Jonas Adoption Journey

Fantastic summer in Portugal!!

2011-08-17T23:00:00.000-07:00

Tess and Cameron with their grandparents and great grandmother in Portugal. Tess met the whole family for the first time.
With cousins in Setubal.
At the monastary in Lisbon -called GERNONIMOS where the tomb of Vasco da Gama is...
At Tia Lili's in Lisbon with baby Nora...
with cousin Pedro...

With friends in Cartaxo...

City view in Lisbon...
With Nana in Lisbon for a great day of shopping and lunch

Baleal beach where we went surfing
visiting the ancient town of Obidos

At the bullfight in Lisbon. Tess and Cameron loved it!!

Tess with great grandma Mili in the dress that grandma made for CHristine...so sweet!!

Bennett's 18th birthday

2011-06-07T13:15:00.000-07:00

We had our traditional birthdya dinner at the Montage in Laguna Beach for Bennett's 18th. Loving

Belated Easter photos :)

2011-06-05T20:55:00.000-07:00

Jeff and his 4 sisters!!
Bennett and cousin Jacob
The cousins after the easter egg hunt :)

Bennett and his girlfriend Madi
All the sisters, grandma and me!!

We had a wonderful Easter with Jeff's 4 sisters and all the kids :) Katie was in from Wisconsin and all the cousins had a blast being together. Happy Easter!!

China!!!

2011-04-26T09:55:00.001-07:00

Biggest camel humps ever!!
Shanghai skyline
At kareoke in Xiamen
Get a load of this menu
Beautiful WU gardens in Shanghai
Amy and I spent the day driving into the countryside. It was fantastic. We visited some ancient towns
Chinese foot massages after dinner...I will miss those!!
Yay! Starbucks and the Shanghai Daily!!
At the Great Wall outside Beijing
Buddhas at the marketplace
Villages fly red balloons over their town to show they are in celebration-a wedding or birth
At the marketplace in Beijing...I was in heaven and bought lots of stuff for my jewelry
entrance to a traditional Chinese street
scorpions on a stick???
Jeff ate 3 scorpions-he just had to try them!!

Jeff and I spent an amazing 12 days in China. It was my first time there and I loved it! Thought the Chinese were sweet and humble. Loved reading up on this amazing culture.

HELLO!!! Long time!!

2011-04-16T21:48:00.000-07:00

Cameron's Lacrosse team...
Tess tried winter lacrosse for the first time and loved it.
Bennett's winter formal...

What a busy few months it's been!! Kids have sports and school.Christine came home for spring break. We went to Vegas for Jeff's trade show, Eva and I went to visit Christine in Dallas and Jeff and I just got home from China...no wonder there is no time for blogging. Will try to update more regularly!

Visiting friends from Haiti

2011-02-05T09:53:00.000-08:00

We had such a blessed week with our sweet friends from Haiti. The boys are from an orphanage in northern Haiti. They travel with "His Little Feet" performing in a choir of 165 kids from the orphanage. It was such a fun experience for Tess and Cameron. The boys were really funny and we had some great stories and laughs with them. Their concert was unbelievable and very moving! I wish ebeyone could have seen it and felt their love! We miss them already!!

Tess turns 10!

2011-01-31T16:44:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Tess!!

...and the holidays continued in Utah...

2011-01-31T16:24:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays from the Jonas family!!
The 3 cousins rocking their new hats!!

Everyone rocks their new hats!! Now we are ready for the snow!!

Cameron spent the afternoon cooking with VOVO
learning how to make a yummy Portuguese treat...
It snowed 5 feet in 1 week!!
The girls at dinner at Park Meadows GOlf Club.
The Jonas boys and vovo at dinner.
The Jonas girls...

Eva and Jeff
We had a short but sweet great 5 days in the snow in Utah. It was so nice to be all together with the whole family! What a blessing!!

Holidays!! Mexico for Christmas...

2011-01-31T16:10:00.000-08:00

Feliz Navidad from Cabo San Lucas!!
Beach lovin Jonas boys...

Tess loves the water!!
Happy Holidays from Cabo!!
The Golub and Jonas kids on what turned out to be one of our favorite trips ever!!
Christine paddle boarding...
Me paddleboarding...
Christmas day with SANTA on the beach!! HO-HO-HO !!
Bennett slept outside on the patio everynight...heaven!

At the wine tasting event...
the kids in the infinity pool...
We had a fantastic Christmas week in cabo with our great friends the Golubs!! The weather was perfect and our days were filled with non stop fun and relaxation!!

packing meals for Haiti...

2010-12-08T08:08:00.000-08:00

first step...grab a hair net and wash your hands...
The girls rocking the hairnets!!
Bennett shrink wrapping the boxes ready to be loaded onto the truck
The boys who did the heavy lifting!!
Cameron and Danny add the rice and dried veggies to the meal packs
rice -ready to add to the meal packs
Tess and the girls were in charge of heat sealing the bags
Dorothy was the angel who set the whole thing up!!
the assembly line...
Charlie, Cameron and Danny on their assembly line

the finished meal packs ready to be boxed

Our church planned a day to pack meals for Haiti. It is a great program where 40 people can pack 10,000 meals in 2 hours. I was able to arrange for Bennett's lacrosse team to come work for 2 hours. It was a fantastic time for the boys to do some community service and have fun too. Cameron brought 2 friends as well and Tess had her friends there too. Everyone gets to help others!! It was a total success and our group packed 25,000 meals!! there were 112,000 meals packed throughout the day!! If you are interested in doing this at your church or any organization-contact me!

snowmobiling !!!!!

2010-11-29T09:33:00.000-08:00

What a fantastic day snowmobiling in the back country in Utah! It was just so majestic. We passed so many families driving in to cut down their Christmas trees. It was a beautiful scene.

I feel so blessed to have had such a great week with Jeff and the kids at our ranch!! I am very thankful indeed!!

A sweet Thanksgiving dinner...

2010-11-26T21:09:00.001-08:00

Such a sweet little thanksgiving with just the 6 of us and Bennett's friend Scott. We have been loving the snow and the sunshine! We are so thankful for this wonderful life!!

SNOW @ the Ranch!!!

2010-11-22T16:39:00.000-08:00

How lucky are we??? The day we arrived at our ranch in Utah they had just gotten 2 feet of fresh snow!! We are in for a great week!!! I'm giving thanks already!!

Halloween 2010

2010-11-12T11:49:00.000-08:00

the latest pictures from Acacia Village

2010-11-12T11:41:00.001-08:00

We just got some new updated pictures from Acacia Village. Children have been moved in and it is so sweet to see our paintings making these rooms look happy and loving!! Brings a smile to my face!!

Surprise- Tess is 11 !!!

2010-10-26T17:43:00.000-07:00

Tess with her 3rd grade classmates
Tess and her 12 year old brother
Tess with her classmates and teacher.

