OUR GOD, MIRACLE WORKER

Salem from Addis Ababa, as many of you know Nick is here. On August 3, he boarded a plane because I told him to book a flight on faith alone. He landed Friday August 4. While he was in the air God knew all the answers. God knew he was going to break all chains and move that mountain. That morning at 5 am I got down on my knees in prayer. God heard our prayers and he knows our heart. Nick met his children that morning not knowing that God's miracle was already happening. 

We got the phone call 2 hours after my husband landed. God moved that mountain! He preformed a miracle right before our eyes. At 3:00 We took full custody of our children.

With God's grace and hundreds of faithful believers praying, we did it! The staff here at AA never gave up. My thanks and gratitude goes out to my agency and the staff at MOWA. I will be forever in debt to them, because of them my children are coming home. The enemy can NOT stand against God's will for our children. 

Our children have been with us in the hotel. They have been so wonderful. Polite, kind, loving and very shy, is how I would describe them. Sleeping next to them every night has been a dream of mine for 2 1/2 years. Sleeping without fear and not being scared has been a dream of theirs for 5 1/2 years. They never have to sleep alone and scared ever again. I keep thinking, "Am I dreaming? Is this really real?"

Well, it is real! God is real! God is faithful! Our story alone proves this.

Tonight my husband will leave to go back to America. I have to wait until their passports are printed and then medical. After medical I will go to the US Embassy for their visa's. My husband can't stay, he has to get back to work ( financially we made this choice) and take care of our children back home. Their 1st day of school is Tuesday. I'm sad I will miss their 1st day of school for the 1st time ever. I am glad their daddy can be there though. I booked a flight for Friday night. We will land in Columbus around 5pm. Please pray that their medical goes good so we can be cleared to come home. Please pray for me as I bring two children home who barely speak English. This is not a straight through flight. I will be flying to Germany, then Chicago and then Columbus. Pray that customs goes well for us. Why, am I nervous? I just spent 8 weeks in Ethiopia by myself? Ha! Btw I love Ethiopia, the culture and the the people here. I will be so sad leaving here. I will be leaving a piece of my heart here. I will be back though and I can't wait. 9 weeks without seeing my children, I'm weepy just thinking about the airport reunion. I'm sure seeing my kids standing there with my husband will make me buckle to my knees. They will meet their brother and sister for the 1st time and see their mommy for the 1st time in 9 weeks. Anyone who wants to come to the airport to watch this miracle happen is more than welcome to be there. Ahhhhhhhhhhh WE ARE COMING HOME!!!

P.S. If you are at the homecoming, I would ask you not to post any pictures of the reunion until I post. I have decided not to post any pictures of my kids until our family is all together. With Asnake and Bizuye's permission. 

God is good!! God is faithful! God is a way maker! God is a miracle worker! God is a promise keeper. ALL THE GLORY TO GOD! 

I know your Able and I know you can JESUS!

 

 

 

Salem, everyone from Ethiopia. I have been here for a very long time. In this
post I wanted to share about how much I have felt God here and seen God here.
Being away from my family back in America has been so hard. Especially hard
since it's summer break. I have been here the entire summer. I have not seen
them swim in the pool or go to the zoo. I have missed almost all my Kuchman and
Gabe's baseball games. I have cried myself to sleep many nights . Every morning
around 5 am I get a FaceTime call from Lily. You see, Lily can't fall asleep
without her mommy. I sleep with her every night ( yes, don't Judge ha)! Lily is
my child that is an emotional child. I'm her safe zone. She has learned to be
comforted by FaceTiming me to fall asleep. She lays her head down while I watch
her sleep. She goes right to sleep knowing that her mommy is watching her. Even
if I'm a across the ocean.
You see in this time being here for so long, I have taken comfort like Lily does
with her mommy. I know Jesus is watching over me. He is by my side helping me
get through these trials. I'm honored to have Him in my corner.
You can not be in Ethiopia without seeing Jesus. He walks these streets with all
the kind hearted Ethiopian people. I have been told by many Ethiopians that I am
one of them. I am family. I miss my family back home but so many people here
filled the void. The Brooklyn Hotel owners and staff have made me feel
completely like family . They call me ETHIOPIAN ha!
They cry with me and pray with me. They are family. I will never forget how much
they have helped me get through this hard time. They even invited me to an
orthodox ceremony, where we shared bread and water together. A woman handed me a
glass of water, I drank the entire glass and handed it back to the woman because
she was waiting for the glass back. You see, I came in late to the ceremony and
she handed this glass of water to me right away. Little did I know that she
passed that same glass around to all 80 -100 people in the room and it came from
a bowl and pitcher. When I realized that, I thought to my self, OH NOOOOOOO, I
just drank an entire glass of tap water, aka parasite water. Instantly my face
got red and I started to freak out. You all remember how sick I was when I came
here in March when I brushed my teeth with the water.
So after the ceremony I told the owner of the hotel, Brook, about my worries
over the water. He said so calmly, "It's okay, it's holy water! You will be
fine!" I walked alway thinking, ya right!
He was right, it was holy water, and I'm just fine. You see with God's blessing
on things, everything good comes from it!
This is a good reminder for me as life is often filled with uncertainty. I was
so uncertain about this water and actually about staying In ETHIOPIA by myself.
I have things in my life which I fear will never change or come to an end. There
are other things which keep me up at night, wondering what will happen and when.
The unpredictability of life can keep me on edge, feeling anxious, and fearful.
With this adoption unpredictable is an understatement. I have never cried so
much in my life, but I have also never prayed so much in my life. Being here in
Ethiopia, I have become a lot closer to the Lord. I have learned to trust Him
fully. In the middle of a problem, it is easy to lose sight of God’s
faithfulness and His goodness. We often find ourselves focusing on our problems
when we are in them and we often forget everything else. But God has a purpose
in the struggle, and He is faithful, no matter what. I have seen that during my
time here.
Being here is not cheap and not working is a problem. I have stressed over
money but God has been faithful. He has laid it on my friend's heart to help us.
I'm overwhelmed and humbled by all your donations. I will be forever grateful.
Thank you from all of us!
God never said that life would be easy but we need to remember that He is
faithful, He is good and He keeps His promises: “Be strong and courageous. Do
not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you
wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9)
We still need lots of prayers . There are only 2 court dates left ( next Tuesday
and Thursday) because of rainy season and then court is closed until October!
Please pray that God makes a way and moves that mountain. He can break all
chains.

