Are you still adopting?

I know I've not been updating this blog, but outside of our extremely hectic summer (and fall) there hasn't been much news (or time to blog, for that matter). Anyway, one thing we hear more than anything else is, "Are you still adopting?". Sometimes that question makes me sad - how could we have changed our mind? But I know they are well-meaning and love us ... it's just a really long process and there hasn't been anything to tell. But, in case you're still wondering, the answer is "yes! Yes! YES!" ... and though we've already gotten a run-around from one government agency which has slowed our timeline up by about 2 months, we said from the beginning that we knew this would be long and difficult, and we're in it for the long-haul!

Another reason people may ask (outside of the complete lack of updates ... since there are none!) is that we may not talk about it much. This is not because I don't want to ... quite the opposite! It's because I want to so much (and would therefore scare off any nice person with a willing ear) that I dare not overwhelm someone unless they ask for it :) It's not because I'm really that non-chalant about this life-changing event that I'm dieing to have happen!!

There are times that it almost consumes me (like today - right now). The first time it hit me was going through customs last June in a US airport ... without our child. At that point, I wondered if I could make it another 3 years. I want my baby girl so bad there are days that Zoe prays, "Dear God, please help mommy be patient as we wait to adopt our little girl" ... she knows. She knows that there are times when talking about adoption with my children I get teary-eyed and can hardly explain why. She prays for her own patience too! We all want her home!! We are praying, we are hoping, we are planning ... but we are waiting. And we must continue waiting until God says "enough"... and let me tell you there will be dancing in the Witzig household on that day :)

10

June 13, 1999. What a beautiful day it was... the sun was shining... and so were we! I can hardly believe we've been married for 10 years!! Wow. So much has happened since then that it's almost a blur.

We have lived in 3 apartments and 2 houses. We have had 4 children and are praying for more! We have been on tops of mountains and in the depths of valleys (literally, and figuratively). We have been through some things that we wondered if we'd ever make it out un-scarred... but God! God was always there and through it all He showed us His sovereign hand. God brought us together in a way man could never understand. God changed us and molded us more into His image ... more unified ... more in love than ever before.

But let's not forget some of the crazy times in the beginning (for better or for worse)...

like Andy having lost his license during our engagement, leaving me to drive on our honeymoon and first 2 months of marriage...

like getting up before the sun did on the day after our wedding to go to court (trying to win back the afore-mentioned lost license)... and getting lost on a dirt road along the way...

like having a scorpion in our chalet or taking Andy to the doc-in-a-box on our honeymoon...

like Andy yelling "That's my wife!" and the little boy behind us yelling "That's his wife! That's his wife!" after I shot a hole-in-one playing mini golf in Gatlinburg...

like me driving nearly an hour to get to work every morning - even though we lived right across the street from the preschool (and yes, it was due to Andy's lack of license and my driving him to work in Huntsville first)...

like Andy totalling his truck after his license was reinstated (hmmm)...

like going through an unfounded work lawsuit that lasted over a year...

like moving into a different apartment every year until we finally found our sweet little house at 101 Silver Poplar in August 2002...

like having 3 children in 4 years! and 4 children in 6 years!!

Nor shall we ever forget the struggles which brought us closer to God and each other (in sickness and in health)...

like 3 pregnancies with months of bed-rest (each with their own unique struggle)...

more doctors visits, lab-work, hospital tests and surgeries than we could've imagined...

being cared for by our dedicated parents and wonderful church family at New Life...

flying out to Bend, Oregon - not for a getaway, but for yet another surgery...

and praying it was the last.

And now we look expectantly to the future (as long as you both shall live)...

I love you, baby! Happy 10th Anniversary!!!!!!!!!!

Celebrating in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic together :)

Did you know?

One of the many blessings of homeschooling ~ and having daddy work out of our home ~ is our lunch time discussions. Today, Andy started "quizzing" the children on where we live, our country, our planet, etc... which led to a quick intro to astronomy... which took a turn for the worse when Wil piped in very confidently to say ~

"Did you know that everyone knows that the moon is made of cheese?"

