Quote #4

I always questioned if I was ready to adopt then 

realized no child was ready to be an orphan -- 

Unkown

Elliana Geneme Baxter, December 2011

Quote #3

Faith is taking the first step, even when you can't see  

the whole staircase -- Martin Luther King, Jr. 

Quote #2

If you can't feed a hundred people, then just feed one.  -- Mother Teresa

photo courtesy of FeedOne.com

National Adoption Month

In honor of National Adoption Month... and leading up to our Orphan Sunday/We Love Kids event at church, I decided I was going to post a few quotes I've run across relating to adoption, sponsorship, foster care, etc.   Here goes the first one . . . 

Do for ONE what you wish you could for for everyone -- Andy Stanley

photo courtesy of Ricebowls.org

Happy Halloween

Break My Heart For What Breaks Yours ~

As we were taking our first trip to Ethiopia to meet our daughter for the first time, I asked God to break my heart for what breaks His.  I returned from that trip crushed.  I had 17 hours on the flight home to absorb what I had seen, and that wasn't enough time.  Still, nearly 3 years later, I’m trying to put my arms around what broke my heart on that trip.  

  

Ethiopia is a beautiful country full of beautiful countryside, people and culture.  But the poverty, neglect and heart-breaking situations I witnessed changed me forever.  I cannot look at things the same any longer.  There were many things that broke my heart on that trip (orphans, children needing sponsorship, families that need food to feed their children, lack of clean water, etc.) but the orphan is what spoke to my heart the loudest. That’s why I’m a little passionate about children, in general. Once your eyes are open and you can see clearly, you never see the same and you can't ignore it.  

Once our eyes are opened, we can't pretend we don't know what to do. God, who weighs our hearts and keeps our souls, knows what we know, and holds us responsible to act.  Proverbs 24:12

For our family, God led us to adopt internationally.  There wasn't a formula or one particular reason -- other than the subtle hints God used to help us with our decision.  Don't get me wrong, we made a million excuses in the beginning as to why we couldn't or shouldn't do it.  We listened to many lies from people who didn't understand God’s calling on our family, and we wondered ourselves if we were cut out for this . . because we knew we were far from perfect.  But the Truth is, we were all adopted by our heavenly father.  He adopted us – not as perfect people, but as broken, needy and selfish people.  And, going to a third world country showed me what a selfish person I am. Many times people make excuses for NOT fostering or adopting or mentors because they feel that they are not qualified. 

But, it only takes ONE person to make a change in the life of a child.  Adoption, fostering, temporary care, mentoring, etc.  is all the same.  These kids need someone and you don’t have to be perfect, and they certainly will not be perfect either.

November is National Adoption Month and the first Sunday is typically dubbed "Orphan Sunday."  That’s why I am hosting a Sunday in November (November 10th) at our church dedicated to helping children locally and globally – find fulfillment, forever families, mentors, sponsors and friends.  Maybe God is tugging at your heart to ‘do something’ but you don’t know what that 'something' is.  Come find out how you can make a difference in the life of a child!  

If you are local, PLEASE come share a soup and bread luncheon (to signify the plight of the orphan).. and listen and gather information on how you can help a child in need. 

The luncheon begins at noon, followed by the program at 1:00. We will be sharing our story of adopting Ellie, and showing a video of our journey.  Please contact me for additional details or to RSVP.    

Here's the Agenda -- 

Sunday, November 10th beginning at Noon

Mountain Ridge Church, 32 Big Dam Road, Dillsburg, PA

12:00-12:45 - Luncheon & Meet and Greet  

1:00:1:15 -   Welcome and Intro

1:15-1:25 -   Fresh Air Fund (HOST a child 1-2 weeks in the summer)

1:25-1:35 -   Compassion International (SPONSOR a child)

1:35-1:45 -   Bair Foundation 

1:45-1:50 -   Older Child Adoption Experience 

1:50-2:00 -   Bethany Christian Services

2:00-2:05 -   Safe Families (Temporary/Emergency care) 

2:05-2:15 -   Rice Bowls & Closing (Feed a hungry child)

  

Beads and Bows and Barrettes, oh my!

So, I've come to the conclusion that our house is getting overtaken by hair accessories.  Between all of the rubber bands for Ellie's hair (that seem to break when Ellie's hair dries), bows for Faith's hair, and now with the addition of beads into Ellie's hair, this mama was finding herself swimming in a sea of hair things!  Faith absolutely hates to have her hair messed with, but Ellie LOVES it.  She could sit for hours, but half of the time I had 4 or 6 containers of 'hair junk' surrounding me and I was feeling a little overwhelmed . . . 

That's when I decided to take matters into my own hands and get a little organized.  

I also started to practice putting beads in Ellie's hair.  I noticed that if I did 2 strand twists or braids in her hair, by morning (or when it dried), they were standing on end like Pippi Longstocking.  (ok, for those of you who don't know who that is, see here)  But, with the addition of beads on the ends of her twists or braids, it gives enough weight to keep them hanging down straight.  It's lovely and lasts for about a week [or until one of the girls decides to pull them out :)]    

Here's a picture of my practice sessions. She's such a good girl and is so patient when I'm playing with her hair!  For me to do 6-8 braids [only about 1/2 of her head] it takes me over an hour and that's with using a bead stringer.  I give her the task of picking the color and counting them as she strings them onto the bead stringer -- it's great practice for colors and counting and she loves the one-on-one time.  I'm hoping with additional practice that I'll improve my time in parting, braiding and beading!  

