Here we goooooooo..........

We are so thankful for the support we have received in the past 24 hrs from friends, families and the whole adoption community. Our children are well loved and well cared for while we are gone, and they are going to have alot of fun as well! We have been affirmed over and over again with our decision to leave Langley at home. We have so much peace about that now.

We did have quite a bit of scrambling & changes to make this morning. God was gracious and provided a smooth path to do so. So now we are repacked, minus one suitcase, so things are a bit bulkier and heavier. Once we get to Fuzhou we can unload several things as we have gifts for officials, foster family, and items for the orphanage. Thanks to my father in law we have several cleft bottles to give to the orphanage!

We tried to spend extra quality time with the kids today. We read alot of books, played some games, and had dinner with extended family. It was a good day. Tonight the 5 of us gathered together to ask questions, express feelings, and pray. The prayers were precious. Prayer time was ended with our 4 year olds prayers for all of us to HAVE FUN! Amen, brother! How it must please our father to see his beloved filled with JOY! 

I have to share a little from how our big girl is doing. I'm so proud of her. I don't think many adults would be so gracious with such disappointment. She is wise and heavenly-minded. She told me today that she might not be crying and her face might not look sad, but inside she still feels sad about not going. She and I had a big cry first thing this morning when she woke up and saw me outside her door unpacking all of her things. She is sad but I think she is also grateful to stay home when we explained the situation. I do still feel that Langley is a special part of this journey. We had planned for her to blog while in China and I still feel she has a unique way of telling this story. So we have asked her to still blog from the homefront. I hope she will.

Our hearts are full with excitement and anticipation. What a precious feeling to KNOW you are in your Father's hands!

A sad, difficult decision

As you know we have been at prayer regarding the swine flu. We are concerned at a variety of levels but tonight something was brought to our attention that we could not ignore. The following is a section from the US State Dept.

In some instances, children have been separated from their parents because either the parent or the child tested positive for 2009-H1N1 and was placed in quarantine for treatment. This situation presents the possibility of Chinese medical personnel administering medications to minors without first having consulted their parents.

Through many prayers & tears we have decided to leave our oldest daughter home. We are heartbroken and she is heartbroken. We just felt it was unwise to subject her to risk of being removed from our care and being alone in a Chinese hospital. We are trusting that God has provided us with this information for our protection and given us wisdom to make this difficult decision.

We were completely packed & ready and now we are repacking, changing flights, and rearranging childcare. 

We thank God for providing this information 24 hrs prior to leaving rather than 24 hours after arriving.

Calling on the prayer warriors again! Swine flu....

Swine flu......we know of a family who is quarantined in Beijing right now. A person sitting behind them on the plane had the flu. Now the father has tested positive and the entire family is quarantined in the hospital (3 children, 3 adults). They were due to meet their daughter on Monday in our province! I have no idea how things will proceed with this family. Pray for them.

Also, now China is doing random quarantine's. Really for us quarantine is bad but what is worse is actually getting sick. We are asking for prayers for ourselves and all those adoptive families about to travel for COMPLETE health & protection.

We are worried..... but Jesus tells us not to worry so we are praying and trusting. God help us in our weakness.

He is also reminding me of how He has shown himself and PROVIDED for our every need, especially in recent months. God has brought Joshua 4:21-24 to my heart:

Then he spoke to the children of Israel, saying: “When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, ‘What are these stones?’ then you shall let your children know, saying, ‘Israel crossed over this Jordan on dry land’; “for the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed over, that all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the LORD, that it is mighty, that you may fear the LORD your God forever.”

I have several "memorial stones" that I need to lay down to remind myself of WHO God is and HOW He loves me. How he has provided, even performed miracles for our family. How He has protected us when we didn't realize we needed protection. How He is all knowing, all powerful, and sovereign over all things....this is Who He Is. That is what I need to remember.

So we lay down our memorial stones first so our children will know and remember the Lord our God. And the that the "peoples of the earth" might also know.

Prayer warriors, join us in praying our way to China and back. May God's Glory shine bright!

Praying this prayer expectantly: Psalm 5:11-12

Because of Jesus we are called Righteous!

¹¹ But let all who take refuge in you be glad; 
       let them ever sing for joy. 
       Spread your protection over them, 
       that those who love your name may rejoice in you.

 ¹² For surely, O LORD, you bless the righteous; 
       you surround them with your favor as with a shield.

New Camera & Note from Langley

We got a new video camera today. Our old one was huge and took forever to download videos. So this should be great for posting videos of Elizabeth while in China. I took a short video for a "test" post. Here it is:

The following is Langley's first post on this blog. I hope she'll do some more in China...I think she will....she loves to write.

