Family Mosaique

Daddy - Daughter Date Night

2012-02-05T09:29:00.000-08:00

I love that my girls get so tickled about a special night with their Daddy. They get dressed up even for frozen yogurt : ) It's so sweet to see that they want to look beautiful for him. We have this little tradition on Sunday mornings when they're getting ready for church. I'm always the one that dresses them but as soon as they come out of their bedroom they immediately go find Rob. He always makes a big fuss about how beautiful they are. They go seeking his approval and they always leave beaming. Every little girl needs to know that their Daddy thinks they are beautiful.

So, here is Isabella...all dressed up for a date with Daddy. Mei Mei has been under the weather for a few days. I'm not sure what's wrong exactly. She's just been running fever with no other symptoms. Sometimes high fever and sometimes low. We were just at the doctors a week ago Friday with Izzy sick. It's that time of the year. Mari is so sweet when she's sick though. All she wants to do is snuggle with me.....and she's not the least bit grumpy unlike the rest of us : )

2012-01-25T10:47:00.000-08:00

She's had this hat on for two solid days....not sure what that's all about except that she sure is cute !

My life with these girls is a rainbow.....

2012-01-25T10:04:00.000-08:00

Thank You Lord for the colors that they bring into my life.

Colors that I would never have known without them.

2012-01-16T12:42:00.000-08:00

It was such a beautiful weekend. We enjoyed the park on Sunday. The girls loved getting outside and playing in the sunshine. It was 23 degrees on Thursday morning and today it's 70 degrees. Strange winter we are having....not complaining about the 70's though : )

I must have seen a million little boys....all around Josiah's age. I can tell it's getting close. I'm starting to notice things I didn't before. I'm feeling the overwhelming urge to nest. It's time to do his room only I don't want to rush because we might be moving. Ahhhh, I guess sooner or later I'll just do it and if I have to undo it and move I will. We have a very busy couple of weeks with our garage sale fundraiser coming up on the 28th. So, maybe after that I'll get with the program : ) While waiting for Izzy we did her bedroom eight months before she came home and it just made it harder to wait for her. With Mari, we timed it to where it was done about two months before she came home and that was just about perfect. It also became the China trip staging room. Packing for four people...leaving the country for 17 days does tend to take over a room. I cannot imagine if we all go to China what packing will be like this time :o

We did get our next approval of our I 800 which is just the next step. We're getting there. Prayers for fundraising needed. We still have quite a ways to go. God's going to do some crazy stuff in the next couple months. Can't wait to tell you all about it. I love sharing what God is doing in our lives. I honestly would burst if I couldn't....so, just wait something is coming soon. Much love you guys. Have an awesome week.

Izzy......six going on sixteen : )

2012-01-15T20:38:00.000-08:00

She is getting too big too soon.....at least she's a big help with the errands

Another Rockstar is born.....

2012-01-15T19:45:00.000-08:00

Finally..... : )

2012-01-08T20:23:00.000-08:00

My girls got a taste of what it would be like with a little boy around when they visited their nephew Jacob. It's still strange to think of them as "Aunt Izzy" and "Aunt Mari". Oh, and I just thought of "Uncle Josiah"...that is so funny.

How cute is he????

They had such a sweet time with baby Jacob, Jessi and James. Izzy said to me "Momma....little boys are kinda crazy"...lol.

The sun is shining.....and the weather is sweet

2012-01-08T20:04:00.000-08:00

Mei Mei discovered my Ipod : )

We have come across three ladybugs in three days.... to the girls it's like discovering a treasure.

It was 75 degrees...love this winter : )

We had a great time outside yesterday

Update..... : )

2012-01-07T18:11:00.000-08:00

We received an update on Josiah last night. I have to be honest (this makes me so sad)....I didn't hardly recognize him. He has grown so much. I actually asked Rob if this in fact was Josiah : (

Aside from him growing way too quickly, the update was really great. He is doing very well. He's very healthy. Rarely Sick. His high muscle tone is completely resolved. He's walking very well. His only delay is language. He understands perfectly, but is only saying a few words at this point. He is 33 inches and 26 lbs. You would never know that because he's in at least five layers of clothes and he apparently hasn't had a hair cut in his life : )

He knows about his family and he gets to look at our pictures often (thank you Jesus). He has twenty teeth. He's still sleeping in a crib and still in a diaper, but is currently potty training.....oh, this Momma's heart !

This is a picture that they included that is from July

Look at that hair.....love that : ) Rob swears they are both getting mohawks in China. Goodness Gracious !

I know they can look so different in pictures. I remember Izzy looking so much older sometimes in her photographs, but Gosh he looks too big to me. It seems like he was just a baby.

We're coming sweet boy.....we're coming!

You say it's birthday...

2012-01-04T16:24:00.000-08:00

So this is how my birthday started.....a little serenading and some sort of crazy rendition of The Birthday Song...I think? The parrots of course had to chime in.... : )

My birthday card from my biggest little girl

My birthday card from my littlest little girl

And this is too sweet. Izzy made these....I can redeem them anytime I want for a kiss or a hug:

Thank you my man for cooking dinner (maybe the fourth time in seventeen years..lol)

My family spoiled me perfectly on my birthday. I love all of my gifts.

My cake was delicious, Lauren. I almost don't want anyone to find out that you are secretly an amazing chef. I want to keep you all to us....John Besh eat your heart out : )

I love, love my Bloggie Touch...awesome videos and pictures too.

You guys make me feel so special and loved.

The Great Giver of Gifts

2012-01-04T14:28:00.000-08:00

To God be the glory

You know I knew that He would do something crazy cool. You guys know this is our third adoption and you know God has knocked our socks off each and every time. The circumstances that brought us to Josiah have been just one God thing after another. I couldn't even dream this stuff up. It's just beyond my imagination. He has provided everything we needed. Never does He call us to anything that He doesn't equip us to handle or provide for in the first place. Well, then things just kind of settled down. Then we got our LOA from China and here we found ourselves just a few months from traveling and we still have a lot of money to raise. For neither Izzy nor Mari's adoption have we been to this point in the process with this much left to raise. Hmmmm...Yes, that could cause a girl to freak out a little, but strangely I wasn't. God has impressed upon us this entire time to just continue to trust Him and He would provide. Recently the girls have joined in the prayer for provision for Josiah. They are funny and they don't mince words with God. "Lord, could you please send the money we need to bring Josiah home. Thank you Lord" .....that's a typical Izzy prayer right there. To the point : )

So, yesterday was my birthday. Forty-two years young : ) I'm so grateful I feel young because these girls keep me running like crazy. So, I checked the mail and there's a few birthday cards for me. Sweet cards. They make you feel special. Then I get to the last envelope which was from a church in Illinois and I opened it and screamed. Screamed out loud. I couldn't help it. It was a very, very generous donation from an anonymous family to help bring Josiah home. It was like opening a gift straight from the Lord. I immediately showed the girls and explained to them what it was. They literally grabbed my hands and started jumping up and down saying " Thank You Lord, Thank You Lord ". They knew right away a prayer was answered. They were so excited. Mari thought that it meant we could go right now to China. Oh, I wish. We have a ways to go yet, but what a big dent in what we need to raise. God is so good. I don't know if that family sees my blog or not, but I hope they could know how truly blessed we've been by this offering. So blessed.

After a few minutes we all settled down and I called Rob to tell him. I had such joy in just telling him about it. So much joy in just sharing the news. I could imagine the Lord relishing in our delight. Once again He knocked my socks off. And you know what, I think He enjoys doing that. He is after all the great giver of gifts.

Thank you Lord for Your provision. You are faithful ! Thank you sweet family that God used to help bring our son home. You are the body of Christ. We are so grateful. Much love......

Xin Nian Kuai Le

2011-12-31T19:48:00.000-08:00

We just had to make one more trip to the beach this year.

Knowing that we'll probably be moving we don't take living 30 minutes from the beach for granted.

I'm still praying for someplace that is 70 and sunny. I know that's a little selfish. Sorry : ( I can't help it. God put the love for the beach in me.... : )

Love these sweet girls....

Love that they love their Momma....

Can't leave the beach without the thanking Him for His creation.

No way in the world could these two sneak up on anyone or anything.....the giggling gives them up every time.

She's never happy when we leave the beach : ( She's a girl after my own heart.

Xin Nian Kuai Le

So long 2011...

2011-12-31T19:32:00.000-08:00

2011 has been an amazing year and a very difficult year. Never before have I felt more blessed and more heartbroken in my life. I'm always looking back for the lesson. Gosh, I don't want to wander around the mountain for forty years or if I have to wander for forty years by goodness I want to be learning something the whole time. What I've learned through 2011 is that God is Sovereign. Period. The things that have been difficult well, there's been a reason for it. I don't always like it, but I've learned to trust that His reasons for it far outweigh my heartbreak. I've learned to seek God in all of these difficult things just as much as I seek Him in the beautiful things. I've learned to Praise Him in all things. All things! And that's not always easy. I've been on top of the mountain and down in the pit, but this year has taught me that He works all things for good for them that love Him. That is clear to me these days even when it doesn't make sense. I know now that when my kids are struggling that God is there for them. He always has been and always will be. I've learned that He loves them more than I could ever imagine loving them. As tough as life gets sometimes, that brings me great comfort. My prayer is that they will know how great His love is for them.

