Yesterday a friend emailed me...
"So what's the scoop with the adoption? I heard it didn't work out?"
I replied, "You've gotta love gossip, don't you? It never comes out just right."
So here's the scoop.
A couple of weeks ago our adoption agency's admin. assistant called and told me something had come up with our children. She said there was another family interested in the brother and sister we had been expecting to be ours. Apparently they had filled out their application and turned in their contract, but for whatever reason, hadn't had a lot of contact with the agency leading them to believe the family was not interested in K and M.
Our contract was in the mail to us. So we hadn't even had a chance to get that in. And until the contract is turned in, they can't officially give you a referral for the children.
When she first started telling me, my heart sank. But then I remembered that we wanted no part of controlling this adoption process and if God was closing this door, He had good reason for it. And so I was at perfect peace about it. And since this adoption isn't about us getting children, it's about children getting a home, we pray K & M are going to be loved and taught about Jesus in their new home wherever that is. And we'll wait patiently for the children God has for us to love and teach about Him.
Since then, we have received our 26-page contract and are in the process of reading it. It will need to be signed and returned with the agency fee. Then when we receive the homestudy summary back, we can work on our dossier (set of documents all about us to be presented to Ethiopia) and wait for a referral for the children God wants to be a part of our family.
Then there will be a court date in Ethiopia which Roddy will fly over for and if we pass, about six weeks later, we both fly to pick them up!
July 31, 2010
July 28, 2010
Will I Ruin Them For Life?
I'm finally finishing up my series of posts on Homeschooling with this question:
Will I mess them up for life?
What if I don't pick the right math curriculum and they don't learn it the right way? What if I teach history in the wrong order? What's the best program to teach them handwriting? What if they don't write their lowercase "d" correctly?
I actually used to wonder if they would be tested one day on how they wrote their letters. I thought if they didn't start in the correct spot, even though it ended up looking just like a the letter should that I'd be in trouble. Yeah, no one's testing them on how they hold their pencil or whether the "d" starts at the top to form the line first or at the middle to start the circle first.
What about writing essays, stories, etc? And will they really be ready for college? There are many things to teach and many more questions about this or that curriculum or method.
What I've deduced is that in subjects like history and science their is no right or wrong order. Up to the ninth grade (when transcripts are required) you can teach those subjects in whatever order you'd like. How do I know this? We have a humongous homeschool convention in town every year. I don't know exactly how many science and history vendors there are, but there are a bunch. And not one of them teaches their curriculum is in the same order. Some teach American History then World History. Others start with Ancient History. There's no best way because unlike math and reading which build on each other year after year, history and science really can be less of a check off list (and I say this as a mom who loves to check off lists in order!)
Now if you want to feel more secure with what your state guidelines are, you can always go to your county's website and find out the public school standards and teach by those.
As far as stressing out over the best math, after you've consulted several friends and actually looked at what they use, pick one. If you don't like it at the end of the year, try something else. I had a friend once who spent a whole bunch of money on a math program. She hated it and ended up feeling like her year was a complete failure because she actually ended up avoiding math. If you get to that point and it's only halfway through the year, who cares how much it cost change it then.
I will say, however, be careful not to make math that big of a deal. It's just math. Whatever program you pick will probably be fine if you just stick it out. Flip-flopping too often can be more of a problem than the actual math curriculum itself.
What it all boils down to is this...education is important but it's not the end of all things. Love for God and others is. Character, work ethic, wisdom versus book knowledge, self-control, responsibility, these are important. Jesus doesn't mention education or wealth as something to strive for.
The problem is trying to keep up with this family or that family. I recommended these before but want to recommend them again :
The key to education is not the books or curriculum. It's encouraging a love for learning and consistently working through the subjects day after day.
YOU CAN DO IT!
Will I mess them up for life?
What if I don't pick the right math curriculum and they don't learn it the right way? What if I teach history in the wrong order? What's the best program to teach them handwriting? What if they don't write their lowercase "d" correctly?
