Like Father Like Son

Our family likes sports, especially Eric (daddy).  Baseball is one of our favorites, and our favorite team is also the best team in the country- the St. Louis Cardinals. 

I'm sure if you have had your tv on any this week, you know that Albert Pujols is no longer a Cardinal :(   We (and by we I really mean Eric) watched the news for several hours the day that the announcement was made this past week. 

Brayden sat right there with him and watched it too.  He loves his daddy and wants to be just like him.  The whole time Eric sat there watching the news unfold and then he would repeat it all to me while I was busy doing something else.  Much more important I'm sure :) 

But, Brayden seriously hung on every word that came out of Eric's mouth.  So much that when Ella came home from school that day, Brayden told her exactly what had happened. 

He said, "Ella,do you know what?  Albert Pujols (but he says Pujas) doesn't play for the Cardinals any more.  He plays for the Angels.  And they live in California.  But we don't like them.  We like the Cardinals. We're always gonna like the Cardinals."

I just smiled the entire time he was talking.  I looked over at Eric and he had a huge smile across his face.  I could tell he was saying to himself "that's my boy!" haha

He looks just like his daddy :)

An unrelated picture of Brayden wanting to be like his daddy

Although this story is funny and sweet (at least to me), God used Brayden to teach me a lesson that day.  He reminded me that I should have as much desire and enthusiasm for my Heavenly Father as he does for his earthly father.  I should want and desire to be like Christ, and to do that I must spend time with Him and listen to what He is telling me. 

Thank you, Jesus, for blessing me with my children to teach me more about you!! 


Brittany

Happy Birthday Emmalyn!!

To our sweet girl,

                      Today you turn 3 years old!  We love you so much and can't wait for the day that you "officially" become apart of our family!

                       We have thought about you and prayed for you all day long!  We have prayed for your protection and for peace for your country as well during this election season. 

                        We are excited to be celebrating your life today, and can't wait to celebrate the years to come.  Although today brings much happiness, it also brings a little sadness too thinking of the three years that we have already missed :(  But we'll just make up for that when you get home!!

All our love from across the world,

Mommy and Daddy

(And Ella and Brayden too!)



Happy Birthday Brayden!!!

Today is a special day!  Not only is it my birthday, but it is also Brayden's birthday!! 

My sweet Brayden,
                 I was truly blessed 4 years ago today when you were born into our family.  I had no idea how much fun a little boy could be until you came into my life.  You are growing up way too fast.  I think sometimes in my head I picture you as this:

Look at that sweet baby face!

But time has flown by, and you already are such a big boy!

My little cowboy!

 You have such a fun personality, and you make me laugh all the time!  It is truly a joy to be your momma!  I am so proud of the little boy that you are are.  I cannot wait to see what God has in store for you in the years to come! 

Happy Birthday Sweet Boy!  I love sharing our birthdays together!

Orphan Sunday

As many of you know, this past Sunday was Orphan Sunday.  This is a day for Christians to all come together and do exactly what the Word of God tells us to do- "Defend the cause of the fatherless.." Isaiah 1:17.  Although we should be doing this on a daily basis anyway, this day is important because many events are planned across the entire world to raise awareness of orphans, adoption, etc.

Of course, this day is especially important to me this year.  Our family can't wait for the day that we get to bring our little girl home.  To us, she is already apart of our family, however, she has not felt that love yet of having a family.  Seriously can't wait for the day that I get to tell her that I'm gonna be her momma forever! 

This year, Eric was asked to preach on Orphan Sunday (not because it was that specific day but because the preacher was going out-of-town).  However, this was no coincidence. 

As most of you know, we live on a Native American Reservation.  I have never heard the word "orphan" ever come out of anyone's mouth here.  I have only heard the word "adopt" a couple of times.  It's just never talked about.  For many, "adopt" is not something that they want to hear because there are many families whose children have been "taken away".  They have never thought of it in a Biblical sense that we, who are believers, have been adopted into the family of God.  So, Eric got the privilege to preach that message and to challenge the church to get involved and do something about the orphan crisis.  It was so awesome to be apart of this reservations first ever Orphan Sunday event!  Eric was able to share many statistics, both globally and locally that really opened the eyes of everyone.  One of those statistics was about the Gila River Indian Community (where we live).  Last year, 400 children from the reservation needed to be placed into foster care.  There are only 2 foster homes on the whole reservation.  Many of the kids were sent to group homes because there was no where else for them to go. 

