Saturday, June 30, 2007
A brand new Washing Machine
Hi! I wanted to thank all of the people who generously donated money towards Sophia's orphanage. The kids loved making the cards for you all and they felt so much apart of helping out. We raised enough money to purchase a Washing Machine for the Kunming Orphanage. This will be put to great use because there are so many children and we all know what it is like to have too much laundry!! We were also able to purchase special bottles for babies who have cleft palate!!! May the Lord bless all who gave - your gift will help bless the little orphans in Kunming China!!!
Thursday, June 28, 2007
8 days and counting!
Well, we are officially just 8 days away from boarding a plane set for China to meet the daughter that we have prayed for. This is the reason that in October 2003, God called us to go to China and bring home our daughter. She was meant to fit into this family and we are blessed that we are days away from holding her and kissing her sweet cheeks. Please pray for Sophia. It is very likely that she is being transferred from her foster family (with whom she has lived with for almost one year) and being taken back to the orphanage to prepare her to meet us - her parents. We know this must be a very difficult time for Sophia and certainly one that she has no understanding of why she is being taken from her home. We wonder if going back to the orphanage may help Sophia be better prepared for us. Surely the orphanage is not a place that feels like "home" anymore. Just pray for our little Sophie!
We are getting packed and it is CRAZY - we already know that we will be paying for extra weight for our suitcases - there is just NO WAY around it!! I am trying to filter through Sophia's clothes and keep reminding myself that this is NOT a fashion show - and to pack light - but her suitcase alone likely weighs 25 lbs over the 44 pound limit - I have to get it on a scale!!!
We are so excited to go to China. We know how blessed we are. We are feeling anxious and sad to leave our children. It is so hard to think of being away from them for two weeks. They will be having the TIME OF THEIR LIVES with their grandparents which makes it a bit easier to get on the plane!!!! 8 days till we leave and only 11 days till Sophie day!!!
We are getting packed and it is CRAZY - we already know that we will be paying for extra weight for our suitcases - there is just NO WAY around it!! I am trying to filter through Sophia's clothes and keep reminding myself that this is NOT a fashion show - and to pack light - but her suitcase alone likely weighs 25 lbs over the 44 pound limit - I have to get it on a scale!!!
We are so excited to go to China. We know how blessed we are. We are feeling anxious and sad to leave our children. It is so hard to think of being away from them for two weeks. They will be having the TIME OF THEIR LIVES with their grandparents which makes it a bit easier to get on the plane!!!! 8 days till we leave and only 11 days till Sophie day!!!
Friday, June 22, 2007
Our Itinerary
* July 6 - leave Seattle!
* July 7 - Arrive in Guangzhou (stay overnight)
* July 8 - Take plant to Kunming
* July 9 - SOPHIE DAY
* July 10-14th - Adoption paperwork done in Kunming
* July 14 - Fly to Guangzhou
* July 15 - shopping and sightseeing day
* July 16th - Sophia’s medical and photo for visa
* July 17th - Consulate Appointment
* July 18th - Get miss Sophie's visa
* July 19th - Departure Guangzhou on 19th - we will NEVER forget you China and the gift you brought us in our baby girl!
* July 7 - Arrive in Guangzhou (stay overnight)
* July 8 - Take plant to Kunming
* July 9 - SOPHIE DAY
* July 10-14th - Adoption paperwork done in Kunming
* July 14 - Fly to Guangzhou
* July 15 - shopping and sightseeing day
* July 16th - Sophia’s medical and photo for visa
* July 17th - Consulate Appointment
* July 18th - Get miss Sophie's visa
* July 19th - Departure Guangzhou on 19th - we will NEVER forget you China and the gift you brought us in our baby girl!
Thursday, June 21, 2007
CA!!!!
We got the call today that we finally have a consulate appointment scheduled for July 17th!!! YAHOO!! We will leave Seattle on July 6 (just two weeks away) and our Sophie's gotcha day will be July 9th! We will be coming home on the 18th - more information in a few hours once we have our flights paid for and booked! We are so excited!!!!
