Our lives are like quilts - bits and pieces, joy and sorrow, stitched with love.
Unknown
Joe and I have gone to parenting classes sponsored by WIAA during our wait for Elainea to come home. These classes have been very informative on parenting and what to expect when adopting a foreign child, but even more it has provided a connection to other families that are in various stages of the adoption process as well.
One of these sessions focused on how to deal with the emotions of waiting. We were all asked to list five adjectives to describe the wait. Joe and I listed, anxious, frustrated, scared, overwhelmed and isolated. The group then put there submissions into a box and they were read anonymously to the group. I remember that on someone’s entry there were entries such as “spiritual, cleansing, and peaceful”. Wow, what a powerhouse of faith! This floored Joe and I to think that someone has found the silver lining when we were convinced that there was not one.During the same meeting we heard from other families about things they are doing during the wait. That is when I heard of the tradition of the Good Wishes Quilt or Bai Jia Bei. I thank Denise Haynie for getting me the details about this wonderful project. In the time since I started this project my eyes have been opened wide to the love and support we have from our family and friends. This quilt will allow us a way to save all of the well wishes in a scrapbook and make a beautiful quilt for Elainea.
Here are the wishes for the quilt:
May you always realize your divine worth and potential. You have been blessed with loving parents and a loving sister. It is not for nothing that you are where you are. Shine that love back into the world.~Seara Patterson
May you know peace in your lifeThe peace of a warm and loving homeThe peace of friends who love and support youThe peace of self-love and self-respect.~ Andrea Hellewell
You are a child of many dreamsAn amazing, tiny blessing chosen with hearts full of love.May your life be always filled with God’s very special gifts ofPeace and Joy.~With much love, G. Aunt Elizabeth & G Uncle Tom
May the blessings of the Lord be upon you all the days of your life.~ Love in Christ, Ken & Nora Hughes
We wish you warm memories to cheer you!~ Annette & Adam Anderson
May the sunshine Brighten your Heart. And May your life Be enfolded inA mantle of LOVE!~ Linda Christensen
Our wish for you is a healthy life,one blessed with wisdom and fullof happiness and adventure.~ Rod, Angie & Duncan Hale
A world of love and blessings to God’sbeautiful new angel baby Elainea.Joe, Pam and Hannah’s tiny treasure.Congratulations to all, and a great futureOf happiness and joy.~Lots of love, John & Blanche Rockwell
May you grow upWith love andGracious hearts andPeople who care.~Don & Rhonda McIntosh
We hope your life will be full of lots of brightand shiny moments.May you always remember what a precious jewelyou are to your family and to your Father in Heaven.You are deeply loved.~Love, Brent Ann, Madalyn, Alex & Julia Allred
May a kind word, a reassuring touch, a warm smile beyours every day of yur life, and may you give these gifts as well as receive them.~Joseph & Denise Haynie, Waiting for Emma
Every heart is touched by heaven when it is blessed with the gift of a new little one.Wishing you every happiness and joydear Elainea with your family, Joe, Pam and Hannah.~Carol, Sam & Margaret Yalbuw
The Lord has sent your family a star and a blessingthat will bring joy, happiness and love to all.~Aunt Marilyn & Uncle Arlen
It was once said to me,Not born of my flesh,but sealed in my heart.Sharing with another is a simple way to say…“We Need Each Other.”The world is filled with Histender Love.~My Love, Grandma McCoy
You are a dream I never dared dream.You are the wish I could not say.You are the make-believe friend that shared my lonely room,shared my childhood tea partiesso many secrets I told you.Never in my little girl heartCould I have really imaginedYou were real.You were wishing the same wishes.You were dreaming the same dreams.You were having the same tea party.You told me your secrets.Now we have that special love,That love that only sisters know.The love that was just a silentwish kept deep in our little girl hearts…The love of a sister. – Unknown~I Love You Buckets! Hannah
Once there were two women who never knew each other.One you do not remember, the other you call Mother.
