I've thought about how to start this week's newsletter too many times. Every version somehow turned into a novel, and the truth is this has probably been the busiest week we've had in years (and that's saying a lot).

Honestly... probably since we were preparing for (and then living through) our last trip to South Africa.

So I'm going to try to keep in short & sweet since time is fleeting and somewhere behind me are still tons of boxes that refuse to unpack themselves & even more that needs to get packed into storage back at home.

It's funny how life has a way of cramming an entire season into a single week.

Last week, I enjoyed a few days solo with the girls at our home away from home in Massanutten and got it ready for about 6 months without a visit from the whole family, plus watched Lowina finish up her first ever summer horse camp.

I'll be the next one to head back to the mountains for another women's retreat with SheWolf, our Wild Women Fall Retreat, and I could not be more excited for that!

While we were in the mountains, John held down the fort solo and rushed to prep as much as he could at home including tons of outdoor work, rearranging all of our storage areas at the house and meeting with our outdoor cleaning & maintenance team that will be supporting us while we're traveling.

Friday came and we headed back home.

Then on Saturday after lots of hugs & cuddles with John, we picked up the camper, marveled over its fresh paint job (especially me since I didn't have to do it!), pulled into our first campground, and started moving in.

Not visiting. Not camping for the weekend. Moving in.

It still feels strange to write those words.

The past few days have been a blur of packing & hauling bins, organizing & reorganizing cabinets, figuring out where everything belongs, and running back and forth to the house.

There's still plenty left to do.

Our "junk drawer" somehow multiplied into six different baskets. I'm fairly certain we've asked each other, "Where did you put the scissors? The measuring tape? The screwdriver?" at least twenty times each.

It's messy. It's overwhelming. It's exciting.

And somehow... it already feels like home.

Not because everything is full or unpacked (it definitely isn't), but because home has never really been about square footage.

It's about who's inside.

Then this morning, we got the email we've been waiting for.

Our South African adoption agency officially submitted our paperwork to the government for our Article 17. If you've been following our adoption journey, you'll know this is one of the biggest milestones yet.

The Article 17 is what officially recognizes our match with Indy, and it's a huge step toward becoming a family of five. There's even a chance we can start communicating with her at that point.

The current estimate is about 6–8 months for approval, followed by another 6–9 months before we'd travel to South Africa to finally meet her. But if there's one thing adoption has taught us, it's that timelines are just that... timelines.

Sometimes they're shorter. Often they're longer. Almost never are they predictable.

So we're celebrating today's progress while holding tomorrow with open hands because one step closer is still closer.

Now I'm writing this from our big little home on wheels while our house is getting ready to welcome its first Airbnb guests in one week, our girls are already talking about our first campground (and meeting up with some of our besties for a birthday celebration!), and halfway across the world, another piece of paperwork has moved us one step closer to bringing our daughter home.

It's amazing how quickly life can change.

Next week's newsletter will (hopefully) be from a fully unpacked camper with minimal projects left to do.

No promises about knowing where the scissors are, though.

Thanks for riding along with us this week, and for letting our travels inspire your own. Your next adventure is closer than you think.🤍

Until the next stop,

The Wagner Family