Orphan Sunday 11/03/13

"I always questioned if I was ready to adopt and then realized no child was ready to be an orphan" ~Unknown

Many churches and organizations have hosted “Orphan Sundays” over the years, and thousands of churches across the country are observing Orphan Sunday this weekend. It's a day meant to encourage Christians to consider adopting.  Today on November 3rd is an opportunity for believers all across America to speak for those unspoken for; those the world has forgotten. There are millions of orphans in the world.  It is estimated there are between 143 million and 210 orphans worldwide.  

Adoption is not for everyone, and never would we want to portray that everyone should adopt because that is not the solution.  Adoption is a miracle. but it is not easy.  If adoption is not an option for your family there are things you can do! We love the saying... "Adopt..if you can't adopt, Foster...if you can't foster, Sponsor...if you can't sponsor, Volunteer...if you can't volunteer, Donate...if you can't donate, Educate"  There are so many ways to lend in the orphan crisis and trust your commitment is valued no matter how you may be able to help.  If you want more information about international adoption-we will be happy to answer your questions and tell you the facts, or interested in fostering- we'd love to direct you to friends who have been there done that, or if you are interested in supporting reputable organizations that care for orphans-we can share some of our favorites, if you would like to support families currently in the adoption process-we'd love to connect you. 

We knew our lives would be touched by adoption, but we never truly understood the depth of this statement.  Adoption has changed how we view the world, others, and how we can give back to those in need.  There is not much else we can put into words...we will let these photos tell our story.

"When you say YES to adoption, you are saying YES to enter the suffering of the orphan, and that suffering includes WAITING for you to get them.  I promise you, their suffering is worse than yours. We say YES to the tears, YES to the longing, YES to the maddening process, YES to the money, YES to the hope, YES to the screaming frustration of it all, YES to going the distance  through every unforeseen discouragement and delay."
 -Jen Hatmaker

BUT YES we can promise you IT IS WORTH EVERY MOMENT!  IF you are thinking about adoption in any way, feel free to reach out to us!  We would love to share our knowledge and support!

Halloween 2013:The year of eLLmo

Oh, Halloween and making memories!  As a child it was one of my favorite times of the year- the big kickoff to the holiday season!  I was so excited to make this a great day for Lottie, trying my best to spend the day filling it with great and fun surprises.  Little did I know she would surprise me and make my day so very special.  We were not sure how Lottie would react to Halloween- dressing up, scary costumes, and all the candy.  We figured she wouldn't pay much attention to it wither way.  Boy were we wrong.  Lottie had the time of her life!  It was as if she had done this before- she is such an old soul.

Our dear friend in the adoption community reached out and asked if Lottie would want to borrow her daughter's Elmo costume- we thought sure! it is her absolute favorite thing right now.  Our sweet friend Paige packed up the tutu costume and sent it from FL with love.  Words cannot even express how excited Lottie was when we showed her the costume.  Her little body erupted with a constant Elmo, Elmo, Elmo.  I found an Elmo candy bucket at a second hand store, and Target supplied red tights, hair bow and the glitter shoes which finished off this amazing costume.

On the day of Halloween, Lottie had 2 very sad doctor appointments one with a flu shot and the second a dreaded 4 vile blood drawl.  We had a rough start to our day and even after our nap (yes Mama napped too) I wasn't too sure how Halloween would play out.  Determined to make this day special for Lottie we rushed from Halloween party to home to get ready for our night out trick-or-treating.  Scott was out of town and would be rushing home by 6pm to see Lottie, but the beginning of the evening it was just the two of us (well three if you count baby #2) Lottie beamed when I showed her the dress, I was worried it would be uncomfortable and she would not like it once on- wrong again.  She glowed, she couldn't stand it and ran round the house screaming Elmo at the top of her lungs.  Honestly one of the cutest moments ever.  Before even leaving the house I wiped tears away, watching Lottie was pure joy.  She just radiated in her pretty tutu costume.  It made me realize how far this sweet little girl has come, reminded me how strong she is, what love can do, and well how special this child of mine truly is.

Once outside, Lottie continued to run around and smile ear to ear.  Our neighbors couldn't help but stare at her- I mean yes the costume was beyond adorable but her glow, spirit and smile just took others by surprise.  Again here is 7 month pregnant Mama sporting a cookie monster tee, sweating (it was a hot day in TX), wiping tears streaming down my face.  She was such a joy to watch.  Lottie enjoyed going from house to house and adding candy to her bucket.  At times, she even tried to give candy back to others she was just too sweet to watch.  Daddy made it home right before dusk, and was able to take her to a few more houses.