Well- that's the thing with international adoptions...you just never know. We have been suspecting that Tess was older for quite some time. We finally repeated her bone-age scan of her hand and wrist and guess what??? She is 11 and not 9 !! I was actually relieved to have this confirmed since it is what I knew to be true in my heart. She was just out of place with younger kids we thought were her age. The problem now is that she is in 3rd grade and we need to bump her up. We will be putting together a plan for the year to be able to move her to 5th next year. We had a bone age scan done when she came and it confirmed her age- that just shows what happens after 2 years of good nutrition!! She has just grown off the charts! She outweighs her 12 year old brother!!

She has taken the news well even though it was a bit confusing at first...it's just the beginning! I'll keep you posted.

SOOO Busy!!

2010-10-07T14:56:00.000-07:00

Wow! have not had a minute to update! Such a busy month...in a nutshell...Cameron turned 12 and is loving Middle School! He is such a Junior High kid and loves his new cell phone (we finally gave in!). Christine is happy in Dallas-loving being a junior and very busy with classes and Mylo!!...Bennett is being recruited by several colleges for lacrosse and we are busy traveling to the various campuses to make our decision...Tess is loving 3rd grade and soccer and it Bennett's biggest cheerleader at all his football games!!

Jeff and I are hanging on tight during this wild ride that is our life!!!

first day of school

2010-09-20T16:22:00.000-07:00

This is a big school year in the Jonas house...we have one in college, one in high school, one in middle school and one in elementary school!! and one tired mom and dad!

Cameron is very excited to be in junior high!! We went to school last weekend to practice opening his locker-which is tricky! He carpools with his 2 best friends so it will be a fantastic year for him. Tess is in the same school and has her 2 best friends in her class-how lucky!! Bennett is full steam at SC high and CHristine is loving SMU! We said our prayers for a great year full of learning and fun!!...here we go...

Are you ready for some football??

2010-09-07T21:57:00.000-07:00

The tough guys with their little sisters!!
Cousin Jason with Cams and Jake
The quarterback with his best runningback!!
Dad and Bennett at his first game...they won 25-0 !! Go tritons!
Bennett and his friend Quinn
At the Hawaii game...

Bennett and Cameron have been back at football since August 1st. This week we finally had our first games. Cameron is the quarterback for his team as well as free safety. Bennett is a starting cornerback on his Varsity high school football team. Both boys started the season with a win!! They both have practice everyday...friday night lights for Bennett's team and Cameron plays on Saturdays. Tess loves to play with the little sisters at all the games. She has had her first soccer practice-finally!! She has been watching her brothers go off to play for a month!

Love fall with all the sports! GO TRITONS!!

reaping what we sow...

2010-09-02T22:34:00.000-07:00

Our little veggie garden is thriving!! We harvested 8 huge cucumbers and 60 potatoes today. Cameron and Tess really helped out washing and cutting up the french fries for dinner...tomorrow we pick the spinach and squash...

Jonas family community service...

2010-08-10T21:53:00.000-07:00

Tess and Dorothy getting all the supplies ready to stuff backpacks...

Cameron loads backpacks after they are filled with supplies
Christine helps load filled backpacks in the car...
the kids and I organizing supplies to load into the backpacks

The kids and I helped Dorothy stuff backpacks for needy kids. This is our first chance to volunteer for Joshua Ministries- Jeff and I are now on the board of Joshua ministries and so happy to begin with this backpack drive!! The backpack project has grown over the last 5 years and we now do 500 backpacks each year at back to school time. Joshua Ministries received requests for 387 backpacks so far this year. We contacted our friend Perry and once again he so generously donated 100 backpacks to our project. I love that Tess, Christine and Cameron were able to serve and spend a day helping others!

bloopers...from our CHRISTMAS CARD PHOTO

2010-08-01T16:07:00.000-07:00

...tried to get our Christmas photo before CHristine leaves for college...very challenging to get 4 kids to all smile on cue!!! We may have to try again before she leaves next week!!

summer camp 2010

2010-07-22T18:01:00.001-07:00

The happy campers with mom
Camp counselor MIM...She was amazing and a great leader for the kids!
The crazy banana boat...what a blast!!
saying a prayer before lunch with parents

Tess on the water trampoline
Cameron won the regatta for his age group in sailing! way to go Cams!!
Tess kayaked and sailed alone and loved it!

The kids had a great christian camp at rockport reservoir this week. We met a wonderful counselor named Mim who runs camps for kids and she was amazing!! Tess sailed a sailboat for the first time alone!! The boys had regattas, kayaked, rode seadoos, wakeboarded, sailed and river rafted!! It was such a great experience. I loved hearing the stories at the end of the day!!

Each day camp began with a message and prayer...monday was "walking on water"- courage and prayer, tues was "calming your storm"-peace and patience, wed was "fishers of fish and fishers of men"- wisdom and integrity, thurs was "what happens when your life is dry?"-Hope

Mim was a great leader. It is so great to meet people who are dedicated to bringing God to young people! She was a blessing and gift to our kids this week!

...nothing is impossible with GOD

2010-07-21T17:26:00.000-07:00

I love how God is with the beautiful people of Africa when we cannot be! I love that he gives them hope and courage and lifts them up! I love that they find strength in their everyday lives through his grace! I saw this photo on a friends blog weho had just been to Ethiopia and it really made me smile and warmed my heart!

Lovin' mountain life!!

2010-07-18T16:34:00.000-07:00

spent the day up on the mountain at Deer Valley. It was spectacular!! The boys went mountain biking. They ride the chairlift up and mountain bike down. Tess, Jeff and I hiked for over an hour and then had lunch while we waited for the boys. One of my all time favorite ways to spend the day...

rafting the Weber river...

2010-07-13T11:20:00.000-07:00

My Aunt and Uncle and their son are visiting from Portugal. We took the group river rafting on the Weber. It was such a beautiful day! One of our favorite things to do up in the moun tains!!

...Driving to the Ranch...

2010-07-07T21:37:00.000-07:00

We are blessed to be heading out to our ranch for the month of July. We are all looking forward to time in the great outdoors!! So... 3 kids (Bennett is playing lacrosse back east), 2 dogs, my Aunt Lili,Uncle and cousin all hit the road for a 2 day drive to Utah!! Yippie-kay-yay!!

We have rodeo tickets for tomorrow and can't wait to hit the mountain to hike, river raft and eat good grub!!

summer fun!!

2010-07-05T19:29:00.000-07:00

wrapping up the school year!!

2010-06-23T10:06:00.000-07:00

At Cameron's award ceremony...
Cameron's show American History...he was Ben Franklin

'Lunch with a loved one" day. I went in and had lunch with Tess and Cameron.

Today is the last day of school. It has been a crazy month for us. I flew back to Dickinson for my 25 year college reunion- FANTASTIC!!. Then on to Florida for my mom's surgery-which thank GOD went well and she is doing great And then home for all the end of year activities...needless to say...exhausting! I am very much LOOKING FORWARD TO SUMMER! YAY!!

...that time of year...

2010-06-10T16:00:00.000-07:00

We are a bit late getting our garden going this year. Cameron, Tess and I finally had an afternoon to go to Plant Depot to pick out our vegetables for this years garden. We went with zuchini, peppers, carrots, beets, lettuce of many kinds, cucumbers and squash. We still have potatoes and squash on the other side from last year. Check back in a m0nth or so to see the progress!!

Cabo!!

