Looking for a child who needs a home...

Monday, February 22, 2010

Our adoption story...

Some of you know us very well, others simply know us by our journey to adopt. However you found us, we consider you friends. Here is our story.

Within 2 months of dating, Andy and I knew we would marry. However, he waited a whole 5 months before asking my father for my hand (and my Dad made him wait an entire weekend for a decision...wasn't that cruel!!) Two years later we finally married, that was 11 years ago this September (1999). We had Jack (2001), our first son, 2 years after we were married, and Jude 4 years after that (2005)! We love our boys, and immensely enjoy them! After Jude was born, we decided to adopt our next child...a girl from China. In July of 2006 we started the process and on October 18, 2007 we were logged in line for a healthy infant girl from China. We were told the wait was about 12-18 months.

However, as time went on, that wait grew and grew. We had some serious decisions to make. Do we wait...or do we switch to another country. One day, our agency announced they were looking for pioneer families for an entirely new program in Burundi, Africa. After praying, discussing and a dream I had (yes, I had a dream...God's only way to get me to truly listen to him!) I woke up (July 27 of 2008) and said "YES, this is the path." Andy agreed. So we DID NOT remove our dossier (the paperwork) from China, but we DID begin the new process to adopt a little girl from Africa!

Truth be told, it was expected to take less than 6 months. But then governments got involved! I understand the need to be careful to protect the children, but sometimes the wait is excruciating! In Spring of 2009, we heared a rumor that a young girl *might* be available. Because we were one of two families in the program, and the other family had already been assigned their sweet boy (see "Waiting for little miss" on the left hand side), we thought "This might be our girl!!" On September 30, 2009, our agency called. "Her HIV test came back negative! Pictures of your daughter are on their way to you via email!" We waited breathlessly! She is beautiful and so very sweet. And I cannot wait to post her picture!!! But not yet!

We hit high gear and updated all of our paperwork, got everything authenticated at the state level, the US level, and the Burundi level...we fedexd, fedexd over nighted, hired an escort...lots of crazy stuff and 2 weeks later our dossier landed in Burundi. What happened next, you ask...? Well, we just don't know! Because this process is so new, there is a lot of language barriers. Not to mention, we Americans tend to be pretty high maintenance, while many other cultures are more laid back. Our "soon" and their "soon" are not exactly the same.

We know our paperwork has been translated and we know "Someone" has it, we are just waiting for that "someone" to say, "Ok, come get your daughter now!" So we wait. It will be in God's time. And our agency has recently made steps that will hopefully get things moving again. I know the wait is necessary. I want to make sure our girl truly is ours, and that we are not taking her from a home or family that indeed can still provide for her. But with each day that passes, I know she does something fantastic, and I miss it. She is 24 months old now... I pray we travel soon.

If you would like more information about Burundi, contact me and I will forward my agency details. If you would like to help us bring Zoe home, please feel free to "chip in". Know that any funds raised on this site go to her adoption. If you have a child from Africa or are adopting, let me know. I want this site to encompass numerous blogs from families sharing their experiences.

Keep us all in your prayers!

No comments:

Post a Comment