One BUSY Month

Christmas has always been one of my favorite holidays. I love to decorate the house, bake lots of yummy deserts, make up gift bags for the nursing home where my grandma lives and watch the Christmas specials on TV with the kids.
I knew this year would be a little different. We were not sure if we would get a "date" to travel from Colombia so not much at all in the decorating department. Did not want to leave all the packing up and putting away to someone else if we were gone nor did I want to have to do it once we return with new siblings!! We knew gift giving would be VERY small since we are saving every little bit for the adoptions. We also did not get a chance to watch ANY specials together as a family because either some of the kids were out caroling with the church or practicing their Christmas programs at church and school or out shoveling in the neighborhood for extra money to come with us (Roc) on one of our journeys. So needless to say, a VERY BUSY month.

But something very special happened to the Fritz farm over the last 4 weeks. Something that brings tears to my eyes then and now when I look back at it all! How do we thank friends, coworker and from people we just met for the first time? How does one put into words the impact these people have had on our family, just a normal family? I'm not sure. But this post will be part of it. It will be long. It will be from the heart. It will be a small way for us to thank ALL of you that helped make this a special Christmas and a VERY special memory. A story to tell our soon to be new Fritz's of how all of you helped them to come home.The first week in December our friends Kit and Ken asked us to come over for a little Christmas get together. Just the 4 adults, no kids! Ken had made tons of horsdoeuvres and had spent time making it look wonderful!!! I was hoping my Ken took notes, but I don't think so :( LOL! We talked about their Thanksgiving and how they had 20 some people over. How some of their guests started talking about seeing Lica and our story on TV. Well one of their guest said that they wanted to do something for us so she told Kit to buy a HUGE tub of dishwasher detergent which Kit presented to me?! Okay...... That was nice, I thought. I wish I could use it, but as Kit knew already, my dishwasher was kind of on its last legs and we have been doing dishes by hand. I mean she was close to 15 years old, which is great for a dishwasher but none the less, not doing the job any longer. So as the four of us were joking about if we could use the detergent as regular dish soap, Kit and Ken handed us a folder full of papers. They said that they were giving us our Christmas present early. You guessed it, a new dishwasher!!!! It was going to be delivered in 5 days and they were going to take our old one when they brought the new one. I say that because Ken and I are ones that do all that sort of thing ourselves. I mean who wants to pay to have someone deliver and take our old things? I must say though, It was WONDERFUL to have that extra service. I really kind of liked it!!! The kids were beyond ecstatic, it meant no more washing by hand! I told them that when I was a kid my sister and I had to wash dishes by hand. Kaylee, without missing a beat, reminded me that we didn't have 10 kids in my family!!! hahahaha!!! True, very true!

Next, we received a call from our agency telling us that their was a family wanting to help another family with their adoption and if they could recommend one. They recommended us! Our agency told this family about us and then gave them the link to watch Lica and our family that was shown on the news a few weeks earlier. The family watched it and then wanted to know if they could meet us. Of course they could meet us and the kids! I LOVE it when folks want to meet my kids! We got in contact with this family and they were wondering if they could bring their three kids and also their best friends who are in the process of their first adoption from the Philippines along with their 13 year old. Sure, bring them with too!!! Then their best friends brought a friend and we had around 10 guests, now friends, enjoying each others company! They loved on our kids, talked about adoption, orphans, school, jobs, animals and just a a great time. They brought us a HUGE gift basket full of crackers, cheese, olives and of course, what the kids spotted right away, COOKIES! Then before they left they asked if they could pray, pray for our family. I can honestly say that in my life time I have never had someone ask to pray for my family specifically! It felt so good!!! A kitchen full of people praying for us, for our adoption, health and wisdom. Never will I forget it or the peace and happiness it brought to me! That night alone would have been enough! But there was more. Ken told me once they left that he had talked with Mr. Jacobsen, Peter, about how they wanted to help pay our debt off that we owed to our agency!!! And that is just what they did! $7,000.00 to pay our agency leaving a $0.00 balance!!!!! Our agency is now paid in FULL!!!!! Things like this just do not happen to us! I read about it on other blogs but they just do not happen to us. I guess they do now!!! How blessed are we to have this happen!!

Oh, it does not stop here. One late afternoon there was a knock on our door with a young lady. She started talking with Roc but Roc soon was yelling for me to get down there. It was someone living in Cottage Grove with the organization "Moms Club". They donate every year to places and were looking for a family this year. Rebecca saw Licas story on WCCO TV and knew she had found her/their family to help this year. With all that was going on in the past view days my emotions were a little raw and all I could do once she told me was to grab her and hug her. I don't think I let go of this poor women for a while! I just kept saying thank you, thank you with tears in my eyes. She asked us to make up a list of things the kids would like as well as mom and tata. And mom and tata REALLY wanted diapers, wipes and kids body wash!!!! A few weeks later Rebecca, Milissa and Michelle, all from the "Moms Club", dropped off presents for our family along with a huge box of oranges and apples and bags of candy for each kiddo! The kids had a blast! After pictures were taken the kids made a human chain to pass the gifts up to our tiny little Christmas tree this year!

We had a few days to enjoy the gifts under our tree before we moved them all a block away to Kit and Kens house where we celebrated Christmas with them and their two kids on the 23rd. It was also Charley's birthday so we had to have birthday cake first!

We had one more stop to make. Grandpas house. 2 1/2 hours away! So on the 24th after the Christmas programs, we loaded TWO cars up with gifts from my coworkers, kids and 3 dogs, we don't all fit in one, and headed over the river and through the woods, literally!!!! Grandpa, my dad, built his home himself and its not very big! It is only a two bedroom home. So we had 3 adults, 10 kids, four dogs and a partridge in a pear tree all inside! We all had so much fun though. We go up north to dads every holiday. Then when we get home we appreciate our 5 bedroom soooooo much more!!!!!

Between my coworkers picking my family for the "armfull of love" campaign and "the moms club" choosing us for their family, Ken and I could take all the money we would have spent on Christmas for all 10 kids and put it towards the adoption of our three newest Fritz's!!!!! And that is just what we did.

Thank you all so much for everything!