HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Happy Thanksgiving to all of our family and friends.   We have so much to be thankful for because GOD has blessed us so much.   As I sit with a full belly, watching the Dallas Cowboys beat Oakland on a beautiful Thanksgiving day with all my family around, laughing, playing and doing what families do,  I cannot help but be thankful.  I know our life is not perfect, no one's life is, but we are blessed far beyond most.  I can not help but think about our Haitian boys and hoping that this will be there last Thanksgiving without us and next year they can be here with us.  I have no idea what they did for Thanksgiving dinner today but I know they are well taken care of until we get them.  We want them with us as soon as possible and this is my Thanksgiving prayer.

Here are Thanksgiving/Christmas pictures early for us to enjoy.  I hope that everyone's Thanksgiving has been awesome.

                                          Davidson, Darby, and Cherdinor 2013

                                          Davidson and Cherdinor 2013

                                          Davidson and Cherdinor 2013

                                                        Davidson 2013

                                                        Cherdinor 2013

                                                       Davidson, Darby, and Cherdinor 2013

                                            Davidson, Darby, and Cherdinor 2013

                                           Davidson, Darby, and Cherdinor 2013

                                           Davidson, Darby, and Cherdinor 2013

We took these pictures in June when we were there but I have been saving them to post around Christmas and could not wait any longer.  

Ironic

When we moved into this house we had thought about adoption, but we were not really that close.   There was a child's room on the downstairs that had this mural  painted on the wall with these words.   We had thought about painting over it but did not.  We later knew this was going to be our Haitian boys' room when they come, so we had matching bed spreads made with Winnie the Pooh characters.   I was in there the other day, and I can honestly say I have never paid attention to the words actually written on the wall and as I read them seemingly for the first time I thought,  "How appropriate for our new addition."  I can't wait to have that room filled with little boys and lots of love .

Waiting

It has been a long time since I have posted and a lot that is due to how busy we are.  My three biological children keep me busy in the fall of the year.  My oldest daughter plays soccer for Freed-Hardeman University.  My son plays high school football at Chester County High School.  My youngest daughter is a high school soccer player at Chester County High School.  Each night of the week is usually a mad dash to a ball field somewhere in West Tennessee.  It is so enjoyable to watch our kids participate in sports but it does keep us on our toes.

Here are some pictures from our fall sports.

                                                                     DARBY

                                                           
                                                                        WILSON

                                                                      MADELYN

The main reason I have not posted is because I have no new news to report.  We continue to skype with our boys every two weeks in Haiti and this is a joy.   They gradually become more talkative with us, but it is hard for them since they do not know English well.  Today it has been exactly 14 months since our paperwork was handed over to IBESR with no movement that we know about.   WE assume that our paperwork is in dispensation waiting for the President's signature.  The new law is soon to be signed that will bring in Hague Adoptions in Haiti, and we do not know how that will affect us.  We know that we will not need dispensation under this new law.  Maybe our paperwork will be ready to leave IBESR then, but we are not sure.

So we wait....So we pray....and we will continue to skype with our boys.

Here are two pictures of the boys that we received in October from other adoptive families who have been taking pictures for all of us.

                                                              CHERDINOR  (on the right)

                                                                      DAVIDSON

We hope that you all will continue to pray with us that these boys will get to our family soon so we can continue to teach them about GOD and about how special they are in HIS eyes.   We will pray every day ourselves and we will wait.  I am gaining a new appreciation for this word,  wait.  Here are some of those feelings in poem form.

                                                           I WAIT

As a hind catcher poised on his toes with glove extended waits for the pitcher to make that perfect crisp snap of the ball in his leather glove,
enthusiastically, eagerly,
I wait.

As a farmer watches his tender plants while looking in the sky for any furtive cloud that might signal much needed rain,
longingly, uncontrollably,
I wait.

As a father stands by the side of his beautiful young wife for the birth of their first born child,
dutifully, exultantly,
I wait.

As a fisherman sits by the side of the water with pole in hand watching all day for his float to be pulled under water without success,
pensively, patiently,
I wait.

