About Our Family

El Paso, Texas, United States
We are James, Lisa, Patrick, Christian, Carson, and Ella Payne a military family serving our country via service in the U.S. Army. Jim and I have been married for 18 years and have 3 wonderful home grown sons -Patrick, Christian and Carson. We recently adopted our beautiful daughter Ella Grace Ana from Donets'k, Ukraine in September. Jim and I began our Army life together at Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas and every assignment thus far has extended unique opportunities and challenges for our family to grow and learn; to become a stronger, committed, and a prepared Army family. Having recently lived abroad for six amazing years, we cannot express how thankful we are for the opportunity to have represented our great country and to discover the cultures and customs of other countries; to become close to the people and learn from them; to open our hearts and minds to the unfamiliar languages and way of life in other countries. Having now moved back to the United States, we are looking forward to discovering what new adventures await our family. Rest assured, wherever the Army sends us we will continue to serve you and our country proudly. Army life, we wouldn’t trade it!

May 4, 2008

May Happenings

Can you believe May is already here?

I love May. It definitely begins to feel like spring this month with all the beautiful greens of the trees and grass, flowers budding and filling the air with their fragrant scents, and the fruit trees are beginning to show signs of the sweet nectar they will produce in the months ahead.

More reasons to love May: Mother’s Day ~ A day set aside to celebrate Mom’s. I am overjoyed I will celebrate Mother’s Day twice this month! Once on our traditional American Mother’s day on May 11th and then again, on Ukrainian Mother’s Day, May 13th, the day we submit our dossier to The State Department on Adoption and Children’s Rights (SDA). It’s only 1 week and 1 day away!

Also honoring in May ~ Military Spouses, The Armed Forces, DOD Teachers, and Memorial Day a day to honor those who have served our country all the way back to the Civil War. Take a moment to say thank-you to these amazing people.

Other happenings in May…the packers and movers arrive to pack up our home and tuck them into crates for shipping to the U.S.; my sister graduates college with her teaching degree; my sweet niece Alex has her birthday; three of my friends have birthdays; I’m taking a girl trip to Africa; and finally my Jim/Daddy arrives home! Yipee!

Have a great week everyone! We look forward to reading the comments/ideas/prayers you leave on our blog!




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This is our "spot" we began at the beginning of our journey in May 2007, to adopt a child from Ukraine. In August 2008, we traveled to Ukraine to bring our daughter/sister Ella Grace Ana home; and on September 12, 2008 we did just that.

While our journey to bring her home is complete, our journey together is just beginning. We will continue to keep our spot here, posting as frequently as we can; and keeping you updated on our next journey in life...maybe a second adoption is in our future.

Please join us by following us by clicking on the "Follow" link to the left and posting your notes at the bottom of any post we have made.

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