Ready or not, here I come!

First, let me apologize for the delay between posts!  June has been CRAZY for the Green house!  A few things we have had on the calendar... 2 Vacation Bible Schools (one of which I am working), Milana's 4th birthday and party at the Flower Mound Community Activity Center (FUN), my Miche Open House, a CAbi fundraising party, swim lessons for 2 weeks, an appointment in Ft. Worth to get our fingerprints done, an audition for a game show... just to name a few things!  :)

Yes, a game show! You read it correctly - I auditioned along with my two teammates, Natalie Reid and Amelia Dement.  It is a new game show called The American Bible Challenge with a tag line of "If you don't  know your Bible, you haven't got a prayer!"  Oh my!  And guess who the host is... yep, Jeff Foxworthy.  Isn't he the first person that came to your mind???  :-)  The winners are playing for the charity of their choice... we have chosen IGAO (International Guardian Angels Outreach).  They are the incredible folks that helped us with getting our home study processed so quickly.  Their focus however isn't necessarily adoptions like ours but rather helping special needs kids get adopted from Russia.  These kids may have been born with severe disformations or have severe burns... whatever the case may be, they help them obtain medical visas to travel to the US for surgeries with the hopes of finding forever families for these kids while they are here.  They have helped over 200 precious children get adopted and the money would help them get many more special needs orphans connected with loving families.  For them it truly is a labor of love!  It looks like we have an excellent chance of getting on the show!  When I started this journey a couple months ago, I would have NEVER guessed that I would possibly be on a game show in hopes of raising money to help other orphans get adopted.  CRAZY!  I will keep you posted... oh my!  :)

I also want to take this opportunity to send out a big THANK YOU to those of you who helped make my CAbi fundraiser a success!  We were able to raise $450... a HUGE blessing.  We have raised $11,000 so far and need $10,000 more so this was a huge help!  It put us over the half way point... whew - that feels good!  And on that note, I have a sweet friend who along with her awesome Bible Study Group and Home Group are hosting a garage sale for us in Coppell, TX on July 14th to help raise money.  I feel so incredibly blessed that they actually chose us to be their service project this summer.  Can you imagine how that makes me feel?  They chose US... they were so moved by our situation that they chose us.  I get teary eyed just typing that out.  My mom sent me a message the other day when she found out what they were doing that said "you are loved!"  Yes Mom, I feel loved.  We have such a wonderful family of friends that even though we don't have any "blood family" anywhere near us, we still feel like we are home.  What an incredible feeling... thank you!  Back to the details... the garage sale is July 14th and you know what they say - one man's junk is another man's treasure!  If you have anything you would like to get out of your house, we will gladly take it off your hands to put in the garage sale... just let me know!  :)

I suppose you want to know what is going on with Marina!  :)  Well, one of the reasons I haven't taken the time to blog is because there hasn't been much to report.  We haven't had any additional contact with Marina via FB because the teacher at the orphanage who provided Marina access to a computer is on holiday.  We have simply been waiting for June 30th to arrive so that we can meet who will soon become our new daughter.  We cleaned out the guest room this week... we are setting up her net book (donated by Grammy and Grandpa)... we have had a few people from our precious Home Group come pray over our home in preparing for her arrival... we have pondered what she must be thinking right now.  Can you imagine... getting on an airplane and travelling half way across the world with nothing more then a purse and the clothes on your back to meet a family that wants to adopt you sight unseen?  Scary... exciting... anxious... sad... happy... unsure... the emotions are most likely all over the place.  She is actually either about to board her plane or is already on it to begin her journey here.  We will be picking her up from the DFW airport at 6:00 pm Saturday evening.  We have invited Julianna to spend the night with us this weekend too.  Can you imagine 8 months ago saying goodbye to your best friend at the orphanage thinking you would never see her again?  Then boarding a plane to not only meet who will soon be your new family but getting to spend the night with that best friend?  God is so great!  He has worked everything out for His glory.  I can't wait to tell her the story one day of His grace... His goodness... His mercy... His love for her.  Ready or not - here she comes... and we will be eagerly waiting for her at the airport with hearts full of love specifically for her.  Marbella and Milana are beside themselves... so ready to meet their new big sister.

For all my prayer warriors out there... pray for safe travels for Marina... pray for a wonderful bonding time for our family... pray for Andy and I to have peace in every aspect and to not let the enemy try to get between us... pray for Marbella and Milana to have a heart for Marina... pray that the Lord woos Marina to Him and that we follow His lead to show her His mighty and loving character.

