Still in shock...

that after:

16 months

1 miscarriage

13 cycles of charting my temp

3 cycles of medication

countless ovulation tests

miserable bloodwork

1 heartbreaking ultrasound

lots of tears

lots of prayers

and many, many negative pregnancy tests...

that we're expecting another baby!!!

There is so much to write and maybe there will be 100 more posts on the pain of our time of loss and infertility. There were so many times that the most-well meaning person said the most hurtful thing, or that people didn't know what to say to me on the subject. There were so many times that I wondered if God would really give us another child (and some of y'all are rolling your eyes...I have done that before until I went through what seemed like an eternity of waiting). There were the comments that started when Harrison turned 2 about how we needed to have another one quick to either straighten up his attitude or because "those families" who waited a long time in between kids were just selfish.

But those posts can wait because, for now, I rejoice! I cannot believe that our prayers (and the prayers of countless others) have been answered! I had prayed fervently that we would be pregnant before October 22, which would have been my due date with the baby we lost back in February. And you may recall that I posted something about it. It turns out, I was actually pregnant at the time but it was too early to know! We found out our news on Halloween! Without posting too many details, it was a very unlikely month for us to get pregnant, but the Lord was so sweet and gave us the desire of our hearts!

Little one is due sometime in the beginning of July. I have already had a couple different due dates, but the very first one was July 12. We are so very thrilled to be able to come back to the states for the summer and deliver the baby in Atlanta! I have been dreaming nightly of Chick-Fil-A, cheese dip from my favorite Mexican restaurant and the countless lunch places I can't wait to dine upon our arrival!

As of my last ultrasound a few days ago, the baby is the size of a "small bug" says my chinese doctor. Hilarious. Pre-natal care will definitely be an adventure over here, but I couldn't be more thankful. I never dreamed I would have to wait this long for another child, especially since Harrison came within, like, 5 seconds of us thinking we might want to start a family. I know our journey is short compared to other dear friends close to my heart, but it felt so very long to me, and I am thankful and relieved to be able to share the news with all of you blogging friends!

Prayers for pregnancy in a foreign country with a toddler-in-tow would be much appreciated...It is not easy, especially when said toddler is not napping every day, when I am carrying 30+ pounds of him up and down 4 flights of stairs multiple times daily,and when the food is really hard to get down. I was not sick a lick with Harrison, so even though I feel okay most of the time, the sickness is new for me, but I really wouldn't have it any other way (and again, some of you are calling me crazy right now)!

We praise God from whom all blessings flow!

"I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord." --1 Samuel 1:27-28

Our First Date...

***

Was 8 years ago today, and it was HERE in East Asia! Now, it's debatable as to when we actually had our first date if you ask me or Brett or the 20 other people who watched our relationship under a microscope while we were here, but today 8 years ago was the first time he came to visit me with the intention of taking me (and only me) out.

He picked me up at my apartment wearing an afro wig~he had me at hello!

And sweet Brett had a tape of Christmas music that he asked each taxi driver to play when we were in the cabs. He also had a small gift for me during each taxi ride. We ate pizza, went ice skating, and went to a lounge on the top floor of a nice hotel in town and just talked and talked! It was such a fun time, and I often think or our time of dating here in China with such fond memories. He led me on scavenger hunts, we travelled together, we danced on tables together, sang karaoke, and the list continues! We had so much fun, and are still having fun today! I am so thankful that God brought me here back in 2002 to not only fall in love with a new culture, but to fall in love with Brett as well. It has been quite an adventure since that first date, and I have loved living life with him!

***In the above picture, shadows may look larger (or smaller) than they appear!

Some Christmas Eve Dancin'

Christmas Card

We had so much fun taking pictures for our Christmas card this year! We knew that this guy would not sit still for long, though. Check him out....this is how he helps me get taxis!

A friend graciously took some great pictures for us in a park.

But, what I really wanted was for us all to sit in a sanlunche (sawn loon chuh-- "three wheeled vehicle"). This is how I get around a lot here, and I thought it would be so cute for our Christmas card. We found one with a window open in the back and got some great shots. We paid the driver about 75 cents to sit in it for 5 minutes and get some photos. (That is also about how much we would pay a driver of these to cart us a short distance around town).

We landed on this shot (I think). I so love Christmas card time of year and I'm SAD that it's hard/expensive/takes so long to mail things over here! I miss getting Christmas cards from all our sweet friends!

Merry Christmas!!

Hong Kong

The type of visa we are on here is a tourist visa....meaning we have to leave the country every 120 days to get a stamp on our passport showing we left the country before returning. Our time here was up....we had to leave. So, last week, we, the three amigos, decided to venture to Hong Kong for a visa run.

Now, before you go and check your maps, yes, Hong Kong is in China. It was under European rule for 99 years until 1997. China considers it China now, but for whatever reason it counts as leaving the country for our visas. I know, weird. However, since it's only a little over a 2 hour flight, we decided that it would be a great and easy trip. Also, it's an incredible city and we both had not been there in years. We were so excited for blue skies, great weather, good shopping, yummy food, and taking Harrison to go see Santa.

Well, guess what we did instead??

We threw up....the whole time....all 3 of us.

Sad, sad, sad!!! We managed to at least hit Toys R Us and one little market for some shopping before it hit Hare Bear. We were standing at a bus stop, and little H leaned into me. I just put my arm around him and was enjoying him leaning on my leg. And then my pants were soaked. Sad. Next, it hit the Brettster....and finally, yours truly. Poor us. We came home empty-handed, with empty stomachs, and with barely any pictures.

But, we are so glad to be home and on the mend.

