Our Adoption Journey

Evan's first year

2009-02-26T10:03:00.006-05:00

We hope you will enjoy these snippets from the last year in our family's life.
Kim

Our first trip to Candlewood Lake

2008-06-19T08:00:00.005-04:00

We have been blessed with some very dear friends who own a vacation home on Candlewood Lake, about an hour north of us. We got away last weekend for Father's Day and our 12th anniversary! Can you believe it has been twelve years and four kids later?

We went up with some friends of ours from seminary. They live near us and it was so nice since our kids get along so well.
Evan got his first taste of lake swimming. He was a little unsure at first, but soon was smiling and laughing.

There is a wonderful playground where the kids enjoyed swinging and climbing. Evan's favorite thing to do was play in the pebbles.

Ellyn wants to do the "baby thing" so her friend Jonathan gives her a push

Daddy, Kayla and Ethan had fun in the deep area standing and jumping off of Daddy's shoulders.

Evan took to the sand and had a great time playing with the sand and water. They say it is good therapy to play in the sand!

We are so thankful to the Lord for the family He has given us.
"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, who does not change like shifting shadows"
James 1:17

Three months since Gotcha Day

2008-05-27T19:07:00.004-04:00

Today it has officially been three months since Evan has been in our arms. In some ways it feels just like yesterday, in others it seems like forever. In the last few weeks, Evan has definitely settled into our family. He is full of smiles, laughter and joy. He loves to mimic funny faces that his daddy or the kids make. His most recent face, is raising his eyebrows. I wish I could catch it for you because it is so cute.
He is babbling up a storm. Kayla has commented several times, that he will not need speech intervention. He repeats a lot. His favorite words are apple(app-uh), diaper(biper), meow(oow), doggie(ruff-ruff), mom, or mamma, daddy, Nannie, Poppy, Ouch. . . with more new ones each day. His favorite things to do are play outside, ride his bike, and take a bath. He loves to snuggle too!

My favorite memory from the last month is this, I was typing on the computer one day. He was in the Ergo. He grabbed my face, turned it toward him, kissed me on the lips and signed, "I love you". I guess if you want to get your mommy's attention, that is the way to do it. He melted my heart.

We are so thankful to God for placing the desire in our hearts to adopt so many years ago. Now that we are through the process, we thank Him for allowing us to parent this special boy.

As for the rest of the family, the kids are rapping up a full school year. We are talking about all the fun things we are going to do together this summer. The weather has been beautiful so we head outside for walking, biking, front yard kick ball and such. We have even had two wonderful family picnics with cousins for birthday celebrations and Memorial day!

God is so good! His faithful love endures forever!

A flower from my garden! Isn't it beautiful!

Poem

2008-05-09T07:53:00.004-04:00

This poem was written by my friend, Joni Gainer, who travelled with us to Vietnam. It expresses eloquently the emotions that flooded our hearts as we picked up our sons.

March 30, 2008 Quiet time reflections on Binh Duong Orphanage

They quietly watch the strangers
tour their familiar halls.
They listen to foreign chatter
as it echoes between the walls.

The lucky one, in the midst of them,
tentative and shy.
Hoping, yet grieving,
as a tear slips from his eye.

This lucky one has a home now
he’ll be going to,
But the others will stay behind
when the day is through.

No matter how old they are
the hope just never dies,
“Please, let it be me soon”,
lingers in their eyes.

How can I forget them
when this one’s in my arms?
How could I ignore them,
to never know their charms?

Lord show me what you’d have me do;
fill me with your will.
You are the God who does provide;
your purpose you fulfill.

You created my inmost being
and filled me with a vision.
Lord show the path and give me strength;
Lord use me in your mission.

Their longing eyes, their hungry hearts
are calling out to me.
I’m waiting, Lord, for answers
In your will...I long to be...
In your will, Lord...help me see.

Parks and plays

2008-04-23T16:14:00.003-04:00

We have been having beautiful weather these past few weeks in Ohio. Spring has Sprung!
Evan is learning all about playing at the park. He loves the swing and climbing. Here he is with his friend Jonathan!

We needed pictures for our first post placement home visit. Don't they all look happy! The kids truly are loving having a little one around. I am appreciating all of their help!

Because Evan got a turn in the baby swing, Ellyn wanted one too! She is still struggling to give up that "baby of the family" position.

Can you tell he loves it! It was so cute to hear him laugh and laugh his first time in the swing!

Kayla, Ethan, and Ellyn were in a musical at church this weekend. It was called "Fish Tales" !
Kayla performed a song in the signing choir. It is so neat to hear the kids singing songs about Jesus and His wonderful deeds!

Oh, yesterday marked two months with Evan. God is so good and we are so blessed to be the parents of a wonderful, sweet boy!

Smiles and Such

2008-04-11T15:32:00.004-04:00

Life with four children who are home most of the time(homeschooled) is very Full! We are all delighting in the little boy who has become very much a part of our family! Evan is full of smiles and laughter. He still prefers mom, but is warming up to his other siblings. Dad even kept him last night while mom had some much needed woman to woman talk time.

Evan's favorite food is small pieces of cut up apple. This week I put two bags of them in the grocery cart and he kept saying over and over, "Ma, Ma". Yes, this is what he calls apples. I say "apple" and he says, "Ma, Ma". Oh well. It is cute and he loves them. This is a picture after he just finished a tray full of them.

Sorry for the sideways pics. Anyway, someone gave us this bathrobe and I thought he looked so cute. Kind of reminds me of "Rocky". Yes I am an 80's child!

When his sister saw the bathrobe, she wanted to get a bathrobe picture with Evan too.

Evan found his blanket from the orphanage in the laundry and pulled it all around the house one day. He also pulled his homecoming balloons with it. It is neat to see how he loves the blanket that he knows from his first "home"!

First haircut

2008-03-31T18:16:00.003-04:00

On Saturday, Evan had his first haircut by mommy. The deal in our family is mommy cuts everyones hair so mommy can afford to get her hair cut! It works out nicely, most of the time. I have learned that Evan enjoys videos that have children singing. So with our favorite "Donut Man"(if you don't know who the Donut man is you might want to check it out), we set out for our first haircut. I think it was the easiest first haircut of all the kids. Granted, he has definatly had haircuts before so may know the routine. Enough said, here are some pics from the event.

