I am thankful, thankful for many things....I need to remind myself of the many wonderful and amazing blessings the Lord has given my family this year. I do not want to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of Christmas and forget why we celebrate it in the first place. I will be the first one to say I stress way to much over what to buy people but this year I am trying not to do that, yes I want to get that perfect gift but the truth is most of us already have the perfect gift, so today I am reminding myself to rejoice in all the things God has given us and enjoy this wonderful time of year.Can I do that?

This Christmas I feel somewhat different than what I have in years past, I am feeling a little guilty that my children will have an abundant Christmas and many others will not. That has always bothered me but this year it does even the more so, I guess knowing that this time last year our little girl was living on the streets with nothing, never ever had any type of toy just kind of puts things in perspective a little bit. My prayer is with those less fortunate than ourselves.

I am thankful my boys have gotten to see that life is not always easy for everyone and that we are all so blessed to have the things we have and to have each other.

Caden and Resiana's homework one night this week was to write a letter to Santa, so considering they cannot spell yet I thought the most simple way would be for them to tell me what they wanted to say and I would write it down and then they could copy it. So we began and I was willing for them to say anything no matter how out there it may of been. I started by asking Resiana first what she wanted to say to Santa and she replied "I dont know" so I asked Caden and boy did I ever get a surprise. In his exact words with no hesitation -

"Dear Santa, will you please bring all the dear children that are pitiful a new home, bed, clothes, and toys, and please come sooner than we thought and I love you more than toys." he continued also by saying please do not let the children be eat by cockroaches anymore,but I left that out of the letter. I was amazed, I sit there just looking at him not sure what to say and then all of the sudden his eyes got big and he said "Mama all them kids are gonna be so happy when they get their new house and bed" at that point I was fighting back the tears, he thinks he has saved the world by asking Santa, I did not have the heart to tell him any different. Oh the in nonce of childhood.

Merry Christmas to everyone and once again Thank You so much to all of you that said a prayer for our family this year

Disney World

Just let me say it was Magical....

Thankful

I sit here tonight thinking of how thankful I am that my little family is complete, that next to me lies a sleeping baby that God has allowed us to have and what joy his little smile brings and how easy your burdens seem to roll away when you hear his laughter, I am forever grateful that God has given him to us and what a gift he truly is. I am also thankful that our little girl will eat her first Thanksgiving dinner in a few days, that she has a home and food and clothes. She has flashbacks from time to time but most often you can just find her playing with her BFF which is her brother Caden. She is still so grateful for the smallest things that I take for granted. She was excited the other day when getting dressed that she had lots of clothes to choose from and began to tell me that when she lived in " the park" she only had one clothes. Resiana is such a happy child, full of love and laughter. I cannot really imagine her life before she came to us, its really more than my mind can comprehend but I am amazed that this little girl who once spoke broken English and peeked inside every trash can we passed is now just a normal little girl who loves to play and loves school and loves life. She is doing amazing in school, she is constantly going around sounding out every single letter she sees on anything from the hairspray to the milk jug, she has caught on so well. There was a time when she did not know the simplest of things, such as a refrigerator, window, blow dryer etc. now she is no different than her brother just a normal five year old. This time last year I was the mother of two boys with no thought of what God had in store for us, I was totally satisfied with just the boys and thought we were complete but never dreamed how sitting and watching footage of the terrible earthquake in Haiti would change mine and Michael's life forever, that through that tragedy we would feel the tug upon our heartstrings that God had more children out there waiting on us, even Carter felt it and through his tears asked if we could adopt again, we would of loved to have adopted some of those children but after doing some research found out the government had put a hold on all adoptions from that country but still we felt the "call" and in less than two months later a precious little girl walked into our lives and forever changed us, now we are whole....... Michael, Crystal, Carter, Caden, Resiana, and Crimsyn!!!!!!!

Happy Halloween

Hope everyone has a fun and safe Halloween... We have had an eventful day filled with lots of fun for the kids. The kids had their Halloween party at school and then tonight we had our church Halloween party, the kids had a blast, Resiana was so excited even though she had no idea what all of this was about, all she kept saying all day was is this Halloween day, I guess my best explanation for Halloween is just that you get to dress up and get candy since It really has no meaning otherwise, anyways it was truly a fun day and night for the kids. Caden loves dressing up and would of wore any costume, Carter on the other hand has give me a fit about dressing up since he was three years old, he thinks its dumb but I made him as usual but I did let him take it off after a few pictures, anyways life is wonderful even though it is a circus around here sometimes, and getting everything together for four kids sometimes gets a little crazy, for instance tonight before going to the party we were all getting things together to take to the party, the food, costumes, candy etc, and in the chaos Crimsyn's bottle got warmed and put away to take with us, after getting to the party and unloading everything Crimsyn is ready for his bottle, but the bottle is nowhere to be found, we searched high and low but no bottle, so Michael had to go home and get him another bottle but no one knows where in the world the bottle went, at the end of the night when we were passing out the candy to the kids, in the bottom of the basket , under all the candy was the bottle...Who knows??? We are one happy family, a little crazy sometime but nevertheless Happy!!! Happy Halloween Everyone!!

Picture Post

Reflecting

The last few days I have been thinking about the way our lives have been blessed and how much God has given us this year, the two children he has added to our home and the love and joy they have brought, healing Crimsyn after bringing him home just in time. Wow we have had an amazing year, with many ups and downs, laughter and tears. God has taught us so much through our children all of them, but in most recent times through Crimsyn and Resiana. I never really understood the exact meaning of trusting the Lord and I know it can be said for many things "we need to trust the Lord" but through this experience I think I found out a little of what trusting the Lord was about. I remember a few days before we got the call to come back and get our baby, I was so distraught and felt part of myself was questioning everything why why why???
I did not want to be that way but I was struggling knowing what precious little Crimsyns life would be like. One day I was praying and I told the Lord he was worthy of the praise no matter what and that I would do my best to be the best even though I did not understand and I think I realized it was not for me to understand at the time, no my hurt did not go away not even in the least but he spoke peace to my soul, in a way only he could, the comforting hand of our dear Saviour...Today I am so thankful he has lifted that burden and brought so much joy to us with the GIFT of baby Crimsyn, for I know he belongs to God and we have been allowed to love and cherish him. The love I have for my childrens birth family is so great, to be given the chance to love and be loved by my children is my dream come true and the joy our children brings is the most fullfilling experience I have ever had, being a Mother is simply amazing, and I thank God daily, I have alot to learn and I need wisdom but the challenges that come along with motherhood cannot even be compared to the joys of motherhood.

