Bulldog is better!

I just wanted to send a quick update.....he is a different person today!! He is ALIVE and back to himself....praise the Lord. Chris will write about it tomorrow. Thank you for praying for our brother.

Love, Lindsey

Pray for our Brother!!!!!!!!

Chris and I got to LR on Thursday to celebrate Christmas with my family. Yesterday, Chris's mom, dad and Brother (we call him the Bulldog) drove in from Tulsa, OK to join the fun. John Jr. (aka Bulldog) is one of the greatest people on the planet. He is ten years older than Chris....and it partially mentally retarded. He is one of the funniest people I know.....and has a HUGE heart. One of his greatest joys is playing Connect Four. Yesterday, we played so many rounds.....my sisters and I took turns trying to beat him. He is so good at it.

Well, this morning we got a call from Chris's parents letting us know that they found John in his hotel room (he likes his own room) unresponsive and very, very sick. Chris and I drove straight to the hotel.....and when we got there he was stretched out on the floor having seizures. It was one of the worst things I have seen in my life. We immediately called 911....and he was taken to the emergency room. We are still waiting for test results. He does not recognize any of us....he is in a weird fog right now. Please be praying for a miracle!!! Pray for the doctors to have wisdom. Chris is really broken right now. I will update you all soon.

Love,
Lindsey

Our 1st Annual Guatemalan Christmas Eve!

The last few days have been very unexpected....fun! My mom, sister Leah, and grandmother came for Christmas....and we spent most of the time with the Moore family! Christmas Eve, Scott and Amelia had us over for the 1st Annual Guatemalan Christmas Eve! In Guatemala, Christmas Eve is a time to spend with family and friends....eating tamales....celebrating the birth of Jesus....and at midnight fireworks (oops, we couldn't find them). Look at the menu below....it was a traditional feast:

Menu:
Tamales
Jocon (traditional Guatemalan chicken in tomatillo-cilantro sauce)
Black Beans
Rice
Yucca
Plantains with Mole Sauce

Drinks:
Horchata
Sangria
Spicy Hot Chocolate

After dinner, we all played games....and laughed a lot (and we all wore our pajamas). Once little Micah went to bed, we got to spend time reading about the birth of our King. It was so good to share with each other what it means to us. We then spent a long time praying for our families....for their little Elliot (they go to Guatemala on Saturday to bring him home...YIPPEE)....and for Eliana and Xiomara. It was such a sweet time! Thank you Lord for coming as a baby....but more importantly, for knowing what was to come. Thank you for loving me so much....I don't deserve it!

I love you all,
Lindsey

Merry Christmas Eve!!

It is hard for you to see our tree because my sweet husband put four times the normal amount of Christmas lights on it. I'm pretty sure our entire neighborhood can see the lights from miles away! But, we love it. This year we added some picture frames on the tree with Eliana's pictures.

Last night we went to a Christmas service at our church and a family sat in front of us with their four kiddos, one of them from Guatemala (they got him 6 months ago). All I could do was stare at him the entire time. It was another little blessing from the Lord. I want Eliana (and Xio) with us for Christmas....but it is fun to dream what it could like like next year.

We still have not received our approval. I am really trying so hard to trust the Lord....He knows when we will get it in the mail. It is not a surprise to Him. Keep praying! Your comments are the highlight of our day....thank you for being the most encouraging community of bloggers in the world!! Merry Christmas.

I love you all,
Lindsey

P.S. My favorite ornaments are from Erin...who made them in Guatemala!! It makes me miss Antigua so much. Thanks Erin!!

Worth the fight!!

I wish you I could hug every single one of you. Chris and I are blown away by your encouragement, prayers, and comments!! They mean so much to us. Each comment was exactly what we needed. Well, the Lord heard your prayers and sent us the best gift last night through our amazing Lisa at our agency....some new pics of our sweet girl! Is she not beautiful??!!! Chris and I just prayed thanking God for giving us these...and he said, "Lord thank you for creating Eliana...she is just so beautiful." We love her so much. Chris went and bought her the cutest monkey stuffed animal on his way home from Memphis yesterday, so that it would remind her of the day her daddy fought for her. Keep praying!! We are trusting God for a miracle.

We love you all,
Lindsey

Not what we wanted to hear....

