HOMESICK!!!!

10 months ago.......we met our sweet angel- Jonathan Caleb Wright. This is the first time we saw him. And our lives have been changed forever because of this sweet boy! You see most people would say that - you already have 6 children why have more? Answer- we felt God calling us to have more children. And when I say Calling- I MEAN a deep yearning put in our hearts for another child from God.

So we saved....planned.....applied.....did loads of paperwork....prayed.......saved.....planned.....did more paperwork......prayed some more........and then we got the sheer privilege of seeing this beautiful face!

How has he changed our lives forever- so many ways.....seeing his giggle, his sweet smile, his excitement, his cute shyness around others, his fun voice as he tugs at my hand saying "come on mommy"....and takes me to the toy room to play or get another book to read. I could list 100's of ways this sweet boy has stolen my heart and that was before I even saw him. If I could give every child in the world two things it would be a family and food. After that things blossom....those two things are sooo necessary.

Did our children complain knowing that there would be another child demanding attention, steal their toys, etc. NO- instead THEY BEGGED for another sibling to love!! They couldn't think of anything better!!!!! Neither could I - another child to love, cherish, teach to play, go on hikes with, see them wonder at spider's webs, read Stuart Little too, tuck in at night time, patch his owies up when he needs it, give loads of hugs and kisses too, teach them how to love his family, the Word of God, and others around the World, watch him grow into a man of God.....and so much more!

Can you tell that even though we have 7 children now.....my heart is longing for our next child. Right now she is being cared for by the wonderful people at Hannah's Hope. We have met them we know how loving they are.....but I AM HOMESICK!!!!!
Homesick for .......
unpacking at 3am........... (oh yeah- that is my Mountain Dew on the desk in the corner!!! Hey our agency said to bring comfort foods :)
Homesick for being in a land of beautiful people, culture, and Mountains.....
Being a crazy person- having to unpack- (diapers for a little one) before going to bed......
Being this joyful and this tired.........at the same time!!!!!!
For a plane (maybe not this one exactly).........to take us to see our sweet girl!!!!

I am HOMESICK because I love Naomi soooooo much it hurts sometimes. As a mother or father there is something sooo hard about having a child that is out there that you can't yet hold. To know that YOU NEED THEM & THEY NEED YOU, but you can't be together right now. Maybe not for a few months from now...........

There is a longing so deep and wide in my heart.............for ALL our children........and can only be filled by them.

Until then......we are playing, reading, schooling, loving, praying, and praising God for our little miracle that we will eventually get to bring home......................(couldn't be soon enough)!

Praises all around, and more cheap tricks :)

OK no idea what has happened to blogger???? But my pictures are all gobbly goop- loads of numbers, letters, etc. But I pre-posted and the pics were there. Sooooo I will try to write about the pics, but if they aren't in order or something...just use your imagination. Sorry....

So some random pics of our kids at the park because I know you all love seeing our beautiful children :)

Huge praises because we had 3 AGCI families that passed court!!!! Yeah!!!!
Praying still for baby Zek as he is still in the hospital with pneumonia....no fun for mom and dad back home!

HUGE PRAISES FOR THE CAMP......BUT I WILL HAVE TO SHARE MORE LATER, BECAUSE I AM NOT SUPPOSED TO TELL UNTIL SOME OTHER PEOPLE HAVE HEARD IT.....TUNE IN LATER FOR MORE INFO!

OK so as you can tell from the above pics we had some fun making some home made laundry soap. I was soooo nervous thinking it would be hard, and we would probably mess up the first time, but it was super easy!!! YEAH!!!

Here is the recipie we used.......
1/3 bar of Zote soap- plain wrapper kind of thing. Zote is a pink bar that smells like citrenella candles, but it works and your laundry doesn't smell like it anyway. We got it at Market Basket (local grocery store).
1/2 cup Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda (55oz box) Found at grocery store as well.
1/2 cup 20 Mule Team Borax- 76 oz box found at Wal-Mart.

