Thoughts from Sophie Ayantu's dad and grandpa

Well November 30th we passed court... To give you an idea of what that was like here is Grandpa Daryl's description:

We got to court a little after 9am and went up to the 3rd floor to a waiting room. The room was about 25 x 25 feet, a few chairs around the sides and lots of people waiting. We waited for at least a half hour. While we were waiting the "lawyer" or substitute lawyer, told us he had a document from the Mati Police stating that they had tried, by posters and asking around, to find the parents of Ayantu. This might be asked for by the judge. This was to confirm that she was really abandoned and an effort was made to find the parents. No doubt the parents, or mother, was just too poor to care of a child and hoped that life in the orphanage would be better.

When we were called in, we walked into a long office that was the length of the waiting room and about 8 feet wide. I don't remember seeing anything on the walls. There were 4 chairs at the end of the room where we walked in, we stood in front of the chairs, and the judge (she looked to be in her early 40's, but really hard to tell) was behind her desk at the other end of the room. She looked up at us from her papers, without a smile, and told us we could be seated. She then began to ask Aaron a series of questions. It seemed obvious she wanted a short one word answer to the questions. The judge spoke fairly good english , rapidly, and just loud enough to be heard down the long room. She began:
'Have you been studying about Ethiopia?'
-yes
'Have you been in contact with other families adopting from Ethiopia?'
-yes
'Have you seen Ayantu?'
-yes
'Do you want to adopt Ayantu?'
-yes!
'Do you know the adoption is binding and she will always be your responsibility?'
-yes
'Do you have other children'
-No
'You know that the adoption cannot be canceled?'
-yes
'Have you taken classes on parenting?'
-yes
'It is very impotant that the child learns about their heritage and culture. Now Ayantu is your child.'

And that was it. The assistant opened the door and we walked out. The judge looked back down at her papers and never smiled. We walked back through the waiting room and the "lawyer" shook our hands and expressed words of congratulations. Aaron came up and put his arm around my shoulders and I congratulated him... but I was sort of in "wonder/shock" from what just happened. Not sure what we expected it would be like, as far as the hearing, but I know that was not it? We thought Aaron might be asked why Sarah was not there, or question the lawyer about the possibility of parents, but nothing of the sort.

Some of Aaron's thought about Sophie Ayantu from emails he's written me:

We just came back from the foster home. I love being there. I love that everytime I go there, Ayantu opens her eyes when I walk in. She is such a little busy body. She needs to watch everything that is happening, very curious! She was cuing a little more and has been more talkative. We gave her some tummy time today. She seems to like that but lets us know when she is done. This girl is quite amazing. We are the 'lucky' ones (her name means lucky).

From another email:

I have been having such a good time with Sophie. I have realized that Saturday is going to suck. Every time I leave her it gets harder and harder. Yesterday she was sleeping and looked very cute. I had to do a couple double takes. I would leave the room and then come back in again and do it again. I am hearing great things about the US embassy. Is it possible that we will get her in January? I hope so!!!!!

Grandpa Daryls' thoughts on the parents having to say goodbye to the children they have now met and love:

We left the foster home somewhat late as Aaron was with Sophie in her room. She was almost asleep or sleeping in his arms when he laid her in her bed and then she opened her eyes. Of course when she did that Aaron could not leave!

Mark and Krisy were leaving at 2 am to go back to the states (another family adopting). Krisy said she had an emotional barrier at this time to their child, so leaving was not hard. She said once it was official and they had the child in their arms heading for the states she would let her emotions go and cry her eyes out...

Everyone said how much they thought Sarah must be sad not to be able to come. But one aspect of her not coming is that Sarah will miss some of the agony of having to leave Ayantu, here at the foster home until she can be picked up to go to the states. That is the moment of unspoken dread that all who are holding their babies have in the back of their mind. Aaron has mentioned it several times. To spend a week with their new babies and then have to leave them in the foster home, without the care they long to give them, is a heartbreak. All speak of the fact that they have the child that God designed for them, and a real gift beyond measure, and no matter what the difficulty with agencies or other circumstances, they have the child they want, love and is just right for them.

With just the 8-10 couples we've seen come and meet their kids, for the first time, it is a real joy to see them bond with them. Most, if not all, have seen pictures of them and have some basic facts of weight and approximate age, but to hold their child for the first time is, of course, totally different! And in a flash they have the whole new wonder and excitement of holding their child. It will be the same for Sarah, but just a little longer wait.

Aaron has mentioned this many times on the phone or in emails... He is so frustrated just thinking about having to say goodbye on Saturday. Please pray for peace and comfort for him and little Sophie Ayantu as they say goodbye and over their time appart!!!! And pray that our embassy date comes in January like they are indicating so we can bring little Soph home!!!!

