News from the Eastern H's...

After posting the numerous pictures in the following two posts...it's time to give you some big news...

The H Family is in the "family way" again.

Still with me?????

One of the biggest reasons that you've not seen regular postings or communication from us has been this major development for the H Family. We waited until today to post these details to ensure that we'd been able to communicate with our children both near and far...our parents...our siblings...all while we waited for the big news we received today.

Some six weeks ago we were being visited by our dear friend on a Saturday...we call his family our Chinese family...and quite unexpectedly the conversation turned to Potato (adopted from China in 6/2006) and Bub (adopted from China in 9/2007.) I was retelling a story about Bub from the day before. That Daddy and I had walked home with Bub all alone that Friday as the sisters were all busy with play-dates and dance lessons. I told our friend that Bub had climbed up on the back of Daddy's bike and that he'd wrapped is arms around his Daddy's back and said..."I love you my Daddy!" I told our friend that I had nearly melted and had tears in my eyes as I whispered another prayer of thanks that God had asked us to bring this precious boy home.

Our friend was also moved by the simple story and he began to relate to me that he suspected that without adoption, and with Bub's special need of a missing eye, that Bub might NEVER HAVE KNOWN LOVE...that he might have only known discrimination. That thought bothered me deeply as Bub danced around on the floor in front of me, happily singing and periodically stopping to hug his Momma. Our friend said, "you do understand that without adoption for Bub, he would have likely been left no choice but to beg."

That comment quite literally took my breath away.

Our precious, happy, bright and joyful boy...a beggar?

My mind instantly flashed on a scene from earlier in that month when we'd visited Shanghai with our oldest son (The Rockstar) and his precious wife (The Princess.) While we pushed through the busy streets of a touristy area my ears first heard the banging of a gong. Then as I neared the sound I saw them. Two older people, sitting on stools. The man banging a small gong that hung from his arm...no fingers on his hand. The woman, preparing to play a flute of some sort...missing one eye.

We see these scenes often. Here, when you see someone begging, it is most common that those pressed out against the edges of the busy throngs of people are those who were born with special needs...limb differences...blindness...

My mind could not envision our Bub...forced to beg.

Then our friend said, "and you know, when I travel back to Potato's hometown, I see the massage shops full of girls who were orphaned or poor or uneducated...forced to sell their bodies to eat."

I know these things to be true. I've seen them with my own eyes...I live Here...but the impact of our friend's words on my heart was crushing.

And, I felt...a deep stirring...the stirring that I've come to know as the Holy Spirit.

Later that night, once all the tribe was in bed and Daddy and I began to have a moment to share about our days...I retold the conversation I'd had with our friend.

As we let the reality of his words sink into our minds and hearts again...our eyes wet with tears...Daddy began with saying "If we can adopt another precious blessing...if there's room in our home, in our hearts...how can we not?"

It was shocking for both of us to have this conversation as we were both quite comfortable with the idea that the H family had reached its full measure. I laughed through my tears...with my heart beating violently in my chest, and said "but I don' t even know if we could adopt again! I haven't looked at an adoption website in more than a year and we live Here, not There...and, and, and.." But Daddy said to me "This is so unexpected, but I cannot deny that I sense that God wants us to wake-up and pay attention to this, right now. Go and research it."

So late that night, I got up and began to research whether or not we could even adopt again. And it appeared, by the narrowest of margins and with some "waivers" for income and family size...that we could. In fact, one major piece of the puzzle? Our home back There that we could NOT sell! We wondered "WHY?" when it wouldn't sell...but now we see that if it had...we could not have moved forward for another adoption.

Over that weekend, looking at the hundreds of kids on the "Waiting Kids Lists" for China...there were two that really stood out to us as children that we should inquire about. The first was a little girl who was missing her left eye...just like Bub. We thought "Well, that's a no brainer...we can handle that and we have the world's best team back There who takes care of Bub's eye." So I sent an email to that agency asking if they would work with expats living Here.

The second one was a little boy. So handsome, his birthday the day after Magpie's with a special need...his left hand missing all his fingers, only his thumb was present. I just kept staring at that little man and my mind kept flashing back on that image of the two begging on the streets in Shanghai...a missing eye and missing fingers... So I sent an email to his agency.

For a few days we waited and began to pray fervently..."Lord, if this in NOT something you've put on our hearts, if this feeling of urgency is NOT from you, please CLOSE THE DOORS on this immediately!"

We also spoke with all our kids. Those back in the states (Rockstar, Princess and Butterfly)...all of them speaking words of faith and agreement with us...our Butterfly saying with her sage 19 year old wisdom "If you don't move forward with something He's asked you to do, I will be so disappointed in you guys. I will always have more love to give anyone that He brings to us." Our Rockstar...."This is so exciting, so awesome, we'll be sharing this with our prayer group on Tuesday night." Here at home our kids, one by one, when separated from the pack said things like "Yes!" "Absolutely!" "Momma & Daddy, I pray for orphans everyday that they'll find homes, of course I'm willing to share our family with another!" and Potato said, "Let's bring home a boy and a girl!" This was so encouraging to us to hear that all seven of the kids were getting their needs met and had open hearts toward another.

Some precious moments happened with Bub that are worthy of mention here. When looking at the picture of the little boy for the first time Bub says "Who's that Momma?" I said, "That's a little guy who doesn't have a family." He kept playing with his cars right next to me and then says "You mean, he don't have no sisters?" I said, "No, he doesn't have any sisters." Some moments later he then said "You mean he don't have no brudders?" I said, "No." Then several moments later he looks at me, right in the eyes with this pitiful, questioning look in his eyes and says "You mean he don't have NO MOMMA?!" I said. "No honey, he doesn't." He then said to me "Well Momma, he NEEDS a family!" I was struck at that moment with the reality that only 3 years ago this precious boy talking to me was a picture on the computer that I was gazing at too.

