A little of this a little of that

Tomorrow we find out if the birth mom is ready to be induced on Wednesday.
We have been trying to prepare as much as possible.
Baby is packed
We are almost packed
Pack n Play and car seat are ready to go
and the nursery is complete
Here are a few pictures of it. Thanks to a friend we were able to put the finishing touches on it last week. I am in love with it. Hope baby girl loves it too.



Please continue to pray for the birth mom. She has been in a lot of pain and now is so big it is hard for her to walk. And pray that tomorrow we will hear good news.

Unbelievable Courage

A couple of weekends ago, we made a trip to Ohio. We had this trip planned for a few months. We were going to help celebrate Nathan's grandparents 60th wedding anniversary. What an accomplishment! I can only pray Nathan and I will be able to celebrate our 60th.

But this trip was extra special. We got to meet the birth mom.

Of course days leading to this I was a nervous wreck. What if she doesn't like us? Will our outfits make her hate us? (Yes I really did think that) What if we say something that we are not suppose to? What if she changes her mind? It's so hard to prepare for something like this. How do you "sale" yourself without sounding self centered?

So we made the trip to Northern Ohio and we took her out to dinner (yummy chipotle, her choice)!

She is the most sweet, kind, caring, funny, loving, comforting, courageous, strong, and brave person I have met. We were able to visit for 3.5 hours ( and the agency was concerned because our initial phone conference was short). We talked about our childhoods, what we like to do, a plan for the hospital, plans for after birth, and of course laughing at Nathan's cheesy jokes. The time flew by.
We came as strangers and left feeling like we were great friends!

It has been amazing to see Gods hand in this entire adoption. Not only did he answer prayers for a fast adoption. But He blessed us with a birth mom in a state that we have family. Also, He blessed us with a GREAT birth mom.  She has told us numerous times she is at peace with her decision on choosing us.

As the due date approaches (July 3rd) please pray for us all. For her delivery, for our quick travels to OH, for the pain that she has been in, and that she remains at peace with her decision. Ohio state law is that she has 72 hours to change her mind. We pray that she won't and I can't even imagine the pain and sadness she will endure within the next couple of weeks!

The Cat is out of the Bag

A week and a half after we went "active" we got the call every adoptive family waits for.
A wonderful young lady chose us to be her child's adoptive family.
We were are so excited!
On Tuesday May 14th we received a call from American Adoptions. They informed us that we were chosen but this young lady's budget was more than ours (we are able to decline this match because our budgets don't match).
But!!!!
The other information (personal information that we choose not to share) made her a PERFECT match.
With SO much help from my parents, we were able to accept this match.
Needless to say, we have a birth mother. She is due July 3rd and she is having a girl!!
Even with all this excitement, we have to remember that the birth mother can change her mind. The state the birth mother is in there is a 72 hour time period that she has to change her mind. It is still a very REAL possibility that this could happen. We have spoken to her a few times and we will get to meet her in 2 weeks. She feels comfortable and confident that she is making the right decision. But we continue to pray that this is God's plan. That the birth mom is at peace with her decision. And that she and the baby remain healthy.
So we wait impatiently for the next call for us to head to the hospital.

We Are Active!!!

Disclaimer: this post is a few weeks out dated

We have sent in our activation papers and are now an active family.

Since we have been accepted and are now an active family, our family profile will be sent all over the USA to birth moms. It is just a matter of time until a birth mother will choose us. The average wait time is 0-12 months + however far along the birth mother may be in her pregnancy. Once chosen, we only have 2 days to complete the remaining paper work and send the rest/bulk of our money. 

We are VERY excited for this next step and can't wait to see what God has in store for us. 

Too much to express

As we get closer to becoming an "active family" we are flooded with, what feels like, a million emotions. And yet again, we are shown that Nathan is in a different place than I am in this adoption.
I have a tendency to get my hopes up, rush things, and just be an impatient, impractical, irrational person.
Nathan is reserved, laid back, rational, patient, and believes everything comes at its own time. I am ready to be "active" where as Nathan has concern and anxiety surrounding this next step in our adoption.  I am so excited and ready to become a mother but becoming a father is very overwhelming for Nathan.
So after a long talk, tears, and hugs we have decided I will slow down and be patient with Nathan, and he will get his anxiety in order and meet me half way. We will be understanding of each others feelings and both get on the same page... Of excitement!

