We got home at 10 last night. We woke up Harper and I think she thought she was dreaming. She just stared at us and blinked her eyes a bunch. And then cried and wanted her Nonny. (My mom says it's payback because when I was little I would go stay with my grandparents for a week and when I came home I would cry and say "I want my mam-ma") ha!
But this morning she was so happy to see both of us and we were thrilled to see her!
It's good to be home.
But my heart is thinking about the homes we saw like this - that were destroyed in the hurricane. Entire villages that were wiped out. The one room homes for a family of 10.
I'm thinking about my other little girl in El Salvador. And I'm so thankful that God has opened my eyes and given me a passion to help free children from poverty in the name of Jesus!I think 78 children have been sponsored through my blog this week. I'd love to see us make it at least 100. I'm praying that you will be open to help.
Go here and look at the sweet faces of children in poverty. And let me know if you decide it's time to take action!
This will be my last post on Compassion for a while - but it's not my LAST post on Compassion by a LONG shot! I am forever changed!
87 comments:
I'm glad you made it home safe. My husband and I are going to talk about sponsoring a child too.
I love it!!! I'm so happy that you and Scott got to experience this. It just makes me want to cuddle and love my little Indonesia girl, Putri. I so want to meet her!!! I love the top picture of you two with Harper :) You are such a good mommy!
so nice to have you home safe. thanks for sharing your amazing journey!
Welcome home Kelly! Thank you for sharing this journey with us! I am for sure signing up to sponsor a child and I can't wait!
Awe! I know you had a life changing experience! I'm so glad we were able to share it with you too! I love Harper's face in the picture! She is such a doll! :)
Welcome back!
Welcome home! I already sponsor a child through compassion... but I am so happy for people like you. Thanks for sharing with us all that compassion is about. It has been an amazing experience for my family and am so happy an organization like compassion exists. Have a great weekend!
Glad to see you home safe. Thank you for the sacrifices you made to guide more of us to our sponsor children.
I'm anxiously awaiting Josue's picture and info! I think of him throughout the day and feel honored that my family will be able to make a positive difference in his life.
God Bless you Kelly!
I have loved learning about this organization through your blog. You. Are. Awesome.
We sponsored a little girl born the same day as Charlotte! Just wanted to let you know so that you can add her to your number!
I am new to learning about Compassion and am thankful you have shared your experience with us. I want to sponsor a child but how do I pick? And there seem to be a lot more boys needing sponsors. I have four children, 3 of whom are boys, so I feel led to sponsor a boy but with all those sweet faces, how do you pick one?
Glad you are safe and sound! Praise God for such a wonderful, successful trip! Thank you for sharing your journey with us!
So glad you made it home safely! I know Harper was extremely glad to see her Mom and Dad even if she didn't call for you!
So happy you are home safely. Harper looks so happy to see you!
Wow! Have really enjoyed your posts documenting your trip! What an amazing opportunity!
Welcome back!
I have just completed the link to sponsor a 10 year girl in El Salvador. Thanks so much for being the catalyst!!
I had to leave my son with my parents for 10 days while I went back to our house in CA to prepare for my husband's deployment return. When I got back to Huntsville to pick him up (he was at Daycare) he cried when he saw me. But not the good cry-- the cry like "I have been having so much fun, why are you back??" It broke my heart because I dreamed of picking him up and him just wanting me. Oh well. He is still a momma's boy! :) Glad you made a safe trip home!
Kelly I am so glad you and Scott are home safe and sound and so happy you were able to experience this trip. I've been following all the blogs and tweets and want you to know you did a fantastic job blogging. I am so very proud of you both.
PS The competitive video cracked me up. Of course the highlight was your cheer jump at the end. Loved It and Love You!
What a sweet moment for Harper to see her mommy and daddy! :)
love the picture of you guys w/ harper :)
glad you made it home safely!
I'm SO glad you got to have such a wonderful trip!! I'm also thrilled that you're able to share in such a valid way- since so many people already love and follow your blog.
Keep up the good work. Every time we step out on faith He is sure to bless it...
Thanks for sharing!!
Georgia (from Texas!) :)
Welcome home. What an amazing trip!
