Crazy Weekend

My thoughts have been a whirlwind the past few days and I feel like I need to "write" it all down or it will be gone.  This might get long-be forewarned.

Friday:  I got a call from Justin at about 1:30 pm saying the 171-H wasn't in the mail that day either.  I was super sad and was upset that I had to now stay at school and work.  I had planned on leaving early to get the dossier certified and mailed off to the agency.

That night, storms started ripping though Arkansas.  I can NOT handle tornado storms.  :::It takes me back to when Cooper was 7 months old, a tornado was coming, the sirens were going off, hail was beating against the house, we heard that it would be coming down some streets close to us, the power went out, I was rocking him (asleep) hunched on the floor with Justin hovered over us, and we heard it go over our house.  That's a sound I never want to hear again.  Never, will I ever, be able to keep my sanity during a tornado storm after this day.:::  We got the bathroom ready, Cooper flipped out because I was taking all of his toys out of the bathtub, we all put shoes and socks on (just in case), unplugged the computer, packed all of the dossier documents into the bathroom cabinet.  You know, all of the normal things you do when you think a tornado is about to destroy your home.  This IS normal, right?

All of our precious documentation, months of work, needed to stay safe.  After all, besides the three of us, it's the most important 'belonging' of the household.  After many hours of literally shaking while watching the weather, the storms finally went on through the state and we were able to sleep.

Saturday:  We all slept in a little so that was nice and Cheeburger Cheeburger it was for lunch!  We stayed around that shopping center for a bit, looking for a lovey for the baby.  I really want one just like Cooper's, just a yellow giraffe.  Who knows if such thing exists, but I want one.  :)  After no luck we decided to head home.

Oh, yeah!  That's exactly what you think it is!  Our GOLDEN TICKET!!!  The 171-H has arrived!  We will be on the waiting list soon.  Monday will be the day to get the dossier state certified at the Secretary of State's office and then FedExed to CHI.  I can't believe it!

More tornado storms and back in the bathroom cabinet went the dossier...this time, an even more important piece of paper went in there with it all.

Sunday:  We woke up to this...

Oh, how he loves his Handy Manny!  After church we had to finish up taking pictures for the dossier.

Eh, it's okay, I guess.  I like these MUCH better!  We were having fun reading/singing Old McDonald before changing from church clothes to play clothes.

Then it was off to go play outside!  It's been way to wet and stormy to do that this weekend.  On go the Monkey Boots!

He has no idea the ground is way too wet to be watering those weeds!

I guess playing outside was hard work........isn't he sweet?

Well, tomorrow will be filled with good stress and excitement as I get the dossier sent off.  The "hurry up" is now over and the looong "wait" begins.  Please pray for our baby and it's health and safety, along with his/her mommy.  I know I've said this before, but I have no idea what circumstances this birthmom will have to face within the next year.  I can't imagine.  Please pray for her comfort, hope, understanding.  I've had her on my mind a lot lately.

Puddle Jumping!

My sister has offered to do a fundraiser for us!  Contact her if you want to book an appointment.  If you have any questions, please let one of us know.

Want to know more information about this exciting event?  More details can

    be found at:  www.amykeltonphotography.com/puddlejumping.pdf

Our mailbox

did not contain the 171-H today... (poking out my pouty lip)

An interesting call

After being in the car for 4 hours for a 10 minute fingerprinting appointment with USCIS on Friday, I was curious how long it would take to get our 171-H (immigration approval) form in the mail.  I started doing searches on the Yahoo! group I belong to and I was finding that people consistently waited about 6 weeks to get this form.  

Today marks the second business day since fingerprinting and I was a little discouraged when I realized I missed a call.  Who was it?  An officer from the Department of Homeland Security.  She wanted me to call her back.  What?  I will actually get to talk to a REAL person on the phone?  This has got to be a joke.  I called her back and apparently I forgot to put in a copy of our home study agency's license.  She said it was fine if I faxed or emailed it to her.  Seriously?  I was just sent an electronic copy of the document yesterday and it was in my inbox.  No problem.  I ask how long it will take to get word of approval (171-H) after she receives the agency license.  She said it would be put in the mail TODAY!!  And you know what?  She replied to my email later in the afternoon saying that we should get it in the mail shortly.  So not only did a real person call me, answer my call back to her direct line, allow me to directly email her, but she replied to my message.  I have not ever had anyone get this kind of service and I'll tell you I stalk a lot of adoption blogs!  

This is just one more way that I know God has this whole thing orchestrated perfectly.

Oh, and the "golden ticket" should be here on Thursday.  Friday I will be going to the Secretary of State's office to get each document of the dossier certified.  And what do you know?  We have club time at the end of the school day Friday so I will be able to leave early and not really miss any teaching time at work.  Tally one more for God's perfect timing!

