The best things I heard yesterday...
TITUS: While having my face gripped in both of his little hands...gazing into my eyes, as they glaze over...lips puckered in expectation he says
"I LOVE YOU, MY SWEET WOMAN"...then kiss.
This is not an unusual statement made by this 3 year old 'OOZING' with love and affections. If Dono is present it typically begins the debate of 'who's sweet woman I really am'. Then it will end with Titus whispering in my ear..."I will marry you!"
(big sigh)
NYENNA: Lights out...said our prayers, and now each of us pick the best thing from our day, so we can thank God for that.
N says, "Thank you God, for my Grammy and Popie...that you gave them plenty of money so they could visit and stay with us." This was followed by, "please provide for us to go and visit them on Your birthday." (um- yeah Christmas;)
KOJO: Kojo rarely goes here but when he does I literally feel joy raise up in my heart. He can laugh, but when he "REALLY" laughs it's the best. Yesterday, I got the laugh. His full, perfect lips split so far apart in the form of a smile that they appear to be on the verge of taring. Then those little, pearly, baby teeth make a full and unashamed appearance...then GUMS...followed up by a laugh that could I listen to over and over again. When he's at his peak...it's almost like you expect his little "inter being" to pop out of his mouth and say, "HEY it's me, Kojo's inter being...let me outta here!"
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
Monday, June 16, 2008
BEEN AWHILE.....
I haven't posted in a long time. Summer must be in full swing. This is the season I desperately wait for, here in Colorado. We have about 5 1/2 months of beautiful weather...the rest of the year I'm not overly fond of, but I can deal. So once spring kicks in we pretty much don't mess around, just get right down to living out those 5 1/2 months to there very fullest!
We've done too much to post about, so I'll just add some pictures here and a couple little things...once everything slows down for us, I'll post an update on how the kids are adjusting. I also have a list of people I'll still be highlighting, you know in our "world changers" series;)
Last week....
In this picture there are 4 moms. Jennifer, Katie, myself, and Amanda. 1 1/2 years ago these 4 moms met at a park...with them totaled 8 biological children and 1 Liberian(Jennifer's daughter had come home).
This time the scene was a little different! Because a total of 8 MORE children have now been added to the mix! 7 from Liberia and 1 from Ethiopia. What a beautiful sight we are all together! 4 moms, 17 children...
How do we survive?
Uh-huh....caffeine
ALL of our children enjoyed the afternoon together...I love these moms and I love these kids...it's sooo great to look at each one of them, and remember the endless prayers and cries for them to come home to their families. GOD IS GOOD!
This weekend we built this beautiful bamboo fence. If you've never seen this before, it's a great alternative to killing more trees;) Bamboo can grow at an amazing rate and it's very durable...building a fence- go green, hug a tree.(little inside joke here)
Not only did I marry handsome, but I also married "handy"
Couple random pics.
Daisy stops to smell the flowers:
Little cutie pie
Well for now...I'll be going back to....
Cleaning things that are dirty-
Feeding people that are hungry-
Planting things that are beautiful-
Loving and enjoying those around me-
And intermittently picking up a guitar or a book.
Peace and love to you all!
Happy Summer
We've done too much to post about, so I'll just add some pictures here and a couple little things...once everything slows down for us, I'll post an update on how the kids are adjusting. I also have a list of people I'll still be highlighting, you know in our "world changers" series;)
Last week....
In this picture there are 4 moms. Jennifer, Katie, myself, and Amanda. 1 1/2 years ago these 4 moms met at a park...with them totaled 8 biological children and 1 Liberian(Jennifer's daughter had come home).
This time the scene was a little different! Because a total of 8 MORE children have now been added to the mix! 7 from Liberia and 1 from Ethiopia. What a beautiful sight we are all together! 4 moms, 17 children...
How do we survive?
Uh-huh....caffeine
ALL of our children enjoyed the afternoon together...I love these moms and I love these kids...it's sooo great to look at each one of them, and remember the endless prayers and cries for them to come home to their families. GOD IS GOOD!
This weekend we built this beautiful bamboo fence. If you've never seen this before, it's a great alternative to killing more trees;) Bamboo can grow at an amazing rate and it's very durable...building a fence- go green, hug a tree.(little inside joke here)
Not only did I marry handsome, but I also married "handy"
Couple random pics.
