The Meyers In Motion

Ethiopia

2010-01-29T22:15:00.002-06:00

THIS IS A WEEK OLD, BUT INTERNET IS CRAZY. FINALLY A GOOD CONNECTION TO PUT THIS UP. MANY OF YOU HAVE ALREADY GOTTEN THIS ONE...SORRY!!

We feel like we have experienced a lifetime of memories and sensations in rapid succession in less than two weeks here under the African skies of Ethiopia. The girls did so well on the airplane rides – even the 8 hour flight from Chicago to Germany and the 6 hour flight from Germany to Ethiopia – in addition to all the waiting for those flights! They especially liked the international airplanes that had movies and cartoons that they could watch from their seat (they watched Disney cartoons and the movie “UP!” about three times a piece!)

It is staggering to think that we began flying early on Tuesday morning and then arrived in Ethiopia on Wednesday night at 7:10 pm Ethiopia time (I think about 10:30am American time). We went through security and customs with not too much waiting at the airport. The Lord was looking out for us because just after we got through there was at least three hundred people that arrived at the airport after us! Some of the friends that we met on the plane told us later that they had to wait three hours to make it through customs and the baggage area.

All eight pieces of our luggage came, which caused us to feel very loved by the Lord, especially when we saw that other SIM short term missionaries we met went two days without their luggage. A driver met us at the airport and took us to the SIM guesthouse. We stayed there from Wednesday night through Saturday morning. We enjoyed the food that the cook made (most of the time!) and really loved getting to meet the many different missionaries passing through on their way to other destinations from all over the world. For example, we met a group of three missionaries working in Asia who were visiting to see what potential ministry opportunities existed with Chinese unreached people groups living in Ethiopia. One family ministering in Northern Ethiopia had two Ethiopian girls and so the girls made friends with them very quickly. Perhaps the highlight of our time there was the little “playground” with swings and a slide. Daddy gave the girls many “underdogs” during that time and we tried to spot many different kinds of Ethiopian birds flying overhead or perched in the trees.

The hardest adjustment there was trying to adjust to a new sleep schedule. It is no fun waking up at 2am and then arguing with your body to go to sleep. Your mind says you should sleep, but your body disagrees. The loud Disco club that just happened to be near us outside, the early morning Muslim calls to prayer over the loud speakers, and the Ethiopian Orthodox church chanting over the loud speakers at various hours, did not help us sleep either. Allie just told me today again that she is tired of all the “songs” on the loud speakers – they wake her up!

We went to the Hope adoption transition home on Saturday. We really enjoyed playing with the babies and it was great to see how much the workers there cared for the children, but the sour milk smell was strong and almost all of the babies made your leg wet when they sat down on you. It made us very emotional. We briefly spoke to a case worker there, but she was new and didn’t know very much. We left and tried to get some errands done like getting a cell phone and then we moved into the SIM “Press” compound where about ten SIM families stay. By the way, when we say “compound,” we mean a gated area complete with a security guard that opens the gate for people to come in. It has a wall around the complete area with only one way in. Just about every place in Ethiopia is a compound.

The apartments here are very nice. We have two bedrooms (the girls have a bunkbed), a bathroom with a shower, and then a kitchen, dining, and living room area. The best thing about the Press compound is undoubtedly the children from the other SIM families (there is not a rotten one in the whole bunch!) The girls have especially connected with one family that has two girls the same age as ours. The compound is a complete circle with houses on the edges and a large play area in the middle with a soccer field, basketball courts, sandbox, and swings. It is very fun to watch all the kids laughing and playing. The girls have asked us a couple of times if we can live here! They both have adjusted so well (probably better than us). We have to shepherd them through the process of getting settled here because, on the one hand, they enjoy meeting new friends and our partaking in our various “adventures,” but on the other hand, they miss their friends and family. They are sometimes worried that their friends back home will forget all about them.

Monday, we went to the Hope Adoption Transition home and spoke to some case workers who knew our case. We spent a long time there. We got some information on our boys that seemed to make sense. We learned that the boys had a father and a mother. We learned that the father had lied on the files by claiming to be the uncle so that the boys could be adopted, but the courts figured out that he was lying, which had caused all the problems with the paperwork. We didn’t know how much of the information to trust and we have since that time wondered if the information about the boys not even being able to walk when they got there was even true. That is what is hard here – you don’t know what to believe or what to think. After finding out this information and being treated to the coffee ceremony (where they roast the coffee beans right in front of you and then serve you coffee and popcorn), they let us visit all the children in the transition home. We got to see them and sit with them as they sang together. It was such a memorable experience.

We also got to see an amazing parade. Jesus’ baptism by John the Baptist is one of the biggest holidays in Ethiopia – rivaling Christmas in terms of the sheer excitement and festivities. We watched the parade and took lots of pictures! Members from the Orthodox church march through the streets with choirs singing and priests carrying copies of the Tabot (ten commandments). Apparently, we were a big attraction as well, because many people pointed and took pictures of us. I don’t think I will ever get used to getting stared at so much as we have the whole time that we have been here!

Thursday, we took a trip to the Southern countryside of Ethiopia in Dilla. I was a little nervous about going because I was still recovering from getting very sick for about 24 hours, but the Lord was very gracious to my body and gave me a full recovery. It is about a seven or eight hour trip depending on traffic. I wish I could describe the change in scenery throughout the trip. Imagine going from a bustling city of four million at about 8000 feet above sea level and then driving through what looks like the desert plains of the Serengeti, complete with termite mounds, Achacia trees, camels, and grass huts. The plains were filled with many Muslim mosques and various nomadic peoples. It was certainly quite a sight as cars swerve everywhere to miss hitting people and animals as they cross the roads at all times with their donkeys and carts or driving their herds of goats, sheep, or cattle. My favorite sight was the four or five times when a large donkey would just sit or stand in the middle of the road with no owners around, seemingly oblivious to the cars driving at breakneck speeds on both sides of them.

Then we arrived in the South in an area that looks like a jungle or a tropical rain forest with banana, mango, avocado, and coffee trees EVERYWHERE. We stayed at an SIM guesthouse and met the SIM missionaries there (Jonathan and Sara Oliver). The SIM compound holds a KHBC (a three year Bible school where students train for ministry at the diploma level). Gracie and Allie were scared of sleeping at first, but I think you will understand why in a second. The missionaries have a little boy, named Edward, who is 4. He started telling them stories that basically amounted to this: the woods are filled with hyenas (he would “howl” to get the point across), the rivers are filled with crocodiles, and the house was filled with termites and rats. It is hard to rattle Gracie’s cage, but he was successful!

I got to preach in their chapel on Friday morning and we fellowshipped with the missionary family throughout the day. They had kids about the same ages as our girls. We saw them throughout the day stockpiling avocados and mangos in their tree house, so I finally asked them what they were doing – and they said they were getting supplies so that they could withstand the invasion of the pirates. The family had an eye patch and some plastic swords laying around, so Daddy became the pirate and they fought against me until they tired me out. You should have seen how dirty and happy the kids were. We almost got stuck one time and I helped push the truck out of the mud and away from a very large sinkhole – then you should have seen how dirty I was (I was still happy too). Can you imagine how much we got stared at when we went to a restaurant? They acted like they had never seen Americans covered with mud!

Allie had her birthday while we were in Dilla. We put candles on strawberry wafers that Cara brought along. When it was all said and done, she told us it was her best birthday ever. It made sense, I never had a jungle birthday growing up! She was a dirty and happy five-year old girl.

Our driver and friend, Yosi, was able to meet the boys and their parents and hear their story. The father is a guard for the local MOWA compound and is also a coffee farmer. The family seemed to be in good financial circumstances as the father had two jobs and coffee farmers do very well in the South. The boys were in “ok” condition, but they were scared by visitors. Yosi thought that they were probably scared because they thought they were going to get taken away again). We decided not to see the boys and the parents and make the situation worse, because the father was fishing for money throughout the conversation with Yosi and we didn’t want to encourage him or others into thinking that they would be rewarded for giving their children up temporarily. We have a hard time understanding people giving up their boys like that when they could totally provide for them. We are certainly not happy with the father for putting them (and us) through that whole ordeal.

One of the missionaries here said that some families will give up their children for adoption so that they will have a chance to make it big and then they think that their children will take care of them afterwards. We thought about setting up an account with Compassion international for the boys, but after seeing the situation and doing a little research, we learned that the boys would only partially benefit from it. Again the father was fishing for money the whole time that our driver was talking to him and thus we thought it would not be best to reward the father for his actions and perpetuate what seems to be a shared mentality throughout that region. Yosi told us that many parents would try to give us their children if we came along with him. We still do not have a category in our minds or hearts for the situation or the shared mentality there, especially after seeing the situation for ourselves.

We drove back to Addis on Saturday. Some of the highlights of the trip were going to lake Awassa and feeding the monkeys there (very carefully!). The girls loved how they would come up and take pieces of bananas right out of their hands. You should have heard them giggle and squeal. We also enjoyed buying mangoes, pineapples, and strawberries from local farmers along the roadside. Every farmer sells their produce along the roads and they hold it out to you as you drive by. In the South, they were selling drinks, produce, baskets, lottery tickets, and even a legal mind-altering drug called Chad or Cat. On the desert plains they were selling charcoal, wood, onions, potatoes, and we even saw a someone selling a very large python skin.

Sunday, we went to church at the International Evangelical Church. It was a taste of heaven to see a truly international group of believers from every tribe and tongue from India, Australia, Africa, different parts of Europe and America worshipping together. People from Australia, England, S. Korea, India, America and Ethiopians etc, all worshipping together!

Tomorrow I start teaching at the college. I am truly looking forward to getting to know the students.

Note from Cara:

Where do I start? As Jason described, so much has happened so quickly. You see pictures in a book or newsletter, but you never truly understand missionary work or living in a different culture until you can see, feel and smell the difference. You also get stared at a lot. My feisty side has been tempted to occasionally make funny faces at them to see what they would do! The culture is very warm and they love to see “white” children. Their staring is not considered rude, just curious. My biggest stress has been providing meals for my family. Imagine trying to shop here and not getting what you need. My skills for throwing things together, has been put to the max and trying to be creative with my ingredients. I miss my kitchen and the spices most of all. I feel like the Lord is using this time in our lives to strip us down of all our comforts and find our true identity and comfort in HIM ALONE. I am independent and you can’t be that way here. You have to ask for help. Since we don’t have a vehicle I ask for rides a lot to grocery stores and “tag along”. I have had to work through some expectations and put them before the Lord’s feet and know He is perfect and good in ALL things.

The Lord has helped us get through the disappointment of the boys. My heart is heavy and sad, but I trust in Him. It has helped to talk to fellow missionaries around here about the culture and the state of poverty here. One lady said that 90% of the children should be adopted here because of their poverty. That is hard to swallow. We were quickly reminded though that the Lord loves Ethiopia too and has great plans for her country. We revisited our reasons for adopting again. Even though Teketel and Mussie’s situation was not good, it wasn’t as bad as other children. Other children don’t have parents and don’t have food for their mouths. We want to meet a need, not take away children from their parents.

This week we are hoping to get in a “routine”…if you can call living here our normal routine!! J I will start the girl’s school, Jason will start at ETC and we are hoping to meet with the workers and attorneys at the transition home to communicate our disappointment for the lack of truth and wanting to start over with a clean slate and work with them in regards to being matched with new children. Even some of the details they gave us last week were false (like that the boys couldn’t walk when they came to the transition home). They also said if we were willing to wait, that the adoption could still be possible. I am not sure what kind of methods they were looking into, but legally if they have two parents they can’t be adopted. I am slowly realizing the gift of being able to find out the truth about the boys. We would have always wondered and now we have a peace of mind knowing we did everything humanly possible for them. I am trusting that the Lord will heal our broken hearts over Teketel and Mussie and enlarge our hearts for new children. I know He will. When you can physically see them and touch them, it will be easy. That is my prayer. We are still hoping to bring home children in June. We will see if that is possible.

Please continue to pray for our time here. Thank you to many of you that made it possible for us financially to come here. I never cease to give God thanks for that gift and for your prayers too…we feel them. I am still curious how the Lord will use us here. I know I have learned many valuable lessons already. How important it is to pray for the missionaries. They are not super humans and need specific and intentional prayers. Since we are “temporarily missionaries”, I will be able to understand at a deeper level what they are going through (at least the initial adjustments). It is hard. I didn’t know how hard, but the Lord’s strength is endless and His love secure.

Sorry for such a long update. We tried to give details so you could slightly see through our eyes what it’s like here. FYI, we have wireless internet, but the connection is so problematic……soooo frustrating. I see some of you on Skype, but haven’t figured out that connection either. So we gave a long update, because we don’t know when the access will be up again. TIE or TIA is what you say when things are so foreign and frustrating as internet. TIE= “this is Ethiopia” and TIA= “this is Africa.” And then you try to laugh, because if you don’t learn that lesson, you will always cry. What a great opportunity to see the creativity of God’s creation and his love for the nations. Believe me, the “American way” is not the only way. Just one more thing, one of the missionaries was telling us that one of the “down country” stores had started carrying Mars choc. bars. Then after about a month, they were gone. When she asked where they were, the storeowner complained that he could never keep them in stock and people were always buying them up, so he quit selling them…TIA!! Food is like that around here. Things come and go and it’s hard to know when they will come back. For example, there used to always be baking soda here for years, now for the last year, it’s been gone….TIA!! Everything is cheaply made down here, so pipes are always breaking and household things falling apart (know from first hand experience)…TIA. And then you laugh…or at least try! J

2 Cor. 2:14-15: “But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being save and among those who are perishing.” I’ve been reading a helpful book by Karen Pearce (given from Preston to Jason to me…if anyone runs into them, please thank them for me). I especially have appreciated the part of trying not to “do” things for the Lord, but to be so full of Him and spending time in His presence that we will be a sweet aroma of Christ to others around us. A lesson for us all, I believe!

We miss you all and love you deeply,

The Meyers

End of the Year Questions

2009-12-31T08:27:00.006-06:00

Yesterday I read a great post and wanted to share it with you. I will be taking these questions with me on the plane and hopefully it will help me to reorganize and refocus my priorities. I like to stop several times a year and reflect where I am at. It helps me to see where I have deviated and also let the Lord show me areas in my life that need attention. Needless to say this past year I have neglected this more than usual.
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The beginning of a new year is an ideal time to stop, look up, and get our bearings. To that end, here are some questions to ask prayerfully in the presence of God.

