Grain Valley Eagles!

Hey all!

Thought I'd share a few "proud mom" shots of Dakota starting his high school basketball season! His first game was on Monday and as you can see on the score board, they won 45 to 24! I was video taping with my camera and didn't get any pics of him on the court. Dang! Well, there's always Thursday's game:)

Adoption Front--They put another consejo out on November 30th (which actually I was surprised about) and we didn't get an assignment but as the boys both told me, "Well at least they are placing children in homes!" So True! Supposedly, the next one will be December the 21st.

Enjoy entering this Christmas Season Friends and Family:)

Creative Images ~ Support!:)

How sweet is that???? Amy went to the trouble of ordering all the girls at work Peru jerseys and they surprised me!! It was the most AWESOME day at work! It felt like I was surrounded by support and they were all behind us and this journey that we are on. The best part was, our story was told ALL DAY LONG! Even though we continue to WAIT (not on the referral list AGAIN this month) we are not alone, and we are NOT in control! God knows what He's doing....I AM SURE OF THAT!
Thanks girls at Creative Images and to all of you who are coming along with us!
Love to all!

Curve Ball!

Okey Dokey! File that under "C" for curve ball!! Found out that they did a placement on October the 17 (usually only at the end of the month) and placed 14 orphans into homes. THAT is the best news. Whether it's our home our not, at least there are 14 more children out of the orphanages. But.....it's NOT our home again, so we wait until....hmmmmm...end of October? Mid November? Or, end of November....who knows, until the next listing comes out! :) Like Dayton says, "14 closer to the top for us!":)

Ask ~ Seek ~ Knock

Matthew 7:7-8
Ask and it will be given to you
Seek and you will find
Knock and the door will be opened to you
For everyone who asks recieves
He who seeks finds
And to him who knocks; the door will be opened

We learned early this morning that after wating for 2 months for a new list, we were not assigned. Our agency says that since there so many children placed on this list, it should better our chances for next time (the end of October???).
Deflated....but not defeated! We will continue to ask, seek and knock - knowing/trusting that this door will in fact - be opened! Someday! God's timing - not ours!:)
Thanks so much for all of your prayers! Can't imagine doing this journey without all of you!

Homecoming & update~of sorts.....

Well....there's my cute... ooops I mean, HANDSOME boys...oops I mean guys! Sure enough, Dakota went off to Homecoming on Saturday night and had a great time. Actually, spoken like a true guy, said he had more fun at dinner then the "dance"! Seems as if some things never change, 90% stand around the edge and 10% actually dance. HA! :)

The "up-date of sorts" is that there isn't much of one! The list of child placements hasn't been posted for September ......YET! We are hoping and praying that they aren't skipping it all together like they did in August. Hmmmm. Meanwhile, many of you know already that our US immigration paperwork has EXPIRED! So, we are in the process of "updating" our home study and re-applying. I finally have a list (of things to do). Looking it over and checking things off. It contains things like, more copies of birth certificates, financial status, physicians letters of our continued good health, friend and family referral, more background checks, etc.

~Any ole' who! We click along, taking what comes and moving forward. All the while God blesses with precious moments like ~celebrating 17 years of marriage and watching and getting to be a part of our "boys" growing to be fine YOUNG MEN! Life is GOOD!

Little Sister's Room :)

Here are some new pics of Little Sister's room. Loooooove it! Can't wait for her to come seeeeeeeeee it! Thank you Amy for alllllll of your help and creative-ness! You're the best!! So sorry that the top pic didn't rotate, don't know why and can't seem to fix it! Please tilt!:) hehe;) The plaque is something I gave Larry for Christmas (for her) that says, "my prince did come, his name is DADDY!" awwwww too cute! Who thinks Larry is going to be a mess??? My hand is raised!!

In case you are wondering, NO we haven't heard about August's list yet! Arggggggg! What in the world takes them so long???? So.............keep prayin'! :) Thank you!

Love to all and so thankful for everyone who is patiently and quietly waiting along with us! It means so much!:)

Some of you might know that I am an "instant gratification" type of gal and I ordered one of these precious signs for "little sister's" bedroom and I didn't put it up right and so it had quite an upward slant. So..... super sweet Mary Ludwig re-ordered me one and I put it up the right way and....well, you can see how sweet it is! Aaaaaaaaaaaaaadorable!