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Travel Approval - it's here (well almost)
We just got an amazing email from our agency telling us that our TA (travel approval) is in the mail right now and will be here on Monday!!! We are so excited!! This is one of the last pieces that we need before we can get our little girl!!!! It seems unreal that in days, not months, we will be holding our new daughter, and giving her the love we have kept in our hearts for almost a year to her!!!! We await the CA (consulate appointment) which is when we can book our flights and really plan our trip. We are praying for a consulate appointment for the 2nd week in July - which would mean we would be able to travel and get our daughter the first week in July! Somedays we feel like we have waited soooo long, others days it feels surreal that life has called us to this purpose! God is just amazing! Please pray for us and our children as we prepare for this major life blessing and altering event!!!! Sophia Hui Juan, mommy and daddy are coming soon!!!!
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
AN UPDATE FROM OUR AGENCY
Today we heard back from our agency, and althought they did not offer any updated information on development, they did say that the orphanage worker was quoted as saying;
"She (Sophia) is very strong and almost never gets sick. She's very naughty and active, keeps adults busy all the time."
OMIGOODNESS - WHAT ARE WE IN FOR????
Looks like little Sophia will fit right in with us!!!
"She (Sophia) is very strong and almost never gets sick. She's very naughty and active, keeps adults busy all the time."
OMIGOODNESS - WHAT ARE WE IN FOR????
Looks like little Sophia will fit right in with us!!!
Friday, May 25, 2007
The kids are amazing
We have been talking a lot with the kids about China, life in an orphanage and what Sophia has gone through. We know that Sophia is in foster care now, and has been for some time. She has also been called "robust" by her caregivers and they told our friends that she has never really been sick (not even a cold). The other interesting tid bit is that Sophia is VERY STRONG WILLED. As they put it, "what Sophia wants, Sophia gets"! It sounds like she will really fit in to this family!
The kids have tried to come up with an idea to give money to Sophia's orphange for children who have medical issues such as cleft palate, who can really benefit from bottles that help them drink better. Many of these orphanages simply do not have the funding to buy extra supplies that can be really expensive. The kids decided to make card sets and sent an email off to friends and family. They are asking for donations for Sophie's orphanage and will send homeade card sets to all who donate! What a GREAT idea! We are excited to see what comes in and this is a fun way to keep the kids hearts with us as we journey to China.
We sent in for our Visas and they should be here very soon. We hope to get some word about travel approval by the fisrt week of June! Pray for us! We would hop on a plane tonight if we could. It is hard for us to know Sophia is just sitting there waiting for us - but it calms us to know that she is coming home so soon!
Her room is almost ready. We have just a few things to hang up - but we have a twin bed set up beside her crib. We figured that during those late nights, a bed may be a good idea to snuggle with mama, so baba can get some sleep!
Let the countdown begin!!!!
The kids have tried to come up with an idea to give money to Sophia's orphange for children who have medical issues such as cleft palate, who can really benefit from bottles that help them drink better. Many of these orphanages simply do not have the funding to buy extra supplies that can be really expensive. The kids decided to make card sets and sent an email off to friends and family. They are asking for donations for Sophie's orphanage and will send homeade card sets to all who donate! What a GREAT idea! We are excited to see what comes in and this is a fun way to keep the kids hearts with us as we journey to China.
We sent in for our Visas and they should be here very soon. We hope to get some word about travel approval by the fisrt week of June! Pray for us! We would hop on a plane tonight if we could. It is hard for us to know Sophia is just sitting there waiting for us - but it calms us to know that she is coming home so soon!
Her room is almost ready. We have just a few things to hang up - but we have a twin bed set up beside her crib. We figured that during those late nights, a bed may be a good idea to snuggle with mama, so baba can get some sleep!
Let the countdown begin!!!!