(Thank you, Wallace and Gromit!)

Let the World Hear Our Cry

I was touched as I watched this presentation of one of John Piper's messages. It is bold. It is truth. And it's about time America starting hearing and preaching more of it.

Please listen to the words of John Piper to President Obama regarding abortion... and pray.

Blogging in my head...

... but not on the computer. I think about writing all these neat and fun things about our family for us to look back on and remember someday ... but by the time I finally sit down to it, I've forgotten most of the things I wanted to remember. It's a problem.

But we have to move on. So, a few little things that get me smiling lately are:

1. Charlie saying "one" at the end of nearly everything (i.e. - Where's my guitar-one? I like a banana-one! I want a car-one! and on and on-one)
2. Wil saying, well, just about anything! He just has a way of cracking us up :)
3. Zoe wearing her favorite pink pants ... which finally had to go to pants heaven because they were so raggedy and holey and waaaay too small; only to be replaced by the brown pants (another cotton yoga-type pant) which are also way too small already and not wearable outside of the house.
4. Sammy saying "I want to be a mommy artist when I grow up so I can teach my children to draw and be artists too!"

For Easter, I made the girls some little pink dresses and they have been wearing them to death. It's really fun though and I'm thankful they like them so much :) Girls are such fun!
During our Easter party with the Witzigs that night, our 4 took a turn to sing some songs and say a few verses together. They're cute when they're all together like that :)
Next is a picture of Charlie's latest accomplishment. I know it's a bit late to be finally potty training the littlest Witzig, but hey- it's been a busy year (or years, I should say!). Gone are the days of magazine and book reading when you've got some time to kill.

The first time he went on the little potty, he jumped up and said, "Look! I make water!" Now, he frequently asks to "show baby make water" (a very instructional time for the little doll, I assure you).
And here he is trying out the big potty, but not so sure he can handle it alone :)

Wil is now our upcoming reader and pushing Zoe to continue her learning! They're both doing great and love showing their new skill to anyone with an ear and a little time to give :)

One VERY exciting thing for the Witzig household is that Daddy got his guitar out after almost 1 year after we moved here. There was just a touch of excitement that first night :)

Notice that Charlie is sitting on the couch by Andy. This was not a quick-run-and-get-the-camera moment. This little guy stayed there for the entire time Andy played (pushing an hour). It was SO cute. He just sat there strumming along on his little guitar and thinking he was just as good as daddy. So here he is playing a duet of the "barnyard song" with daddy...

And here is what the other children were doing during this song...

Such fun! Well, we also got to see some barnyard animals up close and personal during MHS's annual farm event. We went with the Rassi crew and had a great time. There is one thing that stands out in my mind though and it is from this picture that I am reminded of it...

Ok, Sammy held a little chick while I was watching Charlie pet a baby calf. As we came back together, she told me something a little shocking. After we got home with Andy, I asked her more. Here was the story that unfolded...
Sammy, "Uh, mom - I think I killed a baby chick."
Me, "Don't worry, honey, I'm sure it's ok."
Sammy, "No, really. All of a sudden it's head went limp and fell over like this" (doing the motions) "I think it's dead."
Me, "Are you sure it wasn't sleeping? What did the lady say?"
Sammy, "Oh, she said that happens sometimes."
Me, "Really? Well, it'll probably be ok after it rests."
Sammy, "I don't think so. I think it's dead."
Me, "Where did the lady put the chick when you gave it back? Was it in the incubator?"
Sammy, "Uh, I think she laid it on a box behind her. I'm telling you - I think it's dead."
Ok, at this point, both Andy and I are trying to control ourselves. We're both cracking up, but she's just killed a baby bird. How are we supposed to deal with that?!??
And lastly, the Piggy Bank auditor hard at work :)

