One Year Ago Today and a June/July Giveaway!

One year ago today, we got an e-mail from Kelly that ended up changing our lives:

Hi Jenna, I've been thinking about you. I got an email from a yahoo group that said a number of New Day's kids are on the shared list right now and still waiting for their families. 

One of those kids is Evan.

I went directly to New Day's site to find a picture, and this was the one I printed to show Scot:

I remember it all like it was yesterday:

•  swapping endless calls with Kelly to help us find "Evan" on the list
•  no cell reception at my parent's place where we went to swim
• trying to find a cardiologist at 3:30 on a Friday afternoon
• trying to reach my agency at 3:30 on a Friday afternoon  in the summer
• finally finding his file, but not locking it because of our fears 
• getting an e-mail early the next morning to say his file was mysteriously no longer there
• headed to the cape the next day for a family reunion after talking to Kelly who assured me his file disappaearing between 8PM on a Friday night in July and 6AM the next morning made no sense 
• no cell reception at my aunt's house either  
• walking into the family reunion an immediately being asked by my aunt if we had any word about a new member of the family yet
• my heart sinking at the question 
• Kelly's call (even without reception) to say that his file WAS still there (she had kept looking while we couldn't)
• finally calling our agency Monday morning to lock "Evan's" file
• just 5 short (LONG) days later, accepting the referral of a beautiful boy named Xin Hailiang, who is now our Cooper
• Kelly celebrating with me over the phone in the Walgreen's parking lot 

While it all seems like just yesterday, it also seems like a lifetime ago. 

I have said this before, but it bears repeating: without Kelly's e-mail, we might have missed Cooper. We are so thankful for Kelly and her willingness to listen to God's promptings to e-mail us- we are so incredibly blessed because of what she did every single day when Cooper laughs, smiles, kisses us, acts goofy, says something silly, and just generally charms our socks off and makes us stand in awe of all that God can do in a year. 

And what He can do with one person whose heart is tuned into His voice.

So, to mark this day and especially to honor Kelly, I'm giving away TWO beautiful pieces of jewelry from her newest venture, an Etsy site called The Nest.

The Nest is Kelly's Etsy site that sells beautiful jewelry made by a woman in Kenya (read the amazing story here) and all the proceeds to to The Sparrow Fund, another one of Kelly's projects designed to bless other families in the adoption process by helping with the cost of medical reviews.

So, if you'd like to win one of these beautiful pieces of jewelry, all you have to do is head on over to The Nest, check out the options, and leave a comment here telling me which one you like best.  This one is my favorite:

Because I COMPLETELY neglected to give anything away in June, there will be TWO winners this month. Each winner will be able to pick their favorite item from The Nest as their prize! :) The giveaway will end at midnight on Wednesday, July 13th. 


Why Wednesday? Well, that's the day last year we said "Yes" to being part of the story God was already writing with "Evan's" life and he became Cooper Hailiang Hardy.


Winners will be announced on Thursday, July 14th! (Ok, I'll be honest, it might be the 15th, because Thursday is a nightmare for me! :) )

This is added fun right now because my sister is IN Kenya.....I'm TOTALLY buying her some of this jewelry for Christmas. I think she'll love it! 


So, tomorrow, we head off for another "Cousin's Club" (all my cousins, aunt, uncles on my dad's side) reunion at my Aunt's house on the cape. But, this time, we'll be showing up WITH Cooper. 

What a difference one year and one person can make! 


Thanks, Kelly! :)