As you all know Crimsyn fell very ill shortly after he came to be with us , as we were in the hospital with him it hit us of how God brought him home to us just in time, in time for him to get medical help and to have such precious people praying for him, while we were in the hospital the Lord sent him so much help, help that could of only came from him, in ways that no amount of medicine could of done..He truly is a miracle...

Our children our the happiest little kids in the world, Caden came in the living room one day while I was holding Crimsyn and said "Mama we dont have to cry anymore" they love him so much all of them but his big brother Carter is soo crazy about him and loves tending to him, he will sit forever and hold him if we let him, the little ones love him to but would rather be playing with each other, they are still best buds ( I could count on my one hand in the past six months how many times they have argued) they love each other so much and want to be together all the time, its precious.

Resiana is doing so good in school, her teacher said she is a social butterfly and everyone wants to be her friend. She still is the most grateful child you have ever seen, she will recount things that happened in the "park" from time to time and it is simply gut wrenching, I dont think she realizes how disturbing it really is, that was just her life for nearly five years. She is so normal though as if she has always been here and been our child, she is just our little girl..We are thankful beyond measure!!!

Blessings

Thank you Lord for your Blessings on our Family!!!!

We are so thankful for baby Crimsyn.....We are so thankful that God has allowed us to be parents, I remember asking God to let me be a mother however he seen fit, that if there was a child out there that he would allow us to have that I would do my best to teach him the ways of the Lord to the very best of my ability, sometime I feel so unworthy to be the mother of these four wonderful children but I look back to that prayer I so diligently prayed for six and a half years, and I know without a doubt that God choose me and Michael and Carter, Caden, Resiana, and Crimsyn to be a family, and our children know that God put us together in a different way than most families but that they are special and loved beyond measure....When Carter was around two years old we began to talk about him being adopted and what that meant and we would tell him the story of how he came to be ours and he loved to hear me tell him about it and when it was nap time he would want to hear it again and again and through the years he understood more and more and seems very content in knowing that God had a plan for all of us... When you ask my children where they were born they usually say " In My Mama's Heart"

and that is exactly how I feel, they are the children of my heart, the love of their father and my life , we are so very thankful and could never praise God enough...



Crimsyn is doing wonderful!!!!! The kids are crazy about him, always wanting to help feed him or change him...They think he is the best thing in the world and so do we, I do not think he has been laid down more than three or four times in these past five days, we cannot get enough of him...We just want to shout it from the rooftops CRIMSYN IS HOME!!!!!!THANK YOU LORD!!!

The Journey

Well everyone we are so happy words cannot express......

The darkest hour is before the dawn.. The storm came and yes now we have "Our Rainbow"

Last week seemed to be the hardest week of our lives, I had never seen my strong unemotional husband so broken, and needless to say I am always emotional but the feelings I have experienced the last few weeks were beyond emotions that I understood, I felt myself slipping away and I did not want that, I wanted to be a good mother to the three children that were with me and to be a good servant to the Lord but I felt myself slipping into a state of mind that I could not hardly pull out of...Thursday of last week was our church night and Michael told me he just didnt know if he could do it, go and pretend things were ok, he had not been sleeping at night and it seemed he had the weight of the world on his shoulders,and to try and get up before a congergation of people and encourage them seemed impossible (but let me tell you the Lord helped him everytime) and he was there everytime....



Friday night we had a Gospel Singing and I was not even sure I would feel up to attending but I knew going was the right thing..During intermission Michael came up to me and asked me to come outside and said he recieved a phone call from the adoption co-ordinator and that the birthmother had contacted her and told her she wanted us to come and get the baby, just that simple... We were so excited but was still guarded.. We could not hardly sleep friday night due to the excitment but was still a little unsure, Saturday evening the birthmother called me herself and told me that she wanted us to have the baby more than anything.....


We arrived in Hawaii at 10pm and went straight to the co-ordiantors house and got the baby and the birthmother asked to stay the night with us, we brought her back to our hotel and spent the night and day with her, it was bitter sweet but wonderful...The birthmother told me once more of how God had brought us together.....Praise The Lord.....THIS IS OUR JOURNEY!!!!!!

Crimsyn is Home!!!!!! Praise the Lord

Crimsyn is home as of last night fixing to go surprise the church just like we surprised our family last night, details and photos later!!!!

Glory to God!!!!!!!

Thankful

Well I just read everyones thankful list and mine sounds pretty close to everyone else but I thought I would continue the cycle and tell you all a little of what I am so thankful for

I am thankful most of all that out of this big world The Lord choose me to be his servant...

I am thankful for my wonderful husband who is my hero, my best friend, my sounding board, my inspiration...

I am thankful for our "Journey" even when the days looked dark we know this is our jourey,
words cannot describe how thankful I am for the joy my children brings, the void they have filled in my life, the comfort they bring...

I am thankful for my Mother and Father who raised me to fear the Lord and put him first, and that being a Mother was the best thing in the world, and to know they love me unconditonaly...

I am thankful for the influence my Grandmothers had and still have in my life, and that I can truly say that Granny is one of my best friends and I love spending time with her...

I am thankful for my brothers, still trying to protect me.... I am thankful for my sister who makes me laugh and brightens my day..

I am thankful for my dear friends who are always there no matter what and know how to cheer me up..

I am thankful for my wonderful in-laws that I consider my second parents, and to know they love me like their own...

I am thankful for all my "Mama Crystal" babies who have brought so much joy to my life even though some of them are grown, they make my life more wonderful!!

I am thankful for my church family who suffers when we suffer and rejoices when we rejoyce...

I am thankful for my health, that the Lord has restored it unto me, and allows me to do the things I need to and more..

I am thankful for all the little things that are not so little...

I am thankful that my little Girl will have her first Christmas...

I am thankful for life !!!!! AND I Am so Thankful he brought our precious baby home!!!

Missing Crimsyn!!!!!!!!!!!

