Photo Session with Aimee

Our friend Aimee Nielson took these pictures of our family as a gift to us. She got some great shots, and here are just a few that we wanted to share. Aiden loves seeing himself in these pictures with us. Hopefully this will let him know that he is with us forever. Anyone in the Lexington area looking for a great photographer, check out AimeeNielson.com.

Sow in Tears, Reap with Joyful Shouting

Having time alone with the Lord is rough these days. A few nights ago as I went to bed, so stressed and so tired, I asked God to just help me open the psalms to something I needed to hear from Him. He blessed me with Psalm 126.
Verse 3, "The Lord has done great things for us; We are glad."
Verse 5, "Those who sow in tears shall reap with joyful shouting."

Both of these verses have been a life saver to me the past few days and are exactly what I needed to hear. The Lord has certainly done great things for us, and we have had some glad moments in the month that we have had Aiden and Asa home. I would be lying if I said we were not also sowing with a lot of tears right now. We knew the first few months would be tough, and we are going through it. Our transition has not been too difficult, and far better than what I was expecting. However, it is not easy going from 1 child to 3, with 1 on the way. We are tired!

The most difficult part for me has been communication with Aiden. It is like trying to deal with an 18 month old in the body of a 2.5 year old. He is saying more and more English words but it is like pulling teeth most days. I think he is starting to realize that he needs to learn English and he is trying harder. He is good at saying "please" and "thank you" and of course, "no." We are going to get him evaluated on July 12 by a program called First Steps that should help him with his communication. Other than that, he is doing great physically! He is looking healthy and gaining weight!

Asa is doing really well! He has caught up almost entirely with where he should be physically and verbally in the last 3 weeks. He has also gained 3 pounds since we have brought him home. Our pediatrician doubts he will even qualify for any special assistance with First Steps now because he has done so much in such a short amount of time. It is amazing to watch. Even seeing his face light up when he discovers that he can pull himself up on the furniture is adorable and heart warming.

We love our sons, and despite the craziness right now, we are so thankful that God blessed us in such a way. Thankfully He has also given us a sense of humor through most of the trying times. Like when I had to ask Noah, "Did you seriously just pee on your brother?! Really?!"

Counting the Cost

We have been home two weeks and it has been a whirlwind. Some very good ups and some pretty low downs. The Lord has been so gracious to constantly remind me that this is His best plan for our lives and that His grace is sufficient.

A couple of days this week have been especially tough on Noah. This is all a huge adjustment for him, and he is acting out. We have had hours and hours of temper tantrums, not listening, etc. At the same time there have been some incredibly sweet moments between he and his brothers. Even though he and Aiden have struggled to get along, he always wants to know where Aiden is and what he is doing. The past two days the boys have gotten along very well and have had tons of giggles together.

We have seen some great improvements in Aiden's speech. Although he was refusing to speak any English, he has started saying some words and mimicking Noah. Noah points out things to Aiden and tells him the English words and then encourages him when he says it. Kenneth and I had nothing to do with it, and the pride in my heart just swells for him.

The greatest improvements have been with Asa. When he came home with us he was very unsteady even sitting up. In just two weeks he is sitting very well, starting to crawl, trying to pull himself up, grabbing small snacks and feeding himself! He is getting so much stronger each day. He has already gained 2 pounds and is eating about 10 more ounces of formula per day than he was. Asa is such a happy baby, and very laid back.

We have had so many laughs and proud moments that are a true joy to be a part of. Children truly are a blessing from the Lord.

In those moments when I felt like checking myself into the mental facility, the Lord kept reminding me that REDEMPTION IS COSTLY. The minor struggles we have faced emotionally and physically do not compare to what it cost Christ to redeem my soul and adopt me into His family. He went through emotional pain, physical pain, spiritual pain, separation and even death to rescue me from orphanhood. Our small struggles are merely a way that we can partake in the suffering of Christ, giving greater glory to the Father because two boys are no longer orphans here on earth. Praise Him!

"Congratulations and Welcome Home"

"Congratulations and welcome home." These words are some of the most precious I have ever heard. Kenneth and I literally cried like babies when the US Homeland Security Officer spoke these words to us as we walked through customs and immigration with our sons. I cannot describe what a great feeling it was to be home. Yes, we had an amazing trip, but there is nothing like when the plane wheels land on US soil. That too, was another moment when both of us began sobbing. Right there in the plane. It feels so good to be home with Aiden and Asa.

Our trip went really well. We met the boys on Thursday morning at the transition house and then went straight to our embassy appointment. Yet another moment of crying took place after we were interviewed and and the embassy official said "Congratulations" and handed us some official paper work for each boy.

