August Update

                                   

Just writing to give you a quick update. It has been 100 days since we received our first glimpse (picture) of our little girl. It has been 51 days since being submitted to court. It is just 2 days until our little girl turns one. In the beginning, I was hoping we would make it to Ethiopia before rainy season court closures in August. Well, courts close today and we are not there.

As a matter of fact, our case has been at a stand-still for a few weeks and I’m not sure why. There are two court cases that need to take place. The first one, we do not attend. The second one occurs during our first trip. In our case, the first court hearing has not even been scheduled yet and won’t even be able to be scheduled until courts reopen after rainy season closures. The tentative reopen date is October 15^th (though we have learned that, when it comes to Ethiopia, tentative definitely means tentative – and quite subject to change). That means, we will more than likely not be traveling for our first trip (our court date and to meet our girl) until possibly December. Our second trip (when we get to bring our girl home) is estimated to take place 3-4 months after the first (approximately March or April).

We have spent the past few days settling in to this information. I must admit, it has not been easy. There have been lots of tearful moments around here. Being away from our little girl whom we already love so much and having no end date in sight is tough. We are doing our best to enjoy these last few weeks of summer with our two biological kids before fall/school begins.

I will tell you our little girl turns one on August 17^th. I am trying to figure out the best way to “celebrate” her birthday – and I have gotten her one (yep, just one) present so far. We receive updates on her from time to time and I cherish being able to hear how well she is doing, given her present situation.

I will continue to keep you all updated as we hear, but at this point, I’m guessing it will be quite a while.

The good news is – Jaden’s album is completed! He is having his CD Release Party on September 7^th at 7:30 p.m. at The Roots Café (124 Wisconsin Avenue, Oconomowoc). Cd’s will be for sale at the event – proceeds to benefit our adoption travel expenses. We are so excited for this and are hoping to see many of you there! It’s going to be a cd release party and adoption fundraiser, so a great event to come to if you are able!

Thank you for your support and your prayers.

The Thomas Family

Hmmmm

I realized that I haven't posted in a while and don't have much to say.

We just finished up with our small group from church and I WILL say that we have THE BEST small group. It is super how much we can share in life together. I love it. When people miss a week - they are so truly missed by the other members and it just makes me giddy how much I love my small group. It's awesome!

Other than that, not much to report. A bit bogged down by the holiday stress -- presents, wrapping, money, uncertainty of if we will make it through the snow to Milwaukee or not... blah blah but it will be a wonderful holiday either way, so... Don't worry about it, right?

We are getting close to paying for and thus moving forward with our home study. This makes me super excited because, well, it's a HUGE step. And, then we can apply for (and hopefully receive) grant money. That will be really exciting. Plus, that's like getting through the first tri-mester of pregnancy. Some of you aren't going to enjoy these comparisons, but I do. :) So, there you go -- those of you who have had a biological child and adopted -- did you find lots of parallels between pregnancy and adoption?