Meeting the neighbors

A few weeks after we arrived here, I met my neighbor in the stairwell. He lives directly above us, and we struck up a conversation. His English was incredible and he told me that he had a 3 year old daughter and he would love to have her play with Harrison sometime. Thrilled at the option to have a local friend for Harrison, I told him that would be great. We exchanged numbers. He told me at the end of our meeting that he would (again) like for his daughter to be around me and my son because she is afraid of foreigners and he wants her to get over her fear.

Months go by...

Last weekend, Wu Gang (said neighbor) calls and asks if now would be a good time for the kids to play together (it is very cultural to not plan even 5 minutes in advance). I apologize to him saying that Harrison is sick and now would not be a good time, but soon I would like for them to play. He explains to me that his daughter does not live with him all the time (also a very common occurrence here. He is not divorced, but he and his wife live in separate places so he can work in the city and she lives further out.) I apologize again and say now is not a good time.

5 minutes later...a knock on the door.

Me: "oh hello, Wu Gang! Oh, is this your wife? Oh, and is this your daughter? hi little friend! you are so cute!"

Little girl: Crying hysterically

Neighbor: gives us a present, meets Brett. Small talk. We discover the little tyke's English name is Mia

Brett & Lauren: "Hi Mia! Would you like to meet Harrison?? You're so cute! And so tall!" Smiling very big, trying to be inviting

Mia: Standing outside the door, crying hysterically.

Meanwhile, we have 2 guys staying in our home, they are coming in and out...she cries even harder as they pass by her.

Neighbor: "Well, we wanted her to at least meet you all so next time we can play. She is very scared of foreigners."

Me: "Why is she scared of foreigners?"

Neighbor: "Because her baby-sitter told her that foreigners eat children."

Oh....Okay.... Yeah, I don't think she'll be back.

Especially after I flashed my teeth at her about 42 times.

Thankful

Last year I posted a list of things I was thankful for according to the alphabet. In an effort to be thankful over the past week or so (because I have not been the most thankful person lately), I thought I would do it again. Some letters may be the same as last year, but there are just some things that I love all the time! So, here goes, the ABC's of thankfulness, 2010...

A. Atlanta, Georgia. My hometown. I miss it and it's eccentricities and great culture and great food so much. I love Atlanta and although, I'm sad to say I'm pretty sure I won't live there again (at least in the near future), I will always consider it home.

B. Brett. He is my best friend and I have become more thankful for him the past 3 months than I have ever been.

C. Cheap Baby-sitters. Oh, they are in abundance here! I should not even tell you what these lovely young American teenagers charge. But, it definitely makes it possible for lots of....

D. Date nights. Brett and I have gotten into a great habit over here of going out once a week. I am sure this is so normal for lots of you, but it was hard for us to do with our crazy travel schedule before now. I love this time and look forward to it every week (Thursday to be exact).

E. East Asia. Oh, it's been so very hard to move back here, but whether I am here or there, I will always love this place, and I am thankful to be here.

F. Friends. I LOVE my friends! I miss them all so much.

"When you are sorrowful look again in your heart, and you shall see that in truth you are weeping for that which has been your delight." -Kahlil Gibran

I wouldn't miss my friends so much if they had not been my greatest delight.

G. Glee. I have loved it since day 1

H. Harrison. How do I love him more each day? Today he is very very sick, and it has been so sweet taking care of him. I mean, he threw up in my hand...that's love!

I. Internet. It's totally a lifeline for me over here...not sure if that's a good or bad thing, but I'm thankful...for email, facebook, blogs, skype, and being able to make cheap phone calls to my loved ones!

J. Jesus. He saved my life.

K. Kevin. My brother who we lost in 2008. I think of him everyday and miss him so very much. I am so thankful that I had the chance to know him. He was one of the most extraordinary people I've ever known.

L. Laughter. "I just like to laugh. Laughing's my favorite." --Buddy the Elf (except he was talking about smiling).

M. My Local Starbucks. I love Starbucks, truly I do. I would choose other coffee shops if I had the option, but I love that there is one just a 10 minute walk from our neighborhood. It's such a haven for me!

N. Netflix. We don't have a DVD player here yet, so we can either watch chinese TV or watch TV over hulu and netflix. Netflix saves my life for a portion of each day while I show Harrison a 'Thomas the Train' or 'Dora the Explorer' episode (or 4) so that I can have some sanity. I am so thankful!

O. Orlando. This crazy touristy place has become home to us and we miss our life there! Whenever we move back, you always have a place to stay if you're visiting Disney!

P. Parents. I am so grateful for both my parents. I feel that I have a better relationship with them both now than I ever have. I love them dearly and admire them both so much. I also love my Dooley parents too!

Q. Quiet. Especially since H is trying to drop his nap (eeek), a few minutes of quiet time to myself is quite a treat!

R. Running into friends unexpectedly. I love being out and about and running into someone I know. It usually makes my day! Yesterday, I was having a particularly sad morning and ran into a new friend and it really made me feel so much better!

S. Siblings. I love my family ever so much. My sister and brother and I did not have the most conventional upbringing and in many ways took care of each other. I would not trade a minute of the time we spent together. I will never forget the tears I cried over not wanting Robin to leave for college when I was 15. I felt I was losing my best friend. I will also never forget the tears I cried when I had to leave Chris behind when I left for dear old Athens. Although life has taken us to different places, I cherish the few times a year we are together. We laugh so hard and I am so proud of them for being the smartest, most creative people alive (I did not receive that gene). And I was even more blessed to get to have another brother and sister. Kev, who I mentioned earlier, and Hayward who have always been family no matter what. And I lucked out with great sibling-in-laws! Dan, Lindsey, Chris and Julie are the bees knees!