Well I sit here not knowing exactly what to do with myself, it seems the days drag on and the nights have no end...Michael and I were talking of how it seems it has been six months since we have seen our precious baby, when in reality it has been just a little over two weeks. Last week I felt so encouraged so spiritual, trusting and believing that there was a greater plan in the works, but somehow I have let that slip somewhat, yes I know that we are serving a wonderful and gracious God and he does everything just right, but I am finding myself slipping from that strong Hope I had just a few days ago, my every thought is consumed with Crimsyn and that spills over into mine and Michaels sleep, we both are waking at all hours thinking, talking, and crying about Crimsyn. His nursery is right off our bedroom(we had it built on when we found out we were "expecting') and I do find comfort in going into his room but I just do not know what to do with myself, these past two weeks have felt like an eternity..Michael is having a hard time with all of this to and he is always the spiritual one and the one who quotes scripture to make me feel better, but the reality we just dont know what the future holds and that is what scares me to death..I would like to think I was a good servant to the Lord, that I handle adversity in a christian way, but exactly how does the Lord want me to be, I am not sure...I have found myself not wanting to get out of the confines of our house, I went to Wal-Mart the other day but after about 10min, felt like I was about to have a break down so I left. I do not want the Lord to look at me and be disappointed, I just am not sure how to handle this, I have never experienced anything like this and I know alot of other people have and I sure do not want to be poor pitiful me, but I really have never experienced such a feeling of loss, when my Grandmother passed away it was so sad and hard but this is different, I feel like a shell of a human being, just going through the motions and trying to put on a smile on around my kids and tell them its going to be okay when in reality, I do not know what the future holds and I am scared, very scared, things that mattered so much a month ago I could care less about. It feels our little family circle has been broken, I want to hope and yes I still have hope, so much hope that I keep my cell phone right beside me even in the middle of the night just hoping maybe they will call and tell us to come bring Crimsyn home, but I feel so bad when I hear it ring and I look down and it is not them calling and sometimes I cannot make myself answer it, I just dont have any words to say sometimes..Ok I guess this is enough and I know I have said to much on here but I have wrote so much on paper to nobody my hand gets tired..Just trying to find a little relief, I do not want to be ungrateful for all I have in this life because I am truly thankful but we feel like a part of our hearts is still in hawaii..Take care everyone and enjoy holding your children tonight...

Hope

Well I did not have any intentions of posting anytime soon but this morning I was in such despair and my heart was hurting more than it seemed I could bare, and I decided to look at our blog and re-read our encouraging comments, never did I expect there to be more and what encouragement I would recieve...While reading Sis. Heather's comment and then Sis.Sherill's the realization sank in I have HOPE, hope our baby will come home, hope he will have food, hope he will have shelter, hope he will know the love of his Daddy and Mama...HOPE what a beautiful word today HOPE!!!!!!! I have been talking to Michael over these past several days and I would tell him that I did not understand why God did not just take Crimsyn to live with him, I know to some that may sound hard but to me it would mean safety and love, the thought of Crimsyn being hungry, dirty, cold, etc seemed more than my heart could take,but Michael would tell me he could not feel that way, that he was just going to hope, HOPE, yes we can hope...Thank you soo much for your encouragement , it amazes me how God uses his children to help one another...

Pray for Crimsyn

Today I sit in my living room looking at the cradle that was suppose to be holding our precious son, and trying to fiqure out what to do with myself...For the last five months we have anticipated the birth of our son and as all parents do, had many dreams for his future. After leaving the hospital yesterday Michael and I went and told our kids and that was one of the hardest things I ever had to do. The children hugged each other as they sobbed and talked of how they did'nt want baby Crimsyn to live in the park, they are so broken hearted...We are just trying to go on and pick up the pieces and know that within those pieces God has a beautiful puzzle that all the pieces fit inside of and when it is all finished it will be his will and his way. As we made our journey home last night I was trying to make sense of all of this and trying to see some good and all I could think of was our precious little Crimsyn being homeless, and living in such poverty and knowing he is out there, that he is a living, breathing human being that I have touched his soft skin that I have felt the warmth of his little body and to know that I cannot take care of him and give him the things he needs in life is just more than I can wrap my head around, but with all of that being said I have to tell myself God is in control and he knows where Crimsyn is and he knows what the future holds. Even though this is a time of grieve for our entire family it is not prayer for us that I am asking it is for our little innocent child Crimsyn that God will send an Angel to care for him. Thank you all for your love and prayers!!

Empty Handed!!

Hello everyone,

It is with great sadness that we have to announce that when Crystal went to the hospital today, that the social worker met with her and told her that the birthparents had changed their mind on the adoption. She talked with the social worker and asked her if there was anything that could be done since they had already signed the papers and they told us no. So at this time we are sadly packing and heading back to Alabama tonight without Crimsyn, and should arrive in Huntsville tuesday afternoon. Please keep us in your prayers. We truly thank you for all your prayers in this "Our Adoption Journey" THE END

Michael

Welcome Crimsyn Anderson Clark

Welcome Baby Crimsyn Anderson Clark 6lbs.13oz. 20"long

Thank You Lord baby Crimsyn is healthy after a long hard birth !!!!!

26 hours of labor and lots of tears he is here.....

BABY NEWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ok guys here is what we got. They are putting here in tonight at 7pm hawaii time. Crystal is quickly gathering the baby's stuff, and we are off tothe hospital. We will post when we know more and can get internt access. Slick

Emotional Day

Today we went to the park where Resiana and her birthmother lived (not much of a park and not anything like I had pictured) it was very emotional to see where my daughter spent nearly 5 years of her life and to think of the things she has had to endure is nearly overwhelming to me. As we drove by and seen other children sitting out on the grass where Resiana spent everyday it was so sad, I just wanted to pull the van over and take out every bit of money I had and start handing it out, I know we cannot save the world but sometimes I wonder how much we could do that we do not do, what kind of difference could we make...Lord knows I want to make a difference, I want to help those poor pitiful people. No bed to lay their heads in, no shelter from the rain, its nearly to much for my mind to comprehend, I will never be the same, my life is forever changed to witness true poverty and to witness the selfless love of a mother..This woman, my childrens birthmother has a love like no other, she loves these children but has made the ultimate sacrifice, to love so much that she gives them what she cannot provide... Tonight Michael and I went and picked her and the birth father up to go with us and our family to a Luau, it was nice to spend time with them and for everyone to see her but of course its always emotional for me when I am with her, Resiana did great again and seems to have a great understanding of the situation. I watched The birthmom as she held Resiana and the look of love in her eyes as she stroked her hair and her face and realized in that moment what a true sacrifice she has made....She spoked to me of the comfort of knowing her children would never be homeless again. I am truly thankful and will never forget this precious lady!!!!

Maybe the baby will be born tomorrow, we go to the doctor at 1pm which is 6pm AL time...

The pictures are the actual "park" Resiana lived at and the sidewalk where she slept every night

A Day at the Beach (still no baby)

Today has been a good day (if you just came to vacation in Hawaii) we played on the beach all day with the kids and enjoyed that alot...Talked with the birthmom and still no labor pains so we are just hoping and praying soon. Please Pray all will go well and quickly if it could be his will. Will post as soon as we know something..Thanks everyone!!

Prayer Needed !!!!!

