The moment we've all been waiting for............

We got our travel approval!!!!!

 

 

Finally, finally, finally, after over a year of waiting and watching our sweet girl growing older in pictures,  we are at the end of this journey and will soon be on our way!!

 

 

Oh my goodness, I can't tell you how excited I am.  I've been trying to wrap my brain around this, and organizing in my head everything I need to do now before we go!

 

Here's a picture of her with some birthday presents she received.

 

 

I just love that tiara and necklace and purse.  She is just ready to go!  And we are soooo ready! :)

 



We've got mail!!

Oh, yes, we got some mail.  What was it, you ask?  I'll give you three clues..

L,

 

 

O,

 

 

A,

 

 

!!!

 

 

 

That's "Letter Of Acceptance," for anyone who doesn't speak the adoption language.  If you are in the process yourself and wondering, it took just over two months from LID to now.  It felt like it took forever, but our agency said that was actually quick! 

 

Now we are REALLY in the home stretch.  They are telling us their best estimate will be mid-March for travel.  I really hope we will be in China on Corrie's birthday, Feb. 23.

 

I am so excited...I just can't believe it is coming up so soon! 

 

 Corrie and her sweet little friends.  She always looks so happy.  I love her to pieces.  

 



 

 



DTC!!

Our dossier is winging its way to China as I type!

Wow...that whole paperwork process is so crazy and long,  I almost can't believe it's done.  And I can thank my hubby because since he is the one who is better with those sorts of things (I do not win any prizes for organization and would probably lose or spill something on the forms), he is the one who has done most of the work.  Still, in all seriousness, we are thankful that God brought us through that, and there were a few hurdles this time.  We are so very thankful that we are at this point in the process of bringing home our very special girl!

 

 

How sweet are these pictures?  I would love to meet this precious lady someday who obviously loves her so much.

 

Looking at these pictures just reminds me again...that I am completely humbled when I think that God would trust me with the awesome privilege and responsibility of being "Mom"--to children I've given birth to, and more amazingly, to children I never felt growing inside me, or even knew as infants.

 

 I will never get over that fact .  

 

Lord, that I would live my life as Mom to them to the best of my ability.  Help me to love them like You do...  

 

Blessings to you, friends!      

 

 



My heart did a flip when I saw this picture...

And I sort of got goosebumps...and I felt all melty...and my day that had begun kind of lousy suddenly felt like sunshine!

How many ways do I love this picture??  Well, I love the fun slide and sweet aunties in the background, reminding me how loved this girl is...  I love the cute, flowery dress and especially those little pink crocs...   I love how confidently she is standing and the look on her face telling me "I am doing fine, Mom!"  AND her two little thumbs up signs.  Those about did me in. :)  This little girl is absolutely precious--to God, to those who already know her, and to US!! 

And...we are sending in our dossier on Monday!!!  One step closer!!

We are finally finishing up our dossier paperwork...

Can't wait to go and get this girl!  Isn't she precious?

 

 

(We won't actually be traveling until spring, but it feels good to check things off our list.)

 

Longing...

I know...it's the middle of the day.  I should be doing any one of a million different things right now.  But instead, I am sipping a cup of coffee and writing a blog post, because today...  I just need to share my feelings!  (We girls and our feelings, right?) :)

I saw this picture of Corrie today.

 

 

Yes, I know it's really a picture of the adorable sweetie in front.  But honestly when my eyes first hit the picture, they immediately went to the little girl in the background.  That cute little pink bathing suit.  Her head tilted to the side.  In an instant this mommy's heart didn't even see the picture's true subject.  She only noticed her little girl.   And that heart just melted into a puddle inside.

 

It is hard to be in the adoption process.  The wait stretches on and on.  You see the photos.  You long for your child.  My mind wanders throughout the day.  Is she happy?  I know she is loved where she is, and for that I am thankful.   But still I wonder, is she getting enough hugs and snuggles?  Is she sick?  Does she have bad dreams?  Even if she is completely happy and secure, still I long to be there.  To scoop her up in my arms and bring her home. 

 

For now, I endure the helpless feeling of missing someone you've not yet met.  Sweet baby, I can't wait to meet you.... 



