Here's the Skinny

Wish I were talking about me...haha This is going to be a hodgepodge post for today because there's a lot to share...

Well, we (the boys and I) have returned from yet another fun trip. Paul is speaking all week at a Family Camp in Pennsylvania. There are programs for children, teenagers (who Paul is speaking to), and adults. There were things for the boys to do while we were there, and they met some great friends (it just wasn't the same the last day without Grant and Christian). I am so proud of Paul and the awesome job he does in communicating to students. God has gifted him, and he is so passionate about what he shares with students--it was great to hear him.

So, we've made it back from PA, and are unpacking and doing laundry--or should I say, we've made it back from PA, and I AM unpacking and doing laundry...haha Paul is still speaking tonight and tomorrow, so he'll be back Sat night! It was something different for our family, and it was great!!

Well, since we were gone for a few days, I placed our mail on hold and came back to lots of junk, bills, and a couple of magazines. I'm so sure you're not interested in our daily postal deliveries, but there was a letter from the Department of Homeland Security that caught my attention. HAHA Got your attention, too, didn't it???????

Well, it was an appointment for Paul and I to get our fingerprints re-printed. As I posted a couple of weeks ago, our fingerprints that were printed for our adoption expire on August 14th, and I filed for an extension so that they will still be valid while we travel (the extension is good for 15 months). The problem is that our appointment for reprinting is on the 17th of August...3 days after they expire. So, I immediately gave USCIS a call and asked them what was going on, and why we didn't get our extension. She told me that we were denied our extension if they sent us an appointment notice. WHAT??? I have to admit that it drives me absolutely nuts when I can tell when someone is reading from a script to answer a question that I asked; so with a quick "good-bye" I hung up the phone and called our Family Coordinator about our situation. She called me back about an hour later and told me that there's nothing to worry about, and everyone has to be re-printed for an extension. We will get our 15-month fingerprint extension after we are printed on the 17th.

To quote someone from college, "I said all that to say this..." I am ashamed to admit that not once did I pray about our fingerprint situation. The first thing I did was to try and take care of details and circumstances with my own power and make my own phone calls and try to control the situation...After recognizing this flaw, I am glad that the Lord showed this to me, but ashamed that after so many details have been out of my control with this entire adoption, I haven't learned to trust God first!! So, I'm going to keep this lesson in the front of my mind, and hopefully learn to trust God first...not Mandy first.

Second order of business...got an email from our agency that the judge in Ethiopia looked at our paperwork and rescheduled a court date for us. She wanted a new recommendation later to be written from MOWA because of the paperwork that has been added to our case. So, drum roll please....August 13th is our new court date! At least that gives us a notch on our timeline. So, don't forget to pray, especially on August 12pm!!

I know this is a long post, but there was so much to share from the week. Thanks for reading, and I'll definitely try to keep you updated!
Mandy