Family is MORE than BLOOD!

How true is that though? Growing up I amassed a group of girls I call "sisters". They are at times more "family" than my own extended family (not knocking my family at all). Family is MORE than BLOOD!

We started a T-shirt fundraiser yesterday to help us pay for our homestudy. The homestudy update costs $700. The T-shirts will get us to $200 if we sell all 25.

They are super versatile. I made them that way so more people could buy them and wear them! You know you want one! Have a friend who is family? Buy them one too! Step parent? They need one too! Everyone needs one these walking advertisements that family is not just relegated to DNA. It is so much more. It is LOVE!

Get your shirts here: Hoos Family "Family is MORE than BLOOD" T-shirts!

It's Been A Long While...

Well. Here's an update. I guess I thought if I didn't blog about it I wouldn't have to bring all the emotions up to the surface.

In December I started pushing our agency for an update on Koraline. Because that's what we pay them for! Well, they kept saying "we emailed our in country representative and he hasn't responded, as soon as he does we'll forward it to you." After nearly a month of waiting I found the in country rep and emailed him myself. HE RESPONDED THE SAME DAY. Our daughters birth mother had heard rumors of American families adopting babies and harvesting their organs (NO children have been legally adopted internationally for this purpose, it was a scare tactic from the DRC media to get the country against international adoption during the suspension). So she did what any mother would do hearing that, she scooped her daughter up and brought her home.

Our hearts still ache at the loss of our baby girl. We pray everyday she is well taken care of, we know she is loved. This all went down before Christmas. I didn't have the heart to pack away any of her stuff until February. So obviously we couldn't handle starting another adoption right away.

On mothers day Kevin gave me a gift. It was a coupon gift with coupons like free night without baby duty (Jack's STILL not sleeping all night), or a back rub. The last coupon brought me to shock and then tears. "I'm ready, let's adopt again."

So we started the process.

That's where we're at, starting the process. Homestudy update is underway and we're exploring our options. There's an opportunity right now we are exploring and I'll be able to share more once we have a solid answer on some things!

Be praying for us. I'm so scared we'll get a match and then the country will suspend exit letters.

We are also accepting donations to help us with the fees of getting our homestudy updated, once that's done we can apply for grants.

Stay tuned for some fundraising opportunities coming up!

Jack's First Birthday Picture