There were several people afterwards that came up to Eric and asked, "What can we do?"  Praise God!!   That needs to be the question that we all ask.  If we are believers, we are called to do something!! 

One event in particular really stood out to Eric and me that day.  There are 2 girls in our youth group that have just started coming in the last couple of months.  We don't even know if they are believers, but the message really got to them that day.  They decided to get a coffee can and attach the bulletin insert on the front of it.  They went around the entire community where we live and collected money for orphans.  That night, they brought it back to us and said, "We didn't really know what to do, but we had to do something."  How awesome is that!!!

How about you?  Did you do anything special for Orphan Sunday?  

Brittany

  

Ella Grace

My sweet Ella Grace,

Today you turn 6 years old!!!  I seriously can't believe it!  Time has gone by way too fast!  It seems just like yesterday that you looked like this:


Our little chunky monkey

And now you have gotten so big so fast:



Our beautiful princess

I thank God everyday that He has given me and daddy the awesome privilege and responsibility of being your parents.  It has been so fun watching you grow into the little lady that you are.  I can't wait to see the plans God has in store for you in your future!

Happy 6th Birthday sweet girl!  You are loved more than you know!!

Love,
Mommy



Our Rollercoaster Ride

Hello everyone!  I know it's been months since I have blogged, but there is a reason for that.  It's called LIFE.  There have been several things/circumstances going on with me and our family these last couple of months, and honestly, I needed to take a break.  I needed to actually live my life instead of write about it.  Most importantly, I needed to spend time with my Heavenly Father instead of my time on the computer.  There were just some hard things that were going on that I needed to talk to God about first and not the whole world.  :)

One of those hard issues was our adoption journey.  We feel like we have been on a rollercoaster ride with all the ups and downs.  It seems like when we think everything is going just fine and we are getting closer to the end of the ride, it takes one of those hairpin turns and everything goes upside down.  

Let me explain further.  We happily announced about 4 months ago that we had been referred a little boy!  I can not explain to you how excited we were.  We had pictures of him and we had sent him a book of our family, as well as some other goodies.  We had him named- Weston Fisher Gibbs.  The kids called him their brother.  We called him our son.  I could close my eyes and see him running around our house. 

All of that came crashing down about a month ago.  We got the phone call that no adoptive family wants to get.  Our agency called and explained that as the lawyer was doing more investigations, he found out that Weston has a family.  Although he lives in an orphange, his family had not legally abandoned him.  We could not adopt him any longer. 

I didn't know what to say.  I couldn't really respond.  My heart broke into a million pieces.  It was a really hard day.   In fact, I cried most of the day and the day after.  Although I wanted him to be in our family, my heart broke most of all for him.  I kept thinking, "What if his family never comes back for him?  He will spend his entire life in that orphanage without the love of a family." 

But then, I/we just gave the situation up to God.  He is the one that is in control, not me.  He is the one that is all-knowing, not me.  For some reason, Weston was brought into our lives.  We don't know what that reason is right now.  Maybe it is just for us to pray for him, because more than likely we are the only family in the entire world that knows him and will pray for him.  Maybe it is so God can teach us to trust and have faith in Him above all else.  Whatever the reason, we love that boy and not a day goes by that we do not pray for him or think of him. 

We are learning to TRUST.  We are learning to have FAITH.  We are learning that GOD is in CONTROL.

And just when we thought that we were in a really low spot, God brought another child into our lives.  This time a sweet little girl.  Yes, we have been referred a 2 1/2 year old little girl!  We immediatley loved her when we saw her.  We are waiting for the lawyer to get her abandonment decree soon (although all the proper investigations have been done this time he assures us).  But that is where the trust, and the faith, and the control thing come in.  There is no point in worrying about it when there is nothing we can do anyway.  We are trusting that she is our daughter.  In our hearts, she is already.  We have named her as well- Emmalyn Jewell Gibbs.  Her name comes from both of my grandmothers.  She has a different name now that I can not publicly share yet, but it means "blessing."  We also hope to keep that as a middle name too for her.  We hope that we get to experience the blessing that she is. 

Would you join us in praying for her and for this adoption journey? 

Our adoption journey has not been an easy journey, but yes I would do it all again.  Because the day that I finally get to hold my child in my arms will be worth it!  The journey of God growing us more like Him is worth it!   The rollercoaster ride is worth it!!!

