Espresso A Mother's Love - In a Family of fourteen where this is always something brewing

Blessed Beyond Measure

July 9, 2017 By: klovecomment

When we first began to think about planning our home assignment the task seemed insurmountable. We knew from the moment we first considered adopting our sibling group of five (plus eventually one more 🙂 ) that a great challenge would be traveling to the USA. As time passed we began to seriously consider all we would need both in the area of paperwork documentation as well as necessities such as plane tickets, a vehicle, housing, furnishings, and finances to compensate for the increase in living expenses.

Finally, after a seven year term, we prepared to leave Brazil. It was amazing to witness all the adoption process paperwork slowly come together step-by-step just in time for us to leave after Karina’s graduation. We completed Landon’s adoption process, filled out applications for US citizenship, and took a trip to Rio de Janeiro to request tourist visas for the kids.

We left Manaus just before midnight on June 3^rd, and arrived in Miami the next morning. The immigration officer was stamping in the kids’ visas when we noticed he had a serious look on his face. Our nervousness started to increase a bit until he looked up and grinned as he handed the stack of passports back and said, “Be sure to let me know if you become a reality TV show.” 🙂

We arrived in Seattle to a warm welcome by Jessica and some of our dear friends. We were all exhausted yet excited to finally be in the USA. When we arrived at the house we were absolutely amazed at God’s provision—-above anything we could have ever asked for. We knew ahead of time that we would be provided with a house and some basic necessities but never imagined all that would be waiting for us—a totally furnished beautifully decorated home complete with furniture, kitchenware, toys, clothes, a fully stocked fridge, pantry, and freezer, and a custom built table big enough for our entire family. We have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love from generous people who want to help in any way they can. Several people have assured us they want to help feed our big family, and to please let them know if we need anything. We’ve received grocery gift cards, and help from our wonderful neighbors preparing a garden to be planted. I’ve been pampered and my hair, which hadn’t been trimmed in over a year, received some major help and I am so grateful. And to be able to wear clothes that don’t smell moldy and put on a bit of make-up without it melting off my face has been an added bonus. One of my kids innocently said something that made me laugh: “Mom, you look prettier here in the States than you do in Brazil.” 🙂

It was SO fun to witness all the kids’ reactions to life here: drinking out of a drinking fountain for the first time, visiting the library, feeling cold air, and experiencing cracked lips and dry peeling skin. Trying new foods has been a highlight, and, for me, a highlight is definitely being able to prepare food without spending all day long in the kitchen. We are loving meeting new friends and reconnecting with old. I am so excited about the opportunities for our kids to get involved in the community through Sunday School, VBS, sports, etc… We are thankful to God for all the opportunities He is providing to broaden their world view. My little “jungle children” are seeing the wide world—many of them for the first time or the first time in a long time—and loving it! God has provided summer employment for our oldest kids as well. Jessica is enjoying her job at a daycare. Karina and Logan are harvesting strawberries and, in a few weeks, raspberries. We are so thankful for these jobs which will help pay college bills.

We arrived exhausted from our seven year term on the field. The past few months in Brazil were draining in many ways, but especially the robberies took their toll on our family. We are experiencing rest and an opportunity to renew our strength. A highlight of our time so far has been spending time with family in Montana the first week of July. We are grateful for all God has provided! Thank you to everyone who has and is having a part in supporting us!

Family: It’s a Beautiful Thing

September 18, 2016 By: klove1 Comment

It’s FINALLY official!!! There are five new members of the Jansma family: Lucas Andre Jansma (11), Victoria Kate Jansma (9), Ana Clara Elise Jansma (6), Haylee Gabrielle Jansma (3), and Hudson Gabriel Jansma (3). We have been waiting for this day for a long time!

Reflecting on this adoption journey, I think back to the day we met the kids. We were delivering Christmas cookies to the orphanage. The first kid we met when the big security gate opened was Lucas. So many kids pulled at my heart strings that day, but over the weeks and months to come I just couldn’t get that eight year old boy and his four siblings out of my mind. I began to pray for them, either that their home conditions would improve enough for them to go back to a loving home, or that they would be legally free to be adopted. Several months after that visit we were asked to consider adopting this group who would be separated if a home for them all together couldn’t be found. The following six months were filled with ups and downs as we waited on God’s perfect timing. We are forever grateful for the orphanage A Father’s Heart (Abrigo O Coracao do Pai) which provided a safe and loving Christian environment that enabled our kids to begin the healing process and prepare to be a part of a new family. The end of September 2014 we received the official call that we could begin the process to adopt the kids, and now exactly two years later, that process is over and we are celebrating.

