CHINA SAYS YES!

We are Logged-in to China as of today which is MiMi's "Gotcha Day"! So now the clock begins to tick ........

MiMi - Gotcha Day and Beyond!

Nanny at hotel on "Gotcha Day"

Our sweet one year old!

I love my life!

Flying my kite!

Cute!

Love the beach....

Looking forward to a First Friday!!

My last day of PreK 3!

Do you think Santa will bring me something wonderful!

I wish I had hours to put some pictures together, but...... well, tonight is MiMi's Gotch Day eve and we always feel this emotional ache as we celebrate her "gotcha day" and think of her birthmom and dad. To be honest we don't make a huge deal about "gotcha day", as her birthday is in a few weeks, but we have certainly had some great talks about this special day, she now has lots of questions and is beginning to ask and need much detail! So, this is good we love to see her begin unfolding these beginning days and months of her life. We want to say a BIG prayer for her birthparents, as this time of the year can be so difficult for them. We hope God will comfort them as only He can do as they wonder and possibly grieve over the loss of this precious angel. We love you all the way to the moon MiMi and are so proud of you. Happy "Gotcha Day"!!

We made it to China! Well, our dossier made it and we hope to be "Logged In" very soon. Of course this is MiMi's "gotcha day" week, so that just makes it more exciting!

More soon, we hope ....Dan's quickly approaching the "50 mark", so we need China to move fast!!

First Day of School

First day of school

Carpool - MiMi and Mrs Vinson (my teacher last year)

So far so good ....we had a great first day and Grace and MiMi both have terrific teachers, know lots of kids, so it's starting to feel like a family! Both of our girls go to Mt. Paran Christian school and we say a prayer every morning before we walk out the door and thank God for this spirit-filled place and the teachers who are so committed to walking with the Lord as they teach "our" children. Grace said wow 1st grade is alot of work, but continues to love bible study and sharing her love for the Lord with her classmates. She recites Isaiah 58:11 on a regular basis "The Lord will guide you always: He will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail." She has grown so much this past summer, both in size and maturity!

MiMi is in preK4 with a great teacher, MiMi says, "Mrs. Laton can really get things done"! MiMi's favorite thing continues to be crafts and painting or coloring. That girl could definitly head up the "cut and color" club. She knows many of the kids now and really knows her way around the school! Go MiMi!!

We had some tears (only me) on the first day of school. I really enjoy being with my girls, we talk and laugh, and just have such a good time. So now, when I pick them up from school we really have alot to talk about!!

On an adoption note, our dossier should be in China and we are waiting for our LID! The last two weeks we really pushed the paperwork, which I credit CCAI for doing an amazing job, as usual, to get the documents reviewed, translated and then out the door! These guys are good!!

So now we pray for Hope who is waiting, unknowingly, in China for us to come get her. We asked China for a 4 year old, which would make her about two years old right now! I wonder if she can feel our prayers for her? I wonder if they have ladybugs in China? Our prayer is that she be a little light for those who work around her and care for her, for her to touch any missionary teams who come through, and for her to help others to know Christ as she acts just a little different. We believe as we pray for her she can can also plant a seed in some of the lives she touches, we may never know, probably won't, but we do know God will use this little child to plant a seed in someone or many as she waits for us and we wait for her!