What’s one thing you could do this year to increase your enjoyment of God?
What’s the most humanly impossible thing you will ask God to do this year?
What’s the single most important thing you could do to improve the quality of your family life this year?
In which spiritual discipline do you most want to make progress this year, and what will you do about it?
What is the single biggest time-waster in your life, and what will you do about it this year?
What is the most helpful new way you could strengthen your church?
For whose salvation will you pray most fervently this year?
What’s the most important way you will, by God’s grace, try to make this year different from last year?
What one thing could you do to improve your prayer life this year?
What single thing that you plan to do this year will matter most in ten years? In eternity?

Whitney writes:

The value of many of these questions is not in their profundity, but in the simple fact that they bring an issue or commitment into focus. For example, just by articulating which person you most want to encourage this year is more likely to help you remember to encourage that person than if you hadn’t considered the question.

Whitney also offers an additional 21 questions to help us “consider our ways.”

Read the whole article here.

HT: Justin Taylor

Walking by Faith

2009-12-29T22:03:00.004-06:00

I am sorry I haven't made any updates to the boy's situation. There is not a whole lot to tell. All efforts were blocked and we do have some limited information that I am hesitant to divulge online for fear that it would hurt our case. I am hoping that we can share more of the pieces of this story when we get over there.

I know I keep saying this, but your prayers are so appreciated and felt. Things are soon approaching for our leave date. I am a little overwhelmed and relieved at the same time for some forward movement. We continue to pray that our desires would be secondary to what the Lord's will is for us and for Jonathan and David. Nothing is too big or difficult for the Lord and we are leaning on Him and trusting that He knows best and ultimately that He is in perfect control. I quake at the thought of me being in control. I would mess everything up....so we rest in HIM and wait.

Today I read Isaiah 53
53:5-7 says "Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions; He was crushed for our iniquities; upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned - everyone- to His own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth."

This was just a small portion of a glorious text. I sat there weeping and realizing that the Lord bore the full wrath of His Father and He bore the weight of the world's sins on His shoulders. How little is my pain and suffering compared to Jesus'. I rejoice in these struggles if to only be close to my Savior and to fellowship with Him. Though we had never thought this adoption journey would lead us down this path, we rejoice and thank Him through it all. In our weakness His strength is evident and our heart's desire and prayer is that no matter what the end of this story is, the Lord will get all the credit and praise. His ways are not our own, but we rest in His perfect sovereignty and plan, even if we don't fully understand or comprehend it.

On A Mission

2009-12-23T12:05:00.002-06:00

The last few days have had another full range of emotions. The verse that keeps running through my head is this: "The steadfast love of the Lord never changes. His mercies are new every morning. Great is thy faithfulness." When things keep changing and stresses keep coming, the Lord's love is always steady. His truth never changes. His grace is always sufficient for that particular moment. I try not to think beyond today, because I know that the Lord hasn't given me the allotted graced for those days ahead. He only gives me the perfect amount this moment. I shudder and almost cry thinking what it would be like to go through hardships and life without the Lord. All the untruthfulness and confusion that we have experienced has made me even more thankful for the Truth of His Word that NEVER changes and is the foundation to our lives and in all the craziness we feel.

We have a christian driver and interpreter that is working for us in Ethiopia. He has helped several families in the past and we were blessed to come across the right people to get the connection to him. He visited the transition home yesterday and they told him that the boys were back with their father. After talking to the person that is connecting us, we decided that the only way we will know the truth is to find out for ourselves.
So as of this morning we received this email: On A mission. Our "helper" in Ethiopia is driving 6 hours one way to their regional orphanage to try to find out what is happening.

So my plea is this...please pray for our helper and please pray that the truth will come to light. I don't know if the transition home is helping him with info in regards to where the boys are located, but we are confident that the Lord will help him. I am praying that the Lord will prepare our hearts for whatever we hear. Believe me, I have cried my tears and at some level I am not sure how I will feel if I know they are with their father. We will still want to meet them regardless of where they are at.

Jason gently reminded me yesterday that we want to adopt children who desperately need a family. If the boys are able to go back to their family and are taken care of, that is our greatest desire for them. It's about their well-being not ours!

Also yesterday we found out that most of our funds are in for our trip!! Again, more tears shed with thankfulness for the Lord's provisions and clear hand upon this journey that He has called us to. Thank you all who gave to our trip. We thank the Lord that He moved through you to bless us.

Thank You all For Your Prayers

2009-12-20T16:28:00.002-06:00

Things are starting to wind up pretty quickly. I can't believe we are literally a few weeks from going to Ethiopia. Time seems to be a blur in my eyes and I literally have to will myself to slow down and enjoy each day's blessings.

Thank you all for your prayers for us during this past year and this past week for our boys and our transition of moving to Ethiopia for awhile. What a joy and privilege it is to be used by our Lord. This journey has been hard, but I wouldn't trade it for the world. He has taught me so much about myself and HIM and trusting in Him alone....mm, you would think that would be an easy lesson!! :)

The latest update we have is nothing....we tried to find out an explanation as to why the boys are no longer up for adoption and back with their family(especially after we had heard encouraging news a couple months ago). After talking to others, our instincts do have some grounding. The opinion is that they may be with their family, but probably not. We really don't know what is happening. We are so ready to go over there and find out what is truly happening. I am frustrated by the lack of communication and help we are getting from the people that are supposed to be doing this stuff!! We feel very alone in this endeavour.

The Lord has brought some people into our path that are and will help us out in Ethiopia to find out what the truth is. Please continue to pray. In all honesty, this last piece of news was hard, but hardly surprises us because we keep having one obstacle after another. We know we are doing the right thing and are at peace with pursuing these boys to the very end of whatever the Lord has for them and us.

This past week, I kept wanting to know what the last chapter would be in this book of our adoption. It hasn't seem to reach the climax yet! :) At some point everything has to start fitting together somehow.

So we continue to trust the Lord and wait and pray that His will be done and knowing full well He is capable to move mountains.

Something Doesn't Add Up.

2009-12-15T13:10:00.003-06:00

So we got another update today. Shimeliss told Hope adoption which told Lisa that our boys are no longer available for adoption and that they are back with their family. Shimeliss had mentioned that he had already told Lisa that, which he hadn't. SOMETHING DOESN'T ADD UP. We have been offered new referrals and new children TWICE and since the boys are back in their regional orphanage again, they have no jurisdiction over them. My fear is that this may just another way for them to get us to move on?
If they are back with their families again, great, I can deal with that and are would be happy that they are with some sort of family. But something in my spirit doesn't feel right. I can't put my finger on it. Our updates have hardly ever seemed to add up and sometimes been contradicting. I have no reason to trust them, even though I want to.
PLEASE PRAY FOR US, we need wisdom. I feel so trapped, angry, devastated and in tears. I can't let this rest until we have more details, because of course, we didn't get any of those.

Merry Christmas

2009-12-08T16:30:00.002-06:00

I posted this video last year and again I find myself praying for our sons this Christmas season that the Lord would hold them close and all the other orphans in this world that don't get to experience a family's love. I pray that the Lord would hold each of them closely to His side and that they would experience His peace and love midst pain and confusion.

Gracie Reading to Allie

2009-12-06T21:08:00.004-06:00

Gracie loves to read and her goal has been to read to Allie. She always asks Allie if she wants a book read to her. So proud of our girl!!

While You Were Sleeping

2009-12-03T07:44:00.000-06:00

Why We Are Going To Ethiopia

2009-12-01T12:06:00.003-06:00

Dear Family and Friends,

Many of you know that we are in the process of adopting two boys from Ethiopia. Some of you have also heard of the Lord's leading in our next step of faith: the Meyer family is moving to Ethiopia for next semester (January through June). We will be working under the leadership of SIM (Serving in Mission). SIM is an interdenominational mission organization whose main focus is to glorify God by evangelizing, ministering, discipling, and establishing national churches that fulfill the Great Commission. My main ministry opportunity in Ethiopia will be teaching the Gospels at the Evangelical Theological College in Addis Ababa in Ethiopia. We would love to explain how the Lord has worked in our hearts to lead us to this exciting decision.

We began to be confronted with the idea of moving to Ethiopia as we meditated on the meaning of the gospel. It all started when one of our agency workers recommended that we seek a referral for a new child because of certain difficulties in the adoption process with our two boys. Those words were unthinkable and unsettling, but the situation brought the gospel into clear focus. We owe our salvation to the relentless, loving, patient pursuit of God. God in Christ took a "whatever it takes" approach to redeem and rescue us when we were helpless sinners. Therefore, we long for our relentless, loving, patient advocacy for these boys to serve as a model of the gospel.

Having resolved that we were not going to give up on them because God never gave up on us, we considered how we could expend every effort and use up every option at our disposal. The gospel surprised us again with its challenging, yet compelling beauty. The glory of the incarnation is that Jesus left heaven to come to earth and dwell among us in order to bring us into God's family. Suddenly, the distance did not seem so great between Louisiana and Ethiopia. The "sacrifice" seemed surprisingly small to leave the comforts of America for Ethiopia when we compared them to Christ's loving act of leaving the glories of heaven for the hardships he faced on earth. We are gladly bringing our family to the boys rather than waiting to bring the boys to our family.

Our time in Ethiopia is now about so much more than the adoption of our two boys. We have a chance to proclaim the true gospel. One of the problems in Ethiopia is a false teaching that Jesus is part God and part man, not fully God and fully man as the Bible teaches. It is no coincidence, but providence that they assigned me to teach a class on the Gospels! We long to see the Ethiopians worship Christ in His full glory because He alone is worthy of their praise. "Let the peoples praise you, O God, let all the peoples praise you" (Ps 67:3). Our prayer is not to be seen or to be admired as we take this step. Our prayer is for Christ to be seen and admired in all the stunning beauty of His majesty. O how we long to see Him more clearly and proclaim His glory more faithfully and passionately in and through this mission. It has the potential to be the biggest catalyst for spiritual growth that we have ever experienced together as a family.

My main purpose for writing this letter is to enlist an army of prayer warriors for prayer support for our ministry in Ethiopia. We are also beginning the process of fund raising. We will need to raise $19,504 to cover flight costs, medical insurance, and living expenses while in Ethiopia. The financial support for this trip must be raised before we can leave the U.S. on January 11. If the Lord leads you to partner with us financially, you may return your gift with our STA#33929 on the enclosed response card to the SIM office. SIM will send you a tax-deductible receipt for your gift. Please know that this is not a "we will mention prayer in passing, but we really hope you give money" kind of letter. We pray that the Lord will lead you as He sees fit. We pray that He will raise up many to give cheerfully to this cause, but our greatest need is for many more to intercede for us faithfully before the throne of grace because His grace is our greatest need. We know that apart from Him we can do nothing (John 15:5).

Yours in the greatest cause,

The Meyer family

202 Iris Park Drive
Pineville, LA 71360
318-542-2823

SIM information

P. O. Box 7900

Charlotte, NC 28241

704-587-1518

Running A Half-Marathon

2009-11-22T13:20:00.007-06:00

Yesterday I did something I thought I'd never do. I ran a half-marathon, 13.1 miles. I couldn't have done it without the accountability and encouragement of my running partners, who are 10x better than me. I aspire to run like them someday!! I ran my personal best, which shocked even myself. I finished in 2 hours 11 min. The funny part was that I actually placed second in my age catagory. My response was complete shock. It was a smaller race and there must not have been a lot in my class. I told Jason that the Lord had a sense of humor, making my first race one that I place. I am sure that will be the last time!! Here a few pictures from yesterday. It rained that day, so I was wet. The rain actually made it more refreshing when we ran.
From left to right. Anna Magee(she was the one that I ran with until mile 10..I couldn't have done as well as I did without her). Carine Mattix(she was my 5 am running partner...she is an awesome running and encourager) Brenda Pierson(LC biology professor that ran sometime with us on the weekends). Jon(LC student that is a cross country runner that on a whim decided to run the half-marathon and had never run that far in his life. His time: 1 hour 45 min!! Puke!! ;)

Photography Mania

2009-11-18T21:25:00.018-06:00

cheek to cheek with my princesses!!

Enjoying the pumpkin patch and collecting mini pumpkins!!

Beautiful fall weather and doing a little hiking. We had to find walking sticks!!

Behind Jason and the girls is huge cane plants. The girls had fun exploring the woods!

posing in front of a cool mushroom. Have yet to find out what it was. Lots of flowers and berries too. The girls thought each find was a treasure and gushed with excitement. Trying to take picture shots in my mind of all these memories.

The following pictures were taken when the girls dressed up for a little tea time with mommy. I thought they looked too cute to pass up. K...just a proud mama!! :)

Allie thinking that vacuuming is a blast!! What a goof-ball.

A Shimmer of Hope?????

2009-11-07T19:37:00.002-06:00

Some good friends of ours, the Stutzman's are adopting three siblings from Ethiopia. Jake the father has gone over there due to problems with the progress of their case. While he was over there, he was able to ask about our case. They told him that the situation with the boy's father had been resolved and that as soon as someone can travel to the region, that they can come back to the transition home. We were estactic to receive this news, but also very cautious. We have gotten wrong information in the past and don't want to set our hopes in this too much. So we continue to pray with fervor that the Lord will continue to put His hand upon our case. We see this as another sign that it will be very good for our case if we were over there. It seems that if they can put a face and family with the case that it may help things possible move more quickly.
We never give up hope that the Lord will work in mighty ways!!

BTW....tomorrow is Orphan Sunday.

A challenge: Satan does not want to see orphans or broken children united with families. Please pray, support, or encourage someone who is or has adopted and be prayerful if the Lord is leading you in this direction. It is a mandate in the Bible to care for widows and orphans!!

Life's Inconveniences

2009-11-02T13:43:00.002-06:00

this from an out-of-print book, The Life and Letters
of Janet Erskine Stuart. (Says one who was her assistant for some years),

"She delighted in seeing her plan upset by unexpected events, saying that
it gave her great comfort, and that she looked on such things as an
assurance that God was watching over her stewardship, was securing the
accomplishment of His will, and working out His own designs. Whether she
traced the secondary causes to the prayer of a child, to the imperfection
of an individual, to obstacles arising from misunderstandings, or to
interference of outside agencies, she was joyfully and graciously ready to
recognize the indication of God's ruling hand, and to allow herself to be
guided by it."

