This past Sunday was a very special day.

 We dedicated our dear Christiana to the Lord during the Sunday morning service at our church. As our entire family stood along with our pastor and his wife before our church family and dedicated this newest blessing back to the God who gave her to us I was overcome with emotion on many levels.

 I was filled with joy that God has chosen to bless us with this precious life.

I was filled with love for Christiana, my amazing husband, my beautiful children, my extended family, my pastors and my church family.

 I was filled with peace knowing that this child belongs to the Lord and that He is in control of her life.

 I was filled with hope, awe & wonder at the knowledge that God has a very special and unique plan for her life and that she will certainly be called by God to do great & mighty things for His kingdom.

 As I stood there and looked out on the congregation, it hit me that 20 years ago in 1989 we had brought our first born daughter, Michelle to that very same altar, at that very same church and dedicated her to the Lord. Over the past two decades, everyone of our eight children has been dedicated to the Lord at this same altar.

 It also hit me that this is a rarity in our modern day mobile society where for one reason or another folks seem to switch churches every few years.

 I officially joined this church 26 years ago as a single young college student who after spending the summer as their youth intern decided that I wanted to become a part of this church family. My now husband, Dan became an official member after he decided to commit to being a part of the volunteer youth staff almost 25 years ago.

 One of the benefits of staying put over all these years is that many of our important spiritual milestones have taken place within those church walls and with our church family.

•  Dan proposed to me at the altar at the conclusion of our youth service on March 18, 1986 (and I said yes!)
• We were given counseling and married by the staff of this church and held our wedding reception in that very same sanctuary.
• We served on staff as youth pastors of our church for four years.
• Besides all of our children being dedicated to the Lord at that altar – one was saved during a children’s puppet crusade there (all the others prayed to receive Christ at home other than one who happened to be at a local gas station), three have been baptized in water at the church, four have been crowned an honor star through the outstanding girls ministry of Missionettes and two have held their Rite of Passage ceremony in the chapel.
• We have sat in the same section in the front left hand side faithfully every Sunday and worshipped together, prayed together, given offerings together, been convicted, inspired, amused and yes even sometimes put to sleep, by the messages, gone to the altar for prayer and ministered to others all in that sanctuary.
• We have taught Sunday School, worked in the nursery, volunteered in children’s ministry, attended special events, rejoiced along with dozens of young couples as they were wed, watched multitudes of baby dedications, baptisms and celebrated the lives of precious saints who went home to be with the Lord…all in that very same building.

 Now perhaps you might be thinking, that we found the perfect church since we have stayed and remained faithful all these years.   The messages must always be compelling, funny and interesting. The programs must be comprehensive and state of the art with something for everyone from infants to senior citizens. The music must be perfect and pleasing to everyone. The pastor and staff must be kind, compassionate, forgiving, wise, moral, charismatic, friendly, organized, effective communicators, dynamic leaders, ready to drop everything when you need them and willing to go the extra mile. The people there must be wonderful, supporting, encouraging, loving, serving one another – never gossiping, backbiting, complaining, grumbling  or…..

 …..oh wait – are you laughing yet?

 No, my home church is just like every church I know – full of imperfections, flaws, problems and frustrations.

 We have had some very amazing and awesome times at our church and we have had some very troubling and terrible times as well.  There has even been the “in between” rather dull and boring years with not much happening at all. We have seen hundreds if not thousands of lives dramatically impacted and we have seen people hurt and become bitter and angry.  We have gone through three pastors, five children’s pastors, six worship leaders and seven youth pastors. We have experienced an abundance of resources as well as times where we did not know if we would be able to turn on the lights the next Sunday.  We have had seasons of favor in the community and years marked with scandal.  We have seen people come and people go (and even come back again several times)  We have seen them trickle out because they were unhappy with this or that or because they were searching for better preaching or programs and we have seen them leave in droves because of some controversy, offense, disagreement or because of the latest and greatest new church starting up across town.

 And yet through it all….we have stayed.

 Why??? I am glad you asked.

We have stayed because we see commitment to our local church family the same way we see our commitment to our marriage and family.  We have made the commitment for the “long haul” – in good times and bad, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health and hopefully until death do us part.