Feels like a dream

2008-03-27T20:52:00.002-04:00

Isn't it amazing how quickly a trip or vacation, when you're back into the daily grind, can feel like a dream? Now that we've been back from Vietnam for just over two weeks, it does feel like a dream... at least until I get home from work [Eric writing] and see that cute, little, asian pair of eyes greeting me at the door!!! Then it all comes back -- we really did go and we really did bring home a son. It wasn't a dream.

I must thank again all of you who helped make this DREAM COME TRUE. I must say that over two years ago when we decided to finally fill out the adoption application with HOLT it seemed like a mountain that would be impossible to climb. We we didn't even know then that God had a job change and relocation in mind for us all at the same time! (if we would have known that we probably wouldn't have started - thank goodness God doesn't let us in on the future, otherwise we wouldn't do that things we have been asked to do).

Thank you to all who have prayed and paid - paid for part of the adoption costs. Its amazing that out of the roughly $25,000 of adoption expenses, we have only $2,000 to go - and get this, we will be receiving a $2,000 grant from the State when Evan's adoption is finalized. Get that! Totally debt free - a family of 5 (prior to evan), living on one "average" income, getting through a $25K process without owing a penny! THAT CAN ONLY BE GOD... working through gracious people like you. With MUCH THANKS... Evan and his parents and siblings:)

Dancing baby after one month being a Crawford

2008-03-25T15:12:00.003-04:00

Today is a day of celebration for our family. Evan has been ours for one month. We rejoice in all God's faithful hand that has brought us this far. We hope you enjoy this video of him dancing.

You've come so far baby!

2008-03-25T14:31:00.003-04:00

Today we celebrate a whole month of Evan being home. We are amazed by God's incredible faithfulness which has brought us to this point. It is awesome for us to think that a month ago we took Evan in our arms for the first time. Now he is quite content being in our family. I think my favorite "change" that has taken place over the last month is seeing him learn to trust us. A month ago I started the routine of holding and singing to him before he went to sleep. He would push away and cry then finally give in. Now, I say time for "Nigh, Night" and sit down on the bed. He curls up in my arms, puts his two fingers in his mouth and snuggles while I sing and pray over him. I praise the Lord for this, realizing that it is His amazing healing hand and knowing that it is in answer to so many prayers! We hope all of you who have prayed so faithfully for us and our family will rejoice today with us.

Signing time

2008-03-23T19:48:00.003-04:00

Since we have had Evan, he has learned many new signs. We have taught all of our kids sign so they can communicate before they talk. He has learned the signs for shoes, mommy, daddy, ball(his favorite sign), cookie, all done, please, more, and milk! He is like a little sponge soaking up all of the learning. Here are a few pics of him signing. It may be hard to tell what he is doing, but it is much better in living color. He is signing ball in one picture and I love you in the other by crossing his arms and rocking back and forth. The other pic is just having fun with mom.

We are so blessed of the Lord to be parenting such a sweet little boy!

Boys and bath time

2008-03-23T19:43:00.002-04:00

The kids have all been taking turns taking baths with Evan, in their swimsuits. They are all having a blast bathing together. It is so fun to watch Evan learn to splash, blow bubbles, and just have fun in the tub. We have bath pictures with all of our kids and funny hair styles. As you can see Evan has joined the funny hair club. He and Ethan show off their mohawks!

Do the baby workout!

2008-03-23T19:13:00.004-04:00

Okay so you've all seen Father of the Bride 2 where Frank does a workout with the two pregnant mommies. I happened to watch that movie during my labor with child #3. Last night Evan was in the Ergo and he and I were doing the baby workout. He was laughing hysterically! It was so much fun.

I know I look dorky, but it sure was fun. We were great entertainment for the rest of the family!

Settling in

2008-03-18T09:28:00.003-04:00

Evan in his exersaucer

Evan loves being outside on his bike! He is learning that he joined an outside family.

finally all together at dinner, minus mom who is taking the pic!

Now that we are home, we are throughly enjoying being a family of six. Evan is getting to know his brother and sister. They love to hold and play with him. I am getting the distinct impression that he loves being part of a family. We had a wonderful time playing outside yesterday. It was warm enough, by Ohio standards, to be outside. Evan loved being on the tricycle and pushing himself around with his feet. First he figured out how to go forward, then backward.

We are FAMILY

2008-03-13T14:00:00.004-04:00

Psalm 16:6 "The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance. I will praise the Lord. . ." I have such joy in my heart and such a peace for all that the Lord has given to us. I am truly a blessed mother of Four wonderful children, each uniquely made by God!

Granma Crawford welcomes grandbaby number 12 to the family! #13 will arrive this fall!

The sisters are so thankful to be back together after 3 long weeks apart!

The "Boys" of the family enjoy a moment together playing on the floor!

It is with great joy that I write to let you know that we are finally home and all doing well, except for a little jet lag, which is to be expected. A couple of weeks ago another adoptive mom wrote about the joys of being home and finally all being together as a FAMILY. It was such a joy to see Ethan and Ellyn's excitement over having Evan home. He is not going to have any problems learning his new name because his siblings call out to him over and over and over!

My heart is full of gratitude to the Lord for leading us to our son Evan. He is weaving our hearts all together into a family that I pray will honor and glorify Him.

WERE COMING HOME

2008-03-10T07:10:00.003-04:00

We applied and picked up our son's visa today. The Lord opened up seats for us to come home on Tuesday instead of thursday. We have tickets in hand. The bags are 90% packed! We are going out to our favorite restaurant with our dear friends the Gainers, who are also going home tommorow! Please pray for a smooth flight with no unforseen layovers. Please pray for us all to have the strength to make it home in one piece! Please pray the Evan will sleep for at least some of the time. We know our God will answer! We'll be home on Wednesday!
Yahooooooooo!

Slide Show

2008-03-10T01:04:00.001-04:00

Blazing new trails

2008-03-09T11:23:00.003-04:00

This is a VIDEO of Eric taking motobike taxi - much more fun than a regular car taxi! For those of you who LIKE to drive in busy cities, bumper to bumper on the high ways, you've never seen anything like this-- and what you see is NOT even rush hour traffic!

Comfort Food

2008-03-09T04:38:00.002-04:00

While Eric is out at the National History Museum, Kayla and I are here dreaming about the food we will eat when we get home. We played a little game to see who could come up with the best meal when we get home. So, you vote. Kim's meal: A wonderful salad with all the fixings(have not been able to eat greens in VN due to fear of water diseases), a pork roast, warm italian bread with butter, an oven baked sweet potato with brown sugar, and for dessert our favorite chocolate raspberry cake with vanilla ice cream!!!!!! Now for Kayla's: Pancakes smoothered with warm, real maple syrup and blueberry sauce, cheesy eggs and bacon, and one delicious lemon merrange(sp?) pie made by my dear Grandma Bell because no one makes it like her!!!!!!!
So who wins! Can you tell we are ready to come home?