Perfection.......:)

Hi All!
I haven't updated in a while because there hasn't been much to update on the adoption front. We are all approved, that is - the US and Peru both agree that we are fit to be parents, Whew! - but we just wait to be assigned to a particular child. Key word "WAIT"! So that's what we're doing....waiting. Knowing that the big guy in charge has PERFECT timing and a PERFECT plan and PERFECT reasons why He will connect our paths on the day HE chooses! And as hard as it is some days, WE WOULDN'T WANT IT ANY OTHER WAY! So we are clicking along, trying to carry on as normal as possible.
Dakota had a wonderful time in Peru, loved being with the children and working hard and also, building bonds/friendships with his team. We had many reports of how hard he worked/served and Larry and I are very proud of him. He turned 15 years old the day they got back and a few days later got his driver's permit. Doing pretty well, I must say. He loves driving us all around!
Dayton is enjoying his summer as well, going to the GV pool a lot and running cross country. That kid is up to running 4.5 miles a day. Hmmmm...I try to think of him as encouragement as I try to make it 1 time around the track at boot camp. Yeeeeks!
Both boys are looking forward to possibly a little Colorado time coming up including TPX camp the first week of August.
Hope all is well with all of YOU and your summer is going GREAT!
Thanks for catching up!
~Laci:)

Dakota's off to Peru!!

Ok...tears are all dried (I think) and we are moving on to just being COMPLETELY EXCITED about what God has in store for Dakota this next week. I mean...how could we NOT be excited??? His Peru journey began long before his flight left at 2:45 today. Him being obedient, and working hard to raise his own money and watching it add up to exactly the right amount...WOW!! We are praying that he goes into this with absolutely NO expectations, just allowing God to push & pull & poke & prod him into whatever HE desires. Now THAT'S EXCITING!! Can't wait to see what transpires this week.

You probably know already that we were not on the May consejo. That's OK. We will do what we do best (JK) and WAIT until the end of June and see what happens then. :)

In my daughter's eyes :)

Admittedly, I had a little bit of a weird "Mother's Day" a few weeks ago. Knowing that I am a mom to someone that I haven't got to meet yet. Knowing that somewhere in some orphanage in Peru a sweet little girl with big brown eyes waits for God to connect our path with hers. Almost simultaneously, I hear Martina McBride's song from some years back titled, " In my daughter's eyes. I have heard this song a million times but, being the mother of boys, it didn't phase me much. Now, I took the time to pay a little closer attention to the words and how absolutely beautiful and RELEVANT they are. To her, we must look like some sort of heroes, strong and wise, but in reality, this GIFT that God is about to give to US will give us even more reason to believe in what life is REALLY about!



In my daughter's eyes

I am a hero

I am strong and wise and I know no fear

But the truth is plain to see

She was sent to rescue me

I see who I wanna be

In my daughter's eyes

In my daughter's eyes

Everyone is equal

Darkness turns to light

And the world is at peace

This miracle God gave to me

Gives me strength when I am weak

I find reason to believe

In my daughter's eyes

And when she wraps her hand around my finger

How it puts a smile in my heart

Everything becomes a little clearer

I realize what life is all about

Is hanging on when your heart has had enough

Is giving more when you feel like giving up

I've seen the light

In my daughter's eyes

In my daughter's eyes

I can see the future

A reflection of who I am

And what will be

And though she'll grow and someday leave

Maybe raise a family

When I'm gone I hope you'll see

How happy she made me

And I'll be there

In my daughter's eyes



Mayo consejo (the May placement list) should come out this week. So, if you feel like praying that we might be on the list, we would LOOOOOOVE it!

Nope, not yet!!

Well, the "abril" (April) consejo is out and we aren't on it! Oh Well! That's ok! We will go ahead and rest in the fact that God's plan is BEST! Not ours!! :) Waiting a little longer will give us time to be better prepared and also be here to see Dakota off on his mission trip.

I attached some pics of us in the backyard last week. It was such a beautiful evening! Notice, Dakota wet in the top pic. Couldn't stand it, had to jump in! Yes, Larry was short to follow!

Reckless Faith

My good friend Lisa gave me an awesome book named Reckless Faith. It's a about a girl named Beth and her husband who live in Mexico and have established a ministry to help orphans. Her stories of all sorts of situations with the children, break my heart but also give encouragement of having a ....reckless faith....trusting that God will show up, exactly where and when he's needed.
One statement rings true to our current situation of waiting. She said, "Sometimes reckless faith requires no further action. You just hold on to the limb you've been led out on and trust that it doesn't break."
2 Corinthians 9:7-9
God loves it when the giver delights in the giving. God can pour on the blessings in astonishing ways so that you're ready for anything and everything, more than just ready to do what needs to be done. As one psalmist puts it, "He throws caution to the winds, giving to the needy in reckless abandon."