2010-06-08T13:32:00.000-07:00

Off to Cabo with Christine, Cameron and Tess. Jeff and Bennett went to Maryland- I'd say we got the better end of the deal!!

Cameron and Tess spent everyday in the pool morning til night!! At 95 degrees it's where you wanted to be!
Best part of the day...mango margaritas!!
Jonas gang with the Mariachi band!!!
3 of my beautiful kids!!!

We took beautiful long walks everyday down the beach...HEAVEN!!

view from the infinity pool deck!!

We had planned a quick family trip to Cabo for Memorial day weekend since the kids had 5 days off. Jeff and Bennett ended up going to Maryland for the lacrosse championships so I decided to go anyway with the 3 other kids. It was a really nice 5 days to catch up with Christine and just relax!! Missed the big boys but we met some fun people and had an amazing time...

water...

2010-06-02T14:50:00.001-07:00

...We took this picture on our drive down to Soddo... young kids were getting water at a brown dirty river. We began to recognize that these yellow plastic bottles are for water transport. We saw them everywhere. What is so shocking is that the drinking water they collect is just so dirty-which is why typhoid is so prevalent. There are so many great organizations working for clean water...we saw first hand how important that is. Find one and support it. The one we work with is www.charitywater.org

...70's day at school...

2010-05-24T14:48:00.000-07:00

Bennett's 17th birthday!!

2010-05-21T11:00:00.000-07:00

We had a great family dinner at the Montage to celebrate Bennett's big 1-7!! His girlfriend Brogan and best bud Jonathan came with us as well as CHirstine's friend Mylo. It was a fun dinner and we had some great coffe rubbed steak!! Happy Birhtday Bennett!! OXO

please madam...glasses

2010-05-20T09:55:00.001-07:00

One of the workers at Acacia Village came up to me and said "please madam, glasses" He spoke no english. I took his hand and walked him over to one of the other boys who spoke a bit more english and asked him to help us translate. What I learned is that he is blind in one eye and is near and far sighted in the other. He basically can't see at all. He had this old pair of glasses that did not help him see close or far and asked if I could please help him to see better. WELL- it became my mission to help this kid get glasses. My first call was to our friend in Soddo, Harry, who is an eye dr. He said it would be hard to find bi-focals in Addis but to try the German eye clinic. So I told him to take a bus to our hotel in the morning and Haddeush and I would go with him to the German eye clinic...no luck. They did not make bifocals. Next we went to another eye place -not sure where we were- but they did not make them either and told us basically you can't get bifocals in Ethiopia- CRAZY! I mean they are just glasses- available all over the world and these poor people can't even get glasses! SO we decided to just by 2 pairs of glasses for him- one near sighted and one far sighted. The glasses were $140. I used some of the donated money I had collected! It was so great to see that donated money go to such a great cause! This sweet boy can now see! He never could have saved enough money to buy the glasses himself. I think the ones he had were just glasses given to him that were not even for his prescription!! I praised him for asking for help and told him I know that is not an easy thing to do. Seeing his smile when we ordered the glasses was one of my favorite moments on the trip!! Knowing we all came together to make a differnce in someone's life is such an amazing humble moment I will not soon forget.

lazy days playing with dogs...

2010-05-16T16:13:00.000-07:00

Tess holding Cowboy...
Tess's sparkling shoes...
Our shaggy dog JAKE...the world's best dog!!
Cameron found a stick bug...
Kids and dogs...

This is what lazy Saturdays are for...laying around on the grass playing with dogs and friends while the parents wrok hard in the yard!! A glorious day indeed.

...such sweet friendly greetings!!!

2010-05-11T16:32:00.000-07:00

Everywhere we went we were greeted with such sweet smiles and waves. We would have loved to stop each time and meet our friends but we had such a long way to travel. It was so amazing how friendly and happy they were to see us. Just makes my heart smile looking at these great pictures!

Happy Mothers Day!!

2010-05-09T12:42:00.001-07:00

Had a beautiful walk along the bluff in Dana point and then went to brunch with Jane and the kids. We are missing Paul who is in the Philipines and Christine who is in Paris...otherwise such a great mother's day morning. Sending out love to all you mom's!! OX

back to real life...lacrosse champs

2010-05-09T12:28:00.000-07:00

Bennett's varsity lacrosse team won league!! We had a fun team dinner at our house. The boys had a great season. Tess also has her last soccer game this weekend...bring on the summer!!

...the most amazing letter

2010-05-03T13:26:00.000-07:00

Ahere's letter...
Jeff giving Ahere the bible he asked Dorothy for.
Dorothy, Bennett and Ahere at the Acacia Village children;s home we were painting...
bringing bibles to all the worker kids at Acacia Village...
Jeff and the Ethiopian Amharic language bibles...
The most amazing thing happened at Acacia Village. One of the young men that we gave clothes to wrote Dorothy a letter the day after he received the clothes and shoes. It should be published. It is such a sincere outpouring of gratitude and the depth that it reached in this young man was incredible. We were all moved to tears. He was the first to ask for and recieve a bible, which lead the other young people there to ask for the same. Here is what his letter said...

"Dear madam, sorry for not calling you with your name and let me say you "so kind and virtuous person",

Yesterday you brought me suits so sweet that they trippered in me tragedious childhood times. You see my parents didn't buy me clothes and I didn't feel those delicious scenes as my kid friends enjoyed it, because I was an orphan child.

What I remember of my childhood is that I was unloved, barefoot with tourtured clothes. After I have seen myself in the suits you bought me, I feel that I have regained my parents, who I did not know in my kid times. I felt as if they were released from their prison (graves) and giving me a surprise with this clothes.

Please let me not miss you too as I missed my parents.

Thank You a million,

Ahere

this letter contained my words translated by my friend- Anaan. I'm also grateful for him too for he helped me talk with you. I interrupted my education from grade 8 because of lack of support and I'm thinking to continue with night classes by working daytime next year.

SUCH POWERFUL, SOULFULL WORDS! "Trageious childhood", I didn't feel those delicious scenes of childhood, unloved, barefoot with TORTURED clothes!! my parents were released from their prison (graves)...it is almost too much to comprehend...what this poor boy has survived...

This sweet young man spilled his heart to dorothy and us in his amazing words. An orphaned child with dead parents that grew up unloved and alone. Our simple act of kindness made him feel like these clothes were a gift from his dead parents releasing them from their grave-prison. Unbelievable how powerful that is...

...for our friends

2010-05-02T21:23:00.000-07:00

I have to say that one of my favorite parts of the trip was giving away all the supplies we brought. I think about being alone in my guest bedroom at home with donations of clothes and shoes piled high, sorting clothes...thinking about who they would go to...and then being there face to face and handing out these same clothes and watching the smiles and gratitude...It is the most amazing feeling ever! I remember we had tons of kids clothes. I stopped and thought that there would be workers at acacia village that could probably use clothes as well. I went upstairs to Bennett and Jeff's closet and grabbed a bunch of clothes, then went to my closet and CHristine's and grabbed some more. I was so glad I did because all the workers at acacia village were 17-24. The larger clothes we packed allowed us to give each one pants/shorts, rainbow sandals, a tshirt or sweatshirt, toothbrush and toothpaste. Dorothy sorted all the clothes into piles while we were painting. At the end of the day we called each worker up and they got their new clothes. It was easily one of the best moments I have ever had. God rained blessings on all of us that day!!

an Ethiopian home

2010-04-28T09:55:00.000-07:00

Danni invited us to see his home. He lives there with his parents and a brother and sister and 3 little nephews.

this bedroom sleeps his mother and siblings.
the only thing on the walls were a map and an Obama poster...imagine the hope that must hold for them...
this was the kitchen with a dirt floor. The yellow conainers are to go get water...
another shot of the kitchen...