Thursday, May 17, 2007
LOA CAME TODAY
What an awesome day!!! I kept seeing all of these LOA (letter of acceptance) come in from a waiting child group and did not get a call or email until 3pm from Cindy - she left two messages and then when I called back, Dave (the other American's Adopting Orphans owners) told me that our LOA was in. This is the piece that tells us beyond any shadow of doubt that little Sophia Hui Juan is OURS!!!! We feel so blessed and are excited to make the journey to bring her home! We go into American's Adopting Orphans to sign on the LOA and then it will be off to China!!!!! We then wait for two more items. We need travel approval and once we get that we need to make a consulate appointment. Our hope is to travel at the middle to end of June - Sophia baby.....here we come!!!!!!!!! We are blowing kisses from little Kent, Washington to little Kunming, China!!!! Love mama and baba
Friday, May 04, 2007
What is a cleft lip and cleft palate
Education on Cleft lip and cleft palate
As you are aware, our beautiful daughter, Sophie, was born with a birth defect of a cleft lip and cleft palate. Her cleft lip was repaired in China when she was seven months old. As far as we know, she will has not had her palate repaired. I thought I would post some interesting facts on clefts to help educate our family and friends who are not very familiar with this condition.If you rub your finger above your top lip, you will feel two ridges. Those are in fact the cleft scars of a non cleft-affected person. Those tissues naturally join by the fourth week of pregnancy.The palate is then formed out of the structure that begins as the tongue and palate. Between the fourth and eight week of pregnancy, the tongue drops down and the palate segments then move from the sides and fuse in the center. Run your tongue across your hard palate from side to side and you will feel the seam where the two sides fused.A cleft, therefore, is not something that is formed, so much as it is something that does not form. Everyone began life with a cleft. For 699 out of 700 of us, the cleft fuses before birth. For that one in 700, it fails to fuse.One child in 33 is born with some sort of birth defect. One in 700 is born with a cleft-related birth defect. It occurs most often among Asians, Latinos and Native Americans.The causes could be a gene passed down from the birth father or birth mother or from the lack of folic acid in the birth mother's diet, or from the pollution in the air.A parent with a cleft has a minimum of 5% chance of passing the cleft along.
Some famous people who were born with a cleft:
Reverend Jesse Jackson
Tom Brokaw
Mary Crosby
Stacy Keech
Cheech Marin (from Cheech and Chong)
I've listed two non profit organizations where you can learn more about clefting. With donations, these types of organization can provide the necessary surgeries all across the world:
www.smiletrain.org
www.lovewithoutboundaries.com
As you are aware, our beautiful daughter, Sophie, was born with a birth defect of a cleft lip and cleft palate. Her cleft lip was repaired in China when she was seven months old. As far as we know, she will has not had her palate repaired. I thought I would post some interesting facts on clefts to help educate our family and friends who are not very familiar with this condition.If you rub your finger above your top lip, you will feel two ridges. Those are in fact the cleft scars of a non cleft-affected person. Those tissues naturally join by the fourth week of pregnancy.The palate is then formed out of the structure that begins as the tongue and palate. Between the fourth and eight week of pregnancy, the tongue drops down and the palate segments then move from the sides and fuse in the center. Run your tongue across your hard palate from side to side and you will feel the seam where the two sides fused.A cleft, therefore, is not something that is formed, so much as it is something that does not form. Everyone began life with a cleft. For 699 out of 700 of us, the cleft fuses before birth. For that one in 700, it fails to fuse.One child in 33 is born with some sort of birth defect. One in 700 is born with a cleft-related birth defect. It occurs most often among Asians, Latinos and Native Americans.The causes could be a gene passed down from the birth father or birth mother or from the lack of folic acid in the birth mother's diet, or from the pollution in the air.A parent with a cleft has a minimum of 5% chance of passing the cleft along.
Some famous people who were born with a cleft:
Reverend Jesse Jackson
Tom Brokaw
Mary Crosby
Stacy Keech
Cheech Marin (from Cheech and Chong)
I've listed two non profit organizations where you can learn more about clefting. With donations, these types of organization can provide the necessary surgeries all across the world:
www.smiletrain.org
www.lovewithoutboundaries.com
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Some information about where Sophie is.....
