Happy New Year Angel Girl!

Emily went to her first Chinese New Year celebration at our friends the Lai's house. She was too too cute in her red and gold satin New Years outfit. She's getting much better in crowds but still somewhat keeps her distance...with one exception her new friend Dean. She LOVED him and why wouldn't she we love him too! She thought he was too cool and loved little Jaxon's toys too. She's been eating much better and is growing like a weed. She's in size 24 months now. I'm starting to try and take her out more just to get her accustomed to different people. I'm going to look around this week for a play group and maybe something at a pool just to get her in shape for boogie boarding this summer. I've been writing tons while I'm home. My goal this year is to finish my book. I've been working and concentrating on searching through the bible using my concordance and the Hebrew and Greek dictionaries. Sounds snore...boring but whoa baby does God bless when you really dig down into His Word. My DH and I started to reread the Purpose Driven Life again today. We've committed to each other that we are going to devote the next 40 days to seeking Gods purpose. My desire has always been that God use me to Make a Big Difference in the lives of others and to use my life for a special purpose to serve others. Please pray for me as I pray and study that God would open the doors for myself and my family. We received good news about Son #1 yesterday. He got back safe and sound by the way from his trip thanks so much for your prayers. Oh back to the good news about Son #1 he's been accepted once again at camp for the summer. He applied for a different position First Aid/ Spiritual Advisor which is a senior leadership position and he got it which is great. It will get him deeper into God's word, pay him more money and he'll have an opportunity to counsel every child that makes a decision for Christ. How awesome is that. He is over the moon. I started running on the treadmill this week. I've actually enjoyed it as I plugged Son #2's Ipod in my ears and ran for over 1/2 an hour. This is my year baby. Well that's it for tonight. Did I mention that Emily loves loves loves the boys and they love love love her. Just a treat and my heart sings when I see them together. This is Mama on a Sunday night out!

My Head is a Box Filled With Nothing!

Ok...so today I'm in my house looking after the baby and I got a brainwave to start her on the toddler cereal....now those that have been following my blog might remember and should be screaming right now "NO NOT THE TODDLER CEREAL"...apparently I forgot it was this very cereal that I fed her just before she had her barf fest just a mere few weeks ago. Completely oblivious in my OFCRAA state (that's Over Forty and Can't Remember Anything Anymore ) seems I can't remember my name half the time so cereal out of sight out of mind. I mix up a big old bowl of this stuff. Feed her the whole bowl...then feel guilty that I'm not rolling around on the floor enough with her. On the floor I go which in itself is a feat and low and behold "Thar She Blows Again"! I heard the rumble and just before the rumble happened I had a flashback on the cereal. What a mess and I mean a mess. I stripped her upstairs and put her right in the tub. She must be PMSing because oh baby she had attitude today so I put her for a nap a little early. Gathered up the barf clothes and put them in my great front loading washer I bought from my friend Shaun. Now this is the part where my head is a box filled with nothing. Apparently I also picked up something else and put it in the washer. Now not to worry it wasn't as bad as the time my DH's sister put Kitty Mitty in the dryer but after the rinse finished I opened up the washer and well if you can imagine a kleenex times....let's say a trillion. That's what was all over everything. For a nanosecond I thought it was the barf had baked or something? It took me a while to figure out what in the name of goodness it was! It wasn't until I pulled out the shell that I remembered taking the diaper to put it in the garbage and in my barf stupor opened up the washer and chucked it in. Not to worry Pooh Bear survived on the front I couldn't bear (no pun intended) killing Pooh (hahahahaha again no pun intended). Ok so I'm giddy tonight. I love this song that's playing. My friend Chris found it for me and I listened to it a million times on the beach in Ingonish last summer and every time I listen to it I'm transported to Black Brook Beach in the sun with the surf smashing on the sand. All you Ingonisher's reading this know what I'm talking about! The song captured my day so I thought I'd share it. I might go to Ingonish with Emers for a month this summer. I might become a bohemian and just stay there camping till someone comes looking for me. Someone will come looking for me right? Emily was into everything she shouldn't have been today. It was like you fed me something to make me barf I'm going to make you earn your vacation pay today Mama! My DH's family had a welcome home party for Emily yesterday. I had a great time. Just an intimate group but really just the right amount. She got some great things and I had a chance to catch up with family. What was great was it was like Emily knew it was family because she was super comfortable. I've been told that not leaving us or being "strange" with others is a good thing because it means she's bonded. So I don't sweat that she likes being with us because that's a good thing. We finish our interview with Global this week so I'll keep ya'll up to date on the time that it will air. Pray please for Son#1 he's headed to NB on Thursday and that he will arrive safely. Oh and I almost forgot I have a Praise Item for God....the Alongside Ministry called last week to ask if we would like some homemade meals to help us settle in. What a blessing. My friend Janice dropped supper off tonight and it was to die for! She called and I would have kissed her right then and there with the day I had. Just hectic not bad. If any of you reading this are part of that ministry it is awesome! God picked the right day to have supper arrive. My family was pretty excited too. A home cooked meal is a great thing....a home cooked meal dropped off by someone else is a God thing! I got my camera back and charged so my next posts will have pictures of the bambino! Mama grateful for her church, grateful for her God and Grateful for her family out.