Throw me a bone!

Well, a lot of you have asked but...nothing new. I really wish someone would throw us a bone. Just a little tidbit of info. ..............I have been trying to concentrate on Psalm 62 that says: I wait quietly before God, for my victory comes from Him. I suppose I need to do just that, wait quietly and remember whose ultimately in control over the entire situation.
tick-tock-tick-tock....
Meanwhile both of our guys started a little spring basketball this week and they're excited about that. But, while I have your attention, could I please be a proud mom for a minute? Some of you know that Dakota has to raise his own money to return to the mission trip in Peru this year. We have been so pleased with his effort and dedication. The fact that he has spent some afternoons after school and some full Saturdays to raise funds, not for a trip to lay on the beach or to CO to ride his motorcycle but to serve the Lord....does his parents' hearts good. He is well on his way!! Thanks so much to all who have helped and by doing so, becoming part of his journey!
Also, Mr. Dayton is excited to be taking an IQ test in the next couple weeks to see if he qualifies for the 'gifted' program at the middle school (Eagle Talent). He's a smart little cookie:0) Yep, you guessed it, Larry and I are still racking our brains to see where those genes came from.
Thanks for all of your love, concern, and prayers!
Love to all~Laci

And their off......................

And their off..................... I made it to the Sec. of State office this morning and got the 2 doctors letters sealed in about 15 minutes. Then, I dropped them off at the UPS store to go to Chicago to get the last set of seals. It should reach them by 10:30 am tomorrow and possibly in Alabama (Villa Hope) by Friday (@10:30am). She said she would get them off to Peru asap! She is supposedly e-mailing Maria (attorney in Peru) copies now so she can get the translating going while she waits to receive the hard copies. Yippppeeeee!!!

I have to tell you the sweet little thing Dayton said yesterday. Larry and I were talking about all of the things we need to take care of and the amount of time we will be gone and Dayton said, "Will I be coming to the airport when you come home with her?" I said, "YESSSSSSSSSSSS!"
Then he said, "Well, I don't know who I'll hug first, mom or little sister!" That makes me have a lump in my throat as I type it! It is overwhelming sweet to see how excited both of the boys are! Looooooooooove it!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAYTON!

12 Candles on Dayton's cake this year!

That's right, on Saturday he'll be 12 years old. Larry took both of the guys to Chadwick this evening (the boys start 4 day spring break tomorrow) to camp and ride bikes. This is the first time that Dayton has shown any interest since his accident. However, he has absolutely NO interest in riding his motorcycle. He says he'll stick to the 4-wheeler for a little bit. A-OK with mom. Larry says that Dakota is becoming quite a rider these days on his bike. I gave him a teeny weenie lecture before they left about not getting too cocky/gutsy and riding foolishly. He promised he wouldn't. Hmmmmmm....

Isaiah 40:31 says that those who wait upon the Lord will renew their strength. TODAY, our strength was renewed. I checked my e-mail via my phone while at work today and noticed one from Villa Hope. It said that the SNA office had reviewed our dossier already and just needed a couple clarifications. Please don't miss the coolest thing here.....they told us it would probably be a couple months while we waited to be approved, Yesterday was 3 weeks!!! The problems they had were: Dayton's birth date was recorded wrong on his physical examination and my doc had crossed out something that he had written and they didn't like that. I quickly got on the phone and asked both doctor's offices if they would write the little letter they were requesting, stating the corrections and mine is ready for me to pick up tomorrow and Dayton's will be ready to pick up on Monday. Both offices agreed to have them notarized and I will hopefully have them sealed at the Secretary of State on Monday and put in the mail to Chicago for the last set of seals.

The movement so quickly is very encouraging. Our strength is renewed!

We are soaring.........on wings...................like eagles!

Cute little Marta!

Well, in case you are wondering, no "new" news. Waiting to be approved.

Above is a picture of the Cabbage Patch that my grandma gave me a bizzillion years ago. Her name is Marta Lavinia. Isn't that a pretty name??.....nope! But...what she is wearing is oh so pretty. Our sweet friend Mary Jo made one for Lil' Sister and one for her baby doll. So, Marta is modeling the adorable scarf for you! Thank you very much Mary Jo for thinking of us.

