Saw this on a frined's blog and wanted to share.
Pure and undefiled religion in the sight
of our God and Father is this:
to visit orphans and widows in their distress,
and to keep oneself unstained by the world.
James 1:27
Monday, December 26, 2011
Reece's Rainbow on ABC tonight
For those able to watch, tune into ABC World News with Diane Sawyer tonight for a story featuring one family that adopted a little girl with Down syndrome. There is a link to the story HERE.
Saturday, December 24, 2011
Friday, December 23, 2011
The "I raided the Christmas candy stash" Update
We finally got some news from Russia the other day. The good news is that the issues the judge had with our paperwork were nothing big. The bad news is, none of it matters. The judge has decided that it would be better to wait until after Moriah is born for Graham to come home. This means that everything is over at least until this summer. This means that a homestudy will have to be updated, paperwork will have to be redone, medical appointments will have to be redone, we will need new visas, etc. We have already put $20,000 into bringing Graham home so that news is very frustrating!
It looks like our first visit to see Graham will still count, that is great news. We just need to see how long the judge wants us to wait before we can go over after the baby is here. Unfortunately, he may end up being relisted on Reece's Rainbow in the mean time so that other families can commit to him. Depending on how quickly another family can complete the process and how long the judge requires us to wait, Graham may not be joining our family at all.
The judge did try to reassure us by saying not worry since she is sure no one else would adopt this boy before we can come for him. For some reason that comment didn't quite comfort me...
Brett had to remind me that Graham is God's child first. We are hurting and frustrated but trying to lean on the knowledge that God is in control and everything that happens is to bring Him glory.
It looks like our first visit to see Graham will still count, that is great news. We just need to see how long the judge wants us to wait before we can go over after the baby is here. Unfortunately, he may end up being relisted on Reece's Rainbow in the mean time so that other families can commit to him. Depending on how quickly another family can complete the process and how long the judge requires us to wait, Graham may not be joining our family at all.
The judge did try to reassure us by saying not worry since she is sure no one else would adopt this boy before we can come for him. For some reason that comment didn't quite comfort me...
Brett had to remind me that Graham is God's child first. We are hurting and frustrated but trying to lean on the knowledge that God is in control and everything that happens is to bring Him glory.
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Adoption Update
Not much to update at this point. We STILL do not have our court date. Apparently the judge does not understand why we want to adopt Graham. We added an addendum onto our homestudy before it was sent over to try to more clearly explain our motivation, but they still do not understand why anyone would want one of "these" children. Right now it looks like the judge is going to be asking for more papers from us, we do not know yet what they are though.
How you can pray right now:
1. Please pray that the additional paperwork that is being asked for can be done quickly and easily.
2. Please pray that we will get a court date SOON! We want Graham home before Moriah is born.
3. Please pray for the judge. Pray for God to guide her decision and for her to look on us with favor.
4. Please pray for Graham, that he continues to stay safe and healthy and that he is not transfered before we can bring him home.
5. Please pray for God to prepare our family and Graham for the transition of bringing him home. Pray that everyone will adjust easily and that Graham will form a strong attachment to us.
6. Please pray that the judge will waive the (now 30 day) waiting period so we can bring Graham home right away.
How you can pray right now:
1. Please pray that the additional paperwork that is being asked for can be done quickly and easily.
2. Please pray that we will get a court date SOON! We want Graham home before Moriah is born.
3. Please pray for the judge. Pray for God to guide her decision and for her to look on us with favor.
4. Please pray for Graham, that he continues to stay safe and healthy and that he is not transfered before we can bring him home.
5. Please pray for God to prepare our family and Graham for the transition of bringing him home. Pray that everyone will adjust easily and that Graham will form a strong attachment to us.
6. Please pray that the judge will waive the (now 30 day) waiting period so we can bring Graham home right away.
A break from the craziness
With all of the ups and downs lately from the adoption and the busyness that December always seems to bring, we decided we needed to get away for a couple of days so we don't forget how to enjoy each other! So, on Monday the little ones were dropped off with Grandma and Grandpa for a night (we are trying to keep them young after all!) and the rest of us headed off to Duluth.
Waterpark fun:
Train Museum:
The girls were so excited about the water park and we got a deal we could not pass up (even a free pizza for dinner with our room!).