Well our dear followers we need prayer...Miscommunication again (this language barrier is really getting us) The birthmother told us before we came that if she did not have the baby by Aug.25th that they were going to take it, so in knowing that we planned the trip. Today being the 24th I thought we might should go to the clinic ourselves to find out forsure what time tomorrow and what ever else we might need to know.I went into the clinic and talked with the OB nurse who informed me that they had no intentions of inducing her before 41 weeks ( which is next wed.) they said they never induce before 41weeks unless something is bad wrong that babies come when they are ready, I proceeded to ask what about her having diabetes and etc..and they said they do not take babies early so PLEASE pray she goes into labor on her own because we really do not want to have to stay another week and half (at minimum) and the whole family that came for the birth would have to return home without getting to be here when the baby is born, and my kids need to return to school, so if it could be Gods will we really need this baby to be born..Thank you all and maybe by the time you all read this in the morning(your probably all in bed now its 11:27 AL time) she will have went into labor on her own but for anybody who might read tonight PLEASE pray..We will keep you posted.

Meeting of Families

We just got back to our condo after spending the day with Our daughter and soon to be sons birthmother and father...Once more it was a very humbling experience and story someday we will share with our children. Michael, myself and Resiana went to meet them while our boys stayed back here at the condo to play on the beach with the rest of our family. When we got there they had homemade gifts for us, necklaces, braclets and decorations made out of cocunut leaves. We all went out sight seeing and they took us to the top of a beautiful mountain, we shared stories of our lives and cultures..People we are blessed!!! The birthfather teared up when he shook Michaels hand, that was very moving to me. We went to eat and started to throw our scraps away and they asked us not to..Lessons in life that make me feel so spoiled and unthankful. Thank You Lord for your Blessings on us!!!!

Resiana did so well when seeing her birthmother, as you can imagine we were very concerned about this..When we walked in the room she just went and sat in her lap and layed her head on her chest and sat quietly for about 20 minutes while we all talked, she acted very shy and like she was'nt sure how to act but within a little while she was happy and wanting to be right with Michael riding on his shoulders while we looked at the beautiful scenery, after awhile she wanted us to take them back home so she could come back and be with her brothers and swim (which we are fixing to do)...All went perfectly....

We Have Arrived!!!

We finally got to our destanation at around 11pm Al time and we are so thankful we made it safely, a few bumps in the road but all in all we had a good trip, a lengthy one to say the least but all safe and sound so Thank the Lord for that....We were worried about the flight and how everyone would do but everyone did great, the kids were great, so patient, never complained just sat quietly in their seat and played their games and colored, and slept some as well. Thank the Lord were here, hoping to got to see the birthmom tomorrow and talk with the doctor..Love to you all and thanks for your prayers!!!

Flight Delay

Well they are having mechanical problems with our plane so our flight has been delayed for who knows how long, we are about an hour and a half over right now and they still do not know how much longer but Lord knows we want them to get it fixed...Everyone is tired , we have a few sleepy heads but as for me I am so nervous, excited, and a thousands other emotions I do not even know the word for. All we want is a safe trip so the wait will be worth it...

IN Dallas Now

Well we have safely landed in Dallas TX, so Thank God for one safe flight, no panic attacks, no asthma attacks, just a peaceful flight...Our seats were all messed up and we had to run to the gate, Michael and I and our kids and Brandy got behind the rest of our crew and while going through security Dusty runs to where we are and says their closing the gate in three minutes, So we run and with no time remaining we board the plane safely...Once on board the kids and I were separated so another delay from the Clark family as the nice and kind flight attendants kindly asked people to change seats so we could be with our children..So as we began to take flight my heart began to race and I began to sweat and shake a little, looked around and there is no adults I know that are close to me so I tell myself Crystal it is ok, get ahold of yourself, I look around and Caden and Resiana are laughing and excited so I began to calm down.. I was seated right next to the emergency exit(not the best place for me to sit) but just so happened the flight attendants station was right next to me, needless to say I talked to her the entire time except for when she was serving drinks..So now the nice lady from Oklahoma knows all about our "Adoption Journey" Thank the Lord for a great flight but please pray for us on this next flight for it will be very long 10 hours long... Maybe I can post again while on our long flight before we get over the ocean.. Our precious baby is still nice and safe and warm and waiting on his Mommy and Daddy to come get him!!!! Love you all..

In the air

Prayer Requested!!!

Well as you know we are to be heading out early monday morning , (Lord willing). We are excitied, nervous,etc... Please pray that we will have a safe trip and that our baby will be healthy. I am sure if I were having this baby I would be a nervous wreck to, but my mind is racing and thinking of a thousands of things that could go wrong , but I know that the Lord is in control and when I can get my head on straight I find great comfort in knowing he will take care of us. We are preparing but not prepared yet, hopefully we will get it all together soon. Thanks to some sweet sisters at church that let me borrow all their childrens clothes,shoes,etc.. I have plenty to do him for awhile. That has taken a burden off of me, because we had Nothing but as usual the Lord has provided. I would think by now I would have completely learned to surrender to the Lord and trust in his almighty power but I find myself trying to fiqure things out on my own and what a mess I make. Trusting the Lord is a learning process for me but what a comfort to know we have him to depend on. Please Please Pray for us because so many things could go wrong and as we all know prayer changes things!!! Thanks, Crystal

And here we go

Alrighty followers, its time to start again, we are getting on a plane Monday morning heading back to Hawaii to get our 4th child. Our kids are fired up to go play on the beach and try to catch sand crabs. Carter is very excited to go back to Hawaii and Resiana is excited to go and play on the beach and see the baby birds that she used to play with. I am very very nervous about the flight over there, Carter and Caden both have asthma, and Crystal is scared of being in closed spaces "whatever that word is". We will have my mom and dad, Erica, Todd, Kristen, Dusty, Julie, Lanita, Lester, Brandy, Ethan, tyler, and Logan with us, so hopefully everything will go ok. I want all of our followers to pray for us and we will do like we done last time and post very often with pics and the whole nine yards. SLICK

First Day of School

Well today started a new journey for our family...The journey that last thirteen years, my babies are gone to school and I am going to have to learn a new normal and that is not an easy thing for me. On our way back home this morning I was crying and told Michael I was so worried because Caden and Resiana did not even know how to open their food I sent them for luch and how to put straws in their capri suns (I bought them cups they could work instead) and Michael started laughing and he said " Yes honey they do, they do it all the time when I am with them" and I am like "WHAT" and he said yes they will be fine. So I guess I should find comfort in the fact they probably can do alot more than I think they can. I will survive, I hope...