At first meeting Aiden was very shy and cautious. Asa is such an outgoing and happy baby that he warmed right up to us. It didn't take Aiden but a few hours to want to touch us and let us hold him. We cannot believe the change we have seen in him just in the last few days that he has been with us. He is starting to use words, in his native tongue, but he is at least talking. He is smiling a lot more. He runs to us and hugs us. He holds our hands and follows directions. He wants us to comfort him when he falls or gets upset. I know he is going to blossom.

Noah is also doing very well. He is a great big brother, even better than we expected. He loves both Aiden and Asa. He wants Aiden to play with him all the time. Just this afternoon when we put the boys down for a nap we heard a lot of laughing and talking before they finally fell asleep. Noah wants to feed Asa, hold him, kiss him, etc. Aiden also wants to be a big helper with Asa. I think they will all get along just fine.

It has been quite an adjustment for our family, and we have several things to work through, especially with Aiden. However, I think in due time, the issues will resolve as he is fed consistently, when he feels secure in our family and loved. Our issues are just minor things like food and sickness with both boys and sleeping schedules with Asa. We would not trade this experience for anything! The boys are a huge blessing! We could not have asked God for better boys than the ones He has chosen for our family. We praise Him for how wonderful things have been.

Wow

We are just days away from getting on a plane to go meet our boys for the first time...and bring them home! I must admit that I am pretty stressed out between finishing things up at work, preparing the house to be gone, packing Noah for his stay with MawMaw and PawPaw, getting stuff together for the boys, and packing for ourselves. It seems like I cross one thing off my to-do list and then three more things are added. I needed to take a break and update the blog...

Many people are asking how we feel. We are both very excited and very anxious. Excited to get the boys, to bring them home, to hang out in Rome a few days. We are also anxious. I love being on planes, but being 4.5 months pregnant and on a plane doesn't not sound fun to me. I am nervous about how I am going to feel and get the needed rest, etc. We have never met our children and have no idea what their personalities will be like, and we know that they will not understand what we are saying to them since they do not know English. We don't know how long it is going to take them to feel comfortable with us as Mommy and Daddy, we don't know if they will adjust well or if it is going to be really hard on everyone. We have no idea how Noah will react once he truly realizes that his brothers are home forever. There are just so many unknowns running through our minds.

The best thing is that I know that God has led us here, and His grace is sufficient for all we need! He has an amazing plan for our family, and I know we are going to be very very blessed with all these precious children. What an honor that God saw us fit to parent four young men.

We are also so very humbled by the gifts and encouragement we have received from our church family and friends. One Sunday school class blessed us with a multitude of diapers and wipes, and several gift cards. Others have donated clothes and car seats. Just a few minutes ago our doorbell rang and two girls from across the street handed me an envelope with money they had raised for our adoption by selling popcicles. The whole thing was their idea. I am almost speechless. God uses young children to teach us so much about faith and charity. Isn't He amazing and good! I cannot describe the gratitude I feel.

Over and over again I am reminded of how blessed I am that God has called us to adopt. We are simply being obedient to what He has called us to do, and He just hasn't stopped blessing us!

Plane Tickets & Hotel Rooms Booked!

Even though we found out we had an embassy date a couple weeks ago, we had to wait on the official birth certificates for our boys from Ethiopia. We could not book plane tickets until we knew the correct spelling of their names. The birth certificates finally came in yesterday! I cannot describe how it felt to finally see an official document with Kenneth and I listed as the proud parents of Abedi (Aiden) and Merga (Asa). Seeing their pictures at the top of the page with our names listed as parents was amazing, and very real! It is really real!

Although we received the birth certificates via e-mail yesterday, we were not able to book Aiden's flight. I think our credit card could not handle all the expense! haha. We booked our flights, and then Aiden's flight was booked today. We did not get Asa a separate ticket, so we paid a minimal fee for him to ride home on our laps. I think we will be very pleased that we spent the money to get Aiden his own seat on the plane.

We leave May 28 out of Cincinnati to head to Rome. God has really blessed us with the ability to have a mini vacation (just the two of us) before we go from 1 to 4 children in a few months. We will arrive in Addis, Ababa Ethiopia on June 3! Lord willing, we will be coming home with our sons on June 6.

I cannot express how grateful I am to all of our friends, family, and church family who encourage us, pray for us, love us and support us. The journey, although it is far from over, has been a joyous blessing and I am so humbled that God has led us here.

Proud Big Brother

We found out today that Noah is going to be big brother to another boy! That makes 4 little boys for the Bruce household! Yesterday I managed to get this picture of Noah wearing his "big brother" shirt. He wore this both Monday and Tuesday...don't judge me. haha. :) I couldn't get him to wear anything else yesterday, and it was not a battle I was going to fight. He is so excited that he has two brothers in Africa, and just loves to tell people about his shirt. It is pretty adorable, so I caved in and told him he could wear it again, but he had to put another shirt over before he went to school. That shirt is stinking up my laundry room now.