You will also need a grater or processer of some kind....3 qt sauce pan.....spoon, 2 empty gallons of milk or other container that can hold 2 gallons.

So you bring 6 cups to a boil.....while you are doing that
grate the 1/3 bar of Zote soap- really easy because the soap is really soft!

after you are done and you water is boiling...add the Zote and stir until it is dissolved....

then add you 1/2 cup of washing soda and 1/2 cup of Borax. Stir until completely dissolved.

Then put in a bucket and add water until you have 2 gallons all together.....easy :)

Pour with funnel into containers. *note you will have to shake as you use because it is a gel/thick fluid. But Jason has approved and if you knew how picky he was - you would know that this is a big deal!

COST- hardly anything .01-.02 a load (we have front loaders so you only use 1/4 cup, if you have a regular machine you use 1/2 cup). The Borax is $2.98, A & H was $2.75, and Zote was $0.44 for the whole bar. So really cheap and easy :) Yep, we will be doing this from now on! You can also use all of these products for other cleaning as well....stay tuned in the future we will be trying those too. As soon as I am done using some store bought products that is.....

So there another way we "afford" our large family. Hey, more pennies we can save so we can give more, and save more for our adoption. YEAH!!!

Tag you're it! Here goes.......

The above picture is one we took at the zoo this past week, and if you notice the place we are looking at- Ethiopia where our precious Naomi is right now..... :)

I was tagged...you are supposed to answer in one word, but hey, I am not perfect :)

1. Where is your cell phone? purse
2. Your hair? straight
3. Your mother? FUN
4. Your father? Trucker
5. Your favorite food? pizza
6. Your dream last night? Naomi :)
7. Your favorite drink? Mt. Dew
8. Your dream/goal? Save Orphans :)
9. What room are you in? dining room
10. Your hobby? Children
11. Your fear? something to happen to my children (cheated)
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? God's Will
13. Where were you last night? HERE!
14. Something that you aren’t? Serious
15. Muffins? Blueberry
16. Wish list item? Naomi- home!
17. Where did you grow up? Eagle Grove, IA
18. Last thing you did? movie
19. What are you wearing? pj's
20. Your TV? on
21. Your pets? 5
22. Friends? true
23. Your life? Wonderful
24. Your mood? Happy
25. Missing someone? NAOMI!!!
26. Vehicle? 15 passenger :)
27. Something you’re not wearing? perfume
28. Your favorite store? Wal-Mart (simple person)
29. Your favorite color? Green
30. When was the last time you laughed? today
31. Last time you cried? yesterday
32. Your best friend? Jason
33. One place that I go to over and over? Lake Charles, LA
34. One person who emails me regularly? All God's Children Int.
35. Favorite place to eat? Texas Roadhouse

Watch out bloggy friends you may be next :)

A Child that listened to God..............

Jason & Dawn,

We received your letter and found your story so touching. The world needs people like you that offer a life to these children. We think it is absolutely wonderful that you guys are adopting another child and would like to do what we can to help you.

I wanted to pass on this story to the both of you b/c it touched my heart. When I received the letter last week, my daughter Ella (five yrs old) saw it on the counter and asked me about it - who was in the picture, etc... I immediately began to explain to her that you both had adopted these 7 children b/c they did not have parents and they needed a family. I went on to say that it is extremely expensive to travel to Africa to adopt but that you guys were determined to adopt lil Naomi (she looked at her picture on the letter) and offer her the experience of having a family and all the blessings that go along with it (what your 7 other children have come to experience). I told her that you guys were praying and asking for help from your church family to help with your expenses and she immediately looked up at me and said “I want to send them some of my money so they can give Naomi a home”. Of course – I immediately began to cry b/c it touched me that she would think that way being so young. It is so difficult sometimes to know if how you are raising your children is really “working” and that was the first time I actually realized that my husband & I must be doing something right. I was very pleased and overjoyed that she wanted to give to your cause (and give her own money). Enclosed you will find the envelope that she wrote to you guys it says “I hope your new daughter likes her new home. Ella goes to ICCS. Love” Those are her words and expressions that she wanted to share with you. She went in her piggy bank (enclosed you will see the picture of her with her bank and your letter) and pulled out what she wanted to send which was $12. I know it is not much but it is filled with joy and happiness of a 5yr old. We have donated as well to make a total donation of $50 – I wish we could give more but unfortunately I lost my job in June and am still unemployed.