 

 

I walk to this church on top of the mountain everyday. It's an Orthodox Church and absolutely beautiful!

Orthodox ceremony with my good friend Anne and her adorable daughter.

The bridge I walk over everyday

.

 

 

 

IN OUR BONDAGE HE IS OUR FREEDOM

Salem from Ethiopia! I arrived in Ethiopia on June 16th. On my daughter's
birthday. I surprised them. The video will have you all in tears. I can't wait
to show it to my close friends and family. B went running to me and A stood up
and started clapping his hands. I was a mess, well we all were. I got her a cake
and we had a huge celebration. The nannies had the room all decorated. This was
her 1st birthday celebration ever. This was a day I'll never forget.

Many of you know that I did not get on my return flight on my birthday. I
cancelled my flight and I have no idea when I will come home. I will be home
when God moves this mountain and breaks all chains so that our children can come
home.
This is the hardest thing I have ever done. I miss my family back home. It's so
hard when you have two families across the world from another. I miss Kuchman
saying " mom can you oil me up?" I miss sleeping with my baby girl. I miss
Gabe's baseball games and him saying " mom come in my room and talk to me!" I
miss Kaitlynn's clumsiness and the things that come out of her mouth, that Nick
and I look at each other and laugh about. Haha , sorry Kait! I miss hearing my
husband's truck pull in after he gets off work. I miss him hugging me and
telling me it's going to be okay when I fall apart. Falling apart has been a
daily thing here for me.
I have sobbed and pleaded in front of so many strangers. A taxi driver even
picked me up drove me around and prayed  for me because I was crying so hard
while walking by myself on the streets of Ethiopia.
God has given me so much courage. I walk to see my kids everyday. I'm very
comfortable here. I walk to get groceries by myself. I walk up to a church to
pray often. I love Ethiopia and the people here. I have even got to wash some
hair at the barber shop here. They love when I come and hang out. Oh how I miss
doing hair. I did give B her 1st haircut.
My dear friend Kelli took me on a weekend trip out of the city. I'm so grateful
she did this for me. The country side is absolutely breathtaking. I will post
when I get home. Africa is amazing. I fed a wild monkey out of the palm of my
hand. Ummmmmm ya, I don't think brave is a good word for that, I'm thinking
crazy is better. I rode in a boat to see the hippos and I may or may not have
freaked out when the boat got a little to close for comfort for me. Haha!
Of course I'm still the thrifty Val. I wash my clothes in the sink with a bar of
soap. My friend Kelli just gave me some laundry detergent so I don't have to
wash with the bar of soap anymore haha! I keep sniffing my clothes now. I eat in
my room most days. Ramen noodles and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches is what
I live off of. Oh I long for a home cooked meal.

