Happy Lunar New Year to all my Korean friends!!
Mia’s new Hanbok, her first Hanbok was 2-3 inches too short!! Which means Mia has grown!!:)
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Category Archives: Uncategorized
~Presenting Avah Noelle SeeEun~
WOW!! Where do I even start?
I guess at the very beginning…
Before Kenny and I traveled to Korea to get Mia Grace, we knew we wanted to adopt again and from Korea. We felt this strong urge that our child was waiting for us at AMSA. We tried to go take donations to go there, but I got the call the day we were leaving Seoul that we were able to come. In fact, we were at the airport to head home. I just felt if I could see the children there I would have known who she was. But we didn’t get to go, that’s okay. God had another plan! I had shared my thoughts of adopting again as soon as possible with our social worker at our agency. She had told me she was sorry but we had to wait 6 months to even start reviewing files, that was July 8th. On July 13th, I received a call from our agency and my heart almost stopped because I thought it was a sibling call. I told my Social worker, just tell me right now if this is a sibling call. She said well not quite, but almost. So I listened, as she said she had a little girl that would fit nicely into our family and if I would review her file. Well of course we will!:) So on July 21st, we verbally accepted SeeEun Moon which we will change her name to Avah Noelle SeeEun.
I couldn’t be more happy with this little doll baby!! She just turned 4 years old on December 26th. She will fit perfectly between Paul and Mia. She attends preschool 4 days a week. She is quiet and shy. She has lived at AMSA since she was 19 months old. She loves to color (I have over an hour of her coloring and not once does she look up to the camera!) and play baby dolls(which we may share that infamous video soon).
We do not know when she will be coming soon, since obviously I have already been waiting 6 months and 4 days but who’s counting. We will have to see, but I am hopeful she will be home this summer.
ISN’T SHE BEAUTIFUL!!!!!?????
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| She is in a wonderful orphanage. Many children have been adopted from here and come home and do fabulously well. She is a little thing. Her hair is all tied up, it seems to be the AMSA do. Probably easier to take care of, it stays out of their face and isnt messy. Because she is always dressed so adorably cute!! |
Now you know I couldn’t leave my God story out here…Okay..where to start?? Oh yes at the beginning….so when I put on an adoption forum that I was reviewing Mia’s file(I know ..out of order…just follow me), I had several people email me. My special friend, Grace, emailed me right away and told me she had been praying for Mia because they had reviewed her file when she was 10 months old but made a hard descicion not to pursue in adopting her. I didn’t realize how hard it was until I asked her if she wanted to see Mia’s current video, and she told me she couldn’t watch it. That really affected me, more than she knows as I have never voiced it. To know that she had been prayed for and cared about by someone I had just met, just meant so much to me..more than I can describe. So Grace and I have chatted back and forth through out Mia’s process and became good friends. In July she decided to adopt a little girl from AMSA as well. Sarah Mercy will be coming home hopefully in the next 6 weeks.
Which leads me to another dear friend, whose daughter is pictured below with Avah. This is Cora SeungJoo, she lives at AMSA as well. Grace and Jen will be traveling SOON to get Sarah and Cora, they will be traveling together, which I think is so incredibly awesome!!! In Avah’s referral video, Cora pops in for some legos and giggles. Cora’s mom, Jen and I have became great friends during this long wait for our girls. It is so nice to have someone to talk to in this horrible wait. We do know Cora and Avah attend preschool together.
These three little girls are living at AMSA in Seoul, Korea right now. Cora and Sarah are roommates with 6 other children and Avah is in another room with 7 other children and a caretaker. There are only about 50 children living here. It is a very special place.
