Subject: Pearl

While the boys were on the bike trail and Tim and Anna were out working in the front yard on riding a bike with no training wheels... I figured out the very basics of my camera. Pearl was a very willing (or unwilling - just submissive) subject... and I thank her.

Here is a beautiful picture of my precious Pearl:

A beautiful picture of my beautiful Anna-banana


And Cameron:

Hamilton takin' a ride around the neighborhood

Look at those blue skies.... the house is much prettier with the flowers in bloom instead of the dead stalks still there.

Anna stopped quickly on her bike, and Tim toppled over her. Pearl quickly took the opportunity to pounce.

And finally, Anna on her bike. Nice flower stalks again... oh well, they are in the process of being hacked!!!

I seriously LOVE my new camera and can't wait to get creative with it!

In Christ,

Charity

Bike Rides and Cameras

Whoo-Hoo!!! I got my camera to work!!! I made a deal with Heather though, that I would pretend that it didn't work, so she could come over and we could spend some time together. It will be a long time before I end up anywhere without this camera. I have only learned the basic stuff, but already it ROCKS!!! I am so happy I got a new camera for Christmas and I'm so happy that I have it in time to take it to Ethiopia with us (which who knows when that will be, but at least now I am ready!!!). I have been snapping pictures all over the place.

Anna learned how to ride her bike today. She should have really done it this past summer, or the summer before, but she was not interested, so we didn't push her to do it. We did take the training wheels off last summer though and pitched them (which is probably why she was not interested in riding). Then recently, as I reminded Tim that we needed to work with her, he went out to check out her bike and the wheel was broken. A wheel costs just about the same as a new bike, so we just got her a new bike. We were already out shopping for one for Cameron, because somehow, his got stollen. He and Hamilton were going to go for a bike ride yesterday and they came back in the house and said that Cameron's bike was not in the garage. Sure enough, Tim went out and looked, and it was gone. So, while they were out looking for a bike for Cameron, Anna got a new one as well. It was kind of an incentive to get her riding as well.

Sure enough, she did it. I think Tim was getting a bit frustrated with her, but they rode over and over the grass and finally, she was able to do it. She rode the entire length of the front yard. Now grass is an easier surface to fall on... but it is actually hard to ride on grass. I think once she is done being afraid of falling, she is going to tear up the pavement!!! Cameron and Hamilton took off down the bike trail, and now Tim is off running. Me... I'm vegging out in my pj's figuring out all of the wonderful features of my new camera.

I guess now it is time to start looking forward to 2010. So, what do I want in 2010? Well, I've been thinking a lot about it, and will put together a nice, long post prior to ringing in the new year.

Off to play with the camera and download some pictures... I will share soon!!!

In Christ,
Charity

Christmas Day

It has been a great Christmas Day. The kids were up bright and early this morning waiting to open their gifts from "Santa". Well, actually, Cameron was up bright and early as usual, but Anna had to be prodded out of bed. I think Cameron went by her room and made her getting up happen a little quicker than it would have happened on her own, but that is ok.

The kids really enjoyed opening up their gifts. Cameron got many new things that he really enjoyed. Anna did as well. We talked about what happened over 2000 years ago this Christmas morning. The kids shared their gifts with us and we had a good time together. I have some pictures (that I had to use Cameron's camera to take) but they are pretty blurry. I was hoping to use my camera, but I haven't figured it out completely yet, so I was not able to use it. I was able to get the lens on it, but I was not able to figure out all of the functions, so I was not able to use it. Heather is going to come over one day soon and help me figure it all out. The sad news is, the pictures weren't all that great, so I'm not going to post them. I'll post some Christmas vacation pictures later, once I get my camera working (or rather I find out how to work my camera).

After the kids took some time playing with their toys it was time to go and pick up Hamilton. He had time opening gifts with his mom this morning, and then we have him until New Year's Eve afternoon. Once we got him here, he opened his gifts and then the kids headed off to play. We played scrabble and now they are upstairs playing Madden football. Cameron won in scrabble, Tim came in second and Hamilton and I tied.

