She Can Sure Ask Some Questions!

Last week I had quite a few errands to run so I invited Abby to tag along (instead of hanging out with her older brother all afternoon)...  I've learned over the years that car time = talk time and WOW did Abby want to talk!  And what a wonderful conversation it was!!

The conversation started like this...

Abby - "Mommy, how do people know God?"
Me - "How do you mean?"
A - "Like the people who wrote the Bible, how did they know God?"

By this point I'm sending out a heavenly call for help...  How on earth do I answer these questions?!

Romans 1 first came to mind, so I talked to her about how God is visible in creation and that often God will use creation to cause people to start asking questions...  But then, many times, He will send someone to tell others about Him...

And then it hit me and I said, "Abby, did you know about God in China?"  "No, I never heard of Him."  "Abby, think about that...  God loves you SO much, He thought you are so special and He wanted you know Him so much that He picked us, on the opposite side of the world, to come and be your family so you could know Him too..."  I wish you could have seen the smile on her face as she thought about that!!

From there we talked about Adam and Eve, their first sin in the garden, and why Jesus had to die on the cross...  At one point she asked, "If Mary was Jesus' mommy, does that mean God was married to Mary?"  (Where on earth does she get these questions?!)  "Well, not exactly..."  And then I LOVED her response, "But I thought if Mary was His mommy and God was His daddy, then God would have to be married to Mary."  (At least she has the order of things correct!!)  I admit, I didn't find a simple way to explain that one, but we had a great conversation about faith...

We talked about how God gives us so much evidence of Him in so many things to help grow our faith so that when we come up against hard things to understand, we can trust Him and believe Him for the hard things... 

It was a wonderful afternoon and 4 1/2 hours later (I thought she would have been SO bored!)...  She said, "Mommy, I really enjoyed spending time with you...  I like talking to you!"  Talk about melting a heart...  Complete puddle!!

I'm still in awe at all that God has done in her sweet little heart in just 2 1/2 years...  Talk about a faith builder!!  Adoption is a WONDERFUL journey...  even the hard parts!!

Jesus' Favorite Color? (Updated with an answer to a question - the update is in red)

It was sweet listening to Mackenzie try and explain Easter to Abby yesterday. We were on our way to church for our Maundy Thursday service, where we take time to remember Jesus' last night before His crucifixion on Friday, and Abby wanted to know why we were going to church in the middle of the week.

And once again, we found ourselves in the dilemma of explaining Jesus to a child who doesn't have a complete grasp of our language and who really has no concept of who Jesus is and what He did for us...yet.

I got tickled as I tried to listen through her ears and her little mind... (Mackenzie) "Well, we're going to church because Jesus died..." (Abby) "He died?" (Mackenzie) "He died, but then He came to life again." (Abby) "He...?" (Mackenzie) "3 days later He rose...He came to life again." (Abby) "Oh..."

You could just see the little wheels turning, trying to figure out exactly what we were talking about... I tried to explain to her that it happened 2000 years ago and that we just take time to remember because He loved us so much.

Well then we got the brilliant idea to try and explain to her about Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, how they disobeyed God...how that caused us to be separated from Him and because He loved us so much He wanted to make a way for us to come back to Him... So Jesus allowed Himself to be killed, to take the punishment for what we did, and now someday we can go and live in heaven with Him!

Yea... a little much...but how do you explain the greatest gift in the history of mankind?! I just don't think it's something you can put into words, it's something she will come to understand, over time, in her heart.

I was a little concerned about how this conversation was going...she got really quiet for a while and then I hear, "Mommy, I think I'd like to go to heaven someday.... What do you think Jesus' favorite color is?"

I don't know why but that question has captured my heart... Jesus is becoming so real to her!

(UPDATE... My friend April asked a good question in her comment... why Abby wanted to know what Jesus' favorite color is... Abby LOVES color...she has a beautiful eye for color and it's very important to her to know what colors we like...she often asks me to choose colors that I love when she is making me a bracelet or a picture...so that's why it said to me that Jesus was becoming very real to her...it's a question that she often asks of people who are important to her.)

Last night, Mackenzie had a friend sleepover and so I let them stay up a little later than usual... When it was time for them to go to bed, Mackenzie said, "Can I keep reading to Abby?"... "Sure...what are you reading to her?" ... "The story of Adam and Eve and now I want to read her the story of Jesus and the cross... I'm reading to her from the Rhyming Bible since it's easier to understand."

Sweet Mackenzie went back to the beginning, she took time to simplify it, even when she had a good friend over, she was concerned that Abby understand what Jesus did for us!

Happy Easter... May we all take the time to remember what Jesus did for us!

Just Amazing!!

Tonight was one of those amazing moments that takes your breath away with an older child adoption...

We have been home for 6 months and tonight, when we sat down for dinner, Abby said, "I wanna say blessing!"

We bowed our heads and there was a long, silent pause... I thought, "Maybe she's not sure what to say, so I'll just give her the words." So I said, "Dear God..." And Abby said, "I do it!"

And pray she did!! I couldn't understand every word but here's what I managed... "Dear God, Zack...safe...soccer (he was at soccer practice)...safe...tomorrow...good day (we're going snow tubing)...thank you for food. Amen."