T. The Classic City. Athens, Georgia. Love this place. It changed my life and I had the best time ever there.

U. Umbrellas. It rains here a lot.

V. Visitors. We have had our first crop of visitors here this week! Brett's best chinese friend from years ago (Tommy) spent 2 nights with us and now we have 2 other guys staying at Chez Dooley. I love hosting people in our home!

W. Waiting. Not my favorite, but it's always neat to see how things change while I wait. I find in most cases, that I would not have changed the length of the wait because of what I learned during that time.

X. Xylophones. I really am not sure how thankful I am for these little musical instruments. I'm sure if we had one, I would not be at all, but I really couldn't think of another word that starts with 'x'.

Y. Youth Group. One of my highlights of my growing up years, and even beyond!

Z. Zara (and H&M) just opened in my city on Wednesday. Total bonus that a) Zara is one of my favorite stores ever, and b) i may actually be able to find clothes that fit there (chinese people are tiny).

So, on this day after Thanksgiving. I truly am thankful. Thanksgiving morning was a hard one for us. We were so homesick, but the day got better and better and I can honestly say that I went to bed way more thankful than when I woke up. We had a fabulous turkey dinner with some friends, watched football and had great laughs. My heart was so full. And although I missed being at the Dooley family Thanksgiving this year and getting to hug my parent's necks, I will never forget the sweetness of celebrating this day of thanks with my beloved husband and son in far away China. I'm so thankful God brought us here.

2.5

My Dear Harrison,

This past Friday marked you being 2 and a half. Oh my goodness, I cannot believe it! You are growing up so fast that I can barely keep up with you! In the last few months, you have bowled me over with your vocabulary! You are truly conversing with us now. You make full sentences, and although sometimes we cannot understand you, you very much understand yourself! You have even picked up a few chinese phrases; "Ni Hao" (hello), "Xie Xie" (thank you), "Zai Jian" (goodbye) and "Wo Ai Ni" (I love you). You have made about a million friends here and constantly ask for all of them by name. You still don't touch chinese food, but you eat well, or I should say, you snack well and then try to skip meals.

You are both friendly and shy all at the same time. But, no matter what, you are ALWAYS chatty at home with mom and dad. You LOVE to wrestle and do so every night with daddy on our bed. You ask, "wrestle?", which then proceeds in lots of throwing and tickle fighting. You have a mind of your own which is evident when you ask me to "please stop, mommy." Daddy and I think that you thrive on words of encouragement and quality time (which is the same as us). We think this because if you do something good, you will often tell us, "mommy, I gave daddy his glasses," if we don't get the chance to praise you first. Also, you love to do things together, even if it's just watching TV, you want us to be there, too (and you DO really like TV, especially chinese cartoons).

You are so fast these days, I can barely get a hug from you. I truly think I only get one kiss a week from you (although you still get a hundred a day from me). I cherish the times you sit on my lap or willingly give me a hug or kiss because they are so few and far between these days since you are finding your little independence! Oh, and speaking of independence, you really like walking these days as opposed to your stroller. Would you mind re-thinking that one? Please???

On October 24th you slept in your big boy bed for the first time. You have done great! The first couple days were rough, but then you were great for about 2 weeks. However, the past 2 weeks you have discovered you can get out of said bed, which makes for some long days. You have begun skipping your nap and only taking one every 2-3 days. This is Mommy's worst nightmare, but thankfully you still give me some reprieve by having "rest time" in your room on the no-nap days. Oh, and it does make you go to bed pretty early and sleep late, so I guess I'll take it!

Your favorite toys right now are Thomas the Train and Legos! You play with both for hours (probably because those are the only toys we brought over here... Oh really? you didn't realize that? Well, we're super glad you still like them). You also love to read and for us to sing to you at nap time and bed time. You always ask for "one more song". Currently your favorite melody is "Jingle Bells". Daddy and I usually sing it to you at least 3 times before bed each night, along with a dance routine. It's quite fun for us.

You love to play on this playground almost everyday. It is in our apartment complex and we usually go there at least once a day. Our very new tradition as of last week is to stop at the WoWo (a convenience store right outside our gate) and get lollipops before we go play. I realize you could choke on the lollipop, but you're also so careful that I just don't think you will. I hope I don't get proven wrong.

Oh, and one more thing...I think you weigh about 31 pounds...I'm not quite sure about your height, but you are definitely 3 feet tall, perhaps even 3 feet, 1 inch. You are so tall, little man! And just for mommy to know when I look back on this, I really wish I had brought cuter clothes over with me. I know you don't care a lick, but I miss your john john's!

Hare Bear, I love you more than you could ever know. I was looking at baby pictures of you recently thinking, "I loved him so much then", or "oh, wasn't that time so fun?" I truly have loved every stage of your life, and am having so much fun right now. I am so privileged to be your mom and I still can't believe you are mine. I am so proud of you for just being exactly who you are. And I hope we can both always remember that!

I love you to the moon and back,

Mommy

Mom's Retreat

First of all, I want to thank y'all for your kind words about my previous post about our loss. That meant so much to me... There is so much more that is part of that journey than just our miscarriage, but it's hard to know what to share on this blog aside from pictures and stories of our family. I figured I could use the prayers.

We received much care on that day that would have been our due date. A few people here knew and one new friend brought me flowers the night before, and shed a tear with me, while another sweet friend texted me all day to see how I was doing. For the first time, I felt at home here.

On that day, I left to go to the capital city for a Mom's conference for all the mom's working with our company in the entire country. There were 100 moms there, both expat and Asian. I was very familiar with the area we were staying in which was fun! We had a great speaker and I really enjoyed seeing a few old friends and making new ones. I feel like that weekend was a turning point for me, as it is no secret I have been a little lonely here, but really got to connect with some fun people and have lots of laughs. It takes a lot more time to make friends in a new place when you're a mom (or at least it's that way for me), so I am grateful I had this weekend to hang out sans Harrison and have tons of fun shopping and eating great food with other fun ladies. Unfortunately, I have NO pictures from the event, but more pictures will come soon of some other recent out-of-town jaunts.

