Puzzle progress update

First an update on the Kindle Fire. The winner was drawn saturday evening and we wanted to touch base with them and present the Kindle Fire to them before giving out the name. We met with him today, so with that a huge Congratulations goes out to Garry! Thank you to all of you that have sponsored pieces of the puzzle so far.

The puzzle continues to be a work in progress. There is still time to become a forever part of our journey. Sponsor a piece of the puzzle and we will place your name on the back of the puzzle. When it is complete we will frame the puzzle with glass on both sides in order to see all the names of those who have helped bring the little one into our home. For just $5.00 a piece your name will be placed on the puzzle, get yours today.

Here is where we sit with the puzzle as of today:

Check back often for more updates on the journey we are walking down one step at a time.

Kindle Fire giveaway

With our puzzle piece sponsorship we had a Kindle Fire giveaway going. Tonight we used random.org to draw a winning sponsor number. The winners name will be released once they have been notified.

 

 

 

We will post a current puzzle picture soon so you can see how far the construction has come. We still have pieces that need a sponsors name for the back. We will continue to place your name on the back of the pieces till the puzzle is complete. Take this time to join the journey and be a forever piece of the puzzle. There is a link on the right side bar for online sponsorships or you are welcome to contact us for mailing information.

Kindle Fire drawing time

Thank you to all of you who came out to the Lighted Pathway Candle open house. It was a great evening with a bunch of friends. The evening ended with a "mystery host" name drawn to receive the host credits in free products. Congratulation Laura! If you are interested in having a home show at your house and earn many free candles let us know so we can save the date for you.

We have been building a puzzle by sponsorships over the last few months. The puzzle is under construction still and well along the way. By sponsoring puzzle pieces your name will be placed on the back side of the finished puzzle. By sponsoring 2 pieces we also have a drawing going for a FREE Kindle Fire. With the holidays coming up soon we are going to be drawing the winners name this weekend so that we can get the Kindle to them before the holiday. There is a sponsor link on the right sidebar of this page if you need to still get your name entered. Remember it only takes a sponsorship of 2 pieces, $10 total, and you are entered into the drawing. For every 2 pieces you sponsor your name will be entered once. Sponsor 2 pieces = 1 entry, sponsor 4 pieces = 2 entries, and so one. Sponsor in your childs name, grand childs name, a friends name, whoever you would like.

Check back here later saturday night to see the winners name of the Kindle Fire giveaway........

Join us for a night out

Come join us for a night away from your busy holiday schedule. I will be hosting a "mystery hostess" candle party. One lucky quest will be chosen to receive "host" benefits. As a "hostess" you will receive a free candle of your choice along with a percentage of the party total. Cash and carry items will be available to use as gifts for the holiday season. Custom orders also will be taken.

Check out the website lighted pathway candles to see the scent list and all the different sizes available.  Bring a friend or two to receive extra free gifts. RSVP to lightedpathwaycandles@gmail.com or 616-889-1952. What a great way to sit back and relax, enjoy some good food and fellowship, and have a chance to finish up your shopping. Start thinking about your favorite scent

What: Lighted Pathway Candle "Mystery Host" open house
Where: 3078 143rd Ave, Burnips
When: Monday, Dec. 10th
Time: 7:00 - 8:30 pm

See you there!

November is Adoption month!

It is a wonderful feeling to be a part of adoption month. Each year the month of november adoption is celebrated. What a wonderful feeling of being part of that. While we still wait for the call to come our thoughts go out each day to each and every child out there that is "waiting" to be part of a forever family. We have been blessed beyond imagination with this journey that we have been on. I encourage you to be a part of blessing someone in the adoption process.

A quick update on our puzzle progress. We are 1/3 of the way. Thank you all for each piece that you have sponsored. Our hope is to be able to say we have completed the puzzle by the beginning of December. Why, you ask? Two reasons. One is that we have the kindle fire giveaway to bless one of our sponsors with. What a great gift to be able to give in time for christmas. Second is by having the puzzle done we can get it framed and it can be part of our holiday celebrations. While we think and pray everyday for the child that is out there waiting to be part of our "forever family" a visual reminder to be able to hang on the wall would be a great blessing.

Here is a current photo:

In the update today we were able to add the baby elephant to the puzzle. The giraffe is wondering how long it will take for him to come to the party. Will you help us finish up? On the right side bar is a donation link thru paypal. You can donate there, or email us for a mailing address if preferred.

