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| Thursday, December 29, 2005 |
| Turning 2 alone |
| Today is the boys' birthday. They are 2 years old. Of course, in Russia, it is now the next day. It is so sad to think about them having a birthday and us not being with them. Maybe some day they'll read this journal and know we were thinking of them. Happy Birthday Boys!! Hopefully, your next birthday you'll be in your home with your forever family. No more birthdays alone. We love you! |
posted by 6blessings @ 2:34 PM  |
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| Wednesday, December 28, 2005 |
| home study was a breeze |
Whew!! We had our homestudy today and it went well. The lady was incredibly nice and friendly. We worked really hard getting presents put away, getting unpacked, doing laundry and cleaning. The house looked good, but wasn't totally spotless. However, it didn't matter. I'm so glad to have that over with. Now we just have to wait for the report to be sent to us to look over. Then she will do the final copy and get it sent out to everyone. Next, is getting the dossier ready. It seems a little confusing, all of the paperwork. I guess we'll just go with the flow and get through it too.
Christmas was good. The kids received lots of cool things. They're all put away and a garage sale box was started for all of the old toys. The boys even got a few gifts. They each got a blanket, shirt and a stuffed animal. My sister-in-law also gave us the book "Shaoey and Dot". If you haven't read it, you should. It is a sweet adoption story written by Steven Curtis Chapman and his wife Mary Beth who have adopted 3 girls from China.
http://www.ShaoeyandDot.com/
Thanks to those who have encouraged me and written comments. I appreciate it! We hope everyone has a Happy New Year! I'm spending it at a church lock-in with my kids. Ugh!! :-) |
| posted by 6blessings @ 11:26 AM |
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| Tuesday, December 20, 2005 |
| home study coming |
We just heard from our home study agency. They are going to be calling us in the next few days to do the home study. Our references are all in, as well as our background checks. She's ready to come see us. I'm a little nervous and don't quite know what to expect. She said not to worry. It's just such a busy time of year. We'll be gone on Christmas vacation a few days next week and of course, the house will not be normal with all of the decoration and gifts. Do you know what it's like to put away new toys and gifts for four children? It takes a while. ;-) I think I might leave all the decorations and stuff up and not worry about taking them down until after it's over.
We also just found out that our adoption agency has a small video of the boys. We're hoping to be able to view it soon. How exciting!! They said it's too late to send presents for their birthday, but we could donate some money to get them a birthday party. We're not sure about that.
Well, I guess that's all for now. I hope to have a fundraiser total soon. The ladies running it said they wanted to suprise us and tell us at the end. They have been so generous and kind. I am truly grateful. Once the homestudy is done, I plan on going full speed ahead applying for grants. That should be fun!
Merry Christmas! I hope your holiday is a holy day remembering the birth of the Savior. |
| posted by 6blessings @ 6:51 AM |
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| Thursday, December 15, 2005 |
| Local News Story |
Forgot to add this link. There was a wonderful story on our local news here in Oklahoma. Couple adopted a girl from Russia, then learned she had a sister and had to raise money and return to get her. REALLY worth watching. Below is the link where you can download the video of the story. It is two parts. Follow the link below... the story is "The Love of A Sister" and "The Love of a Sister II".
http://www.kfor.com/global/category.asp?c=67438 |
| posted by 6blessings @ 8:57 PM |
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| first fundraiser |
Well, we've turned in a lot of paperwork and are now waiting. The homestudy is in the works. Hopefully they will call soon to schedule a time to come visit. I say that, but the closer it gets to Christmas, the more I think I hope it happens after the holiday is over. My oldest daughter also has a birthday before then. All of our referalls for the homestudy have been sent out and most of them have been returned.
On the financial side of things, my daughter's small group at church decided to do a fundraiser for us. They have been selling cookies in a jar, chili mixes, cinnamon roll mixes, etc. With the season, these have been going really well. They have also talked about selling Krispy Kreme doughnut discount cards. All of the girls and the ladies helping have been so sweet and generous. It is such a blessing to us. We are really new to our city and church because of a recent move. It is so nice to see the family of God reaching out even to those that they don't know very well.
My second grade twin daughters are studying about Christmas in other lands.
They have to write a paper on how the holiday is celebrated in another country. Of course, they wanted to know about Russia. We went to the library to get information, and our search was seeming fruitless. However, a lady at the card catalog across from us overheard me telling the girls that there was no information. She spoke up and said she had lived in Russia for 6 years. She said they don't celebrate Christmas on the 25th of December. They celebrate in early January, she thought the 7th. It is more religious. They dress in white and go to church all day and night. They don't have Santa Claus. They have Grandfather Frost. She said their big gift giving time is at New Year's, which is not our New Year's either. I thought the info was interesting and definitely will be looking into it more.
Well, that's all for now. Merry Christmas! Hopefully I'll have exciting news next time I write. The boys' birthday is coming up in a few weeks. They will be two. I wish we could be with them on their birthday. |
| posted by 6blessings @ 8:36 PM |
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