Six years of God's Goodness.

Six years ago in the month of June, My husband had just started a new job after being laid off for 6 months. He was making significantly less than he was before and I had all but given up on our dream to adopt.

Life is unpredictable. Lay offs could happen again.


I can work outside the home, but with a little one, we didn't feel that was best.


How could we survive on just one income?


How could we come up with the $$ to fund an adoption when he was bringing in so much less?


I had completely given up. And reluctantly shelved the idea of  having a daughter once again.

In all the years of our marriage, I can count only a very few where my husband has emphatically said, "God said."

We follow biblical principles. We apply them to our life. We pray, and we seek counsel.
But he is very careful he has heard correctly before saying, "God said."

I love that about him.

He called and said, "Honey, I have been praying and although it is completely irrational after being laid off for 6 months, I am feeling God still wants us to adopt. I know this is crazy, but GOD SAID IT and I feel very strongly that we need to call the agency TODAY.

How would we know that the very week we called and began our adoption journey in  June 2004,  that a baby girl was born in Jiangxi, China? That God in his faithfulness laid it on our hearts because HE ordained who would be our daughter? That His timing is always perfect?

We didn't know at the time the urgency of TODAY. But we willingly obeyed.

And while we will never know the reasons why, her family was unable to keep her.  Within days of her birth, she was placed where she would be easily discovered to receive the care that they could not give.

Today we were blessed to celebrate that beautiful girl's 6th birthday.

To celebrate the milestone of being SIX years old, she got to go to the American Girl Store and pick out her very first big girl doll. She agonized over which doll to choose (we have been reading 3 of the different character books since January) but in the end, she chose the"just like me" doll.

She waited a looonnnggg time for this rite of passage.

She dutifully fed her new baby, "Arianna" lunch, and hugged her and whispered, "Be brave" when she sent her to have her ears pierced in the Doll Salon.

We sang and we celebrated.

And my heart rejoiced at what God has done by blessing our home with this beautiful treasure:

She is a joy. She is a servant. She is her mommy's faithful sidekick.

She loves her family. She is fiercely loyal.

She radiates her sweetness.

She is thankful.

And she is our daughter.

Because God said.