19miles and we Collide..

Lyrics from "Collide" by Howie Day

The dawn is breaking
A light shining through
You're barely waking
And I'm tangled up in you

..
I worry I won't see your face
Light up again

Even the best fall down sometimes
Even the wrong words seem to rhyme
Out the doubt the fills your mind
I somehow find
You and I collide

19 miles on the road. Knees are sore. 2 miles more than 17. My heart still soars. 2 miles less than 21. Still such a long way more. 6 weeks to my personal 50k. 6 weeks closer to the day when you and I may finally collide.

For those that I love that I already see, and to those I love I've not yet met. I can't do much. But I can run. I run for time to pass, run for praise (to him the gives me strength), run for healing, for you...

1770 miles done. 8,014 more to go.

Peace

10 Things you Might not Know about J

10. I love milk. As in LOVE milk! The colder the better and I absolutely hate soda. I think I drank so much milk one time that I gave myself a kidney stone. When my dr. suggested I needed more calcium in my diet I had to laugh. Once I relayed the kidney stone story, he changed his mind.

9. I reverse-sneak my kids (if that is a word). There I admitted it. The kids, especially the boys are notorious for sneaking into our bedroom in the middle of the night, crawling into bed and then snoring in our faces. I wait for them to fall asleep in our bed, then sneaking out of our room and into their bunk bed. After a peaceful night sleep with the stuffed animals, the first thing I usually hear is someone asking where mama disappeared to as the last place they tend to look is in their own bedroom.....

8. I ate a pringle covered in ants on our honeymoon. It was dark and I didn't realize it until I felt them crawling on my hand. They were crunchy.

7. When we first bought our house, it needed painting. So we bought a ladder and I spent all summer on an extension ladder painting the exterior. Its starting to peel again and I am starting to wonder how I managed to paint it the first time around and still be here to tell the story.

6. I secretly wish I had a closet full of shoes like Carrie on SITC, but wonder how long it would take me to break my ankle hiking around a construction site in my
Man.olos.

5. I am convinced that most things women "claim" to be a result of child bearing are not. They just don't want to admit they are getting old. Case in point, I never birthed a child however a. My beautiful blonde hair is now a shade of dirty dish water b. I have a pooch c. I pee my pants when I laugh too hard.

4. Speaking of old, I am now jealous of women who are in their early thirties as someone pointed out to me the other day that I am now "pushing forty". Luckily I discovered a time machine.

3. I caught a 10" diameter plate of barf the other night at our favorite restaurant totally unnoticed by anyone sitting around us. The hard part was trying to figure out what to do with it after the vomit machine (AKA E2) finally turned off. Needless to say I ran into the owner on the way to the dishpan. Oh so embarrassing

2. I have had 2 ticks on two separate occasions decide that my left cheek was an ideal location to set up shop, and I am not talking about the cheeks on my face. Both time I had to call in reinforcements (AKA T) to get the confounded thing out as I am not a Circ-de-Solie performer people!

1. I can't think of anything else. So much for the build up......

These tired legs...

No rain, no snow, nor wind chill temps shall keep a runner from his routes...

Despite two blizzards, impassable bike paths. I've managed to keep up my weekly runs. I had to resort to street running, and some loops (gosh I hate running loops), but I've stuck with it. Each run bring a new challenge. Sometimes is the elements. Sometimes its a heavy load on the mind. Sometimes its the Indian food from the night before (OMG did I just write that?!?)

Only 44 days until the Lakefront 50k. Last week was a cutback week. So now its back to business. I'm not really following a training program, but I do know that I need to get a couple 20+ milers in. So now, besides a tired mind and legs, I need to plot a course for about 17 miles, and find the time to do it, since its no longer possible to get those sorts of distances in on Saturday mornings. At least not in snowy conditions.

Why bother to share this? Since I'm running with a few people in mind, I thought it good to share my madness. Or at least my dedication to it. Peace..

Prayer of St. Gianna

God our Father we praise You and we bless you because in Saint Gianna Beretta Molla you have given us one who witnessed to the Gospel as a young women, as a wife, as a mother, and as a doctor. We thank you because through the gift of her life we can learn to welcome and honor every human person.

