What Now?

First of all, let me start by saying, Ava is still doing well! She is letting Daddy hold her more(I'm leaving them together tomorrow for a couple of hours..hope this goes well), she is swinging and playing outside more..before she just stood there and watched.. She is laying down for naps and bedtime without crying(I still rock for a few minutes and I lay there long enough for her to settle), she is not crying in the car anymore...until we stop and she sees the other kids getting..I make her stop crying before she gets out(I know, MEAN MOMMY!)..but usually just telling her "Ne Plachi"(no crying) once works:). She is throwing a few little fits here and there...but if I ignore her..she stops... Really that's about all..our lives seem extremely "normal" right now... The language barrier is driving ME bonkers, but she doesn't seem to mind...she just goes about her business:). Last night we had Daddy's birthday dinner at his mom's house and Ava did really well. I held her for a bit, then she got down and played with all the kids/cousins and had a blast..only checking in with me every now and then;)...she did MUCH better than I expected. We are also taking her to church with us on Sundays, and she sits with us(no nursery for a long time, till she understands we're not going to leave her forever, and she is SECURELY attached to us. Also, no one else holds her but me or Ben..which is fine, because she won't go to anyone else...sorry folks, she needs to know who the PRIMARY people are in her life..no "shallow" attachements right now). She has been to Wal-Mart, and restaurants and is fine(no anxiety) anywhere we go.

In the last post I left a link to a website that has GREAT lists of signs of healthy attachment, RAD, etc... I was so excited to find it! I'm even more excited that Ava actually is doing ALL the things listed on the "healthy attachment" list...for now...they say problems can still come later...hence the need for this great link;)!

Now...what's next for us? After 18 months of "adoption" planning and paperwork and advocating and crying with other families...what now? Do we just leave it all behind? I can't!!! I will continue to blog about our adoption and other related stuff....we still have a great responsibility to advocate for these children, even though our daughter is home.

I will still be praying for all of you and watching to see your journeys unfold, and I will continue to pray for direction as to what the next step is for our family... I have a strong desire to adopt again...and have a tremendous burden for HIV+ children and Ethiopia...but we just found out we have to put in a new septic system....yeah, that could/will cost THOUSANDS of dollars! I'm so bummed! So, if you know anyone in Northwest Ohio who installs septic systems CHEAP, let me know! But we are just praying...letting the Lord lead...and surrendering to whatever he calls us to do.

Adopting Ava was never about me having another child, or another daughter(have FOUR boys already...DUH!!:))...it has always been about following Jesus into the fields of fatherless children and bringing them into a family...or advocating for them in other ways... And I will continue to do just that..it is my PASSION..and the calling I believe the Lord has placed on my life. I can't wait to see what He does next in our lives:)! Surrendered! Wholly devoted! And may our prayer always be "Here am I, LORD send ME!"

I covet your prayers and friendship more than you know bloggy friends! So stay tuned, it's far from OVER:)!

By the way...I'm thinking of changing our blog title to "Into The Fields"...I think I like it:)!