August Updates

August was a busy month full of adjustments, more Dr.'s appointments AND AnnaGrace's birthday.  Our family is adjusting to three car seats, a child in diapers again, a shuffling of the pecking order among the children and general turf-warfare.  I'm the primary "turf". 

We have lots of moments like this....

followed by moments like this...

I think Isabelle is incredulous most of the time that she has been dethroned as the sole princess at the Horton farm.

I spend much of my day sitting on the couch reading books to the girls.  It is the only way that I have enough lap to go around.

Aside from the turf wars, I received GREAT news this month!!  After 7 months of tweaking my seizure meds and not driving, I got the nod from my neurologist that I can drive again.  My driving privileges were granted just in time as adding a 6th child with medical needs has certainly increased the Dr.'s appointments.

Lily is adjusting to farm life including becoming acclimated to all the farm animals....

Lily Rose was a little puzzled as to why this hen wandered onto our deck.  But for that matter, so was I???

In addition to accepting the chickens, Lily Rose decided she liked our horses as well.  Last week she even mustered up the courage to ride Popcorn...solo.  Of course she had to hold the reins all by herself. 

 and Sarah Mei took her job as assistant very seriously.

 
 
Other big news on the farm...
 
AnnaGrace had a birthday on August 18th.  It's hard to believe she's 11.  I don't understand why every one of my girls' birthdays catches me by surprise.  I just stand in awe of watching them grow into the godly young women God designed them to be.  Each with their own personality.  Their own strengths.  Their own giftings.  What a blessing!
 
 

 
We continued our tradition of taking the birthday girl out to lunch with just Phil and I.  AnnaGrace picked lunch at Mazatlan...a local Mexican restaurant.  The waiters all love it when we bring the girls in because they like to practice their Spanish.  AnnaGrace is learning Spanish with Rosetta Stone.  Nothing like an Asian child trying to speak Spanish?? 

In the evening we ate AnnaGrace's favorite meal...grandma's tacos, opened presents and dined on a Baskin Robins ice cream cake. 
 
 

 
  Can you tell life is a little chaotic around here by the candle on AnnaGrace's cake??  Yes that is a taper candle...not a cute number candle, not a trick candle that won't blow out, not a sparkly candle...but a taper candle.  Well at least I made a memory that our family won't soon forget:)
 

 
 
Aside from Annie's birthday, probably the highlight of my month was a "Welcome Home" shower that some of the ladies' at our church organized for Lily Rose and 2 other girls just home from Ethiopia.  Not only was it so thoughtful that they wanted to celebrate the homecoming of these three girls, but one of the girls was part of the Summer of Hope program that we helped with two years ago.  
 
 

 
To see Helina home with her family fills me with so much joy!  Words can't express my thanksgiving to the Lord for bringing her home to her forever family.  The great part of the story is after she went back to Ethiopia, her adoptive family found out she had a little sister, and they ended up adopting both of them.  So now Helina and her sister (pictured in the photo below) are home together.  We truly do serve an awesome God!
 

 

 

Many things went wrong with the Summer of Hope program which I'm not privy to share here.  And my heart is broken in SOOO many ways.  But I rest in the Lord that even this was part of His plan and I praise Him that six of the children are now adopted and back here in Charlotte including the little girl we hosted!
 
 
Below is a photo of Helina, Lidiya and Emma (Meskerem when we hosted her) reunited in the States this summer....what BEAUTIFUL smiles!!!
 

 
I am thankful, too, to be part of a church body that embraces adoption as His story!  Thanks ladies for the wonderful shower.
 

 
August was a full month and September and October will be busy in a different way.  Lily is slated to have her open-heart surgery on September 20th. We are praying that Dr. Scott Bradley, the cardio-thoracic surgeon, will be able to perform a bi-ventricle repair on Lily's heart.  After looking at the cath results that is his intent.  Please pray with us that all will go as planned.  Dr. Bradley told us to plan for a 5-7 day hospital stay with Lily's surgery.
 
After her surgery we'll have a few weeks home in Charlotte before we return to MUSC in Charleston, SC for Isabelle's Fontan open-heart surgery scheduled for October 17th.  Dr. Bradley told me to plan on a month long stay for that surgery.  Isabelle had some draining issues with her Glenn which predisposes her to drain longer with the Fontan.  My prayer is that our stay will not be a full month. 
 
Life is full and busy and the turf wars are intense and hilarious and tiring, and I am loving life and falling into bed exhausted at night!  Thank you Lord!!