Waiting For Two

Half The Sky

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 04:55:00 +0000

One day an elephant saw a hummingbird lying on it's back with it's feet up in the air.

"What are you doing?" asked the elephant.

The hummingbird replied, "I heard that the sky might fall today, and so I am ready to help hold it up, should it fall."

The elephant laughed cruelly. "Do you really think," he said, "that those tiny feet could help hold up the sky?"

The hummingbird kept his feet up in the air, intent on his purpose, as he replied, "Not alone. But each must do what he can. And this is what I can do." ~A Chinese folktale

A foundation that has been near and dear to my heart for quite some time now is Half The Sky Foundation. Half the sky was created to enrich the lives, and enhance the prospects for orphan children in China. They provide training to local women who work in orphanages, to build healthy emotional bonds with the children in their care. Children who are held often, who receive affection, love, and attention, are able to thrive, and develop healthy emotional attachments as they grow older. Individual nurture and attention is as important to a developing child as food, shelter, and medical attention.

We have supported this charity for quite a few years now, and I have a half the sky poster in my house. Imagine my excitement when I learned that the orphanage that Mackenzie lives in is a Half the Sky center! I am so relieved to know that my little girl is held, loved, and treated with kindness and respect, because of where she lives.

Click here to learn more about Half the Sky, and the great things they are doing in the lives of orphaned children in China.

Why Wouldn't I?

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 16:36:00 +0000

Why wouldn't anyone?

Her Face

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 15:56:00 +0000

When I look at this little face, I am in awe. How can a little girl I have never met have my heart? I smile every time I see her beautiful little smile. It warms my heart that she looks so happy, and I pray that she is this happy more often than not. This little face, this little girl...I am in love.

Topping It Off

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 03:33:00 +0000

I knew the bay window was beautiful, and I knew it was happy with it's new treatment, but I felt like it needed a little something more, so I found some pictures of letters, and then found the perfect frame to put them in.

Ah, Spring! I hope it comes soon!

The Care Package

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 13:40:00 +0000

We have finally put together a little care package for Mackenzie. We aren't supposed to send much, but we wanted her to have some things!

So we got some disposable cameras, and a little picture album, with pictures of us in it. A little stuffed hello kitty, a small blanket, some bubbles, a birthday dress from my mom, and some candy for the nannies at the orphanage. We will send her a cake in a few weeks for her birthday.

I love the way the photo album turned out. We found the chinese characters online, and put them with the appropriate pictures. I am hoping that her nannies will show and read them to her.

One Month Ago

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 13:40:00 +0000

Exactly one month and one week ago, we were wondering if we were ever going to be parents. We were discouraged, and wondering what God had in mind for us. Then...

One month ago today we saw Mackenzie's face for the first time, and we have fallen in love with this adorable little girl. It feels surreal that this summer we will be bringing this little girl home to her family. Even though we have been waiting and preparing for her for months and years, no one told Mackenzie, and I know her little world is about to be rocked.

Please pray that her little heart would be at peace, and that she will be open to trusting, and bonding with us!

And pray that she will stay healthy until we can get her the surgery she so badly needs!

Thanks!

Just Because I Liked It...

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 14:06:00 +0000

Lamp Candlesticks

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 13:38:00 +0000

My friend was going to throw these cute little lamps away! (Don't worry, she got cuter ones)

So I took them, and then I realized I didn't need any lamps, I just love their cute little shape.

So I took them all apart, and now?

Now they are my new candlesticks! A little paint (what can I say, I see something, and I want to paint it black), and now I love them even more!

A Little Treatment

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 13:29:00 +0000

Our bay window has had the same treatment on it for five years. It was left by the previous owner, and I was too chicken to deal with it. There was nothing really wrong with it, I thought. I didn't love it, and I even hated it a little, but still I let it stay. Well, no more! After great thought and agonizing about what I wanted my bay window's style to be, I believe I have got it figured out. And after searching high and low at antique stores, I have what I want!

Here, I give you the before. This is the picture of Josh taking down the old treatment. I have no other pictures of them, because, really, why would I?

And here is the new treatment! Antique shutters, and grassroot blinds. It is much more "us", and goes better with our style.

Becoming a Mother

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 13:11:00 +0000

I didn't write this, and I don't know who did, but I know exactly what they were feeling when they did write it. And I cried when I read it.

