It's a BOY!!!

I came down with a bad stomach bug on Monday, so I'm just now getting a chance to make this news blog official. :) Late last Thursday afternoon/evening {after a 375 days of waiting} we were matched with a 3.5 month old little boy!!! I was actually in Benton to help my mom with a procedure she was having that morning. After getting up at 4:00 AM, I was taking a nap when our case manager, Brandi, tried to call me & didn't hear my phone ring. She then tried to call Matt, who was in a meeting, & couldn't get a hold of him either. Bless her heart, she had to resort to emailing us that she had "something to chat with us about." Matt got the email when he got back to his desk, called me on my mom's cell {which is loud enough for the world to hear:),} & Brandi conferenced called us while Matt was seriously driving 90 mph to get home to our computer! It was a whirlwind of a time...a little like being in the delivery room meeting your child for the first time without his daddy by your side...but at the same time, the Lord used it to brighten my mom's day & for that I am grateful! I drove back late that night so that Matt & I could get a move on all the paperwork that we needed to fill out to "officially" accept our little man & GET HIM HOME! :)

We are not allowed to post anything about our referrals out of their protection, but I will tell you that we are truly in love. I love everything about this lil guy: the things we know about his personality, his cheeks, his eyes, his skin...you name it! This is one of the ways I believe adoption is such a testament to God & His glory- we love because Christ first loved us {1 John 4:19.}

Yet, now that I have met our miracle & felt God's grace, I am even more anxious about this next phase of our journey. We have no idea how long it will take to get our baby home. Before all the changes in Ethiopia, the standard time from referral to home was 4-7 months. It is undoubtedly longer than that now; plus, add in rainy season where their courts are closed in August & September. Why is it so easy for us to know the faithfulness of His hands, have our prayers answered, & then immediately struggle once the next hurdle comes? Lord, I am weak but trust in Your Purpose. I do not want to miss out on these days with my son. Even more Lord, I don't want my son to miss these days. I pray that you will help us both holdfast to the days to come.

We made it!

To what, you may ask?? To being #1! ;) Our June numbers are:

#1 for boys

#8 for girls

This means we are THE first in line for the next baby boy ready for referral!!!!! Now, this could be today, tomorrow, in 2 weeks, in a month; there's no way of knowing, but we are rejoicing over our new placement!

I wanted to capture a few thoughts I had this morning on our waiting. I by no means pretend to know the Lord's intentions, yet I can see that He is using this time for our betterment in several ways. Matt & I have been relishing our time together, especially these last few months. Just simple things like spur of the moment float trip on the Kings, bike rides at night, lounging on the couch watching TV/movies {which reminds me I should really do a post on thoughts I've been having about that as well...}, etc. We know that we have a relatively simple life & that our time can be devoted to each other without the distractions of a munchkin to take care of. As I was making the bed this morning, I honestly just felt the need to praise God for the ability to genuinely enjoy these opportunities. Back in March/April I'm not so sure I could have...thankfully Matt wasn't available then anyway! ;)

This time as also forced me to think about my time, i.e. what to do with it. The Lord has me at a place where my current work load is dwindling. Back last winter, I found out that Ginny {who owns the jewelry biz I run/ran} was going to be adopting & thought it best to take a break early summer in order to get their little girl & build their new family. At the time, it seemed perfect. I would be close to having my little one home as well & would need the time to finish getting ready too. Then came March 8th & where we are now. Addition is officially on break, & I am no where near having baby home. So, long story short, the thought of grad school kept popping in my head. I'm starting a class next month - an African history class! I am super excited not only to be learning again, but to be learning about my child's heritage. I think this will be an invaluable use of my time as I wait to get my "little man" {starting to allow myself to go there now :)} home. I enrolled as a non-degree seeking grad student, but the thought is to pursue a history {or similar} degree in order to teach part time on the college level. I would only need 30 hours & have 6 years, so I'll be taking my time. :) I in no way want to make my family any less of a priority than it should be, thus this is just a plan & we'll see how it goes. I've been praying over this decision & will continue, but God has been faithful. For example, the professor that is teaching the Africa Today course has good friends that also adopted from Ethiopia, is considering adopting herself at some point, & was excited for me to enroll! You just can dismiss little details like these. :)

Last, but not least, I want to ask you to join me in praying for my friend, Ginny. You can see her blog {Orbit of the Mooney's} on the blog roll to the side & get more details. Basically though, they have a tremendous opportunity to hit a window to pick up their little girl, Lena, by the end of this week! Lena is a special needs orphan in the Ukraine that is about to age out of the orphanage, meanwhile, the Ukraine is changing their adoption procedure. In order to get Lena home at the earliest time, the Mooney's need to be able to have their adoption papers go through before the July freeze! They should find out on Thursday & could be leaving as early as Friday! Will you please join me in praying (1) that the timing will work out & they will get through before the Ukrainian changes take place (2) for her family {there are 2 little ones home} as Matt & Ginny travel. Thanks!!! I don't have much time to go into all the reasons we love the Mooney's & Lena, but trust me in that your prayers will be coveted.