There is a new photo in my house! I have known for a while, but have not mentioned it here because I have been waiting for more photos and information to pass on. But nothing new seems to be happening and I am too excited to wait anymore to announce this newest addition to our family. Dennis and Abby have been matched up with a 5 month old boy from Korea. They have named him Gabriel. Do-Hun is the name his foster family is calling him, so Dennis and Abby decided to keep his Korean name as his middle name. So we wait and wait...as we have done for almost a year since they began the process, for the processing of paperwork, passport and all that is needed to make him fully ours. Hopefully, if all goes as planned, they will be able to travel to Korea and bring him home sometime before Christmas.

An update on the other grandchild that I have on the way. Jessi is 7 months along now. They know it is a boy, but they have NO IDEA what to name him. Dennis and Abby were able to come up with a name for Gabriel in just a couple of days...but Jessi and Ariel...no way! They seem to have a language/cultural thing going on...like the names he likes...us guys in the states would not be able to pronounce or would just laugh at, then she suggests her favorites and he can't pronounce them. I keep asking her if they have come up with ANYTHING, she has assured me that somehow, they will have a name for him before he leaves the hospital. None of the names I keep suggesting are successful...now WHAT is wrong with Vic?

As with the paperwork for Gabriel, so we have been waiting almost a year for the visa to come through for Ariel to travel with her back to the Oregon to have the baby. Her doctor says she has to travel no later than the middle of September. As the date nears and no progress that we can see with the final phase of the visa, I finally have contacted our state Senator Merkley. His office is helping to expedite his visa. They are not automatically granting it, but because of the conditions, they have requested doctors papers to help speed along the process in hopes that Ariel will be able to get his appointment to the US Embassy for his interview and be granted the visa to travel with her.

So around here, between Gabriel, 'BabyBoy', and Ariel's visa, we have been saying a lot of prayers for healthy babies, and speedy paperwork done to get visas and passports and all that is needed to get these 3 guys home to us!

I'm sure you must think that I am going to have all kinds of interesting things to say about why I have not posted anything for the last couple of weeks. Sorry to disappoint you...nada. Of course I would LOVE to say that I have been off on some island soaking up the sun, dipping into the cool ocean to refresh myself after a day of hiking into the jungle to take pictures of breath-taking waterfalls and trying to learn the native language so I could play with the little children before lounging beside the pool with my island drink topped with a little umbrella and a hunk of pineapple...no, none of that, in fact, all last week, the sun didn't even show up around here until late afternoon, no little kids to talk to in any language, and the only refreshing drinks I've had are the iced americanos I have made myself, with no little umbrella. But it has not been because of boredom that I have not taken time to write. I have been sorting, and cleaning and dusting, and scrubbing and tossing and organizing. I have gone through every room, every closet, every drawer, there is not a cobweb, the floors are sparkling, the carpets are cleaned, and I put new shelf paper in the cupboards, curtains washed, the oven cleaned, I tore apart and scrubbed the inside of the refrigerator and sorted out the filing cabinet. I don't think my house has EVER been so clean and organized EVER, EVER! So now, I can sit back with nothing left to do and enjoy my americano...and guess what? While I was sorting, I found myself one of those cute little umbrellas...sure makes the americano taste better!

Last week, I was asked to take part in something with the Red Cross that I have not done before. A few weeks ago, a 57 year old fisherman/camper went missing. After being a week overdue and looking for him their own, the family finally reported him missing. They knew where his camp was, found all his things in order, nothing looked like foul play, and so the search began. The Red Cross is providing food and refreshments to the searchers. We have a small crew going up each day to make sandwiches and set out snacks and water for everyone. I have had the training to be a part of it, but never taken the opportunity. So, on Thursday, I hopped in my car and drove up the Clackamas River...and drove...and drove and drove...miles, I could not believe it as I kept on driving. Almost 60 miles 1 way. I could have ridden up with the others in the Chapter van, but I would have had to go 45 minutes in the opposite direction to just turn around and pass my place to get out to the scene. It was a beautiful drive, I even stopped twice and took some pictures. It is so hard to imagine that such a beautiful place could be the same place that is causing so much pain for this family. One look at the terrain and you can see why they are having such a hard time finding this man. It was interesting to see what goes on from the inside of one of these searches. I watched and listened as the man in charge of it gave the morning briefing. I can't believe that by their detective work, they even know what he ate the last time he ate in camp, they know about what he is carrying and how much snacks and water he took along with him. People were calling in tips to the Tip Line and the sheriffs were responding to those calls on the spot, taking notes, returning calls and sending searchers to those areas. We even had a clairvoyant walk into camp with her husband, an elderly woman who had spoken to the sheriff the day before, I guess, he had not given her the response she wanted, so she marched herself into the camp and demanded to be listened to. According to her, she was in contact with the missing man and knew exactly where he was, she described his clothing, told us he had a broken leg and was hungry and giving up. She told us all kinds of things about this man. When I left, she was talking to the sheriff still. Actually, I was glad to be going, it was kinda creepy. The other two Red Cross guys I was working with said that she has been on one of the late night shows, like David Letterman because she also is an Animal Whisperer, and has given tips to the police many times about other missing person cases. As of this morning's report, he has still not been found.