2012.....well, this year I'm looking forward to this little sweetie : )

I'm looking forward to some new pictures (God willing) soon...update is supposed to be coming. Yeah!

Just realized that every other year since 2008 we've grown our family through adoption. 2008 - Izzy, 2010 - Mari and 2012 - Josiah. Oh my goodness. I am turning 42 this year Lord....just sayin : )

Merry CHRISTmas....CAW! CAW! CAW!

2011-12-26T17:41:00.000-08:00

You know how there's always that one gift that your kids just LOVE and they can't get enough of it....and it's usually what you least expect. Well this year it's these parrot puppets that their Aunt Neanie got them for Christmas. They are as cute as can be, BUT....they go CAW! CAW! CAW! oh, my goodness. I was so desperate by Christmas night that I made a pretend nest and convinced the girls that they were tired. It took A LOT of convincing, but they finally caved in and put the birds to bed. Ahhh!!! Peace again. Then first thing this morning CAW! CAW! CAW! : )

I hope you guys had a very blessed Christmas. Ours was sweet. I love hearing little giggles throughout the house. Music to my ears. Can't wait for Josiah's little giggles too.

2011-12-24T14:33:00.000-08:00

Sheng Dan Kuai Le

Have a very blessed Christmas from our family to yours

Introducing "Handy".......

2011-12-23T13:37:00.000-08:00

We have a new member of our family......meet "Handy". I know, how original! As original as "Leggie", right? : )

She is lovin her new hand and is already amazing us with how well she can use it. She literally got it at 11:00 a.m. today and she's picking up things and holding things with it. She can open and close it easily. I'm just shocked at how proficient she is already. The myo-electric hand is SO cool. It's funny that Rob and I just stare at it because it's way crazy how it works and the girls are acting like this is just a regular thing. Like it's just a normal part of life. I guess it is normal for us. She had me paint "handy's" nails as soon as we got it. I was in the middle of painting and I started cracking up laughing because aside from trying to make the girls stay still so their nails would dry (which is an impossible task) I'm also balancing a prosthetic leg on my lap and I have a prosthetic hand in my left hand because I'm trying to paint them as well. It was just so funny to me. This IS our normal and it just makes me laugh.

Two and half years ago I was petrified at the thought of parenting a child with such special needs. Only God could've known that I would actually delight in parenting her.

Welcome to our family "Handy"....we are so happy to have you join us.

Here we go.....

Nice to meet you "Handy"

It's the little things in life like holding an umbrella....Thank You Lord.

waiting patiently

2011-12-21T13:46:00.000-08:00

Habakkuk 2:3

But these things I plan won't happen quickly. Slowly , steadily, surely the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow, wait patiently, for it will surely take place. It will not be delayed.

I saw this scripture today on a friends blog and it really spoke to me. We are in such a season of waiting right now. It seems like we are waiting on everything these days.....not the least of which we are waiting on is Josiah. It's the area of my life that I have the hardest time waiting. It's just hard to imagine him alone in an orphanage without his family. It's harder this time because he's in a regular orphanage unlike the girls that were at Hidden Treasures Home. BIG DIFFERENCE. So, I cling to God's word in such a fierce way lately. I have to trust that God's got it all under control. Trust that Josiah is ok. That someone is loving him for me. It breaks my heart that I'm praying that someone is showing love to my child today. It's so hard to believe that this is the reality for so many children. There is so much that I don't understand. There is so much more I want to do. There is just SO much in my head lately that it feels like it's going explode. And right now, I wait ! Which feels a lot like I'm doing nothing. I can't stand doing nothing.

It doesn't help that I have two sick kiddos and haven't slept much....yeah, that doesn't help :(

I see the vision though and I anticipate it being fulfilled in God's absolute perfect timing.

Be The Difference

2011-12-20T15:20:00.001-08:00

Be The Difference from Videos for AGCI on Vimeo.

Wonderfully Made.....

2011-12-18T21:08:00.000-08:00

Five years ago.... my baby girl was born. She was wonderfully made and I am blessed to be her Momma. Happy Birthday my sweet Mari. At your very young five years you inspire me to do more than I think is possible for me. You remind me often that with God all things are possible! Thank you for gracing my world with your amazing zest for life. You lion-hearted little thing...you are truly a gift.

"Santa....I'm five years old now!"

2011-12-16T21:03:00.000-08:00

That's all she had to say. She didn't want anything for Christmas. She just wanted to tell him that she was five because when she saw him last week she was just four : )

Two Birthdays in Two Days....

2011-12-15T20:15:00.000-08:00

Did someone say cupcakes? These two are always up for baking...especially when it comes to baking for their Daddy.

All we need is Daddy to come home from work...... Happy Birthday Daddy!

Good Morning Birthday Girl......

2011-12-13T10:59:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure if cutting is a big deal to your four year old or not, but to this four year old it's a HUGE deal. She prides herself in cutting beautifully. I have to say that I'm always blown away at how well she does everything, but her cutting skills in particular are AMAZING.....

Mark 9:23

“What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.”

At least someone likes to get dressed up for Christmas parties.....

2011-12-12T12:37:00.000-08:00

Lovin Santa this year

2011-12-12T12:32:00.001-08:00

Good King Wenceslas

2011-12-12T12:29:00.000-08:00

Izzy had her first piano recital on Sunday...oh, my goodness. She was a nervous wreck. In fact, for two months she's been telling her piano teacher that she wasn't sure if she was going to do it or not. She told her that she would pray about it and let her know. My girl....I love her! So every week Miss Chrissy would ask her if she had decided yet and she would " No, I'm still praying about it. " Well, last week she FINALLY decided that she would in fact play in the recital. Yeah!!! She is the youngest student and by far the littlest. When I saw her feet dangling from the chair while she played it really dawned on me that this was a HUGE deal for her. She is just a little girl. To play piano in front of all of the families at six years old after only taking lessons for three and half months. Gosh, I was proud of her.

Izzy and Miss Chrissy (her piano teacher)

Here she goes.....

So serious

Now this smile is worth it all, isn't it?

So proud of you my big girl : )

Our Journey so far....

2011-12-03T11:12:00.000-08:00

Well, it's chilly here in Dalton, GA but it seems to be appropriate when you look out at the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. So...I'm not complaining : )

The girls were amazing being cooped up in a car for eight hours. I mean really amazing. No fighting. No getting car sick (Thank You Jesus...Mari slept for several hours right after she told me she felt nauseated) The weather was great and the ride didn't feel that long which made me feel good because if we end up moving to this area then I'd like to think that my family would come see us more often if the ride wasn't so bad. It's good for me too knowing that I can get home to our family in a days drive. Just some weird little comfort I have in being this level of away from home. If that makes sense. Now, if the Lord calls us way far away, I guess I'll get over that : )

The Lord was definitely with us on the ride. We felt a great peace as soon as we drove off from our house in Slidell. I had been a little anxious prior to leaving but it immediately vanished when we left. There were a few signs on the way too.... : )

And this was on the Marquee at The Hampton Inn when we pulled in on Thursday night.....

He is so good !

So Rob went to church at Rock Bridge on Thursday night. He really loved the church so we stayed Friday and explored the downtown area where the church is located. It's a quaint urban pedestrian area that seems to be in the midst of a restoration effort. It looks like the church has had a lot to do with that. Rock Bridge takes up a block maybe of the downtown area. A few different buildings including a old theater.

Then we went up into the mountains for the rest of the day. We did the whole touristy thing...Rock City and Ruby Falls. We ate dinner at this kind of old school pizza joint in Chattanooga which was great then we went back up to Lookout Mountain for the Enchanted Garden of Lights. That was really cool. It reminded me of Celebration in the Oaks at home just not in the Oaks but on top of a mountain. The girls loved the Christmas lights and the caroling. They also loved the home made Kettle Corn and Hot Chocolate from Starbucks.

Tonight we're going to church for a Christmas program and tomorrow we're going to the early service and heading home. So much has been revealed and I'm sure there's more to come. Thank you for your prayers. We have felt completely covered by them. Blessings, Lisa

LOA....Yeah!

2011-11-30T12:55:00.000-08:00

Yes, we got our LOA today from China. Woo Hoo.....89 long days of waiting. So, wow. What now? A little more waiting : ( but a big step in the right direction. Praise God.

