woo hoo!

Received the call last evening...we have a court date!!! July 17th. If we pass court we travel six weeks later. Please pray for a smooth court date and pray for the money to come. Blessings to you all!

Simon follows Jesus

My wonderful husband, Ryan baptized our son, Simon Derara, this past Sunday. It was really beautiful. He said "I'd like to introduce my son, Derara. We adopted him one and a half years ago from Ethiopia. Today he'd like to also be adopted into Gods family..."
Picture of the screen with them also in the background.
Picture on the big screen.
It was also Simon D's 9th birthday and the family joined us for lunch, pie :) and presents at one of our favorite restaraunts. Check out Lauren's expression as D opens his Guitar Hero.
Just a funny picture of one funny little guy, our Beniam with a face full of french fries.

official

We received word today that we will in fact be receiving a court date soon! We were told to get our paperwork together. (Extra stuff secondary to HIV) I was reminded of a beautiful verse this week: "The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing."
Zephaniah 3:17
Did you catch that? We have a Lord who sings over us! I feel him singing today.

adoption update

Not sure what it means, but this is the news we got today and it looks like forward movement!

"I will be opening up a court file for this case and others on Monday. I will send you a list as soon as I do. I have all the necessary documents for this case."

All of you prayer warriors continue to pray. If we don't go to court before July, the courts are closed until October:(

Lauren is baptized

Lauren was baptized Sunday @ her grandparents church. It was a beautiful service. We loved the pastor. It was a small church and we loved the fact that they baptize in the river, it reminded me many sciptures:

Mark 1:4-5 John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgivness of sins. 5 And all of the country of Judea was going out to him, and all the people of Jerusalem; and they wre being baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins.

After the service we joined Grandma and Granpa Myers for a picnic. They were beautifully gracious and we appreciated all they have done for the kids.

COULDN'T HAVE PUT IT BETTER MYSELF.

ANOTHER GREAT POST FROM FROMHIVTOHOME
what about your other children
A big concern for the family members or friends of people who pursue HIV+ adoption is “what about your other children?” Often the question comes because people are still misinformed about the status of treatment for HIV/AIDS today. Many still operate on what we heard in the 1980s. So the question often comes because people are worried about transmission. But since HIV cannot be "caught" and transmission doesn’t occur with normal household contact, this is really a fear that can be addressed with education and information. The more subtle fear, sometimes spoken and sometimes not, is what if we make life more “difficult” for our kids?This can be looked at from many angles. But for us, the bottom line came down to, yes, life could be more difficult. All of our children will probably encounter more judgment, ostracism, and fear than they otherwise might have. But this simply is not a deal-breaker. In our natural drive to keep our children safe, we forget the beauty and strength that adversity can develop in one’s character. And we forget how character can wilt without adversity.I don't take it lightly that life may be different for our kids than it is for other kids. But I also have a heavy and deep trust that we are all equipped for this and our kids are being built through it into people with depth and character and empathy that have been formed in a unique way. I have a profound gratitude that this has been given to our family, to our children. I believe that if you are following love, there is a cushion of grace that is going to come along with that - and so as we take our kids with us on this journey of love, I believe that the difficulties and heartaches will be cushioned with grace.

preschool graduation and school picnics

Beniam getting a wipe down after his t-ball game and before his graduation .
Handsome preschool graduate

Derara at his end of the year school picnic
People often ask us how the boys are doing since adjusting to life in the US. They are doing amazing, truely. Simon Derara has an off and on battle with grief, we pray daily for his peace. He made straight A's already and is on a select baseball team. He is a joy to be with.
Beniam is a rough and tumble kinda boy. He loves sports and loves to box and horse play. He does his ABC'S and is excellent at Math. I do Not believe kindegarten will be any challenge to him. We are truely blessed.

SCHOOL HOUSE ROCK

Beniam, Noah and a proud Mama me:)
Noah was in his first play Friday. He had the lead role of Tom the teacher. He sang a solo with a back up choir. He was fabulous. No nerves. All joy. I teared up watching him, actually I think I live in a perpetual state of teared upedness. I thought of the famous quote from Chariots of Fire, "God made me for a purpose. He also made me fast. When I run I can feel his pleasure." paraphrased. It is pleasurable to watch people live from their sweet spots.

I also wanted to share a verse I've been meditating on: Proverbs 3:27 Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, When it is in your power to do it.
Great scripture to commit to memory. I plan to teach it to the kids.

I work with a great friend named Katie. She is sweet and kind and beautiful. Today she made arrangements all on her own to raise some funds for our adoption. She is acting as a Proverbs 3:27 kinda girl.