"To bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair." Isaiah 61:3

The Burckhard Family

The Burckhard Family

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Great News.....

After a VERY long week....Bella is finally on the mend. She had her tonsils and adenoids out a week ago last Monday. Being the tough little cookie she is, I just assumed she would bounce back no problem. Boy, was I wrong! I really had to force her to take pain meds and drink....she seemed to be in a lot of pain.....poor thing! And her breath....Oh My!!!!!!

I only left the house one time during last week, and that was to pick up Grace from school because she got sick. :(

But today we got great news! While Bella was under anesthesia, the local lab drew blood for a full screening. Today we got the results: Negative to everything......HIV, anemia, Celiac, leukemia, thyroid.....Yay!

And today, I know she is feeling better, because she ate a graham cracker and drank a whole glass of chocolate milk.

Praise God for a great report and that she is finally feeling a bit better!

Great News.....

After a VERY long week....Bella is finally on the mend. She had her tonsils and adenoids out a week ago last Monday. Being the tough little cookie she is, I just assumed she would bounce back no problem. Boy, was I wrong! I really had to force her to take pain meds and drink....she seemed to be in a lot of pain.....poor thing! And her breath....Oh My!!!!!!

I only left the house one time during last week, and that was to pick up Grace from school because she got sick. :(

But today we got great news! While Bella was under anesthesia, the local lab drew blood for a full screening. Today we got the results: Negative to everything......HIV, anemia, Celiac, leukemia, thyroid.....Yay!

And today, I know she is feeling better, because she ate a graham cracker and drank a whole glass of chocolate milk.

Praise God for a great report and that she is finally feeling a bit better!

Saturday, November 27, 2010

Thank You, Lu, for the Button!

Lu, a wonderful Reece's Rainbow volunteer from England, designed this beautiful button for our little Nathan.



Grab This!

Be sure to right click on the box below and then select all.




Thanks, Lu from Poppies Blooming, http://thepoppiesblog.co.uk ..... we love it!

Thank You, Lu, for the Button!

Lu, a wonderful Reece's Rainbow volunteer from England, designed this beautiful button for our little Nathan.



Grab This!

Be sure to right click on the box below and then select all.




Thanks, Lu from Poppies Blooming, http://thepoppiesblog.co.uk ..... we love it!

Friday, November 26, 2010

OK, Let's Talk.....

Our Thanksgiving was a wonderful time of sharing, food, and fellowship. The highlight of the entire day was when we all sat down, after singing our grace, and were about to partake in our feast--

When all of a sudden, Grace with her little round face beaming in the candlelight, said "Ok, let's talk! Daddy?"

Translation: "Let's go around the table and share what we are thankful for...Daddy you go first!"

Grace knows how to get to the heart of the matter on all things and to focus on what is most important. Thank you God for giving us our Grace to shape us into the people you want to be!

OK, Let's Talk.....

Our Thanksgiving was a wonderful time of sharing, food, and fellowship. The highlight of the entire day was when we all sat down, after singing our grace, and were about to partake in our feast--

When all of a sudden, Grace with her little round face beaming in the candlelight, said "Ok, let's talk! Daddy?"

Translation: "Let's go around the table and share what we are thankful for...Daddy you go first!"

Grace knows how to get to the heart of the matter on all things and to focus on what is most important. Thank you God for giving us our Grace to shape us into the people you want to be!

Friday, November 19, 2010

Grace's Response......

Just the other day, Elizabeth said to Grace "Guess what? You are going to have a little brother!"

Grace responded by clutching her stomach, doubling over, and saying "Ugh, A boy! I gonna be sick!"

Ha Ha Ha......She is already over it, but we thought her initial reaction was just so "Grace!"

Grace's Response......

Just the other day, Elizabeth said to Grace "Guess what? You are going to have a little brother!"

Grace responded by clutching her stomach, doubling over, and saying "Ugh, A boy! I gonna be sick!"

Ha Ha Ha......She is already over it, but we thought her initial reaction was just so "Grace!"

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

We're on Our Way.....

Whew...the last few days have been busy with adoption stuff! Just this afternoon, we met with our Social Worker from Catholic Charities to begin the home study update. (Hi Lisa!) So, we are officially on our way....

