Tuesday, September 30, 2008

A Date Night

If you are like us, you very seldom get the opportunity for a Date Night. Our church made this opportunity possible for couples this past weekend. The date night was great and I highly recommend the movie - Fireproof. It was awesome!!!

Saturday, September 27, 2008

Yard Sale Update



My assistant

Who could resist buying things from this little cutie????

Well, it has been a long day!!! The Yard Sale started at 7:00 am this morning and we closed the doors at noon. Between all of obsolete items and the baked goods, we made $255.00. This is fantastic!!!! We still have a ways to go, but we will get there.



Till later....



Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Need some prayers

I am really needing some prayers lately. As many of you may know, one of the primary stumbling blocks to adoption is the expense. During our adoption with Tessa, God provided what we needed, when we needed it. It was so amazing!!! Well, we are once again facing the need to raise funds for our adoption. I will be hosting a Yard Sale this weekend to help with our initial fees. I have had to break things down a little, just to try and get my head around it. Right now, we are needing $3,200 - this will pay for our home study update, post placement and initial agency fees. So far, we have raised $100 towards our goal. I have installed another meter to show our progress towards this goal.

If you have some ideas on fund raising, I am open to practically anything. Thanks in advance for your prayers.

Also, we will be selling adoption awareness bracelets as well. This is something we created during our last adoption as a fund raiser. They are great! It is a purple silicone bracelet, much like the ones from the Lance Armstrong Cancer fundraiser (Livestrong). Ours say, "Adoption...A Child Waits" and then our favorite verse from Jeremiah 29:11. Let me know if you are interested in ourchasing a bracelet or would be able to sell some at your church or work.

Monday, September 22, 2008

Walking Update

As you can see, we are now at 21.56 miles towards our goal. Great job team!!!

Sunday, September 21, 2008

What a Weekend!

It has been a great weekend. Fall is by far my favorite time of year. I could smell leaves burning in someone's yard today, and it was awesome!!!
We had the opportunity to spend a lot of family time this weekend. My husband's company sponsors a day at Six Flags (our local amusement park). They offer early admission to the park, lunch and other specials. The kids had a blast!!! Tess is still my brave little daredevil. She wants to ride everything. This really worries me when she gets her license.
I had the chance to walk a lot around the park. The pedometer is not working, so I will have to estimate my miles for the day.
I am still waiting for miles walked updates from a few people, so I will post our new total on Monday.
On the adoption front, I am still working on paperwork. This will be a big week for physicals and fingerprinting - YEAH!
My babies
And did I mention that it rained....
Isn't he cute.
Taylor looks thrilled to be spending time with her mom - right????

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

So, why are we choosing to adopt?



This is a question that I have been asked several times lately. I guess the most accurate reason would be that Terry and I feel this is God's plan for our lives. Also, this picture helps to remind me of the children I met during our last visit to China. Each night, these children go to sleep with no one to hold them and tell them goodnight. I feel very humbled by that.
This has been a very big week for us. We have finally selected an agency. This was not any easy process. I am happy to say that we will be working with A Helping Hand Adoption, http://www.worldadoptions.org/ . They are a wonderful Christian agency based in Lexington, KY.
We are currently in the paperwork stage of our adoption. Since this is our second adoption in less than 5 years, we will only need to update the information. This is not an easy task, but I am trying to learn to enjoy it. lol

Now, an update on our walkers. I have spoken with quite a few people this past week who are joining our walking group - Sherry and Carol are two of our newest converts. They walk 3 miles each day at lunch - WOW!!! Welcome to the group.


Until Friday.....





Friday, September 12, 2008

The Cheese Stands Alone


Well, I am feeling a little lonely in my quest for 7,266 miles. I have only recruited my children so far. Many of you have sent your good wishes, but no one has signed up to join the team. I can't do this one alone....

Anyway, I have successfully walked 3.6 miles so far this week. I actually think I walked a little bit more than that, but my pedometer is not the best. It was only $2, so I guess you get what you pay for. There will be a new pedometer purchase in my future this weekend.

So, now as promised, a little more about the adoption. I know many of you may be thinking "Terry and Diane are off their rocker - they already have four kids". Trust me, I have had the same thoughts at times, but we know this is right. Many of you may have experienced this as well, when you are following God's will for your life, there is a sense of peace. I can't describe it, you just know you are walking where he wants you to be. I am sure there will be days that I question what we are doing, but I know that God has a plan for us.

Anyway, let's talk more about this little girl. Yes, we will be seeking to adopt another little girl from China. Tessa has said for months that she has a sister in China. Well, I plan to bring her home. We are still researching which agency we will work with this time. The entire process has changed so much. So until then, let the paperwork begin. We will only need to "update" our homestudy, but that is still a considerable amount of work. We do plan to adopt a special needs child. This term can be so misleading. What one country may consider as a special need is so easily correctable here in the states. We will request a little bit more mild special need this time. Tessa medical needs came with some challenges. She is doing wonderfully, but it has been a tough road at times.

Tanner will be traveling to China with us this time. He is really excited! I think this will be a great opportunity for him.

Well, I think that will do it for now. I will post a barometer on the page later today, to show the meager miles walked so far this week.


Until later......


Tuesday, September 9, 2008

We are on our way...


I received my pedometer today - hurray!!!! It took me about 30 minutes to figure out how to set the configurations for my small steps. lol But I am pleased to say that I completed the first .10 of a miles towards our goal. The rest of the family is starting tonight.

Let me know if you are ready to join in.




Monday, September 8, 2008

What's In A Name



You may be questioning the title of our blog. Well, it is actually pretty simple - we have chosen to return to China to bring another child into our family. As many of you may know, we were blessed with the addition of our daughter Tessa from China in 2006. She is an amazing little girl! Since we returned home, I have felt a calling to go back and bring home another child. My dear husband was not so sure about this plan. It has taken two years and a LOT of prayer to bring us to this point. That is where the Mei Mei part comes in. The Chinese word for little sister is Mei Mei. We will have more details about the adoption in a later post.

So, how does that bring about the other elements to the blog name??? Well, when we were completing our adoption paperwork, I had to face the fierce reality that I might need to shed a few pounds. So, I thought what better way to loose weight than to walk. Just for fun, I checked to see the estimated number of miles between Missouri (our home) and China. The total number of miles is 7,266. WOW - that's a lot of walking. Even though the adoption wait has increased greatly over the past two years, I do not think I will be able to walk this entire distance alone. So, that is where my friends and family come in. To help pass the time, I would like to invite all of you to walk with me. Each Friday, just send me your total number of miles walked for the week. That evening, I will update the site with our progress. If you want to participate, just send me an email or comment to this blog. I actually purchased a pedometer for each member of our family. I think I might even try to bring the dogs in on this one...lol

Anyway, just let me know if you want to participate, or just check back weekly to see our progress.