Daisy stops to smell the flowers:
Little cutie pie
Well for now...I'll be going back to....
Cleaning things that are dirty-
Feeding people that are hungry-
Planting things that are beautiful-
Loving and enjoying those around me-
And intermittently picking up a guitar or a book.
Peace and love to you all!
Happy Summer
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Just a band-aid
I borrowed the following from my friend's blog...it is so eloquently put that I thought why put it in my own words.
"It is easy to sink into the bliss of being an adoptive parent - but it is important to always remember that the bliss comes at great expense - often the heartbreak of a birth parent left without options, or the hopelessness of a child's prospects in their broken birth country, or the death-knell of an incurable disease, or the ramifications of poverty on a small life.
Adoption is not the answer - it is a band-aid and it is absolutely necessary, but something needs to be done about the problems - poverty, disease, war, racism, economic disparity - that leave children in this chasm.
It is imperative that those of us who walk down this road vow to always engage ourselves in solving the bigger problems - the very problems that brought our children home to us. Find an organization that is addressing these problems and send your money, give your time, advocate on their behalf."
Many people have made comments to us like, " These kids are so lucky..." "Aren't they so thankful that they are here with you?" "They must be grateful for all that they 'have' here."
I know these statements are totally not premeditated and are just said "off the cuff". I used to respond to them, but now have realized, people do mean well, they just don't understand. And that's OK.
The truth is years ago our social worker told us we were the "last and worst option for our adopted children" I heard this and really believed it, but had not yet lived it.
When your children come home and they openly grieve the loss of SO much, when they do not attach and love you the way you fantasized as quickly as you thought, when they act like how we are living is not good enough, when they stare straight through you like they are cutting glass, when each day you hear less and less of their "accent and language", and it's crossing over into American English...when your kids beg for food from 'their' country. When you hear their prayers each night, asking Jesus to please provide for their families and friends in Liberia...that they would have water to drink, work for the next day, and plenty of food to eat, you then really start to "feel like the band-aid"
Now that I'm saturated in that living....I feel FAR from being their 'savior'. In fact it's quite opposite. My heart aches for them. My heart aches for their loss. The loss and sacrifice of their families. Living in that realization is quite humbling.
On the flip side, we all need band aids at some time in our life. What an honor it is that God has chosen to make our family just the way He has. Truly, our children's loss is our gain. How selfish I feel in even saying that. But it's flat out truth. We have our lifetime to live together, and so I know God's plan is to turn their loss into their gain as well...it may just take some time.
"How lucky we are that they are here with us." "How wonderful it is that we live the way we do, and can bring them into that."
"We are so grateful they are here with us!"
I can say that with confidence, whether our adopted children feel the same way or not, this is "my truth". I can only pray that, one day, it will be the truth for them as well.
above excerpt from a non-profit "From HIV to Home" (my friend Jennifer) go there to read more!
"It is easy to sink into the bliss of being an adoptive parent - but it is important to always remember that the bliss comes at great expense - often the heartbreak of a birth parent left without options, or the hopelessness of a child's prospects in their broken birth country, or the death-knell of an incurable disease, or the ramifications of poverty on a small life.
Adoption is not the answer - it is a band-aid and it is absolutely necessary, but something needs to be done about the problems - poverty, disease, war, racism, economic disparity - that leave children in this chasm.
It is imperative that those of us who walk down this road vow to always engage ourselves in solving the bigger problems - the very problems that brought our children home to us. Find an organization that is addressing these problems and send your money, give your time, advocate on their behalf."
Many people have made comments to us like, " These kids are so lucky..." "Aren't they so thankful that they are here with you?" "They must be grateful for all that they 'have' here."
I know these statements are totally not premeditated and are just said "off the cuff". I used to respond to them, but now have realized, people do mean well, they just don't understand. And that's OK.
The truth is years ago our social worker told us we were the "last and worst option for our adopted children" I heard this and really believed it, but had not yet lived it.
When your children come home and they openly grieve the loss of SO much, when they do not attach and love you the way you fantasized as quickly as you thought, when they act like how we are living is not good enough, when they stare straight through you like they are cutting glass, when each day you hear less and less of their "accent and language", and it's crossing over into American English...when your kids beg for food from 'their' country. When you hear their prayers each night, asking Jesus to please provide for their families and friends in Liberia...that they would have water to drink, work for the next day, and plenty of food to eat, you then really start to "feel like the band-aid"
Now that I'm saturated in that living....I feel FAR from being their 'savior'. In fact it's quite opposite. My heart aches for them. My heart aches for their loss. The loss and sacrifice of their families. Living in that realization is quite humbling.
