Look What My Husband and Daughter Did!

For Christmas this year this mommy received a couple of priceless gifts. First, daughter Julie made me a 2008 calendar of the VanLue Girls. She took the girls one Saturday morning ~way before Christmas....(friend Stephanie took the pics, and Kathy P. came to assist:)) and did 12 months worth of pics....then made it into a calendar! Each girls birthday month features that girl, with priceless pics and poses in between --reflecting each one's personalities. What makes it even better, is that no one told the mommy~they actually kept a secret for weeks!! WOW! Written into the calendar pages are dates with each girl, and special sleep-in mornings for mom, dinners, and various special times. Can't wait! Julie also had hanging as a suprise in her daddy's office, a HUGE framed pic of the 4 girls with the saying "In a daughters eyes, you're a hero." Let's just say, she made both parents cry this Christmas!!

THEN my husband had a book made for me entitled "They Call Me Mommy". Get out the kleenex! There's a poem we found titled 'The Orphan's Prayer' which he printed in the book, with new verses written by him....and each girl has a book section dedicated to her. Katherine's has her China story we had written before we left, along with travel pics. There's even a section for Cade!

The finale is a quote from Steven Curtis Chapmans new song about envisioning mothers all around the world....'You may not see it now, but I believe that time will tell...how you were changing the world, one heartbeat at a time..making history with every touch and every smile....' because they call you Mommy.

Life for us this past year has been on fast forward....crammed with unusual amounts ups and downs....all sovereignly deemed for us by the Lord's hand. As it says in Isaiah, " His thoughts are not our thoughts, and his ways are not our ways"! How true! How vast is the knowledge of our Father as he apportions to us exactly what we need at the proper time! You will not find our family seeking that which the world calls easy or even average/normal......what you will find is this mommy dripping with diamonds....yes, diamonds....not what you think of ordinarily, but those of the eternal nature......four extraordinary, rare pink ones (actually five...Mel is extraordinary too!:) and two blue:) We are blessed beyond measure and know it's only by the hand of God on our lives that we are even able to have what we have, and do what we do. We're looking forward to all this year holds and in enjoying these beautiful girls and guys!!