 

 



Quick update...

Just a quick update since I've been leaving you hanging for so long...

Our summer in a nutshell:

The kids swam,
we did fundraisers,
and more fundraisers,
and cleaning up after fundraisers,
and we went to Family Camp.

That's about it. 

And we had a setback in our adoption process. :(  We had to do an update to our homestudy...it's a long story.  But, I am remembering that God already knew all about it, and He is not wringing His hands.  Just trusting and resting and knowing that He loves Corrie even more than we do.  His timing is always right, even when we can't imagine that it is. 

Sometimes He does really cool things like what happened the other day while we were at Family Camp.  One of the days, a couple and their grandchildren were visiting their niece and her husband who was preaching in the chapel that week.  This couple's daughter is a facebook friend of mine who has met and loves Corrie, and she became my online friend when she found out about us and our upcoming adoption.  Well, one of the granddaughters there had been with her parents in Corrie's baby home and had met her, too.  It was such a blessing to talk to someone about Corrie who has loved on her in person!  And it was fun sharing stories with the grandparents about our visits to China, since they had been there, too.  It's just so neat how God orchestrates things and puts people in other people's paths.  It was definitely the high-lite of my week!

So, we press on and wait for the government to move us to the next step in the process, and know that someday soon the ache in my heart when I see that precious girl's face will change to joy!

If you feel led to help us with our adoption expenses, you can go to this link.  Thanks so much...

Our night at Culver's, and my Thirty-One party!

So...we have been in Fundraiser-land lately.   Sorry for the very broken record here on my blog.  Even though I wish we didn't have to be there, we have been having a lot of fun!

Krispy Kreme gift certificates came first (and there are still some left), then our garage sale, along with selling some really beautiful bracelets made in Haiti through this organization.  If you are raising money for an adoption yourself, I highly recommend this fundraiser!  They sell really well, and it feels so good to be able to help Haitian people, too!  The garage sale went great, and we still have a lot left, so we will just open up our garage and do it again another weekend.

Our next event was at our local Culver's restaurant.  We just did it last night.  A portion of the proceeds from all the orders from 4 until 9 will come to us!  (They told me to come back in a few days, so I'm not sure yet how well we did.)  But, we had a steady stream of people the whole evening, we got to see many of our friends who came in to support us, and most of all, the boys loved being the food runners!  (In case you don't have a Culver's, that's kind of like servers, but all they had to do was take people's food to their tables and out to the cars in the drive-through.)  Seriously, they loved it.  When it was time to stop at 9:00, none of them stopped!  They just kept taking people their food, and Ben especially kept going until we made him leave at 9:45. :)  It was so much fun!  Here are some pictures of our evening.  We all wore red to represent our Corrie waiting for us in China...

 

They sure look official, don't they?

 

 Such prompt, courteous service!

 

 Some of our honored guests...

 

 

 Sarah being a Chinese princess for the evening

 

 

And they did take a break to eat!

 



Now, we are working toward one more fundraiser, but I think this will be the last one, and then I can blog about more interesting things.  I found out about a lady who adopted a child herself, and found that her most successful fundraiser was when a lady she knew did a Thirty-One party for her, and donated all the proceeds to her.  She decided she could be a blessing to adoptive families like that, too, and started her own Thirty-One consultant business with the express purpose of helping adoptive families with fundraising!  So,  she sent me the things I need in the mail, I'm having a party here at my house next week, and all the money she would have made as the consultant, she will donate to us.  Also, everyone can order to help us--even you!--from this website.  There is a great sale going on in July, too.  You get 31% off of any item in the catalog when you spend $31.  Awesome!  Also... if any of you out in bloggy land would be interested in helping us, YOU could host a party through me, and all the proceeds from your party would come to us, also!  (And YOU would get the hostess benefits--FREE PRODUCTS!)  Please leave me a comment if you would be interested in that.  I would be so excited if somebody would! :) 

Soooo...that's what's happening in Fundraiser-land.  I know we are getting much closer to meeting our goal--just several thousand left.  Which is much better than tens of thousands!  :) 

I'll end with this sad little story.  Corrie's caregivers posted on facebook the other day, asking everyone to please pray for her.  She has watched so many of her little "brothers and sisters" leave to go home with their new families over the years--and three of them in just the last few months.  That particular morning, one of them had left, and she was just having a hard time with it.  Always saying good-bye to the only siblings she has known, and always being left there herself.  I don't know how much she understands, or if she knows yet that she has a family coming.  But they posted that she cried all morning that day while the only daddy she has known held her.  It broke our hearts.  We love you, sweet girl! 