Last night we had a wonderful Christmas Eve. The Christmas Eve service at church was wonderful. We sang a TON of Christmas carols and for the first time ever, they invited everyone in church who had a cell phone with them, to call friends and family who could not be with them at church that evening, and we sang Silent Night - first with the orchestra, and then finally with just our voices. It was beautiful. I'm not sure how many people received a phone call, but if one did, they heard some beautiful voices.

After the service we went to a Christmas celebration at Heather and Neil's house. Heather's mom and dad were there, and we had a great time together. I think Heather's mom has adopted me as her second daughter. She, Heather and I sat and laughed all night. Mostly we were laughing at Neil. I guess second we were laughing at me. Not WITH me mind you, but AT me!!! It's fine. If I can dish it, I need to be able to take it. Someday I will tell the stories that Neil blesses us with every visit. He has a story for at least one thing, every time we are there. It usually involves a food item. Someday I will tell the stories, but he made me promise I not broadcast it to the entire internet.... So, I won't. But someday, we will hear the Mimi3 (I'll explain that sometime later) story about 1 - beans, 2 - the truffle sniffing pig 3 - the goat Larie' that provided milk for mimi3 and was turned into a purse...... A RED purse.

Speaking of the red purse - it is absolutely wonderful. I love my new red purse. I'm going to get the perfect little wallet to fit into my purse and get rid of all of the extra junk that I don't need in my current purse. Heather is such a sweetie for finding me the red purse :)

Heather also got me a tacky pair of socks. Heather and her mother like to wear strange socks. I'm a solid, boring sock person. They make fun of me, and I make fun of them. Heater's mom has this pair of Birkenstocks that are hideous. I know that sounds terrible, but her mom knows that I think they are crazy ugly. We laugh about it. Anyway, they thought it funny to get me a pair of ugly socks, that I really do not feel obligated to wear. I returned the favor though. I had the kids help me look at every store for the two ugliest / tackiest pair of Christmas socks and purchased one pair for Heather and one pair for her mother. The sad thing is - they WORE them. Heather's mom will probably wear them with her ugly shoes!

Heather and her family have a Christmas Eve tradition which was our last night gathering... it is fondly called Tea Cart. It has grown beyond a tea cart and sometimes it is themed. We are blessed as a family to have been included in tea cart this year. I'm hoping that we will be able to participate in years to come.

To Heather and her family (mom and dad), we are happy to be part of your lives and you are wonderful, wonderful friends. We are looking forward to ringing in the new year with our family again! (Heather, your mom and dad are MORE than welcome to come and ring in the new year with us - please invite them for us).

Merry Christmas to all of my family and friends. Merry Christmas to Sara Joy who is not with us yet. We love you Sara Joy and can't wait to find out who you are and when you will come home!!!

In Christ,
Charity

Christmas Eve

I would like to start by wishing everyone who reads this a wonderful Christmas eve and day! If you happen upon this, and don't know the true meaning of Christmas, then I would hate to miss the opportunity to tell you what it is all about. It is about more than presents, Christmas trees and decorations. It's even about more than having family around. Truthfully, it's about more than just the birth of Christ. It's about the birth of the savior. The one who yes, was born on this day, but also who died for us! To save us from our sins.

I heard a church service recently that put it very simply:

"Hark the herold angel's sing
Glory to the new born king
Peace on Earth and mercy mild
GOD AND SINNERS RECONCILED"

Christmas is about the reconciliation of sinners with God. It could only happen through our Lord Jesus Christ - and the miraculous birth of Christ in a manger to the virgin Mary started the whole reconciliation process.

I need to spend more time this Christmas remembering that. Remembering what it is all about.

When I was young, I used to think that Christmas was all about the presents, the Christmas lights, Santa and snow. Thank goodness that is not what it is all about, because here in South Carolina, we have no snow, there are lights on the trees, but I've come to learn that Santa is not real and that the presents can disappear - all it takes is losing a job, having a family member sick or a multitude of other things. Thank goodness I have learned the true meaning of Christmas - it's all about Christ and the process that started the day of His birth.

Tonight we will go to our Christmas Eve church service, and afterward we will go have a Christmas Eve celebration with friends. While the food will be good, and it will be great to be with friends, I hope when I come home tonight, I spend some time thinking about what it really is about.

