Christmas wishes

Today is Christmas Eve morning here in Maryland.  So right now our little Ellie is getting ready to go to sleep on Christmas Eve night.  Right now I am praying that she will have sweet dreams tonight... dreams of joys to come... of her family waiting for her.... of the wonderful memories we will make together.... of the beautiful and amazing woman God will create in her.  I am praying that all of her Christmas wishes will come true this year.
     With today being Christmas Eve, our children are so excited about the wonders and joys of this day and the next.  There are presents all around the tree (even for Ellie).  The recipes are planned out for our day of baking goodies.  The girls will be angels in our church's nativity tonight.  They are anxiously waiting for Santa Clause to arrive tonight with even more gifts!  And the best surprise of all will be arriving tomorrow... Granny and Paw-Paw are coming to visit from Louisiana!!  This surprise has been hard to keep, but it will be so much fun!  You can feel the joy in our house today....
      So why is my heart not brimming over with the joy my children feel?  There is something missing this year... one of my children will not be around our tree.  This may seem strange to some..... I have never held this baby, seen her (except in pictures), played with her, or dried her tears....how could I love her so much and miss her this badly?  This answer, is because God planted her in my heart.  She is there as deeply as every other one of my children.  Yes, I have never held her in my arms, but have always held her in my heart.  She is my baby... and my only Christmas wish this year is that she will feel loved...loved as much as our beautiful Savior loves her, and loved as much as we love her.
      Merry Christmas Ellie!

Please pray...
   - That we will receive an update on Ellie soon.  A request was sent Tuesday, but we have not heard anything yet.  I just want to know my baby is okay.
   - That our homestudy will go through the review process quickly.  We cannot apply for immigration (our next step) until it is complete.
   - For all the orphans without families this Christmas season that they will feel love and joy from those around them.  And for all of the adoptive parents waiting for their children.