This was taken at Christmas-time with one of the directors at Morning Star.  I love this picture!



STUFF!

So excited, so excited!

Just a little sample of the stuff...

Our garage is full of stuff.  Our living room is full of stuff.  Our family room is.....full of stuff.  And we have MORE STUFF COMING!  :)  And it is because friends have been donating this stuff to sell in our garage sale this weekend to help bring our Corrie home!  Would you pray with us that it won't rain, because our garage won't hold all the stuff that we are selling.  It will be covering our driveway too,  and spilling over into the yard.  And, I am really excited because it is really nice stuff!!  The kids are going to be keeping the lemonade flowing and the cookies going, too.  When we had a lemonade stand at our garage sale to bring Sarah home, I think they did better than we did.  That cuteness factor does have a way with tugging at people's heartstrings... :) 

I love garage sales.  Honestly, what feels better than getting a good deal?  When I come home with bags of clothes and things that we really need (and fun things too) for only a fraction of the cost it would have been in the store, it's one of my greatest joys in life.  Humongous blessing!  AND, what's better than having a sale, (okay, the work is not so fun--but meeting people is fun!) and seeing their happy faces as they walk away with THEIR treasures they are getting for a song?  So fun.  SO FUN!!  AND...what could be better than getting great deals, giving people deals, and helping a family bring their daughter home so that there will be ONE LESS ORPHAN???  Oh, there is nothing better. :)  Blessings, blessings, blessings!

So, that's what we are doing this weekend.  I hope you have a great one, too! 

(And if you are sad that you can't come and shop at our garage sale, you can still buy some Krispy Kremes with the gift certificates you can get from our friend.  Here's that LINK.  Or, check out the Once Was Lost button at the top of my page and shop for some great STUFF, and it will help Corrie, too!)

More fundraising fun!

Hi, everyone!  I'm sorry I don't have much news to share.  One of these days I will spend some time catching you up on what the rest of our family has been doing over the past year or so.  But for now, I must tell you about the newest fundraisers we've been doing for Corrie. 

So, you all know about the Krispy Kremes.  Check out THIS POST if you don't.  Our friend who is graciously doing this fundraiser for us still has some gift cards left that she can mail anywhere in the country and they never expire.  So, if you like donuts and would like to have a part in the blessing of bringing Corrie home, you have come to the right place.  :) 

Next, I found this wonderful company called "Once Was Lost."  (Look on the right side of my blog at the top for the button.)  They have a store with fair trade items, and half the proceeds of purchases go to help adoptive families!  Proceeds also go to feed hungry children!  Our family is registered with them, so if you would like to make a purchase (and there is some cute stuff over there), don't forget to put our names in the "notes to seller" box when you are checking out.  We are listed in their "affiliates" section--Scott and Holly. :) 

AND...we are getting ready to have a garage sale.  I love garage sales.  Going and shopping at them, that is.  Having them?  Not as much.  But, I am willing to do my best to make it a great one, and friends are already donating stuff for it, so we are praying it will be a success! 

And, last but not least, we have an account set up with Project Hopeful if anyone would like to just make a tax deductible donation to help us.  Thank you!  (Soon we will have our bio and picture on the site.  For now, scroll down until you see Corrie's picture.)  Every little bit helps!

Now, a little note about fundraising... 

I know that not everyone thinks fundraising is a great idea.  I mentioned in a previous post that I really really wish we had no need to do it.  I do believe that God could just provide all the money without doing all these fundraisers.  However, I also know that God loves to use His people to do His work.  It is a blessing to give, and that's something I've learned first hand.   Please don't think we are begging, because we are definitely not.  I know that God has got this covered in one way or another, and we only want you to consider helping us if you feel like He is placing it on your heart.  If not, please just pray with us that  the whole adoption process will go smoothly, including the financial part.  Please pray that Corrie's transition into our family would be smooth and seamless, and that God would be getting things set up behind the scenes for the special care she will need when she gets here.  Thank you for visiting our blog!

