Hope: One Less: Day 24

After oversleeping, we had to hit the ground running this morning. She ate a strawberry poptart. And she put on her special birthday outfit for church. Of course, she wanted to wear a necklace and headband (even though they did not match). She was great during church. She seemed very sleepy and kept rubbing and closing her eyes. This made me a little nervous about how she would handle no nap today due to her party. We also received some books about the life of Christ from the Gergeni's in her native language of Mandarin. After church, we began setting up for the Open House. Her contribution was eating tortilla chips and knocking the party balloons around. She was also very concerned about when Kinsley was going to get there. Several family members and a few church friends came early to help setup which was much appreciated. As soon as Kinsley arrived, she helped her take off her coat and mittens so they could start playing.

The Open House was designed to serve multiple purposes: meet and greet, birthday party, and going away party. Grandma Barb was so kind to offer to make her birthday cake. Over the last couple of weeks, she has been pointing to pictures of 3 tiered cakes and so that is was Grandma Barb made. The 3 tiered cake was white, and she also made chocolate cupcakes. We kept things simple with light refreshments and drinks. This was likely the first birthday party that she has ever had. And I believe the party girl had a great experience. She had many people's undivided attention, got to be held by many, sat on many laps to snack, and received several very nice cards. We intentionally asked for no gifts because when she returns to China later this week, her items must fit in a backpack. She received some nice stickers and some goldfish that she can use up and eat this week. Nana Smith also brought her some more jewelry so that she finally has earrings. She also had a special visit from our friend, Joy, who has helped us with translation. She would listen to Joy, but would not really respond much. Her snacks included tortilla chips and salsa, mandarin oranges, goldfish, and meatballs. She did have one bite of her cake, but she is not big on sweets. A big thank you to everyone who attended, helped setup, or helped clean up. It was a memorable day that I am sure she will not soon forget.

It was a great afternoon, and we are so grateful to all of you for allowing this precious little girl into your hearts during this adventure. She has definitely touched our hearts and brought much joy to our lives over the last three weeks. We hope she has to you as well. Reality is setting in that her visit is quickly coming to a close.

Chris:
It was a tearful happy birthday song as mama and bah bah are slowly realizing how quickly this trip is coming to an end. I am not completely sure the reality is setting in for me yet but a tear filled mama caused my tears to well. I am not sure God could have blessed us with a better little girl to awaken or renew our love for orphans. We definitely have it. The bigger questions is what do you do with it? How do we effectively answer God's calling to be a voice for orphans or even is that what he wants for us? Maybe he is just wants us to speak for this one.

For all of you who read this blog thank you. Thank you to those of you interested in our lives or in the life of this little girl. No matter which country you reside in or whether you have read every post or just this one. I hope after reading this blog every person is aware and possibly drawn to the idea of us as Christians to step up to look after Orphans. That means different things for everyone and I believe the only way you will know what your role should be in the process is to pray. Maybe Kelsey and I are just supposed to bring these wonderful children to the US for others to love and adopt them. Maybe your roll is to follow in our footsteps and bring a wonderful creation from God into your home. Feel free to reach out to us if you would like information on our program.