Garage Sale

We held a garage sale this weekend to help earn some money to apply towards our adoption expenses for A*.

Some friends might remember we did a big fundraising garage sale with 2 other families who were adopting from Ethiopia a little over a year ago. The multi family garage sale we had that year was epic. I mean it. So many generous friends and family gave donations that our ENTIRE carport, back patio, storage room, and several bedrooms in our home will filled to capacity last time. We had so much stuff I was panicking that we wouldn't sell it all. I had no clue what we would do if we didn't.

Start a resale shop, maybe?

Thankfully most everything did sell (and what didn't went to a friend to raise money for medical bills for her mom) We 3 families split $5000.00 for our efforts and were elated!

While our sale this year is a bit smaller it's definitely more manageable for just our family. Though, our same wonderful friends who worked with us last time are back at it again, lending a helping hand. We have some of the best friends!

We are so thankful for your help, Kim, Brooke, Julie and Mark!!!

Have you ever noticed that there's a certain culture to garage salers? They are a breed all their own. The people watching never disappoints at these events.

This year we had many return customers. Some of the more colorful shoppers showed up in full force much to my amusement!

One particular woman who came back again was a woman my dear friend Julie had to get firm with last year when she caught the woman greedily rolling and compressing clothes into a 5$ fill-a-bag we offered. She piled the clothes so high over the top of her sack that Julie just couldn't let her get away without charging her for half a bag while pointing to the sign which said "Adoption Garage Sale Fundraiser." (I realize it isn't reading as humorous as it truly was because you just had to be there to see it. But, trust me, it was a hand-over-my-mouth in disbelief, don't-burst-uncontrollably-into-laughter kind of moment.)

Our over-stuffing friend was back this year dismayed to find we learned from last year and marked items individually. hahaha Of course she still complained that we were selling near new children's jumpers and jeans for fifty cents.(No stains people! Not faded one bit.... worn maybe twice)

The outrage!? How could we?

I guess we're greedy to get our son home like that ;-)

Another woman I'll refer to as Ms Indecisive came back again this year too. She's the one who asked all about items and haggled us down to a really good price only to leave. Then, she'd come back and buy one item at a time. She did this several times at varying intervals from 10 minutes to an hour. Sometimes she even came back to buy some random thing she didn't even act interested in the first time around. One time she parked pretty quickly, jumped out and went looking for some other item that had already sold, much to her dismay.

Seriously, she cracked me up! I guess she's been burned by buyers remorse once to many times and likes to stew on things for a bit. Maybe she has a commitment phobia. Whatever the case she's a hoot.

Then there are the people who steal. We've had them every time. I can't say I understand adults who behave this way. My feelings about people who steal are that if they need it that bad; God bless them. But it should be noted they just stole from my baby boy and I know God's not going to be very pleased with that.

I especially enjoy the garage salers who just love to get out on a cool morning and do some chatting with neighbours and maybe shop a little.

I love to hear people's stories. The older people are my favorite. They talked to me about how when they were a child and how they had a thing-a-ma-bobber just like this and they used it for this or that. Or, they'll just shoot the breeze while explaining to us about some mysterious contraption we're selling and don't know what it is. I enjoy watching them use their years of expertise in the art of being thrifty (for many, like my grandmother, had to learn this art the hard way during the great depression)

Garage sales are sentimental in a way because I enjoy seeing objects our family enjoyed and used going to a good new home. I so appreciate items that were lovingly donated to our cause being purchased by folks who will have their needs met for a good price.

I *may* have let a few items go for less than they were worth (I'm a horrible haggler that way) but there's something in me that's wired to be a giver, I guess. It's so hard for me to charge people for items that we're graciously given to me. I understand I might need some better boundaries but I'd also rather be a softy on that matter than run the risk of being too stingy.

In the end we made $800 for today. Not bad at all!

Tomorrow we wake up the crack of dawn, brew some coffee and do it all again.

Ah, yes, a good garage sale is so satisfying. Especially since the proceeds bring us one step closer to bringing A* home.

Biometrics Appointment Version 2.0

Dustin and I received our biometrics appointment dates in the mail. We'll be going October 23rd.

The saga continues.

I case you've forgotten the joys of our dealings with USCIS I've come up with a convenient numbering system to help track our various experiences with the fine folks there. May I remind you of appointments 1.0 (which was so devastating I posted about it twice), 1.1, and 1.2.

