3AM Thoughts (again)

Well it's 3am...and guess who's up?  I slept for 3 hours and now I'm wide wake. So I thought I would share a few things about Gotcha Day. Madison's foster mom sent her with a back pack full of all her things & also a video that she made for us....So thoughtful! We are told this is not the norm, so we are very thankful to have these things and we are happy that Madison will have these to look back on, as well. Her foster mom also sent us a photo album with pictures of the 2 yrs she spent there.  You can tell that she really loved Madison, and we even got a few pictures of the orphanage & the crib where she slept.

Speaking of the backpack...with all that's been going on we haven't had a chance to go through it and see what's all inside.  In addition to the schedule we are on, Madison is somewhat protective of that little pink bag and rightly so!  We tried to take something of out it earlier and Madison promptly retrieved the item, placed it back into the bag, and zipped it up almost like she expects to leave.  Again, it is so hard to know what is going in that little mind, but we pray that as each day passes she will feel more at "home" with us.

At dinner tonight we ran into a family from Utah who adopted a 5 year old girl yesterday and while their first day went great, day two has been a struggle.  The mom said once the little girl realized that she wasn't on a field trip and would never be returning to her caretaker and friend, she started crying and has not stopped since.  Would you please pray for this family from Utah and for their little girl, too?  While I can't remember their names, God does and they certainly need some help and encouragement.  Please pray for Madison because she too might be thinking some of the same things.  Pray for God to give her peace and to protect her little heart and mind from all the changes she experiences on almost a moment to moment basis with us.

Now, back to the little pink backpack.  After dinner, bath time, and putting Madison to bed, we took the bag to our room and quietly went through it for the very first time.  As we took everything out, it was humbling to see that all of Madison's earthly possessions could fit inside such a tiny container.  In addition to the little bear David mentioned yesterday and her blankie (that's right Jim C, we now have another little girl with a blankie you can mess with!  And McKinley, she is not quite as attached to her blankie as you are to yours--We miss you sweetie!), all that Madison has or should I say "had" thanks to the Lord's great plan, was the following:

5 dresses
3 shirts (one is for a boy and at least two years old based on a picture we have)
3 pairs of underwear
2 pairs of pants
1 small purse 
A few pieces of candy and two happy meal toys
1 pair of shoes (several sizes too big)
And cup and a tooth brush...by the way, when Madison brushes her teeth she does so over the toilet and spits in there instead of the sink--still working on that one!  David brushed his teeth with her and she spit in the sink twice but then smiled and went back over to the toilet.  :-) 

That's it...probably more than some children have, but not very much at all.  She was greatly loved by her caretakers / foster family, though, and that's so much more important than stuff, right?  A great reminder to parents everywhere about what's truly important.

So thanks for all the prayers and good wishes.  Please keep them coming and specifically pray for our doctors appointment today with Madison and her TB test, our continued bonding, the language barrier and our ability to communicate even though gestures (we both downloaded a Cantonese app on our iPhones tonight that allows us to play basic words and phrases out loud--cheesy I know, but when you are all by yourself you do whatever you can), and for Madison to continue to sleep well.  She made a few whimpers in her sleep tonight which we've heard about before.  Again, pray for peace and for God to protect her little heart and mind.  Thank you!

Melissa