Crazy life

I feel smack in the middle of adoption craziness now! We have so much going on. Our dossier is finished--just waiting (still) on that darn home study. She needs one letter. According to her today, when that letter gets to her, she will have the home study the next day. Pray the letter comes asap. We will then ship our home study off to immigration for that final piece of paper we need to submit to our country. We are so close. Just need that letter!!

On the fundraising front, we have a cut and color giveaway and a handmade wool soaker giveaway going on. We also are still selling coffee and thirty-one products. We are going to start selling the most awesome t-shirts ever soon. I am going to do an online/in-person bead party Jan. 30 and a couponing class on Feb. 20. We are also working on a huge benefit for the end of Feb. This is so exciting if it all works out. It will involve a yard sale, a carnival of sorts, free concerts, booths for vendors, and lots of food. Wow--what a huge ball of stress, but it will be such a huge blessing. Look for more details soon.

On the get ready front, we are working on our language skills (ok, so it is pretty bad-I'm too old to learn a new language! but I am trying!) and studying up on attachment and the adjustment Grace and Malachi will go through when we bring them home. I can't wait for that day! Malachi's bday is coming up and it is so hard to not be able to hug my little man on his day. We are lining up resources and support for the transition our family will go through. The kids are so excited about the entire process. They have always been apart of our plan to adopt and have been a huge encouragment for us to go for it now.

We are also celebrating the news that 2 families connected to us have now committed to adopt!! It is their news to tell, so I am not sharing names, but praise God! 2 more lives saved! I have spent major time celebrating this news. I have also heard that 2 more children at Grace and Malachi's orphanage have a committed family. Those kids are so close to my heart. I have cried over and prayed over their pictures for months. What amazing news!

Abigail, I so wish you were here to meet your newest siblings. I am sure you would be trying to find a way to boss them around like you do the rest of us. We miss you and always will. I hope we are making you proud by the choices we are making. Your marker should arrive soon baby girl. I am praying over and pondering how to approach your birthday this year. I know there will be lots of pink balloons for you no matter how the day ends up. You are always on my heart and on my mind.

Giveaway! Kate Cut and Color!

The fabulous Ms. Kate has offered a cut and color to one lucky donator. Kate says that you can get highlights or all over color to go with your cut. This is a $140 value!!! I know a Kate haircut is in high demand, so be sure to jump on this opportunity!! This giveaway will run for one week.

To donate: Just use the donate link on the right there to donate. Each $5 gets you one chance to win a free cut and color. And, if you share on facebook or your blog and tell me about it, I will give you an extra chance. Be sure to comment here or in email so that I know which giveaway you are entering!

If you want to donate, but don't want to donate online, please email me (bldahlen@aol.com). This is open only to those local enough to get to Kate, or willing to travel.

Soaker giveaway still going on until Sunday! Get your entries in!

Bead For Life

We are hosting a beading party with Bead for Life. This fantastic organization offers handmade beaded jewelry made by women in Uganda. According to their website, "BeadforLife eradicates extreme poverty by creating bridges of understanding between impoverished Africans and concerned world citizens. Ugandan women turn colorful recycled paper into beautiful beads. Women in Northern Uganda gather shea nuts and press them into shea butter for cosmetics and soaps. And people who care open their hearts,homes and communities to buy and sell both products.
The beads and shea butter become income, food, medicine, school fees and hope. It is a small miracle that enriches us all." We are so excited to help this organization out and at the same time fundraise to make a very real difference in the life of two children.

So...save the date! January 30th from 2-4 will be the date of our "party." Come and go as you like between those times and purchse some beautiful pieces. I will also post pics of some pieces on my blog as I get them in closer to the date of the party. I will be happy to ship your jewelry to you if you are not local.

An extra surprise for you...

I know I said that I would be using the same numbers we used for the ipad to draw for additional prizes, so here goes the first extra prize. I have a gift card here for Darden Restaurants (Red Lobster, Olive Garden, Longhorn Steakhouse, Bahama Breeze, and Seasons 52 Fresh Grill). The winner of this gift card is...




which is...according to my master list...DeAnn Shannon!

