Our paperwork made it safely to Gladney on the second attempt. We only have 3 more items that they need to finish processing everything. One of them is pictures. I know .... who would have thought that's the part I've struggled with organizing! We also need pics for our dossier paperwork. A combination of things have held up the progress with getting pics done and having them all organized and labeled. Either someone was in need of a haircut, or someone was a ball practice, or I was trying to meet a SaCH order ... or was just too wiped out to get everyone ready for family pics. Slowly but surely I've been saving up photos and will have everything printed on Tuesday when we go to town. Then my plan is to have them compiled and completed by Friday. For some reason it seemed easier to compile pictures for Naomi's adoption. We were putting it altogether for her birthmom to see and so that's who the receiver would be and I knew what I wanted to include and what I wanted to say. Sad thing is, I don't believe Naomi's birthmom ever even saw our packet that we so careful prepared for her. But that is a whole other story to write some day .... maybe.

Anyway, this time the "receiver" of the photos are the officials in Ethiopia. Somehow in pictures and captions we are to tell them about us, show them our home, tell them why we want to adopt a child from their country and how we plan to keep their heritage alive. This will all be translated into their language.

To complicate things we moved last year into a major "fixer-upper" home and I have yet to get an outside angle that doesn't show a very unfinished view! Progress we have made, but new windows and doors leave behind a siding mess and we aren't to the point of repainting yet.

We will be so glad to have our part of the paperwork completed. We are grateful for a wonderful team in our agency and social worker to help us along the way.

Tuesday we'll be in Fargo for a special adoption program that is being put on by Family Christian Bookstores to raise awareness for their James Fund (the bears that can be purchased and sent to orphans). We are so happy to get this opportunity. They have a full morning planned of activities and hope to have the media there to raise interest to further this project. Our social worker from the agency that did our homestudy will be there helping as well. Should be a wonderful day! Then Wednesday morning we go BACK into Fargo bright and early for fingerprinting appointments!! That'll be one more thing we can mark off the list.

The photo pictured above was taken on the 4th of July by the flowers that our neighbor labors over continuously. We get to enjoy their beauty outside of our window each and every day! ..... nice neighbors, huh?!! :) She does an amazing job each year.