One of the young men that worked with us at Acacia Village was Danni. He spoke good english and had a degree in sociology but as is too often the case there are no jobs for these young kids and so they end up doing hard labor for $2 a day. Danni was very helpful to us because he helped translate for the rest of the group. At the end of our trip we had become good friends and he invited Jeff, Ally, Joao Paulo and I to see his home which was walking distance from the new orphanage we were working at. (The rest of our group had returned to the states) We were thrilled because we had not had a chance to see an ethiopian home and were very curious to see how they lived...and he was so excited to take us. He had been inviting us for days.

Danni lives with his parents (he's 24) and his 3 nephews and his brother and sister. We only saw 4 small beds. The house had no running water nor did it have any kind of bathroom. We brought him a tarp as a house gift and he was so grateful because he said he will hang it in front of the hole that serves as a bathroom out at the back of the yard. The 3 little boys were home alone (6, 4 and 2 years old)Danni's parents had gone to church he thought.

I wish we could have come here with our teenagers before they left. It was amazing to see how proud he was of his home and how humble it was. We were so moved by seeing how they live. I think there was a light bulb in the family room but I know they get electricity randomly. Ally and I smiled when we looked into the kitchen and said we will never complain about doing dishes again!

I wish we had a few extra days in Ethiopia because our team could have given that sweet home a new paint job in a day! It has planted the seed and that will be one of our tasks next trip. To help some of our new friends in their personal lives,and at their homes-things as simple as rugs and tarps and maybe some dishes... we can so easily do that!

Jeff and I have decided to sponsor Danni to help him feed his family as he is the bread winner for all of them. He explains that they usually eat injera for dinner but sometimes they get to eat bread...

...holding those sweet babies

2010-04-25T20:16:00.001-07:00

A beautiful morning spent at the orphanage in Soddo holding these sweet babies. What a blessing and what an amazing day!! These babies are God's children and I really felt they were being well cared for and felt great hope for them as they wait to be matched with loving families...they are in my prayers!!

...and paint we did!!!

2010-04-22T12:32:00.000-07:00

Our work days were spent painting happiness on the walls of the new orphanage. The guys finished their outside work early and by the end of the trip we were all painting. We had tunes on our ipod dock and lots of watchful eyes. The sweet worker kids were just fascinated by us, our paintings and our music. It was so great to interact with them. One day we brought 10 pizzas from a pizza shop in Addis (Ethiopia was once ocupied by Italy and they left behind some great italian restaurants). It was their first time tasting pizza! They just loved it. I am just so full of amazing memeories spent painting, laughing, eating and spreading God's love at Acacia Village!!

"one of the best days of my life"

2010-04-19T13:11:00.000-07:00

The 3 teenage boys went out to play and built these crosses...we later found out they were on the site plan for Acacia village...God at work!!
The kids with the workers after playing ball...such happy love filled faces!
Max gave away his shoes to this friend...
Bennett gave away his shoes to his new friend too...

Brothers!!!

Christine wowed the guys with her great volleyball skills!! They thought it was so great that a girl could do that!!

This particular day was just magical. We all felt that it was a day touched by God and one of the best days any of us had ever had...REALLY...we all said that at least once that day!!

We all worked at Acacia village side by side with these amazing people. Today the boys finished a bit early and went out to play. They decided to build a soccer goal. When they lifted the first log, Bennett said "this would make a cool cross". The boys (Max, Mitch and Bennett) then built 3 crosses before building the soccer goal. We later came to find out that the 3 crosses were actually on the original plans for Acacia Village...these sweet "coincidences" kept happening throughout the trip. Just confirming that we were seeing and doing all that we were meant to by God!!

Once the boys had built the soccer goal, the workers all gathered around and started to play with them. Christine then picked up a soccer ball and started playing volleyball with another group. We spent the afternoon, after work hours, playing with the guys. It was so moving because no one had ever paid attention to them before and here we were playing with them and loving them as our friends. Our 4 teenagers were so moved. It was a life changing day for them. After the impromptu games, each of our guys gave away the shoes off their feet when they saw the beat up shoes the workers were wearing. They all came home barefoot...so incredible!! They saw how these lovely guys with nothing were really just like them. They all shared their feelings on the bus all the way back to Addis. It was one of the highlights on the trip. The amount of love felt that day, on that field, was incredible. It brings tears to my eyes just thinking about it.

out and about in Addis Ababa

2010-04-18T20:38:00.000-07:00

Words are still a bit hard to come by. It is taking a long while to process the experience we just lived. I will have to just let the photos speak for me for now...some sweet group shots...

Ethiopia Day 1

2010-04-17T21:35:00.001-07:00

The view from our hotel room at sunrise...

Our first day we went to the "mercato" which is the largest open air market in Africa. It was incredible. Busy and full of commotion...we watched our pockets carefully as we were told we would be easy targets. We watched a girl in front of us get pick-pocketed.

We stayed at a new hotel. It was centrally located in Addis and made it really easy to get around. We were all up early due to jetlag and the time change. The flights over were fairly easy since we slept most of the way. We had a free day until the rest of our team arrived so we headed to the open market to look for cool Ethiopian stuff...I was on a mission to find cool crosses for my jewelry...it did not disappoint. We are all buzzing with energy from this place. It is so unbelievable that we are here again. Our contact from CWA is Haddush. He met us early and is taking us around Addis. He is so kind and generous, always smiling and laughing. It's nice to have someone to translate for us...

Mission trip vs. Humanitarian trip

2010-04-16T15:01:00.000-07:00

TEAM ETHIOPIA...the girls...and the guys

We are safely back from Ethiopia. We are tired, inspired, sad, transformed. Re-entry back into everyday life has proved challenging...

It was amazing to feel the presence of God with us the entire time we were in Ethiopia. I learned on this trip, from Dorothy who joined us from South Africa, that the differnece between a mission trip and a humanitarian trip is working for the good of God vs. the good of man. It was clear after the first day that we were there for God and he was going to lay out our path and bless it. Amazing stories unfolded and major changes took place that lead us exactly where we were supposed to be. We saw what we were meant to see so that we could come home and continue to work on behalf of these beautiful God loving people. We were blessed to work side by side with them each day. Our hearts are full and our spirits are strong so that we will remember them and come back to keep giving them hope.

I will post photos as I collect them from everyone...

...and we're off!!

2010-04-02T21:38:00.001-07:00

Tess and Cameron boarded a flight to Miami this morning and are already enjoying the florida sunshine with their grandparents (vovo and vovo)...we will see them when we get back from Ethiopia.