Snot Suckers, Tv's and The Pillsbury Dough Girl

The snot sucker is my friend! I had forgotten about this little tool that mother's use. You know the thing that looks like a mini turkey baster that you simply squeeze first then jam it up your child's nose and viola you are left with either a string of sticky snot hanging from the child's nose or a booger firmly lodged in the tool. Now the booger thing is awesome because the snot sucker can also be used as a booger launcher. Let's just say that the boys have been extra special listeners since the snot sucker arrived. I was wondering today, who invents something like this? A mom that's who. A Mom who was sitting shack cracked for some adult conversation and her mind wandered in her delirious state thinking..."hey if I take one of those rubber balls my little angel is playing with and attach an eye dropper to the end I bet it would suck snot...all you Mom's out there you know I'm right. My little bundle of joy is leaking body fluid everywhere. She's teething. Yes our sweet China girl looks like a drooling mad dog...her nose is running, her mouth is running, her eyes are running and as Son#1 put it when he was changing her...."Mom she has a rash on her woofy...you might want to check". Let's just say that I'm sure he didn't dream 6 months ago that the term rash and woofy would be used with his Mother in a million years. The young men in my house have been awesome with Emily. They have babysat a couple of times and like clockwork each time she had a big ole poop. I'm kind of excited by it because well....I'm liking that they have to change it. Sweet Victory for me I say. I have officially shut the TV off in the day time...well most of the daytime...I can't miss Oprah. A dear friend of mine described a tv addict today turning into..."a one eyed monster'. I can believe it. Ask me ask me about any crazy talk show and I can answer it and well I've remodelled my house a million times after watching 3 weeks of Trading Spaces, Decorate My Space, How Not to Decorate, Clean Sweep and praise the Lord What Not to Eat....all that show did was make me hungry. I'm finding my days more bearable now that I'm not addicted to the tube. I found out a couple of things this week....vinegar strips the finish off of prefinished floors (don't ask), when checking the babies sheets for "stuff" check all the blankets (not just the sheets), I still love to lick the cake bowl and when you're over forty you can't eat raw dough anymore. Yes Raw Dough....I know I know you health nuts are cringing right now but in my Newfoundland home growing up we ate baked dough, fried dough and on occasion (for me whenever Mom made bread) RAW DOUGH. I love raw dough or should say loved it! Apparently I must have eaten it after it rose because take it from me never never eat dough before it has risen cause well it rises in your belly, it rises in your esophagus and in other places to personal to mention...I was kind of like the Pillsbury Dough Girl if you know what I mean. Takes about 24 hours to go away! No more dough for Mama. Life on the Mommy train is getting better. The house is clean "today", I'm settling in "sort of" and I truly am loving my family life "for real". God is so good. God has truly blessed us and I can't even remember what we did before Emily arrived, I'm just glad that she did. Mike and I are truly becoming more and more dedicated to the cause of Orphans in the world. We aren't sure how God is going to use us beyond what he already has however we are certain that we will do whatever He wants us to do to help and be a voice. Here is a scary statistic, the United Nations estimates that there are over143 million orphans in the world right now. How crazy is that! That's almost 5 times the population of Canada! There is so much that we can do...short term, long term missions, maybe adopting again, helping other families know the joy of adoption, helping to connect children with families or funding to families...there are tons of opportunities. Please pray that we would know God's will for us in this matter. What an awesome opportunity! At home and beginning to love it...Mama out!

A Shot Heard Across HRM

Yesterday was the day that we started to re-immunize Emily. Our doctor recommended repeating all of her immunizations just to ensure that she is protected. After yesterday I think that it's the doctor that needs protection. Let's just say our sweet little baby turned into an alien from another planet. I think that it's safe to say that she isn't super fond of needles. The first one was bad but the second one was heard in Bedford I'm sure. The good news is we have eight more to go. She didn't get sick just ticked. I'm having some trouble settling into the pace of my new life. The term shack cracked is coming to mind. Now I know I know...I'm not complaining I'm learning that this "Be still" thing that God is teaching me isn't going to be easy. Being the high energy person I am I suddenly feel like I'm moving in slow motion. God continues to teach me that I need Him. I see that the hardest part of this hiatus from work is going to be the hiatus from work. How pathetic is that! So as Son #2 says occasionally...."Suck it up Princess"! So this is Mama...sucking it up and signing out for the night.

