Shelby's Request

Shelby has asked that I post on our blog that her friend Brennan Stanley got his Tonsils & Adenoids out today, she's worried about him. She said the sweetest prayer for him earlier today, please pray that he will have a speedy recovery from his surgery and will be able to eat losts of yummy ice-cream very soon. We are thinking of you Brennan & love you very much!!!!!

Mommy & Grayson Faye Day

Grayson & I had a special day last Friday unfurtanetly it was partly because on Thursday she fell of the diving board at the Country Club which required a trip to the E.R. & 7 stitches, ouch!!!! Katelynn Bockman drove her & Timmy to the E.R. while I stayed with our other 3 kids. So while Timmy took the kids Friday to a waterpark that he had promised he would take them to Grayson & I went to the mall for lunch, rides on the carousel & the quarter rides by the Children's Place & finished the day off with Grayson getting her nails & toes done, of course it was the brightest pink they had & what better way to end the day than a Hot Fudge Sunday. Sorry, Grayson Faye, looks like no more jumping off the board for you until your 10, according to your dad.

Fish Fry At Grammie & Pops, Yum!!!!

The kids had a blast spending time together. Aunt Gina & Uncle Roger were the life of the party, wrestling around with the kids, making them laugh those big belly laughs, those are the best laughs. We love you guys!!! We could not believe how much our nieces had grown since the last time we saw them, they are too sweet & they are gorgeous & great with the kids. Pops as always fried up the best fish & hush puppies, Cooper loved it, we had to cut him off at some point we were afraid he would get sick. What a great day, can't wait until the next fish fry. Sorry about the side ways pics it was late when I tried to play catch up. Above are some of the pics I was able to get.

Cooper & Sissy At The Park

Cooper & Grayson had so much fun at the park. Timmy & I both got a little emotional seeing our son see a park and play at a park for the first time, what a blessing!!!! He was a little uneasy at first but got more comfortable and then just wanted to keep up with his sissy, too cute!!! It was so much fun watching them chase each other around and hearing them laugh those belly laughs. Missed Bubby & Sissy, they were at Sylvan, next time for sure.

Cooper's First Time Going To The Pool

Collin, Shelby & Grayson have always loved the water, all three of them can swim and we have been hoping that Cooper would love the water as well. He was a little unsure at first but didn't take him long as you can see to get comfortable with it. We had a great day, we all just had a blast watching him & seeing his reaction. He also got to have his 1st Famous Cinnamon Roll from the Club House, he loved it, but some Cinnamon Roll Monster ate half of it while he was in the pool, I wonder who that could have been????

OUR FIRST DAY TOGETHER PLAYING & GETTING TO KNOW EACH OTHER

Rich In Love

Collin and Shelby have asked Mattie and I many times, "Mommy, Daddy, are we rich"? We always give them the same answer. Yes, we are rich in love. Mattie and I have been so blessed to have children who don't hesitate to show their love for one another, for us, and for others and I can't wait to see the love they will show their little brother Cooper Habtamu.

Habtamu means "rich one" and I know that he will be rich in love when he comes home. Mattie, Collin, Shelby, Grayson, and Cooper. I love you so much!!!

1 Corinthians 13:7,8 Love always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.

Thank you Lord for such an awesome gift.

Flight Delay

Some disappointing news tonight from Mattie. She called and got to talk to all of us and let us know that they missed their connecting flight in Dubai because their flight out of Ethiopia was about an hour and a half late. They spent the night in a hotel in Dubai and will be arriving in Cincinnati at 12:50 on Sunday. Please keep them in your prayers for a safe travel home.

Our Boy!!

Sorry I have not posted we have limited computer access and downloading pics at this point is not possible, I will post lots of pics when I get home.
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> TODAY WAS A VERY HARD DAY, WENT WITH SUE AND A MOM TO PICK UP HER DAUGHTER IN AN ORPHANAGE. GOT REALLY CAR SICK ON THE WAY THERE, KRISTY, COOPER & I WENT TO PASS OUT THE GIFTS THAT WE BROUGHT FOR THE CHILDREN, ALL I CAN SAY IS THAT WE WERE NOT PREPARED FOR WHAT WE SAW. TEARS, I'M TRYING TO GET THRU THIS POST, I CAN BARELY SEE THE SCREEN FOR THE TEARS & THE ACHE IN MY HEART. WE MET THE MOST BEAUTIFUL CHILDREN THERE, THE BABIES WHERE 2 TO A BED & THEY WERE SO TINY. I THEN SAT WITH COOPER WHILE KRISTY PASSED OUT THE GIFTS & TOOK PICS I FELT SOMETHING WET HIT MY HAND AND LOOKED DOWN & HE HAD BIG TEARS FALLING OFF HIS FACE, HE THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO LEAVE HIM THERE, IT BROKE MY HEART, WE THEN WENT OUTSIDE & IT DID NOT HELP SO WE ENDED UP SPENDING THE REST OF THE TIME IN THE VAN, IT WAS A VERY EMOTIONAL DAY FOR ALL OF US. PLUS I AM MISSING TIMMY, COLLIN, SHELBY & GRAYSON SOOOOO MUCH!!!!! THANKFUL TO BE HERE BUT CAN'T WAITE TO GET HOME. TOMORROW IS EMBASSY APPT. FRIDAY, PACKING UP & FLYING HOME. PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR SAFE TRAVELS & FOR COOPER, PLUS I AM NOT FEELING WELL, ALAZAR OUR DRIVER SAID IT MAY BE DUE TO THE HIGH ALTITUDE, I HOPE THAT'S IT. COOPER LOOKS AT PHOTO ALBUM EVERY DAY & POINTS TO YOUR PICS & SAYS, DADA, MAMA, BUBBY, SISSY & SISSY, IT'S SO SWEET. HE HAS PICKED UP SEVERAL WORDS ALREADY, BUT WE DO HAVE DIFFICULTY COMMUNICATING AT TIMES. Y'OUR THOUGHTS & PRAYERS ARE SOOO APPRECIATED. XXX'S & OOO'S.