As I was glancing through the birth certificates tonight something amazing struck me. These birth certificates are no different than those of our biological children. It is incredible to think that when you adopt a child they are YOURS just as much as the child who is from your womb. Adoption is a beautiful thing. ADOPTION is REDEMPTION. It is the perfect picture of what Christ did for us when He chose us as His own.

I decided to make a celebration slideshow, and am so thankful for Karina’s help with this project. The same day we began working on the project Jessica messaged me about a song that touched her heart and made her think of our family. As you watch, listen closely to the lyrics from the song “Add to the Beauty” by Sara Groves. FAMILY is BEAUTIFUL, and adoption did indeed ADD TO THE BEAUTY of our family. Here is what Jessica wrote on Instagram when she heard the news that the adoption was officially finalized:

“Today five of my siblings received their official certificates of adoption in the mail. Tears fill my eyes on this special day because it is a reminder of how God has used their lives to so dramatically transform mine. Adoption is BOMB.”

I am forever grateful for God’s gift of family, and for how He used adoption to enrich our lives. Thank you for your faithful prayers and support for our family through this journey. Please keep praying for Landon’s process to be finalized soon!

A Mother/Daughter Bond

August 24, 2016 By: klove1 Comment

A mother/daughter bond —- it’s what we have! It didn’t happen the ordinary way—as mama rocked her newborn baby in her arms. It didn’t happen the way it did with my five daughters who came before her. It didn’t happen the moment we met for the first time when she was six years old. And even when she moved into our home, it didn’t happen overnight. But IT HAPPENED—-a strong mother/daughter bond that can’t be broken!

I praise God for the life of this beautiful girl who turns nine years old today. She is a gift from God, and I am blessed to be her mom. I’m thankful for how God has helped her through grieving the loss of her biological mom, and accepting me into her life.

Victoria has made amazing progress this year in all areas of life: physically, spiritually, emotionally, and academically. I couldn’t be more proud of her! I praise the Lord for protecting her during the extremely difficult years of early childhood, and for giving her a fresh start in life. She looks at life in awe and wonder. She has taught me so much in the two short years she has been a part of our family. Happy Birthday, Victoria Kate! I love you more than words can express!

This little boy…

January 30, 2016 By: klovecomment

…brings so much JOY and energy to our lives. He has only been with us for a little over a month, but we have already developed a deep bond with him. It is hard to put into words what the transition has been like, but for those of you who have adopted, you most likely understand the sheer amazement of bringing a child home and watching them blossom—moment by moment, step by step, day by day.

When we first found out the kids’ biological mom had another baby we were quite shocked. When the social worker asked if we were interested in adopting him I quickly responded with a “yes” and then glanced over at Phil, who looked rather pale—-as if he could pass out right then and there. 🙂 Some questions that went through our minds were: How could we say “yes” to another child when we already have eleven? How could we say “no” to a baby when we have the opportunity to give of ourselves so that child can know God’s love? How will others react when they hear this news? Will we have the financial means to survive? Will I be able to balance my time to give each child all they need to thrive—-to be all that God created them to be? In the end, we came to the conclusion that if indeed God wanted us to adopt him, He would give us a peace and pave the way. God did just that, and while it hasn’t always been easy, we KNOW without a doubt that this little guy is a treasured gift from God to our family.

Our family just wouldn’t be the same without him. He has already taken on his role quite well. He knows where he fits in as the youngest of twelve. He enjoys having so many older siblings to interact with—to shower him with love and attention. Though I don’t think he always enjoys the fact that he has so many older siblings to tell him what to do. Hudson and Haylee have taken on their role of big brother and sister, and love the opportunity to boss him around any chance they get. All the older kids have been such a huge help with him. God’s timing was perfect in that Jessica was home from college, and the teens were on break from school as well. They took on an active role of helping out even more around the house during this crazy transition time. And now that the older kids are back at school during the day, the younger ones each take a turn helping with Landon while I am home schooling. Landon is at, in my opinion, the most challenging age of early childhood—-the stage with lots of energy, always on the go, into everything, can’t be left alone for a split second, still learning boundaries. 🙂 But at the same time, this stage is an exciting one. He is discovering his world—-and loving it. He is learning new words—in Portuguese and English. He is trying new foods, spitting some out and swallowing others and asking for more.