I will post an update very soon... with pictures!!!

Where exactly is the Ukraine?

I'm daring to guess that most of you don't have a passport stamp from Ukraine.  In that case, here is a brief geography lesson.


Ukraine is in eastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Poland, Romania, and Moldova in the west and Russia in the east. Ukraine is slightly smaller than Texas.  Specifically, in the Ukraine we'll be headed to Pantaivka, a small town of approximately 2000, located 162 miles southeast of Kiev or 240 miles north-northeast of Odessa.


View Larger Map

For those of you that watch soccer, or futbol, you're probably hearing about Ukraine right now as the country is presently hosting Euro2012. The CIA World Factbook contains a thorough brief on the Ukraine.


Orphans in Ukraine
This map really helps clarify the situation and shows the reality of the situation-- many older kids, kids with disabilities and lots of sibling groups!

How do I feel?

Three weeks from today I will be driving to Atlanta with Lisa and Julianna (Lisa's adopted daughter and Marina's best friend from the orphanage) to pick up Marina for the hosting stay.  Seven weeks we will have together while the adoption process takes its course.

How do I feel?
Much like a mother who is about to give birth... on one hand, beyond excited... on the other hand, wanting to feel every moment with my existing 'family' before everything changes.  I remember feeling this way before giving birth to Milana - taking extra moments to appreciate just being Marbella's mommy before everything changed. God knew how our family would grow long before I was born.  He knew Marbella was going to be a beautiful tender first born child.  He knew Milana was going to be the precious spunky "baby" of the family.  He also knew long before Marina was born that she would be added to our mix and become the big sister to these two precious blonde haired blue eyed little girls.  The fact that He knew all of that and the fact that He ordained all of that makes this all so much easier.  He gave me the gift of Marbella... then the gift of Milana... and now the gift of Marina.  As I write adjectives about Marbella and Milana, I realize that I don't have any to describe Marina.  I can't wait for the opportunity to get to know her so that I can give you some wonderful adjectives to describe her as well!

At the same time, I am not going to lie to you... I feel a bit of fear.  I know - fear doesn't come from God but rather the enemy - but I am sure you can understand why.  Unlike Marbella and Milana, Marina has a choice.  She can choose to be a part of our family... or she can choose to stay at the orphanage until she ages out.  Regardless of why she would do that... she can.

I also feel so blessed to have you all to share in this excitement... to share in this journey... to share in the anticipation.  As I continue to reiterate in every post, your prayers are so important to us. Our specific prayers right now are for a safe journey here for Marina... a safe journey for us as we travel to Atlanta to get her and bring her back to Dallas... and a time of bonding with both us and the girls.      Thank you so much... you are a blessing to us all!  :)

The Count Down Begins!

I leave in 26 DAYS to pick up Marina from the Atlanta airport!!!  And we get to keep her for 7 weeks... WHOO HOO!  Can you tell that we are a little excited here in the Green house.  Marbella and Milana continue to draw pictures for her and make her cards... she will be welcomed with open arms and lots of paper!  :)  The countdown has begun...

On another note... OH MY GOODNESS... 72 tickets have been sold for the Miche raffle so far and the drawing isn't until Saturday, the 16th!!!  Only 28 more tickets to reach my goal of giving away 4 bundles!!!  Seriously, your support is amazing and I can't thank you enough.  It truly blows my mind!!!

While she is here, we are going to teach her to play BUNKO!!!  If you are interested in playing with us, let me know!  I think it will be a blast!!!  We will plan it either mid July or early August and determine the venue once we know how many want to join us.

Thank you all for your prayers.  I can't continue to comment enough on how thankful we are for your support.  There are times when we get so wrapped up in all of the things that need to get done in order to make the adoption happen that we forget to sit down and rest in God's presence... in His provision... in His peace... in His arms.  These are the times we are counting on YOU, and I am so thankful that we have you to count on!  Please don't stop praying!!!  We need your prayers... Marina needs your prayers... and we as a family unit need your prayers!  As I write this, tears come to my eyes because I can feel your prayers.  Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!

An amazing letter...

If you are new to the blog, start reading at the post "When God Calls, How Do You Respond?"...


My dear friend, Kelly Jarrell, sent me a blog post (link below) that I love and want to share with you.  Once you read it, you will understand why I think it is so perfect... I just wish I had written it myself!  :)  As you read it, think of Andy and myself writing it to Marbella and Milana...


Click here to read the letter (blog post)