Music To My Ears…

Myla has been anxiously awaiting to turn 4 years old so she could be in children’s choir at church.  She has enjoyed going each Sunday night, and they made their debut this past Sunday morning, and they did great!

This was them practicing before the 8:30 service.  They all looked a little apprehensive about singing in front of lots of people!

When Myla came out to sing, she had to wave to her adoring fans!!

This was the actual performance…SO PRECIOUS!!

Myla had lots of people come and watch her sing, and she was so excited to have all of them there!  Here she is with Granddaddy and Sae Sae.

Sis Sis and Myla

Mimi & Bodie, of course, made it too!

I just can’t believe how big these girls are getting.  Grace did great singing too!  There is nothing more precious than seeing those sweet children sing to the Lord!

Fun, Fun, Fun Weekend!

This past weekend was one I have been looking forward to for 9 months!  Last December, my friend, Katie, went to a Deeper Still conference in Birmingham.  While she was there, they promoted the .MOM (dot mom) conference that Lifeway would be putting on in September 2011.  Katie called me and asked me if I wanted to go, and I said SURE!  We recruited a few more friends to go.  There ended up being six of us, and we had such a GREAT time!  I don’t think we stopped talking and laughing (except for when we were in the sessions) the WHOLE time we were gone.  I felt so blessed to be surrounded with other Godly women who the Lord has used to greatly encourage my heart!

Katie and Jill – Jill left her two little ones at home with her husband.  Her husband, Joey, has such a testimony of the Lord’s protection and provision.  Last year he was hunting by himself and suffered an aortic dissection.  I think that’s what it’s called.  Nonetheless, he really shouldn’t have survived, but God miraculously provided a way out of those woods where he went on to have open heart surgery.  He is doing great now!

Katie, Jill, Hilarie and Emily

Jill, Hilarie, Emily and me

We were so blessed to hear wonderful speakers at the conference…Angela Thomas, Angie Smith, Vicky Courtney and Priscilla Shirer.  The worship was let by Melissa Greene and it was incredible!  On Friday night, we were surprised to hear that the Duggars were there!  They had just returned from Israel.  The smallest baby, Josie, got sick while they were there and had to remain behind with her mom, Michelle, and sister, Jill, until she got better.  I know some people think this family is crazy, but I am in awe of them!  I can’t imagine having that many children.  They are so well behaved, and I admire how Jim Bob and Michelle live out a Christ centered life and include their children in Kingdom work all of the time!

I was so excited to have my picture made with Priscilla Shirer!  She is such an incredible woman of God! She brought an amazing message that just encouraged us to keep on being faithful in what we are doing, and God will meet us where we are.

I was also thrilled to hear Angie Smith!  Her husband, Todd, is the lead singer for the Christian band, Selah.  And, I guess it’s obvious by my daughter’s name that I really like that band.  (That is not the only reason we named her that, but the band was the first time I had ever heard the name).  Angie has been given an incredible ministry that was birthed out of the death of her fourth daughter, Audrey.  She has written two books, but the first one, I Will Carry You, is the story about Audrey….her life and death.  It is a great book!

After the conference was over, we went to The Summit and had a nice and healthy YUMMY dinner at The Cheesecake Factory!  The menu there is quite overwhelming, but everything is so good!

As I said earlier, I felt so blessed to be a part of this weekend.  The Lord spoke some amazing things to me, and I am so grateful for that.  I would encourage you to attend some type of conference like this every once in awhile!

Woohoo!!!!!

I can’t believe I am just now putting this on the blog, but last Monday, September 12th, we found out from CHI that we are now are an

OFFICIAL WAITING FAMILY!!!

We were thrilled to find this out after several months on the paperchase!  Our agency does one comprehensive waiting list.  There are not individual lists for boys, girls, older children, sibling groups, etc.  Everyone is on the same list.  We are #77 on that list, but we really don’t know exactly where that puts us for an infant girl.  There could be 30 (for instance) families in front of us that are waiting for little boys, so that would make us higher on the list, but we have no way of knowing.  I know that God’s timing is perfect, and he will bring our sweet girl to us in His time.  We are just excited to be where we are….simply waiting! 

Hence, this image….

Not really, but I know God will provide it!!

We are gearing up for a few more fundraisers.  Our next one will be t-shirts!  I am meeting with a designer next week to hopefully get a design together.  We will be doing pre-sales, and I’m sure we will order a few extras as well.  As soon as we have a design, I will quickly share it on our blog!

Thanks for all of your prayers up to this point….keep them coming!  We cherish them!

 

 

School Days…

I’m a little late with this post, but better late than never, right??  Wednesday before last, the girls and I started Mother’s Morning Out at our church.  Myla calls it “school”, and she LOVES going!  Selah has done pretty well so far.  As long as she doesn’t see me, she is fine.  It’s like when she sees me, she thinks, “Wait, I’m supposed to be with her!” and she gets upset.  But as soon as I’m out of sight, her teachers say that she calms down.