Smoochy Girl

Ok for those of you that know me my favorite thing to do is smooch babies...do yah think Emily has seen me coming at her one too many times....hee hee...you go girl. Thanks Scott for this picture we loooovvvve it. What a sweety. We're all sort of back to normal in our house barfing and pooping has stopped,with the grown people anyway. The pooping with the baby that's gonna stay for quite sometime. She is settling in so well and loves to nap Hallelujah Praise God. It so neet to see how as she becomes more comfortable with us little things change. Little things like this morning when she woke up and talked to the bear in her bed instead of screaming....little things like touching a strangers hand.....little things like sitting on a friends lap.....little things like blowing kisses and picking up a cheerio and actually making it to her mouth! Every day she is growing and everyday she is trusting just a little bit more. Like all new children you worry about whether you'll adjust, you worry about your free time, you worry about the change and then you realise once they arrive what would you do without them and can't quite remember life before them. We are now blessed times three and I'm just as smiley over the looks on the faces of my guys as I am about the look on the face of my smoochy girl....Mama out.

Thar We All Blow!

What a wicked couple of days. It started with me on Sunday night. We had friends over for the Super Bowl and I started to feel queasy and my belly was a wee bit flip floppy. By about 11:30 I found my friend Mr. Toilet Bowl and we became intimate friends, real intimate friends. I visited my new friend about once every half hour whether I needed to or not. We got to know each other really really well. Just when I thought I couldn't possibly stand my new friend anymore it just got worse until at last 7 hours later I slept. Then I slept and slept and slept and slept some more. Good thing My DH was there to care for Baby Emily cause I sure couldn't unless he put her in the toilet bowl...and well they frown on that. Now if it ended there that would be normal but here in this household normal is not a word we use much or at least it never seems to work out that way lately. Son #1 and Son #2 babysat while my DH went to an appointment. By 8:30 Son #1 was introducing himself to my new friend and Son #2 wasn't far behind. Now that wouldn't have been too bad however when my DH insisted on meeting my new friend we now had 4 out of the 5 people in the house dying to meet Mr. Toilet, Mr. Bowl, The Hurlmyster, and finally Upchuck man. Now women we suffer in silence, not men. I awoke to Son #2 who sounded like he was upchucking a Volkswagen, Son #1 who never did do the throw up thing well did what he usually did and sort of made it to the bathroom. DH came home to much barf and oh did I mention the stupid dog has the runs too! Now all of this from one little baby from China. I can't imagine that this is the bug she had because she was smiley and her usual pleasant self while she was barfing and pooping. I have a whole new respect for her but then of course she is a girl ...the whole suffer in silence thing. At one point I did have a bit of a meltdown because by about 1:00 in the afternoon no one had checked to see if I had croaked so I made an appearance, had the meltdown, did the guilt I almost died speech and just waited for them to get it so I could so pay them all back. I envisioned ways to make them beg for Gatorade but alas I do have a heart and spent the day caring for the three of them. Emily and I are fine. I'm about 4 pounds lighter literally and well God even works out our barfing schedules because if all four of us were hit at the same time with this I don't know what we would have done given Emily won't go with anyone other than us. Well she did actually go to our friend Shelly the other night which is progress! How do you make that phone call...hey Shell....Jul here...we're all pooping ourselves and barfing but if you have a spare minute could yah come and watch the baby...Hopefully we'll all be back to normal whatever that is tomorrow. In the meantime I'm washing the house with disinfectant cause I do not what a double bout of this. Until next timeMama out...(all out if you know what I mean!).

Thar She Blows!

Well we've had an interesting few days. Poor little Emily's tummy has been big time upset over the past two days. It started out on Friday night at Son#2's Basket Ball game which she loved by the way. She was watching the game...had a wee bit of a gag and oh baby did she barf. It was like reliving my parenting years with Son #2. He barfed his way all around the Maritimes and I thought Emily was headed in the same direction but I think now that it might be the formula. As upset as my stomach was in China is as upset her stomach is here. She will drink Pedialyte no problem but the instant I give her any formula it just pours out of her. I don't think it is a flu because she has no fever, she isn't crying and she is in good spirits just barfy. Now this morning when we woke her up she blew again but out a different end if you catch my drift. I was wondering what was on her sheets then realised quickly what it was but couldn't figure out where it came from then noticed that whatever happened down below quickly escaped and migrated up her back out her neck in her ear and well pretty much everywhere else in the bed. She keeps down her cereal and the Pedialyte but nothing else. I'm going to give her tummy a break and not feed her any formula today and see what tomorrow brings. We bought a different type of formula -Soy based so once we change it hopefully it will work for her. I'm slowly but surely getting back into the swing of things. I've been sticking pretty close to home. If there was ever any doubt as to whether I had ADHD I can safely confirm it. This is the most docile and stationary I've been since I had my operation two years ago. God still tells me to "Be Still and Know That I Am God". It's the Be Still part that I'm not great at. Emily had her first day at church this morning and she did really well. We were nervous out how she would take it but she did just dandy. It was like she knew that everyone had prayed for her and that this is home. We pinch ourselves everyday we are so blessed. Mama out!

