Cramp in my Nesting

Ok, so I've been nesting like a fiend lately. Today, however, for as much organizing and cleaning and making my awesome husband insane, we have "cluster flies." They are awful! Todd killed about 50 last night. Today, he's in Benton Harbor for the night and won't be home until tomorrow. This morning I killed like 6 more, but thought the worst of it was over. I went to get Audrey from school and when I got back - another 60 or so! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! I have a bug guy coming any moment.

Newest Photo of Lewis

Here is another picture. So I guess this really is his foster mother, which is awesome. I should send him some of our pictures...hmmm...that's a thought. She just looks like such a beautiful person!

Anyway, we had a bit of a scare this past week because we got a letter from Customs that said the approximate wait time for our paperwork is 3 months. We were a little saddened to hear this when we were thinking Octoberish and whatnot. I emailed my caseworker and asked her how realistic that time frame was. She said not to worry, and that they always say that. So that's a little bit of a relief. We really need him to be here now - not just because he's so doggone cute, but it would help on the taxes :)

So yeah, his hair appears to be growing quite lengthy. If the foster care system is anything like the states, then his foster mother might not be allowed to cut his hair. She can as far as I'm concerned. I know, though here in the US, foster families aren't allowed to without consent - and even then, I'm not so sure. Anyway, I thought you'd enjoy it.

The dog was one of Audreys and she decided, "I don't really like this dog, so I'll give it to Lewis." Very kind of her. I did buy her a book about how great little brothers are - I should start reading that to her more frequently, apparently. The outfits you see are from his Grandma Coni. They have the picture of Audrey on the back that we sent out for announcements, and it says something to the effect of, "This is my big sister."

CAN'T WAIT TO BRING HIM BACK! I just want to squeeze him, he's getting so big!!

2nd to Last Fundraiser for Lewis

Ok, so here is my latest fundraiser. Some of you are going to be sick of hearing about this, so I'm sorry for that. I think I said originally that this would be my last, but there has been some expressed interest in a Tupperware party, so I'll be doing one of those too.

As most of you know, I am a BeautiControl consultant, and LOVE their product. I started doing it last year to raise money for our adoption. Now that I've raised what my goal was, I've kind of tapered off. Plus things are getting kind of stressful around here, so I am taking a break. HOWEVER, I realize that some people just love Mary Kay, which is fine because they also have GREAT stuff. From now until September 12 I am hosting an online fundraiser called "Mary Kay for Lewis!" He's going to hate that when he's 15!! Reason enough for me!

Instead of receiving free products from whatever you decide to order, I will receive cash: I will get 20% of the sales towards our adoption. I will also get $0.50 for anyone who does NOT have a consultant and who does NOT wish to order anything.

Here's how it works:

1) If you already have a consultant, it's no big deal, the beauty consultant helping me said that you can make a one time order to support our cause and then go back to your regular consultant, no pressure.

2) If you wish to order, you may order from her website which is: www.marykay.com/kvogel and simply put my name in the comments section.

3) If you wish to order by phone, you may call her, Kelly Vogel at 616-340-5040 (cell) or 616-530-0046 (home).

4) If you do NOT wish to order anything and do NOT already have a Mary Kay beauty consultant, simply reply to this message answering the following questions. For each reply, I get $0.50, so PLEASE pass it along to your friends as well!! It is a very non-pressure sort of thing, although for some of you who have received this info like three times, it may seem like I'm pressuring you. :)

Apparently you get entered to win a Skin Care Consultation (it's a ploy, you don't really win it, anyone can have one, so if you really want one and you don't "win" it, call me and I'll come over and spa you myself - for you "out of towners", I'm not sure what she'd do. She's pretty nice, so she may make it worth your while).

