Mini-reunion

On Friday we had the distinct, and fun, privilege of meeting up with an adoptive family that we traveled with on Noah's trip back in 2005.



They were adopting their 2nd daughter from China, their fifth child. They've had one more bio child since then, named (much to the delight of my boys), Noah Daniel.

Here are Noah and Alissa on Friday:

Here they are during The Famous Red Couch Photo, November 2005:

Alissa is the cutie with the lavendar dress on the far right on the couch. Noah is in the center of the couch...yes, the only boy in the whole bunch!

While all 10 kiddos played, I got to chat with Chris and Lori. If my calculations are correct, we were there for almost 3 hours. This family homeschools also, and after being around them for even this small amount of time, I wish we lived closer to them because I know that Jas and I could just soak up wisdom from them. Just watching the interactions of the parents with the children, and the interactions amongst the children...well, the only word that comes to mind is graceful. Full of grace. Love, kindness, patience...I saw fruits of the spirit (Gal. 5:22-23) right there in Chick-Fil-A!

AND, to top it off, this wasn't just any regularly scheduled playdate...they were in the middle of moving!

I mean, they were on day 2 of a 3-day drive to get from their old house to their new house! They contacted me to see if we could meet up because they knew they would be driving by our neck of the woods as they drove to their new home.

If I was on day 2 of a 3-day drive to get from our old house to a new house...I would NOT be...well, I shudder to think what I would be like...

They were an inspiration.

So, not only did we have fun, as I expected we would, but the little reunion was a blessing and an encouragement to this mama who all too easily becomes "weary in doing well."

Keep up the good work, Chris and Lori!