(For those of you who want to just see some pictures, here's a new Picasa2 album: http://picasaweb.google.com/pastordanbennett/EllieArrivesHome)
As we traveled home yesterday and spent the day together as a family for the first time today,I was overwhelmed with gratitude to the Lord and our family and friends. Ellie is coming home not just to our family but to a group of people here in Illinois and around the country who have cared for her in ways she will never know or understand.
I am excited for our family and more excited than ever for what I believe God is going to do in the lives of other orphans because of your faithfulness with Ellie.
We are in for a long road ahead...there is no doubt of that! Four kids six and under are a lot of work. Thanks to those of you who took the time to see us at the airport. When we got home, we found that some elves had been home ahead of us. There were balloons and a welcome sign out front and presents at the doorstep and in the kitchen. We have decided not to press charges for trespassing and breaking and entering and instead are just very grateful for those who were nice enough to make our homecoming so special.
After we got home, the kids stayed up another hour and a half just playing together. We had thought that it would take awhile for Ellie to warm up to her new siblings. It did...about 33 seconds. She loves her new room and loved taking toys out of boxes and running over to her brothers and sister with "presents" for them. We slept in this morning, then went for a swim at Five Points.
Though she loves playing with the other kids, you can tell Ellie is still confused sometimes as to what's going on. It will take awhile for her to adjust to her new routine, but she is so far ahead of where we thought she would be from day one.
We will continue to keep you updated. As you can see from the pictures of her homecoming trip, things are going well.
Be sure to check out Whitney's blog for her take on the past day and a half.
7 comments:
What a beautiful family!
Love you!
Thought I'd leave a comment here as well...your children are so adorable together! God is so good! We can't wait to see Ellie again soon. Thanks for the updates!
Her face is precious and already tells a wealth of trust, peace, and pure joy to be with her family. Thank you for making your lives a window for us to see the Lord's impression on a wonderful couple and family!
John and Sarah
So very happy for you and your family! We can't wait to meet your sweet Ellie in person. Thanks for sharing the journey with us. We praise the Lord for His goodness. -The Phillips Family
Dear Grandson,
What beautiful pictures! How pleased we are to see your family all together now! Our hearts overflow with thanksgiving to such a wonderful God that we share.
Looking forward to seeing you all sometime soon. (when the weather gets better, of course).
Thank you for keeping us all "in the loop". We love you all,
Grammy and Gramps
Praise God. What a great inspiration.
By the way, what was in the envelope? The suspense is killing me!!
you're welcome!
welcome home!!!
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