We leave today!

Good Morning!!!

The kids and I leave the house in a couple hours and I thought I would try and post one last time! No word yet from Daron on if we have gotten both passports and if the 1-600 is ready. The Eban House director in Ghana said that she called on Wednesday and the embassy told her to call back on Friday-praying here for good news on all fronts. I really wanted to go to Ghana with no paperwork on the front burner that we are waiting for, but it doesn't look like that is the case; so we will keep praying.

Throughout the adoption process the last 5 months, there has been a song, and especially the chorus, that has always choked me up when I heard it. It is written by Nicole C. Mullen and the words are below. I woke up early this morning (wonder why??!!) and started praying for today and our trip. When I was finished I tried to go back to sleep and I realized the words of her song were playing in my head. (You will have to google her when you get a chance. She has actually done amazing things in Ghana with the Trokosi slaves)

Well, the next time I post, there will probably be a picture of me with ALL my children! I can't wait!! Thank you for everyone who is thinking of us and praying for us- I need it and I feel it!
Oh, and we will be traveling until Sat. night, so no need to check back here until Sunday!

Call on Jesus
Verse 1:I'm so very ordinary, nothing special on my own.Oh, I have never walked on water,And I have never calmed a storm.Sometimes I'm hiding away from the madness around meLike a child who's afraid of the dark
Chorus:But when I call on Jesus,All things are possibleI can mount on wings like eagles' and soarWhen I call on Jesus,Mountains are gonna fall'Cause He'll move heaven and earth to come rescue me when I call
2:Weary brother, broken daughter,widowed, widowed lover, you're not aloneIf you're tired and scared of the madness around youIf you can't find the strength to carry on
Chorus:When you call on Jesus,All things are possibleYou can mount on wings like eagles' and soarWhen you call on Jesus,Mountains are gonna fall'Cause He'll move heaven and earth to come rescue you when you call--
Bridge:Call Him in the mornin', in the afternoon timeLate in the evenin' He'll be thereWhen your heart is broken,And you feel discouraged,You can just remember that He said He'll be there

Thankfulness

Thankfulness and thanksgiving is something that I have been trying to focus on the last few days instead of worrying about the unknowns and 'what-ifs'. I know that when I focus on what I am thankful for and have a positive attitude about things, I find so much more peace. It was a theme for us last Sunday at our house church and then I was discussing this with a good friend of mine(T.F.)She had just meditated on 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 yesterday morning and shared it with me:
"Always be joyful. Keep on praying. No matter what happens, always be thankful, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus."
This isn't always easy to do, and I especially find it hard for me to do when I feel out of control. Right now though, I feel God's peace through this all, even though there are so many things that I am praying for right now. Now more than ever, I have been awoken in the middle of the night and felt the sense of urgency to pray. I have also truly felt a weight on my heart when I was praying- and got the sense that their were many hands laid on me, praying with me. I have felt our family so lifted up in prayer that it gives me peace.

I am trying to be joyful, I am praying for two signed passports to be found & delieverd, as well as an approved 1-600 from the embassy, and no matter what happens, I will be thankful, because there is so much to be thankful for. I have a husband who is my best friend and he loves me, I have three children at home with me that I get to tuck in at night, I have two children that even though I can't tuck them in yet, are alive and healthy and spending time with their father, I have a wonderful extended family in WA. & MN, I have so many dear, true, life-long friends, I have a loving church, I have a home, I have food, I have cute clothes(it's all relative), I belong to Jesus!

Below is a post that Daron sent to our church today. I think we were both on the same wavelength a couple continents away:

"Hello church,
Giving thanks in the midst of hard times.

When I first arrived in Ghana – I was overwhelmed. All I could see was the NEED (too many orphans, poverty, lack of clean water, smell of sewage/burning trash everywhere) and I felt powerless to be able to change anything.

I’m sure you heard that/felt that in last week’s email.

So I’ve been asking God for help in being thankful – even joyful – in my present reality.

I don’t want a “comparative thankfulness” (i.e. God, I’m thankful that I wasn’t born here/live here/that I’m not like…).

So I’ve tried to focus on the good I see here in Ghana each day and what I am thankful for…. And it is working!

Yesterday I was reading Psalm 116 – I recommend reading the whole thing – but verse 7 jumped out at me:
“Let my soul be at rest again, for the Lord has been good to me.”

When we focus on what we are thankful for… When we are able to say the Lord has been good to me – a wonderful peace comes over our soul.

