Happy Birthday "little" brother!

Today is my brother's birthday! Gaylon, I hope you have an awesome day! I am so blessed that you are my brother and that God has given us many years together and I look forward to many more! You are a great brother, amazing uncle to my kids, wonderful husband to your wife and an awesome dad! You often amaze me with your hard work, "get it done" attitude and yet with a sense of humor! God has blessed you in many ways and I count it a blessing to call you brother!

Gaylon & Shawn were in the Philippines last fall helping out missionary friends of ours. Here he is working on a water system with one of our friends.

County Fair Results!

Our county fair was last week and I took several items down for it. Asem, our exchange student who had lived with us this past year was involved in 4-H and had prepared several things before she left. Here are her results...

Asem's Geology box received Grand Champion! It will be going on to the State Fair! We are really proud of all her hard work on this!
She also entered 4 photographs- 3 received blue ribbons and 1 received a State Fair ribbon. It's this beautiful black and white photo that will be going on to the State Fair.Asem was also in the arts and crafts project. She entered 4 items- 2 paper quilling projects. One received a purple ribbon and the other a State Fair Blue. She also entered 2 woodworking projects. This clock received a blue and her ship shelf received Reserve Champion in Arts & crafts!Lenna entered one of her art projects from her class this year. It was a "print making project." It also received a blue ribbon.Lastly, I entered some items- some photographs, quilting projects and a jar of apple butter.They also did well. It's always fun to enjoy a good old fashion county fair!

Sewing, Sewing, Sewing....

Just thought I would post about a few projects I have been working on (other than more baby quilts for China!)

This is a Japanese Knot Bag, I got the pattern from my summer secret quilter. I love it! They are so cute and fast to sew together and can be made from 2 fat quarters. I am making a couple for the girls, they are just the right size for their girly things to take to church, etc. I am also working on 10 other ones that we will use for nanny gifts when we go to China.


Remember my quilt- West Lake Memories, that I pieced for our friends in China? I wasn't really happy with the first border so I took it off and redid it. Here are is a new picture. I'll take a better one after it is quilted.
I am also picked up a new dress pattern with a very twirly skirt that I am making for the girls, we'll post them soon too among other things!

My big brave girl...

Yesterday sweet Lenna got her first stitches. She slipped and hit her chin, one look and mommy knew we were headed to the ER. She was very brave and came home with "blue whiskers" and a large gumball for each stitch!"

Just a few pictures from the last few days....

Daddy made it home!

Shawn arrived home late Saturday night from Cameroon. He had a great trip, God is at work getting the clinic started in an area that he says definitely needs it! It was a wonderful time of encouragement with the team and meeting Sixtus' family (team leader who is originally from Cameroon.) Sixtus has been a good friend since our Muleshoe days, as a PA student, he rotated under Shawn at his clinic and also helped us out more than words can express when Eli was born and was hospitalized. I'll share a few pictures and have Shawn post later!

Here's a boy that needs his brother home to play with him...

poor guy is out numbered right now...we also need more boy dress up clothes in our house! (attire brought to you by 2 older sisters....)

This was also taken this afternoon..."Sisters & Best Friends"

"Warm Heart, Cold Hands..."

Abigayl will always love you!
We love you and miss you very much, but are so glad that you at home with Him!
(This picture was on the kids camera from Christmas time and had been missed. what precious memories!)

Pictures found on a camera card....

Today I download the little digital camera that our kids use (small cheap one.) I didn't realize how long it had been since it was downloaded or think about what 2,3 & 5 year olds take pictures of or what the world looks like from their view point.... enjoy!

Still waiting....

I just thought I would give a quick update about our adoption paperwork. We are still waiting for the 2nd set of paperwork and I will admit it is getting tough. Today I sat down and had a good cry! I know God has an amazing plan for it all but I am struggling with the waiting to see it, it has been over 3 months since we first saw his little face and we are Day 86 of our LOA wait:( Would you pray with us that everything will come soon. Our agency got some paperwork today but it was for another family who were matched long before us but before their paperwork was submitted. They were LID in May after us... I'm excited for them but sad for us as our little guy continues to wait. So tonight, we keep praying and hoping for the day we hold our son!

