Summer in Washington

Appointments, appointments, and more appointments.  So far almost everyday of the week has been full of dental, orthodontic, doctors, orthotistists, and eye doctors.  We are trying to get caught up so we can have some summer weeks without appointments.    Sneha is being closely monitored on her new medicine  We are trying to get her the services that she needs now and into adulthood.  She has been doing better and hopefully next year in school will be a new start for her.  Joyce received her new hearing aides from MIRACLE EAR!!! We are hoping that they improve her ability to understand language.  Did I mention that she is very stubborn!  I guess that she needed this to survive, but wow.  Elijah is finally starting to deal with some of his loss and grief issues with the appropriate interventions.  He is  waiting on a new leg brace and a new arm immobilizer for at night..  We are hoping this will improve his ability to stretch his arm in swimming.  Elise is loving wearing contacts and is going to try out the 2 week day and night wear.    We are just so happy that she can see now and not always squinting.  We found out that she is congenitally missing some of her permanent teeth so we are hoping the baby teeth will stay with her many years.  This is inherited, but we have yet to find out from who.    She has a major enamel problem and this will be a battle her for her entire life.    Sneha's teeth are really pretty good considering she has never had an real "work" done on them.  So in the coming months she will be under to have a full cleaning, fillings, and sealants applied.  This will be very expensive because she will have to have full anesthesthia.  It will be great to get this done.

 We are happy to report  that Elijah now can swim!  Graedy and Elise are perfecting their strokes and Graedy will be on swim team hopefully next year.  Elise loves the water and we hope this can be her sport.  Joyce loves the water, and tries, but she is not yet a swimmer.    Graedy, Elise, and Elijah are going to Colorado and are very EXCITED!!!!!Wow will the house be quite for two weeks and then we will go pick them up.  Did I mention appointments for the dogs so they can be kenneled.   I hate leaving my dogs, but it will be too much to bring them and into such extreme heat.    This will be our first road trip in a very long time.    Our vacations used to be to Portland, Astoria, and the Oregon coast, I could never have imagined that we would ever live here.

  Graedy is thinking of the future where he wants to do missions or teach English for a summer once he is in high school.  Moscow and China are possibilities that he is thinking of.  Elise is considering volunteering in a few years at an orphanage in Ghana or helping out in China with children.  Of course my mind is always planning and dreaming of future trips, and one for sure that I am going on next year to India with Emmanuel. 

ELISE 12

GRAEDY 13

ELIJAH 10

SNEHA 11

JOY 7

My Bird and Dali.  She has been such a great help this summer with chores and grilling.  She is a wonderful cook and learning more all the time.  I love how she is so helpful and more relaxed now that school is out.

The summer is flying by and it is our coolest summer ever.  We are talking 50-75 degrees in the day time.  A big change from the 100 degree days of Sterling Colorado.  The lush green and cool breezes are a nice change.

Just a few random pictures to show how tiny Joy is compared to Sneha and how much her hair is growing.  Our hope is to be able to braid her hair by the time school starts.  It is very puffy and too short for braiding now.   This summer we are working on the ABC's and trying to get her caught up by the fall.  A long road a head of us for her to be able to recognize sounds and identify what they mean.  She has been unable to hear for so long that this is harder than I thought, but all in good time.  She will catch up eventually at least now she is in a setting to learn and hear.  Sneha  is focusing  better this summer with the help of a new medication to help her attention span.

Sneha over the last few years

Romans 10:10

 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.

This is how you looked at 3 years old when you were found and taken to the orphanage in New Delhi India.  You had severe malnutrition, measles, and tuberculosis. We are so thankful to Achla that she was able to take you in and have you in a private orphanage with much better care than a government run institution.  I am also thankful that Vicki traveled to India with me to meet a little girl that God would not let me forget.  November of 2007 rocked my world to it's core and has never been the same again.  My world view changed forever.  If you have never visited India I would encourage every American to see how others live in the world.

