Lauren is such a little love!

I thought it was time for a little Lauren update...plus I had really cute pictures!! Lauren is truly such a beautiful blessing to our family. Her sweet smile and sparkling eyes will pull us out of a bad mood so quickly. Watching her do everyday tasks that we take for granted helps us keep our lives in perspective. She really is a little love and is totally spoiled by everyone in the family.
Lauren also continues to do well in homeschool. Her most recent accomplishment is helping us spell rhyming words. Seriously! We can write the end of a word(-an), call out the complete word(pan) and then give her 2 letters to choose from to complete it(p, m). Do you know she gets it correct EVERY SINGLE TIME? EVERY TIME! And it doesn't matter who is asking. She did it for me, Daddy, Sarah and Dino today! I am going to try to get a video of her doing it to put on the blog. She is our little superstar and we are so proud of her. We are most thankful to Susan Norwell for showing us what our girl is capable of!
Enjoy the pictures. Then go hug your children and thank God for them.

Lauren swiped my cinnamon toast off the kitchen counter one morning. I returned to the kitchen to find an empty plate and no toast on the floor. I found her sitting on my bedroom floor, watching Dora....yep, with cinnamon all over her face....and not one crumb left!


Daddy was watching Carolina basketball one night in our bed. Lauren climbed up there beside him to watch. Clearly, she is a Tarheel fan too!


She isn't really that into decorating the Christmas tree. In an effort to keep her happy and entertained, I lined mini marshmallows up on the kitchen counter for her. She picked them up in order all the way down the line AND used a pincer grasp to do it! Woo Hoo! Yes, Lauren will work for food!



Sweet sister shots~ Lauren often will walk up to Avery and look into her eyes. It is so sweet!
We are blessed indeed!

Bye, Bye Crib.....Hello Big Girl Bed!

Yes, that is Cubbie going along for the ride!!

She is thrilled with her new bed and the transition was seamless.
(It should have been! She has been climbing out of her crib for months!)

Blessed

Orphans are easier to ignore before you know their names.
They are easier to ignore before you see their faces.

It is easier to pretend they're not real before you hold them in your arms.

But once you do, everything changes.
~Anonymous

So thankful we've been changed by adoption.

Yes, We are alive!

I am sorry it has been SO long since my last post. Let's see.....what have we been up to?

Well, two weeks after returning home from China we left for NC and Alabama. Lauren sees a specialist in Birmingham every August and so the trip had to be made. While there, we spent a few days with the Privett Family...and had a marvelous time!

Dr. Percy~A hero to many Rett families

Swimming in the Tennessee River

We came home from that trip on Sunday night and started school Monday morning. Seriously...what was I thinking?

September is always a busy month as we are preparing for the Rett syndrome fundraiser that we chair. Throw in 4 birthdays(out of the 7 in our family) and it makes for a CRAZY time!

Sarah turned 10 on Sept. 15

Mama celebrated a birthday on Sept 18

Anna Grace turned 3 on Sept. 29

Avery turned 13 on Oct. 7

So, vacation, homeschooling 5, 4 birthdays, and chairing a fundraiser.....and THAT, my friends, is why you have not gotten a blog update.

And just so we don't get bored....Avery had surgery today. The plastic surgeon that operates on Anna Grace, did a nose revision on Avery today. She did great! Her nose looks beautiful but there will be no pictures posted yet. She said not until the stitches are removed in 10 days!

So in the midst of chaos, how are we doing? Really, pretty well. Avery is learning English well. It is coming slowly but she is definitely making progress. She is adjusting to life in America and in our family pretty well. It is a slow transition and not without its struggles but we realize that she is doing wonderfully when you consider all she has been through in her life. She is a brave, smart, beautiful girl and we are proud to call her our daughter. I am hoping to post more often now that the birthdays and fundraiser are behind us.

Sorry for the quick update. But its a start, right?
Oops....forgot a few things.....

Like an ER trip after a bicycling accident

Avery seeing the ocean for the first time!

Anna Grace and Avery getting their ears pierced(Anna because she potty trained...oh! And she did that the first week home from China!)
and apple picking

It's no wonder this is how I feel most of the time!!!!!

More soon......... I promise!

HOLY MOLY!!!!!!!

