One of 'those' days...

Mercy lost a tooth(bottom right)...finally we get to be there for one of her milestones!! She lost a few before getting to us and according to her, she 'chunked ' them in the banana bushes at AOH!
Jenkins K. was over with his big sisters on Friday... it is such fun to watch these 3 interact together!!
On Saturday morning, I took Mercy out on a 'date' with me....we have never had 1:1 time together like this and since most of the house was still asleep, she joined me on my morning errands. It was a delight to spend time alone with her ~ We went to a produce store and she was so excited to see a coconut. We bought it with the promise to crack it open after an afternoon photo shoot with a photographer (I'll post the pictures when I can). Anyhow, this was great motivation to cooperate during the picture taking. She and Odesco were sooo excited to have another taste of Liberia :)!! On the way home in the car Mercy told me how men selling coconuts often passed the gates of AOH...then she mimicked their sales pitch....too funny!

Here they go...showing their clueless American family how to open a coconut!!
They did it!! Notice our gleeful Liberians and our sour faced Americans....both L and G said the coconut milk tasted like sour milk and I must admit, it did!! Umm, umm good!!!


Thought I'd post a few pictures before too much time passes. I must admit, today was one of those' Calgon take me away' type days. I'll spare you the nitty gritty details but sibling strife, less than enthusiastic students, $6.30 in library fines and a bit of 'fence rattling' pretty much sums it up. Ironically, as I was typing this I heard an unfamiliar dripping noise and after investigating, found water dripping into our foyer above one of the windows....hmmm... I sent C upstairs to check the bathroom and he yelled down that the floor was full of water... evidently, the toilet tank has a small crack and its contents emptied on the floor and down the foyer wall. Thankfully, there is no major damage...just the need for a new toilet and my "Mr. Fix it" hubby will take care of it :) Opportunities abound today to put my trust in Him and not in our current circumstances!!
Earlier in the morning when I was doing our preschool program with the little ones we were reading about Hannah's prayer for a child... I told the kids how I often read Hannah's account when we were waiting for God to allow me to conceive again after our first miscarriage...I shared how we prayed and prayed and how God blessed us with our bio kiddos...then I was able to tell Mercy and Odesco how God led us into adoption...and how we prayed and prayed again and the Lord blessed us with them. They love hearing the story about our phone call at 10 pm from Donna at AOH telling us about Mercy and Odesco...I spoke of our excitement and anticipation to bring them home and how grateful we are that the Lord has added them to our family.... BUT, I must admit, there is often a disconnect with my brain and my heart. I am so very grateful for the blessing of a house full of children...BUT , often my responses to the challenges of mothering do not display gratitude. I am so aware of my desperate need for supernatural grace, compassion and love to do the job He has called me to do. How good it is to be reminded that on my own I am incapable of doing this.... I need more of Him and less of me!!

Thankful that His mercies are new every morning and great is His faithfulness!
MamaB
ps SOME OTHER FUN TIDBITS:
*Odesco needed(an understatement!!) to spray some airfreshener in the bathroom...he said"Look Mommy, the blessings are falling down!" as the droplets floated down...
* On Friday when we had our first warm sunshiny day in a long time, both Mercy and Odesco were requesting a 'cold bath' because they were sooooooo hot! Pretty odd considering the humidity and hot African temps they endured...not to mention the lack of electricity (no fans or AC)... I wonder what will they think of August weather?! Thankfully, we have lots of friends with pools!!

Forget not all His benefits....

Mercy and her 'natural hair' aka: mommy didn't have time to fix it!!
The little boys and their new 'fort' on the bottom bunk :)
Mrs. L had this cake made for the special day... perfect!!
Fortunately, I had the kids dress in their Liberian outfits on Thursday knowing pictures on Sunday would not be feasible....so glad we did that...I just love seeing them in their traditional dress:) Mercy fashioned her head scarf from a piece of scrap material!
L and Odesco were so excited about this "Century War Day", as they fondly called it. It was hysterical to see the colonists in 'formation' with the order from their captain to get 'shoulder to shoulder' and there were L and Odesco , shoulder to hip with the big guys!!

Daddy and one of his little men~ Odesco stoically guarding the colonist fort!
The little men preparing for battle....too cute!
Jenkins K and Odesco... these 2 are becoming such good buddies!!
Here we are...look pretty silly, don't we?! The things we do in the name of education :)!! I don't think any of the kids will forget this day!! Special thanks to Mimi (my mom) who made our skirts, aprons , caps and the haversacks for the men/boys...she also did this for many of the other relieved moms who were so grateful to not have to add costume design to their homeschool curriculum!!

Our little girl is 7!! sigh...where have those years gone?!

