timeline.

You may have read in my previous blog entry about Chadasha [the organization I work with here] partnering with the International Children's Heart Foundation [ICHF] to provide kids in Haiti with lifesaving heart surgeries. I had written that there would be a wave of these surgeries in late August, but those have been pushed back until mid-September. Today I had the pleasure of spending some time with a precious little girl name Kathline.

Kathline

I first met Kathline a few days ago when she and her mother were getting out of a taptap on the side of the road. We just talked briefly with her through the window while traffic wasn't moving. Michelle explained that Kathline was 3 yrs old and had been on the list for heart surgery back in July, but that the team didn't have the equipment needed to do her surgery. So, she was back on the list for surgery in September. When I saw her then, she didn't even look sick.

Then today I went to a hospital here called Medishare where I am about to start volunteering as a nurse a couple days a week. We went there so that I could meet the nurse manager, but when we got there Kathline and her mom were in the ER. It was then that I learned that Kathline had Tetrology of Fallot, a severe heart condition that would have been fixed long ago if she were in the US. She had started retaining fluid, and they thought she was in the early stages of heart failure. We were supposed to evaluate her and talk with the doctors to decide if she could wait until September for her surgery or if she needed it sooner. She continued to deteriorate while we were there, and the nurses finally got her stable enough to give her some meds to get her to sleep for a while.

We decided she couldn't wait, and we tried to arrange for her to come to the States for surgery. The thing is, we can't send a kid to the US without a receiving hospital who volunteers to do their surgery [for free] as soon as they land. These are hard to come by. If you know of anyone who would be interested in this, let us know! The best we could do was arrange for Kathline to go to a hospital in the Dominican Republic where they would at least have more equipment to stabilize her if she got worse before the surgeries. We left her sleeping in her crib with her sweet mom by her side.

Later tonight, we were eating dinner when Brittany, the nurse manager, called. She said that Kathline had woken up and was getting worse. Then she coded. We all loaded up to go to the hospital in a hurry, but before we even got out of the drive way Brittany called back and said she had passed. We went on to the hospital any way to support her mother, who lost her husband about a year ago to a cardiac condition as well. We found her hovered over her baby girl, repeating "She's still warm!" and shaking her violently begging "please wake up, please wake up for Mommy?" We loved on her and her brother [Kathline's uncle], then arranged for a funeral home to come pick up Kathline's lifeless body. We all knew that Kathline was on a timeline... but none of us could have guessed it was such a short one.

It was a hard day. The saddest thing about the whole situation was that Kathline was totally fixable. Her heart was not broken, just flawed and a simple surgery could have fixed her. She just needed it sooner. She needed people with the right resources and the right knowledge and hearts for Jesus to come to her rescue sooner and take care of her. This is the 3rd patient off of our heart surgery list that we have lost. These are senseless deaths. They can be prevented. I will post more information soon about how you can help get these children the care that they need, before it's too late.

Tonight is one of those nights. You know the kind I'm talking about. The kind where you lay down and can't sleep, so you eat a whole candy bar at midnight and listen to music and read your Bible, trying to find comfort, trying to find rest. Praise my Jesus that He is the ultimate Comforter. That I need not look any further than Him, because He provides me with peace and rest. Tonight is one of those nights when I am so thankful that I know that my God is here. That I know that "The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold." [Psalm 18:2]. And that I can go to bed knowing that "Weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning" [Psalm 30:5].

Goodnight from Haiti :)

expectations for tomorrow

Oh sweet Irene... how I appreciate the cool breeze you have brought to Port au Prince, but how broken my heart is for the people in other countries who were so unfortunate to be blessed by your presence this week. For those of you worrying about us in the storm, you can rest easy knowing that we have only had clouds, a little wind, and a few rain drops. The Lord has spared Haiti! Praise Him!

I wanted to give you an update of the last few days here. First of all, yesterday we were finally able to reunite Manny with his Daddy! It was a bittersweet goodbye.. but I know that it was the right thing. As I said in my last post, we are here to reunite families, not tear them apart. We met his dad at the clinic where he was dropped off, and below is a picture of the meeting....

this is what we are all about!

