My friend Sherri left very early this morning to be with her sister (Judy) and husband, Bruce. Bruce was diagnosed with gall bladder cancer only a few short months ago. The cancer has taken it's toll on Bruce's body and has done it very quickly. He slipped into a coma yesterday and is very close to the end of his life. I am very sad for my friends, Dale and Sherri. It is such a difficult and painful time for them, and I am feeling so helpless... It doesn't seem fair that while our family is experiencing such great joy, our good friends are grieving the loss of someone they love so dearly. I guess we can never know what is around the next corner...
If you have a minute tonight, please pray for this family. I know I will be. Thank you.
Friday, October 24, 2008
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
SIGNIFICANT EVENTS
We have had SO much exciting stuff going on that I have failed to write about the "normal" stuff this week. The thing is, nothing this week has really been very NORMAL. We have been a part of three very significant events (not counting the engagement) that I want to tell you about.
SUNDAY AFTERNOON - Allen and I asked two of our pastors and their wives to come to our home for a time of prayer with our family. All three girls and Bjork were here to celebrate Stephanie's 16th birthday so we thought it would be a nice time to just spend some time reflecting about the adoption adventure and also pray for the journey ahead of us. It was very special to me as we shared some of our thoughts and concerns with each other. More importantly, we spent time praying together, asking God's blessing on our family. We so appreciate our pastoral staff! It was a great idea and was very meaningful.
TUESDAY AFTERNOON - I have been meaning to do this for quite some time but didn't get around to it until now. I invited some mothers of adopted children for coffee. All of these mom have older biological children. All of them have adopted internationally. Most of them have adopted sibling groups. We definitely had no trouble finding things to talk about! Although I knew some things about each of these people, I learned so much more about their adoption experiences. I honestly could have sat there all day listening to each of them share their story. It was very comforting and I hope we can get together again! Thanks, ladies for coming!
TUESDAY EVENING - I have been a part of a Tuesday morning Bible study for many years now. We meet every week, work through a study book (and the Bible, of course!) and pray for each other. All of us (including our husbands) met for a WONDERFUL! potluck dinner at our friends' house. We shared our story with these good people and they (too) spent some time praying for us. Once again, we felt very loved and supported. It was a very significant event to us.
Allen and I are humbled by all the kind and encouraging words from friends and family...especially in these last few weeks. I am a person who prefers an ordered life. All of these events have helped to bring closure to this chapter in my life. At the same time, it has helped me to be ready to move on to the next phase...and to not be afraid. I know that there are so many people standing in the gap praying for our family. It has been very comforting in an otherwise scary time. Thanks to all of you who are supporting our family. I'm pretty sure we live in the best community ever!! :)
SUNDAY AFTERNOON - Allen and I asked two of our pastors and their wives to come to our home for a time of prayer with our family. All three girls and Bjork were here to celebrate Stephanie's 16th birthday so we thought it would be a nice time to just spend some time reflecting about the adoption adventure and also pray for the journey ahead of us. It was very special to me as we shared some of our thoughts and concerns with each other. More importantly, we spent time praying together, asking God's blessing on our family. We so appreciate our pastoral staff! It was a great idea and was very meaningful.
TUESDAY AFTERNOON - I have been meaning to do this for quite some time but didn't get around to it until now. I invited some mothers of adopted children for coffee. All of these mom have older biological children. All of them have adopted internationally. Most of them have adopted sibling groups. We definitely had no trouble finding things to talk about! Although I knew some things about each of these people, I learned so much more about their adoption experiences. I honestly could have sat there all day listening to each of them share their story. It was very comforting and I hope we can get together again! Thanks, ladies for coming!
TUESDAY EVENING - I have been a part of a Tuesday morning Bible study for many years now. We meet every week, work through a study book (and the Bible, of course!) and pray for each other. All of us (including our husbands) met for a WONDERFUL! potluck dinner at our friends' house. We shared our story with these good people and they (too) spent some time praying for us. Once again, we felt very loved and supported. It was a very significant event to us.
Allen and I are humbled by all the kind and encouraging words from friends and family...especially in these last few weeks. I am a person who prefers an ordered life. All of these events have helped to bring closure to this chapter in my life. At the same time, it has helped me to be ready to move on to the next phase...and to not be afraid. I know that there are so many people standing in the gap praying for our family. It has been very comforting in an otherwise scary time. Thanks to all of you who are supporting our family. I'm pretty sure we live in the best community ever!! :)
OUR DEPARTURE DATE HAS CHANGED
Yes, we have decided to push our departure date back a few days. There is one more detail that is not in place yet. We must visit the Inter-Country Adoption Board one more time before leaving the country for final exit interviews, etc... No one can set up that appointment. Not CSC, not our adoption agency, not us. We will most likely get notification of that meeting while we are in the Philippines, but no one can be sure of the timing. We have been advised to come a few days later than originally planned. We will also probably stay a little longer with this new agenda. SO...our plan is to leave next Wednesday, October 29 and return on Saturday, November 8.