Yesterday we went to Children's Hospital for Mari's myo-electric hand fitting. Oh my she was something. She tried it on and was able to open and close beautifully. Tears and more tears over this hand. My tears...not hers : ) I'm just so in awe of her in how she is handling all of this. The color matched so well. It looks very real. In five minutes she was able to pick up a roll of masking tape and hand it to me. By the time we left she was opening and closing her hand over and over and it's not even fully assembled. It had wires hanging out. It looked robotic because the outer covering/glove wasn't on it yet. She didn't care though. It's a tool for her life and she immediately used it. She is so smart. It was quite impressive. I'm still blown away by the myo-electric process in general. But seeing my Mari with a hand and watching her use it was a lot for this Momma yesterday. God is so good. So good to us.

Tomorrow we start our spiritual pilgrimage. Oh how we covet your prayers. There's a lot going on with our family right now and I'm a bit overwhelmed by it all. I joked earlier with a friend that it feels a lot like a roller coaster ride....exhilarating but at the same time I might have to throw up : )

More to come.....much love, lisa

2011-11-27T20:41:00.000-08:00

I love this time of year. I'm not a winter type of girl. I'm much happier at the beach in the summer. But I LOVE the holidays. I'm always excited when Thanksgiving comes. I've always put up our Christmas tree the weekend after Thanksgiving. My kiddos always loved it too. Then they got older and didn't even want to help me decorate it : ( Now though...I've got two little sweeties that are all about decorating for Christmas. They are already planning their birthday party for Jesus. Planning the kind of cake we're baking. What color icing should we make. Decorations....oh, the decorations!!! Izzy suggested that we skip school this week and just make decorations for His birthday party. Ha....good try Bella.

So this year we went to get our tree on Thanksgiving night and instead of black Friday shopping we decorated the tree. A much better plan than Black Friday...much better. This is the first year in ten years that we are in a different house so that was a little strange for me. You get used to decorating your house a certain way so it's all new this year. The girls had a blast though. They have such a beautiful way of keeping my focus on what matters. It's nothing like having a 4 and 6 year old reminding me that it is in fact all about Jesus.

Elfie is back..... and so are the squeals of delight every morning when they discover the new place that he returned too. Sweet...sweet.

Of course our tree couldn't be complete without a little bit of China.....

What a great Thanksgiving. I have so much to be thankful for.....

Thank You my Savior for Your birth on this earth

My sweet husband....my partner in life....my partner in Christ

Thank You Lord for the first miracle of adoption in our family....Izzy Ting

Thank You for our second miracle of adoption....Mari Jiang

Thank You for our baby boy that will be with us soon

Thank You for my big kids that I miss terribly....miss them decorating the tree with me.....miss their dirty clothes all over their rooms....miss them drinking all of the sweet tea and leaving an empty container in the refrigerator....MISS THEM !

We ended this weekend with a mad game of Battle and Hot Chocolate on the back porch. So thankful for the little things. Battle and Hot Chocolate.

God is so good to us. So Good.

Wow...this was a dose of perspective for me!

2011-11-27T17:52:00.000-08:00

Crossroads.....

2011-11-26T14:44:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I’ve been crazy busy lately and haven’t updated…sorry. These little girls are truly filling my life in such a blessed way. What in the world would I be doing without them? Who knew I had this much room in my heart. I read on someone’s Facebook page the other day a Danish quote “If there’s room in your heart, there’s room in your house”. That made me laugh out loud….loved it. Mainly because right now I have no idea where we are putting Josiah in our house. It’s been the subject of recent debate. We don’t have another bedroom but we do have two extra rooms (one is a playroom and one is a formal dining). I doubt seriously that he will go in the playroom. The girls have so much in there I’d be lucky to carve out a section to add some “boy” stuff to the mix. The formal dining on the other hand is mainly wasted space, so that looks like the ticket. Who knows though. To add to the uncertainty Rob has been called back to vocational ministry and we are traveling the road so to speak of seeking God’s will for us. We will actually be “traveling the road” next week on our first pilgrimage to an area of the country that we feel He is calling us. We leave Thursday and will head to Tennessee, then on to North Carolina, South Carolina and then Georgia. Hoping for some clarity and discernment about what He is saying to us. We’ve never done anything like this before so it’s a little scary, but absolutely feels like the next step in this journey. A career change, physical move and an adoption all at the same time could send me over the edge. I’m ok with change, but this is quite a bit for me. So, as we wait for Josiah (day 85 of our LOA wait…UGH!), we are walking towards our Father and seeking His will for our family. Rob said to me recently that he just wanted to make sure that we are at the crossroads of where God’s will for our lives and our hearts desire intersects. Well I want that very much too and I believe that we are there. I just wish that I had an idea of what that looked like. Chances are Josiah will never live in this house. That ought to be a relief to know that I don’t have to figure out which room he’ll go in right now. I can figure that out in the next house, right? Not that easy for me. I trust God. I do! It’s just a lot more trusting is required of me this time. More than ever before. Like there are degrees of trust when it comes to God. Well, either I trust Him or not. So, I’m going with “I trust Him”!! I have no idea what state we’ll live in. No idea what church Rob will work at. No idea when our LOA is coming. No idea how God is going to provide for the rest of this adoption. No idea how I will live for the first time in 41 years away from my family. No idea about anything. It feels very out of control some days. You see how the wheels could come off the track right now! I recognize this journey is about trust. I know that I’m being stretched. I know that on the other side of this journey I will look back and see God’s perfect timing throughout it all. I’ll see His hand at work in all of the details. I’ll see more of His tapestry come into focus. It will be beautiful and I will adore how He majestically brought it all together.

So, I’ve got my nose in scripture, praying like crazy and hanging on for dear life. I’ve gotta say….this is not a bad place to be. At the crossroads of God’s will and our heart’s desire. No, not a bad place at all.

Wild Olive Black Friday Sale....

2011-11-25T14:57:00.000-08:00

Wild Olive Tees is having an awesome Black Friday sale AND they have a new tee just in time for Christmas....check it out here

And don't forget our adoption fundraiser has been extended till December 14th. You can Christmas shop and help bring our sweet little guy home. Just shop from the Adoption Fundraiser tab and put in our family code when you check out BRANIFF0820

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T19:55:00.000-08:00

So thankful for these silly girls....

Princesses....

2011-11-19T19:30:00.001-08:00

Dance, Dance, Dance

2011-11-17T13:35:00.000-08:00

They both danced this time.....can you believe it ? Finally. They looked absolutely adorable and they had a great time. What more can a Momma ask for?

Welcome Home Daddy...

2011-11-14T17:34:00.000-08:00

I am blessed to hear this and see this at least five days a week. Two little squealing girls excited to see their Daddy come home from work. What I'm wondering is where in the world is Josiah going to fit in those arms : )

2011-11-09T11:18:00.000-08:00

Real success is found in radical sacrifice. Ultimate satisfaction is found not in making much of ourselves but in making much of God. The purpose of our lives transcends the country and culture in which we live. Meaning is found in community, not individualism; joy is found in generosity, not materialism; and truth is found in Christ, not universalism......

David Platt, Radical

The Least of These

2011-11-05T19:40:00.000-07:00

I love this photo....Love it : ) ok, so I know it's not a great photo. It's a little blurry ( I still don't know how to work this camera). They girls look all disheveled. Clothes all mix matched. They were actually a little slap happy from the sugar they just consumed. But I LOVE this photo because of where we were and what we were doing as a family. I snapped this picture below our local food mission. It's elevated because it had flooded severely during Katrina so they elevated it one story when they rebuilt it. There's this little area below the stairs that's a perfect little hiding spot for kiddos, the only thing is it stinks like garbage. I mean really bad and that's where my kids were playing. So, why are they all smiles playing in a stinky garbage smelling below the stairs of a soup kitchen. Well, I guess it could be the sugar..... : ) No...just kidding, they really just loved being there. They didn't want to leave so they were hiding from us. Izzy has been going there for years, but it's still kind of new to Mari. We occasionally serve at the food mission and my kids have been exposed to that and it's awesome, but we don't ever just go there to eat. On this particular day we spent the day at our local street fair and we went to pick out a pumpkin. The weather was absolutely beautiful. Just a great day all around. The food mission is just around the corner from where the street fair was and God whispered to my heart to take the girls there for lunch. I know, that's weird. We're weird though so, it was ok : )

I expected the usually barrage of questions like "why don't these people have a home? ", "Why is that man talking to himself?", "Why does that lady have all of her stuff in a shopping buggy?". Izzy is quite inquisitive and it doesn't matter that I've answered those questions a bunch of times already, she always asks. Mari is just as inquisitive but much louder about it. So, I figured I'd spend much of our time there asking them to speak quietly and don't point. You know the usual thing you have to do with a 4 and 6 year old. What I wasn't expecting was my kids totally blending in with everyone (we didn't stick out like a sore thumb which we usually do), hanging out with the other kids, eating what they were served with no complaining (the food is sometimes ummm interesting...let's just say that) and thoroughly enjoying their lunch at the soup kitchen. We got to meet some very sweet people and enjoyed our time there together. So, we decided that we'd make our food mission lunch a regular thing.....donating what we'd normally spend on lunch at a restaurant.

