tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81840212856372030532024-02-18T22:00:35.270-05:00A Family Rebuilding the WallBeing a voice for the orphan and encouraging a brick-by-brick rebuilding of the wall of orphan ministryFamily Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.comBlogger136125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-55705929924945844512012-11-01T12:01:00.001-04:002012-11-01T12:02:07.035-04:00Time to MOVE!<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I am merging my 2 blogs into one little spot on the web. The new blog is titled "Our Home for His Harvest," and it combines our orphan ministry with our every day life (ministry!) within our home and family. We hope to see you over there! :)</span><br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.ourhomeforhisharvest.blogspot.com/">http://www.ourhomeforhisharvest.blogspot.com</a></span></b>Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-64888871820762369692012-10-26T22:31:00.001-04:002012-10-26T22:31:44.411-04:00Host an Orphan at Christmas<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
The deadline is quickly approaching to sign up for orphan hosting for the Christmas holidays through New Horizons for Children (November 1st deadline for most of the children). Here's the latest New Horizons video, and our Sandija is one of the children featured on it (near the end). Get the word out! These kiddos need families willing to step forward to share the holidays with them.</div>
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<br />Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-1283737374240473122012-10-09T08:07:00.001-04:002012-10-09T08:07:12.747-04:00Her Decision<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">We received an email from Sandija's roommate at her orphanage. It was short and very sweet, telling us that Sandija has decided <u>not</u> to be adopted because she does not want to leave her family and friends in Latvia. She ended the email by telling us that she is so very sorry for Sandija's decision. You see...her roommate is older and will soon find herself released onto the streets. She sees the road a bit more clearly than Sandija sees it. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">There is a whole range of emotions that flood in with this news... There is relief that we finally have an answer after 2 months of waiting and praying. There is anticipation at seeing God's closed door and moving forward to His open window. There is great sadness, knowing the statistics for girls in Latvia and knowing that Sandija is just 2 years away from aging out of the orphanage. There is complete reliance on God to step in and care for Sandija like only a Father can. We open our hands and release her into His care.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It was such a big decision for a 14-year-old. One of my sweet close friends worded it perfectly: <b>"Bless her heart---we're all so human. She was given the option of an 8 course meal or Skittles and she chose the Skittles."</b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">We tuck into our souls the memories we have of Sandija...the hard times overshadowed by her amazing ability to love...the way she would find me in the kitchen every day, come up behind me, hug me and say, "Mama, what you doing?"...the way she gave up her money every time to buy a gift for someone in our family...the 5 long hard weeks of sacrifice and tears to pour into her something she had never had before. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And a precious memory that will never leave me... We were driving in the van one day, and we were listening to music. Steven Curtis Chapman's song Remembering You came on, and every time the chorus played, we would all point to each other: <b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">I'll be remembering YOU!</span></b> And we will always, always be remembering her...our host daughter from the other side of the globe.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Here is the song Sandija said was her song to us, and in turn, we said it was our song to her too...</span></div>
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<br />Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-82567036272545037982012-09-30T22:40:00.000-04:002012-09-30T22:49:28.166-04:00Safe Families for Children<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4okNfOq10oQ2xOH2S5WOuTHEHOHeli2hiujuK1vu-MMeJCFQIqJGvmtU6iaYqBQ-ejdZ4B8YwGpX67t1iCdoHS5fI16KWeqeh7RkUD8pWdlwwdlNE_vxSyjMgkdN-2pHjYd1GOe9-vheB/s1600/IMG_3276.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4okNfOq10oQ2xOH2S5WOuTHEHOHeli2hiujuK1vu-MMeJCFQIqJGvmtU6iaYqBQ-ejdZ4B8YwGpX67t1iCdoHS5fI16KWeqeh7RkUD8pWdlwwdlNE_vxSyjMgkdN-2pHjYd1GOe9-vheB/s320/IMG_3276.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Imagine being a single mom who has recently lost your job. You have 3 children under the age of 5, and you desperately need to get another job before your rent is due in a couple of weeks. There's nobody who can take care of your children, and you cannot afford daycare right now; so, you take to the streets looking for a job in stores, restaurants, wherever you can find to go. You have a choice to either leave your children alone in your apartment while you go job-seeking, or you can take them with you. You love your children and don't want to leave them alone, so you opt to take them with you. Yet you find that nobody will hire a single mom with 3 children in tow. Frustration mounts, groceries need to be bought, rent and bills are coming due. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Really, what would YOU do? </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.bethany.org/">Bethany Christian Services</a> used to receive many calls from parents just like the one I described, wanting help. Because Bethany had no such ministry to help with this particular need, they had to say, "I'm sorry. Unless your child has been neglected or abused, we cannot help you." Then, Bethany decided to do something to help these desperate parents who were in temporary crisis.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It is called <a href="http://www.safe-families.org/"><b>SAFE FAMILIES FOR CHILDREN</b></a>, and I'm quite excited to introduce it to those of you have never heard of it. Tonight we went to a meeting where a sweet lady from Bethany Christian Services passionately introduced our orphan ministry team to this truly amazing aspect of their services. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Safe families for Children is <u>not</u> about foster parenting, and it is <u>not</u> about adopting. It is about being a <b><i>host family </i></b>stepping forward to help families who are in temporary crisis. It is <b>Biblical hospitality</b>, where a host family temporarily cares for the children until the birth parent gets back on their feet (i.e. gets a job, saves enough money to put a deposit and first month's rent on an apartment, pays off medical expenses, has drug rehab, etc). Most children stay in their host families' homes for 35-45 days, though some stay for shorter or longer periods of time...all depending on the arrangement made between the host family and the birth family. The birth family voluntarily seeks the help of Safe Families, and the host families voluntarily offer their home to care for the children. Because it's all done on a voluntary basis (no court orders, etc), a sweet bond is allowed to grow between birth families and host families. It's all done in love. The love of Jesus... </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">At the <a href="http://www.safe-families.org/">Safe Families for Children website</a>, there are videos that give a view into how safe families work. It is a precious ministry for both the birth parents as well as the children. I encourage you to look into it personally as a choice in orphan ministry, and I especially encourage you to take this to the leaders of your church and introduce this as a ministry your entire church can do in carrying out James 1:27.</span>Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-91802532814415375952012-09-14T16:43:00.001-04:002012-09-14T16:43:19.098-04:00Connecting Across the Globe<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://www.newhorizonsforchildren.org/">New Horizons for Children</a> had a fund raiser, where for a donation of $50 to their ministry, we could send a gallon baggie filled with goodies for our host child. The New Horizons staff and volunteers took these baggies to Ukraine and Latvia when they went to interview more children for their hosting program a couple of weeks ago. </div>
