Caringbridge - Update from Nashville

Yes, that's right.  Our family is in Nashville, Tennessee, this long weekend for the 10th-anniversary celebration of Show Hope.  We are so thankful that we were able to come, especially since when we first got the invitation in the mail, it seemed like such a long shot.  I figured I would be on bed rest or something by now, but here I am, traversing the country with my family in our 12-passenger van!

Tonight, Steven Curtis Chapman and his family welcomed donors, grant recipients, and others to the anniversary concert, and it was wonderful! Full of amazing stories and testimonies of God's grace, we were again humbled to get to be a part of the special world of adoption.  Neil has been particularly vocal this weekend about how grateful he is that we adopted him (If he only really knew how thankful we are that God chose him for us!), and we keep thinking of how this reflects our relationship with the Lord--how grateful we are that we've been adopted by the King!

There are many things I should share related to the babies.  So without further ado and in no particular order...

-At last Thursday's doctor appointment, I met one of the new doctors at the practice.  She was very nice...no surprise.  Everyone there is fantastic.  I was concerned about a couple of things, but we talked them through, and in the end, she was able to answer my questions in such a way that my concerns have faded.

-Also at last Thursday's appointment, I failed my glucose screening. I think this happened one other time.  No problem yet, except for the fact that I need to return on Wednesday for the more extensive 3-hour glucose screening.  She told me that 95% of people who fail the 1-hour test end up passing the 3-hour test.  That's what happened with me last time, and I'm hoping for the same result this time around.

-Baby Bart is still very, very low.  75% of his movements make me feel like he is clawing to get out.  This was part of my concern, but Dr. W assured me that some babies just find their favorite spot and hang out there.  I guess that's Bart and Aaron for you!

-Last week (again!), we received some amazing blessings from some folks.  On Wednesday, I hung out with a woman from church for a bit who had asked if she could meet with me because she had "a couple of things" to give me.  We talked for awhile, and I got to hear her story, which was so good.  I hadn't known before that their family had lost a daughter to Trisomy 18.  Heartbreaking, of course, but good to talk to someone else who knew before she was born that their child wouldn't live outside the womb.  It is a strange reality to know that you're carrying a baby who can't survive.  She gave me a book, "I Will Carry You" written by Angie Smith, wife of Selah artist, Todd Smith.  I am not a fast reader, but....I finished it yesterday.  It was sooo good! Angie and Todd also had a daughter who died upon birth.  Months before she was born, this sweet couple was told that their daughter had conditions that were "incompatible with life".  I cannot express how much that book has ministered to me over the last few days.

-Also on Wednesday, we received an amazing gift in the mail that came to us from some brothers and sisters in Christ who lives across the pond.  Jill (Jeff's sister) send us a prayer quilt made my members of her church, and it is beautiful.  It has been prayed over by many, and included was a card with the most dear sentiments--from people we don't even know.  How blessed we are to be walking this road, despite the uneven terrain.

My favorite moment of tonight was when Casting Crowns was on stage performing, "Praise You in this Storm".  As often happens when I hear that song, tears started falling as I chose again with my will to praise the God who gives--and takes away.  I used to hear that song and think of Hunt; now I think of these precious babies I'm carrying today.....

Tom noticed my tears immediately, and with his sweet little hand, he began to wipe the tears from my face.  Then Beth noticed and got in on the action.  "Why are you sad, Mommy?" she asked.

"Well, Beth," I explained, "I'm just thinking about how sad I am that we have to say goodbye to Baby Aaron.  I miss him already. But I'm also thankful because we can trust God with our sadness.  He hears our cries and understands."

And then...out of the mouth of my sweet babe...with her hands cupping my face, she looks at me and says, "Don't be sad, Mommy. We will see him again soon!"

Amen, little one.  You understand words that beguile the smartest of men and the most powerful of kings.

Because we will.  See him again soon, that is.  This life is but a breath.

So for the breath, I grieve.  But for eternity, I rejoice.

Show Hope 10-year anniversary weekend!

What a blessing is the ministry of Show Hope!  Our family has benefitted twice now from grants given by Show Hope as we traveled the road of adoption.

I remember sitting at the Steven Curtis Chapman concert in September 2002.  Rex was just two months old, and Andrea and I headed to the concert--it was one of my first evenings away from Baby Rex, and it ministered to my soul.  The whole concert was amazing from start to finish, and most of the night was spent searching every nook and cranny of my purse for an extra tissue.

Nicole Nordeman opened.  She was fantastic.  Steve Saint appeared onstage with Mincaye, one of the Auca Indians who had speared his father and 4 other missionaries.  It was astounding.  And then, a video...When Love Takes You In.  I remember weeping and telling Andrea that I couldn't wait until we were at a place where we could adopt.  Less than a year later, we would attend our first adoption seminar, and we were off and running...in our hearts anyway.

Steven Curtis Chapman explained that night about how his daughter, Emily, had wanted a little sister and had prayed that her parents would open their hearts to adoption.  The prayers uttered by a little girl a decade-and-a-half ago has led to thousands of children being helped home through the ministry of Show Hope, as well as all the other adoption initiatives with which they are involved.

