More of Anna Grace Fengqin

Oh my goodness!! That face melts our hearts!

Today we were blessed with the wonderful gift of updated pictures of Anna Grace. A HUGE thank you to the Berichon family for taking pictures of our Princess for us!! These pictures truly keep us going and we are so very grateful!

Thoughts diverted....

It's been a pretty hectic week here and I've been gathering a few thoughts that I wanted to blog about, but just haven't found the time. Well, tonight, I came across this scripture and felt I had to make the time:

"Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God." John 1:12-13

After I read it, I just sat back and "wow'd" in awe of our Savior. That scripture right there says it all. We are not born of each other, but BORN OF GOD. How powerful is that? I think this scripture pretty much will be my answer to those who ask about my "adopted" kids and my "real" kids. Now, I can't wait till I get asked about "my children". I will clearly recite John's words...they were all born of God, therefore ALL of them are my children, adopted or not, it makes no difference. I think the only thing I can really compare it to is the love I have for Scott. When we were married, we became ONE. We are obviously not blood related, yet I feel like he is such a part of me that I could not exist without him, as the same he feels for me. That is the love I have for ALL of my children....but, especially for the ones that came into our lives through God's grace of adoption. Once He formed them in my heart, they became mine...forever! My children, my blessings, my gifts from God! I am eternally grateful to our Lord for those gifts....both biological and adopted. And I am forever thankful that He made us His children. My signature on my email address states: "Yes, I am a Princess! I am the daughter of the King of Kings." How true that is!! Thank You, Jesus! Tomorrow I will blog about the more trivial things in life.

Happy Anniversary, Sweetie!

We were married over 5 years ago through the civil courts, but 3 years ago yesterday, November 23, our marriage was transformed through the eyes of God.

In 2003, we were both granted annulments and we were married before the eyes of God in the Catholic church.

Honey, you are my biggest blessing and I thank God for you every day of my life. You are an amazing husband and an inspiring Daddy. Happy Anniversary, with all my love.

THANKSGIVING BLESSINGS

MY BABIES!

I have so very much to be thankful for!

• A God who loves me unconditionally
• An amazing husband who makes me complete
• Five wonderful children who make my heart swell
• One beautiful daughter waiting to come home
• A family who stands by us with love and support
• True, God-loving friends who are always there

Thank you Lord for the multitude of blessings that you shower upon us daily. Thank you for the trials and tribulations we go through, that only bring us closer to you, and are for your glory. Thank you for all of the things I have mentioned above. Please continue to keep our baby girl safe in your loving arms and continue to watch over our process. May it be your will that we can bring her home as soon as possible.

To our family and friends,

The Bombardiers wish you a very blessed Thanksgiving. May you be surrounded by those you love, sharing good food and good times.

PRESENTING....Our Daughter!

HERE SHE IS!! THE LATEST LIGHT OUR LIVES!

ANNA GRACE FENGQIN BOMBARDIER

• Chinese Name: Lu Feng Qin

Meaning:

LU - (surname) nickname of Hefei City

FENG - Wish she will be treasured as Phoenix

QIN - Wish that she will have a colorful life

(umm..that's a given with all these siblings! :)

• Born April 7, 2005
• Residing at Hefei City Children's Welfare Institute in Anhui Province

• LOI (letter of intent to adopt) - 10/6/06
• PA (Pre-approval from China) - 11/20/06

A little bit about our precious angel:

Fenqgqin has a quiet personality. She is fond of smiling and is good at imitating. She likes playing in the playground. She likes to play with toys with music. Deep sleeper (yeeaahh!) and is obstinate sometimes (she'll fit in perfectly!)

We are over the moon with excitement over having received PA yesterday. Thank you Lord for leading us to our beautiful, new daughter!