Until then...

So glad...

That my little Harrison looks just like his Daddy! When I was pregnant, I prayed that our child would look like his dad because Brett was just such a darn cute little guy! His mom emailed us some old pics the other day and I had to share them so that you could see the uncanny resemblance as well! I guess now I know what H will look like in a few years time!

It's a Bird, It's a Plane...

It's Superman!!!

Today Harrison went "trick or treating" for the first time! Some of the adults in our apartment complex got together in one little cul-de-sac of the neighborhood, and we all spread out so the kids could come "trick or treat" to us (all outside). The group was about 15 kids and maybe just that many adults!

In the picture above, Harrison is standing in front of Cameron (Thomas the train), and next to Gunner the Bumble Bee and Canyon (in the red costume--not quite sure what he was).

Below is a picture of (almost) everyone who dressed up...If you can't tell, I am in the picture and dressed up as Brett.

Harrison and sweet Gunner eating lollipops together.

Harrison and his 2 dads (did anyone ever watch that show?) Can you tell which one is the real Brett??

Happy Halloween!

Glory Baby

Sadly, I had a miscarriage this past February. That baby would have been due this Friday. We were so devastated as our plans to move to China included hoping that we would move over with a newborn...well, here we are, 2 months into this gig, and our arms (and my womb) are still empty. It has been a lonely time for me, especially as I look at how I hoped life would look like here, and am faced with the reality that it's not what I wanted or hoped for. I miss that sweet little one every day and am so thankful I got to carry him/her for the few weeks that I did. This month has been especially hard as our hope was to be pregnant by the due date so that we would not have to watch it pass still longing for another baby. But, alas, we are still longing and still trying to hope. Not that another baby would ever replace the one we had....no, far from that.

And while I'm still so very sad that we had to lose a precious life, I am grateful that that baby is whole and with Jesus. That sweet baby has 4 cousins, 7 great grandparents, and a dear, dear uncle fighting to hold him/her in Heaven, and I smile and cry at the same time thinking of it.

I am posting the lyrics to a song that I listened to a million times in college, but never actually heard the words, or understood their meaning. However, since our loss, I have listened to it a million more times, and it has given lots of comfort, along with lots of tears.

To my Glory Baby, you will always be a part of our family and we will never forget how you changed our lives. I miss you everyday, and I can't wait to hold you.

Love,

Mommy

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Glory Baby, You slipped away

As fast as we could say baby, baby
You were growing, what happened Dear,
You disappeared on us baby, baby
Heaven will hold you before we do
Heaven will keep you safe
Until we're home with you
Until we're home with you

(chorus)
We miss you everyday
Miss you in every way
But we know there's a day
When we will hold you, we will hold you
And you'll kiss our tears away
When we're home to stay
We can't wait for the day
When we will see you, we will see you
But baby let sweet Jesus hold you
‘Til mom and dad can hold you
You'll just have heaven before we do
You'll just have heaven before we do

Sweet little baby, it's hard to understand it
Cause we are hurting, we are hurting
But there is healing
And we know we're stronger people
Through the growing and in knowing
All things work together for our good
And God works his purposes
Just like he said he would
Just like he said he would

(chorus)

I can't imagine Heaven's lullabies
And what they must sound like
But I will rest in knowing
Heaven is your home
And it's all you'll ever know
All you'll ever know

(chorus)

What we do on Monday mornings

About a month ago, one of the other moms here discovered an indoor playplace at a local mall. Ever since then, a few of us try to go every Monday morning. It has only happened a couple of times, but it's great. We all pile into someone's mini-van (there are about 5 moms, and between us we bring 7 kids, and yes, we all fit into 1 car with no carseats), then maybe stop by Starbucks and hit the playground, and complete the morning with lunch at Papa John's. I know what you're thinking...Or at least, what I would think..."Ew gross, Papa John's?" Yes. I ate my weight in Papa's pizza my first 2 years of college and from then on, it grossed me out. But, I have to say when you live over here, beggars can't be choosers, and it tastes pretty darn good. Now, it's no Mellow Mushroom or Fellini's (my 2 personal faves), but it's yummy!

So, a couple weekends ago, I wanted to show Brett the place that Harrison loves so much, so we cabbed out there and played and had lunch together at Subway (this mall is chock full o' western restaurants!) Here's a couple of pictures from all the fun...

I love the mini-animal merry go round!

not sure what the above thing is, but H gets knocked out by it a lot!

random floating balloon room

and the very favorite...the slides going into the balls!

we raced down the slide, and if you can't tell, it was FAST!

I think we will spend a lot of time at this little gem, especially as the weather gets cold. We have not seen a cold winter in 6 years, so inside we will be! I am thankful for this time with other moms as I'm really hoping to become better friends with all of them. Harrison is already BFF to the bone with the whole entire city, so I'm glad I get to hang out with him...he makes me look so cool!!

My Room

Hey Folks,

What'sa happenin' in your corner of the world? Yep, if you couldn't figure it out, it's yours truly back on writing duty...did you miss me? I sure missed all of you!

I wanted to show y'all a couple pictures of my room! I love my new house. Every time We go in or out of it, I say, "Bye Bye, New House" or "Hello, New House!" Anyway, Mom has more pics of our apartment, but they are not uploaded to the computer and she's actually having some problems with the computer anyway. But, thankfully we had a couple pictures of my little man cave. I think you'll like it!

So, this is the view from the door. Mama and Daddy put a shade over the window so that I could sleep past the sun in the morning.

