One Year Ago...

We received the call. We had a baby girl. Her name was Lidiya. She was four months old. We rushed to the computer. We saw her precious face. It was love at first sight.

One year later, Lidiyanna brings us so much joy. She is a lively 16-month old toddler. She keeps us very busy. She is constantly following her brothers around, climbing on everything (including the table in the backyard), snuggling with mom and dad, bringing us books to read to her, and showing us her adorable, toothy grin. Although she is more interested in moving than talking, she does say a few words like Dada and pupu (puppy). We cannot imagine our lives without her. This weekend, we remember the call that changed our lives. We thank our God for giving us the privilege of being her family.

Glimpses of Oakville

Lidiyanna in our backyard on Father's Day

The kids enjoying the bike trails around our neighborhood.

Random Thoughts about My New Home

My Canadian observations so far:

• "Mum" instead of "Mom"


• "Bum" instead of "bottom"


• Smarties candies are different here. They are similar to M&M's.


• In my opinion, the summer must be the best time of year. The weather is fabulous and everything is green and beautiful.


• A lot of women work full-time outside of the home and have live-in nannies (a lot of them are from the Philippines). Whenever I go to one of my neighborhood parks, I see groups of Filipino nannies with the children they care for. I am a little discouraged that I am not meeting more stay-at-home moms during the day. The nannies are nice, but they have their little group. I just feel like an outsider to them.


• The GTA (Greater Toronto Area) is very green and environmentally concerned. I have no disposal in my home because I am expected to compost which is picked up every week. The GTA does a great job preserving trees and green space. Even though I live in a new neighborhood, lots of trees were saved in the outlying areas and trails were made throughout the wooded areas. The kids and I have spent many hours this week riding bikes through the trails near our house. Lidiyanna rides in the bike trailer, and I ride Tim's old bike from college. Good times!!


• I've said this before...people from all over the world come to live in Canada. So far, I have met people from Europe, Tanzania, Jamaica, Nigeria, Russia, India, and Philippines.


• I can't find any cans of Rotel tomatoes. Oh, my!! Although there are lots of great food here, Tex-Mex doesn't seem to be too popular.


• Canadian geese are everywhere by the lake. So is their poop.

Things have been interesting. I'm finally learning my way around, most of our boxes are unpacked, and the kids and I have set up somewhat of a daily routine. I miss my friends and family in Nashville terribly. Despite all of the fun, new experiences we are having, I am homesick. I'm praying each day for God to shape my attitude and help me to enjoy this time and not just endure it. I am clinging to these verses:

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. Joshua 1:9

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10

Zero Emission Sunday!

Wesley was on charging duty.

Sitting by the dock on the lake.

Skipping rocks - The lake Ontario shoreline is a rock skipper's paradise - Smooth stones abound.

The Seagull likes it.

Plenty of cargo space.

We may have taken the first Zero Emission trip to church in Canada. I drove one of Nissan's new LEAF's home this weekend. The LEAF is the first true production all electric car. After church we explored another shoreline park in Oakville.

Nissan's marketing strategy is "Innovation for All," and we put "All" of us in the LEAF today. It is truly an amazing car, and while I love big engines and 0-60 times, I am glad Nissan has created this truly innovative car.

The Adventure has begun!!

We've made it to Canada and have been in our house about a week. The boxes are just about unpacked but there's still the settling in that takes time. We started out last week at Great Wolf Lodge in Niagara Falls, and the kids had a great time at their indoor water park while we waited for our furniture to arrive on the moving van.
We're learning where all of the parks and grocery stores are and we've found a few "splash pads" as the Canadians call them. Toronto has a really great park system, so I think we could go to a different park almost every day this summer.

Overall, things are going well. The kids are doing a really great job adjusting to the change. The boys have had their moments of sadness. Graham has mentioned missing his Kindergarten teacher and Wesley said he was ready to go back to his old house. I've been trying to keep them busy, and that seems to help. The weather has been so nice, so we spend a lot of the day outdoors.

I have moments during the day when I feel the loneliness hovering over my head like a gray cloud. I miss our friends and family in the states, and I simply long for a friend who knows me. When we are at a park or the store, I wonder if I stick out because of the way I talk or how I look. Am I giving the cashier the right coins or am I saying the right word for the bathroom (which happens to be "washroom" here). Then, I look around and realize there are lots of people here that are from other countries so I blend into the array of diversity around me. I'm learning to appreciate new things and my perspective is growing.

I'm a minivan mom now, and I'm loving it. My favorite part of the car is the GPS. I'd be lost without it...literally.

Our new home

It didn't take long before Graham learned about the ice cream truck that frequents our neighborhood. He has declared Tuesdays "Ice cream day".

I can already tell one of my favorites things about living here will be the water. Oakville is right on Lake Ontario and some nice lake shore parks are not too far from our house.

Wesley loved the flight to Canada. I think he thought we were just going on one long vacation.

The good-byes have begun.

