Emotional Rollercoaster

This last week was an emotional rollercoaster for our family!  We spent Sep 24-26 in Fargo...four hours away for a 10 minute fingerprinting appointment!!  It was a nice, quick getaway for our family.  We got to spend a few hours shopping (!!) and were able to catch up with my cousin, Jenna, and her sweet little man, Evan, while splashing in the pool!

We returned home on Monday to find a check in the mail...
a check for Bobby's work trailer that was damaged in a hail storm....
a check for $3,200...
a check that brings us within one hundred dollars from our dossier payment.  WOW. 
We knew God would provide once again...but we're expecting it to fall in our hands the DAY we returned home from our last step in completing our dossier.  We were expecting to have to dig into our savings account again...or to wait until more fundraising has been done.  Once again God has shown us that He is in control.  When we follow his call and open our hears and minds to His will, He will support us along the way!

Deuteronomy 10:21He is your praise and He is your God, who has done these great and awesome things for you which your eyes have seen...

We are now anxiously awaiting our I-171H (approval for a orphan petition) and then our dossier will be sent to AWAA for approval, then to ETHIOPIA for our sweet girl or sibling group!

After the high on the adoption front, we quickly faced a tough trial for our family.  Our black lab, Louie, has been struggling for about a year with nerve damage.  Slowly the damage took over his back legs and he was no longer able to do much.  Our amazing vet tried a few different approaches, and nothing worked.  Just recently the damage seemed to move to his front legs and he quickly went downhill...falling all the time, unable to walk more than few feet without falling, barely being able to lie down, and no playing.  We knew it was time to say goodbye, but making the decision was soooo hard! 

Louie has been with us since before we were married!  I picked him out when I left college in Grand Forks and made a trip across ND and MT where Bobby and I were married.  He quickly became our "child" and was my rock when I was lonely in a new place!  He was with us for SIX MOVES and three children!  He was definitely a part of our family.

Our vet called us on Friday morning and said she would be coming to our house that evening to put him down.  Bobby told me to give the kids a heads up...little did I know how much it would affect a 3 and 5 year old!  Eli quickly picked up on the fact that the vet would be "killing" him (in Eli's words) and could not let that go.  Bobby took the day off as we spent the day grieving as a family, digging a grave, and making a cross for him.  Louie was by our side most of the day, but it was hard to even look at him.  The pain was great, the emotions were high, the tears were plentiful. 


Psalm 34:18The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit

After I told the kids, I realized I maybe should have waited until it was over, as they were extremely emotional.  As a mom it was extremely hard to see my children like that!  In their short lives, this was the first time they had to face loss and grieving.  It was hard to see them so emotional and so hurt.  Looking back, I think it was good for them to go through this tough situation. It was a good time to bond emotionally as a family and helped them understand death at a personal level.
 
Matthew 5:4Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

We're doing much better after the weekend has passed.  The kids still make comments about it...but Gus seems to be effected the most!  He (our chocolate lab that we got on Louie's 1st birthday) isn't eating and just lies around all day.  You can tell he is very sad and lonely! 

We are ready for this new week!  The weather is beautiful (more like PERFECT!), and we have a pretty low key week so we should be able to enjoy some family time outdoors before the ND fall/winter weather kicks in.

Love from our family to yours!