The Sale Results

I am happy to report to you that the sale was an enormous success! Lots of donated stuff, two days of hard work, and we earned around $1,500. This was more than I could have hoped for, and a good return on our labor.

Lots and lots of people helped, and there's just no way I could have done something so huge by myself. I don't even know all the specific people who helped, but I do want to thank a few in particular. Many people donated things to sell, some quite valuable. This of course was critical for the success of the sale, and pretty much everyone who walked in the door was impressed with the sheer volume of stuff, so thank you everyone who donated item to sell.

Friday we had the huge job of sorting, organizing, and pricing all the merchandise -- what a job! It was a little overwhelming to walk into the room Friday morning and see all that was in there, but I had many helpers, and what do you know, it went very quickly. Most notably, Amie Ehnis really knew what to do to get things going, and she helped a ton both Friday and Saturday. My mom was there the whole time I was, Friday and Saturday, and even talked some of her friends into coming and helping/buying. And then the wonderful Steph Hays spent all day Friday and again Saturday -- we got a bit giddy pricing some of the more, ah, unusual items together!

Then there was the bake sale, which was quite impressive! There were so many delicious and beautiful goodies to buy, we had some people come back for seconds. A special thanks goes out to Greta Lankheet, for coordiating the bake sale, sharing a little moment with me in the kitchen, and staying (with Brad and the kids) to help clean up right to the end.

My cousin Beth gets a special mention too, as it was her idea, and she gave up her Saturday to help. And the there is the URC diaconate, who approved this scheme, and my dear boss Sherre Whalon, Facilities Coordinator who supported the process (even though it created a lot more work for her!) Plenty of others came and helped, shopped, and encouraged me through this process -- if I try to name you all I'll be sure to forget someone, not because your contribution was insignificant, but because that whole weekend is a bit of a blur. So to each of you who helped in every way, thank you truly. It was been a lightening of our burden to be able to chip away at our adoption debts through these fundraising efforts.

As far as Anastasia is concerned, there is no real update. At this time we are just waiting to hear when her adoption by this other couple is final. The reality of this has been slow to sink in, as we try to reshape our ideas of the future for our family. The sense of loss has been suprising. There have been some good, encouraging things that happened this week, but I continue to find it hard to accept this blow without feeling depressed, confused, even betrayed by God. The thought of the maturity I have the opportunity to gain through this trial seems cold comfort in comparison to the joy of having this little girl as my daughter. You can pray that I can see God's hand in even this, and that I would be able to regain some faith in His goodness.