Ok, I know I am writing a post about Father's day about 3 weeks too late, but there has been a lot going on and well I was tired! Eli has had some bumps in the road and in his mouth (two year molars) which have caused a bit of a slow down here in the Pilato household. We are moving forward, trusting the Lord to do a mighty work (which he always does) and enjoying what the summer has to offer.
AJ is an amazing man! Enough said! He has been a rock, a support, and an unfailing love throughout our marriage and now parenthood. I LOVE watching him as a father and how he loves, loves, LOVES our son! He makes us laugh, calms our fears and provides for us so well! He works so hard to ensure we are loved and taken care of each and everyday! I thank the Lord everyday for the man he made for me and the family he created for us. I never never never dreamed life would be so beautiful, but it is. Hard work, but awesome in every way!
For Father's Day, I wanted to do things I know AJ loves. So we set out in the morning for our favorite beach with our little man. I thought it would be so neat to have Father's Day be the first time Eli saw the ocean and the beach! Eli was hesistant at first, needed to observe for a while with a very serious face and then eventually (in true Eli fashion) popped right in the water and plopped in the sand! It made this beach loving Daddy and Mama very happy!
We then had lunch at a favorite place that AJ never ever gets to eat at Bobby's Burger Palace, where we enjoyed yummy burgers and had a wonderful lunch together. Eli did great. We drove home, hung out for a while, had a small dinner and then took AJ to get ice cream! All his favs with his favs!!!
We love you Daddy, thank you for the Godly, strong, and funny man you are! God has surely blessed us!
God is good and we are blessed!
Just as a father has compassion on his children, So the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him.
Two weeks ago, we said so long to a dear, sweet fighter....Kya. It has been an extremely emotional couple of weeks and difficult to get through. Eli's Baoji Buddy Kya went to be with Lord after fighting such a strong fight for several months in the hospital. She was such a fighter in spirit, in emotions and in her physical body. That girl had spunk!
Her story is amazing one filled with the healing love of Jesus Christ, the determination of her strong, amazing parents and the transformation of a frightened orphan into a smiley, dancing, happy child in the arms of Jesus. Through all the pain of losing Kya, her parents' hope is to simply and powerfully have the truth of the Gospel shine and for Kya's short, little life to impact others for Christ....that it did and that it does and that it will. We first met sweet Kya in Xi'An at the civil affairs office where we united with Eli. It was Eli, Kya and Elyana waiting for their families..they were all in the same classroom in their orphanage and slept cribs away from each other. In essence, they each were the first semblance of family they had, they had each other. God knew when placing these sweet lives together that they would eventually bring together three other beautiful families that have been loving, Godly support for one another in the last 6 months.
Playdate in Xi'an
Hangin at the zoo
The three Baoji Buddies having a playdate in Xi'An
Kya's Mama and I enjoying the elephant show in Guangzhou
She held onto a cracker or sausage all day long while in China
Over the past six months, we watch Kya go from a tiny, hurting little girl to a child who understood what love is and how to be part of a family. When Tracy, her mom was caring for her in China, Kya would not even look at her...this girl had been through so much and had no idea how to trust. Once we returned home, we began receiving updates on Kya's condition (which was extremely complicated and tough to treat). We were in awe of the Lord's work in her as we began to see this child smile, laugh, roll, dance, and play. The Lord was working through her and in her and it was a sight to see. Her parents worked tirelessly to give her the love and nurturing she needed to be all she could be and to realize the Love of Christ.
Kya blossoming
Kya underwent several surgeries while home and the last one proved to be just too hard on her little heart and lungs. We rallied around her family, praying, believing and trusting the Lord. Kya received her healing when, as her mom said "Kya stormed the gates of heaven" on June 2nd at 1:00 pm. We were/are all crushed and just thinking about what her family has endured to bring her home, what they sacrificed to help her and having broken hearts in the end is so difficult to comprehend . But Kya's heart is no longer broken and that is what we prayed for her. Although she is no longer with us here on earth and her family cannot snuggle with her, they know and we know she is with Jesus healed, whole and complete. It's hard, it's devastating and will be a difficult road to navigate for her family, but they and we trust the Lord for healing, hope and grace.
Will you please keep Kya and her family in prayer...the months ahead will tough ones. They will need much love and God's peace to surround them. We love them so much and we love "KyKy" as Eli so lovingly call her. So, so long sweet girl. We will see you in Heaven.......
Kya Marilyn
Born October 22, 2011
Adopted and loved forever
With Jesus June 2, 1:00 pm
You will be glad to know God heard our pleas.
Kya was in our arms when
the machines were turned off
and she stormed the gates of heaven...
And just so you know, we'd do it all over again if we had to.
