Precious Lovenie

Who will fall asleep first? I was SO tired and Lovenie was really sick. I had trouble getting her to go to sleep each night, and she would wake up many times during the night. She was so sick and I felt so bad for her. It occurred to me after I got home that it was probably the first time in her 3 years of life that someone loved and comforted her that much while being sick. It was both an honor to be there for her and yet breaks my heart to think of the many times I was not able to comfort her. I got her flu or parasite and am extremely ill. I went to the doctor yesterday for lots of labs and test and hope to hear soon what we can do to make it better. It was totally worth it!

A peaceful nap time. It was with such relief when I could get her to go to sleep and lay her down without her waking right up and yelling at me. :) Just like her American brothers when they were babies.

All Dolled up with the bows I put in her hair. Notice how wide open and alert both of her eyes are!


I tried to give her a cute little doll we got her for her birthday and she had no interest at all. She instead really liked this soccer ball. She would hold it and rock back and forth on it. And if you can notice she also had a small pack of Kleenex in her hand. It had a pretty pink cover and it was her FAVORITE thing! She loved the crinkly noise it made in her hands.

Hanging out in the room with our dear friend Job

Waiting to be dressed. You can see how thin our tiny little girl is. I still find it so hard to believe she's 3...1 maybe, but not 3!!!

Being sweet and quiet on one of the very rare moments she allowed me to put her down without a fight.

One of our first moments together again.

Just sitting looking pretty, content enough for me to just sit next to her.



What an honor it was to be there holding and loving on our little girl while she was so sick! We had really been praying for her and I was so excited to see how God had answered our prayers in such a BIG way. Just 2 months before Lovenie was not making any noises other then mimicking a crying sound and calling me "ma" once. The last update picture we got of her had us very concerned for her health and we prayed and prayed for God to heal her. I received that picture just a couple weeks before our trip. When I was with her this time she was very alert, the blankness in her eyes was totally gone! She called me "Mama" many many times while I was there (loved it!). I got to see her cry her first real tears, make her smile for the first time, and even got her to laugh out loud a couple of times!!! We have so much hope for our little girl!

She was playful with her siblings and able to play little games with them like trying to grab things out of their hands, but while we were in church if anyone tried to get too close to her Mama they would be rewarded with a kick. :) Gonna have to break that but I'll admit it was kind of funny. She likes it when I would rock back and forth while holding her. If I stopped she would rock back and forth in my arms to try and make me keep going and of course it worked. One night I was outdoors at the big guest house balcony walking back and forth, rocking her in my arms, and singing to her. When I stopped singing she patted my arm and sounded as if she was trying to sing. There were so many moments like this with her that I held back tears and praised God again and again! What a beautiful and wonderful little girl God has given to us!


I took this very short video of her making sounds and trying to speak. It may not mean much more then little girl's gibberish to someone else, but to me, the fact that she was making sounds...was one of the most wonderful miracles I've ever witnessed. Click here to share in this miracle: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsXoV7zwwcc