Big CHARM ADDICTION Giveaway

As some of you know, I created a little business to help defer the cost of adoption. THANK YOU to everyone that has bought charms and passed along the WEBSITE ADDRESS (www.CHARMADDICTION.etsy.com) to friends and family. Your help is working; to date I have sold 36 charms across the country and around the world (TWO TO SWEDEN!)

To help promote this business and bring our little Shania a step closer to us, we are sponsoring a CHARM GIVEAWAY. You don't have to spend a thing, just help me spread the love a little by promoting my favorite healthy addiction, C.H.A.R.M. ADDICTION.

Over the next few weeks I will be giving away three, (YES 3!), C.H.A.R.M. ADDICTION charms. Here's how you can HELP and WIN!

1. Go to C.H.A.R.M. ADDICTION and pick out your favorite charm - WARNING...I have posted lots of new adorable and addicting charms so choosing might be the hardest part.
2. Grab a picture of your favorite charm (just cut and paste from our site) post it on your website, blog, facebook or myspace page with a little blurb about why you like the charm, along with a link to C.H.A.R.M. ADDICTION.
3. If you have more than one favorite charm you can post it as well - there is no limit to how many favorite charms you can post - for every post you will receive another entry.
4. Return to this post and place a comment - please include a link to your blog post.
5. Bonus double entry - tell a friend and when they post it, YOU will recieve (2) two entries! Just let me know in the comments that you referred a friend and give me a link to their post!
   

Easy right?

You can start posting today, Friday, November 28th. I will give away a charm every Friday for the next 3 weeks.

Friday, December 5th
Friday, December 12th
Friday, December 18th

You are probably thinking "hey, what charm will I win?" That's a great question and I have an answer. You win the one you choose! How sweet is that? Pick your favorite charm and if your name is drawn that is the charm you will win!

Winners will be drawn EACH FRIDAY (using Random.org) for the NEXT THREE WEEKS! Winners will be posted right here on the blog, so check back on FRIDAY to see if you have won! I'll ship anywhere in the world - so SWEDEN, you're in!

Thanks!

Checking the Last Box

Here is a pretty big update for you... We are about to check off the last item in our home study. The last item is my physical exam.

China has a number of medical requirements to qualify for adoption. One of them is for a BMI (body mass index) under a certain number. When we started the process I did not qualify, but now I do. In the past six months I have lost the equivalent of at least two Thanksgiving turkeys. It's been a fantastic, fun, and sometimes stressful time for us. Sheri has been my champion through this adventure and continues to give me the desire to be the best possible husband, and if God wills father, that I can be.

First thing tomorrow morning I go to the doctor for my physical exam. We'll then check the last box on our home study.

all in his good timing

I received this from a friend today - it could not have come at a more appropriate time. As we wind down our HS - I sometimes feel like we are taking 1 step forward and 2 steps back. I was feeling a bit discouraged - mostly because things were not moving at my pace (:

"But these things I plan won't happen right away.
Slowly, steadily, surely the time approaches when the
vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow, be patient!
For it will surely take place. It will not be late by a
single day. Habakkuk 2:3

What a wonderful reminder on Gods promise and timing.

PS Thank you Kathy for the wonderful scripture and thank you Jen for your comic relief and your encouragement.

It's already been three weeks, so where's our baby?

Dave posted this title 3 weeks after we had made our final decision to adopt.

It has actually now been 5 months and I thought it would be nice to take a look back at our journey and where we are today. Even though the process seems slow at times, the truth of the matter is a lot of incredible things have been accomplished. Of coarse there is the paperwork, Home Studies, Medical test and Fees but the most incredible highlight of all has been the relationships we have built and the knowledge we have gained.

We have had the opportunity to talk to, email and actually meet many wonderful people in the adoption world. Some that have adopted from China and are already home with their children. Some that are in the process and some that just want to help people who are interested in adoption.

For instance My "adoption friend" Jen (Hi Jen) we exchange email almost daily. Jen, PJ, Ashlyn and Phillip are an adorable family from Texas and they are just a little ahead of is the adoption process.

There is Jeanette - who found us through another blog and after an exchange of a couple of emails - learned that we live a mile away! Her family just celebrated their one year home with Elizabeth - there adorable little princess from China. They actually go to our church and invited us to their Thursday night bible study. We have attended two consecutive studies - and they actually invited us back! What wonderful people!

Many families that we have met are currently in the China program, some for over two years now. Currently the wait time is three years and appears to be growing with each month. As we continue to follow the China Program and finalize our HS(Home Study) We are continuing to look at all options for adoption. Our hope is by December, our HS will be completed and through the courts - this means we will be certified through the state of Arizona to adopt domestically or internationally.

Each day brings new opportunities, opens new doors and new life journeys. Where will this one lead us next?

Everything to me

Thank you for carrying a child for nine months, going through the pain of labor, holding the child in your arms and loving the child so much that you

The video below is a song by Mark Schultz who was given up for adoption. It is his tribute to his birth mother and birth mothers around the world.

Thank you for everything