There you have it ~ 6 weeks in 11 pictures. I would say that I plan to do better, but it's best not to lie. Not that I won't try, but life just happens. And with 4 children and adoption paperwork/training, it seems to happen a lot faster. It's been busy. I've been doing my best though to forgo urges like cleaning (and blogging) to take in these moments that I'll never have back again. I know life won't be perfect - I know I'm not perfect, but I don't want to regret how I use this time. It's hard though. Very hard. But I'm learning and I'm trying (though I must say this post rather shot that as I continuously had to "push" away 2 little boys trying to get their mommy's attention - ugh). How's a mommy supposed to do it all? I ask this of myself frequently, but I can't say I've gotten a good answer yet. It seems that if one thing is stellar, another is lacking. But that's just life, isn't it? I mean, if I had it all in perfect order why would I need to cry out to God? Exactly. It never will be in order... I need Him too much for Him to allow it... and I will do my best to be faithful and thankful for what He gives. Thank you, Lord.

A Tribute

As I wrote in my last post, Andy is 30 years old! I am so grateful that we have been best friends for nearly 1/2 of that time, and married for almost exactly 1/3 of it ~ what a blessing!

During these past several years, I have watched a rambunctious boy become an unwavering man. I watched my best friend become the best father to our 4 small children ... and the best husband I could imagine. I had no idea what I was getting when I stepped into the beginnings of a friendship with Andy ... I couldn't have dreamt it. It's been quite a ride and rarely on the path I had planned on taking ... but I am thankful for it. So thankful!

I pray that God continues to grow Andy over the next 30 years as He has the first 30!

... and I can't wait for the ride :) I love you, sweetheart!

Life Happenings

Wow. A lot has occurred in the past month (which is why I haven't been posting, I suppose). Let's see if I can quickly summarize: I made play skirts for the girls, I started making shades for the kids bedrooms, I purchased material to make a skirt for myself, Andy had a birthday week, we purchased and Andy set up our new Bowflex exercise equipment, we started our home study to adopt, Andy & I finally obtained IL drivers' licences, I purchased and hung shades in 3 bathrooms, our master bathroom is being renovated (removal of wallpaper glue, patching of plaster, removal of old cabinets on top of the counter, filling in of holes, purchase of a new mirror, and soon-to-be painting of walls!) and I'm sure there was sickness in someone at sometime... plus we're still filling out paperwork for adoption and homeschooling 3 kiddos. It's all been good, just busy.

Just in case you didn't catch it in the middle of that blurb ...

My sweet hubby of nearly 10 years celebrated his 30th

Birthday on March 2nd!

Happy Birthday, Angel!!

Then, just one day after his birthday, we had the delivery of our new Bowflex Extreme 2SE. This is the ultimate workout equipment and I am so excited about it! We were introduced to it by Trent (who should be hired by Bowflex as a sales rep) and he was so right - it's amazing. And most importantly, it works your muscles via resistance without the pain associated with free weights. This is very important for me and my pitiful joints. It's been awesome! We are so thankful for it!! (It's time for some muscle!)

Adoption Happenings

Well, we received a phone call Monday, February 9th, 2009, saying our application has been accepted and we are ready to start the next phase ... the home study. Our adoption specialist, Alison, came to our house to start our home study Friday, March 6th (it was the earliest time available). She gave us some more paperwork/homework which we quickly finished and sent back to her one week later (March 13th).
Hopefully, by the end of April we will have passed the home study portion of this process. Alison is aiming to have our dossier (i.e. huge stack of legal documents) ready to send to China by September. I was hoping for July, but she seemed to think that was a touch unrealistic. But if she's right (which she probably is) and we don't get "logged in" on China's side until September or October 2009 (which is when we're officially put on a wait list), then we're looking at receiving a referral by July 2012 - if we wait for a "healthy, happy child" under age 2. We are, however, very willing (and even excited) to minister to and love on a child that falls into the "special needs" category. Therefore, we have NO CLUE what our timeline is ... only God does.
Anyway, upon completion of our home study, we will have the opportunity to start being matched with special needs children (even though our dossier would not be complete or sent to China yet)... please pray for us for wisdom throughout this process. We really can see great potential of our wait being sped up, but we are unsure if we are entirely ready. And on the other hand, we can see a 3-yr. wait ahead too. There are just so many unknowns and caveats to everything ... which is why we need prayer, patience, perseverance, and trust in our loving Saviour to watch over us and our children.

