Going Viral

     Social media at it's best! This week I sat in amazement as over 200 people wrote to me wishing our daughter in China a "Happy Birthday". It was like Talia's birth date went "viral"! How cool is that? This little girl who only know a few people her whole life now has people praying all over the world for her safety, happiness and health. Talia turned 3 yesterday and well we celebrated. Harper told me that Talia would need a "pink" light up seahorse just like she has in order to sleep at night! Poor Talia -- I hope she likes pink and Cinderella because that is the only thing Harper picks out for her! Not a day goes by that Harper doesn't say "Mommy, Talia get a pink toy and be Cinderella!" It is too, too cute! I didn't have a sister so I am just bursting at the bits to see these two girls grow up together! I picture lots of  joy and laughter filling up our home! I just love to watch Todd play with Harper! I literally got teary eyed every time Todd takes Harper outside to play (okay maybe they are happy tears sometimes because it is the end of the day and this mommy is tired! ha!)There is just something about their connection and her sweet giggles as he throws her up in the air! She is such a happy little girl and we are so blessed to have her in our lives. I can't even fathom what her life would have been like if she stayed in China.  At least here she can follow her dreams and we can provide her with every resource possible to protect her heart and spine, and even more importantly, we get the opportunity to teach her about God's love. 

Yes she holds her legs like she is a professional ice skater..ha! 

   

     Harper is already a wonderful big sister and when people mispronounce Talia's  (Tahl-lee-A) name (I know we didn't pick an easy name!) she corrects them. The other day Todd asked her, "Harper, do you really understand what it means to have Talia home with us? She will live with us forever!" Harper quickly responded with a a sigh and then said, "Yes dad. I have to share my mommy and daddy with her!" It was so funny and I think she is sick of us constantly saying Talia is coming home soon and you will have to share everything you have with her, except your monkey! She has known about her for almost a year now and although this has been a long adoption journey the past 4 months have flown by and I feel like we are in scramble mode for the trip, expenses, paperwork and then of course all the other things that go along with a 2nd child-getting a crib, car seats, high chair, etc.  After next week we will be waiting on our final approval for China! So hard to believe that we are about 6 weeks away from bringing her home! Here are some pictures of Talia's 3rd birthday here in the USA without her :(

Harper was very careful to make the "pink" card perfect for her sister!

Happy 3rd Birthday Sweet Angel (Sorry your big sis enjoyed your birthday treat for you!) 

     We actually were blessed with a new picture of Talia last week! She is the one hogging
all the balloons! It seems she is quite the princess..ha! Well I would like to think they remembered her birthday there in China but in reality I know they did not! Sometimes it is better to daydream and have happy thoughts during the rough days of waiting then it is to deal with the reality of the situation. Soon enough she will be in our arms and all my daydreams will be a reality!

     As we celebrated Talia's birthday we also celebrated another adoptive family who is adding 2 more children to their family. We need to step up our adoption announcements! Take a look! This video has gone viral the past few days and I promise you never saw anything more heart warming before! I was in tears and jumping up and down for this family and will be cheering them on until they bring those precious children home! This family is truly living out God's plan for them. We get a lot of e-mails talking about Todd and I being angels but quite honestly we are the same people you knew before whether it be from high school, college, etc. (and well not sure we were "angels" then... ha!) We just do not follow our plan for our lives anymore we follow God's plan and I can tell you life is so much more fulfilling, stress free and exciting! I am not saying every person should adopt (but hey I would love it if you did!) I am just talking about your calling and living it out! We are all called to be doing something and some of us know right away what it is and others need to do some soul searching and go through some dark times to get there! So many people don't realize how one small step can be such a life changer for millions! With that said this is one of the many families that surely inspire us! (Pause my music player way down at the bottom and then hit play here-you have to hear the song!)

How cool was that? right? Love it! Here is their blog should you want to follow along on their journey as well! http://www.abeautifulroad.com/


     So just as life's joys can be shared all over the Internet, sadly so can all the horrors of this fallen world. I know some people reading this are not versed in China and its slaughter of babies so read this article and you will soon realize how out of control and inhumane life is over there and remember this is just one country! Can you imagine what happens in all the others that we don't hear anything about? I know you don't want to think about it... but someone has to! This can't go on and to me we are just as wrong for putting this in the back of our minds and thinking this does not affect my life, so who cares!? I tell you who cares the children in dying rooms, the children that are not old enough to speak to say that they are hungry, the children that are lying in a street gutter with their umbilical cord still attached because they were "pushed out" to early! And of course the mothers care! The mothers who have to live the rest of their lives feeling like they didn't protect their child. Or once they get past the first trimester and they start to show with their 2nd child they wonder not if, but "when", a  government official will take them to the streets and brutally inject them with something to miscarry their child. Some might even make it full term only to hear their baby cry for the first time and then watch them be drowned in a bucket of water! You may wonder what was the crime these women committed for such brutal attacks of outsiders into their homes. Their crime was having a 2nd child! If the majority of these women are lucky enough to avoid such a horror then they have to worry for the rest of their pregnancy if  their family will disown them because they gave birth to a baby girl with deformities instead of a "perfect male". The list goes on and on but here are the facts of this article:


In China about 13 million abortions are performed nationwide each year, that equals about 35,000 a day! 35,000 a day people! 

http://edition.cnn.com/2012/04/30/world/asia/china-forced-abortions/index.html?hpt=hp_t2


   Just in case you don't have time to read the whole article today read this excerpt from it!


"In one example from October 2010, the commission said, a woman in southeastern China who was eight months pregnant with her second child was kidnapped and detained for 40 hours. She was forcibly injected with a substance that caused the fetus to abort. Her husband reportedly was not permitted to see her during this time, the commission said.


Nothing in human history compares to the magnitude of China's 33-year assault on women and children!


      I was sickened by the article, not because I didn't know the information. I have known about the happenings in China since high school. I was sickened because I knew it would make CNN headlines for a few days people would highlight it (as I did on my Facebook status) and then it would disappear. Just like the pictures circulating last month with the dead baby in a bucket in China! You see people forget or their day to day lives get them down and before they know it years pass and they did not take that single step to do the right thing! The humane thing! Ironically enough I am going to grab a quote from Confucius  "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." Consider taking that single step today! 
     
      The internet is pretty darn powerful giving statistics, spreading messages of love and hope and stories we can all relate to but other times the viral load can be too much. The stories can be too harsh yet we want more, we crave more information isn't that why we "google"?!  This week maybe more is less...just look at those staggering numbers of children that were never given a chance.  


     This week I ask for prayers for the unborn children in China, for the mothers and their safety and for my body which is "going viral"! At the age of 27 I was diagnosed with Chronic fatigue Syndrome (yes it is a real illness!) It is not life threatening but it surely is life altering and it really deserves its own post. Someday I will get around to it! From time to time I get fatigue and fever episodes that can last days or months. It seems I am in one of those "modes" so if you could please pray for God to strengthen my body especially as we prepare for Talia I would very much appreciate it! Have a wonderful week and stay tuned for our final fundraisers to bring home Talia! 

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