Chicago-land Earthquake

What?  There was an earthquake this morning, you say?  Nah, that was just me JUMPING UP AND DOWN FOR JOY at the confirmation of our court date:

October 11!!!!

Praise God from whom all blessings flow!  Praise Him all creatures here below.  Praise Him above ye heavenly hosts.  PRAISE FATHER, SON AND HOLY GHOST!!!

We are coming Leah Grace!  Leaving Wednesday.....

Ever closer....

I got an email from my attorney this morning.  Our judge has a VERY packed schedule and so the 14th is out.  But, our lawyer is going to beg for the 11th at a meeting tomorrow, which will be over-night for us.  Calling all prayer warriors....  pray for the 11th!!  Join my lawyer (who is fasting and praying?!?!?) and me in pleading with Jesus to move a fraction of the judge's schedule around to accommodate sweet Betty, soon to be Leah Grace.  More to come....

Fall is here (or coming)!

Last week, while Mommy worked, Lola took my friends Asher and Mimi with me to a pumpkin patch in Woodstock.  Boy did we have fun.

Praise the Lord!

There was walking stuff.....

And pumpkins and rocks.....

And thinking spots.....

And this great jumping stuff.....

Can you see how much air I'm getting?!?!?

There were also animals.....

Slides.....

Tunnels.....

And more pumpkins!

By the time we left, some of us were WHIPPED.

But not me....

Oh brother!

Let the fun begin!

Kathryn, Anna and Grace (with the help of Grandma and Lisa) have been gathering treasures for our trip to Uganda.  What fun to lavish gifts on these kids! 

We have tons of stuff, based on YOUR generous donations!

Clothes and more clothes -- from the second hand store and just. like. new.  :)

Pack it in there, sister!

(That's Kathryn)

 Get those precious shoes ready, Grace!

And, dolls, dolls, and more dolls!

 Good job, girls!

Of course, we are working on the boys' stuff too....

More pics of the Chicago-side packing to come!

Now is the time

I got an email this morning from my Ugandan attorney.  It simply said that she is pursuing October 14 as our court date.  And one key word:  Pray.  Will you join us in petitioning our Lord for that date?

Update on Uganda

Hasn't been much sleepin' going on around our house this week.  Well, Seth and the dogs are sleeping just fine, but Mama?  Not so much.  After a battle that started on Friday and ended (badly) in the wee hours of Sunday night/Monday morning, I have a new attorney.  Her name is Victoria AND SHE ROCKS.  Victoria has accomplished more in two days than my previous attorney in four months.  We are filing my petition to adopt in Uganda tomorrow (Thursday) or Friday.  It's all ready to go and the originals are in the mail to her by Federal Express.  Once she has the case filed, she will seek a court date.  We are still praying that it is in the next three weeks or so, and Victoria says that's possible.  Wuh hooo! 

One interesting note:  Victoria says we do not need the officers' signatures.  Further, she said that if the Court required them for some reason, it would be easy enough to get them with a little diligence.  (sigh)  Why didn't I switch attorneys sooner?  Somewhere in my spirit I knew what the problem was, but I just couldn't pull the trigger!  Anyway, there's no time to look back; we must look forward to next month and the BIG trip.

Meanwhile, Kathryn, Anna, mom and I have been shopping and shopping with all of the donation money we have for gifts.  The girls at Leah Grace's orphanage are getting a doll baby each, along with a blanket and pillow each for the babies.  The boys are getting cars and trains.  All of them are getting books and coloring books and crayons.  The house moms are getting watches.  The orphanage is getting a camera (so adoptive families like us can see the kiddos without having to hire someone to take pictures!).  We have 50 beanie babies and a huge suitcase full of clothes, with another to be filled.  We have soccer balls and smoke detectors and gloves and infant cereal and more.  What a gift to these kids!  THANK YOU from the bottom of our hearts.  God will be smiling on your generosity in a short while, and is laughing with us as we gleefully buy it all.  I hope to be back soon with pictures AND a court date!!!

"Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time He may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on Him because He cares for YOU!!!"

Heard Today Around Our 'Hood

• No, Seth, the curtains are not strong enough for you to swing on.
• Seth, please don't jump off the top of the couch. You will get a BIG ouwie.
• The phone and computer chargers are not toys!
• Do not crash your trucks and trains unless you are okay if they break.
• Do NOT pull Annie's tail or you will have a time out!
• Mommy's brush is for gentle brushing; not for hitting Mommy on the head.
• If you hit Maggie she WILL bite you.
• Please stop wailing.  I need to have a one minute conversation on the phone.
• No, you may not cross the street without Mommy.
• Yes, when you jump on the bed like a maniac, you will sometimes fall off.
• Why are you pouring the water all over the floor rather than in the cups?  (Like I said, Holly, he's crazy....)
• BE CAREFUL!
• No, you may not use the computer.
• The paper comes out of the printer; trying to jam it back in is not going to work.
• Mommy said, "NO!"

(sigh)  I'm exhausted.  When did my sweet, gentle boy become such a wild man???  :-)
Saaavvvveeee me!!!!

Do you hear that rumbling?

It's the sound of the mountain moving.  Yep.   That's right.  God MOVED that officer today and the declaration we needed will be signed tomorrow!  Oh how thankful we are!!

