The Harmon Family

WE HAVE WORDS!

2011-12-18T12:44:00.000-06:00

It's official.

Miles is talking.

Well, talking might be a bit of an exaggeration.

Miles is saying words.

Sign language is still our main form of communication, but he is adding new sounds/words every week.

We are struggling big time with behavior stuff, but for today, we are celebrating the little things. The baby steps. We are celebrating the gift of words!

:: Miles eating an ah-po ::

THE 'FRO

2011-12-16T11:33:00.001-06:00

Miles' hair is crazy so we finally caved in and got it cut.

It was time.

I was in complete denial, but it really needed to be done.

His ends were getting dry and knotted real easy, making getting ready in the mornings a bit of a nightmare. So, in an effort to make it healthier, we cut it.

I really did not think he would do good.

I had braced myself for the worst.

So, my super fabulous hair girl came in before the salon opened to cut down on noise and we armed ourselves with a bag full of candy, toys, books, and electronics. Turns out, all we needed was a lollipop. Well, two to be exact.

:: All picked out and ready to go ::

:: Miles getting his hair cut like a big boy ::

:: Two lollipops later, all done ::

CHRISTMAS BAND CONCERT

2011-12-08T23:12:00.001-06:00

Alex is in the 6th grade band this year at school. I was surprised when he told me he wanted to try band because he's never been into music, but he loves it. It's his favorite class.

He plays the trombone and actually really good.

I now know more about the trombone than I thought I ever would.

I found one at a flea market, had a couple of dints removed from the slide, and it has turned out to be a nice starter instrument for him (for a fraction of the cost). I love flea markets!

The Christmas Band Concert was tonight and the students did a great job!

:: Alex getting his music ready ::

:: Alex introducing the 2nd song ::

:: The brass section ::

READ THESE POSTS IF...

2011-10-18T07:03:00.001-05:00

...you are praying about adoption or foster care.

...you are in the process of adopting.

...you have adopted.

Seriously, you have to read them.

They are so good!

Don't Adopt! by Russell Moore, author of 'Adopted for Life'
Adoption is about taking on risk... by John Knight
After the Airport by Jen Hatmaker

LOVE IS A CHOICE

2011-10-17T14:20:00.003-05:00

I am married to the most amazing man in the world.

I don't deserve him.

But I am better because of him.

He lives out Jesus to me.

He's not perfect.

But he is quick to extend grace, love and forgiveness.

He knows my flaws and my shortcomings and loves me anyway.

He forgives when I don't deserve it.

He's quick to say sorry, even when it's my fault.

And he doesn't hold a grudge.

Who does that?

My man, that's who.

By choosing to love me as Christ loved the church, Jesus shines.

Which makes me want to be more like Jesus to him.

Which makes me better. And our marriage better.

All because he made a choice.

I am so blessed to have a man who is willing to lead.

He leads gently.

By example.

After we got married, he told me that if I leave him he's going with me.

I thought it was funny.

He makes me laugh.

But 15 years later,

I am surprised at the security that statement has brought me.

Because I know they aren't empty words.

He means it.

The statement comes from a place of insecurity for him, but God has used it in our marriage to get us to the place to not only say we are all in, but to live it. To choose it. To fight for it.

So, good, bad, or ugly,

'till death do us part' is the only way we are getting out of this marriage.

And I love that.

Today isn't special.

It isn't the day we met, our first date or our anniversary.

It's just a Monday.

And today, we choose love.

THE HAIR...

2011-09-26T15:23:00.000-05:00

I love Miles' hair.

LOVE IT!

But it is Crazy with a capital C!

Fixing Miles' hair in the mornings is usually a battle, so when days come around where I can put it off until after his nap I jump at the chance. He has serious bed head so it helps to only have to fix it once.

Even though putting it off until later in the day is an option (an option that we only take when we don't have to leave the house), his hair MUST be done everyday. If not, it is a tangled mess the next day. Not only do we have to get the knots out, but we also have to empty it of any stored food.

Yes, you read that correctly.

Miles uses his big beautiful curly hair as food storage.

Not by accident.

On purpose.

It's not hard to see the food if it's a potato chip, like the picture below, but when it's something like chocolate cheerios, it could be a couple of days before we find them. And that may have actually happened, but I would be too embarrassed to tell you if it did :)

SOMEONE GOT A TIN GRIN TODAY...

2011-09-23T16:51:00.000-05:00

MAKING PROGRESS

2011-09-03T18:03:00.001-05:00

It has been a few months since I've given an update on Miles.

Miles has been in therapy for over 6 months and is making some real progress.

We have been able to see little differences here and there, but the last month or two it's been amazing. He is now making progress that people who don't see him everyday notice. It is so exciting to watch his little personality come alive.

Miles is now making great eye contact, responds to his name, babbles (lots of consonant sounds), waves bye bye, lets us hold/rock him, doesn't bang his head near as much, doesn't spend as much time upside down, and initiates play with us. His hips and core are also getting a lot stronger. His balance is really improving and he can walk at more than one speed. He does good going up stairs, but going down is still very difficult.

Our biggest struggle with Miles is communication. He is constantly frustrated and expresses it through biting and pinching. The only word he says regularly is 'bye' and he usually says it when he wants someone to go away. He also says words that sound like 'mama', 'dada', 'book', 'apple', 'duck', and 'no'. He will sign 'more', but we don't always know what he wants more of. So, since his motor skills are getting better, they have started sign language with him at therapy. I am so amazed and excited how quick he is picking up on it. I have learned over 80 signs in the last week to be able to work with Miles at home, and we are having so much fun with it. Miles has started consistently signing yes, no, eat, milk, book, car, and monkey. If he doesn't know how to do a sign, he will put his little hands in my hands so I can help him say it. It is so sweet! I think this is going to be a huge help for him.

His therapy schedule was adjusted this summer to combine therapies so he could move from going 5 days a week down to 3 days a week. It has helped SO much! It allows his daytime routine to be more consistent, which means no more falling asleep during lunch.

So, now that we are on a schedule that gives us some breathing room, we are finally going to start Developmental Therapy. Miles' little quirks can be overwhelming sometimes, but this will give us the tools to make the day to day stuff be more manageable.

A new book on Sensory Processing Disorder was recommended to me yesterday that I can't wait to get my hands on. The more I learn about SPD, the more I am amazed how complex our bodies were designed. "Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! You workmanship is marvelous - how well I know it." {Psalm 139:14 NLT}

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ALEX!

2011-08-19T22:41:00.000-05:00

Alex turned 12 this week.

We spent the evening tonight celebrating his birthday with lots of family and a few friends.

Alex LOVES baseball cards.

He is a big collector.

So, this year, he wanted a Baseball Themed Party.

We couldn't find any invitations that we loved, so we made our own.

We took unopened boxes of Cracker Jacks, attached his party info to the back, stuck on address labels and mailed them.

Here are a couple of pictures from the party...

MIDDLE SCHOOL

2011-08-12T14:29:00.002-05:00

Today is Alex's first day of school.

First day of 6th Grade.

I thought I would be a little stressed when he reached Middle School.

But I'm not at all.

I'm so excited for him.

He is so ready to move on to this next phase of life.

He is a leader.

He makes good choices.

He puts a lot of thought into who he surrounds himself with.

He has a big heart and cares about others.

He really is ready.

Alex- You are such an amazing kid! You were created with a purpose and you were made to change your world. I love you so much and I'm so proud of you. Your mission this year hasn't changed... {Love God, Love Others, Go Tell}. I have know doubt that you can do it!

ONE MAN'S TRASH...

2011-06-16T15:08:00.002-05:00

I've been in the market for a headboard for our bed for a while now, but I just can't seem to find something that I love - in my price range. I was looking for something that looks kind of old. A brand new bed would look out of place because there are several pieces of furniture in the room that look kind of rustic.

Pieces like this...

This is my FAVORITE piece of furniture in our house.

We picked it up in Roanoke, Texas six years ago from a little shop that was going out of business. It's about nine feet long, made out of old barn wood and complete with a glass top. It was one of those 'right place at the right time' moments because we ended up getting it for a hundred dollars! I've been offered a couple of thousand dollars for it, more than once, but I'll never sell it. I'm not a real sentimental person, but this piece has a story and it's very special to me. Keith says everything is for sell for the right price, but even he knows that does not apply here.

Another treasure that we have that Keith found for me about eight years ago is an old screen door. He found it on the side of the road in Albany, Georgia and it survived our moves to Texas, Florida, and Arkansas. The movers always gave us funny looks when they loaded and unloaded it. I think they thought we took it off the house.

When we moved to Arkansas, the door never found a home.

Until yesterday.

I had to get something out of the attic yesterday and saw my screen door in the back corner. I had forgotten all about it, but when I saw it, I immediately thought...

...HEADBOARD!

So I drug it down and had Keith help me hang it on the wall.
I went ahead and made a banner to hang on the door out of the leftover burlap I had from Miles' birthday party.

I LOVE how it turned out!

(And I love the fact that it cost me nothing!)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MILES!

2011-06-12T15:23:00.000-05:00

I can't believe Miles turns TWO today.

It just doesn't seem possible.

He is such a blessing to us.

I can't even begin to imagine doing life without him.

Miles has so many people in his life who love him and would love to help us celebrate him, but he's not at a place yet where he can handle all the attention.