Brittany 

Funny Story (at least it is to me)

We were sitting around the dinner table tonight talking about our day.  Ella was telling us all about her school day. (She always has so many stories to tell.)  This week, their class is studying about community helpers.  She was telling us she was so excited because tomorrow 2 police officers, a fireman, and a nurse were all going to come visit her class and talk about the ways that they help the community. 

Eric jokingly said, "So when is your teacher going to ask me to come speak to the class about being a preacher?"

Ella started laughing and said, "Daddy, you have to have a job to come speak to our class."

The whole table erupted in laughter.  So funny! 

Then, as we were finishing eating, she said (as if not to hurt his feelings), "Daddy, I know you actually have 2 jobs- you're a preacher and a missionary."

Oh how I love that sweet girl!!

Brittany

Beautiful Eyes

Today we went to get Brayden's hair cut.  (I think he has the fastest growing hair in the world!) While we were there, he and the lady that was cutting his hair started having a conversation.  It went something like this:

Lady: "I think you have the most beautiful eyes. Where did you get your eyes from? Your mama?

Brayden: "Nope."

Lady: "Well, did you get them from your daddy?"

Brayden: "Nope."

Lady: "Did you get them from your sister?"

Brayden: "Nope."

Lady: "Your dog?"

Brayden: "Nope."

Lady: "Well, where did you get them from then?"

Brayden: "God. He gave them to me."

Lady: (laughing) "I guess you're right.  God gave you beautiful eyes."

 

I love how much truth a child can speak!  What an example he was to the lady we met today! 

And, of course, he does have beautiful eyes!!  No bias at all!

Brittany

Knee Deep in the Water Somewhere

Have you ever had "one of those weeks"?  Yeah, me too.  I gave you a short glimpse at just the beginning of our week last week from the last post (with the flat tire).  Well, the week continued to dwindle.  Monday night I became really sick and had to go to the ER.  They didn't know what was wrong.  The next day I went to Urgent Care.  They sent me to get a Doppler ultrasound on my arm and neck just to make sure I didn't have a blood clot.  I didn't :) but my symptoms didn't go away.  All week I have been absolutely miserable with pain and numbness in my right arm, sometimes having trouble breathing.  I have had to sleep on the couch so that I could be elevated and have something to prop my arm upon.  It's been a hard week.  But praise God, I woke up this morning feeling much better!  No explanation other than that God healed me! 

However, one day last week, we took an afternoon to get out of the house and getaway from everything.  Although I didn't feel well, we were all dying to get out of the house and thought maybe the fresh air would feel good.  It did.  We had a great time. 

Here are some pics of us soaking up the sun and splashin in the water at Canyon Lake:



I just put my feet in the water





This girl would live in the water! 



One of my favorite places to go :)

Sometimes it feels good to get knee deep in the water somewhere (or in Ella's case, get all the way in) and just take in all of God's creation! 


Brittany

 

This is the stuff that drives me crazy!

"This is the stuff" by Francesca Battistelli is one of my favorite songs.  Today has been one of those days.  Actually, the last week and half have been "one of those days". 

You see, today, while on the way home from picking Ella up from school, we got a flat tire.  It was just me and the kids.  I do not know how to change a flat tire. :(

And although I do not know how to change a flat tire, I am learning.  This was the 3rd flat tire we have changed in a little over a week!!!  Let me clarify by saying they were not all on the same vehicle.  (Last week we had one on the church van while we were driving.  Then 30 minutes later a friend called that also had a flat tire and needed help.) Today was my personal van. 

As soon as this happened, I thought of the song above.  There is a line in the song that says, "This is the stuff that drives me crazy, this is the stuff that's getting to me lately, in the middle of my little mess I forget how big I'm blessed." 

So, today I am choosing to see how I am blessed and not focusing on the little things that make me crazy. 

FYI, Eric had just arrived home and was able to get there and help me in less than 5 minutes.  We were able to get pulled over quickly and will be able to get the tire fixed.  A sweet lady pulled over to give us a bigger jack so it made the job much easier.  We were also able to invite her to church.  All blessings :)



Two of my biggest blessings!!

What are your blessings today??


Brittany

THANK YOU!!!

Thank you so much to everyone who gave towards our matching grant from Lifesong for Orphans!  Because of your willing and generous hearts, we were able to match all $3000!!  This means we got $6000 to put towards our adoption expenses, which was really great because we had a payment to make of $7600.