Seeing Cooper the First Time & Play Time Later

Our Little Blessing

It's hard to put into words what I have been feeling, what I've seen!! It's amazing, I'm here in our son's birthcountry. Julie was right, nothing can prepare what you will see here but I've also seen & met the most beautiful people!!!

The reason why I have not posted is because where we are staying we have no electric maybe an hour a day, no hot water, actually they will boil you some if you need it. It has been an experience to say the least, however the women & men there are such beautiful kind people who are christians, it has been awesome to hear their stories. Cooper Habtamu is truly "Our Little Blessing" he smiles alot, we have played, played and played, we have played ball, we have read books, & he loves, loves bubbles, he loves to blow bubbles and he loves to watch his mama chase them & try and pop them. We have been looking at our family pics and he points and says, "mama, dada, bubby, sissy & sissy & smiles the most beautiful smile. We mainly communicate through gestures and smiles but I know when he needs to potty & when he is hungry, he eats alot. His belly is extremely big, heartbreaking!!!!!! He will need to see Dr. Joe soon when we get home. We just had a great lunch at the Hilton, Kristy is walking him around right now while I blog, she has been such a blessing, soooo thankful she is here. We got so tickled last night, we have a big group of girls from China staying with us & they came in last night shortly after I rocked Cooper to sleep and they were soooo loud & so giggly that Kristy and I could not help but giggle. Plus we had no electric we walked around our room by candlelight and had to venture to the bathroon in complete dark. We basically laughed ourselves to sleep. Needless to say it has been very humbling!!!!

I can't wait for you all to meet this sweet, sweet boy, his smile & giggles will melt your heart!!! I can't wait for him to meet his dada, his bubby, sissy & sissy. I miss you guys soooooooo much, but am so thankful that I am here in Cooper's birthcountry. Hugs & kisses not sure I will get to post again. Please continue to pray for our trip & for Cooper!!! Love you all!!!!

In Dubai

We are in Dubai, yeahhh!!!!! JFK flight bumpy, Emirates flight very smooth. We just got done eating dinner with Sue(our director) her husband and another mom who is going to pick up her 2nd child from ET, her & her husband have 2 beautiful daughters from China.God is soooo Good. Seeing pics of them Made me think of Lily!!! It has been alot of fun trying different foods, just had the best Lentil soup, Timmy you would have loved it.

Tomorrow is gotcha day, praise Jesus, this time tomorrow I will have our baby boy in my arms, sooooo hard to believe. I am however missing my other 4 babies, Timmy, Collin, Shelby & Grayson. I miss you guys soooo much, just think this time next week we will be a family of 6, yeaaahhhhhh!!!!! Kristy and I are having a great time, a lot of laughs, just hanging in our room right now, going to read a little & hopefully get some good zzzz's. Love you guys!! I will try my best to post tomorrow. Time here is 10:05 p.m., xxx's & oooo's

Tomorrow Is The Big Day

I can't believe that Kristy & I are on our way tomorrow to get Cooper, Timmy said it best it is very surreal!!! We have had a great last day of a family of 5. We are also sooo thankful that our great friends the Stanleys stopped by this evening. What a blessing to get to laugh, fellowship and get some great info before I leave. What a blessing, they are such an inspiration!!! Please continue to pray for their little Lily Hope, we got to see her newest pics and she is beautiful!!!! To hear Lolee say her name & that she's in China words cannot describe how it tears at your heart strings. After our friends left we went out to eat, to Wal-Mart and then home to watch "Meet The Robinson's" it's one of our favs, rent it, it's awesome!!!!!!! We all cried at the end, rent it & you will know why. I worked on our suitcases for the transition house & orphanges thanks to everyone who donated, I didn't take pics because of time but we have 3 big suitcases full, thanks to the Stanley family, Kristy and my sis we were able to fill the 3rd, you guys rock!!!! I will be posting while there just not sure how often hopefully at least 3 out of the 5 days in Ethiopia.

So many emotions, excited, nervous, anxious & sad to be away from my hubby/best friend & the kids but know in my heart all these feelings are so worth it!!!!! Can't wait to see my baby boy, to hold him. Please pray for the safety of our trip, pray that we will remain healthy, pray for Timmy & the kids. Pray that Cooper will bond with us and connect with us, I have been praying this for months asking that God will knitt our hearts together, I know that he can!!! Everyone's prayers, comments, love & support mean more than you can imagine. Can't wait to bring Cooper home & join Timmy, the kids and our family & friends on July 17th. Blessings!!!

One Year Ago Today!!!

One year ago today, sweet Lola Joy was brought home by her mommy & daddy & greeted by 2 wonderful big brothers. What a great day, what an AWESOME 4th of July!!!! Joy, how fitting, she brings Joy to everyone that is around her. We love you Lolee, you are such a blessing!!!!!!!

URGENT PRAYER REQUEST!!!!!!

This is an URGENT PRAYER REQUEST, for a very sweet family. Their name is THE Niedermeyer family & I have been following this family's blog and she contacted me through our blog. This family is ready in every way possible,ready to go get their son Obsi. Their Embassy date is suppose to be the same day as ours however now they have run into some complications. Please hop over to their blog which is on my list of blogs I follow, just click on their name and read their latest Post so that you may understand and know what they are going through & PLEASE ASK EVERYONE YOU KNOW TO PRAY FOR THEM & THAT THE AWESOME GOD THAT WE SERVE WILL HELP THEM BRING THEIR SON HOME VERY SOON!!!!!