And now I'll leave you with a summer treat...  How precious is this water baby??  She and Sarah (my other little fish) will have so much fun together!

(And yes, little Timothy there with her is absolutely adorable, too!)

Video of Corrie!

Look what I found... a video of the baby home where Corrie is--and Corrie is in it!  (Only for a second.  I wish she were in it longer!)  She is near the beginning in blue.  She is so precious, I just cannot wait to have her home!  (Did you read my previous post about the fundraiser a kind friend is doing for us?  And did you know it involves Krispy Kreme donuts??  AND, today was National Donut Day?  If you know of someone who might like some donuts, even if that someone just might be you, go check it out!)  And enjoy the video!  Those babies are so adorable, too. :)

Where we are in the process of bringing our Corrie home...

Hello again!  So sorry I disappeared on you right after I shared our exciting news.  It turns out that being a busy mom is tiring--and especially when you are the mom of one very chatty, delightful, precious and BUSY little girl like our Sarah. :)  So, most nights I mostly just feel like putting my feet up and vegging instead of blogging. 

But, I need to update you now because we are in the middle of the paper pregnancy.  Well, actually we are almost done with it!  And we have been watching God provide the money for this adoption in several different ways.  Amazing, really-- and that whole story will be the subject of a different blog post when it all plays out.  Part of the way God is providing is through ordinary people.  It always touches my heart so deeply when people step forward and give to meet a need.  It's humbling when the person in need is me.  I would so rather just be able to get money out of the bank and do it all ourselves, but no, we really don't have thousands of extra dollars in the bank.  We are definitely scrimping and saying no to some things that we would like to do and selling some things on ebay and things like that.  And, we are looking into some different fundraising ideas.  We plan to have a garage sale soon, and do some local restaurant fundraiser nights, and we're deciding about some other things.  But in the meantime, I got the biggest surprise the other day on facebook.  A cousin of Corrie's caregiver has loved Corrie forever, and she took it upon herself to do a fundraiser for us!  I've never even met her in person.  I can't tell you how encouraging that was to me!  I wish I lived next door to this precious lady so that we could be best friends! 

And the best part is... it involves Krispy Kreme doughnuts!!  How great is that?  It's great because they are not expensive, almost everyone likes doughnuts....and if you don't, you surely know someone who does, and it would make their day if you surprised them with some!  Anyone in the country can order from her, and she will ship you gift certificates that never expire.  Is this a WIN-WIN situation or what?  Get doughnuts and help a little girl to never be an orphan anymore!  Easy and yummy!  Are you loving this lady and this idea as much as I do? 

So, I know you are dying to know how to get these doughnuts.  Just go to this LINK and it tells you exactly how to do it.  Thank you in advance for loving Corrie with us and helping us to bring her home.  We are so grateful to everyone who can help! 

And just in case you forgot how beautiful she is, we got a new picture!

 

Doesn't that face make you hungry for some Krispy Kremes??

Precious Corrie-- Part 2!

So...where did I leave you hanging?  Oh, yes.  I remember.

You get the picture.  I had loved Corrie for so long.  Even as I prayed for her to get a family and wanted her to have one with all of my heart, I also knew that if a family came forward, a piece of my heart would break that it wasn't us!  I prayed that God would take that selfishness away from me.

Now, fast forward to just a few months ago.  I had pretty much resigned myself to the fact that it was God's will that we were not Corrie's family.  So much time had passed, and I just assumed He would have let us know by now. 

