Gelila Bekele Call To Action from A Glimmer of Hope on Vimeo.

Love this organization and love this girl.  Both are the real deal.  Still looking for a place to give?  Go here to visit their campaign page to help! CLICK HERE

The drought in the horn of Africa is so tragic.  Not sure what to do, where to give??? Please consider giving here to the new campaign that A Glimmer of Hope is doing for relief in Ethiopia.  

This is from the Glimmer website:

Filling in some of the gaps.......
I've known that we had a daughter in Ethiopia for awhile, my dear husband wasn't so sure.  I think since we lost the referral for Wudassie and Biruk back in the spring of 2008, I've known she was there and trusted the Lord would reveal His timing.  We both assumed that we would return to adopt a girl after Abe and yet the Lord so clearly spoke to both of our hearts that we had another son in Ethiopia.  I simply can't imagine our lives without Eyasu and the connection he has given us to our family in Dube Bute.  After Eyasu had been home awhile, I started to long to return, to start the process to our girl. Last summer around this time, my heart literally ached for a child that I longed to mother.  I was so heartbroken when Moody wasn't on the same page.  I wondered how I could have missed it.  So I prayed and waited.  Around Christmas he was ready.  The Lord confirmed in his heart we did indeed have a daughter and we were to begin! I'm so thankful now, seeing His timing, because it is now clear as our daughter wasn't ready for us yet, she actually was just being born. So the heavy heart was for her, I just didn't know it yet.

We updated our homestudy at the beginning of the year and made the decison to return to the agency that we used for Abe, Children's House International.  Our dear friends, the Porters, had recently returned home from Ethiopia with their precious Mary Aster and they used CHI and their YWAM program.  Their experience and way they described the care of the kids, family preservation programs, etc. gave us such ease using CHI again and it has proved to be a wonderful experience.  Everyone on the team has been a joy to work with through this process, and we are grateful for each of them as they work tirelessly for their families.

We assumed that the process would take a very long time as news began to circulate that the Ethiopia program may shut down or at least become VERY slow.  I even began to pray about other options and thankfully the rest of the family were RESOLUTE to remain in Ethiopia.  Moody kept saying, "she is in Ethiopia babe, just be patient".  Love him.

So we did our paperwork, we got fingerprinted and life went on.  Upon receiving our CIS approval we were allowed to discuss any particular children on the waiting child list.  She was not there and we were content to wait for our girl, trusting in His perfect timing.  I got an email from Becky about a little one that was ready but not yet on the wc list.  She was on the much younger end of our perameters, but once we saw her face, we knew.  She was ours and we were hers.  Her story breaks my heart and lets me know she is full of fight.  I simply can't wait to see what the Lord has for her.  We feel so blessed.  The kids are beyond excited and want her home yesterday.  We will sit out the court closure as we did with Eyasu and pray her home quickly.  We would appreciate your prayers as well.

This is the second time that we did not set out to adopt a baby and that it what He has given us.  I have now learned that His plan is always better than our own.  That His purposes are always for our good and His glory.  I have seen Him reveal Himself so much in our first two adoptions and have seen Him work in this one as well.  Moody and I may be the oldest to show up for sweet baby girls 5 year old dance recital, but you can bet her whole cheering section will be right there with us!  Welcome to the Team little one.  We love you dearly.

We are thrilled to announce that we have accepted the referral of the most precious little girl from Ethiopia!  I have much to tell (especially as many of you may be saying, huh? what?) but am running out to baseball games!  Trust me, she is perfect for the team and we can't wait to have her home.  More to come this weekend. :)  God is good.  Soli Deo Gloria!

Enjoy this video of Kristen Bell going to the site in Ethiopia she raised money for her 30th video.

Kristen Bell visits Northern Ethiopia from charity: water (special donors) on Vimeo.

The City of Addis - A short documentary from Session 7 Media on Vimeo.


This is an amazing video of Addis and highlights some incredible ministries doing work there.  It makes my heart long to be there.

Tomorrow is Birthmother's Day.  I simply don't have words to adequately express how my heart feels towards the women that carried and deeply loved my sons.  We have had the pleasure of getting to know Abe's birthmom and will never have the opportunity to know Eyasu's.  Either way, they will forever have a place in our family.

I have shared this before.  It is pretty raw and difficult, yet I just don't know of a better way to show you how in His marvelous creation, He could weave the lives of two moms together so perfectly.


ethiopiasmile 2010: Reunion at KVI Orphanage from Kurt Neale on Vimeo.

My heart is heavy, heavy for a country that I love dearly and the recent news about potential changes that could slow things down there to a crawl! I have been around Internation Adoption long enough to know that rumors swirl, changes take place and eventually things settle down and are accepted as the new norm.  If the news about Ethioipian adoptions slowing down like they speculate becomes reality, SO many children will spend YEARS living in orphanages, not families.  This breaks my heart.

