Sonya's Heart

Sonya shared with me almost from the very beginning of our adoption journey that she would like to pay her own way to China.  It turns out, Sonya's round trip airline ticket including all meals for her two week stay in China comes to roughly $500.00.

As some of you know, Sonya attends a professional art studio called Garden of Arts, a Christian-run art studio intent on upholding and maintaining a biblical worldview.  I have listed on the side bar of our adoption blog some of Sonya's finest work through Garden of Arts thus far.  In order to help Sonya accomplish her goal of providing her own financial means to China, I will give our readership an opportunity to view some of her prints and then contact me via email to make known your selection for purchase.  Please everyone, spread the word for Sonya's sake. 

All prints will list a minimum donation which includes the cost of the print (with a marginal
mark-up) plus packaging and postage.  The following is Sonya's  work listed in the order found on the side bar (including dimensions) with a minimum donation.

 

"Cattails"- 10 3/4 x 15- min. $5 donation



"Basket of Flowers" - 10 3/4 x 15 - min. $5 donation

"Cactus in a Clay Pot" - 8.5 x 11 - min. $4 donation

"Happy Flowers in a Bowl" - 8.5 x 11 - min. $4 donation

"Water Lilies" - 8.5 x 11 - min. $4 donation 

"Flowers in Vase" - 8.5 x 11 - min. $4 donation

"Basket Full of Apples" - 8.5 x 11 - min. $4 donation 

Please contact me at c.hoium@yahoo.com to place your order.  All proceeds will go toward paying Sonya's way to China and back.  This child is serious about wanting to do it all by herself. 

Will you please support Sonya's heart in this most precious matter? 


The Experience of What Art Really Is and What It Can Do -
 From a Mother’s Point of View
Written by Cheryl Hoium



I have liked Sharon Kuhn from the very beginning. From our very first telephone conversation regarding the potential placement of my daughter in her art school until the present day, who she says she is, what she says she does, and what she says she believes in have not changed.
Sharon is solid. Sharon is stable. Sharon is safe.



I like Sharon’s simplicity of purpose - to maintain her biblical worldview while elevating her students to recognize their God-given potentials and then exercise them. I like her honesty and integrity, where she honestly sees talent and potential in each and every student she meets and then exercises her integrity in lifting each student up to shine above her.

I like that it is important to Sharon that she provide my daughter and her other students with a safe and loving learning environment, where they are safe to be themselves and make mistakes and then succeed. I like that she begins each art lesson in prayer, lifting up to our Father praise and thanksgiving for every good gift that flows out of them into their creations. I like that Sharon’s love for Jesus translates as an innate ability to sense the needs of each of her students and meet them in that place, providing a collaborative mechanism between teacher and student in order that
 inner excellence can flourish and prevail.


I have learned through listening to and observing Sharon with her students that art is not just something we do with sidewalk chalk. Art, or the experience of real art, is something that will change who we are on a neurological and practical level. Real art, awe-inspiring and life-sustaining, is capable of stimulating and building higher reasoning in each person whom it touches. In essence, real art emanates from the spirit, exuding a spiritual substance our Creator has imbued with an unbridled joy! Sharon, because of her spirit-filled joy, is highly successful at teaching these children how to draw from their own reservoirs. It is in this joyful place where true, living art is birthed, the children are celebrated and their competence and a sense of belonging recognized.



As parents, we can see that Sharon knows how to intuitively and actively build bridges to her pupils, these young hearts and minds we have entrusted to her care, perceiving as parents that the youth whom we send through her art school doors will be changed forever for the better with each and every encounter. At Garden of Arts, we can witness that through humility and grace the pupils can be emboldened to step out of their self-confined shells of uncertainty and embrace a new world of possibility just because they’ve been given a chance to be. To Sharon, it is not about the outcome of the artwork. It is instead about celebrating the uniqueness and beauty of each person who walks through her art school doors looking for help to set free their innate and God-given creative genius.



