Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Please help Teri Lynn!

This sweet little girl was transferred to a mental asylum because she turned five.


These pictures were taken before and after the transfer.
Please read the story here and help if you can!



Saturday, July 16, 2011

A little house progress

We got an awesome deal on a foreclosed home last spring.  The only problem was that the previous owners were apparently not happy to leave and they took their frustration out on the walls. 




Brett has been working hard on patching everything up and even completely redid a couple of walls with new sheetrock.  We also don't care for the lovely strips they put on the walls in manufactured homes, so Brett has been taping and mudding those too.  There is a lot of work to do still, but the dining room is finally done!
Here is the before picture:


And here it is now:


It feels so nice to have fresh paint on the walls!


Boy, n.: a noise with dirt on it.

Being surrounded with all of these little girls around here, can I just say one thing?


BOYS


ARE


DIFFERENT!


And it's kinda fun!
Oh, and mud is soooo much easier to wash of than peanut butter.
Maybe they're not all that different after all?
Girls are just a little more creative.



Thursday, July 14, 2011

Adoption Agreement Between US and Russia

The US and Russia signed an agreement to do with adoptions between the two countries yesterday.  We still have no idea if or how this will affect us bringing home Graham.  Please pray for everything to continue forward smoothly!

More information here.

Russia

July 13, 2011

Notice: Secretary Clinton and Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov Sign Adoption Agreement

The Department of State and the Department of Homeland Security announced today, July 13, 2011, that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov signed a bilateral adoptions agreement that will strengthen procedural safeguards in adoptions between our countries.
This Agreement will provide additional safeguards to better protect the welfare and interests of children and all parties involved in intercountry adoptions. Under the Agreement, only adoption agencies authorized by the Russian government will be able to operate in Russia and provide services in adoptions covered by the Agreement, except in the case of an adoption of a child by his or her relatives. This will largely eliminate independent adoptions from Russia and create a better defined framework for intercountry adoptions between the United States and Russia. The Agreement also includes provisions designed to improve post-adoption reporting and monitoring and to ensure that prospective adoptive parents receive more complete information about adoptive children’s social and medical histories and anticipated needs.
The United States is committed to working with the Russian Federation on implementing the provisions laid forth in this Agreement as soon as it enters into force.
The Department of State will publish criteria, procedures, and clear guidance related to the Agreement on adoption.state.gov prior to the Agreement's entry into force.
To find out more: Please visit the Department of State's FAQs on the Agreement and the Department of Homeland Security's FAQs on procedural implications.