Cora, Sarah and Avah are going have a lot of memories of living at AMSA. We plan on keeping the girls in contact with each other and raising them like cousins. We think it is so important to keep in contact with Korea, friends and anything that reminds them of their childhood. I feel so blessed to know Grace and Jen and that they have included Avah in with Cora and Sarah. I know the 3 girls will grow up continuing to be great friends. We already have out first meeting planned here in the US for the girl!! Details to come…
I am going to just put it out there as to what Avah’s special need is. Avah was born with Neurofibromatosis Type 1. She has other issues that are related to NF 1. When I opened Avah’s medical file, I closed it quickly and looked at Kenny with fear and apprehension. I said, Oh Kenny…He said..put the DVD in…we will know. And guess what we knew…we knew right away this special little girl is ours. Her future may be unknown but guess what we do know, she has a family.
~Trip to DC~
We decided to allow Camye fly to Grandma and Grandpas house in Texas with her cousin, Alycia. She lives in Virginia Beach, VA, so DC was an obvious central meeting place. We stayed in awesome little 2 bedroom apartments on Bolling Air Force Base. We each had our own apartment, between my sister in law and me, we have 9 kids. We have so much in common, we love to get together, but it is also chaotic. We always have a great time though!!!
The little sisters having a great time!!
The girls hiding in one of the walk in closets comparing candy stashes for the cruise!!
Lots of sight seeing!!!!:) We also went to the American Girl store and the Lego store…which is on the blog Iphone DC trip.
Saying goodbye, was really hard!! Camye was tearful and I was tearing up. She is such a sweet girl that we are going to miss so much!! But I know she will be home and she have AN awesome trip!!!
Bye Camye-girl!! See you in 2 weeks!!! We love you!:):)
~Happy Birthday Sweet Camye Renee~
I can not believe my sweet, sweet Camye girl is 11 years old. Wow! How time flies!! She is such a blessing to me. She is lovable, funny, sweet, sensitve, funny, creative, artsy, motherly…everything a mother could ask for in a daughter.
I
She wanted a DQ oreo ice cream cake for her birthday …and below is cutey Paul getting his Leap Pad camera ready to take a photo Camye. I could eat him right up!:)
So cute! Camye loved her bottle cap art set.
My mom came up for Camye’s birthday party. Camye decided to have a family party with presents instead of a large friend party. Camye wanted/needed clothes and all sorts of things because she is currently in Eastern Caribbean with her Grandma, Grandpa and her cousin Alycia. And a girl cant go on a cruise without new things….
She got all sorts of dressy clothes, bathing suits, flip flops, sunglasses, cash….all sorts of cruise things..which are great presents when it is the middle of January!!
Happy Birthday Camye Renee! God blessed me beyond words when you were born. Blessed to be your mommy!!
Night Night with Omma
Mia found her back pack from Omma and Appa today. She put it on, laid down with Ommas picture and said,”Come on Chloe, let’s go night night with Omma.”
Wow does she love her Omma and Appa!!!:):)
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~Avah Hanbok Bow~
We were officially MATCHED today!! Well probably before today, but today was the RED BOX matched day!!!
SO I wanted to present from Baby Bug Wear on Facebook, the Avah Hanbok Bow!! That’s right I had a bow created in Avah’s name. I have a very limited amount. I am figuring out right now if I even have any left. But as of right now I have 10, they were very difficult to make and meticulous.
I am hoping to get 10 more, but I am not sure. This is a fundraiser for our daughter’s fabulous orphanage in South Korea, AMSA. I am selling each ribbon sculpture for $15.00 a piece.
Avah is coming from an awesome orphanage with lots of little girls, if you are interested in purchasing a bow or just making a donation to this orphanage please donate with my paypal button. That I am trying to create.
If you do not want a bow but would like to donate, we could donate an Avah bow to a precious little girl at AMSA in your name.
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~Six months Today~
Today is exactly six months, since we have told our agency yes to our precious little girl. We don’t even have our Homestudy to Korea yet, we will be sending by the end of January.
I always remember asking my mom who she loved more me or my brothers. She always answered that she loved us all the same but differently. I never knew what this meant until I had kids. Even though our little Avah isnt home, I cant tell you how my arms ache to hold this precious little girl. I am thankful for all of my children. I am enjoying Mia being home, Chloe being 15 ½, Blake being 12, Camye being 11 and Paul being a precious little 6 ½. However my heart still aches for Avah to be home.with us. I wont even plan a trip to Disney in September because I am afraid Avah will not be home by then. We can always go to Disney next year.
