Lovin' Much!

Home Study Update...DONE!!!

2012-03-02T13:57:00.001-06:00

Guess what arrived in our mailbox yesterday???

Our HOME STUDY UPDATE!!!

This past Tuesday, our social worker emailed me that our home study update was ready to go, and that she would get it in the mail to us ASAP! YAY!!!

I was super excited to see the large manilla envelope in our mailbox yesterday! I knew exactly what it was! :) And even though the home study update was way easier than the initial home study, it was still so great to know that it was DONE!!!

And this one does not expire until August 2013! Obviously, I am really praying and hoping that Caroline Faith will be home way before then! Please pray with us that we won't have to update our home study again! We are praying that by August of 2013 our daughter will be HOME with us!

So then very last piece of paperwork we need to have EVERYTHING up-to-date will be our extended Favorable Determination Letter (FDL) from USCIS. Basically, this paper is our US government approval to adopt our baby girl from Ethiopia. Our current FDL expires in May, so we are requesting that they extend this date. Once USCIS receives our updated home study from the state they should issue us an updated FDL. Is this so confusing!?! :)

Anyway, trust me, this ROUND 2 of the paperwork chase is almost over!

Now we will just wait for our baby girl to be ready for us! I know that God has the perfectly appointed day that we will see her face! Praying that day will be coming very soon!!! :)

"For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay." Habakkuk 2:3

New February 2012 Number!!!

2012-02-29T14:27:00.001-06:00

Okay, ya'll. It's February 29, 2012, and that means it's Leap Day! And I have some exciting news on this Leap Day!

We got an email from our sweet AGCI case worker, K, this morning with our February 2012 waitlist number...

#15!!!

Yep, for the month of February we are "officially" on the AGCI girl waitlist at #15!!!

And we really think that we are already "unofficially" at least #14 because of some referrals that have gone out that were not accounted for in our official number! YAY!!! So according to our countdown wall upstairs, we are already #14!

This is the first time in our wait that our "official wait list number" has been lower than the number of months we have been "officially waiting on the wait list". We are #15 and we have been on the waitlist for over 17 months. I don't really think that means anything, but just thought I'd let ya'll know! :)

It looks like we are maintaining our average "2 spots per month" movement. And trust me, I am not complaining one bit! We have already had two different months of zero movement, so I am always happy for ANY movement that brings us closer to our baby girl! Every spot we move is because a precious child has been referred to their forever family, and that is always a reason to rejoice!

Of course, I would LOVE to see even more referrals go out per month, and I am praying that will happen! In my time in the Word this morning, I read Psalm 37:7 which says,

"Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him."

That has probably been my biggest struggle in our adoption journey...to truly REST in Him, and to wait PATIENTLY for Him. I am trying though. As a precious friend emailed me yesterday, "He knows where she is today and how to make this whole thing work out to bring you together."

Oh, her encouraging words are so very true. We are trusting His perfect plan to bring us to Caroline Faith. She is in His hands, and knowing that helps my heart to rest.

Thankfully, we have seen lots of great news this week with some friends in our adoption agency and some friends with another agency who have finally been given US Embassy clearance to bring their children home from Ethiopia! Praise the Lord! We are so excited for them and are rejoicing with them!!!

And our other sweet friends leave tomorrow to go pick up their precious daughter in China! We are so excited for them! What an great way to end the month of February!

I can't wait to see what God is going to do in March!!! :)

"Lord, who may dwell in Your sacred tent? Who may live on Your holy mountain? The one whose walk is blameless, who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from their heart." Psalm 15:1-2

American Girls!

2012-02-28T15:27:00.001-06:00

Well, I am still trying to catch up on my blogging, so this is actually from last week!

Callie Grace had her "Famous Americans" day at school! Back in the fall, she read a book about Helen Keller and was so interested in her life. Well, when it was time to choose who she wanted to be on Famous Americans Day, she chose...

Helen Keller!

Mommy, Daddy and Caty all came to watch her program! (Carson was in class!)

Callie Grace did GREAT saying her line, "I am Helen Keller, the first blind and deaf person to graduate from college!" They also sang some really cute patriotic songs!

Another family picture after the program! It's kind of strange to not have Carson in the picture! :)

One last picture of our precious Famous American Helen Keller! We are so proud of her! The dress she was wearing was actually my dress from when I was little! Except I didn't wear it as a costume...I wore it for real!!! Oh how the style changes! Haha! :)

Well, speaking of American Girls, how about a GIVEAWAY for this...

precious American Girl doll!!!

The Bright Family is fundraising to bring their daughter home from Ethiopia! Go check out how you can enter to win this cute doll AND help an adoptive family raise the money to send in their paperwork! Click HERE to read all the details!

Also, I have a Blogger question for you blogger savvy folks...it looks like they are now requiring that people type in 2 words for word verification when they leave a comment. I am thinking about taking the word verification requirement off of my blog (as long as I don't get too many spam comments). Does anyone out there know how I can do this?

Thanks, ya'll! :)

Our God is Able.

2012-02-27T08:00:00.000-06:00

So, last Sunday at church our pastor started a 2 week sermon series to update us on the "Outlive Your Life" campaign that our church is doing. It is a two year commitment that began last February, so we are now officially halfway through. It has been amazing to see what God has already done this past year!!!

One of the big emphasis of the campaign is orphan care and adoption. (Ya'll know I LOVE this!) Our church is supporting lots of different orphanages and giving grants to Pinelake families who are adopting. We are so blessed to be one of the recipients of these grants. In fact, it was this grant from our church that was the final amount to get us to our fundraising goal!

Also, in one of the videos they showed last Sunday, it stated that there are over 30 families at our church who are in the adoption process right now! I CRIED when I heard that! We didn't know even ONE other adoptive family at our church when we first began our adoption process. God is truly moving in hearts to love and care for orphans...and bring them home!!! It is so encouraging!

One of our best friends (who painted this painting for us) was on stage painting during the worship time of the service. One of the songs we sang that morning while she was painting brought tears to my eyes...

Our God is Able.

This is one of my favorite Hillsong worship songs, and we have sang it countless times before. However, last Sunday the words were just so profound to me especially regarding this part of our adoption journey. Here are some of the lyrics that impacted me...

God is with us
God is on our side
He will make a way
Far above all we know
Far above all we hope
He has done great things

Lifted up He defeated the grave
Raised to life our God is able
In His name we overcome
For the Lord our God is able

God is with us
He will go before
He will never leave us

God is for us
He has open arms
He will never fail us

I know that God is for us in our adoption journey to Caroline Faith, and I know that He is able. No matter how slow the movement to her, I have to remember these truths. I hope this encourages ya'll today no matter what journey you are on in your life right now.

God is with you, and He is going before you. He will make a way far above what we could ever hope for. Our God is able!

"I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the Lord." Psalm 27:13-14

Show Hope!

2012-02-24T15:13:00.000-06:00

I can't believe it's already Friday! I know I say it all the time, but the week just always seems to fly by! I am a bit behind on some of my blog posting, but hopefully I'll catch up next week! :)

We had a GREAT night last night! Jody and I (along with several of our friends) had the opportunity to volunteer with Show Hope at the Steven Curtis Chapman concert!!!

This is me and my sweet friend, Katie, last night at the Show Hope table at the concert! We were hanging out at the table while some of other friends went into the concert for a little bit!

The concert was really great! SCC is sooooo good in concert! And Josh Wilson and Andrew Peterson were with him, and they were really good too! I had not been to a concert in forever, and it was so uplifting and encouraging.

Right before the intermission of the concert, SCC told everyone about Show Hope and they showed a video of pictures of adoptive families meeting their children for the first time and bringing them home...all while SCC sang "When Love Takes You In". Ummm, let's just say there were lots of TEARS! It was so powerful and emotional!

Then we (the Show Hope volunteers) passed our sponsorhsip packets to audience members who raised their hand that they were interested in sponsorship. There were hands raised all over the auditorium! What a blessing!!! I LOVE seeing how God moves in the hearts of His people to support adoption and orphan care!!!

At intermission, we helped people fill our their sponsorship forms at the table. There was a long line to get signed up! How awesome is that!?!

America World Adoption agency had a table set up close by the Show Hope table. I looked over there one time during intermission and saw a crowd of people around their table too. It was so neat to see people lined up to talk to them about adoption, and then see people lined up at the Show Hope table to support orphans and adoptive families! LOVE how God works!!!

If ya'll are interested in finding out more about how Show Hope (which was started by SCC and his wife), please go check out the Show Hope website and see how God might use you to help support orphans and adoption! For those of you who God has not called to adopt, but you want to help adoptive families...this is a great way to do that!!!

Hope that ya'll have a fabulous Friday night! I will be taking FOUR precious little girls to the movies and out to eat! It's sure to be a FUN and CRAZY night!!! :)

"It is You, Lord our God. Therefore our HOPE is in You, for You are the one who does all this." Jeremiah 14:22

Writing on the Church Floor!

2012-02-22T13:55:00.000-06:00

Yep, ya'll read that title right! We've been writing on the church floors! :)

Well, you get to do that when your church has been meeting in a high school for over 5 years, and you are finally moving into a new, permanent building! But not just any building, mind you...but a former warehouse that was in foreclosure, and God provided the money to be able to purchase it, for what else? Our new church home!!!

To say we are excited about what God is doing through our church is an understatement! He has blessed our years in the high school beyond measure, but we are super excited about finally having a church home! And we are really close to moving in! The warehouse is still in renovations right now, but we just have a few weeks left!

Two weeks ago today, on February 8, 2012, our church body was invited to come out to the new location and walk through the building, to pray over the rooms and write Scripture on the floors (the ones that will eventually be covered with carpet). I totally LOVED this idea, especially since that it what we got to do while building our own home. Jody wrote a Bible verse on the floor of every single room of our house. We had precious friends who came during the construction process and prayed over the rooms and stuck post-it notes of Scripture on the wood frames before the walls were made. What a blessing!

And I love that we got to do the same thing at our new church home. So, I let the kids each take "their verse" and write it on the floors at church. Of course, we knew we wanted to write Caroline Faith's verse for her on the floor of the baby room at church. Callie Grace helped me, and here is what we wrote...

I wrote the verse, and Callie Grace drew the globe! So precious! I had to go back out to my car to get my phone, so I could take a picture of it!

I can't wait for the day when we can walk in the baby room at church with Caroline Faith in our arms, and remember the night we prayed and wrote her Bible verse on that very floor!

When God gave us the verse, Hebrews 11:1 to claim over our adoption journey to our daughter, I had no idea just how much we would cling to it in the days and years ahead...

"Now FAITH is being sure of what we hope for, and certain of what we do not see." Hebrews 11:1

Lovin' Our President's Day!

2012-02-20T15:02:00.001-06:00

Today is just a good day!

We didn't have to wake up to an alarm clock. (Well, the kids and I didn't, at least.) And the best part of all...no school for the kids and no preschool teaching for Mommy! I always LOVE a Monday off!

We had to send back one of Caroline Faith's baby dolls that she got for Christmas because her eye was "sticking" when it opened and closed. The new baby doll came in, and we went to pick it up today!

Isn't she sweet!?! I just know that Caroline Faith will love her! It always makes me happy to get something for our baby girl!

The sun is shining today, and the Lord has lifted my spirits so much since last week! I just have to thank ya'll so very much for all your prayers and your encouraging words! I can't even tell you how much it means! I am so thankful for the precious friends that God has put in our lives! It is a blessing to walk this journey with your love and support.

It poured down rain here on Saturday. One of my sweet friends, Mysti, sent me a text on that day with this verse...

"O God, You cause abundant showers to fall on Your people. When they are tired, You sustain them."
Psalm 68:9

I just love that verse, and it spoke to my heart so much. God is so faithful to always sustain us even when we get tired and think we can't take another step on the journey He has called us on.

Today, I am just so thankful for this long weekend that God has given us to feel refreshed and renewed. He is giving me my "second wind" in our adoption journey. And I can't wait to watch the next part of His plan unfold!

Oh, and I mailed off our FDL extension request to USCIS on Friday afternoon. It should be there by this Wednesday. So, hopefully all of our paperwork updating is almost over! :)

17 Months and Hoping!

2012-02-17T14:30:00.001-06:00

Today, February 17, 2012 marks exactly 17 MONTHS on the AGCI waitlist for our baby girl in Ethiopia!

So, today is the 17th day of the month, and we just finished 17 months of "officially" waiting, and we're at #17 on the waitlist. Hmmmm, interesting..lots of the number 17 going on right now! :)

I don't even know where to begin with all that God has been teaching me lately. I have struggled lately with how much time has gone by since God first told me His plan for our family to adopt from Ethiopia (over 2 years), and how much time has gone by since we sent in our adoption application and officially started the process (over 21 months). I struggle with the fact that our baby (Caty) was 2 years old when God first told me His plan to bring Caroline Faith into our family, and now I am starting to plan our "baby's" 5 year old birthday party.

A lot of life has been lived in the past 2 and a half years. But my challenge has always been this...how do I balance staying emotionally attached to Caroline Faith and her adoption process AND stay fully engaged in the lives of the three precious children who are home with us now? Just being honest here...this has been hard for me.

I don't think that I have quite achieved that balance yet, but God is working on me. But if there's one thing I have learned in the past 17 months of waiting, it's this...NOTHING is constant except God.

Life moves on. Paperwork expires. Waiting times increase. Government adoption policies change.

And with all that...My faith waivers. My hope falters. My worry builds. My passion fades.

But thankfully HE remains constant, true, stable, trustworthy and always faithful. Always faithful.

That's what keeps me going month after month after month...God's constant faithfulness. His gentle reminders that He is with us. His soft whispers that He is in control. His quiet confirmations that this is His plan. His sweet reassurance that this wait is all part of His timing.

It is only in His arms that I can truly find rest, and I truly feel Him carrying me through this part of our adoption journey. There is definitely just one set of footprints in this chapter of my life...and they are His.

To our precious Caroline Faith,

Words can't even describe how much we ache for you, baby girl. We long to see your face, know your story, and bring you home to our family. Your brother and sisters pray for you every day, and they talk about you all the time. You are going to be completely smothered with hugs and kisses when you get home!

Your daddy and I are praying and fasting today for you. We are crying out to God on your behalf. We are taking this day to completely surrender everything to the Lord...including you and our journey to you. We want you home soon, but we want His will above all else.

We aren't sure how much longer the Lord will ask us to wait for you. And we don't know what the road ahead will look like, but we will walk forward in full faith and trust in our Heavenly Father. He alone makes all things new.

Hold on, baby girl. We love you and we're coming soon.

"Hear me, Lord, my plea is just; listen to my cry. Hear my prayer—" Psalm 17:1

Busted Heart.

2012-02-16T22:16:00.000-06:00

There are so many things I want to post about, but I just honestly haven't had the heart. I have kind of "checked out" of the blog and FB world over the past week or so. I am just really having to cling to the Lord right now. Tomorrow marks our 17 month waitlist anniversary, so I'll be back with a post for our baby girl.

God is really using this song lately to minister to me. This song pretty much sums up where I am right now...especially the first verse.

Hold on to me, Jesus.

Happy HEART Day 2012!

2012-02-14T15:29:00.001-06:00

Happy Valentine's Day from our four little hearts...

Callie Grace,

Carson,

Caty,

and Caroline Faith!

"Wait for the Lord; be strong and take HEART and wait for the Lord." Psalm 27:14

Cassady Street Giveaway Winners!

2012-02-13T08:00:00.000-06:00

Well, what about starting this fun Valentine's Week with some February Cassady Street GIVEAWAY WINNERS!?! Sounds great to me! :)

We decided to put all the entries in some of the heart bowls that Marmi brought for the kids this weekend! The BOY entries are in the red bowl, and the GIRL entries are in the pink bowl!

Of course, I let Carson choose the BOY winner!!!

And the winner of the cute, handmade Dr. Suess bib and burp cloth set and the crayon roll is...

Colin and Jess at With Love for Africa!!!

YAY!!! I am so excited for ya'll, Jess! These will be so precious for your baby (or babies) that you will be adopting from Ethiopia!!! Please email me your address to lovinmuch at yahoo dot com, and I will get it to Katie! Your items are ready to go, and she'll mail them to you soon!

Next, it was time for Caty to choose the GIRL winner!!!

And the winner of the precious custom, handmade Cassady Street dress is...

Megan at M and M's!!

YAY, Megan!!! I am so happy for you! This sweet little dress will look so adorable on Marlee when she gets home! You can email Katie and choose the size you want her to make it in!

Thanks so much to everyone who entered the giveaway! This was so fun! And even if you didn't win, remember that you can always go to Cassady Street to order some adorable cuteness! All of the profits go to help the Cassady family bring their little one home!!!

Go HERE to check out all the cute things Katie is making over at Cassady Street!

Have a great Valentine's Day Eve, ya'll!!! :)

Don't Forget...Giveaway Ends Soon!

2012-02-11T21:15:00.001-06:00

We have had a full weekend, and I have to be at church really early in the morning so I am about to go to bed. But I wanted to send out a final reminder that the GIVEAWAY ends at midnight TONIGHT!!!

Would love for ya'll to check it out HERE! :)

Goodnight, ya'll!

