My Ella is sweet and sassy, and I cannot imagine loving her more than I do. She has a really big personality and processes her little life verbally.

So many things have changed for her in dramatic ways over the past months. Here is a sample of Ella’s processings:

Lots of kids – Mama, are these all our children (in reference to Ryan’s siblings)? Where did they come from? Are we keeping them?

Hospitals, every other day – Mommy, where are you going? Again? Can you tell the doctor you need to come home to see your Ella?

Stars – (Some nights at bedtime) Mama, can we go look at the stars? Wait – where are the stars? We have stars in Kenya. Is that a star? No, that’s an airplane.

Home – (While singing loudly) I want to go to my home, to my home in Kenya. I want to see my friends: Jaden, Zoe, Ryan, and Kibet. I want to go to my hoooooome! In KENYA!

Home – part 2 – Yesterday, she whispered, a really unusual thing for Ella.) Mama, Ryan misses his home in Kenya. You know how he cries a lot – it’s because he misses his friends. And when he hits other children, it is not appropriate (I wish I could capture the way she said appropriate – I didn’t even know she knew the word). He’s still a good boy – he just wants to go home.

My sweet Ella is homesick for Africa.

Sadly, I so often hear ‘going to Africa’ referred to in Christian circles as the greatest sacrifice God could ever ask of you. Main stream media highlights stories of poverty, hunger, and war. Over and over again, the dangerous ‘single story’ retold; but there’s so much more.  The beauty. The simplicity. The people. My daughter, and the rest of us less vocal ones, love and miss it.

While we are unbelievably grateful for the treatment our boys are receiving here in Los Angeles and are blessed beyond measure by the love and support of family and friends during this season; Ella’s our spokesgirl, and we miss Kenya!