A Bump in the Road

We know that the "adoption" road is sometimes filled with surprises and unexpected "bumps". We learned yesterday that the Ethiopian government has recently decided to begin implementing a new "adoption" safeguard for their orphans. They want to assure that all adoptions are carried out ethically for the orphans' sake. Another government agency, called the Central Authority, will now also have to give the go-ahead to all of our paperwork, along with the Ministry of Women's Affairs. After our paperwork clears both agencies, THEN our court petition to bring "B" home will go to the courts. Here's the heartbreaker for us...we just found out today that our original court date was set for Oct.27th, this past Monday!!! If the government had not changed its regulations, we would be traveling in November to get our little African princess! Aaahhh...it's so hard to think that we could have been traveling soon. We just want to take care of "B":) The good news is that our court date has been rescheduled for mid-December. That means we would possibly travel in early January. Please pray that our court date will actually take place at that time! We do know that God's timing is perfect, and we are trusting in Him. What else can we do? He is in control:) God determines the times set for us and the exact places where we should live...Acts 17:26. That means He will bring our daughter home when it is His time.

Wonderful surprises and pink casts!

On Saturday, I was overwhelmed as my sister & close friends had planned a "Celebration of Life" party for Hannah's Hope and our little African princess! It was absolutely wonderful to be surrounded by so many of my very favorite people all in one place!!! One of the biggest surprises was that my college roomie had driven 2.5 hours just to attend - I burst into tears when I saw her! Another big surprise was that my mom and dad came to join us! It was a great time of encouragement for me as people wrote special notes to us, brought gifts for "B" and the orphans in Ethiopia, and shared generously with us. The highlight for me was the "All God's Children Adoption" table, filled with books and literature on adoption. May God use that material to lead other families to adopt:) Thank you, thank you to all of you who played a part in the planning of the event or who attended! It truly was a fabulous celebration for which I am very thankful!

And now, about the pink cast...Sis was playing with her cousins & Dad at the park during the event and broke her wrist! I was sad for her because she would have LOVED to have been at the celebration. I met Don at the hospital. Sis was really brave. She had almost passed out on the way to the ER and Don said she asked, "Is this like the pain Laura was in?" (Our friend who is now with Jesus because of cancer). Don answered, "Yes, but worse." Sis replied, "Then I can do this." :) The drs. and staff were great. They set her arm, but had to give her an extra dose of medicine to knock her out. Coming out of her drug stupor was the VERY worse part for her...she kept asking, "What's...wrong...with...me!!!" We had a long night at the ER, but during that time we also had sweet moments together as we comforted Sis. I'm so thankful for the love that we share. Now, Sis is learning to adjust to life with "one" arm - she's doing pretty well! But, she's already looking forward to the day that the cast comes off!

Good news!!!

Should I call this good news or "God" news! The good news concerning our adoption is that there is some movement in processing the adoption documents in the Ethiopian government right now! There were 40 families from our agency, All God's Children International, who are like us...all documents in Ethiopia and just waiting for travel dates. We found out on Friday that 3 of those families have travel dates in early November, so that means things are beginning to happen!!! We are so excited about traveling to get our daughter, and know that it will be sometime this fall/winter. The anticipation is part of the adoption journey, I suppose! I know that God's timing is perfect, so I have complete confidence in Him that we will travel when He wants us to travel. Thank you to those of you who are praying for us!

The other exciting news is that some very good friends of ours are going to adopt a little girl from China!!! We spoke with them back in the spring about our adoption, shared our excitement with them and they felt compelled to pray about it for their family! We didn't realize that they were praying about it, and now they've shared their good news with us!!! We are thrilled for them and we are thankful to God for the small part that He allowed us to play in bringing this precious Chinese daughter home to her forever family! That means that our sweet African princess and this China doll can have the security and love of a family! It reminds me of Jesus' words in John 14:18..."I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you."

Perspective

We had the privilege of sharing lunch with Pastor Peyot, Sangeline and baby Pednika this week. Peyot is a pastor in his native land of Haiti. Don met him years ago on a mission trip! How wonderful it was to see him again, and to meet his wife and baby daughter! Of course, all of us, especially Sis, had fun holding Nika and playing with her! I kept imagining the fun we are going to have when we are finally able to bring "B" home:)

As we were eating together, Peyot was sharing about the poor economic and political situation in Haiti right now. It's been especially hard there because of the hurricanes - many families' crops were destroyed. Then, he told us about a time that he was unable to feed his wife and children for a week. He talked not of his hunger pains, but of the pain of watching his family suffer from hunger. As he was speaking, my mind was racing as I thought: I have so much! I've never seen my children hungry. I've never experienced this level of suffering. "B"'s mom in Ethiopia experienced this. Oh God, please help me to not become so concerned with the little irritations and inconviences in my selfish life. Please let me remember this moment. By God's grace may I get beyond myself.

A New Creation

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" II Corinthians 2:17.

Yesterday, my friend, Laura, took her final breath here on earth and now is in the very presence of Jesus!!! A stunning thought! She had been very ill with cancer, but had a tremendous amount of peace in the thought of going home. And now, she is no longer in any pain and she is COMPLETELY and FULLY alive in Jesus Christ! I can picture her warm and brilliant smile as she is worshiping God even right now!

The hard part is saying good-bye to her while we are here. She had to leave behind her loving husband, her 2 boys and her baby girl. That's where the pain is. Pure, undiluted pain. But I know that God is in the midst of the pain. He is faithful. He is the only One who can give us REAL hope. Please pray for this family. "The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." Psalm 34:18

Hiking and Waiting

We spent a beautiful fall afternoon at the state park with the kids yesterday! I like nothing better than to walk hand-in-hand with my honeybun in the stunning creation that God has given us! The trees are just beginning to turn colors, and the weather has turned cool...perfect for sweatshirts! I'm grateful for the change in seasons that reminds me of the different seasons of our lives. Right now we are patiently waiting to hear the news that we can travel to Ethiopia to bring our newest little daughter home. The Ethiopian courts reopened on October 1st and our agency told us we could get the "call" in 2-5 months. We're praying that it's sooner than later, but God's timing is perfect!!! We did get a whole disc full of new pictures of our African princess - WOW! She's such a cutie! The pics really help to encourage us as we wait. It's amazing that she's halfway around the world, but already so close to our hearts...it's truly a God thing!