Bella, Post Adoption: ONE YEAR

I've been trying to compose this post for awhile now but to be honest, I have tried and stopped so many times because I didn't know where to start. 

How do I begin to describe what the last year has been like? 

How do I do any kind of justice to what the last 12 months have held? 

I don't know. 

For so long, Clay and I wondered if we should adopt. It had been laid on our hearts so long ago, but we were scared and uncertain. We were living a safe, comfortable, easy life. Now, it makes my breath catch when I think about the what if's...

What if we had said no? What if we had let fear dictate our life instead of God? 

Now I know: our hearts would never have been whole. 

Because what we didn't know at the time was that a piece of our hearts was on the other side of the world, surrounded by hundreds and yet alone. Waiting, so, so bravely, for her momma and dada to come to her and bring her home. 

When we met our daughter, she was missing something, too - not just her family. She was missing a piece of her soul. It had been pushed down, diminished, hidden, forgotten, until it was unrecognizable, until she was only a shell of what she should be. 

She was missing the glimmer in her eyes - her spark. Her joy.  

I was the same, in a way - a piece of my soul had been pushed down, diminished, hidden, forgotten. I was missing something. What I know now is that I was missing HER. 

Bella is joy. She is life and light. She is determination and resilience. She is belly laughs and hugs. She is love, and she is faith. She is everything we ever needed and everything we were ever missing. She makes us whole. 

As we celebrate one year of being a family, I thank God for keeping His hands over her until we could get there. I thank Him for weaving her into our hearts so long ago, for continuing to call us to adopt, knowing she was there waiting for us. Thank you, Jesus, for our Bella. I don't know what we'd ever do without her. 

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Friends, life isn't about comfort. It isn't about safety. It isn't about easy. It isn't about perfection. It isn't about acquiring more stuff. 

It's about faith. It's about family. It's about Jesus. So much Jesus. 

For the many who reached out during the last year, asking about adoption, please listen to God. Trust Him. If He has given you the calling, it isn't going to go away. Nor should it. 

I will never regret saying yes. I was scared and anxious for so long, but He has been beside us, and her, from Day 1. Don't say no because you're scared or you're worried about how your life will change. It will absolutely change! It will be harder and busier and more stressful. It will be more chaotic and exhausting and unpredictable. It will be more beautiful and meaningful and faith-filled and life-giving than you can ever imagine. Yes your life will change...in the absolute best possible way. How I wish everyone was called to adopt - everyone deserves to experience the kind of beauty and wonder and awe that is our Bella. Is your little one waiting? 

My hope and prayer as we celebrate one year with our Bella is that, a year from now, those of you who are considering adoption will be on pins and needles, waiting for your little ones to come home. As we celebrate our littlest Lu, I pray for God to open the eyes and hearts of those who, too, are considering adoption. I pray that the comfortable, predictable, easy lives won't prevail over the immeasurable beauty that is adoption. I promise you: If you are called to adopt, it will be the best "Yes!" of your life...and theirs. <3 Please reach out. I'll help you and walk with you and pray for you through every step. This I pray today, July 31st, exactly one year since we met our daughter in a hotel conference room on the other side of the world. 

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Bella Elizabeth, Year 1 is in the books, sweet baby. On to Year 2 we go. Adventure awaits...

(For anyone who wants to get a glimpse of what the first year with our Bella looked like, I created this video to show her one day. <3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDaIREXM-Fk&t=3s)  

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1:27

Cheers to the Weekend, Camp Edition

Happy, Happy Friday, friends! We've had a busy week 'round here and I wanted to share a few of the things we're saying CHEERS to before the fun weekend we have planned ahead kicks off! So, CHEERS to...

Camp Rock. Every summer, our beloved church hosts this AWESOME sleepaway camp for rising 3rd through 5th graders at Black Mountain, North Carolina (about two hours from where we live). We were so excited that Banks was finally old enough to attend this year, as we had heard wonderful things about it from other church friends. You guys. I could not be more impressed with this incredible camp, and Banks could not have had more fun! His dad dropped him off at 2:00 pm Sunday, and I arrived at 10:00 am yesterday for a closing ceremony and to pick him up, and we were not allowed any contact in between (i.e., no phone calls!). Every morning we received these amazing video recaps and hundreds of photos of the campers living their best Camp Rock life, and at 7:00 pm every evening, Camp Rock did a Facebook Live so that us parents could watch the worship session and Bible lesson being shared that day. During the days, there were small group sessions and individual sessions to learn and share more about Jesus and other than that, there were tons of awesome games and free time and snack time and down time and just about every cool camp experience you can imagine. 

But the most AMAZING thing happened on Wednesday night, when my hub and I were watching what was taking place at Camp Rock while sitting on our couch back home. We saw our son walk up to the stage and sit in front of a room full of his peers, bolding choosing to accept Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. I was in tears, so proud and thankful of my big boy and his life-changing choice. Maybe the understatement of the century - I absolutely LOVE Camp Rock and every one who works so hard to make it the life-changing experience that it is. My kiddos will now attend it every year that they are old enough for it - I'm not sure who loved it more, me or them! That being said you can bet your bottom dollar I basically sprinted and tackled Banks when I saw him yesterday...there may have been momma tears and the biggest bear hug as soon as I spotted him - I missed him so much, and our house finally feels like home again with his return. <3

