Video to watch

My mother sent me a link to a You Tube video that touched her. It was the Contemporary Christian Music artists Leeland and Brandon Heath on a mission trip to Cambodia. The video and pictures are powerful, but the song is what is so strong! The song talks about taking Jesus into broken homes and such.   Cambodia, a small country ravaged by decades of war.  A country of about 14 million people.  I just read a UNICEF report that estimated in 2004 there were 553,000 orphans living in Cambodia.  Yep, I did type half a million orphaned children in that one tiny country alone!!!!!!!!  Inconceivable!  This really breaks my heart and I'll be transparent and tell you why.  You see, the end of August 2000, we had been in the adoption process for about 7 months.  We were losing it.  It was soooo hard to sit and wait and not know when we would get a referral call.  I knew there were kids out there waiting for homes, and here we sat on a waiting list.  It seemed crazy.  So, we began looking at some waiting child sites.  We found a darling 3 months old girl waiting for a family---in Cambodia.  We were so naive and thought we could just make a few changes on our paperwork and Voila, jump over to Cambodia instead of Korea right?  Fortunately, the director of Dillon International was very forthright with me about the challenges of changing countries.  Then, the agency who was working with this little girl informed me that Cambodia had just closed to adoptions, but they expected them to open in just a few months and we could go get the baby then.  Thankfully the Holy Spirit nudged us to stay with Korea and Dillon Int.  That was 9 years ago and Cambodia still hasn't reopened to adoptions.  I think about that dark skinned, chubby baby in the picture we had.  Her name on the file was "Rath Theary."  Many of the Cambodian children were named 2 names.  The first one was always Rath.  Do you know what the name Rath means in Cambodia?   
                        UNWANTED
                       
Can you  imagine growing up with the name Unwanted???  That precious angel baby girl is the same age as my beautiful daughter Abigail.  Do you know what the name Abigail means?  Her father rejoices! 
Both little girls began life without families somewhere in Asia.  One little girl becomes the beloved only daughter whose name means Her Father Rejoices.  One little girl is most likely still an orphan, spending her days in an institution, full of other children whose names mean Unwanted!
Pray for the unwanted.  Give to the unwanted.  Bring in the unwanted.  Go to the unwanted.  Spread the word about the unwanted!

Genius and Adorable

Just in case you need a "cutest kid in the world" fix, I attached 2 pics of Hudson reading his favorite book.  He has only been home 7 weeks, heard Korean his whole life until now, but he understands most of what we say.  This morning I got a spoonful of oatmeal and said "Hot".  He blew!  Amazing.

So, I'm not cool?

Carter asked if he could make his own lunch from now on.  You see, I embarrass him with my lunches.  Yesterday morning, the groceries were low.  I hate grocery shopping and so I really try to save up the list and go once a week.  Yesterday morning we were out of snack crackers, pretzels, popcorn and such.  I don't give my kids chips in their lunches.  I made the kids a bean and cheese burrito, apple slices, little packet of M&M's, Caprisun drink, and a baggie of Alpha-Bits cereal(in place of crackers).  It looked good to me!  Last night Carter said "Mom, it is a little embarrassing for an 8th grader to pull out a baggie of Alpha-Bits and a Caprisun."  So, I bought some groceries and I just gave him a dollar, against every mother instinct in my body, to buy a drink out of the machine at school!

Tired-being real

Honesty, plain honesty:  I'm so tired sometimes!  I love being a mom.  But, sometimes, I'm so tired I can't stand it.  At this very moment, being a Yuppy who goes to work, then goes to the gym for an hour, drives a nice new car(with cd player that works), join my husband at Central Market for dinner, then go home to a quiet and clean home, all sounds really nice.  I know, I'm super blessed and have such a great privelage raising these 4 miracles.  Ohh, but sometimes, I'm just tired!

What about the kids right here?

Like I said several days ago, November 8th is Orphan Sunday(http://www.cryoftheorphan.org/) and November is National Adoption Month.  So, I promised that leading up to then, I'd be posting about the plight of children around the world.  Today I'm gonna talk about the kids right in my area.  I did some research on Texas Dept. of Family and Protective Services webiste.  In the fiscal year of 2008, 31 thousand children were in foster care in Texas.  In 2008, 6,375 children in the state's custody were waiting to be adopted.  You don't want to travel to another country?  Okay, how about kids in your own backyard?  You say you have no money for adoption fees?  No problem, adopt from the state and you will have extremely reduced, if not free adoption fees.  You say you want to specify gender?  No problem, lots of boys and girls are waiting(typically, boys are harder to place than girls).  Now, it won't be easy.  Heck, the state makes some of the dumbest requirements I've ever seen!  But it will be worth it!  As most of you know, my sister and her husband are in the 90 day waiting period to adopt their foster daughter.  I'm tellin ya, she is no foster child in our eyes!  The minute she came to live with them, she was "ours".  When I say ours, I mean everyone in the family felt like she belonged with all of us.  Yep, M and B have had to jump through some really stupid hoops to satisfy the state, but in the end, that makes adoption day all the more sweeter.
Okay, so you don't feel led to adopt.  No problem!  Did you know that children in foster care can only be cared for by other foster parents, or respite parents?  I can't babysit my neice.  My sister frequently babysits other children who are in foster care.  These parents NEED a break once in a while.  Go through the paperwork and become a respite family.  What a blessing to the tireless foster families!
Or, here is a great idea.  Be a transitional care family.  There is a couple at our church who provides transitional care for newborns whose birthfamilies have made an adoption plan, but for several different reasons, the child can't go to the adoptive home yet.  So, this couple takes care of the newborns for varying timeframes.  They currently have their 55th sweet baby!  Can you imagine a more selfless gift?  Caring for that newborn until his/her forever home is ready? 

