A day in the life...

Want to know what a day in the life of waiting for a referral is like? Glad you do, because I'm in the mood to give ya a glimpse. 

Here's the deal.  I'm not gonna lie, the waits tough at times, and there are people who've been waiting much longer than us.  We're about to end our 6th month waiting.  6 months... if we were pregnant at the 6th month mark, I'd assume we'd feel a lot like we do now.  We'd be getting a room ready for the babe, we'd be dreaming of the day when we'd get to meet our child face to face, but the difference is..we have no due date, we have some estimations-but really, we have no idea.  That parts kind of fun-not. You see, I'm a bit of a planner...I like to know schedules and routines.  I can be flexible-if it fits in with the schedule ;) 

We are truly on an adventure, it's one of many twists and turns, laughs (you should HEAR the conversations that go on in our house.  Things we've learned in the last year that I NEVER thought we'd be just chatting it up about) and some tears.  But you know, it's all good.  Because HE knows, and HIS plans a perfect. So I give you, a day in the life.

-Awake. We're on the west coast and our agency is on the east coast...so they're 3 hours ahead. I check some blogs, Facebook, the yahoo groups and see if anyone has gotten a referral.  If they have, I LOVE waking up Justin and telling him-I live vicariously through this wonderful community of adoption. 

- During the day I get emails from fellow families along in the journey.  These emails range from a variety of different topics.  I like reading them, sometimes they're from people who have gone before us and have some great info, sometimes it's from families who have just started and need advice on what paperwork gets sent where (we ALL know how awesome the paper chase can be..not) 

-Some day's I debate emailing our family coordinator hoping for some info

-Some days I sit and think about a women on the other side of the world...someone who will forever be connected to us. I wonder what she's doing. Is she safe? Is she scared? I pray for her all the time.

-Once it's about 2pm here, I know we won't hear from our agency...and that's okay. It's just another day down.

-We end our day usually talking about the little guy. What he might be doing, if he's even born, what his mom or dad are doing. Things like that.

God's been more than gracious to us this far. I have a feeling (actually I know) He's just getting started. 

Now wasn't that exciting?! Just another day in the life! 

Paid in full...

$25,000

That's how much God has brought to our adoption fund

It's paid in full
Yesterday we got a donation for exactly what we needed to cover our estimated costs. 

I wish I had some profound thing to say, but literally... I'm speechless. 

It's been almost a year since we announced our plans to adopt

Our lives have been rocked to say the least

God has taught us SO much in this last year, and we're still learning

We're learning sacrifice

We're learning total dependence

We're learning to live out our faith

I remember thinking back when we started, $25,000...we didn't even have $250 to fill out the application!

It's here

I remember when we decided to sell my car, I loved it, but knew we needed money to pay for our homestudy, so we sold it, and God provided. 

We've learned some pretty strict budgeting tricks this year-it's a love hate relationship. Justin and I joke that we're happy that we don't have much money, it's easier to decided how to spend it haha. 

I had a friend describe the adoption journey as if it were a race 

(ps, I don't run, hate it, tried to love it, didn't happen)

It's so true, it's like this continuous race of hills, flats, twists and turns, unexpected pains in your side, and comfortable strides.  

It's like we just ran up a hill, got our water break, and now we keep running.  

I can see the faces of those who stand with us, those who have given financially, prayed with us, people who are in this with us.

They're on the sidelines cheering us on, giving us what we need to keep running

Because we're not done running, not at all. 

We finished a major lap, a huge lap. A lap we could only finish with God's provision

We've gotten our water, now it's time to keep running...

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, ²¹ to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen

-Ephesians 3:20-21

Helpin' out

I love the community of adoption, like I've said a bazillion times before. I love some of the friends I've made along the process and the ones that I continue to meet.  Something I super love is when the body steps up and helps one another along in the process.  A fellow adoptive mama Kayla is hosting a giveaway for a super sweet couple who is adopting TWIN boys from Africa, melt my heart! Kayla and her husband's adoption story is super sweet, her little one was born in Nigeria, awesome.  Head over to Kayla's blog to enter to win an awesome giveaway that helps Natalie and her hubby bring their babies home!!! 

"My friends, adoption is redemption.  It's costly, exhausting expensive and outrageous.  Buying back lives costs so much.  When God set out to redeem us, it killed him."

-Derek Loux

Bye bye month 5!

