Ours Forever

Ain't No mountain high enough...
Ain't no valley low enough...
Ain't no river wide enough...
Ain't no stomach flu long enough...
to keep us from going to court!

Introducing.................................Lydia Vinita

Yes, I know. You've seen lots (maybe your sick of them but I don't care because this is my blog) pictures of this cutie. BUT as of December 29, 2011 she is legally ours forever. What was birthed in our hearts was signed on legal paper. We are so blessed. After a wonderful Christmas (which I didn't take hardly any pictures), Lydia came down with the stomach flu...ugh...at Papa and Grandma's house. She was fascinated with the bucket that was in her crib and the next day kept pointing at it saying "Mommy, I did this...(stick out tongue with corresponding noise)." So, add another first to her list. We headed home and after the other 2 Parmenter girls came down with and recovered from the bug we headed to court. The judge was super kind, and it was super fast. Signed and sealed... What a blessing!

I wanted a picture so we asked a random guy sitting in the hall to take our picture. Here we are...what a crew!


Because we were out of town we missed the first gentle snowfall of the year. There was still a few patches along the sidewalk at the court house. Add another first...SNOW! She giggled and picked it up and had no idea what it was. Hopefully, we'll see some more so we can play.

Merry Christmas sweet, baby girl!

She is such a hoot! We gave her this picture from the first night we had her in our arms. We had bought the frame in India. I just think this expression is hilarious!

Good bye 2011~Hello 2012

Merry Christmas

Boxes...why do we buy gifts? A big box is the best!

Just sitting here pondering that this is Lydia's first Christmas...

Reindeer Ranch 2011

What do you think he is thinking?

We did go to the reindeer ranch to see the reindeer...caribou. Did you know that their hoofs make a clicking sound when they walk?


He came because He is the only one in all of history that could pay the price...

Merry Christmas

5 Months Home

I am so thankful that I finally put this outfit on her again because I had to force it over her head! I don't think we'll get it on and off again! With that...here she is...being home for 5 months!

She has decided that she doesn't really like to stand still...

There is something about this picture that I love~

OK Mom..."cheese"...

Oh wait, I found something in my toes...

Home for 5 months...You have changed so much since the first time we laid eyes on you. You have grown like crazy! You have gained 11 pounds and grown almost 5 inches. You speak in complete sentences and express yourself easily. You are feisty and a quick learner! You are just now getting over your first sickness~an ear infection. You are beginning to love to read books and love to play with your dolls and play kitchen. We are looking forward to Christmas break when Anna and Daddy will be home to enjoy lots and lots of family time!

Deck the Halls

The tree was decorated in record time with these three hanging the ornaments. Granted some lower branches ended up with two or three ornaments on each branch. Anna, who is just like her Mama, could not help herself. She moved them around until they weren't all clumped together. :) It is soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo good to have Lydia HOME for this Christmas season. I was remembering last year that Anna and David opened presents for her. I don't think that they will be able to get away with that this year!


Someday I hope to be able to put some thoughts into words to express that "good" doesn't mean "easy", but for now I'll definitely soak in the moments when life is like this...

These two are becoming best buddies that play wonderfully and yes all the other things best buds do like argue, yell, hit, spit, push, whine, cry, and sit in time out together... Back to the play wonderfully... They were so busy playing and posing for me. It was one of those moments where I try not to move or talk or hardly breathe because it is just too cute. Life is busy and "good"!


In other news, our friend Dara who 2 1/2 weeks ago was fighting for her life from post delivery complications is HOME. HOME...what a glorious word! (So thankful this world is not our home...another post for another day!) Thank you for all your prayers! We continue to pray for complete restoration in all areas that the stroke affected.

And last but not least~my brother and 4 other men are in India right now on a mission trip. They are ministering in villages, encouraging pastors, preaching the Gospel. Please keep them in your prayers! If you would like to read some quick updates, you can read them here: http://adullam-litchfield.net This is my cousin's website who is also in India on the team.

Praise the Lord!

Thankfulness

I love Thanksgiving!
What a wonderful time with friends and family and yumminess and a fever. Oh yeah, the fever part wasn't part of the wonderfulness. David spiked a fever and had to exit the Thanksgiving fun. We are hanging out on the couch all day today while Erik and the girls are enjoying being with his family. David and I are pretty bummed, but I have assured him that we will go to Papa and Grandma's again soon. Back to being thankful...

My mind swims with all of the blessings this year~
Lydia coming home and her and our adjustment, Anna loves 4th grade, David loves preschool, lots of family time, a wonderful growing in the Lord church family, a warm home, vehicles that are running (at the moment), good health, at the moment~tylenol and ibuprofen, most importantly God's grace that covers us and enables us to walk each day...

We are so thankful for everyone who encouraged and supported us on our journey with Lydia!

Thank you, Father God, for your provision, protection, and Grace found in Jesus Christ!