Morning Reading

2009-10-28T07:14:00.002-05:00

Isaiah 30:15
"In returning and rest you shall be saved;
in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.
(but Jerusalem was unwilling)

30:18-21
"Therefore the LORD waits to be gracious to you,
and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you.
For the LORD is a God of justice;
blessed are all those who wait for him.

....He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry. As soon as he hears it, he answers you. And though the LORD give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide himself anymore, but your eyes shall see your Teacher. And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, 'This is the way, walk in it,' when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left."

I have been reading through Isaiah. It amazing how God's word is ALWAYS relevant in our lives. I am thanking God for his promises and fresh new grace and mercy for today only!!

Soberly Resolved

2009-10-27T13:59:00.002-05:00

Our adoption updates have been few and far between. Our case seems to be stuck in limbo and no one seems to know the specifics of what is being done to move the case forward.

This morning we were given more discouraging news. They think our case could go on indefinitely and some of these cases have been going for two years!! The advice that was given to us again was to be matched with new children. Jason and I are at a loss of what to do because we feel connected to these two precious boys. We don't want a new referral. This seems to solidify even more that we are needing to go to Ethiopia next year. We were waiting to make it official, but at this point Jason and I are planning to live in Ethiopia from Jan-June. He would teach at a Bible college and hopefully while over there we can figure out what is happening with our case and possibly our presence would move it along quicker. I feel like we are missing some major pieces to the puzzle and us going over there will help us understand more what is happening and possibly bring in some extra resources to get the job done. If we don't adopt these boys, they will probably stay at an orphanage indefinitely as long as they live.

Our tenacity and determination is still there. I think we are a little sobered to the task that lies ahead us. The Lord is in control and He is and will be getting all the glory through this whole process. We could not be or do what we are doing without the strength of the Lord!!

To be truthfully honest, it's been hard again lately. So many changes and uncertainties are lying ahead of us. I feel sometimes that it is a lonely road to travel. Every day is a fight to rest in the sovereignty of God and every day to rest fully and completely in His hands. Jason and I want the Lord to use us as He sees fit. This is about Him. This whole adoption has less to do about us and more to do with the Lord and the orphans in this world that need a family and a chance to hear the gospel.

At this point we will not be accepting a new referral or new children.

Our prayer is this: "Lord, be with these two precious boys. Hold them close to your bosom. Protect them and sustain them. Give us strength God, we so desperately need you. We feel weak.....but You are strong in our weakness. Help us to finish well. Let everything we say and do bring honor and glory to You, O God. No matter the outcome, you are perfect and good and Holy and we rest in Your perfect understanding of the adoption process. We rest in You."

Our Daddy is Cool!!

2009-10-09T19:46:00.005-05:00

I know it is not Father's Day or Jason's birthday, but I am so thankful and undeserving of such a wonderful husband and father who adore his girls and prays diligently for the arrival of his sons. The last couple weeks I have tried to capture things that are dear to my heart and wanted to brag on my husband for a little bit.

Ever since the girls were babies, Jason has always put his girls to bed and had a sweet time of tucking them in, reading to them and blessing and praying for them every night of their lives, except when he is gone. He has always done catechism with them, bible verse memory or now lately has added reading through the Bible and acting out certain parts. The girls always remind him if he has forgotten something!! :)

We were in Minneapolis last weekend and brought back a stuffed animal for each girl. A moose for Gracie which she named "Boom" and a black bear for Allie which she named "Rocky". I am not sure why we bought them more stuffed animals, but they seemed to love them. I have no further comment about this video....just plain silliness!! :)

Family Verse

2009-10-06T08:00:00.003-05:00

So a few posts back I had shared a song that speaks appropriately to where the Lord has placed us in our lives. Today I wanted to share with you our family verse that we had chosen way back when our girls were first born. Every time I read it or mediate on it, it fills my heart with hope and utter joy for my Savior. So here it is; may it encourage your heart as well.

"Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor? Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid? For from Him and Through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be glory forever." ~Amen~

Random Videos

2009-09-27T16:52:00.013-05:00

I love this video. Their laughter is very contagious!!

Gracie(#2 jersey & long ponytail) is playing soccer this season and here was a little excerpt of her game. You can hear her little sister cheering her on!!

Allie's soccer team. She is the #2 jersey and she makes a goal in the beginning of the video. The other team didn't show up, so the parents played the kiddos. It was really fun for everyone...even the parents!!

The girls have taken to doing their own personal movies. Here is Allie's along with some 4 year old commentary! (sorry about the vacuuming in the background. It's always interesting what your kids are doing when you are busy in the back doing something.)

Gracie's movie with her own commentary.

Thank you all for your continued prayers and support for us during this time. We planning towards moving to Ethiopia in Jan-June. Jason is getting an opportunity to teach at the Ethiopian Bible College there. More details to come and quite the story how God has moved our hearts to go to Ethiopia for the spring semester. We have no preconceived notions that it will help our adoption, but hopefully our presence can count for something. God has done a great work to get our hearts to get to this point....anyway will fill in more of the plans later!

Another Disconnected Piece of Information

2009-09-25T18:07:00.002-05:00

It seems like our updates come in torrents!! This afternoon after inquiring about a DNA test, we found out that they did indeed know that this man is the boy's father(wondering why they told us wrong info earlier). The problem now is that he has voiced doubt about the adoption and so the MOWA in the southern region(which is like equivalent to our social workers here) is investigating as to whether or not he can even provide for the boys. We are really confused if he doesn't want us to adopt them or if he genuinely wants them back. All they said was that he was having doubts.....that can be interpreted a lot of different ways.

My big concern still is that these boys are in limbo and that they are back at this orphanage again, where we have no idea as to whether or not they are getting good care. I have always prayed that no matter what happens that they would get to be with a family, either us or their biological family. We just did not want to see them stuck in an orphanage the rest of their lives.

To be honest, we do not know how to process this information or how long all this will take. I am feeling very numb and at loss of words on how to even pray other than O Lord, please move this along for the sake of our precious boys. I am still going to call them ours until the end, no matter what direction it takes. I have no doubt that the Lord has led us to them and all this has happened for a purpose and reason in our lives and theirs. I am just weary and tired and I know that the Holy Spirit takes the groanings of our hearts and takes them to the Father.

Thank you all for your prayers and support....they mean more than you will ever know.

RRR...RESTING in God with RELENTLESS love and a RESOLVE to bring home Jonathan and David.(or whatever is best for them)

A Long Overdue Update

2009-09-25T12:06:00.003-05:00

This week has been difficult for me to handle. It has been around 2 months since their regional court date and barely any news to sneeze at. I am not directly frustrated at our agency, but the agency they are partnered with.
After almost two months, we found out that whatever the father of the boys said to the judge, the judge thought that he may not be their father. Our agency said this has happened before with other cases that the judges don't believe that certain birth mothers were not old enough to have their children etc... and that they take out ads in local papers to find people to vouch for them and be witness in court that these parents are legit. So our case feels like it is at square one again. This also means that they are no longer at their transition home but were taken back to their region's orphanage again. We found that out today too. The fact that they are back at their orphanage again really breaks my heart. The one thing that has brought us peace during this waiting time is that they were at a good place getting good care and contact. I am worried that this will not help their attachment issues or add to the stress with being jerked back and forth during this time.
Right now we are trying to find out if a DNA test can be done to find out or solidify that he is their father and that we can move on with our case. It seems to be another huge waiting mountain and frankly I am feeling a little worn out.
Please continue to pray....I don't even know what to ask for anymore that I haven't already asked. Just pray.

Bringin' It To the Lord

2009-09-23T08:28:00.004-05:00

Yesterday was a normal day full of business and responsibilities. As with each day, I am at some level always thinking about our boys and the adoption, even if it is more subconscious. I have found lately that I will be doing fine, but at times will casually go down the path of our adoption sequence and what is or is not happening and then I lose it. Right in the middle of whatever I am doing. For one that has considered herself an even keel person, I have been rather emotional this past year!
So...back to yesterday!! I was a mess and I started to pick up the phone to call someone that would have totally understood how I was feeling. Something stopped my hand and Phil. 4:6 ran through my head. "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God." I let go of the phone and realized I needed to be going to my Father in Heaven that knows perfectly the state of my heart.
I recommitted in my heart with the Lord yesterday to go first to Him before going to my husband or friends with my burdens or concerns or even joys. Spending time with the Lord and being reminded about His promises and His Word will filter a lot of my anxiety and hurt, if I would first place it in the most perfect and capable hands of my Lord.

What does Rain and Turkey Legs have in Common?

2009-09-17T10:42:00.013-05:00

We have started a new trend in our house. If it's pouring down rain and warm outside...go out and get wet and have some fun. The girls now beg to go outside when in rains. Every once and a while I join in. This particular day I decided to take pictures instead. They loved to get into this little stream that runs through our ditch and kick water at each other and run back and forth in it. Allie also enjoyed throwing herself into the water!!

Chasing each other. All I remember is the squeals and giggling....ahh, a good memory.

OK, I had to include this picture. It reminded me of a kicker for a football team. Man, can she get that leg up!

Allie posing for Momma!

Gracie posing as well!!

A good friend of ours gave us some turkey legs. Gracie was so excited to "eat the chicken on the bone" She cleaned up the whole leg!! It was fun to watch her.

I couldn't help but include this picture of Allie eating her breakfast in her XL pajama t-shirt that we got from Delta after being stuck in Atlanta overnight with no luggage. The girls love wearing them for some reason.

So what do turkey legs and rain have in common?? Absolutely nothing! ;) Just a catchy phrase!!

No new updates on the adoption. Hoping to hear something the end of the week or beginning of next?? Who knows!

Our Theme Song For This Period of Our Lives

2009-09-09T21:13:00.008-05:00

video can be seen here

Jesus, Draw Me Nearer

Jesus draw me ever nearer
As I labor through the storm;
You have called me to this passage,
And I'll follow, though I'm worn.

(Refrain)
May this journey bring a blessing,
May I rise on wings of faith;
And at the end of my heart's testing,
With your likeness let me wake.

Jesus guide me through the tempest
Keep my spirit staid and sure;
When the midnight meets the morning,
Let me love You ever more.

Let the treasures of the trial
Form within me as I go-
And at the end of this long journey
Let me love you at Your throne.

A Few Random Happenings

2009-09-07T16:11:00.013-05:00

Gracie lost her second tooth. This time around the tooth fairy left her a note along with the money. Gracie was thrilled and carried the letter around with her everywhere and I probably read it a dozen times. She is already working on her third one!! She had learned about the tooth fairy last time and was excited that she had visited again!!

Yep, Whitefield got roped into this one. "Super Cat"!!

Gracie and Allie in their Sunday dresses.....so cute!!!

Guess what....girls can play with toys meant for boys too. Not only did she enjoy herself, she got pretty dirty too!!

The girls have been begging us for jobs to earn money. It's hard to come up with things that they can do that is just family responsibility. I always remember thinking that there was always plenty on the farm to do!! I suggested that they pick up the sticks in the back yard. They wanted to rake, I did not think they could do it, but went ahead and gave them the rakes. To my surprise they got together a rather significant pile. Way to go girls!! We are so proud of you!!!

Lately they think it's fun to sleep together in either one or the others bunk bed. You can hear them giggling and talking away for about an hour before they either fall asleep or one decides they need a little more space. Here they are playing some silly game where Allie sleeps on Gracie.

School is in session. We started early this year with the knowledge of the possibility of our adoption going through. Here the girls are working on their worksheets. Hey....and they are still smiling!! :)

More News and More Grace Given

2009-09-02T13:11:00.003-05:00

Yesterday was another normal day and also one that brought along more news about our boys. It wasn't good and through it all I feel like the Lord has given me a peace that surpasses my own understanding.
We were told that the father of the boys was also at the regional courts when the boys were taken there(first time we knew that one of the parents was alive). We don't know a lot of details and they are trying to get more information to further understand what actually happened. All they know is that whatever the father had said to the judge, I am assuming in regards to questions asked to him, the judge was not satisfied with the answers and kicked out our case again.
The reason our case is at their regional courts is that the national judge was not satisfied with the paperwork and kicked it back to their region. So we are a long way, it seems, to being done with this adoption process. It was very hard news to hear and my heart again seemed crushed; but another thought continued being present in my heart. If God wanted this case to pass, it would have been so easy for it to go through. There is a reason why this is all happening and even though I don't fully understand, I must trust in Him. My own abilities and strength has proven to be weak and insufficient and the promises of the Lord has carried us through this process.
I felt like the Lord had prepared my heart the day before with helping me to realize that I wasn't staying vigilant over my heart and that the deep void I felt in my heart for Jonathan and David was being filled with other things besides the Lord. I was checking out emotionally sometimes, feeling emotionally exhausted and sometimes very frustrated and anxious. I thought I was doing OK, but I realized I had let myself slip. Daily and hourly I am trying to fill this void with the joy of the Lord, mediating on who He is, His good and perfect character. He loves Jonathan and David more than we ever will and He loves us enough to give us the privilege to go through this trial. Not only has it helped paint a clearer picture of my spiritual adoption, but our journey has given us so many opportunities to share with others about spiritual and physical adoption, God's faithfulness and his mercy and above all even that these struggles bring glory to our Father in heaven because through our weakness, He is strong.

My staying phrase that I continually try to put before me is this: "THE JOY OF THE LORD IS MY STRENGTH". I am striving to continue to find joy and gladness in my Savior and that when I focus on Him, His strength sustains me.

Romans 5:2-6
"Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. More than that, we rejoice in our suffering, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us." FOR while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly

Tears of the Saints

2009-08-21T09:23:00.001-05:00

Update Number 2 Today!!