Kindred Spirits, cute pics, and funny story:)

2008-03-08T09:29:00.004-05:00

This is the Gainer Family... who came the same day as us, and hopefully we'll all be leaving the same day this next week! It has been a blessing to be in a totally different country with another family - but not just any family, but a family who has some much in common with ours; homeschool, faith, values, love for children (they've got a total of six now!), books, etc... Kayla has definitely looked up to nathan their 15 year old - he's been an older brother to her and has helped her adjust to very different foods and experiences. We've had all of our appointments togather. It wasn't planned... but must have known we needed each other... and our two Vietnamese sons needed each other too.

Now for some cute pics of Evan --then to the funny story of the day!

I think Evan is excited... what do you think? Really - kim has been teaching him to make these funny kind of faces... and it worked.

Evan wasn't a THUMB SUCKER... he was a two finger sucker - the first pic is from the very first day we met evan.

Here's the most recent picture of "two finger sucking" - but look in whose mouth the fingers lie! (i guess that's a good sign of bonding... I know that for myself, I only put my fingers in the mouths of people I only have the most complete trust:) )

Ok, this pictue wins the prize for the most stuff fit onto one bicycle! (yes, there is a bike under there... somewhere) This was actually in a museum, and all those things are fishing baskets/traps.

Ok, here's the funny story. We went to lunch today before visiting a museum... but it was close to 2pm, totally non lunch hour. We were in the area of the museum and just assumed we would be ablt to find somewhere to eat pretty easily... WRONG... either because the museum is in a part of town where there aren't many eating establishments, or because it was 2pm and they all shut down still the dinner rush, I don't know. what i do know is that there wasn't much around, so we had to do some walking. the first thing that looked like it would have eatable stuff, we walked into it sat down and through cave man style sign language signaled our intense desire to eat before starving to death. Kim went for the standard PHO (traditional VN soup), Kayla had lost her appetite just by the very different eating environment (she was hoping for a KFC or starbucks kind of place); But I was full of advernture and stuck to my guns - If I'm in Vietnam, i'm going to eat like the Vietnamese! I asked the lady to bring me something with rice and meat. I'm not sure exactly what we said, what she heard and vise versa... because by the end of the meal, we had two cups of strong VN coffee, three cups of tea, three main dishes, a bunch of side dishes, dessert, and a free round of Jasmine tea (compliments because of the National WOMEN'S day here in VN). By the way, the total bill came to only 60,000 VND (only $3.50 ) - the cheapest meal to date! I gave the young guy an extra $1.25 (20,000VND) and he tried to refuse it, but I insisted. So here's the funny part... here's my meal below... take a guess what it is:

YES, there's rice in there! Da! Yes, there's meat too... but do you know what kind? Well, that was the problem, I didn't. I thought I asked for something with beef in it, but who knows what she heard. I finally inquired, the curiosity was killing the cat. One of the ladies did speak a little english. I asked if there was chicken in it, because I thought for sure there was and ate all the stuff that looked and tasted like chicken. But when asked she said pretty plainly that there was not chicken... hmmm; I started to worry. How about beef... YES, there's beef. ok, i'm feeling a little better. THEN she said, "Feck hert" & she pointed to her heart....what? I didn't understand. She said it again, and then my wife said, "do you mean FOX HEART?" -- Yes, fox heart. Ok, my stomach just went to my heart, and something else's heart some how got into my stomach... all kim could do was laugh, saying my adventureous spirit finally got the bet of me!

Here's kayla enjoying some chocolate dessert later in the day.

Ok, for you who didn't believe the SNAKE WINE story from last week, here is the actual thing... A king cobra in a bottle - but this time he's got a scorpin! You won't see that in America!

Medical exam and a weeks reflection

2008-03-07T07:39:00.005-05:00

Evan has such emotional eyes... the asian eyes with dark colors add so many emotions and added expressions... sad is much sader and happy is much more happy. I think one of the most beautiful things in Vietnam are the facial lines of the people - and evan's face is a wonderful glimpse of the beauty we see all around us each day. It is one of the things I will miss when we come back to the states.

Here's what they call DRAGON FRUIT... bright, dark pink with "tintickles" on the outside, but much like a Kewi on the inside, but much more mild and consistent... we've had them most mornings here:)

Evan is definitely warming up to Eric... here he sits on my lap and enjoys some lunch time with daddy.
We are a family who LOVE back rubs... Evan fits into the family just fine. Here is kim giving him a full body message. One of the areas of healing that many orphans go through is called "attaching and bonding" - emotionally clinging to a caregiver - which does not happen when orphaned at an early age. One way to do that is through meaningful touch. Also, smells can be used to build bonding in a family. We all use a certian kind of lotion each day... and kims uses here with Evan. BTW, for other adopting families, if you haven't read any of Gregory Keck's books, they are incredibly helpful. "Parenting the Hurt Child" is a very basis book about the needs of orphans who are placed in adoptive families.

Kayla and Evan enjoying some giggle time in bed:)

We had our medical exam for Evan's visa today. He is doing very well, despite a little constipation. So for our first doctor's appointment together, Evan weighs in at 17.6 lbs and 29 1/2 inches tall. He is tiny, but healthy. We are working on beefing him up. So far he will eat cheerios, yogurt and baby cereal. He takes his bottles very well.

Here's a pic from our medical exam today:)

Evan in true Vietnam garb:)

I fed Evan some tradition Asian food--- rice. I thought he would naturally enjoy it - he's Vietnamese. He did chew on it for about 20 seconds, then he spit it all out and then laughed:)

Kayla has been a big blessing. here's another pic of them out by the pool.
Water puppets in Hanoi - a $3/ticket, and worth it! I wish I could get a video somewhere with English subtitles. Its an art form from the 11th century!. The stage floor is water, about 2 1/1 feet deep, and the puppets are about 12-18 inches tall, connected to a long pole that is actually under the water. The men and women who guide the puppets are behind the stage, invisible to the watching crowd. There are also fireworks in the show too!

After little over a week, we have watched him grow from a timid little guy to an active, gabbering. laughing boy. He loves to put up his hands when he wants to be held. Needless to say, he has stolen our hearts.

