15 Second call

I  got a 30 second call from Grace today.   I answered the phone and heard "Hi, mama.  I am having lots and lots of fun.  I love you a lot.  Bye" Clunk..,she hung up.  I don't know if she thought she had gotten the answering machine or what.  Needless to say, I guess her fear of me "getting stolen" while she is at camp has past.   So all of your prayers are working!! 

Off To Camp!!

Grace left this morning for church camp!!  She will only be gone for three nights and I know she will have a great time.  She loves her Sunday school teacher and she knows a lot of the kids going.  Plus her papa will be there but with the boys!!  This is a rather large camp with about 600 kids there this week.  I think the age range is about 9 to 12 years old.  Our church is actually taking 150 kids.  Some of the kids go to our church and some of the kids are part of an at risk program in our community that our church sponsors.   So many kids from that program don't know how to swim, have never been to a camp or even out of our town for that matter.  What a wonderful experience for them!!

Please pray for Grace!!  She really, really wanted to go to camp but we could tell she was starting to worry last night.  Some old fears started creeping in.  When we prayed before bed she added a P.S. and said "please God don't let mama get stolen while I am gone".  She then made me promise that I would lock doors, shut the shutters, etc.,  Then this morning we loaded the car and she ran back in the house.  She came out about 5 minutes later and said "I am sorry but I had to write mama a letter".  Right before she got on the bus, she hugged me and said "this feels like I am leaving for Ukraine"  "No!! No!! No!! Sweet girl of mine, you will never have to leave for Ukraine again!!!"
 "will you miss me, mama?"  "Yes!!, Yes!! Yes!!  I will miss my daughter and her papa!!!"

It became official.., one year ago today

 

One year ago today, a judge and jury of two said "yes" to Alona Grace becoming our daughter.

What a change in one year!!  She has grown 3 1/2 inches,  speaks English really well and is becoming more secure in the fact that we love her and aren't going to reject/abandon her (which we thought was a given from day one).  

Then

Now

hat