2009-08-18T15:04:00.000-05:00

Here are some more details....it sounds like the man they were looking for just showed up at their care center and said he needed to take the children back to their region to see the regional judge. He was very vague about what the problems were. Rahel, the attorney in Ethiopia, was pretty upset with him because this is the third time he has had to do this. We don't know why he has had to take them twice before.
Anyway, please pray for the childrens' safety. It's a long trip and I am sure it is emotionally taxing on them because they have no idea what is happening to them. Just praying that everything will be sorted out this time. They are hopeful for another update this week; but I am not holding my breath!
Thanks for the prayers

Good or Bad??

2009-08-18T13:15:00.001-05:00

Today we got some news, not a lot; but at this point I am thankful for anything!! The good news is they are in contact with the man that needs to give them info about the boys. The confusing news is that he has to take the boys back to the region that they are from and present them before the officials there again. From what I can gather this has happened more than once.
Lisa, our agency director, said that each region has a local MOWA office and court system that they first have to pass before they are allowed to be matched with a family. Then after they are matched, their paperwork along with the family's is presented before the national MOWA and courts, which is in Addis Ababa. From what we can gather or make of this info. is that the courts in Addis decided that the paperwork that they have isn't sufficient and that they have to go back to the region they are from and get more background info and send them through the local offices again before going back to Addis. This seems to have happened at least twice or more. They are saying that it's either good sign or very bad sign. It may mean that there is real problem with the boys papers, or family or guardians.

All this to say is that prayer is still very important even at this time when they are working on things. I am glad to hear that there is work being done and our papers are not just sitting in a pile somewhere. Please pray for the people in Ethiopia working on this that they can get the papers or the cooperation that they need. I have faith that God is bigger than this problem and whatever happens that His perfect will is being done. So we continue.....

RRR...RESTING in God with RELENTLESS love and a RESOLVE to bring home Jonathan and David.

Love Package #3

2009-08-17T15:52:00.001-05:00

It's a simple package. Full of love and sentimental care. Both Gracie and Allie gave one of their favorite toys away(I didn't ask them to do this). Gracie loved her frog, but wanted her brothers to have it. Allie said that boys like balls and picked out this little soccer ball. This is our third package for Jonathan and David and each time it gets a little harder to send it off and pray this will be our last one to commission someone else to hold our boys and tell them we love them. To touch each thing that their hands will hold and wonder if they will really understand and feel the love that is sent to them in this package.
I don't ever boast of understanding God's will and timing and this is no exception. I pray daily for His strength to make it through and to turn my worries and anxieties over to Him. I know everything He does is for our best and for His glory and I have prayed for both. Today is a little harder, but my God is bigger than my tears and pain.
I pray every night the same thing that Jason prays over our girls ever since they were babies.

"Jonathan and David, may the Lord bless you and keep you. May He lift up His countenance upon you and be gracious to you and give you peace, joy and love. " I add: "May you feel His smile on your faces and feel Him so ever close to you. The Lord loves you more than I will ever be capable of doing and I put you, Jonathan and David, in His strong, loving and tender and capable arms."

How Hot is Louisiana??

2009-08-14T09:02:00.000-05:00

Yesterday Jason's divisional secretary came across this squirrel and posted it on his blog! HILARIOUS!!!

On a Lighter Note(Part 1)

2009-08-10T20:19:00.000-05:00

I have not been very good about posting pictures for all the grandpa's and grandma's. So this post will be dedicated to our summer happenings and pictures. These are pictures of our time in Tehucana, TX with Jason's former professor from Southern Seminary, Dr. Jim Parker. He has a cozy place tucked into the middle of Texas that we got to enjoy for a few days of R & R. Thanks Jim.....we all loved it!

discussing the intricacies of life. This was Allie's favorite thing to do.....sit on the porch and each snow cones.

And boy.....did Jim have all the flavors a kid could ever want!!!

Gracie has always been our little florist and this time was no exception. She kept Jim supplied with all sorts of arrangements when we were there. Here was her centerpiece of supper one night.
He has a good sized herd of miniature donkeys and goats. They were so fun to watch. The girls even helped water them one night. I thought this little billy goat was cool.

Some of the donkeys were really tame and the girls enjoyed petting them.

Here we are visiting an old fort with Jim. The girls especially enjoyed all the exploring.

Gracie and Allie with their water bottles were previously pretending to shoot at the Indians out of the holes made for guns on the top of the fort. Here Gracie thinks I am one and shooting at me!

Here is Jim with the girls...all trying to stay cool and have fun!!
I thought this sign was funny!! What a special moment to remember!! :)

The girls loved to swing on the porch, here are a few of my artistic attempts!!

The girls and I hanging out!

Here is Simba and I talking....he is a good listener.

The was one of the highlights of our trip. Jim has a donkey trained to pull this little buggy around. It was a blast!
Over the summer we have enjoyed playing this game called heroescape and building all sorts of fun boards. Jason has even used it for their history lessons
This is our fourth week of school. We decided to get an early start with the uncertainty of the boy's adoption. Gracie is first grade and Allie is in "free-k" as she puts it. I am homeschooling both girls and it has been going good and the girls seem to really enjoy it.

Staying the Course

2009-08-07T12:34:00.001-05:00

Today we got bad news from our agency. We were right in the fact that Rahel and Shimeliss were in the southern region looking for information on our boys and one other child. The only information we were told to day is that they needed more information on the boy's background or family. The problem they ran into was that the orphanage that the boys came from has closed and they were looking for the person who signed off on the boy's paperwork that worked at the orphanage. They went to his home and tried calling him, all to no avail. They need to find him in order to find their family? I am not totally sure. The reality may be that they may find him and he may not even know where the family is and then we are back to square one.

So all this to say that the obstacles are enormous and the road will be difficult. We are hoping to get more specific information next week as to what region in the south they are looking for information at, what the name of the orphanage was and the name of the person they are trying to get a hold of, and what specific information they need for the boys.

Please continue to keep us in your prayers. Jason and I need to also make some decisions as to what we are going to do. If anyone has any contacts in Ethiopia or any advise, we are taking all suggestions. Please send all information privately through our email: www.koolmom1977@yahoo.com or www.meyer@lacollege.edu. The only thing that is non-negotiable is that we are not going to give up on the boys. Please pray for our agency and the people that they are in contact with in Ethiopia. Our hearts desire is to partner with them and not to be in conflict with them and how we go about getting them.

RRR

2009-08-04T17:59:00.000-05:00

Today we heard that Rahel(our Ethiopian attorney) and Shimeliss and are still in the southern region until tomorrow. Hopefully we will be hearing some good news. I can't begin to thank you all for your prayers and support for us during this time. We have definitely felt them. The Lord has been gracious to us and given us a peace, even midst the temptation to be restless and anxious.
We have come up with a theme that shares our hearts and prayer for this process.

RRR...RESTING in God with RELENTLESS love and a RESOLVE to bring home Jonathan and David.

Rahel

2009-07-30T08:12:00.000-05:00

Today we were supposed to get some new details on our case, unfortunately Rahel, who is our attorney over in Ethiopia, is in the southern region. The only reason I am sharing this small fact with you all is that I am assuming she is there trying to get the information she needs on some cases. When we had spoken to the agency last time, they had said that she were trying to get more info. on the boys and that they were having to look in the southern region and were having difficulty. So if she is there looking for information, let's pray with a specific renewed picture of what she may be dealing with now and that the Lord would be merciful and gracious in her endeavors.

Inward Groanings

2009-07-28T18:33:00.000-05:00

Romans 8:26: "Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.

Yep, that is how we feel. We have prayed so fervently for our two boys. The latest news has put us into a state of inward groaning and crying to our Father. As we don't know what words to pray, we rest in the knowledge that the Holy Spirit is interceding for us and supplecating our case before the Father.
Jason and I had been suspious of the fact that something must be going on with our case for there to be no court date assigned in over a month and the constant seeking for information for over a month and getting no answers from Ethiopia. Today we found out that they are in need of more information on the boys that needs to be gotten from the southern region of Ethiopia, which they are from. They are saying it's getting almost impossible to get the information that they need and that if they can't get it, they will assign us a new referral or new child. Jason and I had a conference call with the lady that is direct contact with the people over in Ethiopia. We made it more or less clear that we are fighting for our boys and not going to give them up that easily. If we didn't adopt them, they would be without a family for the rest of their lives.
We don't know all the details yet. Hopefully we will be getting them in the next couple days, but Jason and I are resolved that we are going to be these boy's advocate if no one else will be. We don't know what this will look like, but I am asking you to please please pray for us and especially for these boys that the people in Ethiopia get the information that they need and that the communication will get better, because it is terrible right now and has been a real source of frustration.

Below is a letter that Jason wrote our agency and the agency they are partnered with. I included because it speaks to our resolve.

Dear Nightlight and Hope Adoption Agencies,

As Christians, we owe everything to God’s relentless, pursuing, patient love for us in Christ. When I was powerless and helpless, Christ died for me (Rom 5:6). The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and give His life as a ransom for us (Mark 10:45). I have been adopted into God’s family because Christ was willing to do whatever it took to bring me to His Father and now my Father so that I can cry out loud “ABBA, Father” (Rom 8:15).

Therefore, we wish for it to be known that we are not in this endeavor simply “to get a child” so that if one case doesn’t work out we will just get “another referral.” We are commissioned as Christians to “visit orphans in their affliction” (James 1:27), bring justice to the fatherless and plead widow’s cause (Is 1:17). If we are not the advocates for these two boys, we know that no one will be. The foster care system will not give them a family. Therefore, we seek to reflect the relentless love of Christ that we have received by pursuing Jonathan and David (Teketel and Mussie) with a “whatever it takes” approach.

Therefore, it is important for us that you know where we stand as we commission you to look for the missing information. We will be patient, but we are not going to stop asking and pursuing and so we hope that our resolve will help empower you to join us in being a relentless advocate for these two precious boys and relentlessly accept a “whatever it takes” approach for them. Thank you for allowing us to share our hearts in this matter. To summarize: we will be patient and understanding, but we will also be relentless. We ask that you will be patiently relentless in your advocacy for these boys.

For the love of Jonathan and David (Teketel and Mussie),

Jason, Cara, Gracie, and Allie Meyer

All That is Left is Prayer

2009-07-06T16:26:00.000-05:00

Sorry I haven't kept up with updates. We have been in South Dakota for two weeks and technology was not at my fingertips and time was fleeting! Throughout the last few weeks it has become very clear that our adoption process is becoming more and more discouraging. Waiting on answers and results has almost stretched my patience beyond my limits. (Thank God He stretches me beyond my own abilities!!) It has becomes slowly clear that MOWA is a mess and so far behind that it's hard to give definite deadlines or answers for anything. The director of MOWA has taken upon herself to sign each and every adoption dossier in the country, which is a good thought, but impossible for do. She is also going to school for her masters and is not in the office like she should be. She was the one who decided to go to school on our third court date rather than take ours and other families cases to court. MOWA is also revamping everything which also is slowing things down. I know our agency is doing everything they can here and in Ethiopia to get things resolved, but it is so hard to be totally out of control with regards to this process. They are not giving any sort of timetable right now and so we have not idea how long this process will be going on. The advice I got from our director was to just pray and commission others to pray with you.
So there it is. Pray that that Lord would intervene. I am reminded, every time I have fleeting thoughts of doubt, that God's timetable has not changed and God's perfect will, no matter the timing and results are good and right, for them and us. I don't always understand everything about our journey....but I am not God either!! I rest in someone who is infinitely more capable than I in running my life, our family's life and these precious boy's lives.

A Few Days in the Life of the Meyer's

2009-06-17T19:49:00.000-05:00

Our cat Riki Tiki looking very studious. The cats spend most of the day sleeping by Jason as he works from home on our bed!

So this is how my week started. Gracie came up to me and asked if I could help her write a letter to the tooth fairy. Her and Allie were putting their cute little heads together and decided that the fairy needed to visit Allie so she could get money too. Their plan was to write a letter and put a little white stone instead of a tooth by the letter. I told them the fairy was too smart because she was the tooth expert and could tell a fake one from a real one. So this is what I caught below, Gracie trying to loosen and pull one of Allie's teeth. Side note...they had been at this "pulling" for quite awhile.

Our family loves Tim Hawkin's comedy. He has produced a kids CD which the girls love. For about an hour Gracie kept repeating the Anaconda song. I lost count how long I kept hearing the same song. I finally had to tell her to move on.....but not before she rehearsed her "moves" to this song.

Here is a game that our family thoroughly enjoys. Heroscape is like Risk to an extreme. Jason simplifies the game and they enthusiastically battle good vs. evil. There is a "good" castle and a "bad" castle. Allie likes to add her animals to the landscape as well.

At the end of the day......well, let's just say we are gonna have to change how they play with their toys. The last few days they've done better putting things away when they are done playing with them.

So at the end of a busy day, I try to put up my feet, treat myself to a cup of decaf and unwind a little and catch my breath!! :)

VBS Song!

2009-06-14T16:50:00.000-05:00

The girls were sweet enough to sing one of their VBS songs that they learned last week. They made these hats for a craft....they looked so cute!!

Nothing Seems to Surprise Me....Anymore!

2009-06-10T07:01:00.000-05:00

(I love Calvin & Hobbs, so I thought this picture was appropriate of Hobbs scaring and surprising Calvin. Kinda symbolic of all the surprises that have come our way through this adoption process.)

We got more details yesterday as to why we did not pass court of Friday. From what we were told everything with our paperwork was a go. Before the dossier packets go to court to be approved, MOWA looks through all the agencies and pulls out the packets to agencies whose license has expired. Well, they included Hope Adoption in that list, even though their license wasn't expired. The judge, knowing that MOWA made the mistake ordered them to get the packets reviewed and to court. There were nine families affected from our agencies. On Monday the lady that was supposed to bring the packets over from MOWA to the courts decided she was going to school that day!! Imagine that! So again, the cases weren't there to be heard. Shimeless assured Lisa, from our agency, that our case should be heard within a week or two.
At this point all this information is kinda ironically funny. No, I am not going crazy, but I am learning about how different cultures work. From what I am told, Ethiopian culture is very laid back and if something better comes up than what they are doing, they will just go and do the other. They are not detail-oriented and things of importance, well......will eventually get done.
Because I am detail-oriented, it was good to hear this kind of information and know that they are trying to get these cases through. Ultimately, I have to trust the Lord that this time of waiting isn't being wasted and that I can grow and learn about patience, and trusting fully in God's timetable and that He will work out the details. Psalm 135:5-6, "for I know that the Lord is great and that our Lord is above all Gods, whatever the Lord pleases, He does." We are not just waiting for His will in an abstract way, but trusting Him to accomplish His pleasure. (per Jason)
I am also experiencing first hand that our culture is maybe somewhat unique from the rest of the world and that God created all of us differently, even our cultures. So I am trying to learn to embrace the differences and rejoice with God's creativity. I am not saying it's right how some of the cases have been handled and have not gotten resolved, but I can take the good and rejoice in that.

