Come....

Nesting...

This weekend we played switch-a-roo with the bedrooms! Our plan is to have all the girls together in the upstairs two rooms and we have moved Jack down stairs. He is officially sleeping in a "big boy bed"! Moving things around and cleaning up all those under-the-bed dust bunnies is a lot of work- but so fun! It is nice for Jack to have his own little boy area for all his little boy stuff. Trucks, blocks, drums, swords and more trucks. The poor guy has had to deal with everything pink since he was born! I think it was probably the most fun for me, decorating and such! So- with all this moving around - it makes it even more "real" in preparing for our girls to come home. Pretty soon we will paint and finish the empty room upstairs. Yesterday I was out with Grace and we came across these really cute quilts and sheet sets - ON CLEARANCE! I couldn't resist. She is SO excited to share a room with one of her big sisters and we had fun picking out their new bedding! (Wow-- I am going to have lots of sheets to wash!)

We are praying this week with excitement, waiting to hear any news of the girls. AWOP is in Ethiopia right now, checking on all the kids at the orphanage and getting more information for us. Please join us in prayer that we will continue to rest in the Lord, and wait on Him.

Our wants = Their needs

Do you know about (PRODUCT)RED yet? Ever since we found out about it, we have been buying it up every chance we get! We discovered (PRODUCT)RED way before our decision to adopt. Oprah had Bono on one afternoon and he had unveiled this concept to partner with various corporations in order to raise money for AIDS in Africa. From their website:

(RED) was created by Bono and Bobby Shriver, Chairman of DATA to raise awareness and money for The Global Fund by teaming up with the world's most iconic brands to produce (PRODUCT)RED branded products. A percentage of each (PRODUCT)RED product sold is given to The Global Fund. The money helps women and children affected by HIV/AIDS in Africa.

What's the meaning of the parentheses or brackets? Well, we call them "the embrace." Each company that becomes (RED) places its logo in this embrace and is then elevated to the power of red. Thus the name -- (PRODUCT)RED.

It just makes sense. If you are going to buy something, why not buy the product that gives back. What a great concept. Many companies have joined in and many are following. Some of the companies we have purchased from are GAP, Sprint and Hallmark. So far (RED) contributions have topped $100 million. They have put the money to work in the African countries of Swaziland, Ghana and Rwanda.

This subject has become so much more intense for us. Our girls parents could have died from AIDS. If not, something even crazier, like Malaria or TB. Diseases that are PREVENTABLE and that people in the USA DON'T die from. If their parents weren't infected with the AIDS virus, I am sure that their friends in the orphange have been affected by it. 11.4 million children in Africa have been orphaned by the AIDS epidemic.

Buying products that help to change peoples lives, makes this world a little smaller. We are often paralyzed into doing NOTHING when a crisis is a world away and is so big. This offers us a way to really HELP, no more excuses. You can learn more about(PRODUCT)RED here and learn about the Global Fund here.

So, when your cell phone contract expires and you need a new toy get a (RED)MOTORAZR like me! OR if your shoe fetish has taken you hostage and you need a new pair of kicks go here. OR the temperature has warmed 30 degrees and you are ready to bare those arms with a cute new tee go here. OR you just need to send a thank you note, make a trip to Hallmark and buy these.

Approval!

We recieved THE approval yesterday!! Our I-797C came in the mail from the Department of Homeland Security. We thought we were waiting for the I-171 form - but this came instead. We found out that it all depends on which office you file with. We filed at the Baltimore office, therefore received the I-797 form. It really doesn't matter what it's number is -- all that matters is that according to the US government "It has been determined that you are able to furnish proper care to an orphan or orphans as defined in Section 101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act." YAY! YIPPEE! WOOHA! We are one step closer and praising the Lord!

Do angels drive white trucks?

