Race for the Kid

I'd like to reintroduce you to someone.

Do you remember the bag-giveaway we did in February? And do you remember our big winner, Stephanie?

That's right, the Stephanie who was so excited to learn that she had won that she shouted in the library. Yep. I'm talking about that very same girl.

Well, you see, Stephanie is doing something HUGE for us next week. It's 26.2 miles of huge.

I had the privilege of having coffee with Stephanie about a month ago. I took a picture of us that day because I wanted to tell you all about her.

Unfortunately, I lost that picture. Well, unfortunately for Stephanie I lost that picture because all I have to show you is her photo from eighth grade when she was one of my adorable little volleyballers. (And, honestly, who wants a photo from eighth grade shared on the internet?)

Okay, I apologize. Perhaps that was mean.

To make up for it, here's a photo of Stephanie and her boyfriend Daniel (also an important part of the story today) from Halloween.

I want you to see that she has grown into a beautiful young woman.
A beautiful young woman with a big, big heart.

In one week, Stephanie and Daniel are running a marathon.

It will be 26.2 miles of focus, determination, and pain. And these 26.2 miles represent months of hard work - of getting up early and giving up free time to train and prepare.

But Daniel and Stephanie are not just running this marathon to conquer an obstacle or improve their physical fitness.

Daniel and Stephanie are running this race on behalf of a six-month-old boy in Ethiopia. Before we even knew who he was, Daniel and Stephanie decided that they would run this race to help us bring our son home.

So, while they've been running their tails off, Daniel and Stephanie have also been working hard to raise money to support our adoption.

Words are inadequate to express how much this means to us. We have been loved and supported by so.many.people. Our boy is already so.loved.

I'm not sure that it's possible, but if Daniel and Stephanie listen hard enough, they might be able to hear me cheering them on from Colorado next weekend.

They have kept a blog the past few months to share about the marathon and how they decided to support our adoption. If you have a minute in the next week, will you head over there and leave a comment to let them know that you are cheering for them too? (www.raceforthekid.blogspot.com)

Whether or not you know them, I'm sure they would appreciate letting your encouraging words roll through their minds as they line up to run next Sunday. And I have no doubt that they will need to recall something positive as they finish miles 25 and 26.

Daniel and Stephanie, thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Thank you for loving us and loving our boy. And thank you for giving us such a powerful way to show him how much he was cared for from the very beginning of his life.

Run hard.

We know you can do it.