 That makes it that much closer for us to bring this little guy home:


I can't show the whole picture until he is officially a Gibbs, but here he is!!

 Thanks, also, to everyone who helped with the yard sale.  Whether you brought items to donate, helped price items, worked the couple of days preparing, etc. we can not say how much we appreciate you!!!  We are constantly amazed at how much our family and friends support us.  We know that there were so many of you who helped in so many ways.  We wish we could have been there!  Our parents kept telling us how much stuff was donated.  I, personally, asked for pictures so that I could see it all.  It was awesome!!! 

I am so proud to say that we you raised a little over $2000!!!  Complete awesomeness!!

Because there were still many items left to sell, our parents have decided to have one more yard sale day this Thursday.  Although we have raised our goal for this time, we still have more payments in the future.  The proceeds from this yard sale day will go towards those payments. 

To give you an idea of what we have left to pay:

one payment of $2800 to our lawyer/agency

one payment of $1200 to our lawyer/agency

about $5000 worth of travel expenses (including airfare, hotel, food, etc.)

So, we are preparing for about $9000-$10000 more!! 

Once again, we thank you so much for supporting us, loving us, and encouraging us.  We seriously have the best friends and family in the world!!!!

Brittany

                                                                     

Children on the mission field

I want to say right upfront that I did not write what I am going to post below.  It came from a Godly lady named Amy Block.  I do not know her personally, but I read her blog regularly and I feel like I know her.  I think in real life we would be friends :) 

Anyway, her and her family are fixing to move to Guatemala onto the mission field there.  This is a post that she wrote yesterday that I can very much identify with, except for the fact that we still live in the US (although many times I feel like we are in a different country).  The words that she wrote come from my heart as well.  You should check out her blog: http://www.buildingtheblocks.blogspot.com/

Her words: 

Monday, July 25, 2011

Children on the mission field

One of the top questions we have had lately is how do we feel about raising our children on the mission field. I am assuming the reason we get this question so often is because of fear. People fear something happening to their children and fear not being able to offer them 'the best things' in life so they assume we feel the same way.
First of all, we believe that raising our children in the center of God's will is the safest and best place to raise them.

While some may view moving to another country as unsafe- I can assure you we are doing everything in our power to provide a safe life for our children.

Our power is the key word.

Because the truth is- while you and I can do all the 'right' things to make sure our kids are safe and healthy- in reality, there is only so much we can do. Whether we live in the comfy old USA or in a 3rd world country- things happen. People get sick- cancer rears it's ugly head, we break bones, and get in car accidents. They are a part of life no matter who you are or where you live.                      

Does it scare me those things could happen to my children? Of course. It scares me right now living in the USA. But what scares me more is raising my children in a world where they are constantly bombarded by the pursuit of personal happiness. Where 'the finer things in life' are constantly dangled in front of their eyes and where they are brainwashed into thinking 'things' are more important than people. 

We learned a long time ago that there are no guarantees in life- and we learned a long time ago that the Lord isn't so much concerned with our 'happiness' as He is our holiness. While we do need to be wise- we also don't want to stand in front of God one day and realize we missed out on the very purpose He created us because we were too afraid to really live.

While it's true the USA is considered the land of opportunity, I believe my children will experience 'other' opportunities while living in another country that many Americans will not. They will see things, experience things, and live things that are different than those living in the United States- but equally as good. They will learn to relate on a new level to others who are not like them and learn to appreciate those differences. They will learn to be fluent in two languages and learn how to step out of their comfort zones. They will experience different cultures first hand- rather than just reading about them in geography books. They will learn to be resourceful, flexible, and adaptable.

I think many people believe that by taking our children onto the mission field they will somehow be deprived. If being deprived means no more video games, cheer leading try-outs, cartoons, or fast food- then we are okay with that. While they may be giving up some things- I believe what they are gaining is so much more important. It's simply a matter of priorities.

We view our going to Guatemala as our family mission. The Great Commission isn't only for adults. Each one of us are playing a vital part in reaching the world for His kingdom. Each one of us will relate to specific people in specific ways. Each one of us have different strength and gifts the Lord has given us and each one of us will come into contact with different people. I have already seen my children touch the lives of people that I never would have been able to. Each one of us, no matter how old or young, are able to love and reach out to others. And, I think it's crucial we teach our children this at a very young age.   

