Marriage License? Check.

5 Physicals? Check.

References? Check.

Livescan? Check.

Everything else on that long list? Check.

Truthfully, we thought the packet would be a lot thicker.  I guess you could say we were pleasantly surprised.

Here is our trusty friend that helps keep us organized. (You know who I’m married to, right?).

What adoption file thingie would be complete without a copy of The Strength of Mercy, Adopt without Debt, and Kisses from Katie?? The adoption trifecta, if you ask me.

Our categories include:

Important Documents

Medical

Receipts

Grant Applications

Fundraising Ideas

147 Million Orphans

Just Love Coffee

Bethany Contracts

To Do

Our “Village”

Livescan Info

I am sure the list will continue to grow!

So, tomorrow the paperwork will be in the mail.  After our social worker, Eleanor, receives it, we will set up our first appointment to meet with her.  We will meet with her 4 times.  Once as a couple in her office, once as individuals in her office, and once in our home.  Lastly, we must complete about 10 hours of online training.  Whew! Once that is done, our home study will be complete. We are shooting to finish it all by mid-March.

Holler!! Woot! Woot! Paperwork DONE!

Matt and I are totally blown away.  Yesterday Matt made a comment that stuck with me.  He said, “Is it possible that having a garage sale can be a spiritual experience?  Because I feel like it was!”

And he’s right.  We experienced God in the midst of a yard sale!

We are so overwhelmed and blessed by all of the family and friends who donated their goods for our cause. We were so blessed by our family and friends who came to help out, or remembered that we were having the sale and stopped by to say hello and do a little shopping.  We were blessed by friends who watched our kids so we could work. We were blessed by strangers who have adopted children and took a few minutes to encourage us.   We were blessed by the countless number of people who bought $2 worth of stuff and gave us a five or twenty dollar bill and said to keep the change.  We were blessed by the sheer number of people who showed up and picked through tons of stuff and bought so much!!

We are blown away because in two days, selling unwanted junk, God brought in $2,500 for our adoption! Have you ever heard of a garage sale making that much money?!  In addition to the cash made at the garage sale, we sold a whole bunch of donated items on Craigslist, making the grand total for this yard sale endeavor $4,000!!! Holy Smokes, people!

Here are a few snapshots from the day:

We wanted good signage to not only advertise the garage sale, but to share with people our cause.  We wanted to be bold in sharing our love for Jesus and the orphan.

We placed these signs up all around the yard.

The clothing area was total chaos the entire time!! Thanks to Susie and Carol who tackled this beast of a job!

Somehow I didn’t get a picture of Kay… who got to our place at 6am on Saturday morning when the sky looked like this…and it was COLD. Thank you, Kay, for helping all day!

The red-head is not for sale.

Yard Sale Item of Honorable Mention: What is more disturbing? That this stuffed animal (“Flasher”) opens up her bathrobe while shaking her hips to the song, “Come and Get Your Love” or …

… that someone thinks this toy is age appropriate for a 6 year old?!?! (Disclaimer- This was NOT one of the items the Davis family donated to the cause. The giver of this priceless item shall remain anonymous!)

Cleaning up the mess!

Thank you, thank you, thank you to God our Father whom is able to do immensely more than we can ever imagine. Thank you to each person who contributed to the success of this event! We are so grateful!

Next up: Let’s get this home study DONE!

Why does Matt look so tired all the time?

Why are there constantly people dropping stuff off?

Why are there constantly people coming and taking things away?

Where did Matt get that pick-up truck?

Is Marilee on a cleaning strike?

Is Matt undergoing some sort of intensive therapy to remedy his OCD tendencies?

Are the Davis’preparing to go on an episode of “Hoarders?”

What has become of their children? Can anyone find them in all that mess?

What could possibly be the explanation for this:

and this:  (You know how Matt loves a tidy garage)

Huh?

Have they gone insane?

Even the deck.

Well. The answer is Yes. We have gone a little insane. But that is because we are so overwhelmed by all of the amazing people that have brought all their amazing stuff to donate to our YARD SALE!!!

That’s right folks, this Friday afternoon (the 13th) and Saturday morning (the 14th) we are having EARTH’S LARGEST AND BEST EVER FUNDRAISING YARD SALE!!! Come one, come all! Shop until you drop! All proceeds go directly into our adoption fund!

See you HERE!

Davis Place

291 N Harwood Street

Orange, 92866

Friday 1/13 1pm-6pm

Saturday 1/14 6am-1pm

In early 2011, Matt and I came to believe that God was calling us to adopt.  Though we did not sense His leading to a specific country, we both agreed that we felt pulled toward international adoption.   We prayerfully started to look into different adoption agencies and also began to research which countries we were qualified to adopt from.  Over the course of the next few months, God was faithful to narrow our search.  We chose Bethany Christian Services as our agency and God continues to confirm that the child meant to be in our forever family is in Ethiopia.

I asked God to bring to my mind what the title of our adoption blog (and subsequent campaign) should be.  He did. Waiting for Rain. For us, this simple phrase is overflowing with meaning.

Ethiopia, as well as Somalia and Kenya, are facing the worst drought they’ve known in 60 years.

The Horn of Africa is literally waiting for physical rain.

It is easy to look at a nation such as Ethiopia and quickly become overwhelmed by the tremendous need and bleak reality in which so many millions of people live and die:  drought, starvation, extreme poverty, AIDS, lack of education and resources, and spiritual darkness – just to name to name a few.

Through adoption, we can be rain for one child.  We can physically water and nourish a young body. We can love, cherish and water a young soul.  In the Bible, rain is synonomous for provision and blessing. We will introduce this child to Jesus, the Wellspring of Life, the One who gives Living Water.  He will be for her spiritual rain in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

Her.  Yes, we believe that the child God has hand picked to be part of our family is a baby girl.

For years, Matt and I have always loved the name, “Rain.” We were sure that if God gave us a daughter, her middle name would be Rain.  Before we even knew our Karis was a girl, we felt the Lord impress on our hearts her name was Karis.  Though we loved “Rain,” “Karis Rain” just wasn’t right.  We weren’t going to change her first name to make her middle name fit.  So sadly (especially for me!) we let the name go.

At that time, we had no idea God would be leading us down the path toward adoption.  I can’t help but smile when I think how perfectly Rain seems to fit as a middle name for what we hope will be our second daughter.

And so she waits. And we wait.  For Rain.