Home safe and sound!

Just a little note to let everyone know we are home, SAFE AND SOUND! :) We had a little turbulence on the long flight back that got everyone a little antsy, but it didn't last for long.(thank goodness!)

We are certainly all glad to be back with our families, but a part of me is still converting the time and wondering what all the kids are doing back in China. We hope to share more of our experience there in the days ahead......these kids truly need us to "stand in the gap" for them!

Blessings~
Wendy

THEY'RE SPEAKING OUR LANGUAGE...

Today was our last full day and we had a wonderful time with the kids. We made some necklaces, handed out goodie bags with special fish sunglasses and did our best to let them know how special each one of them are! They were each given medallions that resembled an Olypmic Medal with their own pictures in them....and they were just thrilled!

If it is one thing that I can truly say that we have learned it is this:

Love is definitely a universal language that requires no interpreter. We have given love and received love this week.......and have been extremely blessed by these kids. Many of them have the most heartbreaking stories of abandonment and loss......and certainly if anyone has the right to throw up their hands given life's circumstances, they would be justified in doing so. BUT.....that is not these kids. They smile ALL THE TIME! They love each other, they love their nannies and they just love life. Anyone who comes into contact with them knows just how contagious and infectious their love and laughter are.

We all had hoped to learn a little of their language while we were here......and much to our surprise, it was not Mandarin at all. It was the language of love!

We will begin our long trek back tomorrow morning and certainly covet any prayers for traveling mercies. Thanks for following along on this AWESOME journey. We cannot wait to share more with you about it when we return!

Signing off!

~Wendy

Lots of love to give!

What another great day here in China! We started the day out with play time with the kids....singing, doing crafts and even playing a few games. We surprised them all with lunch from McDonalds today and they LOVED IT! They had a great time and many of them even asked if we get to play again tomorrow?

This afternoon, we got to take a trip to the local Wal-Mart to pick up a few things and it was quite interesting. There were alot of similarities, but certainly more differences. It was fun for everyone to see! They do shop alot like we do expect for the fact that when they come to the store, they only pick up one or two things rather than doing a whole weeks worth of shopping at a time.

While at Wal-Mart, I thought it would be fun to get all the kids cookies to have during afternoon playtime. Karen and I made rounds this afternoon to all the houses and handed them out....they were most tickled! Above are several of the kids enjoying their goodies!

Tomorrow will be our final day here before starting our trek home. We will get to have LOTS more play time with the kids and we are all going to make sure we don't waste a second with them! Keep your prayers coming!

Sweet Tabitha

We want to introduce you to a very special young lady named Tabitha. She has worked here for the summer and is currently doing all the videos. She is such a sweetheart and we have so loved the time we have had to get to know her while we have been here. (she braved the gondola with me yesterday!) I know we are forging alot of lifelong friendships here and that has been an added blessing to us all!

Since many of you are becoming blogging enthusiasts, I thought I would post her blog here so you can read and see more of what life is like here. She has some very special posts about specific children that are needing homes and certainly wants us to spread the word so these children can find the families and homes they so desire!

Tabitha in China!

Great Wall or Great Fall????

Let's Climb!

WE DID IT! Yes, all 5! We had to coax a *certain* not very willing party to get on the gondola (not mentioning any names!) but we all made it in one piece! We were told the gondola up the mountain was enclosed and when reality sank in that we were riding nothing more than a sky lift up, we were a little surprised! We all just had an awesome time walking the wall and catching a glimpse of what beauty God had created for us to take in. It was a wonderful day-not too hot and the skies were unbelievably clear as you can tell from the pictures.

And just when we thought that the gondola would be the *funnest* part of the tour, we learned that the only way down is a huge slide! WHAT? We each had our own little carts that we rode equipped with a brake. We all agreed that it was a blast and would *almost* consider riding the gondola up again just to ride the slide back down!

Say what?

A view from one of the watch towers.

What a view!

Karen enjoying the ride down!

On our way home from the Great Wall, our driver so graciously took us by the Birds Nest in Beijing....home of the opening and closing ceremonies and several of the Olympic Events. The Paralympics just ended yesterday and it had not been opened back up to the public yet, but we were able to get some photos from the street. It is an impressive sight.

One of the many sights we see on the road....

We all had a very memorable day.....one filled with a little anxiety at first, but wonderful blessings in the end.

