Tears again

I just got back from the Open House of Ava's future school for disabled children, "The Little Lighthouse". I knew this was a great school. I volunteered there for lunchtime feeding when I was in college. But I had a whole new perspective today. A mother's perspective. I still can't believe I will get to be the mother of one of these special kids!! Oh, the wonderful resources we will have when we become the official parents of Ava!

Hope kept asking me, "Mommy, what is that? What is that for?", pointing to all the special chairs and walkers. Things I had never seen before! We got to peek into the classrooms where the children were doing their physical therapy, rolling and crawling on mats on the gym floor, coloring at the table. We saw kids with hearing aides, kids with walkers, kids in wheelchairs, kids on the floor on boppy pillows. Of course the ones who really caught my attention were the ones with Down Sydrome. One little girl was playing peek-a-boo with her teacher, and there was another little girl learning how to hold a crayon and draw with it, and a little boy rocking himself in a teeny tiny rocking chair...

Then there was a luncheon with a video about how the school started 35 years ago. A woman named Marcia Mitchell (you can read her book, Milestones and Miracles) had a child who was blind, and there was no resources for her here in Tulsa. So she and another mother started this school, and several others have been modeled after it. One of the staff members is going to move back to the Phillipines where she is from to start one there too! The best part of the whole thing is...it's offered at no cost. It is run off of private donations only, and they do not accept any government funding. I sensed God's presence so strong today...in a special little place called....The Little Lighthouse.

blue crayons

Evidently a blue crayon went through the washing machine. I say "evidently" because I never actually saw the blue crayon, or even remnants of a crayon wrapper for that matter, but only little multiple blue "waxy" stains all over the clothes that I washed yesterday. I wish I would have discovered it after the first load, but I only discovered it after the second load. I still can't figure where this crayon came from but I can't figure out what else it would be causing blue spots all over the kids' BRAND NEW school clothes. Let's just say, there is a reason I shop Good Will and consignment. I would be really upset right now otherwise! Anyone know how to remove blue crayon stains?

Changes

I can't believe how much easier my life has gotten these last couple of weeks. I had no idea how loud and how busy my house was until I realized how quiet it could be when there are only two people in it. I have been home schooling my kids since the very beginning. And I could never understand why, at 4:00 when the neighbor kids got off the school bus, they would run straight to OUR house instead of going home to eat their own snacks or say hello to their mother!

This is our first year to try "real" school. I halfway worried all summer, and cried 3 times during the open house. I'm sure 4th grade teachers are not used to see mothers crying during Open House!! HA Embarrassing!

But they all seem to be adjusting really well. I really expected some "bumps", some phone calls home, or tears while being dropped off. But....nothing so far. Praise God for an easy transition! In fact, they all decided they wanted to ride the school bus!! Sad for me, but I can imagine how much fun it would be for a 6 year old boy to get to ride in a giant yellow vehicle with a bunch of other kids....without a seatbelt at that! So we worked out a compromise. Let me tell you how scary and weird it was watching my kids get on the school bus with this total stranger...as nice as I'm sure he is. :) Here is a picture of their first day riding the school bus!

Recipe for Living to be 100 years old

I just got back from the school. I had to deliver 2 lunchboxes that got left at home! In Liesel's hallway are displayed the kids' writing assignments for last week: "My Recipe for Living to be 100".

It was really hilarious to read all the second graders' thoughts on this. Most of the answers were related to exercising and what you eat. A lot of apples, a lot of grapefruits, riding your bike 3 times a week, walking every day. The class clown wrote, "Eating stinky tennis shoes", someone else wrote, "Going to San Antonio". Here is what Liesel wrote:

My Recipe for Living to be 100

Love God Forever
Never talk to strangers
Don't run away
Eat a lot of apples

Precious boy

My kids eat a lot! Seems that every 5 minutes someone is "starving" in my house. In a typical moment of 4 kids begging me for a snack from the "snack basket" at 4:35pm as I am trying to set the table and prepare dinner, or telling me they are dying of thirst as we drive down the highway 5 minutes from home, I informed them: YOU ARE NOT STARVING. YOU ARE NOT DYING OF THIRST. A PERSON CAN SURVIVE FOR 3 WEEKS WITHOUT FOOD AND 3 DAYS WITHOUT WATER. YOU ARE NOT STARVING.

