hosting: day ten

The day began with a great new experience for {name} and three of the other Ethiopian children at Kinetic Youth Academy.

Not only did they enjoy fun games with the parachute, but they had the entire use of the gym. There was rope climbing, rope swinging, trampolines, balance beams and other equipment they could play on.

There were so many big smiles and giggles as the kids were thrusted into the air on a giant swing. Arms out and feet dangling high above the rest of us, you could see pure joy on their little faces.

I'm so thankful to God for the generosity of so many unknown people who sponsored events like these for the children and their host families. These are experiences and memories that the children will always remember.

This afternoon, a couple from church, Eric and LaShelle Bray were kind enough to swing by a nearby soccer field before their weekend getaway without their children!

Eric is a gifted soccer player and it was a great opportunity for {name} to be challenged. My little guy David joined in the game, along with Stephen and Abbie.

So who was victorious?

I would say Eric, though {name} did get a few good shots in. It didn't help that David was holding Eric's hand the entire time they were playing!

hosting: day nine

Today we took {name} to our home school Co-Op that is held at our church. He was able to join Stephen's science class and was warmly welcomed by cheering boys giving high fives and fist bumps!

After Science class, I snuck away with him and headed to Dankner-Fiergang Eye Associates for his ophthalmology appointment. It was fun meeting up with the other host families and their children and I think helpful for {name} to just be able to speak with others who understand him.

Dr. Andorsky was incredible with the children - explaining things clearly and making it comfortable and easy for {name} to do what he needed to do. {name} experienced his first dose of eye drops that enlarged his pupils and left his sight a little fuzzy. I told him, through our interpreter, that I would challenge him to soccer while his vision was like this! He giggled.

After a thorough exam, we learned that he is blessed with 20/20 vision!

When we got home we watched The Karate Kid - the classic version with Ralph Maccio. Love that 80's music! And no, when I first saw this as a teenager, I did NOT have a crush on Ralph Maccio.

After the movie ended, it was back to the scooter and soccer!

And speaking of soccer, tomorrow he has a soccer match with a friend from church, Eric Bray. Word on the street is that Eric is a gifted player so I thought it would be great for {name} to play with someone who can teach him things!

Some have asked if {name} is feeling homesick so I took the opportunity today while our interpreter was at the eye appointment to ask him questions. He conveyed to me that he is very happy here with our family, that he is having a lot of fun, and that he is not homesick at all.

I am very grateful that he feels so comfortable with us and so welcomed by not just our family, but our neighbors, our church family, Stephen and Abbie's friends, and basically by anyone that meets him!

hosting: day eight

Day Eight can be summed up in seven "S" words.

Scooters: This little guy is a natural on the scooter. There was no learning curve for him. My daughter Abigail handed it to him, he jumped on, pushed with the opposite foot, and took off through our neighborhood!

School: While my children are busy at school, {name} is busy writing things in his notebook. Sometimes he writes in Amharic and other times he writes in English. In addition to writing things, he plays learning games and types out words on the iMac.

Spiderman: He absolutely loves this cartoon that we downloaded on Netflix. Even my little kids are enjoying the break from Oswald and Dora. And let's be honest, so am I.

Sleep: Tired out from all the scooter riding, {name} went upstairs and fell asleep in his bed. It took both Stephen and Abbie to wake him up for dinner.

Spaghetti: This seems to be the meal of choice. I fix him a big ol' plate with sauce and parmesan cheese and a side of garlic bread and he's set!

Stephen: All day long I hear this word: "Ste-phen!!" "Ste-phen!!" Whatever he needs, he goes first to Stephen. Stephen is definitely his go to guy.

Shower: It's always fun explaining and demonstrating through charades the need to take a shower and how to make sure the inside shower curtain stays on the inside so that water doesn't spill out of the tub. The first few showers left our bathroom in a bit of a river! :-)

Matt and I had an engaged couple over tonight for pre-marital counseling so the kids were downstairs playing. When we called them up for bed, Stephen arrived up the stairs first and hugged us both goodnight and then {name} came up next, and to my surprise, hugged us both goodnight as well.

This was the first time he initiated a hug with us. How sweet!