As Sharon reinforces that she loves the “Sonya way” or the “Samuel way” or the “Melissa way”, and on and on, she is literally reinforcing in these young minds and hearts their ability to achieve, to problem-solve, to meet life head-on in any given situation. Truly, the sense of belonging and being liked by Miss Sharon causes the brains of these children to map success, victory, love and attachment, and in this manner our children are being given a hand-up into a future of endless possibilities and opportunities to cope and flourish, leading to
the conquering of hidden fears and traumas.
 

Finally, I can say with all assuredness that my daughter experiences healthy attachment with Miss Sharon; thus, she can trust Miss Sharon when she tells Sonya she can do something new and different. Sonya listens to, believes in and respects Miss Sharon’s authority. Because of all of this, Sonya has been able to create such beautiful art for her young age, and I know this beauty which is conceived in her mind and flows through her little fingers is an extension of her worth in God’s eyes, and as a mother and a human being, I marvel at the creation of the created. My daughter’s experience with Garden of Arts and her profound love and liking for Miss Sharon
bear witness to this mother's testimony.


For more information about enrolling your children or grandchildren in Garden of Arts, please contact Sharon Kuhn at 260-492-5602. 
 I highly recommend her!



Sonya's Fund Raiser

Notice the beautiful art work on the side bar.  Stay tuned for further details to find out how YOU can support Sonya in raising the money she needs to go to China to bring her little sister home safe and sound.

The Aftermath

Witness with your very own eyes the ill effects of a garage-sale ravaged home!

Randy and I, with the Lord's help, have managed to survive two humongous fundraising sales.  Now comes the clean-up and return to some semblance of order, God willing!  Even our carpets need cleaned!  Ugh! 


Okay....can we have a drumroll, please?  This weekend we made $1,200.00 profit towards our little one's ransom!  Praise the Lord!  Folks, without Him, we wouldn't be doing this!  Without Him, we wouldn't have the COURAGE it takes to do this!


Just yesterday as Randy and I were on the final leg of the day, we were convinced that we were all garage-saled out, until today that is when we realized we have a couple more families stepping forward with a willingness to donate toward our next one....  So... maybe...another one in August?  Lord, help us!!!  But, we will do another one again if the Lord calls us to.


Btw, some of the money raised this weekend came from a couple private donors dropping by the sale specifically to make a monetary donation toward our adoption expenses.   And I am confident in both circumstances that these families were responding to the call placed on them by the Lord Himself.  "Thank you, families, for obeying the Lord!"


Between our church family , homeschool families, friends and neighbors we have been blessed with countless prayers, emotional support and donations of various kinds.  I really cannot imagine doing all of this without being able to lean on brothers and sisters in Christ at such a time as this.  "Thank you, Father, for bringing to the forefront of our lives so many people who have been Jesus to us with skin on."  


On a different note, I would like to mention that Sonya now knows how to whistle.  She started practicing yesterday evening, and whistled the entire time we were breaking down the garage sale (which took roughly two hours)!  No kidding, two hours non-stop.  Once in  a while, she might stop to ask, "How am I doing?  Do you think I'm getting any better?"  Then, as soon as we'd reinforce that we could hear an improvement, she'd go right on back to whistling.


Then today, the only break she took from practicing was at Sunday school and children's church.  But as soon as she was released...she went back to whistling!  Non-stop.
You gotta love that kid!


One more thing worth mentioning.  Late yesterday, as Randy and I worked together on breaking down the sale, with Sonya's help that is, we could hear the distant thunder and dark clouds looming overhead.  Just as we were finishing the clean-up, Randy made the comment that it would probably start raining now that we were through as he held out his hand and a drop of rain landed on it.  That is soooo God to do that! 


"Thank you, God, for caring about us so much that You would hold off the rain long enough to keep it a picture-perfect memory for us!  Thank you for helping us through all of this!  Even though we grow weary and discouraged when plans don't always go as we anticipate, we are still soooo grateful  for the opportunity to get to know Your ways through this journey You have taken us on!  Father, it hasn't been easy, but it has been worth it!  We want to continue to be faithful to You, and to give You all the credit for all of the good that is coming from this and all of the lives that are being touched and forever changed because of what You are doing in our lives!  Amen!"


And for all of you who are following our journey to Mei Mei, thank you for caring, and thank you for not making us walk alone!