It's a Beautiful Day - In more ways then one!

Ok - I have had a couple "stressful" days! I had not heard anything about the crazy translation and it had been over 3 weeks. Then, it occurred to me to check the date on the physical exams because they can only be 3 months old when you submit your dossier to the SNA office. Well...when I looked them up, my eyes welled up with tears because...... THEY HAD ALL 4 EXPIRED! Arggggggg. If you want me to TRANSLATE that, it means, all four of us would have to re-visit the Dr., AIDS testing and other blood tests, not to mention all the seals, seals, seals. Plus all the $$$ it would cost to have all that re-done! I immediately piped off an e-mail to our agency (Monday night), explaining my concerns and she didn't respond until Tuesday late afternoon saying, "I'm just sure that's all taken care of" - "But I'll check". So, today she e-mailed me again telling me that she had heard from Maria (the lawyer in Peru) and - Get This - IT WAS DONE BEING TRANSLATED AND SHE HAD TURNED IT IN LAST WEEK!!
Hellooooooooooooooo Did anyone know I was going CRAZY here???
Any ole' who ~ That's awesome news! Total answer to prayers over the last couple days. That God would work out all of the details and HE DID! It is a Beautiful Day! :)
Now..we have to wait to be approved, which she said would take a couple months.
My mom reminded me of a song that I learned at church when I was little. (You can make your own conclusions as to why I have remembered every word to this particular song.)
It goes like this:
Have patience ~ Have patience
Don't be in such a hurry
When you get impatient
You only start to worry
Remember, Remember
That God is patient too
And think of all the times when others HAD TO WAIT FOR YOU!!
You like it? If you want, I'll sing it for you, cuz I'm in such a Celebratory mood today!

ticktockticktockticktockticktock

Well, not much of an update here but, it seems as if we might be "Lost in Translation". Not technically, I suppose, but we were told it would be about 2 weeks and yesterday (Friday), was 3! Hmmmmm....Our first taste of the waiting game. Hopefully they will notify us this week and it will be off to the SNA office, ASAP!
Meanwhile, Dakota had his first "dance" last weekend on Valentines Day. He looked so......handsome. I had to contemplate which word to say, I don't seem to say many "14-year old correct" things these days. :) Not sure the one I used here is ok, might need to run it by him.
Also, Larry is off to Croc, Mexico as of tomorrow morning for a mission trip. Croc is where he went on his first mission experience and he is excited to return.
The four of us started Spanish lessons on Monday nights. We have only had one class so far, but the boys and I will go this next week without dad. I expect he will be getting enough "lessons" of his own, being immersed in it all next week.
Hope to have good news soon.
Take care!

Dossier in TRANSLATION

Our dossier has been in Peru for almost a week. Supposedly, in translation which takes about 2 weeks, from what I understand. Then "Maria" (the attorney) will hand deliver it to the SNA office. I learned today that there are approx. 380 families on the list to adopt from Peru. Hmmmm.....don't know what that means for sure. I also learned that 25'ish orphans were placed in homes with families in January. Again, it's difficult to calculate or try to figure it out because there are so many different scenarios.
On the home front, last night was a little bit sad for Dakota Ray Thurn's ole' mom. :( What in the world? WHY, did I have to go to a parent meeting about Dakota enrolling for HIGH SCHOOL!! Yikes!! How could he seriously be going to High School?? Seems very weird. People have always told me to enjoy every moment because they go by so fast. At times like these, I realize that that is SOOOOO true.

And the waiting begins.......

Okay..the most exciting news to date! Our dossier is officially on it's way to Peru. Expected arrival date? Tomorrow! It will then be in the hands of our "adoption attorney" and she will have it translated and take it to the office herself. Seems as if we should be in the system sometime next week. And the waiting begins......
We have plenty of things to do while we wait. Like, get moving on some Spanish lessons and tons of other details about going to get her and when she arrives HOME. What an awesome day that will be.
I want to add a side note, but very sweet and important. It's how incredibly interested and involved her big brothers are. Each day when they get home from school they ask what happened with items that I might have mentioned the night before. They pay close attention to detail and express their opinions frequently ( which are valued). I am certain that they will the best "Big Brothers" ever!

There's a light at the end of this tunnel....

