Merry {first} Christmas!

While Trey was in Kenya, I found out some things about Little Man that I wasn't sure of. Based on his name, people had told us that he was from an Islamic family. I confirmed this by asking some of the older kids where he is currently living. They said they knew for sure because the first couple of days he was there he performed his prayers 5 times a day. Then when he realized no one else was doing it, he stopped. I had them ask him {he's still learning French and doesn't always understand mine :)} if he still knew the prayers. He said yes. My eyes began to open and my mind began to race and my heart began to melt. What did we ever do to deserve to be this kid's parents? What a privilege.

Trey returned the Monday before Christmas. Little Man asked me if he could be at the airport when "papa" came back. I told him unfortunately that wouldn't work out, but we would be back to see him soon. It worked out that Little Man {and a friend} were able to stay the night with us Tuesday night. This was HUGE. First, he got to see what our life was like. He got to see how we would love him in our home, provide for him, and essentially how things work in our home. Trey took him to see the beach for the first time. He tried {but didn't like} pizza. He played with blocks for the first time. He broke one of Chandler's toys, the first of many I'm sure. He opened his first Christmas gifts. And Chandler stole them, again not the only time this will happen. It was a great night. The next day I made lunch and he wasn't ready to eat. I asked him to eat since we needed to get on the road to head back to Sakété. He took a few bites, pushed the food away and walked out the front door. I thought he was going to play with Barley {the dog} as he had done before. Then I heard the gate to the road open and shut. I took off, yelling at Trey, afraid of what was going on. I go out to find him throwing up. We tried to ask him what was going on. He wouldn't talk. We asked if he wasn't feeling well. Silence. We assured him we weren't mad, just wanted to know why he threw up. Silence. We then got the friend {who's much older} to talk to him in the local language. Silence. So then we enlisted Rigo, the man who helps around our house and seems to have a way with kids. Rigo talked, Little Man answered. Apparently, he wasn't hungry, but thought I'd be mad if he didn't eat what I made him. So he tried, it hurt his stomach, so he threw it up. We told him it was ok. We weren't mad, just concerned. He then took a 2 hour nap - knocked out, snoring kind of nap - which he doesn't take naps anymore.

All in all, it was a good two days. But it only got better for this mama's heart. Remember when I said he came from an Islamic family, well that means that this Christmas was the first time he's ever celebrated Jesus' birth. I don't think that God made Trey sick so that we would be able to spend Christmas with Little Man, but I do think that God blessed us with the opportunity to spend his first Christmas with him in the midst of our trials. We sat there and watched as he heard the Christmas story for the first time. We watched as scripture was read and the birth of our Savior was made the most important. And then we watched as he excitedly opened his Christmas gifts. That night, we invited him to stay the night at our friend's apartment with us. He agreed to staying in the same room with us & Chandler. When bedtime came, tears started coming. We aren't sure exactly why… maybe he was just overwhelmed with everything, but eventually he made his way into our room and to the palette we made for him next to Chandler. I sat there and rubbed his back until he was asleep. Trey and I slept soundly having our 2 kids under one roof - our little family of four.

When we decided to adopt an older child, I accepted the fact that we wouldn't see a lot of his "firsts." You know, first smile, first laugh, first word, first steps, first solid foods, first holidays… all of those typical firsts. But God showed me differently. They may not be all the same "firsts" that Chandler had, but there are surprisingly a lot - first Christmas, first American food, first time at the beach, first time playing with blocks, and the list will go on and continue to grow.

We are still a little ways out from having Little Man permanently in our home, but every day is one step closer. And having days and nights like those mentioned above is an incredible insight into our future. We are so thankful that God has given us the opportunity to have another child and the opportunity to currently build a relationship with him. After we had Chandler, I wondered how it was possible to have more children and love them the same. I even asked other mothers how they did it. Their answer was that it just happens. Now, I understand. It just happens.

Family Update

Before Trey and I got married, we saw international adoption in our future. We didn't know when, from where, or which child, but we knew it would happen one day. We talked about it from time to time... the details, that is. And then we had Chandler. We are so blessed by her little presence and personality. Watching her grow over the last 17 months has been incredible. We began to talk about growing our family. We talked about when we'd start trying again. We counted out the months and when a new baby would be born. We talked about how old we wanted Chandler to be when she became a big sister.

Living overseas has continued to open our eyes to the heartache of this world. We've made friends who work at an orphanage (friends we've mentioned on here before) and have seen insight into their world. Also, insight into the children's backgrounds and lives. God continued to push international adoption to the forefront of our minds. We began to search out what it would look like to adopt from Benin. We've heard stories and seen people in the process here. It hasn't been easy, but then again, what adoption (domestic or international) is easy?

I'm sure you can guess where I'm going with this... the family update we have.... we're in the process to adopt from Benin. We have begun and are taking it step by step, daily. There's still a lot of uncertainty in adoptions from Benin, which gives us a lot of uncertainty. But we know this is something the Lord has placed on our hearts for years. And we know He's giving us a peace about it now.

