I don’t know what it is, but Ami sure loves to act like she’s a princess.  It’s not like we shove Disney down her throat or talk about her being a princess all the time.  And it’s not like we encourage it all and shop for princess stuff all the time.  Funny.  Anyway, here she is yet again dressed like a princess.  After being told to go bet her pajamas on she came out like “Jasmine”.  Hmm, when is it too risque  to let her bare her shoulders?!  When she talks about the beautiful princesses I’ve been trying to talk to her about being beautiful on the inside by having a heart that makes God happy.  Hopefully it will sink in at some time.  In the meantime, she is all about being outwardly beautiful. 

She wanted me to take a picture of the back first!

Such a poser!

It’s over 50 here today and oh, what a taste of spring!  We enjoyed a hike through our woods and soaked in some sunshine.  I know cold days are yet to come, but I sure wish it would stay nice like this.

I have one little one who more than willingly obliges to pose for me.  She insisted on taking my picture, too. 

It’s been a while since I posted a MBM story.  If you are unfamiliar with Memorial Box Monday, please check out the categories on the right and see my original MBM post.  Thanks to my bloggy friend Linny for her encouragement to finally get going on our Wolfe family Memorial Box.

In August of 2006 we had just received our referral for Ami and were so overjoyed.  Mom and Dad were in the States at that time and were actually at my Grandma’s house.  As soon as we had pictures of our new daughter I emailed them to Mom, Dad, and Grandma.  I love this picture that Dad took of Grandma “meeting” her newest granddaughter via the laptop.

Just days later as I sat in the pediatrician’s office waiting to discuss the medical paperwork of our new treasure I received a call from my mom that Grandma had passed away in the night.  Oh, how bittersweet!  Immeasurable joy (the referral of Ami) mixed with such sorrow (losing Grandma), that has happened more than once in my life.

Michaela and I had just been out to California in December to celebrate Grandma’s 100th birthday and it was such a special occasion.  It was so very neat to celebrate and honor her life in her presence.  Oh how I wanted to be with my family again to be a part of Grandma’s memorial service.  BUT we were getting ready to travel to China and were still short the $$ needed for our travel expenses.  We weren’t spending any extra money at that time.

BUT God.  I poured my heart out to Him and He answered my prayer in a big way.  As I was searching for low airfares an agent asked if I had any frequent flyer miles.  I knew I was a member of at least one program, but didn’t think I had hardly any miles at all.  After the agent checked she said I had enough miles to fly free to CA!!  Oh, what a God thing!  Only He could make that happen and once again assure us that He is in the midst of it all.  Once again He assured us that in our stepping out in faith on this adoption journey, He would provide all our needs.

I brought this beautiful doily home from Grandma’s house after that God-provided trip.  It was one of her handmade works of art and last night we placed it in our Memorial Box.  I love that it’s a Standing Stone to remind me of God’s care and provision, but I also love that it is a reminder of the solid Standing Stone that Grandma was in our family’s heritage.  She was such a Godly lady and someone I aspire to be like.

On another note, yet very much related, I thought it was more than appropriate to remember my grandmother last night as we had also received word that a wonderful Christian lady and friend had gone to be with Jesus.  She was a fellow China adoptive mom that struggled with cancer over the last year.  She leaves behind a husband and two children ages 13 and 11, both adopted from China.  They  are part of our local adoptive families group, are active Christians,  and also homeschooled up until illness made it impossible to do so.  You may remember me blogging about a service project that our Wolfe families did last Thanksgiving for this family.  We will be attending services this week and would appreciate your prayers for this dear family as they celebrate Kathy’s life and her homecoming, yet grieve such a personal loss.  We are so thankful for our friendship and bond with this family and are all the more thankful for the Hope we have of a future together.

All is not well in Ratville.  On Monday we left the house about 4:30.  The kids had been playing with Midnight up until right before we left.  We returned home at 7:30 to find Midnight a little stiff.  Ugh. One poor child was in tears, mourning the loss.  The others were equally grieved.  Despite my bit of disdain for the rats, I felt sympathy and rushed the kids to Petco for a replacement (now Midnight II).  Yes, it ended up being a late night, but hopefully they will have sweet memories of being escorted to the pet store late at night because their mommy loved them so much. 

