Beach Weather

Yesterday, it was even hotter (at least 92 degrees) so we took the boys to a nearby beach. We weren't sure that the water would be warm enough to play in, but I think the air was so warm that even that cold water felt great. The boys sure had a good time! I think this is going to be one long, hot summer. I guess it'll make the temps in Africa less of a shock (if we ever get there...)

Seriously?

From snow to sprinkler in 15 days...only in WI!

On May 8th, our boys wanted to play in the freshly fallen snow from the night before. Chris and I were completely un-thrilled with the new snow, so we let the boys call our good friend (and children's pastor), Preston, to see if he wanted to have a snowball fight with them. He was out and about, so he stopped over to play with the kids in the snow. We watched from inside wondering if this made us bad parents. We have since decided that this made us smart parents--we still let our kids have fun in the snow (in May), but we didn't have to get cold or wet to make sure they had that opportunity. Thanks Preston!!!


Today, May 23rd, it was like 85 degrees and 100% humidity (rare for us ever, unheard of in May). I took the boys out for a walk which just produced a lot of sweat, so when we got home, they played in the sprinkler--just 15 days after having a snowball fight in the same backyard. Crazy!

Babies

Some great friends came to visit last weekend and brought their baby with them. Gavin, as usual, was enamored with the baby--but who could blame him? Liam is seriously cute!

No great news to report on our baby (now 6 months old), but we did learn that our case should be submitted to the Ethiopian courts in about two weeks and we will be assigned a court date sometime after that. We're still hoping and praying for July, of course. For now, we're just working on fundraising to help pay for that second trip. Our garage is quickly filling up with items donated by great friends who want to help out.

The sale will be the first weekend in June--wish us luck! Think we can make about $9000???

Adoption Thoughts

As long as I can remember, I have always wanted to adopt. I remember being in college and seeing commercials for special needs and older kids that needed to be adopted and I would try to figure out if it was feasible for me to adopt them. I was thrilled when Chris told me he was open to adoption--I wouldn't have married him if he hadn't been open to it. Adopting was not an option for me, it was THE option. When we decided to become parents, we went about it in a rather unconventional way and decided to do foster care to adopt. Of course, we all know how that turned out...it didn't result in adoption, but I ended up pregnant twice in the middle of all that and I now have 4 boys in my heart (side note: Roth will be 16 in July, which is crazy!).

Last spring, Chris and I decided it was time to dive head first into adoption again, hoping for different results this time around. We decided to go a completely different route to help guarantee different results. Eventually, we settled on Ethiopia, breezed through our paperwork and were approved. Waiting, waiting, waiting...a year later and we have a little girl thousands of miles away just waiting for us to come and get her and you'd think I would be in my glory realizing that my dream should shortly be a reality. Instead, I keep playing this saga out in my mind.

This could be a royal disaster. We have to fly to Ethiopia twice now and something could happen to us leaving our boys without parents. Financially, this is tapping every resource we have and putting all future dreams on further hold. I keep hearing attachment nightmares from other adoptive parents that are honestly scaring me a little bit. This shouldn't scare me, I mean we parented a kid who had reactive attachment disorder for 2 1/2 years and we still have a real connection with him--though different from the one I have with my other kids, it's real. I can handle smaller attachment issues with my hands tied behind my back after all we went through with Roth and Dera. Or can I? I'm older, I'm definitely more tired--I've loved and lost two children, I have been pregnant twice and have two terribly busy little boys that will be affected by this adoption, Chris and I rarely see one another and parenting is done in shifts rather than as a team, really. I'm not saying that I want to back down from this challenge, but I can definitely see, for the first time in my life, why adoption is not for everyone. I also understand why other adoptive parents tell us that they are proud of us for embarking on this journey. It takes a lot of courage, an abundance of patience and a really incredible support team. I have two of the three...this one might finally teach that patience God has been trying to beat into my head for almost 32 years. Maybe...

Just my thoughts for the day. If you have ever given a thought to adoption, make sure you pray about it a lot and let God lead. This is one adventure that is not to be entered into lightly.

We're good

Sometimes it just takes a bit of time to process all the information we're taking in regarding this adoption. We've processed the latest information and we're fine...at least for today!

I looks like we will not have to wait the predicted 3-4 months for a court date because we were already so far along in the process when the changes came, but there are no guarantees. We are hoping, and praying, for a court date sometime in July since the courts often close for all of August and September due to rainy season--if we don't get a July court date, it'll be more like a 5 month wait for court.

Please pray with us that we would have peace to just let this process run it's course. We know that we will have her home at some point and that we will have our daughter months sooner than if we had stuck with our old agency. So, really not all that bad when you get some perspective. Still, it's easy to get caught up in the details and to let the discouraging news that keeps coming get the best of us.

At this point, our ideal situation has been completely done away with, so plan, um, maybe k (way past a & b) would be that we get a court date in July--which we will have to travel for--and that we will then be able to pick up our baby in September sometime. Fingers crossed!

Then again...

