Remembering today the wondrous works He has done..

A rare still(sort of!) moment with all 6 kiddos!
Mary with Baby Jesus, Joseph (out of costume), the angel and a little man!
Stickers to our new little ones are no fun unless you wear them on your face! Mercy shared her Christmas stickers with Odesco to decorate himself!
Puzzle time!!
Mercy with her new school books. Wouldn't it be lovely if she remains this eager to learn!?!

How can it be that just one month ago today, our 2 little Liberians who now call us Mommy and Daddy were not known much beyond pictures in cyberspace, facts on a piece of paper and intense yearning in our hearts to get them home? Now, they are integral members of our family! While we still have a long way to go before they are fully assimilated , God has done some amazing things in just one short month! I must admit, our days are a blur and parenting all 6 can be draining and at times discouraging as issues continually arise. It is good and essential for us to step back and recognize the many evidences of God's grace upon our family...especially our newest members. I liken it to being on a long journey looking only ahead at the distance yet to travel. I can get so overwhelmed thinking of the many mountains and valleys that have yet to be traversed before getting to the final destination(and is there truly, a final destination in parenting? )...I am tempted to fall into unbelief when I only look ahead at all the "work" that remains to be done. Yet, when I take the time to stop and turn around to see the many bumps and mountains God has already taken us over, my heart is filled with faith for the journey ahead. I think I may need to do this several times throughout every day! So, without further ado, here is my chronicle of God's amazing grace to our family!!

* Our new little ones now get into the van and into their carseats without fighting or crying out in fear as we hit bumps, go over railroad tracks etc.(Mercy asked the other day as we headed out the door,"Are we going in the bus?")

* "Please and thankyou "are now frequently used words in Mercy and Odesco's vocabulary and now they only require occasional reminders to use these pleasantries :)

*Both children call us "Daddy and Mommy" (or sometimes Daddy-o or Mommy-o if the mood strikes them!)

* Odesco spontaneously came up behind me today as I was working on a floor puzzle with Mercy and climbed on my back to give me a "backwards hug". He is growing in giving and receiving affection with all family members. He also eagerly plays the "smakerel game" to see who can smooch the other's cheek the loudest!

*Mercy received school books today...simple preschool books I had on the shelf. Previously when I mentioned school she would plead,"Oh, Mommy...I beg you...no school!!" Today though she was overjoyed with all the brightly colored books and diligently applied herself to complete 35 pages! She couldn't wait to proudly display the fruit of her efforts to Daddy when he came home from work. For right now, she is an eager learner and I'm going to capitalize on that for as long as I can!!!

*Both children are transitioning during bedtime much better now that we keep table top lamps on all night long(in their shared rooms with B3 and B4)We are using 20w bulbs- since nite lites' were not giving off enough light ...fortunately, my contact at AOH informed us that the children sleep all night long with the light of a lantern burning-this explained their apprehension/fear in their dimly lit bedrooms. What a gift her input has been to us in answering so many of our questions/concerns. Melodie, if you're reading this, thankyou!!

*The food frenzy seems to be settling down a bit. Both children are venturing beyond meat and rice (although we always have this on hand) and generally they are willing to try new foods. We are also transitioning to a standard "3 meals a day" schedule (but we aren't quite there yet ..) The bloated bellies seem to be resolving a bit also. One other funny tidbit...I have had a jar of red pepper flakes in my pantry for years (literally!!)...Mercy finished it off in just 4 weeks!

*Both children seem to recover much quicker after 'meltdowns' (which still occur regularly but at least we can now perceive when they are coming ) and they are learning that longstanding bouts of the "grumpies" are just not an option :)!!

*Odesco is beginning to talk much more....this morning when he had "the look" and angrily shoved his bowl to the center of the table, I encouraged him to use his words to tell me what he wanted(Ifigured out what he wanted but didn't tell him that!) . Several minutes later, he calmly and politely asked for more rice (evidently the bowl I had given him did not have'plenty' and he was disappointed with this 'meager' portion.) I made a huge deal of his self controlled response and rejoiced at this small but significant victory!

