Week One - Let The Nesting Begin!

Well, we officially made it through the first week of waiting. Waiting is something that is still so new that I often have to remind myself that we are finally in this place in the adoption process. I woke up this morning completely in the "nesting" mood. I have this desire to be writing lists of things we need to get done before the baby gets here...things like clean the trim and doors and reorganize every closet, cabinet, nook and cranny in our home, oh, and start researching cloth diapers. I also feel this strong pull to get rid of stuff...lots of stuff. I have been selling some things on Craig's List and my Goodwill pile seems to be getting bigger and bigger with each passing day. I don't remember nesting like this when I was pregnant with Blake...I kinda like feeling this way though...I like being productive and well, there is just so much to do!

I have gotten a few emails recently wondering if my mom is still creating the Heart For Africa necklace...she is! My mom creates each necklace as they are ordered. You can visit her etsy shop to see this necklace and all her other creations. My mom's heart is for adoption and meeting families who have been touched by this amazing process. She has LOVED talking to everyone who had ordered a necklace. Thanks to all!

Yay! We are offically on the wait list!

I was so excited when I got the email saying that we are officially on the wait list...I can only imagine how much more excited I will be when we get the referral! Natalie said our dossier is on its way to Washington DC for final authentications. The Gladney staff in Ethiopia can now start matching a child to our family. This is such an exciting time for us, we just can't wait to see what God does during this time. We are expecting great things!
We are also excited to start our adoption training through Gladney. Both Andy and I really enjoyed our training through Hope's Promise. We just learned so much. I have heard such good things about the Gladney training and I can't wait to start.

For those of you who have been through this waiting period...any tips on what we can do to help pass the time???

We can now join the ranks...

...of those who have turned their dossiers in! Friday we received our last authenticated document from Washington state, scanned all the documents into the computer and went to the Fed-Ex store to send it off. The nice gentleman at Fed-Ex took our family picture...
I cannot believe we are finally turning everything in...we have been waiting for this day to come for over a year. There have been many ups and downs through this process. I have learned so much about patience and how God's plans for us are way better than we would have ever dreamed. We have been on an adventure and I feel like it is now finally starting to get really exciting. Please be praying that everything goes smoothly with the dossier and that our referral will come just as quickly as possible.

Our dossier was over-nighted to Gladney on Friday (we already tracked it to make sure it is on its way even though it won't be get there until Monday) and once they check it over it will be on its way to Washington DC and then on to Ethiopia.

For now, I am busy composing a list of things to do to keep us busy while we wait for the oh-so very important phone call...Let the waiting begin!!!

Ethiopian Children's Book Week :: April 1st-7th, 2008

April 1-7th, 2008 is Ethiopian Children's Book Week. There is a wonderful organization I have found through our home study provider called Ethiopia Reads. This organization strives to build a reading culture in Ethiopia by connecting children with books. They do this by planting libraries for children, publishing books in English as well as local Ethiopian languages, and training teachers and librarians to cultivate a love of reading among children. You can also purchase books in English and in Amharic.

Here are some ways you can help Ethiopia Reads:

• Ask your library to buy Jane Kurtz's books about Ethiopia. Check them out and read them with your children, grandchildren -- or even by yourself. People can't care about what they don't know about.
• Buy copies of Ethiopia Reads’ multi-lingual books for children. 100% of the money goes to Ethiopia Reads.
• Organize a book sale and donate the proceeds to Ethiopia Reads.
• Host a “dinner party” in which guests stay home and donate the cost of a meal out to Ethiopia Reads.
• Write an article about Ethiopia Reads for your school, neighborhood, church, synagogue or community newsletter.
• Tell your friends to visit www.ethiopiareads.org.
• Honor a friend who loves to read by making a donation in his or her name.
• Challenge a group of friends or co-workers to raise enough money to plant one library.
• Are you a teacher or librarian? Encourage your students to learn about Ethiopia! Make a book about your school or classroom and ship copies to Shola Children’s Library.
• Make Ethiopia Reads the focus of a service project for Scouts, school, camp, church, bar mitzvah, graduation, etc – or just for fun!
• Introduce Ethiopia Reads to your service club, such as Kiwanis and Rotary.
• Celebrate the birth of a baby by making a gift in a child’s name to Ethiopia Reads.
• Let your local librarian know about Ethiopia Reads.

What Children Can Do

• Send a favorite book to Ethiopia Reads P.O. Box 2677, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
• Ask birthday party guests to bring a book for Shola Children’s Library.
• Offer to do odd jobs in your neighborhood to raise funds to donate to Ethiopia Reads.
• Contribute a portion of allowance money (each week) for the permanent library building fund.
• Put your old toys and clothes in a garage sale – contribute the money to Ethiopia Reads.

Approved!

We just got the email that we are officially Gladney approved!!!

Yay! One more step closer to our baby!

I love Sarah Groves and I love this video...enjoy.