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We sent Sandija letters, cards, song lyrics, material for sewing, lollipops, gummy bears, tights, dental floss, squiggly shoe laces, batteries for her mp3 player, gum, pistachios...and more. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1FbMMfI6ebw5QsuSj4Hl7ywAIevfm2RNWYgZ0SLzTGkWovUUtvYpSO4KWYZJME7IQcS_Umth3GLkpD-co2EM4sNV8az9wxX9iuDfX8QGjyo1LFAeQGB9y9JKjiBn7SdCedeRpQrU3Egvl/s1600/IMG_2773.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1FbMMfI6ebw5QsuSj4Hl7ywAIevfm2RNWYgZ0SLzTGkWovUUtvYpSO4KWYZJME7IQcS_Umth3GLkpD-co2EM4sNV8az9wxX9iuDfX8QGjyo1LFAeQGB9y9JKjiBn7SdCedeRpQrU3Egvl/s320/IMG_2773.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Today we were blessed to receive some photos in our inbox. Sandija's roommate has periodic access to email. She wrote us a sweet note, saying that Sandija loves us and that she enjoyed her goodies that we sent. <br />
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Here's a momentary smile...excited to hold her bag of gummy bears...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga8HUzrljpRFENIRSwMXWP2MLQqiafLbv3CSyOO1vQgWBnpxCsJaPRF-fNPeVMOnaouTwQ3kxeQL4YzIYYjh77VJOHdznSRF6jt5S1yVsQeRVl8rjOnylD_y9t2adaS8Me2HDTxo2gn43m/s1600/14092012126.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga8HUzrljpRFENIRSwMXWP2MLQqiafLbv3CSyOO1vQgWBnpxCsJaPRF-fNPeVMOnaouTwQ3kxeQL4YzIYYjh77VJOHdznSRF6jt5S1yVsQeRVl8rjOnylD_y9t2adaS8Me2HDTxo2gn43m/s320/14092012126.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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And yet, sadness in those eyes...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfA3QOW8NL9aYehpu3d_9jLjRrwTBxFLl0aiKvMWg07orCJQY0O_ZBEG7chNwi83vJRA0p7OH_gpcRh6QzS2Fs-mrQCHWoFNXYUcRitzPYsahKAjeDxGV3fBNBTrTD-9WZuMHvE3L4yJZ9/s1600/14092012127.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfA3QOW8NL9aYehpu3d_9jLjRrwTBxFLl0aiKvMWg07orCJQY0O_ZBEG7chNwi83vJRA0p7OH_gpcRh6QzS2Fs-mrQCHWoFNXYUcRitzPYsahKAjeDxGV3fBNBTrTD-9WZuMHvE3L4yJZ9/s320/14092012127.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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For all the ups and downs of the hosting period, we wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. Even if she chooses not to be adopted, she will always know that there's a family in this world that loves her. That's something that cannot be bought with money. It goes down into the very depths of who she is. <br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b>And now it's time for a new group of children to be selected for hosting during the Christmas season. Please consider giving of yourself this Christmas to invest in a child's life in a way that is bigger than you can possibly imagine. <a href="http://www.newhorizonsforchildren.org/">Please see New Horizons for Children for details</a>.</b></span>Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-52317066489591974962012-09-12T15:40:00.001-04:002012-09-12T15:45:27.468-04:00Big Decisions for a Teenager<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">What would YOU do if you were a teenage girl from Latvia who absolutely loved your American host family and were offered to be adopted by them? Sounds simple, right?</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc0AS_udnOTFcbnV2o3c8736SAnR4mF0atWJqXaND6N4P5X1RuMps0l0YvtZwigMMcQOX7p59lAmF1qRR3UJrhWlvmOi87eE15qjOW3aHvqZA6HK3ZN1V6l14Uiu0UMi4_o1yPLwRZqdAT/s1600/IMG_2162.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc0AS_udnOTFcbnV2o3c8736SAnR4mF0atWJqXaND6N4P5X1RuMps0l0YvtZwigMMcQOX7p59lAmF1qRR3UJrhWlvmOi87eE15qjOW3aHvqZA6HK3ZN1V6l14Uiu0UMi4_o1yPLwRZqdAT/s320/IMG_2162.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Put yourself in her shoes for a moment... You DO love your American host family...so much so that you told them they are the first real family you've ever had...and it has been your lifelong dream to have a family who truly loves you. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And yet you also love Latvia for all its beauty and it's familiar food and language. You have birth family scattered across your homeland. You rarely see them, but you have dreams of reuniting one day. Whether they are real dreams or pipe dreams, it doesn't matter...still dreams of the heart. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And you have freedom. Freedom to dye your hair any color, any time. Freedom to wear your lip ring without rules. Freedom to have a boyfriend that nobody has to approve.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The fact is that, although adoption means the priceless gain of a forever family, it also means loss. And as a teenager, you have the large weight of the choice. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Look at one small example: </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">* To stay in the orphanage means you can go to bed late at night, after a day spent doing whatever you want to do. There's nobody to impose rules on you, and yet there's also nobody to tuck you in or tell you that they love you. There's nobody to wash your sheets and make sure you have fresh pj's. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">* To be adopted means you will have lost your freedom to roam the streets, go wherever you feel like going, and go to bed late after hours of watching whatever you want to watch on TV. And yet you are tucked into a clean cozy bed, kissed goodnight and showered with love you've never experienced </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">before.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Yes, adoption involves both gain and loss. And you, at an immature age, have the weight of that decision. How do you think you'd answer when asked if you wanted to be adopted?</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It's quite possible that you'd say exactly what Sandija said: "I don't know."</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge8MEcdU9rTLgi_mUHvXvUEI9s0uX_kIM6O3SPAwKdDvE3UDMofIAM2sDQK3t21XGyC5DpvErugszu2Em5eRRg3dBncYQxpbfCJYeX7lvO2I8Q7mSAC2yhtx7_p46a6XnBUZtYKBCZck8C/s1600/IMG_2660.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge8MEcdU9rTLgi_mUHvXvUEI9s0uX_kIM6O3SPAwKdDvE3UDMofIAM2sDQK3t21XGyC5DpvErugszu2Em5eRRg3dBncYQxpbfCJYeX7lvO2I8Q7mSAC2yhtx7_p46a6XnBUZtYKBCZck8C/s320/IMG_2660.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our last day with Sandija before she left for Latvia<br /></td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-80423413505664850952012-08-12T11:24:00.002-04:002012-08-13T18:17:21.780-04:00Our Journey in Orphan Hosting<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
During our 5-week hosting period, I purposely kept my comments on this blog fairly neutral and quiet. I found myself in an odd situation, wanting to share the reality of hosting an orphan with those who truly wanted to know...and yet not airing our host daughter's laundry for the world to see. I felt a need to protect this child as a Mama protects her young. And, thankfully, the weeks of hosting were so tiring and jam-packed with activity that I rarely had time to write much.</div>
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But now, I sit to write what I still am unsure how to word...unsure of how much to say and how much to keep to myself... I pray that I walk this line with integrity, sharing only what God places on my heart to share...because there are many orphans like Sandija who need someone to be their voice...and yet Sandija needs a mama who will work on her side and keep private things private. So, here's my attempt to walk that tight rope...</div>
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When Sandija came downstairs on her first morning in our home, she had a large lip ring (click photo below to see). We contacted New Horizons, who returned our call later that day, and they told us that lip rings were not allowed while the children are being hosted. The children had known this rule, and Sandija had chosen to disobey. Welcome to Day #1 of hosting! Here's a piece of reality: These kids in orphanages in Eastern Europe have extraordinary freedom to do whatever they want to do. They roam the streets, go to bed late and have nobody to tell them the good and right path to take. THEY HAVE NO FAMILY, and without family, they grow up doing what feels best. Many of the children have all kinds of body piercings, as that is cool in the orphanages. The photo below is one that I actually don't like at all. The attitude on Sandija's face is definitely not one we support, but nonetheless, sharing this photo will give you an idea of the hard walls that these children have raised (and in a few minutes, you will get to see more photos where the walls began to come down).</div>
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By the third day of Sandija's visit, she was playing dress-up with the other girls and enjoying being a princess. The lip ring was never seen again. We told her how pretty she was without it, but she disagreed.<br />