So, we had a small party yesterday at our house with our immediately family.

We didn't want to overwhelm him.

I even started singing 'Happy Birthday' to him several times a day for the last week in an effort to help him get ready.

It didn't work.

He was overwhelmed.

Happy Birthday Sweet Miles!

God has big, big plans for your life.

After all, you were His idea!

...

2011-05-31T10:59:00.005-05:00

"Your story may not have such a happy beginning, but look how it turned out.

Your past does not define you. It is what you decide to be that does."

-Soothsayer {Kung Fu Panda 2}

What is the GOSPEL?

2011-05-25T17:23:00.001-05:00

God created us to be with Him. (Genesis 1-2)

Our sins separate us from God. (Genesis 3)

Sins cannot be removed by good deeds. (Genesis 4 - Malachi 4)

Paying the price for sin, Jesus died and rose again. (Matthew - Luke)

Everyone who trusts in Him alone has eternal life. (John)

Life with Jesus starts now and lasts forever. (Acts - Revelation)

Click here to read about about the GOSPEL Journey message.

MOTHER'S DAY

2011-05-08T15:28:00.005-05:00

I am so blessed to have these two little guys in my life.

So blessed to be called their Mom.

_________________________________________________________________________

Alex surprised me this morning with this...

Yes it's a bottle of Coca-Cola.

But not just any Coke.

It's 'Hecho en Mexico'.

And 'Made in Mexico' means that it is made with real sugar.

Which means it's not made with high fructose corn syrup like regular Coke.

And that's only a big deal if you have crazy food allergies like I do.

_________________________________________________________________________

This year, we gave our Mom's this...

Keith and I were both blessed with amazing Mom's, so in their honor, we gave to help provide clean water to a village in Ethiopia, which will free women from the responsibility to search and fetch water and make it possible for them to lead productive lives of hope and dignity.

_________________________________________________________________________

This is the second Mother's Day Miles has been home.

And the second year we get to celebrate Fikirte, Miles' birth mother.

I am so thankful for her.

So blessed by her sacrifice.

And I proudly share the title of Mother with her.

Happy Mother's Day, Fikirte!

PRAYER BOX

2011-05-01T15:15:00.002-05:00

A couple of years ago, I started helping Alex with his personal time with God.
I knew he needed to learn to do it on his own, j
ust him and the Lord, but I struggled with feeling like he was too young.
I liked spending that time with him and the thought of stepping back and letting him do it on his own meant that he was growing up.

But, I want his faith to be his own.

I want him to know what he believes and why he believes it.

And I want him to know, first hand, that God's Word speaks to every area of his life.

So, I started looking for a devotion book that would guide Alex through God's Word, not act as a substitute for it. I wanted something that would not only walk him through scripture, but help him learn to apply it to his everyday life. There are so many great resources out there, that I didn't have any trouble finding something.

After we found a way to help him read his Bible, I started looking for a way to help Alex organize his prayer time.

To simplify it.

To help him stay focused.

To help him keep up with who he was praying for, what he was praying about, and when God answers those prayers.

There are not a lot of resources on practical ways to helping children learn to pray. So we created our own system.

Several years ago, a good friend showed me the way she was taught to memorize scripture, and we discovered that it could be used for prayer also.

I absolutely loved how the system turned out, so I ended up, not only making a box for Alex, but making a box for myself also and I use it every single day.

Here is my Prayer Box...

Everything and everyone I am praying for gets their own blank index card and that index card gets filed in one of these three sections...

DAILY
I have several index cards behind my Daily tab... Keith, Alex, Miles, then friends and family who have somewhat urgent prayer requests, each have their own card. And on that card, I write out the things I am praying for along with the date.

WEEKLY
My weekly tabs have very specific things that I want to make sure I pray for at least once a week.

Monday {Christian Leaders}
Tuesday {Local Church}
Wednesday {Relatives}
Thursday {Friends}
Friday {United States of America}
Saturday {Lost & Unchurched}
Sunday {Missionaries & World Missions}

MONTHLY
The last section has 31 numbered tabs. One for everyday of the month.

This is where most of my index cards are filed. I have made cards for my family members, friends, staff wives and their families, ministry friends all around the country and their families, the 5th graders at Alex's school and their families, the families in our adoption group, etc... I think you get the idea.

Each of those cards are placed randomly behind a number.

This is how it works...
Let's say that it is Tuesday, April 5th.

First, I start by taking out the index cards behind my Daily tab and pray through those.

Then, I would go to my Tuesday tab, which is the day I pray specifically for our Church, and pull out the cards behind that tab and pray through those cards.

Lastly, if it's the 5th of the month, I would jump to the number 5 tab and pray through those cards.

I love how easy and organized it is.
I also love that it keeps the answered prayers in front of me.

When we lived in Florida, a staff member found out he had cancer. So, I found the index card that had his family on it, wrote down the date and the prayer request, and moved it behind my daily tab so I could pray for him everyday. After he went through treatment and finally got word that he was cancer free, I wrote the date that God answered the prayer and moved his index card back into the monthly section. Now, when I pray for his family, I can also see how God has been faithful to them and it reminds me to praise Him and thank Him for that.

I realize that this might not work for everyone. I have a lot of friends who keep prayer journals, but since I can't read my own handwriting, journaling never worked for me.

You could easily use a smaller box, but we decided to combine our Prayer Box and our Scripture Memory Box together. It also gives us space to keep extra index cards, pencils, and pens.

What are some ways you encourage Spiritual Habits in your children?
What are some resources that you think we should know about?

THE MUSIC MAN

2011-04-30T12:14:00.002-05:00

The 5th graders at Shiloh Christian School have been working very hard the last few months to get ready for their 5th grade musical, The Music Man. They had three performances the last two days and they did an amazing job!

Alex has never done anything like that before and I was so surprised how much he enjoyed it. He played Ewart Dunlop who was a member of the School Board and part of the Quartet.

Thank you Mrs. Darr & Mrs. Duell for investing in our children!

What a blessing!

Great job Shiloh 5th graders!

MILES (update)

2011-04-27T19:54:00.000-05:00

Miles has done a lot of testing and evaluations in the last 3 months.

He is either in Speech, Physical or Occupational Therapy 5 days a week.

He works so hard and we are so proud of him.

It's a lot, but it's necessary.

We received his approval to start Developmental Therapy, but we are putting that on hold until we can get him on somewhat of a normal schedule.

Mainly, because this happens everyday...

At Miles' 21 month check-up, his Pediatrician referred us to a Neurodevelopmental Pediatrician and a Pediatric Neuropsychologist. We were able to meet with them for over 2 hours and left very encouraged.

The one thing we have to factor into every equation with Miles is the first 8 months of his life... and before.

The unknowns.

Things like prenatal care, delivery, nutrition, illnesses, etc.

Some things we know, most we don't.

Which makes trying to figure out neurological stuff more difficult.

They said besides his sensory issues, he may be dealing with some possible attachment issues. So, we have contacted an Attachment Counselor for an assessment. Since Miles is difficult to engage, makes such poor eye contact, and has serious social issues, that can make attaching a little difficult. Even though he seems to be bonding just fine, we want to make sure we have the tools necessary to help him continue to form a strong, healthy bond with us.

They want to do an MRI to further rule out neurological issues, and blood work to do some muscle enzyme testing. But, they are going to give us time to see how he does in therapy before going that route.

If you don't spend time with Miles everyday, you probably wouldn't notice the progress he's making. But we see it. He still has a long way to go, but we love celebrating the little things he is doing.

His girls at Children's Therapy T.E.A.M- Kara, Melissa, Holly, Tabitha (and occasionally Julie and Cindy)- are so good with him and we are so thankful for all their hard work and patience.

After our assessment with the Attachment Counselor and Miles' up coming eye appointment, he will be DONE with all his testing and evaluation appointments.

We are continually reminded that even though there are many details of Miles' first 8 months are unknown to us, they are absolutely not unknown to God. He made Miles wonderfully and perfectly and we are so thankful for that!

"You made all the delicate,

inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb.

Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex

Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.

You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion,

as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.

You saw me before I was born.

Every day of my life was recorded in your book.

Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.

How precious are your thoughts about me, O God.

They cannot be numbered!

I can’t even count them; they outnumber the grains of san

And when I wake up, you are still with me!"

{Psalm 139:13-18}

TWO DAYS IN A ROW

2011-04-27T14:02:00.001-05:00

Miles dosen't care what he wears, but he does care how.

This has been our view the last two days...

Monday

Tuesday

The boy likes his pants sagging.

And when I pull them up, he pulls them right back down.

HAPPY EASTER!

2011-04-24T19:44:00.005-05:00

Miles hates to be held. Can you tell? :)

Alex is such a great big brother!

So patient.

I tried to get a quick picture of the boys this morning before we left for church and I was thankful (and surprised) that I got one with both of them smiling.

HAPPY EASTER!

EASTER FUN

2011-04-23T22:02:00.002-05:00

Easter has always been difficult at our home.

Keith leaves for church on Sunday mornings before the boys even wake up, which makes getting everyone ready for church very challenging.

And Easter Sunday is the worst.

I usually spend Easter Sunday morning looking through Easter baskets with the boys, hunting Easter eggs with them that the Easter bunny left around the house, then trying to get them focused, dressed, and to church. ON TIME.