Our move to Canada is quickly approaching and the time to leave our friends and family in TN is almost here. Today was our last Sunday at our church. I kept telling friends that I would like to see them later in the week so I wouldn't have to say goodbye. I'm procrastinating.

Right now, I have very mixed emotions. I'm so glad to have Tim home and for the six weeks of being apart to be behind us. I'm excited about the new adventures we will have as a family and to see how God is going to grow and challenge us. Yet, I am nervous about moving where I know no one. I'm overwhelmed at the thought of unpacking and getting set up in our new house with three little children. I am sad to leave our friends and family that we have enjoyed sharing day-to-day life with for the past five years.

As Perpy reminded me this weekend, life is always changing. Nothing ever stays the same, so I know I need to embrace this new chapter in our lives.

Thanks for your prayers and for your friendships. God has given me some amazing friends here in TN and I will miss you all.

The movers are coming on Wednesday and we will be leaving Nashville on Saturday. We're are going to the Great Wolf Lodge over the weekend to have a little get-away before the unpacking begins at the beginning of next week. So, the next time I post I will probably be writing from Canada.

Bye, y'all!! It's been fun, eh?

Happy Birthday, Graham!!

It's celebration time at our house. Graham turned six today and is finishing up his year in Kindergarten, and Tim came home from Toronto. We are happy!!His teacher gave him this crown to wear all day at school since he was the birthday boy.

We enjoyed a birthday dinner together as a family. It was the first time in over six weeks that Tim has been home on a weeknight. We are all so happy to have him here.

Canadian Experience as a "Single" Guy

This is Tim writing from Canada. For those that do not know, I have been working in Canada since the 1st of April. Thankfully, our time apart is growing to a close. I will be headed back to TN on Wednesday to celebrate Graham's birthday and get the family ready to start our Canadian experience together. It took about 3 days being here by myself to learn that I am not cut out for single life. :)

I am living in our rental house with nothing but a mattress, dresser, and chair. As a result, I have finished a couple of books and mostly worked way too much. I am finishing up a "Counterfeit Gods" by Tim Keller now. There is a quote in the book at the beginning of chapter four that resonated in my heart and honestly scared me a bit. . .

"I have an iron will, and all of my will has always been to conquer some horrible feeling of inadequacy. . . . I push past one spell of it and discover myself as a special human being and then I get to another stage and think I'm mediocre and uninteresting . . . Again and again. My drive in life is from this horrible fear of being mediocre. And that's always pushing me, pushing me. Because even though I've become Somebody, I still have to prove that I'm Somebody. My struggle has never ended and it probably never will."

As I read the quote I had to admit to myself that part of me really resonated with this potent paragraph of lucidity provided by Madonna of all people. The title of chapter four is "The Seduction of Success." Why is it that we need validation from others and why doesn't the weight of our heavenly father's validation crush the desire for earthly validation? I have always identified with one description of Mary the mother of Jesus as an ordinary girl the Lord used in extraordinary ways. Sometimes Ordinary is just what we need to be, but it is just awfully hard for me to be content being Ordinary.

This Canadian opportunity is yet another example of the Lord's allowing me to combine my passion for cars with my career. I have the opportunity to be the Nissan/Infinti Product Planning Senior manager for the country of Canada for the next couple of years.

For some unknown reason, the Lord has richly blessed me in every area of my life. I had amazing parents and a father whose love, while not perfect, was very intentional and sacrificial. It is a steep extample to follow. There are not adjectives descriptive enough to describe what a blessing my wife is. She has been a partner and my chief supporter in the many adventures my career has taken us - Grad school, Michigan, TN, Canada . . . . As if those blessings were not enough, my sons and now my daughter are simply joys. I don't know what the Lord has planned for my life, but I want to live it for him wherever that takes us.

Oh, may I rejoice in the good times and also when the tough times come. Let my love for the Lord not be contingent upon my blessings. All I have is his - may I live with a loose grip on my possessions and career. May I not be "too easily pleased."

Now, I have to go clean up the house before Jo gets here . . . . she won't be pleased with the popcorn bag in the sink.


"We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like and ignorant child who wants to go on making mid pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased." C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory

A Little Photo Shoot

Our adoption agency creates a calendar every year using pictures of the adorable children they've helped to place in homes. They ask families to send in pics and they choose the cutest ones. I've been enjoying my calendar all year and am hoping to see my sweetheart's face on next year's calendar. Mommy and daughter had a photo shoot today. Can you help me choose which one I should enter? I actually get to send in five pictures and I'm going to use some that I have from earlier in the year.

Mother's Day Thoughts

Yesterday, Wesley kept saying to me, "Happy Smother's Day, Mommy!" I thought he was pretty close to the truth in his statement. Sometimes mothering feels very much like smothering. It's okay though. If I have to be smothered at times, I couldn't pick three more precious kids to do it to me. :) I know there will be a day when I miss being smothered by them.

And, now, for some comic relief...Daddy had a little too much fun with Lidiyanna's hair in the bathtub. Our little girlie has some hair!!