KISSES IN THE WIND

I hold you in my heart and touch you in my dreams.You are here each day with me atleast that's how it seems. I know you wonder where we are... What's taking us so long.But remember child, I love you so and God will keep you strong.Now go outside and feel the breeze and let it touch your skin.Because tonight just as always, I blow you kisses in the wind. May God hold you in his hand until I can be with you. I promise you my darling, I'm doing all that I can do.Very soon you'll have a family for real, not just pretend.But tonight, just as always, I blow you kisses in the wind. May God wrap you in his arms and hold you very tight and let the angel bring the kisses that I send to you each night.
Author unknown-

Day 39 of waiting!!!!

Yes, we are on day 39 of an average of 41 days of waiting for PA.  I am praying hard that Monday is the day.  

As I am typing this, I am anxiously awaiting to possibly receive new pictures of our precious daughter.  There is yet another family visiting her orphanage who offered to take pictures.  I'm dying to see her again and am so grateful to them for their offer. We have so much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving (my favorite holiday) because our boys are finally home, and our daughter is being prepared by God to join us in not the too distant future.  

Life is good!   But, it would be just a tad bit better with the acronyms PA next to our signature line.  :)  Have a blessed day everyone!

Missing Anna Grace

For those of you that haven't noticed, I changed the song I had on this blog to a BEAUTIFUL song I came across that just says everything that I feel for our precious Anna Grace. It is a song written by Michael W. Smith, the Christian artist, for his daughter, Anna.

I literally sit here and listen to it, over and over and over. With tears streaming, I think about how much I already love this little girl. My heart aches, I love her so very much. Only God can make you love someone with all your heart that you've never met. As I hear the lyrics of this song, I dream about sweeping her up in my arms and swinging her around, making her laugh! I think about all the bows and ribbons and the pretty dresses and hats. I think about her rolling around wrestling with her brothers and about her looking up at her big sister, Amanda. I want so badly for her to know how much she is already loved. There is a huge family waiting to give her everything that her short life has been deprived of.

Anna Grace, we are doing everything in our power to bring you home, baby girl. I continue to pray, with many others, that our Lord and Savior hold you close to him. That His blessed Mother wrap her mantle of love around you so that you can feel our love, and as you drift off to sleep at night, that His angels hover over you and protect you. I know that the Lord could move mountains and I pray daily that His will be that our dossier not have to wait until February to leave. I am blowing kisses in the wind and hoping that you feel every single one of them, along with the immense love that your Daddy and I already have for you.

Mommy

For those of you that have not heard the words to the song, Anna.
Here are the lyrics: Anna Lyrics: Michael w. smith/ Wayne Kirkpatrick

Jack is in the corner
The dish is with the spoon
The sheep is in the meadow
The cow is on the moon

But I am here with you and I believe
There’s no other place I’d rather be
And a promise not to leave you
Is a promise I can keep

CHORUS:
You’re my muse
You’re my rhyme
You’re the fire warming this heart of mine
When you hear me say "i love you"
Anna, do you know how much I do?

So I watch you from a distance
Getting lost within your world
You pretend to be a princess
As you flutter and you twirl
Fragile as the flower in your hair
Dancing in your castle, unaware
That a single day without you
Would be more than I could bear

Little Anna, little star
That is what you really are
Cross my heart and hope to die
You’re the apple of my eye    

KAI IS AN OFFICIAL SUCKER!!!!!!!!!

Wooohooo!! Praise the Lord! Yes, Kai can now officially suck from a straw. For 7 long months we have tried this. We knew before his palate surgery that he couldn't do it because of the air escaping through his nose. But his palate has been sealed for over a month now. I tried a couple of times in the past week, and to no avail. I had to pinch his nostrils and even then the concept wasn't there. He would get very frustrated and would want me to remove the lid from the cup so that he could sip. Well, tonight, I was sipping away on a coke from McDonald's, which he never drinks, and he came over. I tried a couple of times again with the straw, and he did it with me pinching his nostrils. Scott and I clapped and danced around with glee!! Kai looked at us in amazement as his parents behaved like he had just won the Nobel Peace Prize! He clapped when he realized why we were so happy. So, then it became a game, and this time....HE DID IT!! He finally realized that you had to suck in and not out through your nose. Needless to say, I let him drink almost an entire Coke!! So, 20 minutes before bed time he is pumped with caffeine, but that's ok, it's a reason for celebration!!! The boy is an 'Official Sucker'!!!!!!!!!

