Created for care Conference

This weekend I had the amazing experience of attending my FIRST created for care conference in the beautiful state of Georgia. 

The Conference for Adoptive and Foster Moms gave me the chance to meet and connect with 500 other women in the same season of life as myself. What a group of women! 

This group consisted off Mothers who have adopted both Domestically as well as internationally, who are currently or have fostered children, and even women who are simply PRAYING about Adoption...

Let's just say I bet some dossiers were started after leaving this conference!

Hearts were opened, tears were cried (oh BOY were they cried!), faith was restored and visions were made more clear. 

Oh how I needed this.

During our adoption process, thanks to modern day technology, I was able to connect with women all over the country that were also in the process of adopting children from China. Bonds were formed and before we knew it, we felt like far-await Sisters. We have rallied with each other, cheered each other on from afar as we each traveled that big ole Ocean to meet our babies..

We have also cried with each other as we met attachment and binding struggles along the way. 

Well....give us all the opportunity to actually MEET face to face..hug each other's necks and chat....

We were there!!!

We all stayed up until midnight the night that Registration for the conference opened up. We grabbed our spots, secured the dates..and began marking the days off of our calendars.

FINALLy.....

We were all together!!!!

This conference was amazing! There were breakout sessions that you signed up for individually, depending on what you wanted to really "focus" on for the weekend. There were group speakers who tore at our hearts, and opened our eyes even more to the Orphan spirit. They fed us, emotionally and spiritually...so that when it was time to leave, we were renewed...

While I took away more than words can describe from this conference, I will share with you what resonated the most with me.. The words came from a speaker at the conference during one of the "ask the panel" sessions. 

Earlier that weekend, I had shared with one of the ladies, how, now that Mia is home and settled,  my thoughts drift to the future. Her future. I begin to worry about the questions that will come (because we all know they will!). I have lately, longed to connect with an adult Asian woman who has been adopted, herself. I long to talk with her. To ask her what her thoughts are on being an adoptee...and what she wishes her Aadoptive parents would tell her.

Well

God must have heard my desires....

Because that's exactly who he put on the panel!

I got the pleasure of hearing the amazing words from Carissa Woodwyk who was adopted from Korea as an infant. She wept as she read us the letter she once wrote to her Adoptive mother. What she WISHES she had been told. While she admits that years ago when her adoption took place, many details were left unknown; she admitted that she wished her Adoptive Mother would have told her what she DID know...and most importantly..(and this is what brought the tears..).  That she would have just held her while she cried and said those 3 words...."I don't know"

Don't be afraid to simply say..."I don't know..."

This meant more to her than anything. It meant nothing was being swept under the rug. Details weren't being avoided. Sometimes you just don't have the details...and that's ok...

After returning home from the conference, I sent Carissa an email, telling her exactly what that story meant to me. How I needed to hear those words; that perspective; and how much her emotions touched me. She was so kind to send me the sweetest reply....

We also got to hear 3 sessions by the AMAZING Beth Guckenberger, founder of BacktoBack Ministries. Oh, her stories.... I could have listened to her for hours..and hours. One if the first things I did upon returning home, was to order her book. She is truly a remarkable woman, with a huge heart for the Fatherless. 

I loved as she spoke to us about trying to find the unforced rhythm of Grace. 

GRACE.

Definitely something I need more if in my life. More Grace for my children. More Grace for my marriage. More Grace for my friends.

More Grace for MYSELF.

I will take so many things away from that weekend...and look forward to next year...where I'm sure there will be new challenges and advice I long to hear.

Until next year, ladies...,.

Blessings,

Angie

Catching up...(in other words...a camera dump)

We wWhen I look back through my camera trying to remember JUST what we've been up to this past month, it seems just easier to explain with pictures. Because..let's face it...I take a lot of them.

We've spent the month doing a little baking...

Some cuddling and playing....

Some snoozing...

Some crying...(hey....we're 2!!)

And lots and lots of smiling.....

We celebrated Chinese New Year with some other local adoptive Families who have Children from China. It's the year of the Horse!!

