Christian James

*In order to protect Christian's identity, we put smiley faces over his photos. I truly WISH you could see his sweet, sweet face! He smiled SO much when he was here*

***Update on 4/25/13... no more pictures can be displayed, even if his face was covered by smiley faces. Read Blog titled, "Calloused Hearts Cannot Read Pure Intentions" for reasons why.

Well, it happened! We got our first placement on Tuesday night, February 5, 2013.  My mom was visiting for the day when I got the phone call. The social worker asked if we would be interested in taking in a 2.5 year old boy who was abandoned by his father. I asked if he was adoptable since he was abandoned and she said they didn't know. So, I told her I'd call her right back. Called Mark at work... he didn't hesitate to say "yes"... and that was the beginning of blessing #2.

*Pause* Take note of the divine orchestration here. My mom "just so happened" to be visiting for the day so Mark and I could have a date night. Instead, God provided the best support for us to watch Ethan as we left to pick-up an "unwanted" child. God providing and saving lives... as usual!

Mark came home from work, the 4 of us said a prayer, then Mark and I left and quickly ran to Target to get the little guy a stuffed animal before heading over to meet him for the first time. We introduced ourselves (as Mark and Allie), signed the paperwork, and headed to the ER - standard procedure to visit the doctor before placement, but it was after hours (driving through McDonalds first for dinner... because what kid wouldn't like a Happy Meal? Also because no kid deserved a Happy Meal more than him!). It was there in the ER that he started calling us Mommy and Daddy. We hadn't been together more than an hour.

He had a bruise on his right ear. There is no way to verify how it got there, but it looked as though someone had pulled him by the ear. Other than that, he was clear and released from the hospital.

When we got home, Ethan was waiting to meet his new buddy. My mom did an excellent job of prepping Ethan... not knowing what to expect, she told him that he's probably scared and sad... and Ethan was very sweet in meeting him. But... Ethan is Ethan, and God used our little boy to instantly bring joy to the newest Super Sweet Hero in the house. How? Well, pictures speak volumes... so without further ado, here he is...

His name is Christian (alias for now... potentially his forever name!).

Please just look at that face! And he really is sweet as can be! 

Looking at his face and knowing he was abandoned reminds me of how broken our world is.
{Again, sorry you can't see his face!}

And then there were... twins!

Well, almost. 

7 months apart...

We "just so happened" to have another pair of Superman Jammies the next size up...

(Christian is 7 months younger but one clothing size and shoe size bigger!)

Here's a picture of them seeing their matching jammies in the mirror for the first time.

The super power of boys being boys = "smooth"/natural transition for everyone

So, the first night went better than I could have imagined. We had been praying for a foster child who would blend well with our family and God answered that prayer. I truly can't think of a better placement... and yes, he sleeps through the night every night. Praising God!

Catching a ride...

Daddy time!

 Both Grandmas and Grandpas came to meet Christian...

Here's a few snapshots with Grandpa Wager

Silly Boys

As smooth a transition as it's been, Ethan has had a hard time sharing everything of his with C. Going from only child to twins is a hard/forced lesson in sharing 24/7.

 It's also been hard for him to see Christian get all new clothes (the one thing they can't really share... yet!)... 

So... this is where the matching outfits come in. 

Having the same is just easier. 

Ethan has asked us, "Where are his Mommy and Daddy?"

To that we answered, "We are his Mommy and Daddy for now. We can share."

A playful banter between the two was this, "That's MY Mommy!"

"No, that's MY Mommy!"

"No... that's MY Mommy!"

We told them, "Boys, you say, 'That's OUR Mommy!"

That, and I've been practicing with the boys and having them repeat, "What's mine is yours" along with asking the question, "Who owns everything?"

To that, Ethan quickly answered, "Me."

"Nooo. God owns everything. And He shares everything with us so we can share with others."

Although, I gotta admit, I cracked a smile when he answered, "Me" as I'm sure he was answering honestly.

Now when the playful banter takes place, I hear the following...

C: "That's MY Daddy!"

E: "That's MY Daddy!"

*Both smiling and encouraged by the participation of the game*

C: "No! That's MY Daddy!"

E: "NO! That's MYY Daddy!"

C: "My Daddy!!!"

E: "No! You don't say 'That's MY Daddy'... you say 'That's OURRRR Daddy."

*Heart Smiles*

More Super Hero Fun:

Batman muscles

And C was Robot Boy

Crazy cucumbers found Daddy's shirts

As you can see, Christian fits in just beautifully! If I were to guess why God placed us with him, my guess would be because of Ethan. These two are buddies. They laugh, play, and quarrel like brothers. Ethan has been a healthy distraction for Christian and Christian is a God sent friend for Ethan.

If I could ask 2 things from you who are following this blog, they would be:

1) Please pray for us! Here are our requests:

• God's peace and perfect love to penetrate Christian's heart. (John 14:27)
• Trust and bonding between C and each member of our family.
• Wisdom and discernment in shepherding these 2 boys given the circumstances they were both thrown into. 
• For God's will in this placement. We don't know much information or the likelihood that C will stay with us forever.
• That Mark and I would fearlessly pour out our hearts and continue to love on this boy, treating him as our own even though we have no promises of permanency. (John 4:18)

2) Please don't praise us if you too celebrate with us in this placement. Praise God, for it is His doing. He is love.

We are broken vessels doing our best to love with His strength.

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will." 

- Ephesians 1:3-5