Puzzle update.......

Our family has been working on the puzzle these last couple weeks. We have been very blessed with the "piece sponsors" that have been happening. I have an update picture of the work in progress.

If you have been following along you know that for every 2 pieces you sponsor you will be entered once into the drawing for a Kindle Fire!!! As a result of the generous sponsoring we are offering a "deal" for the next 10 days. In the next 10 days for each and every piece sponsored we will enter you into the drawing for the Kindle Fire!  Get yours today and take advantage of the special 10 day offer. The flamingos and elephants are waiting patiently to be added to the picture. Will you add them?



On to the next question that has been asked often.......

Where are you in the adoption process??? We are still in the "waiting" pool. We entered the wait pool in April 2012 and just need to learn how to sit back and be patient for the day that God has chosen to show us who He will be blessing us with. Some days are easier than others but we take each day as it comes. We were informed it would be 12-18 months before we would be getting close to a referral. We are hoping that in the year 2013 we will either be blessed by having him/her in our arms or at least have a picture of our blessing. There is only one that knows how it will play out and we need to sit back and wait for His time of reveal to us.

For now we take each day as it comes........ and hope for the future.

Puzzle construction has begun

A quick update on the puzzle progress. We have begun the building of the puzzle that will be placed in our little ones room. Get your piece of the puzzle today and be a part of this journey. When you sponsor 2 pieces you will be entered into the Kindle Fire drawing. What a great christmas gift that will be.

For more information on how you can be part of this journey email me at jewels2journey@gmail.com. Lets see how many more pieces we can add by Oct 1st.

Sponsor a puzzle piece…….

 Fall weather for us “Michiganders” is quickly approaching. School is back in session, the weather is cooling off a touch, gardens and canning is slowly finishing up. Time to start thinking of fall activities and gatherings. Hard to start thinking Christmas but I know many of you are already. The Christmas decorations our out in many stores already.

With more “inside” time our family has taken on a puzzle project that we would love to have you help us with. We had found an African Safari “At the waters edge” puzzle.

At the Waters Edge

It is a 1500 piece puzzle that when put together will be framed and placed in our childs bedroom as a reminder of his/her heritage.  We are asking you to join us with making this puzzle. How? You ask. By sponsoring a puzzle piece.  We are asking for a sponsorship of $5 donation per piece of the puzzle. When you sponsor a piece of the puzzle we will place your name on the back of the puzzle piece. As pieces are sponsored the puzzle will be constructed. When all pieces are sponsored the puzzle will be framed with glass on both sides. Our child will be able to see the picture of his/her heritage on the front and each and every person that helped bring him/her into our family on the back. You will forever be a part of our childs life! How awesome is that?

With 2 pieces sponsored we have added a bonus giveaway!!

A Kindle Fire!!!!

You will be entered into a giveaway of a Kindle Fire when you sponsor two pieces. What a great Christmas gift idea! By sponsoring 2 puzzle pieces three things happen: 1) you are entered for a chance to win the Kindle Fire, 2) Your name is placed on 2 puzzle pieces, 3) You become a forever piece of our childs journey to our home. Sponsor today!

Sponsorship donations can be done online thru paypal (on the right side bar), you can mail the sponsorship direct to us, or feel free to give it direct to us personally. The address for mailing donations is 3078 143^rd Ave, Dorr, MI 49323. Checks payable to: Chad Smit.

Sponsor today and be the first corner to be constructed?

Check back for updates on the progress of the puzzle.....

Summer is rolling along

It has been a while since I posted. Many different things have been going on. Over the last month we have another official driver in our household. Courtney turned 16 in June and has been out testing her abilities to find new places she wants to go. She also had a wonderful opportunity to go on a mission trip with the youth group to the Crow Indian reservation in Montana. While we had the hot 100 degree days here in Michigan she also had them in Montana. What a wonderful experience to be able to venture out and lend a hand.

While she was packing up to leave we held our "garage sale fundraising events". We had a great opportunity to meet several different families and share many stories. The 4 day sale at the house was possible only because of the piles and piles of wonderful items donated by many of you. Thank You!! Preparation was taxing but the end result was worth every minute. At the close of the event we were able to pass along the donated items to another family that is walking thru a journey vary similar to ours. Your blessings will continue to bless many others.