And here's the view standing at the window. Don't you love my big boy bed? I haven't slept in it yet, because, just between you and me, I'm a little scared. Mommy is stumped because everyone tells her it's not a problem to do "the switch". However, every night when they try and pump up this bed, I say to them, "no, I want baby bed." So, I am still scrunched up in the pack and play and loving it! Any ideas on getting me to this bed? Mommy thinks it's the cutest thing ever! Some of our friends let us borrow it. Oh, and there's nothing on the walls yet. Mommy sure does miss what she had on the walls of my room back home. You can see them for yourself here and while you're at it, you should definitely make an order of your own!

Well, I hope you enjoyed my tour. I will be back, and Mom will be back with more pictures of where we live!

6 years

**old picture, i promise i will post new ones soon!**

This past Saturday was our 6th anniversary! I really can't believe it...it seems like yesterday that my bridesmaids and I were getting our nails done in the dark the day before our wedding, due to Hurricane Ivan hitting Atlanta pretty hard. However, the actual day was gorgeous and so much fun! At the same time, it seems so long ago! So much has happened since then!

Well, one of our favorite traditions that we do every year is to fill out a book that Brett's mom gave us when we got married. It is our "wedding anniversary book". It has a page for each year with quotes and room to write your memories--good and bad--from the last year, and a place to put a picture. We usually go out of town for our anniversary, but seeing as we just moved to another country, we settled for dinner and a massage (but, not nearly as nice a massage as you would get in the states!) We were also able to sneak in some time to talk over our last year, and talk about the year to come. It is always one of my favorite things that we do, and if my house were burning down, this book would surely be the one thing I would want to take with me (along with Brett and Harrison too, of course).

So, here in blurb fashion, are our memories (both good and bad) from September 18, 2009 through the same date in 2010:

UAE, Oman, going to London as a family, Harrison starts walking at 18 months (finally!), Dad and Isabel's divorce, trying to have a baby...getting pregnant...miscarrying...still trying to have a baby, friends leaving, Deacon Dooley, watching our church become particularized, marriage conference in Miami, Iron Bowl with The Baileys, beach with the Baileys (we love these friends!), Outback bowl, Disney, Epcot, Animal Kingdom, H turns 2, Lauren turns 30, getting snowed in with the Fierer fam in NC, St. Petersburg, Grandma passing away, filing our first police report (for a stolen bugaboo!), lots of goodbyes, lots of transition, lots of going away parties, Easter egg hunts, Easter with the Dooleys in Orlando, going to a taping of the Ellen show, Braves spring training games (H's 1st), moved to China, watched God provide for our move (ie. selling our car, renting our home, etc), Parenthood, Glee, Seasons 52, Ravenous Pig, First Watch, Sweet, feeling hopeful, uncertain and homesick, 3 weeks in Atlanta with family and precious friends, celebrated by eating ribs at Tonyroma's in China--ha!

And those are just a few memories to scratch the surface...As we looked back at the past year, we laughed and were sad at how things looked different than how we hoped they would be at this time. But, we also talked about hopes for year 7, and some (but not all) included:

Growing in our marriage, Baby, Potential Grad School for Brett, friends and family visiting (hint, hint!), new friends, and parenting with grace.

I love Brett and am so glad he found me! He literally just walked right up to me one day and introduced himself...I totally ignored him...and he has not turned back ever since! I am grateful to get to walk through life with him in this difficult, yet amazing covenant called marriage.

......................................................................................................................

"Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same." --Emily Bronte

The 5 Letter Word

Well, thanks to those of you who lifted Harrison up. Please keep doing so! And before you keep reading, please heed my warning that this post is gross. It names many bodily functions, so if you don't read it, I understand. I, however, for some odd reason, want to remember this little nugget of a story, because my dear husband has been such a trooper through it all, not to mention the mini-trooper has been just as fabulous.

You see, the "issues" I was talking about involved the lack of going to the bathroom. As some of you know, Harrison is not a stranger to traveling and a handful of times in his life has gotten constipated for several days on end. Once when he was a baby baby, he went 11 days without going. I was at my wit's end when my sweet friend, Tiffany, told me of a home remedy of giving him Karo Syrup in a dropper...worked like a charm! And it worked the other 4-5 times it has happened in his life...

Until we insert our move to Asia in his little life. For the last month, he has only pooped 1 time a week. And his last stint was, again, 11 days. I think he was going for the record. That, coupled with the fact he won't touch the local food and wasn't eating well, was starting to unnerve me. I wasn't worried at first, because it was jet lag, right? And also, those of you who know me, know that I don't worry a whole lot about these type of things, but 11 days?? And guess what, the Karo wasn't working this time (and for those of you who are wondering, yes, you can buy Karo syrup here, although mine is borrowed right now!)

So, we finally call the doctor. We go to him yesterday. He was great, spent an hour with us going over how the large and small intestines work and where they are located in the body. I came to the realization at this time that I truly wasn't paying attention in Mr. Barnhart's biology class in 9th grade...none of it rang a bell. Oops!

And do you know what we had to do? Oh yes, the 5 letter word, we had to give our child an enema. An enema, I tell you. Now, we had already tried this the night before, as our friend Sonya helped me buy one at the local pharmacy. Well, we did it wrong. After 2 failed attempts (because of blockage from 11 days of poop), the third try was a charm. Thankfully he had a dirty diaper right away....but the unfortunate part is that he threw up at the same time...all over Brett.

We decided that Brett was the better one to have gotten the blow...I would have probably immediately thrown up as well and started crying uncontrollably. But, sweet Brett just held Harrison and rocked him as his little body shook. He didn't care that he smelled plain awful or that his favorite shorts might be completely ruined. He just held that sweet boy. Because he's a sweet boy himself with loads of compassion especially on his sick son because Brett has been way more sick than that here in years past.