Crazy Energy?

2009-06-07T13:56:00.000-05:00

I had commented in the past posts that we were working on some renovations in our house. I thought I'd post a few pictures. I am soooo glad we are done and glad we did it while we could. I had a sneaky suspicion that we would not have time later to do these jobs.(this may be redundant for friends on facebook...sorry). It has taken us about 3-4 months. We were privileged to have the help of a friend of ours in the beginning to help Jason. Jason gained more confidence with tiling as we went on. I am so proud of him!! It was a good distraction while waiting to bring our sons home. Now I am trying to find other things to keep my mind off of the waiting process that seems to go longer than we all anticipated. That's why I labeled it crazy energy. I think we were going a little crazy or maybe taking nesting to the extreme!! :) Anyway, enjoy it for what it's worth!

Guest Bathroom-Before
Our initial plan was to ONLY finish tiling our bathtub and about 1/2 of it fell when we took the border off, so we had to start over. It ended up being a blessing in disguise. We decided to try to get it to match our floor which led to use the same tile for our kitchen counters, which we initially weren't planning to do. Isn't that how it always goes?

Our friend Brad helping teach Jason all about tiling and they are still smiling!! Actually it sounded like two boys back there joking around!

Guest Bathroom-After

Kitchen-Before

Sanding and repainting cabinets

We had two layers of linoleum to pull up. It was a bear!!

Jason shoving away for most of the day to get the layers up.

We had to pour hot water with dawn soap in it on the floor to soften the paper backing and glue. Then we took 4 inch razors to scrape it up. We had two garbage bags full of the junk afterwards.

Kitchen-Finished

Then....Jason said we had enough tile left over to redo the master bathroom(see the progression)? :)

Master Bathroom-Before

(excuse the messy counter)

Master Bathroom-After

More Waiting.....................

2009-06-05T14:47:00.001-05:00

Just heard back from our agency that we didn't pass AGAIN!! I think this is the most discouraged I have ever been. We had been told that our papers had been approved by MOWA, but when our case went to the judge today, thay had NOT been signed off on. I am not sure where the confusion comes from. The judge, knowing it was MOWA's fault, ordered them to review our papers. They left our case open, again...... There were 9 cases today and none passed.
Keep praying that our open case won't go for 2 months again, but a few weeks. I know there are a lot of families out there today that are feeling just like us. I know adoption has it's ups and downs, but I wasn't expecting this much!! :)
I will affirm again, that God is good, perfect and sovereign. He knew all this ahead of time and we will trust in Him. I would rather be in the shelter of His Wings and live in His perfect Will, than having been approved today and be living without the Lord in my life and not have His hand of blessing on our lives. I trust Him!!

Psalm 20:7 "Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God." or......... Some trust in judges, some trust in MOWA, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.

Rain Drops Keep Falling on My Head

2009-06-02T17:36:00.001-05:00

Is this the Week?

2009-06-01T08:38:00.000-05:00

I had the privilege to travel with Jason this week up to Natchez, MS and spend Sat. night at a hotel with the girls. It is a joy to be with my husband and to hear God's word. It fills my soul and encourages me in the fight of Faith. That was just a side note to share thankfulness to God for giving Jason such a gift to preach God's word and communicate it in such a way that shows God's glory and greatness!!
All this to say that as we were traveling home last night we were talking about what it would be like to bring Jonathan and David home. It's hard to know because we have never done this before. It feels like we are treading on new territory. Finally after evaluating and talking about the struggles, joys and changes that are to come, I told Jason that this adoption feels like the first time you are going to have a baby. You can try to plan for what it will be like and the feelings you will have, but reality happens when you bring that baby home and realize how much they will change your life and visually see them in your home.
Some of the thoughts that go through my head are sometimes in contradiction to each other.

"I am so ready to bring our sons home!" vs. "Am I really ready for them?"

"When people see them, they will surely accept them and treat them as they would our girls and part of our family!" vs. "Will there be differences?"

"I am confident that the Lord will give me strength for raising 4 kids!" vs. "What are we doing, I am tired sometimes just raising 2 right now!!"

I continually am reminding myself that in my weakness, He is strong!! I am weak and feel so desperate for the Lord to sustain me and give me wisdom. Ironically, that is a good place to be....desperate before the Lord. Because we are weak and frail and our pride can keep us from realizing how much we need God in our lives on a daily and hourly basis.
Pray for us this week that this will be the court date that we pass. I am preparing myself for both though. In His goodness, He ordains all things, even court dates!

JUNE 5TH

2009-05-27T18:43:00.000-05:00

This is our new court date....for the third time. The agency decided that open cases were having a hard time getting heard by the Ethiopian judges. So getting a new court date would force them into hearing our case instead of keeping it open for them to determine when they wanted to look at them. Last week our lady brought 6 open cases before the judge and he yelled at her. There are so many crazy things that happen in third world countries. There seems to be no rhythm-or-reason why certain things do or don't happen.
It had been a difficult couple weeks and I had sorta resolved in my mind that they probably wouldn't be coming home until the end of the summer. Now maybe it will be sooner than I expected......IF we pass this one. We should, our dossier(papers) are signed now and just waiting on the judges approval.
For the first time I feel a little encouraged. So please pray along with us that this will be the last complication in this process and that we can bring these boys home soon. If we pass in June, we will be able to post pictures of our handsome sons! :)
We have also learned that Jonathan and David were NOT abandoned. So we don't have to wait for Ethiopia to lift it's hold on abandonment cases. Hopefully we will be able to get in contact with someone in their family while we are there. Praying in that area as well.
Thanks again for all your prayers and encouragement!!

Thanking God for the Pain & Knowing Him

2009-05-25T08:32:00.000-05:00

Lately my mind has felt like the static and fuzziness of a television. My ability to focus has somewhat been paralyzed this past week by the changing news of our adoption. Trying to find a normal rhythm in my life comes and goes. I am attempting to live in today in the fullest way and rest in God for the future....easier said than done!! :)
I've learned a long time ago that pain and hardship is an OK place to be at in my life....for many reasons. Don't get me wrong, I don't like pain and I would rather avoid it if it came my way. But as I have looked back over those difficult times, I see that I have grown spiritually and was the closest to the Lord. Difficulties also helps me to see my sin more clearly. When things aren't going my way, sins can rear their ugly heads that pride has kept subdued over more peaceful times.
Scripture, prayer and theology rich music has continued to encourage me and remind me of what is really important in life. Sovereign Grace has been my mainstay....I love their music. I thought I would quote a few songs that have been relevant for me during this past year.

"Every Day"

"In your grace You know where I walk
You know when I fall
You know all my ways
In Your love I know You allow
What I cannot grasp
To bring You praise

chorus:
Thank You for the trials
For the fire, for the pain
Thank You for the strength
Knowing You have ordained
Every day

Your great power is shown when I'm weak
You help me to see
Your love in this place
Perfect peace if filling my mind
And drawing my heart
To praise You again

Bridge:
In my uncertainty, Your Word is all I need
To know You're with me every day."
*************************************************
"Through the Precious Blood"

"You have ordained every breath we take
In pleasure and pain, there is no mistake
Gladness and grief, both are in Your hand
And suffering brief carry out Your plan
and fleeting sorrows
Will yield an endless prize
When some bright tomorrow
We'll see You with our eyes, and

Chorus:
"Grace upon grace flows down, flows down
Grace upon grace flows down, flows down
Through the precious blood of Christ

"Father of lights, Giver of all grace
Your mercies crown our lives all our days
River of Life, quench our thirsty souls
For no true delight does Your love withhold
And in every season
We are satisfied
For just one reason
Christ was crucified, and..."

Bridge:
"All good gifts, every good thing
Comes to us freely, so freely
All good gifts, every good thing
Comes to us freely, so freely
Through the precious blood
Through the precious blood."

The verse that I kept going back to last week was:
"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning. Great is Your faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, says my soul, therefore I will hope in Him. The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the souls who seeks Him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord. Lamentations 3:22-26

again...thank you all for your prayers and encouragement. They are nuggets of gold for us, thank you!!

Camping and Persevering

2009-05-20T15:32:00.000-05:00

We are finally done with our renovations....(a BIG sigh of relief). You know when women get to the end of their pregnancy and get into a nesting mode?? Well, mine was extreme nesting!! We updated 2 bathrooms, the kitchen and got the boy's room ready. With the extra work came the girls having a hard time with the fact that we had to put some of our attention elsewhere. We tried to explain that all this would take a family effort, including them. They did so well and helped us count the days until we were done. We promised them something special at the end if they persevered with us!!
We tried to think of something that they had never done before. This is what we came up with!

We went to Wal-mart to get some "fun" food. Each of them was able to pick one thing. Gracie picked triple choc pudding cups. Allie picked string cheese. We added smores and hot dogs and juice. Let me pause right here and say that Allie adores her marshmellows. She carried them all over the store, in the van and around outside until she was able to open them and roast them. When we got home, all I could here was giggle and sqealing over the idea of camping out in our backyard. Luckily it was cool last night and perfect weather to "camp"(I hate sweating in a tent with no air movement)!!
Both of the girls have perfected the "art of roasting marshmellows". I personally like mine slowly roasted with a golden crust on the outside and melted all the way through. Gracie likes hers that way as well, but Allie is a different story. She quickly pokes her marshmellow down into the fire and waits for it to catch fire, while she is smacking her lips. She gleefully watches it burn for awhile and then blows it out. It doesn't take her very long to stick it in her mouth. She doesn't let it cool down at all. And then she is back to begging for more. I decided to be the "yes" mommy last night and let them eat anything and everything to their heart's content. Needless to say, by the end of our campfire celebration, they couldn't even finish their pudding cups and declared themselves to be so full that they could hardly walk.
The girls slept pretty well last night and Jason and I did our best to get what we could. We were all up by 6:30 this morning, which I thought wasn't too bad, given all the outdoor sounds and the loud birds that decide to start their day's at 4:30-5am. The above picture was taken this morning after they woke up.

This week as been harder than most with waiting to hear something on our case. There seems to be more questions and no answers. My heart is so heavy and I feel like there is a rock weighing it down. Both Jason and I are feeling discouraged and wondering how long this process can be drug out. We should have had them home a long time ago. Things seem to be changing in Ethiopia and it's hard to figure out what kind of waiting period people are having to go through. The courts are taking a lot longer and there is no one to even give us a estimate. This is the first time that Jason and I are both feeling discouraged. Usually one is down and can encourage the other. Our hearts are bursting with anticipation, and love and with missing them. Maybe that is where the weight comes from. I feel like when I do finally get to meet them for the first time or when we bring them home, the flood gates of emotions will erupt. There are already cracks in the dam and I am about ready to burst. I am not sure what is going to come forth though, tears or frustration.
I am reminded of a qhote that says: "we spend too much time listening to ourselves, than preaching to ourselves". I am trying to quench my own doubts and preach to myself the promises of God's word and bathe it in prayer.....Lord give me strength and help me to finish this waiting well.

Crying Abba Father!!

2009-05-17T15:08:00.000-05:00

Please listen to this message from Russel Moore on Adoption and our cry of Abba Father!! It will challenge and strengthen your heart and your identity in Jesus Christ. I promise it will be well worth 30 minutes of your day!!

Some Newz is Better Than No News

2009-05-13T18:21:00.000-05:00

Adoption Update:
Yesterday marked 5 weeks that our case as been in an open status. Open cases used to takes days to get signed off on from MOWA but has now turned into weeks. Last week Ethiopian ackowledged that they were behind on open cases and were going to designate Wed to hear them. For the last few weeks I have tentively and anxiously waiting to hear something in the middle of the week. Today our agency informed us that our papers had been signed off on from MOWA(ministry of women's affairs). That means it could go directly to court, but another hurdle has come up!!
Ethiopia has been having trouble with a particular agency(not ours) on abandonment cases. So to fill in the loops holes and prevent some those problems, Ethiopia is temporarily suspended all abandonment cases(which includes us). Last year this sort of thing happened with parental reliquishment cases and the suspension was only for a couple weeks. So the good news is our papers are in order and signed off...now we just need to wait for the suspension to lift and hopefully the papers will go to court asap!!!(hopefully)
It has been very trying, having to wait through 2 court dates and an open cases situation for so long. The Lord has given me a peace beyond myself but I am ready for this process to be over and for us to be done with adoption paperwork and waiting.
So our prayer requests is this: pray that Ethiopia can figure out how to fix the problems and reopen all the open cases and that our case and others can be heard quickly. There is more than us that are waiting and it is difficult for all families.
Thank you all for your support and prayers. We feel them!!

Our Big Sunday News...Not What You Think!!

2009-05-03T20:07:00.001-05:00

Gracie would like to announce her exciting news. Something she has wanted to see happen for a long long long long time!! ;)
She has lost her FIRST TOOTH. It has been an exciting few days for her as she fervently worked on loosening her tooth. This afternoon she let her mommy do the honors and gave it it's final tug. Gracie's first words were, "hey, it didn't hurt"!!! She quickly ran to the bathroom to see her new longed-for hole in her pearly whites. She has been giddy all this evening. So, we thought we would write a special post just for her!! She already has two adult teeth behind her baby ones. I think we may have a child that will need dental work.
Congrats Gracie, another milestone passed and I am kinda sad.

I Don't Know A Whole Lot of Anything!

2009-04-27T12:37:00.000-05:00

Ephsians 3:14-21
"For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith-that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
************************************************************************************

These past couple weeks I continue to remember and read God's promises. It's the one thing that continues to remind me Who is in control.
I started thinking about some conversations I have. They go like this:

Friend: "so how's the adoption going ? Have you heard anything yet?"

me: "it's going, we are waiting" (At this point I contemplate, do I tell them the whole story about what an open case is, MOWA is and all the other things that have slowed our process down?)