You changed our family, too. And one day we will meet the little girl we are now sponsoring in Columbia. We should all be thankful every minute for all we have been given.
Welcome home!! Harper looks so happy! :-)
Thank you, Kelly! Our family just this afternoon signed up to sponsor a little boy in El Salvador who is the same age as our daughter. :)
im planning on sponsoring as soon as i can. things are really hetic right now and we need to get caught up on some bills but as soon as i can im going to sign up. all your posts have really touched my heart : )
Welcome Home, Kelly! And welcome to the post mission trip "space" - your heart so full yet broken, unprocessed from all that you've seen yet the Lord only will allow you to process it in His timing, content yet discontent. I got home from a month ago from Guatemala and am still in that "space" ... it's not the most fun but I wouldn't want it to be any other way!
Welcome back Kelly! Glad to hear you are safe and sound in the States!
Karen
Glad you're back safe. You really are a great role model Kelly.
Congratulations on all of those sponsorships. Glad you're home safe and sound with your little doll!
To April, I already sponsored a little boy in the Philippines and decided to sponsor another. I went to the site to "pick" out a child, something that wasn't offered when I got John Dave, and felt like you. For every child picked, thousands are not. So when I signed up... I put "any child" specifically a "waiting" child in an AIDS country and let God pick her. (The reason I did an AIDS country request is because I feel those probably get "picked" last. Most of us know how that feels just from playground days.) We got our packet on "Latifa" from Tanzania in the mail and I already love her. God did a better job picking her than I could have done, and I didn't have to feel guilty about "not" picking the others. God bless you for wanting to help. =)
Hi Kelly! So glad you're back. You and Scott have certainly had the experience of a lifetime. I really loved reading the blog everyday to see what you guys were doing. Didn't you want to bring all those kids home? I know I would. But one kid at home, Miss Harper is sure glad to have Mommy and Daddy back , safe and sound. Have a good rest this week end.
Keeping you in my heart in Ga.
Donna
Welcome back, Kelly! We enjoyed your posts! Harper looks a bit like your brother in that photo!
Glad to see yall made it home safely! I can't tell you how much I have enjoyed reading your posts about your experience in El Salvador and with Compassion.
Welcome Back!! Just wanted to let you know that you have inspired us to sponsor a child through Compassion. We are so excited to "meet" the child that God has chosen for us.
Kelly! We decided yesterday to sponsor a child :), so you can add one more to your list. I started looking at kids in El Salvador, but for some reason felt a connection to an older boy in Kenya :), I'm sure you don't mind where kids are sponsored. Thanks for your blog this past week, its been so inspiring and eye opening.
Congratulations on such a wonderful and successful trip, Kelly! So proud of you...and hopefully I can add myself to that list to create 100 :)
Enjoy your time at home now with a new perspective :)
Personal blog:
www.finewire.blogspot.com
Hi, just wanted to let you know . . . our family decided to sponsor one El Salvador child for each of ours. So, we chose a 3 year old, 5 year old, 6 year old, 7 year old and 16 year old.
Add five to your numbers - you are closer to 100.
So glad you made it home safely! I know your girl had to be so happy to see you. I know what you mean about never being the same again, it's so true! So thankful for the ways that God worked through this trip!
Hey Kelly! We just wanted to let you know that my fiancé and I just sponsored a sweet angel in El Salvador. Her name is Claudia and she is 4 years old! We are so thrilled and thankful that the Lord literally enlarged her profile in front of our eyes to show us she was chosen FOR us as our first spiritual child! Praise God for the work He has done!
-Sarah & Brian Soon-to-be Langhoff
langhofflove@gmail.com
welcome home you two
enjoyed your blogs about your trip
also enjoyed your moms posts about Harper, too cute
have a great one
Loved you blog posts about the trip you have such a sweet spirit. I sponsored my first Compassion child today! it's something i have been wanting to do since i read Melissa's posts about her trip and i think your posts just sealed the deal. Thanks, oh and his name is Yerison, he's 5 and lives in the Dominican Republic! I blogged about how it transpired.
