I now have a 15 year old!

Lauren turned 15!!

Yesterday, February 27th was her date of birth, born in 1996.

Tonight she starts driver's training!

Oh my goodness, how did this happen???!!!

It was just yesterday when she was wearing her princess crown and gold glittered shoes.

At age 4 she begged and begged to play the violin. We finally gave in to her plead at age 6 and she has been very passionate about the violin since then. A couple weeks ago, she was chosen to play the first violin part in our state's mid level orchestra. She was one of 32 violinist out of 800 who auditioned chosen for this special honor.

She has always been a special big sister to her younger siblings. They look up to her and admire her.

She loves family time together.

Lauren and Olivia preparing family devotions:



A heated game of pictionary with the girls against Steve and I:

Lauren giving Samson swimming lessons:

 Lauren also likes to spend time with her friends. In fact, she shares so much in common with her best friend since Kindergarten that the local newspaper did a write up about the two girls:

The coolest thing they have in common is that they share the same birthday.

Not only that but they were born at the same hospital 1/2 hour apart from each other. Big deal right?

Well, what if I told you that they were born in a hospital 2 1/2 hours from where we live now and each of our families moved to our current community 5 years apart from each other.

We moved here first and enrolled Lauren in preschool at a small private school in town. The next year, her best friend's family moved to town and the girls started Kindergarten together at the same small private school.

As the years went by, we discovered that prior to moving, our families lived within 1 mile of each other.

And the coincidences don't stop there...

We drove the exact same van, same model, same color.

We had the exact same camera.

The girls went through 6th grade together at this school and finished #1 and #2 in the class.

and the list goes on...

Today, as freshman's in high school, they still consider each other to be their best friend.

This school year Lauren participated in Tennis and was on the Nordic Ski team:

The girl's ski team earned gold honors for academics this year. Together, they averaged a 3.96 grade point gpa! Isn't that unbelievable???!! Simply amazing!!

We are so proud of you Lauren, all that you have accomplished and the beautiful young woman you have become.

Continue using your gifts to bring glory to Him. Let His light shine through you. Look for opportunities to further His Kingdom. Take the high road in life and strive to be the unique person God has made you to be.

You are dearly loved by your family.

But don't forget that God loves you even more!!

A blessing after experiencing loss

When we were waiting for the referral of Samson, we received the referral of another beautiful boy. I briefly wrote about this experience once but today I want to share what has transpired from this experience and  how this sweet boy continues to be part of our lives.

By far the most difficult part of our journey to Samson was discovering that the boy first referred to our family was not our son after all. We received the referral, we celebrated and claimed this beautiful child as our son. Then as the days went by, our instincts were telling us that we needed to let this child go, that he was meant for another family.

Breaking the news to our girls was the hardest. It was one of the most difficult days of my life. We all held each other that day and wept.

Several months before this referral I had a dream and God told me in this dream that our son's birthday would be in February. This particular child's birthday was not in February. But this is not why we let go of the referral. There were other factors and our gut feeling that led to this decision.

Several weeks passed, we were still grieving the loss of our first referral and with mixed emotions we received the referral of Samson.

At first it seemed unfair to the first child to move on and focus on another child. But as soon as we pulled up Samson's picture, we knew without a doubt that he was our son. His birthday? February 11th. But that's not why we accepted the referral of Samson. It was more than the confirmation of his birthday, it was how he looked like our family! He had Olivia's dimples, a round face and of course Steve's brown eyes! How do you put into words how we just knew he was the one?!

And since he has joined our family, I can't tell you how often we have gotten the comment from others about how much he fits into our family.

Soon after we turned down our first referral, we heard from our agency that he had been matched with another family. We were told that his family would be picking him up in July.

We prayed that they would find a family for this beautiful boy soon, so this was very good news. We continued to pray that God landed this precious boy in the perfect family.

As we prepared for our trip to Ethiopia, I had a strange feeling that this boy would still be in the orphanage even though our family travelled in August. So, Steve and I prepared our girls for the possibility of meeting him there.

Well, my feelings became reality when one of the first toddler boys we saw at the orphanage was this boy. We learned that he would be going home with his family very soon. At the time, we knew there had to be a reason why he was still there and a reason why God brought him into our lives in the first place.

When we visited the orphanage to spend time with Samson, we played with this sweet toddler as well. We held him, gave him hugs and lavished love on him. He was so sweet. There were times when Samson was too scared to come anywhere near our family but this sweet boy was always ready to receive love from us. In fact, many times he pulled on Steve's pant legs wanting to be held.

This is why I believe he entered our lives in the first place. God used our family to pray for him and love on him at the orpahange. There was a unexplainable bond between him and our family.