OK, one last blog before I leave for Jamaica. I couldn't resist, I am too excited.
The consulate was supposed to receive the dossier today before 10:30. I called once, to see if they got it, no answer. Then I tried again and the lady who answered said, "what documents? - Did you say Phurn?" Ummmm....adoption documents and it's T-h-u-r-n? She told me to hold a minute. I don't think she meant for me to HOLD my breath, but I did anyway! She came back on the phone and said "Oh Larry and Laci Thurn, yes, we received those documents and sealed them and already put them back in the mail" Yippeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!
I could hardly believe my ears!
There is, in fact a light at the end of this tunnel. The light is the author and director of this story! John 8:12 Jesus says, ......I am the light of the world...

it's off to the consulate!

I DID IT! Today, I took the handy dandy little DOSSIER to the UPS store and sent it to Chicago. Pretty bitter sweet because, on one hand, I was glad to be delivering it to the next step and out of my hands but, on the other hand, it was hard to let go of it. 25 VERY important documents that if are lost, means we are starting basically back at square one (of dossier prep). So....it should arrive tomorrow by 10:30 in the a.m. Hopefully they will receive it, seal it and stick it back in the mail, asap! I am in hopes that it will be waiting for me upon my return from Jamaica which means that it will be on it's way to Peru as soon as I can get copies made. Yahooooooo!:)

Dot Connector

As a kid I think we all liked doing the little "connect the dots" type of puzzles. I feel like we are participating in a really huge life size one right now! We continue on this path being obedient to follow along from one dot and then the other. The connecting lines are sometimes enormous and other times they are itty bitty. All the while not knowing what the "big" picture we are working on is going to develop into. But, we don't have to know exactly, we just have to trust that the picture will be COMPLETE and we will know that it will be PERFECT because it was designed by God - the GREAT DOT CONNECTOR!
Today, we had quite a few dots to connect. First, we went to the bank and had a few last documents notarized. Uneventful. Then, our psychologist (who is great by the way) had our eval all ready to be picked up after 11:00. We went from there straight to the Secretary of State, downtown. The nice lady at the desk looked over all of our documents and just when I thought she was going to say, "ok, you're good to go", she found 6 or 7 notarization errors that needed to be re-done. Ok, little smidgey of a melt down, on my part! Arggggggg!!!! But....Thanks to my sister's wonderful secretary, Renee, we were up and running again in just a little bit. She so graciously, looked them over, re-notarized, re-copied, and re-stapled with a big smile on her face. A true answer to prayers! So....we ran them back over to the Sec of State and left them there and she informed us that she would call us when they were all ready. Sure enough, she called and said that they had all passed through Jefferson City and we could come pick them up. Never really thought I could be so excited about 26 'SEALS'!:) 26 GLORIOUS SEALS!!
Huge Step - Huge dot that it takes to complete this totally awesome picture!
Now? They are ready to be Fed Ex'd to Chicago to the Peruvian consulate. For...more seals. Then, off to Villa Hope where they will prepare it to go to Peru and we will wait to be approved. Which could take a couple months to be reviewed by all its departments.
Thanks for following along on our journey!

Tomorrow......

Celebration! It's 2009! We certainly have plenty of reasons to CELEBRATE!
Currently, I had been a little discouraged this week because it seemed as if the psych evaluation was going to be delayed a little further because he didn't have the correct "scoring guide" to score our "tests". But.....TODAY, yes TODAY, we received a fax from him including our "revised evaluation" ready to send to Villa Hope for final approval. Yippee! Also, I went to a friends to "scrap-book" on Saturday night and got all the 'picture sheets' done for the dossier. In case I hadn't mentioned that, we have to include 14-18 pics of us and our home. I finally got permission to actually 'scrap-book' them instead of sending them on plain ole' white typing paper! Much too boring.
The boys are not too happy that their break has come to a screeching halt. :( But we have enjoyed some great family time while they were off. Friday night we were amused by the Harlem Globetrotters and Tuesday Dayton and I went to the Music Hall to see that sweet little orphan, Annie. Both shows are ones that I enjoyed as a child, so it was fun to experience it with my own. :)
Truthfully, while watching Annie, obviously, I couldn't erase our own situation, our should I say, our soon to be daughter's situation, from my mind. The theme song alone, Tomorrow- Tomorrow....was a reminder to me that we are not in charge of this plan or the timing of it. I know that God is telling us to 'hang on til tomorrow, come what may'. We are learning a whole lot about WAITING...... until TOMORROW, to see just exactly HOW He is going to unfold this incredible journey.