Nolan and Dallas

I wanted to share with you about Nolan and my conversation with Aleda about him.  Aleda adored Nolan and said he always- always had a huge smile on his face!  He's simply put, an amazing little boy.  Nolan's story probably hit me the hardest.  I could visualize what Aleda shared and for a child to endure so much in his short life...This just seemed like too much to swallow.  Nolan has been in the very same foster home for a long time, since he was very young.  His foster father is terminally ill and his foster mother is also found to be ill now and they can no longer care for Nolan.  On his Birthday and during the camp that Madison had to get to know the children...This information was shared with him, at that time.  He was told upon arriving to the camp(and not before) that he would not be going back to his foster home.  He broke down sobbing.  Can you even begin to imagine?!  This is one of the those instances that you just keep asking "why-why?"  Hasn't he endured enough in his short life?  Its times like this that I HAVE to remind myself that God is sovereign over all circumstances and He is the father to the fatherless and His hand is on little Nolan even during this extraordinarily difficult time.  Nolan wants to be a soccer player one day!  Madison went out and got him a soccer ball for a Birthday gift prior to leaving and it made his day!!  If you'd like to learn more about Nolan, please contact Aleda at Madison Adoption Associates...She'd love to tell you all about him!  Please pray for Nolan and all of the other waiting children!  Nolan's special need is club foot and possibly CP.    Certain fees are waived for Nolan...Please contact Madison for info.

As you can tell from his pictures...He lights up a room!!

Will you answer?

I am still waiting for photos to be sent to me of Dallas and Nolan from my previous post.  As soon as I have them in hand I'll post them for you to see and share with others.

Hugs and love,
Robin

Nolan

Very sorry for my delay in posting!  This is a continuation from my previous post. I wanted to share with you about Nolan and my conversation with Aleda about him.  Aleda adored Nolan and said he always- always had a huge smile on his face!  He's simply put, an amazing little boy.  Nolan's story probably hit me the hardest.  I could visualize what Aleda shared and for a child to endure so much in his short life...This just seemed like too much to swallow.  Nolan has been in the very same foster home for a long time, since he was very young.  His foster father is terminally ill and his foster mother is also found to be ill now and they can no longer care for Nolan.  On his Birthday and during the camp that Madison had to get to know the children...This information was shared with him, at that time.  He was told upon arriving to the camp(and not before) that he would not be going back to his foster home.  He broke down sobbing.  Can you even begin to imagine?!  This is one of the those instances that you just keep asking "why-why?"  Hasn't he endured enough in his short life?  Its times like this that I HAVE to remind myself that God is sovereign over all circumstances and He is the father to the fatherless and His hand is on little Nolan even during this extraordinarily difficult time.  Nolan wants to be a soccer player one day!  Madison went out and got him a soccer ball for a Birthday gift prior to leaving and it made his day!!  If you'd like to learn more about Nolan, please contact Aleda at Madison Adoption Associates...She'd love to tell you all about him!  Please pray for Nolan and all of the other waiting children!  Nolan's special need is club foot and possibly CP.  (I'm not in Indiana and using a computer remotely, so I'm having difficulty posting pictures.  I hope to get them up sometime today)

I will be sharing about Dallas next...

Look at these lovable little boys...

What amazing stories I was able to hear about these boys and I'm so excited to share them with you!  I had a chance to chat with Aleda Madison at Madison Adoption Associates yesterday afternoon about these amazing little ones!  By the time I hung up the phone with Aleda, my heart was heavy because each of them struck me in a different way during our conversation.  Aleda met all of the children they have listed from Qing dao (Also called the "Blue Sky Home").  All of the kiddos were truly unique and amazing.  There were several children that impacted her, personally.  I'm going to share a little bit about each of the boys below.  All of the children from this camp currently have a $1500 grant.  Maybe one of them is your son?


