Baby Steps

We are working through the last ofthe our paperwork we need to submit to our case worker - our medical forms and my husband's employment verification. We are slowly completing the parenting education courses. Many of the questions seem to overlap from one class to another and my husband feels tortured by repetiviness. He commented the other day that "it is much easier to make a baby". Yes, people giving birth are not required to take parenting classes or "prove" themselves as parents. I remind him we are already good parents, we just do not have children and we just have to write down everything we already know. We might actually learn something new along the way.

We are experiencing the joy of bringing a child home through another family at church. They are bringing their long awaited daughter home from the Congo next month. One day, we will be preparing to bring our child or children home.

It's Happening

We had our first home study meeting today - met the case worker, reviewed the paperwork, signed many sheets of paper, created a To Do list and signed a big check. We have most of our paperwork filled out, we just need the employment verification and the medical statements from our doctors then we take the parenting classes and get our fingerprints taken once we have an appointment with immigration. The paper trail has begun! And we have to send our Pre-Adoption Application to Jamaica.

Our first adoption fundraiser is scheduled for June 26 at Shelton United Methodist Church, 6 pm to 8 pm. Entertainment by Swing Fever who are excited to play for us. A video from Embracing Orphans showcasing the Blossom Gardens orphanage will be shared.

Now we just see how long it takes to get all the paperwork and processing done by the US government. All will happen in God's time.

Next Steps

Tomorrow we schedule our first meeting with our home study case worker. Tonight I met with Swing Fever out of Belfair to discuss a fundraising event. They agreed to perform to help us bring our child(ren) home. I am planning an evening of swing music, our adoption story and the story of Blossom Gardens along with some sweets. Just need to find a date for this event.

Something deep in my soul, maybe God's voice, that hints we will be bringing home more than one child. My dear husband has decided he trusts me fully to decide which children are to become ours by not going to Jamaica with me. Yes, it saves us money by sending just one of us on the first trip, but I was looking forward to falling in love with the children at Blossom Gardens together. Instead, I will share photos and video with him from a distance. We are looking into having either other family members (the future grandparents) or part of our church family join me on this momentous trip. So many steps just to get to the first trip.

May peace reside in your hearts.

New Beginnings

As we approach a new year, I comtemplate the various new beginnings 2010 brings. A new job position, a new home, a sister's marriage and steps towards parenthood. Our house goes on the market, we have three potential homes for our new place, the initial homestudy paperwork is nearly done and I am faithfully following the events of Embracing Orphans during their Christmas trip to Jamaica. I wonder if any of the children Carl describes may be the child God has chosen for us to parent. He has described the aching hearts of three young sisters or the two new boys at Blossom Gardens. There are so many other children at Blossom Gardens I do not know if God has more than one child planned for us.

If we could pull it off financially, I would plan to go to Jamaica this summer to meet my future child(ren). Baby steps and God's timing. Right now, the most overwhelming aspect is the amounty of money we have to come up within the next three months, than more by June and even more by December. January brings fundraising planning. Any ideas would be a Godsend. May God bless you in 2010.

Time of Excitement

We have barely started along the path to adoption and I am so full of joy right now. I know this will not last as time drags on and we continue the wait to bring a child home. I do not know how I will feel in a month, six months or a year. This time next year we will be finalizing our plans for our first trip to Jamaica. I know I will eventually come off this excitement high, but I don't know how far my emotions will fall. For now I will ride this wave of excitement that will carry me through the Christmas season.

This anticipation is similar to waiting for the holy child, the messiah. Not knowing when the child will arrive and what God has planned for us all. Whatever may come will be for his glory.

Adoption Lawyer

We have found an adoption lawyer. We have been having trouble finding a lawyer in the Olympia area willing to take our case since it is an independent international adoption.

My husband and I went with my mother and sister to visit my youngest sister at work. One of her close friends, Jill, and Jill's family were there enjoying tea. Jill's father, Art Klym, is a family law lawyer. I asked him if he had recommendations for a lawyer and he offered his services. He has done similar adoptions and even has a home study contact. God brought us together so we may bring our child home. It was an ordinary miracle, an event that many believe is just coincident, but really was allowed by God to happen so his larger plan may unfold. It will be a miracle if this adoption goes smoothly; I just know that God will be at my side through the joys and the frustrations.

Beginning the Journey

My husband and I are in the beginnings of our adoption journey. After finally deciding we want children after ten years of marriage, we have chosen Blossom Gardens in Montego Bay, Jamaica as the location of our forever child. I new Olympia was small town even with 250,000 people, but I did not realize it would be difficult to find an adoption lawyer. Granted our adoption situation is rare - independent international adoption - but we are not unique. We will eventually find that special lawyer who will help us with expanding our family. After Thanksgiving I will begin interviewing home study agencies. The decision has been made finally and our lives will never be the same.