Myla was fired up and ready to go on the first morning!  I think she wore her backpack around for a good twenty minutes before we left.  I was running around like a chicken with my head cut off.  I’m not used to having to get up and out of the house that early.  Kudos to all of you working moms! 

Selah wasn’t much in the picture mood, but at least I caught one little smile behind her pacifier.  She is seriously attached to her pacis.  To sleep, she has to have one in her mouth and one in each hand.  I’m not looking forward to the day we have to take those away.  Oh, and that flower in her hand is supposed to be in her hair, but there is NO CHANCE of it staying in…sister’s not having it!

Myla is in a class with 3 & 4 year olds.  She is the oldest on in her class, and some of the other kids seem like babies compared to her, but she still loves going.  The teachers kid me that Myla is just their 4th teacher, not really a student.  Hopefully she is a big helper and doesn’t drive them crazy!

Selah is in the older 1’s class.  I haven’t heard any reports so far of her hitting her friends, so that makes me happy!  When I peek in her room every now and then, so is playing and looks to be having a good time!  She is worn out by the time we leave!!

I am teaching the younger 1’s, and it has been quite a challenge so far, but I know it will be better!  The first day, seven out of our ten screamed bloody murder cried the ENTIRE three hours they were there.  It was insane!  Even after just two times of coming, they are already getting better, thank goodness!!

Jesus Loves the Little Children…

Jesus loves the little children,

ALL the children of the world.

Red and yellow, black and white,

They are precious in His sight.

Jesus loves the little children of the world!

Love these dresses that my mom got the girls.  As soon as I saw the, “Jesus Love the Little Children” popped into my head!  We’ve been waiting for Selah to grow into hers, and they finally got to wear them to church this morning!

September 11…10 Years Later…

I vividly remember that day…September 11, 2001.  I was a senior in college, and I had woken up and gotten ready for class like any other normal day.  I walked across the hall and a couple of doors down in the dorm to get Joanna so we could walk to Mrs. Jones’ Family Life class.  I will never forget opening her door and seeing her standing in front of her chest of drawers, her face about 8 inches from the television screen.  She looked at me and said, “Have you been watching this?”  I told her that I hadn’t…I had no idea what was going on.  We watched the coverage for a few minutes, then headed to class.  I remember walking through campus and life just seemed dimmed and quiet.  People weren’t really talking and laughing and joking around.  When we got to class, someone had already brought a tv into the room and had the news on.  We all sat there watching the terror unfold, and shortly after we sat down, we all watched the second tower fall.  I can remember thinking to myself, “This is really, really bad”, but I had no idea the magnitude of the situation.  After class, we talked to a girl whose fiance was in the World Trade Center during the attack, and they had not yet hear from him.  He did get out fine, but it dramatically changed his life forever.  Next I went to work.  I was working as a secretary/paralegal for an attorney.  One other paralegal worked there, and when I walked in the office, they (Doc and Amy) were both sobbing.  Doc was on his knees in the floor, and Amy was sitting on the couch. This is when I started to realize that our lives…the comfort bubble of living in America would never be the same.  We had been attacked, and I was scared.  I called Michael after work and went straight to his apartment.  I just remember wanting to be with him, hug him, and thank God for him.  It’s interesting how during a scary/tragic time, our perspectives are very quickly narrowed onto what is truly important in life.  We sat and watched the news.  It was like a train wreck…it was horrible to watch, but I couldn’t quit watching it.  And it remained that way for weeks. 

I can’t believe it has already been ten years.  I can still remember so many details about that day.  Exactly what I was wearing, exactly where I was when certain things happened, etc.  I’ve heard my parents and grandparents talk about days like this in their lives.  The day of Pearl Harbor, the day that JFK was assassinated, etc.  Now, I had one of those days to remember.  I can remember flying for the first time after 9/11…I was truly scared.  It’s like our lives had changed and our fears were heightened.  I am so thankful to live in America, and I am so thankful that God brought us through those darks days.  It is my prayer that our nation would turn BACK to God, and the Biblical principles that this country was founded upon.

AWANA…

Fall is upon us, and that means we get to start our “scheduled” activities back.  One of those activities is AWANA at our church on Wednesday nights.  Myla is a '’cubby” again this year.  She was so excited to get started again!  She loves any activities where she is around other children. She was so excited to go back, and I love for her to go as well because she is hiding God’s Word in her heart at such an early age!

This was after we got home, but I wanted to get a decent picture of her in her vest.  I’m such a bad mom…I’ve had her patches from last year as well as the little cubby bear that is supposed to be on her vest since May, and I haven’t had them sewn on.  She was a little upset!  I’ve got to get on that.

This was Myla during the song time.  I love this smile!  She was so thrilled to be there!

This week we start Mother’s Morning Out.  Myla is so ready to be back in “school”!  Selah and I will be joining her this year on Mondays and Wednesdays.  I am going to be helping teach the younger ones.  Selah will be in the older ones class, and I’ve already warned her teachers of her hitting problem.  She is a hitter!!  It’s usually not out of meanness, I think it is just how she plays.  I don’t know how to get her to stop!  I’m hoping she will not be a bully!