XAVIER
What an absolutely, beautiful smile this little guy has!!!
Xavier was diagnosed with polio but the disease is inactive.  The Physician in China shared with Aleda that Xavier is not contagious and that he will not get any worse than he currently is.  A diagnosis of polio is something that might quickly scare a family off but Aleda said that Xavier is really not someone that anyone should be afraid of.  She said the things that are noticeable about Xaviers special need is that all of his teeth are missing and that he has a different gate when he walks (likely due to the disease).  Other than those two factors, she said you wouldn't even know that he had a special need.  He is a little guy, 7 years old and very-very sweet!  She shared that he is an extremely bright little boy.  She was kind enough to share a couple of very sweet stories about her time with him.  There was one instance when the children were viewing a video of a child that had been adopted and was now home with their family in the U.S.  Some of the children were not focused on the video but Xavier was especially focused and in awe!  He was so intent on watching the video and was entrenched in it and mesmerized...He is so looking forward to finding his forever family!!  There was another instance when everyone was sitting around a table (care workers, the Madison group and the children) eating corn on the cob.  Xavier was picking each kernel of corn off of his cob and nobody did anything to assist him (bare in mind he doesn't have teeth) and so Aleda went over to him, took his corn and began to cut the corn off of the cob for him.  Everyone watched in amazement at what was happening and finally when she had cut all of the corn off of the cob and handed it to Xavier, he accepted it very thankfully, with a huge smile on his face.  If you are interested in learning more about Xavier, please contact Aleda Madison at Madison Adoption Associates, (302)475-8977.  Aleda stressed that while all of the information that was shared on Xavier was positive in regard to his health, it is mandatory that a family considering him must verify all of the medical information with an International Adoption Physician.


PIERCE
Pierce is a deep thinker and a leader...He was very kind, sweet and gentle.  He is at the top of his class and very bright!  He shared that he loves to do Tae Kwan Do and someday hopes to be a policeman.  She shared that at one point the kids were performing and some of the children that were suppose to be sitting around watching the performance were being stinkers.  Pierce motioned for them to come over to sit down so that the children that were performing could have their time and so they did.  She said the other kids loved and respected Pierce and she can see him being a great, "big brother".   He just turned 8 years old in October.  His special need was congenital lip and bilateral cleft.  If you would like more information about Pierce, please contact Aleda at Madison Adoption Associates, (302)475-8977.
Could Pierce be your son?



Information to come on two more waiting angels....

November Is National Adoption Month

A couple of weeks ago I decided to shift gears with this blog and use it as an advocacy blog on the topic of adoption and begin to advocate for children and orphans.  They don't have a voice and so in some small way, I'm hoping to be a squeaky wheel.  With that being said... I haven't shared this on our blog yet but for those of you who have followed along over the last several months...There was a precious little girl named Marlee (Mei Mei) that I advocated for earlier this year while we were in the process of bringing Hadley home.  She was suspected to have CP but it was later determined that she had a rare neurological disease.  I originally saw Marlee on Madison Adoption Associates shared list.  There was something about her that grabbed a hold of my heart immediately and I began to advocate for her, in hopes of her finding a family.  A few weeks after I began to advocate for Marlee, I learned that her condition was getting desperate and she was in need of immediate medical care.  Along the way, someone stepped forward on a yahoo group that was in China working in Marlee's orphanage and was trying to get her the medical attention she needed.  She reached out to me and I was able to stay in contact with her and get updates on Marlee and her condition.  When we returned home from China with Hadley in late August,  I received an email from my contact stating that Marlee had passed away.  Up until now, I've only shared her passing with one of my friends. Sadly, I think I knew that Marlee would not survive in the orphanage.  I would check in with my contact in hopes of hearing good news but somehow knowing that she would be called home soon.  Its difficult to express how it feels to have a connection to a little girl that you've only seen photos of...But the Lord gave me the privilege of seeing her and connecting with her, thousands of miles away.  I'm sharing Marlee's story for two reason...Because I know that many people prayed for her, inquired about her and cared about her.   I'm also sharing because her death reminded me of how many children die every single day alone, without a mother and a father to hold them, comfort them and love them.   It reminded me of something a read in a book not too long ago...I'm going to steel a few paragraphs from, The Hole in our Gospel.   About 26,000 children under the age of 5 die every day of causes related to their poverty.

That is the equivalent of 100 planes filled with children crashing every day. If one jet liner crashes in America, it makes world headlines. There is an immediate flurry of activity: Why did it happen? What does the "black box" say? Is there a safety issue with the airplane? Was it a pilot error? And we start to learn about the lives of the people that died.

But where are the headlines? Where are the hearings, the acts of Congress, the things that would happen if a hundred jet liners were crashing every day?

If you looked at the death certificates of those children you would probably read words like starvation, respiratory infection, malaria, maybe HIV/AIDS. But you could easily cross that out and write apathy as the cause of death. The deaths were largely preventable, but those who could have prevented the deaths chose not to. I know that's harsh but I've seen and I know that it is possible to change the equation. It's the sin of our generation. The sin of my parents' generation in the United States was racism. The sin of our generation will be apathy. 


