"Finding your feet on a wonderful road..."

Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him and praise His Name. For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations. Psalm 100:4-5 Coming to China, I'll admit I was a bit apprehensive about spending the holiday season away from my family and friends. I wasn't quite sure what I was getting myself into. I love the holidays. I love being with the ones I love. I love the feeling of being able to sit by a fire at my parents' house as it gets colder outside. And during this time of the year, I especially love the delicious food of Thanksgiving and the fellowship of preparing for Christmas. So I wasn't really sure what to expect. I knew that I would be spending Thanksgiving with other Americans feeling the same way so I hoped it would be a day that gave me a glimpse into one of my favorite traditions... Thankfully, that's exactly what happened, and our Father graci...

It's that time of the year...you know the time when it's getting cool outside and you can feel winter just around the corner, when all the kids (at least in China) start to wear about five layers of clothing if they go outside; the time right after when the leaves on the trees have changed colors and you've pulled out your jacket and scarf for the mornings...that's right! It's fall!! And it's time for the rest of the leaves to fall off the trees, be raked into big piles, and...yes...be the source of chaos and laughter. So in the spirit of fall fun, a couple of weeks ago, we had our gardener rake up a big pile of leaves in the backyard for our kids to jump in... It was so much fun! Everyone seemed to love it, and each child participated in their own way... There were graceful tosses... There were threatening throws...  There were a few peaceful moments... There was laughter and smiles galore... And there ...

Everyday I see and interact with children who have defied the odds against them. They smile, laugh, walk, talk, jump, giggle, and play in ways that medically can't be explained. Simply put, they're miracles. In the past several weeks, I have been amazed at the progress that so many of our children have made/are making. Kids that have never been able to stand, are able to walk down stairs while holding onto the railing; kids that shouldn't be able to move from the waist down, are ever so slightly moving their feet; and kids that should have not lived long enough to have surgery, have survived three heart surgeries and I now get to hold them in my arms everyday. Their laughter, cries, and soft coos never sounded so wonderful to my ears. It's a wonderful thing to see and a privilege to be able to experience the miracles that our Creator is so generously pouring out on these little ones. At the same time though we have sweet, beautiful children that I so badly want to...