So, the last couple of years, we have decided to reclaim our Easter Sunday morning. We do all of our Easter 'stuff' on the Saturday before Easter, which has worked out so much better for our family. The Easter bunny comes to our house on Saturday, which allows Keith to be part of the fun. The boys can take their time looking through their baskets, playing with their toys, eating their candy, and the added bonus is that we don't have to rush around to be some where.

Here are a few pictures of our Easter fun today...

:: Miles' Easter egg he & Mrs. Melissa made in Occupational Therapy last week ::

We also made these adorable Easter favors today.

We made three different sizes of Bunny Tails and I love how they turned out.

With all the 'bunny stuff' out of the way, we can spend Saturday evening talking to them about the true meaning of Easter, about Jesus dying for us on the cross and about Him rising from the dead three days later. We can help them get excited about Sunday morning, and it's not because the bunny is coming, it's because we get to worship our risen Savior.

"He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen.

Come, see where his body was lying."

{Matthew 28:6}

FIELD TRIP

2011-03-16T13:37:00.005-05:00

Alex's 5th grade class went on a field trip yesterday to the State Capital in Little Rock. He was excited about going, but not excited about leaving the school at 6:45 AM.

They were told to bring a sack lunch and 2 snacks.

One for the trip there and one for the trip back.

When we picked him up last night at 6:00 PM he was starving.

I asked him about his snacks, and he said he ate them all by lunch.

Then he started laughing and told me he that actually, he ate all but one.

The Swiss Roll.

He was saving it for the trip home, but he didn't get to eat it because someone accidentally sat on it and smooshed it.

And apparently it was hilarious.

I was all ready to hear all about the Capitol, the people he meet, his day in Little Rock, but the only thing we could get out of him was the story of the smooshed Swiss Roll.

11 year old boys are so funny.

I don't think I will ever understand them.

Shiloh 5th graders with Lt. Governor Mark Darr

Mrs. Ead's 5th grade class with Senator Bill Pritchard

Mrs. Ead's 5th grade class with State Representative Jon Woods

QUICK UPDATE ON MILES

2011-03-09T14:45:00.000-06:00

The Developmental Therapist that evaluated Miles last week was awesome! She asked a lot of great questions, made a lot of great observations, and really tried to get a complete picture of where Miles is from a developmental standpoint. We were told that the parents are not usually told if their children qualify for therapy at the first meeting because the results need to be figured to get a standardized score, and that number determines if they qualify for therapy. But, after she spent the morning with Miles, she told me that she is approving him for Developmental Therapy no matter what his scores are because "he desperately needs it."

I was glad that she saw what we are seeing, but I hate it for him.

He loves going to therapy, he is just having a hard time adjusting to the new routine.

Right now, he is doing four and a half hours of therapy a week and it wipes him out. He falls asleep during lunch just about everyday. It has totally messed his naps up because he still wants to take two naps a day, which is just not possible anymore because of therapy. We aren't in a place right now to help him adjust to a new schedule because, in the next couple of weeks, his therapy will go up to about eight hours a week. So, hopefully after we add his Physical Therapy and Developmental Therapy, we will be able to help him get adjusted.

Miles had a hearing test yesterday morning. The purpose of the test is to rule out any hearing issues as a reason for his speech delay/regression. The Audiologist did a series of tests and Miles did really good until she tried to use the ear plugs. He hated having the ear plugs in his ears and figured out that if he shook his head just right, they would fall right out. Slowly but surely, we were able to get enough tests done and we were told that his hearing was just fine. Thank you Jesus!

God has opened door after door for us since we started this journey.

It has been quiet amazing.

Our 3 month wait to start therapy evaluations turned into 3 weeks.

Our 2 month wait for OT turned into 1 week.

And just yesterday, our 4-6 month wait to get in to see the Neurodevelopmental Pediatrician and the Pediatric Neruopsychologist turned into 2 weeks. 2 WEEKS.

God has been so gracious to us.

Adoption makes you an expert in the area of 'waiting.'

I'm just grateful that He isn't making us wait to long this time.

HE MAKES ME LAUGH

2011-03-08T12:03:00.006-06:00

The video baby monitor may be the best invention EVER!

I seriously don't know how I survived without it when Alex was little.

It is, by far, my favorite baby thing!

Without it, I would never get to see things like this...
Miles spends most of his day upside down.

It's a sensory thing.

And it's hilarious.

(I'm not saying that his sensory issues are hilarious, but he does some pretty odd stuff and we've learned that we don't find some humor in his quirks, we will go completely crazy.)

When Miles goes down for a nap, he spends about 30 minutes either doing head stands, or walking back and forth in the bed bumping into the sides and falling over. When he's walking around, his blanket is either over his head so he can't see where he's going, or it's hanging over the rail and every few minutes he stops to readjust them.

It's actually very entertaining.

The other day, I could hear him laughing in his room, so I went and turned the monitor on to see what he was doing.

Nothing.

And apparently nothing is very funny.

Treasuring & Trusting God's Word

2011-03-02T19:00:00.000-06:00

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God."
{John 1:1}

"For the Word that God speaks is alive and full of power, making it active, operative, energizing, and effective; it is sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating to the diving line of the breath of life and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, of the deepest parts of our nature, exposing and sifting and analyzing and judging the very thoughts and purposes of the heart."{Hebrews 4:12}

After watching this video, I had to do some serious confessing.
I mean, if I believe the Word IS God, and that it is ALIVE and FULL OF POWER, than why do I take it for granted? Why don't I spend more time reading it? Studying it? Memorizing it?
Why do I sometimes doubt verses like this one...
"And we know that God causes all things work together for the good forthose who love God and are called according to his purpose for them."{Romans 8:28}
I want my boys to fall in love with God's Word.To treasure it.To live by it.To give their lives to it.And if need be, for it.
But it has to start with me.
As we walk this unfamiliar path with Miles, I am completely trusting God's Word and God's plan. Miles was fearfully and wonderfully made. Designed and created by God Himself!
Our doctor's appointment today didn't go completely as we had hoped.We are being referred to a Neurodevelopmental Pediatrician.
The word Autism was used today. Out loud.We knew it was a possibility. The red flags are there.But, it will be quite awhile before we will know anything.Lots of testing and evaluating still to be done.And he's still so young.
So now it's a waiting game.Waiting to get in to see the specialist.Waiting to see how he continues to develop.Waiting to see if he makes any progress in therapy.
Miles has an evaluation tomorrow with the Developmental Therapist and next week he will have some hearing testing done to rule out any issues there.
I am so thankful for the people God has surrounded us with that are working on our behalf to help Miles get the help, testing & evaluations he needs. I'm not sure there is anything more special than perfect strangers coming along side you for the soul purpose of helping your children be all that God designed them to be.

2011-03-02T12:45:00.005-06:00

"What do you want the testimony of your life to be?

What do you want your legacy to be?

Whether it is to Spiritual offspring or physical offspring,

what do you want for them?

What do you want them to be?

Become that. Become that."

{Beth Moore}

NEW NORMAL

2011-02-28T07:08:00.001-06:00

The purpose of this post is to give you a long overdue update on Miles. I have started several update posts over the last year that were never completed. I think because I struggled so much trying to figure out how to update you on my sweet, precious gift that had these quirks that I just couldn't figure out. Let me try and catch you up...

When Travis placed Miles into our arms on February 15, 2010, we were so happy. We were excited, thankful & overjoyed that we could finally hold him, touch him, hug him, kiss him. But in the same moment, we were surprised to see how far behind he was. At the time, we just thought physically. But in the last year, we have learned that is not the case.

We received several updates on Miles before we traveled to Ethiopia.

We knew he wasn't meeting all the developmental milestones for his age, but that didn't surprise us. We kind of expected it.

All of our updates of Miles included the phrase 'laid back little guy', which he absolutely is. But when you spend the first 8 months of your life in an orphanage type environment, 'laid back little guy' is not what you want to be.

If you are the one who will lay there completely content, then you are left to just lay, because some of the other babies, those whose updates included phrases like 'very determined', 'go getter', 'very active', won't.

The back of Miles' head was completely flat and bald from laying in his bed.

He struggled to hold his little head upright.

His movements were real jerky and he was so wobbly.

He could roll once in each direction.

He wouldn't bear any weight on his legs.

No sitting, no crawling, no pulling up.

After we returned home, we started working with him.

It wasn't long before he was sitting without support.

Then he started crawling. Then pulling up.

And after being home 7 months he started walking.

At this point, we were starting to think that he had pretty much caught up.

I mean, he had come so far.

But he had little quirks.

Things that he would do, or wouldn't do, that just didn't seem quiet right.

At first it was things like...

> unable to hold bottle up by himself

> unable to drink out of a sippy cup

> doesn't like to be held or cuddled

> shakes head back and forth when upset

> freaks out when his diaper is changed

Then, the older he got, we were seeing things like...

> avoids eye contact

> seems to be in his own little world

> difficult to engage

> frequent head banging, biting, pinching

> wanders around the house aimlessly

> doesn't interact with peers or adults

> very busy doing nothing

> doesn't respond to his name

> doesn't talk

> very aggressive behavior

> some regression in sounds and interaction

> bumps into things on purpose

> walks around backwards until he hits stuff

> walks around with his eyes closed until he runs into the walls

> spends most of the day upside down

If I would mentioned his quirks to family or friends, I always got the same response, "That's normal for a kid his age."

