Good News, At Last!!!!

I won't do anything to keep you all in suspense...

WE GOT OUR APPOINTMENT DATE!!!

I got the call shortly after lunch today. We have an appointment with the SDA on November 7th! I can't believe that it is finally here... no more talking in generalities. We finally have something concrete to wrap our brains around. It sure feels good.

And now the planning begins...

67 Days!

Orphans of Ukraine

Zack and I believe with all our hearts that God called us to adopt, and specifically, to adopt from Ukraine. I want our friends and family to get a better feel for the plight facing the children there, so take a look at the link below – it’s a video that an adoptive mom-to-be created.

Here's the link: Orphans of Ukraine

I didn’t post this so people will tell us what a good thing we’re doing, or say how blessed our little guy will be because of our actions. I simply wanted you all to get a clearer understanding of why we feel so compelled to go. I wanted you to get an idea of what our child is experiencing right now, and what he would be faced with if he didn’t get out. We are thankful that God has us on this adventure, and we can’t wait for the radical life changes that are in store for us! While the journey is long and at times difficult, we know that God is leading us down this path and that He will be with us all along the way.

For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.
Matthew 25: 35 – 36

Happy 16th Birthday, Ukraine!

Today is Ukraine’s Independence Day.
16 years ago today they officially became an independent nation. So today they celebrate. That means no school. No work. No progress on the adoption.

But we can wait on our progress one more day, while they celebrate their progress! In just a few hours, fireworks will light up the sky. Old and young alike will attend parties, and the population will celebrate a wonderful gift: freedom. I’m thankful that these people are able to celebrate their freedom today.

"Ukraine declared independence from the U.S.S.R. on August 24, 1991, just days after the failure of a hard-line coup against Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev. In December of that year, more than 90 percent of Ukrainian voters endorsed the decision in a referendum. "
You can read the entire article here: http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2007/08/4898dbaf-35ca-4f5b-b0b5-10dc3b426fe0.html

(PS – if you didn’t already read yesterday’s post, you’ll find it just below this one. It has the lastest on the adoption.)

No News Yet

I know many of you have been checking the blog, watching for some news. The only answer we have right now is that we will have to wait a while longer before we find out our appointment date. August is a BIG travel month in Eastern Europe, so things are moving a little slower with so many people vacationing.

We should be experts on the waiting by now, but it gets frustrating sometimes. And yet, I know he will be worth every bit of waiting we have to endure!!

Right now it looks like it may still be a couple of weeks before we find out our appointment date, but we’ll post the news here as soon as we know something.

Q & A

Our friend Deanna asked a couple of questions in response to our last post. Great questions, in fact…

How quickly do they tell you the little guy will pick up English?
And what is the adjustment time for a little guy coming from his background?

There are several factors to consider with both questions, but probably the biggest will be his age. The younger he is, the more easily he should pick things up. With the age range we’ve requested it should happen very quickly. Comprehension will come first (and fast from what we’ve seen so far – Haley’s been home just over a month and I can’t get over how much she understands and responds to), then spoken language.

Another common practice is to teach your child some basic signs to help him/her transition from one language to another. Baby Einstein has a Signs DVD – has anyone seen it? We thought about buying it so he could start watching it on his way to America.

As for adjustment: in addition to his age, it will also depend on his stage of development and what kind of attention/support/contact he’s received at the orphanage. But it’s amazing to read other blogs & see how quickly their preschoolers pick up on language and adjust to their new lives. Most seem to be fairly well-adjusted within 6 months, but of course it differs from child to child.

The first couple of months will definitely be tough. We’ll need to create structure and routine for him as he starts testing his boundaries and as we strive to bond with him. We’ll also have to be cautious about social events and visits from friends & family until we determine what he can handle. Some children are quickly ready to go to big family functions and have lots of people over. Others need minimal outside contact (and even minimal books & toys) in order to become comfortable and to fully attach to mommy & daddy. Once home, only time will tell!

Thanks for the questions Deanna! Anytime anyone has a question, feel free to post them as a comment or email us. We want our friends and family to have a good understanding of this process.

