Paper Chase

Well, we start the paper chase again today. All of our documents are expiring. Is having your fingerprints taken for the tenth time too many? I am not kidding! We could work for secret service at this point. We also need to have our 3rd TB test done. The deed to our house isn't enough, now we have to have our lender write a letter describing our house. Anyone under any circumstances can have a baby and live where ever and nobody asks any questions. Try and adopt and you are told if your house is good enough or big enough. Hopefully this is the last time and it is most likely we get to file our paperwork in Ukraine mid August.

Kevin and I won a vacation to Mazatlan, Mexico at a charity auction a couple of weeks ago. It will be fun to get away for a few days kid free. We will rest up because we know it will be the last couples vacation for awhile. We are going in July. The next trip will be Ukraine, hopefully. Chances are we will be going around Christmas. We plan to take Garrett and Morgan with us so we don't mind.

I found a really cool web-site for those of you who love to take pictures and keep journals. You can also use your blogs. It is called blurb.com. "Book Smart" You can make your own book. It is a free site, you download your stuff and then they publish it like a book! You get charged for publishing, but it is very reasonable. I am going to use my blog as my journal and make a memory book for the kids. Eventually I will download pictures. I don't feel comfortable doing that right now. After the kids are ours I will post them.

My verse doesn't have anything to do with my post today. Last Sunday was an awesome reminder of who God is.

Acts 17:24-31 God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands. Nor is He worshiped with men's hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things. And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us. Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone something shaped by art and man's devising. Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. he has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.

Pam

Disappointed

Well, it looks like August is more likely for us to file than July. I have learned not to get my hopes up but must admit I am disappointed. When we first started this process, I was told when the adoption is over you will become one of the most patient people ever! I am learning but still have a long way to go. I can't imagine not having two more kids in my home by the end of the year. I don't even care if we are traveling to Ukraine during Christmas!

James 1:2-4 Count it all joy when you fall into various trial, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete lacking nothing.

Pam

Hoping For a Good Word!

It's about that time of the month again when we start wondering if we will get submitted next month. We have heard of numbers close to ours getting a date. It is getting exciting! That is the first hurdle. The second one is that our dossier is accepted and not rejected due to an error. Ukraine government can be very picky about the slightest error. After the dossier is submitted, we will get an appointment date to go to Ukraine! That usually happens within a month or two. This may still seem far off to some of you but to us, it is the date we have been looking forward to.

For those of you who will pray for us, please pray that our dossier is accepted the first time. Next pray that the other two couples in our group will get to travel at the same time as us. It would be great to go as a group so we can encourage each other. And of course, please pray that the kids would still be available to us and that they would be kept safe.

You may have noticed that I added music to our post. There are other favorite songs on the play list. One of my personal favorites is "Might to Save". Every time I hear it I cry. I am so moved by the words "He can move the mountains". It is so real to me every time I see things progress in this adoption and in our past ones. It can be like moving a whole mountain and you just can't do it yourself. God is the might one and when He wills it, there is no stopping!

Proverbs 12:25 Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, But a good word makes it glad.

Pam

God is Good!

Well today was a miracle. Truly, we had to try and update our fingerprints for the USCIS today. The fingerprints don't expire until January but they have to still be good for six more months when we file our dossier or the Ukraine will reject the dossier. Our agency told us to try and take care of this but she didn't think we would be able to yet. We may file at the end of July and we need to be prepared. Kevin got to the USCIS before I did and they told him we could not go in without an appointment with a referral. When I got there I gave them our old referral, I had two. One of them was a mistake with my maiden name on it and it was replaced later. It had not been stamped yet. I did not remember this. The officer at the door went ahead and let us in to proceed. When we got to the point of the fingerprinting they told us they could not do it because our fingerprints were still good. I explained that Ukraine has the stipulation that all dates must be good for at least six months before the expiration date. The fingerprinter got the immigration officer who made a phone call and finally pulled it off. We are relieved to have this accomplished. After waiting this long to file with Ukraine I don't want to be rejected now!

I think this is just one more way God lets us know He is paving the way and making our paths straight. Time and time again He proves He is in control. I am so glad because it give me confidence that all things can be accomplished through Him according to His will.

John 15:7 If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.

Small World

It's a small world. (Sorry if the song starts running through your head.) A co-worker of mine came to me last week asking me about hosting an orphan in his home for a couple weeks this summer. He and his wife were approached by their church and agreed to host a little girl and he wanted my feedback from my experience. I smiled and said be prepared to fall in love. These children are starved for love and family. They crave a Dad and Mom who will love them and keep them. I asked him if they were looking to adopt and he said no, they just want to host. I smiled again and told him "that's what I said too."

I am praying for my friend that he and his wife will love that little girl. I pray that I have been a good witness and that they will consider adoption if their hosting experience goes well.

"Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven." Matthew 5:16

A Glimpse of Hope

We got word from our agency today, there could be a possiblilty of our paperwork being filed by the end of July. I try not to get my hopes up, I have been dissappointed before. It is not preventable my hopes are already up! We also know we are close to having to redo all of our paperwork again, for the third time.

Proverbs 16:9 A man's heart plans his way, But the Lord directs his steps.

Waiting Impatiently!

"I wait for you impatiently. I want to be taken by you as soon as possible." This was the latest word from our children. Friends of ours, who are also adopting, paid a visit to the orphanage. With the help of an interpreter, the kids wrote us a letter. We are waiting impatiently also! Oh how my heart longs to take them as soon as possible.

We spoke to the kids on the telephone last week and they said they would be off to summer camp for a few weeks and we won't be able to call them. I am happy they will have other things to keep them occupied, other than waiting for us. Other families have come for kids and I know they want to know where we are. We are being told we may get to travel sometime at the end of this year...

In the meantime, our summer has officially begun. School is over for us. Garrett and Morgan finished up last week. I figure the best way to make the time go faster would be to live in today and not worry about tomorrow! Wow, what a concept. We enjoyed ourselves at the water park last Friday. We look forward to beach days and Water Pollo tournaments. Garrett leaves for camp in two weeks! He can hardly wait. Morgan is sad she isn't old enough yet. She and I will have a great time doing other things while Garrett is gone. Kevin gets to go to camp too! He will be there to help set-up and serve.

Philippians 4:6,7,8 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy--meditate on these things.