Anyways as you can probably imagine..every thing..every song…every comment..every little girls outfit….every TV show…every Korean thing…I mean every every thing!!!
So I am helping the kids at our church make this video to the song ~Total Eclipse of the Heart~! So you can only imagine..this is a pretty intense song. Mia has it memorized, the teens are singing it all the time. And all I can think of is Avah….so here are my thoughts.
Turn around, every now and then I get a little bit lonely and you’re never coming round.
Yes it feels like she may never come home…
Turn around, every now and then I get a little bit tired of listening to the sound of my tears.
So tired of my tears…I not only cry for my Avah but for my friends who are stuck in this waiting mess.
Turn around, every now and then I get a little bit nervous that the best of all the years have gone by.
But then I realize they havent all gone by, and the best of all the years are to be when we are together as a family.
Turn around, every now and then I get a little bit terrified and then I see the look in your eyes.
I will be honest sometimes I think other countries seem easier, another agency wont be as picky, another agency would let me move quicker…another country would be …well easier to work with…but when I look into those eyes. Be still my heart. You deserve a mother who would wait an eternity for you and that I will. If they called tomorrow and said you couldn’t come home until you were 17 years old. I would say okay. I wouldn’t like it. But you are mine and I would wait forever for you.
Turn around, bright eyes Every now and then I fall apart Turn around, bright eyes.
Every now and then I fall apart.
More often than not lately….
Turnaround, every now and then I get a little bit restless and I dream of something wild.
Oh yes…wild like a Travel Call before April. That’s a little on the wild side.
Turn around, every now and then I get a little bit helpless and I’m lying like a child in your arms.
Yes…I am a child laying in the arms of Jesus waiting…waiting…but as much as I want to whine and cry about how long I have been waiting like 6 months. One could seriously ask…where have you been? Because she was born over 4 years ago..and its not like I have been waiting around that long. My answer to anyone if my travel call may come before others is this…she has been waiting for 4 years. This isn’t about me…this is about a little girl, without parents, and significant special needs.
Turnaround, every now and then I get a little bit angry and I know I’ve got to get out and cry.
Yes I sat and cried my eyes out and even ate McDonalds fries the other night in my van. There I said it, I have no shame.
And I need you now tonight And I need you more than ever And if you only hold me tight We’ll be holding on forever.
I can not wait for our forever family day.
I will not let go and will hold on tight forever.And we’ll only be making it right ‘Cause we’ll never be wrong.
Adopting a child could never be wrong, it may not be easy or inexpensive but never wrong.
Together we can take it to the end of the line. Your love is like a shadow on me all of the time I don’t know what to do and I’m always in the dark. We’re living in a powder keg and giving off sparksI really need you tonight Forever’s gonna to start tonight Forever’s gonna to start tonight.
I feel this urgency all of the time to rush to her. To get to her. I am desperately wanting her to know she has a family. I want Avah to have hope.
Once upon a time I was falling in love Now I’m only falling apart, There’s nothing I can do. A total eclipse of the heart. Once upon a time there was light in my life But now there’s only love in the dark Nothing I can say A total eclipse of the heart.
I have to say…the blissful months right after you accept your child’s referral….you know…she is going come home. You know when the country you are adopting from is running smoothly and then wait..oh…wait a minute…changes..changes..changes..and you want to scream. And you feel this shadow stealing your joy….and you know it can only be one thing. Satan….he doesn’t want me to bring Avah home. He knows he has a hold on her in this orphanage and the orphanage she would be moved too. However he will lose his grip…because she will have hope and a family, that will teach her how much Jesus loves her.