And that is partially true.

Some kids his age might not talk yet, they might bite, they might get upset when they can't have their way. But all the things we were noticing in Miles were far from normal.

I started voicing my concerns to our pediatrician when Miles was about 12 months old. Just telling him things I was noticing and the struggles I was having with him. At his 15 month check-up, I had new concerns, and at his 18 month check-up, his doctor felt like he should at least get some evaluations done.

After meeting with several different therapists, we finally have some answers to what is going on with Miles. For the first time, I feel like I'm not just going crazy, like it's not all in my head. As a mom, when something isn't right with your children, you just know it.

Miles is showing all the signs of struggling with Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD), which is a neurological disorder that affects the path between the senses and the brain. Basically, information is processed by the brain in an unusual way that causes distress, discomfort, and confusion.

Miles is about 14-17 months behind in his speech, which puts him at an age equivalent of a 3-6 month old in some areas, and a 6-9 month old in other areas. His receptive and expressive language skills are severely delayed. He spends 45 minutes, 2 times a week in Speech Therapy. He performs below average in the areas of fine motor skills, social functioning, sensory processing and self-care. In those areas, he is about 10-12 months behind, which puts him at an age equivalent of a 8-10 month old. He spends 60 minutes, 3 times a week, in Occupational Therapy. His gross motor skills are still delayed and he will spend 60 minutes, 3 times a week in Physical Therapy once I finish jumping through those hoops. He is also suppose to be evaluated for Developmental Therapy, but we haven't scheduled that yet.

The world of therapy is a very new one for us. Taking Miles to therapy is my new part-time job. Learning to parent a child with SPD is my new full-time job. We are learning a ton, reading as much as we can, and doing everything in our power to help Miles become all that the Father designed him to be.

TWO IN A ROW

2011-02-25T13:53:00.001-06:00

They did it!

Alex's 5th grade basketball team played the last game in their tournament last week and won the Northwest Arkansas County League Championship.

Second year in a row!

Alex loves basketball and is outside shooting baskets every chance he get.

I am so proud of him and his team.

Way to go #14!

GOTCHA DAY!

2011-02-15T08:34:00.010-06:00

One year ago today, we were in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, waiting for the moment we had worked toward for 18 months.

We spent 4 months receiving updates and pictures of Miles.

Pictures like this...

And now the day had arrived.

The day that our pictures would come alive.

The day we would get to meet the baby boy in pink who stole our hearts.

To say that we were excited that our day had finally arrived would be an understatement.

This year has not been without its challenges, but that is an update for another day. Today, we celebrate Miles!

Miles-

You are a very special little boy and such a blessing to our family. I can't imagine our lives without you. We are so thankful that God hand picked you for our family.

Because of you, we see the world differently.

Because of you, our perspective has changed.

Because of you, the reality of our adoption in Christ has a different meaning.

Because of you, we will never be the same.

We love you, Miles Misikir!

You were worth the wait!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

2011-02-14T07:30:00.001-06:00

This is the last year.

The last year Alex has to make a Valentine box for school along with Valentine's for his whole class.

And he couldn't be more excited about it!

Not about making the Valentine's, but about it being the LAST time!

He has NEVER liked the whole Valentine's at school thing.

Since we were snowed in seven of the last ten school days, Alex had plenty of extra time to work on his stuff, and because I agreed to let him do full size chocolate bars, he didn't seem to mind it as much.

Here are his finished Valentine Candy Bars...

And his super cool Valentine Box...

ADOPT(ED)

2011-01-28T00:05:00.005-06:00

Have you ever thought about adoption?

Ever prayed about it?

Ever asked God what your role was in caring for orphans?

We did.

3 years ago.

And our family will never be the same.

It will forever be different.

Better.

There are 163 million orphans in the world and God's Word has much to say about them.

"Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this:

to visit orphans and widows in their affliction,

and to keep oneself unstained from the world.

{James 1:27}

"I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.

{John 14:18}

"A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows,

is God in His holy dwelling."

{Psalm 68:5}

"Defend the weak and the fatherless;

uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed."

{Psalm 82:3}

Our adoption story began with Keith and I praying about our role caring for the fatherless. We knew we were called to do something, but we just weren't sure what. We weren't looking to adopt. Adoption was never part of our plan. But, then again, my plan is never God's plan.

"For my thoughts are nothing like you thoughts," says the Lord.

"And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.

For just as the heavens are higher than the earth,

so my ways are higher that yours ways

and my thoughts are higher than your thoughts."

{Isaiah 55:8-9}

We were fully prepared to give our finances to help others adopt, to sponsor more children, or to give to organizations that supported orphan care. But God called us to give more than our money.

He called us to give our hearts.

Our lives.

So our prayers immediately changed from What? to Where?

It didn't take long for us to narrow it down to Ethiopia.

We were drawn to it.

The more we prayed, the more we read, the more researched,

the more God stirred our hearts.

A FEW FACTS ABOUT ETHIOPIA...

There are currently 4.6 million orphans in Ethiopia- with around 540,000 having been orphaned by HIV/AIDS
1 in 10 children die before their 1st birthday
1 in 6 children die before their 5th birthday
Half the children in Ethiopia will never attend school and 88% will never attend secondary school
Approx. 300,000 children live on the streets
82% of the population survives on less than 1 dollar a day
1 in 4 women dies in pregnancy or childbirth

In some of my research, I read that many children are orphaned because their families cannot provide for them and if they don't give them up, they will die of starvation. That did it for me. As a mom, I could not imagine making that decision. So we decided that since these mom's are giving their babies up to give them a chance to live, than we would help them.

That was the beginning of an 18 month journey that ended on February 15, 2010 in Ethiopia when we held Miles Misikir for the first time.

{Song in video is "This Love" by Mandi Mapes}
I am not one who believes that God has called everyone to adopt, but I do believe He has call us all to do something. Caring for orphans through adoption is normal... according to the Word of God. Please take time to pray about your role in caring for the orphans of the world.
If you desire to know more about the orphan crisis and how you can be part of the solution, check out The Idea Camp.

We were asked recently when will we tell Miles he is adopted.That question always makes me laugh... for obvious reasons :)What they are asking, I think, is when will we tell him his story.And the answer is, everyday.
He will always know where he's from.He will always know he was chosen.He will always know he is dearly loved.We will always tell him his adoption story and we will spend the rest of our lives telling him ours.
You see, God's word tells us that if you trust Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, than you are adopted into God's family.

"Even before He made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in His eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into His own family by bringing us to Himself through Jesus Christ. This is what He wanted to do, and it gave Him great pleasure. So we praise God for the glorious grace He has poured out on us who belong to His dear Son."{Ephesians 1:4-6}

Having an adopted son makes me so much more grateful for God's adoption.

It makes it that much more real.

I love Miles like my own.

He is mine.

And to think that God feels the same way about me is so amazing.

So humbling.

So whether it's bringing a child into your family or making a decision to accept Christ... make adoption an option.

{What to read more adoption stories? Head over to Kelly's Korner Blog and check them out.}

DEPRAVED INDIFFERENCE

2011-01-16T15:32:00.001-06:00

Please watch this video that my friend Ashley sent me yesterday.

But I must warn you, you will be convicted.

You will be moved.

The message is powerful.

It's powerful because it's about something that God takes seriously.

It's about something that God cares greatly about.

Praying that God will give me a heart that is burdened by the things that burden Him, that is moved by the things that move Him, and that I will be willing to be the hands and feet of Jesus to those around me that need Him.

VOTE 4 MILES {update}

2011-01-07T08:15:00.001-06:00

*UPDATE from MJW Photography*

Unfortunately the initial voting has been compromised. The problem has been corrected, but the only ethical thing to do that will be fair to everyone is to start over. Sorry for the inconvenience!

Voting deadline remains the same, January 15th at midnight.

(Original Post from 1/5/2011)

Last night I received an email from Mindy of MJW Photography.

We meet her back in October through Celebrating Adoption, an organization of photographers who donate their time to adoptive families, and had pictures taken. Mindy did a great job and we had so much fun with her.

She sent me an email to let me know that the picture of Miles {below} has been chosen for 2010's Favorite Little One's contest.

Will you vote for Miles?

If so, head over to her blog and vote.

The voting will close at midnight on Saturday, January 15th.

If Miles' image receives the most votes, he will win a 30 minute mini session and an 8x10 print.

A CALL TO ANGUISH

2011-01-04T19:09:00.005-06:00

Keith came home from work today and asked me to watch this video.

Well, that's not exactly true.

He pulled it up on the computer, and said "sit down and watch this."

I was a little busy and didn't feel like I had time to watch it right then, but since it is very uncharacteristic of Keith to ask me to watch anything I thought I would go ahead and get it over with. After all, I'm usually the one saying to him- watch this, read this, listen to this.

All I really know to say is... WOW!

I definitely needed it.

From Our Home to Yours...