When I told my son I was leaving on my birthday he cried. That moment I knew I
could not leave them. My 1st thought was how in the world can I stay here? How
can my husband manage 2 jobs and taking care of the children? Well he's rocking
it. He's amazing and strong. All of you know by now we have no family to help
us. I'm in awe at the help we have with just friends. We never even have to ask.
You guys just show up with meals and texts saying how can I help? Last weekend
Nick texted me saying Kait has to work Sunday so I'm going to have to take the
day off from work. I freaked out and said you have to save those days for when
it's time to come here. A couple hours later he texted me and said Kristen is
taking gabe to his game and the little ones are going with Kristen's parents for
the day. Then all the kids are eating supper and spending the night at Linda's. I'm in tears and
amazing by all of you. I'm so grateful!
Thank you all from the bottom of my heart.

I can not give any details about our case. We would just like to ask all of you
for prayers. We firmly believe in the power of prayer. Everyday I write a
different prayer out for our children. We sit and hold hands with their special
momma( nanny). I say the prayers line by line and she translates for me. One day
I asked A what he wanted to do for the day. His answer was " pray mom!" I'm a
lucky momma to have kids who believe in, and love our Lord and Savior! I have had so
many families come up to me to say they have fallen in love with your kids, and
because of them we would be open to adopting an older child. My kids are a
reflection of Jesus! They are so sweet and kind.
We will wait on the Lord at this point. Waiting is so hard for me. I think in
this 2 1/2 year journey I'm getting better at waiting. Just a teeny bit better. 
I'm asking God to meet me where I'm at spirituality and take any doubts or fears
from me.
I'm asking God to allow me to be brave, when my mind is clouded. I know our
Lord's mighty hand protects us and delivers us.
I will praise our Lord in good times and bad times. I see God working in
Ethiopia. I know He has performed many miracles. I know He hears ours cries. He
alone is the all powerful and merciful God.
Our seasons change but our God stays the same. We know He will make a way. We
know He holds all the answers. In our bondage, He is our freedom. In our
weakness, He is the power! We know He is faithful. We know He will break all
chains. He will lift Satan's hand off our paperwork. He will perform a miracle!
We trust in Him!
Thank you all for praying for my family. For my kids and I in Ethiopia and
my husband and kids who miss me so much back home. I can't wait to share with
you all, God's miracle! Our children A and B!

HE CAN MOVE THE MOUNTAIN!

We have been waiting 26 months for our children to come home. Most of you know that on April 21st, the Prime Minister of Ethiopia instituted an indefinite suspension on international Adoptions from Ethiopia. We still don't know why he has done this. He did not state a reason. This suspension has affected over 200 American families. We are one of those families. My entire family has been broken hearted over this. We are fighting and will never give up. They are our children and we will someday be all together as a family. We contacted our congressmen. Bob Latta's office has been wonderful. The State Department is working for all families waiting to bring their babies home. I posted on my Facebook and asked you all to sign a petition to help bring these children home. I was overwhelmed by the response. My family feels so loved by all of you. Thank you for taking time out of your day to sign and share my post. 

I went by myself to meet my beautiful children in March. I can't even find words to describe this meeting. It was by far breathtaking. Praise the lord a sweet momma captured it on video so my husband and children could see it. Most of my close friends and family have seen this video. I was asked to be the guest speaker at the YWCA for the Tribute to Women of Achievement. During my speech I showed the video of meeting my children, the video included meeting Kuchman for the 1st time also. I don't think there was a dry eye in the place. Everyone who has watched it cries. Watching God's miracles is very emotional and joyful. My children welcomed me with open arms and if you could only see the hug. My son was even rubbing my back because, well I was sobbing. I spent 2 weeks with them, 4 hours a day. I got to know them very well. They are the kindest, sweetest children. My son carried my book bag every day to the car when it was time for me to leave. My daughter would hold my hand everywhere we would go. We played uno, soccer and hop scotch daily. They even taught me a lot of their language so I could better communicate with them. I surprisingly learned fast. They laughed at me all the time because it just didn't sound right with my American accent.

We bonded! They called me mom! When I left them we were all sobbing. My daughter got physically sick. I told them I would be back soon. I am their HOPE! They have been in the orphanage 5 years. They are not orphans, they have a family who loves them and will fight for them.

With all that said, I'm heading back to Ethiopia in 9 days. I'm going alone again. I am not scared. God will be with me just like he was in my 1st trip. I felt him the entire time I was there. He put fear behind me. He sent an angel for me by the name of Victor before I even got on the plane. My husband was in tears when I told him about Victor. You see, my husband prayed that God would send someone to help me. When I left my husband at the Columbus airport I was a mess. I can't imagine how he felt leaving me like that. God answered his prayers. God also had a sweet angel waiting for me in Ethiopia. I didn't know it but he set it all up. I met a woman named Allison at my hotel. Allison was in the process of adopting a sweet little boy. We were with the same agency and our kids are in the same foster home. She became my Rock and even took care of me when I got sick. That's a new level of being scared. Sick in another country by yourself. Allison gave me comfort and calmed me down when I couldn't calm myself. She sat on my bed and took care of me. I will be forever grateful for this woman. She and her husband are now home, and praise the lord their son is home with them. They were able to come home before the April 21st suspension. 