Jet Lag....ZzZzZzZz

Jet Lag spelled backwards is "Man do you look like a bag of dirt"! Not really but close. I really didn't think that it would be this difficult to adapt to the time change. Emily's done great. Babies are pretty resilient anyway but she's settling in nicely. She hasn't figured out the whole "white folk" thing. She just stares when people aren't looking mesmerized by the difference in our faces compared to the faces she is accustomed too. The smells are different, the sounds are different and definitely the weather is different. Poor little lambie chatters her teeth if the temperature is anything less than 25 degrees. We're all walking around in our underwear cause we're sweating to death so if you're planning a visit for heaven's sake knock. Someone at NSPC is going man what's going on the heat's on at that house! I've adapted well to being a new older Mom again. Our house sitters had to move the T.V. into the kitchen. I can't bring myself to move it back out. I've become addicted to talk shows. You know the kind...."in the case of baby (you fill in the name) you ARE NOT the father"! This t.v. has definitely got to go. Just to let you know how little t.v. I watched prior to this I actually bought a paper before we left and as I read through it the headline was "Sadam Hanged"...gasp....couple of pages in..."Gerald Ford died"...WHAT....couple more pages...."James Brown Gone"...you get the picture. I put the paper down by the way because I just didn't want to see who else bit the dust. Our house now is preoccupied with poop. Yes "was it green"..."ewh it's so black"..."it's hard"..."it was soft" the worries we had a few months ago are non existent. Being a Mature Mama has made for some interesting times. My stamina isn't exactly there anymore especially with the jet lag. It's nice to talk to my younger yummy mommy friends to see what's hot and what's not in baby stuff. I did learn that Baby Mum Mum's are a must. They are crack cocaine to babies or at least that is what one of my friends said and she's right. Baby girl loves them. They're crunchy and she can hold them in her hand and well just keep them comin. I was watching on one of my talk shows that the oldest woman to ever give birth just gave birth to twins, she was 67 years old. Wow I'm a spring chicken compared to 67 I have like 24 more good years left. I was thinking that there is advantages to having children that old. You can nap as much as the baby, you can hey you can breast feed standing up, the Depends are only one aisle over from the Huggies...ok ok...I'll stop. God love her. She did say she was looking for a younger husband dah...someone needs to be alive to raise the little lambies...ok I'll really stop now. Baby girl is sleeping so I'm going to try and unpack another suitcase. Yes I know I know all you organized clean freaks reading this...I still have my luggage all over my living room but it will get done..hopefully before I have to go back to work in September. Remember God Rocks! Have a great day. Mama from the sofa signing out!

Prayer,Friends,Basketball and Ziplock Bags

What a great day! I got goobs done at work and my time is counting down. I received a wonderful email today from a dear friend who recently moved away that just blessed me. She send me a paragraph of truth that met me right where I was today and God spoke to me through it.

"It is good to begin a new year with Jesus!
It is good to sail into the uncharted waters of ’07, because He is your Captain and the anchor of your soul. It is good to walk upon unexplored trails because He is your Guide and the Guardian of your way; It is good to face the unknown because He is your wisdom and the One who knows the beginning and the end.It is good to have your hands empty, for He will fill them; It is good to have your heart open, for He will cause it to overflow; It is good to have your eyes focused, for in His light things will be made clear. It is good to have your ears listening, for His voice will be the sweetest sound you hear; It is good to have your feet grounded, for He is your Rock and the foundation upon which you stand. It is good to trust Him because He makes no mistakes! It is good to serve Him, for He does all things well; It is good to honor Him because He has no equal! It is good to obey Him, for His plans always include what is best. It is good to rest in Him for He is the Lord of the easy yoke; It is good to depend upon Him for He takes care of you daily. It is good to delight in Him, for He is your great reward!!! May the Lord fill your year with GOOD things! "Author, Roy Lessin

What a delight tonight was. Our dear friends came to our home tonight to have pizza, pop, a laugh and an opportunity to pray for us before we left. How blessed we are to have such wonderful men, women and children who love and care for us. I have said this over and over and I count my blessings everyday that we have such incredible, wonderful, Godly, friends and family who care. We spent some time in prayer and I feel cloaked in their prayers and it is an incredible feeling and it will enable us to travel knowing that we are covered!

Everyone went to watch our youngest tonight play basketball. That is so positive for his self esteem to have other adults that support him during this time that is difficult for him to transition to high school basketball. We love that you care!

Finally my zip lock bag addiction is out "of the bag". Hee Hee. I read and heard that people zip locked clothing when packing and you could fit more. Actually I already knew this. So 7 boxes of large, 4 boxes of medium one box of small and a box of snack later we are almost packed. My lips are a wee bit sore from sucking all the air out of them and heaven help me if customs makes me open them all. I did get somewhat carried away as I was teased about tonight let's just say if I can fit a flat screen T.V. in one from China and bring it home for Jim (you know who you are) oh I would so try. Great night and we are going to miss you all but can't wait to go so we can get back. I started a website tonight. I just need to get the address right and I will email tomorrow. That is where our pictures will be posted. I'll probably still post to this and there is a link on the website that will take you directly to this so not to worry but we have password protected the website so that we can keep the pictures somewhat controlled to family and friends. Watch for the email tomorrow. Well back to my ziplocks.....