2010-12-25T07:40:00.003-06:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

THE HAPPIEST PLACE ON EARTH

2010-12-14T12:50:00.000-06:00

We took Alex out of school this past week and headed to Orlando to spend some time together as a family, see some of our friends, and take the boys to Walt Disney World. This was the first time we had been back since we moved from Orlando to Arkansas and it was so good to go back. We left some great friends there and we miss them like crazy. Many of them walked though the beginning of our adoption journey with us, prayed for us, and even financially helped us bring Miles home. It was so fun getting to introduce them to the little boy they have been praying for.

Our plan was to do one Disney park while we were there. We didn't want Miles to get too tired or overwhelmed. We spent Wednesday at Magic Kingdom and Miles loved it. (When he wasn't taking a nap. Seriously, the kid can nap anywhere!) His favorite ride was 'It's A Small World' and he loved the parade. Since we have been to Disney so many times, it was fun to watch Miles try and take it all in. After we did all we wanted to at Magic Kingdom, we ended up hopping over to Epcot for a couple of hours before heading back to the house.

The only other park we did last week was Universal's Islands of Adventure. Miles did all the Dr. Seuss rides then fell asleep. (I told you, he loves his naps :) Alex and I rode a few roller coasters, then we walked through The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Now, we aren't Harry Potter people, but it was pretty amazing. I told Keith that I now feel like I need to read the books so I will have a better understanding why grown adults, hundreds of them, were wearing caps, costumes, buying wands, and standing in looong lines to buy butterbeer. But, that's what I love about the parks, they make you feel like a kid again.

IN 8 DAYS

2010-10-13T12:10:00.000-05:00

Miles was on this earth 248 days before we got to hold him in our arms.

Before we were able to hug him, kiss him, rock him, feed him.

I would love to have Miles' first 248 days.

But since that's not possible, the next best thing happens in just 8 days.

In 8 days, Miles will have been with us for 249 days.

In 8 days, Miles will have been with us longer that he's been without us.

In 8 days, Miles will have been part of our family longer than he was an orphan.

Let the countdown begin!

BACKPACK

2010-10-09T15:09:00.000-05:00

I have been looking for a little backpack for Miles and came across this Etsy store. (I love Etsy!) I really liked her toddler backpacks and decided to have one made for Miles. It turned out so cute!

SHOO WEE

2010-10-06T09:22:00.000-05:00

After Miles' morning nap, I gave him a sippy cup full of milk to drink while I fixed his lunch. When I walked back into his room to get him, I found him like this...

No explanation necessary.

It's exactly what you think.

he loves to be outside...

2010-10-03T17:41:00.005-05:00

ALEX, WHERE ARE YOU?

2010-09-30T07:54:00.003-05:00

When Alex leaves for school in the mornings, Miles is still asleep.

He is sleeping like a rock star these days.

Twelve to thirteen hours a night!

It's actually a good thing that he's still sleeping, because he is at that stage where he cries whenever someone leaves our house. It doesn't matter who it is. He doesn't want them to leave.

I'm so thankful that I don't have to watch him cry every morning when Alex leaves for school, but I do have to see this...

After Miles finishes his breakfast, he makes his way to Alex's bedroom. He starts out just looking under the door. Then he moves on to putting his fingers underneath. After a while, he starts banging on the door.

He spends about 5 or so minutes laying at his door.

Every.Single.Day.

I love that he notices that he's not here.

I love that he wants him.

I love that he misses him.

i love his laugh...

2010-08-19T09:40:00.002-05:00

IT'S OFFICIAL...

2010-08-16T11:38:00.005-05:00

...Alex is a 5th grader!

How did that happen?

If you have small children, you've probably been told "enjoy every minute of it, it goes by so fast." Well, it's so true.

Have fun your last year of elementary school.

Be the leader you were called to be.

Stand up for what you believe in.

And live out our family motto:

{Love God. Love Others. Go Tell}

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!

2010-08-16T07:02:00.002-05:00

Today is Alex's birthday.

Today he turns ELEVEN.

Keith and I feel so blessed to be his parents.

He is an amazing kid.

Very sweet.

Very tenderhearted.

Very caring.

And, very funny.

He loves to laugh and loves to make people laugh.

This is the first birthday he gets to celebrate as a big brother.

And what a fantastic big brother he is.

Alex, we could not be more proud you. You are very special and God has BIG plans for your life. Keep your eyes and heart fixed on Jesus. Chase after Him with all you have and all you are. We love you and we celebrate you today.

GOODNIGHT

2010-08-15T21:44:00.002-05:00

SOMETIMES WE JUST NEED TO BE REMINDED

2010-08-14T15:02:00.003-05:00

ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL?

2010-08-13T23:06:00.002-05:00

It's that time of the year again.

Football season.

Tonight was the Blue/Gold game at Shiloh Christian School.

Alex is number 62 and plays on the 5th grade team.

Tonight, they scrimmaged the 4th graders and the 6th graders.

All the boys did a fantastic job.

OUCH!

2010-08-13T09:14:00.003-05:00

Teething.

It's not fun.

Miles cut his first four teeth a couple of months after returning home from Ethiopia. Now, he is cutting eight. Eight at one time.

He's a slobbery, snotty mess.

For today, this seems to help.

But, he's in good company.

Alex and Keith are teething too.

Alex is getting his twelve year molars and Keith's wisdom teeth are still coming in.

I guess I need to freeze a couple of more washcloths.

...

2010-08-12T21:53:00.003-05:00

"Sympathy is no substitute for action."

-David Livingstone, missionary to Africa

...

2010-08-11T22:04:00.004-05:00

"Orphans are easier to ignore before you know their names. They are easier to ignore before you see their faces. It is easier to pretend they're not real before you hold them in your arms. But once you do, everything changes."

-David Platt, Radical

FOOTBALL PRACTICE

2010-08-09T20:33:00.003-05:00

VACATION

2010-08-08T23:48:00.011-05:00

On Monday we headed to New Jersey to visit Keith's sister and her family.

They moved there from Charlotte, NC about the same time we moved here from Florida. So, we went from seeing them several times a year to once or twice a year. We keep telling ourselves that they came and saw us all the time in Orlando because they love us and wanted to spend time with us, but I think Mickey Mouse may have had a little to do with it.

Kim, before you leave a comment and tell me that is completely untrue, let me remind you of this post. :)

We flew out early Monday morning and Miles slept most of the flight, which was a huge blessing.

Kim took us to Ridgewood, NJ one morning to eat at the Country Pancake House. The pancakes were HUGE and there are about 90 different kinds to choose from.

We spent the rest of the day walking off our pancakes at Woodbury Common outlets in New York.

Later in the week, we went to the city and did whatever the kids wanted to do.

We rode the Ferris Wheel at Toys R Us in Times Square,

...walked through Central Park,

...hit up every candy store between 42nd and 61st street,

...and went to Madame Tussauds Wax Museum.

The kids even saw Justin Timberlake in Times Square shooting a scene from the movie, "Friends with Benefits".

Our nephew, Cade was able to work his way through the crowd and get pretty close. Apparently if a little boy says, "Mom, where are you? Mom?" people get out of the way. :)

Thanks for letting us come and hang out in Jersey.

We miss you guys already!

JULY

2010-08-01T22:32:00.004-05:00

July came and went a little too quick for me.
We started the month off at the Rodeo of the Ozarks.

It was fun!

Miles was more interested in the people sitting behind us than anything else.

I'm sure they were glad that we left a little early :)

We also had 3 family reunions that weekend.

It was really fun getting together and seeing everyone.

Miles meet almost 300 family members in two days.

He loves people so he was in his element.

For the 4th, we watched fireworks with our church family at CPH.

It was awesome!

We made a trip up to the Wild Wilderness Safari with my family.

It's fun to drive through because you can see the animals up close.

Which, is nice when it's a cute Zebra...

...but not when it's this.
Keith kept rolling my window down and locking it when the demon emu would get close and I couldn't get the window up! I all but climbed into the driver's seat. It was kind of funny the first time. But after the fifth or sixth time, not so much!

Miles loved seeing all the animals and was all smiles.

After we finished the drive through part, we put the little ones in the wagon and walked through the petting zoo. Miles liked the animals, but my niece, Makayla, wasn't too sure about some of them.

Alex was able to pet the baby tigers. They were only 5 weeks old and their teeth and claws were sharp. They were very cute and very playful.

Keith and I ended the month in Dallas. We went with our church staff for a few days and left the boys home with my in-laws. I was a little nervous about leaving Miles. It was the first time we had left him for more than a couple of hours in the 5 months that he'd been home. But, I had nothing to worry about. He did so good!

When we got home, I was so anxious to see him. But, he crawled right past me and straight to Keith yelling dada dada. I'm not going to lie, I was a little disappointed. I mean, I'm thankful the boy loves his dada, but what about me? :)

We are leaving for New Jersey tomorrow to spend the week with Keith's sister and her family. We are excited to get a away for a little while before the busyness of school and football start.

I can't believe that summer is almost over!

THE MANY FACES OF MILES

2010-06-27T15:38:00.008-05:00

SOAKED

2010-06-14T13:06:00.005-05:00

Keith had the opportunity to preach yesterday morning in 'big church'.

He preached on going deeper with God and did a great job.

"O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you;
my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you,
in a dry and weary land where there is no water."
{Psalm 63:1}

LET'S CELEBRATE!

2010-06-12T23:32:00.002-05:00

Today we are celebrating Miles.

It's his birthday!

