Blessings!

I am such a bad bad blogger. I don't know why and I really don't have any excuses except that I love to read them, but I hate to blog myself, pitiful huh?

Well, within the last couple of weeks. I got a call from Grace and she told me she had some big news. I had no idea what she was about to tell me, but my heart started pounding in my chest so hard and loud it was ringing in my ears. TURNS OUT MIHRET IS HIV NEGATIVE. WE HAD THOUGHT FOR THE PAST FEW MONTH'S THAT WE WERE ADOPTING HER HIV POSITIVE. THE CLINIC SHE WENT TO DID THE DNA/RNA TESTING AND THEY GOT THE RESULTS A COUPLE OF WEEKS AGO. I THOUGHT IT WAS SO FUNNY THAT OUR AGENCY WANTED TO KNOW IF WE STILL WANTED TO ADOPT HER NOW THAT SHE WAS NEGATIVE, DUH!!!

I CANNOT WAIT TO HOLD THIS PRECIOUS LITTLE GIRL IN MY ARMS AND SMOTHER HER WITH LOVE. I FEEL LIKE SHE IS ALREADY ONE OF US. FROM WHAT I HEAR FROM OTHER ADOPTIVE PARENTS THAT HAVE SPENT TIME WITH HER, SHE HAS QUITE THE PERSONALITY AND IS COMPLETELY SPOILED ROTTEN, PRETTY MUCH SHE SOUNDS LIKE A LITTLE BRAT THAT DOESN'T TAKE ANYTHING FROM ANYONE. SHE WILL FIT IN PERFECTLY!!!! I PRAY FOR HER AND HER CARETAKERS DAILY. I AM SO COMFORTED KNOWING SHE HAS AT LEAST THREE CARE TAKERS THAT ARE TOTALLY IN LOVE WITH HER. I THANK GOD THAT THERE IS SOMEONE LOVING ON HER AND LETTING HER KNOW THAT SHE IS SPECIAL UNTIL WE ARE TOGETHER. AN ADOPTIVE MOTHER BROUGHT ME THE E-MAIL ADDRESS FOR ONE OF HER CARETAKERS THAT LOVES HER VERY MUCH. IN THE FIRST E-MAIL HE SENT ME HE SAYS "I LOVE MIHRET VERY MUCH BECAUSE SHE IS SO SMART" I THOUGHT THAT WAS SO FUNNY. SHE TURNED ONE ON MAY 13TH, JUST FIVE DAYS AFTER MANNING (THE FIVE YEAR OLD). GOODNESS GRACIOUS, I'M GOING TO HAVE (2) TAURUS THE BULLS :) SO SHE HAS NOW MOVED OUT OF THE BABY HOUSE AND HAS MOVED INTO THE TODDLER HOUSE :(

I left my teaching job in May, had a new job, decided not to take the job (contract problems), got offered another job with a huge sign on bonus, turned down that job (no way for Mike and I to both work 3 twelve's a week with four kids), and now am going back to my teaching job! MAN MAKES PLANS, AND GOD LAUGHS!!!!

AND ON TOP OF EVERYTHING ELSE POOR LITTLE COLE. THE TWELVE YEAR OLD IS SICK. HE HAS STREP THROAT. I WAS WORKING AT THE HOSPITAL LAST NIGHT TIL 1AM AND MY HUSBAND, WHO IS A PARAMEDIC MIND YOU, CALLS ME AND TELLS ME C. HAS A FEVER. I SAID LOOK IN HIS THROAT AND CALL ME BACK. HE SAYS NAH! IT LOOKS FINE. OK I'LL TAKE CARE OF HIM WHEN I GET HOME.

GET HOME AT 2AM, WAKE HIM UP, EXAMINE HIM AND HIS TONSILLS ARE HUMONGOUS, RED, SWOLLEN, AND WITH EXUDATE. HIS TONSILLOR NODES ARE HUGE. AND HE HAS HORENDOUS STREP BREATH. I ASKED MIKE "ARE YOU SURE YOU LOOKED IN THE RIGHT CHILD'S THROAT?"

I CALLED HIM IN AN ANTIBIOTIC TODAY AND HE HAS HAD HIS FIRST DOSE, BUT I CAN'T GET HIS FEVER UNDER CONTROL. I HAVE BATHED HIM AND ALTERNATED MOTRIN AND TYLENOL,BUT IT'S JUST NOT GETTING IT. PRAYING THE ANTIBIOTIC WILL KICK IN TOMORROW.

Change is Coming!!!

Lot's of changes are coming our way and I have to say I am starting to get a little excited. I finish out my teaching job next week and will start June 1st as a full time Nurse Practitioner in an ER. My baby boy is about to turn five in a few days (this one, not so excited about), and soon we will have another little angel to share birthday's and holidays with.