On the flip side, we all need band aids at some time in our life. What an honor it is that God has chosen to make our family just the way He has. Truly, our children's loss is our gain. How selfish I feel in even saying that. But it's flat out truth. We have our lifetime to live together, and so I know God's plan is to turn their loss into their gain as well...it may just take some time.
"How lucky we are that they are here with us." "How wonderful it is that we live the way we do, and can bring them into that."
"We are so grateful they are here with us!"
I can say that with confidence, whether our adopted children feel the same way or not, this is "my truth". I can only pray that, one day, it will be the truth for them as well.
above excerpt from a non-profit "From HIV to Home" (my friend Jennifer) go there to read more!
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
5 days ~ 5 parties/ tornado
Feeling worked would be an understatement. However, we looooove all of you people that we got to party with over the last 5 nights! We'll see a lot of you again this weekend;)
Benefit~ was a blast! We had so much fun and had a good turn out. I think we are friends with some of the most generous and compassionate people alive! Over $1,600 came in for Ruth!!!!! This is so amazing, this money will be a huge help to her and her family.
Our Africans wearing their fine Liberian clothes, in Ruth's honor!
Love this man!
Balloon fun!
Happy Birthday Osobie!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY KIKI!
Proof that God is real! Ever look at how beautiful your children are, and think "How in the world did that happen?" We do everyday...
PLEASE REMEMBER THESE FAMILIES IN YOUR PRAYERS! CAN YOU IMAGINE YOUR LIFE LOOKING LIKE THIS? THIS IS A TOWN JUST SOUTH EAST OF FORT COLLINS, HERE IN COLORADO. TORNADO!
Benefit~ was a blast! We had so much fun and had a good turn out. I think we are friends with some of the most generous and compassionate people alive! Over $1,600 came in for Ruth!!!!! This is so amazing, this money will be a huge help to her and her family.
Our Africans wearing their fine Liberian clothes, in Ruth's honor!
Love this man!
Balloon fun!
Happy Birthday Osobie!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY KIKI!
Proof that God is real! Ever look at how beautiful your children are, and think "How in the world did that happen?" We do everyday...
PLEASE REMEMBER THESE FAMILIES IN YOUR PRAYERS! CAN YOU IMAGINE YOUR LIFE LOOKING LIKE THIS? THIS IS A TOWN JUST SOUTH EAST OF FORT COLLINS, HERE IN COLORADO. TORNADO!
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
BE THERE!
If you live in N. CO. don't miss this benefit concert. ALL funds donated will be going to Ruth and her family. Please take time to read more about Ruth here.
If you can't make it on Friday, you can still donate to Ruth. Email us and we will tell you how....donolulu@gmail.com
SEE YOU THERE!
Monday, May 12, 2008
Time Flies: part 4
One year ago, yesterday( Mother's Day), I had the most bazaar Mother's Day, one I will never forget. I boarded a plane with my new son, whom I only had known for a few days. That same day, I left my new daughter and son in Liberia. I also had my 2 daughters here in America, celebrating Mother's Day with their Auntie. All in all I was thrilled to be leaving Liberia with Kojo on Mother's Day. A memory I will never forget!
Kojo on the way to the airport. He wasn't upset, just on the verge of falling a sleep.
Kojo in America, meeting his new sisters...
Kojo on the way to the airport. He wasn't upset, just on the verge of falling a sleep.
Kojo in America, meeting his new sisters...
Friday, May 09, 2008
Time Flies: part 3
One year ago, Donovan and I and Kojo went to the US Embassy, in Liberia to get Kojo's exit visa.
If you are a fellow adoptive parent you know how important this day was, especially in Liberia.
This is Kojo and his friend Rose. Rose was going home with her Papa, who came to pick her up this same week. Here's K & R before the Embassy visit.
Obviously the appointment was a success!
If you are a fellow adoptive parent you know how important this day was, especially in Liberia.
This is Kojo and his friend Rose. Rose was going home with her Papa, who came to pick her up this same week. Here's K & R before the Embassy visit.
Obviously the appointment was a success!
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