How did we come to commit to precious Nathan? Well, this adoption journey started last spring when we fell in love with this little boy. We asked about Nathan, but knew it wasn't the right time to start. We both prayed that if he was meant to be in our family, then God would pave the way.

Then we found out that a family had committed to adopting him. We were a little sad for us, but so happy that Nathan had a forever family! I would continue to look at his little face on Reece's Rainbow over the last few months and pray for a safe journey home.

Fast forward to three weeks ago....Kevin and I were beginning to sense that God was calling us to adopt again. We were seriously considering another child, but did not have a sense of peace about it because their personality sounded too similar to Grace's--we knew that it would not be the best fit for the child and our family. While we were wrestling with the decision, we found out that little Nathan's family had to release him due to personal reasons. We took this as a sign from God and committed to him right away.

So, as we prayed last spring, God did intend for us to bring Nathan home to our family! It just wasn't the right time and now it is!!!!

God is good....all the time!

We're on Our Way.....

Whew...the last few days have been busy with adoption stuff! Just this afternoon, we met with our Social Worker from Catholic Charities to begin the home study update. (Hi Lisa!) So, we are officially on our way....

How did we come to commit to precious Nathan? Well, this adoption journey started last spring when we fell in love with this little boy. We asked about Nathan, but knew it wasn't the right time to start. We both prayed that if he was meant to be in our family, then God would pave the way.

Then we found out that a family had committed to adopting him. We were a little sad for us, but so happy that Nathan had a forever family! I would continue to look at his little face on Reece's Rainbow over the last few months and pray for a safe journey home.

Fast forward to three weeks ago....Kevin and I were beginning to sense that God was calling us to adopt again. We were seriously considering another child, but did not have a sense of peace about it because their personality sounded too similar to Grace's--we knew that it would not be the best fit for the child and our family. While we were wrestling with the decision, we found out that little Nathan's family had to release him due to personal reasons. We took this as a sign from God and committed to him right away.

So, as we prayed last spring, God did intend for us to bring Nathan home to our family! It just wasn't the right time and now it is!!!!

God is good....all the time!

Saturday, November 13, 2010

Mama's Away....

As I write this I am about three hours from home. This is one of the very first nights I have ever been away, all by myself without Bella, since bringing her home from Ukraine.

I was recently hired as the new Parent Consultant for Family Voices North Dakota for the Minot region. I am going to LOVE this new position because I get to work with families who have a loved one with a disability. Basically, my job is to support families by facilitating connections, navigating the system, and helping them get the support they need.

What a blessing for me to do this....and I get to do it from my home--just 8 hours a week.

That said, I am currently at a staff and board retreat in Jamestown. It was a beautiful drive down yesterday in the late afternoon listening to my new Matthew West CD, (while scoping out the countryside for our lost Bobcat machine) and taking in all the beautiful wide, open spaces of North Dakota.

After getting settled in my hotel room. I went to Applebees and had dinner--by myself. Then, I walked around Wal-Mart and headed back to my room to go through a huge stack of magazines that I have accumulated over the last year.

This "me time" is nice, I think.....but I miss my family!!!!!

When I awoke this morning, this is the face that was in my email. Daddy took it on his phone after he put the little muffin to bed.....


Sigh...well, I am looking forward to meeting my new colleagues and board members today. I will be home tonight and get to put my babes to bed. Then, I will probably be thinking "wouldn't it be nice to have a night to myself?....."

Mama's Away....

As I write this I am about three hours from home. This is one of the very first nights I have ever been away, all by myself without Bella, since bringing her home from Ukraine.

I was recently hired as the new Parent Consultant for Family Voices North Dakota for the Minot region. I am going to LOVE this new position because I get to work with families who have a loved one with a disability. Basically, my job is to support families by facilitating connections, navigating the system, and helping them get the support they need.

What a blessing for me to do this....and I get to do it from my home--just 8 hours a week.

That said, I am currently at a staff and board retreat in Jamestown. It was a beautiful drive down yesterday in the late afternoon listening to my new Matthew West CD, (while scoping out the countryside for our lost Bobcat machine) and taking in all the beautiful wide, open spaces of North Dakota.

After getting settled in my hotel room. I went to Applebees and had dinner--by myself. Then, I walked around Wal-Mart and headed back to my room to go through a huge stack of magazines that I have accumulated over the last year.

