Home

Friday, April 27, 2012

WOW!!!!!!!!!!

To say that I am blown away seems like such a HUGE understatement right now!

WOW

I mean just 

WOW

Everyone has been so incredibly kind and supportive and encouraging and well just 
 
AMAZING!!!
 
I have read each and every comment here 
 
each and every post on my FB page
 
every single email and...
 
I - am - in - awe!
 
In awe of the Lord's provision
 
In awe of the beautiful hearts that surround me
 
In awe of all of YOU!
 
I have said many times over the past 3 days that I have not cried so many joyful tears in a very long time - if ever!
 
You all have just touched my heart in a way that I cannot put into words
 
and I thank you...
 
and thank you 

and thank you!!!!
 
There are 2 beautiful ladies who have really just rallied around me, around this adoption and I hope they both know how much of an inspiration they have been to me!

Angie truly follows the Lord's will for her life and it is through her that I have been able to grow even more in my faith and now... we are able to work together for Lifeline!!!!  She has been an amazing friend.  She supported me as I struggled through the tough times and rejoiced with me during the great ones!  Love you dear Angie!

God is just SO good!

Tammy and I found each other through her beautiful daughter and what a privilege it was to witness their commitment to this precious child and to what they knew the Lord was asking them to do, even when it got hard!

They never faltered and truly inspired me!

Angie and Tammy have been advocating so hard for me - the advocate - and I feel so blessed by both of them!

Tammy has graciously offered to donate ALL of the proceeds for her beautiful, Be A Voice toggle bracelet.


Again...

WOW!

Tammy, you just have such a beautiful heart and I thank you from the bottom of mine!

If you would like to order one of these beautiful bracelets, please go here, Be A Voice
to order one, maybe for Mother's Day???

Once again, I just have to say a huge, heartfelt


to each and every one of you.

You have truly blessed myself, my hubby and our children who are seeing and living the greatness of our Lord and the blessings that come from the struggles!

WOW!

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Our New Precious Face - Her Story

First of I have to thank all of you for your wonderful, beautiful, amazing comments!

I have been totally blown away by all of your love and support and excitement!

Today has been a very fun day!

From the bottom of my heart...
Thank you!

Now, I know that everyone is waiting to hear about our adorable new daughter


who will, here, be called XM for now because...

we are in a sort of battle of the s*xes around here when it comes to her name

The boys, well they like Sam (Samantha)

The girls are whining hoping for Ella (Eleanor)

Maybe we will let XM choose:)

So, let me back up a bit

all the way back to when we were in China

back to when we were in China in Lizzie's orphanage


That day forever changed me

even though I didn't really understand at the time...

I was finally beginning to hear the Lord's call in my heart
I was finally beginning to understand everything that had weighed so heavily on my heart as a child and everything that weighed so heavily on my heart as an adult

It was Him and He had been preparing me

When we left China

A piece of my heart stayed

and I knew we would be back

Hubby...

not so much 

hehe!

So, we got Lizzie home and after all of her surgeries and casts and just plain ole hard attachment work,  

I began to pray and to advocate

I never asked  Hubby to consider another child, cause

he - was - done!

However, I began to ask the Lord

I asked Him to either move Hubby's heart or take the desire from mine

and...

One day, one summer as hubby was cutting the grass and listening to his MP3 player

a song began to play

and his heart was moved

the song was Steven Curtis Chapman's, When Love Takes You In

and he knew

He knew that there was another child waiting for us

He came to me with tears streaming down his face and he told me that he knew and he told me that there was another child waiting for us and he told me that she was around 8 or 9 years old and he told me that we had to bring her home

and then...

the floor fell out from beneath us and Hubby was out of work - for - a - very - long - time

It just wasn't time but the seed had been planted 

We struggled financially and still do but it was a purposeful struggle which, in the end, brought us closer to God, stronger in our faith and eventually...
here
trusting in Him
following the path that He has laid out before us

having such peace about our sweet XM without knowing much about her at all

or having the money to bring her home

I mean, who does??