One day I was browsing facebook, and the director of Morning Star announced that Corrie was going to have to return to her original orphanage in six to eight months!  My heart stopped.  Corrie needed a family, and she needed one now.  That sweet girl has lived at Morning Star her entire life, since before she was a year old.  She is loved and cherished there in a home environment and given all the help they can possibly give.  She is learning signs and even went to a special school.  I couldn't even imagine her having to return to an institution she obviously wouldn't even remember. Imagine being a little child, all of a sudden being taken from the only home and family you've ever known, to a place entirely foreign to you--not even being able to hear or communicate with the people there.  Even just thinking about it gives me chills.  I was devastated to hear this...and I wasn't the only one.  So many people love and care about Corrie.  Others began thinking about adopting her.  Even my brother and his wife decided they would try to start the process.  I did not ask my husband. I had vowed I never would.  I just took comfort in knowing that at least if my brother adopted her, she would be in the family.  And of course I prayed and prayed.  I prayed that if it were God's will that we adopt her, that He would make it clear!

Well, one night I was working in the kitchen.  My hubby came into the room and said, "So, what's going on with Corrie?"  He must have seen something on facebook, or heard Cassandra and me talking about the circumstances.  I explained what was happening and told him my brother and his wife were planning on trying to adopt her.  And then he told me this story...

He had been driving in the car, praying and thinking about Corrie.  He prayed that if it was God's will that we adopt her, that He would really show him.  And just then a song came on the radio called "Kings and Queens."  These are the lyrics:

Little hands, shoeless feet.

Lonely eyes looking back at me.

Will we leave behind the innocent to grieve?

On their own, on the run,

 When their lives have only begun.

These could be our daughters and our sons.

And just like a drum I can hear their hearts beating.

I know my God won't let them be defeated.

Every child has a dream to belong and be loved.

Boys become kings, girls will be queens--wrapped in Your majesty

When we love...when we love the least of these.

Then they will be brave and free. Shout Your name in victory

When we love...when we love the least of these.

My husband knew that God wanted us to pursue this adoption.  It had taken a long time, but God's timing is always right.  Now was the time!  And I stood there in my kitchen feeling like the world was tilting.  Was this really happening?? I had even suggested to God that maybe He could put something on the radio to speak to my hubby's heart! ; )   Even as I began to remind him that maybe we don't have enough money, or maybe it isn't practical that we do this, he reminded me that God would provide, and isn't it more important to give a child a family than to worry about this or that?  I started thinking maybe we were in the twilight zone or something, and someone had switched our brains!  It was so utterly clear that this was from God.  Only God could have orchestrated something like this!  

And so, I had to call my brother and tell him what had happened in my kitchen.  And he jokingly asked if we were going to fight over her... and graciously agreed to step aside. My brother and his wife are really, really awesome, by the way.

We started making phone calls.  We went step by step, praying that God's will would be done.  And now our homestudy is almost finished, we are pre-approved in China, and we are speeding ahead as fast as we can gathering the things we need for our dossier!  We had ZERO money for this adoption.  And God is already providing there, too.  He is showing Himself powerful in so many ways already.  We are looking forward to what He is going to do next! 

But one thing I know for sure...  We are coming soon to get our girl.  We love you, sweet Corrie!  We cannot wait for you to join your new family!!

   

Precious Corrie--Part One

Well...now that I have told you the big news, I would love to tell you more about this wonderful story that God is writing about this precious little girl named Corrie and the privilege we have in being a part of it!

It all started back in 2010.  Our big girl, Cassandra, was on her way to China to help out at Morning Star Family Home.  I had found out about this place randomly through the Bloggy grape vine.  I had just happened to have been reading the blog of the lady who runs the home, and she and her husband were looking for volunteers to come help out during Chinese New Year.  Well, at the time, Cassandra had been in Bible College.  She knew she wanted to work with orphans someday, but China had not been in her plans at all, and now was not the ideal time.  She was trying to raise money to go back to school.  Things were not going well with that.  It just seemed that no matter how hard she tried, nothing was going right with getting the funds to go for another year.  Well, I found out about the need there, and just thought I would mention it to Cassandra, even though I figured it was a very long shot that she would want to stop school and go.  Turns out, she surprised me, and said yes, she would do it.  Crazy!  In fact, she wanted to go for six months!  Remember that things had not been going well for her in getting enough money to stay in school.  She certainly didn't have the money for a six-month missions trip to China.  But God was about ready to start doing His thing!  Cassandra said yes, and He started providing.  She had enough money in no time.  Even complete strangers were giving her money out of the blue.  It was really something to see How God was totally doing this!