Bub says last week that he wants to pray before we eat our dinner. This is usual...and it's ALWAYS the exact same prayer..."Thank you God for my family, for Momma, Daddy, Magpie, Buggy, Brownie, Potato and Bub, Amen"...We were all really hungry and I begrudgingly said, "even though Daddy just prayed"...okay. He then breaks out in his VERY FIRST original thought prayer..."Dear Jeesusss, please help my brudder who only gots one finger and please help me share my trucks with him. Amen." I nearly melted.

The next day we had an email back from the agency who had the little girl's file. They said, "Thanks for your interest, but no, we don't work with expats." Clearly, this was a closed door.

But there was NO email back from the agency who had the little boy's file. So finally I called them. The first news was that they would be willing to work with an expat family. The second news was that the little boy we'd been looking at...was already out to two families for "review"...and in the adoption world this most often means that the child has already got a family. Feeling like the second door had closed that that we must have misunderstood what we thought God wanted from us...the thought flashed through my mind..."Where in China is he?"

So I asked the question..."Could you please tell me where that little guy is?" After a few moments the voice on the line said..."yes, he's fostered through the XXXX Social Welfare Institute"...I'm using XXXX, but the location was in fact OUR VERY CITY HERE! There are hundreds of kids on waiting list from all over this vast nation. There are hundreds of different orphanages...but this little guy...is right here in OUR city. I nearly fell off my chair.

Those of you who are familiar with the story of our son Bub's adoption and even the final confirmation of what lead us to pull up stakes and move Here know that the Lord has two times blown our minds with the fact that THIS CITY was the key. I knew at that moment, as miraculous as it was, that I was looking at a picture of my newest son and I thought I could see God's thumbprint right on top of his picture! So I told the voice on the line, "I know that you have your procedures about releasing files and that there are two families in line in front of us for this little guy...but I'm confident that he is my son." (She probably thought I was nutty...but she gave me a kind, "Well, we'll just have to wait and see.")

The second bit of info I received was also one that gave me goosebumps. See, the "Waiting Child Lists" only come out from China every so often and I had not been following such things in some time. I asked the agency when this little boy's file had come to them...and she said..."Just last Friday"...my mind quickly tabulating the international dateline conversion...his file came out the VERY DAY that I sat stirred by our friend's words about adoption, the very day that Daddy and I stayed up late and agreed that we were to adopt again. The last list the agency had gotten?...4 months before...

Finally, after one week, on Magpie's birthday, the eve of his 2nd birthday, they released his file to us. Though we were amazed at the suddenness of the development to expand our family, we know our Lord well enough by now to obey when He leads...so on our son's 2nd birthday Here, we sent an email to the agency saying, "we will adopt this child." I believe that giving him a family is the best birthday gift we could have given.

Besides the obvious lack of qualifying on size of our family and our income...the next biggest problem...how in the world would we pay for an adoption....we have no money, we're living as cross-cultural workers! But twice before we haven't had the money either and each time He's provided. We knew to trust Him that if He was asking us to do this, that He would provide. And, once again, we were blessed beyond words by a dear friend and benefactor who loves kids and shares willingly her finances with kids in need. It was quite literally, astounding to receive her email indicating her willingness to help us bring him home. There are angels among us, I am convinced.

Quite suddenly as well, people here began to help us put together the funds we'll require to pay this side of expenses Here for paperwork and the orphanage donation. It has been yet another experience of His abundance working through willing hearts. We have a ways to go yet on the required funds, but we are in absolute peace knowing that every detail He will attend to.

The great savings of all is that we'll really save money on the whole "travel" part of this adoption. We figure that it will only cost us about $15.00 to rent a mini-van for the day and a driver to take us over to Civil Affairs. Back to the very office where twice our hearts and minds have exploded with the reality of adoption...where twice before our precious children walked into the room and into our forever family.

After many hoops, hurdles and the drudgery of paperwork...today we received the news we'd awaited for the past four weeks...China's agreement that they would waive the "family size" stipulation and the "income" stipulation and have agreed to match this young boy to our family.

So without further delay...meet the 8th H Family offspring...Noah Graham...





We hope to have him home in the Spring sometime. We are praying for expedience so that he can travel back There with us next summer to process his citizenship and meet his extended family and friends. We had a homestudy done just this past weekend, with the backdrop of a huge Thanksgiving outreach event...our hearts were full of thankfulness indeed.

In fact, that has been the most overwhelming emotion of this unexpected roller-coaster ride...thankfulness. Twice before He's asked us to do something that many people thought foolish or unreasonable. Twice before He's asked us to trust Him blindly and to participate in His righteous purpose of adoption. (We are always reminded that He was the first adoptive parent when He took us into His family.) Twice before we wondered how we would pay for it, how we would handle another child and how it would effect the lives of our family. Now I am certain that what we have received from those two experiences of what was foolishness to some; pure blessing. I am thankful beyond my ability to communicate that once again He has asked us to participate with Him in a perfect picture in the physical realm of what He longs to do for all of us who are spiritual orphans. We are so blessed, we will get to receive once again the richness of His mercy and grace and the JOY of being His hands and feet to a precious one that He knows by name...and now so do we.

We know that not everyone is called to adopt. We are confident that this is the ministry that He has called us to. If you heart is tugged...may we let you know that there are hundreds of other blessings who are waiting on lists for someone to say "yes" to them. In fact, on the very list that Noah Graham is on, three boys are still waiting who are also from right here in our city! Would you care to know more about them? We feel confident that we could be pretty decent tour guides for your family when you come to bring them home! Come on in...the water's fine!

We are thankful, indeed during this special season.