I hope this will help you guys some – your letter was very touching. Thank you for allowing me and my family to be a part of your adoption and also to experience how Christ works his magic in our little ones lives. It truly is amazing.

Good luck and we look forward to seeing Naomi Caroline in church.

Love,

Kendra, Chris, Ella (5 yrs) & Cora (19 mths) Diedrich

PS - We sent a letter to church family, our family, friends etc. Explaining that we would love prayers, support, money- to help bring Naomi home! We also sent a pic of our family so they could put that somewhere to remember our journey- to pray for us.

I can truly say that I was bawling when Jason read the letter to me. Not because of sadness, but pure JOY! When Jesus said- a child shall lead us- THIS IS WHAT HE MEANT!!!!!! When a child can see a need and does something about it........then we as adults should follow that lead because that is GOD INSPIRED! Not just to give (us) money, but to give to GOD whatever is needed for God's Glory.

Ella- you have touched our family in a way I can not explain, and I can't wait to bring Naomi home to meet her wonderful CHURCH FAMILY :) THANK YOU!!!!

God's Blessings are HUGE!

So the above flowers are from my best friend, the man who has journeyed with me on this crazy road for over 12 years. The man I am excited to be able to spend the rest of my life with! The man who is the best father in the world, and spiritual leader in our home! I love my husband and this past week he reminded me of the fact that he loved me to. Not just with flowers, but with the long hours he pours into the camp ministry, with his love for the kids, with his leadership in our home spiritually guiding & nurturing our children in their walks with Christ, with his patience with me- even when it is undeserved! This is a fantastic Man Of God :) Thanks Baby!!!
Not wanting to be outdone by his father this is a flower picked from a tree outside our home by Matthew.....awwwwwww.....
Here he is.....
and Joshua....
Ooops messed up the order, but this is a pic of all of our kids trying on hats & gloves- pre trip to England preparedness! Because we are whimps- I mean southerners- from Louisiana we need these as we head off to England next month. Oh yeah.......7 children - one 9 hour flight....yep. Trying to prepare- the key word- trying! Can't wait to see all of Jason's family again :)
Awww....Abigail & Jonathan. You can see he isn't spoiled or anything by his siblings (yeah right!). So Jonathan.....just wait until Naomi gets here......yep we will have to deal with sibling rivalry - again :)
Here is Elizabeth petting our indoor dog- Teddy. Awww...
Sarah playing the drama queen- she is really great at it!
Andrew & Sarah being silly of curse
The kids messing around after dancing to the new David Crowder CD!

So other than obviously having a fantastic husband, wonderful children, .....we also have a wonderful church family. Let me clarify what I mean- our church family to me is not only those that go to our church (whom we love very much!!!), but also those out there who are a part of The Church! You have all supported us with wonderful gifts in these past couple of weeks- we are now up to almost $2,000!!!!! We are blown away with your love and the love of God in you - that you would help us bring our baby girl home!

When you have Blessings like that from The Church! YOU ARE BLESSED INDEED! So a shout out to all who are making a reality of bringing our Naomi HOME! You are on our hearts and I know Naomi is feeling your love for her. In fact we got sooo excited today that we started an impromptu praising in our home for all of those who have been praying for us, donating to us, and supporting us in this adoption!!!!! May God Receive the Glory for the Great Things He Has Done!