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The hosting period was not an easy cake walk. Let me try hard to word this with gentleness and tact... When children are taught the ropes of life by other orphans, they often make wrong choices. When they are used to throwing tantrums or pouting to get what they want in the orphanage, they expect this behavior to also work to their advantage in a family. When they have been left to themselves for years with total freedom to do whatever they want to do, they learn to roam freely and do what feels best at the time. And if you take that child and place them into a family (which they CRAVE desperately), they kick like crazy against the boundaries that they are not used to.<br />
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And HERE is where the issue lies in the host family... Do we accept the wrong behavior and just pretend it doesn't exist? NO. And family cannot exist in a peaceful way unless everyone is on the same page. So what do we do? We correct and redirect the wrong behaviors, while we encourage (teach for the first time!) good behavior. It's the same hours we put into our newborns, with the constant maintenance and attention. It's the same work we put into our toddlers, with the nipping of tantrums and the redirection to acceptable behavior. And then, when you throw in teenage hormones, it can make for some long, hard days of work for the host family! <br />
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The choice was ours: Do we EMBRACE these issues and stick with this child through all this upheaval, or do we start counting down the days on the calendar until we can have our lives back again? To say we weren't tempted to take the easy "well-we-tried" route would be a lie...because there were days when we were barely hanging on by a thin thread. But, like one man said who was going through "hell week" with the Navy Seals (I'm paraphrasing from what I recall): "I can leave right now and quit. I can go home and get a shower and some sleep and not have to deal with this torture. But, the minute I wake from that nap, I will regret giving up something I've wanted my whole life." For us, we knew that we could give up on this child and just do the minimum to get through the 5 weeks and then return to our normal (peaceful!) lives. But, like that Navy Seal, when we awoke from our long wonderful nap in our peaceful home, we knew we'd regret letting this child's life slip through our hands.<br />
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The ugly truth is that entering into an orphan's life is entering into suffering. And we all naturally run from suffering. We all tend to want the path of least resistance, the road of few troubles. And to take on an orphan (especially an older child with many past life experiences) often means taking on a life that is riddled with pain so deep that they simply do not know how to process it. I think most of us WANT to help an orphan, but we want it to be easy and to feel like warm fuzzies that make us feel good about the "good deed" we are doing. Well, reality bites deep sometimes, and the truth is that entering into an orphan's life is not convenient or comfortable. IT. IS. SUFFERING.<br />
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It means lying in bed holding a child while they cry about things that are too personal and painful for me to write on this blog. It means watching a life story unfold (through Google Translate) as a child tells us horrors that no child should ever have to experience. It means having your family pushed at the seams by a child who doesn't yet understand that pitting Mama against Daddy is not acceptable. It means having to soothe hurt feelings of other children when the host child absorbs most of the parents' attention, having never had a parent's attention before. <br />
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It means choosing to grit our teeth and push through the rough waters, as opposed to throwing our hands up in the air and giving up. It means choosing to die to ourselves and giving up our lives for someone else when we really don't "have" to. <br />
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It is so easy to talk about "being Jesus" to others. It is super easy to sing "I will love as You love" while we are sitting in our church pew on Sundays. But to live it out when it's HARD...that is another thing altogether.<br />
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So, on with our story... We chose to greet each new day with God's grace to handle anything that happened. Honestly, on some days, it was ONLY His grace that got us through. This is not to say that Sandija was awful...not at all! She was a mix of joy and pain, toddler and teenager, obedience and pouting sessions. I told her often how wonderful she was, and I meant it! But, it was only God's grace that could help our eyes see the light and hope in the midst of the trials.<br />
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We presented Sandija with her own Latvian Bible, and we began to introduce her to reading it. Walls began to come down. She really did want to read it and learn more. Never underestimate the power of God's Word in a person's life! <br />
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With consistent prayer and tedious correction in love and with grace, we began to see some amazing changes in our girl. If you want a quick visual, just scroll up to see the first photo on this post and then scroll back down to see this photo, which was taken on week #4 of her visit. (Go ahead...really look at those 2 photos).<br />
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Yes, it was difficult. But so was everything Jesus went through for us. Why in the world would I expect that following my Savior (who was beaten and crucified for me!) would be EASY and comfortable? Why in the world do we as Americans think it is our divine right to have an easy life? Why do we run from those who will require great amounts of love and work on our part? Why do we opt for our safe, familiar lives in our well-protected homes in our beautiful neighborhoods, while there are people suffering...people that we can truly help (and with more than an occasional donation to a food bank to ease our conscience)?<br />
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Our hosting period was riddled with challenges, even up to the last day. But, in choosing to suffer with Jesus, we also got to see amazing God-sent transformations and miracles. We saw Him soften our girl's heart. We got to peek through the layers of hard shell and to see beautiful tenderness blossom forth. We were given an open door into her heart, and she was happy to invite us in. <br />
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We also realized where WE need to strengthen the walls in our marriage in order to be strong enough to hold this child in our family. We realized where WE needed to make changes in our parenting to treat all our children with the fragile care that we had to treat our host child with. As God always seems to do, while we reached out to meet someone else's need, He reached out to meet OUR needs too.<br />
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Week 4 and 5 were mostly good ones, with walls down and hearts bare. Good does not mean EASY. Good simply means grace-filled.<br />
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And then August 2nd arrived, and we found ourselves at the airport at 5am in a somber mood.<br />
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Here she is as she was just about to go down the escalator with the New Horizons representative...grief apparent on her face.<br />
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Daddy gave her one last hug while she sobbed. As she had told us, "This was my first time to be in a real family with a real mom and dad who love me." And now it was time to go back to her orphanage...<br />
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And off she went... (I had to tie her blanket onto her bag so that she would have it to comfort her on the long flight).<br />
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Two days after she left, we got a photo from another host mom whose older host child had taken this photo of Sandija in her bed after she returned to the orphanage. (Scroll up to see the beautiful photo of Sandija with her pink flower on her head and then scroll down to see this photo of her in her orphanage). Can you not SEE the difference it makes to be in a family? This photo is heartbreaking, and yet it is the reality of her life without a family.<br />
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And here's a very ugly truth that you may want to avoid. But I beg you NOT to run from this! This is a real photo of a real "apartment" where orphans go when they age out of the orphanage. Look at it...really look at this...<br />
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And another one....<br />