New Beginings

Ok I am falling apart my babies are starting school in a matter of a few days....Where oh where has the time gone, our precious little mischevious Caden is starting school, this cant be...We have also registered Resiana and they will be in the same class, we were hesitant at first to let her start but her and Caden are so close and she begged to go with him so we came to the decision it may be best for her..So here we are just a few days away from the first day of school and I am a basket case, I told Michael I could'nt hardly stand for them to go and that they needed me and they needed me to be with them to help them and he said no Crystal you need them, Well whatever the fact remains the same its soo sad..You spend your every waking moment for 5 years seeing to the needs and wants of your children then poof one day there gone that is kinda cruel I think. To think their teacher is with them more during the day than their mother that is sad, I know its probably normal and healthy but I am not ready..Motherhood has been Gods greatest gift to me other than My Salvation(and Michael). My life for the past nearly ten years has been my boys and now Resiana and thats all I know, I dont have a career or a hobby my children are my career and hobby... Every year when this time of year rolls around I get sad because I know Carter is going back to school and I know how much I am gonna miss him but now three of my kids are going, wow this is nearly to much..But on a much brighter they are happy and healthy and very excited so that is good...

The cycle will start again with child number four real soon(still dont know exactly when) and I will give of myself and spend each day playing, loving, holding, nurturing my precious child for him to grow up and have his own life and loves and continue this cycle of life...how depressing but all we can do is enjoy each day while their little because before we know it they will be grown..These our the best days of our lives and I thank God for each one!!!!!

Maybe we will have baby news soon.......................................

Miscommunication

Well here we are still in Alabama, we thought for sure we would be in Hawaii by now but still no exact date from the doctor, it seems as though we have had some miscommunication with the birthmother and considering she speaks a different language I guess that is understandable...For the last month we have thought it could be any day or at least we have been under the impression the first of next week for like the last three weeks...I have spoken several times with the birthmother and that is the information she has been giving me but needless to say she was'nt quite sure herself what was going on but as it is she and the baby are doing good and after speaking with our attorney it does seem as though we were all under the wrong assumption and they may not be taking the baby early after all, so its just a wait and see type thing and boy does that ever drive ya crazy...We have been so up in the air with all of this because we have thought we were leaving anyday for like a month, oh well our prayers have just been for a healty baby and safe trip and that is still all we want and sometimes patience must be added so that is where we are trying to learn how to add patience....

Life is wonderful, our children our doing great and anxiously awaiting the birth of their new baby brother and starting to school( tears for me) life is starting a new chapter for us but what some adventures were gonna have..

Still Waiting.....

Ok we are still waiting and we have been on pins and needles for at least two weeks now...but still no exact date but at least we have had contact with the birthmother and it seems they are trying to hold her off until the first week of August, they thought they would have to take the baby sooner than that but at this point he is doing ok and the longer they hold her off the better for his sake and of course all we want is a healthy baby,knowing this is best for him because he is not due until the end of August. We were told a few weeks ago that it could be any day and that is what has had us a nervous wreck..There is not much we can do but wait but in the middle of playing the waiting game Michael and the rest of us our starting our third revival in a row and as you can imagine there is not much time to plan for baby in between...I thought I would have about three good weeks after the revivals were over to get everything ready for the baby but thats what I get for thinking, our kids have been really good sports though and Resiana still gets excitied when we start getting ready for church because she loves it so much, she just sings and prays her little heart out..Caden on the other hand is not as excited and just longs to stay home and play with his toys(he is a homebody) but he has actually done pretty good..Carter being older has really enjoyed making new friends and hanging out with the young kids( he thinks he is a teenager) he was counting up the other day that he had like 10-12 new friends from these revivals. In the mist of all this we are REALLY excited about the birth of our son and how much joy he is going to bring to our home and how our other children are going to interact with him..We must keep telling ourselves everything is going to be ok and we will have him safe and sound in a few days..It is hard though I just wish I was there to see for myself everything is ok, but we cant be so we can only hope and pray...

Still Waiting

Still no news on the exact date and we are going crazy...I am a planner and a control freak and this is driving me crazy, I know what is probably going to happen, they are going to call us in a few days and just say oh the doctor is wanting to put her in first thing in the morning and we are going to be scrambling for a flight. I know this is aggravating to the few that our going with us but oh well its not like I would be in control if I were having this baby anyway, they just would not have to travel as far to get to be apart of it, so I guess going to Hawaii on a moments notice is a little more difficult...The plane tickets are going up as each hour passes and from this morning to this evening they went up 100 dollars and with all our kids that is adding up fast..anyways really do not want to complain just a nervous wreck about it all..Oh and for the name I think we have narrowed it down to Anderson or Maddox...Maybe Maybe tomorrow we will hear something..Prayers appreciated for the health of this child and a safe trip.

Baby News

OK we are all going crazy around here....We got a e-mail from our attorney and she said the baby is coming early as in about two weeks..Yes I know way earlier than we expected, we are waiting on medical records to confirm everything and find out when exactly they are gonna take him. He is already big dont know how big but they said he is big, so I am wondering how off the due date was or exactly what is going on, but according to our attorney she spoke with the baby's birthmother and she said he is gonna be born in about two weeks..I am impaitently waiting for the report from the doctor. We have not even started the nursery, we do not have a name picked out, we have no clothes, bottles, pacifiers etc... I know it will all come together but I am in full panic mode. Oh yea and our revival at church starts Sunday and as everyone knows that is twelve services of church and cooking cleaning and more cooking and cleaning and also Michael has a revival starting the Sunday after ours and then another one after that. Help Me Lord!! but really most of all just prayers for a healthy baby is the most important, the rest will just be what it is.. We will keep you posted, maybe we will get some more news tomorrow.



If anyone would like to give some imput in on their pick of names have at it..lol

We are so undecided..Here is a list of some of our favorites

Anderson (a family name)
Wyatt
Tucker
Braxton
Maddox
Cooper

Happy Father's Day

Thank God for allowing Michael and I to be parents and I am so thankful that God allowed my children to have such a wonderful father and that he made that possible, our children are such miracles just as all children are and we feel so grateful to be their parents. Michael and I have been blessed with such great fathers as well and we are so thankful for them and the example they have been to us. Hope all fathers had a wonderful and blessed day!!!

We have truly been enjoying our busy life with our three children and Resiana is still doing amazing and is happy as can be. We look forward to the birth of our son and when we get the call that he is on the way and we head out for paridise once more we will look forward to keeping everyone updated during our journey...Take care and God Bless!!!