Her words say it all!!

A milestone moment for a milestone post! (My 100th post!)

Only In God's Economy... When 66 Equals 68!

Just to let you know...I made sure I had Nick's permission to tell this story...

We’ve known for some time that we needed to make an educational change for Nick, we just didn’t know what we needed to do. There are a lot of factors playing into this decision, but it came to a head a few weeks ago and I knew it was serious when Nick asked to make the change this year, instead of waiting until the new school year…

Scott and I had already been praying about what to do next year when he starts high school, Nick, much like his mother, just does better in a smaller environment. But with the request to change this year, we really needed wisdom… James 1:5 says, “If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him,” so we asked for wisdom to know what was best for Nick.

We had 3 options…leave him in his current school until the end of the year, or starting in January, either home school him or send him to private school. As the weeks went by, it was clear to us that it would not be best to leave him in the public school…but how to decide between home schooling and private school? We trusted that God would lead us step by step to the right decision...

I called the private school and that door was immediately closed…there were no openings, with no guarantees for next year either. So that seemed to leave only home schooling…

But I happened to mention to a friend that the private school was full and it turns out that her family is friends with the principal’s family and they have adopted from China also. She made a phone call and was able to explain our situation and he was willing to at least talk to us, but with no promise that he could help us…they were full afterall!

As we sat and talked with him, he commented that he only allows 66 students…3 sections of 22…but after running some computer models, he discovered that he could take two more students for a total of 68! And sure enough, a few days later, he called to offer Nick one of the spots!

Now I don’t know about you, but every time I multiply 22 x 3, I get 66…I never get 68!

The day he called I was with Nick and just like the day with Zack, when he won his new IPOD, I couldn’t stop the tears… I had prayed so hard for guidance and confirmation…how much clearer could it be because who but God could somehow make 66 really be 68?

I loved Nick’s response though, he said, “Mom…Jesus fed 5000 with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish…I think he can handle 66 to 68!”

How right he is… God is in the business of handling impossible situations. I am so thankful for the opportunity that He has given to Nick at this school, but I am even more thankful that Nick was able to so clearly see God at work on His behalf!

I Am About To Burst To Tell The Rest Of This Story...

I've always wanted to be like Paul Harvey and say... "And now, for the rest of the story..." Today I have my chance! Something AMAZING, beyond anything I would have dreamed or imagined, has happened...BUT if you haven't read the post before this one, on What I Love About Zack, read that first...then this story will mean a lot more!

Every summer Zack's orthodontist office does a postcard contest for summer vacations...I can't remember all of the categories, but I figured we were a shoe in for Fartherest Away. I had planned to mail the postcard while we were in China, but I couldn't even remember to buy a postcard, much less get it mailed...I was a little distracted!

So, the day we left to come home, I realized at the airport, in Guangzhou, that I still hadn't purchased any postcards...at the last minute, just as we were getting ready to board the plane, I ran into a little shop in the terminal and grabbed the only box of postcards they had...and paid WAY too much for them! I almost didn’t buy them…

At Zack's next appointment, I decided to just take one in. Since it was early September, I figured we were too late, but turned out, there was still another week left in the contest, so they accepted it. I kept watching our e-mail, but when we never received a notice, I just figured someone had gone even farther than us. I had completely forgotten about it...until today.

Zack had another appointment and as I was checking out, Zack said, "Mom, look, we had the postcard that was the fartherest away!" It was posted on a bulletin board behind him! So I just said to the lady at the desk, "That's cool, we had the postcard that was furtherest away."

She looked up with this surprised expression and said, "Didn't anyone call you?" No...I never heard anymore about it... She jumped up, walked back to another room and came out carrying...

Are you ready for this? A brand new IPOD, just like the one that was stolen! We had NO idea that there was even a prize for this contest...we thought it was just the honor of having your name posted!

And the thing is, Zack's IPOD that was stolen was a refurbished one...he had ordered it to save money, so every once in a while, there would be a little glitch...nothing big, but occasionally we had to reset it... This was NEW!!

Zack took one look at my face and said, "Ah mom, don't cry!" But I couldn't stop my eyes from welling up...he's lucky that I didn't just let the tears flow, like they were threatening to do...you know...that BIG lump in your throat, that somehow holds back the tears, but, if anyone looks at you, or if you try and speak, will break and the flood will come...that was me. I think if we hadn't been standing in the office, in front of so many people, I would have just sobbed!

So, they call Dr. A. to come up front and have his picture made with Zack… I felt compelled to tell him what had happened…I didn’t bring our faith into it, I simply said that “Zack had his IPOD stolen last week, and even though he’s pretty sure he’s knows who did it, he decided not to push it since he couldn’t prove it beyond a shadow of a doubt.” And then I mentioned that the kid he suspects is a troubled young man…

Dr. A looked at us and said, “See what faith can do!” I had ABSOLUTELY no idea where he stood…we’ve never discussed it…he had no idea where we stood!