48 hours from leaving and I spend the day in the ER with Emily....my travel mate!
She has a raging ear infection and they actually thought the infection might be in the bone behind her ear. Seriously? I've decided today that satan is alive and well and he really doesn't want orphans coming into Christian homes! I have had sick children for the past 5 weeks and we really topped it off with a doozy today! BUT, I am not deterred! I am going to China to get my girl! We leave in less than 48 hours and will be in Guangzhou on Friday early morning. WOO HOO!

Please pray for Emily's ear infection to clear up QUICKLY! She did get IV meds today and they are working beautifully! Pray for Anna Grace who continues to tell me that she is going with me to get Xiao Li. I think she could struggle! Pray for Shawn who will be on leave and taking care of the 3 girls while I am gone. Pray for Lauren and Sarah to stay healthy. And pray for Avery's heart....that God is preparing her for our crazy family and all the changes that are coming. I have felt that so heavy on my heart the past few days. Finally, pray for the internet to have good connections so I can skype with my girls back home...yes, that one is totally selfish! : ) I will be posting on "Avery's travel journal" from now on. Head over there for the next few weeks!

Thank you for all your prayers for my family.

Catching up...

I finally got pictures uploaded to the computer and realized that I had not shared these pictures of Lauren. As most of you know, Lauren does not have good hand use. She has trouble holding on to things without dropping them. However, when she is really motivated she has amazing abilities. A good example of this was one night when she managed to get a bag of M&M's out of the pantry. Lauren was the only one inside; the rest of us were in the yard getting ready for a yard sale. We were walking inside every 5-10 minutes to check on Lauren while she watched Dora. Shawn came out and called me inside to see what she had done. Evidently, she had gone into the kitchen, opened the pantry, found a ziplock bag of M&M's, and decided that she hit the jackpot. We found her like this....



And she quickly began doing this.....


and then this....

And this is how she felt about it....

And to be honest, we felt the same way! We were quite proud of our little girl! She "shouldn't" be able to open a cabinet or pick up a bag, certainly not carry it all the way down the hall without dropping it, and that ziplock?? We have no idea how she got that open! But yeah, my girl has pretty good hand use when she has the proper motivation! And I was proud enough that I let her keep eating them while I took pictures! She is our superstar and we really have no idea the heights that she can reach if we keep believing in her and giving her opportunities to grow!
What a blessing she is to our family!

Travel Plans!!

WE ARE GOING TO CHINA! Tickets are bought(ouch!) and hotels are being booked!
Emily and I leave on Wednesday evening, July 14 and fly to Guangzhou. We transfer there and fly to Xi'an. We will receive Avery into our family on July 18 in the afternoon and spend that week in Xi'an. Guangzhou will be our location for the second week. We will head home on July 30, landing bright and early Saturday morning. We can't wait! Avery's travel site is in the works. I will have it linked to this blog.

Avery~We will be there soon!

FINALLY!!!

Our Travel Approval (TA) finally arrived at our agency on Friday! It has been a long and painful wait since our LOA came in early April. Sorry no posts....Anna Grace has been sick for a very long time, like 17 days long time! It started with Salmonella and that was pretty ugly. Friday I thought we were finally in the clear with that and then she started running fever again on Saturday evening and had that lovely barking cough. We did call the doctor when her temperature hit 104.6!! Today's high temp is 103 and medicine does bring it right down. I am praying that this is short-lived as I have a trip to china to plan! We think we will be leaving July 9 and meeting Avery XiaoLi on July 11....just 2 weeks from today! We are so excited at the thought! I have so much to do before then. Please pray AnnaGrace recovers quickly so I can get out to run my errands!

We are alive and well

Sorry for no posts recently. We've had computer issues and I went to NC for a week. We are home now, with a computer that works, and are anxiously awaiting our travel approval to go get Avery Xiaoli! It won't be long now. Our agency said we could get our TA next week...travel is probably the first or second week of July! Coming up quick!! I have pictures to add but they haven't been uploaded to the computer yet....Soon, I promise! And I will most definitely blog while in China. I am working with Tina at The Story of You to get Avery's site set up. Hope summer is getting off to a good start for all of you!

Happy Mother's Day

We have had a fun day in our family. I hope you have too! I am blessed to be the mom of 5 daughters...4 with us and 1 waiting in China. We are thankful she will be home this summer!
Happy Mother's Day!!