To be honest, there was a time that we wondered if we had made a mistake.

Then by a miracle, through Internet connections, we have been able to connect with his new family and communicate back and forth since he joined them.

We have been blessed with updates and pictures and the ability to watch an amazing transformation come over this beautiful child.

And the coolest thing about this whole story is that he is a perfect fit for his family.

Equally as cool, Samson is the perfect fit for our family.

I share this because I know there are other families who have struggled with a similar decision. Out of obedience we let him go, praying that God had a perfect family chosen for him. As difficult as it was to let go, we prayed hard, we knew we had to go with our gut and we left the rest to the Lord. He makes all things beautiful in time.

We are blessed!

Blogging Friends

I have been so blessed by this special group of friends, most of whom I have never met in person. The more time I spend in the blogging world, the more it becomes a small world to me, making this network of friends extra special. Blogging has provided an unique way to build relationships and share life experiences with other women.

Andrea is one of my blogging friends who has inspired me greatly through her blog over the past few years. I admire her for her strong faith and obedience to God. I also love her zeal to help the 'least of these'. Although, I have never met Andrea in person, I have grown to love her compassionate heart.

Recently, Andrea and I have been able to, through our connections, see God at work in pretty amazing ways! What a blessing it has been to experience so much with someone I hope to meet some day.

Andrea is very sweet! She nominated my blog for the "Irresistibly Sweet Blog Award".

So, the rules for this is that I first have to list five guilty pleasures...

1. I love licorice!
2. I love Skittles (YES - I LOVE sugar!!)
3. I love taking bubble baths while listening to Pandora! - it's my escape from the kids.
4. I love drinking coffee ALL day!
5. I love to sit up and read a good book late at night!

Now, it's my turn to nominate other sweet blogs that I follow.

First, I would have nominated my friend Cindy's blog but Andrea already nominated her. Still, I wanted to share that Cindy is one of my on-line friends that I have had the pleasure of meeting. We met about a year ago at the Summit in Minneapolis. Recently, our family and Cindy's have been living very parallel lives. We each are struggling with something very similar and instead of feeling alone in the world with this struggle, we have been able to lean on each other. For this reason, I so love the Internet, that it provides the ability to connect with someone at this level so that we can offer each other support without having to connect in person.

And, here are other blogs you must check out:

Bonnie's:  I have never met Bonnie in person but she has been an enormous support for me through my attachment journey with Samson.

Nikki's:  I first met Nikki through our agency's on-line forum. Soon after, we discovered that she was soon to be neighbors to my parents, so Nikki is one of my on-line friends that I have been fortunate enough to meet in person. Nikki and her family have been waiting months and months for the referral of their second child, this time from Ethiopia. Nikki is a sweetheart!

Kate's: Kate and Jeff were part of our travel group. Incredibly sweet couple! I continue to be inspired by their strength and faith through their adoption story. So blessed to know this sweet family and to have made the journey to Africa with them.

Rachael's: Rachael and I have been friends for several years. Rachael and her husband Ryan came along side us through our adoption journey and now we have the blessing of watching their adoption story unfold. They are parents to 5 sweet children and will soon be parents to 2 more from Ethiopia!

Shelly's: Shelly is another great friend. Shelly and her husband Scott have been part of our small home church for about a year and it has been an amazing blessing to walk this journey of life together. They have just begun the adoption process, their journey to add another one (or two) to their family.

Deb's: Deb is new to the blogging world. Her blog is smothered with sweetness! She is an amazingly, crafty and clever writer! Deb and I have been great friends for 12+ years.

Hope you enjoy all of these treasures!!

On turning 4!

We celebrate Samson's Four years of life Today! And his 1 1/2 years of being part of our family!

I don't think I can say enough about what he has done for my life. Through building our relationship, He has taught me patience, forgiveness, endurance and unconditional love. Because of Samson, I am a better person today. Because of Samson, I have seen God at work and felt His presence in my life more than ever.

Some things I have learned about my little Prince:

• He is persistent determined.
• He is Smart!
• He has a beautiful singing voice.
• His favorite thing to do is have mommy read to him.
• His favorite color is red.
• His favorite movie is CARS.
• He loves kicking, throwing and hitting balls.
• He thinks he is stronger and faster than both Steve and I. We let him think so to boost his confidence.
• He is in gymnastic and Kinder Music with mom.
• He is 40" tall and weighs 40 pounds.

He is in preschool and is the very youngest by several months. While he is just turning 4, most of the kids in his preschool class are turning 5. The teacher tried dissuading us from sending him but he has more than surprised her with his maturity.