For so many months we have prayed for the orphans of the world, then prayed about adopting one, and ever since we have made the decision to adopt, my kids have been under the impression that we are saving up our money to "buy" her. I guess I should explain, but it is so cute to hear their prayers and the funny thoughts that go through their mind through this adoption process. We have talked about various ways we could cut back in order to put more towards the adoption fund. Tonight John and I were looking at the food budget, trying to do better on grocery spending, and he mentioned how much he loves beans and rice, and maybe we could do like the people of Mexico and just eat them all the time....We would REALLY save money that way!

Well Jude, bless his heart was overhearing this conversation, and he said, "Hey Dad, I know.....Lets just not buy any food! We could survive 3 weeks without food! That way we could buy Ava sooner!"

Waiting

I always thought I was a patient person. But I can't believe how slowly the time is going by as we wait for our INS approval. We submitted our I-600A forms over 2 months ago.

I still look at Ava's picture at least a dozen times a day, and I wonder if anyone is holding her or loving her. I wonder if she even understands the concept of belonging to someone, and I wonder if she longs for a mother as much as I am longing for her.

Jesus, please let her feel your love and our love for her while she waits for us. Thank you for being her Shepherd and hearing her needs even when she can't speak them. Let her rest peacefully in your presence until I can rock her in my arms. Keep her heart strong until we can come rescue her and get her the medical help she so desperately needs. Thank you for being her Father these years that she hasn't had one. We feel so honored that you would offer this child to us. We gladly receive her into our hearts and into our family. In the good times we will thank you for the joys she brings us and in the difficult times we will be blessed because we will be doing as unto YOU. We will do our best to be your hands and arms and voice to her. We consider it a privilege to call Ava...."ours". You have done so much for us, and we are now happy to offer to you the gift of a family to your little lamb Ava, who you love so much.

The Greatest Hunger

"Being unwanted, unloved, uncared for, forgotten by everybody, I think that is a much greater hunger, a much greater poverty than the person who has nothing to eat."

-Mother Teresa

Every Child Has a Name

I am the Good Shepherd. I know my sheep as the Father knows me. And My sheep know Me.(Jn 10:14)

The Sheperd knows His sheep. He calls them by name.

We see a crowd, we see exactly that, a crowd...We see people, not persons, but people. A herd of humans. A flock of faces. That's what we see.

But not so with the Shepherd. To Him, every face is different. Every face is a story. Every face is a child. Every child has a name...

The Shepherd knows His sheep. He knows each one by name. The Shepherd knows you. He knows your name. And He will never forget it.

Max Lucado

Children are a gift from God

I got teary-eyed when I received this gift from Melissa and Sharon, our house guests from Virginia Beach. "Children are a Gift from God." Look closely at the names cross-stitched at the bottom. :)What a warm and beautiful feeling I had when I read this.

I really appreciated the timing of this gift, as that very morning I took Hope to the car wash to vacuum out the vehicle. I kept wondering why the suction was lasting so long. After all, I had only put in 3 quarters. I kept vacuuming though, even though technically I could have been finished. I didn't want to waste any suction! I finally realized that Hope had gotten ahold of my coin purse, and had been dropping in the coin slot all my quarters....and dimes...and nickels, and pennies. When I looked in the slot to see if I could retrieve any of my quarters, I saw that she had stuffed 3 bills in there as well!!! Yep! Children are a blessing! She was trying to be helpful!

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Jude is 6 now. More than anything else, he wanted the movie, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. So we built the whole party theme around it. I feel like I NEVER want to see OR EAT chocolate EVER again! (Although, knowing me, I will surely change my mind tomorrow). Happy Birthday Jude!

9 fingernails

Simeon has only 9 fingernails. The 10th one is in a ziplock bag with his first teeth and a lock of hair from his first haircut. We were at the Koens house on Friday, and the boys were scootering and skateboarding up and down the bike ramp. He had a really bad wipeout. He didn't cry. He did, however, hyperventilate (I taught him labor breathing-he says "that really does work!"). His friends were pretty impressed with how tough he was. Amazing how well a 9 year old boy can control his emotions when his reputation is at stake. :)

6 in the morning

Tomorrow is Jude's 6th birthday. He will be up at 6 in the morning wearing his backpack around the house for an hour and a half. How do I know this? Because he has been up every day for the past week at 6 am wearing his backpack around the house, asking, "Is it a school day?'