Our local food mission serves 300 meals a day in our town. I started serving there about ten years ago with the company I worked for and when we talked to the church that we were attending at the time about having a team serve there regularly they said to us "we don't have any homeless people in our town". Huh? What a shock it was for them to learn that we do in fact have a homeless population and we've had a food mission for almost 30 years. Now, if some of the local church doesn't know that we have homeless people in our town than most of the people in our town don't know it either. That lunch reminded me that it's up to Rob and I to make sure that our children know. It's not an easy thing to talk to them about. It's messy and not pretty, but it's the truth. I'm going to make sure that my children know that we have people in our community that don't have a home. They need to know that people are hungry out there. They need to know that we are rich even if we're not rich by the standards of our American culture, we are still in fact rich. I'm going to make sure that they know that as a family we are going to serve the hungry and homeless. We are going to love them. We are going to pray for them. We are not blessed to just be blessed. We are blessed so that we can bless others. I was so convicted about that as we ate with people that lay their heads on the street at night. Some of them smelled bad. Some of them seemed crazy. Some of them looked pretty rough around the edges. The only thing I could think of though was if Jesus was on this Earth right now He would be right there eating with them at the food mission. That's good enough for me then.....

Matthew 25:40

⁴⁰ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

2011-11-05T17:44:00.000-07:00

Nothing like being at home on a Saturday with nothing to do but enjoy your family. Amen!

Orphan Sunday is November 6th......

2011-11-04T11:30:00.000-07:00

What can you do, you ask? Here's 10 ways every Christian can care for the orphan

November is National Adoption Month........

2011-11-04T10:58:00.000-07:00

Fall Festival at Northshore Church....Angels Among Us

2011-11-01T15:16:00.000-07:00

Blessed....

2011-11-01T14:53:00.000-07:00

Pumpkin pickin with the girls.....so much fun. Lunch at our local soup kitchen.....keepin it real. Afternoon carving pumpkins and roasting pumpkin seeds....sweet time.

They all asked for you.....

2011-10-29T12:19:00.000-07:00

Last Friday we went to Children's Hospital so they could do a soft cast for Mari to get all of the measurements for her hand. The Audubon Zoo is just blocks from the hospital so we spent a few hours there enjoying the weather and all of the animals. What a sweet day with my family : ) and Mari took the next step towards her myo-electric hand. We go back in a couple of weeks to mark the spots where the electric currents go through her arm so they will line up perfectly with the sensors. Then they send it off to be manufactured. She's really excited about it...so are we !

Wild Olive Tees Fundraiser extended....

2011-10-19T13:01:00.000-07:00

Thank you Wild Olive for extending our fundraiser. We get to sell shirts now with a portion going to Josiah's adoption until December 14th.....yeah.

All the details are right here

We purchased some of the "Love Others" tees to sell at various fundraisers, so if you'd like one of those, we have Small, Medium and Large in the fitted style. It's one of my favorites. They are $30. Just email me (lisabraniff@gmail.com) and I'd be happy to ship it to you.

Thanks to all of you that have already bought Wild Olive tees in support of bringing Josiah home. We are so blessed to have friends like you. I hope that you love your tee as much as I love mine.

A new journey begins

2011-10-12T08:35:00.000-07:00

Today we go back to Children's Hospital but not for Mari's nose (Thank You Jesus) or for her leg. Today a new journey begins for Marianna. We meet with all the physicians at the Amputee Clinic to start the process for her myo electric hand. I don't know if you remember but Inner Wheel U.S.A. has blessed us by giving Mari a myo electric hand until she's an adult. These limbs are amazing. They are also very expensive. Her "leggie" which is not myo electric and doesn't even have a hydraulic knee was $15,000 so you can imagine what a blessing this is. She was able to see one a couple of weeks ago and she was so excited when she saw that it will move. Now she can hardly wait for it : )

God told us over two years ago when we started the process of praying about adopting Mari that He would provide everything that she needed and He has not only kept His promise but done it in a way that continues to just knock our socks off. He is so good at that. I believe that He has great joy in amazing us. He is so faithful. Thank You Lord for this blessing from Inner Wheel and the blessing of Mari in our family.

Only 6 days left in our Wild Olive Tees Fundraiser

2011-10-09T13:46:00.000-07:00

Hey Ladies.....It's time to Get Your Verse On with a Wild Olive Tee…..if you don’t know about Wild Olive Tees you really have to check them out. (Sorry guys, they’re just for your lady and your kiddos) Imagine a great fabric, cool design and scripture to boot. I stumbled across these tees a couple years ago and my collection started. They’re not just great tees. I mean they ARE great tees but it was the heart behind them that hooked me. You see Wild Olive was created by three amazing mommas that LOVE the Lord and LOVE the orphan as well. One of these ladies I met through the bloggy world. She’s a fellow adoptive mom of ten. Yep, that’s right, ten kiddos. Six of which are special needs babes from China. What an inspiration she has been to me and to so many others.

Wild Olive supports orphan care through An Orphan’s Wish in China and Sixty Feet in Uganda. Aside from the tees being great and 10% of all profits going to orphan care they are now helping adoptive families with their fundraising.

Wild Olive Tees has selected OUR family to be featured from 8/20/11 to 10/15/11. Woo Hoo : ) !!!

So, what does that mean? Well, that means that anyone that wishes to buy a really cool tee while at the same time helping to bring our sweet Josiah home can do so during this time. Shopping AND helping to bring an orphan home….sounds good, right? Not the least of which you’re spreading God’s word.

Ok, so here’s what you do. You go to the Adoption Fundraising Tees page of Wild Olive. Pick out your tee or tees : ) (don’t’ forget to get one for your little one). When you’re checking out put our family code BRANIFF0820 in the coupon code section. You can also put our name in the comment section. Now the coupon code doesn't discount the tee like a coupon code normally would, but it does ensure that a portion of the sale goes directly to bringing our little guy home.

We are honored to be a part of what Wild Olive is doing in the fields of the fatherless.

Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you. James 1:27

We are so grateful for the support of our friends and family. The Lord has entrusted us with much and it has required much of us. We know that we couldn’t have done it without YOU. The Lord has used all of you for His glory to bring our children home. Whether you’ve supported our adoptions financially or through prayer, please know that our children will be eternally grateful. Because of you they know the love of a family and the love of our heavenly Father. A very heartfelt thank you to each and every one of you, but to God be the Glory.

Please consider passing this on to your friends and family.

Spread the Word. Spread the Love. Spread God’s Glory to the Nations……

Much Love,

Rob and Lisa

The park, a picnic and family time....what a beautiful day

2011-10-02T15:13:00.000-07:00

"I am the first daughter that grew in Momma's heart"

2011-10-01T15:57:00.000-07:00

Izzy is trying to find her place lately. Her place in our family. I'm not sure if it's an adoption thing. Probably is. Or maybe if she was one of four bio children she would be doing the same thing. I'm not sure. It's something she is struggling with lately. She's not our first born. Not our first daughter. Not sure why it's so important to be the first, but it seems to be to her. We love all of our children so much. It makes me sad to see her apparently longing for a "special" place in the family. For the longest time she was special in her eyes because she was the only child that came into our family through adoption. Then Mei Mei came home and that changed. So, a couple weeks ago we were in bed talking about China Mommy. The conversation goes there a lot these days. It's painful. It makes me very sad to know that she's trying to figure this all out. I'm very honest with her but in a delicate way. The talk quickly became somber because she asked if we had China Mommy's address so that she could send her a card. When I told her that I didn't know China Mommy and had no way of getting in touch with her she seemed shocked by that. I've never told her that we did know her but maybe she just assumed that we had met when we were in China. She said "well, that's ok. I'll see her in heaven one day and I'll give her the cards I made." Uhhhh....gut wrenching. She said it so sweet and matter of fact. Like that was a given. This is the part I can't stand about adoption. Even though the Lord takes something so broken and awful and makes it beautiful by creating a family from it, it still is hard. Very hard. I want so badly to be able to let Izzy know that she was special to her birth mother. I think that she was. She wasn't abandoned till she was 10 months old and very ill, so I believe that her parents loved her very much. I don't know that for fact and I never will. I choose to believe that for Izzy. For me. I treasure this little one and I believe that her birth parents did too. Mari that was abandoned the day she was born I also choose to believe that her parents loved her too. It's too hard to think of it any differently. So, in the midst of this heavy conversation Izzy looks right at me at says "Momma, Jessi was your first daughter right?"....."Yes, Jessi is our first daughter" ...."And Rymo is your first son, right?"......"Yep, that's right." ..... "and Mari and I grew in your heart right?" ......"Right baby, you and Mei Mei grew right here in my heart"........then she sits up in the bed with a huge smile on her face "Wait a minute......but I am the FIRST daughter that grew in your heart, RIGHT?" she yells. Knowing Mari is in the bed next to us and is almost sleeping I quietly say "yes, honey you both grew in my heart but you grew there first." She was so excited and she yells to Mari, " Mari, I am the first daughter that grew in Momma's heart. Can you believe that ?" Oh, man. I'm thinking here we go. Now I'll be in Mari's bed next trying to make her not feel bad about not being the first. Not to mention that Izzy has completely woken her up now. My sweet Mari. The things that rattle Izzy just roll off of her. I'm so grateful she's like that. Two drama queens in the house would be a bit much. She just smiled over at Izzy and says " Yeah, Iz that means I am the next born in Momma's heart...Yeah. Momma, I'm the next born in your heart. That's great news Iz" and she rolled back over and went to sleep. Whew....I love that sweet pea so much. Thank you Mari for being so easy going.

