BABY'S BIRTHDAY!

Today is my baby's 41st birthday..yeahhh! We celebrated and it felt good, I did not have a lot to offer since we are saving for our adoption. So I gave him breakfast in bed, a full body massage (keep your heads out of the gutter), and my kids gave him a card...then off to grandmas for cake & ice cream.

September has been a very stressful month for us unfortunately..and we should never let stress get the better part of us..but I have to admitt I did..and it just landed me a 'cold sore' ewwwwww..yuck!

Anyway..despite being away..we have some good news.

The couple ahead of us got their call..YEAHHH! God Bless Them.

Now we wait for ours...I doubt baby girl will be home in time for Christmas..but we will wait and see...in life you just never know wink*.

Building our House;)

Psalm 127:1

“Unless the LORD builds the house,

They labor in vain who build it”



Taking care of our spiritual house will be a priority. 1 Peter 2:5 says,

“you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”

Let's not let hard times get us down; let's instead look at it in a way, where we will come out stronger, resistant and successful!

Build us up oh Lord!

Praising God - Hallelujah

LORIEN GOT OUR I 171H and HOMESTUDY UPDATE! YEAHHHHHHHHHH!


Because.. GOD IS GOOD ALL THE TIME..AND ALL THE TIME GOD IS GOOD;)


For great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods" (Psalm 96:4).
"Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom" (Psalm 145:3).
"I call to the LORD, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies" (2 Samuel 22:4).
"You are worthy, our LORD and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being" (Revelation 4:11).

AMEN!

The Big Man & Little Men who Helped Me put Things Together;)

Mamma's little helpers...along with the very talented/handy Daddy.

SMile Boys!

(Pssst...isn't Daddy handsome?...okay enough..no more gawking;)

Pics of Hope's Room

Lilac Daisy Bedding that we plan on buying for the crib & twin bed..it matches perfectly with the daisy fairy border; and also, the inspiration for my daisy lamp;)
Notice my little Russian doll all bundled up for the cold? Freddy actually bought me that (weird surprise, guess he's exploring his feminant side), he said it reminded him of me;) AWWWWWWW! The room is very pink its Fuscia & baby pink, along with a Disney Fairies border (not so much Tinkerbell). I really like the fairies & butterflies it makes it quite magical and fun..plus I get to introduce purple (I love color) with the linens and window curtains, but I haven't bought that stuff just yet. We have a beautiful crib that my girlfirend is giving me...but it too is not set up yet. My hubby managed to fit an airplane in the decor which I actually admire a lot;) Though, that hideous t.v. is not staying there, (he claims he is merely trouble shooting)...sure! I made the daisy lamp, it looks a little homemade, but its very girly and alot nicer than what was there...guess she'll have to live with it for a while...my hubby says this room is just 'wayyyyyyy toooo girly', and I'll admitt maybe I went overboard, but I waited a loooooooong time to have a girl...so its gonna be girly and pink!!






As you can see the ceiling is also PINK! I loved that idea and was very inspired with the different shades of pink..which is quite modern & fun;) My boys won't have a problem playing here (they do everyday); cause its a very cheerful, fun, vibrant room, which makes you feel good. Its the only room that has these big doors that are windows to the backyard, overlooking the pool and Canal..and yes Daddy's boat!

The mini plug in Chandelier is a classic must have..and yes I had to have it..hehe.

The furniture is absolutley beautiful and reminds me of something from a dollhouse. It is very detailed and all carved from wood and hand painted, it was bought used from a lady who took extreme good care of it, and cherished it so...and I am glad to receive this because its perfect!

A Breath of Inspiration..

Psalm 20
For the director of music. A psalm of David.


1 May the LORD answer you when you are in distress;
may the name of the God of Jacob protect you.
2 May he send you help from the sanctuary
and grant you support from Zion.