My next lesson -- learning how to cornrow! 

Referral-versary #2

One of our Referral Pictures

September 9th marked our 2 year anniversary of receiving Elliana's referral.   I can honestly say, I FORGOT about it until a few days later.  Ugh, mommy guilt.  That's like forgetting a birthday...

But honestly, we are so busy doing life right now -- and Ellie is so much a part of our family, that we can't remember life without her.  But, we cannot forget the day that God answered our prayers with the referral of this shy little girl from Epio (as Ellie calls it).  And, I still have to shake my head in amazement as I remember how God delicately orchestrated the plan to bring Ellie into our family - (our surprise pregnancy -- Ellie's birthday being the same day we found out we were expecting --  Elliana's Ethiopian name and American name literally meaning the same thing -- and all the intricate details surrounding her story) .  You can read about our referral day here.

It just seems like yesterday that we were in Ethiopia drinking in the culture, the people and the beauty.  We've already talked to Ellie about going back someday when she can go too and I am thrilled that she is opening up more and more every day -- and allows us to talk with her about the past.   I am very sad, however, that the care home Ellie stayed in between court and our Embassy appointment has closed, and our adoption agency has since filed bankruptcy.  This makes me very sad because it's all a part of Ellie's story... and now those parts of her story are gone.  But the good news is none of those things about Ellie's story define who she is and her 'story' continues to evolve.

Big 3 Year old! 

When I look back at pictures of her, we cannot believe how much she has grown -- in size and personality!   She's such a big girl, fully potty trained, attempting to write her name, talking up a storm and such a beautiful girl.  We continue to be amazed at how our comfy family of 4 has turned into a crazy family of 6!  At times, I'm sure we look like a circus rolling into town, but that's ok! And, I often wonder what life would be like for Faith, without a big sister like Ellie.  We are so blessed to have her in our family.  Happy Referral-versary Elliana Geneme!

Crazy Sisters! 

Daddy's Lil' Helpers

The girls are all about being helpers -- which is great!  I hope they are still 'helpful' when they are teenagers.  Ellie is in the 'question' phase of her toddlerhood so she wants to know why there's a hole, where the plant came from, why its being planted there ..... Etc...  Faith thinks we will get fruit from the plants ... Maybe blueberries, strawberries or grapes... She says.... 

"Do it gently ... Where's the worms ... Can I take my shoes off... Can we make a sandcastle ... Its so beautiful daddy ..." are a few things I can hear them saying as I write this.  They crack us up -- always!!  

Preschool

First Day of Preschool via my iphone!

The girls started preschool last week.  It's not that they need to go, but we thought it would be good for them to get out of our house 2 mornings a week and socialize with some little ones their own age.  It also gives Nana and Memaw a break!   After orientation and open house, I suddenly found myself thinking, "I've made a terrible mistake . . . my babies are too little to go to preschool . . ."     It's only 2.5 hours 2 mornings a week, but, nonetheless, I was a bit nervous the first day.

We arrived early, so we decided to let the girls play on the playground for a bit to shake off any anxiety [maybe I should have played on the playground!]  Soon, it was time to go into their classrooms.  Brad videoed the girls walking down through the hall, anticipating a tearful goodbye . . . (we had a plan in place in case one of the girls or both had a meltdown) . . .when we arrived at their classroom, they both walked in, gave their teacher a flower, and all we saw was the back of their heads going!  Ha!  Ellie told me later that "Faithy cried for mommy . . ." but the teacher said they both did really well! Wheww!  

The next day, wasn't quite as easy.  Faith is going to be the one who doesn't like goodbyes.  Ellie walked right in and said "bye mom."  Thank goodness for that.  Ellie was the one who I thought would have problems with separation, but I think since we've gone over things with Ellie, she's good.  As long as she knows what to expect and what the progression of the day will be, she is super calm and at peace.  My girl loves routine!  Faith, on the other hand, is a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants kind of girl!

It's a small class -- only 8 children, so I really like that.  They both come home with the funniest stories, especially as told by a 2 and 3 year old.  Ellie said everyone likes to  'touch her hair,' and Faith told me all about "Ruffie" the class "stuffed animal" pet.   Today, Faith told me they played "instruments . . ."  I asked her what type of instrument did she play, and she said, "oh, all kinds of instruments but mostly jingle bells."  That girl cracks me up with her vocabulary.  Last week we were going out to eat and Faith said she wanted 'clam legs'... we chucked and told her clams didn't have legs.  She probably meant 'crab legs.'  Her exact words back to me were, "Yes, I understand, but I really want clam legs . . ."  I kid you not!  She's like a sponge soaking up ever word we say!

Their first "assignment" this week was to fill out an All About Me sheet and bring a picture of their family.  This gave me the opportunity to talk with Ellie again about adoption and how all families are different.  We talked about Africa and Ethiopia and our plane ride home, her friends from Ethiopia, etc. These conversations typically make Ellie very anxious, but more and more, she's allowing me to share with her.  She's still not crazy about looking at pictures from Ethiopia, but we are working on that.  We also talked again about how Faith was in my tummy, but Ellie was always in my heart.   It's so cute when she tells someone that.  She doesn't understand the entire statement, but someday she will.  

Picture Ellie's teacher sent me from her first day!   She looks a little shy!

Faith's First Day!  She doesn't look very happy!