Please be praying the adoption process for Landon Moses will move along in a timely manner. At this point we have legal guardianship, and are waiting for another document to be signed by the judge in order to begin the process to adopt. We plan to furlough when Karina graduates in May 2017, and are praying everything will be completed in time to do so. Thank you for your faithful love and support for our family and ministry in Brazil!

Surprise! Looks like we’re going to need a new family picture soon!

November 8, 2015 By: klove2 Comments

Life is full of surprises, big and small. Recently we received one of the biggest surprises of our lives! We were notified by social services that a baby had been brought into custody during a drug raid. He is the biological sibling of our adopted five. We feel it is God’s plan for us to welcome this little guy into our home, to give him the opportunity to grow up with his siblings, and to show him the love of a family with the ultimate goal of teaching him about God’s unconditional love. His birth name is Moses. Ironically, just as Baby Moses of the Bible was rescued from the bulrushes and adopted by Pharoah’s daughter, this little Moses also has an amazing story of redemption that we hope to share in more detail with you someday. Please be praying for the necessary documents to be completed in order to bring him home. We were initially told he could come home this week, but later found out the process could take several more months to complete. Thanks for your prayers and support for our family.

One year ago today…

October 18, 2015 By: klove1 Comment

One year ago today Lucas, Victoria, Ana Clara, Hudson, and Haylee joined our family. Reflecting on the ups and downs of this year, my heart is overwhelmed with gratefulness for all the Lord has done. He has taught us so much! Our faith has grown in ways we could never have imagined. This year has been filled with waves of emotions. Most of the time I feel beyond blessed by the amazing opportunity the Lord has given. Parenting these kids can be challenging, but oh so rewarding. They are soaking up all the love and attention and are THRIVING. Everything most children take for granted is so new and fun to them: to be able to sit with sisters in the toy room and play hours on end with baby dolls, to choose a book off the bookshelf and turn page after page, studying each picture, to get excited (at age 10) about the opportunity to have a coloring book of your very own. Every meal, no matter how simple, is special, and their faces light up EVERY SINGLE TIME they get to eat. The years they went to bed hungry will not soon be forgotten.

Every once in a while, on the hard days, my heart aches for my youngest biological kids, whose world was forever changed the day our family grew. They were used to having much more individual attention from Mom and Dad. They were used to being able to leave their personal possessions without fear they would get destroyed in a matter of seconds. And then in that moment God brings to my mind just how wonderful their world became the day the five joined our family. They have had the opportunity to learn life lessons at such a young age, lessons that many adults have never grasped. They are learning that life isn’t just about them, that the world doesn’t revolve around them. The Lord has used our adoption to help shape them into what He wants them to be. There are examples of this in the oldest, down to the youngest. For example, Jessica (age 18) is studying Child and Family development at John Brown University with a desire to minister to hurting children. While she has had this burden for many years, the Lord used this past year working with our five to confirm this is how He wants her to give her life in service to Him. And Makenna (age 4) said something the other night totally out of the blue when I was helping her get ready for bed. She said, “Mom, why did we only get five of them?” I had no idea what she was talking about so I asked, “Five of what?” She said, “You know: Ana, Victoria, Lucas, Hudson, and Haylee. Only five of them, but I want to get ALL of them.” During our visits to the orphanage she had gotten to know and love many of the children and wanted them to come join our family as well. 🙂

It has been interesting to look at life through the eyes of Lucas, Victoria, and Ana Clara. We have watched them experience many things. Oftentimes we are saddened as we realize the way they think or behave is a direct result of early childhood trauma, abuse, and neglect. Some events are a mixture of sad and humorous (if that is even possible). Like the time Victoria lost her first tooth so we told her to put it under her pillow and maybe the tooth fairy would come. (We had played this game with our other kids, but to them it was just a game. They understood that Daddy was the “tooth fairy” and that if he didn’t fall asleep without forgetting he would exchange the tooth under their pillow with some money.) That night when Phil was tucking Lucas into bed he said, “Dad, I’ve tried that for years and it doesn’t work.” So then the next morning Victoria woke up to find money under her pillow. At the time we didn’t think anything about the ramifications of this “game”. Until later that afternoon and many times throughout the week we caught Lucas trying with all his might to pull out his rotten permanent teeth. Phil had to sit down and explain to him our game, and that he could participate too when one of his baby teeth is loose and ready to be pulled.

