Nicknames

 My sister and I never really had a "secret code" or anything like that...In fact? We were pretty much polar opposites growing up. You  see, she's gotten taller than I have through the years. Her hair is thicker and fuller. and more luscious than mine. She has these emerald green eyes (as opposed to my poop brown eyes). And her skin has that really pretty dark Native American shade to it. 

All things I love. And hate. about my sister.

But for as long as I can remember, my sister has had a nickname for me. As sisters usually do. It's funny though because? She will tell you that I, too, have a nickname for her. Although I would hardly consider shortening Allison to "Al" constitutes as a nickname. But it's interesting nonetheless that neither of us--with all our differences and carrying on--ever cared about the nicknames. In fact? They were quite endearing. 

I have even heard some of the youngin's that  I hang out with call their sisters by 'nicknames of endearment'. And I find that I have a habit of GIVING nicknames to these punks as well...

maybe? that's because?  I am a sister?

Whatever the case and whatever the reason, I love that she's the only person who has ever given me a nickname that didn't cause me great angst and many tears--and trust me--there have been plenty through the years. And that the only person to give me a nickname that doesn't make me cry? 

Is my little sister?

Is pretty cool, if you ask me.

So then. For as long as I have lived and as long as I will live, my sister will be the only person who consistently calls me *Lou*--Short for my middle name Louise--

with the exception of her spawn, Lil' Tank, who now calls me "Aunt Woo"...

cut him some slack though...

"L's" are hard for three-year-olds.

So, if my sister were ever kidnapped and we needed to confirm it was really her before dropping off the ransom money?  I would ask what her nickname for me has always been. Because only she would know the answer.

Except you. But you would never kidnap Al?  Would you?  


Of course, not. That's just crazy talk.

And yes, it's possible I watch too much t.v.

'Til we all have nicknames,

Ashley   *Lou*

Oopsy-Daisy...

Apparently between Friday and today, my blog went "caput" and I failed to notice this ridiculous happenstance! I have *hopefully* corrected the problem temporarily...I know very little about html but enough to play with my fonts and stuff....New plan? to fix this template to my liking until I find the PERFECT one. Thanks for bearing with me ya'll

'Til perfection exists,

Ashley

The Infamous Fever...

I'm 27 years old. I have watched many, MANY of my friends have children. And I love them. I hold them. I rock them to sleep. I stare into their little eyes and smell their soft skin (that's not weird..right?). But? I have never had "baby fever". Not Once. Not after high school. when lots of girls from STA- small town America- get it. Not after college when most of my friends were planning weddings and "settling down" from our wild college days. Not even in my mid-20's when I was the ONLY person my age not lugging around 1 or 2 spawn.

Not. Ever.

So, when we began paper-chasing for our adoption application and homestudy, I was able to say to myself "This IS NOT a baby. THIS is just? paperwork".

Then? We had to answer questions like: Do you want a boy or a girl? Would you like twins? How old/young are you looking for? etc.......

And I had to start? thinking about the baby. It was a strange sensation. What would it be like to look in the back of the car EVERY DAY and see a child? What would  it be like to drop the baby off with the sitter? How hard would it be to go back to work when I have a child who NEEDS extra time for attachment and bonding at home? Would the baby know any Amharic words and say them periodically? Would I know enough of the language to figure out what the baby wanted? What about the pets? What about summers? What about Christmas? If the baby's a girl, how soon could I rack up thousands of those beautiful bows and flowers for her hair? If the baby's a boy, where can I find newsboy hats for him to wear. always.? 

Strange. Strange. Issues. Going. Through. My. Mind.

That's when I realized. What was happening. I had come down with?

The Infamous Fever.

Now, I pride myself on being a logical realist. I recognize that this grueling process we are smack-dab in the middle of...will most likely last another year or so. I recognize that by the time there is ACTUALLY a child, I will have been sick a LONG. time. And honestly? I recognize that while I am looking at the homestudy approval process and the impending horrific "dossier paperchase" that is about to ensue? That having "the fever" (even a low grade fever) is a bad. bad. deal.

I just don't know what to do about it.

I need help.

'Til I am well again,

Ashley

Did You Know?

Did you know that coffee originated in Ethiopia?