You, Lord Jesus, were for Gianna a splendid example.
She learned to recognize you in the beauty of nature.
As she was questioning her choice of vocation she went
in search of you and the best way to serve you.
Through her married love she became a sign of
your love for the Church and for humanity.
Like you, the Good Samaritan, she cared for everyone
who was sick, small or weak. Following your example,
out of love she gave herself entirely,
generating new life.


Holy Spirit, Source of every perfection, give us wisdom, intelligence, and courage so that, following the example of Saint Gianna and through her intercession, we may know how to place ourselves at the service of each person we meet in our personal, family and professional lives, and thus grow in love and holiness.

Amen.

Colombian Names

If you know our family personally, you know that we have chosen to keep the given names of all three of our adoptive children and have only added middle names when there was not one. While 2 of the three are not the easiest names to pronounce and we are constantly correcting people, and people either assume our oldest son's name is a last name or drop the "s" at the end, I can't imagine calling them by any other name. E1's school is just as diverse name-wise. The first time we toured the building, I remember thinking to myself, goodness! they will fit right in here with so many cool and unique names above the coat hooks. So you can imagine my excitement when I saw a post from a Colombian Culture blog we read about Uncommon Colombian Names. The Registrduría in Colombia says that there are 1,691,862 Colombians with completely unique names -- no one else in the country shares their name, and possibly, no one else in the world. Based on the article, naming a child with a completly unique name is a more common practice among folks with lower incomes, while middle and upper classes have gone back to using really Spanish sounding names which would have been considered old school back in the 1980's. Here are some of the most exotic names:

Yicelub, Saub, Irlandesa, Saude, Jhewer, Jheyaa, Cometa Haley, Alka Seltzer, Mickey Mouse Jusayú, Gallina Ipuana, Cine, Helicóptero, María Perra, Ministro y Chorizo Epinayú.

So, we might just end up with a daughter whose name is totally unique to anyone in the world, and knowing me, I will probably take that as sign from up above.....so long as it isn't Alka Seltzer!

Adoption News and More!

Things are moving along nicely on the adoption front. T&I got parts 1 & 2 of the application to our placing agency completed this weekend and sent part 2 off to our social worker as we need to review and discuss the questions from part 2 with her. We also heard last week that DCFS approved our homestudy, so that can also be sent in at the same time as our application for review. Once our placing agency approves our application and HS, they will generate a letter that will allow us to submit our I-800A. We are hoping everything will be approved and ready to go such that we can submit our I-800A towards the end of the month!

On K's hair front, I have really liked the double stranded twists I have been doing with clips, but was scouring the web for videos of some other styles I would like to try. It is hard because her hair is still so short, it really limits the styles, and she is too old to do puffs like you would for a baby. I am thinkng about trying some rope twists and then hoping I can do a twistout so she can wear it loose for a couple of days after. The hair is so short though that I will probably have a lot of rope twists and am trying to find the time to set aside to get it going.

This weekend was the first attempt at cooking Colombian food. I tried to make empanadas with aji. I found the website mycolombianrecipes.com (want to give Erica a shout out for the awesome site and great recipes! - photo credit also, note to readers: that is what empanadas are suppose to look like!) the other day and decided that everything looked so good that I should start trying one recipe at a time. I give myself an A for effort. I ended up using lamb instead of ground beef, which was an excellent choice if I do say so myself and used my tortilla press instead of a rolling pin. Overall, the ones that turned out were very tasty. I did have problems with the oil heat getting to hot, then not hot enough and several of the empanadas opened up in the oil which was disgusting as they ended up being filled with grease, so I will have to work on my sealing technique, but overall, not bad for my first attempt.

We will be praying for some families this week who will be traveling soon to Colombia to bring home their children and hoping our whole family doesn't get hit with the yuck that E1 has right now. Looking forward to 24" of snow over the next couple of days and maybe some sledding time with the kiddos!!

