In January of this year, after at least a year of praying and exploring options, we began this adoption journey. In April, we went to orientation and were overwhelmed with all that would be required of us. We were given a mountain of paperwork to complete and a price sheet that was more daunting than the paperwork. Knowing that God directed us down this path, we knew that somehow He would provide.

Last Saturday, we hosted our third big fundraiser, a Bunco for Baby game night. We were so excited to see 41 (at least that was our best count) ladies show up for the event! We were blessed by many encouraging words, by many friends who pitched in and helped without even being asked, by the support of friends who brought other friends with them, friends who hosted cheesecake and jewelry fundraisers at the event, and by hearing all the laughter and seeing everyone have fun. It was so neat to see how God brought people from every area of our lives here in Abilene together for this event, and it was amazing to watch ladies sit down with strangers at every turn and make new friends over a few rolls of the die. I wish we remembered to take pictures!

Nathan and several of husbands, who stood out in the hall at the beginning of the evening, decided they needed a game night of their own. We’ve put on our thinking caps to try to figure out what to do as a game night for the guys! We’re open to hearing your ideas.

When we finished orientation last April, we set a goal of raising the initial $13,100 and completing the paperwork within a year. As of now, we have raised $6,968 (53%) of the amount, and we hope to have the paperwork finished by the end of Christmas break. We have several other fundraisers planned, and two of them are going on now through the end of this week (11/28).

• Corrie Reed, one of Nathan’s co-workers at HSU, is a Velata representative. She has graciously offered to do a cheesecake fundraiser for us. She is selling 3-packs of No-Bake cheesecake mixes for $25 ($31 if shipped out of Abilene). $8 from each 3-pack plus her commission will be donated to our fund. She has set up a Facebook page if you are interested in more details. https://www.facebook.com/groups/477192795774814/
• Pam Kennedy, our pastor’s wife, is also doing a Premier Jewelry show for us. If you are interested in buying some jewelry from her, please check out her website http://pamkennedy.mypremierdesigns.com/ After the first of the year, we plan to sell t-shirts, which our friend, Emily Spurgin designed for us, and we hope to do another fundraiser dinner.

Every time we do a fundraiser, God confirms to us that this is what he wants us to do, and we treasure all of these moments in our hearts. We cannot wait to see how the story will unfold, and we look forward to sharing it with all of you.

Thank you for supporting us in the journey and for being a part of it!