The devil went down to Georgia!

Today is another hot day in Georgia. :-\ It's crazy how there have been horrible, damaging floods across the midwest and yet here we sit in Georgia, desperately in need of rainfall. So while your praying for rain to STOP in the midwest and praying for those poor people in the path of hurricane Dean, maybe send up a prayer for rain in the South too. :)

I have a few updates for you. First of all, I met up with some Guate Mommies** on Saturday night to see the laser show at Stone Mountain. ("...the devil went down to Georgia...he was lookin for a soul to steal...") It was a lot of fun to hang out, talk about adoption, watch the show, talk about adoption more, eat our picnic lunches, oh, and talk about adoption. :) I think Mike appreciated that I had an outlet other than him. :) My friend Becky drove us and she has a mega-cool Nissan minivan. Who knew that all 8 passengers needed their own individual sun roofs? Who knew how much fun it would be to tease Becky about all the lights and gadgets and knobs while she's driving?....yea, guess I need to get out more. ;-)

**A Guate Mommy is defined as a female who is in the process of adopting or has already adopted a precious little one from Guatemala.

Secondly, my friend who is going through the nightmare with that orphanage that was raided in Guatemala (she is adopting twins) was interviewed by the BBC. If you have 15 minutes, please listen to the interview and the Guatemalan reporter afterwards. The only point I differ on is the "transactional" perception of adoptions down there. I know there are unethical lawyers down there trying to make lots of money, but I have a lot of faith in the adoption agencies most adoptive parents are going through. My point is although that may be the perception, it is NOT the reality in most cases. Most parents and agencies go through painstaking steps and processes to insure the legality of the whole adoption. As you listen you may be surprised at the mis-perceptions of some Guatemalans about the whole process and the resulting actions they take. Please continue to pray for this orphanage and these little ones.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/programmes/outlook.shtml#Mon

On a lighter note, I saw some funny posts the other day about adoption and adoption agencies. My and Mike's eyes have truly been opened to the realities of adoption procedures, interacting with people who consider you just another number, etc... I don't think you have to go through what we've been through to enjoy these, however. If you've ever dealt with any bureacracy, surely you'll appreciate these. :)

• You don't have to be crazy to adopt - but you will be before it's over!
• Bringing Families Together......Eventually...
• International Adoption....bringing children and their families together before either draws social security...And that is our commitment to you.
• When it absolutely, positively has to happen in this century.
• Adoption: Not for the faint of heart, or the sound of mind.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Mike is working on chapter 5! (woohoo!!!) of his thesis. Also, we got our first 'maters from the garden! They are a bit smaller than we anticipated but quite tasty! I plan to cook up our green beans once we harvest just a few more from the vine.

And for those who skimmed down this whole blog just to see if there were any pictures, here you go. :)

Mike and I with our nephew Scott and one of their cocker spaniels --Rusty, this past spring.

We have lots of wonderful nephews and nieces so I'll try to find more pictures to post!

We're still in PGN, (the Guatemala Attorney General's office), as far as we know....I'm hoping/praying we'll get out around August 30th, so please mark your calendars and lift up the prayers! We want out boy home!! And speaking of the cute little chunk..... :)

Lastly, we would like to mention our friends Josh and Jessica who are bringing their Guate baby home for good tomorrow!! Congratulations to the new parents and ,Jadon, we can't wait to meet you!! :)