New Pics!!

                                         So here are the promised pictures of little Kai!

                              I love this picture!  He looks like he is so up to something naughty:)

                   We hear that Kai is talking a lot more and improving with his motor skills

                        I think his little friends are so cute!  I 'm sure he is going to miss them.

             So this is weird but Kai is shorter, lighter, and has smaller feet than before! lol

                  Dont think he is digging having that bowl on his head!  A couple more months and we get to meet this little guy:)  Lots to do before then!

No News

I Don't know about you guys but I could not be more happy that the oppressive heat has finally left us! I don't know if I could have taken one more day! Well I'm enjoying my Monday off before the start of my work week tomorrow. I wish I could say I'm looking forward to it but unfortunetly I'm not. Dealing with the elderly and overworked nurses and aides doesn't get easier but I do my best! I'm sorry to say we still havn't heard anything from China about the adoption. We where origially told 2-3 month's from refferral to our formal letter of acceptance from China. We were later told up to 4 months. Today marks 12 weeks since we got the referral for Kai and 11 weeks since we got the preliminary letter of acceptance. I guess the purpose of this post is really a prayer request. Could you all join us in praying that we recieve our letter of approval(LOA) from China and that the rest of this proccess will move quickly? We have just waited so very long! My husband is doing much better at the waiting part than I am! In the end I know that God's timing is perfect and I accept that. Thank you all:)

New Pictures of Kai!!!!!!

So here are nine new pictures of our little Kai!  Please excuse the pink girls pajamas, it seems in China gender specific clothing for children just isn't that important:)  He is now 32 inches tall and weighs 28 lbs!  He looks very small to us though.  We are still waiting on our letter of approval from China.  Ok mommies out there, what is a reasonable going rate for an Amish babysitter in Holmes county?  I have no clue!  Please continue to pray for us during this process and for Kai that his little heart would somehow be prepared for all the changes that are coming his way<3

A little bit more about Kai...

I know you all have probably been wondering about how things are going and wanting to know more in general!  We don't really know any more then we knew a month ago but I can elaborate a little.  Probably the most frequently asked question I've gotten is when are we going to China?  When do we bring Kai home?  Well we don't know for sure but our agency told us worst case scenario is 5-6 months after referral.  That would put us at the end of September or the end of October.  It seems really long but we are very content knowing that everything is in God's timing and there is no use fretting and carrying on if we cant change it.  Also we have a LOT to do before the China trip!  I have recently changed jobs and I have such a big transition to make with that.  Lots to learn and a major career change.  Also Reuben has been working diligently on Kai's room.  It is far from done but is looking better every day!  I've been having fun buying things we will need for our little guy and our house has been taken over by miscellaneous boys stuff!  ha  So I guess I said a little bit more about Kai.  Well as I said in an earlier post he was born on January 26th 2010.  He is roughly 27 lbs and 31 inches tall.  I have had a time trying to figure out what size he is going to be wearing so if any of you have little ones about that size any insight would be much appreciated!  Also in earlier posts I mentioned that we are adopting a special needs child.  We feel the need to say a little bit about Kai's medical needs just so every one will know what to expect.  Kai is a completely healthy normal little boy except for one minor detail.  His left leg is roughly two inches shorter than his right.  He will require two to three surgeries in the future to hopefully lengthen his leg.  That being said, Kai can run, jump, and go up and down steps.  He is said to be a good sleeper and not a picky eater.  He is cooperative with getting dressed,and knows what no means.  The information we got is just so very positive about him and what a lovely, happy child he is.  Going through this process we so had our hearts and minds set on a little girl much younger than Kai.  It's funny though when we saw that little face, a read about how lovely Kai is, all that flew straight, directly out the window!  A wise man once said that adoption is fairly near the very center of God's heart and I couldn't agree more!  After all isn't that the story of salvation?  All of us who follow Christ are adopted into the family of God!  It is such a peaceful feeling knowing that God is in control of us, and this situation and that no matter the ups and downs and jet lag and exhaustion that face us we are in the perfect will of God!  Whom or what shall we fear??  Got questions??  Ask away!  I will be updating as I have anything to say.

