A New name for An Sheng

David and I decided on a name for An Sheng. He will be called Brighton An Sheng Anderson. Sheng is his given name and it means victory in Chinese. How appropriate! Brighton is Hebrew and means "the one who is loved." We really like it because he is loved so much by so many people.

I prayed over the weekend for things to go a little faster. Patience is a virtue that I'm having trouble with in this situation. Please pray for patience for me! God answered by speeding along two huge envelopes full of paperwork that we received Monday morning. It is a bit overwhelming to have ALL THAT paperwork spread out before oneself. Be careful what you ask for! LOL!

In that paperwork, CWA sent me a few more photos of Brighton. They are in B&W, very blurry and low quality. If I can get better copies I will post them here. They are really cute! I'm hoping that China will send a few updated photos when we get pre-approval from them. We are in the process of sending our Letter of Intent to China this week. Please pray that it will get there quickly and that China will not find any errors in the paperwork!

We have been blessed to find many adoptive families that live right here in the Brazos Valley and surrounding areas. The Forever Families yahoo group has put us in touch with wonderful Christian folks that we can get advice from and fellowship with. One family has 14 children, two biological and 12 adopted! WOW! God has blessed them indeed!

I found a poem the other day that really made me cry. I want to share it with you. It really echoes my love for Brighton.

THE CHOSEN HEART
Longing for a child to love,
I'd wish upon the stars above.
In my heart I always knew,
A part of me was meant for you.

I think how happy we will be,
Once I adopt you, and you adopt me.

I dream of all the joy you'll bring,
Imagining even the littlest things.
The way it will feel to hold you tight,
And tuck you in every night.

The drawings on the refrigerator door,
And childhood toys across the floor,
The favorite stories read again and again,
And hours of games with make-believe friends.

The day you took my outstretched hand,
A journey ended, but our lives began.
Still mesmerized by your sweet face,
Still warmed inside by our first embrace.

I promised to give you a happy home,
And a loving family all your own.
A house you've now made complete,
With laughter, smiles and little feet.

A parent is one who guides the way,
Know I will be there everyday.
Rest easy as each night you sleep,
A lifetime of love is yours to keep.

Longing for a child to love,
I'd wish upon the stars above.
In my heart I always knew,
A part of me belonged to you.

Teri Harrison


Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out His commands. This is love for God: to obey his commands. And His commandments are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. 1 John 5:1-5