"God-winks"

Luke 12:6-7

Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies?

Yet not one of them is forgotten by God.

Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered.

Don't be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows

It can sometimes be tempting to feel "alone" in this heart journey- while we have SO many who are journeying alongside us in prayer and encouragement (and we could NOT do this without you), Brooke's heart is so complex and unique that there are not too many that we personally know who have actually "lived-through" a heart surgery quite like this. 

We were blessed to meet the Rancourt family back in January, when Meredith and Emily happened to begin emailing back and forth about our similar "heart babies"...our Brooke and their Lily. We prayed from January to April for each others' paperwork processes...rejoicing with each other when progress was made, and comforting and encouraging when the road blocks hit. We prayed all along that we might somehow end up traveling to China together...but thought it wouldn't happen since our paperwork dates were all off. Well..

God-Wink #1:

We got our travel approval on the SAME exact date as Emily and Jacques Rancourt, and we were able to coordinate our consulate appointments to be just one day apart. We WOULD be meeting in China after all during the last week of our trip!!! However...Meredith, who had become Emily's very good friend, was traveling back to the States to take finals for the last week, so she would miss getting to meet the Rancourts. We were all disappointed, but...

God-Wink #2:

Meredith has worked at a camp up in New England, and frequently goes up to visit. Come to find out, the Rancourts home is only 30-45 minutes from this camp where Meredith worked...and she was able to visit Emily and Jacques and meet their sweet girls a few weeks ago!!! 

God-Wink #3:

Through conversations with Emily, we realized that Lily and Brooke were "heart-sisters". They both have extremely rare, unique hearts...but somehow...their conditions are so very, very similar. We realized that God had so clearly brought our families together as friends to be able to walk this scary road TOGETHER....and amazingly, Brooke and Lily's procedures (BOTH were receiving the exact same surgery...the Fontan) were scheduled just 4 days apart. We have truly been able to walk this road together the entire time...while separated by several hundred miles :) Finally...today just blew us both away...

God-Wink #4:

Both Brooke and Lily went into surgery wearing the "hospital standard" pale green gown...the gown that almost every single patient wears when admitted for a procedure. However, after surgery BOTH Brooke and Lily were put into "Tired Little Tiger" gowns...that we both separately had been calling "Liang Zhi Lao Hu" gowns (the song "Two Tigers" in Chinese...Brooke and Lily's favorite!). Emily happened to post a picture of Lily wearing her tiger gown...and we were shocked to see that Brooke had just been put in the same exact one! It was just a neat reminder that in a Pediatric Intensive Care Unit across the country, another precious Asian princess was wearing her Liang Zhi Lao Hu gown while resting and healing from HER open-heart surgery. 

God is in the details...and He has been from the beginning of this entire adoption process. Just go back and read Brooke's incredible story...part 1, part 2, and part 3. Go read Emily's beautiful story to her daughters Mackenzie and Lily. It is so neat to see His fingerprints along the way...and we can't wait to see what else is to come!!!