We just found out it'll be 3-4 months before we have a court date. Of course, that's right in the middle of rainy season and they just close courts for weeks during rainy season, so it could be October before we have court and then another 2-3 months before we can bring her home. I honestly don't know what to say to that.

AHHHHHHH!

What a difference a day makes! Yesterday morning, we got fingerprinted so that we could get approved for a visa to bring our little girl home. Getting this approval typically takes at least a week, sometimes up to six. Under this new 2-trip policy, our agency has to have our approval before they can schedule us a court date. So, I called the visa approval office and while we were on the phone, they got our fingerprints, approved them and faxed us the approval. I'm still in shock. I faxed the approval to our agency, so hopefully we'll have our court date very soon. It's looking like we'll get to meet our little girl in June! As much as I still dread leaving our boys twice and having to leave her after meeting her, at least it feels like something has finally gone right. If we have to go twice, I just want to embrace the change and get this show on the road. Let's get this traveling over with and get on with life! (Thanks, mom, for listening to me and helping me change my attitude around. I could not do this without you.)

Also, I had a great meeting with a friend today who told me about a couple of great adoption grants and is willing to help us run a fund raiser. God will provide, I am certain.

Traveling twice

Well, it's official, we will be going to Ethiopia twice. It sucks and as much as I try to think of the positives, I just keep thinking about leaving Gavin and Reily behind twice and then meeting this precious little girl and having to leave her behind. In the end, it will all be fine, but getting to the end is going to be very tough. Let the fund raising begin, I guess! We've got to come up with that extra $9000 that we weren't planning on somehow. Let me know if you have any great ideas for that. Please pray for safe travels. I am nervous to leave our boys behind, twice now.

It's been a strange day...

Well, today some others from our agency heard that they will for sure only be traveling to Ethiopia once and we didn't hear that. Since today is the true cut-off, I'm guessing that means we will be traveling twice. Of course, we don't know this for sure, but it's feeling less and less likely that we'll get away with one trip. On the plus side, this likely means we will be meeting our daughter as early as June. On the down side, this means we will have to meet her and then leave her for 1-3 months before we can bring her home, we will have to leave the boys twice, AND we have to come up with about $9000 more. Yikes, hopefully God will just drop that in our laps! Overall, I'm not feeling too down or overwhelmed by this. It is what it is and we don't really know for sure yet, so I guess we're technically still waiting to find out, it just isn't looking so promising anymore.

Additionally, it is stinkin' May 7 and we are getting snow. Not just a little bit of snow that will be gone in an hour, but SNOW! Here are some pictures that I just took to prove it. This is one of those...you know you're a Wisconsinite when...moments.

My poor patio furniture
I love that bright green grass under the tree

Looks like all the flowers on the ground will come out okay--they're covered by the tree

I don't know that the blossoms on the crab apple tree will be so lucky

What a strange day! Gavin asked me if it was Christmas again.

You Know You're An Adoptive Parent When . . .

I'm totally stealing this from someone else's adoption blog. I LOVE IT! My personal thoughts are in orange.

You Know You're An Adoptive Parent When . . .
1. The fact that there are 143 million children without a parent to kiss them goodnight has made you lose sleep. (It feels so inadequate to help only one...for now!)
2. You realize DNA has nothing to do with love and family. (Lucky for me)
3. You can't watch Adoption Stories on TLC without sobbing. (Not so much sobbing, but definitely getting emotional which is kind of rare for me. Well, it used to be rare)
4. The fact that, if 7% of Christians adopted 1 child there would be no orphans in the world, is convicting to you. (I don't know if this is true or not, but if it is, let's get moving people! 7% could correct this issue? Seriously, let's get moving!)
5. You spend free time surfing blogs about families who have experienced the blessing of adoption. (Pretty much 3-4 evenings a week after the kids are in bed. How do you think I found this list?)
6. It drives you crazy when people ask you about adopted child's "real" parents. (Drives me nuts when people ask about my "real" parents, too. Biological is the word--or birth--leave "real" out of it)
7. You have ever been "pregnant" with your adoptive child longer than it takes an elephant to give birth.(2 years!) (2 years, try 6!)
8. You had no idea how you would afford to adopt but stepped out in faith anyway, knowing where God calls you He will provide. (Here's hoping...and believing)
9. You have ever taken an airplane ride half-way around the worldwith a child you just met. (Hopefully in the next few months, this is exactly what we'll be doing)
10. You believe God's heart is for adoption. (100%--again, lucky for me)
11. You realize that welcoming a child into your heart and family is one of the most important legacies you could ever leave on this earth. (Welcoming them into my heart, family and introducing them to the Lord, of course)
12. You know what the word "Dossier" means, and you can actually pronounce it! (And use a different word for all those out there that have no idea what it means = paperwork)
13. You have welcomed a social worker into the most private parts of your life. (Serious invasion of privacy, but we love ours)
14. You shudder when people say your child is so lucky that you adopted them, knowing full well you are the blessed one to have him or her in your life. (This one even bugs Chris, so you know it's bad)
-Author unknown