To Pack or Not to Pack That is the Question!

Well this is sort of what I am feeling like right now. How do I decide what to take and leave behind. The packing lists are humongous and I've been shopping for a week to get everything. I can't believe I'm going to say this but if I have to go shopping again before I leave I'm going to scream! The men in my life say hey two pairs of underwear, jeans and a t-shirt they're good for at least a week. I had a bit of an anxiety attack the last few days. It is really hitting me the awesome responsibility that God has given us to raise this wee one for Him. I am so afraid that I will mess up some how. A dear friend of mine today told me that the two I have are just fine and that it's better to be humble about it than thinking we have it all figured out. Here's what I know without God I am nothing; can do nothing and I take credit for nothing. My poor DH I'm sure just wants to get there he is so excited to try the different foods and all you out there who know him and have travelled with him I doubt he will even sleep. I think about the time we went to Florida and at 4:3o a.m I awoke to find him dressed on the side of the bed saying "are up getting up now"! This is Beijing, heaven help us. We had our final meeting today and got to see everyone. We have been asked by Global to do a story on our trip and will do our first interview on Tuesday night and they will go to the airport with us and be there when we come back hopefully with some of y'all. It will be a permanent record of our journey and we would love to have our friends in it. Well back to my packing and sorting and deciding that no Jules you can't take "everything" with you because we need room to bring stuff back - Yahoo! Please remember us in your prayers this week. I went to get a refill prescription of happy pills for the flight my doctor said is 5 enough...I say how about 30. Let's just say I'm well stocked. Pray for a safe and smooth flight. There is a bad outbreak of the flu in Beijing right now please pray for our health and the health of the families travelling. I'd ask you to pray for patience but I don't need that stress so close to our trip...hee hee. Pray instead that I take it one day at a time and that I fully rely on God. Pray also for Emily and her transition to us. Pray for our trip to the orphanage that it will be a positive experience. Pray for overall safety. Please also pray for our flights that none get cancelled and that the points we booked on don't cause any flights to get messed up please. Last but not least there is another Christian couple travelling with us from B.C. please pray for them and their two children who will also be travelling with our group. We'll miss you all but can't wait to get back and show off our new addition. I can't password protect this blog so if I have time I will be starting a web page that can be password protected but not to worry I'll make sure you have the password. If you don't hear from me though it is this blog I will use. Until my next post.