Happy b-day ELLYN

2008-03-06T09:22:00.004-05:00

This the first time we have missed any of the kids' b-day. Our sweet Ellyn turns 6 years old today. She is our happy go lucky, joyful, smily girl. She love to snuggle, play, draw, and best of all go out on date times with daddy or mommy. We are sad to be missing her special day. We know that her Nanny, Poppy, Grandma and Grandpa will make it a special day. We love you sweetheart and will bring home your birthday present. . . a new baby brother!

Evan Laughing - Video

2008-03-05T09:47:00.002-05:00

You may have to give this a few moments to load... but I think you'll find it joyous watch. Not many babies are this happy after just a few days in a totally new environment. Of course, we still will hav much healing and loving to do with Evan:)

Ha Long Bay

2008-03-05T08:58:00.002-05:00

Ha Long Bay... a world famous landmark of Vietnam. Is is a bay full of over 3,000 small islands - massive rock formations that just jet out of the water. Beautiful. To come all this way around the world, and only be three hours (well, only 90 miles, but with slow traffic and bumpy roads I would have lost three days worth of meals if we'd made it if traveled @ 60 miles/hour)... well, we just had to go. Kim didn't think that taking a 18month old on a two day trip, sleeping on a boat, skipping all his naps, etc. was a good idea - I married a wise woman - because it was no place for a little one. SO kayla and her daddy [me] became world travelers:) Actually, if you read our FOODS WE'VE EATEN entry about 4 entries before, you'll see that Kayla was the bravest of us all! (Go ahead, read and see the FOODS WE'VE EATEN and ask yourself, "could I have eaten that?!")

Pics just can't capture the beauty... even if I were a world famous photographer. I do have some video but not sure if blogger (or my computer) can handle that big of a file. In the meantime, here's our fist pic... kayla was actually the artist and is the best pic during the entire trip. She and I were on the kayacking leg of our adventure - in a two man kayack and we decided to go the opposite direction of everyone else... and glad we did, got an awesome view.

This pic was captured in the morning of day #2. It was foggy both days... actually this time of year isn't the best because of the haze... but we were complaining.
Kayla and me:) We had some great bonding time together!

The only bummer of the trip was that we weren't the only ones who wanted to see the sights... all the boats were loaded with us good old tourists. There was actually a group of three German guys going on a three day trip. Once you get past the two day/one night tour, you are more free from the mass of tourists. But again, we weren't going to complain about being in one of the most beautiful places on planet earth.

One part of our trip included SWIMMING... yes it LOOKS like good weather for that... but the air temp. was high 60's in the day and the 50's at night... so can you imagine what the water temp was? Kayla was SOLD on swimming in the Pacific Ocean/South China Sea... "I've never swam in an Ocean before." (I tried to talk her out of it; "Its just like swimming in a pond back in Ohio...in the middle of MARCH" - I could have used the "O, I thought I saw a SHARK!" excuse, but all you moms would have pummelled me when I got back to America-- plus I always regretted seeing JAWS when young, being scarred for life...and didn't want even a hint of that for her) Well, how cold was the water... Cold enough that after 60 seconds in the water, I couldn't feel an inch of my skin anywhere on my body... completely numb. No lie... it took a 15-minute HOT shower, plus an hour on the top deck (sun bathing deck) with 4 layers of clothes on to finally warm me up. A DADDY'S LOVE FOR HIS DAUGHTER:) And it was worth it all... to be with Kayla and be reminded of God's Grand Creativity via Ha Long Bay.

Dinner with special friends

2008-03-03T21:58:00.002-05:00

On Saturday evening we had dinner with a very dear couple and their daughter. Eric met the wife on the plane trip from HCMC to Hanoi. She travels for business. It was a wonderful evening of sharing about life in Hanoi from a residents perspective. It gave us a picture of what it is like to live in our son's birth country. It is our hope to keep Evan's knowledge of his country as much as possible through people we know and experiences we can give him. Here is a picture of us together.

NEW POST

2008-03-03T09:09:00.002-05:00

I just posted a new one entitled FOODS WE'VE EATEN... started the blog several days ago, but wanted more pics. so when published it, it went back to the day I started it... so just scroll down, and you'll see it in just a jiffy.

Happy boy!

2008-03-02T03:45:00.003-05:00

Evan has and eats his first French Fry!

Evan plays happily in the balls at the hotel playroom! I wish I could let you all listen to the laughs and see the smiles on our son's face. If a joyful heart is good medicine, than our son is experiencing a lot of healing! He loves to be tickled, play peek a boo, chase mommy around the playground, roll the beach ball and the list could go on. His giggle is so sweet. This momma's heart is full of love and joy! Thank you all for your prayers on behalf of Evan. God has and is answering them. We are so blessed that He has given us this little boy to be our son. Please continue to pray for wisdom for us as we seek to make the most of these days and help our son learn to trust us!
Kim

Gratitude

2008-02-29T05:30:00.004-05:00

For a country that lacks many of the modern conviences that Western nations enjoy, one thing the people do not lack is a genuine sense of joy. For many, life is tough. Yes there are some who enjoy luxuries of life... but they are the very few. Most live on very little in comparison to my family. We were told that a university professor makes $100/month; many, however, may only live on $1/day. Now you may say, "But they can buy so much more with $1." True, to some extent...but not the extent where they are fat and filled as we are - by they way, I have not seen even one overweight person in VN - not one. And its not solely due to their body types - its because their financial situation does not allow many to enjoy the blessings of 3 full meals a day.

There have been times in my painting business when I will make an entire Vietnamese year's income of in just one day!

One of the most challenging aspects of this trip has been the "customer service" of the hotel staff. We are not staying in 5 star hotels... nice, but not luxurious. yet, with how we are treated, you would think my wife and I were millionaires - in fact we are. At one point in time on the trip we had to carry in my pocket over $5 million DVN - vietnamese money. The hotel staff serve us so graciously, humbly, and I think with genuine joy. I will often tip a restaurante waiter or belle hop (spelling?) just $1, and you'd think I gave them $100... to them, I did.

Below are some pics in Siagon... warmer there than in Hanoi, so in my early morning walks (5am-6:30am) I would see people sleeping in the streets.

This was a common seen. Many street venders (sell all kinds of small items: food, drinks, gambling cards, magazines, etc) will literally sleep right on the street where they peddle their goods - perhaps that is the only place they have to lay their heads.

I have prayed that this trip would change me life, Kaya's life, Kim's life, and obviously Evan's. I'm sure the thoughts above are one part of God's humbling of my heart. I wonder what else he will have for us?