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And here's what it all comes down to... Would I rather keep my nice, peaceful, uncomplicated life without entering into this child's life? Could I simply say, "Well, we tried, and it is far too much work for our family"? Am I really able to stay uninvolved when I know that Sandija would end up living in an apartment like the ones pictured above? Am I okay with the fact that statistically, Sandija has a very very high chance of ending up in human trafficking or on the streets or as a victim of suicide after aging out of the orphanage? <br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b>Really, how much does my comfort mean to me? How much does her life mean to God? </b></span><br />
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The answers to those questions are the reasons that we have stacks of inconvenient adoption paperwork sitting on our dining table. It is the reason we are running all over the state getting fingerprints done and papers notarized and doctor's visits taken care of. It is the reason we lay down our lives and exchange them for His...at the cross.<br />
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So, after all we have gone through this summer, do we recommend that other people consider hosting an orphan? YES. DEFINITELY. It may not be as difficult as our experience, or it may be more difficult. But, in the end, the question is always: How much does my comfort mean to me? And how much does an orphan's life mean to God?<br />
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And really: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b>WHAT WOULD JESUS DO?</b></span> Ask that question, and determine to do exactly what He would do. After all, that's what it means to truly follow Him. Everything else is just hay and stubble.Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-62205308537114041312012-08-11T18:19:00.002-04:002012-08-11T18:22:52.832-04:00New Horizons for Children VIDEO<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Here is a precious video that <a href="http://www.newhorizonsforchildren.org/">New Horizons for Children</a> put together after the summer hosting program. All the children you see on here are orphans in Latvia and Ukraine. All were hosted for 5 weeks this summer. Some of them are now on the road to being adopted, while others are not. All are, at present, in their orphanages or summer "camps" without a family.</div>
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Take 5 minutes to view this and pray. Look at these faces and take in the fact that they are earthly orphans...this is the real deal. See beyond the photos and realize that each has a life, a past, a hurt, a favorite color, a favorite food, a belly laugh...a life that we cannot simply walk away from. </div>
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Pray for the children who are being adopted. Pray for forever families to find the ones who are not yet in the process of adoption. And take the bold step to ask God what YOU might be able to do. Host? Adopt? Be a wrap-around family to support an adoptive family? Make a financial contribution to an adoption? Advocate? Share this video with your friends? PRAY.PRAY.PRAY. This is not something for someone else to do. If you are a Christian, this is for YOU to do. Ask Him what your part is, and step into it.</div>
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This video is best viewed in full screen or on YouTube so that you can read the Scripture promises. (By the way, our Sandija is in this video, soon after the 1-minute mark...starting at 1:16 to be exact!) </div>
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I have another blog post that is in the works, and I will post that someday soon. It is a personal view of our own hosting/adopting journey. Words have been slow in coming on that one, but it's almost there.....Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-36682156157633089192012-08-06T15:31:00.002-04:002012-08-06T15:36:21.059-04:00What We're Up to Now...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
The hosting program has ended, and really (REALLY!) I will blog soon about our experience. We've been super busy over here. </div>
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August 4th marked 3 years since our Gotcha Day, when we walked out of the orphanage with this doll baby from Taiwan. Look at her now! Seriously, I do believe that every family needs a child with Down Syndrome...look at the LOVE and JOY in this girl! (There's a funny story about why she has a toilet seat cover around her in her high chair at the restaurant, but that's another story for another day.....). :)</div>
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And here we go again...<br />
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Yep, we are taking the plunge to bring home another one of God's children into our family. Let the paperwork begin!! This is what I've been doing for the past 5 hours today! And I haven't made a tiny dent...<br />
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Oh, yes, it's as fun as it looks...<br />
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I will share more soon...really......just as soon as I get all these stacks of paperwork done. Has anyone seen our dining table??Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-74029672655931197702012-07-31T08:13:00.001-04:002012-07-31T08:13:55.867-04:00Packing Day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I cannot believe that packing day is here! These 5 weeks have been a whirlwind!! And as soon as I catch my breath, I will be blogging quite bit about our experience. There's a lot going on in my head and heart, but I'm limited by such tiny fragments of "spare" time!</div>
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Anyway, Sandija will leave early Thursday morning. Today we will get all her stuff packed up, and tomorrow we are planning a special going-away treat for her.</div>
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Here are a few pictures from the past couple of days...</div>
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Look at them playing while I'm cutting cake! (Oh, and look at my hair. Sandija thought it would be fun to put 25 tiny brains in my already-curly hair and then take them out to create a major wave...and I do mean MAJOR!)</div>
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Sandija with our birthday boy...<br />
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The girls hugging...<br />
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And the treat she picked out from the Fudge Factory. The good news is that she realllllllly enjoyed it. The bad news is that Mama accidentally dropped it on the garage floor, and it broke into 18 million pieces. Soooo, back to the Fudge Factory we go!<br />
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Keep posted because once everything settles down, I have much to type...Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-7381275906182664282012-07-29T08:04:00.000-04:002012-07-29T08:04:26.357-04:00Love Notes<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I have left little love notes for Sandija over the past 4 weeks...in her bed, in her Bible, at her place at the table, with her tea. And last week I began to receive some from her also. Here's one that she wrote on our dry erase board. It says, "Mama loves her children with her whole heart and soul." And in the heart, she wrote, "Mama + children." Ya see...this concept is brand new to her: a Mama who really loves her children.</div>
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Yesterday, she asked if she could dump out our candy bucket. Out rolled a ton of candy and some stray cookie crumbs onto a blanket on the floor. She was busy going through it for a long time. Then she said, "Mama, come see!!" And here was a "candy love note" for me. <br />
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The past 4.5 weeks have been very exhausting, training Sandija in the basics of manners, correcting pouting and tantrums, and learning in a few weeks what Mamas usually have years to learn about a child. We've had our ups and downs. The ups have been very up, and the downs have been like one of those rides where you free fall for 20 stories! But here we are near the end of the ride, and we don't want it to stop. I fully dread Thursday when we have to say goodbye. This child is a daughter in my heart.<br />
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And, on a different note....10 years ago, I gave birth to this treasure:<br />
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This one is "a balm to my spirit," as I've called him for years. He's the tender-hearted one who seeks to care for the brokenhearted and will take a backseat to make sure others are cared for. And he is VERY funny...keeps me laughing every day. Happy birthday, buddy! I love you deeply.Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-74194976449866177292012-07-27T13:02:00.001-04:002012-07-27T13:02:51.347-04:00God's Promises<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
