Care Center Needs...

Hello! I just received a list of things that the care center (orphanage) where our daughter is desperately needs. I plan to purchase as much as I can and also wanted to post this list. If anyone wants to send a donation with us on August 20th, it would be greatly appreciated!! I will have at least one suitcase specifically for donations (and hopefully for souvenirs on the way home!) Here is the list:

Bedding- sheets and bedcovers for twin and full sized beds
Digital Scale
Pampers (all sizes, especially for newborns)
Baby Wipes
Baby Lotion
Baby Shampoo
Baby Oil
Vaseline
Hand Sanitizer
Soy Formula
Surgical Masks
Latex Gloves
Gauze
Bandages
Cotton Tip Applicator
Paper for Changing Tables
Shoes (Toddler and Infant)
NG Tubes, #5, #6, #8

List of Medicines Needed:
Ibuprofen drops or syrups (children's ibuprofen)
400mg Anti Acid Tablet/Anti Acid Syrup
Foban Ointment
Clotrimazol Cream
Antibiotic Ointment
Baby Suppository
Children's Pain Reliever tablets & drops
Multi Vitamin Syrup and Capsules
Vitamin D Injection
Iron Drops

Items needed for brain development:
Building blocks
Coloring Books
Puzzles with big pieces
Big Legos
Books
Big cars to sit in and push around
Any toys they can walk under (tunnel type toys)

Anything would be appreciated! Thank you!!

The Wild, Wild North!

I just had to share these photos. I though our house was being broken into until I turned on the light - the little thieves! (Not the best pictures but I hope you can see the subjects.) There were actually 4 of them - one mother and 3 babies. No wonder our bird feeder is empty the day after we fill it!

The second picture I thought was very sweet. You have to zoom in, but there is a fawn lying in the grass in the center of the picture. If you look real close, you can see Momma Deer lying in the background. Such a fun neighborhood we have!!

Travel Date - She's Comin' Home!

We are leaving to bring our daughter home on August 20! There is no more news to wait for, no more paperwork, no question on when the next step will happen - we have a date!!! We even have our flight figured out. I cannot believe it is down to packing - that is how close we are to having a baby girl in our home. We SO appreciate everyone's support during this time when so much was unknown. We continue to pray for Tarike's health and happiness and for a safe and uneventful trip!

While making our travel plans, we discovered that our travel agent is from Ethiopia. I asked her if she could help us pronounce our daughter's name correctly. She asked how we had been saying it so far and when I told her she said, "Oh, no, no, no! That is wrong!" Oops! Apparently, her name is pronounced Tar-ick (with the "r" rolled). Hmmm, much harder to say than Tar-ee-kae. I hope we have a chance to hear how her birth mother pronounces her name and that we know exactly what her name should be when we meet her.

Birth Certificate!

We learned today that Tarike's birth certificate is complete and has been received without any errors!! We will find out early next when we will travel! It will almost certainly be the first couple of weeks in August - I am so unbelievably excited! There is nothing else to wait for - just prepare for!!! (Sorry for all of the exclamation points.) After all of this time, she is weeks away from being in our arms - WOW!!!

Update

We are still waiting to hear about the birth certificate. Last week, some who made it through court as late as June 20th received their birth certificate information and will receive a travel date on Monday. We are praying that we are able to travel earlier in August so my sister can watch the kids - she starts school on the 25th. We do still have a lot of work to do but we now have her bedroom mostly set up, we have a car seat, diapers, and a lot of wonderful necessities and non-necessities that we received from our generous friends and family. We are getting closer to being ready to have Tarike home! Evan can hardly wait to bring her home now that his vaccinations are finished!

We have received an update on Tarike's height and weight. She has grown some but still shows signs of mild malnourishment. Also, she was hospitalized from June 28 - July 2 with severe pneumonia. We have been informed that she has shown good improvement and is now back at the care center. We so appreciate everyone's prayers regarding her health and well being. Her illness has made it even more difficult to wait to bring her home! We know that she is being well cared for at the care center and that God is watching over her.

Fabulous 4th of July

I hope you all had a wonderful 4th of July - we sure did! We spent the weekend with family at the lake. We watched the parade, did the turtle races, participated in hula hoop contests, watched fireworks, set off some fireworks, swam, swam, swam, and swam!! And Evan water skied successfully for the first time! It was a very busy weekend. My sister, Kris, and sister-in-law, Rita, also threw a baby shower for Tarike on Sunday. It was a lot of fun and there is no doubt that Tarike will be the most fashionable baby in Longville! What a blessing to have such wonderful and supportive friends and family. God is so good!!