3 May he remember all your sacrifices
and accept your burnt offerings.
Selah

4 May he give you the desire of your heart
and make all your plans succeed.

5 We will shout for joy when you are victorious
and will lift up our banners in the name of our God.
May the LORD grant all your requests.

6 Now I know that the LORD saves his anointed;
he answers him from his holy heaven
with the saving power of his right hand.

7 Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.

8 They are brought to their knees and fall,
but we rise up and stand firm.

9 O LORD, save the king!
Answer [a] us when we call!

NO FBI ENVELOPE YET..

Even though it is not really mandatory to have the FBI prints for the first trip, I still want to receive it and get them Apostilled and not worry anymore about papers for a while..its been quite 'the never ending story'.

Also, I spoke to our Agency, and they said that most likely we will not be travelling in September, and more likely in October. Another couple is ahead of us, and so we anxiously wait along with them, to see when they get 'the call' so that we can soon expect 'our call'. Both of us (the other couple and us), are asking for a female up to the age of 24 months, of any ethnicity...maybe we'll travel together hmmm...maybe not. I also inquired about the different baby homes that our Agency's children come home from, and they explained how most of the homes in Moscow are better funded and the children are generally 'healthy' (instituitional healthy I guess) and are on target for their age. I continue to look at the data base to see if my girl is there..and so many of these precious little babies can be 'our girl' I just wait to find out which. I started to think up silly things to worry about; like, what if we have to leave around Halloween (our boys will be disappointed), not that God really cares about this holiday...but I was getting all frantic over what about this or that..but God knows what perfect time is..his time!

Again, I really want to show off the room but haven't looked for my camera yet, because I want it to be finished, and it isn't yet, because I started a crafty idea for the lamp but am taking my sweet time finishing it and getting it together (I am having a hard time configuring how I am going to get it together and stay together..hehe)?

Though I do have quite a room to brag about so you just sit tight tarts...cause our lil Hopee has quite a girly space..our sons love it;) I would love to buy some girly clothes, but that is where we draw the line and we will have to wait just a while longer for Hope. Pray we get her at a perfect time for our family;)

Thanx a bunch for reading and for your darling comments...you gals are great!

ITS HERE!

I am posting today..because I was too busy crying yesterday with excitement!
Our I 171H is finally HERE, YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

So today I need to get the updated HS license & the I 171H signed & notarized & sent off to Tallahassee Florida for Apostilles! It would be nice if Monday the FBI Clearance gets here from Virginia, and I am wondering if I should wait to see? I dunno..I am just happy though!

Also I received a beautiful card from a dear neighbor of mine, the card read:

Safely Home
by Unknown

I am home in Heaven, dear ones;
Oh, so happy and so bright!
There is perfect joy and beauty
In this everlasting light.
All the pain and grief is over,
Every restless tossing passed;
I am now at peace forever,
Safely home in Heaven at last.
Did you wonder I so calmly
Trod the valley of the shade?
Oh! but Jesus' arm to lean on,
Could I have one doubt or dread?
Then you must not grieve so sorely,
For I love you dearly still;
Try to look beyond earth's shadows,
Pray to trust our Father's Will.
There is work still waiting for you,
So you must not idly stand;
Do it now, while life remaineth--
You shall rest in Jesus' land.When that work is all completed,
He will gently call you Home;
Oh, the rapture of that meeting,
Oh, the joy to see you come!


As you can see the highlighted part is what broke me down..because it was yet another confirmation from God, (right after receiving the I 171H), that there is work to be done and children to take care of..and of course my 'Hope' being part of my life's plan;)

My uncle Arturo lived his life and it was all part of God's plan, now he is resting...and waiting for the rest of the family to complete their lives and join him in Jesus' sweet light. My uncle Arturo always raced ahead of everyone else...did everything first..guess he's even experiencing peace first...GOOD FOR HIM! I LOVE YOU TO PEICES UNCLE;) OUR FAMILY'S THUNDER-HEART-XOX
Stay strong girls...pray for your children, and hold tight the Lord is answering prayers!