Needless to say, I have slept like a rock the last two nights [notice I did not say "like a baby", which is like an oxymoron if you ask me]. I feel that I have officially accomplished #81 of my "101 in 1001" List which reads: Keep a kid overnight. On any given night, Manny and I were up 2 to 3 times. However, on his last night here, Manny went out with a bang! Here is a breakdown of our last sweet night together: 11:00 bedtime, up from 11:30 to 12, sleep from 12 to 1, up from 1 to 2, sleep from 2-2:30, up from 2:30 to 3, sleep from 3-5:30, then up at 5:30 for the day. Are you kidding me? At some point during the night while we were up, I was so frustrated, and I thought to myself  "this is how shaken baby syndrome happens.. because if I didn't have control of my anger I would shake this baby" haha. Then I was thinking to myself that when babies go home from the hospital there should be a handout on what to do if your baby won't sleep at night, and pretty high on the list should be "switch out with your husband every 2 hours".. which leads me to the point that if the moral, financial, or emotional aspect of having a kid before you're married doesn't deter you, the lack of sleep should! But of course, he looked at me with those big brown eyes and batted those long eyelashes at me, and smiled, and laughed for no reason at 6 in the morning, and my heart was stolen all over again. I'm sad that I don't have him anymore, but I know it is best for him to be with his Daddy!

You should know that your prayers are so important to me. You read in my last post about the spiritual warfare, and it continues. The 4 babies are still not back to the children's home. Many other issues are not resolved, and there are new issues arising daily. But tonight while I was reading the first chapter the whole book of 3 John, I was reminded of my purpose here and what that looks like no matter what is going on around me. 3 John 1:7a says "For they have set out for the sake of the Name..." This is what it is about friends. Whether you are waking up tomorrow in Knoxville, Lawrenceburg, Port au Prince, Clarksville, New York, Dominican Republic, Texas, California, or anywhere else, if you are a Believer and follower of Jesus then your [and my] only purpose is to live for the sake of His Name. I don't know about you, but that really narrows down my goals and lifts the weight of expectation off of me, knowing that I only have one thing that I am supposed to be doing and that is living for my Jesus. Breathe easier and sleep sweeter tonight knowing that is all you have to do tomorrow :)

Really quick, just for fun, I want to give you a couple highlights from my day:

1. My friends Sara, Kessy, and I were having a good conversation today about love and various other potentially uncomfortable topics, when Sara asked Kessy something that made him embarrassed. Instead of saying "I feel awkward" [which is definitely what Sara would have said], Kessy said "Ooohh Sara.. you just put my two feet in one shoe!" We found this incredibly amusing, because we had never heard it before. Apparently it's a Haitian proverb, and it makes all the sense in the world when you think about it. What could be more uncomfortable than having both feet in one shoe? haha.

2. Tonight someone asked me "what was your high and low of today?" and it made me feel like I was in a community group at Calvary. Missing you guys like crazy!

3. My sister's wedding pictures are finally unlocked, so I got to see them today! Mom, I think that we got a good Christmas card picture for sure. And Sis, everyone I have showed pictures to here thinks you were the most gorgeous bride with the most gorgeous dress they have ever seen... probably because you were! Missing my fam too!

Prayers for you tonight from Port au Prince! 

His arms are big enough.

The past few days have been full. Full of what, you ask? Full of trials and joys and fearful hearts and rejoicing and peace and racket and calm and laughter and tears and most of all full of crying out in desperation to our Heavenly Father. The details are too many and too obscure and too insignificant to recount... so I will spare you. Basically, the point is that there is a battle going on around the Chadasha ministry.. a battle that is not of this world. Paul tells us in Ephesians 6:12 "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." I know this scripture, but I have never known what it looked like until this week. In Haiti there are many battles that are of the flesh... hunger, health care, government, weather, and the list goes on and on. But in Haiti, there are battles of a spiritual nature in which we must call on the Lord to intervene... and He does just that!
I am certain that we are not the only ones battling this week. As you read this, you may be fighting a fight that you have never fought before. You may be scared or worried, or angry. Maybe no one else even knows that something is going on, or maybe everyone does and it makes it harder. Or maybe, you don't even know that you are battling something. Or perhaps you really aren't fighting now, but eventually you will be. It is inevitable. As a team this week, we have been on our knees before God and clinging to His Word with all we have. Below are some verses that we have found strength in, and that I hope you can to:

"Count it all joy, my brothers, when you are faced with various trials" -James 1:2
"No harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways" -Psalm 91:10-11
"You, oh Lord, are a shield around me... I do not fear then, thousands of people arrayed against me on every side... Safety comes from the Lord!" -Psalm 3
“Because he loves me,” says the LORD, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name." -Psalm 91:14
"But whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm." Proverbs 1:33

How sweet of our God to give these words to us, that we may rest in knowing that we are not alone. Find comfort today friend, knowing that our God will not be moved. Below are some pictures of some sweet babies who need prayers tonight. They have left the orphanage to go home to a tent city with their parents for a night or so, and will more than likely be back. As hard as it is to watch them leave not knowing what the end result will be for them, we are certain that God loves these children more than we ever could, and therefore we trust that He is holding them in His arms tonight, and we KNOW that His arms are big enough and strong enough to protect them all.

Wanelson

Junior

Ava Grace

Kynzi

being a light, not a savior.

Well, tonight I had truly planned to blog early, go to bed early, and get some extra sleep. But then, facebook decided that now would be a great time to let me upload pictures [which it hasn't done since I got here] so of course I had to take advantage of that. I uploaded all the ones of kids who's adoptive parents have been waiting on pictures first because they are highest priority, then it let me get a few more in before it quit uploading. So, you should definitely check them out by clicking here.

Manny continues to get stronger and stronger! We are trying to "unspoil" him, if thats possible. So he has spent the last few days doing some serious crying. Not even kidding, he cried 2 hours straight yesterday. It was the craziest thing I'd ever seen. When he made it the whole day while crying and not ever falling asleep or losing his voice, we concluded he is well enough to go home. Below is the most recent picture of him. [I promise he takes a bath every day and we change his clothes, but he only has like 3 outfits that come close to fitting him because he's so small, and I just happened to take pictures on all the days he's wearing this green and white outfit haha]

This week has really been a challenge for me, but the Lord has taught me a lot about my perspective. The situation is looking more and more like Manny will be able to go back to his Mom and Dad. Yesterday we had 5 kids from the Children's Home choose to go back to their parents who wanted them back. Initially, it is frustrating to see kids be put back in conditions that are less than ideal. Especially a kid like Manny who was so sick, he will likely get sick again and may not be able to get the treatment he needs. Tonight I was giving him his warm bath and then lathering him in baby lotion and baby powder, and it occurred to me that when he goes home he may be taking a bath in a bucket of rain water, or simply be placed under a gutter after the rain to rinse off, or be sprayed off on the side of the road at the well pump. He may never get another bath in a bathtub. It made me sad.

But then I was reminded by one of our leaders and mentors here that whether parents can provide as well as we can for their kids or not is not the issue that we are here for. We are here to show the love of Jesus, whether that is for a week, 5 months, or a lifetime. We are here to build families up and teach them how to provide for each other and survive here, not tear them apart because it looks more comfortable for them to us. Maybe Manny will have a little less to eat, and maybe the kids from the children's home will sleep on a less comfortable bed tonight, but they will be with their families. And we all know that there is nothing like knowing that your family has your back and loves you, and would do anything for you. Even if the situation is hard and life is not easy, it is best that they live it with their families if at all possible. This was a hard conclusion to come to, but I am so thankful for a God who gives me "peace that surpasses all understanding" [Phil 4:7] Sometimes I get to thinking that our goal here is to take in children and love them and give them a "good life". But I must remember that I have no way to judge a "good life" from a "bad life" and if these children know Jesus, nothing else matters. We are here to be a light in the darkness, to reflect the Light that is Jesus Christ. To give the people Hope in the One thing we can hope in.. our Lord. We are not here to be a savior to this country, but only to be a Light that reflects Our Savior! And it's as simple as that. Anything else we get to do as servants is simply extra!

progress & personality.

Manny crawling to me!