One day he came home with a drawing given to him from a little girl in his class. We teased him and asked if this was his girlfriend.

He said, "No, this is not my girl friend. She is just a girl and we are friends." We were amazed that he even knew the difference!

Still, our girls like to tease him once in a while about this girl or that girl. One day, it must have gotten to be too much for him, however because he began to blush and he asked them to stop because he was feeling kind of "ticklish." That was the best way he could explain his feelings at the moment.

Speaking of being ticklish, we like to tickle him and he loves to be tickled! He also makes us laugh a lot.

When Samson first came home, he would not leave my side. He even stood outside the shower as I showered and always had to have one hand in the shower to make sure I was in there. Now, he still is near by when I shower and many times is waiting for me with a towel.
There are many times he simply makes me smile and proud to be his momma. Like at his preschool program this evening, they were singing a song that said, "I love you" at the end and he pointed right at me.

Or each morning, I hear him skidding down the steps on his bumper at a frightening speed, landing on the floor with a big thud, jumping up, running to me and throwing his arms around me. What makes me smile most about this is that he saves his first hug of the day for me.

The other day, we were driving somewhere in the car and I asked him, rhetorically, "Samson, how is it that I got so lucky to have you as my son?"

Quite matter of fact, he said, "I don't know. You just got lucky I guess."

This conversation led into him saying this: "Mommy, I know whose tummy I came out of."
Me: "Oh yeah? Whose?"
Samson: "I came out of my Ethiopian mommy's tummy."
Me:  "Yeah, you're right!"
Me: "What do you remember most about Ethiopia"
Samson: "I remember being in  my mommy's tummy and oh boy was that fun."
Me: Hmm

Me: "Do you miss Ethiopia?"
Samson: "Yes, I do."
Me: "Does that make you sad?"

Samson thought for a while and then said something really profound and really beyond his years of maturity.
He said, "No I'm not sad because I know that if I was still in Ethiopia I would be happy. But I'm with you now and I'm happy here too."

At the young age of four, he shows so much courage and strength than a four year old should be expected to show. In the midst of all his pain and confusion, he seems to have found happiness.

Happy Birthday Samson!!

May your life continue to overflow with the blessing of Happiness!

FREE T-Shirt

Drawn From Water is giving away 20 FREE T-shirts!

Go HERE for the details!

The Third Largest Global Crime

That was what Human Trafficking was in 2008! The THIRD largest. Today, it is the SECOND largest and by the end of this year, it will be THE largest!

I found this utube video off Tom Davis' blog of Rick Warren interviewing then presidential candidate Barack Obama. He asked Mr. Obama about Human Trafficking and how it is the THIRD largest global crime industry in the world. Mr. Obama's response was that this needs to be a "TOP priority" for the US government. Which is GREAT that he wants to make it a top priority.

But the other point I'm trying to make here is that this interview took place in 2008, less than 3 years ago. During the interview, Mr. Warren mentions that this is the third largest global crime.

So, in less than 3 years, Human Trafficking will grow from #3 to become the LARGEST, the #1 global crime!

I mentioned in my last blog post that orphans are the biggest target of human trafficking.
In most countries, children age out of orphanages at age 15 - 16 years old.

-15% of these orphans commit suicide
-15% to into prostitution

Again, there are 1.2 million children pulled into sex trafficking each year! This is every 2 minutes and 40 times per day a child is lured or forced into this crime industry.

Praying that this is a priority for the US government. And as Tom Davis states on his blog, we need to "greatly hope the President could advance anti-trafficking legislation and policies that both political parties could back and pass into law."

This morning the International Justice Mission (IJM) is applauding President Obama for his words proclaiming January 2011 as anti-trafficking month and his statement:  "From every corner of our nation to every part of the globe, we must stand firm in defense of freedom and bear witness for those exploited by modern slavery."

Now the IJM is asking for 25,000 people to sign a petition asking the President to end modern day slavery.
I urge you to please visit the above link and sign this petition. Let's keep this social issue at the TOP of the President's priority list!

The largest global crime

That's what experts project Human Trafficking to become in the year 2011!

-Human Trafficking is now the Second largest Global Crime next to Drugs!

-Human Trafficking is a 32 billion dollar industry

-25% of the trafficking is from Europe

-Only 1 - 2 percent of those trafficked are rescued.

-1.2 Million are forced into slavery EACH YEAR!

-Orphans are the biggest targets of sex trafficking.

The rapid growth of this industry is frightening! It's not just something happening in a different country either.

