Breakthrough

The biggest prayer on my heart nowadays is that Hannah and Hailey will have a heart for Tanzania; that they will want to be here more than they want to go back to America.  So far every time Hannah acts up she says it is because she just misses everyone so much that she can’t help but do the wrong thing.  Sometimes at night I hear her just praying and praying that Jesus will let her friends know how much she misses them.   I am so thankful that she had such amazing friends in Wenatchee that she has kept this tight of a grip on them but it is also hard for her to move on.  Hailey follows suit.  One time in the car Hailey couldn’t stop crying and I kept asking her what was wrong. She said she wanted to go home but every time I would say we are almost home she would say “no!!!” so finally I asked her what home did she want to go to and she responded by saying “Abby’s home and Mya’s home” (these are her friends in Wenatchee). She was trying to tell me she just wanted to go back to Wenatchee.  She wasn’t prompted in any way and we hadn’t talked about Abby or Mya’s home in a while so this was her own little mind remembering home.  These have been heartbreaking for me as a mom and I keep trying to figure out ways to make them feel like this is home but in the end I know I just need to pray for their hearts to open up here and for them to feel comfortable. When they get sad we talk about going home to visit for a couple months and that normally helps Hannah settle down. I know it has only been 3 months but I have just been waiting and waiting to hear her say she likes it.  Finally the other day we were walking from Nick’s class back to our apartment and Hannah looked at me with tears in her eyes and said, “Mommy, if we go back to Wenatchee I would miss this place so much. I would cry every day. Can we please stay here? It’s okay if I miss my friends in America, they know I love them and miss them.  Please mommy, please can we stay here?”  After that we talked about all the things she would miss about Africa and the list was long!  Hailey then said she wanted to live in Africa not Wenatchee.  That night the girls and I sat out on our patio and watched the sunset (one of their favorite things to do) and Hannah said “see mommy, like this.  It is so beautiful. I would miss seeing the beautiful sunset if we left here and listen to those silly chickens, they are so loud all day and night. I wouldn’t see chickens and cows if we went back to Wenatchee.”  I am so proud of my girls. We have a long way to go but this is a huge step in the process of adjusting here.  I am seeing their hearts for Jesus grow bigger and bigger every day.  It is such a blessing to watch Hailey fall down (I’m getting to the good partJ) and watch Hannah run to her side and pick her up, brush her off and ask her if she can pray for any of her cuts.  When we are places with other kids the girls are starting to realize these kids don’t have the toys like they do so they give them some of their toys to play with.   We are so thankful for the family he has given us!