Away We Go: Part 2

Well I am sure you have seen our video or heard the news - we passed court and are now the proud parents of a little girl, Wren Kibnesh Lee Berry!

The hubs made this little video.  And I'm gonna warn you, it might make your allergies act up.

Over the next week I'll post more about our adventure in Addis Ababa and the time we got to spend with Wren.

In the meantime I think you should read this.  It will also make your allergies act up, but for a different reason.

Away We Go: Part 1

Very soon we will be leaving on our first trip to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.  Eeek!  I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous.  Nervous.  Excited.  Anxious.  Downright giddy I tell ya!  I get to hold her!!!!  But not until after the the LONG flight there, which is one of  the reasons for my nervousness.   While I love to travel, I am not a great traveler.   Airplanes kinda freak me out.  I mean after all, 'an airplane is just a building on it's side, being thrown through the air' (Claire, Modern Family).
I am also nervous because I have to leave my boys.   My babies!  How will they get along without me?!   In reality I know that they will not miss me one single bit.  In fact they can't wait to get rid of me, and manipulate their poor, sweet, unassuming Grandma into taking them to Chuck E. Cheese.  They are so crafty.  I will miss their craftiness.
So, here we go.  Off to see our girl.  And hug her.  And play with her.  And make her our own.

ps.  Once we get back, we'll answer the ever so popular question "What's her name?"  Stay tuned....

Scenes From a Blizzard

the beginning…

reading by candlelight when the power went out…    

Heading outside…

Heading back in

Smile and wave

We got a new photo of baby girl yesterday.

happiness.

For Baby Girl: Donations and Art Projects

Lifesong for Orphans is an incredible organization whose mission is to “bring joy and purpose to orphans.”  They provide food, clothes, schooling, discipleship and support to orphans all over the world.  They also partner with adoptive parents, like us, offering matching grants and interest free loans.  At this point we’re not sure if we qualify for a matching grant or not (we’ll find out soon), but in the mean time Lifesong will be accepting all financial donations on our behalf.  Meaning, if you were going to help support our adoption, checks and money can be sent to Lifesong, with our name in the memo line.  They will collect the money for us, and send you receipts for tax purposes.  And, if we do qualify for that matching grant, then all the money donated to our Lifesong account would be doubled!  

So, if you’re willing and able to help us bring baby girl home, here is where you can make a donation:

• By Check
  Please make checks payable to:
  Lifesong for Orphans (with our name in the memo line)
  Mail checks to:
  Lifesong for Orphans
  PO Box 40
  Gridley, IL 61744
• By Credit Card (PayPal.com)
  On the PayPal screen, please indicate where you'd like your donation to go. 

Our goal is to raise $5,000 to help fund our second trip to Ethiopia.  And we truly appreciate everyone who has already and is going to help support us financially.  If fact, we want everyone that helps with our adoption fund to also help us with a little art project.  We have a stack of 4x4 canvases and we would like you to paint/decorate them however you chose.  Use paint, crayons, pencil, newspaper, hot glue, scrapbook paper, photographs – whatever you like!  There are no rules or guidelines, anything goes!  We just ask that you sign the back and then return it to us so we can hang them in her room.  We want this “canvas collage” to be a representation of how many people care for her before they even knew her. 

I think I might have a problem

I don't know how mothers of little girls do it!  How do you stop yourself?  Where does the self control come from?
Of course, I am talking about buying little girl clothes.  How can you resist the cuteness of little flowery dresses and glittery shoes?  I can't do it!.   After years of buying ho-hum t-shirts and jeans for little boys that would just assume hang out in their skivvies all day anyway , I feel like there is no way I will be able to control myself when it comes to baby girl's wardrobe.

I resisted the urge for a long time.  I didn't even buy her anything until a month after the referral.  And even then, just looking at itty bitty girl clothes gave me crippling anxiety.  But then I found a $3 dress at (where else?) Target.  And I thought It's only $3, so no big loss if it doesn't fit. And then it began.  And now she has a dozen outfits or more (some were gifts, thanks Mom!)   I fear I won't be able to stop myself.  I cannot go into a store without looking at clothes for her.  And don't get me started on accessories!  Headbands, tights, SHOES.  SHOES, people!  Have you seen how cute the tiny sparkly shoes are?   I am going to need a support group or an accountability partner or something.

PS.  On the upside, though, I am very thrifty.  And so far the most I've spent on one single item is $6.  It pains me to have to buy clothes that are not at least 75% off.  But still, I gotta learn to fight the power of the lace eyelet sundress and the pink satiny shoes.  

Counting Down

We have our first travel dates!  Feb. 23 is when we will get to meet baby girl for the first time!  We are a tad disappointed that it is so far away.  We originally hoped that we would get to meet her in January, but what's one more month? Right? Right. We're no stranger to waiting.   And this way we'll have a little more time to scrape together our pennies for the trip.  AND since we have a two month lead time, plane tickets will be cheaper too.  So there are a few positives .  Right?  Right.
But still...we are anxious to meet her, hug her, hold her, never let her go. It's kinda strange, this feeling of missing someone you don't even know.  So here's hoping that the next two months go by quickly, smoothly and hiccup free. :)