Food we've eaten

2008-02-29T02:21:00.006-05:00

When one travels to the other side of the world, a lot changes... land, culture, language, facial characteristics & food! My idea of a vacation is going new places and eating new things - this is definitely both! But for a boy who has spent his entire life in the good old MidWest of USA, seafood is usually a new, and most of the time, enjoyable change. Below are some pics of the very interesting foods we've eaten.

(1) kayla and i [eric] just got back from a 2 day trip to Ha Long Bay. Awesome experience. WE took a group tour of this world famous bay. (more pics of the trip to come in following blogs) We slept of a boat and just ate what they served us. This is what was served to last night's dinner... and we ate it.

(2) I didn't touch this one... but kayla, after the first bite, ended up eating the WHOLE PLATE = squid... actually a type of squid = cuddlefish!

(3) this is Josiah, the Gainer's seven year old son. Gainers are the other Holt family who are here in VN with us... what a blessing to have another family of kindred spirits with us in a foriegn land. This is a common dish in VN... broth with rice noodles and some meat and herbs.

(4) Nate and Greg Gainer... I ordered a "hot pot" for dinner, not knowing it was a dish you share with the whole table. I'm glad we did, because it had stuff I like (shrimp and fish), but things I wasn't so sure about: clams and squid. Nate digs in - he and kayla will try and eventually eat about anything.

(5) Its a blast to not only eat different foods (sometimes you don't ask you just eat), but also in different ways - CHOP STICKS! After a week, I'm getting pretty good. So much so that kayla and i thought it would be a good idea to buy a set of 10 chopsticks and take them back to USA and have the entire family use them for dinner once a week. So ehtan and ellyn, we're coming home with chopsticks... beware:)

(6) Evan... who needs biter biscuits (a special "teething" food for small children when their teeth are coming in) when you have baquettes!

(7) This is a picture from the day we went into downtown Hanoi and were pretty overwhelmed by the markets, people, smells, etc... it was like Asian Overload for us... so we saw Highlanders Coffee (similar to Starbucks) and made a mad dash for it--- it was a piece of heaven @ a very stressful lunch time:) Kayla is sucking down a fruit smoothie and i'm downing a baquette sandwich.

(8) This was one of our first meals in VN... PHO 24 is a chain of restaruants throughout SE Asia... and serve PHO - a traditional VN meal. Kim choose to use a fork... kayla thought chopsticks were the way to go... when in VN, eat like the VN:)

Other kids at the Orphanage

2008-02-28T16:40:00.003-05:00

Here are some of the other children at the orphanage --they have children from birth (literally just days old) to teenagers. As we met each child, who has an eternal soul, it made us want to take more than just one home. They are precious and beautiful... and all need a home.

quick post from Kim

2008-02-27T09:52:00.002-05:00

Evan is asleep so I have a couple of minutes before I go to bed to give you an update from Mom's perspective. Today was the first day for smiles and laughs and babbling noises. He is feeling much more comfortable. Evan and I did get a two hour nap today which was wonderful. It was heart renching when he woke up. He was not at all to happy to see me. It took about a full hour to get him back to being comfortable again. A warm bath and bubbles definatly helped. I am realizing how much of a "Dance" we are in. It has been said that all relationships are built on Time, Truth, and Trust. I am seeing this played out minute by minute with Evan. The greatest blessing of the day was all of the smiles and laughter and hugs. Once he felt comfortable again, he was a delight! Please pray right now for both of us. We are tired from all of the "dancing", but I wouldn't want to miss this dance for the world!

Funniest Story and Picture

2008-02-27T07:17:00.008-05:00

We flew from Ho Chi Minh City (aka Siagon) to Hanoi today... Evan did very well. But by the time we got into the hotel it was around 1:00pm or more and we ate breakfast at 6AM today... so we were famished. So we (actually me [Eric]) insisted we finally go to a real live Vietnamese Restaurant to eat; so we asked at the front desk and they recommended one just down the street. First you have to understand that the restaurantes that don't primarily cater to Westerns or Tourists have a different feel to them - "earthy" would be a good descripter - sometimes dirt floors, open-air, untidy, etc. As we walked into the entrance the sight of the live food was a little unsettling for Kayla (what would soon be on your plate was still enjoying its last living moments = the seafood was all in tanks, even some chickens close by). We sat down and started looking over the menu... but most of the first 7 pages were filled with very strange menu items - truly Asian at its best... what caught our eye most was the grouping of items listed as "Snake Head"- snake head with noodles; snake head with rice, etc... (Snakes are somewhat mystical here in VN - at the market the other day I saw King Cobras in bottles, being fermented in alchol being sold as "snake wine") The more we read the more unsettled we became, but we couldn't just get up and go. So we finally found a few dishes that looked like we might be able to stomach them. But after thinking about the snake head meals (and I was the only one who noticed a meal with "dog meat") our appetites soon deminished. We quickly ate [only kim and I, kayla refused] and left. When we got back to the hotel the receptionists were quick to ask us about their suggestion. I stammered for an answer and finally decided honesty was the best approach: "I think it was a little too authenicate for us, particularly our daughter" [blaming kids picky eating habits sounded like an easy way out... and it was true]. I then mentioned that I thought the "snake head" items was a night unnerving for us... "In the states you usually don't eat snake let alone its head for dinner..." the two receptionists paused for a moment and finally realized our confusion... "snake head" isn't a snake, its a name of a type of fish in SE Asia!!!! We all had a very good laugh... realizing most of our appetite lose was in our mind not in the food!!!

Ok now for the funniest picture of the trip... as we traveled from the airport [located outside town in farming area] into the city, we came across this:

That puts a whole new perspective on the "this little pig goes to market..." Motorcycles are the primary mode of transporting everything- people, supplies, construction materials, food, etc... We finally came to this conclusion as to the limit of motorcycles' delivery ability: IF TWO MEN CAN LIFT IT, A MOTOBIKE CAN GET IT THERE!

Finally a few pics of us and Evan

Kayla bought [with her own $] an Ou Ai... traditional VN outfit.

Evan and Mommy at breakfast... as you'll be noticing the pics are mainly of kim and evan... mainly females caring at orphanages, so they are not used to men; and this time Evan cries when I come his way... totally expected and normal for orphans.

More snuggles:)

"________ has a funny hat"... is a funny song we sing in our family... and its always sung when our kids are this age and this happens... SO we sang "EVAN has a funny hat..."

What kid doesn't like a warm bath... Evan loves his bath... splashing and "grabbing" the water as it came out of the faucet.

