New Blog!

I've combined my blogs into an all new blog!  Come check it out!  Don't forget to add it to your list of followed blogs as I'll be deleting this one eventually.

Stories from the Shoe

And the Winner Is. . . .

Francesca Scalfaro!!!!!!!

Thank you so much to the many people who participated.  I really wish you all could have won!  We raised $410!!!!!!

Thank you!!!!!! 

Batter Up!

Saturday we got an email from AWAA telling us that we are "On Deck".  We are soooo excited!!!  Basically what on deck means is that AWAA anticipates we will get a referral in the next 1-3 months.  Doesn't sound that different from what we already know right?  Here's why it's exciting:  it means we are where we think we are on the list and that we are on AWAA's radar.  It's also the last time we will hear from them before our referral!!!!!

As of right now we are still number 8 on the infant boy list.  To clear up any confusion:  We are NOT waiting for an orphan to be born.  I realize it sounds that way but there is no shortage of orphans.  Basically we are waiting for it to be our turn to be processed.  Agencies, orphanages, and the Ethiopian govt. can only handle so many adoptions at one time.  Here's how the process works (roughly):  

Step 1:  A baby/child is found or dropped off at one of the many orphanages in Ethiopia.

Step 2:  An agency begins to gather paperwork that proves this child is truly an orphan according to Ethiopian law.

Step 3:  Agency feels confidant that child is a legal orphan and moves them into a transition home (TH)

Step 4:  Child is referred to a family.

Step 5:  Paperwork that agency gathered is submitted to the Ethiopian govt. and a court date is given (sometimes the next available court date is several months away)

Step 6:  Family passes court and the child is declared theirs according to the Ethiopian Govt.

Step 7:  All paperwork is submitted to the US embassy to determine that they feel the child is an orphan
Step 8:  Embassy determines everything is on the up and up and child goes home (if the Embassy is concerned they do an investigation which can take several months)

Step 9:  A bed/crib is open in the TH home and the process begins again.

So you see it is a long, involved process and THAT is what we wait for. 

Please keep praying!

Some Thoughts

I've been wondering:  Can I handle this?  I am reading a great book, There's No Me Without You.  It is the story of an Ethiopian Woman who found herself suddenly the adoptive mother of one child, then two, then 5, then she got a reputation for taking in AIDS orphans and more and more children showed up.  I know she winds up with many, many children but in my reading today a little four year old girl was dropped off.  I think she was about the 12th child.  The woman talks about trying to squeeze her in the bed with five other little girls.  The thought that popped into my head was, "it can't be good for all these children to have to share this one mother with no father or other help."  Then I realized, these children are better off having to share one mother than having no mother at all.  And that is when I began to wonder. . .Can I handle this?  Can I go to the orphanage and see the many, many children without any parents?  I am going to want to  take them all home.  My heart is breaking for all those kids who won't be adopted, who will have no Mommy.

Please pray for those children, and please pray for all those who have thought about adoption that God would continue to stir their hearts, and please continue to pray for us and our little boy in Ethiopia.

A Belated 3 Month DTE

Last Saturday we celebrated our 3rd month of being DTE.  While it was a pretty quick month I must confess that I'm starting to get antsy.  I'm ready to see some pictures of my boy and start planning our trip.  As it stands right now we are number 8 on the baby boy list.  The courts are really backlogged right now and it's about a 3 month wait from when we get our referral until when we will travel.  So we may not travel until March or even May! :(  My prayer is that by some major miracles occurring AWAA would be provided with tons of court dates for January and that by the time we get our referral the wait will be much shorter. 

George and I were super busy on Saturday!  I made the cake for a friends wedding and then we had a great time at the wedding dancing and talking with old friends while the girls had a sleepover at Nana and Big Daddy's.  All in all it was a great way to celebrate our third month and move into what could be a very exciting 4th month.  This month we will hopefully get our "on deck" email and be even closer to our referral!!!  Keep Praying!  

And don't forget to get your chances at Eagles/Giants tickets!

ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL?

We are giving away 2 tickets to the Eagles vs. Giants game on November 21st!  All you have to do to be entered is click on the Paypal button to the right and donate $10.  For every $10 you donate your name will be put in a hat (or box or pillowcase or well you get the idea).  Don't forget to include your name and email/telephone number in the notes section so I can call you when you win.  The tickets are right on the 50 yard line in section 225.Click here to see a map of the seats on stubhub.  Currently these tickets are running for about $130 a piece.  That means you can get a value of $260 for just 10 bucks!!!!!  

The winner will be drawn at kickoff of the Monday night November 15th game versus the Redskins.

Remember the more you donate the more chances you have to win!

Thanks for helping us bring our baby boy home!

Matching Week Results

Thank you so much to everyone who participated in our $5 Radical campaign this past week.  We raised $460 which was matched to $920!!!!  That's awesome!  We have been so very, very blessed by both strangers and friends and family through this process.  I can't wait until we can show our little boy off to everyone.  I'm looking forward to the day we stand before God, our family, our church, and as many of you as possible! and dedicate this little man to the Lord:)  

We will be 3 Months DTE on Saturday!!!  I'm making my very first wedding cake that day so I may not post until Sunday!

Also, coming very, very soon a new fundraiser that many of you will want to be involved in (I don't want to give it away but if you live in Philly or New York you may be very, very interested ;)  More to come soon!

Thanks and God Bless,

Shannon