Fall, Soccer, and a Birthday

I really enjoy the fall weather and the fact that we can go outside without sweating.  Eva and Joy are big sweaters and their hair gets plastered to their foreheads when the humidity is high.  The last few weeks have been so pleasurable, having the windows open and the children outside playing.  Just like Seth and Jack did when they were younger, Eva and Joy love taking truck rides around our property.  We don't have much land, just over 3 acres, but we have a long driveway and can get up to 3rd gear.  So, I love the pics of the kiddos in the back of the truck with Millie, our dog, heading around the driveway.  What fun!





Poor Millie got thrown around one too many times and had to get out.  She enjoys chasing the truck anyway.

We did our yearly brush burn.  Who knows what is in that pile?  For some reason, Jack is always fascinated with the big fire and messes around with it for days trying to get it to burn again.



Seth's team is doing great in soccer.  They are undefeated in their division.  Seth has scored about 5 goals.  Last night I enjoyed one of his games.  I'm usually having to be at Jack's games, but Monday Jack was off.









I like this picture because you can see all the gnats swarming around at this field.  They were everywhere.

Then, of course, Eva and Joy had a good time as always.  The hillside we were sitting on had a nice dirt hole.  They dug and carried dirt everywhere.  By the time the game was over they had a golden look all over them.  I had to pat them down before getting into the car.  They were one big dirtball, but had fun.  I only made them stop throwing the dirt!  Once Joy had dirt in a cup, put it up to her mouth, proceeded to get dust in her eyes.  What was she thinking?  She didn't do that again.



Sweet Ivy Xue turns 7 this weekend.  We are sending a package to her, but know it will not arrive on time.  I still need to get some photos in her album so she can get used to the idea of a family.  I hope she thinks we look normal.  She may have concerns about Seth and Jack, though.  Joy is kind of iffy.

Sweet picture of Ivy Xue

Jordan edited the photo of Ivy Xue for me.  To me, it seems to catch her joy and sweetness in that smile.  All the children in the photo look so sweet.  Wouldn't it be fun to bring them all home to be sisters?  I know that at least one of the little girls in the photo is already home.  I hope and pray they all find families.

Zhongshan

This is Ivy Xue's current home in Zhongshan, Guangdong, China.  It looks nice and it even has a cute playground.  But, I know that no orphanage can replace the love of a family.  Someone sent me a picture of Xue with some friends and she looks like a very happy girl.  I don't feel free to post it as there are quite a few other children in it, some who are being adopted.  I don't have their permission to post it. 

I've also added a video of a busy intersection in Zhongshan, which is typical of most large cities in China.  We experienced much of this on our previous adoption trips.  It is amazing that there seems to be little road rage in this immensely populated country. 

The Naming of the Xue

Our daughter waiting in China has a beautiful name...Xue (pronounced she-way). It flows off the tongue so easily. Like her Chinese sisters, she will keep Xue for her middle name. Eva and Joy have 2 middle names that go together. Xue just has Xue, no other part, just the one-syllable. The tricky part is finding a first name. Because we have a two-syllable last name, I feel that a two-syllable first name will go well with Xue.

I prefer "the road less traveled" when it comes to names. I like simple, yet never out of style names. I'm having trouble here with this name game. We do have a name picked out that we've been calling Xue, but I need to make sure. So, the name is.....Ivy Xue....How does it sound? Simple, yet uncommon, not frivilous, but easy to say. We narrowed it down to Ivy or Maci. I really liked Maci, but I kept thinking of the department store...kind of like Tiffany's. I know we have time to change our minds, but the more I call her Ivy Xue, the more I like it. It's kind of catchy and pleasing to my ear. I hope it is for her, also.

On the countdown side of things....It has been 28 days since we sent in our LOI. Families have been waiting anywhere from 45 - 100+ days for their LOA (the next step). What a range. Our last adoption LOA was received on day 65. We have a ways to go, but 28 days have gone by rather quickly.

Update, sort of. I thought I was being witty with the Title of this post. Apparently I must be the only witty, literature-educated person in this home. "The Naming of the Xue" sounds like "The Taming of the Shrew", Shakespeare's comedy. Get it? Maybe I'm getting too old since my wit just gets stares.

Thankful Thursday

 To view our travel for Ivy, click here.

Welcome to our new blog! I had felt for a while that since this was our family blog, our old title, "Our Journey East" was somehow wrong. Yes, initially, our blog was for our adoption travels, but now it is to keep family and friends up-to-date on our happenings. I'd also like to take this first post to share some things with you all.

Many of you know our experience and heartache over the last few months. Some know more details than others. Regardless of the details, you all know that not being able to adopt Maggie was one of the most difficult things that has happened in our lives. Mike and I were truly filled with grief.

As I told someone else, this loss of Maggie has been like a pregnancy loss. For 10 months we anticipated and prepared for a new child. But it did not happen. I've lost children, so I do know both kinds of grief. After our losses of our daughters, then the twins, we were ready to try again. So, here we are. After some contact with our agency, we discussed asking China for another referral. It was not easy. There were some days I did not want to deal with it. But, in my heart, I felt that I had to ask or else I would never know if God had another child for us all along. China graciously has allowed us to have another referral. I won't bore you with details, but after many conversations and much praying and fasting, we are planning on adopting Ma Xue from Guangdong (same province as Joy). She is currently living in an orphanage and she is quite a cutie. Jordan remarked that she looks more Indian than Chinese. I agree. She is quite tiny. In the spring, Ma Xue weighed just under 35 pounds and is 46 inches tall. It doesn't seem she is much bigger than Eva. Just taller, I suppose.


So, we wait again. This whole adoption process will either drive me crazy or make me a very patient person. I think I've become a little bit of both. I've been hesitant to become excited. I don't know how family and friends will feel. I cannot help but consider the past. Maybe I've just become a bit more guarded, knowing that I don't have God all figured out, and that He is always amazing and surprising me each day of my life. I'm so thankful for His healing of our hearts and His graciousness towards His children. I'm humbled that He cares so much about little me.

About Me

I'm a fifty-something mother of 6 and the wife of Mike, living in the mountains of Virginia.  We've been married since 1987, after a short romance of 5 months.  My first love is my Lord and Savior, Jesus.  I love my husband dearly, and am thrilled to be blessed with motherhood.  We have 3 biological children and 3 adopted daughters from China. 

I grew up the second of 4 children.  The first 10 years of my life was spent in the suburbs of Cleveland, Ohio.  After that, we moved to my parents' home place in West Virginia.  I love the simpleness of life there and had a wonderful childhood.  My father has passed away, but my mother still lives in the house we moved into when I was in high-school.  I moved from home when I graduated high-school and met my Navy husband a couple of years later.   

A few years later, we started a family with our first child, Jordan.  Once Seth was born a few years later, I became a stay-at-home mom.  Although home-life is sometimes hectic, there is nothing I love more than having all my children gathered in the kitchen for some loud conversations.