They showed that goal who's boss.

They did it. 

Oh, I'm so proud of them. 

My two girls read a grand total of 100 books 

during the month of September 

to help bring their sister home. 

And you know what? 

It really wasn't that hard. 

We are readers. 

We read several books a day during a regular month. 

Libby literally reads at least one book a day

and keeps the school librarian on her toes. 

And Hollyn? 

She's learning to love reading too. 

I'm go glad my girls share my love for books. 

I'm even MORE glad that their share my love for their sister. 

Did you pledge to donate for every book they read? 

Would like to pledge? 

It's not too late. 

You can pledge or simply make a donation-- 

whatever amount will be so greatly appreciated. 

With things taking longer than anticipated, 

we've had several unexpected fees come our way lately. 

And we're already working to raise what we'll need to time to 

travel so that we'll be sitting on go when that moment arrives.

Every penny matters. 

Every dollar counts. 

And each donation brings us one step closer to being fully funded. 

Oh, what a glorious day that will be. 

If you'd like to participate in this fundraiser, 

just head on over to www.gofundme.com/turningpagesforemily . 

Thank you, thank you, thank you. 

Hugs and high fives for everyone!

A whole year.

A year ago today, I saw my daughter's face for the very first time. 

She was about fifteen months old then. 

I remember worrying about the day I'd see her face. 

Maybe worrying isn't quite the right word, 

but there was the tiniest drop of fear in my head 

when I thought about how I'd feel when I first saw her. 

Would I know she was mine? 

Would there be an instant connection? 

Would seeing her face only confirm that we were right where God wants us? 

Yes. 

Yes. 

And yes. 

All of those. 

I saw her little face and looked into her big brown eyes, and I knew. 

I knew every day for three months before we were actually able to legally accept her referral 

that she was mine. 

I didn't need a piece of paper or a ruling from a judge. 

I just knew. 

It's been a long year. 

My family won't be complete until our girl is home. 

There will always be something missing until she's here, in her bed, in her room, with her family. 

I've cried for her. 

I longed for her. 

My arms have physically ached for her. 

And I feel like I've been pregnant....for seventeen and a half months. 

We still have several steps to complete before Emily is home with us. 

And it just breaks my heart-- all the time that she is spending without her family.

I'm sad for me, I'm sad for us, but most of all, I'm sad for her. 

It's not that we are anything special. 

We'd loud....really, really loud. 

We're messy. 

Sometimes we eat corndogs for dinner. 

But we ARE a family, and my girl, she needs one of those. 

I knew adoption would be hard. 

I wasn't blinded by gotcha day videos or unrealistic in terms of our unknown timeline. 

But I never had a clue just what this waiting would do to my heart. 

But God is good. 

He knows when I'm at my breaking point, and He chooses these exact moments to send good news and updates and new pictures of the most precious little chocolate face our way. 

The picture we got last week? 

She's so big. 

She looks so good. 

And she's smiling. 

That's the first smile we've seen. 

She's so beautiful. 

And she looks so much like mine....because she is. 

My prayer today? 

Where do I even begin? 

I pray that God will protect her. 

That she'll know just how much we love her and how we can't wait to have her home with us. 

I pray for her foster parents, the ones filling in for us. 

I pray for days to seem like minutes until we're together. 

And I pray again and again for not another year to pass before she's here. 

It's been a whole year, and my heart has felt every minute of every hour without my Emily. 

Joy Comes in the Morning

I know, I know. 

Where have I been, right? 

Well, it's been a long month, both in terms of being busy and have a lot of my mind and heart. 

Fourth grade math homework is about the be the death of us all, 

and some things I'm still processing before sharing them with the world. 

But for today, I have some happy news. 

Friends, meet Amanda. 

She is my kind of people. 

She's a Noonday ambassador as well, and we t-totally bonded this Summer in Rwanda. 

She loves big, dreams big, and wants to serve big. 

And she's recently started a series on her blog to offer weekly encouragement. 

Women encouraging other women. 

And today, she featuring me and my happy happy news that I received this weekend. 

Head on over to her blog, read today's post, and stay a while. 

She's amazing in so many ways, 

and I can't wait to share her with you. 

Crazy Crazy Crazy

Things have been all kinds of crazy lately. 

Between sickness, 

big fat out of town dental visits, 

worrying about friends and family who are struggling with various things, 

missing my girl terribly, 

trying to establish a back-to-school routine, 

a birthday (more to come on this soon), 

and just life in general, 

it's been all I can do lately to keep my head above water. 

All that to say, 

this too shall pass. 

Jesus said so, 

and I'm believing Him on this one--- 

partly because He hasn't failed me yet,

 and partly because my other option is to pull the covers over my head in bed 

and stay there indefinitely. 

And let's be honest, 

even though that sounds kinda nice, 

who has time for THAT?

More to come on soon on the biggest surprise about adoption so far and Libby turning ten. 

Come back soon, mkay?