We are all packed and ready for our 5 am pick up. I will not be taking my computer this time since I was unable to get on line last time we were there. I am excited and a bit anxious to just get there and get settled into our work. I pray that we are all safe and healthy throughout!

Thanks to everyone who supported and dropped off donations for this trip! Will post some amazing photos and stories when we return...Happy Easter! OX

Thank you Nancy and Perry!!

2010-03-29T16:36:00.001-07:00

Our sweet friends Nancy and Perry Alshul were so generous and donated 50 backpacks for our trip to Ethiopia. CWA sponsors 250 local kids to go to school in their village. We will get these backpacks to them so they can carry their things to and from school. Our friend who does ministry in South Africa told us they actually end up using the backpacks as a dresser to hold their clothes and shoes inside their huts...So thank you N & P for making a differnce in these kids lives!! OXO

Tess and the boys

2010-03-28T07:48:00.001-07:00

We heat up the new jaccuzzi just about everyday. Since it has been a bit chilly for the pool-everyone ends up in the jaccuzzi. It makes me laugh because it ends up being a bunch of boys and Tess. She doesn't seem to mind one bit...she's always the first one in and the last one out!!

Date Night...John Mayer concert in L.A.

2010-03-28T07:42:00.000-07:00

Jeff and I had a great date night this week!! We went up to LA to meet a friend who is giving us 50 backpacks for Ethiopia. Then we checked into the Chateau Marmont on Sunset Blvd and just relaxed by the pool before heading off to a John Mayer concert...row 4...amazing music...the best company ever!...the perfect date night!!

11 days and counting...til Ethiopia

2010-03-22T21:16:00.000-07:00

...the donations are pouring in!! It feels like every surface of our house is covered in donations....Thank you to Dr. Godino and Dr. Reishel for each donating 200 toothbrushes and toothpaste! Thanks to lots of friends for the clothes and supplies and thanks to Rainbow Sandals for the 50 pairs of leather flip flops!! AND we collected money from those farther away that will be used to buy supplies when we get to Ethiopia. It is feeling very real now and we are excited. Ally and I designed the team t-shirts for our group today. Jeff and Marco bought bug repelent, power bars and a gadget that will boil our bottled water to make tea while we are there...

such a beautiful day!!

2010-03-14T17:42:00.000-07:00

This is the street I drive down everyday to leave my home...there are not enough hours in the day to give thanks for such an amazing blessing! Thank you God!!

2 years ago today...life changing

2010-03-10T09:00:00.001-08:00

2 years ago today, Cameron and I walked over to an unknown neighbors house because I heard they had adopted a baby boy. We rang the doorbell and our lives would be changed forever!! I did not know the power of that moment. Christy welcomed us in and Kidus was running around. My heart was so full of God's spirit I felt such a clear message that day. We left an hour later and I went right home and got on the CWA website.

Above are the 2 original photos that I saw of Tess on the waiting children's list. As soon as I saw her sweet face I knew she was meant to be our daughter. I couldn't wait for Jeff to get home so I could talk to him about Tess. As always he was so loving and supportive about our adoption. His exact words were "with the millions of orphaned children in Ethiopia, it is not a coincidence that Tess's picture came into our home on the other side of the world...It is the path God is choosing for us."

The next morning I called CWA and in 4 months we were in Ethiopia picking up Tess. I am so humbled and thankful that God gave us so much patience and clarity during the 2 1/2 years we waited for our China adoption...he kept our hearts open and willing to wait for his sign...2 years ago today it was so clear on what He wanted for our family...Tesfanesh Grace Duarte Jonas.

Back from Paris...

2010-03-08T13:24:00.000-08:00

Cam's and Christine in front of the LOUVRE
...Just hangin' with Mona!!!
...in Place de la Concorde...

Taking Cameron to NOTRE DAME...
Parisian graffitti...

We are just back from Paris where we took Cameron to visit Christine. We had a great 5 days in sunny Paris visiting all our favorite monumental places! It just makes my heart sing to spend these precious days with our kids building amazing memories! Jeff and I had such great talks about trips we look forward to taking with our kids as we grow older!! It was fun to show Cameron and Christine our old metro stop where we lived in Paris...and all the places we loved to go. It brings us such great pleasure to share our special places with our children...next time Tess and Bennett will come too! I felt humbled to stand in places so rich with history and am filled with gratitude to be able to do it with Jeff and the kids!!

Off to Paris with Cameron to visit Christine

2010-02-28T19:48:00.000-08:00

...from our visit in January...

We are sneaking in a quick week in Paris to see CHristine. Jeff is in Portugal and will meet Cameron and I there for a week. Even though we skype and talk almost daily, I really miss her and can't wait to spend the time with her in Paris. She says she has a list of places she wants to take us to...Cameron was 6 months old last time he was here so he will just love it! Tess and Bennett are staying home with Dorothy. Be back soon with pictures and stories from my favorite city!! Au Revoir mes amis!!

Jonas kids watching the olympics...

2010-02-26T21:12:00.000-08:00

We sure love watching the olympics at the Jonas house!! Tess was a bit disappointed that Ethiopia didn't have a strong showing!! I had to explain about the lack of snow in Ethiopia making it hard to train for winter sports...I think she got it! Our favorites are Shaun White and Apollo Ono!! GO USA!!

crazy hair day

2010-02-26T20:59:00.001-08:00

Every other tuesday we go see "B" and she braids Tess's hair. It's our job at home to take out last weeks braids so B can get to work on this weeks doo. This is how long Tess's hair is now. We never know what B is going to do. She always comes up with some creative new braids. last week Tess had a cornrow mohawk!!! We are trying to let it grow but that is no easy task!!.

...God's greatest blessings...

2010-02-22T21:26:00.000-08:00

Being a mom to these 4 kids is the biggest blessing ever! It makes me be a better person and strive to do better things!! It brings me the highest highs, the biggest laughs and the best ahh-haa moments ever. They make all the hard work worthwhile and all the mistakes forgivable. I really do try to stop and take in each one at this very moment and where they are in their life's journey. I look out at the sea and pray a little prayer for each one. They honestly teach me as much as I teach them. We are all on this journey together. I am so proud of their compassion and will to help others. I listen and teach and help and sometimes shout, but I thank God every night that I have the honor of being called "mom" by these 4 great kids!!

the calling...

2010-02-21T17:04:00.000-08:00

I can't explain how strong the calling is for me to be in Ethiopia and for me to be helping these kids! I am often baffled because I thought my calling was to adopt and bring them home...so how can I be there??? I follow so many inspirational blogs and read countless testamonies of God's work being done all over Africa. It just calls me to join them!

I have to do a lot of self talking to remind myself that my 4 children still need me here...my work is not done here yet. So the compromise is that I will work here on behalf of those who can be over there right now. I will raise $ and collect supplies and we will bring these things to them. I am so excited to be organizing this trip to Ethiopia. I am so grateful to have such great friends to come along with us and join us and take on our passion as their own. I am grateful and humbled!!

