Almost home...

Here we sit. Again. We are almost home now after 25 plus hours of traveling. One more layover in LA, one more flight to go. But we definitely all left a huge part of ourselves back in Ethiopia. As we were heading to our flight in Ethiopia Canyon informed us he didn't want to leave. He held back tears of sadness. Just as Ethiopia did to me and just as I hoped ....Africa stole a part of each of us. My kids have grown and changed so much. I have watched them laugh, love and live beyond themselves. They get it! They now have faces to marry with the statistics we all throw out about the orphan crisis. They have walked the halls of orphanages, smiled and loved children who to much of the world are forgotten. And while they were doing it ... They saw Jesus in each of them. (see Matthew... Whatever you do to the least of these you do to me) This was my greatest prayer. No dollar amount or travel glitches can measure what I saw in my kids faces as they became the living Gospel ... Sharing truth of his love by simply being him wrapped up in tennis shoes and a smile! Worth it!!! We also laughed much and grew a ton as a family. Travel trials, meeting our brother and son, court fiasco and pressures, loving on kids, fellowshiping with other families and taking in a new culture are all a part of what the Lord has used in 10 short days to show us a little more of him but also a little more about ourselves. Growth is often hard ... But so good! We also come home with a better idea of what to expect upon our arrival home with Z. Lots of transitions are to come ... But we cannot wait to start the process! I will talk more about that soon. Thank you for praying. Keep them up! We are hoping our paperwork will be submitted to the embassy soon and that we will be granted a quick approval so we can return for our embassy interview and bring our little guy HOME!!! Until then, we rest in the knowledge that he is loved by the one who can love him best!!!