Today was the first day of a much needed Christmas vacation. We aren't doing a whole lot of anything, but spending time with family and friends and getting some things done around the house. The kids will open their gifts tomorrow morning and I'll watch the smile on their faces as they open their treasures. I love watching kids open their gifts. Anna will put reindeer food out for Santa's reindeer and in the morning she will surely have a story of how she woke up and saw Santa peeking in her door, or heard the reindeer on the roof. It's not so bad to let a kid be a kid. Tonight though, as we are in church, they will hear (as they do every year) what it really means - - that even without the tree, the gifts or Santa, there is still Christmas. Christmas came before all of that. I wonder if we'll celebrate Christmas in Heaven? I wonder if we celebrate our birthdays in Heaven - 0ur physical birthday? Or maybe our spiritual birthday? I'm not sure, but I look forward to finding out.

Tomorrow I will try to capture pictures of the kids. I got my Christmas present a bit early... I got a new camera, but I'm still trying to figure it out. I currently can't manage to get a lens on it, or take a picture. Heather will help me with that tonight though. Surely I will have it figured out by the time we make our trip to Ethiopia to get our little Sara Joy.... which is the reason I wanted it in the first place. Hopefully this is our last Christmas without our little girl.

Heather - if you are reading this... the apple pie is made (still warm and smells YUMMY), the spicy dip is warming and some crazy socks are coming your way for you and your mom!!! We're looking forward to spending Christmas Eve with your family.

Merry Christmas to Tim, Cameron and Anna! I love you all very much.

In Christ,
Charity

Color Blind

Sometimes it is the post that defines the title, instead of the title defining the post... as was the case with this post. The title was written after the fact.

It has been confirmed....

12/14/2009 2:09 pm With delivery courier.
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Our documents are now officially in the same country as our daughter! How cool is that? To me, that is WAY cool! I honestly didn't know if we'd be at this point by Christmas. I didn't know how long our immigration approval would take, but that was approved in RECORD time. And now, here we are. I'm amazed. I'm excited. I'm full of anticipation....

While I am all of those things, I still stand a bit reserved. We have been here before. Not exactly *here*, but in a very similar situation. Dossier in country and nothing ever came of it. Then we got close to dossier being in country, and couldn't move any further forward because of country changes. So, while we are here again, and full of excitement, we are still a bit reserved.

When I was in the process of adopting Anna, I guess I was a bit naive with regard to the adoption process. I announced my decision immediately, and everyone waited with me for a year to get my paperwork done, to send it off, to get a referral, and then to go and get my baby girl. With the many unsuccessful attempts to adopt recently, it's been a bit more quiet. Very few people know - only close friends and family. I've been down the road of having to explain to person after person why we don't have a child home with us yet. It's difficult. Especially when the person doesn't understand the adoption process. There are so many questions.... where did all of your money go? Doesn't it make you mad that you spent so much money and didn't get a child? Why can't you get your money back? Why don't you just adopt from here? or here?

More than money, for us, it is lost dreams. I pray that our Sara Joy is not another lost dream. I don't think she will be though. God led us here, and God will see us through this. If HE means for our daughter to come from Ethiopia, then she will come, and nothing will stop the process. If in the end, we don't have a child - God has given me peace with this process. Strange but true. No matter what happens, I feel as though God wanted us here, now, going through this process. I want nothing more than to bring home my daughter.... but it's real nice to be walking through where God wanted you to walk at the same time.

I really have been very cautious about how excited I get about this process though. With Christmas right around the corner, I have every reason to want to get Sara things. She will eventually be home and I want her to know that we were thinking about her, before maybe she even existed. She is our daughter in our hearts already... why not buy gifts for her. Well, I've held myself back. I don't want to be disappointed again. I did pick out a very special doll for her though. She will have that. She got a "black" baby doll. I'm not sure if that is the right term to use, if it is offensive or what would be the right thing to say, but that is what she got. Anna got an asian looking doll. Here is the best part though.....

