Three Little Miracles...Make that Four!!

Sorry I haven't posted in a while...you know how it is around the holidays, plus Eden's 3rd birthday was 2 days after Christmas. Then, guess what? I got pneumonia!!! Can you believe that? I'm doing much better, just really tired...I think as much from laying around so much as from the actual illness.

Anyway, I'm getting back into the swing of things. Can I just say I'm so glad it's 2009? 2008 was a really hard year for us for some reason...and I'm grateful to get the "fresh start" that a new year seems to bring.

Last year at New Year's I was still reeling from the adoption adjustment and first-time mom adjustment. I didn't even set any goals for 2008 and I think my year reflected that. So, this year, I'm going to set some goals, or resolutions if you want to call them that. I haven't been so great at following through lately and I'm determined to change that this year. I will do a separate post with my new goals. I'm really trying to think through and carefully set realistic and attainable goals. I've decided to focus on 4 areas, setting one goal in each area: my goal as a wife, as a mother, for my relationship with the Lord, and one goal just for myself. This will help me to focus on what's important in a balanced way. More to come on that later.

Now for the reason for the title of this post. A few days before Christmas, Eden and I got to go and visit the Ferrill's. They recently brought home their 7th child (3rd adopted) from China. Many of you probably follow their blog. We traveled to China with them when we adopted Eden. Kimmie (3) and Quan (4) are from Eden's orphanage in Wuhan.

It was so awesome to see the three of them reunited. Eden hasn't stopped talking about them since then. I don't think they really remembered each other but they picked up like no time had passed. Even though they were all 3 in different foster homes in China, they likely spent time together often at the orphanage. Eden was so excited to see some other people from China. It was neat to see her reaction and how she understands that these children were from the same place as her and now live in the United States.

I was struck by how important this connection to the children in our travel group is going to likely be to her in the future. These kids are her only tangible connection to her past. I plan on being intentional in the future about making sure we stay connected to these families. We share a bond with them that will never be broken.

And can I just say that Candace, the 8-year-old that the Ferrill's just brought home, is such a little love-monkey??? I adore her!!! Her smile lights up the room. We took her a Christmas pez dispenser and she was so proud to share her candy with everyone. I'm so blessed to have met her. Our visit reminded me anew of the miracle of adoption. I am humbled by God's grace in these children's lives, and His goodness to us, the parents He chooses for them. Here are some photos from our visit.

From left: Kimmie, Eden and Quan

From left: Kimmie, Carly, Eden, Candace and Katie Lyn

I'll post again soon. I have a lot of Christmas photos to post. Have a great rest of the week!