Back in February, our sweet XM came to me as a file from the shared list

I recognized her face as a face that I had seen on different lists...
she had been around a while and yet she still waited

There was something about her face

a familiar-ness???

definitely a cute-ness!!!

So, I showed her to Hubby and asked him to pray

and - he - did

I put her pic on the fridge ( I have lots of pics on the fridge - heh )

but we kept going back to her

we didn't talk about her much but we were both praying for her

I was trying to get more info on her but what I learned confused me even more

so I just let it go...

Until about a month later, after I began my fabulous job with Lifeline

My job is to advocate and to advocate for older/more significant needs kiddos and to do that, I needed files

files of older/more significant needs kiddos

right?

right!

So I asked for files

6 files to be exact

6 files out of 2000 files!

When these 6 files were sent to me, I was told that these kiddos were placed on Lifeline's individual
 list and not only that but they were assigned to ME!

These were MY kids

I was excited and could not wait to get them up on my site!

As I began to go through them and got to the third file, "Mindy's" file...

my heart began to race and I began to shake - all over
it was a feeling I will never forget
because...
 
there she was
 
her sweet little face looking right at me
 
reaching out for me

and - I - was - done

I called Hubby and was crying and laughing and shaking and trying to explain to him that out of 2000 files, hers was sent to ME and I believed - to HIM

I didn't have to say much more because Hubby told me that he had been thinking about her ALL day

and - he - was - done

She was ours and we knew it

we knew it with such conviction that it did not matter that her file was full of holes and discrepancies

it didn't matter that we really did not know how old she is

it did not matter that we did not know what her exact needs are 

it did not matter that we really just do not have the money to do this...

cause she is our daughter, the one that He has chosen for us, the one that He has put in our hearts with such peace and trust that we just could not turn away from her again.

We received PA for our precious XM last week

We think that she is 8 years old

We think that she has CP and is very delayed
However...

We know that she is our daughter and that the Lord has chosen us for her

and honestly, that is all we need to know

So, please welcome our newest daughter - name TBA soon

I hope - hehe

I have also added a donate button to the blog

I don't really know anything at all about fundraising and just feel so out of my comfort zone here but the button is up and in the mean time, if you have any great fundraising ideas, I would love to hear them

Thank you all again for being so sweet and sharing in our joy!

look out China, here we come!

The New "FACE" of Cornbread and Chopsticks

Thanks to my beautiful, amazing friend Sharon...

Meet our new Daughter

the new "face" of Cornbread and Chopsticks

and...

our family!!!!!!

Check back for the story behind the face!!!

Suffice it to say that we are SO excited and just cannot wait to bring her home!!!

Thank you Sharon!!!!!

Any last minute guesses...

about the new "face" of Cornbread and Chopsticks??

Cause this last riddle will pretty much give it away!

OK, here goes...

What do you get when you cross an Adoption Advocate

with an Adoption Agency???

Monday, April 23, 2012

Perspective

So either Boo the cat is really BIG or...


Our little Lizzie is really little

or maybe a little bit of both???

Little is good and Lizzie ROCKS little!

OK, just another little teaser post!  

Sunday, April 22, 2012

GOOD GRAVY!!!!!!!



When in the heck did this happen???????

I mean, honestly, I just turned by back for a half a second and he is taller than me


and faster!


WAY faster!!!


Yes, we raced yesterday

cause I am insane

and now sore

hehe

and he won!

Well, at least we have another strong back around here for piggy back rides and the like

and even though good things come in small packages...

I am very proud of the strong young man he is becoming

inside and out!!!

Now, just to leave you with a little teaser...

there is a hint in this post that has to do with the new "face" of Cornbread and Chopsticks

My wonderful, amazing friend, Sharon at Our Family Our Story is working hard on the new look

and I am SO excited!!!!!

Stay tuned...

Saturday, April 21, 2012

Fresh Face!

OK

So I know it has been a bit cricket like around here lately

Honestly y'all

I am BUSY!!

I LOVE what I am doing and I LOVE working for Lifeline

but I am BUSY!!!

and things are about to get BUSIER!!