"The Best Valentine's Day Ever"

I remember when this picture was taken feeling completely in love and on top of the world! And yet I love him even more today. How great is our God? Praise Him!

We praise God for the life He has given us and the family He has given us to share it with. I thank Him for my loving and patient husband, and for my 4 little munchkins who declared that yesterday was "The Best Valentine's Day EVER!" !!

The kids have really been excited about it this year and I didn't want to disappoint, but since we've never had any major Valentine's day traditions (except making cards), I wasn't sure what to do (still being sick and all).

Well, on Friday, Andy brought home a beautiful bouquet of tulips for me (my favorite!) and some sweet baby roses for the girls (they always get flowers too)... and they love them. Then, as soon as we woke Saturday morn, the girls already had their valentines laid out on the table for us all. We pulled out the "special" bagels for breakfast and the day started out great... or was it? Let's see, Andy was in bed sick as a dog and I was only out because someone had to monitor the troops. I really was not in such a happy Valentine's day mood, and yet the 3 older kids kept telling me "this is such a fun day!" (and it's only 9am). After breakfast, they got to watch a movie (twice, a believe) and then some time was spent with daddy rolling them up into cocoons (or raccoons, according to Zoe)...

...and getting small objects dropped on their heads and tummies. During this, mommy made an oh-so-special lunch of scrambled eggs (ooh-la-la). But that's when I pulled out the showstopper:

Yes, that's right, Valentine's Day plates & napkins ... the girls were squealing with delight and the boys were very excited too.

Ahh, the simple things... and all the joy they experienced for $1.98! And there were just enough to have them again for supper, which meant an entire afternoon in anticipation of another special meal!!

So, that night we had a party ~ complete with cake (well Charlie called it cake, but they were actually Ghirardelli brownies) and gifts (meaning some new pencils and twistable crayons). And the biggest hit of all was being in the basement with a fire going :)

And thus was born the best Valentine's Day ever ~ I love our family!!!

Operation Extreme Exercise

Yes, I mean extreme. As most everyone knows by now, I have done little to no exercise for the past several years (3 pregnancies full of bed rest and several invasive surgeries made it rather difficult)... except for one ½-year stint attending "Body Pump" classes at 5:30am with Roxi at Riviera Fitness (until I got pregnant -and sick- with Charlie). Wow, those were some early mornings for this girl!

Anyway, the resulting very non-muscular body is now experiencing the bad fruit of not exercising since my last surgery 1 ½ years ago. Apparently, not only have my limbs been weakened, but the very core of my body is - resulting in weak veins and vessels (not good). Therefore, I have been instructed by a blood specialist to pack on 10 pounds of (mainly) muscle... by next August. You've got to be kidding. It's taken me a week to soak this in - and I'm still not there. I mean, Andy & I have talked about me needing to exercise for my health, but to have a doctor look at me in the eye and inform me that I need to pack on the red blood cells like this was a bit much. What does he expect me to do??

Like I said, I'm a bit overwhelmed. However, I know he's right and I'm going to do my best! The only problem now is finding some exercises that aren't too strenuous for my body, but actually help. This is so much easier said than done! But maybe by the end of it all, this withered up woman will show life again and even gain some tone - who knows?!?

Ephesians 4:32

The other night, we were all saying our memory verses after dinner (which is customary) when I noticed Charlie saying a lot more of Eph 4:32 than usual... so, we asked him to solo... it was so cute we had him do it about 20 times when my brain finally caught up with my eyes and I ran for the camera. Here is what we saw:

Charlie - take 21 (roughly)

"And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you." - Ephesians 4:32

Well, he kept quoting and we kept videoing... when things suddenly took a turn for the worse. We asked him if he wanted to say his memory verse again, and right before I started the video he whispered "no" ... and this is what happened next:
Charlie - take 24

Who knew memory verses could be so much fun?!!