Getting ready to go...back to Ethiopia

2010-02-15T16:11:00.001-08:00

We have begun to really prepare for our mission trip back to Ethiopia to help work on completing the new orphanage at Acacia Village. (www.acaciavillage.org) We will be a team of 12 that we put together from friends in different countries. We will be 9 from home and 1 friend from Portugal and 2 friends from Italy including an Italian doctor (who is in Haiti right now). We each have specific tasks we are going to work on when we get there. I will be on the painting team along with Christine who is flying in from her semester in Paris to work over her spring break. Jeff and the guys will be put to work on whatever needs to be completed when we arrive. We will also be traveling south to Awassa to visit Tess's home town. We did not get there when we went the first time. It is about a 4 hour rough ride from Addis Ababa...let the fundraising and supply gathering begin!!

YAY!! Water is finally in...

2010-02-10T09:59:00.000-08:00

We are winding down with our pool project! We finally have water and the kids used the jaccuzzi for the first time! It will be so nice to be able to have them swim at home form now on! Tess is a good little swimmer so it will be fun for her and Cameron!

sleepovers...

2010-02-08T08:37:00.000-08:00

How cute...I went to check on the kids and each one had a sleepover buddy...Cameron had Jake in his bed and Tess had Mick in her bed...and all sound asleep.

Bennett's winter formal

2010-02-08T08:35:00.001-08:00

Tess

2010-02-03T19:21:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it has only been 1 1/2 years that Tess has been our daughter. I can hardly imagine life without her sweet little presence in our home. She has really blossomed and grown in so many ways. She always asks me if I need help with anything and if I'd like to sit and watch a movie with her. She is my only side kick since the boys are always out and about. I am so grateful that God has blessed me with the honor of being her mom!!

AHHH...to be young and living in Paris!!

2010-02-02T17:19:00.000-08:00

Just got done with a 1 hour skyp with Christine. She is loving living in PAris!! She has already traveled to Amsterdam and brussels and says they are already planning their trip to Copenhagen...and she hasn't even been there a month. So thankful she has met some great friends and has such a nice family to live with! It makes it easier being so far away!!

Tess's new hair doo!!

2010-01-30T17:31:00.001-08:00

I took Tess to see our "Hair Lady-"B" to help me with Tess's dreading fro. She basically told me I can never just let her hair grow-like I was doing. 2 hours later Tess had some cute twists and we have a standing appt every other week to re-braid her hair. It's that or cut it short so we are on the plan...
Kidus and Cameron put on Tess's night stocking that "B" told us she needs to sleep in to keep her braids nice and neat...
Kidus, Cameron and Tess playing with Tess's new birthday ball
...the twists...

Paris...update

2010-01-27T18:36:00.000-08:00

How cute is my daughter!! I just miss her so much, but will sacrafice my self for her to live this fantastic inspiring amazing experience in Paris and elsewhere (like Amsterdam last weekend) She is just meant for this stuff anf is really taking advantage of it all. I'm so thankful for the friends she has made there that are such fun company for her...(in my place!!!) So keep having fun Neener, but know that you are greatly missed! XOXOXOXOX

Of Mice and Men

2010-01-26T21:37:00.001-08:00

We took the kids to see a play at our local playhouse. Bennett' s english class is reading Of Mice and Men so we thought it would be great for him to see the play. It was Tess's first time seeing a play. She loved it. I told her if she really enjoys the little school skits and plays this is what she can do when she grows up...she's thinking about it...

Happy 9th Birthday Tesfanesh!!

2010-01-24T20:34:00.001-08:00

Tess had a fun bowling birthday party. She has been SOOO excited! I actually made her go outside and ride her bike yesterday because she was so jumpy and hyper in the kitchen thinking about her birthday party! It was very cute. She had so much fun and thanked us so sweetly for "the best birthday party ever" (last year having been the first birthday party ever since they do not acknowledge birthdays in Ethiopia...) I can't believe she is already 9!

Jaime in Jamaica

2010-01-21T08:10:00.000-08:00

Jaime at the Dental outreach in Jamaica.
They laid out chairs and desks to make dental tables to work on the children...Jaime said no running water or electricity...

Jaime in action! I am going to work on getting her group to Ethiopia!!
The happy patient and doctor!
Jaime teaching the kids about how to care for their teeth.
My best friend and next door neighbor growing up is in Jamaica doing a dental outreach to needy children in Jamaica. A group of US dentists armed with bags of toothbrushes, toothpaste and assorted dental tools and meds headed up the mountains in Jamaica to treat children that have probably never seen a dentist. I know when Tess came her teeth were one of the first things we had to tackle because at 7 1/2 she had never seen a dentist...we had a lot of work to do!! So the gift these loving dentists gave these children is priceless! Just knowing someone cares enough for them to be there is so good for their souls!! Jaime also went into the schoolrooms and taught them how to use the toothbrushes and supplies they were given....we all need to use our gifts to give back!! Jaime what a blessing you brought to those Kids! OX

SNOWY PARIS!!

2010-01-14T19:03:00.000-08:00

snowy Paris...it was amazing and graceful and magical!!

The THINKER at the gardens of the RODIN museum...
PARIS!!-The city that brought us together 24 years ago...still magical for us!!
walking around the Louvre...
at the Port de Clignancourt flea market looking for treasures...
...found some!!
Moi et ma belle fille...nous sommes tres parisiennes!!
showing Christine the ropes in the metro...seems like it was just my turn not long ago!

Christine is spending this semester in Paris! We decided to take her over to get her set up and meet the family she would be living with. It was so cold- but beautiful and snowing. The french family she is living with is so cool. Her french mom is a documentary film producer! She lives in a great neighborhood right in the center of Paris...I am SOOO happy for her. It is really ideal! She will be blogging about it at her blog ... christinejonas.blogspot.com

wish we were there too...but at least we can follow along vicariously thru her blog!! C'est super!

A Bientot...off to PARIS!

2010-01-05T21:46:00.000-08:00

Christine begins her sememster abroad in Paris!! Jeff and I will be gone for the week getting her set up with her french family...what a fun adventure for her! It doesn't seem like that long ago it was us!! Au revoir!!

Happy New Year!!! from Park City Utah...

2010-01-05T21:40:00.000-08:00

Winter Wonderland !!!

2010-01-05T21:33:00.000-08:00

Tess loved when we got her at the end of the day from ski school and took her up for a few runs. She was more cautious this season but I think she will loosen back up onc she gets her ski legs back!!
Inner Tubing at night ...it was freezing!!
Tess loved the inner tube hill!
Hot chocolate break...my favorite!

At lunch...Tess is in ski school...

Cameron snowboarding at park City
Christine and Catherine snowboarding at Park City

Merry CHristams to all!!!

2009-12-26T16:15:00.000-08:00

Some fun holiday photos...We are having a great time and enjoying all the holiday happenings in Park City! Happy Holidays!

off to our ranch in Utah for Christmashol

2009-12-22T21:15:00.001-08:00

Waiting for luggage after a 2 hour delay getting off...

Look at all the fresh powder awaiting us at the ranch!! It's going to be a great 10 days!!