New Horizons for Children is doing a video project, featuring the host children and God's promises for them. Here is a sneak peek at the photo we submitted...</div>
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<br />Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-55040691521104714442012-07-25T09:59:00.003-04:002012-08-16T20:08:25.925-04:00Celebrating Sandija<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
We celebrated Sandija's birthday a bit early. Here's a peek at her special day in photos...</div>
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First stop: Dunkin Donuts. She wanted donut holes.</div>
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And then on to the Georgia Aquarium! Here she is trying her hand at touching a sting ray. She was proud of herself for being brave, but she didn't like the feel of it.<br />
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Pretending to hold a fish in the aquarium...<br />
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Very fun to be in the clear tunnel, and even cooler to have a scuba diver swim overhead!<br />
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She was mesmerized!<br />
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Then on home for her birthday dinner, cake and presents... Hello Kitty, of course!<br />
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Roses from my parents...<br />
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Her meal of choice: hot dogs, potato salad, chips and watermelon...<br />
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She asked me to take a picture of Daddy Bear eating pink cake and drinking out of a Hello Kitty cup, which she found to be very funny indeed!<br />
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A glimpse into the kind of dinner and cake time we had... <br />
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Family photo...<br />
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Did I mention that we have issues??!<br />
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I guess she liked her mp3 player and her Daddy Bear who loaded it with her favorite Christian music!<br />
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And let's just say that she was quite thrilled with her doll. Yes, in many ways, she is still a very young child. Precious moment as we watched her open her gifts! Oh, and she didn't want to mess up any of the wrapping paper, so she cut it neatly open with scissors. :)<br />
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Can you tell that she loves Mama just a bit?? And Mama loves her.<br />
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<br />Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-74752298217877406272012-07-24T23:06:00.000-04:002012-07-24T23:06:27.096-04:00Hosting: Week 4 in Photos<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Really...when things settle down around here, I have TONS to blog about! But I seem to only have tidbits of "extra"time at my disposal right now. I uploaded these photos last night but was too tired to even write a few words to go with them! So, here they are... And really, one day soon, I will have time to write more.</div>
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Here we are making homemade pizza.</div>
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She was thrilled with the final product...<br />
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Here are my creative girls...one is doing embroidery, while the other is knitting.<br />
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Sandija had her first trip to Hobby Lobby, and it can be summed up in one word: AWE! She went from rack to rack, rubbing the material on her face. <br />
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She was truly amazed at all the things in that store! She kept saying, "Mama, what that? Mama, what you do with this?" It was the best time I've had in a store in a long time. We bought her some fabric so that she can make herself a dress when she gets back to Latvia (one of her many talents). Needless to say, she was the happiest girl in the state that day!<br />
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First ICEE...<br />
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First package delivered by UPS...her winter coat and gloves. When we ordered this stuff online, she could not believe that we could click a button on the computer, and then somehow the UPS person delivered the stuff to the door a few days later! <br />
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All ready for the Latvian winter...<br />
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We bought her a suitcase for her trip back, and she chose an amazing blue one. Here she is playing inside of it...<br />
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Dinner time at our home is usually fun and filled with interesting conversations. When Sandija was first in our home, she told us one night at dinner, "In Latvia, we don't talk at meals. We eat." We explained that we eat and talk (sometimes talk too much!). Now, she joins in the conversation and enjoys herself.<br />
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More photos to come very soon...Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-69509542167391951342012-07-21T03:45:00.001-04:002012-07-21T03:48:59.759-04:00Week 3 Hosting Photos<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Things have been too emotional for me to write much lately, but I will share some recent photos from our hosting experience...</div>
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Making waffles...<br />
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Atlanta Braves game...<br />
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And this little guy lives in an orphanage in Ukraine and is being hosted by friends of ours. Before coming to America, he had only read about baseball and had dreams of one day learning more about it. So, it was special to watch him at his first major league game. If your family is interested in adding a sporty guy to your family, please leave me a message on this blog. We are looking for a forever family for him. We have more information and photos available.<br />
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<br />Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-35474149123640344052012-07-16T09:21:00.000-04:002012-07-16T09:21:04.593-04:00The Past Few Days...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Sandija always watches me decorate the serving plate with fruit, so she tried her hand at it and did a really great job! She even sprinkled cinnamon on all the apples like Mama does. :)</div>
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First trip to the ice cream parlor in town! Grandparents sent money for an ice cream treat, so we splurged with chocolate-dipped waffle cones and everything! <br />
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She wanted Mama to sit next to her.<br />
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Then she offered me a bite of her ice cream and about jabbed it through the roof of my mouth. This photo caught it at the moment of impact. We all laughed!<br />
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I have always tried to do little special things for my children to let them know that I love them. One of their favorite things is for me to bring them some tea or lemonade during their bath time. My oldest daughter wanted to bless Sandija with a treat, so she asked me if I'd make some hot tea (which Sandija loves), while my daughter got a warm bubble bath ready for her. She sprinkled some cute cute cute little "bath confetti" into the bath water, and I put the hot tea, a small treat and a note next to the tub.<br />
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Click to enlarge to see the bath confetti. :)<br />
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We called Sandija and told her we had a surprise for her, and she was really amazed and so happy. She look a long bubble bath! <br />
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And here is a bit of sweetness...2 treasures from 2 different continents hugging on each other in America. Only God could do this! My cup overflows...<br />
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Really...does it possibly get any sweeter than this?? <br />
