Happy Birthday, Vestine!

Today has been a very special day across the world in Rwanda, even though she'll be sleeping soon by now.

This little one,

who has found a place deep in our hearts,

turns ONE today!!!

Now, just to clarify before I begin to gush about this little girl, everything in us wishes she was the one we could bring home to our family, after months of loving her. But right now, this is just not an option. We are praying for changes, so that MANY children like Vestine can be given forever families. But, for now, we love her and pray for her from afar, knowing that God's perfect plan for her life will prevail, even if it doesn't look the way we would like. :)

But, for today...I sure wish we were there to love on her and sing to her and tell her how special she is.

I wish she could know how we pray for her every single day. I wish she knew how much I loved holding her while she slept.

But, someday we'll tell her...that we DID sing and we DID love and we DID think of how special she was all. day. long on September 5th...half a world away.

It's one of the hardest things about loving all the kids we love, in both Ghana and Rwanda.

God puts such special children on our hearts who we have to love from so far away. Part of our hearts live in other countries, and I'm still getting used to that. Or, will I ever really?

And, also.

This mommy can hardly stand it that so many orphans do not know the day they were born. They do not have a special day to celebrate their life. I think about my girls' birthdays and how MUCH they are celebrated from the moment they wake up. And, it makes me want to just plan birthday parties every single day the next time I'm with orphans.

Really. I'm going to. Who's with me?

This morning, as I woke up praying for sweet Vestine to KNOW she is loved and special today, I was reminded again that God doesn't need a special day of the year to show His love and sing His songs over His children. He celebrates them every day.

I don't think it's any coincidence at all, that after saying this prayer, the first song my Ipod Shuffle list played this morning was You Are Being Loved, by Steven Curtis Chapman.

"You are being loved. Right now at this very moment, you are being loved. There's a song being sung over you, by the One who breathed life into you!

"With every breath that you're taking, and every beat of your heart...whatever you do, wherever you are, there's a Song being sung over you."

God, thank you for singing over these sweet children even when many of us who love them can't.

We love you, precious girl! Happy First Birthday. We celebrate you today and all that you brought to our hearts and our family.