Adoption Update

"This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us- whatever we ask- we know that we have what we asked of Him" (1 John 5:14-15)

We received notification today that we have our "letter of approval" from the Ministry of Ontario! This is another answer to prayer.  However, honestly, I found it difficult to get super pumped, because it has taken so long to get to this step.  It is a step, though, and I need to remind myself that it's another step closer to meeting and bringing our son home!  Our letter of approval and our updated papers will be sent to Ethiopia, and we will now need to wait for the Ministry of Woman's Affairs (MOWA) in Ethiopia to give us a court date.  Although this process has been discouraging at times,  I know that I need to humble myself, look to heaven as I pray, expecting an answer, because I know that God hears our prayers and that He will answer in His good and perfect time! I pray that we will  get a court date soon and that we will be able to meet our precious son soon, which will be another step closer to bringing him home to his forever family.  Please join us with that prayer!

One Thousand Gifts (continued)

"This is love:  not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins" 

(1 John 4:10).

I couldn't resist buying him these cute clothes.  I think about him all the time!  You know when you're deeply in love and engaged to be married, and you doodle hearts and his initials all over the place?  That's how I feel.  I doodle the map of Africa, draw "Ethiopia" bubble letters, and look at his beautiful picture every chance I get.

This is how God feels about us too.  He's so in love with us and He desires us to be in love with Him and to have Him constantly on our minds.  I'm so thankful for His love, and I pray that I will be able to love Him the same way and be smitten by Him and His gift for me on the cross.

Continuing to give thanks...
-His love for us

-skating at every chance he can get
-his creative way of studying for exams (recording his Science notes on his Ipod and listening to it while skating)!
-that he did so well in his first semester of his high school career

 -our little hockey super star

 -our rink, and a great way to get fresh air and exercise

-how she plays so nicely on her own

-her great imaginative play

-her favourite toys that have lasted two years already

 -spending a morning with my dear sister-in-law and mother-in-law playing games

 -trying out the new snow shoes and loving the winter sports!

-how she loves all animals, especially the one that we are babysitting for a week

 -enjoying our first snow day of 2015!

-words that melt my heart, "Mom, you make me smile".