When my youngest son gets angry, he often gets dramatically pouty. It may start with something as simple as my refusing him one more...

To the baby of the family, Ezzy Bear, Lieutenant Happy Face (more of a reminder to cease complaining than an actual title), Ez, Lil Man,...

At the end of February, I was given the opportunity to speak at a Family Reading Night at my son’s elementary school. I spoke for about...

There are some mornings when it doesn’t pay to get out of bed. Take this morning, for instance. I killed a wasp in my bathroom. Getting...

I’m always surprised at what plant life is capable of. After our week-long vacation at the end of June, we returned home to a veritable...

When our Congolese son Ezra came to live with us—me, my husband, our twin daughters, and our older son Knox—he entered a family who...

It was April 2, 2016 when Ezra, our Congolese-born son, first stepped foot on American soil. Ezra, my husband Brent, and I were beyond...

When I was in college I went on a couple of mission trips to Romania to teach English using the Bible. Like any overseas trip, it was...

Today, my son had his second haircut since coming to America. In case you’re keeping score, that’s 7 months living with us and 2 trips to...

Today was a big day for our family. Although our Congolese son has been legally ours for years and he’s been home for nearly 6 months,...

Though our African-born son has been in America for only two months, we’re often surprised by the speed he acquires new words and...

When I tell my son of his homeland, I will describe the busy Kinshasa streets—the women with enormous bags, bowls, and boxes easily...

Since it’s already tomorrow in Kinshasa, it’s already our Ezra’s birthday. He’s four now, and four is one of my favorite ages, second...

We’ve been back from our trip to the Congo for six days. We’ve resumed the routines of work and school and extracurricular activities...

A 7-hour layover in New Jersey—this is the anticlimactic final chapter to our week in the Congo. It’s not ideal. We’re watching...

I’ve only seen Brent cry three times. The first was when he was stressed out and overwhelmed in school. The second was when our girls...

He’s spooning up his morning tea with a tiny plastic spoon. Drops cover his lap and the concrete floor of our patio. Every few “bites” he...

Since the beginning of this process, we’ve been told to be very careful when posting pictures of our African son. As this week has...