Last Home Study

Tomorrow at 11 is our last home study! Not that they have been a pain, or intrusive or anything like that. It just means that is one more thing out of our way. One more thing crossed off our mile long list. One less thing we have to do! It seems to be getting a little easier. Maybe because I kind of took a few days off last week, or we are just getting used to this. I have a feeling we are about to get hit pretty hard with this dossier. Another word we hate in our family. Again, because I think we just finally learned how to pronounce it correctly. This is the quiet before the storm! Still, we are getting through this process pretty fast. I'm starting to see that the speed has a lot to do with contacts and who you know. Thank goodness we talk a lot and ask people a lot of questions. That way you can find that you usually have something in common with somebody along the way. People are a lot more willing to help when they feel a connection! That or these people just want us to stop annoying them! I guess there is a little bit of a down side to blowing through this stuff so quickly. WE HAVE NO TIME TO FUND RAISE!!! Getting a little nervous about that. We just pray that people find it in their hearts to keep helping us. I am amazed how much they have helped us already. We are a little over $500 now in Martin's fund. It may go down a little, as we have been donating to his fund and just recently found out that we are not allowed to do so. We are getting a refund even it it's not wanted. That was a little bit of a let down. Every time we get something extra, we want to stick it in that fund. If not, well it gets sucked out by something else. So with that being said, if anyone has any good unique ideas to raise money I would be so open to hearing them. We have been reading up on grants but a lot of them are through churches and we are not yet members of the church we have been attending. We plan on becoming members but the timing is so bad. I don't want to join and then turn around and ask them for funds! Of course there is the bake sale thing that I am going to do. But for something other than that I would love some ideas!

On another note, anyone who knows me well should be proud of me. I have been hoarding my boy's clothes(not sure why)and holding onto them for dear life. The clothes that they have outgrown are taking over our closet. I keep finding reasons to keep them. I can remember each of them in each outfit that I have. I have visions of someone making me a quilt out of them one day. I can't think of anything better to use them for and I can't think of any better blanket to cover up with! Today I did find a better reason for these clothes! I went through all of them and put them in the orphanage pile. I did keep a few things I'm not gonna lie, but most of the clothes I decided I am taking with us to give to Martin's soon to be old home. Letting go of my baby's clothes is such a big thing for me! I know that there is no better place to take them. I have to admit it did bring me to tears. Not because I was getting rid of the clothes but for another reason. It seems like I am crying a lot these days! I came across so many shirts that said my mommy and daddy love me. Or I love my mommy or daddy. I felt so horrible. I felt so guilty. Isn't that strange? I have no idea why I felt guilty. I have all these clothes that I can't send because, how awful would it be to send clothes to the orphanage that say something about a mommy and daddy? Am I being to sensitive? There are so many things that I never thought about until God opened my eyes to this situation that these beautiful children are facing. I am amazed at how they continue to touch my life every day with every thing that I do. Something as simple as cleaning out my closet brings me closer to them and more sensitive the situation they face and the way they live everyday. These children are my heroes. The only thing keeping us from only bringing home Martin...Region 2 in Russia only allows one child to be adopted at a time unless they are siblings.