Orphanage
Sophia's orphanage is said to be very clean and well managed. There are currently about 140 children taken care of in the orphanage and about 450 in foster care (around 600 children total). It’s hard for us to know for sure if she is in the orphanage or in foster care since they aren’t always forthcoming with this information, but most children do spend some time in foster care before adoption.
There are four foster care villages about an hour from the orphanage where families take care of the children in their own little community.
Yunnan Province and City of Kunming
Yunnan means "south of the clouds". The province is in the southwest corner of China bordered by Burma, Laos, and Vietnam.
Kunming is the capital city of Yunnan with approximately 3 million people. The city is situated on a 6,500 foot plateau. Due to its mild climate and beautiful scenery and history, Kunming is a well known tourist spot for all of China and is known as "Spring City".
There are over two dozen minority groups in the Yunnan province which makes for a variety of interesting cultures and customs. Because they are a minority, they are allowed more than one child . Each of these groups continue to carry on their traditions and wear distinct clothing and headwear.
Sophia's orphanage is said to be very clean and well managed. There are currently about 140 children taken care of in the orphanage and about 450 in foster care (around 600 children total). It’s hard for us to know for sure if she is in the orphanage or in foster care since they aren’t always forthcoming with this information, but most children do spend some time in foster care before adoption.
There are four foster care villages about an hour from the orphanage where families take care of the children in their own little community.
Yunnan Province and City of Kunming
Yunnan means "south of the clouds". The province is in the southwest corner of China bordered by Burma, Laos, and Vietnam.
Kunming is the capital city of Yunnan with approximately 3 million people. The city is situated on a 6,500 foot plateau. Due to its mild climate and beautiful scenery and history, Kunming is a well known tourist spot for all of China and is known as "Spring City".
There are over two dozen minority groups in the Yunnan province which makes for a variety of interesting cultures and customs. Because they are a minority, they are allowed more than one child . Each of these groups continue to carry on their traditions and wear distinct clothing and headwear.
Saturday, March 24, 2007
Friday, January 26, 2007
Our Journey to Sophia
LOI is off!
Our letter of intent was sent to China today stating that we would seek excellent medical resources for Sophie and that we would take care of her in all of her needs and love her unconditionally. After China gets this letter, they will pull our dossier and review it. We are now waiting for word that they have accepted us and that we will get our TA (travel approval). Our agency is preparing us for a 3-4 month wait! We keep praying this will shorten greatly! We already miss our sweet Sophie!!!
Our letter of intent was sent to China today stating that we would seek excellent medical resources for Sophie and that we would take care of her in all of her needs and love her unconditionally. After China gets this letter, they will pull our dossier and review it. We are now waiting for word that they have accepted us and that we will get our TA (travel approval). Our agency is preparing us for a 3-4 month wait! We keep praying this will shorten greatly! We already miss our sweet Sophie!!!
Monday, January 15, 2007
OVER THE MOON!
We have been part of a pilot group for the waiting children in our agency. Our agency chose five families to travel together to China to pick up their daughters. We knew they had been reviewing all families and trying to pick the ones to go, and we got the call today at 3:43pm whle driving in our car that we were selected for a baby. We have her picture and will try to post as soon as we can figure out how. She is 15 months old and was born with a cleft lip and palate. The lip has been repaired and she will need surgery soon to repair the palate and she is SOOOOOO BEAUTIFUL! We are OVER THE MOON. We can not wait to bring little Sophie home!!!!! It is likely that we will travel in a few months. Hold tight little one, mommy and daddy are gonna get you as soon as we can! We love you!
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Our Journey to Sophia
LID!!!!
Ok, words are not going to do enough justice to what we are feeling at this very moment. We checked our email tonight and got word from our agency that we are officially Logged in to the CCAA as of August 30th. It took 23 days from the date our dossier arrived to be logged into their system. So there a little piece of the Hopp family sits in a file, in China, waiting to be discovered and reviewed so that our precious baby girl can come home to her forever family! They say that the total adoption time it typically takes in China is about a year after being logged in, which means that if anyone at this moment were to make an educated guess, the time we will get our referral will be August 2007 with a travel time possibly in October. Things could speed up and things could slow down, but that is the beauty of God's time......it is perfect! Little Sophia, we LOVE you sooooooo much and are head over heels ecstatic that we are one major step closer to holding you in our arms baby girl!
