A Name! A Name!

The Child! He has a Name!
Of course, he has always had a name. Only, We didn't know it. We had been referring to him as "the little boy", "The Child", and on occasion I would call him by the name that the agency has him listed under, just to have something more personal sounding to say.

Over the holiday weekend, We were told his name. His proper name.
I can't share it.
We probably aren't supposed to know it at this point but because we are filling out the paperwork all out of order, We needed to have his name to list on one of the forms.

And he has a beautiful name.

As soon as I saw his name, My first question was "I wonder if that's the name his mother gave to him? Or the name the orphanage gave him?"  We might never know the answer to that question.  But it is a beautiful name for a handsome boy, either way.

We also received his last name.  I asked again, "I wonder if that is his Father's last name? or his Mother's? Or an orphanage assigned name?"
Another question that may never be answered.

I mourn for the history that we may never be able to provide for The Child.  Charlie hopes that we will be able to collect as much family history for him as possible. He is looking for facts to be able to pass down to The Child eventually. I am looking for stories of his past.  I would love to be able to tell him the story of his birth, as it was told by someone who attended or even his mother. What a treasure of information.

We may never have that for him.

Today, we finally got the Hold Paperwork notarized and will scan and email it this afternoon.
I'm not sure how fast things will move after this point, but one can only assume that it will probably begin moving very very quickly. Especially since we only have 6 months to complete the home study and submit the dossier, now.

Which means we are going to need to start paying the fee's needed for all the paper shuffling that is necessary in international adoptions.

The yard sale for this Saturday is our first fundraising event of many this month.  There is a TON of stuff  in a huge variety.  We've had 5 families donate thus far.  So clothing is in all manner of styles and sizes.  Household items, bathroom items, trinkets, jewelry,  blankets, throws, comforters, a bike, car tires,  workout equipment, tools, toys, baby items, LOTS of baby boy clothes, curtains, decorative hats, dolls, some Christmas decorations. A paintball set.  Surround sound system. It's really a huge eclectic selection.

We've decided to have it in the shop on the family property instead of down by the roadside.  If we have it at the shop, we won't have the sale ruined if it decides to rain. So, Rain or Shine, this sale is going on!

If you can't make the sale, or any of our events here locally, That's fine. Really, There's no need to drive cross country. =) Charlie and I, both, have family and friends flung far across the states who we thought may want to make donations but not be able to attend our fundraising events.  That's why I set up the Chip In account.  It's a secure account that goes straight into our personal Paypal account which will be used strictly for adoption related fees and expenses.  It's in the upper corner of this page, right above the ticker keeping track of how long we've been working toward bringing  The Child home.

A friend has already made a donation with it, taking us $15 closer to paying our initial fees.
She apologized for the donation. I could have cried. She said "I know it's not much."
Every amount counts. When we are looking at $20,000 in fee's and expenses, $15 doesn't look like much, but it is.
$15 is a gift.
$15 is a sign of support.
$15 is a prayer of Thanks sent up to God by our family.

Charlie and I discussed, If every person that we know donated just $15, we would raise the funds needed for this adoption easily.

If You're interested in making a donation, don't feel held back because you can't give a big amount.  Every single dollar will help us move forward.

So, Come out to our yard sale. =) Come visit with us. Let me gush about how handsome The Child is. Let me tell you his proper name, in person, because I Can't share it here, yet.

Because, The Child? He has a beautiful name.