Pride in our BOYS & Gotcha Day

2008-02-26T03:52:00.008-05:00

While four of us are in Vietnam, two of our clan are back in the USA, Ethan and Ellyn. Ethan participated in his very first PINE WOOD DERBY... and brought home the SILVER!(pictured below with his trophy) He won almost every race he competed in. He worked hard on his bright red car with a briliant blue stripe down the center. GREAT JOB SON at working hard and enjoying a day of fun.

Here we are signing the offical papers.

All the ladies love Evan. He is described as easy going, cuddly, and loves people. Of couse, his being really cute and kissable probably has something to do with it too:)

Here is an older child at he orphanage that we were able to meet and take gifts to.

Mrs. Binh, the orphanage director, was very attached to Evan, and struggled at holding back her emotions on several occasions. It was obvious within minutes that the children at this orphanage are loved as sons and daughters. I struggled with thoughts of "I'm taking this child from them" and yet as one child left, a new born was admitted to the orphanage today -- and it will be loved as their very own children.

This is mostly what we are doing right now - laying low, playing, singing, & laughing with Evan...

The First Magical Moment for Mommy

2008-02-25T08:06:00.003-05:00

Here's a very brief video... hope it puts it more into real life for you:)

It was WORTH it all

2008-02-25T05:40:00.006-05:00

If a picture is worth a thousand words,

the the real thing is worth infinitely more.

After many months of waiting the moment finally arrived for us to touch and hold our son. In a rare occasion we were able to go to the orphanage today to visit Evan. It was truly a "golden moment" in life -- one of those moments you won't ever forget. Tomorrow we go back to for the Giving and Receiving Ceremony (G&R). Again, it was God's Gracious hand that allowed the G&R to be tomorrow, because none of ou five suitcases came until just two hours ago. Going without gifts was awkward but Mr. Binh was very, very gracious. He & his wife are precious, loving, patient and caring. For any other Holt families who might be adopting out of this orphanage- be assured that your children are deeply loved there!

BELOW: Kayla our oldest with now our youngest:) "Look guys he's a TWO finger sucker:)" Evan had no problem being held by kayla.

"I think we have the same shape of nose:)" Eric with Evan. Wow! He is definitely a "feather weight." Like so many of the Vietnamese children, Evan seems so tiny; but then again when I walk through a crowd here in VN I tower in the crowd.

What a WILD Jounery

2008-02-23T17:58:00.000-05:00

We were SUPPOSE to leave friday AM from Columbus @ 1:00 and fly to JFK (New Yourk) - but the flight was cancelled with just one hour before departure because of the snow storm on the east coast. At first we thought it was a cruel pill to swallow - for us to spend the last two years doing all kinds of things, having a wonderful "send off" at the airport - and then a few inches of snow cut us off from traveling, and the airlines refused to rerouted us to the West Coast, even though that was the direction we really needed to travel anyhow. But, by God's Grace alone, the snow ended up in a BLESSING. We ended up rescheduling our trip, starting from Cincinati flying to LAX (Los Angelos - who knows what the X stands for?) - which meant a 5 hour trip, followed by a 14 hour trip, rather than one long, eternal 19 hour marathon! But to do that, we had to get to Cincinati. Well, get this: in the midst of the cancelation, the airlines rerouted 2 of our 5 baggages to Atlanta - who knows? Again, at first we were frusrtated, but in the end that TOO WAS A BLESSIng - because, we had to drive to Cincinati right away to catch the necessary flight; but there was NO WAY that our 5 large pieces of luggage would fit into an average sized car (beside our 5 smaller carry ons- yes I know, we over packed- very clear now:)). So because the two biggest pieces of luggage were transported for us, free at charge might I add, we had just enough room to squeeze us all in a car and run down to Cin. -THANKS mom and dad crawford for rearranging your entire day to get us on that plane!!! Its amazing how love comes out in different ways through different people - that we my parents (eric's) great act of love for Evan.

If you would have seen us, you would have thought we were in the AMAZING RACE - literally RACING from one point to the next. Our longest layover, to this piont in time has been only 2 hours - our shortest was a SPRINT ACROSS LAX to catch the flight, that was half boarded when we showed up to the gate. (FUnny story = we have three carry ons, a computer and a video camera... by the time we were done with our srint across LAX, I had all three carry-ons with kayla tossed over my shoulder like a soldier carrying his wounded mate safely home - OK I'm exaggerating with kayla, but I did have the overloadedcarry-ons on my back.) So here we are in Tapei, Twain, about one hour from our final flight into Siagon... we have now been awake (besides a lousy nap or two) for 36 hours... and its only 5:45 AM HERE!! So we have a whole other day to enjoy before the blessingof sleep hits us. We are in good spirits even though our BO is rounchy and our breath could melt paint off a car:)

If is misspelled or don't make sense, blame it on the sleep.
Eric writing for the clan

What We Might Have Missed

2008-02-22T06:30:00.003-05:00

As I [Eric] awoke today, on the morning we leave to pick up our son, I was struck with the thought… “What might I have missed out on…?” If we had said no to the need and the prompting of God in our lives, what events would we have missed?

Seeing our kids rally behind a cause to the point that they give freely and graciously from their newspaper route money to help buy gifts for the orphanage.
Witnessing first hand how God can help a family living on one average paycheck pay for the $25,000+ of adoption expenses.
The joy of getting to know some of the neatest families on planet earth – like Rick & Jamie DeBoest (one child by birth, three by adoption); Wetzels (2 by birth, 2 by adoption); John and Lynn Boal (2 adopted); Rochtes(4 by birth, 1 by adoption); our Holt internet friends; … Their stories stirred us onto where we are now at.
Watching videos of orphans & being confronted with the reality that I live in one of the "richest countries in all of history" and being forced to stop and ask myself, "What can I do?"
At each of the five major occasions when thousands of dollars were due for fees & expenses, what was missing just months before was now is full supply.
Going through a significant life and job change right in the middle of the adoption process, and praying “God, no matter what happens to us please bring our son home.”
Learning about the amazing emotional, physical and mental connections that are formed in the first weeks and months of a child’s life when a loving adult nurtures a child – and therefore go unformed when a child is abandoned.
Becoming more concerned about others, less consumed with me.
And best of all… hearing of other families who are now adopting because of what they see in us.

What might you be missing out on? I know that their are some of you who are reading this blog who have considered adopting... but that is as far as its got - simply a nice thought. I know it seems like climbing a Mountain - and at times it is - but I think that in the end we will look back and say "It was tough, but it was worth it."