So, Cassandra ended up at Morning Star, loving on the babies there.  And she truly loved them.  All of them.....and especially, especially, especially one of the baby girls named Corrie.  Corrie was two at the time.  She had developmental delays.  She couldn't hold her head up straight very well, and was not walking or talking.  She needed surgery, and spent time in the hospital while Cassandra was there. Cassandra even ended up being the one who would stay with her for days in the hospital.  Corrie was maybe not the most physically beautiful child in the group of babies at Morning Star, but to Cassandra she was by far the most beautiful one.  She would always tell us about how special she was, and how there was just something about her...she couldn't explain it.  When others would come,  they would agree that there was just something really special about Corrie.

Then came June of 2010.  Sarah was diagnosed with Cancer.  Cassandra came home as fast as she could, just shy of reaching her six month mark in China.  And as you know or can imagine, our life suddenly revolved around hospitals and clinic appointments and life in our new normal.  We didn't think much about Corrie or really anything at all besides our Sarah and getting her well.

And then, as we emerged out of that foggy, crazy time in our lives, I began to think about Corrie again.  At first, I was just kind of amazed at the love Cassandra had for her.  This little girl with all of her physical troubles and unknowns about her future health...Cassandra continued to say she would adopt her in a heartbeat if she could.  And I would stop and think about that.  Could I say the same thing? Could I be as brave as that?  What was it about this little girl that made Cassandra so sure she would do anything to be her mom if she could?

And slowly but surely, God was beginning to do something in my heart.  I was starting to love this little girl, too.  Not just as a picture on the screen, but as a living, breathing little person who was obviously very special to God.  He had brought her through perilous times as an infant when she was tiny and malnourished and beat the odds for even surviving.  He had brought her to Morning Star Family Home where she was loved and cared for like their very own daughter.  And He had brought her through life-saving surgeries, showing His power in her life time and time again.  And now she needed a mommy and daddy.  She needed a family desperately who could continue the love and care she was being given, and also provide necessary medical help and therapy.  I started to long to be that mommy.  As time went by, the intensity of my wish grew.  It got to the point where I couldn't even look at a picture of her without my heart aching.  More than ANYTHING I wanted to adopt her.  I thought for sure these longings were coming from God, and so I couldn't understand it when my dear hubby would not agree with me that we were supposed to adopt her.  I would pray and pray for God to change his heart, only to be disappointed.  He had very good, practical reasons, and he promised he was praying about it, but he just wasn't hearing anything from God.  I was heartbroken.

A couple of years went by.  I continued to pray for Corrie.  I continued to love her through my computer screen.  And I would pray for God's will.  I knew that if it were His will for Corrie to be our daughter, He would let us both know.  And so, I vowed to never talk about adopting Corrie again.  I wanted it to be completely from God if it was meant to be.  I prayed that He would provide a family for her, and yes, I still hoped it could be us! (But I wasn't holding my breath anymore.)  Finally, she was put on an adoption agency's list!  But no family came.  She was put on another agency's list!  And still no family.  I kept wondering...is it because we are her family??  Still nothing from my hubby. 

And I will continue this story next time....    The next part needs its own chapter.  : )

Once upon a time......

There was a little girl in far away China.

The poor little thing was sick and tiny.  She needed someone to take care of her and love her.  She needed a mommy and daddy.

A loving family took her in.  They loved her and cared for her and nursed her to health.  She grew stronger and healthier.  She grew and grew...

She was happy and loved in her little home.

But the family was not really her mother and father.  As much as they loved her, a true forever family needed to be found for this sweet princess who was so very special.

Years went by....

On the other side of the world a mother longed for another little girl.

She saw pictures of the little princess, and hoped and prayed for her.  More than anything in the world she wanted to bring this treasure home.


And then one day.....

her dream came true. 

I am that mother.  We are that family!

 

 

Precious Corrie at Morning Star Family Home will be coming home to her forever family soon!!

We can't wait to wrap you in hugs and kisses, sweet girl.  We already love you so very much!

 

Yes, we are so excited about our newest blessing who will be joining us hopefully by the end of this year.  Please follow along on our journey to Corrie!!