Crafted for Adoption

Hello, hello!  It's a beautifully sunny Saturday morning and I'm happy to finally take a little time to tell you about the Fall Craft Sale we had.  We had so many beautiful things donated for our cause, and it really was such a blessing to Sweets and me to see how many people care about us and about our baby, despite the fact that we're still waiting for information about who our baby is and when he or she will join our family.  (Side note:  it's funny, you know, that part of me is getting more and more comfortable with the fact that we don't know that yet, like it's just the way it's supposed to be, and another part of me is getting more and more and more anxiously excited about finally getting that call.  I can't wait to bring our baby home!!)

So, anyway, our day was a good day.  It was very cold, at least compared to what we're used to around here at this time of the year, and we were glad that we decided to sell hot apple cider with our bake sale items.  It was a hit!

We had 8 tables of crafts set up, one table of bake sale items, and one table set up for a former church member who has just started her own business selling Discovery toys.  (I, in our pre-Army days, had a home-based business for a little while and I know how hard it is to get started...so, when she offered to give us her profits in exchange for letting her set up shop for her first showing, I was happy to help her out a little bit, knowing she's helping us out, too!)  We were there from 9AM to 3PM.  The morning was much more successful than the afternoon, but we did have a few stragglers come in at the end to round out the day.

This may be tacky, but as the goal was to raise funds, and as pretty much everyone has asked how successful we were, I'm just going to say that we raised over $1100!  It was more than I thought we would raise, and we're so thankful for that chunk of the placement fee all taken care of.

And...we've got several things left.  I've put them in an online photo album for anyone who is interested in purchasing anything from it.  You can email me at bringhomeourbaby{at}gmail{dot}com with the item number you're interested in or with any questions about dimensions, colors, etc.   The album is public, too, so if you're willing, we'd love any other promotion we can get.  If you want to give us a shout out on your blog, we'd really appreciate it!

There's a little bit more adoption info that we've gotten, and I'd love to share it now.  What we know is that we're now number 3 on the list of families open to any race.  We're really excited about that, because usually family profiles are shown in groups of three, and being in the top three means that ours will be shown every time we match with what an expectant mother is looking for.  We're hoping that now that we've moved to the top three, that will help move things along more quickly. 

We also know that our Bethany office is working with four expectant mothers due in 2011.  They're all still in the decision making process, but I'm hoping that maybe we'll be matched with one of them and we'll have a little bit of time to build a relationship with her and prepare for the due date for our son or daughter.  We'll see what God's plans are, but I've got to admit I keep reminding Him of my wish list! *grin*

Finally,  I'd like to mention that we did get some more good news yesterday regarding the adoption.  We found out that we've been approved by Lifesong for Orphans for a matching grant of up to $2000!  We're praising God for each little bit as it comes in and knowing that He will continue to open each door as it comes. 

Thanks to everyone who contributed already, by crafts or by purchasing something, and thanks to everyone who continues to pray for us and support us in so many other ways.  We will be so thrilled to share our good news with so many people who have proven their love for our little one already.