Following the home garage sale we switched gears and did a "garage sale" day at Sandy Pines Resort. (thank you to Scott, Mindy, Bob and Sandy). That day was a little different. We went with baked good items. Yum! Cinnamon Rolls, Sticky Buns, Jumbo Muffins for breakfast and then moving on to Chili Dogs, Chips, and Chocolate for lunch. Once again Chad won hearts with his homemade chili. Another great day of sharing our journey with friends. With both events we were blessed with many stories.

We took a short break from work over the 4th of July holiday. Days at the beach were priceless when the temps reached 100 degrees. Those of you that live in Michigan, when was the last time the water of Lake Michigan was warm in early July? Very refreshing to dip into the water. As we get back into the "routine" of summer life we settle back into the daily grind. We have partnered up with Lifesong for Orphans. They are a referred organization from Bethany Christian Services to help with fundraising for Orphans from many different countries. They have stepped up beside us to offer a place for those that feel a tug from God to help us raise the needed funds to complete our journey in bringing the loved one home into our family. Each and every dollar helps. Quite your heart and listen to hear if He wants you join us on this wonderful journey. If you feel the pull to help you can send donations direct to Lifesong for Orphans, P.O. Box 40, 202 N. Ford St., Gridley, IL 61744. In the memo of your check please put: Smit #2748 Adoption. By placing this in the memo it will make sure your funds will be placed in the correct account. We are looking to hold that account open till July 31. Spend time in prayer today to see what your heart tells you.

One of the many tugs on my heart comes from seeing what others are doing for all those kids in Ethiopia. In the training that we have been going thru to prepare our hearts I have watched different videos from Ethiopia. One that really brings everyday life into reality is a video of the trash dumps where many children live. Grab a kleenex and watch this video that shows life for many of the kids in Korah. Sumer went on a missionary trip with Ordinary Heroes and ended up moving her family there to help. Project 61 was started to bring kids out of the dumps and give them the opportunity to go to school and better their lives. Amazing what just one person can do. We feel blessed to be called to welcome into our home one of the many orphans in need.

Memorial Day weekend

What a great weekend this has been. Spending some time on the boat with my wonderful husband friday. Spending time friday night with our good friends sending off the now "legal" fireworks. Saturday spending time walking the pier and beach in Holland. Sunday morning worship with friends at a great place, BWC. Then on to spending time with family for dinner. Today is one more day of relaxing before the work week starts again.

This week our first "baby" finishes her segment 2 of drivers training with a road test scheduled for saturday morning. Hoping all goes well because 20 day from now she will be legal to go on her own. Where have the last 16 years gone? Still amazed that we are traveling down the journey to start over again. I can not wait to see who God has planned for us. It will be great to have a young one in our home again.

Have a great holiday. Make sure you spend time with those you love.

Garage Sale Event - June 21-23

As we settle into the "waiting" period we need to start making room for the new addition that will bless our home. As the girls got older I tried to "clean out" some of the unused items, but it never fails you always find or see things that slipped thru the cracks. We are having a garage sale event to help raise funds for our travel expenses and to also help make room for the blessed one that is being prepared for our home.

Here is a post from facebook that gives more details:
June 21 @ 9am - June 23 @ 5pm
We will be holding a garage sale event at our home in efforts of fundraising some of the travel cost for our adoption trip to Ethiopia. We are "officially" on the waiting list for a referral to come thru. We invite you to be part of this journey by donating items to the garage sale or coming to shop at the garage sale. Any donation big or small will be gladly accepted. Your prayers are much appreciated for us while we wait for God to mold us and the little one He plans to bring to our life.


We welcome any donations that you would be able to provide. You can email jewels2journey@gmail.com for details if you have items to donate.

Thank you for being part of our journey to the unknown. Together we will see what He has in store for us.

the start of the "waiting" period.....

We received an email this week that our dossier has been registered in Ethiopia so we are officially on the "waiting list". We are prepared for many months of "waiting", could be shorter or could be longer, there is only one person who knows when it will happen. We need to be patient and wait while He prepares our hearts and the precious little one for the day we can be together. What a day that will be!

As we move forward in the waiting game we got a wonderful candle order this week that we need to fill. This week / weekend we will have amazing scents flowing thru the house. On top of the candle scents there will be the baking and sugar smells. A wedding cake to be done for this weekend. Just taking it one day at a time.