As many of you know, the last few days I have spent with the most precious baby boy in the world. Emmanuel [Manny] is 15 months old and weighs about 13 lbs, and currently has typhoid fever. You can read more about him here. [btw, for anyone who cares, I looked up typhoid fever and it's from salmonella poisoning from dirty water] On top of his terrible cough, rather persistent fever, and lethargy from the typhoid, Manny is extremely malnourished. You will be so happy to hear though that he is getting so much better! With a little more medicine and a lot more loving on, Manny will be just fine. Except for the fact that we have spoiled him rotten in a matter of 3 days and he no longer will sit in the floor by himself haha.

Tonight I have 2 lists for you! First, the progress Manny has made. You should know when we got him he was like a limp ragdoll that just laid in your lap and didn't really move at all. And now...
-he crawls on the floor, and when I say "vit vit vit!!" which means "fast fast fast!" he goes quick!!
-he loves to walk around by himself but you have to let him hold one hand to keep his balance.
-today he fed himself with a spoon for the first time with us
-he has started holding his own bottle as of yesterday!
-he cries violently when you put him down [b/c he's so spoiled haha]
-he laughs and giggles when you throw him in the air or tickle him
It is so amazing how quickly babies can bounce back! It's awesome to watch. He is a different baby from 2 days ago.

Second list is things that I have learned about Manny while caring for him the last few days, just so you can know him a little better:
-he prefers to sleep on his stomach
-when he gets sleepy he starts pinching tiny pieces of your chest
-his left leg is slightly curved and his left foot turns in a bit
-he only knows 2 words that I've understood: "Abwe"="drink" and "adem"="leave me alone"haha
-he LOVES water. [in Haiti babies drink water in their bottles instead of juice or milk]
-he sucks his bottom lip in place of a pacifier and it is precious... but I keep lecturing him on how he's gonna have buck teeth if he doesn't stop!

I hope to be able to put more pictures up of him soon, but our internet really doesn't like to load photos, so we'll see. Thank you so much to anyone who has thrown up some prayers for sweet Manny's health... God is moving! Tonight I'm asking special prayers for his future. It is currently uncertain what his living arrangements will look like... it's a long story but basically there has been some confusion and switching of stories between his mom, dad, aunt, and some other guy who claims to be his dad. Essentially right now the mom may want him back, which is good I think because we aren't trying to tear families apart on purpose. But, like I said, there is some confusion so we are waiting for identification and forms of proof [such as a birth certificate] of parenthood before we do anything with him. At least for tomorrow he will still be with us! We know that Jesus knows Manny and holds him close... and that He knows what is best for him. Prayers for peace and good decisions are so important! Thank you!

I hope all is well, wherever you are. I'm praying for you tonight, and I'm so thankful for you. May the Lord bless you and keep you!

Love,
Chelsey

by our love.

Tonight I am having trouble thinking of a line to begin this post with. My thoughts are all over the place, so bear with me. Lack of sleep does that to you haha. Last night I spent the night in the cholera hospital [don't worry, I wasn't the patient or the nurse!] with baby Manny who has typhoid fever. His admitting problem was diarrhea, but then the medicines to stop it worked a little too well, so we had the opposite problem which won us another night in the hospital. Michelle had to come home to stay with her little boy, so I went to the hospital around 8 and stayed the night.

At first glance, the hospital looked very dirty and if I were a germ-a-phobe [which I'm not] I probably would have washed my hands raw. But once you're there for a length of time you realize that there is no way germs are living there because every little bit someone comes by with bleach water and douses everything down, including your hands and the soles of your shoes. My first thought was "what if someone is allergic to bleach?!" because all of the allergies are a huge concern in hospitals in the US, then I looked around and realized that that was at the very bottom of the list of concerns for this place.