Happy Holidays to all!! OX

Early Christmas

2009-12-22T21:05:00.000-08:00

The kids have been staring at these big boxes that came in the mail for weeks. We are going to have an early mini CHristmas before leaving for the ranch so the kids can open some gifts that will not make it out there...
Opening their new wooden POGO sticks...
Bennett in his new Oregon sweatshirt...he LOVED it!!
Cameron opening his new converse sneakers...
Christine and her graffitti art from the art festival last summer...

We had a mini Christmas with some gifts that we are not bringing out to the ranch. The kids were excited to tear into some gifts knowing that real Christmas is still a week away in Utah. Jeff got stuck in London when he missed his connection from Lisbon due to flight delays so we had to do mini CHristmas without him...He'ss meet us at the airport to fly straight to Utah...

...why things happen...

2009-12-20T08:08:00.001-08:00

Why do certain things happen??? I was reading the holiday issue of Oprah magazine. Came across a page with a photo of a guy(named Barton Brooks) standing in a group of African kids...instantly got my attention. The article was about a guy who left his big job and now travels around the world helping others. Closed the magazine...immediately went on his website. One of the places he had gone to help was Ethiopia. He learned of the fuelwood carriers and their situation. I had brought back photos of these girls when we were there as well.

They get up at 3 am to gather wood in the forests. They then strap up to 75 lbs of wood against their back and walk all day-up to 18 miles-to sell the wood at market for $2 in oreder to feed their families. Many of these women are young girls as young as 9 or 10. They need to help feed their families and so need to carry wood instead of going to school. Barton and a friend spent the day carring wood along side them to better understand their life. This was difficult for 2 big grown men, let alone small kids whose wood loads are sometimes close to their own body weight. These girls end up with stunted growth and physical problems as a result of years of carrying wood at such young ages.

What he learned is that we can not change the situation but we can make it better. He wants to have packs made to help them carry the wood in a more comfortable, supported way. Right now the wood is against their backs cutting into them and held on with wood straps that cut as well. Next he wanted to get them some sort of MP3 player/ipod that could have educational material on it so the girls are learning while they walk since they cannot go to school.

Do you know anyone who can help with this?? If not can you help us fund it? I am already at work trying to come up with a back pack design to help carry the wood and am trying to find someone who can produce it...let's all put our heads together and help these young girls!!

email me @ lizjonas@cox.net

Holiday Happenings...

2009-12-19T11:26:00.000-08:00

breakfast with Papa to celebrate the holidays since we will be away for Christmas...
Papa gave each kid their gift...
cute ornament cupcakes at Cameron's class party...
CHristine and I went to Cameron's party...

We have had a busy week celebrating the holidays...Tess had a class party on Thurs (forgot my camera) Cameron had his class party and music concert this week too (He is playing the trombone) Christine is home from college, Bennett had an OPERATION SMILE fundraiser dance and we had brunch with Papa since we will not be seeing him over the holidays. Jeff is still in Portugal so I had all the holiday running around to do myself...Everything went well, all the performances were stellar and I loved going to all the kids activities...those are the best gifts I'll get!!

2009-12-15T12:47:00.000-08:00

There is no easy way to put this into words but we have decided not to continue with our adoption of sweet little A. During an international adoption process there are many steps during which we recieve information on the child we are adopting. We recently recieved information on this little girl that was very sad. She has been through some very difficult things and is going to need a lot of help to heal. We had some long conversations with our social worker and a therapist to help us understand what could be involved. After struggling and praying for clarity we have decided that our very busy family with 4 children may not be the right family for this sweet little girl. She will require a great deal of time and energy soley focused on her and that would be very difficult for us as we have a busy daughter in college and 3 kids still living at home that also require a great deal from us already.

It has been one of the saddest, most difficult things that we have ever gone through but we had to close our file. We are praying that she will go to the perfect family-maybe one with no other kids, to focus only on her and get her the help and healing she will need. The good thing is she now has lots of people praying for her and she is in the CWA system so she will definietly get the perfect family for her. They are working on it already. She did not know about us yet so I am relieved and thankful for that.

I am praying hard for sweet little A. and will always be sad about it but God has other plans for us both. It makes me so very grateful that God has brought us Tess. I will go into the holidays humbled and full of love and gratitude for my 4 beautiful children and my LOVING husband, who has been amazing through all this. Please keep us in your prayers as we all try to move through this loss and especially pray for sweet A. that God keep his hands on her and move A. forward into a life of love and healing with the perfect family for her.

JOY!

2009-12-13T21:12:00.000-08:00

I know this is a busy time for everyone! Stop and feel JOY for all that we have!! Please take the time to realize how blessed we are to live in this great country with all the comforts we have! I will always hold in my heart the beautiful faces of the Ethiopian children that have big smiles while not having much else. Please take a moment to send up heartfelt prayers for those who are so much less fortunate and struggle for food or a warm place to sleep. So when we are feeling stressed about gifts or schedules just know all that really does not matter. We are loved and fed and blessed beyond belief!!

Tess has a new favorite hobby...puzzles

2009-12-10T20:36:00.000-08:00

It has been cold (for us) and rainy so Tess has asked for some new puzzles. She loves to sit and work on them-preferably with someone. We had a busy week with our adoption papers. Jeff and I had our fingerprints done last week and our medicals. This week we had our individual intake interviews and tomorrow our social worker Jan is coming to the house to talk to all of us as a family. SHe got permission to do Christine's interview over the phone. I forgot what a long process this is and how out of our control it is...I just keep praying for things to go well and for A. to be safe.

A conversation with Tess

2009-12-03T21:42:00.000-08:00

Tess came home from school today talkative as usual...but her story was so cute I have to share it...

Tess: "I like to teach things to people"

Me: " that's great, what do you like to teach?"

Tess: "well, today my friend and I were talking and she asked me, "what does 'stepfather' mean?"

Me: What did you tell her?

Tess: I told her that if your dad died and your mom married a new man, he would be your stepfather.

Me: wow, that's exactly right!

I am always so surprised she knows what some of these words mean!!... here she is teaching english words to an american child after only 15 months here!! She continues to amaze us!!

She was also helping me stuff our Christmas cards in the envelopes and she said " Just think, mom, next year A.(our new daughter) will be in our cards too. We are going to have to take all new pictures with her". She is so excited! She talks about her new sister all the time. This week we were fingerprinted and had our updated physicals...keeping things moving along!!!

tis the season...

2009-12-01T18:12:00.000-08:00

Christams is in the air at the Jonas house!! We put up our tree yesterday and today we made a gingerbread house and Christmas tree. It was funny to watch the kids...they started out all excited and happy and about half way through they were frustrated and cranky...especially Tess. I had to explain that things like this take time and patience...and yes, they are messy! Sometimes it's a good idea to wash your hands half way through the project!!...But in the end we pulled together and finished our holiday masterpieces!

Gobena Coffee helps feed children...

2009-11-29T18:37:00.001-08:00

Tess putting labels on the coffee that we just got in...She really loves to help and knows that the money goes to help kids that are still in ethiopia and need food...
The sticker says "147 million orphans. You just fed 1 for a month." It's that simple.