Home Study Update...Almost Done!!!

2012-02-10T16:20:00.000-06:00

Well, I am super excited to say that our home study update process is almost DONE!!!

Our social worker came yesterday afternoon for our home visit, and it went great! I made sure to answer the door this time! Haha! :)

We gave her all of the paperwork that we have been working on over the past month, and she said that is everything that she'll need from us! She is going to work on our update over the weekend and have it ready for us early next week.

Then we'll be able to apply for an extension to our FDL (Favorable Determination Letter). This is the letter that basically approves our adoption with USCIS...US Immigration. Our current FDL expires soon, but we are allowed one free extension. So, hopefully I will be sending in our extension request by late next week!

I am so happy to say that once we have that FDL extension, all of our adoption paperwork will be UPDATED!!! Our 2nd round of paperwork will be DONE, and we will be referral-ready for Caroline Faith! YAY!!! :)

Thankfully, the home study update process has been way easier than the initial home study process. As we were talking to our social worker yesterday, we realized it had been a year and half since she had last been in our home. It's pretty crazy how fast the time has gone by!

Now, I am just praying that before we know it, we will be seeing our baby girl's sweet face for the very first time! Please keep us in your prayers, as we are getting closer and closer to that day! :)

A Fun 1/2 Birthday & More!

2012-02-09T13:05:00.002-06:00

Since, Carson has a summer birthday, we always try to celebrate his "1/2" birthday! We take cupcakes to school so that he can celebrate a "school birthday" like all non-summer birthday kids get to! :)

Today we took LOTS of cupcakes up to his school to celebrate with his class! He requested chocolate cupcakes with chocolate icing and no sprinkles...his favorite! :) It was so fun! We love this little boy SO MUCH!!! Happy 1/2 Birthday, Carson!

I have to get off the computer because I have so much to do around the house today because...

our social worker is coming THIS AFTERNOON to do our home visit for our home study update!!! YAY!!!

I am more than ready to hand her all our completed home study update paperwork! We are almost DONE!!! After our visit today, she will just have to update our written home study, and get it approved by AGCI. Then we can apply for our updated FDL, and all our paperwork will be done! The end of re-doing paperwork is in sight! :)

And yes, I am going to make sure our kids DO NOT get to go open the door for our social worker again! Some of ya'll might remember what happened to us at our first home visit about a year and a half ago...click HERE to read about it! :)

Oh, and I just thought this was so cool! I posted yesterday about my "Date with God" at the retreat. My friend that I met later that day, Ashley, was one of the moms that was crying on the plastic world map with me! She posted about that moment on her blog two days ago! I'm telling ya'll, it was so amazing!!!

Well, she commented on my post yesterday that a friend of hers emailed her yesterday with a link to my blog post and said, "Look, it's one of your crying friends!" I love it!!! :)

Yep, I think Ashley and I (and the other girls on the map) are all bonded now through that time with the Lord! SO thankful for sweet moments like that and friendships that God has given us on this adoption journey!

And don't forget about the February Cassady Street Giveaway going on right now!!!

Have a great day, ya'll! I am off to do lots of laundry and cleaning! Praying that this afternoon goes great!!! :)

Date With God.

2012-02-08T07:45:00.000-06:00

One of my biggest regrets from the Created for Care retreat last year was "skipping" my Date with God session. I really didn't skip it on purpose. I just got caught up talking to a friend, and I missed my scheduled time.

Of course, the main thing everyone was talking about last year was their "Date with God." I was really sad that I had missed that time with the Lord.

This year at Created for Care I was determined that I was going to sign up for a Date with God session and actually attend it! So, I signed up for the Saturday 11:00 am session. I really couldn't wait!

Well, ya'll know me. I did get caught up talking to someone again this year. But thankfully, I was looking at my watch. When it hit 11:00, I had to end the conversation and run to find the room where the Date with God session was taking place.

I walked it a few minutes late (imagine that!), and stood in the back of the room while the session leader finished explaining all the different prayer stations that were set up in the room. There was a cross, a tent, a painting table, a playdough table, a prayer wall, a collage table, and a station with maps of the world. There were also women there who would pray for you, if you wanted them to.

Soft praise music started playing, and you could go to whichever station you wanted, and then rotate around the room as you wanted. It was a very relaxed and worshipful setting. And even though there were lots of other women in the room, it still felt very intimate.

Well, I since I had come in late and was already in the back of the room, I immediately went to the world map area. It was directly to my right in the back of the room where I was. I walked over to this map of the world that was on a huge plastic floor mat.

I kneeled down on the map right next to Africa and immediately put my left hand on Ethiopia. It seemed like instantly there were at least four to five other girls right around me who also put their hand on Ethiopia.

I started praying (silently) so hard for the country of Ethiopia, for the people of Ethiopia, for the Ethiopian adoption process, for the orphans of Ethiopia, and then, of course, for our daughter.

The next thing I felt is really hard to put into words, but I will try. I truly felt the presence of the Lord. It was one of the most Spirit-filled moments of my life. The power of prayer is truly amazing.

Even though the women around me were all praying silently, I know that we were all praying for the same thing...our children in Ethiopia.

I began to hear crying and sniffling around me, just as my own tears began to fall. My tears were falling and dropping on this map of the world. You could hear each tear as it hit the plastic mat below me. I couldn't stop them. It was such a powerful moment, and I truly feel like God was uniting our hearts as we prayed with our hands on Ethiopia.

It was so beautiful. And I was so wanting to get out my camera and take a picture of all of our hands, but I didn't want to ruin the moment for anyone else. So, I just took a mental picture of it.

Slowly, the other women around me started to get up to move to another station. I was left alone on the mat for a brief moment, so I pulled out my camera quickly. And then I took this picture...

I truly will never forget that special moment of interceding for our daughter along with other mothers interceding for their children...

all in the country of Ethiopia.

"I love the LORD, for He heard my voice; He heard my cry for mercy." Psalm 116:1

February Cassaday Street GIVEAWAY!!!

2012-02-06T15:01:00.000-06:00

Oh my goodness, it's time...time for the February Cassady Street *GIVEAWAY*!!!

My sweet and super-talented friend and adoptive momma, Katie, and I have been planning on this giveaway for forever! I am SO EXCITED that the day has finally arrived to start it! Ya'll are going to LOVE Katie and all the precious things she makes at Cassady Street!

So, Katie and I live in the same area, but we didn't know each other until God connected us through...guess what???

Yep, ADOPTION!!! I promise, one of the biggest blessings of our adoption journey has been all the amazing FRIENDS that God has put in our lives through the connection of adoption and love for orphans!

Well, Katie and her sweet family are adopting domestically, and I can't wait to see which child God will place with their family! Katie is using her amazing sewing talents to fundraise for their adoption. So all profits from purchases from Cassady Street go directly to their adoption fund to help bring their little one HOME!!!

Cassady Street has all sorts of serious CUTENESS including precious children's dresses and other clothing, applique clothing, wipes cases, diaper straps, bibs, burp cloths, crayon rolls...and more!!! Ya'll will just have to check out her website and her facebook site!

So, this giveaway is really neat because God led Katie to the site of an amazing group of pattern makers at Create HOPE Designs who donate 100% of their profits to two orphan relief groups! So, Katie bought one of their dress patterns to use for this giveaway! So neat!

Another great thing about this giveaway is that there will be TWO WINNERS!!! There will be one drawing for a "GIRL" prize and another drawing for a "BOY" prize! You can choose whichever drawing you want to enter!

The "girl" winner will win this...

precious DRESS!!! Isn't it so adorable!?! You will be able to choose the size (12 months through size 7)!

And the "boy" winner wins THREE cute items...

Adorable matching "Dr. Suess" bib and burp cloth set and...

This cute "crayon roll"!

These crayon rolls are so cute...and practical too! It holds 16 crayons (or 32 if you put two in each pocket).

You can choose to enter the "GIRL" drawing for the dress (you pick the size!) OR you can choose to enter the "BOY" drawing for the bib, burp cloth and crayon roll! And you have LOTS of ways to be entered into the drawing of your choice! :)

So here are all the ways to enter the GIVEAWAY:

1. Leave a comment about which drawing you would like to be in: BOY or GIRL!

2. Blog, Facebook or Tweet (or all 3!) about this giveaway and leave a comment letting me know you did! (Each will count as an entry!)

3. Purchase something from Cassady Street or a pattern from Create HOPE Designs! (Each of these will count as TWO entries!)

4. "Like" Cassady Street on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/pages/Cassady-Street/172094252831872

5. Become a follower of Lovin' Much, or let me know that you are already following our blog!

So, there ya go! Ya'll have lots of ways to enter!!! This giveaway ends on Saturday, February 11th at midnight, CST. I will announce the TWO WINNERS (boy and girl drawings!) on Monday, February 13th!!!

Happy *February GIVEAWAY* day, ya'll! :)

Created for Care 2012 Picture Fest!

2012-02-02T16:37:00.001-06:00

Wow, I can't believe that I'm just now having time to post all of my pictures from the Created for Care retreat last weekend! It's been a busy week! :)

Well, the weekend really started last Thursday afternoon, when my sweet friend Courtney came to spend the night with us. She drove from Texas to ride with the Mississippi girls to Atlanta! It was so fun to have a little "pre-retreat" time with her! She is just precious, and I love how God connected us through our adoptions! We took her out to dinner on Thursday night because I had not had time to cook! I didn't even start packing until late that night! Nothing like waiting until the last minute! :)

I got up bright and early on Friday (actually, it was still dark outside!), and we left my house at 6:15 am! And guess what??? I was ON TIME!!! :) I was pretty motivated because we had a long drive ahead of us, and I wanted us to make it on time this year!

We met up with more MS friends at 6:45 am, and we were on the road to Atlanta at 7:05!!! We did pretty good! We had four girls in my car, and five girls in the other car. I wish I had gotten a picture of our fun road trip crew!!! We made it to the retreat around 3:30 which gave us just enough time to check-in, register and get to the first session at 4:00. We were just all so excited to finally be there!!!

Me, Megan and Christy! Megan was one of my roommates, and she rode with us! And this was my first time to meet Christy in person...so fun!!!

This was the only picture that I took on Friday night! I didn't do a good job about pulling out the camera that night! I was talking too much! I had been sick with a bad cold/sinus infection for two weeks leading up to the retreat, and I pretty much had no voice! But I didn't let that keep me from talking as much as possible! :)

The Friday afternoon/evening sessions were amazing. And the worship was unbelievable!!! Something about being the room with over 400 adoptive moms praising God and singing, "Waiting here for You, with our hands lifted high in praise..." I just really can't even describe it. Let's just say there were lots of tears that night.

Later that night, we watched the movie "Moving On" from the organization Light Gives Heat. It was incredible!!! This organization does so much to help support the people of Uganda. Ya'll will have to check them out!

My roommates and I stayed up way too late talking and laughing, and then it was Saturday morning! We were tired but excited about the day ahead! We MIGHT have missed breakfast and the very first session because we overslept! Whoops!

We decided to look around the some of the booths while were were waiting for all the good adoptive moms to get out of the first session! :)

Megan, Jenni, me and Andrea! Andrea is our sweet AGCI friend from Illinois, and it was so great to see her again!!! Jenni and I met her in Nashville at an AGCI picnic about a year and half ago, and we are all in the same stage of the adoption process!

And I always LOVE seeing sweet Kristi and her family!!! She had her oldest girls and precious Wes with her! If ya'll have followed our story, then you know how much God used Kristi and their adoption of Lucy Lane in our adoption story! They were the very first family that we had ever seen who had adopted from Ethiopia...and at the time, we only knew them from the "blog world"! :) So thankful for sweet Kristi and her friendship!

It was so GREAT to see these sweet AGCI mommas...Meredith, Molly, Cortney, Bobi, and Leigh! I just love these girls!!!

My new-to-Mississippi friend Grace was there with her sweet newborn daughter! It's always so good to see her! We live down the road from each other, but don't get to see each other often. It was fun to see her at the retreat!

I loved getting to see my friend, Abby again this year! She is one of the sweetet, funniest girls I know! I loved hearing about what God is doing in her life!!!

It was so fun to get to meet my sweet "blog friend", Heather for the first time in person! We have followed each other blogs for forever, but this was our first time to meet! She is just PRECIOUS! It was so great to talk to her and catch up on our adoption stories!

Several of us AGCI mommas were all out in the hall talking that afternoon and decided to get a quick picture! I just LOVE these girls, and I am so thankful that God has connected us all through adopting from Ethiopia with AGCI! It was fun to see some of them again this year, and to get to meet some in person for the first time!

Amber and I got to sit by each other at one of the Saturday sessions! She is so sweet, and her family is so close to getting a referral! I can't wait to hear her good news!!!

Me, Megan and Courtney having fun hanging out after one of the sessions!!!

More Mississippi girls...Megan, Liza, Jenni, Teresa and me! We had so much talking and laughing together that afternoon!

After the late night pajama Q &A panel, most all of the AGCI mommas who were there all got together to talk and meet each other!!! This was our group picture in our pj's!!! It was so wonderful to be able to get together and talk and pray with one another! I just love how God has connected us so strongly through our adoptions from Ethiopia! I truly love these girls, and I am SO BLESSED to have them in my life!!!

It was wonderful to meet Lauren for the first time! We have been blog friends for a long time, and she is the one who totally re-designed our blog!!! We were both sick, but that didn't stop us from talking! :)

Kelly, Bobi and I on Sunday, the very last morning of the retreat!!! Loved getting to see them both again this year! It was like a reunion! :)

Rory, me and Amy! It was so fun to meet Rory in person for the first time! She is so cute and fun!!! And it's always so great to see Amy again! I met Amy for the first time when they brought their son home from Ethiopia! We were at their airport party!

Candi, Gini, Megan and me...sweet AGCI mommas! It was so FUN to see them again this year!!!

Courtney and I got to meet Erika this year! She is on the AGCI waitlist with us, and is just a sweetheart! She is always so positive and encouraging! Loved getting to meet her!

Desiree, me and Christy...they are both in the paperwork process of their adoptions! It was so great to meet them and talk to them in person!

And finally, a roommate picture!!! Me, Bobi, Jenni and Megan....they were the best roommates! Oh my goodness, we had so much fun together!!! We stayed up way too late both nights talking and laughing. They just all encouraged me so much. I am just so THANKFUL for their friendship!

Well, I know that was A LOT of pictures, but there is one picture that I have saved. It's probably one of the most special from the whole weekend. I think I'm going to save it for a future blog post...so stay tuned!!!

And if any of ya'll are thinking about going to Created for Care in March, I think there is still room to sign up!!! So go HERE to check it out!!!

A huge THANK YOU to Andrea and her team for another amazing C4C retreat!!! I am already excited about next year!!! :)

"Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may have her young--a place near your altar, O LORD Almighty, my King and my God." Psalm 84:3

New January 2012 Number!!!

2012-01-31T20:50:00.001-06:00

Guess what???

We got an email this afternoon from our AGCI case worker, K! She had our new January 2012 waitlist number for us! I am always so ready to get our new number, and since this was the very last day of the month I was really hoping to get it today!

So here it is...

#17!!!

Yep, we are "officially" #17 on the AGCI girl waitlist for January!

And the best news is that I know that we are really already #16 on the "unofficial" list! We know that there was a family on the girl and boy list that got a referral this month, but their paperwork has not been completely turned in yet. So, we know that this family's referral was not included in the "official" numbers for January.

Clear as mud??? :)

I know it's a little confusing, but trust me, we're really #16!!! And that's the number we have on our countdown wall upstairs! :)

Oh, and I wanted to clarify that this waitlist number is just for our adoption agency's Ethiopia adoption program...not for the whole country of Ethiopia. I had someone ask me about that, so I just wanted to answer that question.

Well, ya'll can probably tell that we have been moving A LOT slower down the waitlist over the past six months or so. The adoption process in Ethiopia just seems to be slowing down with all the extra scrutiny over paperwork for orphans. We appreciate their efforts to keep adoption ethical in Ethiopia, but it's hard to be in the midst of such a drastic slowdown in our adoption process.

We are now moving down the list at average of about 2 spots a month. Slowly, but surely. We have no idea when we will reach #1 on the list, but we are still hoping and praying that it will be in the 18-24 month time frame that AGCI is estimating for the wait. For us, that would be anytime between March and September (probably closer to September, if things continue to move slowly).

Of course, I am always PRAYING that God will speed things up and bring us closer to our Caroline Faith a lot sooner than we can even imagine!

We trust Him, and we trust His timing.

"I call on you, my God, for you will answer me; turn your ear to me and hear my prayer." Psalm 17:6

Home from C4C & AGCI Picture!

2012-01-30T14:18:00.000-06:00

Well, I am home from an AMAZING weekend in Atlanta at the Created for Care retreat!!! Thanks for your prayers!

I am a little tired (from staying up way too late with my fun roommates!), and I have lost my voice (a combo of getting over a cold and talking way too much!), but I am so ENCOURAGED from being with sweet adoptive momma friends all weekend long! And I am so filled with JOY after hearing from the Lord and getting to worship Him with over 400 precious women!

