Update

It's been a while since my last post; here's what is going on right now....

1. Working on 10 blankets right now (ordered by Family to Family Adoptions to give to their new adoptive families). 6 are completed and 4 are still a work in progress. The proceeds will go into our Adoption Fund.

2. Working on menu and stuff for a concession stand at the Greater Houston Ham Fest (run by Brazos Valley Amateur Radio Club) on Saturday, March 6. Our stand is called "DX Kid's Cafe" and we are hoping to bring in a fair amount of money for our Adoption Fund.

3. My students at school are now working on their sewing projects and I am really enjoying it!

4. Chris is working at Wal-Mart, with his paycheck going into our Adoption Fund. He is still a cashier, but is hoping that they will move him to another area soon.

5. My sister is donating a portion of items that she makes and sells (from today till January 31) through our Etsy shop: www.landrdesigns.etsy.com to Compassion International that will go to help those in need in Haiti. Stop by our shop and check it out.

6. I sent the paperwork yesterday to renew my passport. Pray that it gets processed quickly.


It doesn't seem like much, but we are busy!

Please keep us and our children in your prayers! We currently have just under $7,000 in our Adoption Fund. We need about $40,000 before we can send our paperwork to Russia.

Back to the blankets; they won't make themselves!!

Any more gold for sale?

Per my mother-in-law's suggestion, I took some gold (and not gold) jewelry to Houston Gold Exchange this afternoon to see what I can get. Some of it was hers that she gave me to sell, some was mine, some was my mom's and grandmother's. About half of it was worth something and the other half I brought back home. I am happy to say, our Adoption Fund is now $1320 richer!!! God is great!

Now, to see what will sell on eBay.......

Last Christmas without a tree...

Chris and I decided to not put up a tree or decorate for Christmas this year, as it will be our last year to get away with it! We are looking forward to next Christmas season and all the fuss that will go in to pulling out the tree from the garage, finding all the ornaments (or buying new ones), stringing lights inside and out, etc.

We did have a good Christmas with family. We joined my sister, her husband, child, and my dad at her house for lunch as spent a nice 2 hours with them. Then we went 'down the street and around the corner' to Chris' mom's and step-dad's house. We spent a few hours with them and other family stopped by (step-brother & wife). It was a really nice time with all!

I am enjoying my last week off from school! As nice as it is, I will be ready to return next week. We are starting the sewing unit on the 11th and I always enjoy those 6 weeks! Chris is off from Fort Bend on Friday and is working at Wal-Mart all week (the only day Wal-Mart ever closes on is Christmas Day).

Our Adoption Fund is now at $5000! It is slowly but surely getting there (we still need about $35,000 more....). One of our friends at church gave us an autographed NFL football to auction/sell as we see fit. It is an NFL (has a serial number sticker on the box) football signed by Roger Staubach from the Dallas Cowboys. The football is engraved with the 5 Superbowls that the Cowboys were in and it also says that it is a limited edition of 5,000. It is in the original box (has never been taken out of the box). Can't wait to see what it brings in! Chris' mom gave us a calendar that she had been given to post on eBay: 1954 Golden Dreams with a nude picture of Norma Jean (later known as Marilyn Monroe). The calendar is in mint condition! It will be interesting to see what it brings in!

Well, I guess I had better get moving. I plan to take some gold jewelry and stuff to sell at Houston Gold Exchange. Chris' mom gave me some to add to what I already have. Anything at this rate will be helpful!

Hope you had a great Christmas and an even better New Year!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope your day has started as nice as ours. Chris left to go to work (the part-time job at Wal-Mart) a little while ago and I got to sleep in till 8:00. Yes, Chris is now gainfully employed part-time at Wal-Mart! He went in Tuesday for the paper work and drug test, worked yesterday from 12:30 - 8:30 (doing the CBL's {computer based learning sessions} and other training things. Today he is back to {hopefully} finish the CBL's so that they can put him to 'real work' tomorrow, starting at 5:00 am. Yes, he will be working during Black Friday's morning rush at Wal-Mart. I will be at home, warm and snug in bed, hopefully still sleeping!

It is a great feeling to know that we will be able to put his paychecks directly into the Adoption Fund saving account. That will really help!

On another note, I have a good-sized deposit to make tomorrow into the Adoption Fund savings account. My 'catering' has really paid off this week (yes, the pun was intended). I have added to my menu: squash casserole, chili, green bean casserole, Italian casserole, lemon bars, brownies and a bacon & broccoli quiche. I am really tired, but no baking today! I made the pumpkin pie and squash casserole that we are taking to Chris' mom's house this afternoon last night after getting home from delivering all the goodies I made yesterday. Tylenol is my friend right now.