Yesterday we had a really scary experience. I had just picked up Grace from her art class and she had a big bag of goodies, as they had celebrated Valentines Day. She pulled out a big gummy heart and tried to give Jack a bite. It was WAY too chewy and big for him so I told her just to throw it away. Before I could hand her a bag to put it in, Jack had shoved the whole thing in his mouth! I came to a stop sign and looked in my rearview mirrow and saw Jack with his eyes as big as saucers. He wasn't making any sound and I realized that he was choking. I was stuck at a busy intersection and didn't know what to do - so as soon as the traffic cleared I pulled across the street, parked and jumped out as fast as I could to get to him. He was choking pretty badly at this point and I started to panic. I was hitting his back and had stuck my finger down his throat with no success. His face was turning blue and we were getting really scared- I screamed out "Somebody help me!" - and started to REALLY freak out! Right when I said that - a man was standing behind me and calmly said "Is everything alright, what happened?" I told him that he had gotten a hold of a gummy candy and it was stuck in his throat. He took Jack and held him up and said "Hi buddy, I am a firefighter, are you okay?" Jack immediately calmed down and just stared at the man. He looked at me and then started screaming. That stinkin' gummy heart must have finally slid down his throat and he was breathing again. The fireman said "That's a good sign!" and handed him back to me. I thanked him and he got back in his white truck and drove off without a word. Poor little Jack was so scared and Grace too. She had her face buried in her coat the entire time. It was a scary experience for all of us! God used that nice fireman yesterday to help us out and make sure my little Jack was okay. He was our angel!
After all the drama had settled and we were asking Jack about it later in the day he had quite a funny story to tell. Here's how the conversation went:

Mommy: That was scary today, wasn't it buddy?
Jack: Yeah, candy got stuck.
Mommy: And that nice man stopped and helped us didn't he!?
Jack: Yeah, fiah fighta (big smile)
Mommy: Do you know who else was watching over us and helping us? (we had talked about how Jesus was watching over us earlier)
Jack: Uh-huh, Darth-Vader

Off to Africa!

Today we finally got our package in the mail to our girls in Ethiopia. Our agency said that we could put together a small photo album and send along a small gift. The director of AWOP is leaving for Ethiopia on February 20th and will be taking our package with her.

My grandma gave Gracie one of these little pups when we visited her in Michigan a few years back. The stuffed springer spaniel was promptly named "Sarah" and has been Grace's bedtime pal ever since. So when Jack was born, Grace and I were off to pick out a puppy for him! Jack's is a golden retriever named "Buster" and just kind of hangs out in the crib, not so much a bedtime pal yet. It just seemed fitting that we select a special pup for the girls. Grace picked them out and chose a black lab and a beagle. We hope these puppies will give our girls some comfort and snuggles while we can't be there.

The best part about all this is that the girls are going to find out that they are being adopted!! They will see their new family in pictures for the first time. How scary and exciting. We are continuing to pray for their little hearts and minds.

Are you fatherless?

I read recently that there are 115,000 children in the US foster care system waiting to be adopted. In comparison and according to The Washington Times there are about 65 million Americans that call themselves Christian(evangelicals). HELLO! These numbers don't match up. Are these 65 million "Christians" skipping the parts in the Bible that COMMAND us to care for orphans? Are they missing what "true religion" is? James 1:27, "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." This verse along with at least 40 others spell it out for us in black and white. Were we not orphans once? Our heavenly Father has adopted us unto Himself, we are no longer fatherless. Will you do what He has done for us? Will you step out in faith and obedience and bring an orphan under your wing? Are you satisfied with your comfortable life, your mini-van, your 5 bedroom home and white picket fence? Have some CONVICTION people! DO SOMETHING! (I have added a feature on the bottom of my blog, How to follow James 1:27... scroll all the way down and check it out- no more excuses!)

As I sit and write this I am humbled and honored to know that I belong to a community and a church where this is recognized. Thursday night, in support of our adoption and our Ethiopian daughters we had an estimated 250 people show up at the doors of Harvest BC. Donations and support came in all forms and we were in awe. I couldn't even allow myself to actually stop and let it soak in for fear of having a complete emotional breakdown in PRAISE and JOY of what the Lord was doing. (warning: this might happen on Sunday morning in church)

This adoption is not only about our family and our Ethiopian girls. This is about the 115,000 orphans in the US, the 4.5 MILLION orphans in Ethiopia, the members and visitors of Harvest BC, our town, our neighbors, our extended family and friends. This is about doing the LEAST we can do after what the LORD has done for us.
Obey Him.