Region Champs with #1 Fan!!!

On October 31st, CPA beat Goodpasture, making us the Region Champions!! We're so proud of our Lions. Here are the seniors celebrating after the game with their #1 fan, Macy Li !!

"Lion, mighty among beasts, who retreats before nothing."
Proverbs 30:30

In awe of God's favor,

Our Sweet Punkin'

Here is Macy Li visiting Gentry's Farm in October. She loved all the pumpkins and farm animals. She brought home her little pumpkin that she picked and still wants to carry it around with her all the time.

We're Back!!!!!!

Well, where do I start? Many of you have e-mailed me, wondering why in the world we "dropped off the face of the map"...
I really didn't want to go into it all here on such a public forum, but after I was asked the wildest questions about what had happened to me, I thought I'd better just explain.

Right after my birthday the first week of September, I got VERY sick, and I mean sick. My symptoms were like the "flu on steroids", combined with abdominal pain, then jaundice and all that comes with that, along with FATIGUE that kicked my tail. It was determined after a lot bloodwork that I had Hepatitis E. I know, you've never heard of it. Well, I hadn't either. But, there is an "E" and it is wicked. You get it from contaminated food or water in Southeast Asia, or a few other places such as India and Africa. Soooo, as it turns out, "Li Ming" wasn't all I brought home from China! It literally put me in the bed for over a month. My sister came in from Cincinnati to take care of Macy Li and me. It took a lot of friends and family to pull me through it. Boy, did "Mr. Mom" spin some serious plates for a while, too!! Man, I never knew he was so domestic! He can bathe a baby, get a meal together, crank out some laundry, wait on me, clean up puke, clean a big house, keep up with 3 boys, coach a football team, and fix some teeth like no other! (Now, we won't mention "monitor homework" b/c it seems he might have forgotten that one, but we'll let him slide I guess). I'm almost completely well now, thanks to so many prayers by so many of you. Friends and family jumped in and served us in so many ways. My 4 boys say a big "thank you" to all of you who brought over the wonderful meals for so long. Feeding these growing boys ain't no easy task, especially during football season, so BLESS you all who served us in this way! I can never begin to express my thanks adequately, but please know that every bit of it was a blessing and made us all feel so loved.

Until this, I'd never really experienced illness or dependence. I realized that I stink at both. The Lord has taught me so much through all this about my "I got it all under control" nature, otherwise known as pride. I'm really not comfortable being so needy, or being on the receiving end of so much "service." Very humbling. He is constantly doing a fresh new work in my life, and for that I am thankful.

Lastly, I want to say that Macy Li was worth every bit of this. I would never want to give the impression of "look what it cost me." I would get it all over again for her in a minute...TODAY. That was NOTHING compared to the incomprehensible gift of her! This child has to be the most precious little cherub on the planet, and we'd sacrifice anything for her.

Okay, with all this said, I haven't caught you up on 2 1/2 months of "dating to diapers"...........Well, it would be impossible b/c so much has happened, but I am working on my next post to bring you a peek into what we've been doing and how much she has grown and changed.

Thankful to be back and among the living! :)

Happy Birthday, Momma

Momma,
It has been a little over a month since you brought me home from China and I can't say thank you enough. Knowing that today is your birthday, I wanted to do something special for you. With the help of my Photo/video blogging "Pops", we set out to mark this day with a special music video starring......"Yours Truly".
Two months ago, I was in a small metal bed wondering what my future held. Today, I am loved like no other. From the first time I laid eyes on you, I knew that there was something special about you. When you reached out for me, I grabbed on and now I don't ever want to let go. Thanks for loving me so well. Thanks for feeding me...(especially all of the things that Dad says I shouldn't be eating) Thanks for all my Sweet Clothes.
Thanks for singing to me. Thanks for showing me what a family is. Thanks for being there when I fall, and most of all, thanks for being my Mommy. I am glad you came to get me.
I hope today is the best "Birthday" you ever had. You spend each of your days making mine and my brothers days the best. I love you more than you will ever know. Thanks for being there for me.
I will always love you.

