Hunt. Gather. Grow.

Summer time in Alaska is when a lot of pent up energy finally gets unleashed. The temperature rise and longer days provide ample opportunity for all sorts of life to finally emerge from under the frozen snow and ice that dominate so many months of our year. There are plenty of opportunities to relax, but there is also much to be done: gardening, berry picking, fishing, and preserving are but a few. By the time March rolls around, I am more than ready for summer to begin. I never know just how much will be in my freezer at the end of summer, but I work as hard as I can to put up what God provides. Alas, it will be two more months before summer will arrive in earnest, and so we WAIT.

That's sort of how we feel right now. Our homestudy update is in limbo as we WAIT for our fingerprints to clear (again). We WAIT for a birthmother to choose us. We WAIT for God's provision of funds, both for our normal living expenses and for our adoption fund. Waiting forces us to look to the LORD because there's absolutely nothing we can do about several of those things.

One thing we can do, however, is attempt to fundraise for our adoption expenses. Last year, we held a garage sale and put my Usborne Books & More commission toward our adoption fund. This year, I plan to have another garage sale, a plant sale and now we are launching a Cards for a Cause fundraiser, too.

In this fundraiser, we are selling boxes of greeting cards. All the proceeds from this fundraiser go into our adoption fund. Each box of cards has 30 cards and costs $30. They are handmade cards for all occasions with coordinating envelopes in a keepsake box. Occasions include birthdays, celebrations, thank yous, and more. They are beautifully embellished and individually wrapped. We have an adult box and a kids' box - you choose!

In addition to posting this on our blog, I will be emailing friends and family about our fundraiser. I've set up an event on Facebook (click the link to go to it) where you can follow our progress. And you can see how much we've raised in our fundraising efforts on our Fundraiser Progress page.

Just as I never know how abundant my berry harvest will be or how well my garden will produce or how many fish we'll catch, we wait on the LORD to provide. And remember that we appreciate every form of support from our friends and family whether it be words of encouragement, participating in our fundraisers, or praying for us; we know that there are many, MANY people who care for us. We are thankful for each and every one of you!