Mati Orphanage

Wow, it was so great to hear all about the day Aaron and Dad had, but hard at the same time since I am not able to be there. I have seen 1 picture of Aaron and Sophie Ayantu! She is an adorbale little peanut!!!! Again, unfortunately we can't post pictures online for a few more months until we are cleared to travel back to the states. So we will obey the rules even though it is very difficult not to share this precious child with you all! Here's what Aaron said in his email about today...

She is so amazing! Didn't cry once on the trip. She fell asleep twice on my chest. She is so sweet! I wish you could be here.

I was able to talk on the phone to him and my dad for over 20 minutes today. They said the trip was long (3 hours one way) and hot since there wasn't air in the car and it was over 80 degrees there today. The countryside was 'eye-opening' as far as the poverty level. When they got to the orphanage Sophie Ayantu was asleep, Aaron walked over to where she was sleeping and she turned and opened her eyes and looked right at him :) The picture that I have seen is of him holding her and she is smiling up at him with this huge smile! She loves her daddy already!! They spent some time with the staff at the ophanage, they are wonderful! They held a coffee ceremony for the departure of little Sophie Ayantu. Aaron said he's had 6 cups of coffee since he's been there, and this is someone who NEVER drinks coffee :)

They took the staff out for lunch at a hotel in town, the food was good. Sophie Ayantu is a very easy going/content baby, she did well at lunch and on the road. Aaron changed his first diaper today... a poopy one at that! And little Sophie Ayantu peed while he was changing her, and smiled a huge smile about it! That should get Aaron ready for diaper duty!!! She did so well on the 3 hour trip back. Slept a lot on Aaron's chest and played some with daddy and grandpa! They dropped her off at the foster home, but couldn't stay long with her there as their driver needed to get back. They will visit her in the morning. Aaron and dad both sound VERY tired, but are happy with how the day went. I am sure it is all sort of a blur... Aaron is looking forward to the next few days and just spending time with his daughter!

Dad filled us in on how she is developmentally. At just shy of 6 months she only weighs around or just over 10 pounds! He said she doesn't seem malnurished, just tiny. She can roll over and scoot around a bit, but she is not sitting up yet. She's very reponsive to people, and has great eye-contact and is very happy. Sort of like a 6 month old personality in a 2 month old's body! She's healthy though, so we are thankful!

Thanks for all your continued prayers as they continue this adventure... Court is Wednesday morning, our lawyer has assured Aaron many times that things should go very smoothly! Sorry for typos and spelling errors... for some reason the computer I am doing this on doesn't have my normal tool bar on the blog site... no spell check :)

Aaron and Dad in Addis!

It's 6 in the morning and I am up because Aaron and Dad called from Addis a little while ago! I figured I would blog and post that to facebook since there is so much information! Communication has been really good so far, I hear from them pretty often either by phone or email which is wonderful!!!! Here are some of Aaron's thoughts from the plane:

'The flight went well, I watched 2 movies, fast 5 and pirates of the caribbean. Food was ok, had a salad, bread and cheese, and chicken with green beans. They gave us a snack and it was gross. Had a banana and OJ with it too. Ok, there is your food update.'

When they got into Addis everything went smoothly, and they got to the guest house with no problems. Aaron was able to sleep since he did not sleep much on the trip, dad on the other hand had a little more trouble sleeping when they got in. Today (Sunday) is almost over for them as they are 9 hours ahead of us. They ate breakfast at the guest house this morning and met some great people. A woman named Jen (who is adopting a little girl) has been helping them out and a woman named Harage is the receptionist at the guest house and has been a wonderful help as well. Aaron is thankful to have great support and people showing them the ropes. Here are some more of Aaron's words:

'So we went to lunch with Jen and Harage. We ate some Ethiopian food. The bread has the texture of skin, but it is really good. And yes, I took pics of the food. The foster home is nice but seems a little crowded. The ladies that work there are angels. They really love the kids. The kids as you can see in the pictures are so loving. They came up and played with us right away. We will probably go to bed early tonight. We are going to the museum to see Lucy (oldest skeleton ever found).'

Tomorrow they will get up early for breakfast and get on the road to Batu to go meet Sophie at the Orphanage and then bring her back to the foster home. harage will be going with to help them out! I am praising God for placing the right people in their path to help them along on this adventure!!! What a blessing!

The countdown is on...

