Mathew 18:5

"And anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me." Mathew 18:5

Sunday, November 2, 2014

ORPHAN SUNDAY

I’m back to blogging. Honestly I sat in front of the laptop blankly staring. I feel like I’m unprepared on what to write. My last post was May. I stopped writing in my blog for selfish reasons. I have come to realize that this blog is not for me. This blog is for my son and all the orphans worldwide. With that said I’m back.
I promise I will go back and finish my journey to my son starting with the 1st time we met him. Today I wanted to write about Orphan Sunday.
November 2nd is Orphan Sunday. Today is a day to focus and pray for orphans. Today is a day to advocate on behalf of those who have no voice. It is estimated there are between 143 million and 210 million orphans worldwide. Every day 5,760 more children become orphans.
Today as I write this with a lump in my throat, because four months ago my son was an orphan.
Today I pray boldly for the fatherless. I ask the Lord to protect them and care for them and keep them safe.
Today I pray for the health of orphans around the world. I’m asking the Lord to provide them with medications and treatment for the simple things that are unnecessary killing these children, like unclean water, malaria, AIDS, and malnutrition.
Today we had a fest to celebrate my son’s homecoming and orphan Sunday.
Our son is the most beautiful gift from GOD! We are so thankful he is home. We can’t imagine life without him. We are humble and grateful that God put adoption and the love for orphans in our hearts.  

Cuteness before church today.




Wednesday, May 28, 2014

ON OUR WAY!

May 5, 2014
I woke up Sunday morning to the sound of my mom moaning in the bathroom. The 1st thing I thought was, oh no she is sick. My mom needs a surgery and was suppose to have this surgery on Monday the 5th. I called my mom and asked her if she could reschedule the surgery because I needed her to watch my kids. I have major anxiety when it comes to my kids. I felt like I could not get on that plane and fly half way across the world not knowing if they are ok. I feel safe when my mom is there with them. It's so hard to have children across the world from each other.
When my mom came out of the restroom I asked her if she was ok? She said yes. I knew otherwise. I could see the pain in her face. This saddened me. I then laid in my bed and cried listening to her reading a book to Lily. I could hear the pain in her voice. I lost it, I felt so guilty that my mom needed a surgery and I asked her to reschedule and now she is protecting me from my anxiety.

I think I cried all day long and we had to leave that night to head to the airport. I reached out to my special friends who are in the adoption process right along with me. They immediately started praying, sending bible verses and started speaking to me. They were praying for healing for my mom and healing for my anxiety. Let me tell y'all I felt their prayers. I was able to get up pack and feel a sense of peace.
As I'm writing this on the plane I pray that God has his hands laid on my mom.

We were able to leave at 11:30pm to head to Indy. It was a very hard goodbye. My middle boy took it the hardest. I prayed for peace in his heart that God would be with him and let him know that mommy and daddy will be just fine.
We arrived at Indy about 3:00 in the morning. We checked our bags in and waited for our flight at 5:45 to DC. I was still feeling calm at this point. The plane arrived and we flew to DC. We landed about 7:15 and I called my kids. To say good bye again and I love them. Lily and Kait sounded good and Gabe sounded a little better( I could tell that he was still a little upset). We had a 4 hour layover. So Nick and I walked around in the meantime. The entire time I was texting kait.
We grabbed a bite to eat and checked in. Looking at the airplane with Ethiopian Air down the side hit me like a brick. I started to shake. I couldn't believe in just 1 hour I would be boarding this flight that would take me across the world to see my son.
We were getting ready to board and about four policemen wheel this man in in a wheelchair. The man starts screaming and yelling saying he needs his meds and that he was not getting on the plane. This man was going crazy. I mean CRAZY! I then start to feel my BP going up, hives on my neck and face. I started to freak out . I went from being so happy to scared all in about 5 sec. The devil was trying to take my glory and joy once again. He doesn't want me to meet my son and he will do anything to stop it. I texted my friend Heidi and was telling her what was going on. Heidi sent me this text "the devil is trying all he can. Too bad your joy is unshakeable, you serve a God that is above ALL things. You are protected. Confident hope!" I can't tell you I wasn't freaking out still but I also felt a sense of peace. They then took the man away. We then went to our seats and I thanked Heidi and The Lord.
It was now almost 8:00 and we would be landing around midnight in Addis Ababa. I would be holding my child in around five hours. I could not believe this. God is so good. I slept about five hours and Nick really didn't sleep at all. I prayed he wouldn't crash when we got there. Because of the time difference it would be about 6:30 am . So we would be up the entire day again.