The first picture that God used to capture our hearts and sent us on a long journey to India.  In this picture you were 5 years old, little did we know that you would be home until you were 8 years old.  We waited for you while you were in treatment to be healthy enough to immigrate.  We waited and Brent was laid off twice, and we had to move once.  God provided a job for Brent in one week to ensure your adoption process would not be stalled.  God knew the plan and we just had to follow along.

The day that your dad was finally able to meet you 2 1/3 years after first seeing you picture on Reeces Rainbow  www.reecesrainbow.com   We are so thankful to Andrea Roberts for having a dream to save special needs children from all over the world. Thank you to Illien Adoptions for seeing her potential.

This what a home does for a child in just a few years.    The obvious hair grows, but their eyes light up.  If each Christian family adopted just one child each, there wouldn't be an orphan crisis in our world!

Since you have been home dear Sneha we realized that your needs were much greater than we could have imagined, but God knew all along.  He knew you were the one for us.  He gives us what we need to parent you.

John 10:10

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. eed to parent you.  It is noting in our power, but in his. 

Summer has started.......

This is what Sneha likes to do EAT.........

School released on Tuesday for the summer break.  Finally the sun is shining today, I have to say it is the chilliest summer I have ever had.  I am trying not to miss Sterling and our friends at church!  I keep asking myself why do we have to keep moving and leave friends that we have made???I must say the beautiful scenery here is great and a larger town with lots to do.   We have so much to be thankful for and I need to focus on the positive!

Hebrews 12:28
Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe,

SO THANKFUL......THANK YOU MIRACLE EAR!!!!!

Joyce received a grant for FREE hearing aids from Miracle Ear!!!!!

Romans 8:24-26

 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? ²⁵ But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.  In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.

A LITTLE GIRL IN CHINA NEEDS A FAMILY............

C-W

Girl, born 2005
Suzy is an outgoing little girl who enjoys playing games with other children. The other children at her institute like her very much and she is very good at socializing. Suzy was born with ichthyosis, a skin disease that covers her entire body. The orphanage staff treats her ichthyosis with ointment once a day. Her skin itches due to her condition and her caregivers say that it also makes her “afraid” of the sun. In the wintertime, the condition tends to worsen. When we asked how her condition affected her in other ways, the nannies said that in the past her gait has been abnormal, but now it is better although she still can’t run as fast as the other children. She is described as a talkative girl who speaks well and speaks a lot.
She is able to walk with one foot in front of the other, stand on one foot, and she is able to name animals and know what their sounds and behaviors were. The orphanage staff say that they haven’t sent her to school yet because she is too young, but she appears to be on target and able to complete tasks that other 5 year olds can do. She is able to do basic self-care tasks such as toileting, washing her hands, and dressing herself. What she could really use is a family who could give her the love and care that she needs and who would help her get appropriate treatment for her skin condition.
There is a total of $9800 in financial aid (made up of a $4,200 Promise Child grant for eligible families for this adoption and a $5600 waiver for the orphanage fee) — details available through the agency.

www.wacap.org

or

www.reecesrainbow.org

Little girl waiting for a family........

Psalm 91:1-2

 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.  I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress my God, in whom I trust.”

My heart is heavy for a child today that waits in Ch*na for a family.  She has a skin condition called Ichthyosis.  In her homeland she does not have hope or future.  So many things misunderstood.  She did nothing wrong and this was not a curse from the "gods".  It is a rare gentic disorder that needs treatment.  She has lived in orphanage for most of her life.  Please join me in praying for a family for this special girl in Ch*na.  Her date of birth is 11/1/2005 and her development is normal. There is a large grant offered from her agency WACAP.  If interested she is listed on www.rainbowkids.com under special needs ichthyosis and her agency contact is www.wacap.org . Let us lift "Suzy" up to God for a family, a hope, and a future.


John 14:18
I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.