I know, I know...give it a rest...but I can't because every bag sold feeds a child for a month! How simple is that!! It makes a great gift if you don't drink coffee. Add it too any gift and know you are really making a difference. I am not set up to distribute but go to their website and order it...it gets shipped to your door!! www.gobena.org

Thanksgiving @ the ranch

2009-11-29T18:12:00.000-08:00

Mom and Tess quading...
Our Ranch...
The boys fishing in the backyard...

Cameron and Tess at our favorite diner in Oakley...
Bailey and Tess quading...

What a nice peaceful week we had at the ranch for Thanksgiving. We missed Christine since she went to spend Thanksgiing with my parents in FLorida, but Bennett's friend Bailey came with us. It was really cold (in the 20's) which made it fun and really felt like we kicked off the holiday season (since in California it was 75 degrees). The boys went pheasant hunting and snowboarding and the girls went shopping and out to lunch...just as it should be!! We had fun quading, taking long walks and going to the movies. Tess can't wait to ski in December when we come back. So peace, love and happy start to the holiday season!!

The Blind Side

2009-11-21T21:51:00.000-08:00

WOW...just got home from this movie and was so inspired! I love to see beautiful examples of how opening your heart just a little can make such a huge impact on someone else. I have been struggling with whether 5 kids is really a good idea and then God just keeps putting these clear examples of why it is a great idea to continue to reach out and help others. I am doing the Beth Moore bible study on the book of Ester and that is also really giving me solid examples of how to be brave and make choices that will impact others in positive ways...keep the inspiration coming Lord...I'm going to need it!

A busy week at school...

2009-11-19T13:11:00.001-08:00

Jeff with the kids at "DONUTS WITH DAD"...

Tess showing her 100% on her spelling test...AGAIN!!
The kids had fun picking new books to read for Thanksgiving vacation at the book fair
They both got home and sat right down and started reading their new books...too cute!

I'm burried in paperwork but all is moving along nicely with our 2nd adoption. Just had our first meeting with the social worker to get a new homestudy going...

Adoption #2

2009-11-15T19:26:00.000-08:00

We have officially opened our new adoption. Our new little daughter has been removed from the waiting child list and is now in our file...WOW. This happened rather quickly and I'm spinning a bit thinking about what the next few months will require. The good news is we found out that our dossier in Addis Ababa is still valid and we do not need to create a new one....this is huge!! We do need a new home study and I-171H. Our first appointment with our social worker is this Wed. so we will find out exactly what we need to re-do. I know we will need new medicals, new fingerprinting and I'm guessing new police clearance. We will be required to complete some hours of training AGAIN including some new training that has been added since Tess's adoption (2 hours of pool safety I heard)...I have been told we are technically a "fast track adoption" becuase of our circumstances but I do not know what that means in terms of time...I guess I'll know more wed...

NO CAVITIES!!

2009-11-12T09:14:00.000-08:00

Tess and Cameron get side by side cleanings!!
Tess loves the dentist because she gets to pick a toy at the end...

JUST LOOK AT THOSE PEARLY WHITES!!!

Dental appointments are a breeze now that we have Tess's teeth up to speed!! She is a diligent brusher (better than her brother!) They both love the dentist because he has a cool video game room. We always go 15-20 minutes early so they can play video games...NO CAVITIES!! Good job kids!!

blogs for a cause

2009-11-10T10:31:00.001-08:00

Meet Nikki...

She is a young college student who does great blog design in order to raise $ to fund her mission trips to Haiti, Dominican Republic and Ethiopia. Thats what I call someone who is listening to God's calling :) She is exactly the type of person they want to encourage in the book I talked about DO HARD THINGS. Her blog is worth following even if you don't have a blog to decorate...but look for ours to be newly improved soon...Thanks to Nikki...

www.madebynikki.blogspot.com

2009-11-09T12:09:00.000-08:00

THE ADOPTION FILE IS BACK!! I brought out our adoption file today as we are opening a new adoption. Yes, that is right, we are bringing home a little sister for Tess (and Cameron,Bennett and Christine). When God lights a passion in your heart he really sets things in motion!! We are under a confidentiality agreement regarding our new daughter but I can tell you she is 6 1/2 years old.

SO what does this all mean...

for now it means LOTS of paperwork. I have been told that very little can be re-used. All new documents must be notarized and gathered and basically we are starting from scratch...to those of you who have done this...YIKES...you know what this means!! Head down, nose to grindstone paperwork! We are looking at about 4 months of paper pushing before our dossier goes to Ethiopia. Then we are told about 6 months from then...so just after the summer...we're going back to Ethiopia to get another sweet little girl!!

Keep those prayers coming to keep her safe!!

JOY

2009-11-09T06:42:00.000-08:00

What a sweet and powerful message Pastor Rick Warren had today about JOY. It really encouraged us to focus on Joy... "living a life of GOODNESS AND PEACE AND JOY" (Rom.14:17 NLT) It's right in the bible. It's what God wants for us. One particular section spoke really strongly to me...he said "when you know what the right thing to do is and you don't do it, IT ROBS YOU OF YOUR JOY"

well, funny he should have said that...I have been praying hard about adopting again and really feel it is the right thing to do and the journey we have been put on...so this morning I made a call to our agency CWA...I'll keep you posted.

Thank goodness for ichat

2009-11-05T09:11:00.001-08:00

Tess and Cameron ichat-ing with Christine at SMU...

We miss Christine but at least there is ichat. The kids love to see her and chat online. It makes it easier being so far apart. We talk everyday but nothing like seeing that beautiful, fun, silly face full of enthusiasm...We miss you neener, but at least we can ichat til you get home...

Gobena Coffee helps feed children...

2009-11-04T15:33:00.001-08:00

The children being fed through donations made by Gobena Coffee...
Bless the hands of these beautiful women who help feed all those hungry children!!

I've been telling you about Gobena Coffee...well here is an update about a feeding program they are helping to fund in Ziway Ethiopia...That's why I keep bugging everyone to give coffee this holiday season to everyone they know!!! It's the gift that keeps giving!!! It really hits home when we can see the good work that comes from it!!!

Charity;Water

2009-11-04T15:24:00.001-08:00

THANK YOU, THANK YOU to everyone who has donated to our well-building efforts. We have raised almost $4,000 towards our goal of $5,000!! It was such a great idea to do for our birthdays this year!! Everyone really joined in and it just makes me feel so happy that we are all doing something to help others that are struggling!! So, THANK YOU, THANK YOU !!

And for anyone who still wants to help us reach our goal of funding a well...

http://www.mycharitywater.org/p/profile?

member_id=4764

Gobena Coffee

2009-11-03T11:12:00.000-08:00

Tess selling coffee to help the other sweet children that are still in Ethiopia...

Just an idea...the holidays will be here before you know it...we have decided to give all our customers Gobena coffee for a holiday gift this year...You can add chocolate sprinkles/cinnamon/vanilla shakers and cellophane wrap it. It makes such a nice gift for teachers and friends too...AND here's the best part...you will be helping orphans in Ethiopia!!

www.gobena.org

go to their site and read about this great young family and the beautiful ministry they have started to help orphans all over the world...

see, I told you SMALL IS THE NEW BIG!! Just start small and it is just amazing where your efforts will take you and how much impact your idea can have in helping others...AMEN!!