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About Us
Well, most of you that will be reading this blog know most of what there is to know about us. We have been married for 20 years, have three amazing and beautiful children (and smart... did I say smart?). Mark has been the worship pastor for White Stone Church for going on 9 years and I returned to teaching 3 years ago after many years at home raising children. Well, there we are in a nutshell. Who would have thought that God wasn't done with our family yet?
I (Angie) have been feeling some "unrest" lately. Although I wasn't able to put my finger on it... something had been leaving me feeling "unsettled". As I talked to Mark and to friends, all I could figure is that I was grieving the growing up of my "babies" and the fact that they were not "needing" me as much. I still remember telling Mark "I just always wanted to be a Mommy... that's all I ever had passion to be". This was until Mark's most recent trip to Haiti.
I (Angie again) have always supported the mission projects and trips to Haiti. We have supported it financially, prayerfully, and emotionally for some time. We have allowed for our Daddy and husband to go a multitude of times, and though we missed him, knew he was doing good. About a year ago, our church decided to narrow our support to a sweet little girl's orphanage in Coq Chante. When we did this, our family chose a little girl to support in prayer and in providing needed items. Valancia was the little girl that Kayla chose from among the pictures. My prayer for her and all the other little girls has been for a family and most especially for a "mommy".
Fast forward to December 2008. This trip was different than all the others. It was as if God whispered something to Valancia and to Mark that He had never shared before. They bonded in such a beautiful way. But what is so weird is that we bonded too. All those miles away, God was also preparing my heart and my children's hearts to open ourselves up to a new family member. As we talked with her on the phone, we were all captivated.
Now I understand my unrest. I have always loved being a mom... now I get to mother a little girl that needs a mother more than anything else in the world. Wow!!! How amazing is that. Please pray for us that this journey to get her home will be quick and that we will experience what the Lord has for us all along the way. That every step and every path that we take is in the center of His will. Our prayer is to have her home by Christmas 2009.
Kayla
When my family decided to sponsor one of the girls at the Coq Chante orphanage my dad told me to pick out one of the girls. As I looked at the girls' pictures, Valancia's picture popped out at me. I told my dad that she was definitely the girl I wanted to buy for. Shortly after that, my dad went to Haiti to spend some time with all the girls. He got to meet Valancia that trip but they didn't get to spend much time together. In fact, he spent most of his time with the younger girls, like Yalanda and her sister Islande. In September, my dad took another trip to Haiti. That trip my dad got to deliver a new backpack, shoes, and dresses that we had picked out for Valancia. But they still didn't get to spend much time together. But then in December . . . everything changed! He went back to Haiti to help his friend Andy (who is adopting Odette). When him and Andy got to Coq Chante, Valancia came running out and just hugged my dad. They spent the whole rest of the week together and they got very close. When my dad got home he was a wreck. So him and my mom sat down and talked about it. The next thing I know they tell me that we are adopting Valancia! I couldn't believe it! I was so excited! I had always wanted a sister! I can't wait to meet her! We will get to share all our clothes and she will sleep in my room (I mean "our room"). I will teach her english and help her in school, and she will teach me to speak Creole. Maybe I can even teach her to play piano. I can't wait until we get to take her to Disney World someday. We will have so much fun together! I will pray for her everyday until God brings her home.
Casey
I remember when my sister first decided to sponsor Valancia. I thought it was cool but I wasn't that involved, but during the December 2008 trip my dad was in Haiti. He called us, and when I was talking to him he put Valancia on the phone. I couldn't understand much, but I understood this: "I love you Casey." Next thing you know I come home and my parents say we're adopting Valancia! Now I care more about Coq Chante because my new sister's there. As I am typing this my dad is studying creole so when she gets here my dad can say welcome home Valancia.
Cody
I went to Haiti in December of 2007. This was before our church decided to adopt Coq Chante as "OUR orphanage, OUR school, and OUR girls." When I was down there I spent most of my time at Belloc and Camaten, so I never really got to know Valancia or any of the girls at Coq Chante. My lucky dad, on the other hand, gets to go about once every 2 or 3 months. He was conflicted though, because every time he went, he was either attached to a different girl, or just was with all of the girls and none of them really stood out to him.
This last time he went, he came back more broken then I had ever seen him. Suddenly making my dad cry like a little girl had become easier than ever, and all he could talk about was the little girl that we had been sponsoring: Valancia. I kinda saw the next thing coming. One sunday night Casey and I got back from church, and they told us that they decided to adopt Valancia. I was excited, I mean, If anyone should understand the magnitude of this it would be me, because I am the only other person in my family that has been, but I still thought: "They made that decision really fast! Have they really considered all of the details?" As I kept thinking about it though, I realized that once you step outside of your comfort zone into the kingdom, your decisions become much more rash. When you are after God's heart, like my parents, you are able to trust God's will without questioning it. This whole experience so far, is another one of those experiences in my life that shows just what living for the kingdom really looks like. I can't wait for my new sister to get here, and I can't wait for her to be a living testimony in Knoxville, Tennessee of what trust in God can really do.
Gracie, Max, and the Bunny
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