Anyway... the night went smoothly. The hospital is one long room divided into 3 sections [not sure by what criteria]. We were in the 2nd section on the baby side which had about 15 cribs packed as tightly as possible, with a space just big enough for 1 cafeteria style chair between each crib. This was where I sat [which explains my aching tailbone] from 8pm last night to 11am today. Manny slept through the night and since we were just waiting on a stinky diaper, we didn't have to wake him to give him any medicine. Let me give you a breakdown in the major differences in this hospital experience and one America:
1. There was no air conditioner, just huge fans. We brought 2 of our own personal fans also. Thankfully, at some point during the night it cooled down so that we could turn the fans off and not be roasting.
2. The lights stay on all night long. Huge, gymnasium style lights. Good thing Haitian kids could sleep through a tornado, because between all the kids crying and screaming, people talking, and the bright lights it was as noisy as one.
3. At the top of the walls before they meet the ceiling where we in America might have glass windows, there is nothing. So the cool night air comes in=hooray! Every mosquito in Haiti comes in too=not hooray! haha. I literally killed 8 mosquitoes just sitting in my chair. My friend Erica let me borrow bug spray, which put like a force field around me, which meant I didn't get a single bite! That was until I decided I would be cooler without shoes on so I took them off, and then a mosquito bit me twice on the big toe [the worst!!] so I put them back on.

Manny slept through the night and I was able to get about an hour or two of sleep in also [sitting straight up or with my head leaned on his crib, but sleep nonetheless]. I took a couple books, my Bible, and my journal so between all of that the time didn't creep too slowly. And I got to love on Manny when he rolled around which made the whole night just that much better. Really quickly, I want to tell you about one 5 minute conversation that forever changed me.

First, I should tell you that no one in the hospital [staff included] spoke a lick of English. The conversations I had would go pretty much like this:
Nurse comes to bedside and wakes me up.
Me: Bonswa. [good evening].
Nurse: Bonswa. asdlfkjadfgoiaertnalkasndfoaifgaretoiufg [a lot of words that I did not understand]
Me: Mwen paller Angles. Mwen pa paller Kreole. Mwen regretsa. [I speak English. I do not speak Creole. I'm sorry.]
Nurse: (look of annoyance, checks chart, checks Manny, peaces out).
It would have been waaaaay funnier if I had had at least one other English speaking person to laugh about it with.

Anyway.. at one point I was chilling out reading my Bible beside the crib, trying to stay awake, when a nurse with a particularly sweet face came over. I said "Bonswa." Then went back to reading. She talked to Manny for a minute [he speaks Creole, as much as a 15 month old baby speaks]. Then she said something in Creole to me, to which I went through my statement about English only, sorry. Then she said "Do you speak French?" I was surprised to hear the English! I said no, I'm sorry. Then she said "Do you speak Spanish?" To which I said no, I'm sorry, and laughed sheepishly because thats really the only choice when you feel like the most uncultured person in the world haha. Anyway, she giggled back and I said "Do you speak English?!" She said "no, only a little. Is this your son?" I looked at Manny, who is clearly Haitian, then at myself, who is clearly not, and just said "no." She said "oh, are you from America." I said yes! I'm here until Christmas." That seemed to be as far as we could go. The nurse standing beside her said something and she said something back, back and forth back and forth, me just looking from one to the other like at a tennis match. They were looking at me periodically, obviously talking about me. I just stood and smiled awkwardly because what else can you do? Then she looked right at me said "You love Jesus" in more of a statement form rather than question. I shook my head yes, and then she smiled and walked away. I didn't see her again, but this seemingly purposeless encounter circled in my brain over and over as I sat and watched Manny sleep. Even today, I have gone back to it several times. It is one of the only times in my life that I have actually SEEN John 13:35 that says "By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." This is a promise from the Lord, that our love will be the sign that we are His followers. And I now know that to be true! How beautiful!

It is now 11:26pm here in Haiti [we are on central time] which is relatively early if I were in the States. But here we are pretty much Haitian Grandmas and I should have been asleep 2 hours ago. So I'm going to go! Oh, I forgot to mention that Manny is sleeping in a port-a-crib at the foot of my bed tonight and he will probably be up around 6, so we'll see how that goes :) I hope all is well, and thank you so much for your prayers. They are literally priceless. I'll write again soon! 

meet manny [& #41 & #45]

I write to you tonight from the living room of the house that I will call home for the next 4 1/2 months. I am sitting on the couch with 2 huge fans blowing relatively warm night air right at my face... they feel surprisingly good. I know many of you will be relieved to know that I made it safely to Port au Prince. After traffic on the way to Nashville, an hour delay in Miami, a random lady saving my butt by faking like I was with her at the airport because I didn't have a Haitian address, and then a 45 minute battle with everyone and their mom to get my luggage, I arrived [in true Haiti fashion] about an hour and a half late. I was so blessed to be greeted by huge hugs from Sara, Ashton, Wilna, and Michelle! My heart was filled with joy to see Sara running toward me outside the airport :) It's so good to be back!