And thank you Lord for the first daughter born in my heart. I just love her over the moon.

2011-09-27T21:07:00.000-07:00

We're leading a group of couples through Radical by David Platt on Friday nights. It hasn't been an easy book for most of them. Shoot....this is my third time reading it and it's still not easy. I'm convicted by something every time I go through it, but nothing more than this quote "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." Nothing has rocked me quite like that realization. It will be my life's mission to make sure that I never forget who they are.

I do have a couple beautiful little reminders though.......

and one more little cutie on the way

and my heart will break till they are all ORPHANED NO MORE......

Get Your Verse On for Josiah.....

2011-09-24T20:24:00.000-07:00

We only have four weeks left to our Wild Olive Tee fundraiser....Check out the details here

Pinkalicious

2011-09-24T20:17:00.000-07:00

We took the girls to see Pinkalicious The Musical today at our local theater. It was their first musical and they absolutely loved it. It was quite precious to see a couple hundred little girls all decked out in pink complete with tiaras and wands.....so sweet.

B.A.K.E. Fest 2011

2011-09-19T13:00:00.000-07:00

On Saturday we went to a fundraiser for Children's Hospital (can't say enough wonderful things about CH....we love them). The girls had their hair painted like ladybugs...so sweet. They loved the Shetland Ponies. The only thing was that Texas Roadhouse sponsored the food and it turns out that Mari is PETRIFIED of giant dancing Armadillos...should've known, right? After the Goofy incident at Hong Kong Disneyland. Remember when Goofy tapped her on the shoulder and she freaked out. All day long she kept telling us that "Pluto bit her". I spent the rest of the day shielding her from Mickey and Minnie and trying to explain that Pluto wasn't even there and Goofy didn't bite you. It was a tap....Well, it all came rushing back as I had to get out of the path of a giant yellow line dancing Armadillo. After that she was glued to either Rob or I. Izzy on the other hand wanted to go dance with him....typical of Izzy. Anyway, it was nice to be a part of helping to raise money for a great organization. We have been blessed beyond measure by Children's Hospital.

What a beautiful day

2011-09-10T10:20:00.000-07:00

It was so nice outside yesterday. After the tropical storm we all had terrible cabin fever so it was really nice to be outdoors. We practically had to drag the girls inside for dinner.

I'm quite sure they're tired of seeing me with a camera : )

Geaux Saints...... : (

2011-09-10T10:06:00.000-07:00

At least someone had a good time watching the Saints game !

2011-09-10T09:25:00.001-07:00

My little artist....Great job Izzy

Just a matter of time

2011-09-07T14:35:00.000-07:00

Anyone who knows Mari would agree that it was inevitable. She had already knocked one out in China. I really didn't think it would take a whole year of being home with us before she knocked her other front tooth out. There have been a gazillion near misses. Near misses for us too. In fact, she's almost taken a few of our teeth out with "leggie". "Leggie" can be a little dangerous. Like the time she did a cartwheel and "leggie" flew across the room and crashed into the wall just missing Izzy and I. Yep, that happens a lot around here. So, when she wiped out on Monday this Momma just picked her up, wiped up the blood and knew that tooth was a goner.

Marianna, I wouldn't have you any other way. The hairs on my head are turning gray but I wouldn't change a thing about you little one : )

Follow Me.....please

2011-09-06T10:28:00.000-07:00

Ok, so my Followers button some kind of way fell off so to speak : ) I think it happened way back when we did our My Marianna blog back in 2009 and redesigned this blog. My friend Stacy didn't know about Josiah and noticed that I didn't have a Follow Me button so she wasn't following me......thanks Stacy for paying attention. Clearly, I'm not paying attention : )

So, if you're not already following my blog, please click on the sidebar and follow along.

love you guys

Daddys really are the best story tellers

2011-09-05T19:59:00.000-07:00

Log in date : )

2011-09-05T19:56:00.000-07:00

We are logged in as of 9/2/11.................Yeah!!!! That was really fast considering we are reusing our Dossier. So excited. Clock starts ticking for our LOA : )

ok, Lord here's when the rubber meets the road. We have about 2/3 of this adoption yet to pay for....
A-hem...excuse me, " Lisa, here is where your faith is put to the test. Do you trust Me?"

Gotcha Day....One year ago

2011-08-29T20:57:00.000-07:00

Angels lined the road on both sides of the street. Their trumpets raised high to announce the arrival of the princess. I can picture this in my mind. Hear the trumpets in my head. What a vision !! This remarkable sight was given to Deena as she and Mike drove down this road bringing Marianna to meet us one year ago today.

Not long after that I would see her again. This time as my daughter.

By this time the Lord had stretched me, grown my faith and prepared me for motherhood yet again.

He held us tight through those rough nights early on

He rejoiced with us during all of our "firsts"

He said to us often "of course she can !"

He encouraged us when we were dissappointed by set backs and

He reminded us that He is "our Lord, our great physician"

What a year it has been. I have never been more blessed in all my life. Thank you sweet Jesus for the children that call me Momma. Thank you for Jiang Yu Feng that was born in my heart.

Forever to be My Marianna.

Our Dossier went to China on Thursday.....Woo Hoo !!

2011-08-28T13:51:00.001-07:00

Wild Olive Tees......

2011-08-22T20:26:00.000-07:00

Hey ladies.....It's time to Get Your Verse On with a Wild Olive Tee…..if you don’t know about Wild Olive Tees you really have to check them out. (Sorry guys, they’re just for your lady and your kiddos) Imagine a great fabric, cool design and scripture to boot. I stumbled across these tees a couple years ago and my collection started. They’re not just great tees. I mean they ARE great tees but it was the heart behind them that hooked me. You see Wild Olive was created by three amazing momma’s that LOVE the Lord and LOVE the orphan as well. One of these ladies I met through the bloggy world. She’s a fellow adoptive mom of ten. Yep, that’s right, I said ten kiddos. Six of which are special needs babes from China. What an inspiration she has been to me and to so many others.

Wild Olive supports orphan care through An Orphan’s Wish in China and Sixty Feet in Uganda. Aside from the tees being great and 10% of all profits going to orphan care they are now

helping adoptive families with their fundraising.

Wild Olive Tees has selected OUR family to be featured from 8/20/11 to 10/15/11. Woo Hoo : ) !!

So, what does that mean? Well, that means that anyone that wishes to buy a really cool tee while at the same time helping to bring our sweet Josiah home can do so during this time. Shopping AND helping to bring an orphan home….sounds good, right? Not the least of which you’re spreading God’s word.

Ok, so here’s what you do. You go to the Adoption Fundraising Tees page of Wild Olive. Pick out your tee or tees : ) (They also have really cute tees for kiddos). When you’re checking out put our family code BRANIFF0820 in the coupon code section. You can also put our name in the comment section. Now the coupon code doesn't discount the tee like a coupon code normally would, but it does ensure that a portion of the sale goes directly to bringing our little guy home.

We are honored to be a part of what Wild Olive is doing in the fields of the fatherless.

Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.

James 1:27

We are so grateful for the support of our friends and family. The Lord has entrusted us with much and it has required much of us. We know that we couldn’t have done it without YOU. The Lord has used all of you for His glory to bring our children home. Whether you’ve sup-ported our adoptions financially or through prayer, please know that our children will be eter-nally grateful. Because of you they know the love of a family and the love of our heavenly Father. A very heartfelt thank you to each and every one of you, but to God be the Glory.

Please consider passing this on to your friends and family. They’re a great gift idea !

Spread the word. Spread the love. Spread God’s Glory to the Nations……

So long summer....

2011-08-22T15:47:00.000-07:00

Just a few random photos from summer. It really was a fun summer....made lots of great memories.

2011-08-22T15:42:00.000-07:00

Thank you so much for your prayers....Mari's surgery went very well. Her doctor took a few extra measures while in there to make sure that this does the trick and we're believing that it did. She is up and running around and back to her normal silly self. The swelling has gone down and she's breathing well. Sigh..... Thank You Jesus.

Update....

2011-08-17T10:50:00.000-07:00

I've been asked a lot lately what's going on with Josiah. Well, our documents are at the Chinese Embassy right now. They'll be ready to be picked up on the 22nd and on the way back to me. Then our dossier can go to China. Then the wait begins for our LOA. The front end of this adoption has gone pretty quickly. It was nice to be able to use many of the documents from Mari's adoption. No telling how the clock will tick on the Chinese end of things. The LOA's are so erratic. One of ours came in 120 days and one came in 46 days. No rhyme or reason. All in God's time. I'm resting in that for sure.