Ok, words are not going to do enough justice to what we are feeling at this very moment. We checked our email tonight and got word from our agency that we are officially Logged in to the CCAA as of August 30th. It took 23 days from the date our dossier arrived to be logged into their system. So there a little piece of the Hopp family sits in a file, in China, waiting to be discovered and reviewed so that our precious baby girl can come home to her forever family! They say that the total adoption time it typically takes in China is about a year after being logged in, which means that if anyone at this moment were to make an educated guess, the time we will get our referral will be August 2007 with a travel time possibly in October. Things could speed up and things could slow down, but that is the beauty of God's time......it is perfect! Little Sophia, we LOVE you sooooooo much and are head over heels ecstatic that we are one major step closer to holding you in our arms baby girl!
Saturday, September 23, 2006
QUILT SQUARES!!!!!
Well, today was a VERY fun day!! We went to the mailbox to find our first two squares for Sophia's 100 wishes quilt! The first one was from Great Grandma Chris and Great Grandpa Norm Hopp. It was a beautiful purple square with pretty flowers and stems and leafs. It is whimsical in theme and we LOVE it! The next one was from Aunt Ruth and Uncle Rudy Baas. They sent us a pretty light green with white greenery on it. It almost appears to be Asian looking and will compliment this project! Thank you a million times over! Your squares made our day!!!
Saturday, August 19, 2006
A beautiful poem about a mother's love
Different Kinds of Love
There were two special women, they never knew each other.
One you don’t remember, the other you call mother.
Two very different lives together make yours one.
The first one like a shooting star, the other like the sun.
One gave to you the gift of life, one showed you how to live it.
The first one gave a need for love, the second was there to give it.
One gave you roots of heritage, the other your good name.
One gave you seeds of talent, the other gave you aim.
One gave to you emotions; the other calmed your fears.
One saw your first endearing smile, the other dried your tears.
The first one had to give you up, it was all that she could do.
The other prayed for her own child and then was led to you.
I hope you see my precious child, that you’re the product of,
not just one but two hearts, with different kinds of love.
By - John Trapani
There were two special women, they never knew each other.
One you don’t remember, the other you call mother.
Two very different lives together make yours one.
The first one like a shooting star, the other like the sun.
One gave to you the gift of life, one showed you how to live it.
The first one gave a need for love, the second was there to give it.
One gave you roots of heritage, the other your good name.
One gave you seeds of talent, the other gave you aim.
One gave to you emotions; the other calmed your fears.
One saw your first endearing smile, the other dried your tears.
The first one had to give you up, it was all that she could do.
The other prayed for her own child and then was led to you.
I hope you see my precious child, that you’re the product of,
not just one but two hearts, with different kinds of love.
By - John Trapani
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
Have you been tagged - think about it....
I was tagged by another August DTC friend, so here it goes...
I am... a born again Christian who has been blessed with the most awesome husband in the world with whom I have had three fabulous children with one precious blessing on it's way from China!
I want... to live in a world that is peaceful
I wish... my children will continue to follow the Lord all of their lives
I hate... when people pass unneccesary judgement on others
I miss... the days when my children were little wee ones
I hear... singing, giggling, laughter and talking from my children
I wonder... when we will get to meet our fourth child
I regret... placing heavy weight on what others think of me
I am... not a quiet gal
I dance... crazily
I sing... and I love it - but it does not sound lovely!
I try... to be the best mon and wife I can be
I am not... always flexible and patient...a work in progress
I make... the most of my time by being very busy!
I confuse... my children with the many things to do for the day
I need... a date with my husband!
I should... be doing the many left over tasks at the house
I start... to write, but seldom finish
I finish... the tasks that are the most important to me (not necessarily the most urgent!)
I am... a born again Christian who has been blessed with the most awesome husband in the world with whom I have had three fabulous children with one precious blessing on it's way from China!