It was the perfect, unexpected end to what was a fairly uneventful day.

hosting: day seven

Well it's been one week since we were sitting in the International Arrivals section at Dulles airport with a group of excited families and friends, waiting for our Ethiopian guests.

All last week my children were on Spring Break which meant no real schedule and every moment was fun, fun, fun. Today marked our first day back to school. They didn't have to go too far, just down the steps and to our dining room table, but there's a different feel in the house. This is our final quarter of school and then it's summer break!

I was wondering how home schooling would work with {name} here with us, but day one was very successful. Stephen and Abbie took 30 minute slots where one would do school work and the other would play with {name}. Then they would switch. In between we had fudge brownies and {name} would type out English words and sentences on our iMac. He asked for "colors", which we learned meant "crayons" and he began drawing and coloring the Ethiopian flag and the American flag.

New artwork now adorns our boring ol' fridge.

We learned in host training that we would experience a "honeymoon" phase with our child and week one was definitely that. He listened to everything Abbie (9) and Stephen (13) would ask him to do. Now that he's comfortable and feeling quite at home here, he is not as quick to listen to his peers, so Matt and I have had to step in at times. {name} has responded joyfully and respectfully to both of us.

The top 7 things I love about hosting {name}:

1. I love seeing his beautiful face among the face of my children.

2. I love the lessons my family is learning about sharing all that we think is "ours".

3. I love hearing {name} speak in Amharic and then English. He has a very sweet voice! I especially enjoy hearing him at 7:00 a.m. yell out, "Get up Stephen!"

4. I love watching him play soccer. There is pure joy on his face.

5. I love that he cleans his plate at each meal, asks for seconds, and eats that too!

6. I love hearing him sing out loud, unaware, when he has the earphones on while listening to the ipod. His favorite song is Jeremy White's remix version of "Across the Great Divide".

7. I love that having him here with us has opened up so many doors to meet new people as well as doors to share the gospel with others.

The first six days {name} has been with us, he has been pretty shy; mainly playing with my children and interacting very little with Matt and me. Suddenly, it was like a switch turned and he is talking to everyone, laughing out loud, playing jokes on people, doing the dishes, carrying in groceries, speeding down the sidewalk on a scooter like a pro, and just being a silly boy!

The next post will be written by my now teenage son, Stephen. I thought it would be neat to hear his perspective on being a host family.

hosting: day five & six

Easter weekend was super busy and full of many new experiences and memories.

We kicked off the celebration with an Easter Egg Hunt at Beachmont, sponsored by Grafted Families, that all of the host children and families attended.

Thankfully, there was a short non-raining window of opportunity for the children to race through the wet grass and playground in search of eggs. Standing back and taking photographs gave me the chance to see lots of smiles and giggles as the eggs were discovered.

From there we enjoyed a cross-cultural lunch together under the pavilion: American (pizza) and Ethiopian (stews, lentils, injera). I'm sure the Ethiopian children were excited to get a taste of home and I personally LOVED the dishes.

After lunch and some free play, we met together again to hear the Easter story. Wendy did an excellent job along with her husband and our faithful interpreters, in creatively sharing the best news in the world: Jesus is Alive! We sang some songs in English and Amharic to wrap up this memorable time.

As a host parent, this event was especially meaningful for me because I got a chance to interact with other host families. We swapped stories, laughed, and learned a bit about one another's experiences so far.

All of the children seemed to be doing so well with their host families!

That evening, along with some friends of our family, we dyed eggs together. {name} really seemed to enjoy this and we all got a laugh when my youngest son David (4) decided to drink a spoonful of the bright blue dye! His entire mouth, inside and out were blue!

Easter afternoon, after a great celebration at church, Matt and I had our extended family over for dinner. There were lots of people that {name} met and I think he felt included and welcomed into our crazy traditions.

There were baskets to open, games to play, chocolate to eat, another egg hunt, and our traditional "egg pecking" contest. {name} was quick to join in and had a winning egg for quite some time until my niece cracked his egg.

We now have enough candy in our home that will last till Halloween! We are keeping an eye on how much {name} eats because he certainly seems to have a sweet tooth.

And that's our day five/six wrap up...

a story for my son

Thirteen years ago, in Moscow, Russia a little baby boy was born.