"I am weary with my moaning; every night I flood my bed with tears; I drench my couch with my weeping. My eye wastes away because of grief; it grows weak because of all my foes. Depart from me, all you workers of evil, for the Lord has heard the sound of my weeping. The Lord has heard my plea; the Lord accepts my prayer." Psalm 6:6-9

My husband is my hero. Today, proved that over and over again. I will let him write about his time in Memphis later. But, I wanted to let you all know that we did not get approval....far from it. We are at the bottom of a big stack on a lady's desk! Keep praying for a miracle. Chris just called me bawling telling me he did everything he could....he cried and shared our story with three different people. How discouraging! Right now I miss little Eliana....and Xiomara so much.

Most of you don't know the story of the last four years of my life, but it has been crazy painful. Someday I will share it....just not now. So, Chris and I got married (which let me say it again...GIFT)....then we hit a time of grieving and pain unlike anything I have even seen. The Lord has been so good to my family and me even in the midst of the pain. I have walked through depression, and I am now realizing that God WANTS to use my pain and my story for good. EVEN THIS!!! Thank you for all of your comments....I just sat and wept reading each and every one of them. The loss of Xiomara hurt so deeply....and I can't even begin to imagine life without Eliana. Pray that we are "grandfathered" in by our Power of Attorney. Pray for my husband...he is hurting deeply right now.

Love you all,
Lindsey

Look out immigration....here comes my hubsband!

"Father of the fatherless and protector of widows
is God in his holy habitation." Psalm 68:5

One thing you should know about Chris is that he has a heart for the orphan and poor like I have never seen in a person! Anytime he sees a video or they talk about other countries at our church, I know without a shadow of a doubt that he is crying. I love that about him. His heart literally aches for the nations!! He cries praying for our little girls....but he also loves to play and have fun with these kids. He is so much like Jesus....I wish each of you could get to know him personally. He is God's greatest gift to me!

So, speaking of defending the orphans.....that is what he is doing at 11:30am tomorrow (Wednesday). He is driving by himself (I have to work) to Memphis to meet with an immigration officer. I am so proud of him. It is a cool story how this all happened, but it is too long to write. Let's just say....God brought all of this together. Please be praying that he will walk out of the doors with immigration approval in hand!! Pray that he will get a kind, understanding officer. This could be HUGE!! He is fighting for our daughter(s)!!!

We will post more tomorrow night....stay tuned.

Love you all,
Lindsey

I miss Guatemala...

Don't get me wrong, I love my home in Franklin. I love the comforts of living in the United States. But, there is something magical that happens when I step foot in Guatemala. It is where I am most ALIVE! I am so drawn to the kids. I love to love and hug on them. I love to pray over them even though they don't understand my language. I love singing with them. The Lord reveals Himself to me in ways that astound me every time I'm there.

I am really trying to focus on what the Lord has given to me tonight, rather than on the things that seem impossible. We have still heard nothing from immigration. I will admit, my spirit is low....very low. There is always going to be a struggle in my heart. Faith requires a lot. We have jumped and are not looking back. It is painful....it feels like you can't breathe at times. But, it is defining who we are. So, right now I am choosing to be thankful. Lord, thank you for giving us the privilege of fighting for and pursuing Xiomara and Eliana. You know our hearts. You know how we would LOVE to bring both of them home. They are your kids....You loved them first. Thank you Jesus!

Love you guys,
Lindsey

We are ALL sad!!

Eliana is sad that we have still heard NOTHING from immigration!!

Keep praying.....we have one week until our documents have to be to Guatemala!

Love,
Lindsey

* We have gotten our congressmen and senators involved, but Memphis is not telling them anything either! They are saying they are short on staff. The one good thing is that we DO have our POA....we flew to Guatemala a month and a half ago to take care of that detail.

STILL NOTHING......KEEP PRAYING!

Be praying for immigration approval for us. We can't get any answers. The human side of me is really anxious and sad. But, I do know the Lord knows ALL....it is hard to keep perspective sometimes. Pray for our sweet Eliana....and for our other little love, Xiomara. What a journey we are on....sometimes it feels like a dream. I will let you all know when we hear something.

The Ortega Law was passed on December the 11th. We are still waiting on answers there too....they said that they will grandfather pending adoptions. Who is actually considered a "pending" adoption....are we?? PLEASE LORD LET US BE PENDING!!!!

Keep spreading the word about elliedub.com!!! WEAR YOUR T-SHIRTS AND PRAY FOR THE KIDS IN GUATEMALA (and all over the world)!!

