January news

It's been way to long since I've blogged. January always seems so blah after the holidays and when you realize winter is still here for a couple more months. But, it's been flying by. Here's a quick recap of our month. Cole turned 2!! He's a sweet little guy with a passion for life. Everything he does is with gusto! He's a challenge in many ways but so fun. :) Happy Birthday Cole!Carson started Upwards Basketball. He likes it and is doing great. He's number 23 in the blue jersey going up for a shot. Looks just like the old 23, MJ, right? :)
Last Tuesday Bart and I flew to Florida to stay with some friends for a few days. Bad timing b/c the weather was cold. It was about 30 degrees in the morning. During the day it was high 50's and then by Friday, our last day, it was about 74. Beautiful. Too bad we had to leave Sat. at 4 am! We got such cheap tickets so the flights weren't too flexible. Here's our first pic upon arrival to Florida. Off the plane and to one of my favorite places to eat, Chipotle!!

Bart golfed during the day and I bundled up in my warm clothes by the pool to read. It was super relaxing but not a lot of time alone. This is the only pic we got together. Eating ice cream at The Royal Scoop. Yum!
And for the last great news!!!!! CWA gave two referrals last week for little girls. Sooooo, we're number ONE!!!!!!! Yeah. It's almost a little scary at this point. It's really going to happen. Soon. I always thought it'd happen in January and time's running out. I'm super excited. Maybe my next post will have referral news...........

Waiting

Well, last week marked 5 months of waiting. I can't believe it. In some ways those long days of paperwork and running around getting notaries, doctor signatures, bank statements, etc. seem like a lifetime ago. I'm not sure I'd remember how to put the dossier together again. Or fill out an I600A. But on the other hand, I'm dying to meet a little Ethiopian girl who God picked before the foundations of the world to be in our family. We are still third in line on the wait list. CWA, our agency, was closed over the week of Christmas. I'm not kidding, every time the phone rang this week I kept thinking it could be our case worker. Surely in two weeks time three little girls would come into at least one of the four different orphanages. Right? That seems realistic. Well, the phone never did ring from North Carolina (CWA headquarters). So I wait.

I'm reading in Genesis right now and I've been reminded that waiting isn't all bad. Jacob waited 7 years to marry who he thought was Rachel, the girl he was in love with. Joseph had a dream that his brothers would bow down to him. It took tragedy first and then many years later, till that dream came true. How many years did Noah work on the ark before the rains came? How many other examples in the Bible are there on waiting? And I'm fretting over 5 months. Puts things in perspective. So what's the lesson in waiting? I guess as I think about these examples, what comes to mind is obedience and faithfulness to what God has called me to right now. Laban, Rachel's father, asked Jacob to serve 7 years to marry his daughter. Jacob obeyed. He worked hard. Joseph stayed faithful to God in midst of trial and temptation. Potipher's wife seduced him. He'd been dealt a bad hand and here was a desirable, powerful woman who wanted him. He refused. He remained faithful to God's purpose for his life. Noah, was obedient. God told him to build a boat. He was laughed at and ridiculed for years. He obeyed anyway.

One last thought. (And I thought I didn't have anything to post about.) A friend sent me an email a while back about the perspective on waiting........

We are waiting for a mother to die. Or a father to die. Or a family to starve. Or a grandparent to lose a limb. Or a woman to be raped. Or a woman to be so hungry she prostitutes herself for a meal. This is how our children come into our lives: through a terrible tragedy.

Pray with me for the country of Ethiopia and it's people. I don't wish trials or tragedy on anyone. Just use me Lord where there's a need!