I want... to live in a world that is peaceful
I wish... my children will continue to follow the Lord all of their lives
I hate... when people pass unneccesary judgement on others
I miss... the days when my children were little wee ones
I hear... singing, giggling, laughter and talking from my children
I wonder... when we will get to meet our fourth child
I regret... placing heavy weight on what others think of me
I am... not a quiet gal
I dance... crazily
I sing... and I love it - but it does not sound lovely!
I try... to be the best mon and wife I can be
I am not... always flexible and patient...a work in progress
I make... the most of my time by being very busy!
I confuse... my children with the many things to do for the day
I need... a date with my husband!
I should... be doing the many left over tasks at the house
I start... to write, but seldom finish
I finish... the tasks that are the most important to me (not necessarily the most urgent!)
Thursday, August 10, 2006
quilt letter
To our wonderful family and friends,
As many of you know, we are adopting a baby girl from China. After months of chasing paper, our dossier is complete and now in China. We hope to have our referral for our baby girl in 2007. We have decided to name her Sophia.
We are creating a 100 wishes quilt to give to our daughter when we bring her home from China. We would love good wishes and/or prayers to be included.
To welcome and celebrate a new life, a tradition exists in the Northern part of China, to make a bai jia bei (100 wishes quilt) to welcome and celebrate a new life. It is custom that the family and friends contribute squares of cloth along with their wish for the baby. The quilt is then passed on from generation to generation.
How to contribute: There are two pieces to contribute
#1 Fabric: Choose a machine washable, 100% cotton fabric. It can be new or used/meaningful. Cut an 12X12 square. We are hoping to get lots of bright colors
#2 Wish/Prayer: This is the fun part! Use an index card and glue a one inch scrap of your fabric to it with your wish for our precious Sophia. Your wish can be simple or elaborate, handwritten or typed. It can be something you wrote, a favorite poem, bible verse or quote. You can even place a picture on it if you wish! Please remember to include your name on it. These wishes/prayers will be put into a album for our little girl to cherish forever.
All of the notes will be put into an album and when we look through it we will be able to match up the wish and the fabric on the quilt.
If you have more than one person in your family who would like to participate, PLEASE feel free to send more than one quilt block and prayer/wish. Remember, we need to collect 100 squares, so the more the better. Children are welcome to be contributors to this project!
We know that you all have busy schedules, but we hope you will be able to help us create this special keepsake to help preserve some of the Chinese culture for our daughter. This will be so incredibly meaningful to us as well as to Sophia as she gets older.
Love always,
Adam, Lisa, Savannah, Tyler and Brayden Hopp
As many of you know, we are adopting a baby girl from China. After months of chasing paper, our dossier is complete and now in China. We hope to have our referral for our baby girl in 2007. We have decided to name her Sophia.
We are creating a 100 wishes quilt to give to our daughter when we bring her home from China. We would love good wishes and/or prayers to be included.
To welcome and celebrate a new life, a tradition exists in the Northern part of China, to make a bai jia bei (100 wishes quilt) to welcome and celebrate a new life. It is custom that the family and friends contribute squares of cloth along with their wish for the baby. The quilt is then passed on from generation to generation.
How to contribute: There are two pieces to contribute
#1 Fabric: Choose a machine washable, 100% cotton fabric. It can be new or used/meaningful. Cut an 12X12 square. We are hoping to get lots of bright colors
#2 Wish/Prayer: This is the fun part! Use an index card and glue a one inch scrap of your fabric to it with your wish for our precious Sophia. Your wish can be simple or elaborate, handwritten or typed. It can be something you wrote, a favorite poem, bible verse or quote. You can even place a picture on it if you wish! Please remember to include your name on it. These wishes/prayers will be put into a album for our little girl to cherish forever.
All of the notes will be put into an album and when we look through it we will be able to match up the wish and the fabric on the quilt.
If you have more than one person in your family who would like to participate, PLEASE feel free to send more than one quilt block and prayer/wish. Remember, we need to collect 100 squares, so the more the better. Children are welcome to be contributors to this project!