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We have had a somewhat rough and rocky hosting experience, but God has been faithful to carry us. And we have begun to understand some of the "why" behind the difficult behaviors. That's another story for another day. In the meantime, I thought you'd enjoy these photos from the past few days.Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-44428886792191407082012-07-12T15:14:00.000-04:002012-07-12T15:14:11.191-04:00Ups and Downs<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
UP: Sandija went to the dentist, and she did well. </div>
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DOWN: She has a cavity and said she will not go back to the dentist to have it filled. (Mama has a differing opinion on this one!) :)</div>
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UP: She likes our dogs, especially our 1-year-old lab Macy. She has learned to be more gentle with the animals.<br />
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UP: She made Latvian pancakes for us a few days ago.<br />
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UP: She said her dream was to go on a roller coaster (which translates literally into "American Slide"). Here she is right before her first thrill ride (the one in the back with the purple shirt).<br />
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DOWN: She continues to need to learn things the hard way. Before going on this roller coaster, Daddy Bear told her to put her sunglasses on her face to keep them secure. She insisted, instead, to hook them onto her shirt. If you click on this photo to enlarge it, you can see her sunglasses flying off. Yep, they broke into 1 million pieces on the ground!<br />
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UP: She liked this water ride best of all.<br />
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DOWN: Well, most of the "downs" are a bit too personal to get into on this blog right now. But let's just say that those roller coasters at Six Flags are pretty much a picture of our lives right now. Some days are up, some down...some are full of loops and twists and turns that we didn't see coming. <br />
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I pray...I really pray...that I can be Jesus to her, even when it's a down day and I'm feeling winded.Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-13212583225149629222012-07-09T08:18:00.000-04:002012-07-09T08:18:04.291-04:00A Day Worth Remembering<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
First things first... Yesterday Sandija asked to watch the Jesus movie (in Latvian) again (her third time to see it in the past week). At the end, they give the prayer of salvation, and yesterday we noticed that she was praying it out loud. I stopped what I was doing because the magnitude of this spontaneous moment hit me. She prayed the salvation prayer in her heart language, and when she was finished, she clapped! We told her how happy we were, although it wasn't possible to communicate to her how truly eternity-altering that moment was in her life. For some things, all we can do is lift up praise and thanks to our God who is more mighty than we could ever imagine!</div>
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And here are photos from Sandija's first experience at a Japanese hibachi grill. She was absolutely thrilled with the experience (although the fire on the grill scared her a bit). When we got into the van to drive home, she asked us to stay in the parking lot for a few minutes so that she could get out her journal and write the name of the restaurant on her journal page. On the drive back home, she wrote about her hibachi experience, and she drew a picture of chopsticks. I think all of us will remember this day always. </div>
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<br />Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-54040576839516323462012-07-07T23:36:00.001-04:002012-07-07T23:36:54.669-04:00The Best Way to End the Day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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During our music time before going to bed tonight, I was rocking in the chair with Sandija, and my oldest daughter grabbed my camera and got this (unposed!) photo of us together. I LOVE THIS PICTURE!!! Really, I cannot think of many ways to end the day that are much better that this right there. <br />
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<br />Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-25669098018146896922012-07-06T22:53:00.000-04:002012-07-06T22:53:38.963-04:00Natural Meets Supernatural<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Here's where natural meets supernatural. Aren't our lives like this? We spin on a natural plane, doing every day life stuff. And there, beyond the edge of all we see, is God's supernatural presence hemming it all in. It's a rhythm of natural and supernatural...the seen and the unseen.</div>
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Our days are filled with a "new normal" routine, with many little activities. Yesterday, Sandija hung up some index cards of English words on objects around the house. This is the everyday natural stuff of our lives nowadays.</div>
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And in the midst of our regular activities, if we are quiet inside ourselves, we can sometimes hear a little prompting. The supernatural presence of God breathes somehow into our otherwise typical day. We are His Hands are His Feet, and I believe He wants to reach out and love others through us. Yesterday, after I put fresh sheets on Sandija's bed, I felt a prompting to leave a little note for her to discover. It hadn't been an easy day, and I was thoroughly exhausted. So the note wasn't my human idea. It was simply where the natural and the supernatural collide...where He uses a broken and imperfect vessel to pour out His love.</div>
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We can never fully understand how He moves and works. It's beyond amazing to me. He's God of the Universe. That's easy to say, but have you ever watched someone encounter Jesus in a different language than the one you speak? You see...I can explain Jesus to my children. I can explain all I know to them and lead them to Him. But, with Sandija, I am incapable of doing this in the same way I do with my children. The language barrier keeps me from fully being able to explain in words. We had purchased the Jesus Film in Latvian for her. So, yesterday we popped it in the computer to let her watch it. And there God was presenting His salvation message to her in her heart language, without me sticking my hands in. Yes, He's God of the universe, God of people of every language. And the Holy Spirit can work in hearts of all languages and cultures. This is where the supernatural is so obvious...those precious Latvian words filling up our home, teaching a teenager His truths, moving and working in ways I could never manage to do...ways that I cannot see with my eyes or hear with my ears. It's like wind through the trees. It's where the supernatural weaves its way through the natural, and we get to have a front row seat to watch Him work. <br />
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The days have not been without trial. And tears. But every day I have seen the evidence that God is working in this. I may not understand it, and at times I'm too exhausted to recognize it. But it's always there...an every-present blending and weaving together of His Hands into our days.<br />
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And He blesses and cares for us in so many details! Yesterday we received a gift card from new friends at our church who wanted to help us with expenses while Sandija is staying with us. This morning another good friend (who is becoming a foster parent) shared a devotional message with me that met me exactly where I needed to be met today. Tonight yet another precious friend brought over dinner for us so that I didn't have to cook. He says He knows our needs before we even ask. I needed it, and He provided.<br />
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So, we march forward, one day at a time into His Will for our lives...watching Him meet our natural moments with His supernatural presence and love.<br />
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<br />Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-44090216621827834322012-07-05T09:26:00.000-04:002012-07-05T09:26:32.971-04:00Sandija's First 4th of July!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
We began our day picking blueberries are our neighbors' blueberry farm. Sandija was very focused and content buzzing around from bush to bush and filling up her bucket. She told us that blueberry bushes in Latvia are smaller than in the U.S.</div>
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She picked almost a gallon all by herself!<br />
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Our sweet neighbors let the girls choose a handmade scarf to take home.<br />