This "me time" is nice, I think.....but I miss my family!!!!!

When I awoke this morning, this is the face that was in my email. Daddy took it on his phone after he put the little muffin to bed.....


Sigh...well, I am looking forward to meeting my new colleagues and board members today. I will be home tonight and get to put my babes to bed. Then, I will probably be thinking "wouldn't it be nice to have a night to myself?....."

Thursday, November 11, 2010

An Adoption Funny....

When my sister's five girls found out we were adopting again, they excitedly ran to the computer to see little Nathan's photo.




Then the youngest girl, Natasha, said "And look, he's only $20!"

Wow, wouldn't that be great? In actuality, the $20 she saw on the screen was the amount that was in his adoption fund.

After Karla, my sister, explained this, she said the little girls scrambled around their rooms to collect any money they had to give to Nathan's fund. Isn't that the sweetest?

Nathan will love his Texas cousins!

An Adoption Funny....

When my sister's five girls found out we were adopting again, they excitedly ran to the computer to see little Nathan's photo.




Then the youngest girl, Natasha, said "And look, he's only $20!"

Wow, wouldn't that be great? In actuality, the $20 she saw on the screen was the amount that was in his adoption fund.

After Karla, my sister, explained this, she said the little girls scrambled around their rooms to collect any money they had to give to Nathan's fund. Isn't that the sweetest?

Nathan will love his Texas cousins!

Saturday, November 6, 2010

Wow! What a Week......

We certainly had one exciting week in the Burckhard household!

Monday.....our Bobcat was stolen.

Tuesday.....Kevin's brother Randy won the state Senate seat for his district. Woo Hoo, Randy! So proud of you! Kevin's sister Bonnie from Renton, WA, flew in to surprise Randy for the election results party. It was so great to see her too!

Wednesday.....We announced our commitment to bring home a little boy named Nathan (which is just a "stage" name....I can't announce his real name until we bring him home) from an Eastern European country.

My head is spinning and, of course, my heart is soaring! Thank you to all our friends and family who have shown support through comments on our blog and on FB. It means the world to us that we have such a wonderful circle of support as we start this exciting journey once again.

I will share more later on how we came to committing to this precious child in my next post.

Thanks again & Love you all......Paula

Wow! What a Week......

We certainly had one exciting week in the Burckhard household!

Monday.....our Bobcat was stolen.

Tuesday.....Kevin's brother Randy won the state Senate seat for his district. Woo Hoo, Randy! So proud of you! Kevin's sister Bonnie from Renton, WA, flew in to surprise Randy for the election results party. It was so great to see her too!

Wednesday.....We announced our commitment to bring home a little boy named Nathan (which is just a "stage" name....I can't announce his real name until we bring him home) from an Eastern European country.

My head is spinning and, of course, my heart is soaring! Thank you to all our friends and family who have shown support through comments on our blog and on FB. It means the world to us that we have such a wonderful circle of support as we start this exciting journey once again.

I will share more later on how we came to committing to this precious child in my next post.

Thanks again & Love you all......Paula

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

A Happy Blog Post.....

After yesterday's sad blog post, we have a very happy one to report.

Just follow this link and scroll down a bit....

http://reecesrainbow.org/category/1newcommittments

A very happy post, don't you think?

A Happy Blog Post.....

After yesterday's sad blog post, we have a very happy one to report.

Just follow this link and scroll down a bit....

http://reecesrainbow.org/category/1newcommittments

A very happy post, don't you think?

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

The SnowMen Have Dissolved.....

Sniff, Sniff....

You may remember last year when Kevin, my Dad, & Sam formed the "SnowMen" snow removal business.



We had a very sad thing happen yesterday....someone stole their Bobcat. We have put out a $500 reward for the safe return of it, but I am thinking it is long gone.

So, the SnowMen business is now "dissolved." Pun intended!

The SnowMen Have Dissolved.....

Sniff, Sniff....

You may remember last year when Kevin, my Dad, & Sam formed the "SnowMen" snow removal business.



We had a very sad thing happen yesterday....someone stole their Bobcat. We have put out a $500 reward for the safe return of it, but I am thinking it is long gone.

So, the SnowMen business is now "dissolved." Pun intended!