Although we are disappointed, we welcome a few extra days to get things in order here and get a start on some of the wedding plans. It is getting to the point where no one can keep track of when we are leaving. Some people thought it was Friday, some Saturday, and some are thinking that we have already left. One person even recently asked how it is going with our new family in Cambridge. I had to break the news that...no, they aren't here yet! Oh well. I honestly don't mind when people ask questions. All the dates are very confusing and we often don't even know what is really going on ourselves!
It will not be long now. I'll let you know if anything else changes.
Although we are disappointed, we welcome a few extra days to get things in order here and get a start on some of the wedding plans. It is getting to the point where no one can keep track of when we are leaving. Some people thought it was Friday, some Saturday, and some are thinking that we have already left. One person even recently asked how it is going with our new family in Cambridge. I had to break the news that...no, they aren't here yet! Oh well. I honestly don't mind when people ask questions. All the dates are very confusing and we often don't even know what is really going on ourselves!
It will not be long now. I'll let you know if anything else changes.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
A TIME TO BE ENGAGED!
Here are a few pictures of Bjork and Lindsay's engagement day. Isn't it fun?
Sorry if I'm going a bit overboard on the pictures. I simply can't help myself! :)
Sorry if I'm going a bit overboard on the pictures. I simply can't help myself! :)
Monday, October 20, 2008
ANNOUNCING....
BJORK AND LINDSAY ARE GETTING MARRIED!!!! What a happy, happy day and we are so excited!!! Here's the story...
Bjork took Lindsay to the Minnesota Historical Center on Saturday. They looked around the center for quite a while before the BIG moment. Bjork had a few friends setting the stage for him. The two found their way to a balcony where there were several canvasses laying on a bench. Bjork had transferred several special pictures of the two of them on the canvasses and proceeded to talk about their HISTORY (get it?). The last canvass was blank and had a ring hanging from it. He then got on his knee to pop the question. (Pretty creative, quite clever and very sweet!) Well, she did indeed say..."Yes, yes, yes...." It was at that point that she noticed a person taking pictures of them. She didn't really care because, I guess you could say that she was lost in the moment! That was at about 4 p.m. (Check out some of their pics... at www.bdphotography.blogspot.com.) A few hours later, our two families met Bjork and Lindsay at the Melting Pot (a fondue restaurant). He had asked us to join them for an engagement celebration. We didn't know how or where he was going to propose, but we knew it was going to happen sometime...on Saturday.
It was such a fun evening and we were all so honored to be included on their special day! We have all been wondering about and waiting for this great day! To see the look on their faces was priceless. Lindsay looked so excited and Bjork a bit relieved, but they both looked SO, SO HAPPY!!! We sat and listened while they told us about their day and the proposal. It was one of those events where you just want to capture it in your mind forever.
They had a great time spreading the news on Saturday night and Sunday. The grandparents were all very excited to be sure. My parents were over to celebrate Steph's 16th birthday when they heard the news. It was fun to hear the story all over again.
Before the two left, we did our own little photo shoot. When I went to download and look at the pictures, I noticed again how happy they both look. And...they are obviously so much in love, and having SO much fun! We think that they compliment each other well and will love being married. We are truly blessed to add Bjork to our family. He is an exceptional young man and will no doubt make our daughter very happy. Have I gushed enough?????
So... here we go! The wedding plans have begun with a date of June 6, 2009. It's hard to think about anything else right now but, oops! I have to get packing. We have three kids to adopt! Things are happening so fast! I am learning how to cherish each new day and every new opportunity to be with the ones I love. I guess maybe I don't have a choice, huh? This weekend was definitely one to cherish. We love you, Bjork and Lindsay! You both picked a winner!!! Congratulations!
THE END...ACTUALLY...IT'S ONLY THE BEGINNING!!!!
Friday, October 17, 2008
FROM LAST TO MIDDLE
Stephanie turns 16 next Wednesday. She is our baby. Uh, anyway she WAS our baby. Is it possible to have two babies in the family??? The old baby and the new baby?? I don't know...but today I am going to hang out with Steph and I am looking forward to it very much. We are going to lunch and do some shopping for her birthday. Then we are heading to Wisconsin with Allen for a cross country meet.