Are you there God? It’s me, J

I was reading a family’s adoption story the other day on their blog and was totally and completely blown away at how God has moved on their behalf through their adoption journey. It was really an awe inspiring story, the kind of story you hear about in amazement on the news or during a moving homily at church. When we started our adoption journey for E1, we had that kind of story, but we also had more doubts than the number of rasinettes I could eat in any give day. E1’s adoption story was a blow your hair back on your head, awe inspiring, really flipping amazing, can’t possibly deny God’s presence in story. And T and I both love telling it to anyone who will listen. As we begin our 4th journey, I look back on E2 and K’s adoption stories and don’t really see anything that I would define as awe inspiring. What I do see the quiet presence of our Lord through the highs and lows of these adoption journeys. I see how my doubt or questioning was answered through faith in Him, I see how He walked with us along the long and winding path, and I see why He knew that E2 and K would fit seamlessly into our hearts and our family.
In my selfishness of wanting to have that awe inspiring story for all my kids, I failed to realize that we didn’t need an awe inspiring story for E2 or K’s adoption and we don’t need an awe inspiring story for #4 either. God spoke to us six years ago to put us on this path. We have been walking on that path ever since. It’s like asking for directions on how to get to Route 64 when you are already on Route 64 (sorry T, had to throw that one in there!). I have no doubt that God will lead us back to the path if we stray, but right now, he is quietly dropping supportive families and friends, resources and guidance in our path for this 4th adoption journey. The blessings we have received over the past 6 years have been indescribable. Our God is an amazing God and doing His will is awe inspiring in and of itself. And when we tell E2 and K their adoption stories, they will know it as well.

13 on the way to 31

It official. Or maybe I'm just certifiable. For many running a 50k would be nuts. But running two? Who on earth do I think I am? Well on March 26th we'll find out. With only 62 days (notice the nifty countdown timer on the right side) its time to get down to business and log some miles.

So its from 7 to 10 to 13.1 in three weeks.

But tomorrow its not about me. Tomorrow I'm running for Rosemary. A friend working through her 3rd round of chemo.. fighting off an unexplained fever.

Lord accept my steps. My labored breaths. My soon to be cold and probably aching legs. Lord accept this offering and provide relief to Rosemary, Bruce her husband, and their children.

Davids has a Family! Praise God

Read the story here http://little-did-i-know.blogspot.com/2011/01/soaring-heart.html

Urgent prayers: Please pray for a family for this amazing young man

UPDATE! WE ARE HEARING THAT DAVIDS HAS A FOREVER FAMILY THAT HAS COME FORWARD TO ADOPT HIM...MORE NEWS TO COME! KEEP PRAYING!

Dear Friends and Prayer Warriors:
I have prayed over the last few days about how to share this story, and I have no words to adequately express it. However, it has to be shared and I will do my best. Many who have heard it are so sick over it, our hearts just ache. We know God has a plan; is it you?

In January, 2010, I met an awesome child/young man at an orphanage in Riga , Latvia . His name is Davids. He was one of a few children we were introduced to that day for consideration in our Summer 2010 orphan hosting program. He was really sharp and smart, had a great sense of humor and looked you in the eye when he tried to speak the good amount of English he had already learned. I remember asking his favorite things to do and he didn’t hesitate to explain he loved kite flying in the sky and dreamed to be a pilot some day! He also enjoys soccer, basketball, swimming and all sports. But, the thing that surprised us most was his age! He was already 15 and effectively the size of a 9 or 10 year old child. We asked the orphanage director more about him later, and were told Davids is healthy, just small and has the kindest, gentlest heart. He generally plays with the younger group of kids because the older ones make fun of him and claim to be “too cool” to hang out with a guy his size. As for history, he has been in 4-5 different orphanages, but has managed to keep hope for a brighter future. He is a sincere and especially child towards younger children. Lego building is one of his hobbies! I remember, he made a joke when I asked him if he liked dogs and cats…a traditional question we ask… He said, “of course! But, I am no cannibal.” And gave us the biggest smile of all! Later, when he was among the group and doing art projects, he drew a picture of a jet airplane landing under a sky that resembled the American flag. When I asked him to explain it, he told me, “My dream to fly airplane and live in family in America !” From that point, he had us at “hello” and we were committed to helping him fulfill his dream.