I have been down for the last week or so and don't really know why, but I now feel like I have a renewed spirit. Last night Mike worked a double (24 hour shift) so it was just Manning and I in bed. I laid there and pretended to be asleep as his little eyes were scrunched close and he was quietly praying. It was just the sweetest thing ever. I am so thankful for all the Lord has given me. He hears the prayers of the little ones and answers them faithfully.

Oh Yeah! I'm Buyin Girl Stuff

So far for little miss princess Mihret we have

Baby doll age appropriate ordered online
Little Einstein's baby photo album so she can stare at her strange and somewhat crazy new family
Five onesies that include the word "Princess" on at least two of them
Giraffe toy

Now if I could just find an outfit to send her. This is not a good sign of things to come. I have looked online at Gap, Children's Place, etc. and in stores at our local mall and I can't find even one outfit that is "good enough" to send to my daughter. Why am I being so picky? I just want the first outfit I send her to be perfect I guess. So as much as it will kill me ;) I guess I will have to keep shopping for little girl clothing, Darn It!!!!!

30,000 children each day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So I made the mistake in my last entry of making excuses about why Christians don't act. Why Christians don't step up and step in to make a difference in the life of a child. I thought well maybe the numbers are just too overwhelming to think about. 30,0000 children die each day due to starvation and preventable disease. That is a big number and maybe Christians just can't comprehend the magnitude of the numbers or maybe Christians think, "Well what could I do to help one and what would it matter anyway's to help one or two children?" Well, I'm tired of the excuses, I am tired of the non-action. It's time to get to work people, it's time to do God's work. Here are two reasons to help break down the numbers into faces. Meet Sam and Esther and the Godly people making a difference in the lives of children.

God's will for the orphans of the world

I have been reflecting quite a bit on the Word and what God say's about the poor and orphans of the world and what exactly the job of the church is in the midst of this crisis. Many questions have come to my mind lately. Why is the church not responding as we should to the crisis around the world? Why do so many Christians judge our family for wanting to adopt? What is not clear about the Word to some Christians? I was reading Jeremiah last night and stumbled across chapter 5;25-29. In these passages the Lord talks about His people that are wicked and sinful. Their sins, well they are sins of omission. We seldom think about sins of omission. Proverbs 24;12 also talks about the gravity of omission sins.

What are sins of omission you may be asking yourself, well these sins are not wrong doing sins, they areno doing sins. In other words by not responding to the orphans and poor in the world we are sinning. Once our eyes have been opened, you cannot pretend not to know and you will be judged by God for not responding. I came across a bible on Amazon that is sold out and is on back order, it is called "The Injustice Bible." This bible highlight's all of the passages talking about the poor, the orphans, the widows, the strangers. I thought to myself, this bible is sold out, you have got to be kidding me. Maybe the "want to do something" is there and alive in Christians and the church but maybe we just don't know what to do or where to begin to help.

So then I started thinking about my orphan sermon again and have been feeling pulled to speak out again. I gave up before because there weren't many churches willing to let me speak to the congregation. And why is that? Because I am a woman (yes, that was the reasoning for some of them) or is it because, goodness forbid, I am not the same "Religion" as them? I am not sure the reasoning, but I am going to keep pressing on to get the word out to God's People.

I read the other day that if each Christian Family would adopt one child, there would be no more orphans in the world. Not that I think this is the answer certainly, but I guess I had never thought of it that way.

There are 143 million orphans world wide right now. I think about that number on almost a daily basis and I still just cannot grasp on to it. If I thought about trying to help 143 million children, I would most likely feel overwhelmed and I think that is where we are as "The Church" We are overwhelmed because this number is terrifying and what difference can we make anyway, right? Wrong, my friends, help one at a time, and once we all start doing it, we are surely going to create a tidal wave, no longer just drops in the bucket.

The Lord commands us to RESCUE the weak and the needy. Psalm 82 doesn't say help the orphans and the poor of the world, God says rescue them and deliver them from the hands of the wicked!!!

Thought I lost my blog, whew!

I have been having one heck of a time trying to sign into my blog. I thought I'd never be able to post again and I was really putting off starting a new one. Finally found my correct login info and we're back baby! Oh we're back!!!!!

We lost our baby :(

Well, you may have noticed that I have removed the baby ticker from the side of my page. I was 11 weeks pregnant and found out this past Thursday that the baby has no heartbeat now. We saw the baby and heartbeat three weeks ago, but I had been feeling weird so went in to be checked. We are having a tough time dealing right now. To make it even worse, the baby hasn't passed, so now I sit and wait knowing that our baby is inside of me still not alive, this is the hardest to deal with. We had just put our adoption on hold three weeks ago because I thought things were progressing well. I don't know what we are going to do now. Not sure if I ever want to try again and not sure about adoption right now either. Guess I am just depressed right now though. I am praying that this baby will pass this week sometime so that I won't need a D & C. Please keep us all in your prayers.