SO glad you are home safe and sound! I know Harper had a great time, but definitely missed her mommy!!!
I was so moved by all your posts this past week. Some had me in tears. I've always wanted to sponser a child in need but i didn't know where to begin. I wish so badly that I could afford to give the $38 a month but we need every penny. This coming year will be better for us financially and God willing I hope to sponser one or two then! Its something I am praying about and I know God will show me the way.
Thank you Kelly for opening my eyes and my heart for me. What a blessing you are, to everyone!
SO glad you are home safe with your sweet little girl!
What an awesome trip. Glad ya'll are home safe!!
Yesterday I posted that I would figure out my finaces etc and probably sponsor. Then I clicked the link and the rest is history. I'm now sponsoring Yesnia and I can't wait to get my packet and start a relationship with her. Thank you Kelly for shinning a light on this beautiful organization. Your are truly a blessing to all who know you!!!
Today I became the proud sponsor of a sweet 9 year old from Ghana named Mercy. thank you for prompting me to take action. I do not know how I will financially be able to swing this but I am trusting the Lord to provide.
Thank you so much for your testimony!
Kelly,
I follow your blog and have since Harper was born. I have enjoyed reading your blog, and after reading your blogs while you were with Compassion, I feel my life has changed. I am a single mom of two girl, and as family we decided to sponsor a 7 year old girl Josianni from the Dominican Republic. We are excited and can not wait for the packet to come in the mail.
Welcome home, Kelly! You have inspired so many with your trip. I can't wait to get my sponsors packet in the mail!
Cxx
I am so glad you are home safe and sound. What a sweet picture:) I have been so moved by the pictures from your trip that we are going to be sponsoring a child this week. Thank you again for making such a difference in these childrens lives by opening our eyes.
What a blessing! When people say that one person cannot make a difference they are so wrong.
Welcome back!
Welcome back home! I loved your posts this week...I learned a lot from them!
Add another to your list, Kelly. I've been following you since Angie at "Bring the Rain" linked to your blog when Harper was born, and I said countless prayers that Harper would be healthy and happy--which she is! Now you've inspired me to look into Compassion International and I always knew that I adore my four kids and my 12, going on 13, grandchildren, but there was still an open spot in my heart. Tonight, I've added Nathalia (age nine, El Salvador) to my heart and responsibility. I can't wait to get my packet and begin writing to her. I'm already praying for her safety and happiness. It IS hard to choose just one, but taking that step and making a choice is so uplifting. I may just choose a boy, too, and I will let you know if I do so you can add it to your tally. I think all of us who have chosen to sponsor a child will have our lives changed for the better by it. Thank you for bringing Compassion International to our attention. What a difference you've made!
You can add me to your Compassion adopt a child headcount. So glad and inspired to be helping a child in need! Thank you for bringing this organization to my attention!~Laura
Hey Kelly! My husband and I have been thinking and praying about sponsoring a child and have decided to sponsor Sofia though compassion! Cant wait to get her information. Thanks for sharing you story!! Amanda S
Glad you are home safe!! I thank you so much for given so much information about Compassion!
I love the pic of ya'll with Harper!
Summer :0)
Hi Kelly,
I've been following your blog for quite a while, but this is my first comment. Your posts this week completely moved me to tears and opened my eyes to how many children there are in need. Thank you for sharing your experience with Compassion and the wonderful work they are doing. I just made the commitment to sponsor an 8 year old girl in El Salvador named Kimberly. I feel very fortunate that I have the opportunity and the means to make a difference in her life. Again, THANK YOU for sharing this experience with all of us and encouraging so many to get involved!
-Kelly S. in Virginia
So glad to see you home safe, sound, and with that precious little babe in your arms! I know she was happy to see her momma and daddy. I bet she couldn't wait to tell you about all the fun she had with her grandparents!!
Thank you so much for all your posts while in El Salvador, sweet friend. I know you are forever changed - we ALL are after being able to experience Compassion through ya'll this week! Thank you from me (AND Elva!) :-)
Hi Kelly, just wanted to let you know you really inspired me! I just signed up for my husband and I to sponsor a little 7 year old girl in Ecuador. I am so excited to make an impact in another child's life in Jesus' name. I am confident now through reading about Compassion on your blog that our money will really be put to good use. Thanks, and God Bless!