It has been a busy, busy week around our house!! Last Friday was our little G's 7th birthday... how quickly the years are flying by!! We had a quiet family celebration complete with her favorite meals and a time of sharing encouragement...always a challenge for the boys to 'think' of what to say!!(L's comment was he was thankful G had a birthday so he could have cake (well, muffins.)..ummm not exactly what we were hoping for!!) Mercy on the other hand, thankfully had a few examples to share regarding things she appreciates about her big sister. It was sweet to know she actually does acknowldege the many kindnesses shown toward her.(Unfortunately, today there have not been many kindnesses shown....sibling squabbles abound -we are all ready for some real spring weather and time outdoors again!!!)
Saturday was a big day as well...since last fall, I have been helping to plan a Revolutionary War Day to coordinate with our history studies. Last May I met Cathy Matson at our state homeschool convention from Mass. who runs a family business. She sells all sorts of historical toys,costumes, etc, and also holds living history type days to give the children hands on experience specifically for those studying the civil war. She agreed to hold their first Revolutionary War Day event for our group hosted by our very gracious friends on their spacious property. It was an amazing day...complete with moms, dads, and children in uniform/costume-about 80 people in all...many were families from our church but we were also blessed to share the invitiation with other homeschool families in our region ~ so, we made new friends too. There was the British army of Redcoats and Tories (British supporters) ,and of course the opposing Colonists. This was a family event and almost every child(3 years and older) was able to participate in some way. Most of the girls were 'nurses' caring for the wounds of the brave soldiers. They also handed each downed fighter a card which told them their fate...a minor wound or death...no worries though if one was fatally wounded because if the man/boy was able to correctly answer a Revolutionary War trivia question correctly, he was miraculously healed and able to continue fighting in that battle. Each battle lasted only 20 minutes so no one was excluded from the action for too long. The Lord totally blessed us with beautiful weather...chilly but sunny and by far the nicest day we had in weeks! It truly felt as if the Lord was smiling upon us to show such favor upon our little event. It was to be held in rain or shine and I am so very grateful we were not faced with the challenges of pulling this off in inclement weather!! The day ended with an optional potluck supper which we stayed around for. After dinner, the small kids were noisily frolicking in the yard while the older children played a game of soccer...what a wonderful way to end a great day!
After the trek home and getting the kids bathed and bedded down, my hubby and I needed to finish preparing our home for another special event scheduled on Sunday.
Mercy and Odesco were dedicated at our church Child Dedication. Typically, parents dedicate their children as small babies (as we have done with our 4 homegrown kiddos) so it was a bit different doing this with Mercy and Odesco...they knew it was a special day and it was fun to watch their excitement ...Mercy especially was attentively listening to our pastor's 'charge' to us as parents and she got a few giggles from his words about the sin present even in the hearts of all of our sweet little dressed up children. As parents we are declaring in front of our families and friends our desire to raise our children in the ways of the Lord and our awareness that we can not do this apart from His divine enabling and supernatural grace...because, let's face it: parenting can be quite a challenge!! We are so grateful to be planted in the fertile soil we are in...grateful for the help we receive from others around us in this daunting privilege of raising 6 kiddos to love the Lord with all their heart, soul , mind and strength. For those of you who are wondering is this like a baptism/christening...we believe in having our children baptized when they are old enough to 'own' their faith and their lives are bearing fruit to demonstrate this...none of our children have been baptized at this time but we trust that in God's due time, He will produce the fruits of repentance in the hearts and lives of our children!
Sorry for that digression...back to Dedication Day: Mercy and Odesco were donned in their beautiful Liberian garb and their buddy Jenkins K and Felecia were also dedicated . Many other sweet little babies (including one set of twin boys!) were called up on the stage with us and their parents. Our friends the L's also dedicated their precious daughter , Joy who is 3 1/2 (and adopted from China)..quite an international flavor to this dedication. Mercy and Odesco were so self controlled and did unbelievably well standing on the stage in front of a crowded auditorium for several minutes. We had been rehearsing appropriate behaviors (and what was not acceptable) all week so they definately knew what was expected of them :) I will spare you the hysterical mantra they repeated..."When I'm up on the stage, I won't...." Use your imagination to fill in the blanks!! :) Also, a dear friend who does a kid swap with me weekly, motivated both kiddos with the promise of a special surprise if they showed self control... True to her word, she met Mercy and Odesco right after the dedication to give them their special gifts. Nothing like a little motivation (bribery?!) to encourage obedience !! We are so grateful for the many family members who joined us ..they bravely dealt with flooded roads, detours and an overall yucky day due to the Nor'easter which hit early Sunday morning. Our social worker,( who completed not only our homestudy,but also the K's and the L's) , also attended...Susan if you are reading this, thank you so much for sharing in our joy!!
After church we had an open house with the other 2 families, some other friends, and our extended family ...44 people in all and it was as if the Lord expanded the walls of our home...it really was not too crowded and the kids (over 20 of them!!) did so well. In spite of my apprehension with everyone having to be inside due to the weather, the Lord once again showered His grace upon us and blessed the day. Mama K (Jenkin's Mom) and I commented after everyone had left and we were sitting at the table enjoying some quiet (that is a relative term with 10 kids between our 2 families!!), that it almost felt like 'the old days' before the kiddos came home. Our families met together often over the past few years and the older kids always have had a great time. Our impromptu gatherings have not been as frequent since December and of course there are new dynamics with 4 little Liberians in the mix ...but we were marvelling at how well everyone played together. No meltdowns, no major episodes...it truly was a day that prompted me to remember the following psalm:

Bless the Lord , O my soul,
and all that is within me bless His holy name!
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits...Psalm 103:1,2

Though exhausted at the end of our busy weekend, my heart was so full as I recognized His many benefits toward us!!

Some other reasons to forget not all His benefits :

*We decided it was time to allow G to sleep on the top bunk...since her homecoming, Mercy has either slept on our floor (first week or 2) and then in her bottom bunk with G. Mercy was quite put out by this change in routine and truly, I don't think she has ever slept alone in her life. She lived in a 1 room hut with her family and then had a bedmate at AOH so this was all new to her. She was quite fearful but we took time to pray and explain that she was never alone (not to mention that G would be asleep right above her!) We sang the Steve Green song from the psalms," When I am afraid, I will trust in you"... and in spite of initial tears of protest, she has adjusted just fine :) It is also a great opportunity to remind her of the faithfulness of God and how He helped her overcome her fears...this helped her so much at the Revolutionary War Day...see below

* Mercy was quite apprehensive about the guns firing after our field trip to the barracks and the traumatic loud musket blast. We practiced in our backyard with the cap guns so she could hear what they sounded like. Despite this, during the first hour of Revolutionary War Day, she walked around with her fingers in her ears and was very fearful and moody. She went inside the house for a while to play with the other little children and when she saw all the fun going on outside, she decided to join us. I realized the caps sounded like packing bubbles being popped which she and Odesco love to stomp on. Once she thought of that, she began giggling when the caps were fired. Then she proudly declared that she was no longer afraid and sang the psalm again,"when I am afraid I will trust in Him...". A real victory for our little girl!!

* Odesco and L are really becoming sweet buddies. Last nite' while we were at caregroup and the kids were with our babysitter, the little boys were busy setting up a 'fort' in their bottom bunk. They creatively hung stuffed animals from the bar above their bed and fixed a flashlight there so they could turn it on at night. They were so excited to show it off this morning and closed their door in order to surprise me and to straighten their room up and fix the bed up just right before I peeked...too cute!

So as you can see, there are so many reasons for me to Bless the Lord , O my soul and to not forget His benefits!!

Thanks for checking in....sorry to have bored you with our last post/ picture sitting for over a week:)
Love, MamaB

PS: Homeschool moms (or others!) if you'd like to get more info about the Revolutionary War Day go to www.historicalhappenings.com
To read a summary of the day go here: http://www.historicalhappenings.com/RWDScoresheet.html
also you can click on the photo option and you might see a few familiar faces in the mix :)

HE IS RISEN...

This song sums up the meaning of Easter so profoundly...
IN CHRIST ALONE- Words by Stuart Townend

In Christ alone who took on flesh
Fullness of God in helpless babe
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones He came to save
Till on that cross as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin on Him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live

There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world in darkness slain
Then busrting forth in glorious day
Up from the grave He rose again
And as He stands in victory
Sin's curse has lost its grip on me
For I am His and He is mine
Bought with the precious blood of Christ

No guilt in life no fear in death
This is the power of Christ in me
From life's first cry to final breath
Jesus commands my destiny
No power of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand
Till He returns or calls me home
Here in the power of Christ I'll stand!!

So grateful He died for me and rose again~
What amazing grace shown to us by an amazing Savior!!
Happy Resurrection Day!!
Love, All 8 of us :)

Worth the wait!!!

G is now able to read the text to her younger siblings!
~A definate Kodak moment~
Odesco and Mercy with their albums-Lost but now found -thanks to some diligent AOH employees :)!!