My plane will leave June 15th and I will arrive on June 16th. June 16th is a special day, it's my daughter birthday. I will land at 7am on her birthday. They do not know I'm coming. I'm going to surprise them on B's bday. This will be the 1st time she has celebrated her birthday. This will be a day to remember. I will be there another two weeks. While I'm there I'll will talk to them and see if they understand why they are not coming home yet. I will let them know we will never give up. We will be a family. Even if it takes my entire family moving to Ethiopia. Yes, you read that right. We will move there if that's the only option we have to be a family. 

With that said, I want to take a minute to tell you about my incredible husband. This man supported me when I left for my 1st trip. He held the fort down. You all know we don't have much family. My mom got sick while I was in Ethiopia so Nick was on his own. While in Ethiopia I realized friends are family. You all stepped up, made meals, picked kids up from practices, and even texted Nick asking to pick up the kids just to give him  a break. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart. I love you all. 

My husband while holding the fort down was worried about his wife in a foreign country. He missed me so much as I did him. We are each other best friends. We have never been away from each other this long. With that said Someone had to hold the fort down here. With not much family we can't ask our friends to take care of our kids for two weeks and Kait is in school. It's not fair to her to leave her with 3 very busy kids in sports and school. So only one could go. My selfless husband told me to go. I will be forever grateful for that. He's stepping back and letting me bond with our children. It's a long story but when we adopted Kuchman, it took Kuchman a long time to love me or even want anything to do with me. Nick was the hero and really all he wanted. That happens a lot with adoption, the men become the hero( the preferred parent). I read about it and even took classes on it. I thought I was prepared if it was to happen. Well I wasn't. It broke my heart and I cried myself to sleep many nights. Kuchman came around about 6 months after being home. He now is my sidekick. He loves his mommy with all his heart. 

So my amazing husband who wants to meet his children so bad is letting me go by myself once again so I can bond more with them. If that's isn't LOVE I don't know what is!

I am reminded of Christ's love through the love my husband has for me. His love is unconditional, selfless, and forgiving. I'm so blessed to have someone who can hold me, guide me, comfort me and support me with every crazy idea I come up with. I firmly believe that our common love for Christ has kept us together and growing stronger. Through all of our pain and heartbreak after receiving the news about our Adoption on April 21st, my husband stayed faithful. While his broken wife was a mess and was doubting. I remember one night I looked over at him in bed ( he had the iPad) I said what are you looking up? He replied I'm looking for a job in Ethiopia. That is FAITHFUL! The devil will not win! We are not on his side! We are faithful to our God just like God is to us. He didn't bring us this far to give up. So I will board that plane in 9 days. I will get off that plane and I will squeeze my girl on her birthday and squeeze my son also. They will see momma came back and will not give up. 

While in county I will go to meetings at the US embassy to find out any new information on the suspension. We are praying for a miracle While I'm there. God can move this mountain. I will be leaving Ethiopia on the night of my birthday. So I will get to spend my entire birthday with my children. That's a great birthday. The only thing that can top that present is if they lift the suspension and my children will get the okay to come home. Please pray for that miracle. Please pray for my incredible husband as he works full time ( 2 jobs) and takes care of 4 children while his wife is gone. Im so blessed to call this man my husband. Thank you Nick, I love you ALWAYS!

 

ADOPTION FUNDRAISER

We have been waiting almost 21 months to bring our children home. Friday we didn't get the news we were hoping for on our case. Just another bump In the road. It will now be longer before they come home. I have decided I cannot wait any longer to meet them. They have been without a family for 5 years, and it is time they meet their momma. I am planning a trip to Ethiopia. I am hoping to leave the second week of February, as long as everything plays out. I will be there to meet my children and see what I need to do to get them home. I could use some prayers, I am going by myself, mostly because of the money. I have never travelled anywhere by myself. I know God will be with me, and I just need to lean on him and cast my fears behind me. I am selling tshirts to fundraise for our adoption.
3/4 sleeve baseball tee with elbow patches for women $25
Unisex tshirts $15
Sizes XS to XL in baseball tee for women (these run one size small)
Sizes S to 5X in tshirts (youth sizes also available in this shirt)
Anything 2X and up is $2 extra
Colors will be gray with black sleeves. The elbow patches will gray not black like the picture.
The last day of this sale will be February 14th. PM me or comment below on how many you would like and sizes. Payment will be through PayPal button on the right. I will ship all out of town shirts. Please pm me your address.