A New Family Pic for the Old Blog!!!

Hi All!!!  Everyone sure is growing up fast over here on our little farm!!  Life is good with no major changes lately!! :)  Just enjoying life with 6 kiddos and ALWAYS fixing up our historic fixer upper we bought!!!  One more week of summer break before school starts... so we decided it was time for a new family pic!!

Lucy Lane is now 4... and Wes is 3!!  My oldest heads off to middle school this year (sniff sniff :).. and the rest will start a new elementary school this year!!!  Lucy Lane will attend preschool for the FIRST TIME EVER!!!!  Wow!!!  Too big!!!!

Hope you all are doing well!!!  And, may God continue to bless each and every one of you!!!  Happy Friday to you!! kj

The Beth Venable Video...a MUST WATCH!!

A powerful story of an amazing family...By far, one of the BEST videos I've seen....PLEASE WATCH and SHARE!!!  And grab your tissues...Beth was a family friend of ours and her husband is now telling his story...a story of love, adoption and the POWER of God working to carry on his wife's love and passion: Orphan Care!!  A beautiful God story..... Happy Thursday to you all, kj

Our Family Was In A Video...

I love Karyn Williams and we were so honored that she asked our family to be a part of her music video on adoption...such a GREAT song: "Just May Be"  You have to look fast for us...but we are there!! :) Hope you enjoy the song as much as we have...  Happy Friday to you all, kj

A Little Wes Update...

Well...most of you have figured out that I just am not keeping up this lovely blog anymore...It was so much fun back in the day when I had time to keep it up daily..I truly enjoyed every second of that chapter in my life...but chapters end..and new ones begin!!  Bringing Wes home was the start of a new chapter in our lives.  He required around the clock care after his surgery...he no longer could sleep and was a constant danger to himself being a running/active toddler that didn't understand that every climb and fall meant ANOTHER ER visit and CT scan to see that he had not hurt anything in that precious FRAGILE head of his!!  To say that it was an exhausting time to keep him SAFE and keep 5 other young kids happy and alive is just an understatement!!  At the same time...we truly lost our minds and bought an 1850's fixer upper house and moved with all 6 kids in tow!! :) Yes, we are insane sometimes..or really LOVE an adventure!! ha  BUT, I can say now that things are finally SLIGHTLY calming down..we are settled in our new place (with decades of work ahead of us to fix up this old place..but love it :), Wes has had MORE CT scans and procedures than I can count and I THINK we are finally in the clear for the next 6 months with out any more IF he doesn't have any more major changes in that noggin of his, AND Wes has caught up physically and verbally with his peers WHICH IS A MIRACLE after all he's been through.  We got the news yesterday that he didn't even qualify for Early Intervention BECAUSE HE WAS TOO NORMAL!!! Wow...just can't believe it!!  Wes hit 30 lbs. last month too (which is a far cry from the 7 lb malnourished one year old I found sitting in an orphanage that day)!!  He's just doing GREAT...and to GOD WE GIVE ALL GLORY!!  

So...my best pal sent me this photo collage the other day to remind me of HOW FAR Wes had come in the past year...and I could hardly believe my eyes with the comparison:

I thought I should sit it on my quiet little blog for a while to be a testimony of God's LOVE and the miracles HE still performs each and every day!!  The fact that my son survived to be adopted was a miracle in itself...but the fact that he's caught up with his peers and his brain has caught up in shape and size and is lighting up beautifully...well..that is just a miracle that only GOD COULD PERFORM!!  We are so grateful!!

*Happy Wednesday to you all, kj

Happy 3 Year Gotcha Day Lucy Lane!!

I truly can't believe 3 years has gone by since I held Lucy lane for the first time!! Wow....time is surely going by way too fast!!  So thankful for this little love...She is truly the craziest, sassiest, funniest, most nutty 3 year old child I've ever met...and yet...I wouldn't have her ANY OTHER WAY!!  We love you sweet girl and PRAISE GOD FOR YOU TODAY!!

 And, my sweet Wes has been home one year now...and he is doing GREAT!!  He's grown so much and has recovered nicely from his surgeries... love my precious baby boy!! :)

Happy Friday to you all, kj

The Ordinary Hero "Change The World For One" Video!!

Here it is....The video that was shown tonight at the Ordinary Hero Banquet...What an amazing night!! My big sister, kelly, did an amazing job!!  So proud!!!  Hope you enjoy the video as much as we all did...Happy Saturday to you all, kj

Join Us at the Ordinary Hero Benefit Dinner....

Yes, my big sister, Kelly, is having her Ordinary Hero "Change the World For One" Benefit Dinner coming up on Saturday, April 28th!!! I hope you can join us:***This is always an amazing night full of blessings!! You can find out more info at www.ordinaryhero.org I hope you will consider joining us in Nashville for this inspiring night!!!