It's November, and as the days tick closer and closer to Aaron's trip my head spins faster and faster with packing lists, paperwork trails, endless to-dos, and a scary shopping list! You see, there are many people Aaron will come into contact with while he is in Ethiopia... Guest house staff, orphanage staff, foster home staff, drivers, lawyers, and agency contacts... All of whom expect gifts to be given from the families they work for, as is customary in Ethiopia. That's a lot of gifts!!! Then there's the list of things we should bring for Sophie to have at the foster home, and all the paperwork that needs to be ready to go... Aaron will be lucky if I remember to pack him underwear!!!  

I often stop myself these crazy days though, and remember that this is November and Thanksgiving is also drawing near as the days tick by; and we have SOOO much to be thankful for this year! 2 healthy girls on their way, a court date that has been God ordained to be perfect timing, the knowledge that Aaron will be with Sophie in less than a month, a warm home, food on our table, financial provisions each step of the way in this costly process, a good job, great family and friends, EACH OTHER, and most importantly a loving and faithful Father in heaven!!!! Lord, may I lean into you each day this month, and thank you for your many gifts. May I trust your hand and heart each moment, rather than fret and worry over things you hold. May I learn to live each moment at rest, having assurance that you are with me in all things! In Jesus precious name I pray... Amen.

Aaron has a plane ticket to Ethiopia!!!

Hello dear friends and family!

We have our court date.... and it is sooner than expected!!!! Aaron and my dad will be leaving Friday November 25th for Addis Ababa Ethiopia! Court will be on November 30th, they return home on Sunday December 4th! Aaron will get to meet Sophie Ayantu at the orphanage she has been housed at since she was found, after he has met her and seen the orphanage she can be moved to the foster/boarding home that is run by our adoption agency! She will be housed there (with better medical and more one on one care) until Aaron returns to Ethiopia for the US embassy hearing, after all that clears we can get her home!!!!!

Thank you for your prayers, we are praising God for such a soon court date!!! And a huge praise that the court date is a month before my due date so (Lord willing) Aaron will be here for Claire's birth! Please join us in giving God the glory for his perfect timing!!!!!

Here are a few specifics to be praying for:
-Health and well-being of little Sophie Ayantu!
-That we would get everything done (paperwork, shots, Aaron's leave from work, substitute teacher and plans etc.) in a smooth, timely manner before the trip!
-That the initial hearing of our case (that we don't have to be present for) on Nov 18th would pass without any problems or delays.
-That the trip itself would go smoothly, and we would pass court with no problems or delays (and on the dates they have given).
-Safe travel!
-Please start praying for God's hand and timing in the US embassy investigation, hearing and trip... this is where people are running into problems.

*Side note: once Aaron returns from this trip we wait for the US embassy to investigate and call us to a hearing (at which point Aaron will return to Ethiopia for the hearing and upon passing the hearing gets to bring Sophie home on that trip). It used to be about a month between the 2 trips, lately it has been taking longer. So we are looking at Jan, Feb, March for bringing her home? Please pray that God's hand would be in the timing here (not too soon with Claire coming, not too long for Sophie's sake!).

Please be praying...

Hi friends and family,

It has been a crazy week since we got our referral. Things are still sinking in. A few things I want to share and then a long list of prayer requests. Since last week we have found out more information... First a fun fact: Ayantu means "blessed for the future" which I think is so cool! Now onto info: it looks like the courts will open back up in mid-October, our case is already filed at the court house and we have a file number. When the courts open back up we will get a court date. I know of another family with our agency who got their referral at the end of July and have a court date set for early November (and remember the courts are shut down August/September/and 1/2 October... so that's not a lot of wait time in between referral and court)! As we realized our court could be as soon as December, January, or February we also realized it will just be Aaron going. Which means Sophie will come home on a different visa since we are both not going to be present in court. Well... this means we need to do more paperwork and foster home licensing here in IL. Which means more chances for hold-ups delays. This whole process is making my head spin, and I am trying not to worry about all the millions of things that could go wrong, so this is where I need prayer!!! Lots of prayer!!! Here are some things to please be praying about:

-That our extra paper-work/licensing here in IL would go smoothly and quickly and not delay anything.
-That our court date would not coincide with my due date (we obviously want Aaron here for the birth).
-That there wouldn't be any complications to my not being able to be present for court.
-That Aaron and I would both trust God's plan/hand/timing in all this.
-Ultimately: that God's plan in all this will be accomplished and to His glory!

Glorious day!!!!

