A Brother's Love.

Tuck: Is this enough Mom?
Me: Enough for what?
Tuck: Enough to bring sister home.

Melt. My. Heart.

Where is our dossier?

That is one of the things I have been wondering lately. I worked so hard on that thing. Turned it in. Got our numbers. Then never heard about it again.

Yesterday our caseworker called for our monthly update. It was so good to talk to her. So I asked her where it was now and she said it is in a lock box at...

Hannah's Hope!!!

For some reason that just made me giddy. Excited that something of ours is actually in Ethiopia at Hannah's Hope. Just in case you might not know, that is our agency's transition home where our baby girl will be.

One of these days when we finally get our referral, they will take our daughter's info and our dossier and combine it as one.

For now, all it does is set there and wait. Day in and day out. Just like me. :)

If I had gotten my way!!

I decided it was time to pull out a tub and pack away all Deacon's baby toys. As I was doing it I was overcome with a very sad feeling. Packing away all those things meant that Deacon is not a little baby anymore and that made this momma sad.

In that same moment I found joy in the fact that I would one day soon climb up to the attic and bring down this tub one more time!!

Then this thought went thru my mind..."not if you had gotten your way".

My way would of consisted of 3 kids. 2 boys and 1 girl. Just what I had always wanted. Hmmmm...or so I thought! I am so glad that God had different plans for us!

First off, I cannot imagine my life without my precious Deacon in it. He has filled me with so much joy and my heart with so much love. I am so glad that I have 3 sons and that I get to see each of their faces everyday.

I also can't imagine all the other things I would have missed if "I had gotten my way".

God used that whole situation to open my eyes to His love for the orphan and the role He wanted us to play in that. After seeing the Lord work in so many ways thru not only our family but many others, my faith has grown and my relationship with the Lord has deepened. I do not think my heart will ever be the same.

That is not the only relationship that has grown. This process has brought me and Dillon closer together. We were so sure that God was leading us to adopt but were not certain what everyone would think about it. We decided that it didn't matter and that together we would step out in obedience. There is just something about watching your man follow the Lord...gets me every time!! :)

I would have also missed out on my daughter, the gift God has for us. Even though I have never seen her face or touched her, I know she is something I don't want to miss.

While typing this I began to think about all the times that I have told the boys "I am not telling you no to be mean, I am telling you no because that is the best thing for you". Alot of the times they just don't understand my reasons behind things. I think I can be this same way when it comes to my relationship with God. I think it would work good one way and then when God chooses something different sometimes I don't understand. But I need to trust that there is always purpose behind his decisions and they are definitely for our greater good.

So, even though I can be a lil' spoiled at times and be upset if I don't get my way, I am eternally grateful to our Lord that this time I didn't.

4 Months Down!

Yep. 4 months since we got on the waitlist. Part of me feels like it has been a long 4 months and the other part of me wonders where in the world has the time gone. I am super pumped that we are now in the 50's. We are a 1/3 of the way there number wise. That makes me happy! :)

Baby Girl,
We just put your brothers to bed for the night. It is the sweetest thing to hear them pray for you. They usually say "Jesus, please be with our sister and help her". You are going to have the three best big brothers a girl could ask for. They love you so much already and can't wait until you are home.
Mommy

January numbers!!

I was surprised with our numbers this month. They were both 2 less than what I was expecting. We were excited to flip over some Africa's. Love that!!

For a girl we are...


For siblings...


That is 6 spots on the girls list and 5 spots for siblings!!! Yay!!!

Looking forward to lots of movement soon!! :)

Guess what is 1 month from today?

The Created for Care Women's Retreat!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am so excited, I can hardly stand it. As you could probably tell by all the exclamation points. :)

This momma can not wait to spend a whole weekend devoted to the thing that stirs my heart the most...adoption. It is going to be such a blessing to finally "meet" so many of you in person. And I am absolutely ecstatic about my roomies that God has placed me with. Girls, we are gonna have a blast!!

It has been kinda slow on the adoption home front lately and I know this is just what my heart needs as I "wait".

I am so thankful that the Lord laid this on Andrea's heart all those months ago and that she was willing to be obedient even tho she had so much going on with her own family. She is one amazing gal as I'm sure you all agree!!

Counting down the days until we are together in Georgia!!

Hello 2011, you can only get better from here!!

Unfortunately I don't have any fun pictures of us ringing in the New Year. If I did, they would be of me curled up in the fetal position or hugging the toilet. Blah!

That's right. 2011 welcomed me and my little Deacon with the always dreaded stomach virus. It hit me around 11:15 last night and the rest is history.

Dil quarantined me to our bedroom and that is where I have remained all day. I don't know the last time I have just laid in bed all day. I have to admit, it has kinda been nice. The older two are at my parents and Dil has taken care of Deacon and Gilbert all day. Let me just say, my husband rocks!!

So my day has pretty much consisted of watching movies, sipping on Sprite, napping on and off, and LOTS of thinking.

I've been thinking about 2010 and all that went on this past year. The three things that I will always remember are Conner's salvation, the birth of my niece, and the start of our adoption process. It has been a great year...so much to be thankful for.

I've also been thinking about 2011 and all that will go on this year. It is full of BIG things for our family. Dillon will turn 30, we will celebrate our 10 year wedding anniversary, Tucker will start pre-k(tear), and we will see our daughter's face for the first time.

It is going to be an amazing, life changing year!! I can't wait!!

I just realized that it has been exactly 6 months today since we sent in our application and I started this blog. My main reason for the blog is so that we will never forget this journey to our daughter. I plan on having it made into a book for her. In doing that, I never imagined what a blessing this blog would be to me. The relationships I have formed and all the encouragement is amazing. Walking thru this process with you all makes it so much easier. I love celebrating with you, crying with you, and cheering you on. Thanks to all who have followed our journey so far. Can't wait to see what the Lord has in store for us all this year!!