Over due update

No excuses...just been very very busy! The house is about done, finally! Few more areas of dry wall compound needed, a bit of paint, and one more room of curtains...then a good dusting and I call it quits!

School is out but here that means one week of no school and then school starts again. Penny and Vicky will have a summer school tutor here at home three days a week. They will catch up on social studies and science BUT the way they will be learning is to enhance English language comprehension. The girls leave these two classes daily at school to receive extra help at school so we will just catch them up during the summer. Three days a week will give them still time to have a summer...it is 4 hours a day and then the rest of the day can be the pool, etc. Addie and Kate will keep reading and moving forward in learning too, but not as scheduled as Penny and Vicky.

Our adoption paperwork has moved along perfectly. Our last date to remember was the log in date of the dossiers in China. That date is 5-21-09. By all of my figuring I see us in China in August. I can only pray that it is no later than August!

We had a great idea today and handed Penny the camera and had her take some photos of us. She really did a good job we think. We will be FedExing two identical photo albums and letters to the a family that leaves this week to adopt a child also from the same CWI as where the girls are in China. We had Penny translate a letter to each of the girls, and also to the CWI director whom we have asked to have the girls know that they will be sisters and to spend some time together. We hope this would be some comfort to them. We kept the package very small so we don't take up any space of the family's luggage, a disposable camera for each, hand creme, hair thingys...lifesavers...and the photos. We also pray that they go ahead and give these to the girls now so they can prepare themselves for being adopted and being part of our family.

We picked up our new van this weekend. We bought a ford Tuscany van that seats 10. It seems that it will work OK for us. Well, once I can figure out how to turn on the t.v. in it...most of you are probably thinking give the girls the remote and let them figure it out...I did and they could not either. Hopefully the dealership will be able to figure it out.

We have figured out Skype...that is great! We even figured out the video cam option on the computer and it is great! This allowed Vicky to see her English tutor and our friend Zoe in Zunyi City China...and our friend Kelly in the Philippines...and when I go to China we will be able to use it to talk to all at home.

I will try to do a better job updating....just got caught up with the girls finishing up at school, paperwork for the girls adoptions, work, and trying to finish up the house all the while having fun with the girls!