It's been pretty quiet on the adoption front since all the major delays happened in Ethiopia back in March... We continued to pester Radu every month for information, but it was slow coming. In June we were told that the orphanage possibly had a child for us, but it was early in the works... We waited... In July we were told the orphanage did have a child matched to us, but still needed paperwork on her... We waited... In August we hear NOTHING! We waited... 2 days ago I emailed Radu, pleading with him for any information or possible timeline on our case... ANYTHING!!! Yesterday I checked my email every 5 minutes hoping for a response... nada! At around 1:30pm today my parents and I headed to Aaron's school to meet his 4th grade class. When we pulled into the parking lot I glanced at my phone and noticed an email... from Radu.... I opened it quickly to see what it was regarding and the first line read: "see attached: your child information." STUNNED!!! That's the only word to describe how I felt/feel. I didn't look at it any further as we needed to get into Aaron's class. Waiting impatiently for Aaron and his class to return from the library, I tried to process this huge thing. As Aaron's class filed in I quickly and quietly told Aaron what I had received. Aaron looked like I felt, and said "that's a lot of information to take in..."  We spent a fun 1/2 hour doing Q&A with Aaron's students, in the back of my mind I still could not even take in what was happening. Once the class got on the buses we pulled up the information on my phone... Little Ayantu, 3 months old and not even weighing 8lbs. I can't even explain what it was like to look at this precious baby who will be our daughter!!!! She is beautiful and perfect in every way. I wish I could post pictures for the whole world to see her adorable face! (Unfortunately I can't post pictures until we go through the legal court process, but let me just assure you that she is PERFECT in EVERY WAY!).

What's next? Well right now the courts are shut down in Ethiopia for the rainy season, as soon as that ends we will be added to the cue, and find out how soon we can go through court (I am sure this will be after the New Year). Once we travel and go through the Ethiopian courts we will come home and wait to get an Embassy date. We will go back for the Embassy hearing and (Lord willing) bring her home with us!!!! I am hoping that we will have Sophie Ayantu Bernadine Owens back home with us before this time next year!
P.S. Most of you know, but just a side note, Sophie Ayantu will be a big sister when she comes home. Her little sister Claire is expected Christmas Day of this year. They will only be about 7 months apart! We are still in so much shock... I will post more info soon, but for now I just want to say Glory to God in the highest, He has a plan for this family and He is faithful and will carry it to completion!!!!

Continued Delays...

We were told back in March that we would receive our match sometime in April. Well, April came and went, and now so has May. We have been in contact with our agency many times, and they say the reason is because of the changes in what’s happening with the Ethiopian government. The orphanages are now required to gather more documentation on the children that are matched with a family. Apparently the orphanage where our child lives is still trying to collect all the documentation on her. So, we continue to wait. Meanwhile, the delays in the government continue to get longer and longer. They are still trying to process all the adoptions that went through court before April 5^th!!! Which means it will be a long while before they get to cases like ours that haven’t even begun the official court process yet. We had one other hiccup that we were concerned might terminate the process altogether, but (thank the Lord!) it didn’t end up being a problem! I will share the details of that in the weeks to come, but we are still waiting on a few details to be worked out. And now for the question that everyone keeps asking: So when will we finally get to bring our little one home from Ethiopia? Frankly, I just don’t know. Only God does! I have a gut feeling it probably won’t be till next year sometime… maybe next spring or summer… but then again, I may be surprised and things may pick up a bit…. Please continue to keep us, Sophie, and the whole adoption process in your prayers!

Dazed and Confused….

So much has been going on, and I haven’t really had the energy to blog. Now that I do, I am so confused and I will probably just confuse all of you! Oh well, you can be confused with me and we’ll all be in good company.


A few weeks ago I requested that everyone sign a petition to get the government of Ethiopia to change their mind about some decisions that were made. The government made a decision to reduce the number of adoptions they process per day from about 40-50 down to 5. The US government adoption website is telling people who have submitted paperwork but have not yet received a referral of a child (which is us) that they could experience delays of up to a year or more. I was devastated to hear this! If you’re curious, here’s where you can read all about it:  http://adoption.state.gov/country_information/alerts_notices.php  read the alert from 3/9 and the notice from 3/16.

So, Aaron and I were sad (to say the least), we’ve been trying to get people to sign the petition, but haven’t seen any good news coming from the US government website of the Joint Council of Adoption. We’d pretty much resigned ourselves to the fact that this wasn’t happening ANY time soon. It’s been rough.

Then… Yesterday I get a phone call from Jocelyn (our local social worker who did our home study). She asks me: “Since there is so much going on in Ethiopia, would you be willing to adopt domestically? We do not have enough families in IL who are willing to adopt children of a different race, and have an abundance of kids who need homes.” I was surprised, and thought, well if Adoption Avenues would allow us to discontinue the program and we could get some of what we’ve invested in the program back then maybe… but we couldn’t afford to do lose what we’ve invested and then turn around and pay the same amount for a domestic adoption.