Help us to help Evan

2008-02-21T10:44:00.002-05:00

When we began this adoption process almost two years ago, we went into it with "blind" faith. Over the course of our process, we have learned an incredible amount of information that has opened our eyes to the reality of the needs of an adopted child. Much of what an adopted child needs a newborn infant is wired to do at birth. It is a process called "Attatching and Bonding". The newborn naturally attatches to their mother. This process occurs as the child has a need and the mother meets that childs need building trust in the bonding relationship. Some of this process has been interrupted in the life of the adopted child. What does this mean for our family?
1) We will be strangers to Evan. We have to help him learn to trust us as his Dad and Mom, sisters and brother.
2) We will have to treat him "younger" than his physical age. He will be starting over emotionally. You may see us "spoiling" him more than a child his age would be treated. Please remember that we have to go back in time to fill in missing gaps before we can move forward.
3) We will have PFI now. What is that you ask? Private Family Information. There are parts of Evan's story and background that we will keep private. As he grows and we feel it is appropriate, we will share this information with him. We will then give HIM the freedom to share whatever he feels comfortable with. With an adopted child, they have lost almost everything that defines who they are. We want to keep the things that are precious to who God has made him and how He patterned his life special to Evan. Please feel free to ask anything about our adoption journey. Please allow us to have the discretion over what we share about his life.
A helpful website I have found that answers a lot of questions about what life should be like for the adopted child the first weeks and months after placement is : http://www.a4everfamily.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=57&Itemid=78
Feel free to read up so you can help us help Evan!

Answer to prayer

2008-02-20T13:43:00.002-05:00

We are going to be able to go to the orphanage on Monday to visit Evan. We were praying that this would work out. Some friends who adopted said this was a huge help to their child to be able to see and interact with them the day before he became theirs and left the orphanage. Please pray that this would be a special time for Evan to begin to feel comfortable with us. I know it will be hard to leave him there on Monday, but I think it will definatly be best for Evan and his adjustment! So praise the Lord with us. He cares for little Evan. Tuesday he will be ours!

This time next week

2008-02-18T09:03:00.002-05:00

Well, we are finally down to less than a week until we leave for Vietnam. It is amazing when I think back about all that God has done to bring us to this point. His faithful fingerprints are all over this adoption. Last week I just found a picture of Ethan and Kayla coloring in a "thermometer" poster that we made to chart the Lord's provision for our adoption. God has now provided way above and beyond what that thermometer was originally intended to hold. For me the things that God has provided that mean the most are not the financial provision(although that is overwhelming and humbling), it is the many people that are prayerfully supporting us and encouraging us. God has put us in a place, where we feel an overwhelming sense of support and care. Even a friend of Kayla's is taking the time to write her a note each day we are away. We are seeing the Body of Christ at work in some incredible ways. So, I want to end this post with a verse of scripture that has always been dear to me. . . "Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus thoughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen." Ephesians 3:20,21

Christmas in February

2008-02-11T19:37:00.000-05:00

Sorry for the sideways pictures, but I have to download them directly from my camera because my computer has an issue with locking up when I want a picture.

Some friends from our Sunday School class at church gave us a big box of toys they had outgrown. I think my kids are loving the toys as much as Evan will. I had forgotten the fun of toddler toys since they have long been out of our house.

The pic of my loving hubby is of him trying to get batteries into the ball drop toy! Why do they have to make toys so difficult?

All this to say, it has been amazing to watch all that God has provided for our family. From sippy cups, to toys, to diapers, to a crib, to a deluxe backpack. . . the list could go on! I am humbled by the giving spirit of so many who have rallied around us during this exciting time in our lives.

Packing-R-Us

2008-02-09T21:22:00.000-05:00

With less than two weeks to go until we leave, I must confess that my room is a mess. We are slowly getting things accomplished. After much debate over packing our gifts for the orphanage in a box or a suitcase, we have opted for a suitcase. My rationale was that it is easier to roll a suitcase than carry a box. My hubby's rationale was that you can throw a box away. Both good ideas.
It is such a joy to finally be at this stage. I am enjoying getting everything ready to go. It was especially fun to pack Evan's suitcase. I can't wait for those cute little clothes and shoes to be on my little boy!
A matter of prayer for us is the FLU. Ellyn had it this week. Kayla is going to bed saying she is hot and has a headache. My stomach isn't feeling too hot! Please pray that whatever we have we get through it and get well before we go. I guess it is better to get it now than when we have to leave!
"Give thanks to the Lord for He is good and His love endures forever!"

Travel Dates

2008-02-04T09:04:00.000-05:00

First of all, I would like to say thank you for all who have been praying for Evan and our family. We found out Friday that we will be leaving for Vietnam on Friday the 22nd. We will arrive Sunday morning around 10am. Our Giving and Receiving ceremony where we will officially be given Evan is scheduled for Febuary 26th. It is our prayer that they will allow us to go to the orphanage on Monday to visit him. We know it will be hard to leave him there after seeing him, but we know it will be helpful to him to spend a little time with us before he leaves all he has ever known as his home forever.

Over the next few days, my goal is to organize my thoughts so we can figure out what needs done when!
We serve a faithful God!

WE'RE GOING TO VIETNAM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-02-01T08:28:00.000-05:00

When I opened my e-mail today I saw a letter from HANOI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We have our son's visa Preapproval which frees us up to travel to Vietnam! Since it is already evening in Vietnam, we will have to wait until Monday to get our final travel dates. We could travel in as soon as two weeks. Last year my daughter was in a musical and one of the songs was talking about how God works in the "Eleventh Hour". It was my hope that we would have our approval before Tet. Today was the last day. God worked in the "Eleventh Hour"! Praise the Lord! He is faithful! This weekend will be a great weekend to tell of HIS FAITHFULNESS at our baby shower! We are going to celebrate!

Trusting in the Promises

2008-01-31T07:43:00.000-05:00

As each day goes by, I am wrestling with my emotions. With the Lords help, I am trying to speak truth to my heart that my head knows. Have you ever been there?
This is the Scripture that the Lord has used in my heart the last few days. It is found in an obscure book of the Bible that is often hidden in the Old Testament.
Habbakuk 3:17-19, "Even though the fid trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vine, even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren, even though the flocks die in the fields and the cattle barns are empty, YET I WILL REJOICE IN THE LORD! I WILL BE JOYFUL IN THE GOD OF MY SALVATION. THE SOVEREIGN LORD IS MY STRENGTH! HE WILL MAKE ME AS SUREFOOTED AS A DEER AND BRING ME SAFELY OVER THE MOUNTAINS!"
For today I know that I must choose to rejoice and have joy in the Lord. Not in my circumstances.
Please rejoice with me in the Sovereign hand of our God. Please continue to pray that Evan's visa will be approved. They officially have till Feb 12th.