Friday, May 2, 2014

K HERE WE COME!!


Good news ya’ll! First of all we received our pair letter on Friday the 25th. Happy news! Nick and I rushed it off the Caring Hands right away. Where they hand deliver it to the State Dept., where it will be authenticated. Then it goes to the Ethiopian Embassy in DC. Then it goes to our caseworker and then to ET. Today was a hard day today, so I asked Nick to check on our letter. My arms were aching to hold my son. Well right after he called Caring Hands Nick got a phone call from Julie (our caseworker), she says that we have AP court date in ET, it is May 8th. Nick then calls me, and I almost hit the floor. I just cried and cried in my friend/ client’s arms. Nick booked our flight right away and we have to leave tomorrow night now. One day to pack y’all! I’m so good with that! As I’m crying I realize that we have no luggage. So I vented about it in the shop. As I’m venting my client’s mom happened to walk in the shop to give her daughter mail and she heard me talking about it. She ran home and brought back her luggage for us. Praise the Lord! Thank you Karen (who owns the yummy and wonderful Rocky Top here in town and is also my daughter’s boss). Thank you so much Karen!!!!  

We would love prayers from all of you. My mom was supposed to have surgery Monday but canceled to stay with my kids. Please pray she stays healthy while we are gone. She is weak and needs the surgery but she knows I can’t leave without her here. She is coming, so I can be at peace now.

Thank you Jesus!!! K, mom and dad are coming we will meet you in just a few days!!!!        

Sunday, April 13, 2014

LET'S HELP HANNAH'S HOPE


Tonight as I type this, I can’t tell you how emotional I am at this point. Tuesday K’s dad has his court date and I have praying and begging the Lord to somehow get him there. I am extremely anxious and have felt the anxiety take me over. I know y’all are praying so hard for BP to make it there, and I just know God hears your prayers. I had a mental break down when BP didn’t show on April 1st. When I crashed I reached out to adoptive momma friends and they picked me right off the floor with their prayers and kind words. I cried out to God and asked for help. I know that God is eager to help me. He loves me so much and doesn’t want me to go through these trials alone. I did feel comfort in knowing that God has this. Please pray that K’s daddy makes it there on Tuesday the 15th. We so badly want to meet our son. Please also pray for K’s daddy this will be an emotional day for him. I pray God will give him peace and comfort.

On another note Hannah’s Hope needs donations for the children there. That is the transition home where K is living. I am so grateful for HH. They have taken care of my child and many others. Many of these children are very sick when they enter the gates. The special mothers there help get these children healthy again, K being one of them. I am asking every one of you who read my blog and are following this journey to my son, if you could please donate one thing? I promise I’m not asking for much. We all can afford one bottle of baby shampoo or a packet of wipes or diapers. I’m begging y’all please help HH out. I will be taking these donations with me. Remember if BP makes it to court we may be leaving at the end of the month. It would be amazing if Nick and I had way too many bags to take with us filled with donations for ET.