This time last year, our 4 homegrown kiddos helped me put together 2 scrapbook/photo albums to introduce Mercy and Odesco to their 'white' family. (That's how Mercy used to refer to us in Liberia). We packaged these up in the backpack (aka: "travelling bag" according to Mercy and Odesco) that they would later be sent home with, and sent them to the AOH office in Wisconsin. Later, the backpack (stuffed with clothing, snacks and small toys for the trip home), and albums were carried to Africa in preparation for the kids' homecoming. Looking at albums is quite an event in the orphanage and it seems to really prepare the kids for their new families. I am not certain how often this occurs but it seems to be some part of their routine and the nannies read the pages and look at the pictures with the children.
Upon Mercy and Odesco's arrival home, we were disappointed that neither album made it back to the States..in fact we learned that Odesco never even saw his album as it had been misplaced.
Looking back I can see the kindness of a Heavenly Father preparing our 2 unrelated little Liberians to be siblings. Evidently, whenever Mercy would look at her album, Odesco would peruse it with her...thus firmly establishing the fact that these 2 were coming to the same family.
After the dust settled upon their arrival home in December, I contacted AOH regarding the location of the albums...Mercy was able to tell me exactly where her book was at AOH/ Liberia, and sure enough, that was where it was found. It was sent home a few months ago in Felicia K's backpack. Odesco was quite put out that he did not also receive an album. His seemed to be forever lost but thankfully, Melodie from AOH found the mysteriously missing album somewhere in the Liberian AOH Office and Donna, an AOH representative, brought it back to the States with her just last week. Donna and Melodie, if you are reading this, thankyou, thankyou!! It arrived in the mail on Tuesday and Odesco has looked at it numerous times since then. I equate these albums with their newborn pictures we will never see...the album represents the beginning of their lives as a part of our family. This summer, I hope to compile "Lifebooks" for both children detailing their lives before they came to us using the information in their adoption decree and their own descriptions of life in Liberia. Seeing how they treasure their albums now, I think these books will be a real gift for them in the years to come.
So, now all 6 B children have their own special albums...I will never get caught up on them ...not until life is alot quieter around here, but it's a start , and I am so grateful our newest additions now have their albums to add to the shelf with their siblings' treasure of memories!!

Grateful for yet another evidence of God's great care for our newest additions!! He does not overlook a detail :)!!
MamaB

Amazed again!

On Saturday morning, we travelled out of state to our friends', the C family. Their son, Michael, pictured above, was in the musical Godspell (great performance!!) and grew his hair into a rather significant afro for his part...Mercy was in her glory ...on Sunday after church she led the others in a plaiting party on his head! Below is the finished product :) What a good sport he was with all these little hands in his locks! Mercy just asked if she could bring her rubberbands and beads on our next visit...look out Michael!!!
Ta-Dah!!! You can't get the full effect from this picture but his hair was sticking straight up with individual braids...quite a sight!
Slumber strikes our little boy again... this time he fell sound asleep during a movie at the C's house~ Pictured with him are 2 of the C children. Fernando is pretending to join Odesco in his siesta~
A quick visit to the park on a beautiful spring day last week!
Our little man, L is so expressive in his outfit choices and in word as well!! Usually he wears a belt and has a few sticks (aka: 'swords' or 'guns')carefully situated in his makeshift holster~ One of our neighbors told me the other day that she loves to come over just to see what outfit he will be in !
Mercy and Odesco were trying on their Liberian outfits to see if they still fit... they are being dedicated at church next Sunday and will be able to wear them ... they are a bit snug, but thankfully, still fit :) I love this picture of our little boy with the smiling eyes and his African drum!!

Our African beauty! Mercy used a piece of scrap material from Mimi to fashion a head wrap-Liberian style~
Our little frontier men ...home on the range...
The girlies had a case of spring fever...last week when we had a beautiful sunny day, they dragged the beach towels and umbrellas out in the yard as they relaxed in their coordinating oufits (given at last year's shower!)


Not much news to report. We had a wonderful visit with the C family this past weekend. All the children did quite well and our friends commented on how much easier it is to understand our little Liberians. I need to make a more purposeful effort to videotape them now because I am sure one day they will no longer have their beautiful Liberian accents which makes my heart a little sad. It is a part of who they are and I don't want them to lose it....we'll see what happens! Mercy and Odesco did quite well sitting throughout the lengthy Godspell performance. After every song which was followed by applause, Mercy would ask," It finished? We going home now??" Odesco also became a bit antsy and decided to fold his program into a paper airplane...thankfully I caught him before he decided to send it in flight! After the play , we were visiting with some old friends we had bumped into and they in turn introduced us to a friend of theirs who is awaiting the arrival of her little nephew ( a baby) from Liberia later this spring- what a small world!
One evening last week I ran out to do errands and forgot to kiss and hug Odesco...my hubby told me he was one sad little boy :( But, I guess it is wonderful evidence that this little man has bonded with his momma! I marvel as I ponder that this time last year we had just received our referral pictures and now Mercy and Odesco are integral members of our family...simply amazing!!
Amazed by Him yet again!
MamaB.

PS:* A funny tidbit: since the kids have come home, I used and entire jar of coconut oil 'greasing' them twice a day. We priced it out and realized it is much cheaper to buy mailorder in a gallon tub so that arrived via UPS yesterday. Mercy and Odesco were sooo excited...who would have ever thought something so simple could cause such a stir?! One thing is for sure...they will be shiny, shiny for a looong time...that'a alot of 'grease'!!