Ahhhhh...it was such a wonderful weekend! I am so thankful for Andrea and the C4C team, speakers, worship team and volunteers for all that they did for us! Really wish I could go to the March retreat too! :) If you are an adoptive mom, or even thinking about adoption, or you have a heart for orphans...I would HIGHLY recommend going to the March retreat! You will LOVE it!!!

I can't wait to share all the pics and stories from the weekend! Hopefully, I'll have time tomorrow! Today I need to catch up on unpacking and LAUNDRY! :) And I am really wanting to just hang out with the kids when they get home from school! But I did want to go ahead and post this group picture of some of the AGCI Ethiopia mommas who were at the retreat! (Feel free to copy it from the blog, AGCI friends!)

Here we are...all in our pj's late Saturday night! It was so PRECIOUS to be able to meet all these sweet friends in person and pray with them! What a blessing!!!More retreat pics and stories to come soon!

Off to C4C!!!

2012-01-27T08:00:00.000-06:00

We are off to the Created for Care Retreat!!! I am SO EXCITED to go back this year! I can't wait to see friends again and meet some new friends in person for the first time!

Andrea posted on the Created for Care FB page the other day that there are over 400 ladies coming! These ladies represent over 247 children who are no longer orphans, 185 in the adoption process, and about 50 who feel called to adopt or to serve families who are adopting in some way! So amazing!!!

I am really excited about learning more, getting to worship with these ladies, and hearing from the Lord! I just know that this weekend will be such a huge encouragement! It's so great to be with friends who just really understand what you are going through...we're all so bonded and connected through this beautiful journey of adoption!

I'll be back next week with LOTS of pictures and updates! Please pray for us as we travel this weekend away from our families! Oh, and please pray for Jody as he keeps the kids by himself all weekend! He will do great! The only thing that might be a little (or a lot!) challenging for him is fixing the girl's hair! :)

Have a great weekend, ya'll!!!

It's All About HIS Timing!

2012-01-26T10:46:00.001-06:00

So, I was planning on posting about this yesterday, but ended up having a CRAZY day! I'm sure ya'll have all had one of those! :)

But today, I am sitting here at the car place (using their wi-fi) while they replace some kind of belt on my car. So, I have at least an hour to spare! :) I am trying to get everything ready for our ROAD TRIP tomorrow!!!

We are going back to Atlanta for the Created for Care Retreat for adoptive mommas...and I can't wait!!! My friend, Courtney, is on her way to Mississippi right now! (Can't wait to hug her neck!) We will join some other sweet MS girls bright and early in the morning for our road trip!!!

Ok, well back to my story about God's timing...

Well, some of ya'll who have been following our adoption journey for a long time may remember when we were going through our initial home study back in the summer of 2010. Let's just say, waiting on the FBI fingerprint results was HARD for me! That was the last thing we were waiting on to get our home study complete, so we could get on the waitlist for our baby girl!!!

God used those 8 WEEKS and 2 DAYS to teach me lots about patience and trusting in His timing! I wrote a post all about the big "pity-party that almost was"...ya'll can read it HERE! This is just one paragraph that I wrote about what God was teaching me about His timing...

"Our loving, faithful God who called us on this journey to our baby girl, is aligning EVERY. SINGLE. DETAIL. to bring us to the child that He has chosen for our family. It became so clear to me, that He has each family on different timelines to place them perfectly with their child. None of them are going to look the same because each journey is unique. I can't keep comparing our journey to others. Our journey is special because it is simply that...it's OURS! And at the end of it is the baby girl that God has chosen for our family, and His timeline places her directly in our arms on the day that He has already picked out!"

I finally got to a point that I was at peace with the "delay" because I realized that it wasn't really a delay at all. It was all part of God's plan to align us with our daughter. I truly believe that!

Now fast forward to the present, where we are doing our FBI fingerprints all over again for our homestudy update. This time around, the timing really doesn't matter as much. We are already on the waitlist. Basically we just need to get the results in before our home study expires (which isn't until the end of March).

So, on January 10, 2012, I mailed our fingerprints to the FBI. This time around, I was much more laid back about it, but still hopeful it wouldn't take quite as long.

Look who sent us a letter that arrived in our mailbox this past Monday...

Yep, it looks like a letter from the FBI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I seriously thought it must be a letter telling us we were going to have to re-do our fingerprints our something. Could it possibly be that the results had come in LESS THAN 2 WEEKS!?!

I laughed out loud when I opened the letter to find this! Both of our results were DONE! (And no arrest record found!) :) Of course, it would only take a few days this time around!

I just LOVE God's timing! It was just another confirmation of His plan. If He had wanted our first results to come back that quick, He could've done it! But He didn't! He used that long waiting time to teach us and grow our faith...

and to use HIS timing to bring us perfectly to our Caroline Faith!!!

"Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time." I Peter 5:6

She's Gonna Be Rockin' at 100!

2012-01-24T15:57:00.003-06:00

Well, Callie Grace came home from the 100th day of school the other day with this...

(My scanner cut off the top part, but I'll type it out for ya'll!)

When I am 100
I would have short
dark hair, pink cheeks,
purple eye shadow
and I have always wanted
red lipstick
and now that I am 100 I can.
and braids and a bow.

OH. MY. Yes, I laughed out loud when I read this! I think she's gonna be rockin' at 100 years old, and it sounds like she's finally going to be able to wear red lipstick! :)

So hilarious! And I have something else to share with ya'll tomorrow that made me laugh out loud...and yes, it does have to do with our adoption process!

Gotta laugh sometimes even in the midst of the long wait! :)

"A cheerful heart is good medicine..." Proverbs 17:22

Minus TWO!!

2012-01-23T07:52:00.000-06:00

I am telling ya'll what, there is almost nothing better than an airport welcome home party for an adoptive family! I hope all of ya'll get to be at one sometime! They are just the BEST!!!

And yes, we're pretty excited that we seem to be having more and more of them here in Mississippi! God is just continuing to grow our adoption group, and He is continuing to bring children HOME!!!

Caty and I were thrilled to be at the airport on Friday night to welcome TWO precious little boys home from China! (CG was spending the night with a friend, and Carson and Jody were hanging out with some sweet kids at a local children's home.) So, we went with some friends to eat dinner and then on to the airport!!!

The "welcome home" sign that I painted really quick at school that morning! It was kind of big for the kids to hold up! :) Oh well, they did great with it! There were LOTS of friends at the airport to welcome the boys home! The kids all had so much fun playing together!

Caty and precious, adorable Ansley!!! I can't believe it's been almost a year since we welcomed her home from China!!!

And then it was finally time! Caty and Ford were so excited to hear that they were coming!!!

Here they are!!! YAY!!! We loved seeing Lee and Mary walking up with their two precious SONS!!!

Sweet Daniel with his Mommy!!! He is just adorable!!!

Precious David with his Daddy!!! He is just pure cuteness!!!

These are just a few of the adoptive mamas who were there! Jenni & Millie, Amy (we'll be welcoming her sweet girl home soon!), Kim & Ansley, me and Denee & Carter! It seems like yesterday that we were celebrating sweet Carter's arrival too!

We are PRAISING GOD for bringing these two precious boys home safe and sound to their forever family!!! It was a great night to celebrate their homecoming with lots of friends! Some friends who have already brought their children home, and some friends (like us) who are waiting to bring their children home, and some friends who were just there to love and support this sweet family of FOUR...oh, what a special Friday night it was! :)

It just never gets old to watch the Lord "set the lonely in families"! (Psalm 68:6)

Not a Moment Too Soon!

2012-01-21T09:40:00.000-06:00

I just had to post this PRECIOUS new music video from Josh Kelley (a former Ole Miss student, like us!!!) about their sweet adopted daughter! Of course, I cried while watching it!

My favorite line of the song?

"You found my arms not a moment too soon."

Such a sweet reminder of God's perfect timing in adoption. I know that our Caroline Faith will find our arms at just the right moment...HIS perfectly appointed time!

This morning, I am praying over these verses God showed me...

"O Lord, You have heard the desire of the humble; You will strengthen their heart, You will incline Your ear to vindicate the orphan and the oppressed...You have been the helper of the orphan." Psalm 10:17-18, 14

Early Birds!

2012-01-19T14:42:00.001-06:00

Guess who actually got somewhere EARLY this morning???

Yep, that would be me...

and Miss Catybug, of course!

Well, before ya'll get too excited, I do have to be honest. We were going back to the health department (for the 2nd time this week!) to have them read my TB skin test results for our home study update. My goal was to be there by 7:45 am.

As I learned on Tuesday morning, the key to getting in and out of the health department in a timely manner is to get there EARLY! We spent an hour and a half of our morning there on Tuesday, and I really didn't want to repeat that today. So, I was determined to be the first ones in line...even if I had to stand outside the door until they opened! (Yes, I am going a little crazy...I have warned ya'll! ) :)

Like I said, the goal was 7:45 am. Actually arrival time? 7:56 am. 11 minutes late is not too bad, especially when they don't even open until 8:00 am, and you are the very FIRST car in the parking lot!!!

Sometimes it's the little things that get me so excited! :)

Well, the front doors to the health department were already open, and we were the very first people in the waiting room! YAY!!! Got the test results read by the nurse (negative, thankfully), and we were out the door!

20 minutes total time at the health department today!!!

And then I even made it to body pump at the gym a few minutes early! Looks like I'm turning into an early bird! We'll see how long I can keep it up! :)

Sweet Sixteen!

2012-01-17T18:41:00.002-06:00

Today, January 17, 2012, marks exactly 16 MONTHS on the AGCI waitlist for our baby girl in Ethiopia!

I love hitting these "waitlist anniversaries" because I know that it means we are another month closer to our Caroline Faith! Our agency's estimated waitlist times have fluctuated greatly over the past 16 months. When we first got on the list on September 17, 2010, we were told to expect to wait 12-18 months to get a referral. ("Getting a referral" is when we will finally be matched with our daughter, and know details about her, see her picture, and start the court process to bring her HOME!)

Then a few months later, we rejoiced when our agency lowered the estimated waitlist times to 9-12 months. But several months later, we were back to the 12-18 month estimated waitlist time. And just yesterday, we were told in an email update to prepare to wait 18-24 months or longer for a referral. We were totally expecting this, but it's still hard to see it officially in writing.

It looks like the Lord is asking us to wait a little longer on our baby girl. So, now we can probably expect a referral anytime between March and September of this year. For right now, I am trying to ignore those two little words "or longer" and just really hope and pray that we will fall somewhere in that 18-24 month timeline. Summer is my favorite season, so maybe the Lord will bless us us with a sweet summer referral! (But of course, I love spring too, and would totally LOVE to see her sweet face this spring!) :)

So, I am trying to prepare my heart for this new "18-24 month window" of waiting. I know the Lord will give us the grace and strength to endure the wait ahead...no matter how long it is! Thanks for hanging in there with us, following our journey, encouraging us, praying for us, asking about the process, etc. It means so much more than you will ever know!!!

Oh yeah, almost forgot. I celebrated our "16 month waitlist anniversary" by going to the health department to get a TB test done for our home study update! Checking things off the list!!! :)

To our sweet baby girl,

We are trying to prepare to wait a little longer before we see your beautiful face. So hard to do, but we know that the Lord will be with us! I truly believe that He has the perfect day appointed for us to get your referral, and the perfect day appointed for us to bring you home!

Every month that goes by brings us another month closer to both of those perfectly appointed days, and that thought fills my heart with hope! We pray for you constantly, talk about you all the time, and think about you every single day.

Your are loved, sweet Caroline Faith. Somehow I know that this extended wait is going to make your referral day and your homecoming all the more special! You are so worth the wait! We promise to continue to try to honor the Lord fully in each day that He asks us to wait on Him.

Hold on, baby girl. We love you, and we're coming soon!

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7

Support Adoptive Families this MLK Day!

2012-01-16T08:00:00.000-06:00

We are happy to be out of school today in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day! And I am excited to have a day to spend with our little ones!

So this post will be short and sweet, but I wanted to take this opportunity to let ya'll know about a couple of fellow adoptive moms who have some really GREAT adoption fundraisers going on!

This is Kim's precious family, and they are fundraising to bring their little girl home from Ethiopia, by giving away this...

brand new Kindle Fire!!! So cool!!! Go to her blog to check out all the details and help their family bring their baby home!!!

Also, my friend, Lauren and her family are fundraising to bring their little baby home from Ghana! She is doing an amazing Baskets of Love fundraiser right now! Go check out this post to see all the wonderful things this "Beautiful Things" gift basket contains! WOW!!!

Hope that ya'll have a great MLK day!!!

A Healthy (Easy) Mexican Recipe for 2012!

2012-01-14T08:56:00.000-06:00

Firstof all, I have to say thank you for your encouraging comments on my last post. It truly, truly means a lot to me that ya'll take the time to do that! The Lord uses your sweet words so much in my life. Ya'll are a blessing!!!

Ok, so I actually made this recipe back in December, but I thought it would be better to post it in the new year! I know everyone is trying to eat healthier, simplify meals and stick to a budget. Soooooo, I have the perfect recipe for ya'll!

Now, I have to say this...it's nothing fancy or unbelieveable. In fact, I totally made it up one night. You know those nights when you look in your pantry and just see what you can whip up real quick? Yep, this was one of those nights. But it turned out really good, so I thought I'd share with ya'll! :)

Hmmm...let me think of a name for it. Maybe Black Bean Chicken Wraps???

Here the ingredients..and there are only FIVE!!! I told you it was easy. You need:

cooked chicken (any kind...I actually used some leftover rotisserie chicken from the night before!)

1 can of black beans (drained)

1 can of ro-tel tomatoes (I like the the with the lime juice and cilantro added)

1 pkg. low-fat shredded Mexican blend cheese

1 pkg. whole wheat tortillas.

Just mix them all together in a bowl, saving some of the cheese for later!

Then you start to fill the wraps just like an enchilada...

You can make as many as you want to. I try to use all the tortillas, because these freeze great! So we just eat some the first night, then I freeze the rest to pull out another night! Love it!

Bake them on 350 until they are hot and bubbly...maybe 20 minutes or so.

Then add the leftover cheese to the top, and bake for about 5 more minutes until the cheese is melted. Remember that low-fat cheese doesn't melt quite the same way as regular cheese. It doesn't bother me. I still like it, but I just wanted to warn ya'll! :)

Then you serve it with a salad and maybe a few tortilla chips and salsa, and you have a quick, easy, healthy dinner! And make sure you save some to heat up for lunch the next day!!! Yummy!!!

I think I may have to make these again soon!

Well, my girls and I are counting down until tonight...

it's Miss America night!!! We can't wait! :)

The Altar.

2012-01-12T15:01:00.002-06:00

So, I have to be honest, I was having kind of a "heavy" day emotionally yesterday. The wait was just seeming to get harder and harder. And I have several close friends and family who are going through some difficult times right now, and I just felt very burdened and heavy with the weight of all of it.

Plus, I had not even seen the sun shine at all in the past 4 days. The rain continued to fall from the gray clouds for the 4th day in a row, and my mood definitely matched the weather.

I walked early in the dark of the morning with a constant drizzle falling on my head, but I didn't even care. The still and quiet was just so peaceful, and walking and talking with the Lord was soothing to my weary heart.

Thankfully, last night was the night of our once a month, Wednesday night renewal service. We always have a time before the service starts where you can come and pray. Well, ya'll know me and my "lateness" problem. Getting somewhere on time is a victory. Getting somewhere early? Let's just say those times are few and far between.

Nevertheless, I was determined to make it to church early so that I could have some time to pray. I wanted to lift up some of our friends and family, and of course, I wanted to pray for our adoption journey. I was trying to make it there by 6:00, and I made it by 6:15. (typical!) :)

But the service didn't start until 6:30, so I still had 15 minutes to pray. I started in my seat with my face down to my knees just lifting up some friends who are going through some hard times. Then, my sweet mentor at our church came over and just prayed the most precious prayer over me. When she left, I knew it was now time to pray for Caroline Faith.

I felt compelled by the Holy Spirit to go down front and kneel at the altar. Which is really just the front of the stage at the auditorium. I wear my "Caroline Faith" bracelet (in picture above) every single day...no exceptions. I only take it off at night and to shower.

Well, as I was kneeling down, the round medallion with her name on it slipped off my bracelet and fell to the floor under my knees. Strange. I picked it up and just automatically placed it on the altar (the stage) in front of me. That's when it hit me...

Wow. That's exactly what God was calling me to do. Give Caroline Faith to the Lord...completely. To lay her down at His feet. To give our adoption journey totally to Him. I left it there on the altar while I continued to pray for our baby girl.

Then, I came back to my seat and had a couple of minutes before the service. I always read my Jesus Calling devotional in the morning when I am reading my Bible, but I had not had time to read it that morning. I had brought it with me, so I picked it up, and this is a part of what I read...

TRUST ME by relinquishing control into My hands. Let go and recognize that I am God. When you bring Me prayer requests, lay out your concerns before Me. Speak to Me candidly; pour out your heart...

I couldn't believe it. That is just what had happened. I had laid out my concerns (our daughter) before Him. He was again confirming that that was exactly what He wanted me to do.

Then wouldn't you know the whole sermon last night was about Abraham giving Isaac to the Lord, when God called him to sacrifice his only son. And our campus pastor had even had a real altar built that was up on the stage. I had not even noticed it when I first came in.