For Our Baby Girl

As I sat here today wallowing in my sadness at thinking how many months we still have to go before holding our beautiful daughter, I wrote this small poem. And since, this blog is for her someday, I decided to post it on here.

My sweet little Anna Grace,
How I long to see your face,
To feel your breath and smell your hair
Sweet baby, I wish you knew how much I care.

I know our Lord has a perfect plan.
But my heart wants you home as soon as we can
The wait seems eternal sometimes,
I am consoled by knowing that He made you mine.

I pray each day that His arms hold you tight
While we wait for the day to board that flight.
May His angels surround you and protect you from all,
Until we finally receive that call.

I anxiously wait for the day that we can bring you home,
And praise the Lord for only He alone,
Knows the depths of our love for you,
It is endless, forever and ever, that’s true.

Mommy

Nothing in the Making.

We are pretty much at a standstill. I called our SW yesterday and asked for the rough draft of our homestudy since it's now been 3 weeks...he said, "OH! I'll get it to you today.". Ahhemm...nothing!! So, this morning, I gave him another friendly phone call. "Ooops...I forgot. I'll get it to you today!" Ok. We'll see what happens. Why is it that no one seems to have any urgency when it comes to processing adoption paperwork except the adoptive parents?

On another note, Kai & AJ had a visit from a beautiful little Chinese friend from the east coast yesterday. She is 20 months old and just adorable. She looks a bit like Anna Grace and from the moment that Kai saw her, he spent the day calling her Anna. It warmed my heart. He was so sweet with her. Constantly wanting to hold hands and give her hugs. I tried convincing her Mommy to let me keep her...at least until Anna Grace came home, but no dice. LOL!

Anyways, that's it from the Bombardier homestead. Nothing...nada...zilch going on with the adoption for our China doll.

UPDATE: I called a second time today and our SW finally faxed over the homestudy. I have sent it off for review (I already noted some mistakes) and will wait till I have everyone's approval before sending it back to him. At least....it's almost done! Woohooo!!!! Then it's off to USCIS and we go back to wait mode for our I171H!

Have you ever asked, "Is there a God?"

This is a question that I know deep within the core of my being the answer to. But, when asked...."How do I know? Really know?" Hmmm. I can't answer that. I guess that's what faith is all about. But, let me share a couple of thoughts I've been meaning to blog about since there really isn't much happening with our wait to Anna Grace.

Do you remember about a week or two ago, I shared about Scott's job and how things were going downhill quick? He was adamant about not being able to do the job on his own. He needed more manpower, he needed more time, and so on. He was ready to give it up, and then I came across the story of Gideon in scripture? Where this appearingly meaningless man was told by God to defeat armies of 100's of thousands with a mere 300 men? Well, God taught Scott a very good lesson this week. NOTHING is impossible with God. This past Friday was month's end for Scott. A crucial time during his work month where he sends to "corporate" the month's figures. Prior to Scott taking over this job 6 mos. ago, the company averaged about $50k monthly from this branch.
Friday night, over a glass of margarita and toasting to the Almighty God, we celebrated the fact that He Is God. Why, you ask? Because my husband, the man that told me just two weeks earlier that "this job could not be done", the man that said that "it was not humanly possible to complete the workload", the same man that said "I'm talking to corporate to say that I can't do this" was awestruck by the power of our Lord this week. Yes, he was right. Scott couldn't do it....BUT God could.

In a matter of a week, through God's grace and Scott letting go, God moved the mountains necessary for Scott to not only accomplish his workload, but to have a record breaking month of ::drum roll please:: $128,000!!!! Yes, he more than doubled what the average monthly intake was. Thank you, Lord...again, we give you the glory because we know that it was ALL you!