Here is a list of the needs at HH

Baby oil/lotion
Baby shampoo
Baby socks
Baby washcloths
Wipes
Diapers
Baby clothes
Baby PJ’S
Towels for babies
Hair oil for toddlers
Shampoo
Lotion
Towels foe toddlers
PJ’s 4t-12 youth
Clothes and shoes for older kids …. Ages 4-13 
One more note, I received a present for K in the mail from my dear friend Erica and I wanted to share. Love her! Here are the pics:  






Friday, April 4, 2014

FAITH


I’m saddened to tell all of you that K’s daddy didn’t make it to court on April 1st. This day was very emotional for me. All morning I felt sick from anxiety. Then I got the call from Julie my caseworker that he didn’t make it. I got off the phone and finished my cut and color. After my client left I crumbled and I yelled WHY God? I could not stop crying and asking why? I was truly a mess! Then something (God) told me to reach out to a friend Heidi who is waiting to bring her beautiful baby girl home from ET also. After reaching out to her she sent me this message “God will redeem this. He will. Satan does not win. He cannot take your joy. Your confident hope has DEEP roots in Jesus, we won’t be shaken. Jesus has this. He does. He will do it. He will reach down and work a mighty miracle to bring your boy home where he belongs.” This message literally picked me up off the floor. I will be forever grateful. Not only did she send me that, she also sent me some amazing bible verses that have helped her on her journey to her daughter, of whom she has waited 3 years for. She also contacted her mother and she started praying for me also. These are women I have never met, now praying to our Savior, for myself and K. I felt those prayers in my heart that day. Those prayers got me through and I was able to finish my day at the salon without having another total melt down. The power of friends that God has connected through adoption is pretty amazing. A bond that cannot be broken for sure! 

So I need to tell the next step. K’s daddy has been rescheduled for court again on April 15th. He also has embassy on the 16th. This is good folks because he won’t have to travel twice. Remember he had the embassy date on the 16th anyways? So he would have had to travel twice if he would have made it to the April 1st date. And remember it takes 2 ½ days to get there.  My photo album and letter for K’s dad is there in Ethiopia and he will receive it on the 16th. Please Pray K’s dad makes it there on the 15th. Please pray for comfort for him and K that day. If he doesn’t make it there I am not 100% sure what will happen. Will they file a police report which will take longer for K to come home? Will they just go with the first paperwork that K’s dad signed when he relinquished K? I don’t know? At this point I’m praying and believing in the Lord that this is all in his plans. I’m hoping and praying that in God’s plans K’s daddy will be there on the 15th and our Lord will be there with his hand on K’s daddy’s shoulder as he reads my letter and signs that paper.  

On a HAPPY note Heidi, (my friend) who I mentioned earlier, well her BP did show up to her court that day! WAHOO! Let me tell you she has the cutest most precious baby girl. God is moving mountains to bring her home. This is Heidi’s first child and she is just an itty bitty baby. So if God continues to move mountains to bring her baby home, Heidi will not miss out on to many first’s with her baby girl! Let’s  pray ya all!

Friday, March 28, 2014

COURT DATE ISSUED...BITTER SWEET...


Yesterday March 27th, we received another phone call from AGCI.  Julie informed us that she had more great news for us. Here it is, Drum Roll please……….. We have birth parent court date April 1st!  Yes you just read that right! Tuesday K’s daddy should be in Addis Ababa for his court date. This is the day that he will have the final choice to relinquish K. This is the day that my heart will be truly broken for K and his daddy. K’s daddy will also get the choice this day to spend time with K and say goodbye to him. I can’t imagine the hurt and pain they both will feel. As K’s mommy I want to so bad hold him and comfort him as his daddy leaves. I can’t be there and it kills me! However I am finding peace that our heavenly Father will be there to comfort K and his daddy.
Please! Please! Pray for K and his daddy on Tuesday April 1st.

Please pray that they find his daddy and he can make it to the court date. If he does not make it there it will cause major delays in our case. If he does make it, our case should go fast. This weekend I am getting my list for packing. EEEEEEK! Also I made a mistake on how long it takes to get there from where BP is coming from. It’s not 10 hours its 2 ½ days!!!!!... That is a long trip! 