Little Light House

There is a little christian school in town for handicapped children. We put Ava on the 12-18 month waiting list! I am so excited about the opportunities for children with special needs, right here in this area. I am looking forward to the many friends we will meet along the way. Also found out the soccer league the kids are on has a special needs-team. I just picture her in a few years, in pigtails, cleats, and shin guards, kicking that soccer ball around!

If I had a million dollars...

Liesel told me that on her first day of school, the second graders had to finish  the sentence:

"If I had a million dollars...."

I asked her what she wrote. She said, "I would adopt 10 kids!" I thought this was so cute. Hope goes around everyone telling the people at Walmart, the bank, etc, "We are adopting a little girl named Alina, and I get to be her sister."

The guy I married

I couldn't nap this afternoon for the hollering in the backyard. I looked out to see what all the commotion was....

Longing for her

We received new pictures of Ava a few days ago. The Bedfords are in the same country adopting a little boy from the same orphanage. They were able to sneak a few pictures during nap time while she was asleep. I was relieved to find out that the lights were out and there was poor lighting. For a few days we thought her heart had deteriorated rapidly...but....thankfully, just bad lighting. Shelley said she was pale and thin, but still seemed relatively healthy considering she is in an orphanage in a third world country! Shelley said she kissed her and held her hand for us, and told her that her mommy and daddy would be coming for her soon. She said she smiled the biggest, prettiest smile. I can't wait to see that smile myself, and touch those pretty little cheeks, and hold her. It seems like an eternity to wait for everyone else to do their paperwork. I would have her right now if I could. 

A good quote

By Frederick Buechner

"Calling. The place where your deepest gladness and the world's deepest need meets."

New friends

We went to our first "Parents of Down Sydrome" support group tonight. Parents were very informative and helpful (and the kids adorable!). Our kids talked all the way home about all the little friends they met. They cannot wait to have their sister home! I am thankful for new friends who have already done all the grieving, question-asking, researching....so we don't have to. I am amazed at the resources these kids have available to them. I have a whole list of acronyms to Google tonight...education, therapy, sports programs, Special Olympics. There was a man with DS who was our speaker. He is 32 years old, and spoke about Special Olympics had helped him become who he is today. He seemed so....INTELLIGENT....and then he came and sat down by his mom, gave her a big kiss on the cheek, and then turned around in his seat and started smiling and making faces at a set of infant twins behind him. Such a sweet, sweet man! I was so glad to see this person, whose life some may not value, making such an impact on the lives around him. What a privilege it was to meet Chris tonight!

LOOK!!!!

http://www.reecesrainbow.com/sponsorurban.htm

We knew as soon as we made the commitment to adopt Ava that God would provide every penny of the finances. I'm not sure why we were so confident, we just knew that He would. Honestly, we began to think of ways to "save" up some money...John working another job on the side, possibly selling one vehicle. We got on a budget and started trying to cut out any spending that was not really necessary. We decided to have a garage sale, and had several friends, neighbors and some family members donate items to sell, and we even had a couple of people walk up to us and hand us cash towards the adoption!!! Well, we were so grateful! And then, out of the blue we received an email from a christian family whom we had never met!They heard about our plans to adopt a child with special needs. They were impressed to help us! It sounded too good to be true, and yesterday.... a check for $4,000 was deposited into our Reece's Rainbow account!!! (Yes, $4,000 from ONE family wanting to honor God by giving towards our family's adoption of Ava!!!). We are so humbled by God's goodness to our family, and this "anonymous" family's obedience to Him. He really does answer prayers.... Thank you God!

First Day of School!!

Here are the kiddos on their first day of school...ever! We have homeschooled from the very beginning, and for some reason, felt that this was the year to experience "real school". Looking back now, I believe the Lord knew that we all needed a little break, and I am looking forward to spending some time bonding with Hope before the new little one arrives. Also, with traveling overseas, we will be glad someone else will not have to be responsible for homeschooling in addition to everything else!

