Finally, a new post!

Who wouldn't love this sweet little honey?!
She came home from Ethiopia in August. She sure does love her uncle Warren, and I know for a fact that the feeling is mutual!
Meg made this cake, it was my favorite!!
This cake sold for $180!!!
This was our auction table.

Ok, so I know it has been forever since I posted and people are wondering what is going on, so here goes. This is going to be a long one, prepare yourself. Life is now slowing down, kind of, but last month was crazy!

Last month I spent the majority of my free time (if a homeschooling mom really has any of that) organizing an adoption awareness benefit with my friend Resa Delany. I really wouldn't have been able to do it without her inspiration. She approached me to ask if I had thought any more about doing a benefit at our church. I had thought about it, but the thought overwhelmed me and I began to hyperventilate. Just kidding, but I really was overwhelmed. I had just finished cleaning up from the garage sale and the thought of beginning another project was almost too much for me to contemplate. Resa had been out of town the weekend previous and woke up one morning with a date for the benefit and she really felt like we needed to give it a try. I had really wanted to do it(but was just scared about it) and decided just to go for it anyway. From the very beginning of the planning stages God worked out so many of the details. Our church was available and willing to host it. It did take me about 3 hours to figure out my computer program in order to make fliers and tickets. It was definitely worth it though in the long run. Resa called bakeries and people donated the desserts for the night. My friend Lisa Hansen helped decorate, and it was amazingly beautiful, but we all know how amazing and creative she can be when making something out of nothing!:0)Love you Lisa! Many people from our church and MOPS group donated cakes to be auctioned off and they were stunning! I was so amazed and humbled by all of their incredible generosity. Justin Holzgrove, our youth pastor at FBC made an adoption video http://www.youtube.com/puaahunter with pictures from the many friends and family members he and I have made who have adopted in the past. I'm going to try and get the video on this post. Bear with me if I don't get it immediately. My friend Denice Gustafson was our guest speaker for the evening. She did a fabulous job sharing her heart for adoption and the call on our lives, as believers, from God, to be involved in adoption with Him. Although she was initially nervous about having to speak in front of everyone, you would never have known it. She was confident, poised, and articulate and I am so thankful to our Father for placing it on her heart to speak. That was definitely another "God Moment."

Another "God Moment" was, after we began to advertise for this, my friend Bonnie Benson mentioned that she had read somewhere that November was National Adoption Awareness month. Ding, ding, ding!!! I had forgotten that piece of info in all of the craziness and was just so blessed that God remembered and designed it all that way in the first place. He is so incredibly awesome, and I love that He remembered that detail, knowing that when I was reminded, I would be so tickled that He found a way to remind me. God really is so good!!!! He knows even the small things that make me smile. It makes me feel like you do when you have a special secret with your best friend, and they say something about it to make you laugh or giggle even when no one else gets it. Do you know what I'm saying? Yes, you can roll your eyes at me right now if I don't make any sense. :0)

Taproot Theater Improv group of Seattle came and performed for us that night. They were so funny that my cheeks hurt from smiling and laughing for so long. I really needed a good laugh after so much stress of pulling all of this together. My friend Natalie Teabo took lots of pictures for us and I'm still trying to get her to email some to me so that I can post it on here.

Miss Meg Gustafson, Denice's daughter(she's 9 yrs. old) made this cake in honor of international adoption and her adopted sister, Ana! It was my favorite one!! It made me cry! The little boy is holding a Kazakh flag and the girl a US flag.

The entire night was a hit! As of now, I know two families who are considering adoption because of the testimony's that have been shared. You can't help but be affected by the immense need of children around the world, even here in the USA. If we can do it, so can you, don't let finances or anything else stop you if you feel like God is putting it on your heart. Money is nothing to Him, He owns the cattle on a thousand hills. More than anything, He wants a willing heart. He will meet you right where you are, I know that because He has met us and led us all along the way. God's call isn't for only those who are in their childbearing years or for those who have money or a big house. He doesn't call everyone to adopt a child, but He does call all of us to be involved in adoption. He only asks that we respond in some way to His heart for the Fatherless. It could be through sponsorship, through donations to organizations like All God's Children International, or to help a family like ours to bring their child home. Prayer is also a major factor in helping these children. Ask God what He wants you to pray for. The fatherless, the widow, and the outcast are the most near and dear to God's heart. I know that He will show you something. I wouldn't trade this incredible privilege for anything in this world. Just like you would never trade your amazing children or anything else important just because of the bad days and hardships that we all often face. It is all worth every single minute. I'm sure that I'll speak with even more conviction after we bring our sweet Kazi princess home.

The cake auction was a blast and Ron Goodale, who so graciously agreed to Emcee, also very graciously agreed to be our auctioneer. He did a wonderful job and said in the end that he had a lot of fun doing it. I loved when he forgot where people were at in their bidding and would jump the price from like $45 to $80 or so dollars. It was pretty funny and no one was upset, they all went with it. Some people even bid up to $180 on some cakes. My favorite part was at the end, when we still had a Costco apple pie, cheesecake, and another cheesecake sampler left. All of the beautiful custom-made cakes were sold and we figured we should just sell these too. There was no way that I was going to bring all of the leftovers home(I would have gained 15lbs in 2 days). So Ron auctioned them off and the pie went for $75. The cheesecakes went for close to the same. Everyone there was so generous, and the spirit behind everything was so fun. I can't begin to tell you how blessed and loved we feel. Thank you to all of you who came, who prayed, and who donated your time, your creativity, your cakes, your donations, and your love. After all was said and done, we raised a total of $2571!!!!!!! I couldn't believe it! I had to just sit there praising God and crying! We are now very close to having all that we need for our trip. This benefit brings Warren that much closer to being able to travel back to Kaz with me on our second trip to pick up our daughter. We couldn't have done it without all of those who so selflessly gave.

Thank you to all of you who have supported and loved us through this adoption. I am so humbled by your unselfish act of giving and for your love for God. Through loving and serving Him, you have helped make our dream of bringing our daughter home become that much more of a reality. Bringing our daughter home is all our sweet boys talk about now. God bless you all for helping to make their dream come true too. I can't wait for her to meet all of her aunties and uncles and grama's and grandpa's. What a wonderful family she truly will have!!!!!! I love all of you!

Love always, Jenn