Baxter Family SIX

Wow!  I was just able to change our blog title to BAXTER FAMILY SIX!  It feels great [and a bit strange] to say that we are now a family of 6.  Just one year ago, we were still a family of 4.  Gaining 2 daughters in less than a year is a huge adjustment, but a wonderful blessing from our Creator.  I cannot even begin to explain what a blessing it is to have 2 wonderful sons and 2 beautiful daughters.  The boys have adjusted well to having one little sister, and I'm sure they will adjust well when Elliana comes home as well.  Baby Faith, however, with probably have a slight adjustment issue, but she will be fine.  She already loves her sissy and kisses and points to her pictures all of the time!  I just cannot wait to have our family ALL home and under one roof.  


I always say this, but I mean it . . . if you would have told me 5 years ago that I would have 4 children, I would have laughed at you. :)  


I'm so glad God is in control of my life... not me.  His plan is much better than I could have ever imagined.  Don't ever close yourself off to what God has in store for You!  

Father to the fatherless, defender of widows — this is God, whose dwelling is holy. God places the lonely in families.

Psalms 68:5-6

 (Don't worry, our blog address is still baxterfamilyfive.blogspot.net -- I just changed the title on my page).  

Back in the Fast Lane

Do you see Africa in the clouds?

Well, things are beginning to take off again on the adoption front.  (Ethiopia, however, is still predicting adoption paperwork and approval to slow WAY down).  But most of our road blocks are beginning to be cleared. 

• We've sent our request to the USCIS for a fingerprint extension appointment.  Waiting for that to come back; This will be at no cost to us!  Praise God!
• We've contacted another home study provider who is coming on Tuesday to redo our home study at HALF the cost of what our other provider was charging for our update!  Praise God!
• We have our physicals on Tuesday, which will knock out our home study requirements and our dossier update requirements.
• We have most of our references back for our dossier update.
• We resubmitted our state clearances and received our local police clearance letters for our dossier.
• Touched based with our notary so she knows all the stuff that's going to be coming her way!

So, things are moving along again.  I did touch base with our case manager to get his thoughts on Ethiopia adoptions and asked if he thought they might stop completely.  Of course, he doesn't have a crystal ball, and said it was up to us, but he thought things were going to continue... just at a slower pace. 

So, as we knew when we started the process, International Adoptions are always risky and unpredictable.  I know some people are bailing out of the Ethiopia program and moving their paperwork to adopt from another country.  We're staying In..... we think E is worth the risk.  The fat lady hasn't sung yet!!

First Check from JustLove Coffee!

We just received our first check in the mail for $22.00 from JustLove Coffee! How cool is that? We just registered our store on November 27th and have already received a check.  Very good service!  If you purchased from us… THANK YOU SO MUCH! We purchased some as well to try, and it is AWESOME! We especially like the Fa La La La La Holiday Blend Coffee. We are not, by far, coffee connoisseurs, but this coffee hits your palate strong then has a sweet and almost holiday-ish taste.. it’s very smooth… almost hard to explain unless you try it. (add a little candy-cane creamer and it is yum-meee). 


For those of you who are local, we are planning a Holiday Open House on New Year’s Eve from 3 – 6 p.m. to sample some of the various coffees from JustLove Coffee Roasters. Please feel free to stop in and enjoy some coffee, cookies, and conversation! We’d love to see you!


If you still need some gifts, there’s time to purchase before Christmas, but you need to hurry! It took about a week after we placed our order for it to arrive. Besides coffee, there is also apparel, mugs and sample packages available on-line for purchase. Here's our link again, or you can click the icon to the right of the blog.   http://www.justlovecoffee.com/BaxterFamily6


Thanks again to everyone who helped us out this month! Hope you enjoy the coffee!

P.S.  If you are an adoptive family looking for a fundraiser -- this one is an excellent one to try!