We are LIVE!

Our website is up and running! If it is not, please let us know!

We were so blessed to work with a web designer who was patient, generous and creative! Thanks to our friends Shelley & Austin for hooking us up with him!  So if you are an avid blog reader and feel moved to forward our web address around to well... ANYONE... that would be most appreciated! We also have the hard copy of the letter which we will be sending out to what is called "our network." Again, if you have ideas of where we can send it, let us know!! It is such a huge relief to be at the end of phase 2... let us hope for a less tedious phase 3!

www.rasera-holden.net

Soleil turns 3!

Or so we think!! We named Soleils "official" day of birth April 23rd because when we began to foster her on Sept. 23, 2005 she was believed to be about 5 months old.  As we will never really know the story of her first 5 months, we have had endless stories to share about the last 2.5 years of knowing  & loving her. When she looks at us, we know that she knows we are her mom & dad  and we also know that who ever her "biological" parents were they must have had  the following qualities: determination, sensitivity, protectiveness, warmth, loving, snugglers, persistence, endurance, agility, playfulness, affection for squirrels, birds, flying bugs & wood, intelligence, friendly to most beings unless carrying a loud , unenvironmentally friendly piece of yard machinery & most special quality... the ability to heal both self & others.

SO the fact that we didn't know her from the very  start doesn't matter one bit as we have reaped the benefit of knowing so much more about her and receiving the inspiration she brings us every day even when things feel really challenging or impossible. Soleil reminds us that love has very little to do with biology.

Letter out!

I can't believe it has taken me all weekend to write this great news! Our 1st 100 letters went out through the agency on Friday!  Thanks to my awesome cousin Jacie, pictures got glued on and Wally and I signed till the pen ran out and then I drove them out to the agency  on Friday afternoon. I didn't expect their response to be that it would go into circulation that day! I was a little stunned after the 4 month  paperwork project.  Nonetheless it was such a relief to let go of that part  and go about our ridiculously busy lives  for a few days! 

Now we are working with our web designer to finish the site. HOPEFULLY that can happen by Friday. It is crazy when I think about how often in the past months we have come home from our jobs and continued to work on  the job of adoption! I do think it is making us more efficient (oddly) in our time and CERTAINLY a clear reminder of how important this whole venture is for us. 

printing accomplished!

We have 250 letters ready to be signed and get the main photo glued on to each one. my goal before I sleep tonight is to do this  (or at least 100) so that I can take them to the agency tomorrow afternoon. Otherwise, we will be delayed till next week. Website is looking good and almost finished. yeah!

Finally...

We are approved for real this time!

Wally needs to fix one typo  and then  we print A LOT of copies!

Well, the printer does! Progress at last!  Phase 3 here we come!

Can we print yet?

STILL waiting for FINAL approval from the agency to do the mass print of our letter. The waiting right now for this one step to happen feels like forever. We are getting so close to being in "the book" and yet still have so much to do. I met with a web designer today (thanks to our wonderful friend Shelley ) and it felt productive. I think I am frustrated because so much of this process is dependent on the talent, time and willingness of other people, including Wally who spent hours upon hours designing our beautiful letter. We think it is beautiful! Hopefully others will agree, and most especially we hope that a special woman will connect to what we have carefully written and shared and trust us enough to parent her child.