I can't believe he's already ONE!

A year sure goes by fast when they're only home for four months.

Miles, we love you so much and can't imagine our lives without you.

God truly blessed us when he gave us you and we thank him for you everyday!

Melkam Lidet!

{ethiopia} DAY 5

2010-05-27T22:38:00.007-05:00

Last day in Ethiopia and I didn't want to leave.

We were suppose to have three more days.

But, I knew we were doing the right thing.

We needed Miles to get well and it just wasn't happening there.

Since we weren't able to meet any of Miles' birth family that morning, we had the caregiver come early so we could do a little souvenir shopping before we had to meet Travis at Kolfe, the boys government orphanage, and for a tour and to get Miles' passport and visa.

To our surprise, Miles' Special Mother came with her.

After shopping for a couple of hours, we headed to Kolfe.

I honestly didn't know what to expect.

We were greeted by a dozen or more boys.

Sweet boys with big smiles on their faces.

Since I can't post any pictures of the boys, I thought I'd just post a few of the orphanage.

Outside by the kitchen.

The kitchen.

One of the dorms.

Garden.

Soccer field.

After we toured the facilities, Alex played soccer with a bunch of the kids while Keith and I talked to this young man.

He is 18 years old and has lived in the orphanage since he was a young boy. He is in school and told us that he has about 3 years left. The more he told us, the more our hearts broke for him. See, they are allowed to live there past 18 as long as they stay in school and stay out of trouble. He is studying to be a tour guide, but told us that he know that when he gets done with school, he won't be able to get a job because jobs are so hard to come by. He doesn't know what he will do. He told us that he practices his people skills by talking to people that come to visit and he hopes that will help him get a job when he get out of school.

It was like looking at Miles 18 years from now.

The whole time I was there, I kept thinking this could have been him.

He could have very easily ended up in a place very similar to this.

It was a hard afternoon.

After a couple of hours, we left and headed back to the guest home to finish packing.

Before leaving for the airport, Miles' Special Mother came by for one last goodbye. She came in and just held him for a while.

After all our bags were loaded up and we were ready to leave, she walked with us to the car, carrying Miles in her arms. Before handing him to me, she just stared at him, kissed him all over his face, hugged him, said something to him in Amharic.

After she and the caregiver finished saying their goodbyes, we hugged them both, told them thank you one last time and headed to the airport.

It was time to take Miles home.

{ethiopia} DAY 4

2010-05-26T17:32:00.006-05:00

Thursday was a long day.

There was something scheduled for us all day long.

This would also be the first time we left Miles.

Miles was only allowed to leave the guest house with us to go to Gladney Foster Care, to the doctor, or to the Embassy. Any other time we left, one of the caregivers from Gladney came to the guest house to stay with him.

I spent the first part of the morning on the phone with the airlines trying to move our flights up. After talking to our doctor, we felt like the best thing would be to get Miles home. We were suppose to fly out Sunday evening, but our airline had a flight leaving Friday night. We were told the flight was full but we could leave a number and they would call us if anything opened up. Twenty minutes later, they called back and told us they had three spots open up if we wanted them. We went ahead and booked them and just prayed that we would get Miles' passport and visa in time.

We met up with the other Gladney families that morning at the Holy Trinity Church for a tour. Travis took us through the church and gave us quite a history lesson. The Church is the burial site of Emperor Haile Selassie and his wife and it also houses a memorial to the first victims of the Derg regime.

After spending the morning at the church, we went back to the guest house to pick up Miles for our interview at the Embassy. The caregiver stayed there because she was watching Miles again later that evening.

Whenever we went anywhere with Miles, I just held him in the back seat.

Alex usually took pictures out the window as we drove.

He actually ended up taking most of the pictures while we were there.

On the way to the Embassy, Alex snapped this picture.

Of all the pictures Alex took, this is one of my favorite.

Our interview at the Embassy was quick and easy. Waiting in the warm, crowded room for our turn was the hardest part. They asked us questions about Miles... where was he born, the name of the hospital, how he ended up in Gladney care, how old he was, if we met him before we passed court. We knew the answers to all the questions, but it was also helpful that Joanna came around while we were waiting and made sure we knew what to say and was there to help if we had any questions.

After we were done at the Embassy, we stopped by the doctor so Miles could get another shot, then we went back to the guest house. We spent a couple of hours there hanging out with the caregiver and Miles' Special Mother, who had walked over from another guest house. It ended up being a sweet time because they shared stories about Miles with us.

They remembered when he came to Addis... "Misikir, tiny baby. So little".

They also told us... "Misikir, good baby. Such good baby. No cry".

Then they laughingly said..."In morning, we turn babies on tummies and they cry and cry, they no like, but Misikir, he lays head down and goes to sleep. And we take babies outside and lay blanket and babies cry, they no like sun in their eyes, but Misikir, he goes to sleep."

Every update we received on Miles said he was a laid back little guy. To this day, that seems to be true.

After we visited for a while, we headed to dinner with the other Glandey families. We went to a cultural dinner that had Ethiopian food and traditional dancing.

By the time we got back, Miles was fast asleep.

If I haven't said it before, let me just say that Gladney Center for Adoption is AMAZING. Their staff is AWESOME and they take such great care of you, from the paperchase all the way to picking up your child.

We are very proud to be a part of the Gladney family!

{ethiopia} DAY 3

2010-05-25T14:07:00.008-05:00

We went to Gladney Foster Care for a tour of the four different homes and the Coffee Ceremony.

This was the day I was excited and nervous about.

I was excited to see where Miles had spent the last seven and a half months, to meet the women who had cared for him, to be able to look them in the eyes and tell them thank you.

But I was nervous about taking him back there.

I didn't know how he would react being back.

Would we walk out holding a screaming baby who doesn't want to go with us?

We knew that was a possibility, and now we were at the point where we would find out.

The first home we toured was Miles' home. We found that out immediately when we walked upstairs and we heard several women start yelling his name and squealing. They were so excited to see him. Within seconds, they snatched him out of my arms, grabbed the bottle I was giving him and took over.

We were able to meet his Special Mother and she put him in the traditional Ethiopian outfit she bought him. Isn't she beautiful?!

The caregivers are so amazing and so sweet. They take such good care of the children and really do love them. We will forever be grateful for all the love, care, and affection they gave Miles while he was there.

After we finished touring the other three homes, we returned to Miles' home and waited for the Coffee Ceremony to begin.

When it started, his Special Mother brought him downstairs and returned him to us.
Did you notice he is sucking on his bottom lip?

He started it when we went upstairs and did it most of the time we were there.

After the Coffee Ceremony, we sat and visited while waiting for our turn to see the doctor. While we were waiting, one of the ladies asked us to come back upstairs and to take a picture of Miles' bed.

This was his bed. The one on the left.

Where he spent the last seven and a half months.

Alex did not want me to put him in his bed.

He was so upset about it.

He didn't want Miles to feel like we were going to leave him there.

So protective.

We snapped our pictures and Alex got him out of there.

By the time we got back downstairs, it was our turn to see the doctor. So we headed back across the street to wait our turn.

The doctors office is a small room and that particular day it was very warm in there. We were in there for what seemed like forever. After throughly checking Miles out, he told us that his ears were still infected, his legs still had spots on them (we were told is was fungal, but they looked like bug bites to me), and his breathing was still shallow and he felt like his pneumonia was getting worse. He decided he wanted to start giving him antibiotic injections once a day for the next five days. Then he told us if he was not better in a day, he was going to recommend he be admitted into the hospital and we would have to stay in Ethiopia longer than we had planned.

I'm not going to lie, that freaked me out a little.

I would have loved the opportunity to stay in Addis longer, but not under those circumstances.

While we were in the doctors office, Alex was starting to feel sick to his stomach. So I took him outside to get some fresh air while Keith finished up with the doctor. When we went outside, we were talking to some of the staff and telling them what the doctor said and we were advised to call our doctor and get a second opinion. Not that they didn't trust the doctor, because they absolutely do, but since our doctor was already aware of Miles' health and sent antibiotics with us, they felt like he would help us make a wise decision. Then they told us the best thing for Miles would be for us to bump our flights up a few days and get him home as soon as we could, not for us to stay longer and put Miles in the hospital.

So we had some decisions to make.

After the doctor we were suppose to meet up with other families and have lunch with the Gladney Representatives, but Alex was feeling worse and felt like he needed to lay down. So, we called Travis and told him we were skipping lunch to take Alex back to the guest house and that's where we spent the rest of the day.

{ethiopia} DAY 2

2010-05-24T22:46:00.003-05:00

We spent all day Tuesday at the guest home with Miles and the other families that were staying there. Besides us, there were two other families and we had so much fun hanging out with them. They were such a huge blessing to us and we are so thankful for the time we spent together.

The most eventful thing that happened that day was that our luggage arrived!

It was a good day indeed, since I had officially worn the same outfit for FOUR days. Gross, I know.

Even though we didn't actually DO anything that day, we were dealing with quite a bit.

When we got Miles, he had a double ear infection, pneumonia and that morning had some bumps that started popping up on his legs that were spreading. We were given medicine to give him and were told to come see the doctor if his breathing got any worse.

Besides dealing with a sick baby, we noticed that he wasn't doing a lot of things that we thought he would be.