Thirteen years ago, in Abingdon, Maryland a young married couple began their first adoption journey. They had talked about adopting for years and when the time seemed right, they stepped out in faith, full of hope and excitement.

The little Russian boy had light blonde hair, a chunky little body, and the most beautiful olive green eyes. Upon his birth, he was placed in an orphanage.

The young married couple was completing their adoption paperwork at record speed. When the wife was at work one day, she received a thrilling call from the adoption agency.

"Mrs. Smith...we have a 3 month old boy that we would like to refer to you. He is in the city of Moscow. His name is Aleksandr."

Immediately the young wife had tears in her eyes and the second she hung up the phone, she called her husband and told him that they were "having" a son!

Thirteen years ago, in Moscow, Russia, my son Stephen Aleksandr was born.

I marvel at the hand of God. I am overwhelmed by the love of God that literally united our hearts and lives with his - before we even knew he was born.

I loved my son before I ever saw a picture of him, read his health report, or learned about his family history. I loved him as soon as I knew he was going to be ours. We waited 13 months to meet him and bring him home.

Today, as I look back over the past 13 years, I thank God for the precious gift that he is to me and to our family.

Stephen is a gentle soul. He is shy but very thoughtful. He's creative and artistic and he dreams big. I love that about him. Most importantly, we see a heart for the Lord and a desire to know God's Word.

I love you Stephen-even. I could not be more proud of the young man you are becoming. Another 2" and you'll be taller than me! I am grateful to our Savior for leading us to you and you to us. His plans are marvelous, aren't they?

You see, our lives are part of a much bigger story. It's a story about another Son.

It's a story about a Father who loved sinful, foolish people so much that He sent His one and only Son, Jesus Christ to planet earth. Jesus lived a perfect life - He never sinned, ever. That means He obeyed his earthly parents in every possible way - in action and motive! Can you imagine that? He was tempted yet never stumbled in any way. He chose to die a criminal's death, on a wooden cross, at the hands of sinful men. He shed His blood and became our substitute on that cross. He bore the full wrath of God, His father and suffered in ways we will never understand.

You know the rest of the story. He was buried and three days later he rose again, just as He said He would. This is the greatest news in all of history, as we sung at church today this Easter morning.

Jesus Christ, through His sacrifice on the cross, made a way for us to be made right with God. If we repent (turn away) of our sin, and put our trust in Jesus and what He did for us, then we can become His children.

"See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are." (1 John 3:1)

"But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are a sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying 'Abba! Father! So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God." (Galatians 4:4-7)

His death on the cross redeemed us; bought us back; adopted us.

The story of how we came together as a family, Stephen, is amazing. It's miraculous really. But what makes it glorious is that it points to the much bigger story of how God made a way for us to become part of His family - for all eternity.

I love that your life points so clearly to the best story ever.

Happy 13th Birthday!

hosting: day four

The rain didn't stop him from wanting to lace up his new Nikes for another soccer game against the neighborhood boys!

After lunch, Christina (an amazing young woman who spent a year in China caring for and teaching special needs orphans) came over with some of her younger siblings to help teach English to {name}. She covered the alphabet, some letter sounds, colors and body parts. Her energetic spirit combined with her immediate loving/welcoming heart made it easy for him to sit and speak with her. After some lessons she transitioned to a version of "Simon Says" and a neighborhood boy joined our group of already six to see if {name} understood everything that Christina reviewed. Turns out he understood everything very well and knows more English than we realized. It was fun for me to just hear his voice!

Shortly after that, three more neighborhood boys knocked on the door looking to play soccer with {name}. Before the Nikes could be laced up again, it started raining so the boys came into our home. This is especially cool because as a family, we've been trying to reach out to the boys and girls in our community. It's sometimes hard for my son (12) to relate to the other kids because they all go to the same school and do the same things and he is home schooled. Having {name} here has opened a door because all of the kids are drawn to him and want to be around him. When they couldn't play soccer with him, they didn't just walk away. They asked if they could come inside our house!

And they did.

So at this point we had ten school-aged children in our home, with my youngest two napping upstairs!

I truly believe that if {name} wasn't with us, these boys would not have been in our home. Even Stephen was shocked and turned to me and whispered, "Why are all these people in our home?"

Smiling, I said, "Because of {name}."

Children open doors that often seem shut to the rest of us!