Blessings Multiplied

If I'm really being honest here, I will admit right now that I still have a bit of a twinge in my stomach whenever I think about all of those unsold chickens!  Although, thinking about Sonya's contemplative inquiries following the chicken delivery to the Rescue Mission quickly dissipates these initial "feelings" of angst.  Sonya - "Mom, I'd really like to learn more about this place.  Is it run by Christians?" or "Mom, do any of these men have drinking problems?"  or  "Mom, these men really need to stop smoking."

The day following the parking lot sale, when I was probably at my lowest point emotionally due to extreme exhaustion, that is when God revealed to me that our fund raiser was not about being blessed with a lot of money but about receiving blessings of a very different nature.  God showed me He wanted me to think on those things.  So I did.

Here's the list of blessings that came through the sale and through not selling the chickens:

1.  All our friends and church family who showed up at 6-7 am ( I was just reminded that some friends came and helped as early as 5:30 am!) and stayed as long as they could or even until the very end, without complaint but with joy, enthusiasm, generosity and kindness.  (And all the men who came over the day before to help us load the uhaul!  So sorry!  I didn't mean to forget about you on the first write-up!)


2.  All our friends and church family who continue to show up and walk along beside us through this extremely joyous yet stressful time in our lives. 


3.  All our friends, church family and strangers who endeavored to make considerable donations of goods to our sale to make it even possible.  I do not forget for one moment just how much effort it took to sort through belongings, box them up, arrange for drop off and make sure they were worth selling.


4.  All the people who purchased Sonya's art work to support her in paying for her own airline ticket to China.  Btw, she wants to use part of her earnings to go toward her sister's ticket as well.  (You gotta love that girl!)


5.  All of the words of support and comfort spoken to me by friends, church family and the Lions Club members when I burst out crying when realizing we were not going to sell 400 chickens and make 1,800.00 to put toward the adoption as I had originally anticipated.  No one, not one single person, accused me of being a big, fat crybaby for having a big, fat meltdown over the reality of it all.   Because really, as a GROWN woman, it's really kind of embarrassing to break down in front of perfect strangers and people I have only known for the last year or two who share no history with me to know that I actually am very stable and not be made to feel ashamed.  Thank you, thank you for that!


6.  The pure JOY I felt in my heart when Dennis Stoll of the Lions Club suggested we make a donation of leftover chicken to the Rescue Mission.  Man, did that feel "right on"!  To feed the hungry, now what can be better than that (besides rescuing an orphan, that is)?  Which God can do btw, through us, when we are willing to do our part. 


7.  Watching some people purchase more chickens than they had planned on just to soften the blow.


8.  Having a dear friend hand me $80.00 a few days later to cover our chicken losses.  Because of her generosity and willingness to obey the urging of the Holy Spirit, we did not lose a single cent on the chickens!

9.  Watching people get excited over finding treasures at our sale which would bless them.  I did want to make money, but it was equally important to me that no one leave our sale feeling gouged or taken advantage of but looked out for and blessed.  


10.  All of the prayers on our behalf lifted up to God our Father to bring to fruition His good and perfect will involving the adoption of our precious little girl!   We know we are blessed beyond measure!  We do not take your love and kindness for granted!  Thank you, thank you for caring so much and not making us walk alone through our long and at times gruelling wait.


So here we go again, preparing for our next big sale on Friday and Saturday, June 3rd and 4th at 819 Bimini Lane located in Caribe Community off of Reed Road and Lake Avenue.  Almost immediately following our parking lot sale, more donations were coming in to help us make more money for Mei Mei's release.  Randy calls me a "Maniac" because I just keep on going and doing what needs to be done for the cause of our little one.  It's really God, though, who provides me with the impetus and drive to keep at it.  Of my own accord, I might decide to sit in the corner of a room, pull my knees up to my chest, put my head down and cry like a big baby non-stop.  Seriously.

Blessings Abound

For a whole week prior to the parking lot sale I spent countless hours in our garage - sorting, folding, pricing, boxing,etc.  While out in the garage I had an occasion to meet a young couple who were in the neighborhood doing business.  When the young wife approached our house with a question, after I answered her, she turned to leave.  That is when I asked her a question in return, "Do you like garage sales?" 