Friend: "when are you going to get them"?

me: "I don't know"

Friend: "weren't you supposed to have them by now?

me: "yes, we didn't pass our two court dates and now it open and we are waiting for them to process our paperwork."

This is how it typically starts and it usually continues on with more details. Now don't get me wrong.....I so appreciate and am thankful that our friends, family and others care about our adoption. I want them to ask or be interested. (I can just imagine...the next couple weeks, no one asking me about the process for fear it is too hard for me) :)
The point I am getting at is this. Throughout the conversation it becomes very clear that I don't know a lot about what is happening and I don't have really any answers to their questions.
I started to realize that I don't know a lot about anything, such as:

* I don't know when our case will pass and when Jonathan and David will come home.
*What will the boys be like?
*Will they bond with us right away, or will it take awhile?
*What will our traveling be like?
*How will they respond to the girls? Or how will the girls respond to them?
*Will this process be difficult for the girls individually with all the changes?
*Will I have enough strength and stamina to care for 4 kiddos instead of two?
*How will our family identity look like? I know we will be changed forever and what will it look like?

As you can see from this, I was worrying. Yep, I admit it. Then I began to see that being in a place like this in our lives is, well, a good place to be. I can't rely on my own resources and abilities to make all the above come to fruition. It all belongs to God. He is the only one who can get us through this journey and continue to change us into His likeness. It reminds of the the verse that says, "for from Him, through Him, and to Him are all things. to Him be the glory forever. Amen" (Rom 11:36). This whole adoption process is been and is from God, everything that happens comes from our Sovereign God. So we rest in the promise that whenever our sons come home is in God's perfect time because all comes from Him. Through all this He will get the glory and all will be pointed back to Him. That is our heart's desire and prayer.
So it's ok not to understand fully or know our future, because we have someone more capable than us who is in control, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!!

The Boys Room is Ready!!

2009-04-25T11:28:00.001-05:00

I finally got the time to clean up and finish the boy's room. I still am going to build a two level shelf that will fit under the window for bigger toys and things. After getting clothes put away and things sorted, I have not gone in a lot. It makes me miss them and I am trying to keep my mind on the things that need my attention. The girls love going in and playing with some of their old toys and new ones. It's like they have two playrooms....and two to pick up!! :) Hopefully we will hear something within a week or two.

Series(Part Three) How to Keep Yourself From Going Crazy While Waiting

2009-04-22T09:09:00.001-05:00

Take Out Pent-up Energy on Demolition!!

Ok, it is not necessary to pummel an old oven, but that is just what Jason and our friend Brad did. We are renovating some of our kitchen, to keep us busy in this waiting period!! Here they had taken out our old oven and thought it would be fun to be boys for a few minutes. It was hilarious to watch. I commented to Jason, "the neighbors must all be watching us and thinking we are crazy, especially since Jason is a professor and preacher"!! BTW....that is what I love about Jason. We owned a "wimpy" little sledgehammer and Jason quickly traded it out for Brad's bigger and cooler version of a sledgehammer

Brad taking a swing. He has been a huge help to us in our renovations. (more to come on this subject matter!!)

Gracie getting in on the action. She is using Jason's "wimpy" hammer!! :)

Jason....do I need to say more??

This morning we just heard great news from one of the other family's with an open case. They finally passed. We are rejoicing with them and hopeful that ours is not too far behind as well.

Series(Part Two) How to Keep Yourself From Going Crazy While Waiting

2009-04-21T10:39:00.000-05:00

DO SILLY THINGS!!

I know it sounds crazy, but I find that being silly with my girls, or Jason helps keep things light and my mind off of, well......waiting. So with all serious aside, here are some pictures that the girls and I took yesterday to prove our point, it really worked!! I should preface here that I don't go around being mopey all day. God has really helped me see the bigger picture....His Will and His perfect timing.
It started when Gracie was doing her chore, emptying out the dishwasher. I got out the camera and we decided to take pictures of funny faces!!

Here is Gracie's funny face!!

Allie's funny face. Stretching out the mouth seems to be the common theme....ouch!!

Gracie thought I needed some. Here is her shot of me!! Behind me we are redoing our kitchen counters....that's for another post though!!

Allie shooting a silly picture of me...again. Sorry if I look a little scary. This is me with no make-up!!

Here is Allie trying to cry(she wasn't happy about something). We decided to take pictures, it ended up being her "trying" to cry, but ultimately laughing. Then she wanted to see her picture of herself crying, which made her laugh more. It was quite funny.

She honestly is laughing in these two pictures!! Notice her blanket on her back? She has these two soft blankets that she endearingly calls her "bungles of joy," which means "bundles of joy." She loves her blankies and when she isn't happy, that is the first thing she grabs!!

The Waiting Continues...Keeping My Mind & Heart on Things Above

2009-04-20T15:01:00.000-05:00

I usually try not to paste and copy emails, but Lisa says it so well. I pass this on to ask you to continue with us in prayer that these cases can be taken care of quickly. I am a detail-oriented person and this process has been frustrating and also a time in my life that I have to WHOLLY depend on the Lord. It is out of my control. It sounds weird to say this, but that is the best place to be...trusting the Lord. He is more capable than I and I am trusting in the One who can move mountains and cares for our boys more than we humanly can. Even as I type these words, it is still hard and my heart is heavy and the tears are on the edge of brimming over. Please keep praying!

Dear Cara,
I wrote to Hope adoptions this morning expressing the disappointment and anxiety that all the waiting families are having with no news. I shared that I understand they are having struggles as well, but that any information would be greatly appreciated. Below is the response I received from Grace. I know that their hands are tied, but with God we can move mountains.

No news, other than our staff in Ethiopia is asking the courts to order MOWA to give recommendations in these cases. No telling if it will work or not. SHe went to the courts Friday.
We have seen many open cases and patience is all I can recommend. An assigned date is much better emotionally, open cases used to be resolved in a matter of days but those days are gone I guess.
We are having at least 3 days a week of planned power outs with random power outs any time so communication this time of year is always tricky.
Sorry for no news again,
Grace

Lisa Prather, MSW
Nightlight Christian Adoptions
(formerly Carolina Hope Christian Adoption Agency)

Series(Part One) How to Keep Yourself From Going Crazy While Waiting

2009-04-16T11:19:00.000-05:00

How have I been handling the waiting game? Sometimes well, other times with total discouragement. It's hard to connect the mind and heart sometimes to the truths you know. I thought I would share how we, Jason and I, are keeping sane and going through this time and trying to do it well. I don't want to fight God through this process, I want to be open to learn and grow. Usually hard times reveal my sinful tendencies. In some ways I welcome adversity, because they reveal so much of myself and how the Lord needs to deal with my heart. The adoption has not been the only difficulty in my life, as of late. The combination of several things has made me desperate before the Lord.
So why the picture of the cross? Because that is the first thing I do to keep myself from going crazy!! I lay my concerns at the feet of Jesus. Not only do I leave burdens behind, but I try to fill that spot with the promises of God's Word. What is emptied out has to be filled with something else. When my mind is tempted with worry or discouragement I cling to His Word and send arrows of prayer to heaven. I try to set my mind on things above. This week I am rereading these following verses:

1)Col 3:1-3: "If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God."

2)Rom 8:5-8: "For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God".

Series(Part One) How to Keep Yourself From Going Crazy While Waiting? Keeping my eyes and mind fixed on the cross and on Christ.

The "Mountain" Gets Bigger

2009-04-15T08:43:00.001-05:00

Dear Cara and Jason,
I received the below e-mail yesterday when I inquired with Hope out all the pending open cases. I have written back for more clarification to find out if they know when these people will be back at work, but I have not heard yet. I'll check again toward the end of the week.

We heard today that due to 2 of MOWA staff being out for training they haven't been able to work in any of the open cases.

The above email was sent to us yesterday. It is hard to articulate how I feel. One side of my brain reminds me that God's plans are perfect and that He can move mountains....and could move our paperwork through. The other side of my brain gets discouraged and frustrated. I know that third world countries don't operate like ours, but it is still hard to understand. Not getting details has been the most frustrating part of this journey. I am sure someday we will look back and not think it was such a huge deal, but right now it feels like a mountain. I will post if I hear anything, hopefully good news next time????

Second Time Not A Charm

2009-04-07T12:51:00.000-05:00

We found out this morning that we didn't pass our 2nd court date for the same exact reason as last time. MOWA didn't get their recommendation to the courts in time. The good news is that they left our case open and as soon as they approve the paperwork, it will go directly to court. This same situation happened with a couple other families and they are still waiting after two weeks, but are hoping to get in through this week. So we could get it through as quickly as a few days to a few weeks. Pray that it goes quickly. Thank you all for your prayers. We really do feel them and are encouraged by all the support and love through this process. I will keep you all updated as soon as I know something. Besides, then I will be able to post pictures of our boys!! BTW....they are the handsomest boys in the house and I can't wait to brag on them!! :)

Trusting in the Lord!

2009-04-06T21:40:00.000-05:00

Ps 26:2-3 "Prove me, O Lord, and try me; test my heart and my mind. For your steadfast love is before my eyes, and I walk in your faithfulness."

Ps 36:7-9. "Your righteousness is like the mountains of God.....How precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the abundance of your house, and you give them drink from the river of your delights. For with you is the fountain of life; in your light dowe see light.

Ps 37:7,8,11 "Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him....Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil."

Ps 37:23-24 "the steps of a man are established by the Lord, when he delights in his way; though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong, for the Lord upholds his hand."

It has been a difficult weekend. I am so thankful for God's word. When I get overwhelmed with the many things happening in my life, I lay them at the cross. I rest in Him. He knows my weak and feeble flesh and yet He loves me no matter how far I fall short.
" Thank you, Lord, for being my steady rock, my fortress and my shelter. You have planned my path perfectly and I trust You".

Senior Moments

2009-04-05T13:08:00.000-05:00

Want a good laugh? I am what I would call fairly young and I have been having senior moments since I started having children. The Lord knows how we are but feeble humans in flesh and mind. It is refreshing to laugh at ourselves. Thank God He is perfect and able to carry us. I know I went on a rabbit trail......so enjoy the below article.

ps. I came across this on www.girltalk.blogs.com This is a great blog for women and girls. It always challenges me in MANY ways!!

Our New "Awlins" (Orleans) Trip

2009-04-02T20:30:00.000-05:00

We decided to go on a weekend trip/summer get-away before the boys arrived. We traveled to New Orleans with good friends Josh and Beth Bryant and their family.
Jason is hanging out in the hotel room with Josh and playing DS with Spencer and Fields.
Chicory coffee and beigets at the famous Cafe Du Monde. Cheers to a good time!!
Yummy beigets with lots and lots of powder sugar.
This guy was cool to watch. It reminded me of some future robotic dude. He is reaching into his pockets to give suckers to the kiddos.
St. Louis Cathedral established in 1720. The Cathedral-Basilica of St. Louis King of France is the oldest Catholic cathedral in continual use in the United States.

The river walk in New Orleans by the mighty Mississippi. It was absolutely gorgeous weather. We did A LOT of walking. The girls did a great job.
"Hey girls, pay attention....please smile" This is about all I was going to get!!
We walked about 3-4 blocks of Bourbon Street in the morning.....just to say we had seen it and walked quickly through it! :)Hurricanes come as easy as the liquor in the French Quarters. I thought this was an interesting sign. Jason and I really enjoyed the French Quarters. We were struck with how people lived and looked forward to getting drunk. How sad that this may be the only purpose that they live for.....a good time. We came away having had a great time and heavy in heart for the lost. It is an interesting city. The culture and history and variety is as deep as it is wide. There is so many things that you will never find anywhere else. New Orleans is a city unto it's own. Along Jackson Street are painters and artists selling their work. It is really interesting to see Cajun and french cultures and the bayou influences. Louisiana is a beautiful state and as we have moved we have enjoyed each state's beauty. God is amazing and creative. His nature screams such amazing creativity and beauty and wonder. Even the less attractive things in nature have beauty.

We all thought it was fun to watch this huge barge full of storage containers. We were speculating were they were traveling to and what was inside.
The French Quarters was so cool with their iron rod balconies and narrow and tight houses.
The Natchez steamboat.

Louisiana Superdome for the New Orleans Saints. This place has quite the stories to tell with Hurricane Katrina.
I thought this Wal-greens was pretty cool. Never saw one like this before!
Gracie, Allie and their friend Annalise looking at the "Nemo" tank at the aquarium. They had a lot of fun looking at all the sharks, penquins, fish etc...
Another beautiful balcony!

Please pray for our impending 2nd court date on April 7th. We are praying that we pass. Other families haven't passed their 2nd court dates for various reasons not related to them, their paperwork or their agency. Waiting on third world countries can proven or test our perseverence. God has given us a peace that transends our ability or understanding. I am feeling a little apprehensive this second time, but I am leaning on the Lord. His timing is perfect and good. So keep praying with us for our precious boys, Jonathan and David.

Happy Birthday Jason!!

2009-03-23T22:21:00.000-05:00

Today Jason turned 33 young. As I have reflected on what a blessing he is, I thought I would tell you a few of the reasons why I love him and think he is the best father and husband in the world. So bear with me and my sappiness. I cannot help but thank God for who he brought into my life. He is more than I ever imagined and I give the Lord all the credit and praise!!

He enjoys life and likes having fun!! He can be serious when he needs to be and boyish when the circumstances fit. Below he is karate chopping bubbles with his girls. One way to spice up the sweet and innocent activity of bubble blowing!!

He likes transformers. His birthday card from the girls was a transformer card. He has a lot of his old transformers and takes them out and plays with them along with the girls. Imagine the girls in their princess dress-up dresses playing transformers with their daddy....priceless. After finishing writing his book, he treated himself to purchasing two marvel crossover transformers. We have helped him add to this collection.

While traveling back from SD at Christmas, he gave the girls a lesson on "How to fill a vehicle with gas". He had an attentive audience. :)

Nothing like flying in a sled in the snow. I cannot tell who is having more fun....Jason or the girls!!

The girls love riding on daddy's shoulders. We are at the homecoming football game at LC. Allie had the prime seat in the house!!