So… I called Radu. Radu and I haven’t had much contact since all of this happened in Ethiopia. I tried to call, but couldn’t get through when I first heard word. I emailed and asked how this would affect our adoption and he responded by saying “You know that I will let you know, when we know FOR SURE what is going on.” So I call him yesterday and explained what Jocelyn had told me. I asked what my options were. He told me that if we backed out now we would lose everything we had invested. He asked why we would be tempted to do this. I told him because of the delays. So he went into explaining that this would NOT delay our referral (he’s expecting that next month). And that IF it delayed anything, it would delay the time between our first trip out: to go through the court process and our second trip out: when we can legally take her home. I’m confused. Why does the US government explain it differently? And if Radu is right does that mean families will be delayed up to a year or more between when they legally adopt their child in the country and when they can bring their child home? HOW SAD!!! Why would they keep a child who has been legally adopted by a family in the orphanage system for an additional year?!?! Is Radu right? Will we receive our referral next month? Will we still be going to Ethiopia this summer to meet our child and go through court? Will we have to leave our child there after that? How long will we have to wait to bring her home?

Major stuff happening with Ehtiopian Adoptions

Please go to the following website and sign the petition!

 http://www.gopetition.com/petition/43714.html

Fasika

This coming week is the week that lent begins. I have never practiced lent, being from an Evangelical Free Church background. However, I have always appreciated this time of cleansing and focusing on God rather than the things of the world in preparation for Easter. I have been studying Ethiopian customs and holidays lately and have been impressed by their version of lent.

Ethiopia is predominately a christian nation. More specifically: Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. Tewahedo faith focuses on the story of Abraham and Isaac. Abraham was going to obey God and sacrifice his own son and the Lord sent a lamb for the sacrifice instead. They believe this was a foreshadowing or prophecy of God sending His son to die for our sins. Tewahedo faith depends on the death and Resurrection of Jesus for salvation, and therefore Fasika (Easter) is the most important holiday of the year for the Ethiopian people.

Typically the period of lent for the Tewahedo Church is 56 days before Easter. Rather than just giving up something for lent, they fast for those 56 days. At first I couldn't believe this, but I discovered that fasting for the Ethiopian people meant that they only eat one meal a day and don't eat any animal products for this entire time (including milk, butter, eggs etc.). OK, so they aren't going without food for 56 days, but that is still a huge sacrifice (I need my 3 meals and my meat!). So Fasika (Easter Sunday) becomes a huge time of feasting and celebration of what Jesus did for us that first Easter weekend.

Ethiopians fast prior to most of their large holidays. 40 days before Christmas, and 56 days before Easter. I know I hardly ever think about fasting, and when I do, it's maybe for a day. Perhaps we have something to learn from our Ethiopian brothers and sisters. Something to think about this Easter or Fasika season!

An invitation to share in the miracle...

One of the biggest challenges in international adoption is the financial piece of the the picture. Many adoptive families share in the sentiment that "our Lord owns the cattle on a thousand hills" now he just needs to sell a few cows to make it happen! Aaron and I have been blessed in this process so far, and the Lord has been selling the cows along the way. We are getting very close to the end, and yet have some major expenses ahead. As we've prayed through how to face these next hurdles we have come up with a few answers: #1 we have begun to plan a 5k walk/run in our local area and #2 we have placed a donations button on this blog to allow our friends, who are not in the area, to share in the miracle of our adoption. We are hoping to raise enough to pay for the direct costs remaining to finalize our adoption. Anything that we raise above and beyond our direct costs we will be donating to:

Show Hope 
http://www.showhope.org/ This is an organization founded by Stephen Curtis Chapman that provides grants to families who have financial needs in the adoption process. We hope to bless other families seeking to adopt.  

and

Adoption Avenues Ethiopian Foster Home http://www.adoptionavenues.org/ This is the adoption agency we are working with. They recently started a foster home in Ethiopia, working to find more Ethiopian orphans permanent homes.

God has placed the desire for adoption on our hearts, and He alone will bring us through this journey. Thank you for considering coming along side of us, and further blessing the adoption process.

Dossier on route to Ethiopia!!!

Well, second time's the charm in our case. The paperwork debacle has been sorted out. IL secretary of state fixed and turned around a paperwork in a timely fashion. Our Washington DC courier then got them authenticated by the state department in DC. And then this time when our paper work was brought to the Ethiopian Embassy it was accepted rather than rejected! YAY! Oh and P.S. it only set us back an extra 120 dollars which was not near as bad as they said it was going to be! So... I was told it was being sent to Ethiopia Today. Once it is there it will be translated into Amharic, and then registered with the MOWA. MOWA reviews our documents for completeness and creates a dossier about us. The Claims and Authentication Section of the Protocol Office at the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Addis Ababa authenticates the dossier and returns it to the Adoption Team in the Children and Youth Affairs Office (CYAO) for approval. Once all those steps are done we just wait for a child to be matched to us! I've discovered that in this adoption process the key to getting through it all is to celebrate every small victory. So today I am thanking the Lord that our hiccup in our paperwork is over, and we are one step closer to knowing who little Sophie is. Hang in there little one, we'll be there soon!!!

