Happy Halloween!

Well, I do love Halloween.  I always enjoy seeing the cute kids in their costumes, all things pumpkin, and trick-or-treating.  Today was a special Halloween because we got a much anticipated update on Charlie, AND our fingerprinting appointment from USCIS came in the mail! 
I had asked about his height and weight, whether or not he wanted to be adopted, his sleeping arrangement, etc.  We found out he is a lanky thing, like Stephen.  We could tell he was from his pictures, but his height to weight ratio is wider than we expected.  A bean pole is what he is!  They said he definitely wants a family of his own and will get sad and act out when other kids have been adopted.  He has his own bed and sleeps in a room with a few other boys.  The caregiver to child ratio at Bethel is 1:3.  Crazy, unheard of, but wonderful.  I'll take it!

Charlie is the one on the left, having a great time with his buddies, playing in the leaves!  Looks like he loves Fall like me!

"Have you met him?"

Since we "went public" last week with our adoption, we have been asked many, many times if we have met Charlie.  We haven't.  We feel like we know him with all of the pictures and videos that we are able to get from Bethel, but we haven't met him.  God has given us a great love for him though.  It is admittedly a crazy thing and we are thankful.  If it weren't for this love for him and our determination to get him as quickly as possible, we might have gone crazy by now with all of the paperwork and red tape!  I believe God knows this and that is why he enables you to have a love, and passion to pursue, a child that you have never even met!

Charlie is 7!

Charlie had a birthday last week!  Bethel sent us this awesome picture of him!  What a stud!

When were waiting to adopt Kate, she had her 3rd birthday in China.  We celebrated in the US with some of our good friends, and a picture of Kate.  She loves that we did that and wanted to do it for Charlie.  Here she is working on his cupcakes!

Here are Sam and Anna Kate singing to Kate's picture in June 2009.  How cute are they?!

Happy Birthday, Charlie!  We can't wait to celebrate WITH you next year for #8!

Pray for Kate

Our sweet Kate was not being herself at all last week.  She was being downright mean to Sam and when disciplined, quite hateful towards me.  One afternoon she was totally out of control in a way that hasn't happened since she was about 3.  I finally got her to open up and confess that she is scared.  She said she isn't scared that we'll love her less when we get Charlie, but she is scared that he is going to come between her and Sam.  In her words, "They're going to share a room, and be boys and just be so obnoxious!!!"  Yes.  They are. 

I wasn't sure how to respond. We snuggled and I comforted her and her behavior improved immediately, but I did realize that this is going to be harder on her than I thought.
I did share her worries with Sam, who was so understanding.  They are our "twins".  They are 3.5 months apart and absolutely adore each other. Kate is already insecure in our love for her at times, and adding another sibling to the mix has her very worried.  I think out of all of us, it might be the hardest on her.  Would you pray for her?

We need your prayers!

The journey of adoption is long, and hard, and beautiful.  We appreciate your prayers and support as we bring this beautiful boy home. 
Kate's favorite book is The Red Thread, based on the Chinese Proverb... 
"An invisible red thread connects those who are destined to meet, regardless of time, place, or circumstance. The thread may stretch or tangle, but will never break."
We believe that this is God's beautiful plan for our family.

 

What do Sam and Kate think?

They are THRILLED!  But I suspect any kid would be thrilled to get a little brother.  Charlie and Sam will share a room and Sam is already getting it ready for him.  Kate said that she likes that she won't be the only Chinese OR the only visually impaired person in our family anymore.  They are excited about him riding their bus with them and being at school with them.  They pray for him with every prayer and not a day goes by where one of them doesn't say, "When Charlie's home we'll..."  It is so sweet.  The wonderful people at Bethel said that they had prayed that Charlie would be the youngest in a family.  We can't wait for him to be our baby.

Charlie's birthday is in the middle of October, 2007 and Sam's is October 11, 2006.  We are having Sam's party on Sunday.  I told Sam that this may be his last solo-party.  From now on, he'll probably be having a joint party with his brother.  His response was, "YESSSS!"

They do understand that he will not speak much English and his adjustment to our family may be tough, but they are determined to help him and to be a great brother and sister.  Sam is such a patient and loving child.  He is so kind and tender, especially with younger kids.  Kate is empathetic because she has been there.  Even though her memories of China and coming into our family aren't that strong, she understands much of what Charlie will go through.  Sam says he has so much to teach him about Star Wars and Kate is always eager to share her knowledge of US History!





We are hoping that they will be able to go with us to China.  There are many factors to consider, and the price tag is huge, but the memories would be absolutely amazing! 

They are pretty great travelers...

How long will it take?

Good question.  We started the process in August.  Already having a child picked out and waiting for you is amazingly motivating.  There is a ton of paperwork involved and lots of waiting on clearances, etc.  We have already finished our Home Study and Dossier.  We have applied for Immigration Approval (requesting permission from Homeland Security to bring a foreign orphan into the US) which takes about 8 weeks to get.  Our Dossier is at the Chinese Consulate being translated and authenticated.  Hoping it will get to China by the end of the year.  If all goes well, and quickly, we hope to travel in May or June.