There is nothing like having fun with daddy. The girls adore him....and me too. There is a lot of laughter is our home. We always say the measure of healthiness in the family can be measured by laughter.
I couldn't help but put this picture in. Gracie had come over to Jason to give him a sweet kiss and smile. Melts your heart! She had plucked a flower from our restaurant table. The girls are infamous in picking flowers, even where they are not supposed to. :)

This is what Jason would look like with a mustache with handle bars......naugh. Green isn't becoming !!

I told Jason he looked soooo handsome helping me paint the boy's room. He was a willing helper. Thanks babe!

This is where he works when he stays home from the office. Surprisingly he gets more work done in his bed than at the office. He takes his job as a professor and preacher very seriously. I see his discipline and dedication and dependency to God and His word. (The cats think it's great to hang out with him too).
I love my husband. I love him because He loves the Lord with all his heart, soul and mind. He takes being a father and husband and professor and preaching very seriously and does his very best. Our marriage points my heart toward God. The Lord get's all the credit for anything good in our lives. I cannot wait for Jason to be the father of our two sons we are adopting. My heart is full and overflowing. I thank the Lord for giving me this blessing. Jason is my best friend and my soul mate and the love of my life.

Happy birthday Jason!!!! We all love you.

Post Adoption Adjusting

2009-03-09T15:00:00.000-05:00

The following is some helpful advise given by our agency when adjusting your new child to your home and family. I am passing this along to our friends and family also so you can understand more the process that will be taking place. If you ever have any questions, feel free to ask them. We are still trying to figure out what kind of expectations and boundaries to have when Jonathan and David come home. It's hard because we already have two girls and we can't bring their lives to a halt too. So, pray for us that the Lord will give us wisdom in helping balance all this when we bring them home. I am already thinking a lot about this. I don't know if it will be smart to go without deodorant in Louisiana in the summer!
A friend and colleague in adoption, Jackie Semar of International Child Foundation in Arizona, writes a weekly newsletter regarding adoption issues.

This past week I had an educational webinar travel and post adoption issues related to an Ethiopian adoption. (Well, I could never get the screen to show on the families' computers, but we did have a great discussion on travel to Ethiopia. and the post adoption adjustment for children.) The information below can be applied to almost any child adopted internationally. Jackie is a a great writer with a keen sense of humor, and I thought you may find this information useful.

Let's review five cushions you can provide:
1) Low level stimulation from the start -- this includes not having balloons and twenty family members and friends welcoming your child with zest and laughter and enthusiasm. Explain to family and friends that children from institutions are easily alarmed by too much unfamiliar activity around them, and, that the way to act around a new child in a home is to be soft spoken and gentle, as if you were visiting a fragile newborn in a hospital.
2) Lots of private family nesting time -- if you (or you and spouse) can arrange for several weeks off when your child comes home, do it. If it is at all an option, do it. This is critical time. The is the time to become parents to your child, for your child to learn what parents are. Mixing yourselves up with nannies and day care is counterproductive. Your child just landed in a strange land. Become the people he or she learns to trust. Don't share that opportunity, except with Grandma and Grandpa and siblings. The way children attach to parents is through their dependency and vulnerability. You've kind of recreated a birth scenario by taking your child out of a familiar place and into a strange one. It is extremely stressful for a child to go through this. It is your window of opportunity to be there as a caring and reliable and present and trustworthy and consistent adult, who will make the world right and safe. That is being a parent.
3) Make bridges -- take the time before the adoption to learn the foods, spices, scents, colors, and simple language of your child's birth country. Your child may not be eating curry or onion soup or whatever -- but he or she will smell it in the air and on the breath of the adults who provide care at the orphanage. Cook foods that are recipes from the country of origin. This might sound a little strange, but skip the deodorant for a few weeks. Let your child get to know your smell. (I'm not kidding -- people in foreign countries are not as body odor phobic as we are -- one way children identify parents is through smell.)
4) Recreate patterns -- while in the foreign country, learn about your child's routines. Duplicate them if possible. Waking time, meals, napping, changing times, potty times, food or formula used, music, bed time, care-giving styles. Simply learn what you can to do what you can to make the transition less abrupt. Find out whether the nannies rocked or sang to the children, what toys they used, if any. Generally, it is not easy to learn the particulars before you travel. It is something you can talk to the caregivers about; they are the ones who know your child's routine.
5) Be flexible -- your child may benefit from things beyond your expectations. One of the most discussed topics in post-adoption circles is co-sleeping. One of the more difficult things your child may have to adjust to is sleeping alone in a room. Orphanages often have two to a crib and ten cribs in a room. If you child cries at night, don't ignore him or her. Again, you are becoming the parent in the child's mind -- you are the one the child must rely on for help when distressed. If having your child sleep in the same room or bed with you is helpful, don't rule it out. For married couples, talk about this before your child comes home. Get that door open to the idea that you may be giving up some privacy for a few months. Gradually as your child builds up trust, you can encourage and reward sleeping along. One other thing that is common in many orphanages is massage. Baby massage is a skill set that adoptive parents can utilize, one that enhances trust through gentle touch. Children, as you know, are very physical creatures. Gentle touch is a powerful way to send the message that "I will care for you, I will not hurt you, I will be gentle with you, you can depend on me."

Okay, so let's say you've done all this -- trained the extended family and friends, stopped using deodorant and taken a baby massage class. You child is home, you gently employ all your knowledge and skills, and your child still avoids eye contact and screams a lot and has nightmares. You may be encountering the child's grief, or, you may need more help. Some children are more resilient than others; they have more go with the flow temperament and are open to new things. Other children are more fearful or anxious, are less flexible and have more difficulty adjusting to new circumstances and connecting to new people. If your child had a really good caregiver who she or he was very bonded to, which is a good!!! thing, then your child may have more difficulty making the initial transition to a relationship with you. But, on a positive note, the fact that your child had a deep bond with another adult will give the child more capacity to have a deep relationship with you, even though the first few months may be a little rough.

--
Laura Beauvais-Godwin, MPH
Director
Carolina Hope Christian Adoption Agency
1527 Wade Hampton Boulevard
Greenville, SC 29609
www.CarolinaHopeAdoption.org
864-268-0570

An Ode to our Cats

2009-03-06T08:12:00.001-06:00

As some of you know, a kitten was added to our family last summer, by accident. I found him in a parking lot starving and all skin and bones. Being softhearted for the perils of starving animals, I picked him up and brought him home to feed and find him a home. I didn't think it through very well and soon discovered that I couldn't get rid of a kitten, no matter how I tried. After a few days the girls had fallen in love with him and Gracie named him Riki Tiki from the jungle book. Thus an addition was added. Whitefield our older cat was now suddenly getting the exercise he always needed and they seemed to adjust somewhat well to each other. I think Whitefield was relieved to see some of the attention of the girls redirected to Riki. The girls have doted and loved on him. We have gotten many hours of entertainment watching our cats. I am putting my foot down though, NO MORE CATS!! Two is enough to keep up with.
The next part of our kitten story is somewhat embarrassing to me. We decided to take Riki to the vet a couple months ago and get him fixed. Well, we got a call back Riki was a SHE. Now, I pride myself in the fact that I grew up on a farm and have some working knowledge of animals. How could I miss this one. I was starting to have my doubts.....the vet confirmed them. So our sweet boy Riki is a sweet little girl. We didn't change HER name, but thought Riki would be just fine, besides there is a Ricki Lake in entertainment!!
Allie LOVES animals. Did I tell you Allie adores animals?? Even dogs, who love attention, well, after about 15 minutes go run and hide because Allie dotes a little too much sometimes. She has this gut laugh anytime she is around animals and they do something silly. So...enjoy the collection of pictures!!As you can see Whitefield(left) and Riki(right) look identical. It has been funny to see the look of confusion on our friends' faces when they thought they just saw one cat one second and had to do a double take, thinking it was the same cat!

Riki loves to snuggle with anything.....blankets, soft scarves, stuff animals, beds, or us.

Gracie and Allie love to cover or wrap up Riki with a blanket and sometimes a pillow, just like if she was their baby doll.

For some reason Whitefield loves to lay this way. He is a little crazy. He will do this in the morning right in the middle of the kitchen floor, where I need to walk or anywhere there is traffic.

Riki sunning herself.

The girls love to discover that Riki has chosen one of their beds to sleep in. They coming running to tell me when they see her all asleep in their blankets. This particular day, Allie was going to take a nap and saw Riki already sleeping in her bed. She begged to let Riki stay with her. I honestly didn't think it would last more than 5 minutes or less. Here is a few pictures I captured during her nap. Riki stayed there the whole time sleeping and purring.

So, here concludes the ode to our cats. This post was more for the enjoyment of kids and our girls. Thanks for participating along with this crazy post.
PS..... They are already begging for a dog!!

If You Give Mom A Muffin!

2009-03-06T08:02:00.000-06:00

Many of you are aware of the wonderful kid's classic, If You Give A Mouse A Cookie. Our girls have thoroughly enjoyed this along with the others in the series. Last week I came across this hilarious version tailored for the mom. ENJOY!

If You Give A Mom A Muffin

Original Author Unknown

If you give a mom a muffin,
She'll want a cup of coffee to go with it.
She'll pour herself some.
Her three-year-old will spill the coffee.
She'll wipe it up.
Wiping the floor, she'll find dirty socks.
She'll remember she has to do laundry.
When she puts the laundry in the washer,
She'll trip over boots and bump into the freezer.
Bumping into the freezer will remind her she has to plan for supper.
She will get out a pound of hamburger.
She'll look for her cookbook ("101 Things To Do With a Pound of Hamburger").
The cookbook is sitting under a pile of mail.
She will see the phone bill, which is due tomorrow.
She will look for her checkbook.
The check book is in her purse that is being dumped out by her two-year-old.
She'll smell something funny.
She'll change the two year old's diaper.
While she is changing the diaper, the phone will ring.
Her five-year-old will answer and hang up.
She'll remember she wants to phone a friend for coffee.
Thinking of coffee will remind her that she was going to have a cup.
And chances are...
If she has a cup of coffee,
Her kids will have eaten the muffin that went with it.

Sad News

2009-02-27T17:29:00.000-06:00

Yesterday we found out that our Feb. 25th court date was rescheduled to April 7th. They told us that MOWA(Ministry Of Women Affairs) didn't get our recommendation to the courts in time. So far, the majority of families that come upon their court dates get them rescheduled for various reasons. We have to remind ourselves that we are dealing with 3rd world countries that are not always as proficient as we would like.
We were devastated when we heard the news, but quickly leaned on God's sovereignty and grace. He directs our paths and we are resting in His perfect plan. Adoption always has it's ups-and-downs. This is one of the downs.
I didn't realize how much I already loved our boys until we got the news it was going to be longer until we got them. I so badly just want to hold them in my arms.
We continue to covet your prayers for not only our family and this process, but for the boys on the other end.

Belated Birthday Pictures.

2009-02-27T09:37:00.000-06:00

This is REALLY late. The girls celebrated their birthdays a month ago. Allie: Jan 22nd and Gracie: Feb 7th. With their birthdays 2 weeks apart, we celebrate them together...for now. We decided to have an indoor swimming party, which they were so excited about. Below they are prepared hours in advance for the party. Thanks Aunt Heidi. It was hilarious watching them walk around in their fins.

I can't believe how much they have grown up. Where are my baby girls??

Because our crazy schedule this year, I was thinking about buying the cakes this once until I found out it would be $40. It's amazing what things will motivate you!! So....I made the cakes and in the end I was very glad I did. The girls loved them and enjoyed watching Mommy create them. Picture this....the girls in their mermaid gear, sitting on the high stools and peering at their cakes through the goggles. These are the memories that are so precious to me.

I think I must have said something silly. You have to be creative to keep their attention. I never got a picture where they were all looking at once. What a bunch of silly, giggly girls!!!

Pictures of Boys.

2009-02-12T09:58:00.000-06:00

We learned the other day that it is not wise to post pictures of the children without password protection. It is frowned upon by the Ethiopian courts and could cause problems. We do not want to jeopardize our adoption process and so we decided to pull them down for now. I believe we will be able to put them back up after we pass our court date on Feb. 25th. Please be praying that it goes well. We have heard that they have kicked some cases out for not having parental rights signed off by the biological parents. Sometimes this is impossible if they have been abandoned. They will usually reschedule the court date and they usually pass successfully the second time.

Sending a package to Ethiopia.

2009-01-24T22:14:00.000-06:00

We had the opportunity to send two gallon size containers to Jonathan and David a few weeks back. We were so excited!! I did not realize how much thought I would have to put into these packages. I ended up having a lot of questions for Lisa our "go-to" gal at our agency. I had initially places two soft blanks and a stuffed animal a piece in each bag. We didn't know what condition the blankets would be in, so we decided to wait until we saw the boys. I told Lisa how much Jason did not think I could get a blanket AND a stuffed animal in each bag. Let me pause and say right here. When a mother is determined....watch out!! So I took pictures to show you that I indeed got them in their containers. I was quite proud of myself and displayed my talents to Jason and of course bragged to Lisa!! :)

In the end, the picture below shows what we eventually put into their bags. The girls each painted them a picture and Gracie had drawn the picture in the middle of our family including the boys. We wrote a letter and put a family picture inside as well. It was so hard to know what to write and what to pack. I did not know how much a 3 and a 1 year old would be able to grasp as far as a picture and letter was concerned. We are so excited to meet them. The anticipation builds daily and I am thankful that my days are full of keeping up with the girls and other activities.
If I could have done one thing over, I would have sent a small photo album with pictures in it. I feel like kicking myself over that one, O well!!

'Til next time!!!