The kids have learned so much this year. We give God all the glory for how He has been working in their lives. They are learning the basics of living life such as table manners, taking care of property, respecting others, obeying those in authority, but more importantly they are learning who God is and about His unconditional love for them. As a mom there is no greater ministry than to be able to share God’s love with the children He has blessed me with. Many days I fall short, and am not the example God wants me to be. But by His grace and with His strength I press on!

National Adoption Month is coming up in November. When I was traveling this past summer, sharing our adoption story, a dear pastor in one of our supporting churches took time at the end of my presentation to give a heart-felt message about God’s command to care for the orphan. He shared James 1:27 “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” I read a statistic recently that said if one family in every third church in the U.S.A. would adopt a waiting child in foster care there would no longer be any waiting children in the U.S.A. I love the message in the song “I Refuse” by Josh Wilson: “I can hear the least of these crying out so desperately and I know we are the hands and feet of you oh God. So if you say move its time for me to follow through and do what I was made to do and SHOW THEM WHO YOU ARE. I refuse to sit around and wait for someone else to do what God has called me to do myself, oh I could choose not to move but I refuse.”

We have completed all the necessary steps of the adoption process, and are waiting for final approval from the judge. We anticipate this to happen any day now. Please be praying with us that the process will be finalized soon.

Time of Refreshment

August 16, 2015 By: klovecomment

I don’t think I knew how much I needed this trip, this break away. But my husband knew, and my teenagers knew. And God brought together all the details to make a seemingly impossible trip happen. The main purpose of this trip was to accompany Jessica on her journey back to the US, but it has been so much more than that!

As the oldest of eleven children, Jessica rarely, ok, NEVER gets my undivided attention. But for five weeks she has been an “only child”. I have been able to spend countless hours talking to her with no interruptions. I’ve been able to treat her to special foods and experience new things together. One of the highlights of our time together was to visit John Brown University, along with my mom who graciously offered to drive us there (1900 miles round trip). I knew that seeing JBU ahead of time would help me with this transition, but it ended up being even better than I had hoped. God gave me the privilege of not only meeting Jessica’s roommate but also her nice family who assured me that their home would always be open to Jessica. The professors seemed so personable. Jessica was able to register for classes, and it was fun to participate in that with her. We were entertained by comedian Ken Kingston on Friday night, and the next morning’s chapel service was a special time of worship followed by a convicting message from one of the English professors whose theme was “whatever you do in this life, each moment of the day, allow Christ to be in it.”

While on this road trip, we were able to spend two nights in Camdenton, Missouri, visiting friends who have had a huge impact on my life. While there I was able to learn a special program called Search and Teach which will be an asset to me during this school year as I work with my new kids. I think all five of them will benefit from this program.

Over the past five weeks I’ve been able to visit many friends and relatives. I was able to spend time with my parents as well as one of my brothers and his wife. It had been three years since we’d been together. I shared in six churches, and over twenty homes/small group settings. Many people hadn’t heard the whole story on how God brought the sibling group of five to us. This was a good time to share in more detail about how things transpired, and to publicly give God the glory for how he knit our family together. So many people have had a part in our lives, and I loved the opportunity to thank churches and individuals for their prayers, friendships, and financial support. There are so many of you we weren’t able to see this time, and so I am going to link the two videos I showed at the conclusion of my presentations so you can see them as well. It is our plan to furlough in two years, where we will spend a year living in the USA and traveling around to visit each one of you.

Please continue to pray for our family as we adjust to life with Jessica so far away. We are thankful for technology which helps bridge the gap. We are thankful for all those who are caring for her in our absence. God provided a wonderful family for her to stay with while she was working a great summer job. She was able to spend several weeks with Phil’s parents in Montana who helped her prepare to get her driver’s license which she did get yesterday. Monday she travels on to Arkansas where she will be greeted by dear friends of ours who will spend a few days with her and then take her on to JBU. We are amazed at how God uses His people to bless us in so many ways. Our hearts are truly grateful!