There are women that become mothers without effort, without thought, without patience or loss and though they are good mothers and love their children, I know that I will be just as good, if not better.
I will be good not because of genetics, or money or that I have read more books but because I have struggled and toiled for this child.
I have longed and waited.
I have cried and prayed.
I have endured and planned over and over again.
Like most things in life, the people who truly have appreciation are those who have struggled to attain their dreams.
I will notice everything about my child.
I will take time to watch my child sleep, explore and discover. I will marvel at this miracle every day for the rest of my life.
I will be happy when I wake in the middle of the night to the sound of my child, knowing that I can comfort, hold and feed him and that I am not waking to take another temperature, pop another pill, take another shot or cry tears of a broken dream. My dream will be crying for me.
I count myself lucky in this sense; that God has given me this insight, this special vision with which I will look upon my child that my friends will not see.
Whether I parent a child I actually give birth to or a child that God leads me to, I will not be careless with my love.
I will be a better mother for all that I have endured. I am a better wife, a better aunt, a better daughter, friend, and sister because I have known pain.
I know disillusionment as I have been betrayed by my own body. I have been tried by fire and hell many never face, yet given time, I stood tall.
I have prevailed.
I have succeeded.
I have won.
So now, when others hurt around me, I do not run from their pain in order to save myself discomfort. I see it, mourn it, and join them in theirs.
I listen.
And even though I cannot make it better, I can make it less lonely. I have learned the immense power of another hand holding tight to mine, of other eyes that moisten as they learn to accept the harsh truth and when life is beyond hard. I have learned a compassion that only comes with walking in those shoes.
I have learned to appreciate life.
Yes I will be a wonderful mother.

~Author Unknown

Happy Valentine's Day!!

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 13:10:00 +0000

Happy Day of love, everyone! We are off on a weekend getaway, to the chocolate capitol of the US!

Pre-Approval!

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 15:14:00 +0000

We have received our pre-approval from China! This is much sooner than we expected, and were looking to receive it in the next 2-4 weeks.

What happens next?

*We receive our letter of intent (LOI) from the China Center of Adoption Affairs, and we sign it and send it back. This can take anywhere from two weeks to two months.

*Then we wait to receive our travel approval. This can happen anywhere from 1-3 months after we send our letter of intent.

*We travel 3-4 weeks after receiving our Travel approval!

We received a new picture of little Mackenzie, as well! She is so cute, and looks happy and healthy. I can't wait to get to her!

Adoption

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 20:12:00 +0000

About Mackenzie

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 22:18:00 +0000

Mackenzie's birthday is March 16, 2008. She will be just over two years old when we bring her home (yikes!)

Mackenzie has a heart defect called Tetralogy of Fallot. This means that there a several things wrong with her heart, and she will need to have surgery when she comes home.

Associated with her heart problem is something called microsia. she is missing one of her ears, and will most likely have corrective surgery on that, as well.

She's the most beautiful little girl I have ever seen, and I am so happy she's mine!

Mackenzie is currently living in Shaanxi province in China, and we have heard good things about the Children's Welfare Institute that she is living in.

According to the file we received, Mackenzie's a deep sleeper, and her favorite food in congee, which is a type of rice porridge. How cute is that?!

Please pray for our daughter. Pray that she would stay healthy and well cared for until we can get to her. I know these next five months are going to be tough on us!

The Story

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 01:05:00 +0000

It all started a few weeks ago...well, actually, the seed was planted last summer.

We were growing discouraged with the ever-increasing wait times for our Taiwan adoption. You might recall that we began our Taiwan adoption on account of the wait times for our China adoption? Yes, I recall that, too. Oh, the irony! Well, they say if you want to make God laugh, then tell Him your plans. God's perfect plan all along was for our China adoption to be completed first. About six months ago, we made the decision to switch our China adoption to special needs. We had talked about it for a year, and decided that, yes, that was the way we should go. We switched agencies a couple moths ago, and were switched to special needs then. At this time we still felt like our Taiwan adoption would come first, and then we would proceed with China.

however, a couple of weeks ago, we had a conference call with our case worker, and several others, and they confirmed what we had suspected. The wait for our Taiwan adoption would be delayed 6-8 months more. They felt it in our best interest to move ahead with our China adoption. We talked it over, and realized that we were both ok with that! So we decided to move ahead. Things happened very quickly at that point, and a few days later, we saw our daughter's face for the first time. I felt drawn to her right away, like it was meant to be. I sent her file on to Josh, and the next day we found out that she was ours if we were interested. We were! On Monday night we called our case worker, and accepted the referral. Now we wait for China's approval! We are hoping to travel in late July.

Thanks, everyone, for your prayers and support!

I'm Gonna Be a Mommy!

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 03:58:00 +0000

That's right! We have accepted the referral of a little girl! In China! Can you believe it?!

Her name is going to be Mackenzie An-Feng Billigmeier. An-Feng is her Chinese name, and we just like Mackenzie. We will post pictures when we are allowed to. It may be a while, as China has rules about when you can put pictures of a child on the internet. Just trust me, she is a cutie!

I will give you details soon!

A New Path

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 05:02:00 +0000

God has re-directed us. We are stepping out in faith on a new path. Stay tuned for more details, I will share them as soon as I can!