Tomorrow we will get to have more time with the kids and have a McDonalds party scheduled.(SSHH! It is a surprise!) As much as I loved the sights today, I found myself wanting to be back here to spend time with the kids. You cannot imagine what an amazing feeling it is when they see you walking through the compound and coming running to you wanting to be held! Truly, they have blessed us far beyond anything we could have ever imagined!

Until tomorrow.....

PS-Just a small note to Bryan and Karen today who are celebrating their 4th Anniversary! CONGRATS to you both! :)

PLEASE PRAY FOR THIS FAMILY!

This family is currently in China trying to adopt their sweet baby girl and had not been made aware that just a few days before they arrived, she had been hospitalized and is in serious condition.

Room for Atleast One More!

We need to pray for her healing, so she may be released into their care and the adoption expedited so she can return to the US for medical care promptly! Keep checking their blog for updates!

Have I mentioned yet how AMAZING these kids are?

In all seriousness, these kids are just amazing.....and they keep proving it each and every day we are here! :) Sorry if that gets a bit repetitive, but it is SO TRUE!


This morning, we got to have some fun with the pre-school and school age kids...singing songs, blowing bubbles and even having some sticker fun! While we were singing, one of the smaller little boys began to fuss and before any of the nannies even had a chance to respond, one of the older boys swooped him up and began rocking him. It was most precious!


This afternoon, Ruth and I went to Beijing with 3 of the kids that needed medical attention. We were accompanied by their nannies and someone from the staff to help translate. The first little girl, Hayden is 5, and needed to have some stitches removed-she had a biopsy of a tumor that is growing quite large on her face. And what a praise-her results came out good and all is benign, BUT she will require 3 or 4 surgeries to correct it. The other girl is in her teens and had been burnt badly many years ago and needed the dressing on her hands changed due to a recent skin graft they did. And the last little guy is only 1 and needed to have his bandages on his hands changed as well-he was born with a condition where all of his fingers are fused together and recently had surgery to separate them all. Ruth and I were quite amazed at the hospital. The doctors were very kind and courteous and even spoke to us in English to explain their care. The nurses still wear the uniforms and hats (much like were worn in the US back in the 1950's) and the actual beds and equipment are very outdated (the beds where the metal, manual crank kind). And although it was pretty stark and colorless, the medical staff seemed to know exactly what they were doing!

Entrance to the hospital.

Ruth and Hayden's nanny walking with her to get her stitches out!

While we were at the hospital, Kim and Karen cleaned in the school some more while Misty was helping out in the house that makes homemade banners to sell for fundraising.

We had a great dinner tonight with some of the staff as well as the Bakers and it was very nice. Tomorrow we are scheduled for a day of touring the Great Wall. Your prayers certainly helped Kim over her fear of flying and I am afraid we may need more yet to get her over the fear of riding the gondola up to the top of the wall! :)


Thanks again for all your kind emails, comments and mostly your prayers! We appreciate them more than you know!


Blessings~

Wendy

God's Hand of Favor

Ava Hope loving on her baby we brought her....

First off, this is a picture of an absolute angel named Ava Hope. All of the kids here are so special, but I am a little partial to this cutie.....just a little! :) We are the sponsor family for her...meaning that through monthly support, we are providing for her basic needs and funding her stay here. There is certainly no doubting the fact that God's hand of favor has been upon this foundation since inception. As they were quickly outgrowing their last facility and looked for more land, a man literally sold them all the land for this compound for 12 cents....12 US CENTS! Amazing! This foundation runs only on donations....100%. The electric company was even allowing them to have no heating bills during the winter time as their contribution. My point is that this miraculous place is here thanks to wonderful people just like you who are wanting to make a difference in the lives of the fatherless. I hope to share with you all in the days of ahead how you too can be a part of how God is providing here..........stay tuned!

We had another great day. This morning, Karen and Ruth made rounds with Dr. Moody and really enjoyed spending time with him and learning more about the kids here.

Ruth and Dr. Moody discussing dr. stuff!

Later on we tackled another chore and finished out by cleaning the school. Later this afternoon, we did get our time with the kiddos (and would not have missed it for the world!) Just look at these faces!

Have you ever seen such little potties!?!?

Joey...Karen says this picture is for you! (Whatever that means!)