Presentations:

Graduation Day

May 29, 2015 By: klovecomment

I used to think this day seemed so far away. And then all of a sudden it was here before I even realized it. My firstborn graduated from high school today. I am overwhelmed with mixed emotions. I feel like a certain aspect of our family won’t be the same anymore. Jessica is the life of the party around our house, and together with the siblings close to her age she plays a certain role that we will surely miss. For eighteen years this girl has been an everyday part of my life. How will I continue on without seeing her every day? How will I enjoy drinking my morning cup of coffee if she isn’t sitting across from me? She is truly one of my very best friends in the world, and I am going to miss her immensely. Even though there are sad aspects to this day, of course my heart is filled with joy knowing Jessica has completed this phase of her life, and is ready to embark on the next adventure God has for her. God has worked out so many details to help pave the way for her to be able to have a summer job, and then go on to John Brown University this fall. Jessica has a strong desire to follow the Lord, and has given her life to Him to be used for His glory. As a mother there is no greater joy than to see my daughter walking this path.

One thing that is definitely helping me in this moment is the fact that I will be accompanying Jessica on her journey to the USA. There was a time this year amidst all the planning when I didn’t think this would be a possibility, but God worked out all the details and has given me this special opportunity. So now I can prolong this goodbye, and enjoy some special one-on-one time with Jessica. I will cherish these weeks we have together! Thank you for your prayers for our family during this time!

Love Is Spoken Here

March 14, 2015 By: klove1 Comment

One year ago today, Phil and I were asked the biggest question of our married lives: “Would you consider adopting a sibling group of five?” We are so thankful we said, “YES!” Our lives have been enriched in a way that is indescribable. To invest in the lives of five abandoned children, and to show them love and acceptance has been a rewarding experience. We entered into this situation with the hope of being a blessing to these children, but in reality we are the ones who have received a blessing, our lives forever changed.

The process of becoming a bilingual family has been so neat to experience! It has been very interesting to have a wide range of ages and levels of language represented in both English and Portuguese. Phil and the older kids are fluent in Portuguese. Before the new kids joined our family, Kayla and Makenna didn’t know much Portuguese at all. I was only comfortable speaking simple sentences with small children.

Within only a few short months, Kayla and Makenna have shocked us all at how quickly they have learned. Kayla can now communicate well with her new siblings. She has amazed us all with her confidence level, and isn’t afraid to speak. When she comes to a word she doesn’t know, she quickly fills it in with an English one and moves on. Makenna is a bit behind her age level in English, so people often have a hard time understanding what she is saying. Her language of choice is now Portuguese. Because she and Ana-Clara spend the majority of their days playing together, she has learned Portuguese at a remarkable rate. (This is a five year old Ana-Clara version of Portuguese, not necessarily “proper” Portuguese 🙂 ) Our hearts melted the other day when at the dinner table, Phil told Makenna it was her turn to pray, and she prayed her whole prayer in Portuguese. It was PRECIOUS!

Our new five who didn’t know any English when they came to live with us five months ago, are all at different levels of the learning process. Lucas is studying in the Brazilian school this year so he isn’t as exposed to English as Victoria is because she is studying in the American school. Lucas has a desire to learn, and loves to try out new phrases he learns on people to get a response. Victoria on the other hand, has AMAZED us. She already understands most of what we say in English, and oftentimes she can respond as well. Ana-Clara hasn’t learned much yet, but that is because she spends her days playing with Makenna who has chosen to speak Portuguese. 🙂 Up until recently we spoke to the twins in Portuguese, but then decided it would be a good idea if Phil continues to speak to them in Portuguese, and I speak in English so they can get a good grasp of both languages.

Last night Makenna woke up from a deep sleep yelling for water. She yelled, “Mamai!!! Estou com sede. Quero agua!” On the other hand, today Haylee asked for water by saying, “Mom, agua?” She says “Mom” in the same way she hears my teens say it. 🙂

As I was thinking about our family’s language learning process, a song I listened to as a kid came to mind: Love in Any Language. It is neat to think that love can transcend all language barriers. It will be interesting to see how languages continue to develop in our family.

Reflections

February 21, 2015 By: klove3 Comments

It has been almost four months since our five new treasures joined our family. Other than writing birthday posts, I haven’t taken time to put my reflections into words. Many people have asked us what it was like to add five children at one time to our family. Our reply is always that it has gone amazingly well. And that is the truth. This process has been much easier than we ever anticipated; however, we do realize we could still very well be in the “honeymoon stage”. We are thankful for all God has done; He has given us wisdom and strength for each new day. He prepared the kids’ hearts to accept us as their new family.