We are asking you to pray with us. Pray for ease in this process. Pray for judges and other officials to be compassionate. Pray for the child God has already picked out for us. Pray for their health and well being. Pray for those caring for him/her. Pray for Chandler and her adjustment to a sibling (and learning how to share!). And pray for us that we will be discerning in this process. And that we will be patient.

We plan to keep you updated on the process as much as we can. But know that often, we won't know what is going on! Feel free to write and ask us how it's going, too. We want to bring you, our partners in prayer and ministry, along on this journey.

not our plans...

Many are the plans in the mind of a man,

but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.

Proverbs 19:21 ESV

We had ministry plans while our team from Olive was here. They were giving Trey the opportunity to reach out to the surrounding community, to make our presence known there. He was going into the surrounding area, talking to people, sharing Bible stories, making connections, and letting people know he was showing the Jesus Film on Thursday night. Things went well. There was a village to the north that was welcoming and inviting. There's potential there. Everything was good. There was nothing bad about that week...

Registration at first village

Trey with Chief

And then Friday came. Friday morning we set out with the team to host an eye clinic in that village to the north. It was great. They were grateful hosts. Such sweet people and children. My heart broke as a little boy asked me what we were doing here. I explained to him it was glasses for reading and that mainly older people would need them. He looked at me and asked if we could fix this... pointing to his brother's club foot. That's a reality here. There are lots of medical needs and we can't fix all of them. I told him no, but that we would pray for someone to be able to come and help him. And then we continued to talk about their life. The team did great! Everyone who came to get tested for glasses heard the gospel. And all who heard, said they want to follow Jesus. I, being skeptical, don't believe that everyone truly means that... but I know that I know that I know they clearly heard the Gospel that day. And because of that eye clinic, we will be welcomed back with open arms. And we will be going back there.

Andrea checking glasses

Rachel & Tiffany testing eyes

Registration at second village

Friday afternoon we headed to a village to the south, one that our friends at Arbre de Vie have connections with. On the drive we passed a teenage girl walking the opposite direction of us wearing a Baptist shirt. We stopped and talked with her. We were shocked to see her since we knew there was only one Baptist church in this very vast area. We asked her about the church and she said we would see it if we continued ahead. So we continued. And we came upon a teenage guy wearing Baptist cloth. Again, we stopped. Shocked. He was going to same direction we were, so in a very African fashion, we told him to hop in the back of the truck and we'd drop him where he was going. As he got in a moto passed us carrying the teenage girl and her parents... going in our direction. We were confused and excited all at the same time. Finally we reached the church. Ashley, driving the car in front of us, pulled over to make sure we didn't miss it. We stopped, thinking we were dropping our new Baptist friends off there. They said no, we're going with you to the eye clinic!

Danny checking eyes for a pastor

We continued to the school where the eye clinic was being hosted. We got everything set up and then had a minute to talk. Trey quickly realized the two pastors had been at two of his trainings. Before when they told him where they were located, he hadn't heard of the town, so he wasn't able to keep the place in his mind. The teenage boy speaks great French, so he assisted us in the eye clinic. The pastors jumped in and helped share the gospel to everyone who came through. I spent time talking with the daughters and through them, talked with the wives. It was really great. It was not our plans to go to this village. It was not our plans to have someone announce the eye clinic the day before. It was not our plans to pick up random people in the village. But it was God's plan.

Kristen with pastors' daughters

Trey with pastor's son

Because of this clinic, we've developed a great relationship with these pastors. We've talked with them about church planting. They already have a vision for this and have already been working towards it. We are grateful for the opportunity to come alongside these two families in their ministry. We are grateful that we could not avoid His plans that day.

Anthony, Pastor Barnabi, Pastor Michel, Trey, Kristen, & Chandler

Photo Catch Up: July part one

Just because we've been rather inactive here, does not mean we haven't been active. In fact, that's the reason we've been inactive... so much going on. In an effort to get all caught up, here's some pictures (& descriptions) from the month of July!

First, we celebrated the Fourth of July! We had friends coming in town on the 3rd, so we had a Third of July party - filled with red, white, & blue, and lots of American food, and country music.

Then we co-hosted a team from Olive Baptist. They worked with our friends at Arbre de Vie hosting a sports camp & Bible school. The last day they helped to host an eye clinic in two villages surrounding - both of which God is opening doors for new churches.

they said difficult days would happen

Remember when I told you about Frances? Well, she needs some prayer again.

She's back in town, and divorced. She returned a few weeks ago and came by to visit. She started helping watch Chandler while I worked with my language tutor. It was nice when Chandler would take a nap and she'd come listen to my language lessons... especially when I was reading Bible stories over and over again. I read them so much that she basically memorized them. One day I had her stay so I could study some with her and working on my grammar in conversation. I had her tell me a Bible story. She repeated the story of the demoniac that I had been practicing in Mark 5. I asked what she thought about the story and she said it was good. It's good that he was healed and normal. I then asked if she knew the story of the woman at the well in John 4. She didn't so I let her read it while I wrote sentences for practice. Again, I asked what she thought about the story. Again, she said it was good. I asked her what she thought about Jesus saying He is the Christ and she agreed that it was true. I was taken back. She claimed the Koran says that... and that He is a prophet. I then explained to her that there is a difference in Jesus being a prophet and being the Savior of the world. She didn't really agree with me about that, so instead of arguing... and well, because I can't really argue in French... I moved on. I continued with my homework and let her read the story of the Fall in Genesis. A few minutes later she said she wanted to ask me a question. I thought, ok, Lord, give me the words in French to understand and answer. And then she asked me for money for a new cell phone. I was a little disappointed, but that's a very cultural thing here. I told her she would get paid on Friday.