Everyone had been given a pen and notecard when they came into the service. At the end of the message, there was a time when you could write down something that you felt God was calling you to give to Him. Then, if you wanted to, you could bring the notecard down to the front and lay it down on the altar.

Is this not unbelievable how God works!?! As ya'll can imagine, it took about half a second for me to know what God was calling me to give to Him. I wrote on my notecard, "Caroline Faith" and then drew a heart beside her name. Then I walked to front and gave her to the Lord.

Later as we stood up to sing the final song, I physically felt like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I felt so free, and Jesus was filling my heart with His peace and joy again.

I couldn't wait to tell Jody all about it later that night. There were some other things God showed me yesterday too, that I also got to tell him about. I am always amazed how God can speak to each one of us so perfectly and so personally at the exact time that we need it most!

Today, my heart is full and free...thankful and trusting. And guess what?

The sun is shining!!! :)

"So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed." John 8:36

FBI Fingerprints: 2nd Round!

2012-01-10T16:37:00.001-06:00

Well, we were back at our local police department yesterday, January 9, 2012, to get our fingerprints made for our FBI background checks!

Yes, this is our 2nd time to do this! We went for the first time back in June of 2010. I posted it about it HERE! It's crazy to see how much the kids have grown in a year and a half! (Callie Grace was at cheer practice, so that's why she isn't in the picture!)

The FBI background check is a requirement for an adoption home study, so you have to get fingerprints made and then mail them to the FBI. Since we are working on updating our home study, we have to submit these AGAIN! I mailed the fingerprint cards to the FBI today, and they should be there by this Friday! The first time it took forever (8 weeks and 2 days to be exact) to get our results back, so I am praying that it doesn't take that long this time!

We have to get this home study update DONE by the end of March! I have had some people ask about the home study process, so I will try to do a post soon about what all is involved! Thankfully, the update process is way easier than the initial home study...and it's not as expensive!

And two funny stories...

Well, one of my fingerprints smeared just a little bit on the card when the sweet police lady was doing it. She said she really THOUGHT it would probably be ok. Well, ya'll know I couldn't quit thinking about it last night and worrying that my fingerprint wouldn't be "readable". If the FBI can't read your fingerprints, then you have to do this all over again and re-submit them! Obviously that's something I don't want to have to do...remember our end of March timeline! :)

So, this crazy-perfectionist-adoptive mom who wants her baby girl home yesterday, went BACK to the police department to get ANOTHER set of fingerprints made!!! :) So, I ended up sending in 2 fingerprint cards in for me...just in case!!! :) Oh my goodness, I think I am losing it! So thankful for my patient and sane husband! Haha!!!

Oh, and that patient and sane husband of mine is also the friendliest, most smiling, happiest, never-meets-a-stranger type person you will ever meet! Seriously, he either sees or makes friends EVERYWHERE we go! And while at the police department yesterday, we met another couple (he is a police officer) who are adopting and they were getting their fingerprints done.

End result?

From one adoptive dad to another...Jody talked himself out of speeding ticket that he got last week!!! :)

Love how God placed us there at the same time, and I am so thankful for that nice police officer showing my sweet husband some GRACE!!!

Three Cheers for Upward!

2012-01-09T14:47:00.003-06:00

This past Saturday marked the beginning of our Upward basketball and cheer season! Callie Grace is cheering, and Carson is playing basketball again this year! (And Mommy and Daddy are coaching again, of course!) :)

Callie Grace absolutely LOVES to cheer!!! She got to be the captain for the first game, and she was loving every second of it! This girl can cheer LOUD! She gets her loudness from her Daddy! :)

Do ya'll see that smile!?! She was glowing that whole afternoon! We love seeing her do something that she loves so much and has so much FUN doing! And the best part of Upward is that it's a Christian program filled with devotions, Scripture memory and putting Christ first in sports!

And it worked out perfectly that her squad got to cheer for Carson's team! Yep, that's our cute little #12! That's probably not how he would like for me to describe him (cute and little)! I guess I should say our tough and tall #12!!! And Carson LOVES any sport...including basketball!

Callie Grace was cheering really loud for her little brother!

Carson in some defensive action...he got awarded best defense of the game! Well, we are all pumped up for a really FUN basketball and cheer season ahead! Looking forward to it!!!

Three cheers for UPWARD!!!

Melkam Gena!

2012-01-07T07:55:00.000-06:00

Today, January 7th, is Christmas Day in Ethiopia!!!

"Melkam Gena" means Merry Christmas in Amharic. This is the day they celebrate Christ's birth in Ethiopia!

We are celebrating this morning at our house too...

with cinnamon rolls and Ethiopian coffee! Yummy!!!

By the way, this Ethiopian coffee is available from our good friends, the Braddy's, to help them bring their PRECIOUS little girl home from Ethiopia! They leave in 2 weeks to go meet her!!! The coffee is delish! Go check it out on their blog!

Well, we are PRAYING boldly for our baby girl and for Ethiopian adoption lately! In fact, lots of AGCI families all over the country were all praying last night at the same time! It was so neat to be on our knees praying for the orphans of Ethiopia, and know that so many of our other friends were doing the same thing!

Jody started reading a new book from Mark Batterson yesterday morning called "The Circle Maker". He updated our FB status yesterday morning with this quote from the book,

"God honors bold prayers; bold prayers honor God!"

So, yes, we are praying boldly for our Caroline Faith! Oh, and guess what? I got my birthday wish...it was just a day late! We moved a spot closer to her!!!! :)

Praying that this is our last Ethiopian Christmas without our Ethiopian princess!!!

Melkam Gena, ya'll!!!

"Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you." Jeremiah 29:12

The Big 34!

2012-01-05T15:52:00.000-06:00

Yep, today I turned 34 years old!!! It has been a great day so far! And thanks to Jody and these sweet kids, we really started the celebration last night! :)

Jody came home from work yesterday with a grocery sack with exactly 2 things in it...a box of chocolate cake mix, and a tub of chocolate icing (that included sprinkles!). He announced to the kids that they were going to make Mommy a birthday cake the night before my birthday!

Ya'll can imagine the excitement in our house when he said that!!! :) The kids were so excited...and so was I! I love a good chocolate cake with chocolate icing!

Here we all are with the finished product! (I think we caught Caty with her eyes closed!)

I think we could've started a fire with all those candles...and there weren't even quite 34 on there! We used all the ones we had left in the box! The cake was super YUMMY!!! They did it all by themselves, and Jody said he now has a new appreciation for cake decorators! :)

Then I woke up this morning to sweet birthday gifts, cards, texts, emails and phone calls! So sweet!!! Thanks so much!

Jody and the kids gave me a gift card to my new favorite store, Altar'd State! Seriously cute clothes and accessories...and it's a Christian store too! You can be looking at cute tops, and then right next to them are copies of the book Crazy Love for sale! SO neat!!!

And they also gave me some new running shoes...

Aren't these interesting!?! I wore them this morning at the gym and LOVED them! It feels totally different, and I'll have to get used to them. But I really think I am going to like them!

And here's the funniest part...these are Jody's new shoes I gave him for Christmas! Yep, we have the same shoes (just different colors!) We are so cool! Haha! :) Don't make fun of us if you see together working out in our matching shoes! :)

Then my sweet sister-in-law took Caty and I out for a birthday lunch!

Caty and her precious little cousin, Ella Kate! EK looked so adorable in her little jeans and little sparkle TOMS! I couldn't get over the cuteness! Hopefully, they will pass those down to Caroline Faith one day! :)

It is a BEAUTIFUL day here, and we got to eat lunch outside! So fun!!!

And I totally cheated today and got a huge Diet Coke (with a lemon, of course!) at lunch! I have to admit, it was really good! :)

Well, I posted in our AGCI group that I would love nothing more than to celebrate my birthday with good news of some referrals!!! I am still praying and hoping this might happen today!!!

It's funny, because I looked back at my post from my 33rd Birthday, and I was wishing for the same thing last year...to move like 5 spots on the waiting list! :)

I feel so loved and blessed today! I am thanking the Lord for another birthday!!! Well, we are all five going out to eat tonight as a family for my birthday! I can't wait! And I am praying that next year on my 35th birthday, we are going out to eat as a...

party of SIX!!! :)

Embrace for 2012.

2012-01-04T14:32:00.001-06:00

It was the morning of December 31, 2011. The day before the dawn of a new year. And not just any year. It would soon be 2012. I was walking in the cold, brisk air of the morning. Circle after circle in the quiet of our neighborhood. My heart in constant conversation with the Lord.

2012. I couldn't keep my heart from pounding harder, and it wasn't just because of the fast pace of the walk. I couldn't contain my excitement of what this year might hold.

Will this be the year we see the sweet face of our third daughter?

Will this be the year that our fourth child comes home?

Will this be the year we finally board a plane to Ethiopia?

Will this be the year we pull the baby crib out of the attic?

Will this be the year that God leads us to our Caroline Faith?

November 2009. The month that God led me to start praying about bringing home our daughter from Ethiopia. Sometimes it feels like it wasn't that long ago. Other times it feels like a lifetime ago. Over 2 years of praying for my daughter, and yet still knowing nothing about her. Still so many unknowns in our journey to her.

My heart was crying out. Oh please, Father! Please let this be the year that we embrace our daughter.

As I held that image in my mind, I knew the Lord was giving me that word for 2012. Embrace. This is the year I pray that we will indeed embrace our tiny daughter for the very first time. But He was showing me more.

This is the year I want to embrace the Lord like never before. I want more of Him. I want to want more of Him. I want to put Him above everything in my life...including our adoption journey. There it was. I had been honest before Him. Is it possible that in following God in obedience on our adoption journey, that somewhere along the way, I had put it above Him?

The verse in Revelation 2 to the church in Ephesus immediately came to mind. "You have forsaken your first love." Oh, Jesus, forgive me. A chorus that we used to sing in church years ago filled my heart...

Above all else.
Above all else.
Above all else.
Give my Yourself.

Yes, Jesus. Above anything else, I want You. More of You.

This adoption journey is just a small piece of this life He is calling us to live for Him. Bringing Caroline Faith home will be amazing...but it won't complete us. It won't complete the journey. Jesus Christ is the only One who will ever complete us. Loving Him fully. Embracing Him fully. Those are the only things that will bring complete joy and fulfillment.

As wonderful as it will be, Caroline Faith will not be made complete by coming home to our family. She will only be complete through Jesus Christ. I can only pray that He will draw her heart to His, and that He will use us to show her His love. I pray that for all of our children.

Then, I felt Him calling me to embrace others around me. To love others through the overflow of my love for Him. A love that is not possible unless it comes through Him. Oh, Jesus, help me love like you love. Give me eyes that see others as You see them. Beautiful and beloved.

2012 has already begun. It is only the 4th day of this new year and already the enemy is trying to put doubts and discouragement in my head.

Lord, I trust You. I pray that I will embrace this new year as the opportunity to love You with complete, reckless abandon.

Above all else...Give me Yourself.

Jesus, my passion in life is to know You
May all other goals bow down to
This journey of loving You more
Jesus, You’ve showered Your goodness on me
Given Your gifts so freely
But there’s one thing I’m longing for
Hear my heart’s cry
And my prayer for this life

Above all else
Above all else
Above all else
Give me Yourself

Savior, the more that I see Your beauty
The more that I glimpse Your glory
My heart is captured by You
Jesus, You are my greatest treasure
Nothing this world can offer
Could ever compare to You
So, hear my heart’s cry
And my prayer for this life

It's Official...

2012-01-03T21:52:00.003-06:00

As of today, January 3, 2012, we have "officially" started the home study update process!!!

I emailed back and forth today with our social worker about what we need to do to get this party started!!! Haha! Can ya'll tell I am ready to get this over and done with!?! :)

This picture was actually taken about a year and a half ago, on June 9, 2010, when we "officially" started our initial home study. I was so excited to get started on the paperwork chase to our baby girl!

Never once that day did it cross my mind that we would ever be having to update our home study. But here we are today...doing just that.

I often remind myself through this process when I say things like, "I never thought we'd be on the waitlist this long", or "I never thought we'd have to update our home study"...that even though I didn't know, GOD knew.

He has always known. None of this is a surprise to Him. In fact, this whole timeline is His exact perfect plan that He is using to bring us to our daughter.

And that gives me comfort. Even though it seems crazy that we are about to have re-do medical forms, background checks, and such, this is all necessary to complete our adoption journey.

She is worth it. But most of all, this is the road that God has called us to walk. It's a much longer road than we ever thought it would be. It's a much harder road than we ever thought. It's a much more emotional road, but it's the road that HE has chosen for us.

And I wouldn't trade that for anything.

He knows the road ahead of us, and He will go before us. I trust Him completely.

Home study update paperwork, get ready! Here we come!!!

"Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” Isaiah 30:21

Our Christmas 2011 in Pictures!

2012-01-02T08:00:00.000-06:00

Well, I still haven't found the time to really sit down and write about what all God has been speaking to me about 2012, so I thought I would give a little quick Christmas recap in pictures!

Don't worry, I'm not going to post all of the pictures...just a few fun ones! :) I have already posted about Caroline Faith's Christmas here! She had a great 2nd Christmas-not-yet-home!

The only 2 pictures I have from New Year's Eve are of DESSERTS! Haha! I took these pics on my phone of the yummy desserts that my sister-in-law, Erin made! We always have a huge, casual dinner at our house after our Christmas Eve service for family and some friends too!

Adorable Christmas tree cupcakes for the kids!

Seriously...there are no words for this dessert Erin made!!!

A special Africa pendant from our friend, Jamie, was waiting on our doorstep Christmas Eve!

Waiting to come out on Christmas morning! So excited to see if Santa came!

It looks like Santa did come!!!

He even ate all his cookies and drank his milk!

Caty loves her new doll that looks just like her!

Now Callie Grace can play "beauty shop" with her doll!

A new bat backpack for our baseball player!

Our precious niece, Ella Kate, had so much fun!

This was one of Carson's favorite gifts...his guitar!

Bless their hearts, with Daddy's allergies, this may be as close as they get to having pets! :)

A quick family picture on my phone at Jody's parent's house for Christmas lunch!

A rainy day-after-Christmas...we took the tree down and put the kids to work cleaning up! :)

A few mornings later, this is what I found when I woke up...too many blond curls to count!

Then yesterday morning, Callie Grace and I started off the New Year reading our Jesus Calling together!

A perfect way to start 2012!!!

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

Welcome, 2012!

2011-12-31T15:41:00.000-06:00

It's New Year's Eve 2011.

This is the day I guess everyone reflects on the past year and dreams of the year to come. (And if you're like us, you also do some cleaning out and organizing around the house!)

I have so many thoughts and prayers swirling around in my heart today. I pretty much wrote a whole blog post about it in my head on my walk this morning! Haha! The problem is having the time to type all those words out...hopefully tomorrow. :)

We are cooking out with some sweet friends tonight, and I've got to go get ready...and run to the store to get the ingredients for the Crunchy Romaine Toss Salad I am making. I will have to share that recipe with ya'll sometime. It is delicious!!! ANYWAY...

Even though I will probably be sound asleep as the New Year officially begins (we are so boring, I know!), I am SO EXCITED about 2012 that I can hardly stand it!!! I can't wait to see where God leads us...and WHO He leads us to!

Happy New Year's Eve, ya'll!!!

"The Lord favors those who fear Him, those who WAIT for His lovingkindness." Psalm 147:11

Can't Get Enough Kisses!

2011-12-30T18:07:00.001-06:00

Yes, I am so thankful that it's still the holidays and I have a little bit of extra time on my hands before the back-to-school/work/sports/etc. craziness begins because..

I seriously cannot. put. this. book. down!!!

I bought this book as a Christmas gift for myself! :)

And ya'll have got to go get it...the 147 Million girls are selling it HERE! This will be a GREAT read for 2012!!! I am telling ya'll, God has used Katie's story so much in my life! Her blog was one of the first blogs that God led me to back in 2009 when He was calling us to adoption.

The way God is using Katie in Uganda is amazing! You will be challenged, inspired, convicted, and changed from reading her story. You will laugh...and cry. But most of all, you will see a true picture of someone who has given her very life to love Jesus fully and love those around her.

At only 22 years old, she serves the Lord through her ministry, Amazima, that reaches hundreds of children in Uganda. Oh, and she also has 13 precious little girls who she has adopted! Get ready...Katie's passion for the Lord and for the least of these is contagious!!!

I am about to start chapter 9...can't wait!!!

Caroline Faith's 2nd Christmas!

2011-12-29T11:43:00.000-06:00

Well, I guess ya'll can tell from the picture above that sweet little Miss Caroline Faith had a BIG 2nd Christmas-not-yet-home! This is our second Christmas waiting on our little Ethiopian princess to join our family, and everyone went all out for her this year! :)

She got precious baby dolls, ornaments, head bands, a recordable story book (so we can record our voices for her) and a learning puppy! It was so fun to add all these sweet things to her ever-growing "stash" up in the closet she will share with her big sister!

Then yesterday afternoon, one of my best friends, Mimi, came over with another Christmas gift for Caroline Faith!

