Fish & Loaves

     Hi Everyone, Just wanted to let yall know we had an awesome fundraiser tonight! We are so thankful for the all of the jewelry orders that helped us raise money to bring home our baby! Thank you, thank you. I will give yall the grand total next week when it's all wrapped up but I am pleasantly surprised!
     I wanted to share something this week that is on my mind from my devotional, I hope it encourages those considering adoption.
"They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat." Matthew 14:16.
Jesus said this to the disciples because they assumed they had no food to provide the large crowd. We all know, that He provided food to many with one boy's lunch. It reminded me of how each time we discussed adoption, we would decide we couldn't afford it. Well, we can't but God can. He is taking our 5 loaves & 2 fish and turning it into the huge sum of money that we need to save the life of one child. We are giving Him what we have, which isn't much, and He is blessing us more than we thought He would.  (Which was just silly on our part, right?) The point is that God can take anything and turn it into something amazing, we often think our issue is too big or too small to bother Him, but He created something as small as 2 fish & He created the universe. Nothing is too big or too small for Him.
    In other adoption news, we had a big week! We mailed off our contracts for AGCI and with a huge check, thanks to all of you sweet folks! The baby bottle fundraiser has been a huge blessing. We also got most of our home study paperwork in the mail. We got blood test and finger prints this week, finally. Finding the time for that without taking off of work was difficult for both of us.  Our FBI packet should go in the mail on Monday! We are trucking right along and thank goodness because I am ready for kid #2 to be here with us! Also, I don't think I have shared this yet, but John & I decided to change our status from baby girl to either gender. So, that means when we finish our dossier, we will go on the waiting list for a boy & a girl and see which comes first! It is more likely to be a boy since they are less in demand. I am starting to get really excited about the possibility of having a son! John, of course, is happy because he wants a camping buddy!
     Ivy had her first big "bobo" at school this week, she tripped, busted her lip and got pretty scratched up. It was tough! Luckily, it was on the way into school so I was there to take care of her. She looks like she got in a fight! So sad, but she is fine. She was out playing on the playground later that day.
    All in all, we have had a big week! Ready for rest, hopefully Sunday will bring that to us!