So here is a small opportunity to do something, to get involved and to not be apathetic.  There are so many children just like Marlee out there...Both overseas and in the U.S. There isn't a person around that doesn't have a full schedule these days but we can all do something.  For each of us, that "something" is very likely different.  The point is...Chosing to do nothing isn't an option for those of us that call ourselves followers of Jesus Christ.  As a very dear friend of mine says..."You either believe it ALL or you believe none of it."  We don't have the option to decide what portions of the Bible we will believe or chose to follow.  November is national adoption month and November 7th is Orphan Sunday.  This is a chance for Christians to get involved and take seriously what the word of God says about caring for the orphans and widows.  James 1:27- Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.


To learn more about how to get involved and what you can do in your local church for Orphan Sunday, please check out... http://www.orphansunday.org/about  There are all kinds of resources on this site that give ideas from acknowledging these precious, innocent lives with a few simple words before or after Sunday service, all the way up to sermons and events that can be done in your church.   If you get a chance, take a look!


Hugs and love,
Robin

Oktoberfest

After some thought, I've decided to keep this blog up and running for anything pertaining to adoption.  My hope is to be able to advocate for children, share fundraising info and anything else pertaining to adoption. After today, I'll start posting any of our family pictures and adventures with the peanuts on our new blog which will be the one thats by invite.  I'm putting any email addresses I have in my address book down for viewing.  Our new blog is, www.livelovelaughwiththeleeses.blogspot.com  If you've emailed me with your email address or posted, I'm including your info as well and look forward to sharing with you!

Last Sunday we took the peanuts to Oktoberfest at Traders Point Creamery with some friends and some of Brandon's family who were in town visiting for the day.  It was a good time just watching the kiddos play in the pumpkin patch, dance to the live music and enjoy the hay ride.  A great way to start off Fall!

ME and daddy!!  We are so cute!

Wyatt- Hadley, can you read my mind?  What in the world do they expect us to do with these big orange balls???  There is no way you're gonna be able to lift them!

Landon- Wyatt, your mom is snapping pictures again....Any chance you can get her under control?  The chicks don't dig this!

Wyatt-  I'm sorry dude, so embarrassing...She's difficult to reign in when it comes to taking pictures

Wyatt- Hey Hadley, is this the one you wanted?  I think I can lift this one!!

Hadley- Hey Wyatt, is this the hay ride you were talking about and are we suppose to eat this stuff? Its sticking to my outfit...

Wyatt- No Hadley, that tractor leaving with the hay all over it...that's the hay ride we're suppose to be on

Wyatt- Lets forget the hay ride, Hadley....I'm enjoying the photo shoot

Some fun misc pictures...

I wanted to share that I've decided to make our blog by invite.  I'd love for our friends and family to pop in from time to time and see the kiddos...So if you'd like me to send you an invite, please let me know, I'm happy to do it.  I honestly can't say thank you enough for the encouragement we've received throughout adopting both Wyatt and Hadley.  It meant so much to both Brandon and I...There were many times that we'd get an email that was just at the right time, that was just the "pick me up" we needed.  I started this blog a few years ago in hopes of encouraging someone else on a similar journey, sharing with friends/family and having a journal to share with the kids as they get older...So they would be able to see how everything unfolded as God deliberately brought them into our family.  I'm now just having fun posting pictures of the kids and our day to day.  I'm shifting gears a little for now and its more for the fun of it...

Below are some cute pictures of our peanuts from the last week.

        You dropped one of the tires you stick in your hair, mom.

I think I'm gonna try to put one of your tires in my hair....Ok??

What do you mean, "no, its not a good idea"...I think its a great idea!

Time for a little grocery shopping....

Sometimes grocery shopping makes me thirsty...

And hungry....

I give up...Wyatt ate all of the groceries before he checked out.  Ugh!  Never let a man shop...

We've had an issue the last couple of weeks with Hadley putting her banana slices on her head when Brandon or I turn our backs.  She loves bananas but for some reason, she thinks this is hilarious.  I'm sure its not because Brandon was feeding her one morning and thought I had put a bow in her hair but then realized it was a slice of banana and we both couldn't help but laugh.  Our fault!  Lesson learned :)

Ok, I get it....this isn't very funny...

Please don't bother me...I'm on a very important phone call

One of the funniest things I've seen!