My kids don't see in color. Really, they don't. I brought Sara's doll out. Anna asked why Sara got a doll and she was not even here. It would have been from "Santa", but I quickly explained to her that her dad and I got the doll for Sara, because even though she is not here with us yet, we wanted to remember her on Christmas. I turned the box so the doll was clear through the front of the package. I asked Anna if there was anything special about that doll. Now in the past I've tried to get Anna asian looking dolls, but sometimes that is not possible, so she ends up with a white baby - so mind you, the majority of dolls she has ever looked at, are white. I asked her if there was anything different or special about this doll than any of her other dolls. She looked closely at the box. She said,

"She has a blankie"
"She has a pacifier"
"She has a bow on her head"
"Oh, she has tiny little shoes"
"She has food she can eat"
"Look, she even has extra clothes"
"She has a small teddy bear that she can play with"

She never mentioned that the doll had dark skin. I think of all the things I have done wrong with my kids, I think the one thing I have done right, is help them not see color. Thank goodness for that. It's not that I don't want her to recognize the differences... but it shouldn't be the first thing my children see about someone. I want them to see past the color of people, and see what the person has to offer, independent of color. I want my children to be color blind, and for now, it appears as though, they are.

Life isn't about color... life is about people. It's important to embrace the differences in people of different color, but it shouldn't be what distinguishes them. I can't wait to embrace my Sara Joy.

In Christ,
Charity

Kinda like.....

It's kinda like being a small child and watching Rudolph travel the globe on Christmas Eve delivering gifts to children. Something like that. Maybe a bit more exciting, because with this delivery is the start of a new life. A new life for a child who needs a family, and a new life for a family who would love another child.


12/11/2009 9:24 pm Transit through DHL facility
Leipzig, Germany

6:48 am Depart Facility Cincinnati Hub, OH

3:16 am Processed at DHL Location. Cincinnati Hub, OH

2:05 am Transit through DHL facility Cincinnati Hub, OH

12/10/2009 10:07 pm Depart Facility Washington - Ronald Reagan National, DC

10:05 pm Processed at DHL Location. Washington - Ronald Reagan National, DC

7:24 pm Departing origin. Washington - Ronald Reagan National, DC

2:48 pm Shipment picked up Washington - Ronald Reagan National, DC

Without getting too excited... this is where we stand! Our paperwork is ON THE WAY TO ETHIOPIA!!!

I wonder if our little Sara Joy has even the smallest of thoughts about the new life she will embark on. I wonder if she has any clue that her mom and dad are waiting for her. I wonder if God has created her. I wonder if God has spoken to her heart - telling her to wait, He is with her, but mom and dad are coming. I wonder.

Who would've thought

Not me, that's for sure! I asked for record turn around time for our immigration approval, and believe me when I say I got it. Tim came in tonight with the mail from today. He said "Why would I be getting something from homeland security"? I dropped what I was doing and said "gimme it"!!! He jokingly said he would open it, because it had his name on it. Oh no.... I handled ALL of the paperwork, I would get to open this! I figured it would be some form saying that they received our application, had our fingerprints and they would be processed in a timely fashion.

Instead what I found inside that lovely envelope was our approval form!!! How wonderful is that? God must've opened a door for a reason! I think that is something that only God could manage to assist in. We just went to the immigration office to be fingerprinted EXACTLY ONE WEEK AGO. Then there was Thanksgiving in there. Literally, we were in the office 7 days ago!!! We have our approval!!! I said it before and now I will surely say it again - SC USCIS office is the BEST!!!!

We are now officially DONE!!! I will contact our agency tomorrow, send them a copy of our approval, and EVERYTHING is now COMPLETE!!! Seriously, how exciting is that! Truly exciting!

Now, we wait. Thank goodness there are the holidays and things like that coming up. It will make the wait go a bit quicker. I can't wait to see the face of my daughter. I seriously think that God has control of all of this. Who ever heard of a turn around time of 7 days? We were there last week Wednesday and the approval date was Monday. And remember, there was a holiday in there. They approved it in basically one or two business days!!! Maybe our daughter is born and God moved this along so we would be paper ready in time to go get her. Maybe she has been born and we needed to be ready quickly so she would not get older and outside of our approved age range. Whatever the reason, I thank GOD for making this happen so quickly. Finally, my part is done and I can now sit back and wait for my daughter. (probably one of the hardest parts, I know!).

Celebrating in SC!!!

In Christ,
Charity