More than anything in this world I want my children to know Jesus deeply. I want them to understand that life isn't just about their getting ahead- having the biggest house or the biggest bank account. Life isn't about being #1, being popular, the smartest, the greatest athlete, or the best looking. It isn't even about our personal safety our comfort. It is so much more- and most of us are missing it.

 There is world out there full of people who are hurting and lost. A whole world out there who's only answer is knowing Jesus personally. You and I were put here on this earth to be His hands and feet-to tell others about Him...not to spend our days trying to prove WE are worthy. We were given life to show others His love- regardless of who they are, where they were born or whether they deserve it or not. If my children discover how to love others regardless of social status, ethnicity, diseases or ability to give anything back- than I truly believe we have succeeded in giving them the very best in life. 

The Beginning of a New Chapter

Well, we officially started a new chapter in our lives today.  Our sweet Ella started Kindergarten.  Where has the time gone?  It seems just like yesterday that she looked like this: 




Look at those chubby cheeks and arms!

But today she looks like this:



All ready for her first day!

She was so excited to start school that I didn't even have to wake her up.  She came in the bathroom while I was taking a shower and said, "I'm up and ready to go to school!"  If you know my child at all, this is a big deal.  She loves to sleep late, and I just knew I was gonna have to drag her out of bed.  Not today!!

She picked out her own clothes and shoes and got ready really quick.  Of course, we had to get a few pictures of her on her special day before we took off.




Ella loving on Brayden (Side note: See the cat that has taken up residence at our house.  FYI- I don't care for cats, but evidently it really likes us.)



Daddy and his little girl.  (Another side note- we heard Steven Curtis Chapman's song "I danced with Cinderella" on the way home from school.  Not a good song to hear on the first day of K.)



My little girl :)

I'm not gonna lie- this was a very emotional day for me, for all of us really.  The first day of Kindergarten is hard anyway, but even harder when you know nothing about the school, teacher, etc.  However, we were confident that the school that she is going to in Chandler (not going to say the name because there are weirdos out there) is the one she should be attending, so we knew it would be ok. 

We pulled up to the parking lot this morning and there were kids everywhere.  A majority of the kids walk to school because it is so close to the neighborhood that they live in.  We were a little overwhelmed.  Ella immediately got out of the van ready to go.



We found her classroom and met her teacher, Mrs. Willman.  She was super nice (as most K teachers are) and showed Ella where she could sit.

I did really well holding my emotions in until we got back to the van and then the flood gates opened.  I gained control and did pretty good throughout the remainder of the day (just a couple of sniffles here and there).

It was just a weird day.  It felt weird eating lunch and not making her plate.  It was weird to not hear any fighting or arguing over toys.  I actually missed it.  Brayden missed her too.  Although I will say, he was extremely well behaved today.  He played quietly in his room several times.  He was so quiet I had to go look for him to make sure he was ok :)

When the clock said 2:30, I was ready to go pick her up.  We waited in the parent pick up line forever (realizing it is the first day) it seemed.  Finally, it was our turn.  She was excited to see us.  Her teacher said she had a really good first day.  No tears ever.  She said she was very well behaved.  

We asked her a million questions on the way home.  Who did she sit by?  Did she make new friends?  What did she have for lunch?  Did they play on the playground? Etc.  She was most excited that she made 2 new friends.  She was also excited that there was a boy in her class named Brayden, one named Aiden (cousin's name) and someone named Bailey (her friend from KY).  She liked recess and snack time.  (She is my child haha)  She said it was a really good day.

So, we made it through the first day.  I think better than expected.  Although I'm sad that my baby is growing up, I'm looking forward to the new chapter that we are beginning.  One that hopefully involves her growing into a beautiful, young lady and child of God!!

 

Brittany

Quick Update

I wanted to give everyone a quick update about Ella and the school situatuion.  We got a letter in the mail this past week from the school district that we wanted her to go to that said she has been ACCEPTED!!!  Yeah!  Thanks for your prayers about this situation!

Now we are busy getting everything ready for school. Her first day of Kindergarten is MONDAY!  Yes, that is only 4 days away.  She is so excited!  I am excited for her, but sad for me :)  I'll let you know how the first day of school goes!

Brittany

My Baby Girl and Starting School

Y'all, Ella starts Kindergarten in less than a month!!!  I can't believe it!  I know that I have had 5 years and 9 months to prepare for this, but I'm still not ready.  I am having such a hard time with it. 