Cleaning up & pruning...

OK so here is the ugly truth! You can't ignore it any longer. It is staring at you....begging for your attention. Just like our sins do from time to time....they blurt out to us- I'm here and you can't ignore me any longer....you better take action- or else!

So you carefully piece by piece take your broken heart and life....put them all back in order. Some things you have to throw away. Clear out- PRUNE! Well, let me tell you there is a lot of pruning to be done with 9 people under one roof! It has to start with- you guessed it- the parents. You see when our hearts are in the right place we are better able to help prune carefully our children's hearts.

So the real story - our children had gotten a bit well.....lax let's just say. They started breaking toys, shoving toys in places they don't belong, to just letting our nice and neat toy room get out of control! So I took all the toys (minus the books) and dumped them out on the floor. Every single thing (I went through the stuffed toys later too), but it is all here. Now don't be deceived remember we have 7 children in this house right now...so that is a lot of toys over time, and some of our toys are 8 years old at least. The truth still remains though that this was a real mess. Not just of the toy room, but of the heart. Our children were taking things for granted. Thinking it was no big deal, but is it?

I think so. When we who are spoiled in life (yes you- if you have more than a one bedroom house you are spoiled...if you have electricity...you are spoiled...if you have more than one meal a day or any meals...you are spoiled- ME INCLUDED!) start thinking that all our stuff - isn't enough or isn't good enough....that is when our hearts are not where God needs them to be.

Over the last few months we have been doing some real soul searching. What can we give up to pay for this adoption....for another child to have a safe, warm, home with food to eat and lots of love. Pretty important goal! We have been giving up things that are "normal" for us, and pruning our hearts. Now it was time to prune our children's hearts too.

So while this mom was cleaning up the toy room- getting rid of trash...getting rid of things not needed....organizing what we have, and giving everything a place so that we can keep our things nice and in working order....our kids had to go a full day without toys! Yes, the full day! I wanted them to appreciate what they had. Even Jason thought I had lost my mind. You would be surprised what took place. Our children played made up games with blankets and pillows. They talked to each other more. They sang songs and made up songs. They did go a little crazy, but overall- it changed them and me.
You see...the next night as I was checking to make sure all the toys were indeed picked up...I almost missed a sign from our Joshua. Look closely......
Here it is. A sign "daddy mommy sarah joshua I Love You". That is a huge sign! A sign that picking up toys was a privilege not a right. A sign that my children had gotten the message of how we take care of whatever it is that we are given- big or small. Just think I could have just cleaned it all up like I have before and went about my business, but nothing would have changed. Now I feel like things can change- so encouragement to parents- don't let things like this pass you by!
Because when you are taking care of yourself- pruning, and pruning your children. Everyone is a lot happier. We can learn so much from each other.
So my note to God would go like this "Hey, it's me Dawn....thank you for loving me even when I am in constant need of pruning. Thank you for the many Blessings I don't deserve. Thank you for the many many many miracles in my life! I love you God!"

What would your note to God be? Are there other things you can think of that need some pruning? How can you do this? Does anyone else have ideas about how to keep "stuff" from getting in the way?

Naomi is back at HH!!!!

So just a quick post..... We just got a call from our agency saying Naomi is back at Hannah's Hope (All God's Children transitional home in Ethiopia)!!!!!!!! She is doing well- couldn't ask for better news than that!!!!!

Also, Sarah's infection seems to be going away as well!

This mommy & daddy are feeling LOTS BETTER NOW!!!!!!!

Thank you all sooo much for your prayers.....they mean the world to us, and our beautiful children!

Naomi is on our minds....and Wright family silliness

Ok so I put the pics backwards.....hmmm....sorry. So this whole scene in our home is pretty normal if you like. The young lady being dumped from the laundry basket works for us at the camp. She reminds me constantly that old is 10 years older than her because that is how much younger than me she is?