Begging for prayers! Right now! I will be so worried until Tuesday when I know whether he made it there. Also if he does make it there he will need all your prayers for peace in his heart. K is going to also need prayers. It will be so hard to see his daddy for the 1st time in a while and to have to say goodbye. My heart is so heavy right now. I want to scoop K up and hold him and comfort him. I also want to give his daddy a big huge hug. We need all the prayers we can get at this time.

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

MOVING FORWARD!


So my last update said, ”Come on pair letter.”  Well its coming soon.  We have news! Our caseworker called us today to tell us that we have birth parent embassy date is April 16th. This is an interview with the BP necessary to verify the facts presented in the adoption case. They want to make sure that everything is legal and also to make sure that BP understands everything that is happening with K.  After this interview our pair letter will be here one week later! I broke out into a happy dance! Our case is moving. From this point forward, if all goes well, it will be moving fast. I have heard of some cases that after the birth parent embassy date, they were leaving for Ethiopia within 11 days. Oh my, folks I’m crying and laughing at the same time. I’m scared and excited. There are so many emotions going on here. I cannot wait to get on that airplane that reads Ethiopian Air! I cannot wait to hold, love, smell, and play with my son. I cannot wait to walk through those big gates. I have no idea how I’m going to sleep until then. I’m packing my bags and I’ll be ready for the call to leave any day.

On another note, I wrote K’s birth father a letter. By far the hardest letter I have ever had to write. How do tell a father who had to relinquish his son that your heart aches for him. How do you thank a father who has been through so much heartache for giving you a son? How do you let him know how humble and grateful you are for his sacrifice out of love? HOW? HOW? HOW?  I humbly wrote this letter with tears in my eyes the entire time. I will always respect and love K’s father and K will always know about him. So, as I’m so happy today, I am reminded about the loss that K’s dad is going to feel when he sits at the Embassy on April 16th. This is the date that he will know he has another family coming for him and that he may never see him again. Oh my heart is breaking for him. I did promise him that his son will be loved so much by our family (including all of you)!

PLEASE pray for K’s daddy that God will wrap his arms around him and give him comfort and peace! Please pray he also makes it to the Embassy safely. It’s almost a 10 hour drive from where he lives. The roads are not good either. It will be a long bumpy ride.

Thank you all for your support! We love you all!

Saturday, March 1, 2014

Come on PAIR Letter!


So, I don’t have much to share about when Nick and I will be traveling to meet our son. We are in what is called a PAIR process and we are waiting on a PAIR letter. This process is very new and became effective September 1, 2013. PAIR stands for Pre - Adoption Immigration Review. This process will protect adoptive parents and also protect the adopted child and promote the best interests of the child. This PAIR letter is a pre-approval letter. The process can take 4-7 months. We are praying it doesn’t take that long. We have been assigned an officer to our case, which we can contact to see where our PAIR letter is and just get an update. Nick has spoken with her and he says she is very nice. We are going to email her on Monday to check on it. We sent our PAIR paperwork the 1st week of January. So it has been 2months already. I can’t explain how much I think of K and worry about K daily. I have to admit I worry so much about this adoption and I just want K home. My arm literally aches to hold him. Every time my family sits down to eat dinner together I see that empty chair and my heart aches. We put his bed up in his room with his big brother and let me tell you seeing his bed with his new matching comforter just like his big brother’s kills me. I picture myself lying down in his bed with him rubbing his back until he falls asleep. Oh my heart, please everyone pray that God moves mountains to get K home soon. I know I do not have control over this, God does. I have read that “waiting for” is an active display of faith in God during tough situations.
Kaitlynn and I were in Columbus last month for her Government class and we decided to check out an Ethiopian restaurant. We are trying to learn as much as we can about K’s culture. Let me tell you we love his culture and food. Yummy!!! Kait and I shared a sampler platter. The meat was lamb. It was so good!  In Ethiopia they don’t eat with utensils.  They eat with injera, (like pancake bread) you tear a piece off and dip and scoop the food up with it. Its takes a little bit to get used to but Kait and I figured it out.  