Our MN Science Museum membership allowed us to get into the Depot for free too. This includes the train museum, children's museum and other exhibits on lumber, veterans, art, etc.
The perfect mini vacation, cheap, not too far away, educational, and fun!
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Fundraiser Update!
Have you seen our chip-in button on the sidebar? You will notice right underneath that some have given money directly to us to put towards Graham's adoption. And we are almost at our goal for what we hope to have raised by the end of the year! We have been truly blessed by friends and family not just financially, but through their prayers and support.
It is amazing to see the ways God has provided through this process in addition to the love he has placed in the hearts of those around us. We saw a bill (unrelated to our adoption) for almost $1000 disappear very unexpectedly. We have not paid a penny for any of our medical expenses in the past few months (and all 7 of us needed another round of exams/lab work to make sure, yet again, that we are fit to bring Graham home).
We also needed to have psychological reports done on both Brett and I as part of our adoption paperwork. Two days before we found out about these reports Brett sat next to a psychologist in his monthly CBMC meeting. Brett contacted Dr. R and he offered to do the reports for us for free! Our agency had given us the number of another psychologist that would have charged us $600 to talk with us and write up a report. I love when God shows us so clearly that he is in control and lining everything up in His perfect timing.
Here is our progress on Graham's puzzle as of this week. Almost finished!
For those that are interested, here are a few of the larger upcoming expenses that the money you have given will be helping to cover:
*Round trip tickets for our second trip: $1600 x 2 (estimated based on the price of our tickets for the first trip)
*Medical exams for Brett and I in country: $500 x 2
*Round trip ticket for Brett for a third trip to pick up Graham: $1600
It is amazing to see the ways God has provided through this process in addition to the love he has placed in the hearts of those around us. We saw a bill (unrelated to our adoption) for almost $1000 disappear very unexpectedly. We have not paid a penny for any of our medical expenses in the past few months (and all 7 of us needed another round of exams/lab work to make sure, yet again, that we are fit to bring Graham home).
We also needed to have psychological reports done on both Brett and I as part of our adoption paperwork. Two days before we found out about these reports Brett sat next to a psychologist in his monthly CBMC meeting. Brett contacted Dr. R and he offered to do the reports for us for free! Our agency had given us the number of another psychologist that would have charged us $600 to talk with us and write up a report. I love when God shows us so clearly that he is in control and lining everything up in His perfect timing.
Here is our progress on Graham's puzzle as of this week. Almost finished!
*Round trip tickets for our second trip: $1600 x 2 (estimated based on the price of our tickets for the first trip)
*Medical exams for Brett and I in country: $500 x 2
*Round trip ticket for Brett for a third trip to pick up Graham: $1600
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Update. Still no court date.
Well, not the news we were hoping for this morning. Court dates are full for December. Russia is in a holiday period after that that lasts until Jan. 10th. Court dates are only on Tuesdays as far as I understand so that means the earliest we will get a date now is the 17th of January.
When we started this process we were told Graham could be home by the end of July! We are still learning that adoption is unpredictable. I am also learning that I cannot control everything!
We are still praying to get the earliest court date possible and for a miracle in the waiting period being waived. Please also pray for an easy transition for everyone once he is home.
I will be spending the day thanking God for knowing what is best for everyone. This DOES mean that we will be able to spend Christmas with our children here, so that is something to find joy in right now.
When we started this process we were told Graham could be home by the end of July! We are still learning that adoption is unpredictable. I am also learning that I cannot control everything!
We are still praying to get the earliest court date possible and for a miracle in the waiting period being waived. Please also pray for an easy transition for everyone once he is home.
I will be spending the day thanking God for knowing what is best for everyone. This DOES mean that we will be able to spend Christmas with our children here, so that is something to find joy in right now.
Monday, December 5, 2011
Bad News
Our court papers are being submitted tomorrow (or right now with the time difference) and we have been informed that we have a slim chance of actually getting a court date in December. That is not the worst news though. Apparently Russia changed their waiting period over the weekend from 10 days to 30 days! This means that we may not have a court date until sometime in January and then we would have to wait another month before we could bring Graham home. I can't believe this happened, especially when we are so close to the end.
Please continue to pray with us for a miracle. Please pray that we will somehow get a court date in December and that the judge will waive the waiting period for us.
Please continue to pray with us for a miracle. Please pray that we will somehow get a court date in December and that the judge will waive the waiting period for us.
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