Summer 2007

It is hard to believe that we are approaching the 10 month mark of our long wait for Lydia. The wait has increased over time and we are hoping that we are about halfway through our wait. It could increase or decrease as time goes...we really do not know. Somehow, God has made the time go by quickly and we are so very grateful that we are on this journey to our daughter in China. The wait time has actually been a blessing for our family as we prepare for Lydia joining our family. We have seen how the process requires patience and that is what we are striving for. Now that doesn't mean, that we don't long for our daughter and pray for her constantly...we just know that we can not thwart God's plans. Our wonderful God knows all and sees all and He will put into place His perfect plan for our family. We rejoice in that plan. Thank you for your prayers. Please continue to pray for Lydia. It is very possible that she has been born by now. That is very exciting for us to know that there is a baby in China that is our daughter.

We have had a wonderful summer so far. We finished our homeschool year in early June. Since then we have had some lazy summer days out by the pool, which has been a nice break for everyone. We had a family vacation to the Smoky Mountains in June. This was a really fun time! We stayed in a beautiful log home in Maggie Valley. We enjoyed touring the Biltmore Estate, visiting the Tweetsie Railroad, hiking, seeing gorgeous views of the mountains and waterfalls, and doing some shopping in downtown historical Waynesviile, North Carolina. It truly is a beautiful part of the country! It was a family reunion, so almost all of my immediate and extended family were there staying in different houses. It was great seeing everybody. Our next family reunion, Lydia will be with us!

Our summer has been full of fun times spent with our children. We did not have anyone playing softball this summer, which was a strange thing for us!!! I'm sure when Evie, Jack Henry, and Lydia get bigger, we will be enjoying that aspect of summer again. Gracie, our oldest, attended a national Leadership Camp in June and also a Mission trip to West Virginia in July. She has been taking piano lessons through the summer as well. Abigail has been busy and active doing lots of swimming, riding her unicycle, taking piano lessons, and doing lots of fun crafts. Evie and Jack Henry have been really doing great with their swimming this year. They love the water! That has been their favorite summertime activity so far! Our children keep us busy and they are such a blessing. We love watching them grow and learn. We can not wait to have Lydia with us, so she can join the fun!

One of the major things we have been doing this summer is having construction work done on our house. We have a bonus space upstairs that we have had made into a bedroom, bathroom, and closet for our oldest child. We are almost done with that. We are then going to repaint all the children's bedrooms, move everybody around, and get everybody situated in their new rooms. Jack Henry will move from the nursery into a *big boy* bed and room. The nursery will then be decorated for Lydia! With the upcoming arrival of our 5th child, there is lots of rearranging and organizing to do! As each project gets completed, we realize we are getting one step closer to Lydia joining our family. That is exciting! We anticipate the day when her life will join ours...

For more information on our wait and what our family is up to, you can visit our blog at www.lifesong-kim.blogspot.com.