No Apostilles in the Mailbox Today....

BummerZ! But we do know that the SOS received the request for apostilles today. Hopefully, Ms. Nan got them out in the mail early today and we'll get them tomorrow!

We have soccer tomorrow if it doesn't rain. So, we'll miss the mail. BUT, if it rains, there's no soccer, and then I'll be watching the mailbox with a close eye; BECAUSE if we get the apostilles before noon... we can send the dossier to St. Louis to CHI for it's final review before it's off to Colombia!!! As a friend of mine says, "Yippy-Skippy!"

(Thanks for listening to me think out loud!)

Request for Apostilles Mailed.

Sent 5 docs off to SOS in Jackson, Mississippi to be apostilled. Hope they return by Friday. That's probably wishful thinking, but I can hope. The lady that does it usually gets them out pretty fast.

So, no one has offered to host a Wii Party. That's a real bummer, b/c I think it would make for a great fundraiser. I was already looking at party decor. Even if you aren't local, you could host one at your place. It would be a great way to raise awareness to the orphan crisis and raise money for an adoption. It should be interesting to see how God provides. I know He will...

Wii Bowling Tournament Fundraiser

Looking for individuals that would offer to host a Tournament in their home... please email me. We'd like to have 2-3 Tournaments. We could potentially raise $200-500!

We got the money!

We have saved and shuffled bills and we got the green! We got the money along with the donations we've been given through Paypal and the Benefit Concert by Orphan Soul and one friend from Facebook, we have the first BIG Adoption Fee of $3500!

We will send off docs to be apostilled from Mississippi SOS tomorrow. Hopefully, we will get those back by Friday and we can get the dossier in the mail by Saturday!!!

Yay! Thank you, God! And thanks to all those who contributed financially and through prayer. We pray many blessings upon you and that what you've given return a hundredfold! God bless!

Our First Wedding...

Tee and Ellen

Us

Andrew & Diego - Ringbearers
Tatiana - One of Three Flower girls

Love this candid of Andrew!

Just Beautiful!

When I grow up...

Tatiana said..."I want to be a doctor...an eye doctor." (She is currently wearing a patch on her eye a few hours a day because the left eye is weak and it is supposed to cause the muscles in the left eye to become stronger. She has seen the Optometrist a few times now since home.

Andrew said..."I want to be a policeman. No, Mami, I want to be a doctor...a arm doctor." He had his finger in a cast last year, and has always been fascinated with the policia.

Diego said..."I want to fix things!" What kind of things, Diego? "In the house." Mind you, Diego is usually the one breaking things... I suggested fixing the toilet... because, he's also the one usually stopping the toilet up, too! lol. I told him a Plumber makes LOTS of money! BUT he also has to deal with a LOT of POOP! They all laughed and Diego said, "Yeah, yeah, that's what I want to be!"

LOL. What will they do? What will they be? My prayer is that whatever profession they choose that they live wholeheartedly for God and provide for their family while continuing to give to others less fortunate and of course, that they take care of me and the Papi! =-)

So close...

Just need two more docs notarized and then send off for 4 apostilles from Mississippi! Oh and 4-6 more pics of us and house! We are a little short with the money, but I get paid on Friday, and we are gonna do some rearranging and get this dossier to Colombia. Things will be tight for awhile, but it's our daughter, right? God is good and He will provide.

I applied for the Show Hope grant, but not sure if I did it right. We are going to do a Wii Bowling Tournament soon, I hope. Haven't had any opportunities to take pictures and get paid, but praying for opportunities. Wanted to do an auction online...had someone say they would offer a painting, cake, and some jewelry. Haven't really solicited much more... any more ideas?

Our Second Retreat in 8 years

Where is your vision? Something mentioned this weekend was the importance of our vision. Write your vision for your family down. Live in that environment and there will be some that aren't supportive and there will be seasons when you ask God where is He? But hang tight to the vision in which God has birthed in you and it will be something GREAT. But... you can only go as far as you can see... so, there must be movement; there must be faith. We brought back a lot from the retreat. We missed our kiddos, too, though!

We met up with the Calhouns' this weekend in Pensacola and had a great time! We renewed our vows, and Ben even sang a song to me, karoke (sp) style! The weather was cold, but it was a fun time! Beamie came for a visit and stayed with the kids... We love our Beamie! Thank you, Beamie.

Valentine's.... Look Who Got Flowers!

Tatiana received flowers at school from THREE different boys! Oh my!

Greater Things Are Yet To Come...

God has great plans for my family. I remind myself when things get complicated... I remind myself the twists and turns usually straighten out at some point... the super-sonic speed slows down eventually; the crash and burn sometimes lasts a while, but in the end what matters is that He gets the glory. I remind myself that my idea of "great" may not be His, and sometimes, I'm okay with that... and then there are those times that I throw a tantrum.... but eventually, I come to the place where I admit to myself that it is up to me, this day, to choose who I will serve... will I serve myself, my desires, or Him...?

I was just talking to Ben the other night... thinking about my little friends in Colombia. Ben recently got off a 40-day fast, and I was talking to him about the kids we met and how some of them didn't have but 2-3 meals per week. In our minds, we cannot even comprehend what they must think or feel in that environment... and to not know when they may get their next meal. Here, even when we fast, we know that there is food available, if we wanted to eat; we can eat whenever we want to. But these little kids and many adults... don't have that... and it's not just there... there are starving people all over the world... when I have these random thoughts like these... I wonder what can I do about it?

Helen Keller stated, "I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something; and because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do the something I can do." I want to do something! I want my family to do something! When I see this picture, I am reminded, I can do something and there are little people just like this guy that are counting on us to do something... When you see this picture, what comes to your mind? Please comment!

Ok, so, I've been rambling and making no sense at all...lol; but anyways, Happy Friday!

The I-800 HAS ARRIVED!!!!

Ta-da! It came! It came! Yay! At last!

Ok, so now I must double check everything, and have the last few documents including the I-800 copied and notarized and apostilled! Then, it's a matter of money! Which I am not worried about, because my daddy owns a cattle on a thousand hills! God will provide. One thing we are doing is cashing out and using some of my PTO time from the hospital. Recently, I left my full-time position at the hospital and went on with a contract company so I am able to do that. I will not know exactly how much it will be until I get the check. I am sure Uncle Sam will take out a LARGE portion!

So, tonight, I will double check everything and get busy this week finalizing everything! Yay, God! Dossier, almost complete! Woohoo! Doing the happy dance at the Wood House!