2009-01-15T20:00:00.000-06:00

Yep, I am a little confused. Silly me for not keeping all the adoption details straight!! Ok, so I told you all that we are picking the boys up around Feb. 25th. I was wrong!! After excitedly talking to our wonderful agency gal, she sweetly informed me that Feb wasn't going to be the time we would pick up Jonathan and David!! What????? Come to find out, we had signed a power of attorney for them to do the paperwork in the courts of Ethiopia. Funny, after signing all those papers, you think I would remember THAT ONE (lol). Anyway, we will go 6-8 weeks AFTER our court date on Feb 25th for the court appointment at the USA embassy in Ethiopia for getting their visas to come back home. I was a mixture of being really sad and disappointed but slightly relieved that we have a little bit more time to prepare.
We are behind in getting ready for them to come. We haven't even started on their room yet. It seems to be the domino effect in our house. In order to clean out their bedroom and closet, I need to reorganize our bedroom storage closet. Next in order to do that I need to pull out the crafts in our food pantry and games out of the girls closet. Then before all that I needed to find a new piece of furniture or armoire to store games, crafts, crayons, markers and anything else a little one year old would love to eat!! I started with domino #1. I found a computer armoire at Walmart(of all places) that was solid. It had a lot of good compartments for organization and looked very trendy and nice. I thought we were going to have to spend serious cash to find something decent that wouldn't fall apart with a child swinging on the doors one time! :) Anyway, I have yet to start domino #2...hopefully this weekend!!
Today I have felt very tired, God's promise that I have continually remembered was: "the JOY of the Lord is my strength". I am thankful for a wonderful and understanding husband and a special friend that let me spill it all out. Even the coffee didn't help today!! God's mercy and grace are new every morning, so I am looking for a good night's rest and a fresh start tomorrow.

YIPEEEEEE!

2009-01-13T18:11:00.000-06:00

We have a date......February 25th is our court date in Ethiopia and when we get to bring Jonathan and David home. We also found out in the same email that we were approved for ANOTHER $4,000 grant from Child of the King ministry. As I read the email, I found myself crying and shaking. I was so overwhelmed with the news and also God's continual provision for us. It has caused me to fall on my knees in thankfulness and I am without words to describe the feelings of joy, humbleness, being overwhelmed, scared, apprehensive and just plain excited that it has finally arrived and we have a definitive date. The girls were ecstatic and Gracie's eyes popped when she found out. She asked me if she could pray and this was her prayer: "Thank you God that we are bringing our babies home sooner than later." She was getting weary too of us telling her it could be awhile longer.
We don't know yet any definite dates for flying etc....We are researching and educating ourselves on this next step. It seems we can barely keep ahead of the task that is in front of us. Please continue to pray for us in this journey, for I know it isn't close to being over. I am encouraged and strengthened to see God's active hand in this process. He didn't have to pour open the floodgates of heaven to show us that this was His will, but we are humbled and thankful. We are confident God has great plans for these boys and we are privileged to be a part of His plan for them. We are not sure why He chose us, but we rest in the fact He will give us the strength, wisdom and grace when we need it.
Thank you all for your support and your love and excitement in this process. It means more than you ever know.

Catching up from Thanksgiving & Christmas!

2009-01-10T14:30:00.000-06:00

One of our Christmas presents from mom was my Grandma Eimer's old hats from when she(grandma) went to mass with her family. Back in the day, they had to cover their heads in church. Each of us got four hats a piece and that didn't count the ones that my Mom had kept also. Pretty amazing that she saved them for all these years.
Yup, you are seeing a goofy side of my sisters and I. This was actually pure fun with no holding back and trying to be cute and sexy in our "Jackie Kennedy" hats. We were pretending to "model". This is only a small slice of the pictures that were taken during this fun event.

The girls kept asking to help Daddy fill up our van with gas. We tried to keep our 20 hour interesting and add things that they would enjoy. So here is Daddy explaining and guiding the girls through the art of filling your tank with gas.
Jason had a lot of things to get caught up on. Here is took a picture of what he was typically doing on our road trip.
The girls taking a nap. It was so dry up north that you can see Gracie's hair sticking to the blanket that was hanging from her window to keep out the sun.
Jason and I love playing cards and aggrevation (marbles) with Great Grandpa and Grandma Meyer and the rest of his family. I didn't do too well this year with cards and marbles....I think Grandpa enjoyed getting the better of Grandma and I. I told Grandpa, "The company was great, the games...oh, not so great." I told him that things would be different next time!!
It's amazing what grandkids will get you to do. Here is Grandpa Steve, hunter and fisherman, reading a princess book to Gracie. I am so proud of him!!!
Oh, and Allie got Uncle Tyson to color with her. Look at his amazing concentration!! :)
Having a meal at Red Lobster together. We had a great time!! We sure miss the family.
Gracie and Allie sipping their "Shirley Temples". That was their favorite part of the meal!! Thanks Grandma Donna!

My fearless daughter holding a lobster at Red Lobster. She held is for quite some time while I was fumbling to get my camera out. She kept calling it a "hamster." Hamster...lobster...what's the difference!!
Reminiscing through pictures. One of Steve's presents.

Allie trying to hold Daddy's head to get him to smile and look at the camera.
Allie was going around taking pictures of everyone. So I took a picture of her taking pictures. I know....a little confusing!!
Donna's side.
Playing cards with Dad(Rolly) and Adam(my brother).
Great Grandma Wieczorek reading to Allie

Allie holding Grandpa Rolly's dove at his feedstore. Good picture for advertising his feed!!

Gracie was the brave one again. Walking around with the dove and petting it. She called it Snowflake.

Still Waiting

2009-01-08T11:48:00.000-06:00

It seems like the majority of your life can be spent waiting for something. Waiting for loved ones to be saved, waiting for a better job, waiting to find the perfect spouse, waiting to buy or improve a home, waiting for kids, waiting for your kids to grow up, waiting in line, or waiting at stop lights. I was thinking about this today as I was praying for a court date for our boys to come through. Four out of the five families have already gotten dates, but we are still waiting. I am a little disappointed but at perfect peace with God's time frame and not mine. I am quickly reminded that we haven't waited nearly as long as some people have while going through an adoption.

I sincerely believe that we wait most of our lives for a purpose. God is more interested in the process that we go through than the end result. Now don't get me wrong, God does care about an answered prayer, but He wants us to grow in our godliness as well. Here are a few lessons I have learned about waiting.

1. Waiting often aligns my will with God over time.
2. Waiting teaches me life lessons that I would have never learned without the struggle.
3. Waiting reminds me that God is ultimately in control, not me.
4. When the answer comes, after the wait, I can look back and see God's perfect timing and sovereignty.
5. Waiting teaches me contentment in my circumstances.
6. Instead of fighting the wait, see what I can learn and be taught through it.
7. I often use my excuse of "waiting for something" or "waiting for a better time" as an excuse for not doing anything at all.

Waiting can also be a time of resting upon God. This reminds me of Isaiah 40:31, "They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not grow weary."

One of my favorite quotes, which I have taped to my kitchen cupboard, comes from Elisabeth Elliot: "Today is mine. Tomorrow is none of my business. If I were to peer anxiously into the fog of the future, I will strain my spiritual eyes so that I will not see clearly what is required of me today."
I can become so preoccupied with having to wait that I miss the blessings of today. Waiting should not be an excuse for me to put off or cancel my duties or do something that God has called me to work on or do in my life. So many people think that waiting is passive when in fact it is active. You should not be twiddling your thumbs, but should be actively pursuing God's heart and mind as part of your waiting.
I am called to wait peacefully and fully trust and hope in God. I am only called to live each day to my fullest and trust Him with my future.
Instead of saying my kingdom come, my will be done, it is worth waiting so I can say your kingdom come, and your will be done.

Playing in the Snow!

2009-01-04T18:58:00.001-06:00

The girls were so excited to ride in Grandpa Rolly's tractor. I can't tell who is enjoying it more...Grandpa or the girls. They helped him "drive" and "feed" his cows.!!

Here they are out in the pasture feeding the cows. Even though it was cold, the landscape was beautiful...even for a farm!!

Here the girls and I are playing in Grandma Carol's backyard. Their first snow experience when we came to SD. They loved their Tinkerbell and Hannah Montana long underwear so much from Grandma that they wanted to go outside just wearing them!! Allie also wanted to wear a skirt to play in the snow. That is where the phrase came in...."mama knows best girls, Mommy grew up here...trust me, you'll want to wear your other layers" :)

I don't know who that schmuck is trying to throw a snowball at me?? Is it the abominable snowman? Did I tell you he missed?? Better luck next time!!

I am really not about myself in poses, but I love this old red grainery of my Dad's. I thought the red paint really set off my white jacket!! :)
This is Tex, my Dad's dog. He is such a sweetie. He really enjoyed romping in the snow with Jason. This is one of my favorite pictures.

Grandpa Steve took the girls sledding at Great-Grandpa and Grandma Meyer's farm. You can see they are thoroughly enjoying it by looking at their frozen smiles! They rarely complained of the cold. I think they were too busy giggling and singing while being pulled around behind Grandpa Steve's suburban.

Great-Grandpa Meyer, age:86. Proof that there is no limit to your age when having fun!! Jason and I had to help him up though. He was covered with snow and laughing.

Another one of my favorites!!

Gracie and Allie with Great Grandma and Grandpa Meyer.

Grandpa Steve with his girls!! You can't really tell, but they are sitting in the side of a snowbank.

After lots of fun outside, we came inside and had hot chocolate and chocolate pie and other cookies and goodies. There have been a lot of fun memories made at Grandpa and Grandma Meyer's home.
I didn't have enough time of upload more pictures....so more to come of our Christmas up north. We haven't yet heard about a court date for our boys yet. We are hoping to hear very soon.

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and New Year. This Christmas was especially hard to quiet my heart and mind and really meditate on the reason for the season: Christ's birth. God has been gracious even in spite of my shortcomings and I have felt His presence and love. Christ is more precious to me than ever before and I look forward to this year and what He has in store for me and our family. I know all struggle, pain, joy, love and circumstances come from God and He allows everything to happen for a reason. I entrust my life in His hands and know whatever happens is in His perfect plan and is for my own good and for His glory. Everything good in me come from the Father above....to Him be all the glory and honor.

Approaching 50 million-A memorial to the missing.

2009-01-03T12:04:00.000-06:00

Between Two Worlds: Number of Abortions Since 1973

The number of pennies represents the number of abortions that have been performed. Very sobering. I pray we don't become complacent with the idea of abortion. I would encourage you to open the above link. It talks about how many states it would take to equal the population of 50 million.

Louisiana Snowmen!

2008-12-13T18:27:00.000-06:00

I am sure that most of you, that are not from this area, heard about the snowfall in the south. We were not so lucky. We barely got a dusting of soggy, slushy patches of snow. Nevertheless we were excited to see a little white!! We bundled up the girls in their new snow boots from Grandpa Rolly(for a SD Christmas visit) and all the other winter gear. This is what we could muster.....two snowmen about 6 inches tall.

The girls thought it was great fun to see two little snowmen looking in on them as the played the rest of the day. After coming in with rosy cheeks and soggy mittens, we made chocolate hot cereal, which the girls called porridge, and hot chocolate for breakfast. Jason and I had our hot cups of coffee. This was an unexpected winter memory that we made and we had so much fun. As you can see in the next picture, I think Jason, well, enjoyed being the biggest kid!

He precariously got up on the roof and started lopping snowballs at me and the girls. They enjoyed teasing Daddy and then running away as he yelled "bombs away!!" with his dripping snowballs. He was squeezing his gloves out too!!

So here was the story of our "white" winter. If we get anything more news-worthy snow news, I will be happy to share it with you.

And There were Two!!

2008-12-10T21:16:00.000-06:00

This post is so long over-due. I was doing well before the holidays approached. You may understand why after I share some news that will change our lives....forever!! About a week and a half ago, Monday, November 1st, we got a call from our agency. "Are you sitting down?" They always ask that question before they tell you good news. "I am now", I said. I was only a few feet from our high-stool. I quickly sat, I thought, "the quicker I sit, the quicker I will hear the news." "Well, we have two boys for you, they are brothers." There is a pause, I know she is waiting to hear something from my end. I know some cry, others start yelling or screaming in excitement. I honestly didn't know how I would react. I hesitated, then said,"I knew it!!" I didn't think she quite expect that response. For the last few weeks I had a strong hunch that we would be presented with two boys. I think the Holy Spirit was getting me ready for the big decision that Jason and I would need to make. I told Lisa(our agency contact person) about my hunches and she just laughed. She went on to explain that she thought of us right away when she got the information of these two boys. The best news though.....they are brothers!!

Teketel is 3. We will call him Jonathan Teketel Meyer*****picture removed

Mussie(it means "Moses" in Ethiopian) is 1. We will call him David Mussie Meyer.***picture removed

Yes, we will be doubling our family. We had always talked to the girls about getting one little brother, so when this news came along, we showed them the two pictures. Gracie and Allie immediately said,"Can we keep them both?" Our hearts were over-joyed to see their excitement as well. Gracie argues that she is more excited than we are. We prayed that evening and the next day. We searched our hearts for strength and ability. Most importantly we prayed for God's will. I soon realized that I didn't have the ability or the strength to raise 4 kids under the age of 6, but if God called us to do this, then He would give the ability, strength and grace to be the kind of Dad and Mom we needed to be for our four children. We called Lisa back Tues. afternoon and told her we would take the boys. Jason was flying on clouds, I was more walking around in a fog saying, "4 kids under the age of 6, what I am doing?" After about the 3rd day, Wednesday, excitement started overpowering my fears. Jason has now declared we have enough kids to play football. I think he is excited not to be out-numbers anymore!! :)
Yes, I do feel overwhelmed at times and a little apprehensive of the unknown, and excited and all the other emotions that run in-between. Through it all, I have a peace that doesn't come from me. I am resting in Jesus Christ, My Lord and Savior. He is SOO much bigger than I am. Through is whole journey I have been so humbled and blessed that God would choose us to be a part of these precious boy's lives. What a privilege and honor!! I appreciate even more that I am a child of God's and that He accepted and adopted me!! What's even more amazing is that I was His enemy and my heart was dark. He still loved me enough to died for such a wretched sinner as me. As others have said, it puts the amazing back into amazing Grace. It also has made me see through fresh eyes the great privilege and joy that I have to be Gracie and Allie's mother as well. The role of being a mother is sacred and so full of blessing, responsibility and importance. I never take for granted that God has called me to this. I don't want to miss a moment of being a part of the lives of these 4 children.
Pray for us......We need and covet your prayers. We are anticipating bringing the boys home from Ethiopia by Feb or March. There is a lot to do between now and then. A lot of miracles need to happen.
Thank you all for your support and the joy that you share with us. You may never know what it means to us for you to share in our joy for these boys that you have never met. I promise to do better in keeping you all updated. Feel free to ask questions. I would love to fill you in.