I'm so glad you are home safe and sound Kelly!!!
My boys always cried when they saw me after being with gparents. Took awhile to get the "happy to see you" greeting! Glad to know its normal huh?
Enjoy your Sunday!
Hugs,
Fran
Welcome Home! (Even tho I live on the west coast - haha!) You gave of yourself on this awesome trip and it was inspiring for me, as a reader of your blog, to share in your journey. It planted a seed for me and I wanted to thank you.
Welcome home Kelly! I bet Harper and Dawson were so excited to see you.
Thank you for sharing your trip with us. I know you had a life changing experience.
Thanks so much for your post, God works through you in amazing ways...I am thrilled to add to the number of sponsored children this week...I cannot wait to write to my new "child" Floridwitch in Hati.
Welcome home! I am sure it was so nice to hug your baby girl and sleep in your own bed.
Also, don't worry about Harper not doing the transition well. I actually prayed about that for you.
My daughter (who is 2 and a half now!) usually spends about 1 weekend a month with my parents. (My friends joke with me that we share joint custody of her.) She loves going there, and they love it too! And I honestly love it too! I think it is so good for all of us.
Anyway, whenever we meet to do "the child exchange" she always cries for her Papa or Grammy and doesn't come right to me. I wish she would run into my arms and hug on me, but she acts all shy. At first it use to hurt my feelings. Now I know to expect it. And she always jumps back into being a mommy's girl before I know it.
Glad you had a safe trip home! I know being with Harper again is the best feeling in the world!!
What an inspirational experience WE all had through your posts. Welcome home- and Harper looks so happy to be with her mama and daddy!!
Kelly, I cried the entire time I read your posts from your trip to El Salvador. It was just so amazing to see the love radiating from those children who have nothing! Like you said, it is just a reminder that all we need is Jesus. After this, I am going to sponsor a child through compassion and cannot wait to start corresponding with him or her. Thanks for sharing this amazing journey with us!
Glad you guys made it home safe. I went to the Compassion website last week to sponsor a child, and I had to stop, because crying at work is never a good thing. I needed some time to pray about it and will be sponsoring a child very soon. Thanks for sharing your experience and leading so many of us to Compassion.
Awe! Harper looks so happy to see her Mommy and Daddy and it sounds like you had an AMAZING trip and touched so many lives! I know those kids were so grateful! Hope you are having a good weekend back at home :) Becky
I'm so glad you are home safe and sound! I SO.....enjoyed reading about your trip! what a life changing experience! Thanks for sharing it with all of us!!
Just wanted you to know that I was so touched by your trip that I have become a sponsor at Compassion, too! Thanks for opening up my eyes to their needs. God bless.
Thank you so much for sharing your experience with us! My 8 year old son and I just signed up to sponsor a little boy and are so excited to be given this opportunity to share the love of Jesus with him!
Hi Kelly -
I have only ever commented once before on your blog, so I know you don't have a clue who I am, but wanted to first welcome you home and say that you are amazing! I get so inspired by you in all that you do, but especially your Faith and relationship with the Lord. I find myself a bit jealous sometimes in that area. I am really trying, but sometimes life gets in the way, and I know that isn't a reason, only an excuse and I am working on that too.
The main reason I stopped by today is that I had an awesome experience yesterday that I wanted to share since I know how much David Crowder means to you. I went to a Rock The Sound concert last night, and had the pleasure of seeing David Crowder and Third Day perform. Well between their respected stage times, I had gone up to the Prayer tent area to have someone pray with me for several things - the biggest is that I am having major surgery on December 10th. Well, I had the change to have one on one prayer time with David Crowder. It was the most awesome touching experience. I just wanted to share with you.
Also, Harper is just beautiful - she has such an awesome personality in her pictures and videos that you have shared. With the holidays coming around, it's an emotional time of year for me, but I'm thankful to be here to share them with my friends and loved ones. I lost my first husband and 7 month old son to a drunk driver Thanksgiving of 1992 - I was 18. It's been many years, but still there is a void.