I told you it was gross. However, the stain came out, even in our tiny 30-year-old washer, it came out...and thankfully Harrison has had several dirty diapers since then. However, we do need to continue giving him the enema twice a day for a few days. And guess who the bad guy is that administers it? You got it...Yours truly. I'm the enemy with the enema. It is truly the worst thing I've ever had to do to him, but I am so thankful for his system to (hopefully) be getting back to normal. Yuck. Please keep praying for him. He has been such a champ through it all, although he does tell us that his "tooshie hurts"...it is so pitiful, but so precious. Please keep praying for his eating as well. Can anyone give me great ideas for fiber in his diet?

I plan to take pictures of our apartment soon and post them so y'all can see where we live. It is such a dear little place. Until then, I hope you all enjoy your day. Ours is just ending, so I will dream about all the wonderful things y'all are doing! Good night!

Once upon a time...

Once upon a time, a little family of three went on a great adventure...After a rough couple days of travel, they made it to the other hemisphere in a land far, far away. Little Harrison, the youngest of the 3 did quite well on the airplanes and adjusted to the time very quickly. After 2 weeks, they moved into their palace (aka 4th floor apartment) and have spent the last week settling in. It has been a long, arduous journey filled with lots of highs and lows, but strangely, this place, after not having lived here for 6 years, feels normal. Many other things are not normal, but this far-away land is not one of them.

The city has changed so much so that the little family has to re-find their way everywhere. All the old spots are gone and the way of life here is so different now.

Okay, that may be enough of my fairy-tale writing (for today), but as stated earlier, we are HERE and hopefully I can be a little more consistent in documenting our lives here. We are closing in on a month in-country, which is crazy. It feels very normal to be here, but so much has changed. It's very weird! We are all adjusted to the time difference and still have a little more settling in to do. We have been to Ikea about 800 times (and yes, how crazy is it that there's an Ikea here?) I will take pictures of our place when it's put together a little more and post them. I think we will be really happy here, but it will definitely take some time. Until you hear from me again, here are some things you can pray for for our family::

...My computer is totally broken. Needs a new hard drive. We took it to the store before we left the states and it was completely fine. However, we had to put some software on it to secure our computer and ever since, it has been shutting down. Computers are such a life line here, so please pray that mine gets fixed. (this is why I have no pictures to share!)

...Harrison's stomach. He has gotten into a pattern of only going to the bathroom once a week and this last run has lasted 10 days. At first, we thought it was the jet lag, so we didn't worry, but being close to a month now is concerning. We are taking him to the doctor tomorrow.

...Friends. Enough said. I can live anywhere if I have good relationships, but so far we definitely feel lonely and homesick (except for Harrison, he is by far the most popular Dooley here).

But, overall, we are so very grateful to be here. We know the time will be short, and although we miss the comforts of the place we have called home for several years now, we know that we will cry many tears over leaving East Asia in a couple years. I look forward to sharing with y'all how our family falls in love with this place again!

I will be back with more posts soon!

A sweet story

Hi friends, oh it's been too long! There is much to write, but we have had a terrible time with our computers here. I will write a huge, long post of our travels and first weeks here soon. We are so grateful to be here and our days have been a mixture of wonderful and so very hard. We move into our apartment tomorrow and hopefully will have better internet connections although we have to send my computer to a shop--um, not sure how I feel about that!

But, today I wanted to share a sweet little story for my memory's sake...Every night at bedtime we spend a little time playing with Harrison, singing to him, reading, praying, memorizing the gettysburg address (gotcha! just checking to see if you were paying attention)...Anyway, lately he has really enjoyed us singing to him (which is not a super lovely sound). So, every night after we have prayed, he has asked for "more song". Well, usually the songs are little diddies like "Jesus loves me" or something of the like, and last night both of our hearts melted after we sang to him and he looked up at us and said, "more Jesus?"

Oh, what a sweet, sweet boy we have. We are so thankful for every minute with him...all the easy minutes and the difficult ones too. His life is such a miracle and it is such a privilege to get to watch him grow.

More stories to come on our settling in...please keep us in your prayers as it's been a rollercoaster of emotions and events these past weeks. I'll be back soon, I promise!

Ask the Reader

I need some advice...

First, I'm trying to change my administrator email on this blog...any ideas how one does that? I am a total computer dummy!

And secondly, moms out there, I'm trying to decide which stroller should move with us overseas. I love to walk with Harrison. I can't decide whether to take our jogging stroller (a Bob) or our umbrella stroller. I was leaning towards the jogging one, but am reminded that I will have to lug it upstairs with me and get it in and out of cabs, so now I'm thinking of taking the umbrella. How long do kids ride in strollers anyway? H is 2 years and 3 months? Is it worth it to take our nice one? Will he be out of it in a few months time anyway? Thoughts?

And finally, our never sick child has come down with a smidge of a runny nose. Please pray that he recovers before our huge long flight on Tuesday. Thanks!!

Transition...

Hello Blog World,

Long time, no see....I have a million things to document, but unfortunately life has not lent much time to blogging these days...I did, however, want to check in to note what has been going on lately.

We left Orlando on July 29...it was super sad, but I still feel like I haven't processed leaving our world down there...we drove up to Atlanta and spent the week with my mom. My sweet brother and sister-in-law came in town from NC for the weekend to say goodbye. We had too much fun with them. Sweet friends threw us a going away party that ended up hosting about 50 people at my dad's house. I got to meet my sweet baby cousin Connor for the very first time, and we hit all of our favorite eateries (or maybe just mine?), complete with a braves game and everything. Oh, and lots of trips to my favorite West Paces Caribou...it could not have been a more enjoyable week seeing friends and family and eating...lots of eating!