What started out as a simple question lead to a lengthy exchange between this young couple and me regarding their problems with infertility and desire to adopt.  It turns out the man is part Chinese, so in essence God lead them to the right house to talk to the right person and opened up the right topic at the right time - just like he always does!

On another occasion, which really is the central theme of this post, a twelve year old neighbor girl was walking by our house.  Because I know this little girl, I called her over and showed her some of the items we would have at the sale, and then noticed in front of me a little purse with her initial on it and asked her if she would like to have it.  As her eyes got big, she nodded yes.  Then I spotted a pair of lavender, silky American Girl pajamas I thought might fit her.   I told her if she wanted to go home and try them on I would sell them to her for only $2.00 and that her two dollars would be used to help bring Sonya's little sister home.  She agreed to the conditions and left.

Perhaps only ten minutes later, she returned carrying the pajamas with a big smile across her face.  I was disappointed for her that she was returning the pajamas so couldn't for the life of me figure out the reason for such a smile.  Until she walked up, handed back the pajamas and then proceeded to say, "The pajamas didn't fit, but I've been saving money since Christmas and wasn't sure what to spend it on, and then the Lord told me I should give it to you." 

This twelve year old little girl then handed me a bill, and when I unfolded it, realized it was a fifty dollar bill!  Of course, anyone who knows me knows what happened next.  I burst out crying and trembling and I hugged her tight and thanked her several times.  Then I asked this little girl if she would retell the story to my husband, so we called him to the kitchen door leading into the garage, and as she recounted her story I burst out crying again!  I told both her and Randy that this is the best gift so far, and it's moved me more than any other.

I asked her before she left if she would like a gift from the garage.  I knew I had several things any twelve year old girl would love to have, but she politely and quickly responded, "No thanks.  I don't want anything.  I just came over to give you the money." 

And if you are wondering why I count this precious twelve year old girl's gift more special or more meaningful than any other, including the gift from Show Hope, it is because this little girl already knows she can speak with the Lord!  She could hear instruction from the Lord, and she chose to obey!  Do you know how many adults don't even know they can have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and that they can walk with Him and talk with Him daily?  And to think that this young girl knows the Truth, experiences the Truth, this fact alone blesses me beyond mortal comprehension! 

Thank you, Jesus, for walking with and talking with this little girl!  Thank you for her desire to listen to You and obey!  Thank you for her generous, selfless spirit!  Thank you for sending her my way at a low point in my day when I was exhausted and exasberated and overwhelmed!   Thank you for renewing my Hope in the next generation!  Lord, I ask that you bless this child for her obedience, and give her the desires of her heart!  Bless her, Lord, and keep her safe and sound always, hiding Your word in her heart so that she will be protected from the snares of the enemy all the days of her life!!!  Amen and Amen!

Limited Editions

Part I - By Sharon Kuhn
Sonya’s eyes sparkled as she sat with her friend Hannah at the art table where she was selling “limited edition” prints of her pastel and acrylic paintings. Although the wind occasionally blew one off the table, and she was somewhat distracted by the David and Goliath gifts she had made to give free of charge along with free toys for children that she had collected, Sonya interacted very sweetly and grown-up-like as she was asked to sign her work. Her friend and helper, Mrs. Angie, was calling out announcements to inform buyers that the prints were being sold to help Sonya raise money to go to China to get her soon-to-be-adopted little sister.


Adults and children alike were oohing and ahhing over the beautiful prints Sonya displayed. Her painting of the cactus greenery in a terra cotta pot sold out first. Second best seller was a floral of lavender flowers in a bright white and blue bowl with a lime background. Being thirsty from so much work, Sonya visited the drink table. Before long, little Hannah came to her to say that she needed to come back to the art table because some people were asking for her signature!  She excused herself very sweetly and went to sign.


As she made her mark on the day, it seemed that many blessings were on the way! It is precious to think of people hanging these innocent pictures in their homes. It was awesome to over hear conversations about where buyers would hang their paintings such as, "This will look beautiful in the bathroom"...  It is priceless how our community brought affirmation, laughter, funds and a day that was pretty as a picture to the precious Hoium family!