Rob's knee is healing and he started physically therapy yesterday. Trying to slow that man down is a whole different story. I keep reminding him "you know you are half way to 90" : )

Mari is having a second surgery on her nose on Friday. Prayers Please. The first surgery didn't work. We were reminded ever so kindly by her doctor that we have a pretty unique girl....didn't we know that though? :) He is such a sweet man and he LOVES Mari. They cut up together. It's really sweet. It broke his heart to keep cauterizing her nose. He finally said " I can't do this anymore ". So, we did the surgical cauterization and it didn't work. He hasn't had this happen before. This means the next step is to go in and stitch up all the blood vessels in her nose. There are a bunch of spider web like vessels in there. It's hard to stitch that nose because it's so little and there's a lot to stitch. It's shocking to me that this teeny weeny little nose can bleed like that. And this time the nose bleeds are by far the worse they've ever been. Please pray for divine healing for her nose. The next surgery if this didn't work is a type of nasal septal plasty and he doesn't even like to do them on children. So, we are believing that this will work. Claiming it in the name of Jesus. Period. She is such a trooper though. She's always reassuring me that it's ok and that's she's fine. The last one happened at Sam's with a buggy full of groceries. We went through an entire pack of wet wipes. It was awful. I couldn't get it under control for 45 minutes. That one scared me.

On a lighter note the girls start school on Monday. I'll be teaching Kindergarten and first grade this year. I'm really excited. These are the fun years. I want to enjoy every minute. They have been begging me to start school for the last month...."No way Jose !" It was just the middle of July. They really do thrive with a more structured routine so I started letting them review a couple of weeks ago with a sort of "loose" school schedule. Kind of getting them back to a routine. They love school so much. What a blessing. I love teaching them but I really love the summer too. It's been such a fun relaxing summer. Just what we needed. Things will get busy soon enough. Mari is starting speech and adaptive PE through the local school system. She's excited about that. It frustrates her terribly when someone cannot understand her. I've never heard of a child being excited about speech, but she is. She is my lion hearted girl. She does it all with gusto. Speech therapy will be no different. Izzy starts piano lessons at the beginning of September. She is beyond excited. She was given a keyboard for her birthday and plays all the time. ALL THE TIME ! We can't wait for her to learn something. She knows the musical alphabet and I hear quite often during the day Izzy playing A,B,C,D,E,F,G up and down the keyboard. Over and over and over...... :)

God bless the stay at home Momma. And I thought I worked hard as an Accountant. My 10 hour days as a CFO pale in comparison to my 14 hour days as a mom. I'm really ashamed to admit that I never used to think of staying at home with your children as a full time job. I definitely didn't have the proper perspective back then. I recognize now that not only is it the hardest job but by far the most important job that I will ever do. I'm so grateful that the Lord is allowing me to do this. Just praying that I do it well. Hope you guys had a great summer too. Soaking up the last few days.....

Wrapped around their fingers

2011-08-13T17:48:00.000-07:00

This is what two little girls can talk a grown man into doing : )

Pink Umbrellas

2011-08-07T11:42:00.000-07:00

Yesterday evening as I cooked dinner I could see out my kitchen window pink Barbie umbrellas floating through the yard. Rob was on the back porch reading. It was temporarily 80 degrees because it has just stormed and was still lightly raining. The girls were on an adventure to find worms and "save" them from the rain. I watched them dance around the yard and I marveled at how sweet and innocent they were. How happy they were to look for worms to rescue and to pick flowers and then run to the back door to give it to me. What joy in these simple things. I went outside to join them and was completely overcome with emotion. Before I could get the words out Rob looked at me and said "I don't want to forget these moments....let's not forget these moments" and then he went and got the camera. They are special moments indeed. Our girls are growing so fast. They are at an age that constantly reminds us of Ryan and Jess. Jess was 6 and Rye was 3 when Rob and I met. I can hardly believe they are 23 and 20. It sometimes doesn't seem possible. Sometimes it doesn't seem fair that they are grown and gone already. Izzy told me today "Momma, I don't want to ever get married". When I asked her why, she said to me "well, I want to always live with you Momma so I'm not getting married, ok?" Sounds good to me : ) What I realized was that Ryan and Jessi at some point in their lives said "I'm never leaving home" too. I know now how quickly your children go from never leaving home to can't wait to get out of the house. What I didn't know then was how quickly that transition would happen. I didn't know then to soak up every ounce of time with them because in a blink of your eye they are gone. These moments with our younger children are so precious to us. We've learned a lot from parenting our older children. We've made lots of mistakes. I would love a do over in many instances. I know I'll make mistakes again. They will just be different mistakes. I'm trying to do it better this time around. When you know better you do better. This time around I let dinner wait and I go outside and watch the pink umbrellas dance around my yard.

First Care Package

2011-08-03T11:38:00.000-07:00

Here are a few glimpses of our boy opening the care package we sent to him. I love his "chub" ...he reminds me some of Izzy when she was just turning two. So glad to see that he's healthy. We've been so spoiled by having our children at Hidden Treasures. We're not quite used to the "rare" glimpse. We're used to getting lots of updates and pictures. This will be challenging for me.

We also heard via email that our I800A is approved and on it's way in the mail. Yeah !

I haven't posted about him accept to introduce him to you guys. I've been sort of holding it off the best that I could. You know by staying really busy with the girls. Trying so hard not to let Josiah slip into my heart fully. Knowing how hard and long adoption is, I foolishly thought that I could put this off some. I know...crazy, right? The longing for him has started though. The Lord placed him in my heart and there's no holding back the love I have for him already. I'm his Momma and I want him with me. How in the world did I think I could hold that off. So, it's official....my heart is aching for my boy waiting for me a world away. SIGH !!!! Godspeed to you Josiah.

2011-07-28T21:00:00.000-07:00

We escaped for a few days to the beach. Ah....it was so nice.

What a blessing to live so close to such beautiful beaches. My girls are full fledged beach bums already...makes me smile : )

The Tooth Fairy is coming tonight...

2011-07-28T20:39:00.000-07:00

Ok, she turned six last week and today she lost her first tooth. There's only a trace left of my little baby girl and that makes me so sad. She's stopped doing so many things that we thought were so cute. Like mispronouncing words like "falimy" instead of "family". Now, she's using words like "outrageous" and telling me things like " I get ya mom ". She's not afraid of things she used to be afraid of and she's stepping way out of her comfort zone in so many ways. I'm getting a glimpse of the young lady she will one day become. I have to say that I love what I see, but I miss that little bit that used to toddle into my room and into my bed at night.

Six years old today....How could that be?

2011-07-20T13:34:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday my sweet Bella. I cannot believe that you are six years old. This has happened way too fast for me. I am soaking up every moment with you. Your light shines so brightly Bella. I treasure that about you. What a gift you are from God. It's like He leaned down and gave me a kiss right on the forehead when He perfectly placed you in my life. You are my precious girl and I love you to the moon and back.

2011-07-18T19:58:00.000-07:00

This is how I found my Mari napping today......

That girl sure loves her "Pig - o - let" : )

I would like to introduce our son, Josiah Jian Guo

2011-07-05T13:05:00.000-07:00

Isn’t he a cutie? Don’t you love those sweet cheeks? He just turned two and is waiting for us at Hubei CWI. We just started paper chasing and look forward to him joining our family. He’s a special focus child and we are re-using our dossier from Mari’s adoption which is all new to us, but that means that we get to skip some steps and hopefully bring him home sooner rather than later.

This has been a long time coming and well, let’s just say that it took a long time for us to “hear” the Lord on this one. It’s easy to miss what He’s saying when you have your fingers in your ears and your eyes closed saying “I’m really busy, Lord…not now”. I’m so grateful He is patient with me. His whispers eventually led to a clunk on the head. Sometimes I need a clunk : ) What else can I say. Thank you Lord for revealing our son to us. It’s an honor to be chosen to be his Momma and I can hardly wait to hold him in my arms.

My Marianna

2011-07-04T14:32:00.000-07:00

Today I've noticed her over and over smiling at me. Just out of the blue....sweet little smile on her face. It's almost like she has a secret or something. And she's been very quiet and contemplative today. This is not the norm for her. She's usually way too busy for that. She's my mischievous one. She rarely slows down and is often into something she shouldn't be. She's a ball of energy. Definitely the "life of the party" as her Mama and Baba described her. But today, she's been quiet and every time I catch her eye she's smiling at me. I'm not sure what's going on in that little mind of hers today, but I'm surely blessed by it. I love getting a glimpse of a different side of her. Even at being home ten months I'm still getting to know her. Sounds strange, but it's true.