Sunday at the Lake

We spent Sunday afternoon at the lake with the cousins. I didn't have a camera, these pictures were taken by my photographer sister-in-law:) We had a wonderful afternoon!

Running on the Love Without Boundaries Marathon Team

My sweet husband is training right now to run on the LWB Marathon team in Oct. He is working to raise funds to help cover foster care expenses for Chinese orphan. You can click on his picture on the side of my blog and read about the Marathon Team, his site, fund raising, etc.

The Love Without Boundaries Blog is featuring some of the runners in the coming weeks. Today, the runner is Lyn Thomas, they are a family with our adoption agency and their story is awesome! Take a moment to drop by an read at the LWB Blog!

Go see this sweet face...

This wonderful family in in China and has their little boy in there arms! He's adorable and is just a bit older than our little man! We met them at the Steven Curtis Chapman concert last fall! It's been neat to follow their journey to their son. Read their story here.

What started as innocent fun and a "slip and slide" with the sprinkler, ended in this! Nothings better than a good mud hole!!!

We are visiting the cousins and they are having a blast! Our other highlight of the day was picking Blackberries at a local farm. I didn't have a camera with us but I took a 2,3,4,5,6,7,& 10 year old along with my mom to the farm as my sister was teaching today at the Jr. College! We picked a little over 25 POUNDS! They are sooooo GOOD! Our treat tonight, blackberry cobbler. Yum!!!

Quilts, quilts and more quilts!

Thursday and Friday I got to spend the days with women who are from my mom's church and friends of hers who have committed to helping us reach out goal of taking baby quilts to China to our son's orphanage! We had two amazing days and when they are done, we will have about 45 to 50 baby and child quilts! They have pieced quilts, sandwiched them with batting, machine quilted or tied and done the binding for many of them. They will be meeting again this week to work another day! I am so thankful for their willingness to be the hands and feet of the Lord to reach out to little ones in our son's orphanage, to do something for their heart that says, "you are loved and valued by someone, even someone on the other side of the world!

We had wonderful fellowship and food for the work days. Here is the rack of quilts they are currently working on. They tied 15 yesterday alone!

now... we could just get our paperwork so we could hop on a jet plane to our little man.....

Safely in Cameroon!

We got word from Shawn that the medical mission team he is traveling with arrived safely in Cameroon yesterday. They spent last night in Douala, you can find it on the coast in the map. This morning, they headed out to the SouthWest Province, they will be working to get the clinic up and running near Mount Cameroon this coming week. Thanks for praying for him and our family while he's gone! Hopefully we'll hear from him again soon and can share more with you!

West Lake Memories

In March '06, our family traveled to China to bring home our daughter, Abigayl. The trip was amazing and we were blessed to visit many areas of China. The last week we were in China, we spent with a family friend who had been an exchange student with our family 20 years previously. The week was a blessing as he and his family hosted us.

Our hotel was near the famous West Lake in Hangzhou and we spent many hours walking at the lake. We sailed on the lake, walked through gardens, flew kites along the shore and watched the fish. As we prepare for our next trip to China, we are looking forward to spending time with our friend and his family once again. This morning, I finished piecing a quilt top that is a gift for his family. I have titled it, West Lake Memories. This quilt is a "one fabric quilt" you can read more about the construction of it in this previous post on May 5, 2008.

Here is the quilt top, ready to send to the long arm quilter!

Good memories, West Lake, Hangzhou, March 2006

Quilts for China

I have mentioned here before that we are collecting baby and children's quilts for China. I am excited that we have 11 completed and many more in the process! Yesterday I got a package from my quilting friend, Laurine, who long arm quilted a few for me with 3 finished quilts in it. Here is a sampling:) I also sent 5 quilt tops home with a friend's mom who just purchased a long arm machine and wanted quilts to practice on so I gladly sent a few home with her! I can't wait to see all these quilts done and together packed for China!!!

If you are interested in making, donating baby/child quilts for our little one's orphanage, just drop me a note! We are also collecting little cloth shoes and crayon rolls to take!