Growth... in Family and Faith

We hope you are all well! We so appreciate the role that you play in our lives and are hoping that this blog is a way to stay connected in thought and prayer, if not consistently in person… As you know, we have officially started the LONG process of adopting internationally. We are extremely excited and feel blessed to be able to share this journey with you!

Adoption has been in our hearts for years - we continually feel a tug every time we learn of children in need. We feel so blessed that God continually provides for us spiritually, emotionally, financially and relationally. We have SO much to be grateful for… and knowing that there are children without family, shelter, food, water, education, etc. overwhelms me. I want to share our family and all that we have with another child who hasn’t yet had the opportunity to experience a “forever family.”

I drew upon Ephesians 2:10 as a motivation when I created Work of Art. The verse brought me the name for the studio and also continually reminded me that God purposed that commission in my life. I am now reclaiming that verse for our current calling, because I know without a doubt that this “good thing” was planned for us long ago.  I cannot remember a time when adoption was not on my mind... maybe it started with the whole “We are the World” phase… or those Christian Children’s Fund commercials we all saw… Regardless, I truly believe it is a seed the Lord planted in my heart that has grown stronger over the years.

For we are God’s works of art. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:10

While adoption has been on my mind, I knew that it was previously not the right time. However, that changed when I left my job in June. Leading up to that point, Chad and I had been feeling like I was supposed to leave my job… but we procrastinated. Eliminating an income didn’t seem like a wise choice (can you tell I spend my days with a toddler? The phrase “wise choice” is one I draw upon frequently!). It wouldn’t allow us to save money for potentially adopting in the future… But after months of God’s prompting, we obeyed. I left my position with the intent to spend the summer with Asher and Cora, and probably return to work in the fall. However, while spending the summer 100% focused on our family, Chad & I came to the realization that THIS is the time for us to be initiating the adoption process. It doesn’t seem logical financially, but we trust God to work out that side of it. (More on that later – again, we are so blessed!)

So here we go!

International adoption is a crazy process with many risks, unknowns and changes. Everyone has a different story with a few twists and turns thrown in. We are about 4 months into the process... with absolutely no idea of a timeframe for completion. The latest timeframe that we were given was 2 weeks – 3 years. That’s easy to plan around, right?! Being that I am a process-focused, time-oriented person, I have asked the Lord to just lift any notion of time from my mind. It’s in His hands and there’s no need for me to worry about it. So don’t ask me about timeframes!

I’ve started breaking the process down into trimesters to help relate it to stages that are familiar in some way to most of us.

First Trimester – Homestudy!

We read and researched for months leading up to this point, but at this stage it felt official.  We had “conceived” an addition to our family – even though not a thing is known about the child yet. Getting together the paperwork was seriously a full time job for the month of August. Once we submitted our home study paperwork, we were interviewed, educated, observed, tested, fingerprinted, prodded, etc. for weeks. But this “trimester” has officially come to an end. We have a signed home study report supporting our decision to adopt 2 children. (Yes, we have requested a sibling set. Craziness!)

Second Trimester – USCIS Approval!

We’re in the middle of our second trimester now. The excitement of the “first trimester” has worn off and the prospect of the “third trimester” seems far off. We were approved on a “micro” level with the homestudy. But the next step is to request approval from Customers & Immigration (under the whole Homeland Security umbrella) to gain permission to bring a child into the United States. The paperwork has been submitted and now we wait… and daily ponder why the government agencies value slow processes and snail mail.

Third Trimester – Dossier!

Once we have the USCIS approval, we will send a dossier to Ethiopia. (Our adoption agency is already working on translating our dossier so that it can be submitted.) The Ethiopian government will review our information (on their own timeframe) and match us with children in one of their orphanages. Again, I’m making NO guesses on when this could possibly be. Then we will receive a “referral” and if we accept, things will start moving. Not quickly, but moving… and in the end, we’ll make 2 trips to Africa, bringing home our children on the second trip.

Whew. So that’s an overview of where we are… I could write about it for days. I have learned SO much over the last year about adoption and orphan care. It is becoming a passion point for me. But above all other lessons, I am re-learning to step out on faith and trust the Lord with where he leads me… it’s an exciting time!