Sunny beaches and the travel system

When we last met Kim had just enjoyed a "shower" of gifts and Marc was preparing to head to Miami to attend a client event. While he was there from April 17-April 21, he was able to spend exactly 1 hr 45 minutes on the beach. What he did come home with was a wanting to head back soon, this time with Kim in tow and for relaxation. Here are a few of the photos from his time there:


Thanks to many generous gift cards and checks, Tuesday we were able to head to Baby's R Us to get "the travel system." What the heck is a travel system? We're so glad you asked. In ye olden days (when we were kids) one could barely count on being in the car with a seat belt, let alone a car seat. Then, if the family went on an outing there was some sort of fold up stroller or backpack-type contraption our moms and dads had us in. Fast forward to 2007 and prepare to be amazed at "the travel system."




No longer do parents have to take the child out of the car seat as it goes from clicking into a base in the car to clicking into a specially-made stroller or additional base in another car. It has all-terrain wheels, safety locks and a place for keys and a drink. What more could one ask for, right?


We're still anxiously awaiting a copy of our home study to be sent to us so we know what we said and what we should have said. . . haha. Kim has begun the countdown to summer and there are officially only 20 shopping days until the end of the school year. Last week, Kim attended a Power Up Conference to learn about assisted technology for individuals with disabilities. She's now ready to blog her brains out. While at the conference, Dick Hoyt, motivational speaker from Team Hoyt (http://www.teamhoyt.com/) addressed the attendees. This week Kim will also be chaperoning a Circle of Friends luau/dance and going on two field trips.


This weekend Spider-man 3 comes out and we're looking forward to catching it with our good friends Steve and Julie. We've also officially become regular attenders at Vineyard Church (http://www.vineyardkcnorth.com/) and Marc will be joining the worship team for the Saturday evening service to help with camera and video.


We're getting antsy about the child God has planned for us and hope He reveals him (or her) to us soon. We pray for patience while we wait and the wisdom to continue to get things in order. Mostly we're trying to enjoy this time. Thanks for your continued prayer. More soon.

Big weekend

Some weekends move slowly and others go by quickly. This is one of those weekends that has moved quickly and it's now 10:45 p.m. Sunday evening. We have much to report to you since our last transmission in the form of text, images and interpretive dance.

First, our prayers and thoughts continue to go out to the Bond family. Yesterday, Marc went with friends Steve and Julie to Eldon, Mo., to be with Mark to attend the funeral of Raymond Bond, Mark's father, who passed away Monday. While it was good to see Mark, Rachel and Mark's family, we wish it would have been under happier circumstances. Mark's father leaves behind a legacy of many he touched through ministry in Christ and many family and friends.

Today, was our baby shower and many family and friends turned out to enjoy the fun. As you can see from the photos below, pictures speak a lot louder than words:




So now as we prepare for the arrival of our son or daughter, we have plenty of time to figure out where we're going to store all of this:

We would also like to give a special thanks to Marc's mom Delene and friend Dianne for organizing such a great event for us, and also to all of those who provided the wonderful and thoughtful gifts for the nursery, cards and advice. We are excited to begin putting these items into action (hopefully soon)!

This week Marc heads to the Trump Sonesta International Beach Resort in Sunny Isles Beach, Fla., to take part in a client event (www.sonesta.com/SunnyIsles). We would ask that if you think about it, to offer up a quick prayer for safe travel and a good event while he is away from Kim.

Make sure to enjoy this week. It looks like the 60 degree days are finally on their way back to us. Thanks for your continued prayer and support. More soon. Sorry, no interpretive dance.

Not asleep at the wheel

Sorry we haven't posted anything in a while. It's a combination of two things. First, we have both been working a largely abnormal amount of hours. Second, Kim's spring break was this week following Marc's 33rd birthday and some much needed time off from work. . .

The weekend consisted of catching a great AFL Kansas City Brigade game Friday night (thanks Steve and Julie!) followed by seeing "300" and "Blades of Glory" and a meal after at Cafe Italia on the big day. Other things that rocked were getting phone calls from Marc's friend Mark who shares his same birth date and a restaurant table of good friends who left a message on Marc's phone of them all singing happy birthday. Pretty cool!

We do have some big news on the adoption front that we wanted to share with our loyal bloggers.

We had an adoption meeting a few weeks ago at Christian Family Services and we have some news that is bittersweet. Our case manager informed us that while it is good to be proactive in getting through the process and to get all things arranged (financial status, baby shower, will, etc.), she wanted us to know it could still be up to one year before we receive a child. She said if we were okay with having the nursery ready and knowing we might have to look at it day in and day out for a while that we should go ahead. She just wanted to make sure having a room with no new little one wouldn't be discouraging.

To get a jump on things we have elected to go ahead with the shower because we're hoping God proves to provide us with a child before the year is over. Plus we know that once we have been presented and accepted by a birthmother, the process speeds up considerably. We're really hoping that 2006 was the last Christmas as a family of two, but whatever God decides will be what we abide by.

That said, the Sunday after Easter will be our baby shower and we're hoping it is a great event. Marc's mom and Kim's friend Dianne are in the process organizing it and we are both very excited. We're really just hoping the weather cooperates and turns back into those 70 and 80 degree days we have been having the past few weeks!

This coming weekend is Easter and we hope you all have a great weekend with friends and family celebrating the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. Thanks again for your continued prayer and support.

Also, Marc posted his first youtube video. Check it out at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=XuVakjse4ZQ.