7 o'clock

We have had many late nights working on paperwork since we got our referral. Today I was exhausted & took a break from it to catch up on some work. After lunch, I got a second wind after I spoke to our homestudy agency & found out that our addendum had already been forwarded to USCIS (Dept of Homeland Security) & AGCI (our agency). I immediately called the UPS Store to find out what time we had to have our stuff there in order to make sure it could be overnighted to AGCI. The magic time was 7 o'clock! We busted it & got the last of it completed. We made it to the UPS Store shortly before 6:45! Woohoo...I was so excited to seal that package & have it all out of my hands (paperwork AND photo album, stickers, blanket, & bear for our princess)! Hoping to get word from Kate tomorrow that we did it all right! Now, I'm ready to hit the sack (& dream about my girl)! Good night!!!

Papa Johns

When I heard the mail come today, I rushed out to see if the addendum to our homestudy (for the age change) had arrived. It was not there, but there was the sweetest card with a $60 Papa Johns giftcard from someone who is very special to us! Wow...wasn't that thoughtful! She loves my boys, & I'm sure she didn't want them to miss any more meals or have to eat burnt Rice-a-Roni! God knows just what you need when you need it! What a blessing! I know He is taking care of us & going to provide for all of our other needs, as well!

Burned Rice-a-Roni

Things are such a whirl-wind in our household! This week has been nuts (but in a good way, of course)! The poor boys are so excited about their sister but are getting pretty neglected. Here was their lovely lunch today...burned Rice-a-Roni! This is proof to all my friends & neighbors who think I cook my family a good, nutritious meal 3 times a day that I am not superwoman!!! I told you so but oh, are we having fun celebrating our referral!!! Her picture is already everywhere, all over the house! We are so blessed!

Amazing

Earlier today, something reminded me about a piece of paper that I have carried in my Bible for the past 17 years or so. It was a date page from a calendar from the day that I surrendered my life to the call of Christ. I had been a Christian for years, but it was the day that I said, "Lord, however you want to use me & my circumstances, I give it ALL to you". I didn't know the whole plan of what God had for me (nor do I at this point :-) ), but I did know that it had to do with the orphans of the world. Well, I just looked at that page & you would never believe the date! June 23rd--the same date as our referral! Read below the verse & quote for the day. Goose Bumps!!!!

"I will not forget you. See, I have engraved you on

the palms of my hands..." Isaiah 49:15, 16 In those nail-scarred hands we see

the evidence of his love, the assurance that we are his family forever.

Referral!!!!

Yes, that's right! We got a referral!!!! We got the call Monday evening for an adorable 4 year old. We are joining the "slightly outside of our parameters" club. She just turned 4 less than a month ago, & our stated parameters were 0-3 years old. We are thrilled! She is absolutely adorable! Since she is slightly older, we wanted to take some time to pray & seek God's will. Having done that, we have been given an overwhelming peace & are so excited. She seems like a perfect fit for our family! More details to come, but I will say now that she is part Asian! Who would have thought that we would end up finding our daughter of Asian descent in Africa!!! It is so neat to see a glimpse of where God was taking us when we began our journey in an Asian adoption & ended up in Africa with an Ethiopian-Asian! God is so good! Kate is overnighting our acceptance information, so we can get started on moving forward with the process! Praise the Lord!

Reminders from God

Here's a list of things God has been reminding me of lately (in no particular order):

1. Others go through some of the same emotional stages of the adoption process that I've been going through & I'm not crazy!

One of my blog buddies mentioned a post where someone discussed the various emotional stages of the adoption process (similar to Kubler-Ross' grief cycle). It was so good to know that there are other's who can identify with the same feelings I've been dealing with. I have always wanted to help a child through International adoption, but a few weeks ago I started feeling selfish for spending all this money to bring a child into our home. I began thinking about how it would be better to help the people where they are without removing a child from their birth country. If you are familiar with the post, I was tiltering between stages 4-8. Honestly, it scared me to be having those feelings at this point in the process b/c I thought we had dealt with these things before officially beginning our adoption. Now I have made it through this time of questioning (& to stage 9), and I am determined that now is our time to help a specific child by bringing a daughter into our family. However, this will not be the end of our journey. We will strive to bring more awareness to the needs in Africa & help in other ways for the rest of our lives.

