Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Remembering Jordyn's Gotcha Day

Fun at the Guanzhou Zoo
Jordyn and Jailynn together at the orphanage.

Sibling bonding on Gotcha Day!


Playing with thier stuffed animals on Gotcha Day! Soon we will be sitting together on this same bench with Jailynn. My heart aches until then!

Waiting and Praying

We are still waiting for our travel dates and Praying for the funds to bring home Jailynn. Our travel dates should arrive anytime in the next couple of weeks. Our agency has TA's for about 30 other families and they are working hard to make all the travel arrangements. I am trying to stay positive and continue to believe that God has a plan to help us bring home our daughter, and I will look back at this time and wonder why I was so worried.
I faced the same obstacles when I was waiting to bring Jordyn home. We received our TA and travel dates and still did not have the money we needed to travel. As I prayed, I felt the Lord reassure me that it would come in the 11th hour. Every hour seemed to be the 11th hour to me, and when it was finally the real 11th hour...God showed up. We had just the exact amount that we needed to travel. We thought that I was going to go with Anna our oldest daughter and we had prayed that our family would be able to go together. At the very last possible minute, a very special couple bought our airfare and hotel accommodations. We were so blessed to go as a family and it truly helped our bonding with Jordyn. She loved meeting Amanda, JonMarc, and Anna.They shared some very special moments together as they played and laughed together. I will never forget that time. I think that having the siblings travel is important when adopting an older child. We still talk about our time together in China. I am praying that we will have that experience again with Jailynn. I know that it is especially important for Jordyn to come to China and be reunited with Jailynn. And so I will continue to have faith and believe that God has a plan to help work all the details out.
While we have waited, we were blessed with the opportunity to move into a larger home. we were literally bursting out of the seams of our other home and I cannot imagine how I could have added another person into that home. We moved in last week and I am still unpacking boxes and boxes. I am not an organized mover and do not like to move at all. I plan to stay here for a long, long time. We love the new home (actually it is only new to us). There are plenty of bedrooms and a playroom and it is in the country! I hope to get a horse next year! I love the country and love having more room. I will love it even more when all the boxes are unpacked.
Joey and Kym are still here with us and it has been a good thing to have them here. They were a huge help with moving. Kym starts school in March and I am sooo proud of her. Joey starts work this week with a roofing company and I am proud of him. Hayden and Noah love to run around in the old,new home and little Phoenix is growing fast. He is 8 months old! So in December we went from a family of 6 to a family of 11 and when Jailynn comes home we will be a family of 12! Mind-boggling isn't it?? I know that God had this planned and we have seen how we have helped Joey and Kym and they have helped us. We have grown as a family and God has healed our relationships.

Friday, February 6, 2009

We Have Our TA!!!!


We just found out today that we have our TA! I am very excited and also very nervous at the same time. We are still in need for our travel funds and praying for God to provide a miracle for us. We filed our income taxes and recieved less than we were anticipating. We donot want to delay our travel to bring Jailynn home but at this point we do not have all the funds we need.I am asking for prayers and any help possible.Please pray for all this to come together and that we will have the funds needed to bring Jailynn home without any lengthy delays. She has already waited for so long. We are humbled by the support we have recieved so far and appreciate every prayer and dollar given. Nothing is too small. Nothing is impossible for God. I am staying positive and believing God for a miracle. I created a new Chipin because the other one does not seem to be working properly. Maybe this one will keep up with any contributions. Thank you for all the support and love towards Jailynn.

Jailynn's 1st Thanksgiving

My GuestBook

Hi! I am glad you are visiting my blog! Please sign my guestbook or leave me a comment. It will mean so much to me, Jordyn and Jailynn!

The rest of our family

In case anyone was curious: Here are som pictures of my oldest son, Joey and his family. Joey and Kym have three children: my beloved grandbabies: Hayden 4yrs old, Noah 22 months old, and Phoenix 9 months old. We have been helping Joey and Kym get on their feet and they have been living with us since December. They are now able to get their own place and will move out in April. I will miss them and miss the babies. I will just have to babysit!

God Is Awesome!

myspace

myspace

I am Praising God tonight because He has Heard my cries and answered my prayers. We have recieved a generation donation from a wonderful family toward our fund raising efforts. We have also recieved generous donations from wonderful people through this website and through Jailynn's Prayer. So far, the total fundraising has reached a total of $4000!!!!!!!! Thank you! Thank You! Thank you to everyone for helping us to bring Jailynn home! We are hoping to travel sometime this month and still need to raise money. I know that God is providing for our family through the unselfish and generous giving from special and wonderful people like you!

We have our LOA!!

Lilypie Waiting to adopt Ticker

Happy Holidays!

Happy Halloween (a little late)

Our Fun At the Texas State Fair

Amanda's Party!

Jordyn and Amanda's Birthday Party