God is so Good!

It is official. We had a successfull court date today in Ethiopia. We are oficially the parents of Selamawit (Grace) and Guta (Maney - Amanuel). And here they are:

Like Mike?

Isnt he gorgeous? :-)
Court date tomorrow for...drum roll.....new names: Grace and Maney (short for Amanuel).

Court Date Goodness!!!!!

Our court date is October 21st! Next week!!!!!! Please join with us in prayer to get together the rest of the money. God is Good. He is so Good to me.
We're coming for you Selamawit and Guta!! Can't wait to hug you and kiss you and have you home for Christmas!!

Reflections

Just finished Donald Miller's book "A Million Miles in a Thousand Years." It is strange how emotion evoking I find his books. If you are familiar with him, he is known for being funny. His popular book "Blue Like Jazz" is being made into a movie. It is my favorite book. Not because of the depth of his theology, but because of the depth of his humility. After reading a Donald Miller book I feel like I just listened to my favorite song or watched a sappy movie, which is strange really because he is not a sappy guy. This particular book made me reflect on my story, the one still in the works, the one this side of heaven. I remember when I was a single Mom, just learning about who I was, who I am in Christ, the only thing I wanted was a Christian man. A Christian man is really hard to find. I have one. My husband is the greatest. I am afraid I have taken him for granted. I am so so thankful for Ryan. It doesn't matter what he does to irritate me, that is the small stuff. It matter that he is following Jesus and HE is in control of the pen that has written Ryan and I in this story together. If you are reading this Ryan, and I hope you are, I love you. I am honored to be in this epic with you, my hero. May our story live on in our children and may they know the ultimate author.

Weekend fun!

We had a busy weekend. Saturday Morning we went to the Zoo. It was Mercy's first trip to the zoo. After seeing the animals we went to eat Ethiopian food, which is all of our favorites! After we got home the girls went out for a little shopping and the men went to football practice/party. Sunday (today) we went to church then to Simon D's football game followed by Noah's soccer game. Enjoy the pictures! We will hopefully receive our court date this week!! Ryan is meeting with a gentleman tonight who game us 10,000 books to have a book sale for a fundraiser. Running out of time, can't wait to see God at work in this one.

I had a dream...

The time is getting close. We should get the date for our court date next week. About 6 weeks after our court date we will travel to pick up our kids. Last night I dreamed of them and dreamed of Ethiopia, the smell of exhaust:), a wood fire and incense, the coolness of the morning air and heat of the afternoon sun on our skin. Laughter. Tears. Love. Can't wait to be there my friends.

Beautiful

I don't know this lady, but a friend of mine sent me this in an email. I love it. Grab a tissue. Or am I just hormonal? :-)

Have I ever regretted being obedient to God?
Lysa TerKeurst

Have I ever regretted being obedient to God?
Most of you are familiar with how my beautiful sons came into my life. If you are not familiar with the story that aired on Oprah on Friday, you can see it at the bottom of the post found by clicking here.

God brought our boys home in an amazing way. But I have to admit, it was not an easy decision or one we took lightly.

Basically, when it came right down to it, we adopted our boys out of pure obedience to God.

We said yes to God’s invitation to become Mark and Jackson’s parents not because it was part of our plan, not because we had enough white space in our schedules, and definitely not because we had the money to fund two international adoptions. We brought them home because God told us to do it.

And then we fell in love.

So, now all these years later, it might be natural to ask me if we regret being obedient to God in this situation. Very few people would be bold enough to ask, but I bet many have wondered.

I can tell you, I've never once regretted saying yes. I love my boys and can not imagine my life without them. But there have been hard days.

Not because the boys are adopted but rather because they are kids that need parenting. Personally, I've found parenting all of our kids to be incredibly challenging. Motherhood is a wondrous mix of the hardest stuff mixed with the best of everything.

So, at the end of the day I have to ask myself, is the best in life found at the end of the easiest routes or the ones that require perseverance?

For me, what started as the faintest whimper of a yes to God eventually caused a glorious break in the dam of my heart. Eventually.

I may not live the easiest life. But, I do rejoice in the overflow of obedience. And no, I don't regret it. Not even in the slightest.

Today my sweet friend Renee is walking her journey of obedience and crazy love. I'd love for you to pop over to her place and overwhelm her with prayers, support, and encouragement.

A beautiful video my Mom made of my son, Noah

http://secure.smilebox.com/ecom/openTheBox?sendevent=4d5445304d446b334e7a553d0d0a&blogview=true&campaign=blog_instructions_directurl_makeyourown

Copy and paste it into your browser.
Isn't he just beautiful? (BIG SMILE)
Good news to report: We had a three day yardsale with some friends who are also adopting from Ethiopia. We made a combined 2,000.00! God provides. Not always when or how we want him to, but he provides. I received a promotion and a large raise this week. Now I'd really like to NOT work but right now the money is very helpful!