2. "Adopting will almost certainly bring heartache & stress & suffering; just like adoption cost God the life of his Son. We dare only adopt children if we have a firm faith in the all-sufficiency of God's future grace." ~John Piper

Another feeling that I have been struggling with was fear..."What if this adoption causes major disruption in our family? What if our daughter one day wishes that she wasn't adopted into a family that looks so much different than herself & doesn't want anything to do with us?"...Then, another blog buddy shared John Piper's "Reflections on Being Adopted by God & Adopting Children". It was just what I needed hear! He was not putting earthly adoption on the same level as Jesus dying on the cross so that we could be adopted by God the Father, but He used the story of the cross & God's adoption of us as His children to illustrate several important truths about adoption. The bottom line for me...Yes, there will be heartache & hard times, but God's grace is sufficient for whatever we will face & it will ALL be for His glory!

3. "Armor up in the armor of God to stand against the enemy."

This was the theme for the boys this week at VBS. What a good reminder for us parents, as well. There is an enemy who wants us to distract us from God's purpose & work in our lives. We must stay in His word, stand in faith, walk in His ways & rest in His peace! This is so true in the adoption process! There are so many ups & downs & twists & turns, so many ways for Satan to gain ground. We have to stand firm & guard against His attack & stay focused on the purpose (which leads to #4 on my list of lessons).

4. All of this is for God & for His glory!

When the world & Satan tries to tell us it's not worth it or we're being selfish or whatever the lie may be, we have to remember that we are God's children & on His mission. All of our days, we are to live to proclaim that He has made the way. There is urgency in our lives. We have to live every second of every day as if it matters b/c it is all that matters.. the Gospel of His love for the world!

Popcorn

We are a popcorn loving family (especially me & C). We eat A LOT of popcorn! We were so excited to learn that popcorn is a part of an important Ethiopian tradition, the Coffee Ceremony. The Coffee Ceremony is a mark of friendship, where Ethiopians celebrate friendship by roasting, brewing, & drinking coffee together. They often eat popcorn during the Coffee Ceremony! Fun stuff!

Ouch!

Today we had our travel medical appointment. N had to get 4 shots & I had to get 5. N was so brave & didn't pass out (LOL! He has a thing with passing out when he gets shots!). My list of things to get done before we get a referral is getting very short! Woohoo!

4 Weeks

Today marks 4 weeks of being on the waiting list! We are in the midst of a big heat wave, so the only way to enjoy the outdoors is with water! Here are our silly boys & one of their best neighborhood buddies. We definately need some more girls around here! We are having the best summer ever, but we sure wish our daughter was here with us!

27

Well, the much anticipated call came. We are, indeed, #27 on the girl list (just as my calculations had indicated). It was actually a little anti-climatic, but that's my fault for playing the numbers game. Kate didn't have our toddler number calculated but made a note for next month to figure it for me. I'm okay with that b/c I figure my guess is pretty close to correct there, as well. I'm still feeling very "okay" with the wait. The little bump last week with the news of the suspensions got me for about 12 hours & then the peace was back. I'm excited to get a referral, but I know it's going to be awhile & I'm good with God's timing on it! He does much better at figuring things out than I do, so I'll give Him this one, as well! Lol!

My Girl

As we anxiously await our monthly call from Kate with our number, I have changed my cell phone ring for Kate to "My Girl" (I copied my blog buddy, Michelle, on this one...thanks, Michelle!!). Can't wait to hear my phone ring with that song!!! Hopefully today...

New Numbers Soon & Update

We should be getting our updated numbers very soon! We can't wait to see where we are officially! We have learned a little more about the situation with the suspended referrals & we feel much better about the situation. I still feel very confident in the stability of the courts in Ethiopia. The situation seems to be one where they are working to see that the high standards of transparency & ethics are maintained. The suspensions have actually reminded me that investigations of the sorts are part of what's missing in current Vietnamese adoption system that needs more safeguards. My prayers & thoughts are still with families who are facing the delays & the people who working diligently to advocate on behalf of the families & children.

Hannah's Hope Ethiopia

Thought I would share a glimpse into Hannah's Hope Ethiopia,

the orphanage where our daughter will be while she waits for us!

This is road from the Union Hotel (where we will stay while in ET)

to Hannah's Hope. We cannot wait to walk this road!

Gates similar to these are seen through out Addis Ababa (the capitol of ET).

However, this one is very special b/c behind this gate is a refuge of God's love

for orphaned children. We cannot wait to walk through this gate & meet our daughter! Hannah's Hope Ethiopia