One of my sisters is getting married at the beginning of October and I needed silver sandals to wear for the wedding.  I didn't have any, so I had to go hunting.  I got lucky and found a pair and when I got home, I set the box outside of the door to our bedroom, which is right off of our family room.  I turned around and was straightening up the family room and I saw Hadley going for the box of shoes.  Next thing I know, I turn back around and without any prompting this is what I see!  It would have amazed me in any setting but to know that just a month ago, we were in China and just 6 weeks ago, she was in an orphanage boggles my mind.  She's been through so much in her short life and it fills my heart to see how happy she is and how far she has come in such a short time.  Our lil man who is all boy decided he wanted a piece of the action too and hammed it up.  He used one of the couch arm covers as a hat.

I had so much fun watching them!  It made me think of a saying a friend of mine has..."Every crow thinks theirs is the blackest" It is SO true!!! I think its by Gods design that people feel that way about their children.  Nothing on this earth fills me up more than moments like this!  These two little miracles really make me look at life from an entirely different lens.

                                               

                     Hadley- "I'm pretty sure these are my size...."

Hadley- "Wyatt, I think I may need a little help with this...."

Hadley- "Ok, maybe they are just a half size too big...But I think I can make them work if I tie these two straps together"

Hadley- "Mom, I asked Wyatt for help and he took my other shoe...See, they don't fit him and not to mention, dad is not going to be happy about Wyatt putting on high heals!"

Wyatt- "Relax Hadley...I'm checking to make sure they're safe for you to walk in.  I don't want you to hurt yourself.  Plus, don't you remember mommy and daddy telling us to SHARE!"

Wyatt- "Look Hadley, I bet you didn't know you can use this end as a tooth pick! Cool!"

Hadley- "Great idea Wyatt!! I still had gram crackers in my teeth from our snack!...I knew you were good for something"

Wyatt- "I'm full of great ideas, Hadley...Just ask me!  Lets play hide and seek now.  You count and I'll hide..."

Wyatt- "She'll NEVER find me in here!"

I look cool in my shades!

Yesterday we had a Dr's visit and so Lil Miss Hadley and mommy ventured out solo, while Wyatt stayed home with daddy.  Wyatt was not very happy that Hadley and mommy were leaving without him...I felt so bad because the three of us typically are always together since we've been home. Wyatt doesn't understand that we weren't heading out to do fun stuff without him. So we decided to play a game before we left to take his mind off of it.  Both the kids love to play with our sunglasses.  We had two itty bitty pair of sunglasses that were given to us by our travel friends in China, for Hadley.  So I pulled them out and put a pair on Wyatt and Hadley and we all started acting silly.  Wyatt kept taking his on and off and putting them on his head like mommy and daddy do...But Hadley actually thought she looked pretty stinkin cool in her shades!  She kept giggling and almost posing when we put them on her.

                              
                           Look out Lucy Liu...Here I come!!!!

Mommy, put your shades on!  Lets look cool together....

Seriously??? The paparazzi already? 

Labor Day weekend- swimming!

We haven't been in the pool since we returned home from China and we thought it was about time!  So we took Wyatt and Hadley in for a swim...This was Hadley's first time ever in a pool and you never would have known it because she acted like a pro!  She was kicking her feet and flapping her arms to make a splash.  Wyatt had been watching daddy clean out the pool earlier with the net and decided he wanted to take part too...

      
Wyatt thought Hadley needed watering before officially coming in...

Kissies for daddy!!!

Wyatt- "Here dad...Take the noodle, it'll help you and Hadley float."

Hadley- "Wyatt, would ya hurry it up with that noodle...Dad thinks he can swim"

Wyatt- "Sorry Hadley, I dropped it, you'll be ok, I'm pretty sure he can swim...Did you see the size of that butterfly?"

Wyatt- "Ya know Hadley, you look like you're doing fine, I need to finish cleaning the pool.  If you need help you can just ask mommy to put her stinkin camera down and she'll jump in and save you."

Our playroom

Mom and dad are slowly putting together our playroom, one piece at a time...

Wyatt- "I'm so proud of my new chair!  This is one thing thats off limits sissy"!

Hadley- "Two can play at this, Wyatt...MY CHAIR"!

Wyatt- "Ok Hadley, I hear ya...We both have our own chairs, its cool now"!

Wyatt- "Ahh- this is the life...Chillin in our chairs.  Mom- Can we watch, Super Why"?

Hadley- "Great idea, Wyatt....would you grab my sippy cup and some popcorn?  I've already got my bib on and I'm ready to go"