Sometimes as the days blend altogether my eyes are open, but I forget to look and see the blessings all around me. I never want to overlook these three blessings... Because I feel like I blink and another year goes by. Thank you, Lord, for Anna, David, and Lydia and all that you have brought us through to be a family.

I have been wanting to get these guys dressed up in their Indian outfits before they outgrow them! Finally, we did it...with a bribe of ice-cream if everyone smiled... :)

Sweet Sisters

Our Indian Blessing

All done...time for ice cream...

During these fun days of remembering all that God has blessed us with, my heart is heavy in prayer for our dear friends David and Dara Watson and their beautiful baby daughter, Isabelle. A week and a half ago Dara had a c-section to deliver Isabelle. There were major complications and Dara is fighting for life. She had an amniotic embolism and stroke which left her on a respirator in ICU. God stretched out His hand of mercy and healing and brought her through. She is still experiencing high blood pressure, has had some siezures, has a hemorrage on her brain, struggling with speech, and right side movements. All this to say...God is able and He is good. David and Dara are strong in the Lord not because everything is going their way because they are in a very hard place, but because they believe what Christ did at the cross is enough. Please pray for this dear family. Pray for complete healing and restoration and rest and wisdom and peace. Thank you for lifting this family to the Lord! So thankful for how God is using Dara's heart~breaking situation to shake people out of complacency and cry out to the Lord (myself included).

I pray that no matter what your circumstances are that you know that God knows and He loves you. He loves you enough to send His Son so that you may be found in Him. True peace, comfort, life, rest, contentment, victory over sin, healing are found in Christ Jesus. There is no other way. So, be encouraged. Be strong in the Lord not in your self. Turn your eyes to Jesus and the finished work of Calvary.

Thank you, Father, for the cross!

Belated Birthday and Four Months HOME

It was a lot of fun celebrating Lydia's 3rd birthday and 1st birthday party HOME!!! It took her about 3 seconds to figure out the candles and presents! :)

She loves her new doll from Papa and Grandma! I thought we should try some matching hair which only lasted for this picture before she yanked them out.

After receiving presents, she entered the "MY" stage. We are now working on another new word...sharing...

Lydia has been home 4 months...

As you can see, her personality continues to grow...

To Anna's delight, she finally allowed her older sister to teach her the art of playing dress up! She had no idea why Anna was trying to get this crazy dress on her, but she was all smiles when big sister made such a big deal about how cute she was.

We visited the pediatrician again this week. Lydia has officially grown 4 1/2 inches and gained 10 lbs. since coming home in July. WOW! Praise God!

What a blessing you are to us sweet Lydia!

Smiley...most of the time

This post is nothing but things I want to remember...

Anna LOVES to read...

David is going through a learning explosion! He loves to find letters everywhere he looks. He also loves this puzzle of the U.S. I do the outline and he will sit and put in state by state while looking at the box. He is very proud of his hard work in this picture. AND he actually looked at the camera! :)

"Up please..."
She is so stinkin' cute, but I hear this 1,000,507 times a day! I want to implant this picture in my mind to remind me to take the time to respond to this reply as much as possible.

Even though Lydia's butterflies are falling off of the wall, I realized I didn't have a picture of this princess in her bed. She sleeps really well which is such a blessing. I guess you need lots of sleep if you grow an inch every day or so... Notice what little sister gets when she has an older brother...yes, a Thomas pillowcase!

Lydia "Lou" loves bath time!

I've been working on a "coming home" video with all of our India pictures. It is amazing to look again at the day we met. It seems like a long time ago, but it hasn't even been 4 months. What does she remember? What does she feel and think? I wish she could tell me. I wish I could sit with her caregivers and ask a million questions. (I did have the opportunity, but totally went blank...) This sweet baby girl is the bravest little one I know. In the day to day of being her Mama I quickly forget that almost three years of her precious life are not in my memory. I do not know when she first smiled or who held her if anyone when she was sick or did anyone clap and cheer when she took her first steps or ...
She is such a spunky little thing with a quick mind and a sweet smile and a definite opinion!
She adores her big brother, but knows EXACTLY what makes him go...NO LYDIA. She makes it known that she does not like to hear "no", but she has quickly learned what "time out" means. She will look at you square in the eye, stomp her foot, stick out her little bottom lip, and let you know what she thinks. Too funny little lady...no is still no. She gives hugs and kisses easily and is going to be a chatterbox once those English words are clearer. She repeats words pretty clearly, but when she gets going in sentences, it can be difficult to understand all of it. I am learning (much slower than her rate of learning) that she definitely needs time each day just being carried around. She just wants to be held. Honestly though, the day flies by and sometimes I am too "busy" to reach down and bring her close to my heart. Why? I do not know. I pray for God's grace and wisdom. So, we pulled out the carrier and she loved it!!!!!! We picked up toys and put laundry away...awww...smiles again.

AND...............................in two days we will be celebrating a birthday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Provision

This post has been in my heart for a long time. I think the time is right to share...