Happy Mothers Day

Happy Mother's Day to all.... Today was a beautiful day and it was a wonderful day, my children and I spent a lovely day together leaving daddy behind to rest, the four of us went out to eat and then got pictures made and then did some shopping. It was a very special day to me, I truly enjoyed being with all my kids and we had a great day. They bring me so much joy and each of them are unique and make my life so blessed, Carter is my little man always there to help and always concerned about everything and everybody and always abides by the rules, Caden is the polar opposite and is about having a good time and takes nothing serious, always wants to make you laugh and breaks all the rules but can make me smile on my worst day, Resiana is the most humble and grateful child and soo loving and just seems so proud to love and be loved, she is my example of Gods almighty power, she renews my faith daily...So as you all can tell Im grateful to be a mother, something I dreamt of for many years and never thought I would be but here I am a mother of three and soon to be four, I am blessed!!!!

Miracles still happen and sometimes my faith has not been what it needs to be but when I look at my children and think of how they came to be mine it is truly amazing, just a gift from God and I could never praise him enough for them and what joy they have brought to my life in their own special way and I praise God for ADOPTION what a miracle not the taboo many people have thought it to be, it is truly a precious gift from God. I understand that some people may not fully understand adoption and that is ok but please do not think of my childrens birth mothers as bad people for these are the women God choose to carry my children and I am forever grateful to them.

LEGACY OF AN ADOPTED CHILD
Once there were two women who never knew each other, One you do not remember the other you call Mother.Two different lives shaped to make your one, One became your guiding star the other became your sun. The first one gave you life, and the second taught you to live it. The first one gave you a need for love and the second was there to give it.One gave you a nationality, the other gave you a name.One gave you a talent the other gave you an aim.One gave you emotions the other calmed your fears.One saw your first sweet smile the other dried your tears. One saught for you a home that she could not provide, the other prayed for a child- and her hopes were not denied. And now you ask me through your tears, the age old question,unanswered through the year, Heredity or enviroment,which are you the product of? Neither my darling,neither.Just two different kinds of Love.

Baby News

Well we just got the word, we are having another little BOY!!!!!
I cannot belive it, wow we are in for some rowdy times but I know we are going to have a ball.
We also found out that he is going to be born the end of Aug. which is later than we thought but I am proud because that gives us more time with Caden before he starts school and time to get everything ready..

Today was kindergaten registration and I did not do very well I thought with knowing I was going to have two more children to take care of that sending Caden to school would be easier,WRONG, I had a total meltdown today crying non-stop for 15 min, my baby is leaving me, he is my buddy my sunshine he makes everyday bright with his crazy personality, The Lord is gonna have to help me or I am going to be a basket case come Aug.10th. Oh yeah I am holding Resiana back, she needs more time and so do I but as with Caden I dont think I will ever be ready for my children to leave me because I still cry when Carter starts back to school, I love being with my kids..I am soo thankful for each of them.

Happy Birthday Resiana

Resiana is now 5 years old and I am so happy that we got to share this birthday with her and we had a wonderful time...I really wished we could of been there for her before now and got to be her parents long before now but God has his way of working and brought her to us when the time was right. Resiana had never had a birthday party or presents but now that has changed. We wanted to make it very special for her(it would not of took much) so we decided to have her several parties to make up for the ones we have missed.
We started out by taking her to The Spoiled Rockin Kidz Salon with her lil friends and they got to dress up like Rock Stars and since she is crazy about Hannah Montana that was perfect, she loved it, during the Happy Birthday song I broke down, knowing where she has come from and wondering where she would have been on the day of her birthday and if she would of been hungry but feeling so much love and peace in knowing that this her 5th birthday was a new begining..
We also had a parties with each side of our families and went to Chucky Cheese just our lil family. We are so blessed and so thankful for the miracle of Resiana and what a wonderful couple of days celebrating her birthday and watching the excitment of a child who is not worried about what kind of present someone got her, just happy to have all the little things in life..May I ever be reminded and humbled by this precious child!!!!

Getting Back to Normal (kinda of)

The Church had us a Welcome home party Sunday night and it was great. Everyone was so sweet and took alot of time decorating and making the party so special for Reaiana , she got so many nice presents and she loved it all, she was not real sure about evertyhing at first so we had to get Caden to help her open the gifts but she was happy ..We are beyond happy to be back home..
Well here we are finally settled back at home( it took nearly three days for me to get everything back in order,Laundry Laundry and more laundry...Anyways we are back in the swing of things (kinda of) life is a wonderful and more interesting, Im a little scatter brained these days and poor little ole Caden has been the victim of my many "mess ups" Our 1st time back to Stevenson to church I was rushing around like crazy and out the door we go and I realize after getting in the car Caden has no shoes on, and of course Michael is flipping out because its 12 till 7 and we live 5 min from the church so I run back in the house and grab his brown flipflops and jump in the car and toss em in the back seat and demand he put them on that instant and he says"mama could you not find any that matched" and I said THEY DO MATCH AND YOU BETTER HUSH AND PUT EM ON RIGHT NOW...He did.. Then as we were walking in the church I noticied he was dragging his left foot and I looked down and busted out laughing, I had given him one of his and one of Carters (needless to say they were 5 sizes bigger than what he wears) so he had no shoes the whole night at church..I also tried to force him to take Resiana's medicine insisting it was his but finally realized I had the "Wrong Kid" well I gues I am getting use to having three kids and two that are the same age and did I mention one of mine is- well for a lack of a better term we will just say adventureous...But life has never been better...This house is lively to say the least and oh yeah we are having another baby in about three months!!!!CANT WAIT and I know everybody will be so happy to see us coming..Yeah right...The Clarks and their 4 kids... Boy are we gonna have fun..

Life Is Grand

Were HOME and it is wonderful, Resiana was and is soo excited to live in the "Big House" that is what she calls it...We are enjoying being home and just watching our children play, it is such a Miracle, really to think she has had no issues of any kind, that is just extremely amazing to me and just validates the truth of how God intended for her to be apart of our family, she just fits, we feel soo blessed to have been chosen to be her Mommy and Daddy.Daily we are reminded of what a blessing she is and how hard a life she has had..She constantly ask "what's this called Mom" we probably hear that at least twenty times a day, for just the most normal things but she is processing everything and learning very fast.Each day I wait for her to be reminded of life in the park and tell me something new..Like the other day we were eating at Logan's and she got soo excitied when she seen the peanuts sitting on the table and said "Mommy Mommy I eat these before in the park" and I said really and she said "Yeah" and then that turned into another gut wrenching story that she did not even know was gut wrenching, it was just Life to her.
We were driving down the road and we seen some people walking and she began to tell me that her and her other mommy always walked because they only had one moneys and then got super excitied and started clapping and said "but Mommy you guys have two moneys and yall have cars and food and everything" and just laughed and smiled for several minutes then went back to singing Hannah Montana.