Maybe you’ve been feeling overwhelmed lately too – whether it be the stock market/economy or other hard times happening in your life.

So this Thanksgiving – whether it be the gift of your life,
giving thanks for God’s love for you,
for Jesus’ sacrifice for us,
for those who love us and whom we love,
or for the wonder of a new day
– may we Give thanks!
– and may your soul be at rest."

Thank you for Donations!`

I wanted to tell the community and two local elementary schools that we are so thankful for all the donations. So far we have received so many great items that were on the wish list and things keep coming in! My kids are beyond excited by how people are donating! Thank you so much! I know a much needed item was underwear and I am proud to say that we have at least 18 new bags of boy and girl underwear! We also received lots of great gently used clothing items, sandals, books, educational material, toys, etc. We have a really good amount of crayons, markers, lined paper, baby shampoo, tylenol, diaper cream, legos also going over.

If anyone still wants to make donations, I will readily accept them! I will make room!! We can always use more sandals, tooth brushes, hats, hot weather gently used clothing, and school supplies.

Here are things we haven't received that were on the wish list: Ink Cartridges(21 HP, 22 HP, 58 HP), cotton hand towels, twin sheets, infant formula, large legos, diapers.

We have also received enough in donations for the stove, as well as extras that I can use to buy more items that we haven't received from the list above. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!

I have teared up so many times because of all of your generosity! It gives me tingles and I can't wait to bring everything there to share it. Thank you for giving to the orphanages! It is something that I am so very thankful for; what a special weekend to be traveling over to share this with them!

Blessings!

Mole Animal Pictures

Here are some pictures Daron sent today from the safari hike at Mole National Park:

Nile Monitor Lizard and a Monkey Daron named Ella

Elephant they tracked for 2.5 miles

Daron had a little bit of news today about the passports, so at least there is some movement. I guess our Ghanaian adoption coordinator stopped by the passport office and they found Fia's passport under piles of paperwork(yeah, sounds great, huh?) I guess they said that it was good he stopped by because it would have been a lot longer....Anyway, they told him that they hoped to have it signed off tomorrow by the appropriate person. They were unable to find Kwame's, but I am hoping and praying that tomorrow they find Kwame's passport and they can get them both signed off and handed over to us!

Daron-Day 15

Sorry it has been awhile since I posted. I have been sitting around alot eating bon bons and I just haven't wanted to get off the couch! ;) Actually, that is what I am dreaming of....

Daron is back safely from up north at Mole National Park. He had a wonderful time and thought it was a great experience. At the same time, I think he realized that it would be too hard for our family to do it unless we had our own driver in a 4x4. Besides it being expensive, it would also be a very long trip for us to do with all 7 of us. I think it would be especially hard for us to bring Fia & Kwame. Daron had to take two buses that were 12 hours and then 4 hours to get there. I think it would be about 14 hours for us if we had a driver and that sounds incredibly long!!! I love road trips, but I am not sure I want to do that as a first memory with the kids-we'll see. On the flip side, it is hard to go to Africa and not go on a safari-but maybe that is something to do on another trip in the future if we have the chance to go back.

Before Daron left, he tried to explain to the kids that he would be gone for a few days and then be back. He told the aunties so that they could help the kids understand too. When Kwame saw him, he ran right up and it was business as usual. Fia was a little more apprehensive and seemed a little unsure. She came up and hugged him, but she just seemed a little more confused. Most of the parents that have traveled over so far have gone and filed their paperwork and left after a few days, only to go back once everything is completed. We chose to try and stay in the country for different reasons until everything was ready, but it was confusing
for the kids. Daron said that they thought he had gone back to America. I think Fia was trying to put up defenses for the time when her dad would be away.

I just love hearing Daron talk about them. He said he feels at peace with everything, so I was glad to hear that. Thanks for keeping him and our family in your prayers. Monday they will try and find out more about the passports and 1-600. We are going to have to move some major mountains for our timing to work out for all of us to come home together. These passports really have to be done this week, as well as the 1-600 needs to be ready by probably early next week. The kids and I leave Friday and we can't wait! I can hardly believe that we get to finally meet them and be with them. I would really love for the 1-600 to be done sooner rather than later so we can take custody of them as soon as we can. It just isn't wise to do it beforehand in case for some reason we would have to leave Ghana before it got processed and have to put them back into Eban house; that would be way too confusing. So.....pray for a miracle that we can get this all worked out.

