the most beautiful mcdonalds in h’burg

I was frantically trying to assemble the new grill so that Curtis Price would have a nice workspace for our 4th of July party.  Of course, it was mere hours before the party and I was attempting to slap the grill together as Levi and Isaac were putting the finishing touches on the yard work.  When I glanced at my phone to check the time, I noticed I had missed a call, and there was a voicemail.  I listened to the message, then called Isaac over to hear it.

It turns out that one of Isaac’s buddies from Hohhot was adopted by a family from the USofA last November.  His new family was in PA for a few days and wondered if we could meet somewhere to let the boys see each other and catch up.  When Isaac heard his buddy’s Chinese name, his eyes lit up and he cracked his famous smile.

So Monday we loaded the Team Sublett van and rolled down the road to a beautiful McDonalds in Harrisburg.  We pulled into the parking lot at just about the same time that the other family arrived.  Their 5 kids poured out of their minivan just as our stumbled out of our maxi-van.  There was a little bit of strangeness at the beginning; Isaac is a man of few words, and his buddy may say even less!  But Josie stepped in to bridge the gap, asking questions in Mandarin and translating to English.  Soon the laughter was flowing like sweet Diet Dr. Pepper.  Kim and I had a chance to sit and talk with the parents, swapping stories of their adoptions.  They adopted a baby girl years ago, and brought home Isaac’s bud and another boy about Charlie’s age last year.  We compared notes about our adoptions, laughed at some of our shared goofy experiences, got a little teary at the fact that God has blessed our families through adoptions…

I don’t know if our paths will cross in the future, but it was good to be reminded that Team Sublett is not the only crazy family in the world.  It was great to see our sons hanging out, knowing that we have been chosen by God to be family for these young men, that God is calling us to shape their futures and do our level best to teach them about Him.  For one glorious rainy Monday afternoon a pile of kids from all over the map got to hang out and laugh together, remembering the wild ride that God has put them on to get them where they are–right where he wants them.