Though the bonding happened so easily, the transition had it’s challenging moments. The first six weeks is almost a blur to me; I was so physically exhausted. Going from taking care of a family of eight to a family of thirteen was no easy task. I had to learn to budget my time differently. I was on the go from early morning until late at night, and still oftentimes went to bed with things unfinished. I had to learn to cook differently, to make LOTS of everything and to look for ways to stretch the budget. I rarely had time to sit down and enjoy a cup of coffee (and you know how I love my precious coffee moments 🙂 ). I lost weight that month, and had several health problems as a result of the fatigue. Emotionally I was feeling drained as well. We made up our minds from day one that in order to help this transition go smoothly we had to be structured and consistent. Our new little ones needed intense guidance as they learned how to live in a family. We went through many struggles with the three oldest kids such as destruction of toys, coloring on walls, ripping books, eating garbage out of the trash can, hoarding food, lying, and stealing from siblings. But thankfully within a month of setting clear boundaries and giving consequences for inappropriate behavior, they caught on quickly and now they rarely make wrong choices. They seem to have bonded so well with our family in such a short time. We are SO thankful!

Our ongoing struggles are with the oldest. We had anticipated he would be the most difficult. The first eight years of his life were spent in survival mode, with lying and stealing being such a huge part of his life. He wasn’t ever held accountable for his actions. It is taking time for him to realize he has parents now, parents who love him and who have his best interest in mind, parents who aren’t going to abandon him. We do believe God is working in his heart. We have seen some improvements in his behavior that indicate to us he is slowly starting to accept us as his parents and to realize that he is secure in our home. Please be praying for our little guy. We love him so much.

Speaking of love, I’ve been thinking so much about love these days. Love can be defined as the action of being totally committed to the well-being of others without regard for their worthiness. For years I have heard messages on love, how we should love our neighbors as well as our enemies. I have studied I Corinthians which speaks of how love is patient, kind, doesn’t envy, doesn’t boast, isn’t easily angered, keeps no record of wrong, etc. But when God blessed me with my oldest adopted child all of this knowledge was put to the test like never before in my life. I’ve been thinking much about God’s unconditional love for me. His love is not based on my actions; He doesn’t love me more on the days I sin less. His mercies are new every morning. I need to live out that same kind of love with each of my children, that same love God shows toward me. I am learning that love is a choice; I choose to love my son because he is my son. Ultimately, I want to exhibit Christ’s unconditional love for him, so that someday soon he will understand God’s love and accept Him as Lord of his life. I am thankful for how God is using my son to teach me truths that I may never have fully grasped if God hadn’t brought Lucas André into my life.

Those first weeks as a family of thirteen seemed so hard. I had to focus on the task for the moment because life seemed too overwhelming if I thought ahead at all. It was difficult to feed everyone, keep up on housework, help with homework, get everyone ready for school, church, and other activities. It was exhausting to tuck all the little ones into bed at night and still have energy to finish up the tasks of the day. Remembering back to the day my friend Holly took the picture in my heading, I think of how long it took to get everyone looking good and ready for our first family photo. I think back to how exhausted I felt at that moment and it was only 9:00 in the morning. I remember the feeling of coming back to the messy house and feeling overwhelmed with the amount of laundry to do, and the task of getting lunch on the table once again. And now, nearly four months later, those feelings are gone. This just feels normal. It isn’t exhausting anymore. It is very doable. I even have time for a coffee break (or two) every day. We have transitioned to being a family of thirteen! Life just feels normal again.

In closing I want to say how thankful I am for my husband who has been such a strong leader and has made this process a success. He is an amazing dad who takes time to teach his kids at a heart level. And I’m thankful for my teens. I can honestly say that without their help I wouldn’t have survived these past few months. They have not only had a huge increase to the sometimes mundane and never ending chores at home, but they have poured their hearts into helping their new siblings adjust and thrive in our family. Kayla and Makenna went through some adjustments, like the time Makenna was in tears because we had to rescue her little Cinderella doll’s head from being chewed up in the mouths of all five new siblings at different times throughout the course of a day. 🙂 In spite of the difficulties, they have adjusted remarkably well. It didn’t take long for Makenna to become the best of friends with Ana-Clara. They play together all day long, and rarely get into an argument. Kayla has been a good example to the new siblings who are close to her age, and she is a big helper with the twins as well.

I am thankful for how God has knit our family together in such a special way. Thank you for being a vital part of this transition. People near and far have helped in so many ways; many have prayed, given financially, sent donations to buy Christmas gifts, shared (in person and e-mail) encouraging words. These are tangible things that remind us God is faithful to meet all of our needs.