So....when daddy walks through the house with Sarah in a basket.....the kids wanted to come see....notice Abigail in the background rolling in laughter almost falling over herself!
Yep, here it is Sarah in a basket. Notice she is still "playing" with Joshua's foam dart gun. Also note Jason's severe laughing really hard face. So if you lived at our home or hung around us all the time...this would be your fate- watch out! Loads of silliness happens here all the time.

Naomi is still on our brains all the time....not just because we can't wait to bring her home, but because she is still in hospital with pneumonia. Now that great thing is that her "special mom" is with her. So since I can't be there- which is the hardest thing!!!!!!! At least she is not all alone in a hospital. We trust our Healer - miracle maker, AWESOME FATHER who loves her even more than we do- hard to believe, but true! We know that at this very moment HE is with her! So we thank you for your continued prayers.....we cherish everyone for our precious Naomi.

Also, Sarah's infection looks like it is maybe clearing up- without surgery! That is something to celebrate too. We of course are checking on it just to make sure....staph is tricky sometimes.

Praying in the Lord's name for our sweet girls, and for Baby Z & her family- The Anderson's who is also in the hospital with Naomi (in Ethiopia). Praising God for courts opening and a family who passed court through AGCI too!!! Giving Praise in ALL situations!!!!!!!

PRAYER please!

So here is my wonderful husband who cooks with our children :) Great thing because if I tried to cook with children- not a good combo. I get to crazy with too many people around in the kitchen.....probably to do with the fact that I am not a great cook. I can do the basics and I love doing fudge, cookies, etc., but that is about it. My husband on the other hand can do anything- very well!!!! Helps that hotel catering (5 star restaurant type) and management was his 2 year college degree. :) Yeah for me & the kids!!!!

OK so the prayer- we got word today that our sweet Naomi is in the hospital with pneumonia. This is obviously not good. Now, I know there are wonderful people who care about our sweet baby in ETH, but as a mom......I want to be there for her! I want to hold her and make sure the doctors are doing all they should! It is selfish maybe, but I WANT TO BE THERE!!!! So saying that...I know I can't be there. I know that I have to rely on the doctors and nurses that are there to watch over her and make sure she is ok. The problem is she has other medical issues that may be complicated by this too. So that makes me worry even more! I am a worrier when it comes to my precious gifts.

Of course I won't lie, on top of that my mind gets right back to our Hannah Grace. I know the situation is completely different Hannah had severe medical issues, etc. It is hard though....once you have lost a child to complications before.....your mind just goes back. The fears and doubts just creep in. I can't help but think of what if????? So needless to say I have not been doing great today. I have been thinking so much of Naomi.....please pray for our sweet baby girl. We have been so BLESSED to have others who understand and pray with us and for us. I can't even explain what it does for us mentally & spiritually. Thank You!!!!
So here is Abigail rolling out the dough for the biscuits......
and Elizabeth cutting out the biscuits into heart shapes of course :)
She is so proud of herself........and I love to see that smile
MMMMMM.....homeade biscuits from my girls- nothing better than that! (yep it is on a basket platter from Ethiopia- we love it!)
So Friday when we went to pick up our co-worker, and spent time with Nell Ann & Asher......we found out that Sarah's flight was delayed....so we did what anyone would do on a miserable rainy, cloudy, nasty to be outside kind of day..........
We all went plane spotting...... of course. Well you would have to know my husband. He has an obsession over planes.....yes I used that word because it is true!
So here are all the kids lined up watching the planes go by. I am thinking ....I would rather not be in the rain watching these planes....but I love my husband, and our kids didn't really seem to mind. We are getting geared up for our plane trip to England later in November. Yep, you got it we are all- 9 of us anyway- going to England in November! Yes, it is a 9 hour trip, and yes we are officially insane. Of course if you follow this blog on a regular basis you know this already!

We are insane- overjoyed and thrilled to be crazy in love with our Savior who has chosen to give us 8 children ....so far anyway.