Today marks our 5th month on the waiting list! We like to do something to celebrate the 18th of each month, even if it's something small.  Tonight, since we have youth group, we're bringing a cake and having a slice to celebrate God's faithfulness over the past 5 months, and to celebrate and welcome our 6th month of waiting! Have a high school student?? Send them our way tonight, they'll get to learn about Jesus, and have some yummy cake, it's a win win!!

Month 5, you were so hard, I won't miss you at all, but I learned a lot during our time spent with you.  

Here we go month 6!!!! 

On my soap-box...

Sometimes, I feel like I have to have it all together.  It's almost like there's this unwritten rule in adoption that you have to always be smiling, always be happy and always be positive.  

Sometimes, I'm not.

Sometimes when people ask me "how's the adoption going?"

I want to burst into tears.

Sometimes, I just want to stay home, literally to avoid answering all questions. 

Sometimes, I just want to rant and rave. 

One thing, one big thing that I've been learning though this adoption journey is how radical the  love Jesus must have been (and be) for Him to have sought me out and waited for me.  To have fought for me. To have done whatever He could to make sure that I'm in His family.

I'll be honest, this past month, last few weeks in particular, the tears have dropped many times.  My poor sweet husband usually gets the brunt of it, and he's awesome at bringing me back down, taking me back to the point and reason we started this journey.  I get on these little pity party rants, woe is me, blah blah blah. I allow myself to think I'm suffering in my situation. But the thing is, I have no idea what it means to suffer.  

I can't imagine what what God goes through (and continues to go through) as He waits for us, fights for us, as He suffered for us. 

It has to be a crazy, radical kind of love. 

"Hero's are made because they are moved.  Not in their head, but in their heart, you have to be moved in such a level that you will shed blood.  Jesus Christ was moved, 'for God so loved the world that he gave'(John 3:16)  And that son that was given suffered."

-Eric Ludy

"Do we care at the level God cares?"

-Eric Ludy

I have no idea what it means to truly suffer, but I am so thankful that God is using this adoption to teach me more about the love He has for His world and for His people.  

And I am challenged to care at the level that God cares for His people and for His world. 

...Stepping off my soapbox now 

source

Mountains Moved

Almost a year ago, we announced our decision to adopt.  

When announced our decision, we didn't even have the $250.00 application fee. 

But we knew that God was calling us, and He was calling us to move right then!

Over the past year, our faith has been tested beyond what I could imagine.  

Thinking back to our garage sale when we needed to make just $600 to cover the remaining of our USCIS fingerprints.  God saw that number, and blew our minds. That day, we made $1,967!!! 

Only God. 

We have had friends give us unexpected financial blessings, huge blessings. We've had children of friends give us their change for our baby. We've had students come to us, wanting to help however they can. 

We've been blessed by an imaginable grant from ShowHope (a resource for adoptive families)  That grant covers over what our expected travel costs are for two trips (one being coming back as a family of three :) ) Another example of God providing over what we think we need. 

Yesterday, we added up all our donations and gifts and money we've been saving...we are so close...

We are just $1,320 away from our adoption being fully funded...

I'm going to be completely transparent so you get how amazing this is

I can't believe I'm typing this for the whole world to see, but we make roughly $43,000 a year.  Half of our annual income was our projected adoption cost. 

God moved HUGE mountains this year thorough His people. You all play a part in that mountain being moved. Friends, we are so close, so so close. $1,320...I would never have thought I'd be typing that in less than a year, God provided $23,680 dollars.  

That's all Jesus.

We're praying big that our adoption will be fully funded by the year mark of our announcement.  That's about 7 weeks away.  God can do it.  Want to help us make it?! I'm booking Noonday Collection trunk shows from now until December, every penny of my commission goes to our adoption.  

Will you pray with us? God moves mountains. 

In unbelievable ways.  

To think..this was almost a year ago...

Deja Vu? Nooo, but kind of...

Remember back in April when Justin and I were featured on the Give1Save1 adoption site and you guys blessed our socks off with all your support?! Well....we have some friends that are currently the featured family! We got connected to The Anderson's though the awesome adoption community and they live about 2 hours away from us.  I love reading what they're up to, seeing where life has them.  They're also in full time youth ministry, so that's also awesome as well! Please head over to Give1Save1 and show them some love! Watch their video, you'll love it, because they're awesome. And they love Jesus, also awesome.  One thing I love that Jessa said in their video was how cool it's been to literally see people become the hands and feet of Christ through their adoption, awesome. I love the family of Christ

Go show the Anderson's some love!