I am moving at lightning speed, but you would too if you looked at this picture every day.

Our God is amazing. And fun. And awesome.

So, as I was thinking about this boy, and praying that Stephen would be open to adopting again, I get a Facebook message from a girl named Amanda.  (Amanda and I had become friends on Facebook about a year ago when she joined a group for families that had adopted from Huizhou, Kate's orphanage.  Very small orphanage.  About 60 kids.  I saw on FB that we had some mutual friends and after stalking her for a few minutes, realized she lived about 20 minutes from us.  Crazy.  So we became "friends".)  Now Amanda messaged me to say that she was thinking about adopting a child from a place called Bethel.  Her husband was a little nervous about adopting a blind child, they didn't know anyone who was blind.  Then she remembered that my daughter was visually impaired and we were pretty plugged into the blind community.  Could we get together and answer some of their questions and address some of their concerns?

Wait.  Which boy?
Gabe.
Oh, thank goodness.  Not my boy.

Y'all.  Gui Gui (Gabe) and Yu Zhi (Charlie) have both been at Bethel since they were 1!  They are best friends.  In the beginning of this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WK6n6DFkUU Charlie is the one in the purple shirt, pushing Gabe in the box on wheels.

And they are both being adopted at the same time to the SAME TOWN!

Here they are graduating from Kindergarten.  It looks like Charlie just made some absolutely hilarious comment about that awesome bow-tie. 

I was so excited.  I couldn't believe it.  God astounds me and amazes me.  Not only is He bringing these boys to their forever homes together, in the same town, at the same time... He also opened our husbands hearts and minds to be a part of this amazing story.  Even though the mamas often feel the pull first, I am so thankful that the daddies are excited about it too!

So then... Amanda tells me she has a good friend and neighbor, Katie, that is also wanting adopt one of the Bethel boys!  Can you stand it??

Here they are!  Charlie, Gabe and George.  These were the flowers they made for their nannies on Mother's Day.  What a miracle it would be if we could have them home with their real mamas for the next Mother's Day!

Looks like a pretty amazing show!  I only wish we could've heard it! (Charlie is the one with his eyes closed, feeling the music.  Looks like he knows how to ROCK!)

How we were led to this child

Well, clearly he loves to eat and will fit right in with us!  My Granddaddy would be proud of the way he is cleaning off that chicken wing!

This picture was posted in July on an Adoption Advocacy page stating that he was in a difficult situation and needed a family to come forward as soon as possible.  He had been at Bethel since he was 1 and was now 6.  Due to government rules with education, it looked like he would have to be sent back to his home orphanage come September.  This broke my heart.  I could not stop thinking about him.

He was said to be very "cheeky" and fun.  Can you resist that mischievous grin??  He is visually impaired due to cataracts and cloudy corneas, but that does not slow him down!  He plays sports and loves to run.  Sounds a lot like Kate to me!

You can read more about him here http://www.bethelchina.org/child-of-the-week-yu-zhi-jason/ when he was highlighted as Child of the Week.  (His English name at Bethel is Jason.)

We were in the middle of probably the busiest summer of our lives.  We were moving, had just sold 2 houses, and our kids were starting a brand new school.
But God kept showing us and nudging us.  This boy was our son.

 

 

How did you decide who to adopt?

www.bethelchina.org

A few months ago, I learned about an amazing ministry/foster home that serves and loves blind and visually impaired orphans in China.  I couldn't believe such a place existed!  I was so excited and inspired by them and began reading their blog and following them on Facebook.  It is an amazing place and the children there receive exceptional care.  Given our level of comfort with visually impaired children, and the amazing services offered by our county, I knew that if we adopted again, it would probably be a child with vision impairment.  Once I learned about Bethel, I really wanted to adopt a child from there!  They're so HAPPY!

What we have learned from Kate

When we adopted our daughter, Kate, 5 years ago we started out thinking we wanted a "non special needs" baby girl.  At that time, the wait for such a child from China was getting longer and longer, and so we decided we might be open to a toddler with minor special needs.  We found Kate on a special needs list and were able to travel to get her about 6 months later.  She was 3 years old and she has albinism.  Through this we have learned that Special is exactly what she is. She may have some extra "needs", but we cannot imagine not having her in our family. She is such an amazing child that has added so much love, laughter and knowledge to our life.  We have learned so much from her and our eyes have been opened (no pun intended) to the world of the visually impaired. 

Why are we adopting a boy from China?

When most people think about adopting from China, they think about all of the orphaned girls.  However at this time, 75% of the waiting children in China are BOYS!

Our Family

If you know us, you know that we love God, adoption, China, and traveling. We are so excited that God has called us to adopt again and it involves China and traveling! This is something that we have prayed about and wanted to do for some time, and it is clear to us that now is the time to add a little brother to our family.