A Fresh Start

Well it's a New Year and a new day and time for a fresh start. That's what I love about a new year it's a time when I always reflect and it literally is a fresh beginning. Time to start moving! Time to start making a difference. I'm truly looking forward to this year and what God has planned for us. I realise there are no guarantees about what may or may not happen good, bad or otherwise. However, I am prayerfully awaiting what God has in store for us this year. It will be a year of firsts for us. Son#1 is off to University in September, Lord willing. We will have a year of firsts for everything involving Emily. We will travel to China for the first time and hopefully not the last! I'm praying that this will be the year that our group puts out our first CD. Laurie if you're reading this....couldn't resist! So here it is my shortlist of what I want to focus on this year. I want to pray more. I've quickly come to realise the more I pray the more in God's will I am and the more in God's will I am, the better I feel and the better things go (dah go figure). I am going to study as opposed to reading my Bible more. I have a Greek and Hebrew dictionary and love love love it! I am going to be a better Mom and wife this year and I'm really looking forward to caring for my family in more practical ways that I haven't been able to. I will not be working full time at my job for a couple of months and I can't wait to just care for my men and my baby girl! Now I might be screaming in 8 weeks I need work but I hope not I really hope not. Some days I wish I was a "normal" Mom but Son #2 tells me he likes having a "looney" Mom and wouldn't have it any other way. So I guess I can't change now. Pray for Emily...hee hee. One of the things I am most proud of myself for in 2006 is I said I would write more and I did. Goobs more than the year before. I wrote every single day not missing one. What a treat to look back over the year and actually have a written record of the ups and downs of the year. It's a habit I intend to keep. This year I intend to take it one step further and actually finish one of the books I've been working on. I have part of a kids book done, I have part of a business book finished, I have part of a bible study done that has blessed me big time and I have a collection of four or five short stories completed. Blame it on my ADHD but as things whirled around in my head all year I put them down. Now here is what I am praying for 2007 and it would surely help if I had a bit of prayer help from all of you as well. I have always wanted to write a book. Sounds crazy but ever since I was a little girl I said I would. It has been on every goal list that I've written for as long as I can remember. It's high up in my To Do Before I Die List and I've let Satan push my buttons and tell me that I'm not good enough but not anymore. I truly believe that God wants me to do this because ever second of the day it's there. Here is my dilemma. I've written all of the things that I've wanted to write but what does God want me to write? I have all of this started and I wonder which one does He want me to finish first? I attended a study that Beth Moore conducted and I was mesmerized by her and her ability to take God's Word and make it so practical and a big part of me when I was watching her kept saying "Wow that's what I would love to do"! That's what juices me up teaching and learning and writing and spending time with other women. That was a big learning for me last year. Ok back on track here is what I need you to pray. Please pray that as I start the year and as I walk every day that each day I would be open to God's plan for my life. As I start down this path that I would have my eyes and ears open to Him and His desires and that as I pursue this dream that He would affirm it or not affirm it so that I can move on. Pray that as I write I write what He directs me to. I will always write I can't help it. How awesome to be able to use it to make a difference in His Kingdom! So there it is the list is done. I'm off this morning to move more and go for a long walk to reflect, rejoice, relax and rejuvenate my Spirit. Happy New Year to you all. I am truly blessed with family, friends and work peers that I truly love and are always there for me. I couldn't do what I do without each of you. Love you all!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Well with Christmas over and the New Year about to begin we are getting closer and closer to our travel date. We really had a great Christmas Season. It began with our Classic Christmas Eve service at the church that was a blessing to play in. Son #2 played his Saxophone in a wee bit of a solo...we were so so proud of him. Mom was able to come and see him which was nice. Christmas we had a house full. Eighteen close family friends got together for some Turducken...yum yum good. I got everything I wanted and then some. Just missing my one big present but she'll arrive soon enough. It was great to hear the boys Christmas morning get up as usual and climb on top of Son#2's bed and open thier Christmas socks. I don't care how old they are it really was so sweet to hear them laugh and yack with each other. I tried to slow down the present opening but oh well it lasted for a wee bit. We had our traditional Christmas breakfast that we love except Son #2 informed us this year he hates it so we had the traditional breakfast plus something for him which apparently he didn't like either. Too funny. More for us! Boxing Day four of us went to see "In Pursuit of Happyness". It kind of drained me. Even though it was a good ending well I just felt blah afterwards. We went for more food at a friends house on the evening of the 26th. I worked the 27th, 28th and 29th. It was pretty slack though not much going on. Working towards buying things for our trip. Picked up a car seat today and a goob of other stuff bottles, blankets, clothes way too much to mention. Let's just say it ain't cheap! Fortunately we are blessed an got a good wad of money in Sears Gift Certificates which came in very very handy today. New Years Eve will be quiet at our house. Were not feeling very partyish this year. We are going to get a movie and Chinese food and kick back and just hang with Son #2 because Son #1 is away. He worked most of the holidays and now is away visiting friends. First trip away on his own. He's growing up so fast. Pretty awesome kids though. Emily has got two of the best big brothers she could ever hope or pray for. We are counting down the days and they are flying by now. We have to get our plane tickets reprinted tomorrow. I've already gone once and they restickered them with a sticker written in Gel pen on shiny paper. One big smudge. Now it looks like we printed the tickets with a sharpy. I'm not too comfortable travelling out of the country with those. I'll just have to pray that we get a nicer ticket agent. The last one wasn't having any part of reprinting them. I was told by Aeroplan to insist, obviously they've never dealt with an Air Canada Ticket agent. I'll just have to smile and take my DH with me. Let's see what that gets us. Happy New Year to everyone reading this. Please continue to pray that these next few weeks are productive and that we are organized for this trip that we've only had 2 years to prepare for! Pray for Emily and that God continues to wrap His loving arms around her and that she is not afraid of us when we take her from the orphanage. Until 2007 goodnight!

What A Week!

