Does anyone remember that little jingle from Blues Clues? Every time the mail came it was super exciting. I remember mail being like this as a child, too. I would get the mail with my Mom after getting off the bus. Our dog had even been trained to carry the stack to the house.
As I got older, mail got a whole lot less exciting. Usually a trip to the mail box means bills, catalogs, and junk I don't care about. This was not the case yesterday. When I got home, Tyler had already gotten the mail. It was stacked in the kitchen. I started with packages because they are typically more fun, and he had sent me a text about them earlier. Package number one - cloth diapers! I ordered these about a month ago so I was happy to open them and see such great colors and quality. Package number two - the amazing video monitor system my parents ordered for us for the twins room! We debated whether this investment would be worth while, but after talking to a few moms, we decided it was worth it (and they got a great deal).
I thought this was the end of all the fun. Then Tyler said, "Oh and we got a letter from Homeland Security." In a normal situation this would probably not be good. I knew it would go one of two ways. They could be requesting more information for our file...but that wasn't the case.
WE HAVE BEEN APPROVED! (By Immigration in the US).
So the ominous question is...what's next? Well the easy answer is: our dossier. But most of you have no idea what that means. So...a dossier is a file that will contain about 50 pages give or take. It is a representation of who we are, why we want to adopt, and why we are qualified to do so. It has lots of legal forms, our completed homestudy, reference letters, and even pictures of both us and our home. This file all has to be notarized, certified, and apostilled. So if any one is wondering what I am doing with my free time, read that paragraph again.
When that is done, we will get our official referral file. That will include more information regarding their background, current foster home, medical files, and sizes. We are patiently (or impatiently depending on the day) awaiting this information. After this we will be given our travel dates. Please pray that we can travel in February. We very much want to celebrate the twins birthday with them. We are on track for that to be a possibility.
On a practical level, we also have had a great week! I found some incredible black friday deals on car seats! We saved a few hundred dollars. Additionally we got a good deal on a luggage set. I have also connected with a mom who has out grown the sizes we need. Being able to purchase gently used clothing in great condition has been a huge blessing! We believe all our major physical needs for the kids have been met. I am sure things will come up once they are home, but we feel physically ready to bring them home.
This also means all our extra funds can be spent paying off debt and paying adoption related costs. We are one-third of the way to being fully funded. We feel incredibly blessed to be part of this journey and see the ways God is providing. Please pray along with us that he will continue to provide in whatever ways He sees fit. I have filled out many grant applications and would love to see some of those to provide for the next part of our journey.
Please also pray that God continues to prepare hearts. You never reach adoption without loss. Pray for the hearts of our children's birth family. Pray for their foster family and community. Pray for our family. Pray for Tyler and I as we prepare for big changes. Pray for our community as they wrap around us during this transition. Pray for our twins. Hope is coming, even if they don't know it yet.
Tuesday, November 29, 2016
Thursday, November 10, 2016
Life as we know it...
Life as we know it looks a little different these days. Tyler and I are both working full time...and then some. Our schedules don't always align very well, but we work hard to include date night once a week. Our free time is spent getting ready for the twins to come home in both the practical ways and the not so practical.
I have written 6 grant applications in the last month. We are working on 10-15 more due in November and December. We are praying that God will continue to provide for the financial part of our adoption as He has already been doing. Fundraising is a pretty regular part of our lives. We are still collecting change jars as well as putting all our change in one. I empty ours once every few weeks. It adds up quick! We started collecting change a year ago and have raised over $1000 this way! If you would like to join us in this, please let me know.
We also have a few new fundraising opportunities that I am excited to share with you! We recently did a Noonday Collection trunk show with Melissa Davenport. You can still order from this online and they will donate 10% directly to our adoption. The really cool part of this is Melissa and her husband are growing their family through international adoption. In addition, Noonday Collection is all products made by local artisans in various countries. This often gives mothers a way to provide for their family so they can keep their children. In Melissa's words, "It's a win-win-win!" You can order online at http://www.noondaycollection.com/pws/MelissaDavenport/eventstore33004/AMUS/default.aspx
We were also presented with the opportunity to participate in a cool fundraiser with The Ripple Effect. They make and sell superhero capes/masks and princess dresses. These are high quality, gorgeous products. They will make great Christmas gifts for little boys and girls. I'm thinking we will need a few of them in our house very soon :) You can go online at tinyurl.com/capesforacause tinyurl.com/dressforacause and select The Weaver Family as your cause. They will make a donation to our growing family at the end of the month!