DONE!!!

Just a quick note to say I'm DONE with my last grad school project!!  Now it's time to get some much needed sleep.

:heart:

Several weeks ago I acquired two new loves.

I :heart: my new favorite song by Leeland and Brandon Heath, Follow You.

I :heart: Bono.  I know, I should have figured out the Bono one a long time ago but my brain has been a little slow the past few years it seems.  :)

Confused?  Let me explain.

I'm a pretty big fan of KLOVE and for the past month or so, I've been loving, Follow You, every time I hear it.  It's brought me to tears on several occasions, including today.  Enjoy...

After watching that video countless times, I saw this.

So I was moved by the hearts of these guys.  I wanted to know more.  I did a handy-dandy YouTube search for the Bono NAACP speech they were talking about..........in tears and speechless.

I was encouraged and challenged by what I had seen and heard. Very convicting.  So, remember when I said I had prayed the words of another Brandon Heath song, "Give me your love for humanity," many, many times?  Yeah, me too.

It's a big week for us.  Tuesday I'm taking the day off so I can finish up my LAST grad school project, a research proposal.  Friday we go to our USCIS fingerprinting appointment.  Saturday I take the Praxis II, PLT.  I'll be done with grad school and the only thing between us and the CHI Ethiopia waiting list will be our "Golden Ticket" known as the 171-H approval form from USCIS and our dossier certified at the Secretary of State.  I'm a little nervous and excited all at the same time.  Right now, time for some sleep.

You can't make this stuff up

At dinner yesterday, Cooper looked at Justin and said, "Thank you!"  Justin asked why and Cooper told him, "Daddy and Mommy and Cooper."

Last night I asked Cooper if he could pray for his baby brother or sister when Daddy put him to bed.  Right then, standing in front of me, he put his hands over his eyes and prayed, "Baby brother, baby sister."  He looked up at me and just grinned.

Today at dinner...

J:  Ask Cooper what happened with his riding horse today.  (toy horse on a pole)

E:  What happened to your horse, Cooper?

C:  It got mad!  It got mad and layed down.

E:  The horse got mad so it had to go lay down?  (Looks at J, confused.)

J:  He came up with this all on his own.

E:  Cooper, what made your horsey mad?

C:  MONKEYS!!

E:  Soooo, monkeys made the horsey mad and he had to go lay down, right?

C:  Uuhh, Huh!  (Grins)

Keeping my mind busy

We sent off immigration papers a week ago and I just KNEW I would have some kind of confirmation from then that they had gotten it on Monday or even that they'd scheduled our fingerprinting appointment...nope.  This week has thankfully gone by quickly.

I was able to get my grad class finished up on Wednesday....woo hoo!!  All I have left is to finish a research proposal in a little over 2 weeks and take the Praxis II PLT.  That's it!  Almost done with grad school.  I'm starting to breathe a little easier.

Spring means time for change, right?  Well, Cooper is certainly changing quickly into a big boy!  He's pretty much daytime potty trained and so proud of himself.  Last night we finally converted his crib into a toddler bed.  He wasn't quite sure about it but then he slept late this morning and never moved.  I'm so proud of him.  I'm so sad he's not a baby anymore but I think this is a really cool age, getting to see him accomplish bigger things.  Sadly, he hates to get his picture taken so I don't have many of those these days but here's one from last night in his bed with the 'baby' parts taken away and the new 'big boy' parts put on.

Last year I had a small garden but I didn't get much out of it.  Halfway through the summer, I decided not to keep going with it so I just let it go.  This year I'm doing it right and going big.  Also, I'm going to try a homemade rainwater drip irrigation system.  Here are some preliminary pictures.

You know I love a good project, right?  Well, Easter is tomorrow and I decided to get crafty.  My mom and my sister's family came over for dinner and Easter eggs.  I had blown out the centers of some eggs (the most disgusting thing I have EVER done in my life!  eeeww!) to be decorated and made into an Easter egg tree and then we dyed others to be hunted with the plastic ones.  I can't wait to see Cooper hunt these eggs tomorrow!

We're still collecting garage sale items from friends for our sale one week from today that will benefit the adoption fund.  Uh, I think we have enough.  :)

So far, I've done a good job at keeping my mind off of waiting on USCIS info.  I'll be better once I get notification of when our next appointment will be.  Throughout the years, I have reminded myself that God's timing isn't our timing to help me cope with being impatient or frustrated about whatever is going on and that God is in control.  There's so much more to it than that, though.  I have been reminded this week that God's timing is perfect.  Perfect.  Always.  That brings peace to my heart.

UPDATES

There's so much to say today.  

