"Why", "How?" You Ask??

Lots of thought and prayer went into our decision to adopt.  We are doing it joyfully, gladly, with much excitement!  First and foremost we are doing it out of obedience to our Lord.  How could we not?  He gave us the ultimate gift of eternal life with HIM.  He has carried us through our darkest days here on earth and we trust that He will do so again as those days are inevitable for us all.  He has made us aware that the need is great.  There are millions of orphans in the world.  He has made it abundantly clear to us that HE is asking us to do this.  Proverbs 24:12 says, "Don't try to avoid responsibility by saying you didn't know about it.  For God knows all hearts and he sees you.  He keeps watch over your soul, and he knows you knew!  And he will judge all people according to what they have done."   We knew; we knew he knew that we knew;  so we're doing it!  Did you follow that?

For anyone reading this who is considering adoption, let me say upfront that we are doing this backwards.  This is not how it usually works.  Usually, you start your paperwork and are matched with your child later in the process.  We matched first and then started paperwork.  This is how it happened for us....

I had seen families around or in pictures who had adopted children from other countries and it always was very appealling to me.  It's so representative of God's love.  Afterall, we've all been adopted by Him, right?  Then I was made aware of the need by friends who have adopted.  Seeing someone else do it made it more real, like something very doable.  Somehow the concept wasn't so foreign anymore.  My heart was being pulled that way so I mentioned it to Doug.  We started praying about it.  We danced all around it...reading, talking to friends who had done it, looking at pictures of kids, imagining fittting another child into our already full lives.  Yes, we have 3 kids who keep us running like crazy and who we will need to send to college and who have us stretched as it is!  Instead of that being a deterrent, it made us think what an awesome impact it would have on them!  They would see and be a part of answering God's call.  We're all stepping out of our comfort zone and taking a huge leap of faith...emotionally and financially!

The opportunity to travel to China with an adoption agency came to me and I was so excited!  It would be a business trip for them and I would tag along.  We planned to start our paperwork when I returned.   We visited many orphanages and foster homes.  So many beautiful babies, toddlers and kids!  I wanted to take them all home!  They were very well taken care of in great facilities but the number of them was astounding!
Very good care but nothing beats the love of a family!  These children need families.  And in the grand scheme of things we all have so much more than we "need" especially when you think of the precious ones who "need"  a forever family.  So now there was no question...we're doing it.  Now to find "her"!

Just assuming that God had a girl for me (because I have 3 boys) I was checking out the girls everywhere we went.  When I walked in to the lobby of the last orphanage we were to visit I came face to face with a boy, we smiled at each other, he melted my heart!  We played peek-a-boo and chase around the orphanage director then I was off to find my girl!  Later, during a serious meeting,  there he was outside the window and we were waving and blowing kisses.  This little cutie pie came into the meeting and ate oranges with us.  He's adorable!  Btw, every girl I inquired about was already adopted, "waiting for her family".  I couln't stop thinking about that cute boy! I got home, Doug was looking through my pictures and when he came to the picture of this "cutie pie" we had been calling him, he saw it, too!  This one is special!  I told Doug all about how awesome he was and that "we loved each other"!  Doug said, "What do we have to do to get him?" and I called my friend, the adoption coordinator, at midnight and here we are!!  Yes, I have to admit that I back-talked God a little...surely it must be a girl!  NO!!  He made it very clear, without a doubt, absolutely without question that he's the one and I couldn't be happier!  A boy...I know what to do with those!!  I cannot wait to be his mommy!!

He is 7 years old, his name will be Kell Douglas Xiaoshu Berry and he is no longer an orphan!!  He is a son, a brother, a grandson, a nephew, a cousin.  He's our's and we are his...forever!  He has a repaired cleft lip and palate.  He is charming.  He is a Berry boy.

Happy Valentine's Day!

"Above all, love each other deeply..." 1 Peter 4:8
"Let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth." 1 John 3:18
We love celebrating holidays at our house.  Valentine's Day is a favorite, I think, because it's low key, not alot of riff-raff....a special meal, a small gift, a little extra time carved out to be together.  We talk about the love we have in our home and how lucky we are and review the above verses "on a good note" (usually these verses come out after some brotherly arguing!)
This year there was lots of talk of our new love who is half a world away on this Valentine's Day.  Burke made Kell a card at school today..."to my brother Kell, from your brother Burke".  Love it!
I can't wait for him to be with us and feel the love!  In the meantime, we're loving him from Georgia!
I hope you all had a Happy Valentine's Day and enjoyed  feeling the love at your house!

Kell Douglas Xiaoshu Berry

This is our Kell!  There was instant connection...truly LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT!!  The cutest boy in all of Asia is soon to be a Berry.  Not soon enough for us!  We are fast and furious on the "paperchase" as I keep hearing it referred to...appropriately named. 
Kell is 7 years old and his "special need" is cleft lip and palate...beautifully repaired.  We filed our application with Lifeline Children's Services and received our PA from China on February 9.  So far, it feels like we're in a flurry of paperwork, reading, online training, filing applications, fingerprinting, doctor's appointments (even the dog), inspections...it gets a little overwhelming.  It feels that way until I look at this picture and see my son and then it's just a process.  It's a process that's going to lead him to us and us to him...Kell will be in his forever family!  It's made to feel doable by our awesome friends and the great Lifeline staff coming alongside us in the journey.  Thank you, thank you!
So, here we go!  We're off and running!  We have Kell's pictures displayed throughout our house.  We've made an agreement to whisper a prayer for Kell each time we see his picture.  Burke chose the prayer of the week to be "that he won't be scared when we get him".  So this week and throughout the process we pray that God prepare his heart for the huge change that is to happen in his life.  
"He tends his flock like a shepherd.  He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart.  He gently leads those who have young."  Isaiah 40:11

I am Officially a Blogger!!

I've entered the blogging world in the same way I entered the facebook world.  A friend set it up without my knowledge and then said, "It's all set up, now GO!!"  I would probably never step out into this unknown world of cyberspace on my own.  So, THANK YOU, dear friends for pushing me into the 21st century!

I have a story to tell...a LOVE STORY!  This story is written and directed by God himself.  No one else could orchestrate it so perfectly.  It will have many unexpected twists and turns, but no more than God gives us the grace to handle.  I am blogging to document my journey with the 4 great loves of my life...my husband, Doug, and our sons, Jack, Mills, and Burke.  It's our family journey to bring home the other great love of OUR life...from China.

I am not a talented writer.  In fact, all you grammar geeks out there will probably cringe at what you read!  But hang in there...it's going to have a really happy ending!