*updates and pics of the fam coming soon!! :) Happy Wednesday to you all, kj

A Beautiful Gotcha Day Video....And...C4C...

Love this family and THEIR Gotcha Day video that just came out!! Beyond precious...So thankful I've gotten the chance to meet them...watch and enjoy!!! :) Oh, and BTW...headed to C4C Retreat in a couple of days....who else will be joining me??!! So excited for a wonderful weekend ahead!!! :) Happy Wednesday to you all, kj

Jada's Adoption Story from Longing for Africa on Vimeo.

Ordinary Hero....2011

2011....an amazing year for Ordinary Hero...I'm so proud of my big sister, Kelly, who runs this amazing organization!!! She just came out with this video looking back at 2011.... Enjoy!!! And, visit www.ordinaryhero.org to see what it's all about.....

Happy Friday to you all, kj

Ordinary Hero ~ Ethiopia 2011~ We Won't Forget from Kelly Putty on Vimeo.

Christmas 2011...So blessed!!!!

We were ALL so blessed to have our FIRST Christmas with Wes Paulos this year.....LAST year I had just arrived home from Africa in time for Christmas....My heart ached for the starving, sick little boy I'd left behind...BUT...this Christmas, Wes is HOME and he enjoyed opening his FIRST Christmas present EVER:

Oh, he's SO CUTE.......I just Praised God this Christmas for the miracle of our new son and the fact that we have 6 little LOVES that make Christmas completely MAGICAL..... CAUSE 3 LITTLE BOYS:AND, 3 LITTLE GIRLS:EQUALS.... ONE VERY HAPPY family this year.....

We are indeed SO BLESSED!!!!!!

(ages this Christmas 2011: 9,8,6,4,3 and 1)

And, from this VERY smothered in babies Momma.....

I Pray you all had a VERY Merry Blessed Christmas!!!! (pic taken last night from our family Christmas party...cracks me up....so represents my life right now...always on the floor covered in babies!!! LOL) Happy Monday to you all, kj

A Year Ago Today...

A year ago today, I walked into a remote orphanage in Ethiopia and saw my son for the first time.... He sat starving at only 7 lbs., covered in waste and flies, unable to smile, and in need of a life saving surgery to survive....I painfully left him there and promised I would return for him.....I prayed every day that he would SURVIVE until i could return to bring him home....One YEAR LATER exactly TODAY... He weighed 25 lbs at his Dr. appt this morning, he's a healthy, active post op toddler boy who has NOW been home over 7 months....And, our Cranio Surgeon says he doesn't have to see us back for 1 year!!!! yayyyyyyy!! His surgeries have been a success and we are celebrating here today for this LITTLE MIRACLE that i met one year ago TODAY!!! We love you more than words could ever express Wes Paulos!! I can't imagine my world with out YOU IN IT!!!! You bring me pure happiness each and every day!! Happy 1 year Meetcha Day!! :) And, Happy Monday to you all, kj

Oh.....Soooo Cute!!! :)

I so LOVE the new VERY SOFT long sleeve Kid's Ordinary Hero Tshirt..... I had to grab one for ALL 6 of my kiddos...BUT...Wes was napping and the big 3 were at school...so it only left my 3 and 4 yr. old to model the new shirts for me....Check them out:



Oh, they keep me on my toes...but...such CUTE craziness always going on at my house!!! :) LOL Grab ya a shirt too this season at www.ordinaryhero.org .....Ya gotta find the store on the site somewhere i'm guessing!!!! :) Just had to share...Merry, Merry to you all...and Happy Saturday to you all too ,kj

Teddy Made It HOME!!!!!!!

The airport homecoming for my nephew, Teddy, last night was just a MIRACLE!! Oh, how i love airport homecomings...The only thing better about an airport homecoming is when it is YOUR OWN FAMILY COMING HOME!!! So much fun...my 6 kiddos were just BEYOND excited as we waited:He arrives and there is NO room for the boy to even breathe...he's attacked by his brother and sister and cousins RIGHT AWAY...and he handled it all so well...like he'd been waiting a million years for this day:

All 4 sisters posing for a pic:

I've met Teddy while in Ethiopia on two of my trips...it was so great holding this little love again...He's so tiny for a 4 year old:

My Julia couldn't wait for HER turn to hold him:

Wes apologizing to Teddy for getting HOME so much sooner than he did....ha ha...just kidding :)....
3 sisters with our 4 Ethiopian Children....God willing...I think we're ALL DONE growing our families.....
Miss Lucy Lane got tired of all the commotion over Cousin Teddy and took a little rest on Daddy:
Teddy and his Daddy.....Oh, that face (teddy's :) is just so cute:
And, here is the family of 5 now....Oh, we're all just so thankful that this long wait is over and they are ALL finally together...Praise the LORD!!!!!!
I cant' wait to kiss Teddy's little face again on Thursday..Oh, we ALL have so much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving!!! Welcome home Teddy!! We all love you SO much and your ENTIRE family PRAISES GOD THAT YOU ARE FINALLY HOME!!! Happy Sunday to you all, kj

Happy 3rd Birthday Miss Lucy Lane!!!