AMEN

I 171H BLUES...

I feel like posting folks cause I am so miserable these days!

My sister is miserable and pregnant and I feel right there with her..maybe were both having girls? HA! Well I know I am, let's pray she is too;) How cool would it be for her to have a girl right along with me...again!

I dunno...I am busy,and we're almost done with the room (sorry for being lazy and not posting pictures). I have been cleaning and organizing as if I was nesting, which is a positive sign. Couples are flying off to Russia to bring home their babies with my agency...another good sign;) In fact, they just recently spoke with the DOE and they want to schedule more invitations to Russia, once they are better aware of which children are available....we could be on the list..who knows?

All very exciting right? Well it could be, if I felt assured that we had our I 171H! WE DON'T YET! I finally decided to email USCIS Orphan Unit and inquire (since I have spoken to the same officer twice). From there...we'll see I guess, I just get alittle frustrated over this cause once we get it, we still have to have it apostilled and sent to my agency to send off to Russia...GROOAAAAN;O(

I am so happy my kids are in school part of the day, so they don't observe my nutty emotions. I am still mourning my uncle's loss..it's been really hard getting over it, and I know I must put my trust in the Lord. Sometimes were just selfish; wanting to hold on, when we should be rejoicing that my uncle is no longer hurting here in the world.

I read a very interesting scripture in the book of Luke (22:31), I am not going to quote it because of the complexity of it and the lack of brain cells I have at this moment (too difficult of a task), but basically, it talks about how often we get attacked by evil, and how the devil wants you to have doubts and negative feelings in which I am constantly fighting these days. I truly feel attacked. So what do I do? I compare it to labor pains...when a woman is going through the terrible contractions and she is trying to breathe inbetween...that is how I am feeling. The good news is that God did give woman that rest inbetween, and that is why we are taught in lamaze class to breath and take advantage of that time God has given us before the next big contraction. We should also do this with our lives....during our crisis', stop and breathe, go with the waves, but PRAY! Luke says the answer is prayer, and prayer alone frees us from the grips of satan's hand. God wants us walking out as winners, and that is how we turn out after the fight (when we don't give up). Like my uncle...a winner & a fighter.

The scripture also explains, that sometimes satan is there because God allows him to be there, to test our faith...and he would never test us with something we cannot handle..Job obviously was a very loyal and strong servant that God knew would stand the test of time.

Let's pray to God harder, during our times of hurt, for he wants to comfort us.

Running to get the PRIZE;)

Fred's passport has arrived today....he said we could have saved money by not paying for the 'rush'..what a guy thing to say! I am very happy it came today, something positive and moving in our adoption world;)

Went to buy paints and baseboard today..took advantage of that Home Depot deal no interest and no payments for 12 months hehe...not good, that they would offer that to me...I now also want to do some landscaping;)

Well hopefully the room gets done tomorrow and I can post some pics this weekend..hope it comes out as pretty as I imagine it.

We'll start off with a prayer and blessing before we paint.

My motivational passage this week:

Corinthians 9:24

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize?
Run in such a way as to get the prize...

The ROOM;)

We have decided..well I have tried to ignore it even; but it seems as though, we will begin painting and preparing Hope's room finally!
I initially wanted to do this sooner, but somehow fell off track with all the misfortunes that had happend this summer...I just feel that it is now finally time..Chandra I think of you for some reason. I pray that we will create a beautiful room and soon have a referral on our little girl. Also, last night after snooping on the Russian data base...there was a little one that caught me off guard...because her name was 'HOPE' ;) My heart fluttered! So I was between a horse themed room or a ballerina room or a fairies & butterflies room. After asking my motherinlaw, fairies/butterflies win. I look forward to this, it also just feels right for some reason. So let's pray for Fred's passport to get here, for the I 171H, and quick apostilles...and off to Russia we go;)