One area of international adoption that makes people's eyes bug out is the financial side. When Erik and I began to seriously look into adoption and began to read the numbers...ummm... We did figures on paper. Threw the paper away. Prayed. Felt God's peace and leading and filled out the paperwork. We started the process in the early fall of 2008. After being accepted to an agency, we felt that we were to wait until the springtime to officially start. (Guess who was born in the fall of 2008? Yep, little miss. God leads and directs each step when we trust Him. He knew the time frame and He knew little miss needed her Mommy and Daddy to wait a little while longer.)

So, in the spring of 2009 we took the plunge and started into the process with a flurry of paperwork. Paperwork...yes, there is a TON of paperwork. Along the way, there are several different fees due at different times. Well, we waited on the Lord and He has provided each step! We had been saving for several years, but that was wiped out in the first step. So, I will skip lots of little details to just say this...God provides. We took out a loan to cover the "biggest" chunk when it came due. We were blown away month after month as we received a check in the mail from someone EACH month that covered that payment. Yes, you read that right. EACH month God provided in different ways. Our friends also helped us put together a "Taste of India" which we were blown away with the support of our family and friends. He provided extra employment opportunities for Erik. And we received a check for work that Erik had done the previous summer, but "wasn't paid enough for" at the time. What? Yep...that money just came out of no where AND showed up in the mail right before we traveled. I am sharing all of this because throughout this journey we felt that we were to be quiet and let God move. He has opened our eyes to His provision in a way that we had not known before. Now, when you are trusting God, the enemy always stirs the pot. Our vehicles have gone looney with a new transmission, new tires, new brakes, new windows, new air-conditioner...enough said. He provides. So, are you interested in knowing the numbers? Get ready...you might want to sit down. Wait before I share that...

Let me just say...the money that goes into international adoption is sickening. If every penny was going toward the children...it isn't. It goes to governments. And legitimately pays for the services of all the people it takes to bring a family together. It pays to legitimately make sure people are who they say they are and are ready to take on the challenges of growing a family through adoption. It also pays to legitimately try to protect these children from the atrocity of child trafficking. It pays the travel expenses and of course all of the legal fees. Some of it hopefully makes its way to support the orphanages where these children live, but I don't see that much of it makes it there. All that to say, yes, the amount is staggering, but seriously...is there really an amount that is too much when you are talking about a child...

Our adoption expenses are nearing $45,000.....................................................

(We realize that for some that amount isn't that eye-blinking. But for us it is a HUGE chunk...)

God has provided. We are not completely free and clear, but God continues to provide.

Do you need help with that math because our God is a BIG God!

We Praise God for leading and directing and providing and blessing us with our daughter.

We thank everyone who has blessed us financially and with all the support and prayers! We cannot express how much we have been blessed and encouraged!

Here's the best part: Do you realize that this is only provision in the natural? Do you realize that God is THE PROVIDER? We are born into sin. We are sinners in need of a savior. We have all fallen short of the glory of God. The wages of sin is death. The truth is that we are headed to an eternity separated from God. But God is THE PROVIDER. He sent His Son who died in our place. Paid the price that we could never pay. Shed His blood. Died. Was buried. And on the third day...on the third day...YES~He rose from the dead. Jesus Christ is ALIVE. He is THE WAY, THE TRUTH, THE LIFE. And He is coming again...

At the cross...

It. is. finished.

Our greatest need is a savior. God PROVIDED.

Our simple trust and faith in the finished work plunges us into that death, burial and resurrection. The precious blood of Jesus is enough. That we are new creations in Christ Jesus for all eternity. By simple faith...in ourselves? in our church? in our works? in our own righteousness? NO WAY By our faith in Jesus Christ~who He is and what He did for us at the cross.

God PROVIDED.

He not only PROVIDER a savior, but He PROVIDES His Holy Spirit to lead and direct us and keep us in THE faith.

Yes, there is compete PROVISION in Jesus Christ.

Be encouraged~God provided for me and for you for all eternity. Trust Him.

(If He births a child in your heart or any other God directed path, never let $ stop you from believing. God PROVIDES!)

3 Months and 4 Inches

On July 16, I marked on the wall how tall Lydia was. Last night, I stood her in the same spot to because I was wondering how much she has grown. FOUR INCHES!!! Four inches in 3 months... Praise God! Our first glimpse of Lydia came when I opened an email in April of 2010. We had measurements then and a couple times during the following year, we received updated measurements. We knew she was tiny and barely growing. I would pray and still do for God to touch each cell. That each cell in her body would grow strong and healthy. Thank you Father for answering that prayer. She is thriving physically and we are so thankful. We have seen her go from an unsteady walker who held onto the door frame to go from carpet to the lynoleum to a full force runner who can also jump! She had to work so hard to just stand up and now she is moving and grooving all day long. Answered prayer...right in front of our eyes!

3 Months Home Photo Shoot

Funny Faces

The Trio

"Fall" What gorgeous days!