Both Hands

Travel to go pick up our girl is getting close. We find ourselves somewhat overwhelmed with the tasks remaining that we need to do in order to be prepared to do that. There's more paperwork to do, Visas to apply for, fees to pay, rooms to organize, a room to paint, baby/toddler and travel items to purchase and packing to start to get done, because you just don't wait until the week before to pack to travel half way across the world. So, we've found ourselves a bit like, "where do we begin?!?. Oh! I'm exhausted just thinking about it. I think I'll go lay on the couch." But, seriously, it kind of snuck up on us. But, I know we'll eventually get it all done. Just gotta focus on one task at a time, as hubby says. :o)

We've also been working on one last final fundraiser. At least, that's our hope. It is called the Both Hands Project. Both Hands is an organization that helps families fulfill both mandates of the scripture James 1:27 "²⁷ Pure religion, undefiled before God and the Father, is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world." The concept is to choose a widow to serve for a day. Gather a team together to help you work on her home, doing painting, yard work, cleaning, organizing, etc. Members of the team also send out sponsorship letters to ask family and friends to sponsor them to be on the team. It works kind of like a fundraising golf tournament or 5k run.
So, we've been working toward doing a project on August 30th. We have an awesome widow we are serving for a day. And all sponsorship funds raised will go toward helping to bring our Carissa girl home. It's actually pretty exciting. I'm really excited about helping out Rita with all the "honey do" projects around the house that she has been unable to do herself or afford to hire someone to do since losing her husband 4 years ago.
So, if you click on the attached link, you can see our donation page. Please take a look and help if you can. If not, please share the link with friends and family that you may think will be interested in helping out.
Thank you!

http://www.bothhands.org/paul-and-angela-widner

She smiles

We got an update on baby girl today. She's getting so big! I wish I could be there to see it...counting the days until we get to snuggle her and see her grow up and celebrate the milestones.

 

 

We have one other picture of her just barely smiling. This is the first toothy, real grin that we have seen. It made our day!

She's also standing very well, just using one hand for support. We've only seen one other picture of her standing with a walker for support, so this was extremely encouraging to us.

 

I bought her some clearance sale shoes to celebrate! :o)

 

 

And We are really hopeful to see her use them very soon!

 

Thank you so much for all those that have been praying for our sweet girl. We really felt that some of our prayers had been answered when we saw this update today.

LOA

So, if you follow me on Facebook, you know that we received our LOA, which is the letter of acceptance. This is China's official approval of our adoption of Carissa. We get to sign this piece of paper letting them know that we accept her.

 

When I checked the box saying we accept her, I was, like "Yeah! Are you kidding me? This is my baby we're talking about! I want to go get her now!". So, I checked that box and signed my name. Yahoo!

 

 

 

And so did her daddy!

 

We are so excited! This is a big step. We will basically be getting immigration approval and making plans for travel from this point on. That process will take approximately 10 weeks, give or take a week or two.

Hold on, baby girl! We are coming very soon! Mommy, Daddy, Sister and Brother are so excited for you to join our family!

 

John 14:18 "I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you."

 

 

 

Tattoo's

I have been wanting to write a post about my experience a few weeks ago at Teen Reach Adventure Camp (TRAC) http://hopeunlimitedinc.org/. I have been racking my brain trying to figure out how to put my experience into words. Truth is, there are no words good enough to describe what that week was like for me...heartbreaking, life changing, heart warming, unreal...none of it describes what it feels like to minister to child that has gone through things that I can't even imagine. A child of 12 that has lived things that no person, young or old, should ever have to go through.
How do you describe something like that?
Many of these children come to camp broken, bruised, terrified, heartbroken. They have labels permanently, what one girl described as tattooed, on to their hearts that people in their lives have given them. People that should have been trustworthy, people that should have protected and loved them. Instead these people gave these children labels such as; abused, neglected, forgotten, broken, worthless, unlovable, abandoned, ugly, stupid, unworthy... and that's just a few of the labels that I heard these children say they felt about themselves or were told to them.
During camp my job was simply to love on these girls. To share with them the love of God. To show them they have a hope and a future (http://azhope.com/). To give them new labels to tattoo on their hearts. Easier said than done with some of the girls. And that can't be accomplished by just me, a counselor...It's a team effort.
A bible teacher who teaches them about David and how he conquered Goliath. How they can conquer their own Goliath's in their lives. How God makes them conquerors over their sins, their trials, the labels they have been given in life. How God chose David and made him a King, just as He can choose them to be His daughters...princesses.  A bible teacher who has been through hell and back in her own life and can share her very own story of triumph. Something that made an ever lasting impression on these girls. Some who thought they may never triumph now have hope that they too will be conquerors someday.
A group of hair dressers and make up artists who come to camp for a day to help make these girls feel beautiful. They participate in a day of pampering, picking out beautiful dresses, shoes and accessories. And the girls just glow. Girls that came in with walls up, with slumped shoulders and broken spirits are now beaming, excited, trying on dresses and twirling around. They felt so beautiful and special.
A group of men that came to camp to be examples of how real men should treat them. Many of these men are husbands and fathers. They escorted them to a princess dance, served the girls a fancy dinner and most importantly, poured life and truth into these girls. Truth about how no matter their history, no matter what's been done to them or what they have done, they deserve to be treated like princesses. They are worthy of love and kindness and respect. Words, I know many of these girls will always hold close to their hearts.
And the ultimate leader of our team, My Lord and Savior. A God who can take a broken heart and make it whole again. A God who can turn a child with a dark and terrible past into a little princess, glowing and smiling. A God who can soften the hardest heart.
These girls came in with some pretty harsh labels tattooed on to their hearts, but many of them left with new tattoos....Loved, Redeemed, Cherished, Conqueror, Beautiful and Princess. The scars from the old tattoos may never completely go away. But these new labels are stronger, bolder...and that will make all the difference!

"'For I know the plans I have for you', says the Lord, 'Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.'" Jeremiah 29:11