Home Study Work Completed!

Hello All!
Our interviews went well and our fire and environment checks passed with flying colours. What that means; our home study is completed and we just need to review the write-up! Let me ask you out there who have somebody like your mother-in-law visit for the first time; did you completely clean out the pantry, bathroom closets, scrub grout with a toothbrush, make your husband rearrange the rooms' furniture, wash walls...?   I should've guessed because I did the same thing for when my mother-in-law made her first visit to my apartment. (Disclaimer: I unnecessarily panicked because of me, not because of anything to do with sweet and unassuming Gloria Kamp.) Thanks to assistance from the Klein (TX) and VandeKamp (IL) families, we were very prepared for the home study.

The next part of the process is to get fingerprinting appointments with the FBI. We can finish filling out our dossier paperwork and have it noterized. Once all papers are noterized, Bryan will drive it to Austin and have the state seal put on each page. When completed, we can send it to Ethiopia and then we wait... I am a fairly impatient woman and I already feel like asking, "Are we there yet?" We are in the "hurry up" phase of the "hurry up so we can wait" process. At least this part is exciting because we can still do things in this phase.

Tuesday, we came in late to find that our entry way, bathroom and family room had taken on a much glossier profile. The pipe the runs water from the street to the house burst. Thank goodness for home owner's and Pablo! Pablo is our insurance man and he has been fantastic, taking great care of us. Some of our friends recommended Ryan at Buffaloe Floors for us and they were right, they have been giving us great customer care. We feel that, in the midst of this, that God has been taking such great care of us.

As a side note, my brother, David has asked the most lovely woman to marry him and she said yes! Miss Tanya Leet is to marry my brother March 2012.

Thank you for all your prayers. Especially for our friends in Uganda and their two children. If you like to see how they are follow this link - at least check out the pictures! http://www.thebrowntree.blogspot.com/

Their Trip

We have friends leaving on Sunday for 6 weeks to pick up their two. We just ask for prayers for them. They are picking up two kiddos and are going to be gone until the end of November. They found out that they were leaving 8 days before they are to fly out. One week from today, they will have their court date which means, one week from today this family with finally be united!

~Meg

The Oh-Ah Effect

We are excitable people but we reached a new level of excited when we finally have the home study sessions scheduled. We are working on the dossier paperwork where EVERYTHING must be notarized. October 7th, we head to Waco, TX for the first part of our home study!

I had a friend take me to a mom’s sale, a consignment sale for mothers. The prices there were unbelievable and my friend, Ashley, was there to show me the good deals. It was a fun way to think about getting ready for Kid Kamp. I had a full dose of infant parenthood on our trip to the sale. Ashley’s son, Raylan, received his immunization shots just a few days beforehand and he was… “fussy” as in, he decided to scream for pretty much the entire afternoon. The only way he would settle is if I held him high over my head (airplane-style) or if I tucked him along my arm horizontally. I found that either way left drool dripping down on my face or down my arm and onto my sandals/feet. I am sure it must have been frustrating and tiresome but I loved it! I loved watching what a good mother Ashley was to her very cranky baby boy, splitting our time between shopping and soothing, and having to schedule our trip around him in some degree or another. I believe this is the “oh-ah effect.”

The oh-ah effect blocks the bad and makes you swoon over the good. It is like falling in love but not with a soul mate. All you know is that everything you see relates to the one you love. I have new understanding of the Jeremiah 1:5a, “"Before I shaped you in the womb, I knew all about you. Before you saw the light of day, I had holy plans for you…” I don’t know my child, I don’t know if they are a boy or girl; if they are here on earth or haven’t even been conceived. It doesn’t matter. I know them as, the one I love, my child. I dream about them, pray for them, I am planning and preparing my home for them and in my heart, I love them. Jeremiah’s “holy plans” were to be a prophet unto the nations. What has God set aside for my child? I know we will struggle but currently, the oh-ah effect presides.

Thank you for all your prayers.