As we tucked her into bed, kissing her through the slats of her crib (a tradition she started months ago) We just stared in awe of this child who simply amazes us every single day.  Today, will forever be engrained in my memory- all day long I thought I would be making this day, Lottie's first Halloween, so special for her; yet she made the day so very special to me.  Tears, streaming down my face I kissed my sweet girl through the slats of her crib.  My life, will forever be changed by this child.  Boy, am I forever grateful.  Happy Halloween!

Month Seven

20 things about Lottie

1. She LOVES Elmo and says it like elMO putting emphasis on MO too cute

2. She can label 15 different body parts

3. She loves to eat pasta especially penne al vodka

4. Bedtime is her favorite she sleeps with 6 different stuffed animals

5. She loves FaceTime, Skype and talking on the phone

6. She can give great kisses- the sound effect is the best part...MUAH

7. She loves anything with wheels including- cars, buses, trains,- her sound effect is also darling

8. Cats are currently her favorite animal

9. She is fascinated by birds

10. Lottie loves to dance and sing songs

11. She particularly likes hip hop beats

12. When she is tired she rubs her right eye

13. She loves the book Where is Spot?

14. Girl loves football and signs touchdown

15. She is funny and silly all the time

16. Lottie LOVES to be the center of attention

17. She is feisty & strong willed

18. She enjoys car rides

19. She won't drink anything but milk

20. She loves Daddy workouts- consisting of jumping jacks and sit-ups

 

Our little Pumpkin

A trip to the Sweet Berry Farms, this past weekend.  Lottie was afraid of the pumpkins at first, but she slowly warmed up to them.  We have dreamed of the day we could share this memory with our daughter, as we have had annual trips to Sweet Berry Farms for years.  What a wonderful day we had as a little family of three.

It's a Girl...Lottie will have a little sister

 

Last week we found out the exciting news that Lottie will have a little sister! We had a small reveal to find out the gender, our local photographer Sarah from Sincerely, Sarah captured some great photos of us cutting into our cake to see pink or blue.  We saw PINK! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sesame Street Birthday Bash

 

Month Six

Six months has flown by and we are loving life with Lottie Lee.  Its hard to watch her grow so fast but honestly we feel we are enjoying every single moment.  Lottie continues to grow and change right before our eyes.  She loves her school/daycare and we couldn't be more pleased with her teacher, friends and setting, what an amazing blessing.  Lottie is now self-feeding- which is a huge milestone and so thankful for her teacher Tianna who was patient and kind helping teaching her this important skill.  Lottie is socializing with friends and will wave hello and goodbye.  She is even starting to bond with some of the younger girls in her class.  She is also participating in finger plays and circle time- she loves twinkle twinkle and singing if your happy and you know it.  She is also sleeping on her own cot with all the other "big" kids!  We LOVE Tianna, and feel 100% confident with our decision, she truly loves Lottie and we never need to worry about Lottie during our work days.  It is the most comforting feeling and has made this transition so easy for our little family.  We feel so blessed to have all these pieces fall into place.

 

This month we celebrated so many wonderful occasions. Lottie celebrated her first birthday with her family. We also celebrated our Referral-versary on September 20th, hard to belive it has been one year since we laid eyes on our beautiful daughter.   Lottie was the flower girl in her Aunt Anne and Uncle Nate's wedding ( we will post pictures soon).  Lottie did an excellent job, she walked slowly down the aisle, smiling and stopping along the way.  She had so much fun and sat through the entire dinner, even eating half of mommy's dinner.  She was too excited to sleep and stayed up until midnight.  We also celebrated Lottie's first Moon Festival at home.  We bought homemade mooncakes from our local Chinese bakery.  Scott enjoyed talking with owner, sharing stories about our adventures in China and of course sharing photos of our sweet baby girl.  Lottie brought mooncakes to school and wore her pretty purple Chinese silks.  Her amazing teacher spent the day making moon crafts , she even found some Chinese coloring pages for all the children to learn about this special Chinese holiday.  We are so proud that Lottie is already teaching others about her heritage.

 

This has definitely been our busiest month home so far and it has been a joy to have Lottie experience all these firsts!  Now we will find our if Lottie is having a baby brother or sister in the next couple days and will be sure to share the news!