Daron was going to go to church again with them today and then hopefully go to a restaurant,
with Percy and a couple other people,that play American sports on their tvs. Hopefully he had a great time and got some good food. I know he is missing food back at home and water that he doesn't have to worry about. Maybe now he is missing the granola bars that I suggested he take! Maybe not.

Love 'em!

Here are some new pictures from an adoptive mom that was visiting at the same time as Daron. I am so thankful right now for 'Titi.' This way I can get a glimpse of what is going on with the three of them, while Daron is away. Plus, I know the Grandmas want to see more pictures!

Mole National Park-Day 12

We talked with Daron this morning after he was coming in from his Safari walk at Mole National Park in northern Ghana. He is having a wonderful time and really enjoying the experience. He was was given or gave himself the self-imposed nickname, "eagle eyes" because he spotted the first elephant they have spotted there in the last couple of weeks. I guess from the hotel you can see a watering hole and off in the distance he thought he saw an elephant and asked the guide. The guide agreed that it was probably an elephant, so Daron talked him into starting the tour and hour and a half early, gathered all the people, and they headed out to go and track down the elephant. I guess they had some boots on and they had to walk in a lot of mud, but after a couple of hours, they came upon the elephant-he said it was amazing! They also got to see other animals, but the ones I remember were monkeys, deer, warthogs, antelope, and some baboons came up to the pool after their tour. Pretty amazing, I would say. It is there, at the hotel he is at now, that he has seen his first two mosquitoes; prior to that, he hadn't seen any in Accra. I think his plan is to leave tomorrow morning with a couple of Swedes he met there that he will share a car with, instead of traveling back in the bus for 12 hours or more.

One thing that was interesting was that Daron started talking to an American there and they asked each other what they were doing in Ghana. She said that she is volunteering at an orphanage that we had heard of that is working with our agency and may someday place children at Eban House. There was a child there last spring that we had heard about and prayed for, as a family, and we continue to have on our hearts out of concern for his well being. The referral never worked out because of different reasons(paperwork/social welfare/etc.), but we have just wondered how he was doing. Anyway, it was a small world in Ghana today, because this volunteer knew exactly who we were and showed Daron recent pictures of this little boy. He is growing and looked healthy now(chubby, to be exact!) Not sure if he will ever be able to be adopted, and it may not even be in his best interest because he does have a grandmother that may care for him, but we pray that he continues to get the care he needs at the orphanage or wherever he is at now. It was amazing how God brought them together today and gave us a little more peace knowing that he is doing okay. Small world-big God!

Regarding paperwork, no news. Supposedly the passports are now under investigation. I haven't heard of this before, but we are still resting on God's timing and know that he is watching over us and I am praying that his timing is the same as mine! There is an election that is going to take place at the beginning of December, so some have thought that they are holding onto passports, looking for a bribe, before they are out of a job, since it is going to be a different party(most likely). Not sure if that is true, but whatever the reason, PLEASE PRAY that we get Fia and Kwame's passports really soon. Percy, the coordinator in Ghana, is headed over to the passport office tomorrow-hopefully we will have some good news! All around, it would be in our best interest to get everything done before the election so there aren't any more hold ups.

The 1-600 is only on business day #6 since Daron has filed it (Tuesday will be day 10) so we don't expect to hear anything yet. But since the kids and I are planning on traveling next week, he thought he would call and check in and make sure there isn't something missing and they have everything that they need. A miracle would be them telling him that it was ready, so it doesn't hurt to ask God for that, so I am! I also pray that whoever he talks to is friendly with him and genuinely wants to help. If you want to pray with me-please pray that both our passports and our I-600(immigration) paperwork is complete before the kids and I go over. If not, we will take it as it comes, but it doesn't hurt to ask!

Well, the rest of us are all doing great here. We have had our dear friends, the Crowders, visiting us from NH. They brought 1/4 of their children-Donny, who is a very best friend of Justus'. They hit it off right away again, after not seeing each other for 2.5 years, and had so much fun together. Hopefully I can get some pictures up here eventually. What was really special, was that Courtney organinzed a 'Coast to Coast' shower with some wonderful friends back in NH. You don't even know how blessed I was and how touching it was that our Bethany church family was thinking about us and blessing us with some special gifts. I was so blessed by the gift cards to Target for the inevitable upcoming diaper/clothing expenses, the adorable outfits, and the thoughtful learnging games, etc. Wow-Thank you!

Donation thank-you's!

