Praise!

We got our planed tickets Friday and it felt so good.  We also got a pretty good deal too.  We were told the price could range from $1,100 to $2,000 for one ticket and we ended up paying $1,199.  I was very thankful.  We fly Delta out of Nashville and change planes in Detroit for the long flight to Beijing.  I am also very thankful that the Gavigant family will be on the same flights as us.  They are another family we have met through A Helping Hand Adoption Agency.  What a blessing they have been.  Thank you Lord.  When we leave Guangzhou on the 1st of December, we will drive to Hong Kong and stay at the Regal Airport Hotel and fly out the next morning for Detroit and then Nashville.  I also want to thank God for providing ALL the money we will need for our jouney.  He's been so good.....so faithful.....so constant.  I know I don't ALWAYS feel Him.....but I know He is there, workin it out for our good.  I saw a sign a few weeks back that said, "True Faith needs no Feelings to rest upon."  My flesh always wants to go on FEELINGS......Big NO NO!  I really haven't had many doubts about this whole adoption since He made it clear to me in His word....but satan has slipped into my mind this week and made me question it all over again.  He tells me that I am not a good mother, and that I have no clue what I am doing.  He also tells me that I can't raise godly children and that I am going to make a big mess out of this family.  I hate him with a fierce passion.  I really do.  I will be so glad to get him off my back for good......and I know that day is coming, PRAISE GOD!  I've read The Book and I know he looses.

"These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace.  In the world ye shall have tribulation:  but be of good cheer; I HAVE OVERCOME THE WORLD."

GOTCHA DAY WILL BE NOVEMBER 21ST!!!

OMG~~~~~
We were confirmed by China while we were sleeping last night and we leave 11/17.  We will meet and take her with us on the 11/21!  I don't think it has hit me yet.....but Jeremy had tears running down his face yesterday when he got the call that our TA was here.  I am dealing with some other issues right now and am not fully focused on us leaving, so I am just chilling out right now....I am sure panic will hit me in a few days.  They will inform YiLin next week that we are coming....that will be huge.  Wish I could see her face.  Continue to pray for us and her.  Pray for Marshall.  He is use to being the baby of the family and having lots of attention.  He is also looking forward to being a big brother finally.

Also, please pray for YiLin's friend Min.  She lives with her new family now and has a serious heart condition.  The doctors are planning her surgery and they all need lots of prayer.  Min Min has been one of her best friends at the orphanage and knows Yilin to be her little sister.  We love her very much and Min's family has been such a blessing to us during our adoption process.  We look forward to them having a wonderful reunion some day.

WE ARE FINALLY GOING!

We received the phone call today from our agency saying that our Travel Approval is here.  Our agency has requested that we leave on the 17th of November.  We are now waiting to make sure there is a Consolute date available in Guangzhou.  We should have all the dates and times for sure at the first of next week so we can book our plane tickets!

Yay!!!!!!!

BY FAITH...........

Hebrews chapter 11 has always been known as the "Heros of Faith" chapter.  However, lately it has been my "FAITH" chapter.  Sixteen times the writer begins with, "By Faith....".  Two years ago, I memorized this chapter for a birthday present to Jesus and still it didn't mean then what it means to me now.  This past week I have been overwhelmed with fear creeping into my mind.  What if......this, What if ......that, thought after thought, day after day, and night after night. 

This past weekend we visited the Creation Museum in KY and I was amazed at the displays about the ark.  The thickness of its walls amazed me.  In my mind I thought, the ark looks so safe and secure.  But in my heart I knew that it was probably still a pretty scary place to be during a world flood.  I could hear the pops and cracks of the wooden walls as the enormous waves crashed against it and tossed it to and fro.  I could hear the thunder and the lightening outside it and the down pour of the rain like hail.  Can you imagine walking through the dark hallways to care for the animals with all this going on around you?  Then it hit me............today I am safe in the ARK of GOD, yet the walls are cracking with the force of the rising powerful waves.  I hear the evidence of the storm all around me......yet if I accept, BY FAITH, that the same God that led us here, the same God that brought YiLin to us, the same God that brought me into His ark of safety when I was rescued by Him, if I will fully trust in Him......my soul would be at peace.  Yes, there is a catch to it, of course.  I have to "Stand still and let God move".  Just like the song says, standing still is hard to do.  I am finding great comfort in that song and in Heb. 11.  I know that the phone could ring any minute now with our departure dates.....and I also know that it could be 3 weeks from now. 

Pray for us.  Pray for Shelby YiLin.  Pray that we will accept His perfect will for our family and that we will BY FAITH, STAND STILL AND LET GOD MOVE.

FISHIN WITH THE BOYS

The boys and I decided to spend some time together at the pond fishing.  It was a beautiful evening.  I had not felt good all day and this was just what I needed.  Marshall really likes catching frogs and putting them on his hook with the night crawlers.  He caught this large mouth just before we went in for the night.  We all had a great time.  I am very blessed to have my boys and to live in a place where we can be out in the woods or at the pond doing what we love; riding 4 wheelers, playing paint ball, shooting bb guns and pellot guns, fishing, hunting, or just going for a walk and catching lizards or bugs.  I guess one of my most favorite memories will always be the day Marshall killed his first deer.  I got the priviledge of sitting beside him in the blind and watching him pull the trigger.  Then my husband got to watch Ian kill his first deer in the same blind we were in, just 30 minutes later.  We've had some good times with our boys.  I wouldn't trade them for any amount of money.



We Are Officially Waiting For Our Travel Approval to Pick Up YiLin!

Our Article 5 was picked up and overnighted to Beijing yesterday.  This means that we are now in the last step of the adoption.  We are waiting for China to approve us to enter the country and pick up our daughter.  This usually takes 3-5 weeks, but we have talked to several families that have gotten theirs sooner.  After we get the approval, we will travel about 2 weeks later.

I met a dear friend today for coffee.  It felt so good to be with her.  They are also waiting for their Travel Approval to pick up their 2 year old daughter in the Zhejiang Province.  We are both nervous, excited, scared, and a bit ignorant about all the changes that are going to be happening in our lives in the very near future.  We bought some items for the trip and for our daughters, and we also picked up some Christmas gifts.  I think one of the most comical moments was when we were standing in the car seat isle.  My friend just stood there and stared at them.  It was one of those..."WOW" moments.  We have both not had a car seat in our vehicle for many years now.  It was a very sobering feeling. I guess we are just going to have to "buckle up.....get comfortable.....and enjoy the ride!"