Looking for a vacation home?

We are selling our first home - an adorable mountain cottage in Ellijay, Georgia. It is located in The Coosawattee River Resort and is even cuter in person. Prices are so low now (insert stomach flop) that someone is going to get a great deal. If you know anyone looking for a second home for under 100k, please let me know. If we could sell it before the adoption, it would give us the remaining funds we need.

How will Parker fit in?

We are all getting very excited for Parker to come home. Harrison is THRILLED that he gets to share a room with him. Piper is devastated that she has to sleep alone. She cried last night and told me to ask her daddy for a little sister.
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We talk with Piper daily about how she will need to help Parker and show him how to do things. I think she will be a great big sister, but I have no doubt that it will take time. Knowing my girl, probably a lot of time!

Parker Michael

We finally confirmed our little guy's name: Parker Michael Gang Lanier.

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Gang is his Chinese name and Michael is his daddy's name. The kids call him Mikey Parker so I am hoping they are willing to switch it around. I cannot wait to meet this guy in person.

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Thank you God for choosing us to raise another one of your children. We are truly honored.

Hui Hui - Focus on an Eagles Wings Child

Hi Everyone,

In an effort to spread awareness of the need for support of the orphans in China and the fantastic work that the Chinese Orphan Assistance Team Incorporated (COAT) is doing, I am going to start highlighting some of the residents of the Eagles Wings Foster Homes. Please consider donating to COAT. Visit http://www.eagleswingschina.org/ for more information.

(I cannot get her picture to post so I will update soon. Visit the link above for more information on Hui Hui).

Hi COAT family,

There are lots of you who love Hui Hui, so I will send this to all of you on the list. She is fully sponsored (a big thank you to all who sponsor her), which is great, but even better, she is a happy, loving little girl. Yes, she is diagnosed with autism, but this doesn’t manifest itself like it used to. Jenny Nai Nai “tamed” her and Chew Gim is keeping up the good boundaries in which she is secure and confident.

She doesn’t like to miss out on anything that is going. She has settled well in the new school at the new orphanage. It is run on a much higher standard than it was before COAT took control of the school….. COAT improved the school greatly and then handed it back to the orphanage and they are doing well with it.

Hui Hui has always loved school, but she ran into a big problem when we put her in the village school. The village teacher had never heard of autism, let alone know how to deal with it. It is much better for Hui Hui to be where she is understood. This way, she has a better chance of growing into the fulfilled adult we desire her to be.

So thank you for your love and your yarping over this precious little girl. Because of many of you loving her, she is a great kid today. She tried to keep a straight face for this photos, but got the giggles and I captured this lovely smile.

Linda Shum

President of Chinese Orphans' Assistance Team Incorporated (COAT Inc)

"I raised you up on eagles' wings and brought you to myself" Ex 4:19b

http://www.eagleswingschina.org

donations over $2 to COAT Inc in partnership with Global Development Group approved aid & development project J587 COAT are tax deductible in Australia and the USA’

LOA

We have been granted our Letter of Approval to adopt Dang Gang today, on what would have been my mom's 65th birthday. I never expected such a great gift on this day. We are thrilled with the timing. We will be busy praying for December travel so that Mike can come to China and meet his son (and hold my hand on the plane).

Thank you God!

Help Bring Sophia Home!!!

Hi Everyone,

One of my dear friends from our trip to adopt Piper is adopting her 3rd child from China, a little girl to be named Sophia. Mandie, my friend, is holding a raffle to raise funds. TRUST ME - every dollar is needed and appreciated. Please consider going by and entering the raffle.

http://www.bringingsophiahome.blogspot.com/

Please Pray for Jacob Jai

Jacob Jai is our sponsor child at Phillip Hayden Foundation and was one of Piper's dear friends when she was there. We instantly fell in love with him as we waited for Piper and noticed that he was in all of her photos. We went early to China to meet him, feeling that we would be pursuing his adoption when we returned. He is AMAZING. The picture below is the first one we saw with Piper where we fell in love.

Obviously, that was not meant to happen.

We came home and Piper had problems bonding with daddy so we delayed. Then, months later we felt comfortable and started moving forward. We had many agencies looking for his file and one in particular went above and beyond - even calling China on many occasions. The foster home reps were also helping us, but everyone's story was the same in the end....the orphanage prepared his paperwork and then sent it to the local provincial office, which allegedly it has sat on the officer's desk for over a year. All contacts claim there is nothing they can do. I was heartbroken, but then we got the call about Dang Gang and I thought maybe it was meant to be that Jacob Jai be the son of another family. To date, there is no movement on his adoption. His file is probably still sitting on that desk - I am afraid to ask or check whether he is on the shared list - because then what would I do.

Today I received our sponsorship update report and many pictures of Jacob Jai. I just cannot look at him and not feel that he is meant to be a part of our family. It is very hard. Mike said that there is no way we could adopt another child after Dang Gang. I hope that he changes his mind and said that if I EVER hear that he is on the list, I will come asking.

So here is my request...I need prayers that his paperwork will be found and processed through the system, and that a wonderful family will step forward, and that wonderful family will have a blog or something where I can get a glimpse of this amazing kid's life.

He is amazing - a child that stands out and captures your heart.