Well, life has been the usual whirlwind in the Donovan household the past month. And, of course, I'm late on blogging about it! So, let me quickly bring you up to speed. This is a lengthy one so I highlighted some parts to speed it up for you, if you are in a rush. :)
A couple weeks ago we said a sad and tearful goodbye to our two foster girls. They had been with us for 6 months. The physical act of saying goodbye was even harder than I thought it would be. "R" was sobbing, hugging me and refusing to let go. She cried from the time we left our house and all the way thru Fort Wayne to where we met their Dad. It broke my heart. "A" was a little more excited to be back with her dad and didn't have such a hard time. Driving away while sobbing was a little challenging. But, I'm tough, and by the time I returned to our house I had pulled it together. All part of the job, right?!
We had such good times with A and R: the Marv Stieglitz retreat in Portage, swimming in Lake Michigan, trips to the ocean in Hilton Head, S.C with my family, summer swimming, bike rides, camping trips, VBS, first day of school, birthdays, a lemonade stand, and day dates (ice cream, movies, putt putt as rewards for good behavior...not all the same day). Don't get me wrong, there were plenty of hard and trying times, too, but the good outweighs the bad. We miss those girls a lot. Our house seems so empty now. I had to laugh at the fact that when they were here, we couldn't wait for them to go to bed at night so we could have a few hours to ourselves. Now, we have all day to ourselves....and we are bored. Life is funny!
We've gotten to talk to A and R once on the phone since then. We've also played phone tag quite a bit so hopefully we will be able to connect again soon. Please continue to pray for them, and their family.
We spent a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving with my family in Ohio this year. This is the first time in 5 years I have been able to spend a holiday with my family and it was so sweet! (In years past, my job would not allow me time off for holidays) We went to church that morning to thank our Lord for all he has provided, yet again. Then, we of course had a wonderful meal full of all the fixins you could think of for a Thanksgiving meal. Picture a Norman Rockwell type meal. Ha! After dinner several took naps and then the games ensued! It was just so fun to spend the day with cousins and friends, laughing and enjoying each other. I have missed that for so many years, and often feel like an outsider now when I go "home" to visit, but this was just the holiday I needed.
Now on to OUR BIG NEWS! Today, we have a new child moving in with us. She is 11 years old. She has a history of having A LOT of psychological problems. I'll admit I am VERY FEARFUL about this! Honestly, I don't know that we are the right home for her. I'm not known for my tact or patience. I struggle with control issues and, apparently, so does she. This should be......fun? PLEASE BE IN PRAYER FOR US AND FOR HER! We are trusting that God has brought her to us for a reason, even if we don't understand what that is right now. And, the kicker of it is, we have been pinching pennies and cutting costs where ever we can because we are preparing to attempt an embryo adoption...and now this girl is a foster to adopt child. This means that they are in the process of terminating her mothers rights and we will have the option to adopt her, if we choose. Believe me, I am praying fervently about this. I want a baby! Do I give up my dream of a baby for this child? I'm trusting God to work in my heart and to lead me in the right direction, even if it hurts.
Now here's my shameless plug for business: in an attempt to earn some extra money towards our adoption, I have started selling Gold Canyon candles/products. Would you please consider hosting an in-home, catalog, or on-line show to support me? There are many benefits to hosting: earning free and discounted items, a night with friends, laughter, good food, yummy smells..... FUN, right?! If you are interested in hosting, please just contact me and we will work things out. If you host an in-home show, you will probably get to meet our new daughter, M, as I would probably bring her with me.
WHEW! Thanks for reading thru this lengthy post; kudos to you for making it to the end! I'm windy. Have a great day, y'all. I'm off to prepare for M to come to us this afternoon.