We received updates on Miles once a month for three months before traveling to Ethiopia. The updates let us know where he was developmentally. Even though we had an idea that he was a little behind, we had no idea to what extent.

When Travis handed Miles to me, I was a very surprised at how wobbly he was. His head was real jerky and we had to support his neck.

At eight months old, I assumed he would be stronger than he was.
I assumed he would at least be sitting up.
But he wasn't.

Here is a picture of Miles trying to sit in a bumbo.

Poor little guy just couldn't keep his upper body up very long.

He could roll over once in each direction, but that was about it.
He was not sitting, crawling, or pulling up.
He couldn't even bear weight on his legs.

At one point, Keith and I wondered if something was wrong with him.

If it was more than being developmentally behind because he would fix his eyes on a spot on the ceiling and start shaking his head back and forth. Fast. It freaked me out a first because I had never seen anything like it.

And, we couldn't snap him out of it, he just stopped when he was done.

When he was mad or hungry, he did the same thing, just with his eyes closed and crying.

That was the moment it clicked for me.

That this would take time.

It would take time for him to trust me.

For him to know that he doesn't have to try and sooth himself.

That we could help comfort him.

The first day and a half, we saw a whole lot of this face...

He sucked on his bottom lip.

Like he was nervous.

Like he was confused.

Maybe even a little scared.

But half way through day 2 we were seeing a lot more of this...

By staying in all day, we learned a whole lot about Miles.

More that any update we received.

More than any visiting family could tell us.

We learned so much about him just by being with him, watching him, playing with him.

It was a good day.

{ethiopia} BROTHERS

2010-05-23T08:43:00.003-05:00

Alex is such a great big brother.

I knew he would be.

He has such a big heart and loves with no strings attached.

He genuinely cares about others and is eager to help people.

Alex is such a joy and Miles was immediately drawn to him.

The first hour we had him, he spent most of the time laying on the bed with Alex, rubbing his face and just starring at him.

Alex was the first to make Miles smile and the first to make him laugh.

The minute we saw them together, we knew bringing Alex to Ethiopia with us was the right decision for our family.

{ethiopia} MEETING MILES

2010-05-22T22:44:00.002-05:00

It's so hard to put into words what it was like.
The day I saw Misikir for the first time.

For 4 months, I knew his story.
For 4 months, I stared at photos of him.
For 4 months, I tried to imagine the day I would finally get to meet him face to face.

And that day had come.

I remember thinking, "He's really real!"

For so long he had just been a picture.

Someone we talked about, but had never met.

Someone we were in love with, but had no idea who we were.

In that instant, it all became worth it.

All the paperwork.

All the waiting.

All the trouble getting there.

It was all worth it.

We spent the rest of the day up in our room.

Just being together, for the first time, as a family of four.

{ethiopia} WE MADE IT

2010-05-21T14:38:00.011-05:00

We landed in Ethiopia on Sunday night and I was so thankful to be there.

What an adventure!

And we were just getting started.

After we got off the plane, we got our visas, exchanged some money, and caught up with Travis. He was a little surprised that we traveled so light. Apparently, flying to Ethiopia without any luggage is not exactly normal.

We met Sammy, our driver, and he took us to the guest house.

After getting there, we spent the next three hours trying to get a hold of our parents so they could track down our luggage for us and see if it could get on the Ethiopian Air flight the next morning. If nothing else, I wanted the Humanitarian Aid to make it. I did not want it waiting for me back home.

We were able to get online, but for whatever reason, we were unable to leave a message on Facebook or send an email. We tried to use our cell phones, but were not able to get a signal. We were given a cell phone to use while we were there, but we were only able to receive international calls, not make them.

We were drained... emotionally, mentally, physically.

We finally gave up and went to bed.

The next morning, we were up getting ready when out of no where, I heard my phone beep. It beeped like I had a message.

Keith and I just looked at each other.

Since we were unable to get a signal the night before, we went through our phones and turned everything off that would allow email, messages, text or phone calls. In fact, the only reason I didn't turn it completely off was because I used it as my alarm clock.

I grabbed my phone and, sure enough, I had a text telling me that @meridithfloyd4 had sent me a DM on Twitter (thanks Meridith!), which also let me know that I had service!

I immediately called my mom to see if she could track down our luggage for us. Even though it was Monday morning in Ethiopia, it was only Sunday night in the states. She called me back within about 15 minutes and told me that it is on the plane and will arrive in Ethiopia Tuesday afternoon! I cannot begin to tell you how thankful we were. What a huge blessing!

Later that morning, we called Travis to find out what time he was bringing Misikir. He told us it would be sometime that afternoon and he would call us back later when he knew exactly what time. Although I wanted him as soon as possible, getting him later that day would give us time to walk down to the store and try and find some formula, bottles, diapers, you know, all the things you need when caring for a baby. All the things that didn't make it to Ethiopia with us.

Since we had a couple of hours to spare, we had Sammy drive us around Addis.

We drove all over the city.

It is such an amazing place.

Something about it captivates you.

It takes you in.

It steals your heart.

Happiness in the midst of extreme poverty.

Joy in the midst of despair.

Love and affection without shame.

After a couple of hours,

Sammy took us back to the guest house to wait for Misikir.

{ethiopia} GETTING THERE IS HALF THE FUN... RIGHT?

2010-05-20T14:42:00.002-05:00

Our luggage. Ready to go to Ethiopia.

Unfortunately, our luggage took a detour...

We waited 18 months for our day.

Our day to travel to Ethiopia to meet our son.

We spent months planning, shopping, packing.

We were ready.

Our paperwork was in order.

Our bags were packed.

Our humanitarian aid was ready to go.

Unfortunately, nothing went as planned.

"Dallas... Washington DC... Addis Ababa Ethiopia. Praying the weather cooperates!"

7:07 AM Feb 13th via Twitter

Well, it didn't.

The Dallas airport shut down due to fog.

No planes coming in or going out.

"Our flight to Dallas was delayed over 2 hours this morning. We pulled up to the gate just in time to watch our flight to DC pull away."
2:14 PM Feb 13th via Twitter

We missed it.

There was a plane sitting at our gate and we had to wait for it to move. While we were waiting, Keith and I watched out the window as our flight pulled away from the gate. That has to be one of the worst feelings in the world. Horrible!

When we got off the plane, we hurried to the counter to find a new flight and were given two options:

(1) fly to Charlotte, catch a flight to D.C., and arrive with about an hour to spare.

(2) fly to Baltimore, take a taxi to D.C., and hope we make it in time

We decided to go to Charlotte, because we didn't know how the roads in Baltimore were. (They had a huge snow storm the week we left that shut down the city.)

The lady at the American Airlines counter tracked our luggage, had it put on the flight to Charlotte and sent us across the airport to the US Airways counter.

So, we took off running from one terminal to another to make our connection. The airport was so crowded and all the lines were so long, which, I guess is what happens when an airport shuts down for two hours.

We finally made it to the counter and got in line. After about ten minutes, an announcement was made that the flight to Charlotte will be delayed three hours.

THREE HOURS.

There is no way we will make our connection to D.C. if we wait for this flight.

So, we take off running BACK to the American terminal.

We already know our options, and it's not looking good.

The flight to Baltimore was scheduled to take off in less than an hour, but we didn't even know if there would be any more seats.

The lady at the American counter told us that she can get us on the flight, but our luggage would still go to Charlotte. And that's where it really hit me. There was a really good chance that we were going to Ethiopia without any luggage. It was all I could do keep it together.

Since the flight was leaving in less than 30 minutes, we didn't even have time to think about it. We told her to book it and she told us to do the same.

We run BACK through the airport, to another terminal, get to the gate, they give us our tickets, we get on the plane and they close the door.

"After 2 hrs of running around DFW airport, we are headed to Baltimore & our luggage to Charlotte. Not sure when we will meet up?!"
5:37 PM Feb 13th via Twitter

On the flight to Baltimore, Alex and I sat beside a nice man from Nigeria, who ironically asked me if I knew if his luggage would be in Baltimore... ha!, and Keith sat 2 rows behind us beside two sweet ladies. We were too tired to even try and switch seats, which turned out to be a good thing.

Keith ended up talking to the women beside him and shared our adoption story with them and what we had been through that day. And Lindsay, one of the ladies, reached into her bag and pulled out 2 shirts to give to me so I would have something to wear besides what I had on. Keith told her that I would not accept them and she told him to put them in his bag and don't tell me until we get there. So he did. (Thank you, Lindsay! What an unexpected blessing!)

We landed in Baltimore, got off the plane and took off running.

When we got to ground transportation, we found a taxi driver that was willing to drive us to Washington D.C. We spent the majority of the drive on our phones returning phone calls, text messages, emails, talking to our travel agent and our caseworker.

"In Baltimore. Taking a taxi to DC. Decision time... IF we make our flight, we go w/NO luggage. NONE! Or stay 2 days & go w/luggage."
6:07 PM Feb 13th via Twitter

We arrived at the airport 45 minutes before our flight was scheduled to leave. We grabbed our backpacks, and ran to the Ethiopian Air counter. After stepping up to the counter, we told the gentleman our names and he said... "YOU'RE LATE!" Keith told him we didn't have any bags to check and asked if we could there was anyway we could get on the flight. He stood up, looked over the counter at the floor and looked at us and said, "You're flying to Ethiopia without any luggage?"

