SOOO much to catch up on!

Hey!

I have SO much to catch up on. Summer is going great, but very busy.

We have celebrated Logan's one year anniversary home, his 6th birthday and are about to celebrate Michael's 16th!

We are knee deep in post placement and dossier paper work. So amazing to believe that we have been given the blessing of another daughter. As soon as I can, I will post pictures and some details about our newest. But I can tell you that she is just to die for.

She looks so sweet and a little sad in her pictures. Life has not treated her as the priceless child she is. I am not going to go into much detail of her history, because it isn't mine to share. But I can say that hopefully soon she will come to know and accept our love for her. And that she will come to know and accept the love God has for her.

To believe that she is SOOOOOOOOOOO love and wanted, to be able to grow in that love and become all that God has intended her to be.

My head is swimming with things I need to do, things I want to do, and things I am being convicted of...and pretending I don't have to do.

This year has been a really amazing year for me. I have been challenged in ways I never imagined. I would love to say that I rose to each challenge, and handled them with ease..but that would be such a lie.

I don't think there there has been more then a stretch of a few weeks at a time where I have not had to ask God to let me see others as He does. Where relying on my own abilities failed.

I can look back and see that things have only turned out as awesome as they have because God was in them.

I honestly do not know how anyone can make it through this life without Him. Without His love, His guidance, grace, and unending patience.

Or the ever so needed, but done in love, kick in the rear.

Hope all is well, we are doing great. Better then we deserve.

Claire

PAPER PREGNANT AGAIN!!!

Just wanted to post that we are expecting again!

God willing, we will have our new daughter home next year. The story of her coming home is a little long, and ALL of the glory and credit goes to God.

I can't post any pictures or details yet. But I will as soon as we receive our approval from China.

I can tell you that she is an amazing 2 year old little girl from the south of China. From the description of her personality, she is a spit fire. She will fit right in.

Love,
Claire

Hangin' out

Hey there!

Hope that everyone has a wonderful Memorial week end. And take a moment to thank those who have served, so that we can be where we are today.

Just hanging on until all of the end of the year activities are over. The kids are more then ready for summer vacation, and to be honest...so am I. It has been a great school year. The kids did fantastic, and Logan just blossomed.. he just continues to amaze us with how far he has come in just a year.

FINALLY that feeling of restlessness has past. And now that I look back, I can see that the restlessness was all of my own doing. Trying to go in a direction that I wanted, not what God wanted. One might think I have figured this one out by now!

God has been working to get my attention focused onto a certain area for awhile now, but I have not been willing to really listen. He has sent more then a few burning bushes my way, and I felt the heat.

I have spent a lot of time wrestling with the concept of faith, deeds and pure religion. But James 1:22 just laid it out very clearly. " Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourself. Do what it says."

James 1:27 goes on to talk about what God accepts as pure religion," Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this; to look after the orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world."

My own issues were the part of "..in their distress.." I take this to mean that we are to get in there, where they are...get our hands dirty and pour ourselves into them.

It is time for me to turn my attention to those here at home. We have always been open to adopting more children since Mia and Logan have come home. I just always assumed the next one would be from China also. Notice how many I's there are in my plan?

But God placed a different thought with Bart. He planted the desire to provide foster care to the children around here who need a safe, loving home. And, after some time allowing that leading to penetrate my thick skull... I realized that not all orphans are in China.

So, we are about to embark on a new journey. We are signed up to take the required classes to foster, or foster to adopt. We have no clue where this will take us, but can't wait to find out.

Love,
Claire

Really ready for summer

police man and daddy

one of these will be my future son-in-law!

shuttle launch- view from our street

getting ready for pool time

body art at its cutest



my princess having tea
Hey out there,

Hope all is good. Sooo ready for summer down here.

Sooooooooo tired of getting up and out the door 5 days a week to end the day with home work and projects. The weather is amazing, and the stores are stocked with sunblock and summer toys.

Thankfully we have spring break next week. We are headed out for some down time camping on a big river here. It will be the official kick off of our summer. It has been a long 5 months without swimming, boating and fishing.

As I have said a million times, I have no idea how you all survive up north during your winters.

Please feel free to come visit and thaw out!

Love,
Claire

A taste of summer

Restless

Nothing terribly exciting going on around here, that I know of yet.

For about the past 6 months, I have been in a season of restlessness and simplification. I had no stinkin idea of what to do with both things, so i turned my focus towards doing some serious de-cluttering of our closets,drawers and pretty much every nook and cranny in the house.

As I went room by room, I was both thankful for all of the material things we have...and also convicted about all of the material things we have. My conviction grew with each bag of stuff I loaded into my car and took to donate.

I realized that I have slipped very far away from being a living example to my kids about how stuff doesn't make you truly happy or more importantly...content.

I still don't really know where this season is taking me.I know that I need to stay in God's word and lean on Him to help me be the example I need to be. I sat down the other day, and opened up my favorite book of the Bible--Proverbs.

I decided to make the title, " Prologue: Purpose and Theme" my purpose and theme...to do my best to attain wisdom and discipline. To gain understanding, and to do what is right and just. To submit to God, and His commands in His word. To trust in Him, not myself.

Love,
Claire

Strawberry picking

on the hayride at the strawberry farm.

sunday dinner with uncle jim, aunt alice, nonni and pa and cousins and kids.

princess mia and her armed guard, sir logan.

liv, logan and mia picking strawberries.

YES!!! there were as delicious as they look. especially with the home made chocolate dip the farm makes.

Just a few pictures of us out and about, enjoying our last few weeks of cool weather.