We've had some difficult times. When you don't really know someone it's hard to know what they're thinking or what they want or why they did what they did. It's been a learning experience for me. For her as well. She didn't know me either. She's so different than Izzy it took me awhile to appreciate it. She's truly a breath of fresh air. I just needed a little while to recognize that. You know it seems strange to have an idea in your head about how your child (that you've never met) is going to act, but you form these ideas about them. You just do. Can't help it. Then they come home and act completely different than what you imagined. Turns out that it's awesome and much better than what you imagined, but it catches you off guard at first.

I'm seeing this beautiful little flower emerging from a bud. It's so sweet to watch.

Well, not exactly. I see this beautiful little flower busting out of it's bud and it's the ride of my life to watch. Yes, that says it better. That's Mari : )

2011-06-17T19:58:00.001-07:00

Rockstar in the making

2011-06-11T18:20:00.000-07:00

2011-06-04T15:30:00.000-07:00

He's created a little fighter in her...what are we going to do with this little thing. She starts taking piano lessons in July and she tells me yesterday "Momma, I want to take boxing too"...good grief !!

2011-06-04T13:54:00.000-07:00

Has your kids imaginary play ever left you feeling like you're the one that's missing something? Or is it just me?

Me: "Whatcha doin Bella?"
Izzy: "Uh, Hellooooo...Surfing Momma..can't you tell?"
Me: "Oh, well...No, I couldn't..I mean...(deciding to play along) I didn't know you knew how to surf.
Izzy: " I LOVE to surf Momma"
Me: "Really, we'll I've never seen you surf before. When did you learn?"
Izzy: " I just learned today Momma (with hands on hips and a little bit of attitude because I didn't already know this information). I've been trying to learn for a long time, but I've been sitting around here waiting for a wave to come and it never did. (Shocking, right? Considering she's in the play room, not on the beach)
Me: "So, a wave finally came along?"
Izzy: "Yeah silly...can't you see I'm surfing now"
Me: "Yes, of course....Great job Bella. You're an awesome surfer."
Izzy: "Thanks Momma, now move out of my way....Uh, pretty please. I'm trying to teach Mei Mei and you're messing up our waves."

Dancing with Daddy

2011-06-04T13:27:00.000-07:00

I heard Izzy from the back of the house " Momma, come see me Momma. Come see." When I got to the kitchen she was in her Daddy's arms as he spun her around. She had a great big smile on her face. "Look, Momma I'm dancing with Daddy". Talk about melt my heart. There's something about a big ole tattooed rough looking guy with his little girl in his arms that just gets me. This was one of those precious times when God whispered to me "don't forget this". I knew that I better grab my camera.

So they danced and I snapped some pictures. She giggled. He smiled and I cried.

"Don't forget this"

2011-05-23T09:36:00.000-07:00

Our family has been asked to participate in the Children's Hospital Telethon this year. We are delighted to share our story with the viewers. We have a great experience there every time that we go. Our inpatient stay back in November was above and beyond what I expected it to be. They have become family to us. We are honored to be a part of the telethon. I pray they are able to raise more funds than what their goals are for the hospital. This hospital is a blessing to say many children. We are so fortunate to live so close to such an amazing place.

The 2011 Telethon will take place on Sunday, June 12 from 7:00 am to 6:30 pm. For more information on Children's Hospital...check them out online at www.chnola.org

For those of you that are local, we'll be on Channel 6 at 11:00 am on June 12th.

2011-05-19T14:07:00.000-07:00

I've been on this quest over the last couple years to scale back "the stuff" in our lives. It's a constant struggle. There's such a pull from the world to get more stuff. The more stuff you have, the better you're doing. You can't be happy without the stuff...You need more stuff. UGH!! It really drives me a little crazy. Anyway, that's another story for another day : ) It's been a process for me. This week it dawned on me that I had 10 drawer 48 inch tall jewelry box. It actually made me ill. 27,000 children will die tonight from starvation and I have acquired so much jewelry over the years that I need a jewelry box the size of furniture. It's quite ridiculous. And it's not that it's all expensive jewelry because lots of it's isn't. It's just that who in the world can wear this much jewelry and the truth is I don't wear it. Why would I keep all of this jewelry. I really thought hard about that all week and once again I came back to the realization that I place value in the things I have instead of where I should place value. This struggle with materialism has been harder than what I've been willing to admit. It makes it more difficult when people treat you like you're crazy for selling your stuff. It's not too popular to sell your new cars and drive old cars. We're on garage sale number four in the two years and still have too much stuff, but yet people don't get it. I've been asked why are you getting rid of your stuff. That's crazy I've been told. I want to scream sometimes "people are starving.....and I have to have two attics and a barn to contain my junk !!" That's crazy to me. Sorry, it gets me stirred up. I'm really working hard on living for the Lord and not for this world. I just have to keep reminding myself that in order to do that I have to stop worrying about what the world thinks and focus on what the Lord's will is for me. I know that's easy for some, but it's hard for me. I'm making progress though. Wow, this has turned into a therapy session : )

So....I tackled my jewelry this week. We're having a garage sale Saturday and I'm getting rid of lots of it. It feels incredible. My girlies helped me clean it all out. They had a blast playing in all of it. I let them both pick out something they really liked for themselves and the rest we polished and cleaned and put in little jewelry bags and boxes to sell. They were so sweet I had to snap a few pictures of them. It always amazes me that a little girl is a little girl is a little girl. It doesn't matter if they started their life in an affluent family, or a middle class family or an orphanage. Little girls just love sparkly, shiny, beautiful things. I love to see their eyes light up playing dress up. I love that God made us this way. They put on jewelry, crowns and princess dresses and they are transformed. They walk differently, talk differently. Truly little princesses. Wow, God is good. It brings me to tears sometimes. I love being a woman, a wife and a mom. I adore that I get to share these moments with my sweet girls. I look forward to teaching them what it means to be godly young ladies. I know that in this world, in this particular culture that we live in there will be a struggle with materialism. I know that they will probably not always agree with me on this topic. I still look forward to the journey with them. You guys remind me of that when they are 15 and slamming their bedroom door in my face : )There is no greater calling than being their Momma. It's not always easy, but an absolute treasure.

Adopting a Boy

2011-05-18T21:04:00.000-07:00

Mother's Day

2011-05-10T10:15:00.000-07:00

Mother's Day was so sweet...my first one with Mari. She loved making cards for me. Helping with breakfast for me. Picking flowers for me. She loves having a Momma….how I love having her for a daughter. I thought all day about Mother’s Day 2008, the day I met Izzy. I can hardly believe it’s been three years. Amy….I so love that we shared that : ) Izzy was a Miss Priss from day one and nothing’s changed. She is getting too big too quickly though. I would love to rewind and enjoy it all over again. Needless to say, I feel very blessed these days. I really never dreamed that it could be this special. On days like Mother’s day though my mind always wonders off to the children that don’t have a mom to celebrate Mother’s Day with this year. My prayer is that by next Mother’s Day many of them will be with their moms. The reality is that most of the 147 million orphans won’t be with their moms but I can still pray for that. We serve a big God and He’s putting families together every day.

I struggle though with the thought of so many children, alone, orphaned. It keeps me awake at night sometimes. I think about Izzy laying outside of a hospital in Fuzhou and Mari abandoned in some remote village…alone crying for their mom’s. I thought about their birth mother’s a lot yesterday. How do they feel especially on days like Mother’s Day. It’s pretty overwhelming. I had no idea what I was getting into when I asked the Lord to break my heart for what break’s His… no idea. My heart is broken though for every orphan child and you can’t undo that. Strangely enough the Lord uses these two sweet girls to help mend it. The thing that breaks it also mends it…go figure. Mother’s Day was sweet.

I'll have some news soon…… Great news. Happy news. Jump up and down news : )

Easter weekend...

2011-05-10T10:13:00.001-07:00

Share the Love....

2011-04-29T15:11:00.000-07:00

Hey guys....Yes, I'm sharing the LOVE....not just because I would love a Suzanne Myers charm necklace (which I do), but I just love this family that I've come to know through the blog world. They are bringing home two baby girls at the same time...WOW. Oh, how I love to see the Lord in action. And He is big time in this family. Please hop over to Ni Hao Ya'll and check it out. Share the love ends Sunday, so hurry up : )

Divas Sunbathing

2011-04-16T20:58:00.000-07:00

You guys... I have my hands full with these two. After swimming today Izzy goes inside to get her sunglasses because it was so sunny outside. Next thing I know they have sunglasses all over the backyard. I had no idea they had that many pairs of sunglasses. They were strutting around, changing the shades, changing them again. It was hilarious. Well, when I came out with the camera you would've thought there was a photo shoot going on....such Divas. So funny. Even Marianna posed for some pics. These girls sure do know how to make me smile : )

2011-04-10T05:56:00.000-07:00

I'm so proud of my Mei Mei...she conquered a fear yesterday. I love it for her. She was so excited she could hardly contain herself. I don't know if ya'll remember but in December she had a dance recital for her creative dance class. It was Izzy's second recital and Mari's first. She got out there and froze, then cried, then ran into my arms. She kept saying " I no like people watching me dance, Mommy." Poor thing. Of course, Izzy pranced around with a big ole smile loving every minute of it and Mari felt awful. I kept reassuring her and telling her it was ok that she didn't dance. Well, she eventually got over it and went back to dance class determined that this time she wouldn't be afraid. She's so funny. She told me yesterday "Mommy, it's ok if the people watch me dance this time."