Stilll not quite resolved.... but getting there!

Hello, from a very content Sarah who is currently sitting under a heated blanket with my kitty at my feet, drinking coffee, and enjoying Saturday morning to the fullest! Thought I would give you all an update on our little setback.... Monday I tried to call Secretary of State department in DC. I couldn't get through, left messages and sent emails. Still hadn't heard anything by Wednesday, so I called again. I got through, explained what I thought was the situation, and they were pretty rude with me, telling me there is no way they could have made that mistake. So I called Radu (our agency person) and told him. Apparently there had been a major miscommunication between Radu and I in the first place, it wasn't the DC office that had made the mistake it was IL who had messed up on 2 of our documents. Radu said he was really upset about this because as a notary if you make 3 mistakes your notary license is revoked by the State department, but they make mistakes all the time and no one looses their job there.

Anyway, so Radu also gave me a bit of a ball park figure on how much this was setting us back in extra charges, which is why this mistake frustrated him so much. So, he basically wanted me to call the IL state department to chew them out.... I called, and tried to explain the situation nicely. They basically blamed Radu for not catching their mistake. This frustrated me a bit, and I told them that 2 wrongs don't really make a right, or let them off the hook for the mistake they made in the first place. At about this point the lady told me she didn't want to talk to me because I didn't know what I was talking about, and she wanted the number of our courier service in DC who was taking care of getting the paperwork back to them. So, I gave her the number. Later that day I called the courier service and asked if they had heard from IL SOS. She said they had, and they were trying to resolve the issue together (apparently even though I "didn't know what I was talking about", something I said got through to them so they are trying to fix their mistake), and it should be resolved early next week. This was reassuring, but I am still not sure how much it is going to set us back...

I'm hoping next week goes a little smoother than this last week went in general. Although, I am thankful for the lessons I am learning in faith and trust. At this point everything is really completely out of my hands! There is nothing I can do to speed things up, so I just need to let it all go. One of these days my little girl will be in my arms and all of the waiting and worrying will seem like nothing. Happy Valentines day little one, wherever you are. This Valentines day my heart is out there with you, will you bring it back to me soon?

Trying to stay calm...

Hi....
I write this entry with a bit of a heavy heart, and the remnants of a migraine. Last night I got some rough news. The Ethiopian Embassy had sent our agency an email saying they rejected our dossier. The reason being: the Secretary of State Department messed up our authentication on 2 of the documents in our dossier. There are 2 types of certificates and on 2 of our documents they gave us the wrong type (I don't know how this happened). So, they wanted to know what to do from there... either send back our dossier, or have the courier bring it back to the Secretary of State in DC and have them fix it. Of course that is what we are doing (and of course it is an extra charge). I am really hoping that this all gets smoothed out within the week, but to tell you the truth it really put me in a tale spin last night, which probably caused my migraine... which put me in immediate care today to get a shot of imitrex.

Please pray for me over the next few days, that I can rest and trust. I just feel a bit overwhelmed by all this right now. Thanks!

Dossier in DC

Just a real quick update:
Got an email from our agency just now saying that our dossier has been through the Oregon senate and has been sent to Washington D.C. for authentication!

Also, I was happy to find out that the US embassy in Ethiopia is working to enable the wait time between court and Embassy interview (to finalize and be cleared to travel home) to be a lot shorter! This is great for Aaron and I who are hoping to be able to stay in Ethiopia for the entire time between court and exit interview. This would mean 1 trip (big cost saver), not having to leave our baby after meeting her, getting immersed in the Ethiopian culture etc. We are really hoping that the timing will work out for this summer, it would be ideal for us as teachers to be able to wrap it all up in the summer!

Please pray:
-That it gets through US state department with no trouble
-Then for the translation and registration with the Ethiopian Government
-Next for God's timing on the referral of our child!

He's got the whole world....

I've been putting off writing this blog entry for a few days. I am still sorting out my own feelings. On Wednesday we heard from our agency on a few questions we had asked them. We had been waiting to find out if Radu had made a match for us on his trip to Ethiopia. He hadn't. He told us it would probably be about 4 months before we find out who our child is. In the world of international adoptions this is still VERY soon, but it was hard to hear when I had been expecting to find out who she was any day! When we signed up for the program the wait time between submitting the dossier (paperwork) and receiving a referral was about 9 months to a year. So 4 months is AWESOME!!! But, it's still 4 months.