A few months ago, we received an invitation in the mail to attend the 10th anniversary weekend of Show Hope.  At that time, we had recently received our pregnancy diagnosis, and any thought that we would be in a place to travel to Nashville over Memorial Day weekend was....not there.  I didn't even consider the possibility, so I tossed the invitation, knowing that having it sitting around the house would just make me sad that we couldn't go. 

A couple of months later, as my pregnancy was stabilizing, and I was beginning to feel better, Hoffbeast suggested that we consider traveling to the weekend.  Let's just say that it didn't take a lot of convincing.  I was so excited--and here we are!

This afternoon, we drove to The Factory in Franklin, Tennessee, an old, long-ago-shut-down factory that has been converted to an amazing retail, dining, and learning space.  There, the offices of Show Hope are housed, and as a lover of all things behind-the-scenes and headquartersey, I loved being there!  Plus, I was able to meet in person a couple of the special people who have helped our process along there over the years.  The Chapmans were there, too, but unfortunately they took off before we were able to get much more than a handshake in.  Hopefully we will get a chance to talk with them in person tomorrow and introduce them to Tom--we are so thankful for the the grant that we received from them for our Indian adoption, as well as the first one we received prior to traveling to Ethiopia to meet Neil.

And I really hope I can tell Mary Beth that she traveled with me to India--because I'm not sure that she knows.  (Any of you reading along on our India travel journey knows that I began reading her book on the plane on the way there, and it was a constant companion for me during our whole trip.)

So, without further ado...photos of our day...

Let's just say that there were....a few people there.  It was hot and crowded, but they kept us well fed and hydrated.  :)  The daddy took the kids exploring while I waited in the hour-and-a-half line.

 It was worth it, though!  Once inside, I got to meet my Show Hope friend, Jaimee, in person for the first time!  Hoping to catch a little more time with her tomorrow...

 Their office comes equipped with a swing!  Now THAT'S a fun office!!  (Hoffbeast and I were both dreaming about HLIC's new office while we were there.)

 Maria's "SEE" flower adorned every corner of the office.  What a beautiful girl whose life has been used to bring Jesus great pleasure--both while she was here on Earth and now that she is in Heaven with Him.

 Afterwards, we spent some time with "Rusty", the Factory's metal man...so interesting!  He was HUGE, and the building of him took six years!  As we understood it, all the parts used to build him came from the factory itself, and he stands now as a memory to what the building used to be, even as it has been refurbished and is now used for completely different purposes.



 I am getting bigger every day!!  :)  Feeling good and really trying to enjoy these days...

 Last up for the night, frozen yogurt...yummy!



We are so grateful for the family God has given us!  Each of our children is so special, and tonight as I put Beth and Neil to bed, I reminded them that if I could have chosen any kids in the whole world to be mine, I wouldn't have chosen any differently.  God is so good in His choosing.



Whatever you say, Neil!

Tom moved in with Neil this week.  It was a big switch that has been coming for a long time.  Beth is getting her own room to make way for the babies' birth, so Tom is now in a big-boy bed, bottom bunking it up with Neil.  Very exciting stuff.  They love each other (Neil always tells Tom that they are "best friend brothers!"  It's very sweet.) and will certainly prove to be terrific roommates.

Today, after just 3 days, Neil announced that he wants his own room back.  "Sorry," I said.  "He's your roommate now!"  And then...one of Neil's classic, random-and-hilarious statements:

"He kept me up 'til midnight last night!  Okay, well, at least 'til ten.  Rooming with him is like rooming with General Washington!  He thinks of war and not sleep...all night long!"

Sure...whatever you say, Neil!

Caringbridge - 28 weeks!

I just can't believe it.  28 weeks.

It's late, and I should be in bed, but I must record just a few words about this milestone before hitting the hay.

For some reason, 28 weeks seems really, really big to me.  Maybe because it is, medically speaking?  Babies who make it to 28 weeks have a much higher survival rate than even babies who are just a bit younger.  32 weeks feels like the next really big one, although for me, 30 weeks will be big because at that point, I will start twice-weekly monitoring.

Tomorrow, I go to the doctor, and I have a few questions that I am eager to talk through.  More importantly, I will be meeting a new doctor, so that's important.  The practice I go to has 6 OBs, but 2 of them are new since I gave birth to Beth; at that time, there were only 4.  Two of the doctors are the ones who know me the best, as they both were on hand to perform my surgeries with both Hunt and Beth.  The other two that were there five years ago, I also feel like I know well and I feel very comfortable with.  Then there are the new doctors.  I actually would have preferred to not even meet the new folks, but Dr. McA suggested that perhaps I should at least see them each once, just so that I meet them in case they end up on call if/when there is an emergency.  That was a good call because, yes, I would not want to meet a doctor for the first time during a crisis.

I met with Dr. C a month ago, and he was great.  Tomorrow, I meet Dr. W.  Once I'm done meeting her, I will be through the list and then, honestly, will probably just see the doctors I'm the most familiar/comfortable with--or, as Dr. McA suggested, whichever doctor who has an opening that works with my schedule.  I'm sure I'll see them all plenty by the time this is all over.  I am so incredibly thankful for them and would recommend them to anyone!