Two different lives shaped to make you one.One became your guiding star, one became your sun.
The first gave you life, the second taught you to live it.The first gave you a need for love, the other was there to give it.
One gave you a nationality; the other gave you a name.One gave you talent, the other gave you aim.
One gave you emotions; the other calmed your fears.One saw your first sweet smile, the other dried your tears.
One sought for you a home that she could not provide.One prayed for a child and her hope was not denied.
And now you ask through your tears the age old question through the years.Heredity or environment, which are you a product of?
Neither, precious ElaineaJust two different kinds of Love. – UnknownAlways remember that I have always loved you. You were born in my heart.~Hugs and Kisses, Mommy
Storks don’t bring babies… Love does!You are well loved!~Pat, Chuck & Michael Camp
Nothing is impossible to a willing heart.~ Brett Bertagnolli
We live in succession, in division in parts, in particles.Meantime within man is the soul of the whole; the wise silence;the universal beauty, to which every part and particle is equally related,the eternal ONE.And this deep power in which we exist and whose beatitude is all accessible to us,is not only self-sufficing and perfect in every hour, but the act of seeing and the thing seen, the seer and the spectacle, the subject and the object, are one.We see the world piece by piece, as the sun the moon, the animal, the tree; but the whole,of which these are shining parts, is the soul. – Ralph Waldo EmersonWe wish that your soul will reflect the brightness of all the beautiful shining parts that make you whole!~Charles, Diana & Chase Brownrigg
If you begin the day with love in your heart, peace in yournerves, and truth in your mind, you not only benefit by theirpresence, but also bring them to others, to your family andfriends, and to all those whose destiny draws you across yourpath that day. Unknown~Dana Christensen
Reach high, for stars lie hidden in your soul.Dream deep, for every dream precedes the goal. – Ralph Vaull Starr~Paula Boydston
Our wish for you is a bright future,With many days of sunshine & happiness.You have been blessed with a loving family,And a new home in this land of many opportunities.~John, Abbi, Michelle and Joey Freitas
Unknown
Joe and I have gone to parenting classes sponsored by WIAA during our wait for Elainea to come home. These classes have been very informative on parenting and what to expect when adopting a foreign child, but even more it has provided a connection to other families that are in various stages of the adoption process as well.
One of these sessions focused on how to deal with the emotions of waiting. We were all asked to list five adjectives to describe the wait. Joe and I listed, anxious, frustrated, scared, overwhelmed and isolated. The group then put there submissions into a box and they were read anonymously to the group. I remember that on someone’s entry there were entries such as “spiritual, cleansing, and peaceful”. Wow, what a powerhouse of faith! This floored Joe and I to think that someone has found the silver lining when we were convinced that there was not one.During the same meeting we heard from other families about things they are doing during the wait. That is when I heard of the tradition of the Good Wishes Quilt or Bai Jia Bei. I thank Denise Haynie for getting me the details about this wonderful project. In the time since I started this project my eyes have been opened wide to the love and support we have from our family and friends. This quilt will allow us a way to save all of the well wishes in a scrapbook and make a beautiful quilt for Elainea.