Aaron and I have been having a rough couple weeks in general. There is a lot going on in the school district that we both work in right now. It looks as though I will for sure loose my job since I am not tenured and they are making major cuts. This isn't the end of the world, as we were planning that I probably wouldn't be working once we get Sophie anyway, but if it is longer than we expect then I am going to have to find work in the in between time. Our big concern is Aaron's job and salary. The teachers are going through contract negotiations starting this spring. The superintendent's saying that if they do not take some major cuts in salary and benefits then she is going to have to make major cuts in jobs, tenured people included. Since Aaron hasn't been tenured long (only 1 year), this could mean that his job is in jeopardy. I am not too concerned about this, because even if he did get cut, he is an amazing teacher with many, many principals who have said they will recommend him (since his school has had a different principal every year). I know he will have a job next year, but he is stressed! And there is concern about the teachers having to go on strike... usually this wouldn't be a concern, we would live on savings, but that has all gone to the adoption.

There have been many nights of concern in our house, but I keep coming back to Matthew 6:26 "Look at the birds of the air, they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them! Are you not much more valuable than they?" I feel that this last month (and probably the next year), is one big lesson on trusting God's provision and plan. Some days I feel as though I am getting an 'A' in this lesson, but then the next minute my grade slips to a big fat 'F'. I will not give up, I may get discouraged, but I will keep pressing on. The Lord is with us, He will not fail us, He will not let go of us through these hard times.

As I write this I am reminded of a Swedish song we used to sing at Holsby (the bible school I went to in Sweden):
Du omsluter mig pa alla sidor
och haller mig i din hand.
Du omsluter mig pa alla sidor
och haller mig i din hand.
It comes from Psalm 139:5 "You hem me in - behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me."
The Swedish translation is: You surround me on all sides, and keep me in your hand.

Known by God

A devotional I read today by Kerry Hasenbalg:
"The Lord will work out his plans for my life - for your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever. Don't abandon me, for you made me." Psalm 138: 8

Statistics like "143 million orphans worldwide" and "every 14 seconds another child is orphaned by HIV/AIDS" can be overwhelming and paralyzing. Yet, it is critical to remember that God knows each one of these children individually - knows their specific circumstances- and that He has unique plans and desires for them. Thinking that helping one child will not do much to alleviate such great suffering is a lie. It makes a profound difference in that child's life and affects everyone whom she touches. Let us imagine God's perspective. When someone adopts one of these orphans, it is as though God is saying, "Little one, you are so special to me. I knew where you were, and I picked you out and placed you here - I knew you would be here from the beginning of time."

The King of  kings is serious about being the father to fatherless. Orphans are members of God's royal family, and He has a plan for each one of his princes and princesses. The nameless and faceless orphan found in statistics is by no means nameless and faceless to God! In the world of adoption, we can be confident that nothing surprises our God, and what may look like "plan B" for us or our children may in fact have been God's "plan A" all along. 

I loved reading this today! It reminded me of the fact that God has a plan for Aaron and I, and our little one. The timing will be perfect. The specific child will be the one God wanted placed in our family! Even though there are so many things that we can sit and fret about: timing, money, paperwork, government agencies etc. There is really no point to worrying. As scripture put it: "who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" Who of you by worrying can add a single dollar to his bank account, or a single thing to help speed up the process, or a single way to identify the child sooner. What can my worrying do? Only cause me to be miserable throughout the process (and others around me for that matter!). So today, instead of worrying about all of this, today I will simply thank the Lord for bringing us this far in the process. I'll praise Him for having the timing and control in His hands, and rest in the fact that there is nothing I can do! God's got this one...

Our paperwork made it...

So our dossier did arrive on time! The next day I got an email from our agency saying "call us." I was a little worried that something was wrong with our paperwork. Sure enough, they had a problem with 2 things not being authenticated. One was my birth certificate (my birth cert. is weird because it's issued by the federal gov since I was born outside the US). I explained that the state here in IL wouldn't authenticate it since it's a federal doc. They said that was fine. The other was our US immigration clearance. Our agency had told me 2 weeks before that it didn't need authentication, but I guess they had told me wrong. Since it was their mistake they are taking care of it. So our paperwork has been cleared by them. They are going to send it off to go through the OR senate, and then on to D.C.!

Pray for our adoption person Radu, who is traveling to Ethiopia. He leaves tomorrow and will be there for a week! Pray that he is able to get our process moving quickly and that the Lord will have His hand in picking our child!

