Hello Friends! So much is happening and I have not had time to update our blogs. Summer has flown by and the change of fall is approaching very rapidly. If you have a chance to check our financial page you will see that we have much to be encouraged about. God is continuing to provide for us to bring our precious kiddos home!
In August we participated in the church yard sale which brought in about $575 to our adoption fund!!! Also a few families have had their pictures taken and made contributions to our adoption. And on top of this wonderful people in our church and friends that we’ve had over the years have sent us gifts. Another blessing that completely surprised and overwhelmed us came when someone offered to pay-off one of our cars! Originally we planned on selling our neon to help us set aside additional money each month for our adoption and help allow me (Bethany) to stay home once the kids came. With this surprise blessing we will have the extra money to set aside and still have a second vehicle!!!!
We’ve also sent out grant applications to Lifesong International, Gift of Adoption Fund, Ava’s Hope, and Shaohannah’s Hope. Hopefully we will hear back soon on whether or not we were approved for an adoption grant.
Our dossier paperwork is almost all done and ready to go! We were fingerprinted by the USCIS office on August 12th. We were told to expect our I-171H immigration approval 9 weeks after finger-printing. This puts us at Tuesday October 14th, and boy are we counting down the days!!! Once we have this coveted sheet of paper we can head to Richmond to have our paperwork state certified and then bring our dossier to our adoption agency to have it apostilled in DC. From there it will be sent out to Ethiopia with a request for a court date to adopt the two kiddos referred to us! We should hear if we passed court or not by the end of November. . . Then. . . we’re off to Ethiopia to pick up our children!!!!!
We are slowly but surely getting settled into our new townhouse. We have unpacked a lot of things but have not moved on to much decorating. I desperately need some ideas for the kids rooms! I’m not that fabulous when it comes to this area. Any suggestions?
We got a wonderful update from some families that traveled to Ethiopia in August. It appears on little boy has lost his front tooth, and our little girl is growing like a weed! Joshua and I fear our 5′7 and 5′9 frames will be quickly passed by our children!
Well that’s all for now. We are so thankful to all of our family and friends for your continual encouragement and support of our adoption journey. We seriously could not do this without you all and we’re so excited for our son and daughter to meet all the amazing people who helped bring them here!
4 Comments
September 9, 2008 at 2:21 am
Regarding the rooms, have you thought about some kind of African theme? Maybe outlines of Africa on the wall or of Ethiopia? To remind them of where they came from, provide some of their culture here so they never forget?
September 9, 2008 at 7:09 pm
Bethany – Thanks for the update! You all have been on my heart and I’m so excited to hear how things are advancing. Way to go with the Goodwill shopping – I’m a fan!
For the room, I like Lindsey’s idea. You could use a big world map and then have Josh paint accents on it – things kids would like (boats, animals, cars, etc.) Or, you could just be looking for one special something decorative for each child, and then decorate around whatever you find. It might be a picture, a ceramic mold (do you remember the care bears in my brothers rooms growing up? ha ha) or just something cool. You can pick colors around that. Or – does your area have a renovation station? They’re stores run by Habitat for Humanity and they have all kinds of house stuff for much cheaper, including paint. You could see what colors you can get discounted. I’m excited to see what you end up with – and to meet these kiddos!!
September 9, 2008 at 7:39 pm
Hey Guys… I was thinking about your room themes.. have you thought of just doing the basics and then when your kids come decorate the rooms with them? It would be a really fun bonding oppurtunity to paint and decorate together and also you might get a chance to see alittle bit more of their individual personalities… just a thought! Take Care!
September 10, 2008 at 6:50 am
I was thinking of African theme’s too. But then I wonder if it would be easier transition if they had an American like space. I sort of like Zack’s idea except I wonder if they’d feel more at home if it was already done. Maybe you could save a wall for them or something like that.
You could try some Bible themes. Veggie Tales for your daughter ( I like saying your daughter
There are all kinds things you could do. I would LOVE emphasize LOVE to go shopping with you and help out in November!