November 28, 2007 - LONGEST DAY EVER!

Three years ago today - Absolutely the longest day in my life!


We left our hotel in Guangzhou, China at 5:20 that morning. We crossed 14 time zones, going backwards. We spent 15 hours plus on a total of three plans, six hours in a car, and were actually awake 37 hours total. We got home at about 1:30am on November 29th. We'd been frisked at a million security check points, had our seats shuffled and bumped to different flights, listened to a furious(that's a nice word to describe her hostility) two and a half year old who was placed into a car seat for the first time in her life, and struggled to find medical care for Ken who was getting worse and worse by the second.

It was like being stuck in a bizarre science fiction movie. Time was passing, but the clocks weren't moving forward. It was truly the LONGEST DAY EVER!

Recent Photos - November 2010

Christmas shopping, AGAIN!

The moon (of course).

Sleeping Beauty....Being wrapped in love by Dora and Scooby Doo.

Think he has a "leak"? :-)

It was sunny and BEAUTIFUL, and then, I entered this cloud. It was like it suddenly became nighttime. All dark and gloomy.... but, still beautiful in a different sort of way.

November 23, 2007

So many things happened that day, but waiting at the airport for our delayed flight was a wee-bit stressful. It was snowing and cold outside, ice on the engines. Our new daughter (who still has no boundaries) would race up and down the rows of people also waiting for the plane. She was chattering away in Chinese and we were doing our best (translation - not very successful) to keep her entertained and with us. She was probably telling all the people around us that she was being kidnapped and that we were mean people who made her take a torturous bath every day. Nonetheless, no one intervened and eventually, we boarded the plane, headed to a sunny warm city of Guangzhou. Our last stop to finalize the adoption, and then, head home with a new U.S. citizen, our daughter!

Three Years Ago Today - 11/19/2007

Brett Eldredge - Raymond (Video)

November 13, 2007

We managed to somehow fit a million suitcases in our car that day. Don't ask me how Ken made it happen. It was something that we probably should have attempted prior to the morning we headed to Denver. We even put a suitcase in Elle's carseat which was already belted in, but we knew that it would have to be somewhere else on our return. She would need to be strapped in the seat instead of the luggage being there.

We made our way to Denver, had supper with Rodger, and then, returned to the hotel where we watched YouTube videos of Achmed, the Dead Terrorist. We were all excited, but very nervous too. The boys had never been on an airplane before. We wondered what this little girl was going to be like. We thought of all the things we were going to miss at home during our two week long trip. We worried about paperwork, documents, deadlines, appointments, schedules, language barriers, flight times, luggage getting lost, the weather, etc. The boys were concerned about food and what things they would be eating. We could have NEVER fathomed how much our lives were going to change. It was only the beginning of our journey to bring E home!

Thought for the Day

"Children have to be educated, but they also have to be left to educate themselves." ~ Ernest Dimnet

ElleAnna and Granny

I Cannot Even Fathom

As I type this, I know that the past three years with ElleAnna have gone by in a whirlwind. So many changes and adjustments, but twice as much laughter and celebration. None of us can imagine our lives without her. That stretches beyond the walls of our tumble down shack (aka home). She has touched so many with her grin and sassiness.

I checked the internet savy site tonight of how far "behind" the Chinese government continues to be - so many families waiting and yet, such a slow process. The information posted indicates that parents who were logged into the system on 05/23/2006 got their referrals on November 1, 2010. We were not logged in until 07/12/2006. At their sloth's pace, that means we would not have our referral until 11/22/2011 - still another year from now - should we have not opted to go the special needs route at the time. That's a wait of over FIVE YEARS! When you add in the amount of months (sometimes years) you do paperwork and such to prepare for that magical "log in date", its far longer than five years for most. I thought our wait was tortue enough. There are LOTS of folks waiting much, much longer than we could ever imagine.

They are in my prayers tonight - as we celebrate having ElleAnna home for three years this month, they continue to ache and wait for their children.

November 8, 2007 -

- we were robbing the bank. Needing lots and lots of cash - unused, not marked on, no creases, etc. Interesting, huh? Each fee we had to pay would require cold, hard, American currency....

Look at Us Now!

Time for a Smile

So, so, so hard to believe that this photo is creeping up on being three years old!! They have all changed so much in the time since then! Look how tiny Elle is here and the boys' hair - WOW! Bryant has about as much on his head here as he's got growing on his face now!

Nathan Stiles

This is a recent article about the young man from Spring Hill, Kansas.


http://www.kmbc.com/news/25639294/detail.html

Matthew West - Save A Place For Me

I posted this video thanks to my sister. She had it on her Facebook page in memory of a young man from Spring Hill, Kansas who died recently. He'd been unable to participate in football after having a concussion. The first game after his return, he collapsed on the sidelines following a hit - and then, never regained consciousness. He died at the KU Med Center. He was only 17 years old. Such a bright light in his church and community. Our prayers go to his family, friends, and loved ones who will grieve his passing for many years to come. This song certainly echoes their sadness in the lyrics and the pictures. Life is short, and fragile. Handle it with care!

Who Am I - Casting Crowns