Finally, another adoptive family shared Amazon Affiliates with us. I love this because you literally do what you normally do, and you get to help bring our babies home. Use the following link http://amzn.to/2eOaYHC Amazon will work exactly the same way. You make your purchases and they make a donation! How cool is that?!
We also still have a handful of Hope shirts and lots of puzzle pieces. Let me know if you are interested in either.
Now if you've made it this far and don't feel completely overwhelmed, I'm impressed. It seems like a lot but we are trying to cater to a variety of audiences. We are about one-third of the way to our financial goal. We are trusting that God will continue to provide for this crazy awesome journey He has led us on.
On the more practical end, the twins room is filling quickly. Both our Lillebaby carriers have arrived. I even got to practice with a friend's little girl the other day. We are excited that these will make travel easier and aid in bonding with our children. We have 3 eighteen gallon totes of clothing, portable highchair/booster seats, bumbos, potty seats, and a variety of other fun baby things! Our next big priority will be car seats. We have registered at Buy Buy Baby, Target, and Babies R Us (which was quite an adventure all in itself).
This part of the journey is quite interesting. It is busy. There is a lot of paperwork. It can be discouraging some days. But mostly there is hope. Hope for a family that we have dreamed about building for so long. Hope for the way God has connected us with our children already, despite the fact that we have not met them. Hope for this broken world we live in, through new life and new beginnings. God has already blessed us so much! Thank you for walking this journey with us. We love you!
I have written 6 grant applications in the last month. We are working on 10-15 more due in November and December. We are praying that God will continue to provide for the financial part of our adoption as He has already been doing. Fundraising is a pretty regular part of our lives. We are still collecting change jars as well as putting all our change in one. I empty ours once every few weeks. It adds up quick! We started collecting change a year ago and have raised over $1000 this way! If you would like to join us in this, please let me know.
We also have a few new fundraising opportunities that I am excited to share with you! We recently did a Noonday Collection trunk show with Melissa Davenport. You can still order from this online and they will donate 10% directly to our adoption. The really cool part of this is Melissa and her husband are growing their family through international adoption. In addition, Noonday Collection is all products made by local artisans in various countries. This often gives mothers a way to provide for their family so they can keep their children. In Melissa's words, "It's a win-win-win!" You can order online at http://www.noondaycollection.com/pws/MelissaDavenport/eventstore33004/AMUS/default.aspx
We were also presented with the opportunity to participate in a cool fundraiser with The Ripple Effect. They make and sell superhero capes/masks and princess dresses. These are high quality, gorgeous products. They will make great Christmas gifts for little boys and girls. I'm thinking we will need a few of them in our house very soon :) You can go online at tinyurl.com/capesforacause tinyurl.com/dressforacause and select The Weaver Family as your cause. They will make a donation to our growing family at the end of the month!
Finally, another adoptive family shared Amazon Affiliates with us. I love this because you literally do what you normally do, and you get to help bring our babies home. Use the following link http://amzn.to/2eOaYHC Amazon will work exactly the same way. You make your purchases and they make a donation! How cool is that?!
We also still have a handful of Hope shirts and lots of puzzle pieces. Let me know if you are interested in either.
Now if you've made it this far and don't feel completely overwhelmed, I'm impressed. It seems like a lot but we are trying to cater to a variety of audiences. We are about one-third of the way to our financial goal. We are trusting that God will continue to provide for this crazy awesome journey He has led us on.
On the more practical end, the twins room is filling quickly. Both our Lillebaby carriers have arrived. I even got to practice with a friend's little girl the other day. We are excited that these will make travel easier and aid in bonding with our children. We have 3 eighteen gallon totes of clothing, portable highchair/booster seats, bumbos, potty seats, and a variety of other fun baby things! Our next big priority will be car seats. We have registered at Buy Buy Baby, Target, and Babies R Us (which was quite an adventure all in itself).
This part of the journey is quite interesting. It is busy. There is a lot of paperwork. It can be discouraging some days. But mostly there is hope. Hope for a family that we have dreamed about building for so long. Hope for the way God has connected us with our children already, despite the fact that we have not met them. Hope for this broken world we live in, through new life and new beginnings. God has already blessed us so much! Thank you for walking this journey with us. We love you!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)