Oh my goodness, I just LOVE this sweet baby doll!!! She is adorable! I sure hope that Caroline Faith likes baby dolls because she has some super cute ones waiting on her at home! :)

She was on our hearts and minds all Christmas morning! We all started the morning (including me! I am starting to drink coffee!) with a few cups of Ethiopian coffee that another sweet friend, Jamie, gave us! It was delish!!! And I think we all needed the caffeine on Christmas morning! haha!

Jamie also brought me a beautiful Africa pendant for my necklace. She got it in a market on her latest trip to Africa. I love it!!! I wore it on Christmas day, and it just made me feel close to our baby girl!

A few nights before Christmas, we came home to see a little Christmas gift waiting at our front door. Of course, the kids ran to the front door to open it! We were so excited to open this Africa ornament from our friends, the Streets! We hung it up on the tree immediately! I love it!!!

Now, we have several Africa ornaments on our tree, and I love every one of them! I know they will be so special to Caroline Faith over the years. It will be so neat to tell her about all the people who gave us these ornaments before she was even home with us!

I am missing her BIG TIME this Christmas season, but thankfully, God has given me so much peace right now. I just loved praying through these verses this morning. Hopefully, they will minister to ya'll as well...no matter what or who you are waiting on this holiday season!

"The LORD is near to all who call upon Him,
To all who call upon Him in truth.
He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him;
He will also hear their cry and will save them.
The LORD keeps all who love Him..."

Psalm 145:18-20

Fingerprint Updated FDL!!!

2011-12-27T16:21:00.001-06:00

Well, I am still working on sorting through all our Christmas pictures, so I thought I'd post about our latest adoption process update!

On December 23, 2011 (just 2 days before Christmas), we were super-excited to get a very special letter in the mail mixed in with all the Christmas cards! And it was from...

USCIS!!! (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services)

It always feels pretty "official" to get letters from them! :) But we were especially excited to get this one because it was our...

Updated FDL!!! (Favorable Determination Letter)

Remember when we had to go get our fingerprints done again a few weeks ago? Well, this was basically the updated FDL saying that our fingerprints are now current again until early 2013. So (for now) we are again updated on all of our USCIS paperwork.

However, we will very soon start to update our home study and our FDL will have to be renewed again. I know this is all pretty confusing, but that's just part of the beauty of international adoption paperwork!!! :)

I am just happy to be another step closer to our baby girl! And I really am excited about getting started on our home study update. We have been anticipating have to do this for several months now, so I am just ready to get it started and DONE!!! :)

Ya'll know I love a checklist, so I'll be updating as we get these home study steps checked off our list...AGAIN!!! But she will be so worth it!!! :)

Hope ya'll had a great Christmas! We sure did!!! Lots of pictures to come... :)

"You hem me in behind and before, and You lay Your hand upon me." Psalm 139:5

Merry Christmas 2011!

2011-12-24T15:35:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas from...

our three little elves and our...

sweet baby girl on the way!!!

We hope that your Christmas is

filled with the LOVE of Christ!!!

New December 2011 Number!!! The TEENS!!!

2011-12-23T13:36:00.000-06:00

Just a couple of hours after I posted yesterday, we received an email from another AGCI case worker (ours had already left work for the Christmas holidays) with our official December 2011 waitlist number...

#19!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :) :) :) :) :)

Ya'll may can tell that I am just a little excited to finally, officially be in the TEENS!!!!!!!!! :)

I have pretty much been on what I like to call "adoption cloud 9" ever since we got that email! You see we had been in the 20's for FOUR (very long) months! That was the longest we had ever stayed in one "decade". I was more than ready to say good-bye to the 20's!

And I know that the timing of this adoption journey is not just about a "waitlist number"...it is about God's perfect plan! But it's still so much fun to celebrate being closer to our baby girl! And we had been praying all month that we would finally be in the TEENS for December. I am SO THANKFUL that God chose to answer our prayers with #19! :)

I don't know what it is about the TEENS, but I just knew that I would feel so much closer once we finally hit them. And I do!!! The teens really do feel different! Now, I just need to start praying that we don't hang out in the teens anywhere near as long as we did in the 20's! :)

Oh, and another great thing? Because of some recent movement in our agency, we know that we are really already "unofficially" #18! We are rejoicing and praising God that more children are being matched with their forever families...and that we are a few spots closer to Caroline Faith!!!

⁷ The law of the LORD is perfect,
   reviving the soul.
The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy,
   making wise the simple.
⁸ The precepts of the LORD are right,
   giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the LORD are radiant,
   giving light to the eyes.
⁹ The fear of the LORD is pure,
   enduring forever.
The ordinances of the LORD are sure
   and altogether righteous.

Psalm 19:7-9

Merry Christmas, ya'll!!!

Christmas for Caroline...the 2nd!

2011-12-22T14:43:00.000-06:00

Last year I wrote a post titled Christmas for Caroline, so I had to title this year's post "the 2nd"! :)

Well, we just had to get Caroline Faith a Christmas gift this year. I knew I wanted to get her a Corolle baby doll, but I just wasn't sure which one. After lots of searching online and in stores, I finally decided on this sweet one...

Isn't she SWEET!?!

It's the Corolle Babipouce Darling doll, and I got it here! This doll is made to be a "first doll" for babies. She is super soft and sweet! I can't wait to let the kids open her up on Christmas morning for Caroline Faith!

I realize this may seem weird to some people, but for us, it makes perfect sense. We have four children, but one of them is not home with us yet. She is already a part of our family, and (for us) it just helps to acknowledge that by getting her a Christmas gift! :)

Oh, and I could hardly stand it last night. There was LOTS of celebrating at our house! I usually don't share "unofficial" waitlist numbers on the blog. And, no, we still don't have our official December number yet. However, I think it's pretty safe to say that we are finally (after 4 full months in the 20's) in the...

TEENS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)

My heart's prayer is echoing Hannah's prayer in 1 Samuel 2:1...

“My heart rejoices in the LORD; in the LORD my horn is lifted high...for I delight in your deliverance."

Our 2011 Christmas Card!!!

2011-12-21T08:00:00.000-06:00

I really, really wish that I could send all of ya'll a Christmas card! But I hope this will be almost as good! :)

From our family to yours...
Merry Christmas!!!

May your Christmas be filled with the LOVE of Jesus Christ!

(For the last 3 years, my super-talented and creative friend, Emily, of 29:11 Creations has designed our Christmas cards! She is amazing!!! I absolutely LOVE the wording she chose..."and praying home, Caroline Faith! That is exactly what we are doing!!! Thanks again, Emily, for creating the perfect card!)

"But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord." Luke 2:10-11

Christmas Card Memory Lane (Continued!)

2011-12-20T08:00:00.000-06:00

This another re-cap post from last year, but I have added our 2010 Christmas card to it!

I LOVE Christmas cards, and I had some free time to scan some of our old Christmas cards. And well, I thought it would be fun to walk down the "Memory Lane" of our family's Christmas Cards!

Wanna walk with me?

Oh yes, so young and newlywed...and we have a Himalayan!! :) This was our first Christmas card picture to send out in December 2001. We had been married a year and a half, and were living in our fun, little apartment in The Woodlands, Texas with our first baby, Angel! (Angel is still alive and well, but now lives with my grandmother, Mimi!)

Our first Christmas card with our new baby girl, Callie Grace! This was Christmas 2003, and Callie Grace was just over 2 months old! (Can you tell that is a Boppy pillow under that green blanket?) :)

I used to think I was crafty (but I was really just frugal), and I would handmake our Christmas cards each year! It was fun...for awhile. :) This was Christmas 2004 with sweet Callie Grace just over a year old, and baby Carson was already on the way!

Carson is here!! It was Christmas 2005, and we got to send out our Christmas card with our TWO precious children! Callie Grace had just turned two years old, and Carson was almost 5 months old!

This marks the last year of the handmade cards! (Life started to get a little crazy after this year!) This was Christmas 2006, and Callie Grace was barely three, Carson was 16 months old, and Baby #3 was on the way!

It's a girl!! Precious Caty joined our family, and we were thrilled to have all THREE of our children in our Christmas card of 2007!

We had a fun Ole Miss Rebel Christmas card for 2008! Have always loved this picture of the kids! Callie Grace was five years old, Carson was three, and Catybug was just 20 months...and notice that her hair was straight! No curls yet! :)

And here was our Christmas 2009 card! We had just moved to our new home, and life was really crazy, but fun! We sent our cards out super-early that year, so everyone would have our new address!

Last year was our first time to include our precious Caroline Faith on our Christmas card! We had started the adoption journey and were already 3 months into the waitlist! This is one of my all-time favorite cards!

Tomorrow I will post our Christmas Card 2011!!! :)

Eight Years of Santa Pictures!

2011-12-19T07:48:00.001-06:00

As promised, here is a recap post from last year of all of our Santa pictures throughout the years! :)

We have a fun Christmas tradition of getting the kids' picture made with Santa each year...a lot of ya'll probably do this too! One of my very favorite things to set out each Christmas is our framed pictures with Santa! We line them across the kitchen counter in order, and they are hilarious!

Eight years of our kids with Santa! Take a look...

I actually did miss Callie Grace's very first Christmas when she was 2 months old! I guess I was too sleep deprived to remember! :) So, here is her first picture with Santa at 14 months old!

She was terrified of Santa! She burst into tears when she saw him! He had to sneak in behind her to even get this picture!

Callie Grace and Carson were ALL SMILES this year with Santa! I couldn't believe we got such a precious picture!

But the next year, the tears started again...

Carson was SO scared of Santa!! I think all his screaming made Callie Grace a little unsure too! :)

This picture cracks me up the most because you may notice that someone is missing! Yep, we could not even get Carson in the picture this year!! He was absolutely terrified and would not get anywhere NEAR Santa! I finally gave up, and just got the picture with the girls! Ha! :)

Caty was happy this year, but that would not last long...

Can you tell how much Caty LOVED Santa this year?!! :)

She was NOT into Santa at all! And I love the look on Carson's face! He actually got in the picture, but he looks like he wants to run!

Ahhhh...now finally they are all HAPPY to take a picture with Santa!!

And last year's Santa picture was a breeze!! They all sat in Santa's lap and told him what they wanted for Christmas, and then were ALL SMILES for the picture! :)

And the latest picture...

Our 2011 "Picture with Santa"!!!

I don't know about ya'll, but I am thinking that we REALLY need a little Ethiopian princess in this picture next year!!! :)

We love getting our pictures made with Santa every year, and we "do Santa" at our house, but we don't make a huge deal of it. Our family believes that JESUS is the real reason we celebrate Christmas!

It is so amazing to think that a baby truly changed EVERYTHING for us! Thank you, Lord, for the birth of your Son, Jesus!

"She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name JESUS, because He will save His people from their sins.” Matthew 1:21

15 Months and Hoping!

2011-12-17T08:18:00.002-06:00

Today, December 17, 2011, marks exactly 15 MONTHS on the AGCI girl waitlist for our precious baby girl in Ethiopia!

I am actually starting to like getting to the 17th of every month, because I love knowing the we are another month CLOSER! And it has been really neat along the journey how God always seems to provide something really fun or meaningful on the 17th.

Today, Jody has the privilege of marrying two of our dear friends. It is going to be a beautiful, intimate, God-honoring ceremony, and I am so excited about it! I have the very informal role of "kind-of wedding director", so I am a little nervous! Haha! My role is basically to keep everyone on time and organized, so I am hoping I can do that! :)

We are getting oh-so close to the TEENS on the waiting list, so I am really looking forward to getting our official December waitlist number...hopefully next week!

To our precious Caroline Faith,

You are constantly on my heart and mind. I told your Daddy the other day, that I am having trouble keeping track of all the Christmas to-do lists. I think it is because I am constantly praying and thinking of YOU! I don't have much more room in my heart or brain to think of anything else! :)

Your older sisters and brother are talking about you all the time too. They cannot wait to have you home! They were so excited to finally move a few numbers closer to you this week! I can't wait for you to get home and meet them. They are already in LOVE with you...we all are!

Maybe it's because of the Christmas season, or maybe it's because we are getting closer to you, I'm not sure...but I know this, I am aching for you more than ever before. I am constantly praying for you until I literally run out of words to say. The I just start praying that the Spirit will intercede. I pray that He will go before the throne of God with intercession for us.

I pray that wherever you are, if you are born or still inside your birthmother's womb, that you will feel the love of God on and around you today. I pray that you will know how wanted, how loved, how special, how beautiful, how precious you are to God and to us...your forever family!

Hold on, baby girl. We love you and we're coming soon!

"Wait for the Lord, be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord." Psalm 27:14

USCIS Fingerprints are DONE! (for the 2nd time!)

2011-12-15T12:53:00.000-06:00

This morning, Caty and I headed downtown to the federal building to get my biometric fingerprints done at our local USCIS office. Yes, we had done this once before back in November of 2010, so we were doing this for the 2nd time!

Our fingerprints will expire in February, so we had to go ahead and start the renewal process. Doing this again keeps our FDL (Favorable Determination Letter) current. That letter is basically our federal approval to adopt Caroline Faith from Ethiopia, so we definitely want to keep it updated!

The same precious lady was there from last year, and she was so encouraging! She even remembered us from last year! It was super quick, and we were in and out of there in less than 20 minutes. So glad to have these done! Praying that this is our last time to do these fingerprints!!!

You are not allowed to take cell phones or cameras in the building, but I got Caty to snap a picture after our appointment. I've gotta photo-document every step of the journey! (even the ones we have to do twice!) :)

Fingerprints done!!!!

Caty and I had to get a picture together too! This little one has been a trooper in the adoption process! I promise, she is like my little sidekick on this journey!

Here we are together last year getting the fingerprints done! :)

Caty has gotten dragged around with me on all my "adoption errands" over the last 20 months, and she has done great! I am so proud of her and her sweet spirit through it all! She knows we are doing all this to help bring her baby sister home, and she LOVES that!!! :)

The Littlest Angel!

2011-12-14T12:43:00.000-06:00

Well, we are super busy this week (as I'm sure ya'll are too) with Christmas parties, programs, etc. I love this time of year! I tend to function better in craziness (weird, I know), so I love all the busy, Christmas fun! :)

This morning was our very last day of preschool before Christmas! So, no more school for Caty and no more work for me until 2012!!! I am so excited for a little 3 week break!

Well, we had Caty's Christmas program this morning, and it was so precious! Here she is...

our precious little ANGEL!!! :)

She did such a great job, and the Christmas program was so cute! I can't believe that was her last preschool Christmas program. Next year, she'll be off at "big school"! Ahhhh...not too sure how I feel about that! :) For now, she is still my baby.

Jody and I were so proud of our little angel!

Jody is off to do his USCIS fingerprint renewal this afternoon! Maybe I can talk him into taking a picture of himself! Haha! Ya'll know how I love taking pictures on this adoption journey! Another milestone day!!! :)

God's Truth in the Wait.

2011-12-13T12:13:00.000-06:00

God is using these verses to speak to me today:

"Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God's Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don't know how or what to pray, it doesn't matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good." Romans 8:26-28 (The Message)

Daddy's HOME!!!

2011-12-12T08:00:00.001-06:00

Yep, Daddy is finally HOME!!! And we are so happy to have him back! Jody left last Friday (as in December 2nd!) for a 10 day mission trip to South Africa with a group from our church!

I didn't mention it on the blog because I felt kind of funny putting it on the internet that my husband was out of the country for 10 days! Wasn't trying to be secretive...just safe! :)

I took him to the airport last Friday morning (the kids were all at school). This picture was made right before I started crying!!! I really was so excited for him to go, but we all know that I've pretty much been an emotional wreck lately! :) I knew that we would miss him so much, and I really just wanted to go jump on that plane and go with him!

Here is Jody and some of the girls on the mission trip team about to board the plane!

It is an 8 hour time difference and the cell phone rates are really expensive, but we were able to Skype with him in the afternoons. The kids loved seeing Daddy on the computer! We plan on talking to them this way when we are in Ethiopia too!

God protected my time with the kids so amazingly while Jody was gone, and we truly did have a great week! I had to stay really organized, energetic and patient, but God just richly supplied all those things this past week! We truly felt prayed for and loved on! Most all of our friends in town knew he was gone, and I got so many sweet emails, phone calls, and texts from friends checking on us! It meant the world to me! Thanks so much, sweet friends!!!

Well, now fast forward 10 days later to Sunday, December 11th!

The kids at the airport with the "Welcome Home" sign they made for Daddy!

Then a sweet lady offered to take a picture of all 4 of us!

A few minutes later we saw his plane coming in!!!

Waiting on Daddy to get off the plane!

There he is!!! Big hugs for Daddy! Of course, at this point I am crying again! (as in mascara all down my face!) :)

I looked down and Callie Grace was crying too! I think she is kind of emotional like her mama! It was just a really sweet moment. It made me imagine the moment we come off the plane with Caroline Faith one day and our whole family is together! Ahhhh...can't wait. It makes me tear up to even think about it!

Mommy and Daddy together again! And what a difference 10 days make! We are now blonder and bearded! Haha! :)

LOVE my man and so glad that he is HOME!!!