The Season of Love

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 15:50:00 +0000

I love Valentine's as much as any other holiday, but I do try not to go overboard in the decorating for this one, since it's not such a huge holiday. I just add some little touches, and I must confess, pink is my favorite color, so I especially relish the decor for Valentine's!

Risk

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 14:25:00 +0000

All of us at one time or another have taken a risk in our lives. Some are so big that you feel as though you will be crushed by the weight of it, and some are so small that you might not have even realized you were taking it.

Life in general is a risk, because if we fall, if we fail, we know it will hurt.There will be pain, and sometimes the fear of that pain is enough to keep us paralyzed, immobilized and afraid to move forward. When I look back on my life, on the risks I have taken, I can see some that were successful, and some that ended in pain. But when I look at the risks I have taken, whether successes or failures, the constant in all of them is that I see God. I can see God in our successes, and I can see God's hand, holding us and protecting us through our failures. And that is what gives me the strength to keep taking risks. Not seeing or knowing the future is a scary thing, but I know who holds the future. The road ahead may not always be a comfortable carefree road, but I know that as we walk it, we are not alone. Though we may feel powerless, and out of control, we are never alone.

Anyway

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 13:53:00 +0000

People are unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered,

LOVE THEM ANYWAY.

If you are successful, you win false and true enemies,

SUCCEED ANYWAY.

The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow,

DO GOOD ANYWAY.

If you are honest people may cheat you,

BE HONEST ANYWAY.

What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight,

BUILD ANYWAY.

If you find serenity and happiness people may be jealous,

BE HAPPY ANYWAY.

Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough,

GIVE THE WORLD THE BEST YOU"VE GOT ANYWAY.

In the end it is between you and God,

IT WAS NEVER ABOUT YOU AND THEM ANYWAY.

-From a sign in Mother Teresa's children's home

A Heart of Twine

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 02:13:00 +0000

February is very nearly upon us! I love this time of year (except for the cold, mind you), and I love decorating for it! Reds and pinks, hearts all over, romance in the air, what's not to love?

I saw this idea for the twine heart wreath on a crafty blog, and thought I would give it a whirl. I cut the heart out of foam, and wrapped the twine around the whole thing, gluing as I went. It took MUCH longer than the hour I thought it would, but I am quite happy with the result!

Twenty

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 14:00:00 +0000

Twenty months.

Thank you for everyone's thoughts and prayers! We appreciate your support immensely!

Why 2010 is Stupid

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 16:02:00 +0000

So far 2010 is not my favorite year. I had much different plans for how it was going to go, and what it would look like so far. Most of those plans had to do with our Taiwan adoption, and how things would go oh, so perfectly.

We found out right before Christmas that there may be some issues with our orphanage/agency in Taiwan. During a conference call in January, right after Christmas, we were told that, yes, delays are likely, and that they would let us know in February something definite, so that families who are still waiting could start to make decisions. Basically, what it looks like right now is that there will be delays, which they are saying will be 6-8 months, but that our orphanage will not be closing down, they will just be implementing some changes.

One of the questions we have heard so much from people is why don't we just switch to another country? Everyone knows someone who's adoption from Korea, or Vietnam, or any other country really, that went "super fast".

The answer is no, not really. We could, if things went south with our orphanage, find another country, or orphanage, however, in adoption you don't just switch around, and no adoption is "super fast". There are always unknowns, and ups and downs. Also, if we did switch, we would be starting over. At the beginning. With an 18-36 month wait. And we would need to switch ALL paperwork over. No thank you!

When a family signs on with an adoption agency, they sign on with a specific country, and they wait. Sometimes they wait, and wait, and wait. And that is where we are at. We trust our adoption agency, and we know that we are in good hands with them. We are quite close to the front of the line, and once our orphanage starts referring children to families again, we are confident that things will move quickly. Also, we are not the only ones waiting. There are some families who have been waiting much longer than we have, and our hearts go out to them.

For now, we wait, and we focus on doing things that we enjoy, and making 2010 a better year than it started out to be!

Happy New Year!

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 03:23:00 +0000

It's the start of a new decade! What will this new year bring? I am hopeful and excited for good things. What are you all hoping for?

Glory to God in highest Heaven,

Who unto man his son hath given;

While angels sing with tender mirth,

A glad New Year to all the earth. -Martin Luther

The Frozen Tundra

noreply@blogger.com (Joanna B) — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 14:06:00 +0000

The Monday before Christmas we left this:

for the frozen, cold west.

It was even colder than what we left, but we were excited to be with some cuteness!

This cuteness:

And that pink cuteness were so fun to visit and spend the holidays with!

I hope everyone had a fun Christmas holiday with the ones they love!