Here are the wishes for the quilt:
May you always realize your divine worth and potential. You have been blessed with loving parents and a loving sister. It is not for nothing that you are where you are. Shine that love back into the world.~Seara Patterson
May you know peace in your lifeThe peace of a warm and loving homeThe peace of friends who love and support youThe peace of self-love and self-respect.~ Andrea Hellewell
You are a child of many dreamsAn amazing, tiny blessing chosen with hearts full of love.May your life be always filled with God’s very special gifts ofPeace and Joy.~With much love, G. Aunt Elizabeth & G Uncle Tom
May the blessings of the Lord be upon you all the days of your life.~ Love in Christ, Ken & Nora Hughes
We wish you warm memories to cheer you!~ Annette & Adam Anderson
May the sunshine Brighten your Heart. And May your life Be enfolded inA mantle of LOVE!~ Linda Christensen
Our wish for you is a healthy life,one blessed with wisdom and fullof happiness and adventure.~ Rod, Angie & Duncan Hale
A world of love and blessings to God’sbeautiful new angel baby Elainea.Joe, Pam and Hannah’s tiny treasure.Congratulations to all, and a great futureOf happiness and joy.~Lots of love, John & Blanche Rockwell
May you grow upWith love andGracious hearts andPeople who care.~Don & Rhonda McIntosh
We hope your life will be full of lots of brightand shiny moments.May you always remember what a precious jewelyou are to your family and to your Father in Heaven.You are deeply loved.~Love, Brent Ann, Madalyn, Alex & Julia Allred
May a kind word, a reassuring touch, a warm smile beyours every day of yur life, and may you give these gifts as well as receive them.~Joseph & Denise Haynie, Waiting for Emma
Every heart is touched by heaven when it is blessed with the gift of a new little one.Wishing you every happiness and joydear Elainea with your family, Joe, Pam and Hannah.~Carol, Sam & Margaret Yalbuw
The Lord has sent your family a star and a blessingthat will bring joy, happiness and love to all.~Aunt Marilyn & Uncle Arlen
It was once said to me,Not born of my flesh,but sealed in my heart.Sharing with another is a simple way to say…“We Need Each Other.”The world is filled with Histender Love.~My Love, Grandma McCoy
You are a dream I never dared dream.You are the wish I could not say.You are the make-believe friend that shared my lonely room,shared my childhood tea partiesso many secrets I told you.Never in my little girl heartCould I have really imaginedYou were real.You were wishing the same wishes.You were dreaming the same dreams.You were having the same tea party.You told me your secrets.Now we have that special love,That love that only sisters know.The love that was just a silentwish kept deep in our little girl hearts…The love of a sister. – Unknown~I Love You Buckets! Hannah
Once there were two women who never knew each other.One you do not remember, the other you call Mother.
Two different lives shaped to make you one.One became your guiding star, one became your sun.
The first gave you life, the second taught you to live it.The first gave you a need for love, the other was there to give it.
One gave you a nationality; the other gave you a name.One gave you talent, the other gave you aim.
One gave you emotions; the other calmed your fears.One saw your first sweet smile, the other dried your tears.
One sought for you a home that she could not provide.One prayed for a child and her hope was not denied.
And now you ask through your tears the age old question through the years.Heredity or environment, which are you a product of?
Neither, precious ElaineaJust two different kinds of Love. – UnknownAlways remember that I have always loved you. You were born in my heart.~Hugs and Kisses, Mommy
Storks don’t bring babies… Love does!You are well loved!~Pat, Chuck & Michael Camp
Nothing is impossible to a willing heart.~ Brett Bertagnolli
We live in succession, in division in parts, in particles.Meantime within man is the soul of the whole; the wise silence;the universal beauty, to which every part and particle is equally related,the eternal ONE.And this deep power in which we exist and whose beatitude is all accessible to us,is not only self-sufficing and perfect in every hour, but the act of seeing and the thing seen, the seer and the spectacle, the subject and the object, are one.We see the world piece by piece, as the sun the moon, the animal, the tree; but the whole,of which these are shining parts, is the soul. – Ralph Waldo EmersonWe wish that your soul will reflect the brightness of all the beautiful shining parts that make you whole!~Charles, Diana & Chase Brownrigg
If you begin the day with love in your heart, peace in yournerves, and truth in your mind, you not only benefit by theirpresence, but also bring them to others, to your family andfriends, and to all those whose destiny draws you across yourpath that day. Unknown~Dana Christensen
Reach high, for stars lie hidden in your soul.Dream deep, for every dream precedes the goal. – Ralph Vaull Starr~Paula Boydston
Our wish for you is a bright future,With many days of sunshine & happiness.You have been blessed with a loving family,And a new home in this land of many opportunities.~John, Abbi, Michelle and Joey Freitas