This post will be a bigger one because I have to fill you in on what has happened this week. Let me start my saying God is AMAZING! It never ceases to amaze me how He has blessed our family. My week started early Monday morning. I have to go back three weeks to tell you about a conversation that I had with Son #1. There is a radio station in town that has a weather guarantee. If the weather guy misses the temperature by more than 3 degrees you have the chance to win a jackpot. Depending on how long he has been right is the amount of the jackpot. I told Son#1 to remind me to send in my name because it has been warm, cold, warm, freezing surely he'd get it wrong soon. I never thought anything more about it until Monday morning when my Son is calling and calling on our home phone. First thing he said was "I forgot to tell you I entered your name in the weather guarantee" second thing was YOU JUST WON! How much? $1575 dollars. How incredible is that. We prayed that Matt and Andrew would be able to travel with us and so far we go their tickets on points and now much of their travelling money will be covered with this win. It is truly such a relief that they can come and we can experience this as a family. That was Monday. Tuesday I received a call from Community service saying that our Notice of Coming had arrived. Yahoo this was our travel approval we had been waiting for which means our travel date shouldn't change again and the boys are definitely able to go. Mike picked up our certificate Tuesday afternoon. It was great to have it in our hands. I woke up Wednesday morning to check my email before work and low and behold there was an update from our adoption facilitator giving us measurements and A PICTURE OF EMILY on December 18th! What an incredible Christmas present from the Lord! She is so cute. Big ole head of hair, beautiful lips (Son #1 says like Angelina Jolie's) and a big hunka bunka. She is growing so well and I just want to hold her and bring her home. I was so glad to have this picture because she isn't the little baby in the picture anymore she's changed her looks so it's good to understand that. Thursday we received confirmation that we will in fact be able to visit her orphanage when we go to China. This hasn't been allowed much and we will actually go inside to see but can't go in the baby rooms. I'm praying that we will have some time to get a picture of her finding place. Things are getting so busy for Christmas. I want to make sure to truly enjoy this Christmas. I'm not going to be sad for Emily because I know she is being looked after and this is the last Christmas that it will be just the four of us and I don't want to wish that away. Our time is coming quickly when we will be leaving. We received our itinerary today which is exciting. Thanks to all of you who have been following this and who have been praying for us. It is so evident that we are covered by your prayers and that God has it all worked out. I am so grateful that we stepped out of our comfort zones on this one. I can't imagine that we almost missed this. We almost said no God not now we're too old. We would have never known the joy that our family is feeling now. Pray for Emily that God will protect her over these next few weeks, please pray that she bonds with us and that the transition from her caretaker to us will go smoothly. Merry Christmas to all of you. May your holidays be filled with friends, fellowship, food, fun and of course the knowledge that God sent His Son as a little baby to live with us, as one of us. How incredible is that! As the time approaches for us to leave I will be password protecting this Blog so that we can post family pictures on it. Not to worry I will let all of you know what it is so you can keep following along however with personal pictures on it I don't want to just open it to the world. I kind of feel bad because I've been following other blogs for a couple of years and they have been awesome but I just don't want to take the chance. I'll email the password to each of you as the time arrives.

I was had again!

Well I was had again! In a good way. After coming back from lunch at work one of the girls asked me if she could speak to me in the boardroom for a minute. When I opened the door...surprize...again. I must be losing it in my old age. That's twice within 2weeks that I was left with my mouth hanging open. I got such lovely things for Emily from the girls at work it really was touching. Here also was the incredible thing. I had in my mind a stroller that I wanted to get, the jogger stroller (don't laugh), it had big old wheels for our country roads and who knows maybe just maybe I might someday want to walk faster than a stroll and low and behold my team bought me the exact stroller I was looking at. How incredible is that. They picked it out for me and put it together and had it all set up and gave me a crash course on how to operate it. Don't laugh it has a hand brake just in case I go too fast. What a hoot. We truly are blessed. Now that Christmas is almost here I'm more focused on getting our tree decorated and presents wrapped and well I still don't have the babies room finished. Good friends helped put the crib together which is still sitting in my diningroom because it won't fit through the bedroom door and my DH has to take it apart again in order to move it. I'll leave it at that. It will get done after turkey season is over cause he's flat out busy making turduckens. We finally got the 12ish foot Christmas tree up we bought. I don't know what I was thinking. I love it but well to decorate we need a couple of big old ladders and a family of boys who would rather eat glass than decorate a tree. I just get the blank stares and loads of excuses but oh they are so going to help me tomorrow put those lights on. DH has been shopping for me for a couple of weeks which is nice cause he usually waits and is actually finished early. Gotta love him. Anyway that's all for now I'm headed upstairs to watch "It's a Wonderful Life" with son #2.

Emily's Finding Ad

Ok so what a cutie patootie.....Emily is number 244. She was the 244th baby to be posted in 2006 in this city. Her ad was posted in the Nanching Farmers Daily right next to the watermelon and the hot peppers! When the babies are found an ad is placed stating that they were found and the particulars and requesting that if anyone wants to claim her otherwise she will be placed for adoption. I'm sure the Mom and Dad must scour the papers just to ensure they are found and in an orphanage. It truly is a blessing to have this because it is the earliest picture that we have of her. She is likely less than a week old here. I have another picture that for some reason I can't get uploaded with all the babies in a spread many of the ones coming home with us are on this sheet. Thought you would find this interesting. I will try and get the other picture to post again next time I'm on.

Message around the world

I thought I would upload this picture to show you the packages we sent off to our babies in China. Not sure if when you click on it if it will enlarge it but you'll see pictures of all of the other babies on the front. $455 ish dollars later we know they received them. I also got something special in the mail on Friday. When children in China are abandoned their pictures are posted in the local paper. It's called a finding ad. Sometimes you can get ahold of them and sometimes not. Well I located this guy on the internet (gotta love technology) who found her ad and I received part of the newspaper with the ad in it and a blow up of the picture as well as a DVD of the orphanage and finding place. This is so special because it is the earliest picture that we would have of her. She's number 244. Sounds so sad but she was the 244th picture posted in 2006 in the Farmer's Weekly. These ads serve two purposes. One to show the parents that the children are found and safe and two that there is an intent to put these children up for adoption and therefore if the parents change their mind they have the opportunity to come forward. I will scan the page and post it later in the week. That's all for now. Thanks again to all of our wonderful wonderful friends who have just blessed us a million times over with your prayers and kind words. Soon very soon she will be home. I am however going to really really cherish these last four weeks with the four of us as that is special as well. Andrew played with our group in church this morning. I was so so proud of him I thought I was going to bust. I realised as I looked at him and at Matt at the back of the auditorium that there is no greater gift that God can give than the gift of children who love the Lord and who love their family. No job can match it, no amount of money can match it, no possession can match it, there is nothing else like it. God is good. "Our cup runneth over"!

