Adoption Update

Adoption Update on the horizon!

I emailed our agency this afternoon to request that they check in and see what in all of China is up with our forms and they are asking tonight soooo....

standby in the morning for news.
Sweet Jesus let it be great news!!
See ya on the flip side!

Pampered Chef added to the Raffle!

My friend Megan has graciously donated a Pampered Chef knife to giveaway on our raffle!
It slices
It dices
It...well, it's a knife so it does all sortsa knifey type things!
It's the 5" utility knife from their Forged Collection!
Holla!

You can check out the rest of Pampered Chef products here!

And to see all of the prizes click here! We are still short of the funds needed so we are incredibly appreciative and will be forever grateful for your help in bringing them home! Prizes will be drawn on October 15th!

It's a New Day

Ahhh how I love soaking up some SONshine.

As I was reading this morning in the backyard with the birds chirping, the sun shining down, a hot cup of coffee in my hand and my Bible in my lap I read this from Acts Chapter 1. Jesus is about to ascend into Heaven and his disciples are questioning him about when the time will be at which He will restore His kingdom.
......ahhh..questioning Him about His timing.....
Hello conviction.
My name is Sonia.
Nice to meet you.

Anyhoo, here is Christ's response:
" He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be my witnesses both in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth."Acts 1:7-8

Btw I had no idea what on earth an epoch was so I looked it up. It means a particular part of history or an era....just in case you were curious. 

Bottom line I have NO idea why we are having to wait.
But He knows.
And we trust Him.
Now if my impatient flesh would just continually remember that it'd be a hecka of a lot easier! 

Now on to another pressing item....my friend Cari has tagged me to come up with 10 surprising things about myself....
what she doesn't know is that I am like the most boring person on the planet...so coming up with 10 things....
oh my....
time for my coffee while I ponder that. ;)

-sigh-

My heart hurts.
Joey's word's of
"Please come pick me up early"
just keeps running through my head.

I think this is the shortest blog post in history.....
but it's just kinda where I'm at right now.
...trying to pick them up early...which at this point will be thankful if that is before the end of the year.

-sigh-

No news on LSC's today...
maybe tomorrow.

147 Million Tee Giveaway!

The sweet ladies over at 147 are donating a tee as part of our raffle! They have some new designs that they are rolling out so head on over here and check em out!

You will be able to select which tee you would like and sizing and such. Thanks ladies! We are blessed!

Our Weekend

Catchin a little air 
Catchin a little relaxation.
Ahhhh, such a great day! We headed out on our dear friend's boat on Saturday. We were going to go out on our imaginary boat but decided that their real boat would be more fun.

Jordan learned a little somethin new.
He went from this

and a bit of this

to this

And when you're 12,
that's cool.
Way cool.

It was the face plants at the end that prevented me from desiring to rouse myself from my shady position on the boat to give it a try.
So I didn't.
The smart people The rest of us stayed  with more tame activities

Tubing

Jumping off the boat

and pretending to be captain's of the ship.
Even if we all know who the captain actually is....

Captain Angie!
ok Jeremy, you can be captain too.

It was a great family-friend- fun day!

And then it was Sunday.
And we went to church this morning.
And I sinned.
Like sinned, sinned.

And only because my aim is to keep this journal of our lives real am I willing to confess this to you.
Whew.
Here it goes....I.....I.....
...I wore white sandals to church......
...in the deep, deep south...
after Labor Day.
I know.
I guess there is a little rebel within me after all.

But all shoe etiquette was soon forgotten because when I sat down and opened the bulletin here is what was staring back at me from the message notes.

Let's just say that all of that mascara that I applied before church...
was wasted.
....and was running down my face.
I looked a bit like I belonged in a heavy metal band....
one that wears white shoes after Labor Day.

60 + days and still waiting

Well,
Nuthin.
I got nuthin new in the ridiculously long bout to drive me crazy wait for LSC's.

I'd be lyin if I said it didn't bother me at all.
It bothers me.
I'm there mom, it should bother me.
It isn't consuming me...which I guess is good considering I have four other sweet faces needing me at the moment....
but it bothers me.

Lately though my heart has been incredibly burdened by those left behind.
Take this little fella in the yellow shirt for instance sitting next to Jacob.

He is one of three kids out of the 8 in Joey & Jacob's foster home that doesn't yet have a family.
Within the next few months 5 of those children will be adopted and
he
will
watch
them
leave. 