What's next?  We file the adoption petition in Uganda and get a court date.  Soon.  SOON, we pray.  In the meantime, we frantically try to spend the almost $3000 we raised, get last minute shopping done, find a travel agent who specializes in adoption, jump, scream, yell, praise Jesus and pray some more.

WE ARE COMING LEAH GRACE!

UPDATE:  The officers did not sign and we are having issues.  Please continue to pray.....

Happenings in Our 'Hood

Seth's delayed speech has taught me to be thankful for progress!  Let's just say I'm hoping that Seth doesn't learn to drive the way he learned to speak -- zero to 60 in, um, no time flat!  Here are some of his priceless mutterings of late:

We were walking down the sidewalk and saw a girl about his age.  Seth said, "Hi!"  Maybe you don't know how absolutely HUGE this is.  I did a little dance right there and then told Seth to tell her his name.  He obliged:  "Mys names Seth."  Nicely done, little man.

Thirty minutes later, in our very long walk, we saw our neighbor Denise.  After I chatted for a few minutes, I realized I hadn't asked Seth to greet her.  So I did.  Seth responded with, "Hi Miss Denise.  Seth get kitty cat after Uganda."  I split a gut laughing.  Denise had a puzzled look on her face, so I had to explain.  That we are adopting.... from Uganda....  that Seth wants a cat.... that I once (ONCE) told him he could get a cat after we go to Uganda.... So there you have it.  When he speaks, he speaks! 

After a trip to the park and a run through the fields (will this walk ever end???), I showed Seth where some boys (probably 5 years old) were playing soccer.  In a league.  With serious looking referees.  I said, "See the boys playing soccer, Seth?"  He squinted his eyes, as he does to see far, and took off, yelling, "Seth play soccer!"  He was mid-field by the time I caught up.  Oops. 

On our walk home, Seth started saying what I thought was "chip" but was really "step."  When he said, "Sit on the step" I finally got it.  Seth loves to sit on our stoop.  And as we were walking, I thought he was talking about getting home and sitting for a spell.  Hmm.  Not so much.  He pulled himself up to the next house and helped himself to their stoop.  Don't know the folks who live there, but figured it wouldn't be appropriate for us to stay.  Try explaining THAT to a two-year old.

Seth is complete joy and I cannot wait to see him teach Leah Grace about life in our house.  Perhaps he could leave out how he performed a full body slam on the screen door tonight to get in.  Or how he rammed his train through the screen in my bedroom, managing to pop the entire thing out, landing it on the ground below.  Or how he climbs.  Everything.  And would swing from the chandelier if I let him.  Yea, he can leave those things out.  We're ready for you, Leah Grace!!

Well, maybe.  (sigh)  ;)

Girls!

These days, there are some interesting new toys showing up around my house.  Dolls and stuffed animals and tea sets and other "girlie" things like dresses.  I must admit, I'm curious.  When the most recent toys arrived, I had to take a shot at using them.

I even tried to feed Leah Grace's doll some of it.

It really got interesting when I invited MY friends.

But it quickly got boring because, I mean, how much fun can one person really have with a TEA set?!?!  So, I started a boy game . . .

 . . . which almost ended in disaster!

So, Mommy and I spent the rest of the weekend watching football.  I'm really good at yelling, "Defense!" and, "Run, run, run!!!"  Mommy's favorite is, "Tackle!!!"  But most importantly, "GO BLUE."

Thank goodness for football season -- What fun!

Update

I spoke with our lawyer, Peter, this morning.  It was a good conversation.  He told me that the officers still haven't signed their declarations (sigh) and we together developed a plan to try to get them signed.  Of course, my number one plan is PRAYER.  Peter said the officers are simply ignorant and haven't had to sign such a document prior to now.  He has not had issues with any other police station -- just this one.  Just now.  Oh brother.

On a lighter note, he is going to file our petition to adopt on Thursday.  Once it's filed, we will be assigned a judge and get a court date, probably 3-4 weeks out.  Wuh hoo!  While we have some major hurdles to jump to get there, I can't help but feel excited about a date certain for my girl.  Much prayer needs to happen between now and then so my precious baby can get home.  Thank you for standing with us!

Speaking of which, I'm humbled by all of the people who were fasting and praying with us last week.  THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart.  It does matter.  It does make a difference.

Lord, I lift up the Ugandan officers to you and pray that you would help them understand why we need their help.  I pray away all fear, ignorance, or selfishness that may be in their spirits.  I pray You would soften their hearts to sign the documents this week.  Lord, thank You for the way You have led me and continue to lead me.  I am so grateful for Your many blessings.  Amen.

Live, from Uganda, this is Betty!

The more my Mommy sees me, the more she is understanding my "voice."
So this is my first post!  :-)

I was very happy to see Miss Keren again today and show her how I can play with my friends.
See how ornery I am?

And then, Miss Keren gave me a DOLL.

Do you see how excited I am???

I showed all of my friends . . .

and said, "Na na na na, boo boo."  :)

Don't even think about touching my doll.....

I'm good at teasing already.

Seth, watch out!!

I even made up some games for Miss Keren and me.

How blessed I am to have her!

Come get me, Mama!!

By the way -- Kathryn and Anna have raised over $3400 dollars for the kiddos!  Looks like we will be carrying arm loads of toys and supplies in addition to sending a few kids to school.  Yippee Jesus!!!