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When we first got to the parade, she said, "No like. Go home, Mama" because there were just a lot of people. But as soon as the parade began, she fell very quickly into a happy excitement. In this picture, you can see the word, "Mama" forming on her lips. She pointed out every exciting thing she saw!<br />
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Some of our friends had some puppies at the parade, and Sandija fell in love!<br />
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And here's the whole crew just after the parade (the bags are full of parade candy that they caught).<br />
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Daddy Bear took 4 out of 5 of the children to see the fireworks with friends, while I stayed at a friend's home across the street with our youngest child who has sensory issues and would rather not deal with the noise.<br />
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Look at this girl's face during the fireworks!! She had the BEST time. She said that in Latvia the fireworks are not good but in America, they are very good! When she came back, she ran to me, screaming about how beautiful the fireworks were. And "I missed you, Mom!" <br />
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Ice cream!<br />
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Sparklers!<br />
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<br />Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-25975121995389221222012-07-04T00:15:00.002-04:002012-07-04T00:34:31.753-04:00A Day in the Life of a Host Family<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I'm checking in with some photos from today, as well as an attempt at putting into a nutshell the past 5 days. To be honest with you, they have not been entirely smooth days. In fact, the word "intense" captures some of the moments. A friend of mine shared with me <a href="http://summer4anastasia.wordpress.com/2011/07/12/riding-the-pirate-ship/">a blog post written by a host mom last summer</a>, and as I was reading it, I realized I couldn't have said it better myself. So, instead of reinventing the wheel, I'll just "ditto" her thoughts as you <a href="http://summer4anastasia.wordpress.com/2011/07/12/riding-the-pirate-ship/">hop over to her blog</a>.</div>
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Sometimes we have a teenager on our hands, sometimes a toddler. Sometimes we have a good day, and sometimes Mama hopes bedtime comes earlier somehow. Sometimes we are drained, and sometimes we are full to bursting with the goodness of these days. </div>
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Today was a good day. A very good day.</div>
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It started with getting our prayer team involved with specific prayer requests for the day. Then, I spent an hour of quiet time alone with my Heavenly Father. I began the day knowing that there was no way I could do this. I was exhausted, drained and completely at the end of myself. Weak. Now, did He not tell us that His grace is sufficient? And that His strength works best in our weakness? So why is it that we don't believe Him?</div>
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That's what I needed most of all...for His power to rest upon me.</div>
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I finished my Bible time and headed to the laundry room. The house was still quiet with 5 sleeping children, and my flesh wanted to stretch out those glorious quiet, unstressed moments. I put a load of clothes in the washer, noting the new "smell" of our Sandija. I've memorized all my children's special "smells," their signature scents. And I'm learning a new scent. I threw in the clothes, and the Lord brought to mind some things He had shared with me before Sandija arrived. For weeks prior, He led me over and over again to verses about how He was going to make the crooked path straight and make the mountains level. </div>
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I had written all those verses down so that I could remember them when I needed them. And this morning, I needed them. I thought of all He had showed me, and the tears came. Thinking of the challenges we have faced so far in this hosting period made me want to cry buckets. I stopped and prayed, "Lord, You said you would level the mountain, but right now I feel like I'm at the base of Mount Everest, and ahead of me is a nearly-vertical climb."</div>
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But then and there, as mysteriously as the Holy Spirit moves, I felt overwhelming encouragement to claim the verses He had given me. The mountain was not level YET, but if He said it, then I would choose to believe it. Faith, not sight.</div>
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Funny how a mere moment in His Presence can alter the course of a day. So, into the new day I walked... </div>
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A lot or prayer and a little schedule go a long way! :)</div>
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Here's the scheduler I dug up out of my teaching supplies. It has little clock faces for each time block, so I drew the clock hands to give a visual, and beside each clock, I wrote what activity we had planned. Sandija LOVES this. She comes to it several times a day to see what activity we are due to have. Perhaps just knowing what is coming up makes her feel secure. At any rate, this little chart has been a gem.</div>
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Sandija has discovered the porch swing. She took her blanket off her bed, a pillow off the couch and made herself a little haven where she could crochet. She told me not to look because she was making something special for me. :)<br />
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At lunch, I carved melon balls out of half of our watermelon, and Sandija was amazed! We all shared the watermelon, and after it was all gone, she asked if she could scrape some of the remaining melon off the inside of the rind. I have never seen anyone so intent on a piece of fruit! She had no idea that I had grabbed my camera because she was almost inside that melon! :) She ate every last tiny bit of it. When she was done, she brought me the empty (and I do mean empty!) rind and said, "Ohhhh, thank you, Mama!" <br />
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She loves crafts, so we dumped out our box of Magic Nuudles in the center of the table and let them make whatever their hearts wanted. And I must say, these things are amazing. VERY FUN! And can you believe that all 5 children (even my busiest busy boy!), sat at this table for over 2 hours with this activity!<br />
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Can you tell they had fun?? And look at their creations. My older 3 children all made characters, and our youngest just stuck Nuudles together to make a chain. Wanna know what Sandija made? She made our HOME, complete with porch and visiting squirrels (which she is amazed with!). And she made Mama to go with the home...and Pooh Bear to represent her "Daddy Bear." She spent the entire 2 hours making this, and I was truly in awe of how much work she put into creating our home.<br />
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Here's the house, with Mama and Daddy Bear on the front porch near the brown squirrel. Never mind the other man and Piglet...those were someone else's creations. :)<br />
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After craft time, she went back out on the porch to crochet. And when it was time to make dinner, she wanted to help me make one of her favorites...mashed potatoes. She also made melon balls, by herself this time, with the other half of the watermelon. <br />
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Look at her amazingly beautiful smile.<br />
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She made yummy smacking noises as she ate those hot potatoes fresh off the beaters for the first time.<br />
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After a hot bubble bath, she joined us downstairs as we opened a special package. Gigi, the kids' sweet great-grandmother, sent them a 4th of July box of goodies (including little gifts for Sandija), and here's Sandija with one of the treasures.<br />
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After a big dinner with lots of her favorite foods, we settled in to do some music with Daddy Bear. He played guitar and sang, and she crocheted next to him on the couch.<br />
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And here's my favorite... Here she is reading her Bible next to Daddy Bear. He would read one verse in his Bible, and she'd read that same verse out loud in her Latvian Bible. She LOVES doing this. We were in John 3, and I was praying that the truth would sink into her soul...and that she'd begin to know Her Heavenly Father.</div>