Here are the questions:
NAME: ____________________
Please call me at: __________ Best time to call: _____________
City: _________________ State/Zip: __________________
Are you interested in improving the condition of your skin?__YES __NO
What product brands do you currently use? _______________________
Do you have a Mary Kay Consultant? __YES __NO
Are you interested in learning more about color cosmetic application and techniques?
__YES __NO
If you are one of the lucky winners of the Skin Care Consultation do you prefer to hold your appointment:__DURING THE DAY __IN THE EVENING __EITHER
We are looking for models for our weekly Success Event. You'll receive a complete facial and/or glamour makeover along with a special gift. This is by reservation only and is a really fun "girl's-night-out." Are you interested in attending?__YES __NO

Thank you very much for reading this very long note, I appreciate it. Again, no pressure, I won't know if you've done any of this or not, so don't feel badly. I will say, though, if you're looking for something to turn back the effects of time, talk to me. As much as I'd love for you to do this fundraiser, BeautiControl's stuff for visibly transforming the way you look is hands down, the best. The microderm abrasion set with the Tight Firm and Fill creme is an instant face lift. You can do it on half of your face and see a difference in 20 minutes! So if you're thinking of buying something like that from Mary Kay, just give me a call and try BeautiControl - no risk. You'll get your money back if you hate it. Also, if you've lost some weight in the last few months due to fun Summer activities, you may want to try BeautiControl's body cremes. Again, just talk to me. I did half of it on my body (to get rid of accursed stretch marks, cellulite and extra belly bulge) and my husband could tell after 2 days. Then I had to quick do the other half so as not to look uneven!

Thanks for indulging me!!!

Also, I already have a bunch of people interested in a Tupperware party - is anyone else interested, so I know who to contact and who not to contact?

While I'm at it....New Photos for all!

NEW PHOTO!!!

Hey! Here is a new photo of Lewis! He's so cute. He's in the 75% for weight and less than the 50% for height. He is 26.91 inches and 20 pounds! He drinks 5.3 oz every three hours. If I'm reading the well baby report, he's got two teeth on the bottom. He rolls over now! He also plays peek-a-boo and prefers mama. He also says, "umma" when he cries. He still has a flat head, though, so pray for that.

I think this is his foster mother in the photo. You will also notice the blanket I made for him. I think the blue fabric in back of the blanket and in front of Lewis is the Lion's onesie we sent him. Getting anxious!

New Info

Crazy happenings over here - well, I should say over in South Korea. All of our paperwork that was sent to South Korea is finished. It was supposed to take 6 weeks, but it didn't. Our caseworker said that us and another family's paperwork was the fastest she'd seen coming out of Korea! So, that being said, here's what is going to be happening next, and what you can pray for:

We are waiting on the legal documents to be signed by the Department of Human Services in Lansing. That should be accomplished some time this week. Those documents will then be delivered via my caseworker to Ottawa County Court for our petition to adopt. That should take a day or so. Then all of that information and documentation and, of course, some sizable checks will be mailed to Immigration so they can issue Lewis his visa. Apparently Immigration, while it's a slow moving machine, is moving quicker than it has on other occasions. Once the approval for Lewis' visa is issued, Immigration will cable that information to Seoul. Holt International (the agency over there) will get that information and then give us the call to go get him!

Again, things seem to be moving quicker than I had anticipated (whether right or wrong). Please just pray that Immigration will not be the hold up. I've known a lot of USCIS Agents, and granted, they're on the criminal side, but it's like anything, over worked and understaffed.

THANKS!!!

Theological Questions From a Kindergartener

Audrey and I were just talking about Heaven and Hell. We were discussing her Children in Worship story about being a fisher of men. She didn't understand what that title meant. I, being the good Reformed Baptist tried my best to explain it to her. She was asking very good questions. One of which was, "Is there sin in Heaven?" I said that there was no sin, or crying, or pain in Heaven. She said, "Because God is there?" I indicated that that was correct. She then said in a very matter of fact way, "Well, I can make myself cry." What does one say to that?! I told her that that was kind of like lying, so you shouldn't make yourself cry. We continued on the conversation which included many questions about what Satan looked like, is Satan mean, and why did Jesus go to Hell for us. Then she came up with, "Is Satan like Batman's friends?" You have to realize that all of her cousins love playing Batman. They have the action heroes and figurines. Audrey just plays along with them. I asked her what she meant by her question and she clarified, "Well, Joker's mean, and Satan's mean. Is Satan like that Joker?" I told her he was worse than the Joker and her eyes became huge. Apparently the Joker is the worst being she's ever come across.