Fast forward to Thursday night... I'm frantically searching for my iPad. The last time I used it was early that morning and then Chandler played with it for a few. Now, I couldn't find it, anywhere. Trey and I tore apart the entire house, searching for 2 hours... I even made him look in the washing machine. You never know, right?! We called 3 of the 4 people who were at our house that day (and every day) asking if they saw it, and getting no helpful answers. With much hesitation and heart ache we came to the conclusion that someone had taken it from the home. I was devastated. I was heartbroken. My feelings were genuinely hurt. It wasn't the fact that the iPad was missing. It really had nothing to do with the item. It was the fact that someone I trusted would take something.

The next morning we waited until all of the same people came to the house and Trey talked with them. He gave an opportunity for someone to admit what happened anonymously. No one did. He then let them search the living room and talk amongst themselves about what happened at the house yesterday. We stayed out of the room. Again, no answers. Talking with our house helper, Rigobert, and Trey's language helper it was becoming clear that Frances' story wasn't making sense. She had acted strange the day before, but some people have off days. But... lies were starting to appear in her story. Trey decided to call them one-by-one into his office. After an hour sitting with her, and a translator to make sure everything was clearly communicated, the truth came out. She said she was playing on the iPad and thought she broke it. She was taking it home to get it repaired and would then return it. We got the iPad back.

Like I said in the beginning... this long story is all about your prayer. We feel this situation has given us the opportunity to show Christ's love and forgiveness. Also, to show how God is just. Pray for us as we continue our relationship. Pray that we can forgive. Pray as we decide what changes need to be made in our household so that we don't run into this again. Pray for me as I use this to clearly present the Gospel to her. We long for her and her family to know Jesus. We long to see a radical change in their lives. Pray that this difficult situation for us, is only the beginning of their walk with Christ.

2013: a look back

Wow. 2013 has been one of the most incredible years ever. The theme of our marriage has not stopped. Still lots of traveling and moving this year, but we are at least settled for a while.

This year started with us in Nigeria. After an unsettling event, we began to question if we were in the right place for us. We returned to the states to have Chandler, not knowing what we should do. After much prayer, conversation, and reflection, we decided to look for other positions in our organization that were in a less tumultuous place. We settled on Benin and then focused on our baby coming!



Chandler was born March 13. The day that forever changed us. There are small details of the day I may forget, but for the most part I can remember everything. Trey tells me that I've already forgotten about the pain of the contractions. I mean, they weren't that bad, right?! I was determined to have her on the 13th, though, because I thought it would be a cool birthday - 3.13.13 - cool, right?!

Two and a half months later we boarded our plane to Benin. We landing in French speaking Africa and already felt a peace. It was very different than Nigeria. Still a very lost area, just a different kind. We immediately jumped into language study and worked on getting our house ready to move in. With in two weeks we were moved in and doing full time language study.


Shortly after our arrival, we headed to Kenya for a retreat. The time with other workers from our organization was amazing. And the weather was absolutely wonderful on top of the mountain! Seriously, it was freezing at night. Chandler slept in footie pajama's, two swaddling blankets, a fleece blanket, and a hat! After the retreat was over we had the opportunity to go on a Safari! Once in a lifetime opportunity. I encourage anyone who EVER has the opportunity to go on a safari - jump on it. Seriously, incredible. And we didn't even see all the animals.

We made it back to Benin and back into French study. We were able to help with a few volunteer teams here. That gave us great insight in to Benin and the people here. We also got to do the touristy things with them and had the chance to visit Ganvie for the first time. We got introduced to Frances early on in our arrival to Benin. We also met her family. Her uncle has become a good friend of ours and through him Trey had the opportunity to share the gospel with his friend and see a new believer. We also had a volunteer team come from Hiland Park Baptist to do a pastor's training. It was nice to have friends visit.

In August, I experienced my first time driving in Africa. Seriously, that's a feat worthy of mentioning in the yearly post. In October, we took a trip to Ghana for a short break. We really enjoyed our time with friends. In November, we celebrated Thanksgiving at the American Ambassador's house! It's as close to America as we could get. We watched the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, football, and ate turkey & ham and other American classics made by guests.

December started with us preparing to come to the states for Christmas. We headed to Florida and had a great time with family & friends. The whole time we were back and forth between Panama City & Pensacola. We celebrated the marriage of one of my best friends, Michelle (and Jeremy), at the end of December in Dothan. Then, Trey's birthday on December 29th. New Year's Even was simple since we had a sick kiddo, but she quickly got over that.

This year really has been incredible. We are so thankful for the opportunities the Lord has provided us with this year. We are so thankful for your support, prayers, and encouragement as we strive to do what we have been called to.