Now of course their could be legitimate reasons to leave a church – like moving miles away, being called to minister to another congregation, if the church was to start heretical preaching (I’ll call this church adultery since they are forsaking the true Jesus – I might not leave for this but rather stay and fight but I do understand those that do leave for heresy)  or if their is abuse going on from leadership (one of the reasons I have chosen to stay in a church denomination that has a governing body over the local church that can intervene when leadership goes awry – non denominational churches lack such accountability) – but unfortunately the vast majority of people who leave a church do so, not for the reasons stated above, but because they:

• are unhappy, frustrated or bored with the services, teaching or music
• are not “getting fed” (ie – want the preaching to be dynamic, motivating and challenging)
• want a better nursery, children’s or youth services, Sunday school or other program they deem vital
• are angry at some church decision, the leadership or policies
• things are not new & exciting enough
• someone has ticked them off, offended, hurt or sinned against them

Now, I don’t know about you but I would not leave my marriage or trade in my family for any of those reasons.  Yes, there are times I am unhappy, bored, angry, hurt, frustrated and not very content with both my marriage and my family. Yes, there are times I want change or feel the need to have something new & exciting but that does not cause me to run off with a new guy or leave my children. And of course on occasion I long for a bigger house equipped with the all the” bells & whistles” and yet that is not what makes a house a home it is my family and our years of memories together that are the most important.

Since the Bible compares Christ and His commitment and love for His church to marriage and how it should operate – I think that we should all more seriously consider our commitment to the church as well.

Maybe it is time to stop church hopping. Maybe it’s time to make a commitment to a body of believers and stick with it.  Maybe it’s time to:

• pray during service if your unhappy or frustrated (or look for someone to minister to)
• feed yourself! (one of my biggest pet peeves is when adult Christians say “ I am not getting fed”. Really? Grow up & feed yourself)
• volunteer to make your church programs better or realize that perfect programs are really not that vital compared to what you are teaching your children about commitment & faithfulness by sticking it out through the good, bad & the ugly
• graciously and humbly communicate with your church leadership when you are concerned or have problems and at the same time let them know that you will not leave if things don’t change or go your way
• trust God that He is using the leadership of your church in your life for good even if they make wrong decisions or policies
• forgive those church members who sin against you (definition of forgiveness here – throw it in the sea of forgetfulness and remember it no more – you know – like what Jesus has promised to do for you…whew!)
• remember that “new & exciting” is fun while it lasts….but it always, always, always ends up being old & routine. (so start seeing that as solid, secure, consistent and faithful)
• “get over it” and realize that there is no perfect church – expect that you will at times be unhappy, frustrated, hurt and offended and enjoy the other times when you are thrilled, excited, amazed, touched, loved and blessed. Just like it is at home.

I believe that we have been blessed beyond measure by making such a unshakable commitment to our local church.  I also believe that the Lord is pleased that we have chosen faithfulness, commitment, forgiveness, long suffering and love over taking the easy way and “jumping ship” when we were unhappy, offended or discontent.

My one regret is that there are only a handful of others in our church who also chose to have that same type of commitment.  Oh how I would have loved to look out at that congregation on Sunday and seen the hundreds of church family members who were there when I became a member in September of 1983, who celebrated with us as we were married in 1986, who were there to commit to helping us raise our children up in the Lord as we brought each one of them to the altar and who played with them in the nursery, taught their Sunday School classes and led their Missionette clubs . Instead most of those folks are scattered throughout churches in our county, yes serving the Lord and yes still part of the greater body of Christ and while we have done our best to stay connected it is just not the same. We have all missed out on the joy, love and blessings of being an intimate “forever church family” while here on earth.

I hope and pray that my children as they grow up and settle down wherever the Lord leads them that they will find a church family that they will commit to and that they will be blessed to have members with that same commitment.  Does that exist anymore? I believe it can if we each just start today with our own decision to commit to our church family…..forever.

Oh what a beautiful girl!

I can’t believe that it has been seven weeks since I have posted anything on my blog!   It certainly hasn’t been –

• for lack of anything to say (this girl ALWAYS has something to say)
• and it hasn’t been because I am sitting around eating bon-bons (although I have been eating a bit too much these last few months & the clothes are getting tight….again. darn it!)
• or because I am sitting around watching TV (in fact there is no longer television available in my home – which is not really much different than before the big digital switch over,  since we only watched sports and an occasional Hallmark movie anyway).
• and no there are not any big JECHS events or fundraisers (although we did enjoy a reunion picnic in June), Creative Memories activities or homeschooling functions chasing me with deadlines at the moment.

Can I just call it “maternity leave”?  I took 12 weeks “off” with my first four babies (back when I had not yet decided that I needed to be an “at home Mommy”, whether we could afford it or not).  So a seven week break from blogging seems reasonable, after all there are 204 archived posts for everyone to read or re-read!

What have I been doing for seven weeks? I have been enjoying my sweet baby girl…immensly! 

FAQ

Is she a good baby?

She is practically perfect – and I am not just saying that.  When she fusses it is because she is hungry, tired or messy.  Other than that she is happy, happy, happy! She is really an easy baby. (and I have had HARD babies so I know the difference!)  But ya know….even if she was extremely fussy and hard, we would love and cherish her just the same…this just makes it more fun!