We have made the commute to Dooleytown for this week just in time for my brother-in-law, sister-in-law, and mother-in-laws birthdays, all within the same 3 days! Phew! Brett's parents live just a mere 40 minutes from both of mine, but we still try to spend all our time with one family rather than going back and forth every day. So, we are here in Great Gwinnett for a few more days before we head back to my mom's to make sure we have everything, re-pack our 8 bags and 2 carry-ons per person (yes, even Harrison), and head to the airport at the crack of dawn on Tuesday morning.

We are so grateful to spend extra time with friends and family, but it is very wearing to live out of suitcases, and as scared (in a good way) as we are about this next move, we are ready to get there and settle in (although we don't yet have a place to live there...yet). We got our visas today and cannot believe that our family will call East Asia home for the next however many years. I am so excited, but it is so hard to leave at the same time. We are thankful to know that this is God interrupting our lives, and because of that, we know it's exactly where we should be, even when it doesn't fit into our timetable.

So, we have said lots of goodbyes, with a few more to go. I promise to check in (with pictures, because we finally got a new camera thanks to my sweet dad) once we land and get settled. Until then, if you would pray for our family as we start over in another country. It won't be easy, but it will be so so good.

I'll be back with lots of updates soon!

Happy Birthday

To my best friend! Today is Brett's 35th birthday! When did his hair get so gray? When I met him 8 years ago he just had one little gray patch in the front!

We are surrounded by boxes and bubble tape galore, but, thankfully the birthday boy was able to find time for some of this....

I was remembering the very first birthday of Brett's that I got to celebrate with him...he was turning 28. I bought him a picture frame that was a box and in each picture slot, I wrote something that I liked about him. I can't remember them all, but some were his school spirit, his questions, and his genuine personality. I remember also loving that when we first met, whenever I was talking to him, I felt like I was the only person in the room, and noticing that when he talked to others, it was the same way with his full attention on them. I know it's not as easy now with a 2 year-old son grabbing at his legs and a 30-year-old wife grabbing for his time (which may be slightly more annoying than the aforementioned toddler), but he still makes me feel so special by his intentional conversation and fun questions. He works hard and plays hard, and I love that I get to do that alongside of him. He is definitely God's greatest gift to me and I love walking through life with him.

Happy Birthday Brett! We love you!

My Girls

As we prepare to leave Orlando in 2 weeks, I am sad to be saying goodbye. Over the last 5 years, this Central Florida city, with all its quirks and transplants, has become quite a home for us. Among the people who I am the most sad to leave are my girls. I met Rileigh, Rachel, Audrey, and Ashley (they are pictured in that order from left to right) when they were in 6th grade. I began volunteering at youth group when they were in 7th grade by going on a retreat. And when they were in 8th grade, I started to help lead a small group. It has been 3 years that we have been meeting at Subway, Starbucks and my house. These 4 girls have truly become my best friends down here and I can hardly think about leaving them without crying. I used to drive them around and now they are driving me around. They brought me decorated diapers when Harrison was born and last night they gave me a teacup with a beach scene in it saying that whenever I was homesick or missed them, I could have a little bit of "Florida in China". They are the craziest, most life-giving teenagers I have ever met and I will miss not being able to walk through life with them their final 2 years of high school. They each have a unique and perfect personality...cheerleader, shy, boy-crazy, sarcastic, smart, and beautiful are just a few words to describe how precious they are to me. They are truly the hardest friends for me to say goodbye to. Last night we went to get frozen yogurt and I barely choked out how much they meant to me. They have ministered to me more than they will ever know and I hope that we can be a part of each other's lives for many years to come...

And I can't talk about them without mentioning a woman who poured so deeply into me starting in my 9th grade year. Precious Kay shared her life with me and Elizabeth (from previous post). She took time out of her busy life to spend Tuesday afternoons with us all through high school. We spent lots of time in the bride's room at Northside UMC praying for our future husbands while eating Mrs. Fields cookies, and spent much time at Fellini's and Caribou. I remember asking Kay some extremely hard questions and she stood by us, prayed with us and for us, and I still, 15 years later, cannot take a trip to Atlanta without seeing her. God has used her to change my life and I love her so much. I pray that my relationships with "my girls" will stay as strong as my friendship with Kay over the years. I am so blessed with great friends, which makes it so much harder to leave.

So Excited!

Because tomorrow, I will be with these ladies!

Our gracious hostess, Elizabeth, will welcome us to her new Oxford, Mississippi home in just mere hours! I'm so thrilled to see her life there! I've known this sweet one since age 5!

And I can't wait to see Blair, who hosted us last year in Chicago and has JUST moved to California....we'll get to hear about if the west coast really is the most!

And see that little bump on Miss Adele?? He's coming too, in all his sweet 7-month-old glory. I CANNOT wait to meet Baby James. It will be the first time in 8 years that we will have a baby at our "roommate reunion", and I couldn't be more thrilled!!!

The four of us lived together in college in a lovely duplex on Oxford Court in Athens. We had the best time together and have been through so very much. Graduation took us all to extremely different places all over the world and in the summer of 2003 (1 year after we graduated), Blair and I decided we should get together for a weekend, and the tradition has stuck! This will be our 8th time to get together and we have gone to a fun new place each time! I am so thankful to get some time with some of my favorite people before we move to Asia in 6 weeks. I am SAD that I will miss this weekend in the few years to come, but am so happy it worked out to see them before we leave. I am sure I will have many tales to tell upon my return (but, probably not any pictures...sniff, sniff!)

Are you worried about these guys??? I'm not. They will do juuuust fine without me! Thanks, Brett for giving me time to do this. You are the best!

Jet Lagging...

Hey friends,

We are back, and I wish I could say better than ever, but not so much! Being up since 4:30 makes me feel like it's time to go to bed right about now!

