So Very Thankful....

It's been a year. A year since we sat down to Thanksgiving dinner. A year since we went out sale shopping for our baby girl, Savannah. A year since we bought the bedding, the high chair, the car seat, and the toys. A year since our baby girl died in Africa before we could ever hold her, kiss her, or tell her we love her. It's strange to me that we sat down, ate a wonderful and filling meal, and all the while the child we were dreaming of and praying for was gone.

I'm sad for us, for the siblings who love her and wanted to know her, and I'm sad for her birth mother who gave up her precious daughter in the hopes of setting her free from poverty only to have her die in a Care Center. I couldn't stop thinking about it today. We sat down to eat another filling and plentiful meal and all I could think of was that somewhere in Africa, someones child is dying. MY CHILD died in Africa.

I watched Sophia chowing down on mashed potatoes in the high chair we bought thinking Savannah would use it and I'm thankful. Thankful for the chance to love Savannah, thankful for the hard times that brought Sophia home to us, and thankful for a God WHO NEVER LETS ME WALK THROUGH THE HURT ALONE.

"You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have loosed my sackcloth and girded me with gladness, That my soul may sing praise to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever." Psalm 30:11-12

Hearts Knitted Together

"Now it came about when he had finished speaking to Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as himself." 1 Samuel 18:1

God could have chosen to have us all go through life without the need of a kindred spirit to share our hearts with, but He didn't. He made us to need each other. He made us with a heart for fellowship.

Not long after we started the adoption process for Sophia God did something amazing. He brought some very special women into my life. At the time I had no idea the connection we would have or the connection our kids would have.

Throughout the wait we rejoiced together, cried together, and understood each other and the toughness of it all without even having to say a word. We prayed, we ate, we laughed, and we shared our hearts. Two of these sweet friends were in Ethiopia when we found out Savannah was gone. I cannot tell you how soothing it was to my heart to know they were so close to where she was.

During our time of sorrow, I had no idea that God was joining our sweet Sophia's heart with her bestie, Davy. These two sweet girls have known each other since Davy was just a few days old. When we were in Ethiopia, visiting Sophia, we brought Davy a toy from her Momma. It was during this time that the nannies told us Sophia and Davy were best friends. The nannies were so excited to know that the girls would live so close to each other.

On my last birthday Davy's Momma gave me some yarn she had spun herself. A few weeks ago I finished a scarf I made with that yarn. The whole time I was working on it I could not help but think about how God knits hearts together. I love these women and I'm so thankful for God's knitting.

An Article Worth Reading.....

Just wanted to post a link to an interesting article.

The United States and UNICEF Wage War Against International Adoptions by Andrea Poe

Happy Harvest

We had a great time watching our kids dress up and "treasure hunt" this Halloween. It was adorable. Eliza had so much fun and could have gone all night. I'm not sure which was more fun for her, handing out candy or getting candy. There was only one kid who was in danger of not getting any candy at our door. He was dressed in a scary costume and right before Eliza was going to hand him a candy she says, "I don't like that one," and goes to put the candy back in our bowl. We made sure he got one before he left.

Here are some pictures from our night of fun and from carving pumpkins. Careful, some of them are so cute it hurts! :)

Christmas Gifts that Bless

Last year I was blessed by a blogger who shared websites where you could buy Christmas gifts that help others. I used many of the links to buy gifts for family members. This year I thought I would share some of my favorites as well as some I have found myself. If you know of one that would be a great addition to my list, please leave a comment with the link.

ethiopiadad

craftymommy

Compassion International Christmas Catalog

Worldvision Gift Catalog

Gospel for Asia Gift Catalog

Living Hope Ethiopia Jewelry

Feeding the Orphans store

Operation Starfish Etsy store

Holt International Gift Catalog

Junkposse

From Africa to your Heart

TOMS

147 Million Orphans

Half the Sky Shop to Help

Show Hope Store

African Elders of Portland

Twinkle Stitch

The Fistula Foundation

foryourchildandmine

Fall Traditions

Fall is one of my favorite times of year. I love seeing the leaves change color and feeling the morning air become crisp in preparation for Winter. One of the traditions we have as a family that I look forward to every year is our trip to the pumpkin patch. This year was Sophia's first time. All of us were looking forward to seeing her reaction to all she would see. It's one of those things I dreamed about doing with her when we were waiting to bring her home. I LOVED having our whole family together at one of my favorite places.

You'll be Blessed

One of the many things I love about the adoption agency we used to adopt Sophia is that they are not just about adoption, they are about preserving families. When a child is brought into care with a Holt program many times they are in need of immediate medical care due to illness or malnutrition. Holt is able to provide that care largely because of their sponsorship program. When you sponsor a child, you are a vital part of finding the best permanent home for that child. First, Holt works to reunite the child with their birth family, then seeks in-country adoption options, and after those options are found to be impossible they then pursue a match to a family internationally.

You may not feel God calling you to adopt but you can be a part of God's call to help the orphan. Holt is holding "Winter Jam" concerts aimed at finding sponsors for children. They need volunteers to help. Not only do you get the blessing of doing something worthwhile; you also get to see NewSong perform and come home with a free CD. Please follow this link, watch the video about child sponsorship, and see if you have the time to help at one of these concerts. You'll be blessed!

Holt Winter Jam 2011