Update

Wow, I just realized how long it has been since I last blogged. Sorry!!! We have had a super busy couple weeks. I had a cold last week, but luckily (??) I was the only one in the family to get it. Oh and did I mention that my house has been overrun by garage sale stuff!?! (I think it multiplies while we’re sleeping!) I have been tagging, cleaning and sorting like a mad woman not to mention putting my friends to work as well. (Love you guys!!!) I am so incredibly thankful to everyone that has donated items though!!! We have TONS of stuff looking for new homes. I’m putting together a list of some of the items that we have for those of you who will be stopping by. Tons of kid/baby stuff, clothes, toys, tools and random household items, etc.

Outside of the garage sale event, things are running as normal. We’ve been really busy, but that’s pretty normal for this time of year. Mackenzie has finally decided on being a cowgirl for Halloween. Luckily the costume is super easy and we have only needed to buy the boots. Can’t wait to see her all dressed up!! Still haven’t decided what we’re doing for Halloween, but I’m sure collecting candy will be in there somewhere.

We took Mackenzie to SeaWorld on Sunday for their trick or treat thing with our friends. The girls had so much fun!! Mackenzie wore her Dorothy costume from last year. We saw at least 4 other Dorothys. It was nice to get out there again. We bought 2 year passes a few months ago and have only been once since we bought them. We didn’t see any shows but it was still nice to get out. Mackenzie rode her first roller coaster! It was Journey to Atlantis which is one of those boat drop rides. (Sorry, best description I got!) She really enjoyed it but ended up with a black eye from bonking her cheek on the lap bar. Yup, it’s just a lovely little bruise and two of her preschool workers have asked about it. Luckily they have seen my child in action on the playground and understand that she is a magnet for bumps, bruises and scrapes!

Well, my news box is empty, Post again soon (I PROMISE!!!)
~Jeny

Blog Additions and Facebook Page

Ok, so hopefully you guys like some of the changes that I’ve made to the blog to kind of spiff it up a little. I have added some page links on the left that run down our story and also our adoption timeline as well. I’ll probably add a page for our fundraisers and sponsors at some point also, but one thing at a time.

I have also created a facebook page specifically for the adoption. This is not because I don’t want to have adoption stuff on our personal page, but this will allow people to share information with others who aren’t our “friends” yet. Also, it’ll be easier to get out information only to the people who are interested in helping without overwhelming everyone else.

Big thank you for today’s donations!! My hairdresser Jillian and her co-worker Jackie donated 2 gift certificates for haircuts. We will be using these in one of the upcoming raffles. So thankful for their support!

Everything else is starting to come together for the garage sale. No set place yet for it to be held, but we are definitely going for November 6th. I have put out a few flyers for donations; one at Mackenzie’s school and one at my salon. Hopefully that will bring in some more donations and also some interest for the actual sale.

One of our friend’s from church Elizabeth is hosting a Thirty-One Gifts party for us on November 14th. Her friend Ashley is a consultant and has graciously offered to donate her commission from the party to the adoption fund. We will also be raffling off some items and I believe Ashley will have some product door prizes as well. The Thirty-One Gifts party should be a great opportunity for some shopping and great fellowship with friends before the holiday season kicks off. They offer a lot of really great products that make perfect Christmas presents. Anything that is ordered at the party should be delivered before Christmas. (I plan on doing some present shopping as well :-) You can take a look at their products here: http://www.thirtyonegifts.com/catalog.htm. Let me know if you are interested in attending or placing an order.

Homework packet is coming along. I am focusing on my self-study now. Let me tell you it is some pretty heavy stuff! I’m trying to take it just one or two questions a day. The really difficult thing is that they ask that you not talk to your spouse about the questions before you answer them. Really difficult since I usually bounce stuff off of DJ, especially if I’m not sure of how to word something. It makes perfect sense though so I’ll plod on alone.

If I could take a quick moment to praise God over the amazing weather that we are having!!! There is very little that is more glorious that Florida in the “fall”. Beautiful sunny days and the temperature is just perfect.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!
Jeny

Coffee and t-shirts and candy....Oh My!!

So I've been researching fund-raising ideas and I'm totally overwhelmed by how many options are out there!! I found a pretty interesting one though at www.147millionorphans.com . It's a ministry that helps raise awareness about orphans and also helps families raising money for their own adoptions. The shirts are really cool and their mission is incredibly moving. If you have a chance to head over and check it out, let me know what you think. We'd have to sell at least 20 shirts/necklaces in order to participate so let me know if you think you'd be interested in getting one.

Plans for the garage sale continue. We already have our guest room partially full and have a few more people promising donations. We're still working on a place to hold it. Our neighborood is tucked back off of the main road so we're trying to find something with a little more traffic. Please get in touch with me if you have any items you would like to donate.

Two other fund-raisers we are working on are a spaghetti dinner and a poker tournament. Those will probably have to wait until December, January or even Feburary though. Still it feels like things are starting to move along. It's still a little overwhelming when I look over at the little widget on the side. (Did you notice the fancy new thermometer??) Can't wait to watch that start to move up! :-)

I'll post again soon!
~Jeny

Homework!

The homework packet has arrived!! DJ called me at lunch and let me know the envelope had arrived. (Longest afternoon ever!) We had 2 things to sign and return immediately but the rest needs to be completed and returned together once everything is done. There is a lot of stuff in there! The most daunting is an 8 page personal study. We read through the questions and they are not easy surface questions - they are in-depth bear-your-soul questions. Hopefully we can get these done fairly quickly and be ready for the next step...the "first meeting".

Not entirely sure what happens at the "first meeting" but I do know that we will need to present them with the first of several large checks. Knowing that we are just a handful (more accurately stack full) of pieces of paper away from it being really real. Wow, it got just a little overwhelming for a bit....better now :@) We have stepped out in faith trusting that since God is calling us here than he will provide.

On that note, the plans for the fund-raising garage sale are coming along nicely. It got pretty big pretty quickly so we are scouting out an alternative site for the sale. This may also involve moving the garage sale to a weekend in November. I'll keep everyone posted as soon as I know more details.

So excited!!!

~Jeny