Big news...like, the biggest!

 I thought you'd all like to meet someone... someone very special...

 This is our little boy!  He was born January 26th 2010 in Ningbo City, China. 

we accepted his refferal this afternoon and are so excited!  And the info I know my family has been waitin on he most is his name;)  So here goes.. his name is Kai Jaxon Miller!  We know a little bit about Kai, his Chinese name is Hu Peng, he likes to watch tv, play with toys and is very active.  He is also potty trained for the most part and is described as adorable, smart, not a picky eater, sleeps well and has a ready smile.  They told us he likes to imitate and shake hands lol.  So there will be more info to come but we all wanted you to hear our good news!  Thanks for all your prayers and keep em coming!!

Progress!

I'm enjoying this thundery morning with two cuddly, somewhat scared dogs.  They are more than happy to spend sometime in Momma's bed because of course, nothing bad can happen to you there. ha  I should really be getting some spring cleaning done but hey, I've got all day.
   Well as most of you know we went on a vacation to Florida a couple weeks ago, what I haven't told you is that on the way down we had a conference call with the lady from our agency who does the matching of the babies to families!  I thought maybe I'd tell you a little bit about how this all works.  One day a month China puts waiting children on a website accessible to all licenced agencies(shared website).  China is about twelve hours opposite us time wise so this happens in the middle of the night.  The agencies are notified that this is going to be happening.  So our lady, Renee, is ready and waiting to "lock in" any child that she thinks would be a good fit for us or anyone else that is waiting.  If she choses a child that she thinks would be a good fit for us she notifies us and we have about two or three days to say yes, this is the child for us, or no,  this is not a good fit for us.  During that time we will not only have to be in prayer about whether or not this is our son or daughter, but we will be in contact with Akron Children's Hospital who will be reviewing all the medical and growth information etc on the refferal and letting us know just what we would be facing medically with this child.  If we chose not to accept the child for whatever reason that child will go back on the shared list to be available to other waiting families.  If we do accept the child we will let China know that we would like to adopt him/her and wait for them them to aprove us!  I know it's a little complicated.  So the good news is we sent our Dossier to our agency yesterday for the final looking over before they send it off to China for approval!  Hopefully everything will be in order and in two or three months we will be logged in with China!  Renee said that she is now officially aggressively looking for a child for us on the shared list so accepting a refferal could happen any time.  However the time between accepting a refferal and actually traveling to China is longer than we realized, five to six months!  Bummer but hey,  what can ya do??  So I am very pleased with the progress we have made lately and we are happily anticipating seeing our child's face for the first time!  I was also gonna say that if anyone has questions or anything please, ask away:)  I hope you all have a lovely day!

Something a Little Different

 
                 This entry is going to be vastly different from any of my other entries so far.  I also am choosing not put a link to this on Facebook.  I believe those that truly love and know us will check for new entries on their own.  This is fairly new for me to post something like this so I just don't know that I'm ready to advertise yet. ha  So God put something on my heart today and many days before this, but especially today.  Today God reminded me that as Christians we are to be DIFFERENT than non-believers.  If we aren't that different, or our only difference is how we spend our Sunday mornings, I believe we are DECEIVED!  The way to Heaven is narrow and few will enter! 
                         " Forgive me Lord for being sucked in to things the world says is ok or normal.  Help me not to judge others lifestyle choices without condoning them.  Help me to be a RADICAL Christian and not luke warm.  For no man can serve two masters.  Help me to be a light in this dark world and let my life never hinder another believer or justify a non-believer.  Help me to remember that I am but an ALIEN in this world and my true home is in Heaven with my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. "  Amen
                            Today I was also reminded that we are truly in the middle of a mission field right here in Holmes county.  I ask that all of my fellow believers join me in praying for those among us who don't believe, or those who profess Christianity but whose lives don't reflect that.  May God have mercy on us all.