Why are we doing this??!!

One of the things I hope to accomplish through this blog is to answer some questions that some may have....mainly, "Why would you want to adopt a handicapped child when you have 4 healthy children already ?" A few have asked outright, and many more have probably just wondered. Number one, we believe God has not called us to seek a life of ease and comfort, but rather a life of serving others. It is very plain in scriptures that we are to "lay down our lives" (Jn. 15:12-13) for others, and "honor one another over ourselves"(Rm 12:10). We believe there is not a better way to practice that than by having a special-needs child in our family. We can't change the whole world, but hopefully by obedience to God we can impact one child's life...forever.

It is estimated that there are 150,000,000 orphans in the world!!! (Yes 150 million). Here in America we cannot grasp that concept. I just have to believe that if there really are 150 million orphans, there HAS to be 150 christian million families open to receiving just one child into their family.  Ps. 68:5 He sets the lonely in families. We hope that by receiving a handicapped child into our family, maybe others will be moved to receive a healthy one into theirs. After all Matthew 18:5 says, "Whoever welcomes a child in my name welcomes Me." I do not believe adoption is for everyone, but I read a statistic that only 4-6% of those who have considered adoption ever go through with it. It is sad to think of the 94% of christian families who are missing their calling, and the millions of orphans who suffer because of it. 

The girls doing their part

The girls are selling lemonade and soda at the garage sale, hoping to help bring their sister home. I was moved as each of the kids went through their favorite toys and brought them to the garage to help bring their sister home (I shouldn't mention that they ate all the snacks that they were supposed to be selling). :)

Our adoption fundraiser garage sale

We asked a few friends and neighbors to donate unwanted items from their attics or garages toward our "adoption fundraiser" garage sale...We made $1,700 when it was all said and done!!! Thank you to friends who donated! I am so glad John thought to take a couple of funny pictures of our yard Saturday at 6 am! What a garage sale it was!!!

Our home study

Here is Hope imitating our social worker during our home visit.

Frogtopia

Liesel and a friend collected little tiny frogs today, and built a "Frogtopia" sandcastle. They had a wedding, complete with the "JUST MARRIED" sign....Hoppy Loves Anna. She even trained the little one to "wink" at her when she held it just right. Here is a picture of Hoppy.

What we're good at

As I was in the shower this morning I was trying retrace our steps toward adoption. I remember, as any good homeschooling mom would do, trying out different activities for the kids, to see what they'd excel in. We tried karate... everybody dreaded going every week. But I remember the night one of the kids in the class threw up and all my kids gathered around, bringing paper towels, trash cans and mops to help him. We tried gymnastics. I can't say anyone necessarily was a "natural gymnast" but they all wanted to befriend the boy who was born with one arm and adopted from (Korea?). Then, in soccer, I'll never forget a mother whose son was mentally retarded, came up to me, and commented how well my kids played with her son. Most kids, she said, were afraid of him, and didn't know how to respond. So as I was in the shower this morning, I realized, that through each of these activities, we learned what we as a family would be good at...caring for others in need.  I contacted pediatrician's offices, and a school for special needs kids to ask how we can be involved in volunteering with kids with special needs. Sorry, they said, everyone in our family would have to be 16 or older to volunteer. That would be a long time to wait to volunteer, I concluded. So we'll do it our own way! Adoption!

Baby Ava

Hope named her baby doll Ava. She pushes her all around in the stroller, and takes her with us on all our errands. It was especially cute watching her "change Ava's diaper". Can't wait!

God is good

We sense the Lord's hand and direction. He is blessing us beyond what we expected! We made $1,700 on our garage sale (thanks to friends, neighbors, co-workers, family who donated items from their garages). Then, out of the blue, we were contacted by a christian family who heard about our plans to adopt a child with special needs. They want to sponsor us!!! Total strangers, stirred in their hearts to bless another christian family taking a step of faith to rescue a needy orphan! THANK YOU GOD! He is so good. We really believed deep down that He would provide for us, but honestly we thought that would be by selling a vehicle, or by working overtime. Little did we know what He had in mind! :) We are humbled, and in awe, by His love and goodness towards His people.