TICKETS BOOKED!!! Ethiopia here we come...

Just got official word on our travel dates and booked our flights. We will fly to Ethiopia on the 8th of January, arrive on the 9th (after a very very very long flight), and hold our sweet girl on the 10th! I am so excited...just a few short weeks away! We will return on January 16th at 11:38 and would LOVE for everyone to come out to the airport to meet our newest family member. Just please remember to meet down in the baggage claim so that our kids and Grandma can meet their new sister and Granddaughter first. Thank you all so much! God is good!!!!

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Chaos!!!

Tis the season for sugar-hyped, gift-wanting, Christmas-crazed kiddos at the Casa de Chaos! We are having so much fun and are so excited for Christmas to be here. Just a few weeks ago we actually got some snow! Not much, but the kids had a blast playing outside...until it melted about an hour later : )

We also had to have our traditional Christmas cookie making and decorating day...

And of course, for L a few sprinkles just won't do...

Pretty proud of their mess...um, I mean beautifully decorated cookies! We will have to save a few for Santa though : )

And of course, we are trying to stay focused on the true meaning of CHRISTmas...the birth of our dear Lord and Savior! We are just so amazingly blessed! And ,this Christmas, we are thrilled to add a new sister to the family...even if we don't get to bring her home until January. Thanks Grandma Bonnie for the new family ornament...we love it! Merry Christmas to all and may you have a blessed New Year!

She's OURS!!!!

Yipppeeeee!!!! She is ours!!!! We just got word that little H is now offically our daughter!!! Now, we wait for the U.S. Embassy to give us a date to travel to bring her home. I am on cloud 9!!!!! Thank you God!

Can I have a little cheese with my whine?

So, I have to admit that I have been a bit depressed, anxious and in a bit of a funk for the last couple of weeks. While I am THRILLED for all of the families passing court, travelling and bringing home their children, I must admit that selfishly, it hurts too. I know that anyone who's ever been there knows what I mean. This is our fourth adoption and we've been on both ends of this rope...getting lucky through the process, while others wait...having to redo documents while others breezed through the process...been there, done that. It never gets any easier, but it really is soooooooo worth it!
Now, our second court date is this Thursday, the 10th in Ethiopia...well, actually Wednesday night as we sleep; and I am just so nervous. I do trust God and His timing, but I am truly scared that one stupid little piece of paperwork will keep us from passing and then we'll have to wait another month for our next courtdate to find that that one stupid piece of paperwork is still not there. I'm not normally one to mire myself down in negative thoughts, I just MISS MY GIRL and I want to be with her. Seeing the videos my friends John and Theresa took of her were such a blessing, but it definitely makes it that much harder to wait to hold her and look into her sweet face.
I am hopeful that we will pass this week...and bracing myself to not be totally devastated if we don't. I would appreciate any prayers on our behalf...especially for my poor husband, who has to deal with me. Let's hope second time's the charm!

Adoption Roller Coaster...AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

Adoption is not for the faint of heart. It's a roller coaster ride...up...down....way up...way down fast....SCREAM!!!!!!!!!!!! It's a bumpy journey, for sure...but well worth the ride. As I type this, we await our second court date next Thursday. Yesterday, my dear friends, John and Theresa, who just returned from Ethiopia with their new daughter, somehow found the time to not only send me several pictures of our "H', but also made me a little music video, complete with several shots of my girl on video. Talk about cloud 9! I laughed and cried and ached to hold her, but wow, did getting a video of her make my day!
Later that same day...SCREACHING HALT! Followed by superfast downhill ride..!!!!..AHHHH. We found out that three other families who did not pass their first time either, did not pass their second time in court. They didn't pass the first time for the same reason we didn't pass...so naturally, I freaked out thinking the same thing will happen to us. Last time we were missing a letter....so five weeks later, could we still be missing the same letter? Of course, I immediately called our case worker and asked if they knew for sure that it was there, but we are dealing with foreign courts so sometimes they can't find these things out until we don't pass court again. AHHHHHHHH!!!! We saw her gorgeous face for the first time on August 24th...it's been way too long...I want my baby home! Mommy meltdown!!!!
And, then once again....God gave me His peace...the peace that surpasses all understanding. My favorite verse..."Trust in the Lord with all your heart...lean not on your own understanding..." Proverbs 3:5, came to mind. And, sure enough my morning devotional was none other than that very verse, coupled with a very wonderful reminder of God's perfect timing and control. How can I complain? God has blessed me with three, and soon four of the most amazing children, through adoption...and he made me a sister in Christ. adopted into God's family by Jesus. Amazing! So, I'm climbing back into the seat, lowering the bar, buckling the seatbelt and hanging on for the next part of this crazy ride. Please continue to pray for all of the families who are experiencing delays in their process and for these silly court things to be resolved. Today, I am also choosing to be grateful to God and to the amazing birthmothers and birthfathers that have allowed me to become a Mommy. Hanging on and hoping for the best....