Last week, I participated in a Human Trafficking Webinar hosted by Christian Alliance for Orphans and led by Tom Davis, founder of Hopechest. This is where I heard the above statistics. This is when it was confirmed to me the one main thing that fuels this industry -

PORNOGRAPHY!! 

Pornography creates an appetite for trafficking.

Those who support the pornography industry, such as strip clubs, websites with porn and play boy magazines, are feeding to the Human Trafficking industry!

Searching on the internet and looking at a play boy magazine in your own private home, may seem like to some very innocent and causing no harm to anyone else.

But the opposite it true!! The more demand there is for pornography, the more sex crazy our culture becomes and the more sex crazy our culture becomes, the more demand there is for pornography, the more we feed into the human trafficking industry.

Pornography is the main business that keeps human trafficking in business!

Furthermore, a lot of pornography features women and children who have been trafficked!

We have a "gentleman's club" in our small community. Each weekend, the parking lot is FULL of cars. During deer hunting season and holidays, the parking lot is overflowing!

My daughter Lauren has driven by there on a bus with teammates or classmates who have pointed at the local strip club and said, "My dad goes there." They offer this information to others like they are sharing which golf club their father's golf at.

I wonder how many clients would still be frequenting the club if they knew that some of those girls were victims of human trafficking.

I walked into a local book store with my 7 year old daughter the other day and up on the back wall in plain sight was a play boy calendar. It was very large and very easy to see upon entering the store. My daughter and I were having some special time together and I was going to let her pick out a book. But we had to leave the store after one foot in the door.

I wonder if the store owner would sell pornography if she knew that some of the girls featured in the magazines were trafficked.

So the question is, what can we do? What actions can we take to change the mind sets of a sex crazy culture.

We can begin by educating, which is the purpose of my blog post today. Educate the public about the affects of pornography and it's direct link to human trafficking.

I was going to list sites here showing the research that has been done to prove that there is a link. But just google the topic and you will find numerous sites.

I have so much more to say on this topic in more blog posts to come.

I Won! and other stuff...

I entered a raffle that my dear on-line friend Andrea offered on her blog to raise money for their home study and I won a coffee maker!

They are beginning the process to adopt their third child from Ethiopia and this time it's going to be a daughter. They are an amazing adoptive family. God willing, I hope to meet Andrea in person some day. I have been following her blog for a long time now and she is a huge inspiration to me.

God has been doing some really cool things in our lives recently. In fact, Andrea's raffle confirmed something for me in a very unique way. I wish I could tell more but I need to wait a little bit longer before I can share on-line.

In other news, our family was asked to staff the Compassion International (CI) table last night at a Peder Eide concert in town. Peder led the worship at the Summit I attended last spring and I love his music. Peder is a spokesperson for CI and an adoptive parent. This is his adoption story. We share a lot of things in common with Peder, so we had a fun conversation sharing our hearts and life experiences with each other.

Then, remember when I posted a while back about a little girl in Haiti that could use some prayers? I have a friend there who was trying to rescue her from a life of slavery. I had not heard from him for a while, so I was starting to worry.

Yesterday, I finally received an email from him with the day by day account of his life this past week. He was able to successfully rescue her. Praise God!!

However, as soon as she was legally in his custody, he became homeless and struggled for 2 nights until he found a place for them to settle. This was the first of many mountains he needs to climb in the near future. He has very limited resource and he has had a lot of friends turn their backs on him. The conditions are so devastating in Haiti, no one wants to help or get involved because they have enough problems of their own.

Please continue to pray for him and this sweet little girl who now has a better future a head of her but still much to overcome. Pray that God will continue to provide. Pray that God will bring a "mother" into her life very soon - she is approaching puberty. My friend needs to return to the US to take care of some business, so pray that God will provide a safe place for his daughter to stay until he can return. Please pray that God will bring people along side my friend to help out and not judge his decision to save this sweet girl's life.

He travelled to Haiti with plans to help orphanages. But God had other plans for him. The enemy told him, this is just one little girl, why pour all your time and resources into saving just one? But to my friend, she was not just another little girl and he wasn't going to sit and watch her get sold into slavery. To him, this girl was a child of God, here for a purpose, a life different than forced slavery. She now has a better chance at living out what God's purpose is for her life.

The statistics of child slavery are staggering, especially since the earthquake. There have been at least 2000 children sold into slavery in Haiti since the earthquake. Sweet "B" was rescued from becoming a statistic. She may be only one child but she is one less child that will be a victim of this horrible crime. And to my friend, her life was worth fighting for. Praise God for her life!

Please pray for the 1.2 million children around the world who are forced into human trafficking EACH year. I have a lot more to say about human trafficking and ways you can help coming in a blog post very soon.