Love you all,
Lindsey

Biblical Hope

"Biblical Hope is the belief that God has not forsaken us."
-Lloyd Shadrach

That's what I'm clutching today...Biblical hope. It's more than just wishing and crossing our fingers. Lindsey found out late last night that TOMORROW (Tues Dec 11) Guatemala is planning to make a statement about who gets to be grandfathered-in and continue in the adoption process. The predominant rumor is that only those cases who are in PGN (a Guatemala specific stage in the process) will be allowed to continue. We are not yet in PGN. We don't know what this might mean. PLEASE PRAY. I just pray "Jesus have mercy." I am confident that we've been following His call in obedience. Our sermon yesterday at church was all about how Risk is involved in Faith- man how we have seen that! If you've read much of our blog you've heard us talk about that! Hope...Risk...Faith...Prayer

I keep thinking of this quote by Brennan Manning
"To live without risk is to risk not living."

And to further quote our pastor Lloyd Shadrach:
“It turns out, living with Biblical hope y'all is riskier than we’ve been thinking about. It will get us into predicaments that we would not choose for ourselves in a million years. It may cost us dearly, in ways that quite frankly we may not be ready to pay...Biblical hope compels us to make risky plans.”

Thank you for praying for Eliana, the many other orphans in peril in Guatemala right now, and for Lindsey and I- that we keep Biblical hope.

-Chris

Happy 5 Months Old Eliana!!

Eliana,

All day today I have missed you so much! Happy 5 month birthday baby girl!! I wish I could be there to kiss and hug you non-stop....and to celebrate you. Know that I am praying and missing you like crazy. I am praying that I can hold you and sing to you soon. I love you. I love you. I love you. You are the most beautiful creation! I love your eyes....they sparkle. I love your smile....it is contagious! I love your personality....I can't wait to watch you grow up. Know that your mommy and daddy are so proud of you. We love you with all of our hearts!!

Love,
Your momma

P.S. This is the picture I fell in love with...your cheeks are the cutest things ever!

Grateful

"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change." James 1:17

My heart is so full right now! We had no idea what kind of response we would get to Elliedub....but it has blown us away. The Lord is so good....He is the reason we are doing this. The proceeds from the shirt sales are going to our little Eliana's adoption (and we still pray that maybe it will be for Xiomara too). Each shirt that is being bought makes me want to cry because it means that we are that much closer to bringing our precious baby home. Keep spreading the word about the site....post it on your blog! I can't wait until we are able to walk alongside other families going through this process.....creating shirts for their specific countries....and seeing how the Lord will provide for their adoption!

I haven't posted a lot on Eliana's adoption, but I am asking for each of you to PLEASE PRAY for us to hear TOMORROW from immigration. We feel desperate....but I realize that we have no control. I loved what one of my blogger friends said....she pictured Jesus holding her baby in one hand and her paper work in the other. I am really trying to give this to the Lord. Also, please pray for our friends (and partners in Elliedub)....they were supposed to go and pick up their little boy from Guatemala.....and there has been a delay in his birth certificate. I want them to be with him for Christmas....so pray for another miracle.

Love you all,
Lindsey

P.S. The picture is when we were flying into Guatemala City....I love it! I pray I will be sitting on a seat in the airplane soon to pick up or visit Eliana!

Drum roll please.....

We are so excited to tell you all that elliedub.com is officially up and running!!! YEAH!!! I feel so overwhelmed with a thousand emotions right now. I want to thank Scott and Amelia (our partners in this venture).....for working non-stop to make this happen. They are seriously two of the most creative, talented and humble people I know! Thank you Lord for crossing our paths with both of them. They took our vision and made it their own....and ran with it. We are so excited for our site to bring hope to families that are adopting....and to spread the plight of the orphan.

There will be many more t-shirts and new countries to come!!

A side note: The girl's t-shirts are so cute and fitted. A medium is like a small, a large is like a medium, etc... Soon we will be adding cute little kids t-shirts! Each t-shirt has a quote in Spanish.

Please pass this information on to others....spread the word!!!

Love you all,
Lindsey (and Chris)

P.S. There is a lot of updating to do about Eliana. But, would you please pray for a miracle with paperwork. We are fighting being discouraged and fearful!

Elliedub.com

The t-shirts will be on the web-site in the next two days! Thanks for all of your "excited" comments!! Check out a sneak preview at elliedub.com (on the right side of our blog).

On another note, please keep praying for our paperwork to be completed. I can't exlain how much I miss Eliana (and Xio...but hopefully that goes without saying)! It is hard to think about not being with her over Christmas. I am so thankful that she has such an amazing foster family though.....I have never seen one woman smile as much or as big as her foster mom! It makes me smile to watch the video of her smiling at Eliana.

I love you all,

Lindsey