I am an adoptive parent who is waiting for his children to come home,
enthusiastically, eagerly, longingly, uncontrollably, dutifully, exultantly, pensively, patiently,
I wait.

R. Scott Miskelly

Some Thoughts from my Heart

This Poem is based on Ephesians the first chapter.  I thought about us all being adopted by God our Father and this poem to our boys in Haiti came out.

Ephesians 1: 5  "....he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will,...."




We Are All Adopted


You may not have my eyes, my son,
     you may not look like me.
And gazing in the mirror,
     my genes you can not see.

But you will have my name, my son,
     and you will have my heart.
You will know I love you because
     God's love I will impart.

For I was once adopted, too
    God took me as HIS own.
HE washed away my sins, and
     no more was I alone.

It won't be too much longer,
    I think that you will see,
My name, my heart, and with GOD's love
    a family we will be.


Love,   your DAD


Author   R. Scott Miskelly

Updated pictures of our Boys.

I just recently found updated photos of our boys and wanted to share them with you.  Cherdinor is 6 years old and Davidson is 4 years old now.   They are becoming more handsome every day.

Cherdinor

 

 

 

Davidson

 

 

We also wanted to post a picture of the orphanage where they are living.   They are being well taken care of but we can not wait to get them here.  This orphanage will be a part of their memory and heritage and we will always be thankful for Hal and Chris and the work they do in Haiti.

 

 

 

Everything is still quiet with our paperwork still in IBESR.  Laws seem to be changing and we are not sure how this will effect us, but we will leave all of that in God's hands.  Continue to pray for us for the patience to see these boys home and the strength to help these boys become soldiers for Christ.





 

Life Goes On (some more)......

We have started back the new school year for our biological children and we are all having a blast.  My oldest daughter plays soccer for Freed-Hardeman University and she has started her first year of college life.

My son is a sophomore at Chester County High School and he kicks for the high school football team.  He is a good soccer player, too.



My third child is a freshman and Chester County High School and she also plays soccer and basketball.

 

 

We love to be busy, and their activities keep us hopping.   We have not heard anything from our Haitian boys.   We did get to talk with them today and they were quiet as usual.  It was still good talking with them.  One of these days they will be playing ball here, too.  Davidson had a birthday in August, and he is now 4 years old.  I told him next year we will celebrate his birthday with a pool party.  I do not think he knew what that was.  On September 15 will be the one year anniversary of our paperwork being presented to IBESR to be approved.   No word of any kind yet but I am hearing that the new adoptions laws have passed both houses and maybe that will do away with our dispensation need, thus our paperwork will get into the court system a little quicker.  We just continue to pray and it will move quickly so we can get our boys here.  We know it will be here one day just like another fall season of sports has come again. 

 

Hope everyone is having a great Labor Day weekend!!!!!

 



Time is Moving so Quickly/Slowly.....It is all in Perspective.

This past week we moved our oldest child into a dormitory at Freed-Hardeman University.  She is the first of our children to move out.   She did not go far but the absence is still there.  As we were driving around last night with our 16 year old and 14 year old we noticed it is still not the same.  The whole group is not together.  We discussed how we wished that time would slow down because before long our Sophomore and Freshman in high school will be graduating.  Time moves so quickly...

I thought about this last night as I was going to sleep.  We have been praying everyday that our Haitian boys will get to us quickly not really thinking that the quicker time passes, the quicker our children will be leaving us.  We do seem to be fickle.

"Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow.  What is your life?  You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes."  James 4:14.

Time seems to be moving agonizingly snail-paced with our adoption.  We saw our boys at the beginning of June in Haiti, and we have only skyped with them once since then.   It was a joy talking with them, and they are so full of life.   We want them here right now so we can teach them how to be a family, how to love God, and to be able to read them Bible stories every night like we did our older children.  We know they are in good orphanage and being cared for well, but nothing has moved with our paperwork, that we can see, since September 15, 2012.   Time moves so slowly......


God will get our boys to us in HIS time and HE will also take care of our older children as they grow up and leave the nest.   Our job is to just teach them all about HIM and be the example that we need to be to point them to HIM.   Give us all the patience to persevere no matter the situation.