There are some exciting things happening at Lifeline and I feel incredibly blessed to be a part of it 

but I am BUSY!

Hehe!

So...

I am trying to spruce things up a bit around here

ya know

get some bloggy excitement back

So...

stay tuned for a slightly different look,

some additions to the ole blog maybe,

perhaps a surprise or two??

Gotta think on it.

I have enlisted some help, cause I just can't do it all myself

you know...

that "B" word again!

So...

Get ready for the new face of Cornbread and Chopsticks

Stay tuned

cause you just never know what's around the bend

See, I am already excited!!!

Thursday, April 19, 2012

We Are Chosen

So I have a friend

and this friend has a friend

and this friend has a heart for 2 little babies

twin babies

who could no longer be cared for

who needed food

and water

and shelter...

who needed a Mommie

So, this friend of a friend decided to care for these babies

IN KENYA

FOR 2 YEARS

because that is what is takes to adopt from this remote little village in Kenya

2 YEARS

So, my friend decided that she needed to do something to help her friend who wanted to adopt these babies

She didn't know quite what to do but...

the Lord knew

He knew exactly what to do

Read her story and then find out how you can help:

I was moved by God to put pen to paper in the middle of the night!  I could hardly get the words written down they were coming so fast.  

Not long after, He gave me the tune... funny cuz I am tone deaf and can not sing a song or a tune but somehow managed to get that song down.

I was then able to begin to piece it together for a Christian musician friend of mine who put it to musical notes in a record amount of time

God is so amazing and has moved in a mighty way to bring this all together in such a beautiful way!!! 

My friend who has never read a note of music much less written a song, was able to put this song together, get it recorded and put on Itunes...

here was His answer!


All of the proceeds of this beautiful song, "We Are Chosen" will be donated to these babies and the wonderful family who just wants to love them for the rest of their lives!

Go here to order this beautiful song (it is only .99) and help these beautiful babies!

Monday, April 16, 2012

Can You Help???

I have posted about sweet Cherry before


I am back to ask for your help


AGAIN


cause you all are wonderful

and

cause sweet Cherry needs our help




A wonderful friend of mine was able to get Cherry posted on Reece's Rainbow 

YAY!!

She is "Autumn" on RR and there is already $100 donation toward her adoption, toward her finding a family, toward her having a Mom and a Dad to get her through what lies ahead for her, toward her knowing the love of a family.

Please go here to donate and to share!

Please pray that this beautiful child will soon be home!

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Sense-sational!!!


So I might have mentioned here that one of my precious ones has some very real sensory issues


and when it comes food and eating


my sweet Caleb has a really hard time

It was a struggle from the very beginning when he was throwing up blood, po*ping blood and hurting

every – time – he – ate

He was tongue tied

extremely tongue tied and was so hard to nurse

but I did for as long as I could

cause as hard as it was to nurse him...

baby food was a whole other challenge

and we won't even talk about “real” food.

Sigh!!

My sweet child has just had such a battle between wanting so badly to eat “like everyone else”
and . well . eating.

The smell, the texture and the taste are all very concerning and even favorites have to be just right.

SO...

When there are victories, even small ones

we celebrate...

and we had a victory the other night

a victory born out of a setback when my sweet child refused to eat something that he had been eating and Caleb just can't afford to strike anything off of his list of approved foods

so, it became a “thing” and that was probably our fault but this was one of the very few meals that we would all eat

It was not easy and Caleb ended up being sent to bed without any supper and I ended up feeling really yucky.

Until...

big brother Charlie


you know Charlie, the peacemaker

AND


Charlie the disturber of the peace!

Came along to save the day

Charlie worked his magic and brought a very excited Caleb down to try something new...

CELERY!

Yep – CELERY!!!

and not only did he try celery but he tried celery with peanut butter and celery with just salt and not only did he try it but he actually chewed it up

AND

swallowed it!!!

WOW!

I have to say it again

WOW!

Caleb was so proud of himself


We were so proud of Caleb

and the best part...

