This morning God faithfully heard many of your prayers on our behalf as we ventured out to the pediatricians for the TB skin test check a little after 9 am. Both kids happily climbed into their carseats and were not distressed at all during the car ride..In my mirror I had a great view of Mercy looking quite gleeful (with her purple sunglasses on upside down!)as we crossed RR tracks and hit various bumps...things that just 2 days ago had her crying out in sheer fear! I prepped both kids that we would be heading to the Drs to show the nurse our arms...then we'd say,"Goodbye"., and that would be the end of the visit...so, while they reluctantly rolled up their sleeves and extended their right arms, they didn't melt down... both kids even managed to smile at the nurse who had administered the dreaded shots on Tuesday...we drove home peacefully and I made sure I heaped the praise and containers of cut up ham upon my 2 little Liberians. My heart rejoices over this display of God's faithfulness.
The rest of the day was marked by relentless testing in all sorts of areas.I was having flashbacks to when our other 4 were about 14-18 months of age and testing their boundaries..Soecifically, the on/off switch on the TV/ the light switch to the basement while B4 is down there playing Legos, deliberate gleeful demolition of another sibling's duplo creation, refusal to sit at the table with food, ....you get the picture. Much of the day was spent with me bear hugging either Mercy or Odesco in the Living room glider as they flailed and screamed because they weren't allowed to do what they wanted to. Still there were bright spots...like when Odesco said, "Pese and Tankyou" without prompting, when Mercy very diligently used the dustpan and brush to clean up under the kitchen table when asked, when Odesco allowed me to rub cream on his very dry skin without pushing me away,and when Mercy unprompted, ran to the door to greet Daddy upon his arrival home from work.After dinner the kids had a boisterous time of giggling, laughter and just pure hysterics as they sat there cracking up at each other over nothing. Mercy and Odesco were babbling in their Liberian English, then B3 or B4 would do something and they'd all be in an uproar.This was followed by a very physical tickle time with all the boys and a happy bathtime. Bedtime was when Mercy and Odesco both decided they were going to challenge us once more but, I must say, though intense, the struggle seemed to resolve a bit quicker...I keep trying to appeal to Mercy's "desire" to please God and do the right thing... and keep praising her for the small but significant good choices she did make today.As I sat guard in the dark relieved that Mercy did not attempt to get out of her makeshift bed, I could hear another struggle going on across the hall .M was in the little boys' room having his eardrums blown out and his muscles worked out as he held tightly to a screaming, flailing little Odesco...I could hear Daddy reminding him that ,"I can hold longer than you can fight" and eventually there was the unexpected silence :)
So, there you have it...day 5 in our transition...thanking God for the many reasons to celebrate and praying for sustaining grace to hang on when it feels as if our strength will give out...thankfully, when I am weak, He is strong. Lord, do your work in the hearts of these little ones and help us to be faithful to display our commitment to love them for a lifetime with tender, long-suffering hearts!!!
Below are some pictures from the day ~
If you read this before friday at 2:30, please pray for us as Mark has the day off so we can take Mercy and Odesco for bloodwork. Pray that we will have wisdom in prepping them for this and that they will be as cooperative as possible. It is a satellite of Children's Hospital, so hopefully it will be a better experience than going to the local lab. Will update tomorrow :)
"Red and yellow, black and white, they are precious in His sight!" Bathtime for the littlest B's
Look what arrived in the mail today!! Mercy received her American girl doll, Addy a gift from Grandmom and Grandpop B..."Tomorro I wi pla he hai ", were Mercy's first words..(translation: "Tomorrow, I will plait her hair!")I reminded her to be gentle and that this is a very special doll with a very special pick to use on her very special hair!
Schooltime!After dinner, as B3 was finishing her schoolwork with Daddy, Mercy and Odesco decided thay wanted to join in as well...to my surprise and delight, Mercy can write many of her letters and she is right handed!!you homeschool moms can appreciate why this makes my heart glad :)
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