Our growing girl...

Here we sit as a family with a new number in the adoption line. We have been given the number 25 which in loose terms means that there are 24 families ahead of us who are also waiting to adopt their sweet daughter from Ethiopia with AGCI. As the number continues to go down we become more aware that all of this is truly happening. That is a strange comment I know but we have been waiting for so long for all of this to actually happen. Our hearts were stirred many years and three kids ago and over the weekend both Bob and I were enjoying an old favorite restaraunt where we lived during his graduate school days. We were visiting to attend the UofM football game and have our boys and my Dad join us for a day of reminiscing and fun. We determined during our calm dinner that the last time we had been to the Earle, in Ann Arbor, MI, over ten years ago, that we were discussing the possibility of adoption due to infertility issues that had lead to an ectopic pregnancy. At that point we were interested in only one thing. We wanted a baby. We both were convinced that adoption would be right for us and that we would not try to have a biological child forever. Little did we know how much that conversation nearly ten years ago would come to pass. What began as our own journey to children soon became God's journey. We went on to have three beautiful boys but still the feelings of adoption lingered. It began to feel like something maybe we were meant to do. Funny how God works sometimes. As our lives became busier, as we become more aware of the blessings in our lives, as our relationship to God became bolder and more important, we were continually reminded of the days back in Ann Arbor when adoption was our great hope. We celebrated 14 years of marriage with our dinner at the Earle this past Saturday evening and we feel like there is no more we could hope for. We are incredible blessed with rich and rewarding, fun and faith-filled lives. We are listening to God's nudges and the daily benefits are so great. We are number 25 and soon we will hold a little girl who is growing somewhere. She may be growing in her birthmother's belly or growing within the walls of an Ethiopia orphanage. She is growing like the idea of adoption grew in us. She is growing like the seeds of faith that have grown within myself and Bob over the past fourteen years and she is growing to someday be welcomed with open arms into our family. We cannot wait to know who our precious little daughter is. Bless and keep her God as she grows-wherever she may be.

Fun and Fantastic!

Fun and fantastic is the way Bob described our Halloween! The boys were so amazing with all their excitement throughout the night! We had good friends here who were new to all the WV hoopla. Grandparents stopped to see the costumes. Grandpa Ron made amazing chili and manned the porch so we could all walk with the kids. Just watching their eyes sparkle as they shook off the cold night air and ran from house to house was so precious. Hayden informed us that at one house Owen even asked for two of whatever they were passing out and it made us recall the days when Hayden would ring the doorbell and say, "trick or treat, I'm allergic to peanuts." People would melt in their doorways or simply dissolve into laughter. Halloween is always a magical night and a favorite celebration of costumes, candy, all the neighbors out taking photos in the cal-de-sac and of course chili and anything pumpkin we can think of. Our Halloween traditions are a blast and this year Frankenstein and my two mummies enjoyed it all! Just think... perhaps next year I will be able to make a little girl's costume. :)

37 sure sounds good to us...

We have had a wild ride of a week around our house and I have not had the chance to update our blog. That's the very reason I love this online journal of sorts... it helps me keep track of all the many changes and updates as we move through our adoption.
So about a week ago I received an email informing our family that we had moved from 44 to 37 on the wait list. This is big movement in one months time! Apparently IN late September through early October the courts close in Ethiopia. That means few referrals are likely to occur at that time since the adoption system is slow and quiet. In spite of the closure it would seem that Hannah's Hope is busting at the seams with infants and they are working hard to match children with families. Remember the referral means we have a match! More later I have to run. :)

Loving My Children

So as crazy as it sounds today was a day where I wished I could have 14 more children in my life! I warned you it sounded crazy but today was one of the best afternoons we have had as a family. The boys were out of school today for a teacher's inservice. They began their morning with a bit of relaxation and by building a skatepark in the garage. The ramps required that I back the car out and they went to town with any wood they could find. They organized everything and had piles of scooters, skateboards, helmets, pads and of course piles of wood they could add to the ramps. The whole endeavor took them hours and it was quite a sight to behold. Bob worked half a day. We organized backpacks, figured out homework and then cleaned up to spend the afternoon and evening downtown. The guys were a blast!!!!

