God Sets the Lonely into Families

We. Got. A. Referral!

Last Wednesday I received a call from our case manager asking if I had a few minutes to talk. My first thought was is this more bad news or is this a referral. She then said, "I want to talk to you about a little boy." I said, "I want you to! Talk to me!"

And now our journey has taken a new turn---a wonderful new turn!
He is precious! His eyes are really big and BROWN! I've seen those eyes a thousand times before and now I can look at them and the face that goes with them.

He's little and young---much younger than we thought he'd be. We were sure we'd get a toddler, but NOPE he's a baby.

So we're digging out our cloth diapers and all the baby clothes we packed away! Yay!

The process now is to wait for his second medicals which have been ordered by our agency. We are told that this can take a few weeks to a few months, so PRAY, PRAY, PRAY that it happens quickly.
Our case CANNOT be submitted to court until we receive these second medicals.
After we receive his second medicals our case is submitted to court and then we wait for a court date which is when we'll travel the first time.
We think this might be sometime in October.

He's a precious boy and we feel so blessed to have this opportunity. We know God is in control and we pray that His will is done.
There are a lot of things going on in Ethiopia now that could or could not affect international adoption in a negative way.
Please pray that God would keep Ethiopia open and protect international adoption.
Adoption is war!
Also, we are not allowed to email or post any pictures of our boy. We are happy to show a picture of him in person, so don't hesitate to ask us!

We've also decided that how he became an orphan is his story and we've committed to not share it. I know we always wonder about people's situations, but we feel that it's his to tell and if at some point in his life he chooses to share it, then he can and if not, then we'll have allowed him that.

Just rest in knowing that God is mindful of even the littlest people!

Thank you all for your support and prayers and for walking this journey with us!
We can't wait to bring him home and introduce him to you all!!

Slooooooow

Slow.
That's how I would describe our wait for a referral. Very slow. Every week we get an update from our agency and it seems that more things keep happening in Ethiopia to slow things down even more.
I won't list all the things that have happened, except for the most recent which is the sudden death of the Prime Minister of Ethiopia.
This is big (or so our agency is telling us).
We have been asked to pray for the stability of Ethiopia and to pray that policies concerning inter country adoption aren't negatively influenced.

Many people ask about our adoption and we feel so loved when they do. We are encouraged that people are praying for us and truly interested in our journey.

We are coming up on one year on the waiting list for a referral. This means that it's been one year since our paperwork (a.k.a. dossier) arrived in Ethiopia.

We know that God is faithful and He can work through all the issues and seeming turmoil.
If we're honest...(and I usually am honest) it feels like we may never get a referral. These are the feelings and thoughts we fight.
We know satan wants us to believe that it's pointless and that we should give up. Maybe he's convinced you of that too. Maybe he's trying to tell you that there's no point to adopt, that the wait is too long.
But he is a dirty liar.
We will continue to wait. We will continue to trust.
BUT... We are asking you to join us in praying for a referral.
Not because it makes us happy
Not because it's what we want
Because John Owen has a brother half way across the world
Because we have a son half way across the world
Because a little boy is waiting for his family to be able to come and get him.

Pray, pray, pray and then pray some more. (please)

Brown Eyes

John Owen has brown eyes--medium chocolate if you will. I believe our next son will have brown eyes too! I find myself looking at every dark-skinned, brown-eyed child wondering "Will my son look like that?" "Will his hair curl like that?" It's a nice feeling, not an agonizing one. It means we're close to a referral and by close I mean I really have no idea when we'll get one.
At the end of May we will have been waiting exactly nine months for a referral. How funny would it be if we got one then?
I hope we get one soon and believe that it could be. Things have picked up some in Ethiopia and it seems that referrals are trickling in more frequently.
 But...if we must wait another nine months, then we know that is what is best because God does what is best.
That will give me more time to imagine what he looks like, smells like, feels like.
We have toyed with a few names, but will hold off sharing until we've gotten that referral.
God has so graciously blessed us during this process. He has confirmed again and again that we are doing what He has called us to do.
Thank you for your continued prayers.
If you'd like to pray specifically, then pray that the hearts of the government officials and orphanage officials will be softened and that the many children who are waiting to be released for referral will be released.

In the meantime, if you're looking for a good book or two to read, I have some suggestions. (Imagine that!)
First, Kisses from Katie. It's excellent and will hopefully light a fire under you for the orphaned and hurting in the world.
Next is Generous Justice. It too is excellent and will hopefully do to you what it did to me--reveal some blind spots in my own life concerning the poor and underprivileged.

Sorry for not posting regularly...I really have no excuse except that I've been reading a lot and keeping up with my almost three year old son--John Owen.

We're Five Months

Waiting that is.
We've been on the referral list for five months now.
February 27th will be one year since we started our adoption process.
One year!
It honestly doesn't feel like a year.
These past five months since our adoption dossier was sent to Ethiopia have seemed longer.
I guess because ALL we have to do is WAIT.
What? (That's what I think sometimes...just wait.)
We get these little email updates from our agency that tell us every week that we are "on the cusp" of things really picking up in Ethiopia.
So, I guess we're waiting "on the cusp" to become "the real deal."

