Monday, May 26, 2008

Cinderella Story

This is the video and the story behind Steven Curtis Chapman's song Cinderella.

Maria is at her "grand ball" with the bridegroom!

Friday, May 23, 2008

In Memory of Maria Chapman


Our hearts are breaking for this family, and especially for their teenage son. Please pray with us for the comfort and healing we know the Holy Spirit brings to each of us in our times of hurt and need.

This article was taken from the internet....

Steven Curtis Chapman’s youngest child died Wednesday evening after being struck by a car driven by her teenage brother in the driveway of the family’s Williamson County home.Maria, one of the Christian singer’s six children, was taken by LifeFlight to Vanderbilt Hospital, which confirmed the death, according to Laura McPherson, a spokeswoman for the Tennessee Highway Patrol. The 5-year-old was hit by an SUV driven by her teenage brother, she said. Police did not give the driver’s name.The teen was driving a Toyota Land Cruiser down the driveway of the rural home at about 5:30 p.m. and several children were playing in the area, McPherson said. He did not see Maria in the driveway before the vehicle struck her, she said.“It appears to be a terrible accident,’’ McPherson said. No charges are expected, she said. The accident was witnessed by two other children; the entire family was home at the time, McPherson said.Singer/songwriter Chapman, who recently was inducted into Music City Walk of Fame, is one of contemporary Christian music’s most recognizable and most awarded names. He and his wife Mary Beth have long been supporters of international adoption, having brought three girls from China into their family. Maria was the youngest.The couple is so active in the cause that they formed an organization, Shaohannah’s Hope, to aid families wanting to adopt. With his latest music tour, which came through Nashville in November, Chapman started a campaign called “Change for Orphans”. He asked audience members at each stop to bring spare change to the concert, where it was counted and given to a local family to aid in their adoption process.“I don’t know of anybody who loves his children more than he does and is so committed to the adoption concept, and to lose one, no matter what the circumstances, is heartbreaking beyond all comprehension,” said John Styll, president of the Nashville-based Gospel Music Association.“He talks about his kids all the time. That’s his life. His kids are more important to him than music, that’s for sure.”The tragedy was announced during Wednesday-night services at Harpeth Hills Church of Christ, which the family attends. Maria had just graduated from the church preschool.And word spread throughout the tight-knit Christian music community on Wednesday evening.Styll got the news not long after Maria’s death.“I’m confident I can speak for everyone in the community to say we will do everything we can to support this family, as we would do at any time, but especially at a time like this,” he said.Most of the Chapman family was at Vanderbilt children’s hospital after the accident and could not be contacted. The long, gravel driveway leading to the home west of Franklin was blocked off by Williamson County sheriff’s deputies.


A sweet video of Maria and her Daddy.....


In lieu of flowers, the Chapmans request any gifts be directed to Shaohannah’s Hope. Donate here at .... Maria's Miracle Fund

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Hi Friends

Wow it feels like forever since I posted on this thing! It's kinda funny how I was on the computer everyday before we had Noelle . Now its very seldom that I have the time to sit and blog or do anything on the computer for that matter. I have to admit I do feel guilty being on it while she is awake and wants her momma to play with her or read her books. When she's sleeping that's when I try to clean the house or read. OK enough about me and my excuses, I know all you want is an update on Noelle and some pictures : )



Noelle is doing wonderful! She just turned 20 months old/young on Sunday the 18th. She is still a very happy little girl! She is a sleeping great both at nap time and at night. She is still on the bottle mostly at bedtime, and still only drinking about 4oz. She wakes up with a smile on her face (most of the time) and is ready to play! She is starting to say some words, here are a few of her favorite....good girl, bye-bye, kitty, star, turtle, ma-ma, da-da, ra-ra (robin), mimi, papa, cracker.

Lately she's been patting herself between her legs when she goes in her diaper (that's another word she knows) so we'll be getting a potty for her pretty soon. She loves to slide and swing and will giggle when she's doing both. Last night she crawled up onto the rocking chair by herself with a book, which was very cute but scary. I don't want her to fall on the hard wood floors.

We have a cute little video of her and we'll do our best to post it soon.



I don't want to forget Robin : ) She is doing great too. She loves having a little sister! She is very busy with school and track. Her last day of school is June 6th! And next year she'll be a freshman!!!! That is just crazy!!! I don't feel old enough to have a high school student.



Well that's all I have for now, I'll post a few pictures.....



Reading the Bible : )




Thursday, May 1, 2008

Recognition of Noelle's Adoption April 30, 2008

Today we went to court and had her adoption recognized by the State and had her name changed. I know it was changed over there, but we still needed to change it here if we wanted her to have a new birth certificate. So we'll be getting that in a couple of weeks along with her SS Card which we also ordered yesterday! We'll be applying for her passport in the next couple of months. It's not a requirement but we want her to have one.
Our judge was Alan Woodcock Jr. he was very nice and took his time with us. He asked us about our trip to China and wanted to know how Noelle was adjusting to everything. He went around the room and asked everyone there for their name, relation to us and wanted to know how they felt about the adoption. Both sets of parents were there along with Sheree. It was nice having them all there.



This is Noelle just before we left dressed all cute in her USA colors!

Waiting patiently for her turn in court : ) Actually she was all over the place I think she stood there for 15 seconds or less.



Here's the family with the Judge. I should have stood up so the picture would have looked better, but the Judge seemed to like Noelle down there.....they played : )


The whole gang....from the left you have my dad and mom, Mike's Dad and mom, Mike, Robin and Sheree

On another note, things are moving along with the adoption group. I have been talking with the leaders of the adoption group at our church along with AWAA and I believe we're all set to get this group rolling! Since we already have an adoption group at church we're going come together and just add the AWAA piece. I'm excited to see how the Lord is going to work through this group! Please keep everyone in prayer as we move forward.