'C' before 'E'...only in the alphabet

For the past month or so Vince and I have been more seriously contemplating the increasing waiting for our China referral. It's actually been quite a conflicting time for us...do we simply continue to wait out the 'wait' for our daughter from China?...or, is there a more purposeful reason for the wait (other than the sake of waiting)?

Well, after much prayer and research, we came to a conclusion.

We know we will have a daughter from China. But we also know time is a precious commodity; especially when growing a family through adoption. So we decided to further investigate China's concurrent adoption policy.

After discussing the possibility of a second adoption, our agency has been able to assure us that our situation is prime for applying to pursue a concurrent adoption.

And today we received official approval to pursue a concurrent adoption from Ethiopia...and we are thrilled!!!

You may be thinking, "Why Ethiopia?" -- and God has brought us to this conclusion: "Why in the world not."

We have 2-2.5 years before we travel to our Chinese daughter, but, we will be able to complete our Ethiopian adoption in approximately 12 months from today. This time frame will enable us to safely meet China's 12-month requirement between adoptions.

We will move forward swiftly after the New Year and will post the details as they unfold. For now, we would treasure your prayers for smooth paperwork and someone to plant a money tree in our backyard (ha ha - just kidding, although finances will be complicated).

Blessed Christmas to you all!

Come...let us adore Him

Who has believed our message
and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
…He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
He was despised and rejected by men,
a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering
…he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows,
yet we considered him stricken by God,
…he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was upon him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.
By oppression and judgment he was taken away.
...yet it was the LORD's will to crush him and cause him to suffer,
and though the LORD makes his life a guilt offering…
After the suffering of his soul,
he will see the light of life and be satisfied ;
by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many,
and he will bear their iniquities.
Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,
and he will divide the spoils with the strong,
because he poured out his life unto death,
and was numbered with the transgressors.
For he bore the sin of many,
and made intercession for the transgressors.

Isaiah 53

Merry Christmas

Blessed Are the Barren

Below is a complex, but sober, article in Christianity Today about the brokenness (and joy) of infertility. I highly recommend it to anyone facing this struggle, AND to those who feel inept in their ability to encourage a 'barren' couple.

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2007/december/21.22.html

Reality Check

Over the weekend Vince and I made a quick trip to MS. His younger brother coaches a HS football team, and they played in the State Champs on Friday. Not to mention, his dad had just returned home from spending a few days in the hospital with a severe UTI. While we were there, we got to visit with some friends who completed a China adoption in Aug of 2006. Their daughter, Jenna, is absolutely precious...personality plus!

Jenna's mom, Lisa, and I were discussing the increasing wait time, and she mentioned a detail I hadn't noted yet: they were LID in Aug 2005, and China is just now processing dossiers from Dec 2005. Do the math-- it has taken the CCAA almost a year and a half to process a little over five months worth of adoptions.

We had already been doing some research of our own to get a grasp on the reality of the wait time that we're facing, and it appeared that the CCAA was backlogged anywhere from 25,000 to 30,000 applications. We wanted to believe these numbers were exaggerated but considering all the data, I'm sorry to say that I believe they are not...

A Few Familiar Faces

You may recognize a few faces in this picture...that's because you've met them before. Shortly after returning from China, our team came up with a grand idea...to run a half-marathon (13.1 miles).

And after training for 9 weeks, that's exactly what we did last Sunday!

Vince and I ran our first half-marathon in Nashville (2004) and haven't had an opportunity to train for one since. But now that we've been granted some down-time before becoming parents, we've decided to make the most of marriage (pre-children). We had a great time and the weather was beautiful! We hope to run another in the spring.

Jeana, Terri, Brian, David, Kendra, Michelle, Luann...you are my gazelle-homies!

Chosen Lives

This month our church's downtown art gallery, The Bellwether, is hosting an extra special exhibit! The exhibit features photographs of adoptive families in our church. Along with the photos, each family's adoption story will be displayed.

The exhibit kicks-off tomorrow night, and we are so excited! Thurs, Nov 15th we're also hosting Adopt Talk; the community will have an opportunity to hear the family's stories in person, as well as ask questions about their experiences.

All the stories are absolutely miraculous! Our goal is to raise awareness in our community about orphans in our city, our state and our world.

Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves,
for the rights of all who are destitute.
Speak up and judge fairly;
defend the rights of the poor and needy.
Proverbs 31:8-9

Hope is not wishful thinking!

We received a second email from our FC this morning regarding China's concurrent adoption policy. Obviously, there has been some conflicting info circulating. AWAA still approves concurrent adoption, but the CCAA appears to be changing their mind.

We're not too alarmed by the news though; over the past several weeks Vince & I both have experienced peace about the wait time. Initially, we began to research our options for pursuing another adoption, but were not convinced that was God's plan for us.

For some unexplainable reason, we're currently at peace with staying the course. We trusted God in the beginning of this process, and He has proven faithful -- we're not about to take matters into our own hands now!