We Are Loved!

     We are getting ready to have our homestudy update at the end of March.  Part of me is a little sad and confused (and sometimes angry) that we are still waiting after three years.  According to our agency we are doing everything right.  All of our friends and family tell us what great parents we will be.  We have continued to pray and trust God for our baby.  So what is the hold up?  We don't have an answer to that question and we may never know why we have waited longer than "the norm."   But something we do know and continue to be reminded of over and over again is that we are loved! 
     God loves us and continues to send us reminders that He is control and has a plan for our lives.  Whenever we do get sad, confused or even angry, He faithfully sends encouragement our way.  Whether it's something we read, a phone call or email from a friend, or a song we hear on the radio, it gives us just the boost we need to continue this journey.
     We also feel the love from all of you!  So many of you have been journeying right along with us.   We are so thankful for all that you do.  Last week as I was gathering information about our contacts from last year for our homestudy update, I was overwhelmed with gratitude.  In 2010 we had 2-3 potential birthmother contacts for the year.  In 2011 we had 19 potential birthmother contacts!!!  At least 6 of those contacts came directly from a friend or family member passing our letter or information along.  Others found us on the internet or facebook, but we don't know the exact source.  So from the bottom of our hearts...THANK YOU!
      Here are just some of the ways you have helped us "spread the word" that we desire to adopt a baby:

1.)  Facebook Page:  Many of you have "liked" our page, shared it to your wall, and send us encouraging comments whenever we posts comments, pictures and our blog. 
                 
2.)  Adoption Blog:  Many of you follow our blog through google or email and share our blog to your facebook account and encourage your friends to do the same.  We actually received an encouraging message from another adoptive family across the country in Florida and a phone call with a potential birthmother lead in Michigan all from one share of our blog on facebook. 

3.)  Sharing on your sites:  Many of you have posted links to our website, facebook page, adoption blog and iheartadoption page on your personal facebook pages, websites, blogs and groups you belong to online.

4.)  Word of Mouth:  The match we had in July (although it ultimately didn't work out) came from a friend of a friend who had met us once at a Bible Study two years before.  She remembered we wanted to adopt and called up our mutual friend to get our contact information.  How awesome is that?  Several other contacts have also come by one of you passing our letter along or calling us with a lead you heard about.

5.)  Community contacts:   We have letters at our local crisis pregnancy center, a doctor's office and a women's center in Redding all because you have been willing to pass them along. 

     There are probably many more examples that I am forgetting right now or that we may not even know about.  We are indeed loved!!!!  Thank you and please keep it up.  We have included a list of all our websites, blogs, pages etc at the end of this blog.  Please feel free to share, share, share.  We also have letters and business cards available if you would be willing to pass them along to hospitals, doctors, colleges etc.  Just let us know and we would be happy to mail some to you.  We know that God has the results in His hands, but isn't it awesome that He allows us to be a part of His plan.  We don't know when our match will come or where it will come from, but we do know that each day brings us closer to bringing our baby home.

Our Contact Info:

Facebook Page:  www.facebook.com/jimandamyhopingtoadopt
Adoption Blog:  http://www.jimandamyhopingtoadopt.blogspot.com/
Personal Website:  http://www.jimandamyadopt.com/
Email:  revjet3@netzero.com
Toll-Free Adoption Phone Number:  1-877-257-6127

We have full color letters, business cards and brochures from our agency available to mail to you to pass along.  We would like to adopt a newborn baby.  Our agency can work with a birthmother from anywhere in the U.S. 

    