I remember very well the weeks leading up to Kristin's birth. Of course, I was excited... but I was also really sad because I knew that our "special" time with Lindsay was about to come to a halt. It was a Saturday morning, March 24, 1989. There were signs that Kristin was coming very SOON so we decided to have Lindsay go to my Mom and Dad's house for the night. It was a really sad time for me. Our time as a threesome had been so much fun! I didn't want to let her go. I'm sure I cried. After they left, Allen and I took a LONG walk in our neighborhood. I remember it so well. It was kind of surreal. We talked about Lindsay, about life (I'm sure... cause I do that a lot!!), about the delivery and about our future. It is such a weird feeling when you KNOW you are about to live through some really big life change...but you don't really feel any different.
Kristin was born a few hours later. Yes, it was one of the fastest deliveries in history and it happened just 15 minutes before Easter. How special is that??? Lindsay and the grandparents came to visit the next day. It was a fun reunion but something had changed. We were now a family of four! And we loved it! Lindsay went from ONLY child to OLDEST child. She, of course, had no clue about all of that, but it was the first of many changes in the life of our family. I would have never imagined that 20 some years later that I would be feeling some of the same feelings and expecting...yet again.
Please pray for Steph. I think that besides the new kids, this change will effect her the most. She has been supportive of this whole idea, but frankly, this is going to rock her world. I have no doubt that she will be a WONDERFUL big sister, but (just like us) this next step will require a lot of change on her part. She will lose some of her freedom and will feel the need to be more accountable as she will be most helpful in showing the kids how our family operates. The good news is that she will have company in an otherwise boring household. I think she will like having younger siblings.
Steph will be going from LAST to MIDDLE child in a few days. I am kind of sad about this, but I know that change helps us grow. I'm so glad that we decided to have Kristin and Steph. Think of what we would have missed out on if we wouldn't have had daughters #2 and #3. They have been such a HUGE blessing in my life and I can't imagine life without them! I know that a I will also feel the same way about our new kids after they come. But for now, for today, I am going to enjoy my time with Steph. This will be our last trip as a threesome. I'm sure that no one else is thinking about this, but I am the MOM and well...these are the things moms think about!
I remember very well the weeks leading up to Kristin's birth. Of course, I was excited... but I was also really sad because I knew that our "special" time with Lindsay was about to come to a halt. It was a Saturday morning, March 24, 1989. There were signs that Kristin was coming very SOON so we decided to have Lindsay go to my Mom and Dad's house for the night. It was a really sad time for me. Our time as a threesome had been so much fun! I didn't want to let her go. I'm sure I cried. After they left, Allen and I took a LONG walk in our neighborhood. I remember it so well. It was kind of surreal. We talked about Lindsay, about life (I'm sure... cause I do that a lot!!), about the delivery and about our future. It is such a weird feeling when you KNOW you are about to live through some really big life change...but you don't really feel any different.
Kristin was born a few hours later. Yes, it was one of the fastest deliveries in history and it happened just 15 minutes before Easter. How special is that??? Lindsay and the grandparents came to visit the next day. It was a fun reunion but something had changed. We were now a family of four! And we loved it! Lindsay went from ONLY child to OLDEST child. She, of course, had no clue about all of that, but it was the first of many changes in the life of our family. I would have never imagined that 20 some years later that I would be feeling some of the same feelings and expecting...yet again.
Please pray for Steph. I think that besides the new kids, this change will effect her the most. She has been supportive of this whole idea, but frankly, this is going to rock her world. I have no doubt that she will be a WONDERFUL big sister, but (just like us) this next step will require a lot of change on her part. She will lose some of her freedom and will feel the need to be more accountable as she will be most helpful in showing the kids how our family operates. The good news is that she will have company in an otherwise boring household. I think she will like having younger siblings.
Steph will be going from LAST to MIDDLE child in a few days. I am kind of sad about this, but I know that change helps us grow. I'm so glad that we decided to have Kristin and Steph. Think of what we would have missed out on if we wouldn't have had daughters #2 and #3. They have been such a HUGE blessing in my life and I can't imagine life without them! I know that a I will also feel the same way about our new kids after they come. But for now, for today, I am going to enjoy my time with Steph. This will be our last trip as a threesome. I'm sure that no one else is thinking about this, but I am the MOM and well...these are the things moms think about!
VISA INTERVIEWS
Our kids should be back in Cebu by now. Their visa interviews at the US embassy went very smoothly. They had a very fun time at the zoo and loved their adventure to Manila. Everything is moving along nicely and our plan is still to leave at around 3 p.m. on October 25. We will go at that time unless we are told otherwise. Thanks for your prayers! We know so many people are supporting us at this time and we are so grateful.
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