It's the end of Spring Break and I'm not done with all of the work I set out to finish this week.  A few more assignments and a project and then I'll be done with one more grad class.  This must be done by Wednesday.  Before I get to those things, I need to get ready for the school week ahead so that will be my focus for my day today.  I'm just so tired but I keep reminding myself that it's a means to an end.  I only have about another month of grad school and I'll be done.  Shortly thereafter, our dossier should be sent off, and then the school year should be ending.  I'm longing for summer right now...especially since I didn't get much of a Spring Break!

When we went to Memphis on Friday, we weren't able to submit our papers in person.  That's what I was afraid of but at least we gave it a try.  We went ahead and shipped everything to Texas (it will get processed and sent back to Memphis...go figure) so it will be on someone's desk in the morning when they get to work.  Hopefully, we will receive a receipt this week saying they got our paperwork.   I asked the lady in Memphis how long the I-600A background check and fingerprinting process should take and she said 8 weeks from beginning to end.  Please pray that it won't take that long!  We have 4 minor things to do to finish our part of the dossier and that won't take us any time at all but waiting another 2 months on something that is out of our control is going to be really disappointing.  So far, we have worked on paperwork, etc. for about 2 1/2 months.  We were initially told it would take 3-6 months to complete so they were exactly right but I was hoping we would be closer to the three than the 6.  I think I will rest a little easier once we ever get on the waiting list.

Good news!  Six or seven families got referrals this past week!  All were boys and one girl.  Most families waited about 10 months and most of the babies ranged in age from 7 weeks to 7 months. I believe there were two older toddlers in the mix as well.  How exciting!

Even more good news!  The adoption tax credit has been extended for another year, through 2011 and they upped the amount to over $13,000 and made it refundable.  I don't fully understand all of this but I'm excited to know that this will significantly help in the finances department!  I guess I should be thankful today for Obama's new healthcare law.

I feel like a lot has been accomplished this week and although even more needs to get done within the next several hours, I'm thankful.  I'm thankful for the time off of work to get homework done, I'm thankful for a husband who works around the house even while working two jobs when all I have time to do is sit with the laptop and work in the evenings, I'm thankful for the generosity of friends and family who have been collecting their change and donating stuff for our garage sale, I'm thankful for the sweetness an innocence of a two year old's heart, and I'm thankful that we have the ability to work hard to accomplish our goals and we will soon be able to enjoy the fruits of our labor.

Happy Birthday to me!

I should have posted this last night but I was tired.

Yesterday was my birthday and I got one of the best presents ever....a completed home study!  I was so excited to hear from the social worker!  We are going now to pick up our copies and then off to Memphis to the immigration office.  I know that there is a huge chance that we will not be able to file in person, but if we have this day to try, why not?  If they refuse us, we'll go ahead and send it in the mail.  No matter what, the immigration portion of this whole process begins today!

I love this kid

Potty training is hard work...

Seriously though, all peepees have been in the potty today!  WooHoo!!

He calls us his "Buddy", he snuggled with me while watching TV this afternoon for about half an hour (I miss snuggling with a baby so much!!), he has the sweetest disposition and loves the "Jesus" around my neck.  What's not to love about him?  Oh, and the other day he told me that he wants baby bruhdooorss.  Too cute.

I'm a little cautious in posting this but...

...our social worker just called and said we are ready to finalize a few pieces of information and the home study will be complete!!!!  What does that mean?  Once our adoption agency looks it over, we are ready to send it in to USCIS (immigration).  YAY!!  I can't believe it!  Immigration is another frustrating process in itself but once it's over and we get approval from them, the dossier will be on its way! 

Prayer Request

Please read this news story.

One of the boys was active at the Silver City Church and was in the mentoring program with some friends of ours.  Here is a quote from an email I just received, "He was a great kid, faithful, and just got accepted into Harding."  Pray for all of these families.

Starting Spring Break

At the ZOO!

As much as my child loves animals, I'm a little surprised that this is only our second trip to a zoo and the first for Little Rock.  We are members of the zoo this year so I'm sure we will wear out those walking paths this summer watching all of the animals sleep, eat, sniff their poop.....

I've always looked at giraffes and thought that God has a great sense of humor. 

WOW!

Ever wondered what $400 in change looks like?  This is craziness!  :)

  (fundraising)

Love Never Fails

*I've changed the music player at the bottom of the page.  If you want music, just scroll down and turn it on.

So this is what I get, huh?

I've had a week to process this news and I know I've told a few of you about this but I guess in my head, it hasn't really been real because it hasn't been put on 'the blog.'  Reality starts now...