Why We Chose Adoption

     I was reading a post the other day by another blogger who was talking about how families come to choose adoption.  I realized that I've written about our choice for open adoption, but not about how we came to choose adoption in the first place. 
     Jim and I actually talked about adoption early in our marriage.  At the time we planned on having children both biologically and through adoption.  I must admit we didn't know much about adoption at the time.  I'm sure I had a romanticized view of "rescuing" from a third world country or "saving" a child from poverty.  Little did we know that adoption would become a major part of our lives...but not in the way we thought.
     When our infertility issues first began to surface, we were not in a place to pursue infertility treatments or adoption.  Jim was in seminary.  I was teaching.  We did not have great insurance and our savings account (as with most young couples) was pretty much non-existent!  So we waited and prayed and trusted that God would provide when the right time came. 
     After Jim graduated from seminary, we moved back to Michigan and ended up working for a major insurance company.  Finally, we were in a position to pursue one of our two options.  We did all the infertility testing.  The results were somewhat inconclusive, so we tried fertility drugs for a while.  During this time we also revisited the idea of adoption.  We decided that we would pursue any fertility treatments that were covered by our insurance, but save our money for adoption.
     Fast forward a few years...we moved to California and Jim began working for the Federal Bureau of Prisons as a Chaplain.  Jim had finally found his career.  I was able to stay home.  More than ever, the desire to become parents was growing daily.  We tried yet another fertility drug without success and decided to end treatment at least for a while and turn our attention to adoption. 
     We began researching the different types of adoption and learned so much!  We decided that for us the best path was domestic adoption (adopting from the U.S.).  We were reading about the benefits of open adoption over and over and really liked the idea of being able to stay connected with our child's birthparents.  We also looked into fos-adopt, but although that may be a path we explore in the future, it just wasn't the right choice for us here in California.  We took several months to research, pray, talk, and pray some more and finally decided on the Independent Adoption Center.  Although we are still waiting for a match and placement, we remain happy with our decision.  We really feel that God has been leading us on this path from the beginning- we know that He is at work even when we can't see it.  Some day, hopefully soon, when our baby is in our arms- all of this will become part of their birth/life story.

Waiting!

     The prayer in our devotional last night really spoke to us so we thought we would share it with you. The devotional is by Ginger Garrett and is called "Moments for Couples Who Long for Children." The devotional talked about how God is still moving in our circumstances whether our journey seems swift or agonizingly slow.  Our wait for a baby has brought a fair amount of weariness to us lately-We seem to get so close and then heartbreaking disappointment and another delay.  It is such a comfort to know that God is always working, even when we can't see the progress.   He is using everything, even the disappointments and delays, to work everything together for our good (Romans 8:28). 

Here is the prayer, written by Ginger Garrett and based on Isaiah 40:31:

 

"Lord, we want to soar like the eagles and run without growing weary.

Walking seems so frustratingly slow! 

We just want to cross that finish line-but You have many plans to accomplish

through our gradual progress.

Give us endurance!

The journey can feel so long and confusing; sometimes it can be hard to see

your hand in our circumstances. 

Grant us the patience to continue walking, give us the strength to keep moving,

and grow our faith in You with every delay as we wait for a child."

 

     Waiting is hard...but we are so glad that time waiting is not time wasted!

    

 

 

 

 

Winter Fun!

     Since winter seems to be eluding us here in Northern California this year, I am bringing winter to our blog this week.  Winter is my favorite time of year, so I am pretty bummed that we have NO SNOW!  Below I have posted some pictures of Lake Tahoe.  Jim and I drove there a few weeks ago for a little get-away, winter wonderland style.  I've also included some of our favorite childhood memories of winter and activities that we look forward to enjoying with our child some day.  Hope you enjoy the pics and memories!  Please feel free to comment on some of your favorite winter activities too! 







Beautiful Lake Tahoe on our last get-away!

 Jim's Favorite Winter Memories:

     *Building snow forts in the woods behind my house
     *Sledding down the hill across the street with kids from the neighborhood
     *Standing outside and watching huge fluffy flakes fall down all around me
               (especially with Christmas lights)
     *Coming in for hot chocolate after shoveling the driveway





Jim still enjoys hiking in the snow!


Jim's Least Favorite Winter Memories:
     *Too many days without snow!




Any day with snow is a GREAT day!


    
Amy's Favorite Winter Memories:
 
     *Building snowmen with my brother and sister
     *Sledding down the hill between our house and my grandparents' house
     *Catching snowflakes on my tongue
     *Sipping hot chocolate after "helping" to shovel the driveway
     *Making crazy snow angels
     *SNOW DAYS!




Did I forget to mention that I like to throw snowballs...at Jim:)

     
    

Amy's Least Favorite Winter Memories:

     *Oversized glitter-laden earmuffs...there has to be a better way to keep little ears warm!
     *The brown slushy mess left behind when the snow melts
     *Getting snow inside my boots and then it melting
     *Not being able to go outside because it's too cold




Mini snowman family


We can't wait to make some winter wonderland memories with our child! 

Now it's your turn...what are some of your favorite winter activities?