Manny in the hospital

As is not uncommon in Haiti, we packed 6 adult people into a 5 person car, and I got in to realize that Erica was holding a precious baby boy. My first question was "where did he come from?" Michelle said "we got him today.. he's got typhoid fever." Apparently, his mother brought him to the clinic because he had severe diarrhea, where he was diagnosed with typhoid fever. After that, his mother said she could not provide proper care for him, and Michelle [the American mother of the family I'm staying with here] agreed to take him. Thats how big her heart is! Its amazing to watch. His name is Emmanuel, but we are going to call him Manny. So, we took this precious baby to the cholera hospital [although we are pretty sure he doesn't have cholera.. but they were the only hospital open late in the afternoon and we knew they could rehydrate him]. Manny is 14 mths old and weighs 6kg which equals 13.2lbs. Imagine how big a 14 mth old American baby is compared to him! He is spending the night in the hospital tonight and sweet Michelle is right by his side. What a sacrifice to make.. spending the night in a cholera hospital with a baby you just met today.

On the plane today my heart was a little heavier than I expected it to be when I came back to Haiti... heavy mostly for my family. If you don't know my family, you should know we are extremely close and my 4 siblings literally are my best friends. It's hard to think about all the things that I will miss out on while I'm gone. But I was listening to my ipod on the plane and just as my heart began to sag, the song "Constant" by Francesca Battistelli came on. The lyrics that really caught my attention go like this:

"Okay I really don't like change but I can't stop it.. I'm moving forward any way but with the promise.. You're the Anchor for my soul and thats all I need to know... You're my Constant!"

It really gave me comfort to be reminded that yes, things are changing but thats the way this world is. It's like shifting sand and always will be. But My God is the same yesterday, today, and forever!! [Hebrews 13:8]

Anyway... I guess I'm going to shower and hit the sack! Traveling wears me out! Not sure what tomorrow holds for me yet... but when I know, you'll know :) Prayers for Manny are super appreciated, as well as the orphanage and the girls I'm serving with here [Sara and Erica]. Prayers going up for you tonight too, sweet friend. Goodnight!

p.s. obvs today I completed #41 and #45 on my "101 in 1001" List which read: Visit a foreign country and Fly by myself. Orevwa!

american air and #35

Megan Nichole Inman

The summer before my 7th grade year I met a girl who became one of my closest friends. We were inseparable for about 5 years, and then [as most people do], slowly grew apart. On December 20, 2010, God called Megan home. She died in a fatal car crash. You can read her story here. It doesn't seem like it has been 7 1/2 months... crazy. I think about her on a daily basis and visit her grave when I'm in Lawrenceburg [even though I know she isn't really there]. #35 on my "101 in 1001" List reads: Visit someone's grave. So today, on my last day in America for a while, I paid her a visit! She had a beautiful face and an even more beautiful heart. Rest in peace Megan Nichole!

I took some beautiful flowers that were leftover from my Sis's wedding [which Megan would have thoroughly enjoyed]

Besides my sweet friend, there are a million other things on my mind tonight. It is, as you may know, my last night of breathing American air! I know that Haiti is where the Lord wants me right now, but I still am sad to have to leave my family. When I get back in December, Sis and Hunter will have been married for 5 months, Cain and KaLee will have been living in Chattanooga for a whole semester, Cheney will be done with her first semester of college, Tuck will have been living in Murfreesboro for a semester, and Sam will be half done with her sophomore year and will have been driving for a month and a half! So many life changes... and so many things I'm going to miss. But I am trusting in the Lord, knowing that He has me held right in His hands.