Well, I want to yell out a big thank you to all of you that have been so generous with the items on the wish list for the orphanage. The stove/oven money has already been collected-thanks to a handful of folks in Martin County, MN! Thank you, thank you!!! It was amazing how the pieces fell together to make it happen-such a God thing! If we happen to get more money in, we will make sure to use it on a need in the orphanage that we see when we are there. We also have a few classes from our local elementary school collecting items now too, as well as some wonderful friends from our community dropping by items off the list. I also have a few duffle bags that we were able to borrow. Thanks for all of this- I can't wait to bring everything over and I think by the time we travel, we will have all 8- 50lb. bags full!

I talked to Daron and he made it safely on his 12 hour bus ride up north. Tomorrow he will travel 4 more hours until he gets to Mole National Park, where he will go on a walking safari and hopefully see some wildlife near the watering holes! If it is a good experience, we hope to take our family up there when we are all together (which I can't believe is next week)!!! Wow, time is flying and before I know it, we will all be together as a family! Did I mention that I took Kwame and Fia on a walking webcam tour of our home? It was kind of fun and crazy, at the same time. I guess Kwame is very excited about his bed and continues to point to his bed in the photo book that we sent over. So, when I was talking to them on the webcam, Kwame wanted to see his bed and his face just lit up when I showed it to him. Fia then wanted to see hers, which she loved too. We then walked around and showed them more of our house, a new doll, a new book, etc., and ended with shoes. Daron said that Fia loves shoes-:) Too bad none of the rest of the girls in our house do.....yeah, right!! I think I may have to hide my favorite shoes from 3 girls now!

Way Up North!

In the morning, Daron is headed up to northern Ghana. Actually, he is probably on his way now. He was going to head up to Mole National Park via a very crowded bus for 12 hours. Please pray that he has a wonderful time exploring and seeing a different part of Ghana, that he has a safe trip, and that he gets word on the passports and I-600 when he returns!

Below are a couple more pictures from their day at the beach:

Random thoughts on Daron's Trip

Daron seems to be doing well and really enjoying spending time with the kids. We got to talk to him today and they both told us all hi. I love hearing their voices and hearing them say,"Hi Mommy." I guess that Fia loves to swing and Kwame isn't so sure about the swing, but loves to be held by his daddy. It sounds like I will 100% have a cuddler coming home, so that will be nice. Can't wait until I can hold him too and snuggle with him. That will make the attachment that much easier. Kwame also loved kicking around the soccer ball with Daron for awhile and then searching for lizards. Justus was excited to hear this and declared that he and his brother now have two things in common: sports and liking to chase lizards!

Daron has really loved sitting and reading with them and he says that he can tell Fia is quite smart(we are already bragging) with how fast she picks things up. Fia is also such a little mother to her brother, which is cute, but also sad that she has felt the need to take on the responsibility. Hopefully when they come home, she will be able to let go of that sense of mothering that a 4 yr. old shouldn't have to have on her shoulders and instead put the natural instinct into playing with her dolls and just looking after her brother in more of a 'big sister' role that is age appropriate.

I guess the kids also really love looking at our family pictures and the photo books that we sent over there in September. Kwame loves to show Daron the picture of his bed and keeps telling him it is his bed. He even noticed the books near the bed and was really excited that those are his and Justus's books to share. I just want to pinch his cheeks when I think of his smile!

It seems that I do need to get used to potty training again for awhile and will need to stock up on diapers and pull-ups. Kwame is still pretty young and so is Fia, but Fia seems to be embarrassed about it, so my heart breaks for her. Daron just keeps telling me he tells her he loves her over and over, which seems to soften her. Gosh, Fia reminds me so much of my girls, especially Greta, who is also a little mother whenever I let her be. It will be so fun to see them all together and interacting. I can't wait(and at the same time, I am getting scared).

Well, I will try and write more later, but this is already getting long. ***Oh, and in case you are wondering why I am not posting pictures any more, it is because the camera has been misplaced/lost/stolen-not sure which one! I can't imagine how Daron is feeling after possibly losing all the pictures(except for the ones on my blog) from the first week, not having a camera now until I get there, and the biggie:it WASN'T OUR CAMERA! Yep, we borrowed one, so you know how great we are feeling about that right now. Please pray that the camera is found and delivered back to Daron. Also pray that our friends are still our friends-that would be wonderful! :)

P.S. No update on the 1-600, except I don't think I mentioned on the blog that our adoption coordinator over in Ghana got the lady at the embassy to acknowledge that it could be ready in 10 days, not 6 months. We will continue to pray for her and the office so that they can process ours, as well as the other Americans that filed theirs this week, as quickly as possible. The passports are also something we continue to pray for.