I have truly been humbled by all of this and at many times throughout this journey I have tried to imagine her in the park living life as they did but it was just to painful of a thought and I would just shut my mind off to it and not "go there" but in the last few days Resiana and I have had some good conversations and it has brought a since of peace to me and I have realized that even in the most dire situations that her and her "other Mommy " was in, God knew where they were the whole time....She told me she loved coconuts and that she loved to drink them and they taste soo good (Food and drink supplied by God) and that the nice people from church came and brought food to them and sang and prayed ( Food and love supplied) and that baby birds were so fun to play with and if you be real quiet they will fly to you and you can hold them and pet them and they will not bite you ( enjoyment for a child with no toys provided)..wow and the list goes on but how amazing to know that our precious Saviour looks upon the world and takes care of us and when he seen it was time he spoke the word and allowed her to become our child. The lessons I have learned and am still learning from my little darling are worth more than silver and gold, Trust on Jesus for he knows!!!!

Home Sweet Home

Praise the Lord we are home, got the call from our attorney at about 6pm this evening and packed up at the hotel and now we are home, the kids were jumping up and down and so was I.. You know you never know how much you appreciate something until you do not have it. We are so thankful and this has been an amazing journey. Sometimes there are bumps in the road but none of that compares to the joy Resiana has brought to our lives and will continue to bring for many years to come.. We look forward to resuming our lives and just being a normal family!!Hope to see you all soon!!

Update

Well we are still feeling very blessed...Resiana is still doing amazing and everyday teaches us something and reminds us how fortunate we are and have always been, we will be doing nothing and she will just start talking about life in the park and needless to say we are humbled, but then in the same breath laughs and goes right on her merry way, it is amazing.

Ok here is the rest of the story- I do not think the Lord wants to spoil us rotten, you know things have went perfect with Resiana so if everything was perfect then maybe we would get to spoiled and now we are having to trust him once more that when the time is right he will help us get HOME and all will be good. As I write everyone is asleep so that is good because we are in a small hotel room and two of us has strept throat and one has been throwing up so sleep and peace and quiet is nice even though I cannot swallow, Michael wathced the kids while I tried to take a nap earlier today (not that there is any place they could go or much they could get into) but he did try and keep them quiet and to my amazement I did take a nap..Carter took bad sick Thursday running a high fever so Michael took him to the doctor in AL while me and the other kids stayed at the motel and the doctor was nice enough to write prescriptions for the whole family knowing the circumstances, and knowing strept is very contagious. Resiana is not sick and we are thankful for that!!!

As far as us getting to retrn to the state with her we have complied with all the laws and all the paperwork but Al has asked fo extra documents such as a signed statement from us saying we love and accept her as our daughter and that she will not be a burden to the state that we will supply for her..That was last week, so it has been out of our hands and we spoke with our attorney who is trying to get some answers for us and she said everything is taken care of it is just a matter of the lady in Montgomery taking the time to look at it and approve it and surely that will happen sometime Monday...But as Michael and I have talked and discussed all of this the peace comes in knowing that our precious daughter is not hungry, or homeless anymore and if we could of stayed in the comfort of our own home for this past month(will be tuesday) and just now be going to get her, there is no way, we are just thankful to have her in our care and we know we will get to go home soon and when we do I will probably appreciate getting to do housework and all that good stuff that I normally dread so just another lesson learned and more to appreciate cause absence makes the heart grow fonder..Hope to see you soon!!

Goodbye Cabin, Hello Motel

OK I will start off by saying yes I have kind of got used to this blogging thing since thats about all there is to do when my children are asleep and Michael is not here..Anyways we did get to go to Coolidge Park today with the Church so that was very nice and Resiana had a blast she loved playing with all the kids in the water, it was nice not to be cooped up..I think she has adapted so well, I know I say that everytime but it is just hard to get it across how "Normal" she is. We still are waiting to hear something from the state about approval to go home..I know this is strange but its just a legality thats hard to explain. Our attorney said she would do her best to find something out tomorrow, the lady over our case in Montgomery was off today. We are patiently waiting , I hope that patient part is true, well I am trying and actually have enjoyed my time "Away" but right now I am feeling like Dorthy in the Wizard of Oz "There is no place like home, no place like home".. NO in all seriousness I am ready but this time has been good for us and our children, in our own little world up here.We are supposed to check out at 10am in the morning, so I guess we will be going to a motel from here..That will be fun!! yeah right... well anyways if anyone could send up a little prayer that we could go home I would greatly appreciate it and I know there could be much worse things and I know others need it way worse than us but we do believe he has enough power and enough time to listen to all of us right? Oh yeah and I feel horrible I was supposed to be planning a baby shower for my precious niece for this weekend but with basicaly no phone for the past two weeks they have had to do it without me and I sure hope their surviving without me!!Sorry Guys maybe I can at least show up..Also My sis-in-law and nephew had surgery and Mama Crystal could not be of any assisstance, sorry guys..Maybe the family can make it without me..Oh yeah and my niece was supposed to have a slumber party at my house for her birthday last weekend ,sorry babe I guess it will be a belated birthday..Oh well I guess they have proven the point they can live life without me..But I am going to tell myself they need me anyways...I have survived two weeks without talking on the phone wow im proud of myself ..Hope to see you all soon and show you our little miracle in person!!

Sweet Home Tennessee?

Well here we are still in Tn, we are hoping to hear something late tomorrow evening ( our attorney is in Hawaii 5 hours behind us) maybe we will get good news..Anyways I am still enjoying all the quality time with my children and I guess I do not get to have everything exactly perfect so I am trying to be patient and enjoy this time. Resiana and the boys are having a blast together, Carter is off school this week for spring break, we have not been doing much of anything except being together and that is good but I think we might have just a bit of cabin fever, I am so excitied tomorrow we are planning to go to Coolidge Park in Chatt. with several people from church since all the kids are on Spring Break so it will be exciting to get out with my friends and see Resiana get be with the kids..Carter and Caden will be excited as well. I am bored stiff at the moment my children are fast asleep and Michael went to our real home to take care of some things and needless to say again, no cell signal(very limited cuts off bout 10 times when you try to make a call) no television and Im lucky to have internet because it only works half the time, anyways back to my story we are looking forward to getting out tomorrow. Resiana is still doing amazing and sometime when I think about it, it blows me away to think what all has happened to her in the last three weeks to be taken from everything she has ever known and not even question a thing and just except us as her Mommy and Daddy and the boys as her brothers and I am telling you it seems she has been here forever just one of us, she LOVES the boys and if I give her a piece of candy or something she always says"what about Carter and Caden" she is a typical little girl who is very girly and loves all the things she never had before, she is a little singer and she is obsessed with Hannah Montana-she watches the movie at least five times a day. We are great, just ready to get home and show this little beautiful girl off...

