One of my favorite evenings of the year:

In just a few weeks I will be enjoying one of my favorite evenings of the entire year. I look forward to this spring night each year for weeks and weeks before it gets here! What am I so excited about, you wonder? The CSC banquet, of course!

May 2nd is the date for the 2009 CSC {Children's Shelter of Cebu} banquet. I love the CSC banquet; I love CSC! This year we will be celebrating CSC's 30th year . . . 30 years of wonderful, tough ministry to precious homeless kiddos on the other side of the world. It is always such a wonderful evening! I get so excited to see all the adoptive families, especially those who have brought home their kiddos since last year's banquet. I always cry (no big surprise there!) when the adoptive families are introduced . . . so fun to see the families that God designed long ago and that came together in such wonderful ways . . . I always wonder if someday God will have it in His plan that they will announce "The Stoll Family" and we stand up with our kiddos during that part of the program . . . only time will tell (don't worry, you're not out of the loop. I'm not making any announcements here. Just dreaming a little and thinking about the vastness of God and His plans for us. The ones he knows and that are plans for good . . . to give us hope and a future -- Jeremiah 29:11). Then, I cry again during the annual media presentation where we are greeted for the kids in Cebu. And I'm bound to cry again at the end of the night when they announce the results of the evening's offering . . . we really shouldn't be surprised by how completely God provides for CSC financially, but it seems I always am! Reconnecting with kids that we met when we visited CSC in 2004 who now have forever families and live here in the US . . . with parents and siblings to love them and care for them and meet their needs. It is so wonderful!

P.S. If you want to come to the banquet, that would be great. You are definately invited! Just let me know and I'll get you rsvp'd!