Well, back to finding something for breakfast and warming up the coffee! Enjoy your holiday!

Trying not to get frustrated.....

Okay, I have been researching grants and I am getting frustrated! We have passed our Homestudy, but it is not 'officialized' yet because it is only valid for 12 months. Our caseworker and I agreed to wait to 'officialize' it until we have the bulk of the funds we need so that it won't expire before we are able to finalize the adoption. Problem: in order to apply for any grants, we have to submit current homestudy papers. So, I will be calling Buckner to talk with Irina tomorrow (at some point, hopefully during my conference period) to get some clarification about all this. We may have to wait until next spring to apply for any grants.

On a good note, I had a call from a friend at church today to place an advance order for goodies: coconut creme pie, a dozen cinnamon rolls with pecans & raisins, a pan of cheese enchiladas & a pan of beef enchiladas! That will bring in $79 for our adoption fund. Slowly but surely it is growing.

Please contine to pray that we have patience while the funds are gathered (winning the lottery would be really, really helpful at this point!). Also, pray for our children and their current caregivers.

Update

Our Financial Plan to fund Larkins Family Adoption has been accepted by our caseworker, Irina. She said that she still needs to run it by the director, but thought it was really well thought out and planned. Since it took me about a month to put it all together, it was really well thought out!

We are still waiting to hear back from Wal-Mart about the part-time job for Chris. Apparently, they need to contact someone higher up in Human Services to 'drop' his name in the system from Tier 2 to Tier 1 so the management at the Sugarland store can call him in for interviews and hire him! Gotta love this technology....

Liz and I had a booth at a craft fair in the Heights last week and we did really well. Other than about 10 minutes of sprinkling rain (covered the stuff with tarps), it was a good day. We are going to be at the First United Methodist Church in Missouri City on Saturday, November 14. They have had a craft fair/festival for quite a few years now, and we are praying for a great success. Most of the vendors are selling jewelry, and our items are rather unique and we didn't see anyone last year that had stuff close to what we make. The lady that I talked with about the booth, was really excited to hear that we have baby & children's stuff. I have lots more blankets to make before the craft fair on November 14!

I have made baked goods for several people at school and will make a Chocolate Marble Cheesecake this week for our cafeteria manager.

We sold my car on October 5!!! Yeah!!! That money went straight to the savings account (Adoption Fund). Now we just need about $38,000 more......

I am working on a grant application right now; need to find papers that I thought I knew where they were filed...

Our Wish List with Wal-Mart is basically complete. Check it out sometime! I think we picked out really cute stuff for the kiddos bedroom & bathroom. Not too much out there is not gender specific! You can find it at the store or on-line under Wish List and both my name & Chris' is listed.

Thank you for continuing to pray for us and our children as we go through this process of adoption.

Still planning, working, etc

We are still working on paperwork! It never seems to end! I haven't finished our written financial plan for Buckner yet (I am still waiting to here that Chris got the part time job at Wal-Mart - it's been a month and he has been assured that they want to hire him, they just haven't called him in for the interviews & finalization yet!!). Please continue to pray for this situation. We really need this second income for Chris to go towards the adoption expenses.

I have been working on a Wish List at Wal-Mart. I think most of the things we need for the kiddos is listed. It is a work in progress (like the adoption!). You can access it through my name or Chris' name. It is registered as a Wish List, not a registry. I put our anniversary next year as the 'event date' for lack of a better date. It will change as we get closer to bringing our children home.

I talked with Donita Potts a few weeks ago and got some great ideas for fundraising! I was originally told that they fundraised both of their adoptions. Apparently that is not the case. She said that they fundraised the first adoption 100% through donations & activities. The second adoption was a gift from God. They prayed and said "God, if you want these children to join our family, you will provide the money". They didn't do any fundraising at all!! Just goes to show how great God is and how He provides for His children.

I heard from Amy Norton, a friend of our pastor's wife, and got some suggestions for agencies that we can contact about financial assistance (scholarships, grants, etc). I will be working on that this week.

Please continue to pray for us: stress levels are lowered (especially for me), we get clear direction on fundraising ideas, our children as they wait for us.

On a side note, my sister and I will be participating in a craft show at St. Andrews Episcopal Church in the Heights area here in Houston on Saturday, October 3. Feel free to stop by if you are in the area. Money from the items that I make goes toward our adoption expenses. Also, I make homemade goodies (desserts, enchiladas, lasagnas, etc) and the money from that also goes towards our adoption expenses. So if you don't bake or cook ......

Oh, the car is still for sale if you know someone who is looking.....