Summer Fun!!

Psalm 118:1 "Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His steadfast love endures forever!"

Psalm 18:6 "In my distress I called upon the LORD; to my God I cried for help. From His temple He heard my voice, and my cry to Him reached His ears."

God is good all the time, and all the time, God is good!! After our big news last week, we have just been trying to enjoy every moment we have with Piano Man. We are down to six days left. Every time we discuss it, I get sad. I don't even want to think about next Thursday when we have to bring this boy, who has truly become part of our family, back to the airport to fly across the world to China. A part of my heart will be in China!! As I've been thinking about how hard it is for me to let go, it has reminded me of someone else who had to let His Son go. I can't imagine what God the Father went through when He sent His one and only Son to this earth. He knew what the future held for Him, and so did Jesus, yet they willingly set those feelings aside to save us! I just love how many illustrations God has shown me this summer of His deep love for me.

God truly hears the cries of our hearts! I read my friend Michelle's post about DJ yesterday and it touched me so deeply. DJ asked that his host parents (his ayi and she she - aunt and uncle), if they would pray for an American family to pay $30,000 U.S. to his social welfare center so that he could come live in the United States! How beautiful is that? Just in the short time he has lived with a godly family, he has learned who to turn to. It's a great reminder for all of us to pray first!! God hears our cries and He knew the cry of DJ & Piano Man's hearts, and He is answering those cries. It is humbling to think that God decided to use our family as that answer. 

Please continue to pray for us as we wait "patiently" (I'm working on that), for all the paperwork we need. Right now we are still waiting on our letter from the USCIS to get our fingerprints done. We are working on some fundraising ideas, including a rummage sale, which will be held at the end of September. So, if you live around the Chicago area and are decluttering, let us know!! We can pick up your "junk" for you!

We are also still selling sheets if you are interested. Brushed microfiber sheets come in Twin, Full, Queen, king, and CA King. The cost is $35 for one set or $65 for two. If you don't live within delivery distance, it is a flat $10 for shipping. The sheets come in the colors and dimensions listed below:

Here are some pictures from the last two weeks.

Trip to Bass Pro Shop to see some fish

Watching a thunderstorm move through. He enjoyed watching the lightening, but didn't like the storm.

We attended VBS and he loved the singing and the crafts.

On the train to downtown to see the doctor. He did great as he rode both the Metra and the L.

Our friends, the Oakley Family, gave Piano Man a Spiderman comic book written in Mandarin. He has loved looking through that.

Swimming at the Oakley house after VBS.

At Comprehensive Prosthetics and Orthotics in Chicago. They were amazing and were able to adjust Piano Man's prosthetic limb to fit better. They even ordered him a sleeve that prevents the limb from falling off.

Waiting patiently for the Lego event at the library.

Piano Man has played really well with all of the girls. He loved building marble runs with Micaela.

We had some friends over for pizza. We love the Hogue family!!

Piano Man is very good at picking new things up. The girls showed him how to "knit", and he picked it right up. They also taught him how to make rainbow loom bracelets, and he made a ton...which he later turned into a long strand and it became a whip. 

Trip to the zoo! We invited the girl's friend to come with us. It really wasn't all that bad having 8 kids. Everyone had fun and did very well, even though it was hot.

After the zoo, since we were already downtown, we went to Chinatown for dinner. We stopped and snapped a picture of Piano Man with his zodiac animal (since we all have a picture with our animal). 

At the dragon wall, one of only 3 replicas outside of China.

This boy LOVED the food we allowed him to pick out at the restaurant. There is a dish called Mung Bean Jelly. I have never seen this boy eat so fast! He ate the entire dish of this while at the restaurant. We ended up ordering another dish of it to take home.

Playing at the park, which had a splash pad. I wasn't sure how to handle the water, since he can't get his prosthetic limb wet. He ended up just taking it off and playing in the water. He did great!!

Pictures with friends are always fun!!

While the big kids were off at the neighbor's house, we made the most of our little pool and had fun for hours!!

We introduced Piano Man to slurpies! He enjoyed it.

We introduced him to Costco food - an inexpensive way to "go out to eat" with a  large family. Plus, we get some shopping done.

Piano Man got his teeth cleaned and did great. I was worried that he would have tons of cavities (he had some brown teeth). Turns out he had no cavities and the brown spots were only stains. He was so excited to see his super white teeth when they were done.