He is 3 weeks younger than the twins and when I look at them it's all I can see.
A child.
A child left behind.

Wow. I'm such a downer today...
So how bout a joke?

Ok,
Here goes.

Knock, knock
Who's there?
Lettuce.
Lettuce who?
Lettuce in, it's cold outside!

Yeah. I need to get out more.

Please pray with us that Satan gets out of our way in bringing these boys home. We know that he knows that when we finally reach them they will hear the Word and be told of the love the Father has for them and we know that is the last thing the enemy wants.
And if you would like more info on the sweet boy in the picture, let me know and I'll tell you where to find him. He is precious!

Jesus turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men." Matthew 16:23

Yep. Get behind me Satan.
Love that.

Another prize added!!

My dear friend Yvonne has generously donated a Scentsy Warmer to be given away for our raffle!!
Can I get a woot-woot?!
We merciously have had a Scentsy warmer for quite some time and it masks the smell of sweaty boy fills our home with luscious fragrance.
Along with this warmer she is including 3 fall-themed scentsy bars!
Check out the rest of the Scentsy collection here! 
Thanks Yvonne!

A gift from afar!!

This has been the week of photos!!
and can I say.....that's like my favorite week?!

A blog friend of mine just returned with her daughter who was one of Jacob & Joey's foster sisters and in her disposable camera were pic's of the kids in the foster home.....
including two chuckle heads that I know.

Peace out brotha!

Kickin back watchin a little TV(Jacob green shirt)....please Lord let it be something appropriate for his little heart!

Hmmmm, whose that poppin in to the photo?

Sweetness....pure sweetness!

Thank you Christie and welcome home Tessa!!

Physically Sick...Spiritually Hangin on!

I've got a nasty head cold goin on...
it's all fun and games around here....
...until mom gets sick.
Good times.

In other news, STILL no LSC's...but I'm sure you guessed that already as you didn't hear crazy woman screams waking you up this morning...
...one morning you will hear that..
but don't be alarmed.
It's just me.
And I mean you no harm...
I was just really, really excited.

I've stopped counting how many days we've been waiting...
my mental health has thanked me for that. ;)

All I know is that
it
has
been
a
long
long
long
time.

But it's ok.
We are firmly within His grip.
And our faith is un-wavering.

So it's all good.
No worries.
It'll get here.
The boys may have moustaches and be of voting age by the time they get here..

but they'll get here.
I just know it.

Besides, I think I've figured it all out.
See this picture?

I think there is a new thing going on where the kids have to write their own LSC's.
And man alive those Mandarin characters can be tricky!
No wonder it's taking so long!

A bit more about Jacob

I couldn't think of a better Sunday Snapshot than our birthday boy himself. It's been quite the week for our little guy!


I'd say Jacob's pretty jazzed at the news of having a family....but that's just a guess. ;)

A little bit about our sweet boy.
He is 7 months older than Joey and they moved into the family home from the orphanage within months of each other about 3 years ago.
This child has our hearts.....big time.
I can't get enough of how his personality shines through each of his photographs.
He
cracks
me
up!

Jacob's "special need" is cleft lip & palate. Both of which have been repaired along with a heart condition that is common among cleft affected children. Medically he should be good to go but we see an immense amount of orthodontic work in his future...also quite common with cleft issues.....but we just don't see any of that when we look at him...
we see love!
We see our son!
We see a boy hand crafted by the Maker and placed right into our lives and directly into our hearts.

He is our ever unfolding miracle...
and for that we are ever grateful.

They remind me of someone....

It's been amazing to see how God is weaving these children into our lives and to see how, even from an ocean away, they
are.
our.
sons.

He truly is the Father to the fatherless...... He sets the lonely in families; he sets the prisoners free and gives them joy....(Psalm 68:5) He cares for the orphan and we know that He cares about these two precious kids. How He orchestrated all of this and events in our lives leading up to this amazes me every moment of everyday.
It's indescribable.

In lieu of the new photos showcasing their sweet goofy-ness it has occured to me....
I've seen these shannagins before....
....it's oddly familiar.

Exhibit A:
circa 2004-2007
...starting with stuffed animals in the refridgerator. That's what I get for going potty by myself and leaving two two year old's alone for 1.2 seconds.

Yep.
They're our children.
No doubt about it.

Not flesh of my flesh, Nor bone of my bone,
But still miraculously my own. 


Author: Fleur Conkling Heylinger