So when the recital started my girl danced to "Singing in the rain" She twirled her umbrella and remembered her steps. She actually smiled at everyone. It was a big deal for her. Towards the very end of the song she looked at me and yelled " Look Mommy, I dancing....see, you proud Mommy? " Oh, my goodness. It brought me to tears. Yes....my Mei Mei. I'm so proud of you. There is nothing you can't do my darling. What a sweet little victory for my girl. It's those little bitty ones that lead to the mountains she will overcome. I know that. Thank You Jesus that she danced. And though she was the only one out there with a red prosthetic leg, the only one that couldn't wear ballerina slippers because they make her slide and fall, the only one that trips sometimes, the only one that twirled an umbrella with one half of one hand, she did it with poise and grace and took my breath away. God is so good !

Now Izzy, on the other, got out there and looked at me and said in very dramatic fashion " Momma, I'm shy I don't want to do this " and literally stood there still until I told her it was ok to come sit down. Izzy shy.....hmmm...I don't think so. She ended up with a runny nose and little fever later in the day. So maybe that explained that. Shy and Izzy don't exactly go together. At least we get to see one of them dance each time. Maybe one day they will dance together : )

2011-04-08T19:32:00.000-07:00

Izzy's latest.....she wants to be everything. EVERYTHING. Everyday it's something different. From doctor, to pastor, to cowgirl, a momma, a princess, a veterinarian, you name it....she wants to do it all. Well, Daddy brought her boxing gloves home so of course now she's added boxer to the list....notice the medal around her neck. She thinks she's pretty good already.

2011-03-28T19:26:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday we went to the Aquarium with our family. What a sweet time we had. I love having my big boy around for a little while before he leaves again. His little sisters enjoy it so much too. It's always good for my heart to hear them constantly bugging him...... "Rymo..... pick me up high., Rymo, hold me for a while my legs are tired, Rymo, play with me, Rymo, can I play with your phone, Rymo, put me on your shoulders so I can touch the ceiling" Rymo, Rymo, Rymo....... I absolutely love it : ) It's the only time I don't hear "Mommy, Mommy, Mommy !!!!" : ) Yes, I get a little break and it's nice. And you know He always does whatever they want even when he's aggravated because they've asked him the same thing fifty thousand times. He just can't tell those girls No. We had a really nice time together with my mom and her crew, my Nanny and her crew, Bobby and I with our kiddos. We even had my grandmother with us for the day. I miss these family outings. I hope we get to do it again soon.

2011-03-28T14:39:00.000-07:00

Can you tell this one loves to be in front of the camera........

This one not so much....... I have to sneak around like some kind of stealth photographer and still I often don't get a smile. Now if they're together she smiles....alone though....no smile. Go figure.

They are night and day, but I have to say both so beautiful : )

Watch out Uncle P .......

2011-03-18T13:25:00.000-07:00

Hope you are enjoying the simple things in life today.....we are : )

2011-03-18T13:19:00.000-07:00

2011-03-12T18:53:00.000-08:00

The weather was so beautiful yesterday that the girls and I decided to take Daddy on a picnic after work. What a nice way to relax and enjoy the sunshine. It was Mari's first picnic....didn't realize that till we were there. It's strange that after six months we are still experiencing firsts. The wind was perfect so they both flew their Barbie kites. Rob pulled kites out of trees for a solid hour. Such a Daddy thing, kite flying, it just isn't a Momma thing. A great way to spend the afternoon. I love to watch him with our girls. Nothing sweeter. Thank you Lord for this amazing weather.

2011-03-01T21:01:00.000-08:00

Six months ago a very brave little girl said goodbye to the only family she had ever known. As she sat in her Momma's lap I'm sure she was anxious about what was happening.

But they had prayed for this day. They believed ever since she came to their home at one month old that she would one day have a family of her own. They had prepared her for this day. Bathed her in prayer and drove her to Fuzhou to meet her new family.

On August 29th 2010, this sweet little thing looked at me for the first time. What a moment. It's frozen in time for me. She was drinking a yogurt drink and eating a sucker at the same time. Little did I know that was just a hint of the many things that she can do at one time : ) She is an amazing girl. I found this out quickly.

We spent that first day in the hotel room getting to know each other.

What an emotional roller coaster. The day was filled with exploration and fun but by nighttime she was missing her home and was so very sad. She did let me comfort her which in turn comforted me.

I used every opportunity I could to show her that she could trust me.
God's grace is amazing.

To see her sleeping right there next to her sister....what a sight. 18 long months of waiting, praying, hoping and here she is sleeping right there in front of you.

It seems like the last 6 months have been somewhat of a blur. We've done so much in such a short time. She's become quite the Daddy's girl. Oh, does she have him wrapped : )

She's taken her first steps. She's worn her first pair of ballerina slippers.

She has celebrated her first birthday with her family.

Her first Christmas with her family.

Lots of celebrations. So much joy. My cup overflows.

She is her big sister's shadow. These two are truly like peas in a pod.

She has stolen my heart just as her sister did.

And to think that I was worried that my heart wouldn't be big enough.

I cannot imagine my life without her.

My day is not complete without that big ole smile that makes her eyes disappear.

And she gives those smiles so freely.

I've never known a child that is this happy all the time. She is filled with joy and love. You would never know what she overcomes every day. Never. It doesn't show. She's excited about what the day brings.

It's pure delight to her.

She has inspired me to be a better person. I am better for having her in my life. I'm happier because of her. I'm more loving. More kind. More patient. Less self pitying. More determined than ever. I'm enjoying life more. Yes, I'm tired but loving every minute. She has taught me so much in just these six months.

More than I've learned in my lifetime.

I am blessed to be her Momma. Truly blessed.

I can't wait to see what the Lord has in store for Mari and our family in the next six months. I know that whatever it is she will embrace it and enjoy every bit of it. What a great way to live life.

Momma's learning from you Marianna.

Keep teaching me.

Mari's First Trip to the Zoo

2011-02-24T11:29:00.001-08:00

When you've missed so much of their lives already these "firsts" are all that more important to you. To see her eyes wide with excitement was so special. I must have heard "Wow" and "look Mommy look" a thousand times that day. Absolutely priceless.

Chinese New Year Celebration 2011

2011-02-10T20:50:00.000-08:00

Family Mosaique

Daddy - Daughter Date Night

My life with these girls is a rainbow.....

Izzy......six going on sixteen : )

Another Rockstar is born.....

Finally..... : )

The sun is shining.....and the weather is sweet

Update..... : )

You say it's birthday...

The Great Giver of Gifts

Xin Nian Kuai Le﻿

So long 2011...

Merry CHRISTmas....CAW! CAW! CAW!

Introducing "Handy".......

waiting patiently

Be The Difference

Wonderfully Made.....

"Santa....I'm five years old now!"

Two Birthdays in Two Days....

Mark 9:23

“What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.”

At least someone likes to get dressed up for Christmas parties.....

Lovin Santa this year

Good King Wenceslas

Our Journey so far....

LOA....Yeah!

Wow...this was a dose of perspective for me!

Crossroads.....

Wild Olive Black Friday Sale....

Happy Thanksgiving

Princesses....

Dance, Dance, Dance

Welcome Home Daddy...

The Least of These

Matthew 25:40

Orphan Sunday is November 6th......

November is National Adoption Month........

Fall Festival at Northshore Church....Angels Among Us

Blessed....

They all asked for you.....

Wild Olive Tees Fundraiser extended....

A new journey begins

Only 6 days left in our Wild Olive Tees Fundraiser

The park, a picnic and family time....what a beautiful day

"I am the first daughter that grew in Momma's heart"

Get Your Verse On for Josiah.....

Pinkalicious

B.A.K.E. Fest 2011

What a beautiful day

Geaux Saints...... : (

Just a matter of time

Follow Me.....please

Daddys really are the best story tellers

Log in date : )

Gotcha Day....One year ago

Our Dossier went to China on Thursday.....Woo Hoo !!

Wild Olive Tees......

So long summer....

Update....

Wrapped around their fingers

Pink Umbrellas

First Care Package

The Tooth Fairy is coming tonight...

Six years old today....How could that be?

I would like to introduce our son, Josiah Jian Guo

My Marianna

Rockstar in the making

Dancing with Daddy

Adopting a Boy

Mother's Day

Easter weekend...

Share the Love....

Divas Sunbathing

Watch out Uncle P .......

Hope you are enjoying the simple things in life today.....we are : )

Mari's First Trip to the Zoo

Chinese New Year Celebration 2011

Xin Nian Kuai Le