Charlie was SO proud of Caleb and so happy with being able to help his little brother

I tell, ya, as much as a struggle this eating thing is, watching the relationship between my two boys grow and strengthen and watching the love and trust they have with each other was right up there with the fact that

CALEB ATE CELERY!!!!!


Now, just so you know, my sweet child is not alone in this and learning about sensory issues and how it can affect/afflict a person has brought me to the conclusion that it must be hereditary cause I am a picky eater and not just picky

NO!

I cannot eat entire food groups y'all!

No meat

and definitely

No seafood

Yeah, try living in the South, right on the coast and not eating meat or seafood!

Just sayin!

I do cook meat for my family because they like it but touching raw meat is not something that this sensory person particularly enjoys doing.

Bleh!

However, when it comes to seafood...

Ahem

I – just – cannot – do – it!

It smells and it is slimy

Yep, I'm done!

Hehe!

So, when my poor hubby, who loves seafood gets the chance to eat seafood...

He does not turn it down!

So, when we were offered some fresh fish by our wonderful neighbors, I just could not turn it down cause I knew hubby would love it

And love it he did!


I, on the other hand had to just take deep breaths and look away for most of the prep and ALL of the clean up!


Cause, my sensory stuffs isn't just confined to the taste of food


nope!

My kitchen smelled – for days – and the mess...

Oh the mess...

I just had to close my eyes and trust that hubby would take pity and clean up too!

And he did!

And my senses thanked him!!

Oh my dear, sweet Caleb, I hope that it helps to see that your Momma struggles sometimes too.

I hope it helps to know that I understand, that I have BTDT!

I hope it helps to know that we love you just as you are and that you will be ok and that you will eventually eat more and that the Lord will love you whether you eat broccoli or not!

It has not been easy, I know

I really know but..

I also know that eating or not...

you are the most loving, caring, thoughtful child

and we love you

just – the – way – you – are

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Please Read - My Overthinking: CongCong's story

Please read this heartbreaking story.  You have the opportunity to pray for this brave young man and send him a note of encouragement, to let him know that there are people out there who care, to let him know that our Heavenly Father is always there, always caring for him, always watching over him.

My Overthinking: CongCong's story: I found a bunch of emails in my inbox about a week ago. From an adoptive mama . A mama waiting for her son who will be meeting them very so...

Sunday, April 8, 2012

Sunday Snapshot

Sunday Snapshot has changed a bit and I am not so sure I can compete

cause...

these are some talented ladies, y'all!

I am just a point and click kind of gal but...

I did get some cute pics of the 3 littles the other day

so

I am putting them up

more for the Grandmas than anything else, cause...

these are some talented ladies y'all!  

Hehe!






To look at some really beautiful Sunday Snapshots, go to Stefanie's blog. who btw, is in China right now about to meet her precious new daughter, Talllula!

Ni Hao Yall

Happy Easter


"The tomb of Christ is famous because of what it DOES NOT CONTAIN."
[Sam Morris]

 
I am so blessed.  Thank you Jesus.

 
More about these pics, later...

Sunday, April 1, 2012

And the winner is...

Lizzie!!!!!!!

Yep, Lizzie entered a drawing at school and won!

The girl won a bike...

a real bike with wheels and everything!

Now to back up just a bit

Lizzie has been riding a bike with training wheels

and she hated it

why?

well because her big sis had already figured out how to ride 

without training wheels

So, the race was on and little Lizzie was determined to ditch those training wheels

She tried


and she tried

and with a little help...


those training wheels are history


SO...

She was so excited when she won a bike
 
a two wheel bike - sans training wheels

She had arrived!

Problem is, the bike was too big

Way too big!

 like as tall as Lizzie big

 
so we traded it in for a puppy

a stuffed puppy (got ya - heh)

a way too big stuffed puppy

 
like as tall as Lizzie big stuffed puppy


and she couldn't be happier


So, now that she has conquered the 2 wheeler

 she has her sights set on...

 
another 4 wheeler!
 
Imagine, this on the roadways!!!!


Oh my!

Might want to brush up on your defensive driving skills in a few years!


Just sayin - hehe!