Anyway, we missed him TONS but I am so glad he had the opportunity to go. It was truly life-changing for him. And most of their time was spent loving on orphans and children in need!!! I always thought the first time we would go to Africa would be together to go meet Caroline Faith, but God had other plans. I definitely think that God used this trip to South Africa in big ways!

I am hoping to get him to do a guest blog post on his South Africa trip soon!!!

The December Giveaway Winner!

2011-12-10T12:17:00.000-06:00

Carson helped me choose the winner today for the December Photography E-Course Giveaway!!!

Reaching in to draw the winner...

And the winner is...

Melissa at Numbering Our Days!!!

So excited for you, Melissa! Hope this photography course will help you get lots of great pics of your little boy! :) Just email me at lovinmuch at yahoo dot com, and I will get the download info to you!

And if you didn't win, remember you can still purchase the photography e-course from Angela and help them bring their little girl home from the Congo!!! Go HERE for all the details!

Have a great weekend ya'll! We're off to see the Nutcracker this afternoon...a fun, Christmas tradition for us! :)

Only A Few More Hours Left...

2011-12-09T15:46:00.001-06:00

to enter the December GIVEAWAY for a...

PHOTOGRAPHY E-COURSE by professional photographer, Angela Braniff!!!

Click HERE for all the details! You have until midnight tonight, and the winner will be announced tomorrow!

Travel Shots? DONE!!!

2011-12-08T14:26:00.000-06:00

One week ago today, we headed back down to our local health department to complete our travel shots for Ethiopia! Yep, we are DONE with all our shots!!!

As usual, I made Jody go first! :) That way, he can take the pain first and tell me how bad it is! Although, we both agreed this final round wasn't as bad as round 2 of the shots!

Miss Catybug was smiling big! I think she was just happy that she didn't have to get any shots herself! :)

Watching the shot go in...why did I do that? I think it made it worse!

I just decided to smile for the next shot! I highly suggest taking pictures while you are getting shots. I promise, you don't even think about the pain when you are trying to smile during the midst of it! :)

I LOVE that we are done with this step!!! Just makes me feel better every step we take closer to our baby girl!

A friend with our agency pointed out today that AGCI has changed the waitlist timeline estimates. Their website now says, "After you’ve submitted your dossier, your family could wait up to 24 months or more to be referred a child."

We had been told 12-18 months when we first got on the waitlist in September 2010. Then, a few months later, they lowered it to 9-12 months. Then they raised it again to 12-18 months. And now, it looks like it has extended to 24 months or more. Which, at the rate we are moving on the waitlist, seems like a more realistic time frame.

Okay, I have decided to prepare my heart for up to 24 months on the waitlist (which would be September 2012), and then if we know who she is any sooner than that, it will be a WONDERFUL surprise!!!

I am still very hopeful that we could see her sweet face BEFORE next fall, but I have to put it all in God's hands and just totally trust HIS timing!

Oh, and don't forget the December Photography E-Course GIVEAWAY!!! It ends this Friday night at midnight, so go check it out!

Happy Thursday, ya'll!

USCIS Fingerprints: Take Two!

2011-12-06T16:04:00.002-06:00

Well, we got our USCIS fingerprint appointment notices in the mail yesterday! It looks like we'll be going back to the federal building next week to get our fingerprints made...for the SECOND time!!! :)

Our appointments are actually on two different days...kind of strange. Jody's appointment is the day before mine. But it actually will work out well because there is no way I could make the time they gave him. And I have nothing going on the morning of my appointment, so it looks like it will work out just fine! :)

Our first appointments we got, (over a year ago) we had to send in to re-schedule, but it doesn't look like we will have to the second time around. I have to admit, it's really bittersweet doing this all over again.

On one hand, it's sad because I always hoped and dreamed that Caroline Faith would be HOME with us this Christmas. I never thought we'd be sitting here at #22 on the waitlist and re-doing fingerprints! But on the other hand, I am excited because this just marks another milestone on our adoption journey to our little love in Ethiopia!

She is worth the wait, and we'll do whatever it takes to get her home! We'll even do these fingerprints a THIRD time if needed! (But I hope we won't have to!) :)

I lead children's worship during the 11:00 service at our church, and it is such a BLESSING!!! Oh my goodness, seeing and hearing these precious children praising God every Sunday is a true JOY!

Anyway, we do the Elevate curriculum in our children's ministry, and this week our "main point" was simple, yet profound...

"I will have patience."

Yep, I think God spoke to me this Sunday just as much (if not more!) through our children's large group as He did through the sermon. The Bible story was how Simeon waited patiently to see the baby Jesus. Simeon had been promised that He would live to see the Messiah. And he did.

Our children's minister talked about how the Greek word for patience actually means cheerful endurance and HOPE. Patience is not just "biding our time" or "making it through a difficult circumstance". Patience is waiting steadfastly with excitement, enthusiasm and HOPE.

And the Bible says clearly in 1 Corinthians 13 that "love is patient." So, putting it all together here...because I love God and want to show His love to others. And because I love our daughter in Ethiopia, my love has to be a patient love. Not a love that complains, cries and whines in the long wait. Not a love that walks around everyday "down in the dumps" because of another day with no waitlist movement. Not a love that just wants to rush through this wait, so it will be over.

And I think I just MIGHT know someone who lives at our house, who's name starts with the letter "A" who MAY have been doing all of these things over the past few months! :) It hasn't been pretty ya'll, but I am just being honest here.

Well, I (obviously) am at a breaking point where I cannot make it through this wait on my own. I am entirely and completely and totally dependent on my heavenly Father to carry me through the rest of the wait. I was telling a friend the other day that I am at a point where I literally cannot get out of bed in the morning without time in the Word and time spent pouring my heart out in prayer to the Lord. As I was saying those words to my friend, it hit me.

Of course!!! That's a point that I should be at each and every day...no matter the circumstance. I think I am finally at the place where God has wanted me all along during this over 2 year journey.

I am completely surrendered to HIS will, HIS sovereignty, and HIS timing for bringing our daughter home. And I am praying that He will give me the strength to endure the rest of the wait with patience and hope.

"But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently." Romans 8:25

December Photography E-Course GIVEAWAY!!!

2011-12-05T07:42:00.000-06:00

I still can't believe that November went by so fast! And it completely got away from me before I had a chance to host this amazing GIVEAWAY! But I think it's going to be even better in December because this would make an amazing Christmas gift!!!

Some of ya'll may be like me...you LOVE to take pictures, and you really want good pictures, but you really don't know how! Sometimes all those camera settings get confusing! :) You would love to learn to take better pictures, but you don't have time to take a photography class. Or maybe you know someone else who really wants to improve their photography skills!

Well, I think I may have the perfect solution! :)

I am super excited to GIVEAWAY a...

PHOTOGRAPHY E-COURSE by professional photographer, Angela Braniff!!!

Want to know how to get those blurry backgrounds?
It's in HERE!

Want to stop the action at your kids sporting event, without blur?
It's in HERE!

What else is covered?
*Exposure Triangle
*Aperture, Shutter Speed, ISO
*LOTS of tips on how to get the picture you want
*Composition
*Focus
*Metering
* Lens recommendations
and SO MUCH MORE!!!!

Angela Braniff and her family are in the adoption process to bring home a little girl from the Democratic Republic of Congo! And since Angela is a professional photographer, she came up with a great way to fundraise for their adoption expenses! She teaches a beginner level photography workshop, and she decided to turn that workshop into an E-course!

Angela is super-talented, and has some great advice to share with anyone wanting to take better pictures! And check out these precious pictures she took of her daughters...

Aren't those the most ADORABLE pictures?!!

Here is what Angela said about their adoption fundraiser...

"Of course our biggest roadblock has been money, we started this process with NOTHING! But God has provided each and every dime along the way! We still have a ways to go, but we know He is Jehovah Jirah, our provider.

I am a photographer, and I get asked by moms all the time, how to take better pictures? So I turned my basics workshop into an E-course and we are selling it to bring our Rose home from the Congo! It’s 50 pages full of images, and practical easy to understand information about photography. Whether you have a nice DSLR or a point and shoot, there is something to learn in this E-course. It’s great if you’re looking to take better images at your kids sporting events, dance recitals, or just to spruce up your blog! The cost is $15.00 and it is an immediate download! I believe life is worth remembering, and what better way to chronicle your children’s lives, than with beautiful images! You can purchase through our blog, by clicking on Photography E-Course Fundraiser."

This would be a GREAT photo course for anyone! And I think it would be a great gift to give someone this Christmas! You can give someone the gift of capturing precious memories on camera AND help an adoptive family bring their child home!!! Sounds like a win-win situation if you ask me! :)

So here are all the ways to enter the GIVEAWAY:

1. Leave a comment about what photography skills you would like to learn more about by taking the E-course!

2. Blog, Facebook or Tweet (or all 3!) about this giveaway and leave a comment letting me know you did! (Each will count as an entry!)

3. Purchase the Photography E-Course! This will count as TWO entries! (And you will get refunded if you WIN!)

4. Become a follower of Angela's blog or let me know that you are already following their blog!

5. Become a follower of Lovin' Much, or let me know that you are already following our blog!

So, there ya go! Ya'll have lots of ways to enter!!! This giveaway ends on Friday, December 9th at midnight, CST. I will announce the WINNER this Saturday, December 10th!!!

Happy *December GIVEAWAY* day, ya'll! :)

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree...

2011-12-03T13:57:00.002-06:00

This past Thursday night, we ventured out in the cold to go do one of our favorite things...

pick out our CHRISTMAS TREE!!!

(I love their cute red cheeks and noses! It was cold, but thankfully, they had hot apple cider there to drink! It hit the spot!)

Our crazy crew was so excited to go look at all the trees at our local Christmas tree stand and pick one out! They were actually out of the size we had wanted, but we liked one that was just a little bit shorter...

and here it is!!! Our 2011 Christmas tree...and it's still way taller than us and our kiddos! :)

Then they wrapped it up and tied it down on the top of our car, so we could take it HOME!!!

Thankfully, we don't have any tree allergies at our house, so we get a real tree every year! There is just nothing like the smell of a frazier fir Christmas tree! One of my most favorite scents ever!

Yes, having a real tree does involve pine needles getting ALL OVER THE HOUSE! :) But if you ask me, it's totally worth it!!!

We are working on decorating our tree today! The kids have "helped" a lot! They had already broken 2 ornaments before I had even gotten out of bed this morning! Oh well! :)

Hope ya'll have a great weekend! Be sure to check back in on Monday for our December GIVEAWAY!!!

Guess Who's BACK???

2011-12-01T08:26:00.004-06:00

Today is December 1st, so guess who showed up at our house this morning???

Sophie!!! Our boy elf with a girl name! :)

The kids were THRILLED to see him/her back! Carson has already read to Sophie the 37 things on his Christmas list! Haha!

And the kids started with Day 1 opening their "Countdown to Christmas" boxes that my Mom got them. Every day has a Hershey's kiss inside! Nothing like having chocolate every morning for 25 days straight! Love it!!! :)

We have got a busy day ahead filled with our FINAL ROUND OF TRAVEL SHOTS for Ethiopia...and we are going to pick out our Christmas tree!!! Pictures to come...

Happy December 1st, ya'll!!!

Fun Times With Santa!

2011-11-30T07:32:00.001-06:00

Oh yes, we are on it this year...it's not even December and we may not have a Christmas tree yet, but we have already gotten our pictures made with Santa! :)

Our 2011 "Picture with Santa"!!!

I don't know about ya'll, but I am thinking that we REALLY need a little Ethiopian princess in this picture next year!!! :)

I love looking at our Santa pictures from over the years. I have them all framed, and I put them out in our kitchen every Christmas! I will post them all soon, so ya'll can have a good laugh! There are some really funny ones...with some screaming babies who did not like Santa! One year, Carson is not even in the picture! He pitched a fit and would not even get NEAR Santa!!!

And speaking of crying babies who DON'T LIKE Santa...

here is Ella Kate's first Santa picture!!!

I think it's pretty safe to say our sweet niece was NOT a big fan of Santa this year! :)

New November 2011 Number!!!

2011-11-28T07:20:00.004-06:00

We got an email from our sweet AGCI case worker, K, last Tuesday with our new November 2011 number! Or I guess I should just say "our November 2011 number" because this number is definitely not "new" to us...

Yep, we are still sitting pretty at #22 on the AGCI Ethiopia girl waitlist!

In November 2010, we were #74 on the waitlist, and today we are #22! That is definitely better, although I have to admit I was REALLY hoping for the teens this month! We have been in the 20's for four months now, and that is way too long, if you ask me! :)

The wait is hard, but God is GOOD! We are really hoping and praying to see LOTS of movement in December that will bring us closer to our sweet baby girl!

And that would definitely be the best Christmas present of all! Praying for the TEENS for December, or better yet...the SINGLE DIGITS!!! :)

But for now, we are trying to rest here at #22, while trusting in THE ONE who is WAY BIGGER than any number on any waitlist!!!

"They cried to You and were saved; in You they trusted and were not disappointed."
Psalm 22:5

Nothin' Like Ice Skating on Black Friday!

2011-11-25T17:30:00.000-06:00

I have to admit it, I am not a big "Black Friday" shopper. Although my mom, sis-in-law and I did go to a few little downtown shops this afternoon. Well, the way I see it, why go fight the crowds and stand in long lines when you can go...

ICE SKATING, instead?!! :)

Yep, our little crew had a BLAST today at the ice skating rink!!!

Here is a rare picture of Carson when he was actually on his feet! Poor thing, I think he spent more time falling down than he did actually ice skating! He is definitely going to have a few bruises, but he still had fun! :)

Callie Grace and I were a pretty good team when we skated in our little "train"! :) My mom said she has a picture of me and her ice skating like this years ago! We'll have to try to find it!

Caty had quite a few falls on the ice too, bless her heart! This was her favorite way to ice skate...with Daddy holding onto BOTH of her hands!

And if ya'll didn't get all your shopping done on Black Friday, then be sure to check out the Christmas Shop for ADOPTION post...there are LOTS of great gift ideas! And go check out Lindsey's Adoption Fundraiser Raffle! She has some super cute items that she will raffle off on December 1st, so go enter for your chance to win!

Our November waitlist number...coming soon!!!

Happy Thanksgiving 2011!!!

2011-11-24T14:40:00.002-06:00

I just wanted to wish ya'll a...

Happy, Happy, Happy Thanksgiving from...

our family to yours!!!

Love my sweet girls, and longing for our THIRD baby girl so much today!

I have been praying all morning that this time next year, I will be holding our precious Caroline Faith in my arms at our Thanksgiving table! :)

We have so much to be THANKFUL for this year! I am so thankful to God for our family, friends, church, health, jobs, home, food, schools, and the list goes on and on! We are beyond blessed!!!

I am thanking God today for leading us on this amazing adoption journey to our baby girl in Ethiopia! And thankful that everyday that goes by, we are one day closer to bringing her HOME!!!

"Enter His gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to Him and praise His name!" Psalms 100:4

Christmas Shop for ADOPTION!!!

2011-11-21T08:00:00.010-06:00

Ya'll, seriously I am amazed by all the adoption fundraising families out there using their God-given talents and creativity to help them bring their children home! I have been blown away by all the great, unique Christmas gift ideas that ya'll are about to see below! Get ready for some FUN SHOPPING!!!

I am going to leave this post up for several days so ya'll have plenty of time to browse and "shop"! :) And then I will put a link to it in a sidebar of the blog during the entire Christmas season! Please help me spread the word about these fundraisers by sharing this link on your blog, Facebook, email or whatever! Let's bless these adoptive families BIG TIME by supporting their fundraisers!!!

And if you didn't have a chance to email me your fundraiser, feel free to leave a comment about it and a link to your fundraiser! And if you see that I accidentally left off your fundraiser, please let me know! Okay, it's time to Christmas Shop for ADOPTION!!!

*Lauren's Tutu Boutique-Lauren is a senior in HS fundraising to help bring her sibling home!

She has ADORABLE tutus, bracelets, Christmas ornaments, and even little tiny tutus and and bracelets for American Girl dolls!!! You can even get matching ones, so your daughter can match her AG doll! So precious!

*Candles! My sweet friend, Demetria, is selling these beautiful candles to help them bring their daughter, Lane, home from China! It is a 7 ounce soy candle and scent is applejack (think Christmas) and they are only $10 each. It has Lane's verse...isaiah 61:3 on the label. If anyone wants a candle they can deliver and even ship! Email Demetria at plainjaneframes@bellsouth.net. These would make GREAT Christmas gifts!!!

*Cookbooks, Fleece Blankets, Bows and Headbands! Kristen and her family are waiting on their precious child from the Congo! They have lots of great things they are selling to help bring their child home! Go HERE to their blog to see all their fundraising items for sale! And cookbooks are always a great gift for anyone on your list!

*Personalized Cake (and Snack) Keepers! Melissa and her husband are fundraising to help bring their son home from Russia! Melissa makes these adorable, personalized cake keepers that would make great Christmas gifts! She customize a cute design for a cake or snack keeper! Go HERE to their blog to see more options and how to place your order!

