"More"

The Lord, through His kindness has blessed us with a precious child who will soon "officially" be our son. These days as he is learning and growing there are so many moments that are so sweet and yesterday was one of them. James and I were sitting on the couch early in the morning right after he had woken up. I was snuggling him and telling him what a treasure he was to his mommy and daddy, I got close to his face and softly said, "I love you so much." He looked back up at me with those big brown eyes, snuggled in close and with the sweetest tone of voice said, "moooore." I don't know if he wanted "more" snuggles or was telling me, "No, Mommy, I love you more." Either way, Mommy knew what he meant and I am ever so grateful.

Please continue to pray for the adoption process, it looked like we would have completion at the beginning of September. That now looks like it will be either late September or early October. We are at complete peace with the delays, knowing from the beginning that is all just part of the process...and the "process" is totally worth it.


I have to tell you I am giggling as I finish this post...James is dancing in front of the mirror laughing at himself, just having the greatest time with the little brown eyed, curly haired boy in the mirror.

Sweet times. I looked forward to many "moooore" of them.

Mr. Personality

Here are a few recent pictures of our sweet James. We are so thankful for his fun personality. He loves people, is very social and always has something to say. He is a very busy boy! His favorite things to do are watch golf (no lie, he is obsessed) play "toddler" golf, and hit or throw any ball he can. He loves to read and sits for minutes at a time going through book after book. He has currently taken quite and interest in Veggie Tales and dances all over the room when the theme song comes on, pointing to the TV and saying "Bob!" "Bob!"

We are so humbled by the Lord's kindness to our family.

James, you are such a joy!

More than $3 Dollars

Chad receives the "Voice of the Martyrs" newsletter each month. He recently pointed out this quote from the August addition and I haven't been able to get it out of my head.

Convicted.

"I would like to buy $3 worth of God, please. Not enough to explode my soul or disturb my sleep, but just enough to equal a cup of warm milk or a snooze in the sunshine. I don't want enough of God to make me love a black man or pick beets with a migrant. I want ecstasy, not transformation. I want warmth of the womb, not a new birth. I want a pound of the Eternal in a paper sack. I would like to buy $3 worth of God please." -William Rees

"I want ecstasy not transformation." How true this is....so often it is just the ecstasy we want, the "feel good," kind of ecstasy. The ecstasy that moves us to raise our hands in praise on a Sunday morning but is not enough to provoke us to love the beggar, the prostitute or maybe the orphan.

Transformation would just be to radical.

God didn't send His one and only Son so that we might have ecstasy. He sent Him so that we might have "life" a new life.

Transformation.

"And be not fashioned according to this world: but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is good and acceptable and perfect will of God." Romans 12:2

Maybe it's the sideburns?

We had a little get together last night at my grandparents house and on the way to their house we stopped at Publix so I could pick up a few last minute things. Chad, James and I all went in the store and when we finished shopping Chad was going to take James to the car with the groceries while I walked next door to Joann's. As we parted ways out of the corner of my eye I saw a man and a few people behind him walking very fast out of the store headed towards Chad. The man started yelling..."Hey you! Hey you! You in the blue shirt...(at this point he was getting frustrated that Chad wouldn't turn around) "Hey, you in the blue shirt, are you Tim Tebow?" Chad turned around, looked at the man like he was crazy and quickly said, no. By the time I got to Joanns I could hardly stop laughing and was dying to get back in the van with Chad and see his reaction. Chad and I both laughed the whole way to my grandparents and of course I could hardly wait to get there and tell the family. Everyone called Chad "Tim" the rest of the night. :-)

I am sure honored to be married to "Superman." Well, my superman anyway :-)

Backpacks! Backpacks!

One of the chilling realities of our day is that children are constantly being removed from their homes and their families. So many circumstances surround these disruptions but it is always needed to protect the children. These removal's are horrifying for everyone involved. Once the children are removed from their home they are placed in a foster home or the home of a relative. I wish I could tell you it is there they stay until their parents are able to take care of them again or someone adopts them and gives them a new home. This unfortunately is not the case. Many, many children in our foster care system are moved around from home to home all the time. Some children growing up in as many as 15-20 homes. I can't even fathom that. Whether the children are moved from their birth parents home or a foster home they usually do not have time to take very much with them and so often, they don't even have a bag that belongs to them. There is no permanency, nothing that is theirs and theirs alone. In our adoption classes the ladies from Partnership for Strong Families shared with us the need for bags for these children.

I know we can't give them all homes but we can sure help get them all bags!

Here is our plan...we are working to collect 25 backpacks by August 25! We would love to collect more but I wanted to have a realistic goal and 25 would be so exciting for the local foster care office. New backpacks are preferable but used are appreciated also! Color, size or brand doesn't matter at all.

If you collect a bag or bags please email me at chad_amber_rollins@yahoo.com and we will gladly come get the bags from you. If you live far away but would like to participate please email us at the above address and we can work something out.

Thank you in advance, for your compassion.

Amber

132,000,000

You might want to pause the sidebar music.

"For they are fearfully and wonderfully made, marvelous are Your works, Oh that their souls would know. Their frame was not hidded from You when it was made it secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw their substance, being yet unformed. And in your book they all were written, the days fashioned for them, when yet there was none of them. How precious also are Your thoughts towards them, O God! How great is the sum of them." Psalm. 139:14-17

Lord, may our thoughts towards them be like that of Yours.

132,000,000

This is reality.

Welcome, finally!

Friends,

It has been several months since we closed our old blog and decided to begin a new one with a little different focus. We have saved our old blog and look forward to making it into a book we can look back over in years to come and be reminded of God's faithfulness.

We wanted to begin blogging again but felt very led to not only talk about life and the happenings around the Rollins house but work towards an adoption awareness and focus. The Lord is pressing our hearts tremendously in this area and we desire to be a voice for adoption and how it relates to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

We look look forward to sharing some of our lives with you and talking openly about marriage, parenting, adoption and the sanctity of life.

All glory to The Father,

Chad and Amber