It you have a request for your favorite candle or have a need for a baked good item let us know and we will gladly help you out. Check out the website for candles and cakes. You can see most of the cakes that have been made on facebook. Summer is finally starting to show, mid 70's today. Let the day begin.

Good News!!!

We received good news this morning that our dossier is back from D.C. and all set to go out to Ethiopia. I am amazed each day where God is taking us and how He is preparing us. Amazing!

Here is a snippet of the email:

Good news! Your dossier is back from Washington, D.C. and has been authenticated by the Department of State and the Ethiopian Embassy. It is being sent to Ethiopia this Friday via our weekly DHL shipment. Once our team in Ethiopia receives your Dossier, they will work on the next steps of translating, authenticating, and registering your Dossier. This process typically takes about two months. - The Ethiopia Team.

I am very thankful that I do not have to do all the "translating" and "authenticating" of that BOOK I sent them. It takes amazing people from start to finish to make this happen and I am truly grateful for each and every one of them.

I can only focus on one day at a time. Today the focus is preparing for the craft show that enables us to spread the word of the amazing journey we are heading down. Come check out the craft show April 21st from 9am-1pm at Cityside Middle School in Zeeland. I will have jewelry, candles, and of course chocolate there. Come take a look!

Easter Weekend

What an amazing Easter weekend!!! So many good things happened, where do I start???

Friday Chad and I went to get the final "great seals" needed for our dossier packet. All copies are made, packaged up, and ready to be delivered Monday to Bethany's office. What a great feeling of relief. All you who have been down this road already know what a relief it is. I had no idea that sooooo much paperwork would be needed to travel down this journey we are on. We can now focus on preparing for our travels so when the time comes for us to bring our little one home we will be ready. The journey continues.....

Friday after all the "official" work was done we met with Smart Choice Market about placing a candle display unit in their store. They are a new health food store in Byron Center. He was kind and let us place a display unit for our Lighted Pathway Candles. This is a great place for you to stop in to see the actual candles and smell some of the current scents. While you are there check out many of the great organic and natural grocery items. They have fresh produce, frozen items, gluten free, vegan, and many more items.

Friday was a great day! If you are interested in putting a display unit in your office or other location let us know and we will gladly work it out with you. A simple way to earn free items or extra cash.

That brings us to Saturday. We traveled to Andrews University in Berrien Springs to see the live Easter Passion Play with some family and friends. What a great experience. The annual Easter Passion Play is an interactive indoor and outdoor walk-through experience for the entire family, depicting the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This was our first time to see the event. We would highly suggest you to look into it for next year. We will plan to attend again. After the play our family went to a local park to have a picnic and fellowship time with friends. Another great day to the weekend.

That brings us to Easter Sunday. Nothing tops a great weekend better than an awesome Easter Sunday service at our home church BWC (Burnips Wesleyan Church, for those of you unaware of BWC). Wonderful music from the praise band (a guitar player and singer from our family, Chad and Courtney) along with a great message with friends. Started the morning off to a great start, nothing better. Lunch with family members. The young ones get to collect Easter eggs outside and crack them open to see what surprise is hiding inside. Let the naps begin. We can all use it.

It hard to believe the weekend is ending already. The girls have been off school all week for spring break. They will be up bright and early for the new week to begin. Back to work and school, "normal life" continues. 

What a beautiful day

Not very often is it the middle of march that you can enjoy the day outside in shorts and a t-shirt. What a beautiful day! After the normal household chores we all got a chance to head outside to soak up some sun. Golf cart ride around the "big" town. It is good to be able to be outside and enjoy the sun.

T-shirt and shorts weather is starting already. We have a great place for you to spruce up your collection of t-shirts and help a great cause all in one. Check out adoption bug to see some cool choices for the whole family. There are sizes to fit the little ones, children, and adults. We all have our favorite one and have put them to good use already. You can order direct thru adoption bug and they will handle all the payment information and ship them direct to you. If you would rather be part of a group order let me know and I will add you to the order so we can all save a little on the shipping.

2 steps forward....

After the small set back we are moving forward again. Last friday we had our fingerprints done and also made our first stop at the secretary of states office for the "great seal" on a set of paperwork. It feels good to be able to say those papers are done! Just waiting to be put with the rest of the stack to go out in the dossier.