When will I learn to never say "never" again?  I learned this from Fifel (An American Tale) as a small child, so why in the world have I not practiced it?  When we first started thinking about international adoption, we didn't even look into some of the eastern European countries because that required two travel trips.  This solidified our choice of Ethiopia because I only wanted to travel once.  I could NEVER travel half-way around the world, meet my child, hug, snuggle, and love on them and then leave to come home without them.  NEVER.....really?  This is what I get for that.  God's telling me, "Really?  You can't do that?  Watch this....you can do anything....ANYTHING!  Just trust and obey."  The announcement was made last week that the Ethiopian government is now requiring adoptive parents to be present at a court hearing to state their commitment to the adoption in front of a judge.  We will be able to meet our child and be with him/her for a few days before coming home and leaving them behind.  Once the adoption is finalized, we will travel to attend the visa meeting and bring our baby home.

So many thoughts have been going through my head....another week away from Cooper, arrangements for his care, another week away from work for both of us, and the cost.  It could be $4-5,000 extra that we weren't planning on.  Every time I get to worrying, this voice in my head whispers, 'trust and obey,' and then I get this vision of Jesus talking to Peter saying, "Do you love me?"  Nothing about this will make us change our minds.  We are totally committed and as I've said before, I have never wanted anything more.  We're just being reminded over and over that we're not in control.  If I can keep from being frustrated, it's a very humbling experience.

"Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up."  James 4:10

Run!

What a week!

I'm sad tonight.  I just want my baby.  Last week was long and tough and it's almost Monday morning again.  I just feel deflated.  Between work, grad school, family, gathering the great paper trail we call a dossier, and all of my extra-curriculars that I am trying to give up, there's not much left of me.  Too many irons in the fire and it's almost down to embers.

I was so busy last week that I didn't get a chance to update at all so here's the abbreviated version...

Last weekend:  We had our second Community Day at Levy Church of Christ.  Our small group was in charge of food and we served a LOT of chicken fried steak, veggies, rolls and cookies.  We were able to feed some people who truly appreciated what we had to offer and that feels so good.  Our turnout was about twice what it was last year and many Bible studies were conducted as a result.

Monday:  It was Monday...need I say more?

Tuesday:  Our friends, Teague and Robert, came over for dinner with their newly adopted boys from Ethiopia, Effeson and Biruk.  They are adorable!  Cooper loved them and they played well together.  I can not believe I didn't take pictures of them all together.  We are hoping to see them again sometime next month so I'll have to remember the camera then!

Wednesday:  Not a good day.  First of all, Spring in Arkansas = TORNADOES!!  Terrible night for weather.  I can not handle tornado sirens...I just think they make things worse.  Also, we got some not-so-good news from our agency about the adoption law changing in Ethiopia.  It deserves it's own post though.

Thursday:  Big Boy Undies!!  We're diving into potty training.  Cooper is very resistant but he loves his Cars underwear and putting stickers on his chart.  We'll see how this goes.  We also got our background checks done this day and I'm glad to announce that I'm not married to a felon!

Friday:   We had our second home study appointment and Justin went without me, as I couldn't get off work and only one of us was needed.

Saturday:  We accomplished a few more things to check off the dossier list.  One of them was to get color copies of certain pages of our passports.  The lady at Kinko's said we weren't allowed to copy ID's in color...only in B&W.  We explained what it was for and she went ahead and did it.  On the way home, we talked about how nice people have been about getting documentation quickly once they hear that we need these things for international adoption.  So many people have changed their tune and moved things along quickly for us.  We have been so blessed to encounter kind-hearted people so far.  Saturday was Olivia's birthday.  I can't believe she's 8!!

Today:  We are blessed.  God is good.  I feel like he has taken this tiny little Bottle Bank idea and is making it more than we could have ever dreamed of.  Every time we go to church, someone is either asking for a bottle or giving a full one to us and asking for another!  I think of the fish and loaves every time I pour out a bottle of change to count and roll it, thinking about the sheer amount of change we have been collecting and it only started out with a tiny little thought.  The Piece By Piece site will be updated tomorrow with pictures and amounts that have been in each bottle.  I think they are averaging about $30 per bottle.  It's just pocket change but it certainly adds up to great amounts!  To those of you who are collecting your 'extras', thank you.  We know how valuable every penny is to all of us and we are so thankful that you have chosen to share.

I have so much more to say but you're tired of reading and I doubt I'll get much sleep tonight so I need to stop this.  If I have time this week, I have a ton to talk about so check back.

Nothing new...

Not much on the adoption front....we are just waiting on the home study to be completed by the social worker.  We have another meeting with her on Friday afternoon to check in.

I haven't had much to say on here lately because first of all, our laptop crashed and we just got it back from the Geek Squad plus, I've been so busy with work and school that there hasn't been much left of me at the end of the day.

There are a lot of thoughts building in this head of mine...maybe I will be so inspired to share later in the week.  For tonight, I'm praying for strength to get through the week.  There are way too many things on my plate and I'm wearing thin.