How is she adjusting?

This question always makes me laugh.  I want to look at her and say…”Christiana, how are you adjusting?”  She seems to have taken to us just fine.

How is she sleeping?

Ahhhh….the number one question every Mom & Dad of a newborn gets asked. (or a variation of it  – “Is she sleeping through the night?” or “Are you getting any sleep?”) First let me say that I can’t remember the last time I slept through the night since I began this mothering journey in 1989 (Well except for my annual anniversary get-away, CM conventions & incentive trips). I get woken up at least once after going to sleep by either a fussy two year old, a six year old having a bad dream or telling me they are using the bathroom, a sick child, a coughing child, a teenager with a question, a late night phone call, giggling girls having a slumber party or an all night study session. Oh and then there’s the 63 months (over 5 years) I spent gestating in which I am up with bladder issues, heartburn, nausea, back aches or just plain being TOO large to sleep.  So does it really matter if she is sleeping through the night?  Nah…not really. Besides someday I will enter into my eternal rest…right?

But I digress….to answer the question. She usually sleeps for 10-12 hours at night, only waking up for one bottle at 2 or 3am. She drinks the bottle, burbs, smiles with her big beautiful smile and goes back to sleep.

How is Daniel doing with not being the “baby”?

He loves being a big brother.  He kisses her feet each morning and says “My baby”. He really does adore her.  It is so neat to watch the protective big brother come out in him.

Actually the only child of mine that ever had a problem with a new baby was the #1 child who after having her little sister for less than a week said – “When are we going to take her back to the hospital?”

I think one of the bonuses of having a large family is that no one ever feels displaced when a new baby arrives…since they were never the center of the universe to begin with.

Is she yours?

Yes! I  am the proud Mamma!

What are people’s reactions to her?

 Oh my!  I feel like a celebrity every time I walk out the door.  Everywhere we go people stare at her saying she is beautiful.  They want to touch her, hold her and ask lots of questions.  Its really amazing – people are always attracted to babies, but I have never experienced this type of attention with any of my other children.  She is charismatic! How great God’s plan for her life must be.

Is the adoption final?

 We just signed “semi-permanent” placement papers today (leave it to the State of California to have a long drawn out process).  The adoption should be final in November and we will have a court date before the years end.  Although it is all just a formality…there is nothing that will stop the adoption from being completed. But it gives us another date to celebrate!

What no one has asked -

Are you going to have any more? or Are you done now?

Wow! How fun is this.  After the birth of every baby since Amy (#2) I have been asked if I was going to have more.  And after the last few people have gotten bolder and just flat out asked us if we were done now. Sometimes this is said with curiosity, often it is said with sarcasm. To which I have always replied either:

• “I hope not”   OR
• “Ask God – we leave the BIG decisions up to Him”

But no one has asked us if we are done or if we will be having and/or adopting another.  So either we have finally reached the tipping point and everyone just thinks we are crazy (so they just don’t ask) or the word is finally out that we trust God with our family size and that we think children are the most amazing blessing in life! But in case you were wondering the answer is:

• We sure hope we are blessed again with another child
• Ask God – we leave the BIG decisions up to Him

My eight amazing blessings! Thank you Lord.

Well dear friends, I’ve missed you ….here’s hoping to be blogging more regularly from here on out.

Was there ever a baby so loved and adored?

You wouldn’t think so by the overwhelming response upon our arriving home on Tuesday afternoon.  We arrived back home to the squeals of delight from all of our children. They each took turns meeting, holding and adoring their new baby sister.  It was such a special day. 

Throughout her first week she was greeted by friends and family members who stopped by the house to meet the newest little Lambdin. She also took her first trip to Jim Elliot Christian High School where she was “oohhed & aahhed” over for hours by hundreds of teenagers.  Friends & family members stopped over all week and we had a “Welcome Baby Christiana” Open House on Sunday.  She is blessed to be surrounded by so many people who love her and are committed to her.

As the saying goes…”A picture paints a thousand word” – I will let you enjoy these photos of Christiana’s homecoming week.

Daniel meets his new baby sister! (Who he has claimed as “mine”)

Kristen adores her newest sister

Joy is going to be a fabulous big sister!

Our dear friends Kelly Hale & her Daddy “Grandpa Jim” meet the baby girl

 Tiffana stops by to meet our newest addition

Cousin Janessa adores her baby girl cousin

Auntie Jennae chats with her sweet new niece

Daniel helps feed his baby sister – what a great big brother he is already becoming!

Sooooooooooo sweet!

Nothing better than a sleeping baby to take a nap with!

