Please Pray Today - and Update this evening

UPDATE: Susannah is out of surgery. Continue to pray for Susannah as the next day or so are very important for her precious little (but strong) heart.

Susannah is having open heart surgery today. Please pray for Susannah and her family. May the Lord guide the doctors and protect Susannah.

Read her story at : roomforatleastonemore.blogspot.com

It's Fall!

Our happy one year old, he is squeezable!
Brandon, Molly, Natalie, and Nathan enjoying a beautiful day.
Time for a ride, especially in this oversized wagon.
Picking apples in style.
Molly is always on the look out for a kitty to hold.

It is fall in the midwest and one of my favorite seasons. While the weather has been a little warmer than I would like at this time of year the weatherman says coolness is coming! Life is good when you can curl up on the couch with a good book in a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt - I'll let you know when I get to do that.

Ken took a day off and those that were home went to pick some apples. My goal is to make (lots of) applesauce and some apple pie filling, if we don't eat all the apples before I get to it.

On our Knees

I have often said that going through our four adoptions has brought us to our knees in prayer many times. While those times were/are often the difficult times of waiting upon the Lord and His answers it is so sweet to be before our Heavenly Father in prayer.

With that said, there are two families that I ask you to join in prayer.

Please pray for Nathan Lee's family as they await the court's decision for their case. They do not have a time frame for this wait. While their faith is being stretched and grown it is difficult to wait. Nathan Lee is an Eagle's Nest buddy.

And secondly, please be in prayer for Susannah and her family. They are in China right now to bring her home. Susannah's health has not been good and she needs your prayers for her journey home to the U.S. (We met Susannah's family in Florida this spring at the Adoption Summit).

Thank you for lifting these families up in prayer.

What a Difference a Year Makes!

Our referral picture.

After receiving our referral last September we mailed back our Power of Attorney a year ago today to get things moving for our adoption of Nathan. Looking back now it seems like the time passed so quickly, but back then time seemed to move at a snail's pace.

What a difference a year makes!

Back then: Weight: 5# 11oz. Height: 18 inches long

Now: Weight: 19# 6.4oz. Height: 29 inches long

(This picture was added later, Natalie had my camera in Michigan visiting her cousins with her Grandma.)

He went from the 5th percentile for height and weight when he came home to now being at the 43rd percentile for height though only the 6th percentile for weight. He is growing like a weed and learning to eat "real" food. Fruits are his favorite - what a boy!


When we first received the call for our referral we had great hopes of him coming home quickly. And by Guatemala time it was relatively quick - it was almost 9 months exactly after we got our referral that he came home. We weathered the rumors of a shut down, the stall of PGN, and the uncertainty of the end of the year. We thought our file was stuck in April of 2008 when they stopped releasing files, only to find out that we were approved about a week ahead of time. Our adoption, as most are, was not for the faint of heart.

God taught us many things in that time. I am most grateful for the lessons of trust and the encouragement of prayer during our journey. How fun to celebrate with our children as we watched the Lord provide the finances, carry us through what we thought was a closed door, and ultimately bring Nathan home. We continue to praise the Lord for His provision for Nathan and for answered prayer!

Homecoming!

June 7, 2008 - we arrived in Guatemala and Nathan was brought into our arms.

June 11, 2008 - we arrived home late at night.

"Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men, for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the
hungry with good things."

Psalm 107:8,9

Number Six

Brandon

Here is our little boy who is growing up so fast. He brings a lot of noise and laughter to our home. Brandon has a great sense of humor - if you are using the hose outside he is the one standing on it.

He is a handsome little guy with dancing eyes when he is having fun.

Probably wishing he could play in that water.

Having fun in Chicago!
Petting a Llama! (that he did this was a small miracle)

We recently went on a field trip to this farm and Brandon was scared of the smell in the barn. We went outside and he was a different child - guess his nose is more sensitive than I thought.

Brandon misses Allison, she often was known to get him out of bed to play when she came home after work this summer. Brandon is a great snuggler.

Brandon is learning a lot about our Lord and we are working on applying that to his young life. I love to watch when the lightbulb goes on about something he has learned.

The Lord brought Brandon to our family in His special way and we are so humbled by the Lord's blessing.