Coming Home Today!

We are meeting Doris in Fayetteville at 1pm to sign paperwork. We will meet our daughter for the first time at another location sometime after that. We haven't even seen a picture of her. So excited! Just to let you know, by law, no one can hold her besides parents and grandparents for the first 10 days. This is the time when the birthmother can change her mind. According to agency regulations, no one except Randy and I and our children can even be around her for 10 days. We have to keep her inside our house and away from all people except for doctor appointments. Because Randy will be gone to Moldova during that 10-day period, I was able to get special permission from the agency for Kristin (a friend from church who has also been going through the adoption process with the same agency) to be at my house and help me with errands, caring for the children, etc. Kristin will also be coordinating any kind of help we might need. Thank you all for your love, prayers, and offers of help and support. God has greatly blessed us through you!

We said, "Yes!"

We had a very good meeting with the agency and the birthmother yesterday. We are so thankful that we were able to meet her and ask LOTS of questions. Apparently, we were the only family that expressed interest in this little girl. The other family was one that the agency thought might be interested if no one else came forward; they live somewhere out in the Midwest. The birthmother was shown our photobook while we had our meeting with Doris, then all of us met together. She said "Yes" to us being prospective adoptive parents for her daughter. About an hour after our meetings ended, Randy and I called Doris and said "Yes", too. We will most likely be bringing our daughter home within the next few days!!! Thank you for your prayers. We can't wait to bring our daughter home!

Please Pray!

We finally heard from Doris at 8:00pm. She is one busy lady! We will be meeting with her at noon tomorrow. She said that under the circumstances, our meeting will be focusing on this 5-month old baby girl, her medical condition, history, our feelings, level of preparedness for a special needs child, etc. She and Gretchen are trying to coordinate it so we can have a meeting with the birthmother, as well. Apparently, there was no meeting with her last week, so she doesn't know anything about us yet. So, we were told that we need to come with two lists of questions to ask...one for Doris and another for the birthmother. All of a sudden, it feels like things are moving VERY fast! However, this does not mean that it is close to being a done deal. Doris expressed that she wants to approach this case carefully due to the special needs of the baby. She wants to make sure that the baby's medical situation is fully understood before an adoptive family makes that "Yes" decision. I am not sure whether there is still another family interested at this point. We'll find out more about that tomorrow, too. Please be in prayer for us tomorrow between noon and 4pm. Please pray that God's direction would be clear to us and that we would approach this situation with faith and not fear.

Final Meeting Tomorrow

I called the agency this morning. I spoke with Doris, the head of the agency. We will still have our final meeting with her tomorrow, which will make us an official "waiting family" with CAS, but it sounds like we'll be able to meet with her in Fayetteville instead of Matthews(Charlotte area). Much closer! Doris and Gretchen were planning on going to Fayetteville to meet with the baby's birthfather so he could sign the papers relinquishing his parental rights. It sounds like Gretchen will meet with him while Doris meets with us. Doris was unclear about whether the birthmother had actually been shown the photobooks yet. I'm sure we'll know more tomorrow at the time of our meeting. Doris will call me later this afternoon to let me know what time we'll meet. I'll be sure to let you know!

Still waiting...

It is 4:10pm...perhaps the birthmom is given a few days to look at the books and think it over...maybe we will hear nothing until next Monday...I have no idea. I have a sinus infection. It hurts. I am going to take some Sudafed and a nap. It will make the time go by faster...

Thank you for all of your prayers my dear friends. You are a great encouragement to us!

Waiting...

I received a card in the mail yesterday with these words on the front:

Each life holds
a UNIQUE purpose-
designed by God,
fulfilled through Him,
guided by His Word.


Words of Life that have encouraged my heart today:

Psalm 143:8,10

Let the morning bring me word of Your unfailing love,
for I have put my trust in You.
Show me the way I should go,
for to You I lift up my soul.

Teach me to do Your will,
for You are my God;
may Your good Spirit
lead me on level ground.


Psalm 146:5,6,9

Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the LORD his God,

the Maker of heaven and earth,
the sea, and everything in them—
the LORD, who remains faithful forever.

The LORD watches over the alien
and sustains the fatherless and the widow...

Moving Forward

I called Gretchen at the agency this morning to let her know that we are interested in moving forward and seeing how God leads in the adoption of this 5-month old baby girl. There is one other family who is interested in adopting her. Either tomorrow (Wednesday) or Friday, Gretchen will be meeting with the birthmother and will show her two photobooks. If she chooses us, then we will have an interview with her along with Gretchen from the agency. The birthmother must let us know at the time of the interview if she accepts us. If she does, then we could probably bring our daughter home within a week or two. We feel good about the fact that there is another loving, Christian family besides our own for the birthmother to choose from. We are confident that the Lord will place this little girl in the best family for her, and that the mother's choice will ultimately be God's choice. His plan is always best and we are willing to wait for His best for us.

Adoption Opportunity

This announcement was posted on our agencies blog this morning. Please be in prayer for us as we seriously consider the 5-month old African-American baby girl. Will she be our daughter? Only our Heavenly Father knows. I called the agency this morning to get more information about this baby girl. After that, I called Randy at work to fill him in on the opportunity. He responded positively. I am over-nighting our profile book to the agency today. Randy and I plan on discussing things together tonight and seeking the Lord's face in this situation. I will let the agency know tomorrow if we want to move forward with this. There are other families who have expressed interest, as well, but all are praying and none have made any kind of commitment yet. If she is to be a part of our family, we are confident that God will direct that. If not, then we pray for a loving, stable Christian family to reach out to her and take her in as their own. Please pray with us!!!

Monday, June 14, 2010
Families needed for 2 situations
We have 2 situations currently where we are searching for adoptive families:

1. Caucasian infant, mom wants an open adoption, the mother carries the dwarfism gene and it is yet unknown if the child will carry the gene. Mother is advanced in her pregnancy. If you are interested in learning more contact Doris at the office.

2. African-American 5 month old baby girl. Mother wants a semi-open adoption (pictures, letters and updates through the agency). Child was born full term (37 weeks) and was stuck in the birth canal. She lost oxygen at birth and is said to potentially have CP. Per Duke Hospital CP cannot be diagnosed until a child is between the ages of 1-2. Please contact Gretchen at the office if you would like to learn more of this child.

If these are not the children for you then please join us in praying for these 2 precious babies to soon have a forever family to call their own. God has placed these children in our paths for a reason.

Meeting Scheduled

I called our agency this afternoon and was able to set up our meeting! We will be meeting with Doris in Matthews, NC on June 22nd at 10am. Then, we will officially be a "waiting family". Can't wait!!! :-)

A Mailbox Moment

The package arrived today! I will now stop stalking my mailbox. Here is a sneak peak for you..."It is my privilege to inform you that your Preplacement Assessment has been approved for the adoption of a female child up to 18 months of age...and approved for a child of any ethnicity...Congratulations once again on your acceptance in the domestic program, for this does represent a major step in building your family through adoption." I will be calling the agency Monday morning to give them several possible dates for a meeting with the head of the agency. Apparently, it can take awhile to hear back from them about the final date. They are really busy at the office, but I consider that to be a good thing! I really hope to have the meeting before July.

Approved!

Our homestudy went before the board at Christian Adoption Services and was approved on May 26th! :-) Now we're waiting for the package to come in the mail with our official copy of the homestudy and the acceptance letter. Once we have received that, we can set up an appointment with Doris Woodward, the head of the agency,for a final meeting in Matthews, NC. After that, we will be officially "a waiting family". Our info will be posted on the CAS website and our profile book will be shown. Yippee!