*Hand-crocheted Scarves! Kristen is selling BEAUTIFUL crocheted scarves to help bring their two children home from Ethiopia! Go HERE to see all the gorgeous color choices available! She has scarves in almost every color and scarves for men, women and children...a great gift for anyone!

*Leaves of Love family prints! Help this sweet couple bring their little home from Tawain by purchasing these Leaves of Love prints! Family and friends can add fingerprints and signature to your tree to make it a special keepsake! Go HERE to the etsy store or to the Leaves of Love blog to see all the cute choices and place your order!

*Custom Made Wreaths, Ornaments and Children's Clothing! Amy and her family are fundraising to bring their little girl home from China! Go to her blog to see all the cute things she is selling! She has so many cute gift ideas!

*Personalized Prints and Blog Design! My friend Lauren has some great fundraisers going on right now to help them bring their second child home from Ethiopia! ONE 17 has so many amazingly cute print designs! Go HERE to check them all out! Of course, I have already ordered the "FAITH" print above in pink and green to go in Caroline Faith's room! :) And Lauren also does blog design! She is the one who totally "made-over" our blog this summer, and I LOVE it! Go HERE to check out L.C. Graphic Design!

She also has a Baskets of Love: Gifts Galore giveaway going on right now where you could win LOTS of great Christmas gifts!

*Customized Family Rules Prints! Ya'll we know we LOVE Sixty Feet and all our friends there who are loving and serving children in need in Uganda! These prints would be a great gift for any family, and 100% of the profits go to Sixty Feet!You can read more about them at Shelly's blog HERE, and you can go HERE to see other design options and order them from Sixty Feet!

*Blankets, Quilts and Taggies! Dani and her family are fundraising to bring their two princesses home from the Congo! She has the cutest handmade blankets for sale at her etsy store! There are so many cute choices available...go HERE to check them out!

*Thirty-One Fundraiser and Ornaments!The McKnight family is doing a Thirty One fundraiser to bring home our little one from Ethiopia, click HERE to go to their blog and then click on the "fundraisers" tab to see all the details! Or you can go directly at http://www.mythirtyone.com/77571/ choose my events then Desiree's catalog Party! Also, they are selling adorable ornaments on their blog too, and there are several cute choices!

*Jewelry, keychains, handcrafted wood tambourines and children's African animals bracelets! Check out the With Love for Africa etsy store to see all these great gift ideas! All purchases will help Colin and Jess bring their precious little one home from Ethiopia!

*Minus One Project! Got Love? Adopt T-shirts, hoodies, travel cups, key fobs and MUCH MORE! All of these great items can be purchased HERE at their store to help the Apisa family bring their sweet little one home from Korea!

*Cassady Street! Precious handmade clothing, bibs, gifts, dresses and more for both girls and boys! She offers custom monogramming and applique too! Go to the Cassady Street website to see all the cute options, and help the Cassady family as they adopt domestically!

*Love Knows No Borders T-shirts! Help the Gordon family bring their son home from Ethiopia by purchasing these great t-shirts available in adult sizes S-XL! Go to their blog to place your order! They will also be auctioning off a whimsical cross painting in the next few weeks, so be looking for it!

*Cheesecakes and Homemade Playdough! This family is having a 500 Cheesecake Fundraiser to help bring their daughter home from Eastern Europe! Go HERE to read all the yummy details! Shipping and delivery options available! Cheesecake is one of our absolute favorite desserts, and these all sound delicious!

*Olive Tree Promise! You can help multiple adoptive families by making purchases from a variety of items listed at Olive Tree Promise! There are LOTS of great items for sale that will help adoptive families bring their children home!

*Handmade Ornaments! Kim is selling these custom, personalized ornaments to raise money for their adoption! These can be custom made for any country! Go HERE to see all the details! These are PERFECT for Christmas but could even be displayed year round!

*Hair Bows and Headbands & More! Check out Christy's etsy store to see all the cuteness she is making to help fundraise for their adoption of a sibling pair from Ghana! She also takes custom orders! The shop is also HERE on Facebook! A great gift for any little girl...you can never have too many bows! :)

*Just Love Coffee-$5 of every bag purchased from their store goes directly to the adoption fund of the Decoudres family adopting from Ethiopia!
https://justlovecoffee.com/about/beneficiary/decoudres/
There are LOTS of different coffee choices available, including Ethiopian coffee! Coffee is always a great gift!

*Metal Wall Crosses! U Silly Pickle is selling handmade crosses to help bring their child home from Uganda! $15, ($20 includes shipping). These would look great hanging on any wall or even just out on a coffee table or bookcase!

*Rustic Creations Frames! Help the Manuel family bring home their baby girl from Ethiopia! You can purchase the frames at the Manuel Family Blog, or by emailing Megan at megsmanuel@gmail.com. Picture frames are always one of my favorite gifts to give...and receive! :)

*Ordinary Hero Merchandise! The Manuel family is also a fundraising affiliate family with Ordinary Hero! Any purchase will go to help them, you just have to select her name (Megan Manuel) from the 'affiliates name' drop down menu at checkout.
http://www.ordinaryherostore.org/

*Cute Christmas Cards, Note Cards, Gift Tags, and MORE! Ya'll have got to check out Charise's blog to see all the cute design options and help them on their journey to adopt domestically! What a great way to get your Christmas cards done, and have cute gifts tags this year for the presents!

*Congo "HOPE" Adoption T-shirts, ornaments and Ugandan bead necklaces! Lori and her family are fundraising to bring their child home from the Congo! Go HERE to go to their blog and order your t-shirt or donate to help them bring their child home!

Also, Brooke let me know that she has a running list of adoptive family fundraisers at her blog under "Shop to Save"! There are lots of great items listed here too that would make great Christmas gifts!

And remember to check the comments in case any other families list their fundraisers too! Thanks for shopping, ya'll!!!

A Little Pilgrim, Funny Thank You Note, and some Lessons Learned!

2011-11-19T15:37:00.008-06:00

Yesterday, we had our annual Thanksgiving Feast at preschool! It was the cutest thing ever! Last year Caty was a little Indian, and this year...

she was a cute little Pilgrim on the Mayflower!

They sang a few Pilgrim songs, and then it was time for...

the Thanksgiving Feast!!!

It was really cute and fun, and a great way to kick off the Thanksgiving break! We are all out of school all week long next week...and I am SO EXCITED!!!

Callie Grace came home with this thank you note that she wrote to us at school. They have been working on writing letters, and I guess she chose to write her "thank you note" to her parents. My scanner wouldn't cooperate very well, but I did my best! And I will decipher for you too! :)

Dear Mommy and dady, (my scanner cut this part off!)
gess (guess) who I'm thankful for goon (good) gess (guess)!
I'm thankful for you! I really really
do! You are so wonderful like
sugar and spice, choclate fuge (chocolate fudge)
with a cherry on top my delight!
Your such a good Mom and dad,
you are the best Mom and dad
I ever had! I am thankful for
my family oh its so so fun
now I'm done! I love you!

Love your sweet girl, Callie Grace

Is that not hilarious?!! I LOVE it!!! I laughed out loud while reading it! I definitely think she's a writer in the making! :) We really do just love our sweet girl, Callie Grace so much!!!

And then she drew pictures of us at the bottom...

Here is Mommy!

And here is Daddy! I think my favorite thing about this picture is that Jody only has eyelashes on one eye! Haha! :)

And I want to take a few minutes to document a few conversations I've had with the kids lately about our adoption. I don't want to forget these over the years! And I especially don't want to forget how God has used our little ones to teach ME some very important lessons!

We were on the way to church on Sunday morning, and Carson said, "Mommy, when Caroline Faith gets home, we are going to have to take her to the baby room at church!" We talked about this for a few seconds, and then he said, "Mommy, we haven't moved a number in a LONG TIME!"

Oh, it broke my heart to hear our six year old talking about the long wait! But, it was a good time to bring up how we all need to be praying every day that God will bring Caroline Faith home soon and that we need to trust His timing!

A few days later, Callie Grace said, "It didn't work!" I had no idea what she was talking about. I asked, "What didn't work?" She said, "I prayed and asked God to let us move a number yesterday, and we didn't. It didn't work."

Well, this led to a very good conversation with all three of the kids about how God ALWAYS hears our prayers, and He always answer them. However, sometimes it's not always the answer we want. I told them how sometimes God answers our prayers with a YES, and sometimes He says NO, and then sometimes He says WAIT! As I was talking to them about this, I knew the Spirit was speaking to my own heart. Such a precious moment.

Last week, the kids' bus broke down on the way home from school. Everyone was totally fine, and they were only about 10-15 minutes late getting home that day. Later that night, Callie Grace was telling me how nervous and worried she was when the bus broke down.

We talked about how the Bible tells us not to worry about anything, and that when we get nervous or worried, we just need to pray and give our worries to God. She said, "Sometimes I worry that Carson won't get home (on the bus)."

She is so protective of her younger siblings. Believe it or not, Carson has gotten in trouble a few times on the bus for talking or getting out of his seat or whatever. Those of ya'll that know Carson fully believe this, I'm sure! :) Well, a few times before they've left school, "Coach" at school has had to take Carson off the bus and tell him to behave! :)

Well, this always makes Gracie so scared that Carson will not get back on the bus on time and will not make it home! I asked, "Hasn't Carson always made it home safe? and haven't you always made it home safe?" She nodded her head, as I reassured her. It broke my heart to think of our 8 year old daughter being concerned about something that she didn't need to be! I knew that Carson would get home just fine.

It was then that I got tears in my eyes, as I realized that I am just like Callie Grace. I go to my heavenly Father saying, "God, sometimes I get so nervous and worried. Sometimes I worry that Caroline Faith won't get home."

I realized how it must break God's heart when I get so worried about something that is totally under His control. He knows I don't need to worry about this one bit! In that moment, while holding Callie Grace in my arms, I felt the Spirit reassuring me that God will bring our baby girl home safe. I just have to give him all my worries and concerns, trust Him completely and hold to the truth that we are all safe in His arms.

"Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you." I Peter 5:7

14 Months and Hoping!

2011-11-17T15:48:00.001-06:00

Today, November 17, 2011, marks our 14 MONTH waitlist anniversary for Caroline Faith!!!

WOW! It's hard to believe another month has already flown by! I am not going to sugar coat it, these last few weeks have been the hardest for me yet! I am not sure exactly why that is, but I have pretty much been an emotional wreck for the past few weeks. I have cried more tears for our daughter than I ever thought were possible.

Also, I have realized more and more the spiritual battle we are in. I truly feel we are fighting for our daughter's life. All of this has brought me to my knees, crying out to God for her. And I think this is exactly where I should be.

But God, in His faithfulness and goodness, has provided for this day to be so renewing and JOY-filled! Caty and I went to eat Thanksgiving lunch with the big kids at their school today, which is always FUN! I am so thankful for their sweet school, teachers and friends!

Then, I had not been home for more than 10 minutes, when I got a phone call from our AGCI case worker, K. I had been waiting on this call since October, but God knew that I needed it today! It is always makes me feel better to talk to her! I am so thankful for our amazing adoption agency and a PRECIOUS case worker who God is using so much on our journey to our baby girl!

Next, I turned on my computer for the first time today to find out I had won my friend Meg's giveaway for the Moss Cross! I was SO EXCITED!!! I LOVE her crosses that she makes, and I had been really wanting one! She later told me that she prayed for just the right person to win! Again, I feel like God knew I needed that today! Seeing this cross hanging in our home will always be a reminder of His faithfulness on our adoption journey.

And if all that wasn't enough, we have our November Adoption Group Fellowship TONIGHT! It's always so fun to get together with our adoption friends! And I don't have to cook dinner tonight because the group is meeting at our favorite pizza buffet restaurant! YAY! :)

So, God has given me such sweet confirmations and joy-filled moments today already. He is always so faithful. Every time that I start to fall for the enemy's doubts and lies, God once again reminds me that HE is in control and HE has a perfect plan for our family!

So today, I am choosing to CELEBRATE our 14 Month wait list anniversary with much HOPE for what (and who!) God has in store for us in the months ahead!

Caroline Faith,
You are oh-so loved and longed for, baby girl! We will wait as long as it takes to bring you home to our family. We are praying you home with hope and faith in God's plan and purpose. Two years ago, God told me of HIS plan for you to join our family. I know that He will be faithful to complete the journey that He has called us to...the journey that leads to YOU!

Hold on, baby girl. We love you and we're coming soon.

"We wait in HOPE for the Lord; He is our help and our shield." Psalm 33:20

Paperwork: Take Two!

2011-11-16T14:32:00.003-06:00

Check out this post to see what we were doing on November 16, 2010, exactly one year ago TODAY!!!

I think it's kind of funny because exactly one year later, I am sitting at our desk upstairs working on our USCIS fingerprint renewal paperwork. Our fingerprints expire in the next few months, so we will actually be doing this same fingerprint appointment (that we did 1 year ago today) all over again! Fun times! :)

And I think it's really funny that I have on the EXACT SAME t-shirt today that I was wearing one year ago today. I promise, I couldn't plan it that way if I tried! Haha! :)

Hopefully, I will be getting all this paperwork in the mail this afternoon!

(This photo was taken by our sweet 4 year old, so that's why the top part of my head is chopped off! But I actually think she was doing me a favor because my hair is really needing to be highlighted! Haha!)

Let the paperwork process begin...AGAIN!!! :)

Sweet China Girl!

2011-11-15T12:21:00.000-06:00

First of all, I have to say THANK YOU for letting me know about all these amazing adoption fundraisers going on! I am seriously blown away by all the creativity and great things that families are doing to help bring their children home! I am already working on the post for next Monday! Get ready!!! It's going to be a good one! :)

See the post HERE or scroll down for more info, and let's all get ready to do some Christmas Shopping to help support ADOPTION!!!

I told ya'll a few weeks ago that I was so excited about helping give a baby shower for my sweet friend Amy, who is adopting precious Anna Kathryn from China! I couldn't show you the present I got her then because I didn't want her to see it on the blog! Haha! :)

Well, here it is...

It's the Sweet China Girl, I Love China, and Meeting My Momma in China prints from the super-talented Katie of Mossy Rock Designs! (Ya'll might remember I did a giveaway of one of her prints back in August!)

When I saw the prints at Katie's etsy store, I just knew it would be the perfect gift for Amy! Then I got my good friend Mary (who doesn't have a blog, but totally should because she is one of the most creative, crafty people I know!) and her husband to make a PINK frame for the prints! I just LOVE it! I thought it turned out so PRECIOUS!!!

And the neat thing is that the little girl in the prints really does favor Anna Kathryn! She is such a cutie, and we can't wait to welcome her home to Mississippi!

I was so happy because...

Amy really LOVED it too! :)

Katie and her family are fundraising to bring their daughter home from Ethiopia, so ya'll should totally go check out her cute prints! They would make great Christmas (or baby shower!) gifts...and you get to help a family bring their child home!

A gift that keeps on giving...one of my favorite things!!!

Showin' Some Love CHRISTMAS Style!

2011-11-14T07:42:00.004-06:00

Okay, I haven't done a "Showin' Some Love" post in forever! So, I thought this might be a good way to catch up!

I have a precious friend who emailed me the other day, and this is what she said...

"When you get time, could you send me a list of some blogger/adoption friends who have things for sale? I just can't see throwing down $ galore for C'mas gifts when these people have great things to give and $ going to help bring their babies home! If any jump out at you for me, maybe you could flag them... or better yet, maybe one day your blog post could be a list of these guys so everyone else could get their shopping lists made! Thanks a bunch :)"

I absolutely LOVED her idea!!! We bought almost all of our Christmas gifts last year from adoption fundraising families, and I am planning on doing the same this year!

This time last year, we were right in the middle of fundraising for our adoption. I remember how much it meant when people bought bracelets to give as Christmas gifts and help us bring Caroline Faith home! It was so precious!!!

God has been so faithful to provide everything we need to bring our baby girl home, and we want to do everything we can to help other adoption fundraising families! So, here is what I am thinking...

Next Monday, November 21st, I would love to do a blog post listing LOTS of great Christmas gift ideas from adoption fundraising families!!!

So, if you are an adoptive family in the fundraising process, and you have something you are selling to help bring your child(ren) home, then I would love to post a link to it! Please email me what you are selling and a link to the blog/website/etsy store where people could purchase it! You can email me at lovinmuch at yahoo dot com or leave a comment with all the info!

I can't wait to start doing some Christmas shopping!!! :)

Oh, and be sure to check out my friend Lauren's very first Baskets of Love "Gifts Galore" Giveaway!!! Let's help them bring their next child HOME!!!

We Ate Injera, Ya'll!

2011-11-11T07:24:00.006-06:00

Injera, anyone???

Yep, we finally got to try ETHIOPIAN FOOD for the the very FIRST TIME!!!

Last Saturday night we took the kids to eat here...

Abeba...our new Ethiopian restaurant!!!

I was SO EXCITED to try it out! And it did not disappoint! :)

Last week was a pretty tough week. The only way I know to describe it is that I was "emotionally weary" in our wait for Caroline Faith. I was an emotional mess. Thankfully, by the end of the week, God had renewed my spirit so much!