Anniversary & New Friends

Today is our 6 month adoption anniversary. We've been at this adoption thing for 6 months already - I guess time flies when you're doing paperwork and waiting on answers!

Looking back on what we've done so far, it is clear that the process has afforded us positive opportunities and experiences already. It has brought each of us into a deeper relationship with God. It has taught us a lot of lessons about patience and about what really is important in life. It has allowed us to share our faith with others. And it has led us to meet new people: some who are in the process like us, and some who've already completed their adoption.

This week we met a family who has been 'there and back'. Hunter & Lauri adopted their beautiful Haley from Ukraine and got home just over a month ago. They were so kind to invite us into their home for dinner. They shared pictures, video and stories about their journey. It was good to talk and share, and it gave us the opportunity to ask questions from someone with firsthand knowledge. Perhaps the best part of the evening was interacting with their sweet little girl. It was great to see how much she is thriving in her new environment and with her family. It's amazing to think she's only been in our country for a month!

As it turns out, they live just a few miles from us, so Little Guy will have a Ukrainian friend when he gets home! Thanks to Hunter, Lauri, and Haley for sharing with us. Zack & I really appreciate your time and your kindness. New friends - just one more great benefit of this life-changing journey!

Please pray for God's continued blessings on this sweet family. And please continue to be in prayer for our approval & travel date. As I mentioned in my last post, we've been told that we will most likely hear something late next week.

Lucky 13?

Today (August 13) is the 20th business day in our waiting process. So there is a chance that we could hear something today, but at the least we think we’ll get our much-anticipated news sometime this week.

Please keep us in your prayers as we anxiously await the official word that we’ve been approved, as well as when we’ll be traveling to bring home our Little Guy!

UPDATE at 2:20 PM: Well, it looks like next week is our new “target” for getting an answer (approval/travel dates) from SDA. We’ll keep you all posted as things continue to develop!

My Dream

My dream wasn’t to be pregnant.
My vision wasn’t of me wearing maternity clothes and “ooh-ing” and “aah-ing” over newborn clothes.
I never longed to go through the birth process.
I never sought comfort in having a crib in the room down the hall.

Instead, my dream is to wear the hat of cheerleader, chef, housekeeper, chauffer, referee, nurse, and general multi-tasker.
I long to put our child(ren) to bed, read him a story, sing him a song, and tuck him in.
I want to tell him to dream big and always try his best.
I need to sit on the sidelines and cheer him on as he plays football, basketball, or whatever sports he enjoys.
I look forward to nights of being frazzled and exhausted, realizing that I didn’t get half the things done that I intended to, but happy knowing that I spent time with him instead.
I dream of teaching him new things, watching him learn, and taking him new places.
Our firsts won’t be about teeth or steps. Instead, we will beam the first time he calls us Mom & Dad, the first time he sees the ocean, the first time he tells us what he learned in Sunday School, the first time he says ‘I love you’.
I long to fix his boo-boos, calm his fears, and wipe away tears.
I look forward to helping him with homework that I don’t understand either.
I can’t wait to tickle him and hug him, and remind him over and over that I love him.

My dream isn’t to have a baby…
My dream is to be a Mom.
And my dream will soon come true!

We are NOT settling. This isn’t a last resort. Our prayer all along has been that God would allow us to be parents. And I believe with all my heart that He will soon do just that.

This is the path that God led us down, so that we will find the child that we were meant to love, protect, and raise. We intentionally did NOT explore every avenue possible to get pregnant, because God showed us that He had something different planned for us.

Our worth doesn’t come from a child looking like us or getting our genes (in some ways he’s probably better without them!). No, it comes from knowing that we are exactly where God wants us to be, seeking His guidance, and bringing up a child who will know that he is loved by his Mom & Dad, and more importantly by a God who will always be with him.

So please don’t think of pitying us or feeling sorry for us. Be happy for us, and rejoice in our upcoming arrival. We are beyond excited. We are anxious and can hardly contain ourselves as we look towards our future as parents.