In the meantime...
I've written our D-Now curriculum, read a lot of books, bopped around with the one and only John Owen Thurman, picked up the nasty habit of running and now.... wait for it....
I'm making a quilt.
Hard to believe, I know, that I'd sew something to pass the time.
But I am and I'll post pictures so you can pass the time with me.

(In all honesty though, we're hoping to not just pass the time, but to really get what God is showing us.)

I attend Bible Study Fellowship on Wednesdays and my group leader commented to me that she appreciated my honesty and transparency.
This is not the first time that someone has said something like that to me. (Shocking, I know.)
But it made me think, "Is that unusual? Should I be different?"
Then I surmised that it's just a lot easier for me to be open and honest even if sometimes it's a little uncomfortable.

So, here's an open and honest truth...I really, really, really, really, really wish my sweet Ella Grace was still alive and here with me and we were waiting for a referral for little Thurman number three instead of two.

But God is Good and His Ways Are Best!!

A Referral is...

Waiting for a referral is a lot like visiting an amusement park.

Some days, you're on the Lazy River and you don't really stress over it much.

That's when you're trust in God's timing is at an all-time high.

Other days, you're on Diamondback, except you never get off and you just keep going over that huge hill and then back up again.

I'd say you're trust in God's timing is at an all-time low on those days.

A few weeks ago we received an email from our case manager telling us of a little seven month old boy in Ethiopia who was very underweight due to severe malnourishment.

He had been declined by two families already due to concerns over development.

Our case manager was emailing all of her waiting families to see who would be willing to even consider him.

We said we would...

Then she said that other families ahead of us had said they would too, so we'd see what happened.

Either we'd hear another family had accepted him or she'd refer him to us.

Of course a lot of thoughts and emotions went through our heads. Is this the boy God has chosen for us?

What does it say about us if we decline him?

It's a lot of stuff to think about and pray about.

It made me think...Am I really willing to help the "least of these"? Am I really willing to have my comfortable life made less comfortable?

We finally decided that we would definitely consider him and see how God directed us.

Several weeks went by and I began to think of how sad it was that he had probably been declined by other families.

And how thankful I was that I didn't have to be perfect for God to choose me. I didn't have to be the right weight or height.

I didn't have to have the right amount of intelligence or meet all the developmental achievements for my age group.

He just chose me.

Then...we heard that a family had accepted him!

We rejoiced (though I was a little disappointed that he wouldn't be mine) that he had found a family and would be moved to the transition home where he could receive better medical care and enough food.

And...we're back to waiting, but you know Abraham and Sarah waited a REALLY long time for their promised child, so what's a few months or a year?

Boys from Ethiopia

Last Friday, J.O. and I had a playdate in Louisville with my friend's kids. She and her husband recently brought home their little boy from Ethiopia. He's now five and a LOT of fun. I think I had as much fun as John Owen.

Here they are playing in the sandbox. I don't have a picture of John Owen throwing sand in my friend's little girl's eyes.  (He really knows how to pick up the ladies!)

My friend's son, Hooper was "helping" me take pictures of all the fun they were having.

Betcha didn't remember how much fun playing in sand could be?! They all had a great time!

Hosanna's caught on that I'm taking pictures and she isn't too sure if she wants to be photographed. This is before J.O. threw sand in her eyes.

We are still waiting for our sweet boy from Ethiopia to be home with us.

This morning as Zack prayed for us, he asked the Lord for our boy to be in our home. 

Things are not great in Ethiopia right now. I know that's easy for us to forget because it's so far away from us and it's not like it's on the news, but many people are hungry and many children are without moms and dads and the orphanages are overcrowded and understaffed and there's just not ENOUGH money.

But God is aware of all of this and He is in control.

Besides today is ONE day closer to the day when we bring our boy home! (That's something to be excited about!)

A Long Time...

It's been a while, but here goes an update.
We enjoyed Halloween with our little football player.
John Owen especially enjoyed getting so much candy.

He didn't enjoy all the walking through our neighborhood, though.

By the end of our trek through our neighborhood he had a bucket full of candy.

We missed Thanksgiving due to the stomach virus that hit all three of us.
I did set a nice table before I got sick though.

It was pretty to look at.
We also visited Santa. John Owen hates Santa and always cries, but this really does bring a lot of joy to Zack and me. We are those weird parents who enjoy the crazy reactions of our kids.

This is probably my favorite picture of J.O.  No need to worry though. As soon as the picture was snapped, he dried his tears and was his jolly (pun intended) self.

I also did a few photo shoots for some friends. I really do enjoy taking pictures of people. It's just plain fun for me.

The photos below are of some of the cutest kids around and the most fun to shoot.

Aren't they adorable?
That's part of what we've been up to.
I'll post more later so I don't overwhelm you!
We're still waiting for a referral!
Sometimes patiently, sometimes not so much, but always trusting that God's timing is
absolutely the best!