Our Kids Make the News

2008-01-25T17:11:00.000-05:00

Our daughter Kayla kept us inpired when we didn't have much hope. About four years ago, when she was only SIX, God grew a secret seed of compassion in her heart for adopting. Kim and I had talked about adopting, but the financial costs overwhelmed us and kept us from acting. However, money seemed like such a small obstacle to this six year old. So for an entire year, she saved up her allowance and then presented a whopping $21 to us as her Christmas gift! The faith of a child. No wonder Jesus said that to enter the Kingdom of heaven we must have the faith of a CHILD!

She did it again, not just once, but two more times at Christmas. Our faith in God's provision shook at the core of our hearts. How could we tell this child of great faith, later in life, that we didn't adopt, not because we didn't want to, but because we couldn't affort to?! She gave all she had... how could we do anything less?

During our adoption journey, one of the most common expressions we recieve about adoption is "Isn't it REALLY expensive?" Well, I guess it all depends on what we are comparing it to -- a house, a car, luxury vacations, etc... Its amazing how we begin to see things differently. When I see a new car, I no longer think about it in dollars, but in adoptions - that family could have adopted TWO children for the same price as that car. Some things of this world no longer have the appeal they used to.

I've gained many of these perspectives from the faith of a child... gratefully a child who also lives under the safe roof as I do:)

Here is the link to a newspaper article written on her: http://www.snponline.com/articles/2008/01/22/worthington_news/news/woorphans%20_20080122_0118pm_4.txt

Encouragement from God's word and prayer

2008-01-24T08:10:00.000-05:00

"Take delight in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit everything you do to the Lord . Trust Him and He will help you. . . Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for Him to act" Psalm 37: 4,5,7

Today I am seeking to delight in the Lord and wait patiently for Him to act. Everything in me wants to DO SOMETHING! So this is what I will seek to do.

Please pray for Eric Alexander and Mary Ann Russell. They are the cheif consulars at the embassys in Vietnam who must approve our sons visa paperwork. Pray that they would look favorably on our paperwork and approve it soon.

Thank you for you support of our family and your prayers!

Getting ready for nap time

2008-01-24T07:02:00.000-05:00

Another family who traveled to Vietnam got this video of Evan. He was getting ready for his nap. His caregiver is giving him the book we sent via this family. I was wondering if he was a thumb sucker! Looks like he prefers his fingers!

Missing the child you've never met

2008-01-17T17:42:00.000-05:00

Right now I sit here missing the son I haven't even met. I know that our time to go is coming soon, but it doesn't stop my mommy heart from wanting my little boy in my arms right now. I see his sweet picture and want to hold him, want to tell him that I love him, want to tell him how much I have prayed for and longed for him to be home. So Jesus, please watch over my baby and please take us to him very soon!

Videos of Orphanages in Vietnam

2008-01-15T20:06:00.000-05:00

This is a moving video we came across. Its from a graduate student who spent a month in Vietnam working with orphangages and disabled children. I hope it'll move your heart as much as it did ours.

A video and an update

2008-01-15T14:02:00.000-05:00

A friend was able to take this ten second video for us last week when she picked up her son. We have watched it over and over again. It has just taken me until now, with the help of my sister-in-law to figure out how to get it posted.
I hope you enjoy seeing our little sweetie!
We found out last week that we will not be traveling to Vietnam in January. Most likely, still waiting for our immigration papers, we will travel mid February. The delay is due to the celebration of Tet, the Vietnamese New Year. The country closes down for a couple of weeks to celebrate. If we left before, we could be stuck in VN for extra time. I am thankful to now know. It helps to know how to plan our families lives for the next month.
Please continue to pray for our paperwork to clear so we can travel around Feb 15th. Please continue to pray for Evan's protection and provision.
Blessings,
Kim

2008-01-15T13:59:00.000-05:00

A New Picture

2008-01-10T07:49:00.000-05:00

We have met some dear friends through the adoption community, even though we only know one another through the web. We have been able to be in regular contact with individuals who are adopting through our agency from the same orphanage where Evan is. One of the families had the great joy of going to get their son this week. They sent us two pictures. Evan is looking at the wife while her husband took the picture. Don't you think he is wondering when HIS mommy and daddy are coming? He is wearing the same shirt that he had on during his 9 month pictures. It does look a little better fitting now. I think I may ask if I can have it when we go to the orphanage, in exchange for something else of course.
Here is a verse of scripture that has been a huge comfort to me this week:
"In repentance and rest you will be saved; in quietness and trust is your strength. . . The Lord longs to be gracious to you, and therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you. For the Lord is a God of justice; How blessed are all those who long for Him." Is. 30:15, 18
Trusting in the Lord one day at a time,
Kim

Maybe this week!

2008-01-06T15:43:00.000-05:00

I have had a real peace about all that is going on with our waiting. The Lord is amazing.
I am hoping and praying that maybe this week we will get our approval from the US embassy in Vietnam. Then it will be two crazy weeks until we travel.
We started homeschooling again last Wednesday. I am trying to pack our days full of schooling so that we can relax a little when Evan comes home. The blessing of having three children at home is that the weeks go by so quickly because they are sooo very full.

Gifts are all purchased

2008-01-03T20:02:00.000-05:00

Tonight my daughter and I went to do our final gift shopping for the gifts we need to take with us to Vietnam. I love Target clearance! We did get slightly distracted in the baby section, which I am finding is quite easy to do these days. I have put a freeze on "Evan spending" because I want to know what size he is before I get anything else. His last record shows he should be in 6-9 month clothing. It is just so hard to see him being that small. Since he is standing and cruising around, in my mind he should be much bigger.
We know that they are working on our I600 paperwork because they requested an additional document from our agency. That gives us great hope that things are moving! God is working and answering prayer.
We pray protection over Evan and we pray that God would release us soon to go to bring him home!
Good night son, I can't wait until I can kiss your precious face and rock you to sleep!
Mommy

Here he is

2008-01-01T21:07:00.000-05:00

On December 27th, we got the call from our agency, Holt International, that we have been cleard by the Vietnamese government to travel to Vietnam. For now we are waiting and praying that we will get our immigration paperwork approved by the US embassy in Vietnam so we can travel. Please join us in praying that we can travel to bring Evan home very soon!