Turnaround, every now and then I know there’s no one in the universe as magical and wondrous as you Turnaround, every now and then I know there’s nothing any better, there’s nothing that I just wouldn’t do
And WE will prevail, I will wait however long it takes…I will travel and fight for you until the day you come home. I will love you forever. I will love you for always.
I always remember asking my mom who she loved more me or my brothers. She always answered that she loved us all the same but differently. I never knew what this meant until I had kids. Even though our little Avah isnt home, I cant tell you how my arms ache to hold this precious little girl. I am thankful for all of my children. I am enjoying Mia being home, Chloe being 15 ½, Blake being 12, Camye being 11 and Paul being a precious little 6 ½. However my heart still aches for Avah to be home.with us. I wont even plan a trip to Disney in September because I am afraid Avah will not be home by then. We can always go to Disney next year.
Anyways as you can probably imagine..every thing..every song…every comment..every little girls outfit….every TV show…every Korean thing…I mean every every thing!!!
So I am helping the kids at our church make this video to the song ~Total Eclipse of the Heart~! So you can only imagine..this is a pretty intense song. Mia has it memorized, the teens are singing it all the time. And all I can think of is Avah….so here are my thoughts.
Turn around, every now and then I get a little bit lonely and you’re never coming round.
Yes it feels like she may never come home…
Turn around, every now and then I get a little bit tired of listening to the sound of my tears.
So tired of my tears…I not only cry for my Avah but for my friends who are stuck in this waiting mess.
Turn around, every now and then I get a little bit nervous that the best of all the years have gone by.
But then I realize they havent all gone by, and the best of all the years are to be when we are together as a family.
Turn around, every now and then I get a little bit terrified and then I see the look in your eyes.
I will be honest sometimes I think other countries seem easier, another agency wont be as picky, another agency would let me move quicker…another country would be …well easier to work with…but when I look into those eyes. Be still my heart. You deserve a mother who would wait an eternity for you and that I will. If they called tomorrow and said you couldn’t come home until you were 17 years old. I would say okay. I wouldn’t like it. But you are mine and I would wait forever for you.
Turn around, bright eyes Every now and then I fall apart Turn around, bright eyes.
Every now and then I fall apart.
More often than not lately….
Turnaround, every now and then I get a little bit restless and I dream of something wild.
Oh yes…wild like a Travel Call before April. That’s a little on the wild side.
Turn around, every now and then I get a little bit helpless and I’m lying like a child in your arms.
Yes…I am a child laying in the arms of Jesus waiting…waiting…but as much as I want to whine and cry about how long I have been waiting like 6 months. One could seriously ask…where have you been? Because she was born over 4 years ago..and its not like I have been waiting around that long. My answer to anyone if my travel call may come before others is this…she has been waiting for 4 years. This isn’t about me…this is about a little girl, without parents, and significant special needs.
Turnaround, every now and then I get a little bit angry and I know I’ve got to get out and cry.
Yes I sat and cried my eyes out and even ate McDonalds fries the other night in my van. There I said it, I have no shame.
And I need you now tonight And I need you more than ever And if you only hold me tight We’ll be holding on forever.
I can not wait for our forever family day.
I will not let go and will hold on tight forever.And we’ll only be making it right ‘Cause we’ll never be wrong.
Adopting a child could never be wrong, it may not be easy or inexpensive but never wrong.
Together we can take it to the end of the line. Your love is like a shadow on me all of the time I don’t know what to do and I’m always in the dark. We’re living in a powder keg and giving off sparksI really need you tonight Forever’s gonna to start tonight Forever’s gonna to start tonight.
I feel this urgency all of the time to rush to her. To get to her. I am desperately wanting her to know she has a family. I want Avah to have hope.
Once upon a time I was falling in love Now I’m only falling apart, There’s nothing I can do. A total eclipse of the heart. Once upon a time there was light in my life But now there’s only love in the dark Nothing I can say A total eclipse of the heart.