Thats pretty much where I'm at tonight... just trying to make sure everything is packed and ready to go. We are leaving town at 6:30 in the morning in order for me to catch my 9:40 flight out of Nashville. I will then land in Miami at 1:10, and take off again at 2:10... finally landing in Port au Prince at 3:10 tomorrow afternoon. It is surreal and crazy, but I'm so excited to see my friends there and I know as soon as I see those sweet kids my heart will feel so at home all over again. Prayers for safe and easy travels would be much appreciated [I'm nervous about flying alone!]. I will do my best to let you know when I make it safely!

Love you!

#7 and infintely more.

#7 on my "101 in 1001" List reads: Be in a wedding. And now, as most of you probably know, I can check this one off! I was the Maid of Honor for my sister, best friend, and other half who is now officially married! I couldn't be more happy for her and her new husband, who are honeymooning it up in the Dominican Republic as of today! The ceremony was beautiful and the reception was flawless... if you know my family you won't be surprised to hear it was pretty much the party of the year haha. By the time I made it home, my feet were solid black and killing me [from dancing barefoot for hours], my hair and makeup looked a HOT mess [from sweating so much], and my beautiful dress had stains all down the front [from where I dropped a chocolate covered strawberry]. Obviously, all of this indicates that it was an exceptional and memorable night. When it was all said and done, me and my other 2 sisters decided that if/when we get married we have some pretty serious standards to measure up to if we are going to have a wedding like Sis's :). Honestly, if anyone has a prefect wedding, I'm glad it was my Sis! Below is some documentation from the night:

These are my siblings and my best friends.

Hunter and Sis

so precious!

Throwing the bouquet

And now, a video of the departure from the reception! It's relatively short, and so sweet... you'll wanna see it, I'm certain.

Now, for an update on my trip to Haiti! [If you have no idea what I'm talking about, click here.] In approximately 36 hrs I will be boarding a plane in Nashville that will take me to Miami, then another plane that will take me to Port au Prince. I could not be more excited! This morning I got the chance to share what the Lord is doing in my life with some sweet people at my Sis's husbands parents [take a minute to figure that out] Sunday school class. It was such a blessing!

Something that I shared with them this morning is Ephesians 3:20 which begins "To Him who can do infinitely more than you could ask or imagine.." This is what The King has done for my trip to Haiti. Many of you know that I had to raise about $3500 in order to pay for this trip. I sent out about 30 letters to people who I thought would give me money. Just when I thought I would contribute to making this trip happen, God reminded me that this is HIS plan, not mine. He has provided for me more money than I ever thought I could possibly get, and He has chosen to use people that I would have never suspected. The following is a breakdown in percentage form of the money I have recieved:
--> People who got a letter: 12%
--> People I have never met: 18%
--> College age people: 27% [These are supposedly the poorest people in our country haha]
--> People that I know but that I didn't send a letter to: 44%
Can you believe that? Go back and read them again. Only 12% came from all the people that I thought would supply the entire portion. God is so amazing... He can truly do more than we can think, ask, or imagine. In a huge way God has used several groups of people and I cannot express how blessed I have been by the outpouring of support from the following:

Calvary Baptist Church, Knoxville, TN
New Providence United Methodist Women's Group, Clarksville, TN
Madison Street United Methodist Women's Group, Clarksville, TN
New Prospect United Methodist Women's Group, Lawrenceburg, TN
First Baptist Church, Lawrenceburg, TN
College of Nursing, University of Tennessee at Knoxville

The above organizations and groups have truly shown me Christ-like love and support, and I am so grateful for you! Thank you again to anybody and everybody who has sent any financial, material, or prayerful support! The work that Christ is going to do through me in Haiti is literally fueled by your love, encouragement, and support. I'm so excited to get there and tell you all how God is working in that country! Not much longer people... get excited!! :)

desires of your heart.

The wedding celebration has commenced! We are down to about 27 hours until my sister and best friend becomes Mrs. Hunter Mansfield. You can view the excitement below:

[this was at the bachelorette party we had last night!]

Since I got home on Sunday night, we have been going nonstop! So much bonding, so much fun... only a tad of stress... the perfect combination to getting things done haha. Weddings are so special, but they are even more exciting when the people getting married are people that you truly love! Having 3 sisters and 1 brother, I suppose we will get to experience this several times [hopefully haha] but this is the first one so it's super fun. And having 4 girls in one family who are all in the wedding party is even more fun than you can imagine... so many pictures and memories, laughing and talking... such a blessing!