Avery Xiaoli

My blessings..... so far

Thank you, Lord, for the precious gift of my girls.

Homeschooling

Just a few of the things I love about homeschooling....

Getting to do fun things like drop eggs and watch them crack open

Working for hours with my big girls and then seeing them both accomplish their goal of "Memory Master" at Classical Conversations

Looking out my back door and seeing Lauren on the trampoline with Dino

Seeing how smart my two year old is

REALIZING THAT LAUREN IS RECOGNIZING SIMPLE SIGHT WORDS!!!!

But most importantly, seeing my four daughters truly enjoy being together

Thank you, Lord, for the privilege of homeschooling my children.

I LOVE SPRING!!!

I love fall....that is my favorite season! But I have to tell you, after the winter we had, I am LOVING spring!!

I love the azaleas and the cherry blossoms.......

......the green grass..........

....family bike rides.....

and then naps in my swing!!!!

Yep, I think I am starting to be a spring kinda girl!!!

Flying!

Today Lauren got a late birthday present. She got a bike that attaches to her Daddy's bike so our family can go for bike rides together. Today Lauren got to fly down the hill on our street on her very own bike! Today I heard giggles come from my sweet daughter as she raced past me and my camera. Today I saw the sweetest smile on her face and I wondered what she was thinking. Clearly she was loving the feel of the wind in her face and seeing the houses flash by. I have a feeling that she tasted a bit of freedom like she has never experienced before. We have to help her with so much in life...almost everything, actually. But today she sat on her very own bike and flew! We have been saving for this bike and I am so thankful that Shawn's parents helped us reach the amount we needed to buy it. I can't wait for them to come visit so they can watch her enjoy their present. I think a family bike ride and picnic is in order this weekend! I promise to take pictures!

Happy 6th Birthday Lauren! You are a precious blessing to our family.

Big News!!!!

Love Our Avery!!!!! (credit goes to Jennifer Privett for that clever use of letters!)




It is official! We have received approval for Avery!! I am now the mom to 5 daughters and we can't wait to bring her home! Travel hopefully in July!

I received this picture today. It was taken yesterday! I can't wait to go get her!

Good Friday

Good Friday...how often do we take time to think about Good Friday and what it represents? So many times we celebrate a day off from school, the beginning of spring, and fun with our families. But do we spend much time thinking about what Christ endured for us on this day? It was more horrific than anything we can imagine. I have been singing in the Easter Pageant at my church this year. I've watched the crucifixion many times and every single time I am startled as the hammer strikes the nail, tears fill my eyes as the man playing Jesus cries, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" And I then have trouble singing the song that immediately follows. But this reenactment that I have watched over and over is NOTHING like the real thing. We can't even begin to grasp the horror of that day. I listened to a song today on a friend's blog. I have never heard it before and it was such a moving song, I've included it here. I hope you will take a few minutes to listen to it. (Actually, if you don't the rest of this post won't make sense to you.) The song is entitled "Why?"



Yes, Jesus died for each of us. After living a sinless, perfect life, he was put to death for me and for you. He did this so we could be made righteous through his blood and gain eternal life. Jesus died for Anna Grace too. I've thought a lot about that this week. Anna Grace began life in harder than normal circumstances. She spent 16 months in an orphanage. Many details of her life we do not know.



Yet, she was protected until we could bring her home. Last Sunday she sat in the back of our van, waving a palm branch from church, singing "Hosanna, Hosanna, blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord." My precious daughter, who began life in a country that does not have the same religious freedoms that we enjoy, was singing praises to God. And the tears flowed...and flowed! I looked at Shawn and said, "Oh, it is so much bigger than us giving Anna a mama and a daddy. We have given her the opportunity to know Jesus." I have thought it before but it really hit me big in that moment. We have brought her home and now she can grow up knowing Jesus and loving him. She won't live without hope, without peace, and without love. She will know the ONE who gives perfect hope, peace and love. Yes, it is SOOO much bigger than simply giving Anna Grace a mama and a daddy.



Have you ever thought about adoption in that way? As a christian family, if you were to adopt a child, you could be the one who introduces them to Jesus. You could play a part in them gaining a temporary, earthly home, but even more importantly, you could have a part in their eternal home. Think about it. Anna Grace is the reason Jesus died on the cross but there are thousands of orphans around the world today that He also died for. Who is going to introduce them to their Savior?