So, I know, many of you who are new to this blog are asking, why did we go overseas?  Well, easy, God called us to the children of South Korea.  Children without families are all over the world AND in our own backyard.  Some people need to care for those here, some need to care for those afar.  No competition, they all need families.

Loving the people of Nicarauga and a great Sunday

According to Children's Hunger Relief Fund, one in three children in Nicarauga suffers from some form of chronic malnutrition.  In the summer of 2006, Carter(he was 10) and I went on a mission trip to a children's home in Nicarauga.  We went with an amazing couple who attend our church and have a full-time ministry, http://www.jodykennedy.com/.  They are helping the sweet family, pictured above, who began taking in local street children into their very modest home.  When we were there, there were about 30 children who recieved food, shelter, love, support, and some form of education with this one family.  I was especially touched by 2 brothers(age 12 and 14) who were found living alone in a tree.  The children were so sweet and precious.  The family  who took all these kids in were not rich.  In fact, according to my standards, they were very poor.  The home was small and made of cinder block, with a dirt floor.  There was 1 bathroom for over 30 people to share.  How did the mother feed all those kids??  I gripe about my grocery bill!  Would I be willing to take in 30 children who were abandoned, dirty, had nothing of their own, probably had emotional problems and learning difficulties?  The answer is an honest and selfish no.  You see, it isn't convenient, it isn't clean, it isn't fun, it isn't easy to care for children like that. But, what does the word of God say?
Isaiah 58:10-11
10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry



and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,


then your light will rise in the darkness,


and your night will become like the noonday.


11 The LORD will guide you always;


he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land


and will strengthen your frame.


You will be like a well-watered garden,


like a spring whose waters never fail. 

About yesterday, we had a great day!!  Abby took a neighbor friend to church.  Our church is the most diverse church I've ever seen.  It is sooooo cool!  There are lots of African-Americans, a lady from India who wears a traditional Sari to church, many inter-racial couples, several Koreans, a few Brazilian families, and several multiracial adoptive families.  We are so blessed to have a loving atmostphere.  The praise band totally rocked the house yesterday.  Our lead electric guitar player could very easily be professional.  I'd tell you the name of our church, but there could be kooky stalkers out there and if I say the name  the city where we live would be given away!  Last night Hudson went to sleep without the usual drama of crying, getting up and roaming, coughing and gagging, basically acting like he is being tortured slowly.  He was sweet, peaceful and just went to sleep(with me reading in the room of course).  Yippeee!  Maybe we've turned a corner.  He is sooooo smart guys!  He is loving, and funny and the cutest little hunk of toddler ever!!!!

True Servants

Yesterday I was hit with a thought.  Well, really it was the Holy Spirit slapping me upside the head!  I'm a flake.  No, really, I am.  I'm a bit rebellious, I hate tradition(or doing things the same way just cause), I can't stand being told what to do.  I dream big dreams and have grand ideas but rarely follow them to completion.  Last year I started a Special Needs Adoption Support Group for this area and had 3 get togethers.  Never did anything else.  I don't commit to teaching kids at church because I don't want to be tied down(okay, in my defense, I work 1 Sunday a month).   Now, offer a big mission trip to China or something and I'm all over it.  The daily service thing:  not my cup of  tea.  I'm so glad there are people like that!  God gifts us in all different talents and personalities.  Take Mike's family for instance.  His grandma, mother, and sister have all been going to the same church for years.  His mother and grandmother have taught children Sunday School classes for at least 12-13 years, Sunday after Sunday, year after year.  They make birthday cakes for the kids.  They have Christmas parties and bring gifts for the kids.  The church leaders never have to worry about who will teach their 2 classes--they will be there.  His sister teaches GA's(have to be Baptist to know what that is) and children's choir.  His brother-in-law is a deacon and on probably every committee at the church.  Faithful, dutiful, quiet, humble servants!!  My hats off to them all!