Sooo

 We have finished our home study. The report should be finished and sent to our agency by the end of the month. We have finished our family profile and will be printed out and ready to send to birth families as soon as we go "active".
We are receiving our video equipment over Easter to start our video profile. We will be interviewed, family and friends will be interviewed, and footage of us being us will be collected and sent to be edited and put into a video. This will be sent to birth families and put on YouTube as soon as we go "active".
Going "active" is a huge step! Once "active" we are able to be chosen by any birth mom in any state. Then it is just a matter of time before we will have our baby!

Of course, there can be bumps along the way. So we continue to pray that God is in control of this situation. We are still behind in funds as well. We need $11,000 to be fully funded for our baby. We continue to pray for this as well!

Stay tuned for pictures of new nursery furnishings!

2 steps forward 1 HUGE step back

Our holidays were wonderful. I had an amazing time in India. And the husband and pup enjoyed their time in Alabama.
I spent Christmas standing on a train platform freezing my bum off for 7 hours and New Years on a safari finding a tiger (which we saw 2)! Of course I have lots more stories. Here are a few pictures from my trip.

(look closely... you can see the tiger)

flower ceremony on the Ganges

lovely lunch at a hunting lodge

our group at the Chanderi rock paintings

trying to get wifi in Alipura

palace wall in Orrcha

Taj Mahal



Thank you SOOOOO much Ma for this amazing trip! I can't wait to go back.

Enough about the holidays... How about an update about our adoption.
As we are getting close to submitting our entire home study packet, I have had mixed feelings. I'm so excited to say that we are done with our home study but I'm so scared to go "active" with our adoption agency.
Here is how it works...
While finishing up our home study, I have been filling out our profile with American Adoptions. Once we have passed out home study, we can go "active" with AA. Being active means birth moms can look at our profile online and/or via hard copies.
If a birth mom likes us (and she meets our criteria), we will have a phone conference with her and an adoption counselor. If she likes us even more after our phone conference, then she informs AA that she wants our family to adopt her baby. Once that happens, we have 48 hours to come up with the bulk of our money ($20,000). We are NO where close to that...
And so I feel discouraged, overwhelmed, and stressed.
How will we be able to get this money? Do we have to put off our adoption even more? What can we do to be able to finish and follow through with this?
These questions are a broken record in my head.
I am trying so hard to not worry and pray that God takes over but I seem to not be able to give up my control. I am thankful for a husband who is calm and relaxed about everything. He has been a great support and is there to talk me off my cliff when I am about to jump.
With all this being said... I pray that we will see answers soon.

The weather outside is frightful

Well it has been a long time since I have posted.
Recap of my last post: we were denied our adoption loan and in a state of hopelessness.
I am please to announce we are back on track!

God always provides. We have officially started our homestudy. We have initiated the paper work and as soon as I get back from India ( yes! I said India) we will begin our finger printing and back ground check.
Also, I have found a new agency, American Adoptions. This agency is nothing like ANLC. With American adoptions we will be able to set a budget and our total adoption ( minus airfare and home study) will not exceed it. The agency have been very responsive and helpful. The consultant is very educated with their programs and is always willing to clarify any misunderstandings. We hope to apply to their "limited risk" program as soon as I return from India. (The limited risk program is a specific program for African American children)

So India... Yes I am leaving for India on Thursday. My mom is taking me on a trip of a lifetime. My most amazing mom promised each of her kids a trip to anywhere after they graduated from college. My brother went to Ireland, me to India, and Alli will be headed to the Galápagos Islands in a few years. I graduated in 2010 and it has finally worked out to go now. Unfortunately, I will be leaving Nathan for the holidays, so I'm sending him ( and the pup) to Alabama to spend time with his parents.  I am very SUPER excited for this trip.
With that said, I'm off to pack some more.
Look forward to pictures!
Until next time... .