For the summer program, Davids was hosted by a multi-cultural, multi-racial family and he did awesome! He was kind to his younger host brothers and sister and enjoyed just about everything they did. He especially liked to build and make things and play sports outside, with swimming being one of his favorites! He learned a lot more English and wasn’t shy to use it either. While his host family was not his forever family, our team and staff was so thankful when we received a call from a couple who wanted to go and visit with him before his return to Latvia . We knew time was short, and we encouraged anyone who might be interested, to meet him asap. After one meeting, the family who went, let me know they would be adopting him and how encouraged and inspired they were by Davids. After many discussions, we realized that he needed to know the plan, as his birthday was coming up…his 16th birthday, which means several things to an orphan. First, it means they are about to age out and can’t be considered for adoption. Second, it means that they are on their path of graduating the orphanage and will soon be on their own. Third, it means life as they know it now: food, shelter, protection and security is about over. In the first year after a child leaves the orphanage, generally 15% commit suicide. So, it was decided for me to talk to Davids when our interview returned to Latvia this past August and see how he felt regarding this adoption.

When I sat down with him, I had a translator with me, but he didn’t need her. We sat on a sofa in the social worker’s office and I asked him how he liked America and what he thought? He explained he loved it, and it was more than he ever imagined! I asked him if he remembered this particular man who came to meet him and spent time with him the week before he returned to Latvia , and he said “Oh Yes and we had fun!” I went on and said, “Well, this man told his wife about you and they want me to tell you they are so happy, and they want to adopt you.” Davids’ look was utter shock! He said, “Who, me?” and I confirmed it was indeed him. He said, “Oh yes! VERY VERY much YES! And, they want ME?” He was just the most excited kid I think I ever had the pleasure to tell about an adoption. Most kids are shocked, but usually have to think about it and have several questions to ask before they really accept it and consider it as real. Davids’, on the other hand, was just the happiest kid on the planet that day; his dream was coming true.

Last week, I got an email from his adoptive family… now just 10 days before his 16th birthday,it basically said they felt that they would adopt a girl they met (which was planned all along), but they no longer wanted to adopt Davids’. They had changed their mind. The next day, I got an unsolicited email from Davids’ social worker in Latvia . This is what she wrote:

"Hello Le Ann,
I wish to ask you about one of our boys, his name is Davids T. He was hosted Summer 2010 at a host family in IL. Since he was close to 16, we got information and you shared with him that there is family who will adopt him. It was not the family who hosted him, but another one.
Till this day we never received more information about the adopting family, and we confirmed that the Ministry also has no information yet. I must share, we are all worried and concerned. Davids became so nervous in this last month, his attention to everything is gone. Yesterday he was moved to hospital, because of problems with his stomach relating to the stress of not knowing. We know this all is because he is so close to his 16th birthday; it's on 23 January this year.
We don’t know what to say and can't say anything to Davids because we don't know. It will be a shock for him if it's not true, he has so long lived with this thoughts focused on this adoption and a family in America .
We wish to know the truth to share so he can know and be happy again.”
We have tried to contact his family and explain, show them, what their decision has done to this child. So far, there is no response, but more importantly, there is no time with only a few days that remain for someone to file the I800 with USCIS to adopt Davids’. I have explained to his social worker what the full situation is, and as a strong Christian, she has agreed to pray earnestly with us for a new family to come forward for this child! The adoption agency who was working on this case has agreed to do everything they can to expedite the adoption and assist where possible to get them through the system.
If you or someone you know is interested in moving NOW to adopt Davids’, this is what needs to happen:
1)You must already have an approved home study issued by a Hague Accredited adoption agency in the USA . It must be able to be amended to show you are approved for at least one child, a boy, who is age 16 or under.
2)You must be willing to file with the USCIS the form I800, which will specify Davids’ as the child you intend to adopt, and it must be received prior to January 23, 2011. If done, this gives the adopting family 180 more days to complete the adoption.

Please join us in immediate prayer and action to locate and identify Davids’ Forever Family!!! You are out there somewhere and God knows exactly who you are and He doesn’t make mistakes. We just need to get the word to you about him."
Le Ann Dakake, Director of Hosting Programs, New Horizons for Children 678-313-8321 cell