She, on the other hand, can not wait.  She talks about it all the time.  She says, "Daddy, how many new friends do you think I'm gonna have when I start Kindergarten?"  Today, we went to the school that she is "supposed" to go to and she said, "Momma, how long do you think we get to play out on the playground?"  She is full of curiousity and questions.  It makes me excited that she is excited.

I am mostly writing this to ask you guys to pray about the school situation.  Not about me having a hard time with it (I suppose I will get over it), but about "picking" the right school.  We have a school just a couple of blocks from our house that she is supposed to go to.  We have visited several times, and mostly have just talked to the secretary, but every time I leave I literally feel sick to my stomach.  There is just something about it that doesn't feel right to me.  It is way different than any school in KY.  Now I know that just because something is different doesn't mean it is wrong or is worse, etc. but I am having a hard time adjusting. 

Let me give you an example:  I told the secretary that I didn't turn in the transportation form for Ella to ride a bus because I am going to transport her myself.  She gave me the weirdest look.  She said, "Are you sure?  Everyone rides the bus.  No one brings their child to school."  She then proceeded to look at Ella and ask, "Don't you want to ride the bus?"  Of course she does, but I feel more comfortable with taking her the first year.  I proceeded to tell her that and explain that we just live a couple of blocks over and if I have to walk with her to a bus stop then I might as well just drive my car to the school.  It would take the same amount of time.  She said, "Well, I guess that makes sense."  

Another thing I am not "crazy" about is that they have to wear school uniforms, although I do understand the reasoning for it. Gold/yellow shirts and navy pants or skirt.  AND, no flip flops allowed-only tennis shoes.  We will be fighting every single morning over that one.  If you know my child at all, you know that she can not stand any closed toe shoe or socks either.  I'm gonna start preparing her now. 

Last thing that makes me uneasy is the Kindergarten schedule.  It is only for a half day and only 4 days.  Of course, that means I will get to spend more time with her, but I wonder how much instruction she will get in only 3 hours.  I wonder if she will be prepared for first grade. I wonder if she will be learning the same things that she already knows.  I wonder a lot.

I asked the secretary today about having any kind of open house or meet the teacher night, etc.  before school starts.  She said, "Oh, that would be nice, but I don't think we'll have anything like that.  We're really unorganized this year and I just don't think we'll have everything ready to do anything like that."  I promise that is what she said.  I managed to smile and walk away before I said anything that I would regret later.

So, Arizona is a state that is considered to be open enrollment.  This means you can go to a school that is not in your district.  However, you have to be approved and there has to be openings at the school.  The deadline to turn in an application for that was in April.  We didn't know that.  So we filled out an application any way and took it to the district that we want her to go to, but they don't know when they will get back with us on that.  It could be after school starts :(  Seriously, I feel like we are trying to get her into Harvard or something. 

I say all of that to say that although I don't know what is "right" at the time, God does.  He knows where my sweet Ella will go to school and who her friends will be and who her teacher will be.  He holds her in His hands.  He loves her more than I do.  So, I'm going to trust Him and be okay with what happens in the end.  Will you pray for us as we make the decisions that need to be made?  Will you pray that God will reveal His plan for Ella and that we will recognize it and trust it?  Thanks y'all!!!

Brittany

Crisis in the Congo

This is a very intense documentary about the Crisis in the Congo; the home of our son.  Please pray for this country and for these precious people.

4th of July Weekend

We had a fabulous weekend spending time together as a family!  We have had mission teams at our house every weekend for 4 weeks until this past weekend, so we took advantage of enjoying much needed family time!

First, we got haircuts.



Cutting out the tangles :)





Always so serious when getting his haircut



Aren't they hot stuff? :)

Then, we had family movie night at home.  We watched Secretariat because we love horses so much.



Notice all the stuffed animals in the background that had to watch the movie too :)

 Unfortunatley, Daddy got called to go help some friends whose vans had broken down so he missed all the movie.  BUT, it was okay because we had a lazy Sunday afternoon and watched it again!!

Then, Sunday night, we went to the community fireworks show.  This was really the first community event that we have went to and participated in.  It was a little different walking into a crowd of over 1,000 people and being the ONLY white family there.  Eric said it was like a reverse Tater Day (for those of you who live in Marshall County and can understand that statement) haha :)  Nevertheless, we had a really good time.  We met up with some of our students from church and hung out with them and their family.  There was all kinds of stuff to do: food, water slide, basketball tournament, skateboard tournament, etc.  There was also a chicken scratch band (the type of music that many Natives listen to and dance to) that played the whole night.  Ella and Brayden danced the night away :)



Eric talking with Joker, Doug's dad

Of couse, my camera went dead before I could get the pics of the kids dancing and the fireworks.