This week has been full of wedding prep.. such as: getting our nails done, getting hair cuts, last minute shopping, last minute tanning [except me because nursing school turned me against tanning beds haha], bachelorette celebration, bridal luncheons, wearing heels around the house to break them in, etc. It's been a fun time, believe me. Below are some pictures of the last 72 hrs:

Sisters for the Bachelorette Party: Swanky's for Mexican and Sips N Strokes to paint in Franklin!

Our spaces at Sips N Strokes!

Group picture after our paint lessons!

I highly recommend Sips N Strokes for a chill Bachelorette Party that includes participants who are underage or don't drink! It's super relaxing and so much fun. Last night when I laid down, I opened my Bible to spend some time with Jesus before I slept. When things get so crazy and we are going constantly, sometimes I get to the end of the day and feel like I haven't had enough time to just sit and BE with my Savior. Yesterday was one of those days, so I took a little bit to just be still [Psalm 46:10].

I was drawn to a line of scripture that a sweet friend shared with me one night via text. It's Luke 1:45 and it reads: Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill His promises to her! I don't know what the desires of your heart are today sweet friends, but I can assure you that if your ultimate desire is to know and glorify our Heavenly Father, then whatever desires you have the Lord has put there, and He will fulfill them! There are so many ladies who long for love, a husband, kids, a family. So many Godly men who long for the same things. Maybe you are in America and wanting to be somewhere else [like Haiti], or maybe you are in another country and longing to be in the United States. Maybe you long to be something that you feel like you will never get to. Maybe you want to be someone you feel like you will never be. I don't know what it is, but I can assure you that Our God has not forgotten you. And Blessed are you who believe that He will fulfill those promises!! Be still, wait, and know that Jesus hears you, and His timing is PERFECT [Exodus 2:11].

Until next time! Love & Prayers people! :)

#38

#38 of my "101 in 1001" List reads: Donate to a foreign adoption. This is one of my goals that would be no where near my mind if the Lord hadn't blessed me with my trip to Haiti. Many of you read about or heard about the sweet baby, Karis, that I absolutely fell in love with while I was there. When I met her, she was only 23 days old. That was in March.. so now she is about 5 or 6 months old! Also while I was there I got to meet her adoptive family! They are absolutely precious. They have 2 biological boys and 1 little girl they adopted from Ethiopia. Karis's dad is a pastor in Kingsport, TN and he writes a sweet blog that you can read here.

Karis's family!

Take a minute to think about this family's situation. They are here in Tennessee, and they have met their daughter twice by flying all the way to Haiti. Each time they go, they have to leave her there. The process and paperwork for a Haitian adoption is teadious and ridiculously time consuming, and unpredictable. I can only imagine how frustrating it must be. This sweet family needs prayers people! For those of you with children.. imagine what it would be like to know where your child is and not be able to bring them home or be able to go to them whenever you want. They know that it is in the Lord's time, and we are all praying for a homecoming for Karis very soon!!

Aside from the adoption process, the financial burden of a Haitian adoption is huge and heavy. The Robison's have been raising money for several months and the Lord has provided! But they still lack about $7000 toward the adoption and need to get this paid asap in order to finalize the adoption and bring Karis home! This, of course, was the perfect opportunity for me to complete #38 on my 101 List!

To the right is a t-shirt designed by Karis's new mom, Allison. They are selling these shirts for $20 a piece to raise money for Karis. The shirts are super soft and good quality, not to mention the amazing difference you are making in a precious baby's life by purchasing one of these shirts! You can click here to learn more about the shirts and buy one [or two, or three] today!

I actually had intended to buy one shirt, but got confused and accidentally bought 2! Good things it's for a great cause, and good thing my Mom LOVED the shirts too haha.

And, as an update for those of you who love Karis just from hearing about her, here are some pictures of how big she has gotten since March:

"Learn to do right; seek justice. 

  Defend the oppressed.
Take up the cause of the fatherless;
   plead the case of the widow."

          Isaiah 1:17