All eight of our blessings from God together at church on Sunday morning.  This moment made my heart swell with joy. Truly these children are my greatest treasures along with the love of my life, Dan. I can only encourage everyone reading this to give thanks for the blessings you have been given. If you are debating or considering having another child….do it! If you have ever thought about adoption (or even if you haven’t) begin to look into your options. If you have the room in your heart & your home (and believe me there is more room in both those places than you think) – why not open them up to a child of God? Be open to all life that He may want to let you play a small or even large part  of here on this earth. Don’t miss out on all that God has for you….you just may be “entertaining angels unaware” (Hebrews 13:2) and you will certainly be close to the heart of God.

Enjoy this slide show of our “Welcome Baby Christiana” party!  Yes….I would say she is loved.

There are some amazing circumstances surrounding our recent adoption that are evidence of the providential hand of God in every detail of our lives.  Let me share them in “bullet” form so that I can get them out quickly in the limited time frame I have.

• Many have asked about her name.  Yes, it is her given name by her birth parents and it is PERFECT.  All of our girls first names are ones that we simply like and all of their middle names are “family” names connecting them to a member of one or more of our extended family members (grandmothers, aunts, cousins etc..) and giving them role models to follow.  When they told us that our sweet new baby girl’s name was Christiana Michelle, I just couldn’t help but smile.  Christiana is a beautiful name that means “follower of Christ” , “anointed”.  And her birth Mom giving her the middle name Michelle — well it just doesn’t get any better than that.  Our first born daughter is named Michelle and we are thrilled to connect her to that name and couldn’t ask for a better role model.  Wow!  God is amazing!
• As I shared in an earlier post we just “happened” to have our placement the same day as the Open House for Life Choices and got to tour the facility and see the ministry up close & personal.  Just watch what the Lord does with that inspiration in the future. Wow! God is amazing!
• God provided us with a place to stay in Nashville – Amanda, a former JECHS graduate and a place to stay in Memphis – Kim, the sister of a CMC friend. Connections we have because of two of the great passions & pursuits in our lives – Jim Elliot Christian High School & Creative Memories. Wow! God is amazing!

We decided to visit the capitol building in Nashville while we were there – partly because we wanted photos of Christiana in her birth state Capitol and partly because I had one of my homeschooling daughters with me (Rebekah who is the 13 year old ”rich” babysitting daughter & paid her own way to be there for the adoption of her little sister) and after all “life is school”.  When we arrived in the building there was a lot of commotion going on.  We asked the security guard what was happening and he shared that they were about to start a legislative session.  Not wanting to pass up an opportunity to see government in action, we headed towards the balcony seating to watch a few votes.  To our surprise we ran into Karen & Sue at the bottom of the steps – the Life Choices Executive Director & Board President.  They were as surprised as we were and asked if we were there for “the vote”.  Not having any idea what they were talking about it was quickly shared that the strongest pro life legislation in Tennessee was up for a vote that very afternoon and was expected to pass – giving a great victory to the pro life movement.  They began introducing us to the multitudes of pro lifers that were there and were showing off our sweet Christiana to all, as a testimony to the option of adoption over abortion.  I can’t begin to explain to you what this all meant to me – a lifelong passionate  pro lifer.  Wow! God is amazing!

• Our last night in Tennessee we had the awesome privilige of having dinner with a former student who, without going into details, was a special part of our pro life journey over two decades ago. It was an incredible “full circle” experience to meet and share sweet fellowship with her and her husband who traveled over an hour and a half to join us for dinner.  Wow! God is amazing!
• My eldest daughter just “happened” to be flying home from her freshman year in college on Tuesday the same day we were flying home from Tennessee.  And even better yet she just “happened” to have decided to fly into Los Angeles to spend a couple days with her cousins before driving home to Stockton.  And of course we just “happened” to have a 2 hour lay over in Los Angeles on our way to Sacramento.  And all this just “happened” to converge at 11:30am on Tuesday.  Christiana was greeted by her eldest sister & namesake Michelle as well as three screaming cousins – Kate, Beth & Jen along with an adoring Aunt Caroline in LAX.  Wow! God is amazing!

• And last but not at all least an update on God’s provision.  Just hours before we left for the airport we had received enough contributions to pay for the adoption placement and all of our travel expenses. (thank you to everyone who has so generously been a part of this amazing adoption – may your generosity be multiplied back to you over & over again!) This left just our post placement adoption fees of between $1200 – $1400 (the amount will vary based on court costs & mileage fees)  Just this week we have received over $400 towards these expenses.  We have less than $1,000  left and we will have paid it all (the total cost of this adoption has been $16,000+).  We had our first post placement visit yesterday and I asked when our fees would be due – we should know that answer next week.  We are confident that the Lord who has provided in amazing ways thus far will complete His work on time!  Wow!  God is amazing!

