Benefit Concert for Adoption--November 1st

The Higher Grounds Coffee House in Bridgeton put together a benefit concert for us on November 1st. It was a gorgeous day (65-70 degrees and sunny!) and we had a wonderful day just hanging out and listening to some great music from around noon to 7 pm. We had several Christian bands lined up that did an awesome job: Gerizim, Broken, Ashlyn, Zoe and a couple others. Chris and I manned the grill/food area (although I did take a break to do some facepainting), Marc worked the cotton candy and popcorn machines, and Chris' dad was the admission guy. Matt was our gopher: ice, balloons, quarters, whatever we needed! The youth group from Calvary Bible Baptist Church went out on the street and collected over $200 from kind people driving by. When the day was over (around 7:00), we had a post-concert party with all the guys who spent the day doing sound and setup....lots of hamburgers, hotdogs, and other goodies, and just great fellowship. We are so thankful to everyone who helped to make the day a success. We would especially like to thank Mike and Viki Pangburn of the Higher Grounds Coffee House for putting on this event for us. We were able to raise $2000 towards our adoption fees! Chris and I had really been praying about this because we were $1600 short of making our first payment, and we didn't know how we were going to come up with it. God provided and then some!

Happy Halloween!

We had such a busy Halloween that we didn't even get to carve our pumpkins! We were getting ready for our benefit concert the following day, but we managed to squeeze in a little trick or treating. Claire was Dorothy and Katie was a cheerleader this year. I had wanted to sew their costumes, but I had two other major contenders for my time this year: 1) Benefit concert on Novemeber 1st. 2) County-wide art competition (possible prize $$$$ to use for adoption!), work due Nov 1st. Yikes! Well, something had to give, and it was the costumes! We didn't have too much trouble finding what the girls wanted at Target. Despite not carving pumpkins and just doing a quick jaunt around the neighborhood, the girls had fun and collected lots of loot!

Marriage Rally in Trenton, NJ--Let the People Decide!

We went up to Trenton on October 19 for the rally to keep marriage between one woman and one man. It should be up to the people in the state how marriage is defined, not the government! There were a lot of great speakers and we had a really good afternoon.

The magnets are in!

They're here, and the company who manufactured them did a really great job! They are heavy duty! If you would like to order one, please look to the left of this post.

Please tell your friends/family who have a heart for adoption and others you know in the adoption community about the bumper stickers! We would really appreciate it!

Homeschooling Perk

Here's yet another perk of homeschooling: Chris recently started a job which is about an hour away...it's actually the first time he's worked in the state of New Jersey, at least since we've been married. Today he had a jobsite to visit in Mullica Hill, only 3o minutes or so away, so we actually got to meet for lunch. The girls loved seeing their daddy half-way through the day! We do really love the flexibility that homeschooling allows, especially impromptu lunches with Daddy!

Katie is 7!!!

Katie officially turned 7 on September 28th. She blew out the candles on her cake as part of our usual after-church lunch/dinner at the Country Rose. Later on in the day, Grandpa came over and Katie opened her presents. She really liked her new bike, as the one she's had for a couple of years now is just too small. Her brother Matt had fun modeling it for her (see picture)! I can't help but think of a lady in Korea who is probably really missing her baby girl today. I thank her for her selflessness and her precious gift to our family.

Aboard the AJ Meerwald

Today we sailed on the AJ Meerwald with the Salem County Christian Homeschoolers Association. What a great trip! It was a beautiful, sunny day, but the wind was cold once we got out on the river. The kids were able to help hoist the gaff-rigged mainsail while we motored up the river. Then the kids divided into groups as we sailed to learn about oystering in the Delaware Bay, plankton, the history of the Meerwald, watersheds, and water quality. The girls had a great time and really enjoyed sailing on the Cohansey. Two field trip days in a row...the girls are loving homeschooling! Back to the books tomorrow!