New Number!

Another Step Closer!

Wait List

We have officially been on the Children's Hope International Wait List for:

Aunt Twonana!

 3 MONTHS!

Our Aunt Twonana has been one of our biggest cheerleader's on our adoption journey. She's helped us sell  Pampered Chef and Chick-fil-A calendars to the entire town of Goldsboro, NC  ... AND now ... she's flying to Kentucky to help us with our Adoption Benefit on April 2nd.  

Aunt Twonana is known in our family as the party planner. My mom tells stories of her organizing tea parties when they were little girls ... party planning is in her blood. That's why I am so thankful that she is coming to help us with our benefit - thank God for small miracles. Who knows how things would have turned out without her?!   

We love you Aunt Twonana and we appreciate your love and support more than you will ever know! Can't wait to see you in April!

Wait-a-versary: 

Well we've moved up 14 spots in 3 months. If referrals keep moving at this pace we could expect our referral in October. Let's hope that things do pick-up because October seems way too far away. 

Please keep the waiting children in Ethiopia (and around the world) in your prayers; pray for referrals to pick-up soon so that these children can leave their orphanages and be with their forever families. 

New Number!

Keep em' coming!!!

Valentine's Day

"Flowers die, chocolates make you fat, but a fashionABLE scarf? You really can't go wrong". These words are posted on fashionABLE's website promoting these beautiful scarves handmade by Ethiopian women. I believe everyone should own at least one (they make great gifts too!).


This is the scarf  I got for Valentine's Day - love it!

 

The purchase of my Valentine's Day gift went to support Bezuayhu. This is Bezuayhu's story:

Thank you Bret for knowing where my heart is this Valentine's Day (and everyday) - with God, with you, and with Ethiopia.

A New Decade

Well it had to happen eventually, I turned 30.

Yes, it's true but honestly it wasn't as bad as I expected. I think I was okay with the big 3-0 because I know that I'm on my way to being right where I always dreamed I'd be by 30 - on my way to having a family. Being a mom has always been something that I've longed for and to know that our daughter will be here soon (hopefully before my next birthday) is so reassuring and extremely exciting!

To celebrate this momentous occasion we celebrated where else, Queen of Sheba. We reserved the private room and ate in traditional Ethiopian style. We had a great time and Bret and I enjoyed sharing the Ethiopian food experience with our friends.

Bret gave me this sweet and thoughtful gift for my birthday:

It's the "Paper Pregnant" woman's baby bump. I love it and you too, Bret! Thanks to everyone that made my birthday so special! 

Finally A New Number!

Referrals at our agency have been slow to come in this last month but we've been told that things will be picking up soon and we have faith that they will.

Upon our weekly check-in with our adoption counselor (yes, you read that right - weekly) she confirmed that we are now number #41 on the wait list. It's a small move but a move nonetheless. We had been at #42 since January 10th. Please pray with us that referrals continue and that there are many more on the horizon.

In honor of our new number we thought we'd celebrate with #41 by the Dave Matthews Band. Enjoy!

You Make Me Smile.

I am blessed to work for an incredible environmental nonprofit that does phenomenal work around the World! Not only do I go to work everyday for a cause I believe in; I am surrounded by top-notch individuals that have become a second family.

Today I received an unexpected gift from a colleague and friend in Texas. It absolutely brightened my day!

For now it's housed on the mantle in my office and I smile every time I see it. For those of you that can't tell what the picture is, it's a sonogram picture with Africa in it.

Thank you so much Sylvia, for being so thoughtful. We love it!!!

Our awesome new gift on the mantle in my office.  

If you like the painting above the mantle you should definitely attend our Adoption Benefit on April 2nd (Click the "Support Our Adoption" tab for more details). Mike Black, a local artist and close friend, is donating a painting to our silent auction. THANKS MIKE! You can check out more of his work at http://mikeblackart.com/.

Wally William Wallister our little man of 9 yrs.

The braggy doggy mom in me had to include this picture. Another great thing about my job is that Wally gets to come to work with me, he loves it and so do I! Yeah for pet friendly workplaces!

#1 Traditional African Recipe

This week we finally tried out the great cookbook we got for Christmas, "70 Traditional African Recipes".

1 of 70 Recipes: East African Roast Chicken   

Ingredients:

Serves 6

4-4 1/2 lb whole chicken

2 tbsp. softened butter, plus extra for basting

3 garlic cloves, crushed

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp ground turmeric

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tbsp finely chopped fresh coriander

4 tbsp thick coconut milk

4 tbsp medium-dry sherry

1 tsp tomato puree

salt and chili powder, to taste

1 Remove the giblets from the chicken, if necessary, rinse out the cavity and pat the skin dry.

2 Put the butter and all the remaining ingredients in a bowl and mix together well to form a thick paste.

3 Gently ease the skin of the chicken away from the flesh and rub generously with the herbs and butter mixture. Rub more of the mixture over the skin, legs and wings of the chicken and into the neck cavity.

4 Place the chicken in a roasting tin, cover loosely with foil and marinate overnight in the fridge.

5 Preheat the over to 375'F. Cover the chicken with the clean foil and roast for 1 hour, then turn the chicken over and baste with the pan juices. Cover again with foil and cook for 30 min.

6 Remove the foil and place the chicken breast up. Rub with a little extra butter and roast for a further 10-15 min. until the meat juices run clear and the skin is golden brown.

Served with Greek salad, rice w/ roasted pine nuts, pita bread and hummus.

We loved it and we think you will too. If you try it, let us know what you think.