Sunday May 17 was an amazing day!  It was the day that the Lord placed into our loving arms, through the miracle of adoption – our newest daughter – Christiana Michelle Lambdin.  Unlike the days our other children came into our lives,  I was actually all  “showered, shampooed & shining” for this momentous occasion.  We drove three hours from Nashville, Tennessee and arrived at the home of our hostess, Kim in time to get freshened up before heading over to the agency – Life Choices - who just “happened” to be having an Open House that afternoon.  We met the staff and toured their impressive facility which offers a full range of services for women experiencing crisis pregnancies – everything from ultrasounds, counseling, prenatal and parenting classes to adoption services, financial, clothing and housing assistance for both women and men who are walking through an unexpected or crisis pregnancy.  It stirred up a passion that has long lived in my heart to see this type of organization exist in my own hometown.  Nothing about our entire three day in Tennessee was “accidental”  but merely the providence of God bringing together our passion for life into our pursuit of adoption. There are so many things I could share and hopefully will have time soon to do that.

After our tour of the facility we met with the adoption counselors to sign papers and review information concerning our adoption of this sweet baby girl.  We the drove over to the home of the family that has been lovingly caring for Christiana for her first six weeks.  We were joined there by several staff and board members of Life Choices as well as the cradle care family.  We had a time of scripture reading -

“For you formed my inward parts; you covered me in my mother’s womb.  I will praise You for I am fearfully & wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works and that my soul knows very well.”

and sharing by the adoption client counselor, Amanda who worked with the our birth Mom; Rebecca , the Mom who has been caring for our dear baby and both Dan & myself. It was an emotional time of sharing as we each realized the hand of God in the adoption of this child.  We were then led in a time of prayer by George, the cradle care Dad who having personally experienced the adoption of his three children, brought the room to tears with his heartfelt prayer for our family and this precious baby.  They then presented Dan & me with the most beautiful and sweet baby girl who we held and loved as everyone in the room  basked in the joy and presence of the Lord during this miraculous moment.

We enjoyed sweet fellowship with everyone before heading out the door (and to Walmart to purchase bottles -  minor detail!) to begin our adoption journey and a new chapter of our lives as the parents of eight blessings from the Lord.  We will always remember this special day as a stellar one in the Lambdin family.

Tomorrow morning we will board an airplane bound for Tennessee and all of our lives will be forever changed.   Although we are obviously not new to parenting, we are new to adoption.  In many ways I have many of those same thoughts and feelings that I did almost 20 years ago as the days grew close to deliver my first child:

• What will the whole experience be like? (no labor pains – I’m likin’ that…wooohoooo!!)
• Will Dan & I be good “adoptive” parents? (is it any different than biological parenting? I don’t know?)
• Will the baby be easy or  fussy? (although the preliminary  report is that she is easy)
• Am I really ready?

Just like most of us in new uncharted waters we find ourselves perhaps anxious, apprehensive or simply wondering what it will all be like.  One of the best things being a “Mommy of many” has done for me is to become more comfortable and relaxed with the unknown as well as more willing and able to just trust God and give Him complete control. (yes I am a “recovered” control freak…or maybe the better wording is “in recovery” as it seems to be a life long process) I am confident that just like 20 years ago after delivering my firstborn, all my questions and feelings of uncertainty will quickly give way to a complete overwhelming and unconditional  love as I take this sweet baby girl into my arms and look into her eyes.  Perhaps it will even be more amazing as I experience for the first time what God has done for me when He adopted me into His family.

“He predestined us to adoption as children through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will” Ephesians 1:5

” …you have received a spirit of adoption as children by which we cry out, ‘Abba Father!’”  Romans 8:15

As we go to pick up this precious child of God and adopt her into our family, it will be a living picture of what the Lord Jesus Christ has done for each of us who have been adopted into the family of God.

This is a recent picture taken by the “cradle care” family  last Sunday on Mother’s Day. Isn’t she just darling? We all can’t wait to kiss those soft chubby cheeks!

I am taking my computer and my camera to give you all updates from Tennessee.  It is sure to be an exciting several days. We so appreciate all of your love, support, enthusiasm and prayers.

Financial provision update:  Thank you to all who have helped us raise the money to fund this adoption.  We are praising the Lord that in a short four days we now have the money to pay the agency in Tennessee. (thanks to over 65 friends who donated this week everything from $5 to $500 – every gift of every size counts!)  We put our traveling expenses on a credit card that we will need to pay off within 30 days. We will also have to pay our “post adoption” fees to the agency here in California by the months end ($1200 for 4 “post placement” visits from a social worker).  If you want to be a part of meeting these needs you can contribute here – https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=5373935  or email me for my mailing address beth@bethlambdin.net  We are truly grateful for everyone who has been a part of this adoption…..may it be blessed back to you in abundance!