Sonya raised over $200.00 to help her travel to China to bring baby sister back safe and sound! Perhaps someday Sonya will paint a picture of this sunny day fund raiser for bringing Mei Mei home!


Part II - By Cheryl Hoium


Many months ago as Randy and I began our initial deliberations on how we would manage gathering the necessary resources to make this adoption happen, Sonya overheard a conversation between the two of us concerning whether or not there would be enough money to take her along with us to China to bring back her little sister.


It didn't take Sonya long to devise a plan to make sure she would not be left behind.  Her initial idea came in the way of making "David and Goliath" gifts which I believe she learned about in her Sunday school class.  Basically she folded up construction paper in a precise fashion so that a little rock would fit inside nicely and snuggly.  The rock was supposed to remind the recipients about the story of David and Goliath, and how, even though David was very little and Goliath was very big, with God's help David defeated Goliath.  So...her plan was to sell these creations and teach people about the victory through Jesus Christ at the same time.  The only problem was that she wanted to sell them for $10.00 a piece!


When Randy and I decided one of our fund raisers would be a parking lot sale, I was then able to convince Sonya perhaps she could sell her art work instead and give the David and Goliath creations as gifts.  She readily agreed as she continued the process of fashioning these little treasures.  Although Sonya handed out quite a few the day of the fund raiser, she still has quite a few left.  As we plan on having a garage sale/month at our home to continue raising adoption monies, Sonya will be given several more opportunities to give away her handiwork.


Sonya did raise over $200.00 at the sale, although I am not quite certain of the exact amount because people were putting money in her donation jar as well as handing it to Angie and Sharon.  In Sonya's donation jar alone was 195 dollars and some odd cents!


When I shared with Sonya about her earnings, she readily informed me she would like a portion of it to go toward her own airline ticket and a portion to go toward sissy's.  Apparently, Sonya wants to make sure she plays an integral part in getting her little sister home.


It turns out it will take roughly $500.00 to pay for Sonya's entire trip if we travel in September.  This sum includes her airline ticket, hotel portion and food.  I jokingly told Sonya recently I wish we could just send her to get Mei Mei as this would drastically reduce our adoption fees.  But...Sonya's not going for it!


Sonya will continue to sell her art work and hand out her David and Goliath gifts at our yard sale to be held on Friday and Saturday, the 3rd and 4th of June at our home.  Incidentally, Sonya attends a professional art studio through Garden of Arts, a Christian art studio owned and operated by Sharon Kuhn who adheres to a biblical worldview.  Sonya loves Miss Sharon, and I am looking forward to next Fall when Sonya will not only have an opportunity to continue her education through Garden of Arts and receive love from Miss Sharon, but little Cassie Mei will be joining her and get an opportunity first-hand to receive some loving too!  Praise the Lord!  Thank you, Jesus! 

Letter from Sharon Kuhn to Her Friends and Family

Our dear friend Sharon Kuhn wrote a letter to her friends and family on our behalf asking for them to support us in getting our second China-born daughter home to the States safe and sound.  With a few minor edits, here it is:


Dear Friends and Family,
The Hoiums are disappointed in the amount of money raised but holding the pricelessness of the fellowship of community involvement in their hearts. God is using all to create belonging, ministry and joy! Upon taking over 200 unsold chickens to the Rescue Mission, Sonya commented, "We need to come back again and bring them more food!"


Please help them if you feel led. Please pray for God to meet their needs and allow them to not only bring  Mei home but also allow them to take her back with Sonya to the Rescue Mission someday as Sonya mentioned in order to feed those poor men! Sonya also speaks of being a Missionary to China so “out of the mouths of babes” may we all be inspired!  I pray that Sonya will not be dumbed down in American culture before she grows old enough to do so! I am certain Randy and Cheryl are doing all they can to prevent that!


So, lessons are learned that are bigger than life! God is good! Please visit their website, and thank you so much for the donations you will send!!!!!


Blessings to you and yours!
Sharon