We started at Cathedral Square and saw the ladders and the Giving Tree. The boys had notebooks and we encouraged them to sketch what they saw or perhaps describe or define it. We traveled next to Calder Plaza and on to BIggby to warm up with coffee and hot cocoa. They guys were dreamy and so fun to watch as they absorbed all the art, some good and some, well the boys are already little critics."Are the ladders really art Mommy or are they more like a creative project?" Carter asked. Owen could not wait to get into the Old Federal Building where several of the top art pieces are housed. Both he and I had visited the area this week and he really remembered the pieces he loved. He owned the place, wanting his Dad and brothers to see it all. How can a five year old be so in love with ART?

I guess I am just sitting here tonight counting my many blessings. I am blessed to have such amazing children and a husband who feels the same way I do. It is our responsibility to teach them all we can, to guide them and to show them the ways of God. They fill our lives with such joy, spirit, concern and love. I am in awe of the gift God has given us in giving is three brilliant and beautiful children. The joy they provide makes me wish I could have more. More children to love. More children to teach. More children to cherish and guide. I can't wait to know who is next to join our family.

ART Rules!

Where to begin? I'm sitting outside in the crisp fall air near downtown Grand Rapids and feeling like life doesn't get any better than this. This city is so vibrant, so alive, so on it's game. Having lived here since I was seven years old, I often feel caught up in my daily routine, my driving shortcuts, my usual grocery and coffee run. I forget to jump outside my own lines. I forget to leave the dishes {I did that this morning :} skip the laundry and just spend my alone time traveling new paths. I'm at the Wealthy Street Bakery this morning watching all the people moving about and feeling a bit like a live in a big city. Sometimes I feel like I missed that stage of life. I'm watching dog people, coffee lovers, moms with little peanuts and the tourists here in town to view the 1300 art pieces shown all over downtown for the next 15 days. ARTPRIZE is in full swing in Grand Rapids, MI and I see and feel a sense of energy, enthusiasm and unity that isn't always in play. It makes me grateful to see that we do have a diverse and rich culture right here in GR. We were downtown last night for piano lessons and I loved hearing my boys, ages 7 and 8 beg me to take them to check out a few of the big ARTPRIZE sites. How could I possibly say no to that request. We loved roaming around, viewing a speed artist demo, watching a man creating moses out a tall piece of wood, finding Nessie and the Sticks table above the blue bridge. People have poured their heart and souls into this competition and we plan to embrace all the art we can fit into our busy lives. Art gives a glimpse into someone's heart. Art helps us think and wonder. Art helps us get in touch with our inner selves and Art reminds all of us that diversity and uniqueness is so good!

What's our number?

We are on the wait list! Can you guess what number we were given? We had the best night with our boys tonight and we had to top it all off with these silly photos. Below you will see our post with yesterday's big news and what it all means in terms of a timeline to learning who our daughter will be. It is so exciting and we feel so blessed to know we will have another little being in our world and in our hearts. Her brothers will be amazing and although it is tough to help them better understand adoption, We know that God will give us the tools and the dialogue we need when we need it.

It was a day of celebration in the life of two families also working with our agency, AGCI. Both of the families were called today with referrals. The Pratt family received a call about a 6 week old baby boy and the Andersen family, who were placed in the number one spot on September 4th for both a girl and also for siblings, received a referral of twin 6 week old girls. It was a busy night on the list serv, where many families all chat and share news. It is a supportive group of people who amaze me with how they live their lives and their faithfulness and service to others. There are so many families we wish we could get to know. There are so many families who are willing to open their eyes to the orphan. I learn new things each and every day by following their journeys.

So all day I've been thinking that somewhere tonight there is an Ethiopian woman who recently gave birth to a child or children she will not raise. She perhaps chose to relinquish the child into the arms of strangers who have more resources or options than she. Or maybe the same woman knows that she will not survive the years it will take to see her child grow. Maybe she is ill or lacks support and basic needs to live and thrive, therefore choosing life for the young child. Whoever this woman is we may never know. But each day I stand in awe of the many women worldwide who carry babies inside their bodies only to be faced with the ultimate challenge of knowing it is best if she lets he or she go. Someone who works in the arena of adoption once told me to pray for birthmothers. I do. I pray for them to find courage and peace and I pray for them to somehow know down deep what a gift they have given to another, both birth child and adoptive family. May they in some small way feel the love that many families are yearning to provide to the young heart of a precious and helpless orphan.