OHHHH!!!!! How is it that my sweet girl is now 3 years old!!?? Lucy Lane has now been home 2 1/2 years and today she turns 3 !!! Wow...time has certainly flown by!!!!I just had to say happy birthday to my sweet, adorable, fun, crazy, outgoing, funny, sassy, hilarious, dramatic, confident, lovable, CUTE, joyful, Lucy Lane!!! Our family would be just so boring without YOU Baby Girl!!! You are truly a BLESSING in each and every way!!!! :)
We love you SO MUCH and we thank God for you EACH DAY!!!

Happy Birthday Miss Lucy Lane and Happy Tuesday to you all!!! kj

Teddy is Coming HOME!!! They Got CLEARED!!

Just a quick note to say PRAISE JESUS...The U.S. Embassy cleared my sister and her son...and MY NEPHEW IS COMING HOME!!!!!!

I'm sure she'll be on the NEXT FLIGHT OUT!!!!! So over the moon excited for them...and for our entire fam!! That will be 4 sweet, adorable, little Ethiopian Babes around the Thanksgiving table this year!! 3 sisters...4 children that now have a HUGE family that LOVES them more than words could ever express!!

Celebrating the Good News...All Praise Be To GOD!!! Happy Wednesday to you all, kj

Orphan Sunday 2011....Never Forget...

What a difference a year makes...This time last year on Orphan Sunday, I was praying my hubby would allow us to adopt for #6!! This year...our son has been home 6 months...Wow!! God answers prayers in big ways!! :) My sister just came out with this video today...so proud of what Ordinary Hero is doing...and what a GREAT video and message for Orphan Sunday...enjoy... happy Sunday to you all, kj (pause my music at bottom of page)

Ordinary Hero~ The Orphan from Kelly Putty on Vimeo.

Wes Goes To the Beach For the FIRST Time!!!

Just a little update from us...We are all doing great...especially Wes....He got to visit the Beach for the first time over fall break and I just HAD to share some of the cuteness....He loved it....

*Seeing the beach for the first time:
*Touching the Sand for the first time:
And, LL has been to the beach a BUNCH...but she loves it and is so excited EVERY time:

Our sweet Wes continues to amaze us.... He's truly a gift from God and witnessing him on the beach for the first time was such a treat to us all:

He was never scared a bit...he loved the waves, the sand, the water, the fish...everything....
He's the happiest boy you'll ever meet:
Oh, and not to mention that he has a slight obsession with LL...He is constantly pulling on her curls...She doesn't quite appreciate the pulling of the curls :)
Wes discovered he LOVED Sprite out of a bottle:



My Sweet 3 boys.....
My precious 3 girls....
And, from us all....Hope you all had a blessed Fall Break!!!! It is our favorite time to hit the beach....
***Happy Wednesday to you all, kj

Praise The LORD!!! They FINALLY Passed Court!!!!

I heard the words our ENTIRE family has been waiting to hear TODAY: My sister has finally passed court for her sweet son!! Yes, a judge is working in Ethiopia right now....cause....they received the news today: It is official!! Teddy is THEIR son and MY PRECIOUS NEPHEW!!!! PRAISE GOD FROM WHOM ALL BLESSINGS FLOW!!!

Here is my sister at her court date on March 10th...she was able to visit my Wes Paulos and allow the first cousins to meet:

My hubby traveled for our court date in April..and he was able to visit with Teddy and AGAIN allow the cousins to hang.....

Every case is unique and we certainly never dreamed we'd be home in MAY with our Wes..and my sister has continued to WAIT as bumps continued to come up in her particular case....
My daughter Helen got to meet her first cousin Teddy when she traveled with me in May to pick up Wes....

This has been a long, hard road...but this precious boy is OH SO WORTH THE WAIT....

They will be submitted to the U.S. Embassy next....and we PRAY they find mercy on this sweet boy WHO has been waiting SO LONG....
*Thank you all for your prayers...thank you CCI for your endless work on this case...and THANK YOU LORD for answering our prayers and that this sweet boy is OFFICIALLY part of our family today!! What a glorious day!!

(most recent pic just sent to us above :) Happy Monday to you all, kj