We know that you all have busy schedules, but we hope you will be able to help us create this special keepsake to help preserve some of the Chinese culture for our daughter. This will be so incredibly meaningful to us as well as to Sophia as she gets older.
Love always,
Adam, Lisa, Savannah, Tyler and Brayden Hopp
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
OUR MIRACLE DAY!!!!
What were you doing on August 7, 2006 at exactly 11:47am? I can tell you that I was at Target with my boys completely unaware of the miracle going on across the world. It was at that exact time that our dossier arrive in China. Now we are officially DTC! We are one step closer to holding our sweet Sophia and bringing her home to a forever family to call her own. As we opened the letter we cried and cried and Adam made a comment that it was exactly the same excitement that we had as we saw each positive pregnancy test. We feel pregnant with this little baby - our hearts are already with her and we love her beyond measure. We feel so fortunate and blessed to know that in the near future we will have our precious baby girl in our arms forever!!!!!! Hooray!!!!!
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
WE ARE DTC AUGUST 1st!!!!
Ok all of the sweat and tears and agony and calling Fed Ex with various tracking numbers has finally paid off. We mailed all of our last documents to Americans Adopting Orphans. We feel so blessed at this wonderful miracle that God has blessed us with. Already, although we do not know what Sophia looks like or what her little personality will be, we sense the fact that she is out far far away in China waiting for her mommy and daddy to come and bring her home to be with her forever family! We already love Sophia. Many would never understand this, but the wonder and love we have for Sophie stems from God's call on our lives.
Many have asked have asked us why we are adopting. We look like we have our hands full (the other day a woman from church stopped me and saw me and my children and asked me if I run a day care). I had to laugh, as all she saw was my little angels! It made me think of the very moment that God vividly revealed His plan for us. Adam and I were at a Steven Curtis Chapman concert and watched a music video that had screens that displayed children who were homeless and without forever families. I cried and cried and asked God what I could do. He planted a seed that night and this seed has been planted and ha began to bloom. After telling Adam about this call, he felt totally overwhelmed and was not ready to jump like I was (much like most things in our life). At this moment from October 2004 to now, I prayed. I prayed like I have never prayed before. I asked that God would make us like minded or that He would make it obvious that adoption was not for us. We talked infrequently generally about adoption, but never with any conclusion until April 2006 when Adam and I were on the couch just talking. He turned to me and pretty much out of the blue told me that he was ready. Ready for what? He was ready to adopt our baby girl from China!!!!!! I cried! I laughed! We hugged and embraced for a VERY long time. God is so good. He has taught me patience as well. But look at what He has done! Look at what He continues to do! Our children are so excited and already debating who gets to hold Sophia first.
Being DTC is a huge hurdle to get through as we are one step closer to meeting our daughter. We love you so much Sophie!!!!
Many have asked have asked us why we are adopting. We look like we have our hands full (the other day a woman from church stopped me and saw me and my children and asked me if I run a day care). I had to laugh, as all she saw was my little angels! It made me think of the very moment that God vividly revealed His plan for us. Adam and I were at a Steven Curtis Chapman concert and watched a music video that had screens that displayed children who were homeless and without forever families. I cried and cried and asked God what I could do. He planted a seed that night and this seed has been planted and ha began to bloom. After telling Adam about this call, he felt totally overwhelmed and was not ready to jump like I was (much like most things in our life). At this moment from October 2004 to now, I prayed. I prayed like I have never prayed before. I asked that God would make us like minded or that He would make it obvious that adoption was not for us. We talked infrequently generally about adoption, but never with any conclusion until April 2006 when Adam and I were on the couch just talking. He turned to me and pretty much out of the blue told me that he was ready. Ready for what? He was ready to adopt our baby girl from China!!!!!! I cried! I laughed! We hugged and embraced for a VERY long time. God is so good. He has taught me patience as well. But look at what He has done! Look at what He continues to do! Our children are so excited and already debating who gets to hold Sophia first.
Being DTC is a huge hurdle to get through as we are one step closer to meeting our daughter. We love you so much Sophie!!!!
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