grace led in life: A favorite month of the year

There is a month in the year that means so much to us on so many levels...

It's a month that we hold very dear and have deep thankfulness for.

from Mid July to Mid August there are really special dates to celebrate.
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On July 11th, we get to celebrate our brave and kind Zeke Shuo! He turned the big 5 this year!

Zeke is such a thoughtful soul and often seems way older than his age. He loves big and his goal is to "fight for good" - wanting to be a rescuer in life. He is very protective of his sister and is so very sweet to her! Zeke loves Jesus and wants everyone to know about him. Zeke will always be sporting his police and rescue garb - seeking ways he can help out, protect, and rescue. He is the greatest bug hunter and will patiently observe the bugs and critters he finds...learning all about them! He loves to be Dad's right hand man and help out in the garage, repairing the cars, building anything, and being silly. He loves playing games - Fav games right now are Guess Who, Connect 4, puzzles, I Spy game, and the fishing game. He is so inquisitive and a learner. He loves knowing details and each detail matters to him. His fav things: Sweet foods, Legos, dinosaurs, geography, police, books, family time, riding bike, hiking, loves swimming, exploring, learning about anything.

We love you so much, Zeke!

Happy 5!

He has asked for months if we could go to "the cheese factory restaurant" for his birthday :)
So we went for lunch to the Cheesecake Factory!

On August 7, we celebrate joyful and vibrant Isla...she just turned the big 2!

This little girl is a fire-cracker of joy! We have loved seeing her develop into who God made her to be! She is vibrant with life. She is starting to say more words now, still incorporating some sign language. Her main words are, Dad, Mom, gege (big brother in Chinese), please, all done, bye bye, uh-oh, and animal sounds. Isla loves going for walks and swinging at the park. She loves swimming in the pool. Isla loves books, blocks, stuffed animals, writing on paper, stickers, the peek-a-boo toys, squigz, bath time, and she adores her blankie. She is determined - not wanting to let anything slow her down. She is brave and confident. She is so smart. She loves to laugh with us and be a part of all we are doing. Isla's favs: food...like, all the food - but especially peaches and chipotle, she loves mom to meet her needs and having many snuggles, but is falling more in love with Dada with every day, lovingly calling for him when he is out of the room. She thinks her brother is the "bees knees" and wants to do everything he is doing. She loves being able to move and is walking a bit more each day.
Isla you inspire us so much! We love you!
Happy 2!

Another two, of our greatest celebrations within this month,
are the days that we saw and matched with our greatest gifts...

Oh, how blessed we are! Our greatest gifts...our answers to prayer.

There are so many details surrounding our time of first seeing and matching with our little ones that speak volumes of God.
Such miracles...God is so very faithful!
We cannot believe it has been 4 years since we matched with Zeke and 1 year since matching with Isla! We are in awe of everything that has happened. We have grown so deep as a family and we are so grateful for how our faith has grown. We thank God every day for building us as a family. We are so humbled by his goodness. God has taught us so much through Zeke and Isla - about deep love, being brave, trusting, and God's deep love for us.
The love and laughs we have with theses two littles each day is a joyful blessing.
Celebrating the anniversary of matching with Zeke and Isla, and celebrating their birthdays, always reminds us of all that the Lord has done. So many memories...

Their life journeys are always on our minds.
The details of their lives matter and those details are their stories.
Their stories include both heartbreaking difficulty and breath-taking beauty.
They are brave.
We praise the Lord that he allowed us to be their parents. It is just truly humbling.

God is SO good...you guys, we do not just say that. He has carried us in every way through the journey to our precious kiddos and the journeys they are on in life.
Just so full of thankfulness...

It means so much to us, to share with Zeke and Isla about the love and grace of our Savior Jesus Christ. The Lord has done great things...and we love to share that with our littles.

We get to love because he first loved us - [1 John 4:19.]

His grace leads us in life. It is so important to us, to share that with our little ones.

At the end of July, we had the opportunity to take part in family dedication at our church. We were so excited to do this, sharing with our sweet church family, our desire to raise Zeke and Isla knowing who Jesus is and the truth of the God's word. My parents were with us for a visit, and able to be there for our family dedication, which was so special too!

We shared two Bible verses that we chose and pray for, for each of the kids.
Zeke - Isaiah 41:10 Fear not for I am with you, do not be dismayed for I am your God, I will strengthen you and help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Isla - Romans 15:13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.