It's Spreading

Sammy stopped her eye drops for pink eye a few days ago and the whole house seemed well ... until ... Wil woke up yesterday with some gunk in his left eye which made us a little concerned. We weren't sure, but started him on the drops anyway (just that eye though - we didn't want to go overboard). As it turns out, it truly was the pink contagion and we apparently should've gone overboard 'cause now his right eye is turning various shades of red too. Yuck.

Aside from that, we're doing well. We went on a walk today and it felt so good!! The weather wasn't just beautiful, it was amazing! We had to keep reminding the kids that this isn't going to stick. This is Illinois. It's not going to warm up for months! But we're enjoying it while it's here :)

Since we were heading off to tread in melted snow/mud puddles, we suited up appropriately!

From Charlie, to Mommy ... everybody in their Crocs for a wonderful walk (though Zoe ended up quickly changing into her fur-lined boots as we were walking out the door) ... and yes, I wore mine too :) Such fun!

The Application is DONE!

As I said in an earlier post, we finished our formal application for adoption on Friday, Jan. 30. Just a few words about all that - the adoption agency we've chosen is having to raise their rates (even though they're not-for-profit) and will be effective for applications sent in after Feb. 1, 2009. Well, once we decided we were for sure going to pursue a Chinese adoption, we realized there was a serious chance that we could complete our packet before the $1,000 increase deadline... so we double-timed it.


Many late nights and long talks were had in one short week, but there were still some complications (like medical visits, etc.) which couldn't be done. But God is so good!! They were very lenient on the medical stuff and said we could send it in as it was done ... but then there was the issue of them not receiving our packet until Monday, Feb. 2nd. Much calling and praying was done until they finally said we could complete a portion on-line by close-of-business Friday, and then overnight our packet on Saturday to arrive Monday. Well, since I was running Sammy to the dr that afternoon, filling prescriptions, and getting papers notarized ~ it left me with 1 hour to complete this semi-formal app (thankfully Andy had done a lot of preliminary work while I was gone!) ... but again, God is good (He's blessed me with fast fingers on a keyboard!). We sent it off at 4:56pm ... sat back, ordered Jimmy Johns, and settled in for a movie night with the fam :)

Sickness Abounds

Ok, I realize I'm a little slow on the draw over here, but it's been busy. First of all, let me say - we're done with the formal application! You have no idea what a huge load off our minds that is!! We do still have some blood work and doc visits to finish before we've completed the application process, but we've got to wait on some of that until all the kiddos are feeling better.

And what's wrong with the children, you ask? Interesting question. Well, last Wednesday I took both girls to the doc for their adoption physical and all seemed to go well. But then the next morning Sammy breaks out with pink eye, and a raging ear infection the morning after that. Did I mention Sammy has never in her life required a sick visit to the dr... ever?!! Well, back we head to the dr's office that Friday for her first sick visit and a double-dose of prescriptions. She is doing well with the med's (she knows when it's time for the next batch and heads for the kitchen - she's great!) and is definitely on the mend. She's just got some sniffles now.

So then on Monday I go to check on Zoe while she's laying down (she'd been down for ~15 min) and her face is covered in red spots/bumps. As I'm looking at her and talking with her, the bumps start molding together into one and I decide to check the rest of her body ... she had them from head to toe. I rush her downstairs to our in-house MD (aka. daddy) and we decide this must be an allergic reaction to something .... but what?!?? We've had hives in the family before because both of our boys have some peanut & bug-bite allergies, but we've never seen anything like this before! We quickly gave her some Benadryl and let her lay down to rest. During her nap, I did a little research into hives and find out that they can last 2-3 days and can be a sudden reaction to something (like a virus) they were exposed to up to a week prior!! Hmmm. Very interesting. Well, we're on day 3 with bumps ... though today was markedly less than before. Maybe the end of Benadryl is in sight! Certainly the end of "well visits" is :)

Scratch that. I've still got to take the boys in for their physicals. Can you even guess how really not excited I am about that?!? Let's just say my fear of taking a well child to the doctor hasn't exactly improved lately. Please pray for us!!