That’s not all.  The next morning the kids decided that “Ginger” was not doing well.  She was very sneezy, and as rats can be very prone to respiratory infections, we made yet another trip to the pet store.  Because we are still within the 15 day guarantee they will take Ginger to the vet and administer antibiotics for her. Oh my.  Wouldn’t it be easier to just get a new rat?  Yes it would, but no, they have all fallen in love with Ginger.  What another little life lesson in just their first five days as rat owners.  We take care of the things we own.  So now we wait 7-10 days for Ginger to be restored to health.  The kids can call and check on her as they like. 

On a totally different topic, here is a funny story.  Elijah and Benjamin love to be tickled and often beg for it.  I know, crazy kids.  But I willingly oblige and tackle them with tickles frequently.  When they’ve had enough, they simply have to say, “I love you!” and then I stop.  Well sometimes I carry on a bit and say, “Well, I love you, too” or “I love you more”.  Elijah started his own rendition of the book Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney, even though he’s never read the book.  He’ll say something like, “Well, I love you around the world” and I’ll return something like, “I love you around the world ten times.”  This morning he shouted through his laughter, “I love you like God does!”  Awwwww.  I said, “Well, you can’t beat that!”  He gets it, he knows how much his Father loves him.  This kid brings joy to me every day.  Thank you Father for your gift of love and for allowing me to show that love to my son and for the gift of his love in return.  Pretty cool!

We celebrated Chinese New Year this afternoon with our local FCC group (Families with Children from China).  It’s always special to remind ourselves of the culture of two of our kiddos and to be with other “like” families.

Ami was so awed by the dancers and loved that she got to practice with them.

These two buddies also lived at Shepherd’s field with Elijah.  They are now brothers.  So neat that they are so close to where we live!

Enough said…

…I promise not to incriminate anyone else involved.

Or more like rats and boys…hard to come up with a title for this post!

First of all, Elijah had an appointment this afternoon with the pediatric cardiologist.  When I say “this afternoon”, I mean ALL afternoon.  This was a different doc than we saw a year ago, but oh what a difference.  We loved this guy, the staff, and the hospital.  They spent a lot of time with us and came up with a clear report.  We may have to watch for a couple of minor things in the future, but God willing Elijah will continue to live a healthy and “normal” life.  What a blessing!  Rather than go back again next year, we will return in two years just to keep an eye on things.

It was also special to spend an afternoon alone with Elijah and have one-on-one time.  We had plenty of time to talk and Elijah talked a lot about his early years in China.  He has shared quite a bit over the last year, but as his English skills have improved he can communicate much more clearly and with more detail.  He is such a brave and forgiving young man despite the emotional scars of the past.  As we hugged and cried together, I thanked God for Elijah’s openness and for continued bonding.

Secondly, while we were gone the rest of the kids were anxiously awaiting our return so that we could go to the pet store for their long awaited rat purchase.  Yes, we now have two rats in the house.  How long does it take to get over the shivers before I start to think they are cute?!  The four older kids have researched and saved their money for this joint venture.  I’m proud of their teamwork!  So here’s to welcoming Ginger and Midnight…..

Ami didn’t quite make it through devotion time last night.  Our busy weekend with cousins and late nights wore her out.

We had a great weekend with Eric, Kate, Elle, and Zane here.  With birthdays on Feb. 1, 8, and 15, as well as Valentine’s Day and Chinese New Year today, we had good reason to celebrate.

Friday night we enjoyed watching Benjamin play basketball and score his first basket this season.  He couldn’t wipe the grin off his face!

On Saturday we made Valentine’s crafts and a Valentine’s/birthday cake.  We also made lanterns for Chinese New Year and made traditional dumplings to go with our feast of Egg Drop Soup and Fried Rice.  We also all enjoyed going to China Night at MU, a celebration of Chinese culture with music, dance, martial arts, and more.  We saw some beautiful performances.

Despite the late nights a good time was had by all.  It’s fun to see the kids playing together and enjoying each other.  We are blessed to have family that lives somewhat close by!

Happy Chinese New Year and Happy Valentine’s Day to all our friends and family!

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