Break Out the Christmas Lights!!

Maria and her Mommy

Do they look "meant to be" or what?

Maria

Eric's cousin, Brandon and his wife Dayna are adopting a beautiful little girl from Guatemala. Isn't she the cutest thing EVER?! We are beyond excited for them, as they have been waiting for a child of their own for so long... and they have been blessed with the opportunity to give this little girl the ultimate gift of a life that she otherwise would not have.

The international adoption process is long and complicated, but they are trying to be patient as they anxiously wait to bring Maria home to Indiana. In Guatemala, orphans are placed in foster homes - a huge advantage over the orphanages that some countries use - so Dayna and Brandon are able to use a translator and call her foster parents for updates.

Today, Brandon and Dayna left for Guatemala to meet baby Maria in person!! They are not allowed to bring her home (although that probably hasn't stopped Dayna from conspiring a way to sneak her in a suitcase), but they are able to stay in a hotel alone with her while they are there. Please pray for them as they finally have this special time to meet and get to know their new daughter... and pray harder for them as they then have to leave her there and return home empty handed - for now. I know Dayna was hesitant at first about whether visits would be wise... as it inevitably would make the separation harder... but this process is not for the faint of heart and in the end I know, they will treasure every moment they have with her.

Please, please, also be praying for the adoption issues in Guatemala right now. A month or so ago, the President of Guatemala announced that all international adoptions will cease after the first of the year due to various issues. This would include adoptions like Brandon and Dayna's, that are "in process"... as they are still most likely several months away from being able to bring Maria home. Many have been fighting this and right now, it looks like they may allow those adoptions in process to proceed, but many decisions have yet to be made. And even if these families are allowed to proceed, many many children will be left stranded in foster care throughout the rest of the country if international adoption is halted.

So much to pray about... here's another picture for inspiration:

Out of the Mouths of Babes

A "friend" of mine emailed this to me with a note mentioning how glad she was that I have moved out of Reno. While I typically avoid providing anyone with ammo against one of my favorite places (particularly my mother)... I couldn't resist this one. I'm not sure if I believe it... but the school does exist. And it's pretty funny, in a twisted, "what-is-our-world coming to"? sort of way.

This is a picture submitted for a "What do I want to be when I grow up contest", by Amanda Marsh of Westview Elementary School in Reno, Nevada.

We were robbed...

Enough said.

Better Days

Life has been crazy busy for the last few weeks... but we have had several highlights. Here's a few pictures of the fun stuff!

Most recently... Susie and Kira came for a visit. We visited the Indianapolis Children's Museum and Kira had a blast.

We met up with our good friends John, Janet and Henry for the Purdue Homecoming game. Both John and Eric graduated from Purdue... Eric, as we all know loved the school so much he decided to return after a degree in Mechanical Engineering for 5 more years of Pharmacy!

And since we're digging football so much these days... we decided to have some other friends (Ryan, Lori, Emma, Noah, Sarah and Anna) over to the house for the Colts game! We had a great time watching them win (as usual)! We even made caramel apples at half time!