Moving Forward...the theme of the Lorenz Family!

The past week has been very exciting in the Lorenz family. Last weekend, we moved our oldest daughter, Rachel, to her first apartment about two hours away from home. She is now an RN, working at a nice hospital, and found an adorable apartment, surrounded by wonderful friends from our KCU family. We packed her furniture, books, clothes, books, stereo, books...and lots of other wonderful items, (did I mention she has lots of books?)...on a moving truck and took her to begin a brand new chapter in her life. It's been an adjustment for all of our family, but we are very excited for her. Thank God for cell phones, texts, pictures and laptops which keep us connected daily. We miss her so much but know we are always close in heart.

Yesterday, we moved our son, Micah, to a new apartment. Thankfully, he is in the same building so the move was not as major as it could have been. But we still had to pack things up, move things out, unpack...and set up. He will begin his sophomore year at UK in a few weeks so we are excited for all the new opportunities ahead for him. He continues to work at the pharmacy and doesn't live too far from home so that makes our contact with him much easier.

We have also been working diligently on our third adoption update. So far, it is going well. We have all the necessary appointments made...are getting paperwork out and back...and seem to be progressing smoothly. We will also have a home visit this week from our incredible social worker...a true gift from God! We are definitely moving forward in our journey to our baby girl/s!

It is not always easy to adjust to changes. Watching our precious children move away from home is no exception. It is not easy to look at an empty bedroom when we were used to having our daughter home...or at least the majority of her belongings...with us here for almost twenty-three years. Although we have taken some of our little one/s' things to the empty bedroom, I have told Rachel that there will always be a place for her to come home to and visit. There will always be a place for her to sleep, stay and be surrounded by family who loves her. Our family is growing on many levels...distance, maturity, addition/s of our baby girl/s, etc.. But our hearts and home will always make room for the love and laughter of our family.

Through all of the moves, changes and adjustments, we realize now more than ever that a family can...and does...love across the miles. Whether it is our daughter two hours away, our son an hour away, or our little daughter/s in China halfway around the world, we love our family and hold one another closely in our hearts. Of course, we look forward to the day when we are all under the same roof, even if only for a short time...and can celebrate, love and embrace the moments together. But between those times,our love reaches beyond miles and holds us together through it all.

We are so thankful for all of you who walk beside us in this journey. Whether you are our precious friends, dear family, doctors and nurses, adoption agency workers, office officials or Church family, we thank God for each of you. Your prayers, assistance, hope and help along this journey are so appreciated. May your journey be blessed as richly as you have blessed ours.
Cherishing the journey as we move forward...
Terri & family