That leads me to something else I wanted to share. Adam, my middle son, has moved over from Miami to our neck of the woods. It's great having him close by. As you all know, we are Catholic. My heart is very open to other denominations and I truly believe that the Lord will not shut the doors to heaven if you are not Catholic. My son, although raised Catholic, had been attending a Christian church in Miami. When he arrived here, he asked about Christian churches in the area. I said I would go with him to check 'em out so he wouldn't go alone.

This morning, the two of us grabbed our bibles and headed out the door to a church that a friend of Amanda's attends. It was a nice welcome we received as many people, not knowing who we were, came up to us and said, "Aaah...a new face in the crowd. Welcome!" I must say that although it didn't have the "essence" of what my heart and soul needs, the Eucharist, I really enjoyed it and will probably join him often for the praise and worship, bible study, and fellowship of other Christians.

Now, this leads me to the title question, "IS THERE A GOD?" That was the question they asked today. They talked a bit about the Big Bang theory, about evolution and the same typical arguments that Christians have with non-believers. But one small story that was shared really made me think. (And again, I never, ever have doubted that there is a God. He has shown himself to me over and over and over again by his love and actions!) I digress.

The story was about a liberal college professor teaching a course. He stood in a lecture hall full of students. The teachings that day led to believing in God. "Has anyone ever seen him?", the professor asked. "How can you believe in something that doesn't exist, something that's never been proven?". Then this all-knowing (or so he thinks) professor, took off his wristwatch and said to the attentive students, "If there is a God, I will give him 1 minute to strike me dead!" Silence filled the lecture hall. You could have heard a pin drop as each second ticked by. Everyone awaited a lighting bolt to strike the cocky professor. Then, a minute passed. Nothing. No lighting bolt, no shocks. Just a man's loud laugh echoing through the hall filled with silence, then followed by the gloating words of "I guess there's no God, huh?"

Well, in the midst of these students, sat a journalist. This journalist worked for the NY Times. This man thought deeply about the actions of the professor for quite a while. A couple of weeks later, he put an article in his paper....same story, this one with a twist. There were two ants walking through the desert. As they walked, something was shining in the horizon. Finally, they arrived at the shining objects. Out of nowhere, appeared two huge silver rivets. One ant asked, "What is this?" The second ant said, "Don't be silly, this is the famous Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway." The first ant laughed and said, "This is not a railway. I only see something shiny." The second ant insisted. "It is! I've heard about it. There is no doubt that this is the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway."

So, the first ant mustered up strength and slowly climbed what seemed to be a giant peak to the top of the shiny rivet. The 2nd ant struggled behind him. When he got to the top, he said, "OK. We'll see if this is truly the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. If it is, then I will give one minute for a train to come by and squash us!" The 2nd ant stood by nervously, knowing in his heart that this indeed was the famous railway. With eyes shut, he waited to be trampled by the oncoming train. After a long while, he looked down at his wristwatch (yes...these ants had watches! LOL!) and noticed that the minute had long passed. Nothing happened!!

The journalist continued with his article and the reason that brought me to write about this. Can you imagine the President of Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway sitting in his office on the 60th floor of a San Francisco skyscraper, being told that two ants were discussing whether he and his railway truly existed? Should he have spent a second of his time sending out a train to squash the ant who needed proof? Of course not! Well, the same goes for our great God. He is the omnipotent, God of the universe. The King of Kings. Do you think that he needs to prove to us that He is God?

I thought about the students in the lecture hall waiting for "lightning to strike". I know that I, for one, would definitely have loved to see it just so that I could have had the opportunity to say, "I told you so!" But, our God is way too big for that. He is not here to conform to our disbeliefs. We are here to conform to His truths. And that my friends is called.....FAITH!

Have a blessed evening!

Did you hear the one about the chicken & the pumpkin?