The other thing happening tomorrow is my glucose screening.  Thick, sweet, orange, syruppy drink, here I come!  Yum!  :/

I have had some pretty beautiful things happen in the last couple of days.  I will try to write after my appointment tomorrow and record a little of that as well as update about my appointment, of course.

Thank you for your many continued prayers.  I am confident that God is using the prayers of His people as we continue down this road...

From Tom's mouth to God's ears...

"God, please give me a thankful heart.  And will you come and live in my heart forever?"

Have more precious words ever been spoken?

Did Tom enter the Kingdom today?  I don't know....but I know that the Father does--and that He is working.  Unless the Spirit draws a person, he/she does not long for the things of God or understand the message.  But Tom is beginning to understand the Good News, and whenever evidence like this prayer shows itself, it is something beautiful.

Thank you, Lord, for drawing my son...

Videos added

I have added videos to this post and, more importantly, to this post.  The first is a video added to the post that I just put up yesterday, but the second is a really special video to me, and I have no idea how it got missed when I was working on my India posts.  Enjoy!

Our Cramazing May, Episode LI: Celebration at Hard Rock

Saturday was another lovely Delhi day!  It was hot but so gorgeous outside by the pool, and our fabulous, comfy, well-air-conditioned hotel/mall kept us happy.

The big agenda item for the day was returning to the doctor's office so that L's and Tom's TB skin tests could be read.  In order for visas to the USA to be granted, they had to pass that test, and while it was mostly a formality, there was still some trepidation until we got the doc's okay.

By this time, we had connected with Mr. Singh, the man who would be our driver for the next few days.  He was kind and had a car with AC.  Both facts were greatly appreciated.  ;) 

Mr. Singh showed up at the agreed-upon time, and with all 7 of us crammed in his car, before we knew it, we had made it back to the doctor's office.  This visit was much smoother than the first, since we knew where to go and what to expect.  After making our appearance before the receptionist, we were ushered upstairs to wait for the test reading, which took all of a few minutes.  Both kiddos passed with flying colors, and in no time flat, we were done with the process and back in Mr. Singh's car.  It was so nice to have something be so easy for once!  :)

We spent the rest of the glorious day relaxing, swimming, and enjoying each other, so grateful that we were just one step away from being able to get on a plane headed for home.  On Tuesday we would have our Embassy appointment, but until then, there were no specific agenda items other than to enjoy this beautiful land from where our beautiful children had come.

After much back and forth, Hoffbeast and I decided that we simply couldn't pass up the opportunity to see the Taj Mahal, despite the four-hour drive that it would take to get to Agra.  Since we had two days to kill, how could we not?  We made plans with Mr. Singh for an early-morning pickup, while Scott and Karen made arrangements with another driver to move to a different hotel the next day.  We would stay at the Hilton Garden Inn for one more night and join them at the Sheraton on Monday.

That evening, we decided to celebrate our victory at the doctor's visit by eating at Hard Rock Cafe.  I have to say that I was very much craving a hamburger by this point in the trip and was hopeful that Hard Rock would be able to deliver.

Note to self:  Don't ever get hopes up for a yummy tasting burger in a land where cows are considered sacred.  Just don't. 

Even so, we had a great time with our friends....another great end to another great day!

From L to R:  Scott, Karen, L, Hoffbeast, Tom, me, Rex, and....our two mannequin friends.  Random, right??!

 These two pictures are simply to prove that not every single moment traveling with an 8-year-old was perfect.  Overall, Rex did SO well, but he had his moments, as did we all.  I'm not sure what was upsetting him at this point, but thankfully, it didn't last long...

 Where's Waldo saves the day!!!

 I love this picture of Scott, Karen, and L!

Rex really enjoyed his food!

 My burger looked really good, but....um....well....the fries were yummy!

 I did discover that if I was feeding Tom, he seemed to kinda like me.  So we made the switch, and I started sitting by him at meals.  Since he and I were going to be traveling halfway around the world alone together, it was important that he started to trust me. 

 He still preferred Daddy by far, but at least he would tolerate me.  :)  Our server was so sweet!  She looked much more East Asian than most people that we were meeting, and she explained that she was from the very northeast part of India, just south of China.  India is such a diverse place!

 Nothing like a daddy-snuggle at the end of a long day.  :)

 The McF family embraced our Rex and seemed to enjoy him so much...what a blessing!

 Happy, happy girl!

 Happy, happy boy!  (The troubles from earlier were long gone.)

To close out the night...balloons!!!

Does it get any better than an elevator and a balloon!??

I'm not quite sure why this video is sideways, but it shows us heading toward the security area that we had to go through each time we walked from the mall back into the hotel. 

A couple other interesting things that we saw at the mall?  People paying to put their feet in water and have tiny fish eat the dead skin off their feet.  No joke!  I wish I had taken a picture of it, but I felt awkward, like I was invading their paid-for space.  It was crazy weird, though.  Also, up and down all of the escalators were printed comic strips, most notably Garfield.  I have no idea why, but it was a welcomed piece of home each time we saw one, and Rex loved it!