*Both children are growing in the common courtesy of graciously greeting others. We continue to work on this but they are learning what is expected. While it might take a few minutes of reminders/instruction, we are slowly getting away from snubbing or totally ignoring those who are engaging them in conversation.

* Mercy sings throughout the day...usually it is a bible verse or some song she learned that is chock full of biblical truths...today I 'caught ' Mercy and Odesco on video singing their hearts out in their thick Liberian accents...I'm sure we will all treasure this years down the road when they have lost their accents and we've all forgotten how difficult it once was to fully understand them...

*Both children now love to be read to...this is such a gift since I so enjoy reading aloud to the kids(if I can stay awake!!). Mercy especially will sit for LONG periods of time listening to bible stories...she really seems to have a heartfelt interest in the things of God! This morning, as I was having my quiet time , I gave each of the kids a children's bible to peruse. Now Odesco comes and asks"Lau -oo-dah"...who is that? And I love to listen as he points to pictures of"Gee-du" (Jesus)-He has a few speech issues and finds certain sounds difficult to pronounce...but it is soo cute at this age. Don't worry, we'll work on that later!!

*Both children are currently taking an antibiotic and for the most part have been so compliant when it is time to take it. If I forget, they both remind me..."Mommy medicine!" They actually seem to like the flavor :)

*While the 4 littles can squabble quite a bit(think 2 sets of twins!) the past few days they have been really playing well together. On Saturday, B3 decided it would be fun to put on a reenactment of the Christmas story. She was Mary, Mercy was an angel and Odesco was Joseph...B4 decided he didn't want to be a part of it at the last minute so it was a short lived performance .

*Last nite' all 4 littles came up with the brilliant idea to plant apple trees...better yet they decided to eat their apples to the core, remove the seeds, and send them to Acres of Hope so that they could have apples there! It took a bit of convincing to assure them the seeds probably would not make it in the mail all the way to Liberia and that the soil/climate there was not good for growing apple trees.(Who knows, maybe it is?!) So for now, they are saving them in a container on the window sill and trying to figure out how to clearly mark which seeds belong to each child so that when spring comes they can plant 'their'seeds in our backyard!(of course, I could offer to give them each a container but I'm not saying a word!)

* Family,friends, and neighbors have really served us during these weeks of transition...meals delivered,prayers offered, leftovers shared, an unexpected gift of new industrial sized rice cooker(actually a steamer) with 40# of rice to feed the troops...we are so grateful for these practical and helpful displays of support and care!!

* Our 2 youngest homegrowns are really beginning to express their mixed emotions regarding all the changes taking place...many of their comments are not necessarily positive and usually spoken in the heat of a conflict, but I am encouraged that they are talking and letting us into the window of their hearts so we can seek to guide them and help them process things in a manner pleasing to the Lord. If you would, please pray that God would give them a supernatural love for their new siblings.This has been a challenging transition for all but especially for them!

* Seeing the world through the eyes of a little Liberian is quite amusing at times....the first time Mercy saw a car with a tarp over it she laughed hysterically and wondered why the car had clothes on!! I never realized how many cars in our area have a wardrobe~

*Right now( during our lunch break) the kids are dancing to the African Children's Choir cd...Mercy and Odesco have such rhythm and are absolutely hysterical to watch...Odesco especially is a hoot...we are all in stitches...they will definately outdance the rest of the family!!

This act of recounting His goodness has been good for my heart... Must be why the scriptures say in 1Chronicles 16:8-12

O give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name;
Make known His deeds among the peoples!
Sing to Him; sing praises to him; tell of all His wondrous works!
Glory in His holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!...
Remember the wondrous works He has done....

Choosing to remember today His wondrous works, even during those more trying moments pocketed throughout the day :)!!

Thanks for checking in!!

MamaB