I have to say…the blissful months right after you accept your child’s referral….you know…she is going come home. You know when the country you are adopting from is running smoothly and then wait..oh…wait a minute…changes..changes..changes..and you want to scream. And you feel this shadow stealing your joy….and you know it can only be one thing. Satan….he doesn’t want me to bring Avah home. He knows he has a hold on her in this orphanage and the orphanage she would be moved too. However he will lose his grip…because she will have hope and a family, that will teach her how much Jesus loves her.
Turnaround, every now and then I know there’s no one in the universe as magical and wondrous as you Turnaround, every now and then I know there’s nothing any better, there’s nothing that I just wouldn’t do
And WE will prevail, I will wait however long it takes…I will travel and fight for you until the day you come home. I will love you forever. I will love you for always.
~Trip to DC IPhone version~
Okay I will do a better blog later but here is my iPhone version of DC. We met my sister in law and her 4 kiddos here so Camye and Alycia, my niece could fly to Texas together so they could go on a cruise with Grandma and Grandpa.
First stop American girl store.. Totally awesome!:)
The boys were not thrilled…at all.
Mia was shopping immediately.
Paul and Austin were wrestling everywhere we went!
Mia lounging with a doll!
Mia loved his stroller!! I so see bitty twins in our future!
Amelia pulling her twins!
The girls had a great time!!
Lego store!! Awesome!!
Mia carrying the bag… She had too!!!
DC Cupcake!!! Incredible!!
Eating outside!!! 6 cupcakes for $15!!
Chocolate for Mia!:)
Washington monument
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Mia’s Preschool Snacktime
Right now Mia is in a little preschool class on Friday mornings…. I snapped a few of her with her friends having snack time.
Her favorite part of preschool, snack time.
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~Pinterest Projects~
Okay so no judging me on my mess… I have 5 going on 6 kids. I have been waiting 6 months, already for #6. So that means I have to stock forums, Facebook and my agencies website around 47 times a day. The carpal tunnel/IPod-itis is flaring up. Okay a little exaggeration..but not much.
In my free time, I love the website Pinterest! Love it!! So many great ideas to pin!! And to possibly try at home. And I have….
So the next several months, while I am waiting even longer for our little one to come home, I am choosing places in my house that cause me stress and doing something about it.
And the movie cabinet is #1 on that list! Below are two areas that drive me over the edge. I am so tired of this being a mess.. It looks like this about 2-3 times per week. So it had to go!!
DVDs stacked everywhere.. When mom yells put them away or clean up that mess. It’s a cram and shove anything anywhere!!
So yes I threw every single DVD box and most (which weren’t many) any VHS tapes in the trash!!! They are gone!!!! Don’t say how wasteful.. Or take to goodwill.. Or you may want those VHS tapes someday…. Which were all things my friends and mom told me.
Sorry ladies.. VHS is OUT!!… DVDs fit into sleeves nicely if I need to loan them out.. Blueray is next…. And the little digital disks of movies are already out! I have zero… Attachment to stuff! I hate cluttery stuff and this makes me feel great!!
I put all educational CDs in one case, seasons of Cosby and little house in another case. The small pink box holds the rest of the CDs and organize according to subject.
I did save some VHS.. All home movies of course… On 9/11 when we taped for 4 days straight of fox news… Dance recital… My friends high school copy of Pretty Woman.. Pretty much the important stuff.
Isn’t it beautiful!!!!! And clean and neat and stress free!
Now Chloe has gotten into pinning as well.. This is not a recipe I have allowed on my pin boards. I will admit I am a little bit of a food snob.
This is a technique… I have never heard of… I am going to explain it. Now before you start assuming, like my friend last night when I explained said to me, ” Are you drinking?” no I am not…:)
Okay Chloe and her dad cut up
Sausage links into 2-3 inch pieces and pushed through uncooked pasta noodles, then Boiled them and covered in creme sauce to serve. Very odd…
However everyone thought they tasted great including the food snob!!
If you would like an invite to pinterest… Leave me your email!:) you know you want to pin this fabulous sausage/noodle recipe!
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Rogers Family Adventure 