One of the fabulous aspects of being a super-sized family is that we never run out of reasons to celebrate. Last week we marked Nathaniel's 15th birthday.
The weekend we celebrated, Nathaniel's brother-in-law, Eric, was visiting from Boston. He helped Faith make Nathaniel's cake.
This wasn't just any dessert, however. This was to be a traveling cake. Nathaniel asked to celebrate his birthday in our favorite nearby park.
This birthday celebration was enhanced by having dear friends, Jamie (pictured here), Marcos and their son, Samuel with us. They'd come from Illinois to celebrate high school graduation with the family the day before.
Once we settled in the park pavilion, Nathaniel opened his gifts, and we ate that traveling cake.
As much as Nathaniel enjoyed the gifts of love from his family members, what made this his "best birthday ever" was having the American couple he first met in his Russia there to help him mark his birthday.
The two of us first met this faith-filled duo who have huge hearts for orphans in Moscow. These links tell some of the story of the time we shared in that beautiful city getting to know Russian children that we would be able to add to our families through adoption if we felt so led. Jamie and Marcos have been Nathaniel's greatest cheerleaders as he's adjust to life in America and in a family. Their prayers have been worth gold to us!
(Marcos and Jamie are in the midst of adopting again, this time two sepcial-needs toddlers from China. To learn more about their adoption journey, click here. I know they would truly appreciate your prayers!)
Now nearly three years later, these four children share what I believe will be a lifelong bond. After all, they have something very unusual in common ~ having been fatherless children who spent years together in the same orphanage. It's no wonder Nathaniel dubbed this his favorite birthday. He was surrounded by the friends with whom he was rescued by the Lord from hopelessness. At age 15, his future couldn't look brighter!
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