My computer has been acting a bit weird lately (perhaps its from a certain little one that clicks the on/off button a gazzillion times before Mommy catches him) so I wasn't able to update when I wanted to do so. A warning, this post will be filled with awesomeness, cuteness, birthday craziness and LOTS of pictures. Eli's birthday fell the Tuesday after Easter, so naturally we celebrated with our family the Saturday before and had Easter Sunday. We just had grandparents, aunts and uncles there, my little nephew didn't make it which was a bit sad but we had a blast anyway! We kept the party small as Eli is just getting used to celebrating birthdays and holidays. With his Birthday and Easter back to back we knew it was going to be a lot for him, but we wanted to celebrate his life and what an awesome boy he is!
Eli loves, loves, loves him some puppy dogs and will excitedly point
them out whenever he sees one. He has multiple stuffed puppies and
loves to cuddle them and feed them and love on them. It's the cutest
ever! I had a few things made on Etsy and then got the rest at Party
City, all puppy themed of course. I wanted to get less cheezey items
for the table, but I plan on doing that for his big during the summer.
So Party City items it was and it turned out rather cute and Eli loved
it
He was definitely SPOILED (he has a couple of grandma's that just melt for this boy!) for his birthday and got A LOT of beautiful toys. He opened them all that day, but we slowly introduced them into his play over the course of the past two weeks so as not to overstimulate him and to give him time adjust! He was extremely excited to get a smokin new set of wheels and a play kitchen which he has been making Puppy breakfast every morning!
We ended the day with a Paleo birthday cake and coconut milk ice cream which Eli L-O-V-E-D! He doesn't really ever get desserts except fruit or an occassional paleo muffin. He was in HEAVEN! My mom did a fantastic job with the cake! The LORD blessed us mightily in every way, shape and form!
If you are all wondering if my child smiles, I guarantee you he is a VERY smiley, happy, silly boy. HOWEVER, when he is in a new situation or one with a lot of people or new things around, he gets very serious and observes everything. We know this is part of the process of him healing and trusting that nothing bad is going to happen. We know he thinks back to the day when he was taken out of everything he knew, traveled three hours in a vehicle he was never in, placed in a new room with a bunch of nannies and kids and bombarded by a bunch of Americans so excited to see his face and other children's faces in that room. VERY, VERY VERY scarey if you ask me, so little by little his is trusting more and more in new situations but he gets very quiet and keeps an eye on Mommy/Daddy. He is doing wonderfully, but we always have to keep in mind his point of view and what he might be experiencing. The next day was Easter and we dressed in our finest and headed out the door for church. I cried thinking about every Easter that had past, praying to hold a child in my arms and this year the Lord showed Himself mighty!
We had another beautiful day filled with the peace and love of Jesus Christ and really reflected on what the day meant and the salvation that was given to us that day! We had a little egg hunt for Eli and then ended the day with a delicious meal! We are truly blessed to have a such an amazing family!
On Tuesday, we celebrated Eli's 2nd birthday! We prayed that morning for his China Mommy and Daddy who so lovingly gave him life so we could hold him in our arms forever. It's not anything AJ and I take for granted and we will always honor his birth parents in celebrations like this. We wanted his first birthday with us to be filled with love and family time, just the three of us. AJ took the day off from work and we headed to a local zoo for the morning to celebrate! Eli loved all the animals, the train ride and most of all his first PONY RIDE! He was so brave and courageous-he had to go by himself with two strangers spotting him on the horse around a big track! He LOVED LOVED LOVED it! I asked AJ if we could get him a pony for Christmas and that was quickly shot down! We had a quick bite out to eat and then had some left over cake and ice cream for dessert that night! It was really a beautiful way to celebrate our first child, our first son, our first birthday with Eli and our first time celebrating a birthday as parents!
We have seen Eli just flourish in the past almost 5 months since being with us! The amount of change that has transpired since bringing him home Christmas day is incredible and a testimony of the Lord's power to heal. He went from a sad, shocked little baby to an incredibly vibrant, social, rambunctious, silly, joy-filled toddler! Eli is initiating hugs, kisses, and a few "I wa oo" (i love you) from time to time and showing more and more healthy attachment. All this excitement did create some regression in the beginning of last week. So we did A LOT of lap time, snuggling, holding and rocking to comfort him and reassure him. He is adjusted once again now and we are preparing for May which holds a few birthdays, Mother's day (MY FIRST!!) and a surgical procedure for Eli. So I am sure there will be a lot of snuggles, lap time and hugs in store for our lil man, but nothing that Jesus can't restore through His love and healing power! Friends, we are so blessed that you all helped us in some way, shape or form to get to this point in our lives and to enjoy being the parents we so desired to be! Words will never express the gratitude we have for you all! Above all, we thank the Lord for all He has done, is doing and will do in our lives! God bless!
God is GOOD and we are BLESSED!
"This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24
