and I will never forget.  It was the day that God showed us this incredible baby girl named An Jing Hu, who was His but needed a physical family to love and nurture her.  There is no doubt in our minds that God has big plans for her due to the fact that she was only three and ½ lbs when she was abandoned.   She was left with nothing, found by the commoners and taken to the Children's Welfare Institute where she has been ever since.  Addison Jing will join her forever family in 3-4 months, when Mike and I will travel to receive her into our family. 

Here is our miracle...