Sunday, January 19, 2014

WAITING.....


Most of you know that there have been some scary things happening with Ethiopian adoption right now. I will do a recap. The Friday before New Year’s Eve we received an email from AGCI briefly stating that adoptions in Ethiopia may be closing for outside of the country adoptions. Therefore the fate of thousands of orphans is unknown. There was supposed to have been a meeting about this in ten days. Well that meeting never happened. I’m not sure how this will all end, and if that meeting will come later. What I do know is that I am ready and willing, if I have to fight to bring K home.  As of now AGCI has been very positive about K coming home and has given me hope again. As of right now there are 6 families waiting to travel for 1st trip and 3 families waiting for their 2nd trip. Wait times between court and embassy have been around 2 months. We are part of the new PAIR process so it could take us longer. AGCI is still trying to figure this process out right along beside us. They are saying it could take up to 4 to 7 months. Let’s pray that it doesn’t take that long. I’m going to pray that God moves mountains to get K and all the special kids at HH home soon.

I know it’s easy to get frustrated and caught up in the wait time. However, I know I should try to maintain as normal as a routine as possible. This is extremely hard for me. I have to tell you, I had a breakdown when we received that email, and K getting home is all I can think about. I feel I am overwhelmed and consumed with the mission of getting my son home. That is the first thing I think about when I wake up and the last thing I think about going to bed. The wait and the not knowing is extremely hard. This is where faith comes in. God, I do have faith that you will bring our son home and this is all part of your plan. I had a dear friend tell me that it is special in God’s eyes to be called to wait. She said to be called to wait is like serving our God. Helping and encouraging others who have also been called to wait. As I write this with a smile because that is exactly what is happening.  I am not the only momma in this wait for her child or children.  I have been praying and saying words of encouragement daily. Waiting also has brought me closer to God, for I have found myself praying a lot more. I have confessed my struggles to God and have been seeking grace of our God who has called me to wait. I have now rethought the meaning of waiting, and feel God is using the waiting in my life as a call to action to bring me closer to him.
I will close this blog with letting everyone know that we did receive our contracts from Ethiopia. One step closer!!!!!!!.... THANK YOU ALL for prayers and support to bring our special son K home!!!!!!

Melkam Gena!


January 7, 2014 is my son’s Christmas in Ethiopia. Melkam  Gena ( means Merry Christmas in Amharic). We are extremely proud of our son’s Ethiopian heritage and would like to keep it dear to him when he comes home also. We decided to celebrate his holiday with him. I am a part of a special AGCI Ethiopia group on Facebook and some of these special mothers gave me some great ideas and recipes to help us celebrate. We ate by candle light, had some delicious Ethiopian food. I made Wat,Ethiopian honey bread  (“Yermarina Yewotet Dabo”)  and of course popcorn, a favorite by my kiddos. The girls loved wearing their scarves.  Here are some pics of our dinner.  
 



 

CHRISTMAS!


It has been awhile since my last post. Therefore I’m going to do three different posts tonight. I am writing about our journey to K and someday I would like to make my journal into a book for him. During this journey to him, I have written about milestones and detours, as well as love, hope, and most of all faith. Writing this journal has made me think about what he is going to think when he reads this? Should I hide my fears and anxiety I have written about when unexpected things happen along the way? But hiding fears and feelings and putting up fronts, defeats the purpose of a journal, which is most effective when it’s honest.  

I would like share our Christmas with you K! We can’t wait for Christmas time next year when you’re in all the pictures with your brother and sisters. We made a video for you but we can’t post it on the blog. The song in the video states it is Christmas time and you’re not home. We can’t wait to sing the part that says its Christmas time and now you’re home.


December 25, 2013
 

Lily, Kaitlynn, Gabe, and K's stockings.

Your stocking is the only one left hanging, but next year there will be none!

Your big sister is opening up your stocking this year.



 

 
 

The shirt you will wear when we bring you home to America.






The presents Santa left for you.


 


Merry Christmas K! We love you!