The weirdest thing happened when we were at the secretary of states office. After signing in and sitting down to wait for our turn we had a lady come up and call me by name! What? How did she know my name? Turns out she was there for the very same thing. They were getting their paper stack sealed and are also heading to Ethiopia. After sitting there and talking with them it clear that we were both there at the same time because of one reason. God made both our schedules in the morning turn out so that we would both be in the same room at the same time. We had been running a few errands before that stop and she had small delays at home that morning with her children, but yet we both walked in within a couple minutes of each other. How awesome is that? Didn't plan on meeting someone that is traveling down the same journey as we are that morning. Each day still amazes me.

On another note, I have the most amazing husband! This week we are able to share his great creations with the world wide web. He has put his mind and heart into creating candles to be sold as a fundraising opportunity for our journey. Lightedpathwaycandles.com has gone "live" to the www. Check out the great creations he has made. http://lightedpathwaycandles.com/ They are awesome hand made and hand poured natural soy candles. We have them in two different size jars and many different scents. We are able to ship them anywhere in the US or you are welcome to pick them up from us at any time. They are great gift ideas or just something to make your house smell like you have been slaving all day. Blueberry Cobbler? Smells like a fresh dessert is waiting for you with out the work involved. Awesome! If you have any special requests email us and we will gladly help you.

A great week, spring may be here. The weather is wonderful and I can't wait to be able to be outside.

Small set back in the adoption world

Anyone one that has gone thru the adoption process knows that things happen. We have never gone down this road before so this is all new to us. We have a small set back in the paperwork process. From what I have read in other stories this is known to happen. So one step back and two forward we go.

I have been putting paperwork together for our dossier hoping to have it all ready by our fingerprint date. Found out that almost all of it needs to be redone. I am thankful that I have found out now rather than after it was all sent in. I can regroup and get back to work on getting it done. Anyone out there a notary, that would love to help us on our journey?

One step back but two steps forward. Candles are in the making. I have an extremely talented hubby that is jumping into a whole new world of candle making. For any of you that know him well know that when he puts his mind to anything great things will come. Stay tuned for the "unveil" in the days to come.

Saving addiction T-shirt giveaway

Savingaddiction.com is running a t-shirt giveaway on their site. Check out the wonderful savings site for everyday needs. The site is Always Free!! Follow along and save on many things. Two wonderful girls who have helped many people many ways.

Here is a link to their site with the giveaway. Enter today
http://www.savingaddiction.com/?p=22402

T-shirts are wonderful !!!

Chad and I ordered a couple t-shirts and we received them this week!! They are great, very nicely printed, great quality t-shirts. Shipping is priced very low. I would love to see which ones are your favorites. Leave a comment and let us know which design is your favorite.

I will be placing another order soon for the girls, they saw ours and picked their favorites. If you are interested in ordering one with us let me know and I will put a larger order together. Saving on shipping is always a bonus! Send me an email at jewels2journey@gmail.com and I will get the order put in.

Thank you for keeping our journey in your prayers!

T-shirt fundraiser

We have an exciting opportunity for you to join in our journey. We are looking for help in raising funds for the travel cost of our journey. We have joined in with Adoption Bug to make t-shirts available to spread the word of our adoption. You can be a part just by purchasing a t-shirt direct from them and a percentage of the sales go straight into our adoption fund account. It is a blessing to see the different ways many people join together in helping everyone out.

There is a link on the side of our blog page. You can click right on the picture and it will take you to their site. We have 6 different shirt options that we receive fund from. Take a look and let me know what you think. You are more than welcome to share the link with any of your friends and family. Just pass on this link www.adoptionbug.com/smitfamilyadoption and it will go direct to our family fundraising page.

You can also follow along on our jewelry items on our facebook page http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Jewels2journey/216410108408854

Thank you for being a special part of our journey.

Starting the waiting game......

The game of "hurry up and wait" has began. Today we sent a paperwork package off to get an immigration approval. Having never done this before I am really not sure of what to expect. I have read that it can be weeks before we get an answer back, then more weeks before we can get a fingerprint appointment. Other places I have read said to make sure you have every "i" dotted and "t" crossed, or be prepared to wait some more. Fingers are crossed that when it gets there everything will be good to go. Now the wait will begin.....