“I think we are the family
for adopting kids.
I think that’s
the coolest present in the world.”
Lucy Joy

The days here are full of activity and cuddles and giggles…
but not much sleep!

(Dishes, lots of dishes… and laundry!
But we had some amazing help with that…
you know who you are!)

Smile
Our hearts are full too.
We are so thankful.

We just had the sweetest talk with Lucy…

“I think this is a better place to live than I lived before.  I get to ride in the car and go to stores.  I get to play with my brothers and sisters and go to the park.  I like my family. I get to play with playmobil here and I get to wear fancy dresses.  I had 3 fancy dresses in China, not as much.  But I didn’t get to bring them home.
And Petunia. I get to have Petunia.”

(Lucy’s favorite doll.)

Do you know that it has not even been two years
since our Lucy Joy came home?!?!

We are so pleased with how everyone is doing.
Of course we have tears and frustrations too…
Things like…
Will I get a shower TODAY?
And…Michael might be heard saying things like,
“I want him to get down so I can sit there,” as he motions to my lap…
or something else less subtle.

Most of our pictures of Henry look something like this…

He and I are “tight.”

But really, it is amazing.
Jason and I are just trying to keep up with them all!

We do have a concern that we would ask you to pray about.  Henry’s  liver panel was high in the medical file we received from China, but our pediatrician thought it was perhaps consistent with a recent immunization or infection, not a chronic problem.  Those numbers were two years old when we received them. Blood work done this week shows the numbers as still high, so we are going to see a GI doctor at the end of the month.  We are praying for a simple answer, for healing of any problems present in his little body, and wisdom and discernment for all caregivers involved.

(After a morning that was a bit overwhelming, we decided to get cary out for lunch! On the way home, Michael kept saying, “Thumbs up, mom, thumbs up!” When we pulled in the driveway and the garage door went up, Henry’s face lit up with a smile…
he didn’t know if we were coming back or not.)

Thank you for walking this journey with us, praying with us, hoping with us, and caring for us in so many practical ways.

Just have to say one more time,
thank you for all the love, prayers and support!
We would not have gotten this adventure off the ground without you!

Local Omaha friends and family,
please meet us at the airport when we return on 
November 10
at 9:44 pm
DL0783
(Delta, Detroit to Omaha)
We would love to see you and let you get
a peek of our Henry before we start cocooning!

And since, as Bilbo Baggins would tell us…
“…adventures are not all pony-rides in May-sunshine…”
please pray for us as you think of us!

No more pumpkins,
and only 1 more sleep
until we leave for China and this
precious boy!

We heard from our friend who is serving at the orphanage this week
and she has shared a few pictures with us!
(Henry is the little guy on the right who knows what to do with that spoon!)

Yummy!

Taste and see that the Lord is good,
blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.
Psalm 34:8

Thank you for all of your generous contributions to our story!
We more than met our goal and will be able to realize the full
$3,000 matching grant offered to us by Lifesong for Orphans!

Today we counted the money in our family fundraising jar.
Spencer, Hanna, and Lucy did fundraisers
(even Michael sold a notecard or two!)
and many of you supported them in this.
(Becca was faithfully serving in Sicily!)
Thank you so much!
$864.15

We have had some really touching contributions from young people too.
Our niece and nephews, some beautiful sisters, and also a special young lady
who made and sold handcrafted necklaces and
gave us her donation this last Sunday.
She is so excited to help Henry come home and gave us this note.
So precious to us!

We are busy over here at the Rothfuss house researching,
preparing to travel, and packing!

We are also nesting…
cleaning, stocking the freezer and pantry, trying to get ahead on school work,
assembling bunk beds, setting up the pack and play
in mom and dad’s room, just in case.
Preparing for our early days at home in many different ways.

We will return home from our travels and cozy up to cocoon here at home for a season.
Today while doing some reading on line, I happened upon a wonderfully encouraging and helpful blog called A Beautiful Symphony.
I found this post particularly helpful as I thought about the season
we will enter into upon coming home. The author likens this season of cocooning
to a time of respite to recover from the necessary trauma of adoption. Here is a quote that helps to see the experience from the point of view of the adoptive child…

“A great way to think about newly adopted children is as if they are a newborn. In a sense, they are just that. A newly born child into a family in another country where NOTHING is like anything they have ever known: new language, new people. new food, new home…”

She also gives some suggestions for cocooning that would be helpful to other adoptive parents or their friends and family members seeking to understand
the cocooning experience.

This is a precious season in the life of a family, but also very challenging as well.
This will be the third time we have welcomed home a newly adopted child
as the year was coming to a close and springtime’s celebration of new life
has been so, so sweet each time so far!
You can look forward to what’s to come with us!
This beautiful butterfly has grown 4 inches and gained 12 pounds since coming home two years ago!

Thank you so much for reading along, praying for us, helping us prepare to travel, participating in Tag the Bag and our other fundraisers.
We appreciate you all so much!

What’s in a Name?

We hope a blessing and words of life spoken over our new little man!
We know that his Chinese name, Chen Yang, means “Morning Sun.”
We are choosing for him the name…

Henry Clyde Chenyang Rothfuss.

Henry means “ruler or head of the home.”
Clyde is the name of a river in Scotland and
its name possibly comes from an old word for “cleansing one.”
It is also the name of Jason’s father.
So, for our little Morning Sun whose name reminds us of
the Bright and Morning Star, our Lord, Jesus…
we hope and pray that you will one day taste living water
from our source, the cleansing one,
and that He will be the head and ruler of your heart!

We are counting the days until all seven of us board that plane!!

Do not be afraid, for I am with you;
    I will bring your children from the east
    and gather you from the west.
Isaiah 43:5

We have travel dates!!!

We depart Omaha on Wednesday,
October 26 and arrive home on Thursday, November 10!

For you are great and do marvelous deeds; you alone are God.
Psalm 86:10

p.s.
You can still Tag the Bag until Sunday, October 9!!

(Teaching hospitality through play.
Both Felix the Fox and Petunia celebrated 
birthdays recently with cupcakes!)

“Hospitality is the gospel hidden deeply in our souls and in the corners of our homes.  It’s not Pinterest-worthy and requires a level of mutual trust.  Take me as I am, and I’ll return the favor.  It’s the unwavering belief that when I add your mess to my own,
the place has never looked better.”
Falling Free
by Shannan Martin

I hope the author will forgive me taking the liberty of applying her words to adoption.  She meant them in a broader sense, but in our experience, these words help to explain the blessing that adding to our family via adoption has been. Our home has never looked better and we look forward to our upcoming remodel!!

p.s.
You can still Tag the Bag until Sunday!!

“This is how the kingdom of heaven comes down sometimes, in small moments where we can choose to believe he makes much of little, in ordinary pockets where what feels like waiting is actually the undercover work of our resolve being steeled for what waits for us.”
Falling Free  by Shannan Martin

It turns out we won’t have travel dates until later in the week now.
Offices in China are closed for Golden Week.

“Chinese National Day is celebrated on October 1st every year to commemorate the founding of People’s Republic of China. On that day, lots of large-scaled activities are held nationwide. Besides, the 7-day holiday from Oct. 1st to 7th is called “Golden Week”, during which more and more Chinese people go traveling around the country.”

Enjoying the small moments over here, trusting in his timing.

p.s.
The deadline for contributing to our matching grant from Lifesong for Orphans is this coming Sunday, October 9.  One more week to Tag the Bag!