a few announcements

I am an Aunt!!

My sister had her first baby this morning-two weeks early, lucky girl!!! We can't wait to go see that sweet little baby! Especially Three. She sure does love those babies!!! For those who know my sisters, it is the sister with the silver hair. Exciting, I know!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This morning at 8:30 when we drove the girlies to school it was a whopping -11. Brrrr. Fortunately, though, things warmed up a bit and the high today was 9. But I'm not even going to complain because up here in the good old mountain air I can see the beautiful blue sky!! And that, my friends, is my tender mercy.

I keep forgetting to report back on the "glove drive" that I did for the orphanage. The glove collecting was amazing, thank you all you awesome friends! I have the best friends and family that support all that I do! A few other people that I don't even know heard about this project and a lady in Colorado collected a bunch of stuff with her church and drove the stuff to Utah to be sent to Ukraine! Can you believe it?! People never cease to amaze me! I often feel hopeless that the number of proactive, caring people is so small that a difference cannot be made. Then, every time, I am privileged to witness an act of generosity and kindness, of true charity, which I believe is the pure love of Christ. And each time, my faith in humanity, my hope for good to prevail, is strengthened along with my desire to do better and to be better. This charity I believe in is not simply something that you do, but something that you are. Something that will guide and direct your life. I hope to be able to get some pictures of the kids who are receiving the gloves and other gifts within the month that I will post. Just so you can see their sweet faces and know that they are real.:)

...and I hesitate to mention this last thing because it seems like everything is always so up and down and back and forth that it makes me nervous to say it out loud. But I guess technically I'm typing so maybe it won't really count...

I am going to be practicing my Russian on Ukrainian soil, hopefully at the end of March, when we go to pick up BoyOne and BoyTwo and bring them back to the U.S. as Holbrook's. WOOOOOO-HOOOOOOO!

Prayers to those headed to Ukraine this week for their adoptions and prayers continuing for the moratorium to not pass!