In the Ethiopian highlands, where the legend of Kaldi, the goatherd, originated, coffee trees grow today as they have for centuries. Though we will never know with certainty, there probably is some truth to the Kaldi legend.  It is said that he discovered coffee after noticing that his goats, upon eating berries from a certain tree, became so spirited that they did not want to sleep at night.  Kaldi dutifully reported his findings to the abbot of the local monastery who made a drink with the berries and discovered that it kept him alert for the long hours of evening prayer.  Soon the abbot had shared his discovery with the other monks at the monastery, and ever so slowly knowledge of the energizing effects of the berries began to spread.  As word moved east and coffee reached the Arabian peninsula, it began a journey which would spread its reputation across the globe.

Did you know that the average coffee farmer only makes $100/year??

Farmers cannot cover their basic production costs and are operating at a loss. After the last harvest...farmers in Jimma sold Red Cherry at between .5 and 1.00 Birr/kg while average production costs were 1.53 Birr/kg....That makes it SO urgent that we support fair trade companies that pay their farmers enough to sustain a family, a farm, and most importantly, their lives!

Did you know that Ethiopia has one of the highest percentages of orphans per capita?

According to United Nations Human Development, United Nations International Children's Emergency and Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey, today there are an estimated 5 million orphaned and vulnerable children in Ethiopia; 800,000 of them are AIDS orphans. The country's cities and villages are overwhelmed; Addis Ababa alone has more than 100,000 orphans. The system is overtaxed, and sadly, new orphanages are not the answer.

Did you EVER think maybe you could help?

I would never solicit money for anything unless I truly believed it was a worthwhile cause...and in this situation? that is exactly the case! We are partnering with Just Love Coffee to support and promote the sell of fair trade Ethiopian coffees by purchasing through our site. These purchases not only help stimulate a struggling economy that NEEDS the sell of coffee, but also help us, your friends, towards accomplishing our goal of adopting one of the 4 million children needing protecting, loving, encouraging parents, we get proceeds towards our adoption from every purchase made through our site....We are grateful to be part of the "Plan B" for any child needing a family, but we also understand that if we could help minimize the number of mommies and daddies that have to make that unbearable decision to relinquish their children in hopes of a better life, the world would be a better place! We don't simply want to put a band-aid on the wound, we want to be part of the healing of the wound!!

Please consider partnering WITH  us by purchasing one, two, or even more bags of this amazing coffee! It's so much more than JUST  coffee... Send this on to anyone and everyone you might think would be interested, and let's TOGETHER  make a difference in our world!

https://www.justlovecoffee.com/TheSmithsJourney

 

Much Love,
Jeremiah & Ashley
James 1:27

Home Study

Well, yesterday was the big day! 

The house was clean.

The snack trays were ready.

The animals were sedated.

And she was?   late. 

Those were the longest 15 minutes! of! my! life! Longer, even, than the next 4 hours (which was about how long it took to get through our second home-study meeting)!!!

The Good News? Is that it's pretty much DONE! She is writing up the report and may call if she finds holes in it--- But other than that? We are just waiting for the draft and final report so we can move along with the USCIS paperwork and dossier! Thankfully, we did find out that Dillon will do most of the courier/tracking/mailing part of the dossier for us and keep us ON TRACK so that we aren't missing anything!! We are so excited about moving forward  and I?

Can't! Wait!

The Better News? Is that I now have a couple reading assignments, online and saturday courses, and various other "homework" from the SW to assist in keeping my hands busy if when I start getting ancy again!!!

We are glad this part is over! Thankful to have a clean house (haha)! And SO grateful to have family and friends praying and encouraging us through this grueling process! It will SO be worth it for us in the end!!!

So Now? We are praying and hoping that in the next month (before our homestudy is approved) we can raise the remaining $2000 we need for this piece! It seems like a mountain but I know my God is able!!! We would definitely appreciate your prayers for this!! We have watched God work in this so far and we are excited to see him continuing to work as we go through this! 

Soon, I will be posting a fundraising effort that I would like to encourage everyone to be a part of by purchasing, promoting, and praying for this new effort!

Adoption has ALWAYS been the heart of God. From the very beginning. And we are so honored to be part of this plan!

'Til we see the miracles,

Ashley