Home Sweet Home for Now

I thought I would post a couple of pictures of Emily's orphanage that I got off of another parents website. One is of the orphanage entrance and the other is simply a side shot. If you look on the roof of one of the pictures you can see all the clothes hanging on the line. This place has been Emily's home for the past 13 months. I'll be so glad when she is home in my arms safe and sound in her own bed until then I'll just trust God to snuggle her until we arrive.

Dinners and Showers

Well finally I'm able to sit down in front of my computer and update this. We are still awaiting our TA (travel approval) from China to arrive. So all you folks reading this blog please pray that God's timing prevail and that if it is His will that we will go on the dates our plane tickets are now booked. My DH and I were to meet friends of ours for supper on Friday night then come back to the house to watch a movie on Chinese adoption. We had this planned all week. An hour before we are supposed to go to dinner my DH calls and tells me he has to work. Stinky. I wasn't upset because he was selling a house to people I really wanted to see get a house. He said he'd meet me. He called said he would be late. Called said he would come later. Called and said he'd meet me at home. So I drive home with "the friend" and when I drive down our long long driveway I see one car that belongs to good friends of ours and was excited they popped in to visit. However when pulling in front of the house saw a body running from a van to the house with a gift...the cat was out of the bag! A surprise shower! What a surprise it was. I was completely duped when I walked through the door there was 65 people in my house and only a few cars in the driveway...my dear boys shuttled and parked people all night. I was overwhelmed and here is why. When my two home grown boys were born we had great friends, and we were over the moon. However, even though God was definitely in it we didn't recognize it. With Baby #3 this is different. It isn't better just different. What is better is recognizing God and seeing the tremendous support that our church family has given us is incredible. I sometimes wonder if Emily is feeling the anticipation of her arrival all the way across the world because we can sure feel it here. Poor DH had to try and get the crib together for me...and good thing a dear friend had her DH pitch in to help...once again....because they got it together in 1/2 flat I'm told and I love it. What fantastic gifts we got, what a load of food that was eaten, what a night of laughs, tears and fellowship was had by all. To all of you that were here who are reading this thank you so much for making the night very special for us! Love you all oodles...smooch smooch hug hug. I meant to write in an earlier blog please comment on the blog so I know who is out there...sometimes I wonder if I'm all alone writing to myself!

Ho Hum.....

We didn't get great news today. We are being delayed in our travel to China by a week. I can live with the week but I just want to Bring Emily Home Now!! Patience my friend Patience is what God is telling me....Be Still and Know that I am God. I know I know Lord...but my lip is still out. So now we need to change our flights and hopefully will still be able to get the kids with us. I called today and they didn't think it would be a problem. It actually may even work out better. So here is what you can pray for us that our flights work out and we can switch our tickets. Also, I believe that things happen for a reason so I'm not questioning God as to why this happened I'm actually praising God that He is in control and knows the reason we need to be delayed and has our best interests at heart. That's all the reassuring I need and I am praising him in advance for looking after all of this for us. He's taken us this far I won't lose faith now. So I'll just have to pray that she get angel kisses for one more week and it gives us one more week to get everything sorted out with room, packing, paperwork, clothes and all the other stuff we need for the wee bambino! Always positive always positive...

Leaving on a Jet Plane

We got great news on Friday. We were able to get three of our tickets to China on points which means that for sure the boys will be able to come with us which is awesome. We really didn't want to go without them. The flight there is 13 hours going to China and 17 hours coming back. Now we have to think about what to take with us. The good news is all my DH needs and my boys are a few pairs of underwear and then their bags are fair game for shopping...Yahoo. I can't believe that Christmas is less than a month a way. This is the first time in 4 years that we will actually be home so that will be a wee bit odd but I'm actually looking forward to it. I have been trying to start Emily's room but every time I start to work at it a bit I always have to stop because something else comes up. We don't have the crib in yet but I know it will all come together. DH's dad came over today and brought Emily the sweetest suede jacket with little oriental flowers embroidered on it. She will look sweet in it. I am getting more and more excited as the days tick on. I can't wait for Emily to see the wonderful friends that we have here and how much they so can't wait to meet her. We got a beautiful card and a present for her birthday from our friends at church. We also got plenty of emails telling us that they were praying for her. She got our package we sent last week $485 dollars later...too funny but worth every penny! DH is so cute he's walking around with these pictures in his pocket asking if anyone who will look wants to see "his baby". I can't wait to meet her but most of all I can't wait for the boys to meet her. Well that's all for now off to the Amazing Race!