We're Outta Here!

So...we're leaving in 13 hours for China, baby! We're leaving tonight, but won't get to Beijing until Thursday! We're going to be blogging from China, but due to the "Great Firewall of China" we can't use this website. We'll be posting all about our trip at www.babyjellybeans.com. Search for margala in the last name field and you can see what we're doing and the first pictures we have of Aaselia!

We'll be back in 2 weeks...so I'll post here after the 29th of September. God bless, ya'll.

Love Without Boundaries

As Stephen and I have been pursuing our adoption with the paperwork and waiting and reading and living through other people's blogs, there is one charity that pops up all over the place. It's called Love Without Boundaries. They are dedicated to helping orphans in China as they find their forever families. They support thousands of orphans in China: medically, educationally, nutritionally. It's run on a completely volunteer basis: more than 97% of the funds they receive go directly to help orphans.

They also have a book that uses the imagery of "the red thread," a popular belief in the adoption community, to show how our lives become entwined with our children's, as adoption weaves a beautiful tapestry of love and family. The moving photos and essays in this volume, again submitted by parents from around the world, talk about discovering the thread that connects us with our adoptive children, weaving the fabric as our children become integrated into our families, and cherishing the intricate tapestry that evolves.

For $5 for postage, you too can read these amazing stories.

Go to www.lovewithoutboundaries.com for more information

By the way, for those of you that are counting, there are only 5 more days until we leave for CHINA!

A Trip to Alexandria, MN

It’s been a busy August. I spent much of my month in Minnesota for our family reunion on my Mother’s side of the family. We get together every 4 years and this time we had around 170 people join us at Mount Carmel just outside of Alexandria, MN. I thought I’d share some pictures of that week.

Fist of all, you should know that Stephen wasn’t able to join us in MN this year. He needed to save his vacation time for our trip to China coming up in a couple of weeks…so I went alone with the kids. My sister also had the same tickets that I had (given that we were supposed to be in China that week), so she was able to help me get through the airport and hand with one kid on the plane. Very nice.

We spent a couple of days in the Twin Cities with my Aunt Lori and Uncle Keith. I should have taken a picture of the outside of their home. On the outside, it’s just a plain house…no fancy gargoyles on the outside or anything like that. But…once you walk inside, you just feel home. It’s an amazing experience. Thank you Keith and Lori for making us feel comfortable and for letting us stay with you. You definitely helped to make the trip something special!

Then, on Sunday we all went up to the lake for the week. This is the main lodge/dining hall at Mount Carmel. It’s beautiful and can feed a small army! My parents along with a lot of the “first generation” were able to stay right in the lodge and they had air conditioning and no steps to climb. It’s a great place and completely winterized. (That doesn’t mean too much for us Californian’s, but it does to those of you in the Midwest!)
This is my beautiful cabin! It was amazing. It was much smaller than my home, but much nicer too! There were heated bathroom floors (didn’t use) and a huge tub (multiple families used!) and a nice kitchen and living room where I could bribe family to come and visit me in the evenings with chips and popcorn and pop. It was a great and wonderful place to spend the week. On top of that, I had a commanding view of the lake and the beach and the playground. I could send the kids off to play and not have to worry about them at all. Perfect.
This is the cross that is just down the hill from the chapel. It’s the first thing I think about when I think of Mt. Carmel. It’s a nice place to sit and think and pray.
We had family activities in the afternoon…this is a picture of the Eikum/Merrifield team playing against the Nelson/? Family in volleyball. Twerp #1 and a cousin loved to play and did really well serving the ball from mid-court. Fun.
We also had a lot of time to spend with family. This is a picture of my mother and her 1st cousin. Man, they look so much alike! Their smile and laugh and just the way they get along.
Finally, a picture of the first generation. These are my grandparents, Lloyd and Fran Eikum…along with Twerp #3. My grandmother was one of 9 children and that is who comprises the family reunion…all of those descendants. I love spending time with my grandparents, I only wish that they lived closer so I could visit them once a week. The things I learn from them and the things I learn about myself are something to be cherished.
Well…it’s only a little taste of our time in MN, and I’ll have to write a little more later. Only 11 more days until we leave for China!