Mother's Day, Chess Club, Schools Out!

My girls made me a card on the driveway for Mother's Day! It was so thoughtful and one of the few days of no rain....thanks girls you are very clever! I love my role as a mom to two awesome, God-filled, loving kids and know I am blessed!


Our last week of school was FUN, no stress, just, let's party! The girls got to "dress-down" for the last three days which is so different for them to wear regular clothes to school instead of a uniform everyday. I love the uniforms! ha
Grace participated in Chess Club after school during this past semester and received a trophy for placing in the top five for Blitz chess and 3rd place in Bughouse Chess.....she really learned alot and hopefully can teach us a few moves!

We are officially on summer break! It takes me a few weeks to figure out what everyone is doing kind of "getting a flow" to our days...thankfully, my girls love an organized day "stuff to do", which we have plenty of things planned over the next month and then getting ready to leave for China in July (Grace and I), Dan and Mimi get a trip to the beach while we are gone.

We are prayerfully getting ready to "plant" our first orphan home in China and thank God for being so gracious in sending us the right people, as always, at the right time! Working over in China and exposing our family to what it is "really like" orphanages, etc... brings alot of interesting conversations between Dan and I and the girls. Mimi has been exposed to alot of conversation about China, but watching her begin the process of "who she is, her identity" is sometimes fun and sometimes very hurtful to experience. She has ALOT of questions and many theories about why, what and how everything happened for her in the first year of life at the orphanage. She said to Grace a few days ago "take a good look at my skin, my hair, my eyes, you, mom and dad are all the same, I am different...this is why I get frustrated sometimes and get mad at you because I don't fit in." Mimi is almost seven and I know, for us, keeping everything right out in front of her is so healthy, Chinese friends, learning the language, culture things...the confusion on her face sometimes as she tries to process "it" looks painful .....I do know that everything we do to "keep it real", as Dan says, heals her soul and continues to bring her a sense of peace. "Identity" is a big word, it's relevent at almost every age and what a huge gift you can give your kids by helping them find the tools to master the ability to find their identity.