However, I told Jody that I would love to take the kids to the new Ethiopian restaurant on that Saturday night because I just needed something to help me feel "connected" to our daughter. Don't know if that makes sense to any of ya'll, but I just needed something! And it ended up being the perfect thing to get me feeling "connected" and excited about going to ETHIOPIA (hopefully, soon!)!!!

And ya'll know I had to document this memorable night with some pictures! Our waitress took some for us too! She was from Ethiopia, and was completely PRECIOUS! We loved talking with her! The kids asked her to say some things in Amharic, and she did! It was so neat to hear the language for the very first time!

We had no idea what to order, so she helped us a lot with deciding what we should try! And there was a glossary on the back of the menu that helped too. Here is one of the things we got...

Callie Grace loved the Doro Wat that we ordered! It is a chicken dish that is traditionally served with a hard-boiled egg. Kind of different, but seriously yummy!

The girls were going crazy about the egg! They had never had a hard-boiled egg before! They loved it! I told them I could make them one at home. CG looked at me with huge, excited eyes and said, "You CAN???" Haha! Yes, Mommy can't make Ethiopian food, but she can make a hard-boiled egg! :)

Ethiopian food is very spicy, but I think it's more of a flavorful spicy than a hot spicy (or at least the food we got was like that!). The chicken was delish! I have to admit, I wasn't crazy about the red stuff...I am really not sure what it was. Our waitress said it was potatoes??? But that was the only thing I didn't care for. The other side dish was great!

But our very FAVORITE was this dish...

the boys were lovin' the Beef Tibs! It came out on a sizzling platter like fajitas at a Mexican restaurant. It was DELICIOUS! The seasoning was perfect! And we wrapped injera around the beef and ate it like a fajita! :)

And speaking of injera...

we loved it! I was very interested to try it...probably more than anything else. Almost all Ethiopian food is served on or with injera. I had heard it described as a sour, sponge-like pancake type bread. I wasn't too sure I would like it, but I really did! We all did! It's really, really good!

Oh, and you don't typically use utensils with Ethiopian food either. You tear off pieces of injera and dip it in the food to eat it with. Our kids were loving that! A great excuse to eat with their hands! :)

We also ordered some kind of beef sandwich for the kids to share, and it was really good too! The spices on it were totally different from the other beef dish, but really flavorful and yummy!

Our sweet waitress offered to take a family picture for us! I have to say that our first experience with Ethiopian food was GREAT!!! We will definitely be going back soon! For all you local friends, I would highly recommend trying out Abeba...such a fun, yummy experience!

And I am thrilled that we now have an Ethiopian restaurant in town, so that Caroline Faith will be able to grow up eating the food from her country! It will be so much fun to be able to take her there one day! And I need to try to work on cooking some Ethiopian food at home. It seems like it would be hard to make, but I have lots of friends who have done it. Maybe I'll attempt it one of these days!

I think I can at least handle making the hard-boiled egg! :)

Have a great 11/11/11 day, ya'll! I'm hoping we'll move 11 spots closer to Caroline Faith today...wouldn't that be great?!! :)

It Finally Happened.

2011-11-09T07:23:00.002-06:00

(UPDATE: The Personhood Amendment (Amendment 26) was defeated yesterday at the polls. Please continue to pray for the unborn here in Mississippi and around the world...that each one would get a chance at LIFE!)

Yep, it finally happened. I knew it would come one of these days.

What is "it", you ask?

Well, even though I don't allow anonymous comments on my blog (for this very reason), I got my first "negative" comment about our adoption.

Now I realize this is ONE negative comment in over a year and and a half of blogging. So that means that 99.9% of the comments on our blog have been kind, encouraging, fun comments. And we are so grateful for each and every one of them!

I have deleted the comment, but basically, the commenter said something about how "disgusting" he or she thinks it is that little boys waste away in orphanages and foster homes while people sit on waiting lists just so they can get a little girl.

I am going to try to say this with much grace. I have blogged about this before but I want to express something again.

This was GOD's plan for us to bring home a baby girl. Our call from Him to adopt was very clear...a baby girl in Ethiopia. Trust me, I questioned Him about it many times, especially in the beginning. He has confirmed countless times that our DAUGHTER is in Ethiopia.

With our agency, the wait list to adopt boys is almost as long as the girl list. And I have many friends who have waited just as long as we have, and are still waiting on their little boys. Some are only on the boy list because God has clearly called them to bring home their SON.

Unfortunately, there are boys AND girls all over the world in orphanages and foster homes. It truly breaks my heart, and I pray for them all the time. I know that God loves each and every one of them and has a plan for their life. And I will continue to pray for boys and girls all over the world to find forever families, and that they will find the forever love of Christ.

Here is the thing, we live in a fallen world. Sin is in our world. All of the injustices on this earth will never be made right until Jesus Christ returns. He alone will bring full redemption.

Our job while here on Earth is to love Him and bring Him glory, love others and follow Him in obedience. God calls us all to different things.

Some He calls to adopt; some He doesn't.

Some He calls to adopt girls; some He calls to adopt boys.

Some He calls to adopt older children; some He calls to adopt infants.

Some He calls to domestic adoption; some He calls to international adoption.

Some He calls to adopt children with special needs; some He calls to adopt healthy children.

Some He calls to adopt waiting children; some He calls to get on a waitlist and wait for the child He has chosen for them.

Some He calls to foster care; some He calls to pray for orphans.

And I could go on and on. The point is that God calls us all to different things! Praise God that He does!!! There would be some serious issues if He called us all to the exact same thing! I love how God works. He calls us to do something specific, and He gives us a passion for the thing He has called us to do. And our passion and our obedience is just an overflow of our love for HIM!

Now I do believe that God calls us ALL to love and care for orphans in some way. I believe that we all have a role to play in orphan care whether it's sponsoring a child, praying for orphans, supporting organizations that care for orphans, helping other families who are adopting, going on mission trips to orphanages, advocating for orphans, etc. If you aren't sure what your role is, just ask Him! Seek His will, and He will be faithful to show you! I'm sure of it!

My hope is that, as believers, instead of trying to make others feel inadequate or guilty about the journey God has called us on, that we will always seek to ENCOURAGE others. Instead of being so critical of others, I hope that we can embrace the differences of our callings. As brothers and sisters in Christ we should always be lifting each other up!

God has used this to show me that I need to do a better job of encouraging others! That is something I am going to be working on...taking my eyes off myself and seeking to build up others!

God has called us to bring home our baby GIRL from Ethiopia. Unless HE tells us otherwise, we will continue to follow Him in obedience on this path to our daughter.

We haven't walked this journey perfectly by any means. I cry out to Him daily to give me the strength to go on, and to fill me with His hope and joy in the wait! He is always faithful, despite my failures. I know I say it all the time, but I am so truly THANKFUL that He has allowed to walk this road to our daughter.

I wouldn't trade it for anything!

"Therefore encourage one another and build each other up!" 1 Thessalonians 5:11

Vote For LIFE!

2011-11-08T08:17:00.000-06:00

Today is the day to vote YES for Life!!!

"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart..." Jeremiah 1:5

October Baby.

2011-11-07T08:00:00.004-06:00

Jody gave me the opportunity to sneak out (literally) yesterday afternoon and go to the movies! And get this, I went...BY MYSELF!

Don't you always feel sorry for the people who are at the movies by themselves? Well, I used to, but trust me, it's not that bad! :) I couldn't find anyone who could go with me, so I just ventured out alone!

I had heard so much about this particular movie, and when my Mom texted me Saturday night that she had just seen it and bawled the whole way through, I knew I had to see it! Now I realize that it will not be released nationwide until spring of 2012. But for my Mississippi peeps...for once, Mississippi gets to see something first! :)

And here it is (you might even see some familiar actor/actress faces!)...

October Baby

Please go out and support this movie!!! God is using it already SO MUCH! Yes, I cried the whole way through! This movie is a beautiful story of love, forgiveness, adoption, healing and redemption!

Check out the trailer...

I strongly encourage ya'll to go see this movie! I promise you, it will be life changing! Mississippians, you can go see it in theaters NOW! And it will be released everywhere in spring 2012!

You might be wondering why it's coming out in Mississippi first? Well, check out this video to see why...

Mississippi has a historic vote coming up tomorrow! It's our chance to vote for LIFE!!! It's our chance to vote YES on 26!

"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb." Psalm 139:13

A Special Sunday!

2011-11-06T08:32:00.000-06:00

I don't usually blog on Sundays unless it's something special, and today is a really special Sunday!

Today is Orphan Sunday, and today I am so thankful that God has called us to bring our Caroline Faith home from Ethiopia! I am so thankful that she will be no longer be an orphan, but a daughter. I am so thankful that through the blood of Jesus Christ, my heavenly Father has adopted me into His family. I am no longer an orphan, but a daughter...a child of the King!

This was the picture I posted of our kids last year on Orphan Sunday! What a difference a year makes! I can't wait to see our picture next year! Praying and hoping that all FOUR of our kids are together by this time next year!

If ya'll want to read more about Orphan Sunday, you can go to the Orphan Sunday website! They will also have a one hour webcast of guided prayer and worship tonight at 6 p.m. CST.

Today I am praying for orphans all around the world and for God to continue to call Christians families to adoption and orphan care. And I am praying for our daughter in Ethiopia and for God to pour out His favor and blessing on our journey to bring her HOME!!!

"Defend the cause of the fatherless.." Isaiah 1:17

BOW-verload!

2011-11-04T15:55:00.000-05:00

Yep, I know it's a cheesy post title, but I couldn't resist! :) It's true though, with two (soon-to-be-three!) girls and living down here in the Deep South, we are OVERLOADED with bows!

And yes, I am thankful everyday that I have an 8 year old who will still wear bows! :) The bigger the bow...the better!!!

Well, I got out of the shower the other day, and this is how the girls showed up in my bathroom...

almost every bow from their bow holders were on their heads!!! I was cracking up, and of course I had to go grab my camera!

And here is the view from the back! LOVE it!!!

I think the only bows they didn't have in are the little ones we are saving for Caroline Faith! Hope she like bows too! :)

It's been a long, emotional week, but God has been renewing my spirit over the past couple of days! God is so faithful and so good...all the time!!! Will share more when I have a chance. Going to do one of the things God has been showing me I need to do better about...enjoying the three precious little ones who are home with us now!!!

Off to go for a walk to the playground! Happy Friday, ya'll!

"But may the righteous be glad and rejoice before God; may they be happy and joyful!" Psalm 68:3

Guest Blogging!

2011-11-03T11:40:00.000-05:00

This is a FIRST for me!

I am so excited to be guest blogging today at Allison's blog...What Love Has Done! She is doing a series of guest posts this month from adoptive mamas because November is Adoption/Orphan Awareness Month! I love sharing about our adoption journey to Caroline Faith, and I was so glad that she asked me to contribute!

Go check out the post to read a little of our adoption journey and why the month of November is so special to me! More on that to come!!!

Boots, Tutus, Poodle Skirts and Chargers!

2011-11-02T14:03:00.002-05:00

We had a fun, candy-filled Halloween night! In fact, there are 3 gallon sized ziploc bags FULL of candy on my kitchen counter right now. Ahhhh...I have got to get it all put up! My rule is 2 pieces of candy a day...I need to make myself abide by that rule too! :)

I am not that creative when it comes to my kids Halloween costumes. In fact, this year we didn't even spend a dime on them! I just got the girls to pick out something from their dress-up box, and Carson got to choose which sports player he wanted to be!

Here is what we ended up with for Halloween 2011...

A Ballerina, a 50's Sock Hop girl, and a Football Player!!!

These were the girls costumes from their ballet recital last spring, and this is Carson's uniform that he wears for his football games! It was super easy, and I think that they all look really cute!

I got them all to pose for some pictures before our friends came over that night...

Down, set, hut!

I told him to give me his real smile! Haha! He is so funny!

Ready to throw the ball!

This is Caty's favorite ballet pose!

Then she gave me a little curtsy!

And I promise, she totally did this pose on her own! Oh my goodness, is she not the cutest thing ever?!!

Next it was time for our 50's Sock Hop Girl!

And I couldn't resist showing ya'll that our picture sessions don't always go that great! Haha! I don't even remember why she got in this bad mood now!

But she soon got over it...

Lovin' her lime green poodle skirt!

Then it was time for our friends to arrive for to eat dinner before we went out trick-or-treating!

Our precious niece, Ella Kate, was the first to arrive! Such cuteness!!!

All the kids ready to hit the streets!

Ella Kate was the cutest little strawberry ever!!!

Erin, Drew and Ella Kate on her very first night of trick-or-treating! I think she loved it!

Melissa and I decided that you're never too old to dress up! I was a cowgirl, and I'm really not too sure what she was...but she was rockin' it with her pink hair, rhinestone-studded eyelashes and huge hat! :)

Having fun and getting way too much candy!!!

And speaking of, I better go be putting all this candy up somewhere before the kids get home from school!

Happy November, ya'll! I LOVE November, and I can't wait to tell ya'll why tomorrow! :)

Happy Pumpkin Day!

2011-10-31T07:38:00.004-05:00

Well, we had a great Saturday afternoon carving our SIX pumpkins! Ya'll know I love "before and afters", so here are our pumpkins BEFORE...

I think that pumpkins are just so CUTE!

Okay, so we are not "super-creative pumpkin carvers" here at our house! We just like to have FUN, spend quality time with our kids, and make memories! So don't judge our pumpkin carvings too strictly! Haha! :)

It was a beautiful, bright and sunny afternoon to carve some pumpkins! We started with Daddy cutting the tops off of all the pumpkins!

And then it was time to dig out the insides and get...

MESSY!!! :)

Carson was so proud that he got his pumpkin all cleaned out and ready to carve!

Daddy was the pumpkin face designer! The kids would tell him what shape eyes, nose and mouth they wanted, and he would draw it out for them! Oh, and the girls decided they wanted their pumpkins to have eyelashes this year! That was fun! :)

And here is the AFTER picture...

our little pumpkin family!!!

Unfortunately, Jody's pumpkin had a little "Humpty-Dumpty type fall" and ended up with a cracked head! Oh well, we got him back together as best we could! :)

And you might have noticed that we decided not to carve Caroline Faith's pumpkin this year! We thought it might be fun to paint her pumpkin with a...

PINK Africa on it! And of course, a little heart over Ethiopia!

Then I got a little carried away and added her monogram and the bow! Now, it's a pumpkin fit for a little Ethiopian princess!!! :)

The kids were so excited to light the candles in the pumpkins later that night!

And one more picture with Mommy and Daddy and all of our little PUMPKINS!

We can't wait until the day we have all FOUR of our little pumpkins home with us!!! Hopefully, this time next year, our little Caroline Faith will be in all our pumpkin pictures!

Happy Pumpkin Day, ya'll!

"The Lord has done great things for us; we are glad!" Psalm 126:3

The Give Hope WINNER is...

2011-10-29T14:22:00.000-05:00

Alright, ya'll...I'm blogging on this beautiful Saturday afternoon to announce the WINNER of the October Give HOPE Giveaway!!!

Here are all the entries! Ya'll know how we roll around here...we draw names out of a bowl! The kids look forward to it every month! :)

It was Gracie's turn to be my helper today! She took it really seriously too! Look at those squinted eyes, and two hands in the bowl! Love it! :)

And she drew the winner...

McCall at Lee, Me, and the Girls!!!

YAY, McCall!!! I am so excited for you! Please email me your t-shirt choice and what size you want to lovimuch at yahoo dot com. I will get your info to Jennifer, so that she can mail you your new Give HOPE t-shirt!

And if you didn't win, but still want to support the Wayman family in bringing their baby boy home from Ethiopia, then go check out their Etsy store where they sell these super-cute Give HOPE t-shirts!!! These would make great Christmas gifts too!

Okay, I've got to get off the computer and get outside to help our little ones with our big afternoon "project" of...

carving our SIX pumpkins!!!

Isn't Caroline Faith's little pumpkin the cutest thing you've ever seen?! I love it!!!

I better go change into some short sleeves because I think I am about to be cleaning out some pumpkins! Callie Grace told me today that "she is just NOT a pumpkin digger"! She thinks it's gross!

Looks like Mommy is about to get MESSY! :)

Pumpkin Carving and Last Call!

2011-10-28T14:54:00.000-05:00

Well, we just got back from carving PUMPKINS at the big kids' school! Thankfully, my camera battery is now charged up! :)

Callie Grace did NOT like the insides of the pumpkin! She wouldn't even think about touching it...such a girly-girl! :)

So Daddy had to get in there with the ice cream scoop!

The final result...a cute little snaggle-toothed pumpkin!

Carson's class was carving pumpkins outside in the cold, drizzling rain! Fun! :) This is the only picture he would let me take!

And of course, Miss Catybug was with us for all the pumpkin carving fun!!!

We have LOTS of pumpkin carving to get done this weekend! I always get a pumpkin for each of us, so I have SIX pumpkins on our front porch! Sweet Caroline Faith had her own pumpkin last October, and we aren't about to leave her out this year! :)

Okay, this is the LAST CALL for the October Give Hope GIVEAWAY!!! Make sure to go enter before midnight tonight for your chance to win one of Jennifer's Give Hope t-shirts! We'll be announcing the winner tomorrow!!!

Happy Friday, ya'll!