Settling In

The past two weeks have flown by and we're thankful we've survived them :). It was our intention to update our blog right when we returned, but it was much easier said than done! It's been a whirlwind, yet God has been faithful and good - as He always is! As I sit back and think over the past two weeks (am I actually having time to sit back and think???), I am reminded at God's faithfulness to answer many prayers we've had from before and during our trip to China. After our return we were so encouraged to hear how many of you had been praying for us during our trip. I guess we failed to realize that anyone was actually taking the time to read our blog and taking the time to lift us up in prayer. Yet we have seen the answers to so many prayers, we KNOW God has been faithfully listening and answering the prayers of many.

We arrived safely at LAX after a 14 hour flight. Karis did wonderfully on the plane and was a great little traveler. An answer to prayer! We got through customs and immigration with little hastle and Kari immediately became a US Citizen. I wish we had some photos of our arrival at LAX, but my dad took all the photos and we've yet to get them from him (yes, it's been a true whirlwind as my dad left for Thailand on Sunday!). We did arrive to the open arms of our 3 children, my parents, mys sister and the many smiling faces of Pathway Bible Church family. What a wonderful way to arrive!

We must admit though, the jet lag for the next week though, was really tough for all of us. Mike had to start back to work after only one day home and the other 3 children were as energetic as ever since they didn't have jet lag. Mike, Kari and I often found ourselves all awake in the middle of the night, tired, but unable to sleep. And then we were like walking zombies during the day. Thank the Lord for his sustaining grace, as we made in past that difficult week! I must mention though the ministry to us by Pathway Families was a tremendous blessing. They cooked dinner for our family for several nights. Every night we'd sit down and eat, I was SO thankful b/c I don't think my family would have been eating those nights. I was so out of it, it would have been really hard to buy groceries and make something decent to eat. God truly used the church body to minister to us that week.

So, we thought Kari would be thrilled to meet her 3 siblings, but instead her reaction was more like, "Hey, I thought I was an only child, what's the deal here?" She spent a week stiff-arming the kids and pushing, shoving or hitting them when they got too close. Thankfully a one year old can't hit too hard! The three kids though thought Kari was wonderful and still fight over who gets to feed her her bottle. After two weeks now, they seem to have won over her heart. She lights up when they enter the room and she's right in there rolling around with the rest of them. I'm sure hoping it will be that way for the rest of their lives. Lydia's reaction to a new sister has been great. We wondered if it would be a difficult jump for her to become a big sister ("jie jie" as they say in Chinese), but she loves it. She is constantly reminding me that she is the big sister and gets all the priveleges of being a big sister. She loves the fact that Kari sleeps in her room. Another answered prayer.

My little sister got married this Saturday - thus the continuing whirlwind for our family. I'll have to write more of my reflections on that later when I get some picts. For now I'll just say that we're thankful Kari handled all the new faces so well. She did great! Another answered prayer. Please join us in Praising God for his faithfulness and goodness to our family.