Congrats! I will mail this gift card to you today. Thanks for entering the ipad giveaway!

Introducing...

I wanted to formally take a moment and introduce our prayfully-soon-to-be-added children, especially since we have finally agreed to names!!! Both of these children live in the same groupa in the same orphanage. They know each other and, from what I hear, play well already. I am so thrilled we can welcome them both into our home and hopefully having a buddy they have been living with will ease their transition.

First up is this little beauty who we will call Grace. She will be 4 this summer.


And next is the little boy that stole my heart with his beautiful eyes. We will call him Malachi. His 3rd birthday is coming up in a couple of weeks.


And now for an update...According to our social worker, if all goes as planned, we will be getting our completed home study in the next couple of days. Please pray that all goes well getting that finished. We will then submit our home study to US immigration, and wait again for their approval. As sooon as we get approval from immigration, we will ship the home study and the rest of our dossier (which is already complete) off to Eastern Europe and wait for our country to give us a travel date. I feel so close, yet so far away. Please continue to wrap us in prayer, and pray especially that the last little bit of this home study will be complete and ready this week. Our country will open up again in the beginning of Feb and we want to have our paperwork there as soon as possible.

New Fundraiser! Beautiful Handmade Wool Soaker

Ok, all you cloth diapering momma's know you want this. This beautiful handmade wool soaker comes from the ultra talented hands of my dear friend Mandy. According to Mandy, the yarn is 100% merino from Uruguay dyed by Mandy herself in a rainbow colorway with coordinating trim. It will fit a wide range of sizes from about 6 months to 18 months. She says she would call it a medium. The measurements unstretched are: waist 14", hips 17", rise 18" and thigh 9". It comes freshly washed and lanolized, ready to use.

To enter: Donate $5 to our adoption fund. Each $5 will get you one chance to win. Be sure you comment here or in email to let me know which giveaway you are entering! Sorry to send you around the world, but we are having issues with buttons!

This giveaway will run for one week. Happy donating!

Secondary grief

When a person dies, there are so many facets to that loss that aren't obvious to anyone not living through it. Professionals call these additional losses secondary grief. The primary grief is the loss of the individual. That loss--the loss of Abigail is overwhelming and hard enough. But, the secondary grief is there in so many hidden aspect of life. For example, I have the hardest time now doing everyday things like laundry. Not that I ever loved laundry before, don't get me wrong. But now, doing laundry is a constant slap in my face reminder that her clothes will never be in the basket again. Did you hear that? I will never wash clothes for my little girl again. That takes my breath away. It is just one more stabbing reminder of her absence. Serving dinner to my family is another--we are always one plate short. My family, who typically doesn't miss a field trip, has not be on a single one this year. I get snagged every time by the part where you have to say how many adults and how many children are attending. The numbers are just always wrong.

I grieve Abigail, but I also grieve Anna Faith's sister, Samuel's lighthearted innocence, Nathan's hip carry, Eli's too much love. I grieve our future, the way my family functions. I grieve the trauma free childhood I wanted for my children. I grieve the holidays we used to have and the energy I did.

There are things I don't grieve though. I don't grieve the stress I put on myself over minor things. I don't grieve my children's eyes and hearts being closed to other's pain. I don't grieve the friendships and amazing people I have come to know through tragedy. I don't grieve less than sacrificial giving by our family to the hurting of the world. I don't grieve the illusion I lived in where superficial things mattered and pain was hidden. Thank you baby girl for teaching us the important things and for sharing Hope.

Tragedy is so much more complex that I could have ever understood before I walked this path. It affects each and every aspect of a person's life. We have had to rebuild our family and how our family interacts with each other in the physical absence of a key piece. We have had to start rebuilding new traditions and purpose as much as we want to fight this change. Thank you all for being along on this journey.