On Monday, we relaxed and played in the water.  That night we went to the drive-in in Scottsdale and watched Cars 2. 



 They wanted to go swimming, but we don't have a pool.  So, we did the next best thing-filled up a bucket of water :)  You only have so many options when you live in the desert! 




Ready for the movie to start!

We had a fun weekend!  Hope you did too!!  Happy 4th of July!!

Brittany


IT'S A BOY!!!

We officially received our referral one day last week!  We are adopting a sweet, precious baby boy from the Democratic Republic of the Congo!  Right now, he is 6 months old!! 

We do have a picture of him, but we are not allowed to post it online- only after everything is official through court and he is officially a Gibbs. 

I can't tell you how excited we are and ready to meet him face to face!!  We love him so much already and can't wait to hold him in our arms!! 

Please don't forget about our matching grant that we received from Lifesong for Orphans.  They will match up to $3000 of what we raise, so we could have $6000 to put towards our adoption expenses.  Any amount donated at all is helpful to reaching our goal- even if it is $5 or $10.  (See previous post for the mailing address.) Or you can make a donation online @ http://www.lifesongfororphans.org/  and go to make a donation (type Gibbs Family adoption #2064).

Thanks for all your prayers and financial support to help bring our little boy home!!!

Brittany

$3,000 Matching Grant

We are super excited!!!  We found out this week that our family was approved for a matching grant from Lifesong for Orphans!!!  This is awesome news!

Basically, this means that Lifesong for Orphans will match up to $3,000 of all donations that we receive.  So, we could have $6,000 to put towards our adoption!!!  This is such a God-thing because our next payment to our agency is going to be close to 5,000 and we do NOT have the money.  However, God will provide!!

Our goal date to have the money for the grant is August 12, 2011.  Lifesong for Orphans is a non-profit organization so anything that you donate will be tax-deductible. 

Please don't think: "I don't have that much money that I can give."  No amount is too small, especially since it will be matched by Lifesong!!! 

If you would like to help bring our child or children home please consider giving to this organization so that they will match your donation. 

There are two options:

1. Mail a check.  Make it to Lifesong and in the memo line write "Gibbs Family Adoption #2064"
 The address is: Lifesong for Orphans
                        Attn: Gibbs Family Adoption #2064
                        PO Box 40
                        Gridley, IL 61744

2. Or you can do it online.  http://www.lifesongfororphans.org/donation.html 
     When you get to the page, follow the instructions where it says one-time donation/gift and put the same info "Gibbs Family Adoption # 2064"

Please pass this along to anyone that you think would want to be involved with making a difference in the life of an orphaned child and ultimately impacting the Kingdom of God!!!

We sincerely appreciate our family and friends for supporting us through this journey!!!

Brittany

My Old Kentucky Home

Last week we had the opportunity to travel back to Kentucky!  It was an awesome week visiting family and friends.  I posted on our ministry blog (liveloveaz.blogspot.com) about some of our experience, but I wanted to add a couple of things that we did!

• We ate our favorite restaurants!  Belew's 3 times and Los Portales 2 times!



Eric and Harper



It was cold this day that we went.  I about froze after drinking my milk shake!

• The kiddos got to play with family



Aren't they a cute bunch?



• We splashed around...



They're gonna love me one day for this pic!!

• One of the major events of the week: Ella finally decided to get her ears pierced!!

After we got to the store, she wasn't so sure anymore.  She had a melt down.  So after a long talk, she decided that she did want them but was gonna cry anyway.  This is me having to hold her arms down so she wouldn't move.



This is right after.  She was saying, "It hurts! It hurts!"




About a minute later, she was all smiles and so proud of those new earrings.  She showed everyone that would look!  BTW, they are Minnie Mouse!



• We acted like monkeys!!

• We went swinging!

• Our muscles grew bigger and stronger!



Yep, he's definitely gonna love me for this!



• We learned all about deer and hunting and looked at these:



The deer died this way! You can't separate them!

• We loved on each other!!!

• We went swimming!!



• We rode go-carts and bumper boats!

The winners!!



Getting wet!



We just had lots and lots of fun!!

We seriously did have a really good week!  We look forward to seeing everyone again at Christmas!


Brittany