Apparently we are.

He gave us our tickets, and told us to RUN!

So we did just that.

Straight to our gate, where, once again, we were the last to board the plane.

"We're out of here! We've waited long enough!"
7:05 PM Feb 13th via Twitter

We decided that we would keep trying until we hit a dead end. If we had to wait until Monday to fly out, we would, but it had to be the only option.

It may sound silly, but I wanted to be able to tell Misikir that we did everything we could to get to there. That we never stopped trying. Just the thought of not being in Ethiopia on Monday to hold Misikir was enough for us. We would just figure it out when we got there.

FIKIRTE ON MY MIND

2010-05-09T22:37:00.005-05:00

Today is Mother's Day and Africa is all I can think about.
Africa and Fikirte.

Fikirte is Miles' birthmother.
I wish I could have meet her while we were in Ethiopia.
I wish I could have given her a hug and thanked her for the precious gift she had given me.

I know I haven't told you Miles' story.

The details are his to share.

When he is older. When he feels comfortable.

So leaving out major details, here is what we can share...

His birthmother was unable to care for him for reasons we know,
and some we don't.

So she left him here.

She loved him enough to leave him someplace safe.

Somewhere where he would be cared for.
She loved him. She loved him very much.

I can't help but wonder what it was like leaving the hospital and walking through those gates.

Without her baby in her arms.

Without Misikir.
What was she thinking? Feeling?

Fikirte, we are thinking of you today.
Thank you for choosing life.

I am honored to be able to share the title of Mother with you.

I AM THAT BLOGGER

2010-05-06T20:27:00.001-05:00

I never thought I would be one of those bloggers.

One of those who travel across the world to bring home their baby, comes home, and doesn't blog about it.

I use to wonder why those families wouldn't update.

I mean,

Didn't they know I was dying to find out about their trip?

Didn't they know that I wanted to see pictures of their newest family member?

Didn't they know I was anxious to hear how the family is adjusting?

Well, apparently, I am that blogger.

When we first got home, I was so tired.

Too tired to function, much less blog.

Between the emotional roller coaster of getting to Ethiopia (more on that later), lack of sleep in Ethiopia, jet lag, and life with a baby that gets up a couple of times a night, we were doing good just to get a shower each day.

When I sat down at the computer to post an update, I felt lost.

I had so much going on in my mind, so much I wanted to say, but my words would leave me.

We've been home for two and a half months and are still trying to figure out what life with a 10 year old and a 10 month old looks like.

Miles has come so far in such a short amount of time and now that he is finally sleeping through the night, I will have time to catch up on more that just laundry, bills, and dishes.

HOME

2010-02-28T15:15:00.009-06:00

I still can't believe that Miles is home.

It's so surreal.

We worked and waited for 18 months and it's over.

He's home. And we're tired.

We are just enjoying being home.

Being a family of 4.

We had an amazing time in Africa.

Getting there was quite the adventure.

Being there was absolutely amazing.

I promise I will post all about it.

I won't do it justice, but Africa is too amazing not to share it.

It stole my heart.

I am still trying to process all we saw. All we experienced.

We are so grateful for each of you that prayed for and supported our family in our journey to be obedient to God's call to grow our family through adoption.

We pray God will bless each and everyone of you.

Have you ever thought about adoption?

Ever prayed about it?

Ever asked God what your role in caring for orphans was?

We did.

3 years ago.

And our family will never be the same.

It will forever be different.

Better.

"...once our eyes are opened, we can't pretend we don't know what to do.

God, who weighs our hearts and keeps our souls,

knows that we know, and holds us responsible to act."

{Proverbs 24:12}

DID YOU KNOW?...

...of the 9.9 million women who had ever considered adoption, only 16% had taken steps towards adoption, and only 31% of these had actually adopted a child.
...there are an estimated 3.3 adoption seekers for every actual adoption.
...over one-third of Americans have ever considered adopting, but no more than 2 percent of Americans have actually adopted.

There are 147 million orphans in the world and God's Word has much to say about them.

"Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this:

to visit orphans and widows in their affliction,

and to keep oneself unstained from the world.

{James 1:27}

"I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.

{John 14:18}

I am not one who believes that God has called everyone to adopt, but I do believe He has call us all to do something. Caring for orphans through adoption is normal... according to the Word of God. Please take time to pray about your role in caring for the orphans of the world.

Also, please join me in praying for this sweet family that is still waiting to pass court. They have been waiting far too long and I am more than ready to see their sweet baby boy home where he belongs.

THANKFUL FOR THE WAITS

2010-02-09T10:06:00.007-06:00

An adoption brings so many milestones.

Days that will forever be important.

There is the day you started telling everyone about your new journey.

The day you are put on the waitlist.

You have the day you finally receive your referral.

And the day you become a forever family.

An adoption is filled with so many waits.

The waits drive you nuts, but are so necessary.

The waits forever change you.

One year ago today we were put on the waitlist.

Waiting to find out the one God chose for our family.

And now, in just a few days, we will hold Miles in our arms.

We leave in four days for Africa and I am all over the place.

I am so ready to meet him.

For our family to finally be together.

But I don't know if I am ready to bring him home.

Don't get me wrong,

I am ready for him to be home, I just don't know if I am ready to take him from his.

That is just one of the many things you have to process on this journey called adoption and just one of the many reasons I am thankful for all the waits.

WE GOT IT!

2010-01-18T10:15:00.004-06:00

The CIS issue we have been dealing with everyday the last 3 weeks has finally been resolved.

But not without a fight and not without a lot of prayers.

It has been a LONG 3 weeks.

There were mornings I would wake up feeling like I don't have any fight left in me. I was just so tired of fighting.

But then I would think about what I was fighting for.

Who I was fighting for.

If I don't fight for Miles, who will?

Here's what happen...

Our case was assigned to an officer who no longer works at the USCIS office. Her case load was split up and re-assigned to the remaining officers. Our case was assigned to the officer who just started. The new girl. She has been training the last several months which is why our case wasn't looked at. When we started looking into the status of our case, she started processing it. She came back so many times with requests for different paperwork, updates on other paperwork, then requested an interview. On several different occasions, I asked her if she understood what we were needing. I let her know our I-600a doesn't expire until July 2010 and we weren't trying to get an extension, we just needed our I-171h amended with our new address. She said the process is the same for both.

We went for our interview on Friday.

The officer called in sick so we had to meet with the director of our CIS field office.

The.Director!

What an answer to prayer!

During our interview, we answered all kinds of questions about our moves, our finances, then he told us he would get with the officer next week and give her all the information so she can finish processing our case.

Keith told him we needed our letter.

We went back and forth and explained to him what steps we have taken the last 4 months to get our I-171h amended. We even pulled out our files to show him what we have done, and our correspondence with the officer in charge of our case. Then it clicked. We could see it on his face that he understood and knew they messed up. He confirmed our suspicions and told us he was under the impression that we were applying for an extension.

Being new, she got it wrong.

The process isn't the same for both.

He closed our file and told us to come back in an hour to pick up our approval letter.

That was it! We got it!

We walked out of the USCIS office with our new I-171h in hand.

We give God all the Glory for answering our prayers, for giving us favor with the CIS office, and for giving us the energy to keep fighting.

So, we get to keep our Embassy appointment on February 18th.

It won't be long now!

THE QUESTION OF THE DAY

2010-01-07T22:19:00.003-06:00

When do you travel?

Traveling is the last step in our adoption.

We did all the paperwork, were put on the waitlist, received our referral, passed court, now we are at the last step and we aren't sure when we get to take it.

You know that letter?

That letter we impatiently waited for because it allowed us to be officially waitlisted?

The I-171h.

Well, we are still impatiently waiting for it. For the third time.

Let me catch you up.

Remember this?
When we had to move because the home we were renting was being sold.
Well, we didn't talk about it much, but anyone in the middle of an adoption knows that moving means more paperwork.

Because we moved into a new home, we had to update our homestudy, send it to our local USCIS office, and wait (again) for the new approval letter. We received our new letter, with our new address on it in about a month. Not bad. Much better that the four months it took the first time.

Well, then this happened.
But this time, we weren't just moving down the street, we were moving to a new state.

So, we emailed our new CIS office and let them know what was going on.
We moved across the country, bought a home, updated our homestudy and submitted all of our new and old paperwork to our new USCIS office.

And that's where our stuff has been the last 3 months. Sitting on a desk.

The email that I sent them in August to let them know we were moving there was never replied to. My plea to let me know if there was anything else they needed was not answered.

I followed up with them last month to check on the status of our case, and two weeks later, they let me know that they don't have everything they need to amend my I-171h.

Our local CIS office has requested information from us everyday this last week. And just when we check everything off their crazy insane list, they add something else to it.

We have been doing paperwork for this adoption for the last 16 months.

Non-stop.

We are so ready to go get our boy! So ready!

So, when do we travel?
We aren't traveling on our first travel dates of February 1-8.
We were bumped.

Our new 'tentative' travel dates are February 15-22.

We are praying for favor with our local CIS office. Praying all the documents they've requested come in quickly from the other states. Praying they get it all processed in a timely manner. Praying that we get to travel soon to be united with the little boy that God choose for our family. And praying that Jesus will shine in all that we say and do.