Let Us Know if We Can Do Anything For You...

We've had a lot of folks make the statement above (or something similar to it).  I usually don't know how to respond in those situations primarily because I don't have the normal allotment of social skills which is part of why I'm an engineer.  Heather's also commented to me that she's not always sure how to respond to the invitation.  We're not actually in need of anything even though there are things people could do that would make our life easier or that would help us in some way.

So, for those out there that want to know what you can do for us I decided to just put it out there.  Here are some items on our Christmas list!

1. You can pray for Joshua.  He's only been out of the orphanage for 16 days.  He has many adjustments to make and praying that he comes to understand that we're his parents is important.  Also he has a few surgeries to come, many Dr's appointments, blood draws, and a new language to learn.  Thinking more long-term, he'll forever be the recipient of staring because of his hand.  And, he'll have to overcome certain physical limitations that many of us will never understand.  Further, some day he'll have to come to grips with the fact that his birth parents abandoned him, etc...  So you can pray for him.
2. You can do for us any of the things you would normally do for new parents to help them out or make their life easier as they adjust to a new family member.  We've already received many gifts for Joshua and a meal was brought to us the night we got home all of which was very much appreciated and sooooooo helpful.  It has been hard for us to get unpacked and put back together and ready for Christmas with the jet lag.  But it is getting smoother and our routine is getting back to something that resembles normal.
3. You can overlook the fact that we didn't get every one a Christmas card or even send you an email this Christmas.  We are really behind.  We just got the tree up and had the kids decorate it.