Tracking our dossier :)

I know it's silly, but if you would like to join me in tracking our dossier:
Fedex # 874638674035

It's currently on schedule and in transit... sorta fun!

We sent off our dossier...

We got it all in the mail today, everything that we have been working on since May. Aaron was able to get the last few documents authenticated in Chicago. He had a bit of a hiccup (they weren't notarized correctly) but he was able to get it all worked out and finished. He then went and had everything overnighted to Portland! We are hoping snow delays don't affect it, it should be to Portland around 10:30 tomorrow morning. We are so relieved that this part of the process is done. Hopefully all our paperwork will be accepted the first time around and everything will go quickly and smoothly. I am so thankful to Aaron for his help today!

I keep praying all along this journey... Lately though I feel silly asking God to help with every tiny step, because He has been in control this whole time and I trust He will continue to be in control. Over and over it's like He's saying "don't worry, I got this one!" It was, after all, His plan in the first place. Even still, I will continue to lift every detail to Him as we continue down this path because we are called to pray!

More to come!

Biggest rejoicing day yet!!!!

"Oh my dear!" As my nephew would say! Today has been so crazy! We were waiting to hear if we could use the old license from Lutheran Social Services in order to get our dossier sent out tomorrow.... I called Radu (our placement agency contact person) to see if we could, and he said no. They actually needed both the expired license AND the new one. He then asked me if I could get our dossier to him before the end of the week, as he was leaving for Ethiopia and wanted to start getting it processed. I was bummed to tell him that I didn't think it would be possible.

I got off the phone and called our social worker right away to see if by some miracle the license had come. She answered and asked if I had received her emails. I said no, and she said "well I sent you one this morning letting you know that the license hasn't come, but then I sent you one a few minutes ago saying that we just got it!!!" You can imagine my joy... So I hung up with her and called Radu back. I told him we'd over night it Tuesday after we get the last few things authenticated, and he would have it Wednesday (Lord willing). I asked if that would be enough time to get things started before he left. His response? "Oh ya, that's not really what I'm concerned about. It needs to go to the Oregon senate first which takes a few days, but I really want it in order to take photocopies of the dossier with me to Ethiopia." Translation: identify a child for us while he's there!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I wanted to scream and cry and who knows what else. But I played it cool and then burst into tears as soon as I got of the phone! WOW!

I spoke with my social worker about it later today and she said that even if they do match a child to us next week (NEXT WEEK!!!!) we still may not hear or know anything until all our paperwork has jumped through the hoops and it's an official referral. But still, wow! PRAISE THE LORD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Please Pray:
-Tomorrow goes smoothly for Aaron
-Our paperwork gets to Oregon on Wednesday
-God's hand is in Radu's trip next week and the possible match!
-Our paperwork goes through OR, DC, and Ethiopian embassy quickly and smoothly

US Immigration done!

Wow! So we got our US immigration clearance about 3 weeks ahead of schedule (thanks to our local Congressman's office)! We are so excited! Actually, I am still in a bit of shock... We had a nice evening last night, we went out to eat, registered at Babies R Us and then came home to find our clearance in the mail! I thought Aaron was pulling my leg when we he told me there was an envelope from US immigration.

So here's the scoop. In order to finish our dossier we need a copy of our home study agencies license (Lutheran Social Services). Sounds easy right? Of course not! They have a license of course, but it expired in December. Don't worry, they submitted their paper work for renewal back in November, but guess who has to renew it.... DUN DUN DOOOOOON:   DCFS!!! The bane of our adoption process. They are the local child services org. that can't get ANYTHING done in timely manner (or take seriously child abuse notifications, but that's a whole separate teacher issue that I won't go into). So it's January and Lutheran Social Services still doesn't have their new license.

I've emailed our placement agency to find out if we can use the expired one in our dossier, since it was still valid when they were doing and completed our home study. We shall see. If that works then here is the timeline of what's to come:

-Monday 1/10: get expired license from Lutheran Social Services
-Tuesday 1/11: Aaron takes off work to go to Chicago to get license apostilled
-Tuesday afternoon: finish photocopying our dossier and overnight it to Portland OR
-Wednesday 1/12: Agency in Portland receives and reviews our dossier
-Fingers crossed they send it ASAP to Washington D.C. to get authenticated
-A courier hand delivers it in D.C. to get it authenticated and then hand carries it to the Ethiopian Embassy
-Ethiopian government accepts it and we become a waiting family
-Some unknown amount of months later we get a referral of a child (could be anywhere from 2-9 months)
-4-6 weeks later we travel to Ethiopia for court
-4-6 weeks after that we can bring Sophie home!

Please continue to pray for each little step. Especially this license hiccup we are dealing with currently!