A year ago today....

Oh sweet guy, we were so excited this time last year.  Thanksgiving had just passed and we had been blessed with the news of our court date!  I remember going around the Thanksgiving circle at dinner time and being amazed that our journey was finally here.  All the prayers and tears and imagining your little face, all that was finally subsiding and the end was in sight.  Daddy and I left your sisters (which was really hard since Lyd, Lyd was not even a year yet) and boarded a plane to headed for Addis Ababa.  We had awful travel and got delayed in Atlanta and in Germany.  It made our trip there last more than 24 hrs.  By the time we finally got to Ethiopia we had missed a nights sleep and still were 7 hrs off due to the time zone.  We were given the option to go straight to Shalom Orphanage and meet you or to rest and go for the afternoon session.  Of course we went to see you!  Your little sleepy face was not in the mood to meet us.  You were not interested in playing or smiling and I thought, "Ought Oh, this might be harder than I imagined".  You allowed us to finally play with you and hold you only if you good friend was near by.  Our court trip to Ethiopia had some unexpected glitches and caused us to only wait longer until you came home. But I know now that God was only giving you and us the little extra time needed to make our adjustment easier.  You couldn't have done better getting use to our family.

JP, I'm so glad you came into our lives.  The path that led us to you was unusual and different than most other little boys but no less special.  Your sensitive and charming way just compliments your sisters perfectly.  You have the most mischievous smile and your charisma is contagious.  We love you and couldn't imagine our family without you.  Here's a few pictures from last years court trip

 Mommy had just gotten off the plane in time to meet you!

 Mitin, your special friend that never left your side.  I pray the Lord keeps you two in touch over the years.  Mommy will do all she can to make sure you have this connection.

 So  happy to finally meet the staff in Ethiopia that made your adoption possible

 Addis Ababa from our guest house window

 Our last visit with you before having to come home.  Look at that cute, little handsome face. 

6 months already?

6 months ago I stepped off a plane with a little boy who barely knew me and whom I barely knew.  We had spent the last 4 days together after only meeting briefly 5 months before.  And during the brief meeting my JP was not happy about talking with me or his Daddy or sitting with us.  We were forced to bribe him with dum-dums to get him to sit on our lap or not cry when we touched him.  Joey and I came home and wondered how long it would take this child, who we had prayed for nearly 3 years, to adjust to coming into our family.  We had anticipated meeting this child of ours for years and dreamed of how our life would look with a little boy but then we worried that somehow he might be frightened and terrified to board a plane and come across the ocean only to be forever with these white strangers.  That small, sweet, scared little boy did board a plane with me and his Grandfather.  He endured a long journey without a whimper or typical two-year old episode.  He was strangely still and quiet for a tike his age.  Now knowing him as a mother does, that behavior came from a scared and insecure place within his confused heart. 

Today he has been home for 6 months.  He is a happy, sweet, sensitive, and very smart little boy.  His English is as good as or better than his peers.  He is learning his colors and numbers quickly. He loves "choo-choo's" and cars and screeches every time he sees a fire truck with it's sirens on!  His favorite food is french fries and he can spot a Chic-Fil-A from a mile down the street. JP goes to school two days a week and bible study once a week.  His best friend is his little sister who loves to run up and down the hall with and who he likes to push in her baby doll stroller.  He has fit in perfectly to our family. That's not saying it hasn't been a hard and we are still getting to know each.  Our love for him has grown and I'm sure if he could say it he'd tell you the same thing. 

I did a small "interview" with JP tonight.  I was going to post it but it took way too long to upload....



Memphis in full show

This isn't "my" tree but these are some downtown trees:)

Today as the kids and I were riding to bible study I was enjoying the beautiful show that Memphis is in the midst of.  To be honest, until last week, I was disturbed that I had somehow moved from the lush, green and beautiful land of Upstate South Carolina to what was seemingly a pretty pitiful fall display.  There were no turning of leaves to brilliant bright reds, oranges and yellows. Instead the trees remained green and some just went to straight brown or had fallen to the ground.  It was yet another small grievance on my behalf.  But last week I woke up and walked out our front door to a beautiful, confident, bright yellow maple in a lot across the street that is home to an abandoned house.  I rode around last week and found that Memphis was going to prove she was just a pretty as my Carolina.  It really was a sweet comfort to my sometimes homesick soul.  I was marveling at what is sure to be a short-lived miracle this morning and worshiping God in song and the Lord spoke to my heart.  He used that tree across the street to give me a pretty useful analogy.  It's funny that the Lord can bring beauty out of despair.  Most people in Memphis would ride around Orange Mound and see blight, crime, and poverty. In fact, over the last two weeks I've encountered my first taste of not-so-understanding Memphians.  People here are really concerned about where people live.  Normally I try to give a general answer but they're not happy with that.  Memphians want to know your cross street.  Stranges thing.  So a couple of times I was talking with someone and they kept pressing about where I moved to in Memphis and I'm trying to avoid because I've already picked up that they're not going to be very understanding of our choice.  So push comes to shove and out comes Orange Mound and I see anxiety and discomfort written all over their faces.  And I wish I could somehow bring words to encourage them to give it a chance.  To not miss the blessing I'm receiving.  After living here for only a few short months and beginning to know it more intimately I've found that it's an extraordinary place.  My neighbors are special and wonderful people who were created by our Masterful Maker for a purpose in the history of time.  There is beauty in ashes and strength in weakness.  The tree also showed me that, yes, Jesus does choose to use us despite our sin.  That His Majesty shines even through the filth of our nature and our constant waywardness.  When I look across the street and I'm tempted to see only a boarded up home and empty lots and find reason to complain about where I'm at, I hope my heart remembers the splendor of a simple maple tree in a Memphis November.  That the Lord is at work in the most unusual places and that he normally uses the low and little and humble places on Earth to reveal His Glory.

I'll leave you with a picture of the three little maples in my life....