I am all for reform and am well aware that there are agencies not playing by the rules and they absolutely should be stopped.  My heartbeat is for all of the children there that are true orphans, legally available for adoption, in the care of ethical agencies, doing everything they can to process cases in an ethical manner.  These children deserve homes, deserve moms and dads to tuck them in at night.  Deserve the security of a loving home.

I am not so naive to think that unethical practices don't exist, that some families aren't torn apart by greed and lack of options. That definitely needs to be stopped!  I am a HUGE supporter of family preservation, and DOMESTIC adoption within Ethiopia (check out this amazing new initiative if you haven't already). Sometimes though, IA is the best option for them.  Their chance at life.

I can only speak to my 2 experiences so far.  Speak of my 2 precious sons.

Abe- I honestly don't allow my mind to go to what life would be like for my little guy had he stayed in Ethiopia.  Had his precious birthmom not known in her heart that she wasn't able, didn't have the tools, the resources, the means to care for her son.  The son that she thought was healthy.  She made the decision based on what she knew.  She simply didn't know the needs this beautiful child would have, the therapy he would need, the access to neurologists and orthopedic surgeons and nutritionists......she didn't know, but HE did.  "A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in His holy dwelling.  God sets the lonely in families," Psalm 68:5-6


I can't think of anything more lonely than lying in a crib, unable to move and having your muscles severly contract due to lack of stretching.  International adoption was Abe's best option and our greatest gift.

We would have missed out on moments like this.  When his legs move in a way that an MRI simply says they shouldn't.  We get to experience the miracle.

Eyasu- A double orphan, extended family doing the very best they could to care for him, to love him, to meet his needs. I imagine, and have been told, that the decision to relinquish was extremely difficult.  When a 2 year old weighs what a typical 6 month old does, sometimes you don't have a choice.  So he moved to care, he got well.  He got a family.  Our joy, our blessing.

So today, I am prayerful.  Prayerful for the children that need homes, that deserve families. For those already referred, about to be referred, those waiting...... I am prayerful that the necessary measures needed to make sure that unethical practices, people and agencies are stopped, and prayerful that His glory will be shown and revealed in ways that we simply can't imagine.  His plan is best.  He writes the script and I am learning to allow Him to move the pen.

For I know the plans I have for you, (orphan and adoptive parent) declares the Lord.  Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11

Hope for Dube Bute Campaign Fundraising Event, Hosted by the Festes and the Baileys from A Glimmer of Hope on Vimeo.


Our time in San Antonio was another reminder to us just how much He loves the people of Dube Bute.  Just how much the story resonates in the hearts of others and motivates them to act, to DO, to help bring hope to those living without basic needs today.  Not for long.

Phase 1 is DONE!  And while it was really amazing to see 100% total campaign goal on the main page, it was clear that we needed to begin Phase 2.  So we have.  The total has gone up and we rest that the funds will come in as the Lord continues to reveal to us that this is His.  We are humbled to play a role and more humbled to witness those that step up and are bringing HOPE.

Watch the incredible recap video from the event in San Antonio. Thank you Eric.  Kelley and Joey, Anne Marie and Jeff, Moody and I are so grateful that you jumped in with both feet, were willing to ask your friends to come along on this adventure!  I simply can't wait to be standing in Dube Bute with you, watching these beautiful people experience the gift of clean water for the first time!!!

P.S-- Just how incredible is Grace and how cute is my hubby???

Imagine farming for a living in Southern Ethiopia. You are raising your 4 children with the help of extended family as your wife has passed away. Your brother and his wife live in the same village and have 4 children of their own, with one on the way. Your brother passes away and you begin to care for his children and their pregnant mother. 4 months after she gives birth to her 5th boy, she too passes away. You are now responsible for 9 children, one of them an infant. You work hard to provide for them, but it is difficult. You do your very best, but the baby is sick, really sick. Weighing only 16 pounds at 23 months old.
You ultimately relinquish this child in an effort to better provide for his needs, to save his life. This is a painful decision, evidence is shown in your eyes 13 months later when you see him again with his adoptive family in Addis.

This is the current water source in Eyasu's village in the Southern Region, Sidamo zone in Ethiopia. He is from the district of Gorche.

Back to day 5 in Dali. So we have darling little Daniel running fast and furiously to keep up as we walked all over Dali to see first hand the work that Glimmer of Hope is doing there. The first stop was to see some new school blocks that were being built. The view from these schools was just gorgeous. The people of the community were so warm. At one point a group from a local church sang for us and they were wearing beautiful red choir robes. They also had a very large drum they were using.......remember the drum?? Back to that in a minute.



I was so full. The rest of the drive home was slow going as a heavy fog set in and we just prayed we were going in the right direction! We made it safely back to Tercha, ate dinner and hit the sack. I didn't hesitate to take my Ambien and I was out.

I'm getting sleepy and the rest of this day is just too important to try to crank out quickly, so I will leave you with Daniel for today and finish our Dali day hopefully tomorrow.