We had an awesome, wonderful, exhausting, challenging and rewarding trip. For security reasons, I can't post too much about our ministry on this blog, so if you're interested in hearing about it, I will forward you our prayer letter (once we write it, of course). I'm sure you're thinking, "but they were in London....what need for security?" But, it's more for the safety of the Middle Eastern believers that were helping us minister to the people that we did.

Harrison was great, and although he always makes it difficult for me to be a part of things on these international trips, I loved having him there and meeting the fabulous people that we did. He keeps asking me about all of them. Also, among his favorites were not Buckingham Palace or Big Ben as one might think, but instead, riding the "red bus", chasing pigeons at the park and riding the "choo choo" and "airpane".

We did manage to find some time to tour around which was such a treat, and I will have to post pics later. Sadly, our back-up camera is completely broken as well, so we don't have very good pictures, and we are now camera shopping. Any recommendations??

I will post more when my eyelids don't feel so heavy, but until then, I can't wait to "catch up" with all of you!

I still remember when 30 was old...

Today was my 30th birthday!

The other night, I said to Brett, " I can't believe I'm going to be 30!"

He replied, "I can't believe you're not!"

To all of you 30-somethings or almost 30-somethings, how did you feel about this crazy birthday?? I feel like with our impending move and leaving the country, um, tomorrow, has definitely not given me the most time to think about it! It is a little weird, but since I have the luxury of being married to a man who is 5 years my senior, I think I'll always feel young comparatively!

Brett did too much for my birthday and we have been celebrating all week with a visit from my mom, shopping, a surprise party, an awesome birthday dinner, and a sweet birthday brunch with some dear friends while watching the World Cup. All capped off beautifully with an hour to myself and some great gifts. I really think my favorite part about every birthday I celebrate is getting to talk to and hear from great friends and family all day long. It's been so fun, and it really is my favorite holiday (is that okay to say??) I am so thankful for the life God has given me. I sometimes cannot believe where I am now compared to where I thought I would be...back when I thought 30 was old.

As mentioned earlier, we leave tomorrow for 2 weeks in London! So, you won't hear from me for awhile. I know, I know...it's devastating, but I will be back! Please pray for our family as we lead 2 cycles of mission trips there. It feels crazy to do so close to moving away from Orlando, but I'm excited! What a way to jet-set into my 30's!!!

Cheers!

Disney

At the end of April, we took the little Mister to Disney World for the first time!

Since living in Orlando, we get asked pretty frequently, "So, do you go to Disney, like, ALL the time?"

And most people are shocked when I tell them that this is the first time I've been to Disney World in 11 years! We have been to Universal a number of times, but not Disney. And we were always the parents that said we wouldn't take Harrison until he was old enough to appreciate it (which in reality is probably not until he's paying his own way, but you never know!) like at age 5. But, a couple of months ago, Brett found an incredible deal for us Florida residents that we couldn't pass up....seriously, if I told you, it might make you throw up a little in your mouth.

We had a GREAT time! Harrison was an angel and made it through about a half day at the park. Here's a few pics of the little man to enjoy...

Raisins were our best friend that day

He loved the magic carpet ride and Dumbo....Turns out our Harrison is not scared of heights like his parents are!!

Look at those tired eyes...

Where did Mom and Dad go???

Found 'em!!!

Nana

Hi People,

My Nana came to town this past weekend...oh man, she is super! Over the past few months I have really started remembering places and people, and she is one that I definitely don't forget! Sometimes I grab Mama's phone and ask, "Nana peez?" So, she came to see me this weekend and Daddy and I threw Mama an early surprise birthday party because she's about to turn 30. Wow! It was a really fun weekend and here are a couple pictures from it.

You wouldn't believe the attention I get from this woman! She is the bee's knees!!

Oh, and guess what?? We finally have pictures to catch you up on some of my latest shenanigans, so be looking for some updates soon!!!

Peace out,

The H-Man

Official...

Good grief, we are a one car family again. A few of y'all know that sweet Brett and I shared a car for 3.5 years. What? How did we do that??? Well, seeing as we lived together (obviously), worked together (mostly in cubes next door to each other--which Brett detested), and travelled together, it was all we needed. Brett married into my car in 2004 and we put some miles on that thing! It was really sweet only having one car (although challenging at times if we had to be in 2 separate places, but, like I said, we were together 99% of the time), we had lots of talks, arguments, and fun driving in little Freckles. I call her "Freckles" because she got severe hail damage before we got married, and I think "Freckles" is a much nicer name than "Crater Face". I love names.

When Harrison came along, we upped the ante to being a 2 car family, and sweet Brett let me drive the newer wheels. Well, we knew we had to sell one of our cars for our big move, and with the little jetta being 10 years old, having no AC (in Florida--miserable), needing lots of work and having 150,000+ miles on her, she was the one to go. And let me tell y'all, that we sold her off of Craigslist--in 2 days!!! If you have a nicer car to get off your hands, this may not be the way to go, but if you have a beater like ours, do it!!

Do y'all get attached to your cars? I do....and although Brett has been the primary driver of this little black beauty for the past 2 years, I will still miss her. She came to me my senior year in college and was actually cute then, and who doesn't have great memories of the car they had in college?

Not only did we sell a car, but we also bought some plane tickets for our journey to East Asia! We are leaving the US of A on August 17th. For those of you Atlanta folks, we will head that way at the end of July to spend a couple of weeks with both of our families, and perhaps have a little going-away soiree. Things are super crazy here, and we are a mix of emotions. Boxes are being packed (because my husband is Mr. Super-Organized-Planner-Man), and unfortunately, goodbyes are having to be said already. But, it's official...and exciting!

Wish us luck as we share one car for about the next 10 weeks!!