Hard to believe last Chinese New Year we were in China, preparing to meet our Daughter! I can renember the decorations throughout the city...and the sound of fireworks being set off, around the clock! Pretty special to get to experience it....

 

NYC in Winter

Can you believe that this Southern Girl has NEVER been to New York City? 

Sheltered.

Well, that all changed last month, as my hubby surprised me with a trip there! He had to be there on Business, and so thanks to some awesome Grandparents (Holla!!), momma got to join him!!

What an amazing City! So busy. Everything is RIGHT there. The food. The shows. The SHOPPING ! Oh Lawd....I was in heaven! And it didn't hurt that 10 inches if snow fell on our last day there, canceling our flight and keeping us "trapped" for an extra day....

We took care of the kiddos back home by visiting FAO Schwartz...

Look, Mimi! We even visited China Town!!

Oh, I had so much fun! Can't wait to visit this big ole City again!!

Our Big Snow!!!!

FInALly!!!!! We have snow!!! And twice in one month!!! That is a record!

We don't get much of the white stuff where we live and so to see it coming down hard, to get to run and play in it, to have enough to build a snowman, is pretty spectacular!!!!

 The kids LOVED it!!! My Mother-in-law had given us snow tubes and a snowman kit several years ago for Christmas, that when I opened it, I quite honestly thought.."Great...when in the hell are we gonna get to use THiS?!?!"

Well....Boy was I singing her praises when the Snow started to fall!!! Those tubes were blown up and ready the night before!!! 

The Boys enjoyed their snowball fights and snowman building, while Mia just frolicked in the snow. She was in heaven!!! LOVED it. She even gave tubing a try and quickly got hooked!!

This will probably be all Mother Nature will share with us this year, but I think the kids will be good and ready, should she decide to coat us with the white stuff next Winter. Until then....we have these sweet photos to remind us of the fun we had...

Blessings,

Angie

This poor blog....

This poor old blog....

So neglected.

I mean, it's pretty bad when you get so far behind on it, that you have to scroll thru your camera to see all the things that have happened since your last post, just to know what your NEXT post should be about.

I began this blog 2 years ago, to chronicle our adoption journey. I wanted to have a way to keep my family and friends updated while we traveled. I thought I MAY be able to keep it going for 6 or 8 months after we were home...but didn't really have much hopes after that. And here we are approaching a year of having Mia home! and the posts are slipping. Let's face it...this momma is tired by the end of the night. It's so much easier in the world of email and Facebook, to snap a quick picture with a caption, click POST, and boom...everyone is caught up. 

But then I am reminded of the OTHER reason that I started this blog. To bring AWARENESS to Adoption. If ONE family could read this blog, hear our story and take that leap of Family to add to their Family...it was worth it. And that has happened. I have been contacted by SO many people who have randomly found our blog, or stumbled across it through a link on our Adoption Agency's Webpage, and have decided that Adoption was for THEM, because of reading about US. Worth every word I've typed.

I still am amazed at the emails I get of those still tuning in; people I will never meet; who still want to hear what I write. Worth it. 

I don't want the SOLE purpose of this blog to be just about our precious daughter. I mean, our boys count too. They deserve to be bragged on, talked about....have a post all to themselves....and so, as we draw to a close our first year with Mia home, I will try to make this Blog more about our EntIRE FAMiLY...

Don't get me wrong, you're going to hear my advocacy for Adoption and these sweet children who need HOMES. It has become such a passion of mine, that it's hard to ignore. I will talk about ways to FEED one, HOST one, SPONSOR one, PrAY for one, and yes...ADOPT one....but I will try to mix it up..

The posts may come more spaced out, but my New Years Resolution is going to be to TRY and get better with sitting down to blog....

We have a busy life, a fun life, one that I believe deserves sharing....and so I'll try not to disappoint..

Thank you, to those of you who continue to follow along.....

Ok, while I'm on a roll...let me pull the camera out and take a jog down memory lane (or....the last month....);-))

Stay tuned!!

Blessings, 

angie