We would endure any number of visits, though, because we've got a precious boy waiting on us. He is oh SOOO worth it!

Immunizations and Immigration for Adopted Children

Okay, so by now I think we all know about how our kiddos adopted from Ethiopia are considered immigrants until readoption in the US.

I wanted to write today about the vaccination requirements for immigrants. To see a list go to: http://www.immihelp.com/greencard/vaccination-requirements.html

In the case of HIV+ children the issue becomes whether or not is is medically profitable for the child to receive these vaccinations. Because of a diminished ability to fight off infection it is often advantageous to stagger immunizations for these children. In the Visa process parents of children 10 years or younger can apply for a waiver HERE. They must attest that they will vaccinate the child within 30 days or "at the earliest time it is medically appropriate." This will allow them to delay their child's vaccinations until they become medically beneficial for their child.

Adopted children who are 11 or older are subject to the immigrant vaccination requirement. This was another cited reason for the FACE Act as proposed by EACH which would make our internationally adopted children citizens while they were still in their birth country so that they would not be subject to immigration requirements. (I've already written about the immigration concerns related to TB in children.)

The issue of the vaccination requirements for immigrants is a heated debate right now as problems surface with regard to blanket requirements. I completely understand the need and benefit of vaccinations. I also see how the CDC might want to consider adjusting their regulations based on age.

To read up on how these requirements play out in real life for child immigrants I offer for your consideration a story about how Gardasil was added to the list of recommended vaccines, and became an immigration requirement. It seems like even the advisory council that recommended Gardasil to be added didn't mean for it to be an immigration requirement.

Now that is is a requirement you can see how a girl's ability to gain citizenship was affected when she refused to receive the Gardisil injection. There are two articles about her case. Here and Here

Amazing!

The Lord is so good. I found out this afternoon that Surafel received the money he needed for his trip and that the funds we were going to give are no longer needed. That means we can keep the proceeds from the fundraiser and apply them toward our adoption expenses.

Yahoo for God's provision on both counts!

Important Update

Have I mentioned this family has been sick almost constantly since the girls began school? (Warning: I'm about to complain a bit.) The third day of school they came home with Strep. Then they got ear infections, then the flu. Dustin and I also got the flu. I had a bonus fever/flu event last weekend. This week I have a constant tickle in the back of my throat and am coughing. We just can't seem to get healthy these days. It's difficult since our family doesn't usually fall ill easily.

My heart has been aching for A* so much during this time. Every time we get a new sickness I think of him being constantly exposed to germs. I pray continually for his health and for the strength of his immune system. I know there have been outbreaks of chickenpox and the ever present, ever deadly pneumonia among the kids in the Transition Home (TH) where A* lives. Please keep A* and all the children in your prayers!

We recently received news that our dear friend Pastor Surafel fell short on money needed for his upcoming trip to Ethiopia. I don't think I have ever posted here about the work Surafel plans to do this October in Ethiopia. He is organizing a trip, a crusade as he calls it, to speak with some 700 pastors about their role and responsibility to care for people suffering with HIV/AIDS. He wants to educate them about the disease and admonish them to reject stigmatizing those in their community living with it. HIV/AIDS sufferers in Ethiopia face living life as outcasts and Surafel's heart is to see the church in Ethiopia step up to take care of God's beloved people. He also plans to travel around the country providing food for people and sharing the Gospel.

Of course, Dustin and I support what Surafel is doing! His work or very dear to our hearts. When we heard that Surafel was $5,000 - $6,000.00 short of the amount he needed for his trip we knew we had to act. We had already planned to hold our fundraising garage sale the weekend of Oct 9 & 10th which would be too late to give them money to Surafel so friends graciously agreed to pitch in the money and let us pay them back with the proceeds from the garage sale.

Some have asked us why we're willing to give up the money from the sale. Dustin's answer is my answer too. "We know that the Lord will bring home A*- it's going to happen! Surafel has a need and it's more immediate than ours. God will provide.... And, think of all the lives that will be touched by the work he is doing!"

That's just it! So many people stand a chance to learn about HIV/AIDS and many people living with the disease stand the chance of seeing a real change in the hearts of Christians around them. I want Surafel's dream to become a reality!

So, while we still don't know how we are going to come up with all the money we need we know we made the right decision. For those of you who donated to our garage sale fundraiser we pray you'll agree with us and see the same value in what Surafel's trip can accomplish as we do. What you gave you gave to the Lord and we know you want to see it used to honor him. We think this is the best way to do it. We thank you again for your generosity toward our family.