Wow…can one phone call change your life in an instant and send it in to a whirlwind of activity.

Since Monday afternoon and my last post we have been going a “mile a minute” with preparations and details that need to be completed.

• Booking plane tickets to Tennessee – looks like we will be leaving on Saturday and coming home (with our baby girl!) on Tuesday
• Finding places to stay in Nashville & Memphis (thank you Amanda, Kim and Jan – who helped us find housing and are offering their hospitality!)
• Talking with the adoption agencies both in Tennessee & California
• Faxing forms and completing paperwork (it never ends!)
• Arranging meals, transportation & supervision for the rest of the family while we are away (thank you Sallee, Rachel, Kelly, Rachael, Leslie & Sarah)
• Raising the funds to pay for the remaining adoption fees and post adoption fees for both agencies. (we are currently half way to having the money – and God is doing a miracle! I have heard from some that the original link to make a donation did not work.  Here is one that should -  https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=5373935  ) The vast majority of these donations have been $10 – $20.  God can take a little and multiply it abundantly! Thank you to all who have been a part of bringing sweet baby girl home – from the beginning in October 2007 –  those who have bought Christmas wreaths, donated to yard sales, helped with our “barn raising” (adding that new much needed space to enlarge the family), encouraged us, prayed for us, cheered us on  and now those contributing for this last leg. You are ALL a part of the miracle!

On top of all that, life around here just doesn’t stop – still working on multiple things for JECHS, chauffeuring kids to appointments, lessons & practices, homeschooling (life is school!), wrapping up my National Scrapbook Day event from last Saturday along with upcoming CM events that have begun registrations, preparing to speak at a women’s retreat at the months end  and of course taking time to snuggle that cute little blond boy.  (oh and did I mention a major plumbing problem that needed attention immediatly -  thank you Mr Plumber – Roy Hale – once again you were my hero!)

In the midst of the whirlwind…I got an eye infection – which ultimately paralyzes me with pain and makes it hard to do much computer work, driving or being out in the sun. In fact laying there with both eyes closed is the best therapy.  At first I screamed (in my mind of course) – “Lord I don’t have time for this!” and then as I laid in my bed with a warm wet wash cloth over my eye I realized that about all I could do at that point was spend time in prayer.  There’s a thought!  That is what we should always do first during “crazy” times of life anyway – but I am such a “doer” that sometimes God has to go to extreme measures to get me to STOP & pray.  My eye is getting better today – but I will still be stopping to  pray for all the details of this adoption  - for the birth mother & father, for the adoption agencies and their staff, for a smooth transition, for the financial need, for traveling mercies, for the sweet baby girl, for her “cradle care” family (temporary family) as they say goodbye and for our family as we transition to this new exciting path for our life.

In the midst of your “crazy” whirlwind life – don’t forget to STOP & pray!

It has finally happened!

After 1 year, 7 months and 4 days of  “waiting”  we got a call this afternoon from a our very enthusiastic adoption counselor that we have been chosen to be the forever family to a baby girl who was born six weeks ago and is in need of a loving family and a place to call home.  I can’t tell you the joy that has filled all of our hearts and how our household has been turned into a frenzy of activity and commotion as we make plans and get ready to welcome a new baby into our lives.  We are all so excited!

There are many details to share and for sure I will be sharing soon….but for now let me just answer a few common questions for you.

“Wait, a girl! I thought you were trying to adopt a boy?”

When we started this amazing adoption journey, we thought we would be adopting a boy. In the midst of the process we realized that it really did not matter what the gender of our adopted baby would be (just as it never mattered the gender of our biological born children). Yes, we would like a brother or two for Daniel (and are still believing God for that to transpire someday soon) but we decided not to close our hearts to whatever God had for us.  Well, now we know that he has a precious baby sister to bless us all with and we couldn’t be more thrilled.

“You already have 7 children….Why are you adopting?”

• Because you can never have too many blessings in your life!
• Because children are a gift from God!
• Because the Bible says – “Pure & lasting religion in the sight of God our father means we must care for widows & orphans in their distress”  James 1:27  I believe that we as followers of Christ all need to play a part in the plight of orphans around the world – whether it is by adopting them into our family, supporting those who adopt, helping out financially, or fostering and providing a “forever family”  the many waiting children in the system.  Will it be hard? Probably…but just because something is hard that doesn’t mean we are not suppose to do it. (especially if it is so clearly stated in the Word)  Can we afford it? – No, not really but we know that the Lord will provide our needs.  (He promises us that) Will the adoption road always be easy? Probably not – but it will be worth it!

When will you be bringing the sweet baby girl home?

It looks like we will be traveling to Tennessee this weekend and hopefully be back home by mid next week with our new baby girl.  We will be posting lots of photos and keeping you all updated. (and for those who are local I am sure wse will be having a BIG baby shower & welcome party)

How can we help?