God's Provision

Well, we're still working on paperwork (our adoption application) over here and it's taking much longer than we thought. There's no such thing as "quick" filling it out ... these are thought-provoking questions which really make you sit back and evaluate just about everything! We're getting nearer the end of this portion though and are looking forward to starting the next phase ... home study ... deep breath. Under normal circumstances you couldn't pay me enough money to go through a process like this, but this is special ~ this is a child God has placed on our hearts and I can't wait!

Anyway, with all this writing and pondering, I've been thinking a lot more about our little girl. One thing I've been wondering is if she will be ok with not too many other Asians in our circle of friends and I've been praying for God to give her security in our family (among many other things). I was not even seeking more adoptions out of Asia, but I discovered some very encouraging and exciting news today ~ my cousin Jeff is planning to adopt from Asia also! What a miracle for them and a blessing to us!! I just love how God provides for His children! You never know how or when God will provide, but He always does ... and better than we could imagine.

"I will proclaim the name of Jehovah, and ascribe greatness to our God. He is my Rock; His work is perfect." - Deu 32:3-4

Cinderellas

Last night, I listened to Steven Curtis Chapman's song "Cinderella" over and over... it's amazing. If you've never heard it (you can click on the pic to listen), let me quickly summarize: it's a reminder to parents how quickly time goes by and how precious each moment is with our children. Well, this morning I kept singing that song to myself ... but Andy had a meeting - and when Andy has a meeting, I have to clean my house. So, I'm sweeping the dining room floor 15 minutes before this man is supposed to arrive and I'm feeling a little anxious that he will find me on my hands and knees picking up pieces of popcorn from last night's movie fun and Sammy decides she wants to talk... and she's brought Zoe along too. She begins by asking me if I know what she wants to do. Ask me if I cared. I quickly say "no" and continue working away. In the back of my head I know I should at least look at her when she's trying to talk to me, but I had too much to do. So, she continues talking anyway. Then Zoe chimes in ~ "Mommy, I want to adopt a child." I looked up. And Sammy adds, "Yes, that's what both of us want to do. When we're mommies, we want to adopt children into our homes." I was so ashamed and so excited and so overwhelmed I didn't know what to do! I asked them why they decided this (we've not told them our plans yet, but we've talked about the need with them) and Sammy said, "because we want to help those children and show them love and tell them about Jesus." I was speechless ... and all the while this song is going through my head. These sweet little girls are my cinderellas and I don't want to miss a moment! I shouldn't. That little conversation turned out to be such a blessing and I almost missed it for the sake of cleaning my home (and the guy was an hour late anyway!). I learned my lesson for today, but I've "learned" it before ... so, what am I going to do tomorrow? And will the clock strike midnight while I'm cleaning and my cinderellas will be gone?!?

Click on the picture(s) to hear "Cinderella" by SCC

"so much"

Tonight, as I put Charlie to bed I gave him a squeeze and he sweetly squeezed back with a sigh and a "so much" ... I say "I love you" and he responds with "so much" ... and I love it so much!! God has blessed me with 2 little precious boys who love their mommy. Last night, as I tucked in Wil he whispered, "Mommy - I love you the best" and I thank God for them. Those precious moments and memories are what spurs me to wake up tomorrow to face another day. And I know Andy feels the same about his 2 princesses ... and they adore him! Of course we are both very much in love with all 4 of our blessings, but God has made those relationships so special. There's just something about daddy's little girls and mommy's little boys that is wonderful. It makes me almost come to tears to think that that's how my God views me - I'm His little princess - and I love Him so much!! It's such a miracle.

Looking for a Miracle

With my first blog, I thought I would share a little about our search for "a miracle". Since our engagement, Andy & I have had a desire to help orphaned children ... and we are now ready to put our words (and our faith!) into action. After much prayer and late night talks, we are preparing our hearts and home for a special little girl God is preparing for us in China. We believe this is our calling and a great privilege. We are very excited, but at the same time settling in for a long wait (~3 years). We are only at the very beginning stages of the process ~ in other words, we're filling out papers (and have lots more to look forward to!). We are thankful to God for placing other adopting families in our lives and look forward to all He has in store for us!