I realize that many, who don’t live by faith, would argue that this is just a grand coincidence… But I will emphatically say that I do NOT, in any way believe in coincidence…and even more so when so many events transpired to perfectly time this to happen after Zack made a choice to live for something bigger than an IPOD, putting this other child’s heart before his own rights.

Does God ALWAYS bless us, or reward our obedience so visibly? Of course not. Would He still be a good God, even if this hadn’t happened? ABSOLUTELY…

But sometimes, God pauses in the midst of eternity and blows our socks off…I am so completely overwhelmed…but what’s even more important…Zack is overwhelmed! What God did for his faith in that moment…Zack will never forget. Zack made a choice to live in light of eternity and God blessed his obedience!

So maybe you’re wondering, how can we even believe that God of the universe even cares about a 15 year old and his IPOD? Fair question…but the Bible says that He numbers the hairs on our heads…if He cares about how many hairs we have, which changes from moment to moment…why wouldn’t He care about a 15 year old’s disappointment…

Zack has used that IPOD as a testimony…he openly shares what he has on it with his friends, and it’s far different than some of the stuff that they listen to…it’s full of Christian rock… it has other, non-Christian music too…but we’re careful to check the lyrics before we put it on there.

And for the couple of friends that know about this at school, and what his decision was to not pursue it, there’s no telling how this will speak to them.

Matthew 7:11b says, "...how much more will your Father in Heaven give good gifts to those who ask Him." God is an amazing, perfect Father...I have no doubt that He LOVES to bless us, even more than we can think to even ask...

When I think about how I love for our kids to open gifts that we are excited to give them, it's fun to imagine heaven at the moment the lady brought out the IPOD...I wonder if God said to the angels..."Come here for a minute and watch this?" Maybe, maybe not... But I have no doubt that God was watching and smiling as He waited for us to unwrap this unbelievable blessing!

Our God is so BIG that He can use anything to bless us and increase our faith, even an IPOD!

P.S. He said, "This one will not be going to school!" What an awesome remembering stone! Way to go God!!

First Progress Report & A Funny

Abby brought home her first ever progress report today, these were the teacher's comments...

"Abby is a joy to have in class. She is adjusting to Kindergarten very well! She is very eager to participate in class and volunteers to raise her hand. Even though she does not always know the answer, she will repeat it after me. She is not shy and will even stand up and sing her name during our name song. She is picking up on concepts quickly."

And to think that the tutor thought she was developmentally delayed! Amazing!!

Mackenzie brought home a great progress report too...her teacher said she is a "very attentive and conscientious student."

(The boys get theirs in bits and pieces, by class, so we'll see those over the next few days.)

Way to go girls!! I'm so proud of you!!

I almost forgot I wanted to add this...last night it was past Abby's bedtime and she was playing with Bitty Baby... I said, "Abby, sweet girl, (she's sweet girl and Mackenzie is sunshine) it's time for bed."

Her response... "In a minute mommy!" Yep, right out of the mouth of my little China girl! I burst out laughing and said, "Abby, you're not supposed to know how to say things like that yet." She just laughed and laughed!

I Love You Loud!

I am somewhere else in the south (besides home) with the girls...we're having a girl's weekend with my mom, but we came specifically to see my grandmother who is...well, just suffice it to say, 'you wouldn't believe me if I told you her age when you see her picture'...so I'll just tell you, it won't be too much longer until she's seen a century of years! She's in amazing health, but still, I wanted to be absolutely certain that Abby met her great-grandmother. So we braved the gasoline shortage, and drove to see her (for those of you not in the south...it's CRAZY here!).

It was a wonderful day... I had to post the first picture of me with Abby, simply because she asked for this picture! I had been taking quite a few photos, had finally put the camera down and Abby pointed to me and said, "Picture mommy." I said, "You mean with me?" (She's NEVER asked for a picture with me) and she said, "Yes, picture mommy!" And she crawled up into my lap for a picture! Remember the last time you saw us in a chair together, she was sitting on me!

Me with the girls! (She's still on my lap!)

Abby, Me, Mama H.(great grandmother), Noba (grandmother) & Mackenzie

The girls with Uncle F. & Aunt J.

Uncle F. gave her her first ever money!

When it was time to go, Abby had a big hug for Mama H. and I whispered over Mama H.'s head, tell her "I love you." Well, Abby is a bit soft-spoken and Mama H. doesn't hear like she used to, so she had to tell her a few times...about 10...finally I said, "Abby, tell her I love you loud." Abby looked up at Mama H. and said, "I love you loud!"

From the mouths of babes... I have been so blessed to be surrounded by people in my life who have 'loved me loud'!! My husband and children, my mom, and the people you see in these photos... Mama H., Uncle F. and Aunt J... There are many more that I will get to tell you about over time... but the one who is noticably absent from these photos is my Pop...he was married to Mama H....talk about someone who could love loud...that was Pop! He went to be with Jesus over 9 years ago, but I always miss him...he should be in these pictures too...he would have LOVED Abby loud! I'm so thankful to still have Uncle F, Aunt J and Mama H...they loved her very loud today and they didn't even need their words...it was written all over their faces!

Mama H., Uncle F and Aunt J...I love you LOUD!