A Cozy Little Home

On the steps of our deck in the backyard, a blue jay has made a nest for her four eggs. We found the nest last week, and for four days in a row, she laid one egg each day. We are excited to watch the baby birds hatch and see how the mommy takes care of them. We can stand on our deck and look down below at the nest. God's creation is truly amazing.

Happy Easter!!

Friends from Ethiopia

Larkin with our kids

We met Larkin's mommy in Ethiopia when we were there for court, and we traveled again the same week for embassy. She lives within an hour of us so we get to see them every now and then. My boys love playing with Larkin.

Lidiyanna and Ella

Ella's mommy, Leigh ann, and I quickly became friends through Yahoo groups as we were waiting for our referrals. We both found out about our daughters on the same day and hoped we would meet in Ethiopia for court. At first, it looked like we would not because Ella's court date was not going to be until after courts resumed after the rainy season. Then, at the last minute, Leigh ann found out they made court on the last day before the closing, and we did get to meet in Ethiopia in August. We later spent another week together in Ethiopia in September when we were back for embassy and to bring our daughters home.

The bond between adopted families is amazing and to have spent a week together (we shared a suite) in Ethiopia with our daughters truly bonded our families. Our precious girls were born in the same region of Ethiopia and were taken to the same orphanage within days of each other. Then, America World brought them to the transition home at the same time. I say they were each other's first friends. We hope we can get the two girls together periodically in the years to come.

The Creek

Something magical occurs in the creek behind our home. Sticky mud on a flat rock becomes a decadent chocolate pie. An ordinary stick turns into a fishing pole able to catch even the smartest fish. An overturned rock reveals an elaborate home for the the juiciest worms one has ever seen.

The warm weather and running water in the creek draws my boys out back where their imaginations take off, and together they explore and have adventures that I could never create for them. As they enter this make-believe world, they miraculously cease all arguing and work together to build their fort, catch their fish, or transport rocks from one place to the next.

This week, I have been in love with the creek behind our home. It has offered my family a sanctuary where two little boys get lost in hours of play. Who needs a TV or toys when you have mud, water, and the companionship of your brother. Yes, my laundry may have increased but so has the peace in my little world.

Welcome back, Spring! We missed you.

Spring Break in Texas

Our kids with their cousins, Hayley and Davis, enjoying the marine life at a children's aquarium in Dallas.

We took Lidiyanna on her first road trip last week to visit family in Texas. She is an amazing traveling and never even made a peep in the backseat (the secret is her magic blanket). We visited my family in Tyler and then headed to Dallas to visit Tim's sister and her family. All of the kids had a great time together!

Lidiyanna and her cousin, Hayley

Graham and Davis

I love these smiles!!

Tyler's azaleas were looking so beautiful!

practicing her walk in my mom's backyard

I think it's so cute how she walk with her hands in the air.

My mom and Sam took us to the zoo on a beautiful, warm Saturday.

Baby Steps

Tonight while we were at our church community group, Lidiyanna took her first steps. It was so exciting!! I had gone in to the room where all the kids are during the adult prayer time. The teachers told me she had been trying to take some steps. So, as I was down on the floor with her, I helped her gain her balance and off she went. She went from taking no steps to taking four or five over and over again. All the kids gathered around and cheered her on. I told Graham to get his daddy, and shortly after, all the adults filed in to watch. It was such a fun moment, and it was so neat that this group who has supported us from the very beginning was able to be there and celebrate with us. Of course, Lidiyanna just ate up the attention. There's no stopping this girl now!!

Speaking of baby steps, Tim and I passed over the baby steps and jumped in with both feet towards our move to Toronto this past weekend. We traveled to the big city to look for a house. Fortunately, my mom and Tim's mom were able to come to our home to take care of the kids. (Thanks, Nana and Perpy!! You did a fantastic job!)

We spent four full days looking at tons of houses within the city of Toronto and in a suburb to the west called Oakville. It was a bit overwhelming, but in the end, we found a house we both liked. It's in Oakville and is in walking distance to an elementary school.

One thing I learned about Toronto that I really like is the diverse population. Standing in a movie theater one night, I heard four different languages as people passed by. You can eat just about any type of food from all over the world. The city is so multicultural, and I think our family will fit right in to that environment.

I wasn't too crazy about the weather. It was cold and snowy and it's the beginning of March. Despite the frigid temps, many people walk everywhere and the children go out everyday to play on the playground at school. Unlike Nashville, the city doesn't come to a halt when it snows, and the Canadians like the great outdoors no matter what the temperature.

Right now, I'm feeling positive about the move, but I've definitely had my moments of doubt. I feel God has been encouraging me to take things one day at a time and to give him an attitude of trust and thankfulness.

Baby steps, eh?

Thank you!

Wesley: "Thank you, Mommy, for going on a plane to Africa to get Lidiyanna."

Mommy: "Well, we should thank God because He's the one that brought her to us."

Wesley: "Really? You didn't go a plane? God did?"

Every good and perfect gift is from above coming down from the Father of heavenly lights who does not change like shifting shadows. James 1:17