"Thank you" just doesn't seem like enough.

What a day!!! I don't know if you can tell from this picture (I'm not so good with photography), but the quantity and quality of donations for the Yard Sale was completely OVERWHELMING!!! I think all of us were shocked, excited and at least a little terrified on Thursday morning when the car loads and subsequent boxes just kept on coming. Since my words won't adequately communicate the emotions I've felt the past 72 hours, I'll just share some of the moments I'll always treasure from the last few days:

• Thursday morning a new friend mentioned that a few weeks ago she had driven her child's crib, bedding, rug, etc. to a consignment shop, got there, and just couldn't sell it. She didn't know why, but she turned around and took it home. Then when she heard about our adoption she thought perhaps we might need a crib and offered it to us! What a gift! I'd SO much rather get to use a friend's crib and bedding than get our own! And, can you believe that the adorable pattern for the bedding is African animals? When she was offering it to me her eyes started brimming with tears, and then mine did, and then both of ours started spilling down our faces a bit. What a sweet moment for both of us. I can't wait to see our child in that crib. Later that morning another new friend offered us her Britax carseat since we'll be needing two now. The thoughtfulness and generosity of these friends is remarkable.
• On Thursday morning I walked in the room where the donations were located for our "how are we going to organize all this stuff" meeting, and the number of gifts took my breath away. One member of the church MADE a beatiful crib blanket for a baby just for the yard sale. One person donated furniture--multiple pieces--she'd worked so hard on, that could get LOTS of money if she sold it to a consignment shop or on craigslist, but instead she wanted to donate it for us. The crazy thing, though, was that a few minutes after I walked into the room where the unbelievable number of donations were located, I found out that NONE of the (about 20) people there had unloaded their cars yet. Everything in there had been brought in advance by other people at the church. People we've never met. People we probably never will meet. All graciously giving their treasures for the sake of another. How beautiful is that?!
• I need to mention my friend Kelly Blanchard who was the grand organizer of this whole thing. Kelly's been a good friend since our first year in Richmond and she's such a gift to me. We were in the same Bible study years ago and I've always felt a special bond with her. She has a huge heart for adoption, in part because her younger brother was adopted. She's been so supportive and encouraging throughout this process, and months ago she asked if she could do something for us...and this AMAZING Yard sale is the fruit of her creativity and organization. I'm so excited to walk life with Kelly, to have her be an "auntie" to our kids, to have her seek me out to know whether we're adjusting okay or not... just to have her around. Thanks so much friend.
• Upon hearing about the proceeds of the Yard Sale going to an international adoption, complete strangers hugged me, wished me well, (without me being around) decided not to ask for change or wrote a check to donate money on top of their purchases, told stories about people they know who have adopted, etc. I LOVE how events like this can make what could be a transactional experience transformational, encouraging and relational.
• 2 of my friends not in the Bible study asked if they could somehow participate in helping. Alisa brought us a CAR FULL of great items...most of which went quickly at the sale. And then she showed up and bought some things too! Chrissy came to the pricing party to help us organize everything, brought some donations and made Peanut Butter pie (yum) for the bake sale. I'm continually amazed at the wonderful people God has surrounded us with and these two friends are clear examples.
• A newer friend, Sarah Birckhead, gave TONS of time, creativity and organization to this weekend's events. I think she was there from start to finish (7-10 on Friday night) and 6:30 am-2 pm on Saturday. She was faithfully present, cheerful and generous in every way.
• One new friend has a 3 month old, came to the pricing party on Friday night and worked until 10, then went home and baked for the bake sale until well after midnight, even though she knew that sleep is never a promise with a newborn. Then she showed up in the morning with her baked goods and cheery self to help out.
• Longest distance traveled to come to our Yard Sale goes to my cousin Eric and his wife Elim who came from OKLAHOMA. Okay so they were already on their way to Virginia Beach. Minor detail :). But they still were exhausted from lots of driving and hung out for an hour! They're so great!
• My friend Carly came and watched Lucy for a bunch of the Yard Sale so Hunter and I could talk to people and help out. What I should say is that Carly came to the Yard Sale, probably planning for a 15 minute stop-in, and she quickly identified that watching Lucy would be a big help. So she stayed for an hour and a half just to play with her. She's such a dear, kindhearted, selfless friend.
• I won't mention any names, but someone I met only a few months ago JOYFULLY wrote a $500 check for us. I'm SO thankful for this financial gift, but I am FLOORED and overwhelmed with joy and gratitude at what God must be doing in someone's heart to make them do something like that. I feel freed to give up more of my "treasures", more of what I hold tightly because of this act of love and generosity.
• Okay, since some of you are probably curious, these friends raised a grand total of $2,056.67 through this yard sale. GOODNESS GRACIOUS! Can you believe it?! I was totally shocked, overwhelmed and delighted. I'm so thankful for this financial provision and I'm excited to get creative about how to best use half of the resources for the orphanage. Let me know if you have any ideas! Towards the end of the adoption process we'll be in touch with the Sisters at the orphanage and will know some of the needs they have, but I'd love it if people can help us with ideas!
• It didn't rain a single DROP from 6 am to 2 pm and about 10 minutes after we cleared out the last bit of leftovers (sending them to an amazing ministry another woman in our Bible study participates in) it started POURING. I'm so thankful God made such a beautiful day in Richmond today.
• As wonderful as today was for our family, it was even more wonderful for our friends the Greers who arrived in Rwanda to meet their son, Myles, for the first time. Please check it out, you'll be touched: http://www.milestomyles.blogspot.com/. I asked Laurel to squeeze every single kid in the orphanage telling them how deeply loved they are. These two events coinciding (the Greers in Rwanda and the Yard Sale today) makes our adoption feel so much more real and so much closer. Likely they're meeting our child this week, though we won't know it for a while. Sigh. Here's a picture of Myles laughing during their first visit, but you can check out more on their blog:

I could keep going and going because there really are so many amazing people and stories from today, but I'll stop since I need to get some sleep.

Here are some other pictures from the last few days. I'm so thankful to everyone who played a part in making this day so meaningful and precious for our family--everyone who donated items, time, baked DELICIOUS goodies for the bake sale, came to buy things, etc. It really feels somehow like our child is a little closer now. Thank you for being a part of that.

The DeVriendts and Passmores:



Lucy and Cadence in the adorable chair a friend remade:


Just a few of the baby items we had:

Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church, where it was located:

A few of the AMAZING women who pulled this thing off so spectacularly!:

The Wijesooriyas and Avulas!

Our long travelers!