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Tonight, about 15 minutes after the children all went to bed, she came downstairs looking very frightened. She had her stuffed animal in her hands and had its nose in her mouth. She looked more like a scared 4-year-old than a teenager. She said, "Mama...." And she made gestures that showed she had heard thunder. I asked if she was scared, and she said yes. So, I went upstairs and crawled into her bed next to her. She held onto me as I rubbed her back. She drifted to sleep, and I prayed silently over her...praying that He will heal the hurts inside that I could never heal...praying for His Will for her life. And it hit me how amazing it was that this soul from across the globe was resting in my arms feeling secure tonight.<br />
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The valleys may seem low again, and the mountains may again look high...but He is faithful to always make them level. There is beauty in this weakness. And I'm feeling very very blessed to have this child in our home and lives this summer.Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-17559978596030338222012-07-01T22:40:00.000-04:002012-07-01T22:40:26.064-04:00Sunday Happenings<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Really, one day I will get to blog more. I'm either getting old quick :) or it's just been extra busy...but I've been exhausted. I even napped today. </div>
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Here are some photos from today...</div>
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Sandija's first time to our church... She is very happy to be holding her new Latvian Bible. I found the Scriptures from today's message and pointed to them for her to read while we read our Bibles. We are blessed to have another family in our church who is hosting a boy from Ukraine this summer, so we congregated today and shared hosting stories. Both sets of hosting parents came to one big conclusion: We were very tired today! :)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2I_T0C_jUQ6EPkLeCV5MQm5A-324PJl2XlltpHMHM_ZDm3pjb-UjLWsvDicGFAI7as8Y7e-SEeBzJqGH7B8YPcp1FqO6TU-K_vvazI1DWccEva0JJkC1ZbEJSrt1mP25lmIXIWkNW3t-z/s1600/IMG_1855.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2I_T0C_jUQ6EPkLeCV5MQm5A-324PJl2XlltpHMHM_ZDm3pjb-UjLWsvDicGFAI7as8Y7e-SEeBzJqGH7B8YPcp1FqO6TU-K_vvazI1DWccEva0JJkC1ZbEJSrt1mP25lmIXIWkNW3t-z/s320/IMG_1855.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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First trip to Cracker Barrel for lunch... Here she is laughing because Chris was using a translator to tell her what they had to eat there. Apparently the word "chicken" got her giggling today!<br />
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Playing checkers with "Daddy Bear"...<br />
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Let's just say that we have some table manners that we're working on... ;) She was very excited to unroll the napkin and find her silverware inside.<br />
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One of our sons gave her $2 to spend, and she asked me if she could use it to buy our youngest daughter a birthday gift. She chose this roll of huge Smarties. Very sweet of her to use her only money to buy someone else a gift...really, think about that one...<br />
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And here she is at gift time, giving the candy to our youngest daughter. Both were happy! (On a side note, today Sandija grabbed my hand during church, and my youngest grabbed my other hand. And it struck me how amazing it was that I was holding the hand of one child born in Asia and the other born in Eastern Europe. How many people can say they had that honor in church this morning?)<br />
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The girls dressed up like princesses for today's birthday party. Sandija said, "It's magical!"<br />
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And the boys dressed like knights to defend the ladies. Here they are posing in character. :)<br />
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She is always giving hugs and more hugs!<br />
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This host Mama is going to SLEEP now! Goodnight.Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-41840266227159650022012-06-30T23:46:00.000-04:002012-06-30T23:46:47.017-04:008,000 Words<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I'm exhausted but wanted to upload some pictures to share with those of you who have been checking on us. They say a picture is worth 1,000 words, so here are 8,000 "words" for you. :) </div>
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Here she is in Wal-Mart for the first time...</div>
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Painting toenails...<br />
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Playing doll house...<br />
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The kids all disappeared upstairs and created some music and then came downstairs to perform it for us...<br />
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Tonight we went to the New Horizons for Children event at the splash ground, where Sandija got to see some of her friends from Latvia, as well as a Latvian chaperone. She had a great time socializing with everyone! :)<br />
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Here she is with her "Daddy Bear," as she calls him...<br />
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All the kids LOVED the splash ground, especially in this record-breaking heat!<br />
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Lovin' the watermelon.<br />
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Hopefully I will find some free time to write more, as there is so much to say.Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8184021285637203053.post-20000558327932716272012-06-29T09:09:00.001-04:002012-06-29T09:18:46.329-04:00She Has Arrived!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Last night found us waiting at the airport in much anticipation.</div>
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Checking flight status every minute. "Have they landed yet???"<br />
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The clock we stared at during our wait...</div>
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And here was our first glimpse of them! If you click on this photo, you can see Sandija waving with both hands. :)</div>
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Sandija and her friend Liga walked together, holding hands much of the time. We had met Liga's host family (from Tennessee), and we've made plans for the girls to Skype and get together sometime during their stay in the U.S.<br />
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And here they come!<br />
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Isn't she absolutely beautiful?! Next to her is the director of New Horizons for Children.<br />
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She's finally with us!<br />
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And, in a moment I will never ever forget as long as I live, Sandija gave us a gift. We were waiting in the women's bathroom, and she pulled her backpack off her back, unzipped the front zipper and pulled out these 2 things...<br />
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She pointed to the girl on this magnet and said, "Mother," and then hugged me and said, "Thank you!" It was truly a precious moment that I will always remember.<br />
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She was happy and having fun with her friend Liga in the airport. Once they parted, she got a bit quiet but was still smiling and taking things in. She slept the whole way home and then climbed into bed as soon as she could. When I went to tuck her in, she was curled up in fetal position and seemed very withdrawn and lost. I stroked her cheek and kissed her goodnight. <br />
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And then I went to my Heavenly Father, the only thing I could do. Prayer is our lifeline. He holds Sandija in His Hands. And my hands and life I offered to Him: "Use me, Lord." <br />
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The house is still very quiet, as everyone is asleep. The breakfast table is set, with a bowl of clementines and a container filled with different kinds of granola bars. Little place cards are at each person's spot at the table, everyone learning their new place.<br />
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And my heart is full full full. God is so good, and this is going to be a blessed summer.Family Rebuilding the Wallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896129263666683818noreply@blogger.com0