• Well thanks for asking!  We do need help and some of it we need pretty quickly.  As most of you know this entire adoption has been financed through fundraisers and donations.  We have aprox 2/3 of the money we need to finalize the adoption — but when we write that check for $7,500+ next week we will be short a couple thousand.  We also will have “post placement” fees here in California to the tune of about $1,200 in the upcoming month.  Then there is the air fares which as we are looking right now will run us about $350 each.  We know that the Lord has a plan & perhaps that includes you.  If you can do anything to help us out you can donate through paypal online here.  (Or you can send a check to – 313 W. Robinhood Dr  Stockton, CA 95207)  Please pass this request on to anyone know who has a heart to help others with adoption.
• Pray for us! Pray for this transition to be smooth.  Pray for the girls & Daniel as they wait rather impatiently for their new sister to come home. Pray for the mouths of any  ”naysayers” to be shut.  (yes people do say negative things)
• We have passed on most all of our girl clothes to bless others – so if you like to go shopping for little girl clothes – go right ahead! 

And now what you have all been waiting for – a picture of our precious new little baby girl!

If the above link does not work for donations – here is the URL – https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=5373935

My last post indicated that I was in a bit “over my head” especially with our big annual dinner auction fundraiser at Jim Elliot Christian High School.  Since that post on April 15th…I literally worked ’round the clock on this spectacular event.  And it was fabulous! You can read about it and see photo’s here – Denim, Diamonds & Dreams.

As with all big events like this, the work does not end with the actual event. I continue to wrap things up with a post auction sale, recognition, appreciation, evaluations and follow up.  Then I get to move on to putting out a quarterly newsletter & planning a 10 year all school reunion picnic. No….it never ends….but is so worth it when I see the hundreds of young people positively impacting the world & loving the Lord.

So hopefully I’ll be getting  back to one of my “loves” – blogging – but here is a quick update on life at the Lambdin’s:

• Daniel’s Birthday – We celebrated Daniel’s 2nd birthday on April 20th. He continues to be such a joy to all of our lives and his hugs and kisses truly bring life to my bones and refreshment to my spirit. I highly recommend everyone having a toddler in their life to love! 
• The “Boys Bedroom” Makeover- Three of our former students (who I often still call “kids” – even though they are 35) – Carrie Elliot, Rachel Fichtner & Leah Kidger decided to come over one Saturday & do a makeover on Daniel’s (the “boys”) bedroom – painting the walls & dressers and adding cute accessories.  It was so nice to spend the day with these lovely ladies and to be the recepient of their blessing.  (Now all we need is a few more boys for the boys bedroom!) 

• College Grads- My beautiful nieces – Kate & Beth Kirchner graduated magna cum laude from Pepperdine University last Saturday and we were able to take a quick trip down to celebrate this milestone with them. We are so blessed to have “elder” cousins like these girls and Janessa & Chrisann Meier for our children to look up to.  They are wonderful role models and examples for those coming behind them to follow.  The graduation was beautiful as the campus overlooks the Pacific Ocean (my favorite place in the world!) and the commencement speaker had some great life lessons to share!
• Adoption Update- Whew!  I know I have been very quiet about our adoption pursuits as of late.  Mostly because there has been nothing to share.  Well here is the latest – the day of the auction (the busiest day of my life) we got a call from the adoption agency that they had a “special needs” baby they wanted us to consider adopting and even though they knew we “wanted” a boy, there was a little girl named Makayla who was born on Daniel’s 2nd birthday for us to consider.  Of course we said unequivocally and without hesitation – YES!(just as we would to any baby we were given by birth).  Well…..we were informed yesterday that Makayla’s Mommy picked another family to raise her.  However that exact day they received a call from the hospital from another transient mother who had decided to choose a family for her child to be raised by….a little girl born on May 2.  So once again we are praying for the Lords perfect plan for this new baby & hoping that we are the chosen ones.  And yes we are still believing for a brother for Daniel but just might have to raise $30,000+ and go to Africa to get a couple orphan boys to love. (10 children sounds like a really great number….of course then there is the thought that it is “cheaper by the dozen” – we are open to whatever God has for us!)
• Trusting God - We have been given yet another opportunity to put our trust in God as our van had a bit of a mechanical problem that set us back by $700.  Since we don’t have an emergency fund for this type of thing – we spent 2/3 of our food and gas money for the month.  It will be awesome to see how the Lord provides for our needs and a great learning lesson on faith and trust  for our kids. 
• Coming Up this Month-  We will be observing National Day of Prayer on Thursday with our local community, my National Scrapbook Day celebration is happening on Saturday, of course Mother’s Day is Sunday with my usual requests – a foot massage & clean house (both of which cost nothing!), a planned camping trip over Memorial Weekend (which has been put on hold pending finances), School ends for the high schoolers & Dan the man at the end of the month, Michelle is coming home for the summer after completing her freshman year at The King’s College (wooohooo, can’t wait to have her back home) and I am ending the month by speaking at a Ladies Retreat in Lake Tahoe for Valley Community Church. 