Resiana's 1st Church Service

Well I have missed so much church and when I found out it could possibly be another two weekends of church me and the kids would have to miss, I told Michael lets just go somewhere close that is not in Al, so that is what we did..last night all of us went to church for the first time as a new family and Resiana was so excitied she was laughing and smiling and saying "yes were going in church in church" I was a nervous wreck and when we stepped up on the steps of Trenton my heart was beating out of my chest, I knew she was excitied but I also knew she had no idea what church means, well our kind of church anyway. As we walked in she just started waving at everybody and was all smiles. She kept looking around just checking everybody and everything out. Church was very good and many people got blessings and I was not sure how she would react to that but she just laughed and smiled then eventualy feel asleep so it was a success!!! I asked her what she thought and she said "Wow mommy that was a cool one church"
so she is looking forward to going again and I cant wait until she gets to go to Stevenson but I was thankful to get to go to Trenton (we have very dear friends there) so that was great and several from Stevenson got to come as well...This journey of Adoption has brought to me a renewed outlook on my life in every aspect, I realize what we have is just a gift from him and by his mercy and it is not anything I have done in this life to be worthy of his blessings. I could never praise him enough for all he has given me and I pray through this journey I have become a better person and I do not want to forget what I have learned about life and that we are the most Blessed people in the world, not only do we have Shelter, food , clothing, but we also know the Master and what better could we have, no amount of money could ever buy the peace that comes with our salvation, and today I thank him for Salvation, Life, Love, and Motherhood!!!!

Happy Tears

Well another breakdowm moment, Michael and the boys went fishing and Resiana and I are just hanging out here in the cabin and watching movies, so anyways we just got finished watching Stuart Little and I have seen that movie several years ago and never thought twice about it..Well near the end of the movie Stuart Little is searching for his human family and finally finds them and when he does, Resiana starts jumping up and down and says "like me, oh his mommy and daddy and his brother" and continues to jump up and down and then hugs me and tells me she loves me. At the very end of the movie there is a song (Trisha Yearwood) " You're Where I Belong" I never heard it before, and as my daughter danced and twirled throughout the song, I broke... It was very touching..well I just thought I would share that with everyone since I cannot call anyone...I am ready to go back to our familiar surroundings but each day that passes all that matters is that I have ALL my children safe and sound and in the comfort of their parents arms..We will be home and life will resume but for the mean time I would love to enjoy every moment we have in this slow paced time because as we all know Life is not usually slow paced, so I would Love to count my blessings and know he is in control and does everything JUST RIGHT!
We do look forward to seeing you all soon..May God Bless You All!!!!

Well we are still in Tn and looks like we could be here for a least another week, Michael said it felt like we had been halfway around the world and back and we still aint home. I am here to tell you there is no place like home...But just to all be together means so much..We have had lots of good quality time together and that has been wonderful but we are ready to get back in the swing of things, Michael has been able to go to church and work, so that has been good but I think it has been nearly three weeks since I have been to church and I am ready to go , I miss being there so bad and miss my church family as well. Resiana ask every time Michael leaves for church to go with him, and every night when we say our bedtime prayers(Now I lay me down to sleep) she folds her little hands and tries to say it,even though she does'nt know it yet, and when were finished she begs for us to do it again, I think last night we said it five times.. I am still amazed everyday at her acceptance of us. I was hugging her the other day and telling her how much we loved her and that we would be her Mommy and Daddy forever and she said " your not going to leave me at the park no more" and I said no baby were going to take care of you forever..I was also talking with her about some of the scars she has on her legs and asked her what happened and she said "oh that is where the cockroaches bit me" and that got me, I can not comprehend that..She has dealt with more in her short little life than I have ever thought about. I was putting cream on her sores that are on her head and it took about thirty minutes to doctor her head and she sat there still as could be and when I told her I was done she looked up at me and said "Thank you Mommy "she is such an humble little girl, everyday is another lesson and I am enjoying being taught..Children are truly a most wonderful gift from God and I praise him for blessing us beyond measure, three times over!!!

A Happy Easter

Well i did not think I was going to blog useless information that no one probably cares about reading but the truth is I am very bored and I kind of like writing on this thing...We are still up in Tennessee in a place I had no idea about until about five days ago, and we have little or no cell signal, there is no land line, the TV reception is horrible there is very little house work to do and Michael is at work, the kids are watching a movie, Carter is at school and this internet is so slow I cant look up anything on the computer so as you can guess this is about the only option I have. It may seem as though I am complaining and that is not what I mean to do I am in fact trying to explain why I feel the need to blog...I am also computer dumb, really we did not even get internet until like a month ago, we got it to make communication easier for our adoption process.They do not even offer wireless in the area of Stevenson where we live we had to get some kind of expensive satellite that is stuck out in our yard ,anyways I was just going to talk about our Easter a little.....Well Michael went to church but I had to stay here with Resiana (due to the ICPC) so both the boys stayed with me as well and while Michael was at church the kids and I decorated Easter eggs, Resiana could not understand for the life of her what in the world we were doing but she still had a ball.. We decorated the eggs and then the kids got there easter baskets and once again she was in amazement..After church Granny and Pappy brought dinner up here and Todd and Erica came also and the kids hunted easter eggs and at first Resiana just looked at us like ok what is the point (most of the eggs were in plain sight and she seemed to think we were crazy) but within a few minutes she was acting like the other kids and running around picking up the eggs and putting them in her basket it was pricless to watch her and know she had no idea there was such a thing called Easter but like I have said she has just fell right into place in this family.She did not even know what a bunny was, but she catches on very quickly. We had a wonderful day even though I missed getting to dress her up and take her to church but I will have many years to come for that. My parents (Nanny and Papa) came that evening to spend some time with Resiana and the boys and we had a great time as well. Resiana acts so excited each time someone comes to visit and seems so happy to have all these new people that love her. What company we have had has been in small amounts at a time and I actually think that has been good for her because that gives her one on one time with everybody and does not overwhelm her. I really cannot wait for her to meet all our friends and loved ones. Well enough i guess but it seems there is a million things I wanna share with people but no phone and out in the boonies with no one we know around so sorry to all yall in the blog world for my ramblings but trust me I could keep going but I will stop and hope I have not turned everyone away from reading our blog..lol