One late, but very important, Christmas gift

It's something so simple, and yet for us, has taken so long. BUT, we finally have it...my mom's FBI clearance!! It came in the mail today! It took 4 tries, but they finally accepted her prints :) Now we can send them off and our homestudy can be finalized!!! This is definitely the best Christmas present, a little late, but I'm okay with that! So, we are really hoping to have our dossier ready for the kid's country for February. That of course will depend on how quickly our 1-600A gets processed, but we are praying for things to move smoothly and quickly. We just can't wait to get our babies home!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! We haven't posted much because Christmas kind of snuck up on us this year. Sad, I know, but with all of the paper chasing, we just had trouble getting it all in. We did have a wonderful time with Pumpkin and with family - she was an absolute riot this year, she just looooves presents, or resents, as she says - but it just wasn't the same. Our family was incomplete and we all felt it. Three little people are missing from our lives! Hopefully, not for long though.

So, Christmas was wonderful and yet sad all at the same time. I found myself wandering through the pages of the waiting children section of Reece's Rainbow more than once. The faces kept me up at night. No matter how good these kids are, there are no presents under the tree on Christmas morning, there aren't mommies and daddies to snuggle up with, and there are no Christmas decorations. That is the sad reality of life for these children. And as uncomfortable as it may make us feel, as "un-Christmasy" as it maybe, we must remember them. Please, look at their faces, pray for them, pass on the message. And maybe, next year, some of these beautiful children won't be "waiting", they will be home.

Reece's Rainbow

I thought I'd take a moment tonight to explain a little about Reece's Rainbow to those of you who have never heard of it, or the work they do. Reece's Rainbow advocates for international orphans, like Sweetie and Angel, with Down Syndrome. They also now have a growing list of "other angels" with various special needs and HIV+. I urge anyone who has not visited their website to please do so. George and I were shocked to see the number of children who are truly living on "borrowed" time. We were unaware that orphaned children with Down Syndrome, in many other countries, had no place in their societies and were often institutionalized at the age of 5 with no hope of being adopted (there is literally no other place for these children to go.) Orphaned children living with HIV, often age out of the system, are unable to find work and many times end up on the streets. Even if you cannot adopt, please take the time to educate yourself and your families and friends about what the reality is for these precious children. There are so many ways we can all make a difference if we will just take the time!