What a Week!!!!

Wow…what a week!  If you recall, our Favorable Determination Letter came in the mail last Thursday, so the countdown was on to get all of our documents state certified and sent to our agency.  On Monday, I headed to Jackson to take them to the Secretary of State’s office to have them certified.  A sweet lady in our church, Mrs. Laura, kept the girls, which was a HUGE help! 

I got to Jackson right at lunchtime and was able to meet three dear friends for lunch.  Mandi is one of my dearest friends from college, and I was so excited to see her (even if for just an hour).  When I pulled up to the restaurant, she said, “Who would have thought ten years ago that we would be meeting for lunch driving our minivans!!”  Tamah is my sweet friend that I dearly miss in Jackson.  We talk almost daily, and I was so excited to get to meet her newest, precious addition, Amelia!  Alison is my friend that I have met through this crazy adoption world.  She is one of the first people I emailed about adoption, and she has ben SO encouraging and supportive.  I was so thrilled to get to eat with these sweet girls!  We had so much fun visiting…it was just much too short!

After eating lunch, I found my way to the Secretary of State’s office.  Before I went in, I just prayed that everything would go smoothly.  It took a little while because I had 23 documents to be certified. Each document had it’s own page that had to be attached to it certifying that the notary was a true notary in the state of MS.  When everything had been certified, I looked through all of my documents and compared it to my “dossier checklist”. While doing this, I realized there was one document missing.  Panic set in…big time!  I realized that I didn’t have a document that I needed from our homestudy agency.  I was SO upset…I did shed a few tears, just out of pure frustration.  I was ready to be done and get our dossier in the mail!  (I’ll finish this part of the story later)…

After leaving the SOS office, I went to visit my sister-in-law, Mary Jennifer, and our nephew, Luke.  I couldn’t believe how much he has changed and grown since we saw him eight weeks ago!!  He is such a little chunk.  He let me hold him the whole time and even feed him a bottle…he was so sweet!!

After I left Mary Jennifer’s I went to Tamah’s house so I could get my hands on Amelia for a little while.  She is OH SO SWEET!!  She just let me hold her while she snoozed!  I was still a little panicked and upset about the whole dossier shenanigan, but holding these two sweet babies made me feel so much better!

So, here is where the dossier story continues….  On Monday, I called Marcus, our wonderful social worker who did our homestudy, and told him about the document I was missing.  He promised to do it on Tuesday and overnight it to me so I would have it Wednesday morning.  Being the head strong person that I am, I decided that I would drive BACK to Jackson on Wednesday to get that ONE last document certified.  My main reason for this is that our agency send dossiers to Washington, DC, each Thursday.  On Fridays they have a courier in DC that takes them to the Ethiopian Embassy where they are authenticated then sent back to our agency.  It is at this time that we will be on the “official” waiting list!  I was DETERMINED to have our dossier to our agency by Thursday!  So, we got up on Wednesday, got ready to go, and waited on UPS to come and deliver the letter that we needed!  I took the girls with me this time, and they were great.  I definitely found out that traveling with a portable DVD player and a Miss Patty Cake DVD makes Selah enjoy car rides much more than normal!  Myla was ready to go with all of her bags packed.  She LOVES to pack a bag!

Don’t they look thrilled about the trip?  HA!

Besides my children, this was the most important thing in my possession yesterday….my “dossier” folder that contained all of our documents.  I’ve been so protective of this folder for the past several months.  I am NOT an organized person by any means, and I was so paranoid I was going to lose something very important, but I managed to keep it all together in this folder!

We stopped for lunch with Aunt Mary at Chick-Fil-A!  The girls loved getting to play on the playground after being cooped up in the car!

Aunt Mary and Myla.  Baby Luke stayed at home with Uncle Spencer, so we didn’t get to see him.  But, we will be seeing them this weekend! 

Selah loved the playground.  Notice the huge ketchup stains on her outfit.  She somehow managed to squeeze open a ketchup packet and get it everywhere!

After lunch, it was finally time to get down to business!!!  We went back to the Secretary of State’s office to get our one LAST document certified! 

This is Myla with Mrs. Nan.  She is the lady that does all of the “certifying”!  She thought I was crazy when I asked to take her picture! 

Here they are again the receptionist (I think her name was Debbie…I feel bad for not asking).  She helped me so much on Monday by looking up all of the different notaries that we had.  It’s neat how so many people go into making an adoption happen!!

Then, it was FINALLY time to go to the UPS and get sent away forever and always to our agency!  It was a very scary feeling handing over our dossier to the lady at the store.  I know she thought I was nuts.  I recounted the documents three times, made her double check the address twice, then asked her to take our picture!  She kept saying, “Hon, you need to calm down.  Everything is going to be just fine." Ha!  I wanted to say, “This is not just some random package! It’s the last six months of my life, and I would die if something happened to it!!!”  Well, not to worry!  It has been safely delivered to our agency, and now I’m just waiting to hear that everything is okay.  Hopefully it will be sent to DC today!