Life & the Lord are good!

January is National Right to Life Month.

If you have read much of my blog or have known me for longer than 24 hours you most likely are well aware that one of my passions is LIFE!  I believe that all human life is a precious gift from God to be more highly valued than riches, possessions, personal pleasure or pursuits. I believe that every human being has the “right” to life – no matter their size, their level of development, their environment or their degree of dependency.

Do you believe that?

* Size – Are bigger people more human or more valuable than smaller people?  Is a baby born at full term weighing 7lb 11 oz more human than the one born in the room next door at 26 weeks gestation weighing 1lb 6oz? For my dear friend who delivered her baby at 15 weeks and held in the palm of her hand a tiny yet perfectly formed little baby boy and saw his perfect little hands, toes, eye brows and tiny little finger nails- she can tell you that her tiny baby was valuable and human.

Level of Development- Certainly we do not want to live in an elitist society that says only people with a certain level of development are human and valuable?  Are you at a higher development level  - physically, emotionally and mentally –  now than when you were 5 or 15 or  even 25 for that matter. I certainly am.  And as I age, I realize that in many ways my development will actually start deteriorating  (especially in the physical arena) – does that mean I am less valuable or human?  Level of Development does not make a life valuable.  No matter what our level of development, no matter what our disabilities, we have the right to life.

Environment – Does where we live determine our right to life or our value as a human being?  I have lived -

• under my parents 14 ”roofs” (in seven different cities, in four states)
• in a dorm room at UOP
• in two different apartments and a rental home
• in my own home (well ok, really the banks home)

….and in my mothers womb! I have been a valuable human being with the right to life in each and everyone of those places. Why would anyone suggest that an 8 inch trip down the birth canal somehow makes you human?

Degree of Dependency - Dependency is irrelevant to value in human beings.  My 21 month old precious baby boy (I refuse to call him a toddler yet) is completely dependant on others to sustain his life.  My 19 year old amazing daughter is completely dependant on insulin to stay alive. Someday I just might be completely dependant on my children due to the loss of my health or ability to work t0 provide for my needs – will that make me not valuable or have the right to life? In many ways we are all dependant on someone or something to sustain our life. And for those of us who have others depending on us to sustain their lives….are we not morally and ethically responsible to provide that need?

Bottom Line – Why is it ok to end the life of  a baby before they are born?

My passion for life is not something I just talk about – it is something I have actively lived out by -

• praying, praying & praying
• sharing my passion for the unborn with young people for the past 25 years
• teaching & training those same young people to defend the rights of the unborn
• having the privilege of being able to “rescue” a teenager literally right from out of an abortionists hands (her beautiful daughter is now 20 years old & living a wonderful life!)
• being arrested & going to jail for peaceful civil disobedience while protesting abortion (no signs, no words,no threats)
• being personally open to every life the Lord wants to bless us with – at any age, under any circumstances, at any time
• being willing to adopt any baby (no, not just a “perfect” baby) that a mother is unable to raise for whatever reason (really!  If you know of someone with a “unwanted” pregnancy we would love to raise their baby in our loving home)
• having an “open home” policy for anyone in a crisis pregnancy (or any other crisis for that matter)
• donating baby clothes, diapers and money to the Pregnancy Help Center in Stockton
• participating in fund raisers for Pregnancy Crisis Centers
• teaching, training, influencing and inspiring my own seven children to be actively pro-life
• and this past Saturday our entire family participated for the first time (but not the last!) in the Walk for Life in San Francisco with over 30,000 others who are taking a stand for the right to life for the unborn. 

These type of events help to solidify your and your children’s convictions in every way – from the inspirational speakers, the testimonies from women who regret their abortions, the warm, wonderful & diverse fellowship with fellow walkers and even listening to the angry protesters rhetoric ignites passion & purpose.

My eldest daughter, Michelle,  participated in the March for Life in Washington DC two days prior to our event (and I have to say I am one proud Mommy – she has been passed the baton & is running with it!)

She got to hear incredible “right on” speakers like Pastor Luke Robinson -

If you too believe in the right to life for the unborn,  I would ask you today….what are you doing to “talk the talk” AND ”walk the walk”?  Together we can – stop the killing of innocent life.

 * The SLED acronym was learned from Scott Klusendorf one of the best defenders of life in our country!(www.prolifetraining.com)