God Bless you and your family and thanks for being here.
I have been praying about sponsoring a child, and feel very led to do so, but due to upcoming surgery and being out of work for an undetermined amount of time without pay (I will only have 6 paid days at the time of my surgery, so anything over I won't be paid for. We don't have short term disability.) I have to wait til I am back at work and have my budget back in order.
Sorry for the book.
Teralyn
so glad you made it back home. I am sure you are loving on harper non stop :)
Thank you for writing about all of this. I have begun to sponsor a little girl named Aleyda from El Salvador. :)
Kelly,
Thanks to your El Salvador blogging experience I learned about Compassion, and my husband and I are now sponsoring a little boy!
Thanks for doing this! I am so excited.
Wow, you have done an absolutely AMAZING job relaying your personal experience and have helped the Compassion organization so much. I'm truly moved. My husband and I are currently separated and already give $200/month to a college friend of mine who is a missionary, so it's just not really in the budget right now, but I wanted to let you know how blessed Compassion is to have you as a first-hand spokesperson for their obviously wonderful organization. I am a fundraiser for a non-profit organization and I am impressed by the 83% going directly to services - thank you for including that information as well as all of the photos, personal stories, etc. that make this so real to all of us. People give to PEOPLE so thank you for educating and helping make a difference ;)
I love that it points out how truly life changing sponsoring a child can be...for you and them! We have sponsored Marta for almost 13 years and she is 18! She lives in Ethiopia and we chose her because she and I shared a birthday and then my oldest was born on that day, too! After traveling to Africa in February, I saw first hand that sponsoring a child, gives them food, education and a future. Thank you for reminding me what really matters! Blessings!
Hi Kelley!! Thank you for sharing your trip w/ Compassion with us! I just wanted to let you know that my husband and I just signed up to sponsor a child!! We are so excited. A sweet little 5 year old girl named Deysi Carolina that has been waiting 6mths for a sponsor! We can't wait to get our packet in a few weeks. Thanks you again for sharing your trip and being such an encouragement. God is working is such big ways!!!
My husband and I sponsored a child tonight! It's something that I've wanted to do for awhile. We have struggled with infertility for over two years now and I think this is a wonderful way to be involved in the life of a child right now. Thanks for encouraging people to do this.
It has been a blessing to follow your amazing trip to El Salvador. I am so glad yall made it home safely and Harper had lots of fun with her grandparents.
Thank you for sharing your trip with everyone. I'm sure the pictures you showed and the stories you told do not come close to seeing what it is really like down there, but it's given me a glimpse. I told my husband after catching up with your blog today what a great reminder of how truly blessed I am. I never have to worry about feeding my children, clothing them, etc. My heart breaks for those Mothers and children, as well all of those in our own country and all over the world that worry about things that I know I take for granted.
Thank you again for sharing!
Hi Kelly! I have been mentored so much by my husband and a friend that I've been around for years, but just in the last year really discussed God with. We've had a lot of conversations about opening ourselves up and doing the right things, and it's really changed my way of thinking about God.
Also, I signed up a few weeks ago to sponsor a little girl in India. I thought with my older son's 5th birthday, it could be kind of a gift to him and her since she was also 5 at the time. I have filled out the information online, but had not yet written my letter. Your blogs have made me get off my butt and fill that out with my whole heart in it and let that little girl know that we are here and praying and eager to know her.
I'm so glad that you guys arrived back home safely and that you had such a great time - I enjoyed the pictures!
Everywhere I go I hear something about sponsoring a Child through compassion. I loved seeing your trip and seeing how wonderful Compassion really is. I was worried about the monthly cost and then I decided that I could get my nails done every two weeks instead of each week and help a beautiful child of God in a real way through their whole childhood. Thank you for helping me not be so selfish and entitled. I just signed up. Compassion is picking a child for me and sending a packet. I can't wait to see who God has picked for us and who we get to watch grow up and learn about Jesus.
Just wanted to let you know we sponsored a little girl from Indonesia. She is hearing impaired just like my little girl! I'm so excited to be a part of helping this sweet little girl. Thanks for the encouragement to do so!
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