Macy Li

Life!

No, we're not dead. Nothing's happened. I'm just a blogging-slacker, okay?!?!?! :) No, it's just that LIFE came rushing on with a force in the last 2 weeks! Fall has always been our family's busiest season, and this one even more so. I haven't slowed down long enough to even think about what to say here.

But for a synopsis, Macy Li and I took our first "road trip" to Cincinnati to see my sister and her family last week. Macy Li had a blast playing with her little two year old and 9 month old cousins, Maggie Leigh and McKenna Grace. While there, she finally started to crawl! Woo hoo! Maybe that had something to do with the fact that McKenna Grace is a speed-crawler...or perhaps we should call her "McKenna Phelps" for the way she takes to water and "swims" in the tub like a fish. She's a wild one.

McKenna Grace says, "Welcome to my house, Macy Li! So glad you're here!!!" :)


Macy Li and McKenna...


Maggie cooked dinner for Macy Li...


Here she is first learning to crawl the correct way, rather than her usual "sitting-Indian-style-scooting-with-one-leg-sideways-like-a-crab-crawl"...


Macy Li kissing "Ling," her beloved Mandarin-speaking baby doll...



On the way home from Cincinnati, we made a little stop in Louisville to see our sweet friends, the Bachmans. Here is Tannis and Macy Li...


We also stopped at Nannie and Papa's to pay them a little visit, too, but I forgot to take any pictures.

After returning home, it was "Football time in Tennessee" for us! On Friday mornings, I go to pray with some other football-moms in the boy's locker room. It is an amazing time early every Friday morning of football season to get to meet and pray for and over our young men on their big day. Here is our prayer group's new little "prayer-mascot" in both her brother's lockers (still in her sweet little jammies)....



All the boys all had their first games of the season. Tyler and Nolan played on Friday night and both did really well. I can't tell you how thrilling it was to see them out there on that field TOGETHER! I was just about to burst the whole night! This is the first and last year that they'll ever get to be on the same team with Tyler being a senior and Nolan a freshman...book-ends!

My favorite 2 receivers....#11 and #9!


That's my freshman, #9!



That's my senior, #11!




Touchdown!...


Tater, and his buddies at the game...


Aunt Lauri and Macy Li...


Nannie and Macy Li...


On Saturday morning, Peyton played 2 back-to-back games in the heat! Macy Li went to his games, too, and had a great time! Since Mr. "Papa"razzi was coaching, we don't have pictures. I'll have to take care of that next Saturday.

Our friends, the Iveys from Knoxville, were in town and we got to spend some time catching up with them.
Labor Day was pretty uneventful for us...the boys had practice and we tried to recover from the past week.

Macy Li is growing like a weed, and learning so much. She gained 1 lb., 1 oz. since this time last month. Here is what she does now: Crawls, waves good-bye and hello, blows kisses, "winks," plays peek-a-boo by covering her eyes, hugs, kisses, says, "Mama, Dada, and Uh Oh", does the sign for "more," praises the Lord (throws arms up), dances, bobs her head to the rhythm of ANY music, sticks her tongue in and out when we ask her what a lizard does, mimicks all our sounds, eats pretty much any and everything including all the Stage 2 foods, as well as many other table foods (canteloupe and cucumbers being her favorite), drinks her juice in a sippy-cup holding herself, sleeps all night, plays appropriately with several little toys, pat-a-cakes/rolls 'em up, etc...She's a genius! Just kidding. Actually, she is amazing and we still just sit and stare at her in wonderment as we pinch ourselves and ask why God would choose pitiful ol' us to be her family! How amazing to think that in all of China, He reached right down into the middle and pulled out this one for us, a little lost girl without a hope to come home to a father, mother, and brothers who love her with everything in them, a family who will tell her and teach her about the one true Father, and His Son,....to think that she will know Him because of coming to our family blows my mind. How great the Father's love that He has lavished upon us all!