Trolls Camp. Speaking of camp, this week was Raleigh's second of two camps she was signed up for this summer - the first being the cheer camp she did back in June and this one being...Trolls Dance Camp! It took place at her dance studio, and my sweet girl had the best time attending it with her "bestie." As if that wasn't awesome enough, she had her first EVER sleepover with said bestie one night this week and had the best time! Rals was definitely living her best summer life this week. :)

Operation: Organization. Clutter is my nemesis. BUT ever since we added our fourth little Lu to our family, and all the chaos that comes with that first year craziness, our house has become increasingly disorganized and cluttered. So, I made it a goal to tackle it this summer. I finally started this week and was able to care of Banks' room and the laundry room. And I feel better already! My anxiety level no longer goes through the room when I enter either of those rooms. Over the next three weeks, I am going to try to tackle two rooms per week so that we'll be in a much better, much more organized space once the 2018-19 school year arises. Next up? The girls' room and guest room. Then? Harrison's room and the playroom. Finally? The guest room and our closet. Hopefully, by writing it down here, I can hold myself accountable. :) 

Nephrology appointment. Earlier this week, we met with a pediatric nephrologist to have Bella's kidneys checked out, at the recommendation of our geneticist. Because children with hearing impairment can sometimes have kidney dysfunction (as they develop at roughly the same time in utero), we wanted to make sure all is well. So, we headed to Levine Children's in Charlotte earlier this week (Rals, big sister extraordinaire <3,  accompanied us) for our appointment. As she does, Bella was very compliant and in good spirits for the duration of the appointment. This girl is such a warrior: she had a vial of blood drawn and didn't even flinch the entire time. Just sat on my lap calmly and didn't make a peep before, during, or after the blood was drawn. Our prayers were answered when we got the good news that the blood work was normal yesterday! She'll have an ultrasound of her kidneys done sometime over the next few weeks, but we have faith all will be well. As always, prayers appreciated. 

Summer Concert Series. Last night, we were actually in town and finally had a Thursday night free so that we could make our way across the street to our Greenway and go to the Summer Concert Series, which is held every Thursday night during the summer here in our sweet town. Think live music, food trucks, games for the kids, the most beautiful background, and tons of local families taking it all in. We had a great time having our Banks back home and enjoying this fun night that our Greenway has to offer as a family. <3

And with that, the weekend awaits! And we have a super fun weekend ahead! Have a good one, friends! I'll be back soon with something special to share...

BLOMPS at the Beach 2018

If you've read this lil' ol' blog for any amount of time, you probably know that we refer to my "side" of the family as BLOMPS. My mom married my stepdad almost 17 years ago and, along with my stepbrother and stepsister, there are now six siblings in total and between the six of us, fourteen kiddos ages 8 and under. <3 

You also probably know that I LOVE kids; so, I am pretty much in heaven when I get to go to the beach each summer and be surrounded by not only my Lu Crew littles but also my many nieces and nephews. Similar to our trip with my "in laws side" of the family, when we venture to the beach with BLOMPS, we all pile into one big ol' house and it makes for a loud and crazy, chaotic and exciting, super-duper fun week. Are we worn out by the end? Yes. Are we thankful for the time spent and memories made? YES. 

A look back at our week in Crescent Beach, just outside of St. Augustine, Florida, and a few of my favorite memories from BLOMPS Beach 2018: 

The cousins/nieces/nephews. It was kiddos, kiddos, everywhere, and we loved every minute!

Making the most of it, weather wise. The weather was hit or miss. Pop-up showers, and a couple downpours, throughout the week, but we still got in some good beach time every single day. And when the rain came, so did the indoor fun! Game time, porch-side inflatable poolin', and a double birthday ice cream party for two of the sweet BLOMPS babes. 

A visit in town. Mid-week, my Lu Crew headed into beautiful St. Augustine and had such a fun time visiting the quaint, historic town. There was the stop at the cutest coffee shop, a trip around the historic battleground fort, a visit to the pirate museum, the devouring of yummy gourmet popsicles, the window-shopping of all the fun shops, and the souvenir buying for our little tourists. It was a great day!

Grown-up time. Yes, the 14 BLOMPS kiddos dominated our attention during the day, but we made plenty of room for adult time, too! - golf for the dads. Breakfast for the moms. Beach runs and beach reading. Nightly porch laughs hysterics. Catch Phrase competitions. Bucket Ball battles. Beach fishing. And so.much.more. Man, we had a blast together!

Boat ridin'. Then, there was the day my sister and brother "in law" rented a boat to take some of the big cousins out for an adventure. They had the BEST time! And I got in some good beach time with my littlest duo in the meanwhile. <3

Karaoke. My hub made the best purchase the morning before we left for the beach - this awesome speaker that, after being charged, allowed for 50 hours of speaker time. It went to the beach and blasted tunes each day, allowed for adorable karaoke opportunities all week, and provided the background soundtrack for our grown-up porch time every night. So, so fun!!!

One last 2018 beach trip with my Lu Crew. And of course, I enjoyed every second I could get with my Lu Crew peeps when they managed to peel themselves away from their cousins. <3 This was our last family trip of the summer, and I loved having all SIX of us there, together, this year (at this time during last year's trip, we were mailing off final adoption paperwork from the beach and anxiously anticipating the five days we would have between the time we returned from the beach and the day we left for China!). 

It was such an awesome trip with people we love, and we are already looking forward to next year's adventures. Thanks for the fun, BLOMPS Beach Week. It was one for the books!