Hear the Siren

Last week we joined up with some of our MOPS group at a local fire station. The kids had a big time! Riley loved every second of it. It was really neat for the kids because they got a tour of the entire station, including the sleeping quarters!

For our final stop on the tour, our fireman tour guide said he was going to show us the captain's quarters. Riley asked me rather loudly if the captain was a bad guy. Our tour guide laughed and took Riley to meet the captain to show him that he is not a bad guy! I think Riley's frame of reference when he hears the word "captain" is Captain Hook!

So excited to be on the fire truck!

Cousins (Mason, Laila, Riley and Mary Kenzie)

Carson (one of Riley's friends) and Riley having a serious conversation about the fire truck

The fire girls (Laila, Molly, and Mary Kenzie)

Have you heard?

"Do you not know? Have you not heard?

The Everlasting God,

the LORD,

the Creator of the ends of the earth

Does not become weary or tired.

His understanding is inscrutable."

Isaiah 40:28

Sometimes...especially after a long week...I need the reminder that while I grow tired and weary...my God doesn't.

For the Least of These

I don't know about you but the news and images from Haiti are overwhelming to me. For some people when they hear about a tragedy of this magnitude their first instinct is to try to find some way to just do something, some way to "fix it" if you will. For me, I have to admit that while I would love to do something I feel so overwhelmed with the huge needs that I just don't even know what to do, how to do it, where to begin, etc...

There are SO many great ways that all of us can help. There is no end of great organizations who are helping with the relief effort. Because of my passion for helping orphans, I have listed a couple of links that specifically deal with providing help for the orphans of Haiti. Please check them out if you are looking for a way to get involved either prayerfully or financially. Also, if you have a blog, please feel free to re-post these sites or link to my blog so that others can join in!
Holt International

FHG Adoption Outreach

MWTS

A lot of people have wondered about the orphans of Haiti and the adoption process...click here to read the latest news on this effort.

A Year Ago Today Our Lives Changed Forever...

...when we were matched with a precious baby girl!

I really cannot believe that a year ago today we received the shocking news that not only did we have a referral but doubly shocking that it was a baby girl! We had not requested a girl...we were open to either a boy or a girl...but we knew we had about a 95% chance that by not requesting that we would be matched with a boy. So, it was such a shock when our program director called and said "Erin, I have a referral for you but it is a girl...is that okay?"

All of the emotions that I felt that day come surging up inside of me again as I relive the miracle of that January day. In that moment, the long and agonizing 2 year wait to have another baby in our family was replaced by so much joy and so much overwhelming thankfulness that God had come through in unspeakable ways.

January 15th will forever be one of the happiest days of my whole life.





If you want to read or re-read the posts I wrote last year describing what happened that special weekend here is Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.

Our Sweet Girl

Last night we found out that our little niece Laila and another little girl...both in Mary Kenzie's MOPS class on Tuesday...had a stomach bug. I didn't sleep well last night because I kept waking up wondering if Mary Kenzie was going to start throwing up. This morning when I woke up I told Michael "Yay...we made it through the night without MK vomitting!"

Then, I walked into her room. Poor little girl...she was curled up in the one small corner of her crib that did not have vomit. I will spare you the gory details but let me assure you that it had happened sometime in the middle of the night and she had gone back to sleep without ever crying out. What a laid back little girl!

Laid back girl with her Aunt Kaitlin a few weeks ago

Tender Place

There will always be a tender place in my heart for our children's birthmoms. When I think of them I am filled with gratitude. And I am not just saying that because it seems like the appropriate thing to say. Instead I say that because I mean it. I feel that gratitude in the very innermost parts of my soul. Without the nine months our children's birthmoms carried them in their wombs I would not be a mom right now. Without their selfless choices to give their babies life, Riley and Mary Kenzie would not be alive today. That seems so cliche but that cliche has changed my world...I have gone from a dark place of longing to a place of intense fulfillment as I live out my dream of being a mommy. I pray often for my children's birthmoms that they, too, will find peace and joy and that their deepest longings will be met.

Some friends of ours traveled to Korea last week and were adopting from the same agency that Riley's adoption was handled by. They were able to take this collage and a letter for us to put in Riley's file for his birthmom. I hope she checks it and finds peace in knowing how well her baby boy is...

Goodbye, Lady

Several months ago our washing machine was having some problems, so Michael called a repairman to come and take a look at it. While the repairman was fixing what turned out to be a very fixable problem with the washer he noticed our lovely dryer. (I still wish there was some way to indicate a sarcastic tone while I blog.)

Anyway, our dryer is a lovely avocado green Lady Kenmore. It was Michael's grandparents and it is at least 34 years old.

These were the exact words of the repairman, "Wow! I haven't seen a Lady in years!"

Now to me that means most people aren't living with the lovely Lady; to Michael it means that they are such good dryers that repairmen don't need to come and fix them.

Well, right before Christmas the Lady finally passed on and has been replaced by the Admiral.

Savoring Christmas

Last Christmas I posted about the bittersweetness in my soul...how joyful the holiday was spent with family and Michael and Riley...but how there was a piece of my heart that wondered if our next child had been born yet and if we were missing his/her first Christmas.

As it turned out we did miss our sweet Mary Kenzie's first Christmas last year. Yes, she was only five months old. And, yes, we have the rest of her Christmases to spend with her. But, there is still a tinge of sadness to know that our daughter was half a world away last Christmas and not home.

So, this Christmas I really wanted to soak in every second I could and relish the time spent with my kids. We had a full month of baking cookies, reading Christmas stories, driving around looking at lights, going to Christmas parties, buying gifts, seeing Santa, etc... But, I have to say that some of my favorite memories I will take away from this season were the quiet moments spent with my kids and Michael...Simple moments like talking with Riley about what Christmas is all about. Simple moments where we stepped away from the chaos of life and just enjoyed being together and enjoyed the intangible gifts that we have been blessed with.


Christmas Eve at Michael's parents' house


The kids coming into the living room to see their presents Christmas morning



Opening presents


Matching cousins (Riley, Mary Kenzie, Mason, and Laila)


P.S. Thank you SO MUCH for all of you who voted for Mary Kenzie in the Santa Baby contest...she didn't win but it was still fun that she made it to the final round and the top 12! Thank you again!!!