Elizabeth is my only sister! I  really like the idea of me going to China!YIPPI YIPPI!! COOL!!! I know the flight will be long but its worth it.I think it will be fun but I'm a little nervous , I haven't been this far from home. I think that this will be the best summer ever!Actually I know that this will be the best summer ever! And I will always remember my 9 birthday!

Forever Family Quilt Squares (#26-30)

We took the kids to a quilt store and each walked through the aisles of fabrics until they found just the perfect fabric for their little sister. John and I selected fabric as well. It was a very sweet time together as we shared our excitement of Elizabeth joining the 5 of us!

This is the fabric Langley selected. I think it is so beautiful & unique.....very much like Langley. She has a beautiful heart and has been praying/dreaming of a sister for years.

This is what Gray selected. He is very decisive. It was the first one he saw and refused to consider anything else. I think Gray loves Elizabeth very much....He is going to be a great big brother!

And this is what our superstar Mac selected. It is very appropriate. Mac spent a lot of time on his card. He wanted to say just the right thing to his new sister. What a sweet boy!

This is from me. These are some of my favorite colors and had an asian look as well. It expresses the beauty that Elizabeth has brought to my heart.

And this what John selected. I think he was the most thoughtful of all of us. Elizabeth is named after his grandmother, Nana. John adored his grandmother. She was a schoolteacher and wanted to find a fabric that expressed Elizabeth's namesake.

New Info!

When we received Elizabeth's referral we learned that she had been in foster care since 3 months old. Soon afterwards we learned which organization provided her foster care. I contacted that organization and sent letters to her sponsors here in the US thanking them for sponsoring her. Due to China rules, the organization is not allowed to share any information with adoptive parents....they can only share info with sponsors. So we were hoping that perhaps we would meet a sponsor and they would have some type of history or info on Elizabeth.

Last week, a letter arrived from one of Elizabeth's sponsors. We were so thrilled! I called the lady at home and we spoke for a while. I explained how only she could share info with us that the organization wasn't allowed to do that. Suddenly, she realized how her "updates" were precious to us. And she promised me she would look and see how many updates she could find and send them to us. Well, today those updates arrived. I had no idea what to expect or what type of information would be in the sponsor updates. 

The information we received today is priceless. We have 4 new photos. We have sets of measurements and can actually create a growth chart for the doctors! We have much more detailed info about her developmental and social growth. And we even have a little more insight into her arm....she can move it!!!

One of the most significant insights is her relationship with her foster family. This precious baby is going to be sad, oh so sad in a few short days. As I pray for my days to get shorter as I want to hold her, I pray for God to lengthen her days with her foster family. I pray that she enjoys their love and presence immensely these few remaining days with them. They obviously have loved her well. I am overwhelmed thinking about how sad my baby's heart will be as she leaves her mother, father, and sister. That is how she knows them. Those are the names she calls them. I am praying for God to fill us with wisdom and grace to love this baby and walk with her in her grief. I am praying for a miracle....for God to create a corner for us in her heart and with his healing that corner will grow as she learns to trust us.

I am praising God for the details in this new information that show us His presence and loving care. Several reports talk about how much Elizabeth loves playing with her sister's "electric organ". When we sent a care package we sent one toy....an electric piano. We didn't know what she would like, but God did. Also it appears she is very close to her sister and we don't know her age but it sounds as though she is older. I wonder if she is Langley's age? And God placed it on our hearts from day one that Langley was to go on this trip. He knew even before Elizabeth was born that she would need her sister during this time.

Here are our sweet new photos. The love is abounding in our hearts!

April 2009

December 2008

August 2008

April 2008

A new dress and more quilt squares(#22-25)

My sister (stitchingtochina.blogspot.com) made another dress for Elizabeth. Isn't it cute?

She made a matching skirt for Langley as well. She is selling her amazing designs to raise money for their second China adoption. You will LOVE her creations!

This is a square from my niece Corinne. Corinne just had her first trip to Disney World and is very excited about princess, fairies.....and mermaids! I think she and Elizabeth will have a lot of fun with each other!

This is from my nephew Davis. I love the "bad kitties" in this print. Davis is wickedly funny and has a super tender heart. This print makes me laugh....just like Davis always does.

This is from my oldest nephew Graham. Kitties are obviously important in their house! I think this is so sweet and loving...especially with what he wrote!

This is from some friends here in our town. They just had their first baby! How sweet for this new Momma to share in our joy. Congrats on your new little guy!