Readoption Day

Here's the photo of our big day in court. Jonas is officially a US citizen.

A Rose By Any Other Name

Today is all about names. Oh how we've grappled with them since coming home last Christmas. Tomorrow is our scheduled re adoption court hearing, during which Jonas will receive his new name.

Again.

I wonder, as my son grows, how will he come to terms with the complexity of his owning many names? Reflective of so much of my young Jonas' life the changes of his name speak to all that he has gained and lost. While his names will never be able to completely define his person they do tell at least a part of his story.

For me, it's just one more instance of how adoption is never simple. Not for any of us involved.

Jonas was given the name Yonas A* Geremew by his birth mother. (I'm leaving out parts of his name on purpose) We treasure his given name because of it's significance and history. Each name was lovingly chosen for him by his first mother and has deep meaning. It is unique that he was given 3 names at birth. To this point I have not known any other Ethiopian with what we would consider a middle name.

In Ethiopia the custom is to name a child and for their second name - what we would call a last name- the father's first name is granted. So, for example, the son of a man named Fikadu might be Yonathan Fikadu. There are no real surnames in Ethiopia.

After the Ethiopian courts granted us custody of our prince they dropped all but his first name, Yonas. As is custom officials gave our son his father's first name. Then they tagged on our last name (I guess this was their effort to Americanize the name) We knew from the beginning that Yonas Dustin wasn't going to stay Jonas' legal name.

We were burdened to make the right decision in renaming Jonas. We wanted to honor his first mother and bestow upon him a place in this family as well. Because Jonas is the English translation of Yonas it's obvious how we came to that conclusion for his legal name though we often call him Yonas or his Ethiopian nickname, "Yoni".

A* will remain the same because it is the male version of his first mother's name, thus we value it deeply.

All the members of this family have middle names which begin with "L", so we determined that Jonas would have to have an "L" middle name too. Liben is an Amharic name meaning "Ethiopian King" which, of course, he is!

We made the tough decision to drop Geremew from his legal name and add Liben instead.
Honestly, I'm not entirely sure what is the "right" thing to do.

There is so much to consider when renaming. We wondered if we should we leave his first name intact. Could altering it to the English pronunciation be something he would grow to appreciate? We also worried that not having an "L" middle name might make him feel left out in some way. I think he will both mourn trading yet another piece of the history his first mother granted him by naming him Geremew and appreciate the common bond of our "L"-ness. I did imagine Jonas growing up with 5 names and wishing we had edited a little so he could be like every other kid.

Ultimately, four names seemed like plenty enough for a legal name. So, the child will be Jonas A* Liben (and our last name). I find great solace in the fact that my nephew has two middle names as well. Thus the two can commiserate when in each other's company.

We will teach Jonas that all the names he's been given are his possession regardless of what any piece of paper says. He is so much more than a name and can never be defined by one (or, in his case seven.)


I pray one day Yonas A* Geremew Dustin Jonas Liben will understand how painstakingly and thoughtfully we attempted to proceeded in choosing his legal name. Then, I pray he'll find grace and peace for all the decisions made which were out of his hands.

On the Sovereignty of God

A father speaks at a conference giving his testimony about God's sovereignty and about suffering. It's WORTH your time. Follow the link and click on One Generation Shall Tell Your Works to Another- http://www.childrendesiringgod.org/events/conference2005.php

John Knight (the father speaking) has a blog called The Works of God. You can read John Piper's letter here: http://ow.ly/qSjx

EACH- Equality for Adopted Children

I believe I highlighted this organization before, but it's been awhile. Besides, I've gotten a new blog badge for EACH. I'm a member of EACH because they are working to see that legislation passes which provides equality to children who are adopted abroad by US citizens.

One major push EACH is making is to remove the immigrant status of children adopted by US citizens. If their parents are citizens don't you think that ought to make them citizens? Me too! That's why I support the work EACH is doing. Won't you please sign up to become a member? And, let your friends and family know they, too, can join- EACH is not just for adoptive parents.

A Must Read

Here's a super interesting artile from TheBody.com
This Month in HIV: An Update on the Amazing Story of the First Man to Be Cured of HIV - The Body

This Month in HIV also comes has podcast if you prefer to listen instead. Sweet!