why In The Light Of Eternity...??

Yes I changed the name of my blog when Carla did her makeover (thanks again Carla, you are wonderful!)....
This has always been one of my favorite ways to look at life. When things seem to get hard or out of control or we wonder why, I take great comfort in putting it into perspective. Like when I have an 'issue' with my teenager or I am waiting..waiting..waiting for TA (LOL, can you tell what my struggle is right now?) I am gently reminded by the Lord..."In the light of eternity this little thing will not even matter". It was the idea we always came back to when we were praying about adopting and the 'world' said we were crazy..the $$, the time, starting over again...then the whisper would come..."In the light of eternity, this is so much bigger, a little one may have their eternal life changed..." When we found out Hudson was in a province that adheres to aetheism, Buddhism or Taoism and is only 1% Christian it certianly will be worth it!

The other really cool part about the saying is it is one that Hudson Taylor is known for. I had never read anything about him but Mark had grown up being taught about him. The night we decided to officially name Xiao, Hudson was when Mark remembered he was the first one to take the gospel to China and his heart was wrapped around the Chinese people knowing the Lord. I began to read about him and was stunned when I read that he lived by that saying. It was just one more confirmation to me how this was all the Lord's plan. HE had planted that saying in my heart years ago just like He did adoption.

So....a few more days waiting for TA...leaving the 13th or the 27th In The Light of Eternity
will not matter!!

Egg rolls and paper lanterns...

My amazing friends, The Posse, threw me a great shower yesterday. I was so blessed by the many amazing gifts that were given but loved how it was started off with all gathering around my girls and I and praying for Hudson and our family. The praying lasted for about 15 minutes and I was overwhelmed by this journey that God has brought us on and how it is about to transition into a new phase. Hudson is so loved by many already!! The girls had a blast opening the gifts...I can't believe I didn't get a picture of the three of us! My friend Pam, on the far left is waiting for her RA for their little boy who is 4 months older than Hudson. The next shower is hers!!

Hudson is set. Now, where to put it all??

Prayer cards

The posse asked me for prayer requests while we are in China and then printed up these business cards to send home with the shower guests!! GREAT idea!

....sweet boy....

I woke up this morning with Hudson on my mind more than usual. I go to the gym every morning but Thursdays so I got up to check my emals before the kids woke up. There were a couple more pictures that Jenn had forwarded to me. This one has quickly become my favorite because it is EXACTLY how I picture Hudson the moment they bring him to us. We think his personality will bring us much laughter but I also think he has a shy side. If you look closely you can even see a tear on his check. The wait is getting hard...I want my baby!! The Lord always knows what I need and more pictures today has made the wait a little more bearable.

Happy Valentines to us!!

We received a great valentines gift yesterday. A friend (Bringing Jack Home) forwarded me the picture below that she had received through a friend. She didn't know if Hudson was in the picture but sure enough there he was in the back row on the right. Then last night my friend Jennifer (Journey to Abby) called to tell me she had just sent me a picture of Hudson and Abby TOGETHER!!. We will be traveling together to Gansu and this will be priceless for their photo albums. Both of these pictures are from a Christmas party. Any pictures we can get of our little ones, especially updated ones are so wonderful. Better than jewelry on this Valentines Day!!

XIN NIAN HAO!!!

Happy Chinese New Year!!
Aren't these litte ones adorable in their new Chinese NY outfits? The picture is from Love Without Boundaries and no Hudson is NOT in the picture.
Today I sent off a package to Hudson. We hope it reaches him soon and he will become a little familiar with our faces in the photo album that was included.
It is also Thursday and this week it is so easy to be thankful.
-Obviously receiving our RA is at the top of the list!
-The kids visa's will arrive today even though I forgot to have them sign their passports. Thankfully the visa's were granted without their signatures.
-For the unexpected ways God has provided for our final travel costs. We have been uncertian if we would be able to take all the kids but now we know we will be able to. We are overwhelmed with God's goodness to us.

Thanks secret sister!!

I received my first secret sister package today for Hudson. I sweet valentine teddy bear and a book (I love books!). THANK YOU!!! What a fun day to receive a gift. We received our RA via a fed-ex man and gladly signed it. It is amazing that such a simple piece of paper contains so much!!!
Thanks again ss....I know you have been faithful to pray for us and know you will continue. I appreciate you so much already!! Love, Sharon

RA is here!!!

After 105 days of waiting we were notified today that China has officially approved us to adopt Liang Xiao Yue. Our family coordinator, Lauren, expects we will travel in mid to late March. Fed-ex will deliver our RA to us tomorrow, we will sign it and return it to our agency. Our agency then returns it to China and we wait for our travel approval (TA). We then will have definite dates. We are still pinching ourselves as it is finally sinking in and this is really happening!!

... chosen one.....

I was reading through a blog of a family on their way home right now with their daughter. She is 6 and her special need is she has a weakened right side. Her father is such an entertaining blogger but he posted something after their daughters dr. exam in China. It really resonated with me and I think is a precious way to look at adoption. I pray this speaks to you like it did me.

"When we got into see the doctor finally, we didn’t find out much more than we already knew. One leg is slightly longer and the tendons in her weak leg are tight and the doctor was pleasantly surprised at the strength of her hand that she doesn’t use. It was interesting as I asked why all of this was so important. The answer was they wanted us to be fully aware of what we were getting, and all of the future needs that may come up. We were told that we needed to be aware that she would not be able to feed herself with her bad hand and that she would limp etc (notice the pic of her holding a fork and knife)…. It was like the opposite of a horse sale…instead of pointing out all the good they wanted us to know the problems. They were very insistent on how smart she is, Leah really responded well to their questions and their poking and prodding. This must be what it is like for God when we first come to faith. Satan would point out all the problems we have, all the things that should be barriers to being loved… I can imagine His response being similar to ours, we don’t really care about the problems because she is our daughter, she is our chosen one, which we have come across the world to get."