I actually used to wonder if they would be tested one day on how they wrote their letters. I thought if they didn't start in the correct spot, even though it ended up looking just like a the letter should that I'd be in trouble. Yeah, no one's testing them on how they hold their pencil or whether the "d" starts at the top to form the line first or at the middle to start the circle first.
What about writing essays, stories, etc? And will they really be ready for college? There are many things to teach and many more questions about this or that curriculum or method.
What I've deduced is that in subjects like history and science their is no right or wrong order. Up to the ninth grade (when transcripts are required) you can teach those subjects in whatever order you'd like. How do I know this? We have a humongous homeschool convention in town every year. I don't know exactly how many science and history vendors there are, but there are a bunch. And not one of them teaches their curriculum is in the same order. Some teach American History then World History. Others start with Ancient History. There's no best way because unlike math and reading which build on each other year after year, history and science really can be less of a check off list (and I say this as a mom who loves to check off lists in order!)
Now if you want to feel more secure with what your state guidelines are, you can always go to your county's website and find out the public school standards and teach by those.
As far as stressing out over the best math, after you've consulted several friends and actually looked at what they use, pick one. If you don't like it at the end of the year, try something else. I had a friend once who spent a whole bunch of money on a math program. She hated it and ended up feeling like her year was a complete failure because she actually ended up avoiding math. If you get to that point and it's only halfway through the year, who cares how much it cost change it then.
I will say, however, be careful not to make math that big of a deal. It's just math. Whatever program you pick will probably be fine if you just stick it out. Flip-flopping too often can be more of a problem than the actual math curriculum itself.
What it all boils down to is this...education is important but it's not the end of all things. Love for God and others is. Character, work ethic, wisdom versus book knowledge, self-control, responsibility, these are important. Jesus doesn't mention education or wealth as something to strive for.
The problem is trying to keep up with this family or that family. I recommended these before but want to recommend them again :
They're on sale right now 30% off!
YOU CAN DO IT!
July 27, 2010
Hee Hee Hee
My parents were in Alabama last week staying in a cabin at Wheeler Dam. This is the little store just before entering the property:
July 23, 2010
July 21, 2010
Yes, We're Crazy
I know people think I'm crazy having five kids. And even crazier wanting more. And now even crazier wanting to adopt more than one, not a baby, and from a foreign country.
If you've ever been pregnant, inevitably you've been told horror stories of other's pregnancies and especially deliveries. Well the adoption horror stories and warnings have just begun - only they haven't been from people who have been there, they were other people's stories being retold to me.
So I decided to talk to someone who has actually adopted older kids from Ethiopia. A mom and dad in Nebraska who have 2 grown, married children, adopted 6 kids (3 sibling groups- ages 2, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10 at the time) about a year and a half ago. They are now in the process of adopting 2 more girls ages 6 and 9.
I called her this afternoon. She told me flat out all that they went through during the long adjustment period. She didn't glamorize or sugar-coat any of it. But she concluded our hour-long conversation with, "It's a wonderful experience. I wouldn't trade it for anything."
So as nutty as it sounds that I would want to put myself through what they went through, I can see what she means when she says she wouldn't trade it for anything.
And trust me, after the conversations I had Sunday with the horror-story people, I was not sure.
By the way, I did ask her if she was just an easy-going person. She said absolutely not. She is type A, likes to get things done in a certain time frame, but she has learned to slow down and appreciate things more through all of it.\
It was a great conversation and I'm sure I'll be calling her again.
Photos: Bringing Iris home from the hospital. Emma (5), Gray (4), Jackson (almost 3), Charlie (1 1/2). I had just donated my hair to Locks of Love. I do not recommend making major decisions like that right before having a baby!
If you've ever been pregnant, inevitably you've been told horror stories of other's pregnancies and especially deliveries. Well the adoption horror stories and warnings have just begun - only they haven't been from people who have been there, they were other people's stories being retold to me.
So I decided to talk to someone who has actually adopted older kids from Ethiopia. A mom and dad in Nebraska who have 2 grown, married children, adopted 6 kids (3 sibling groups- ages 2, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10 at the time) about a year and a half ago. They are now in the process of adopting 2 more girls ages 6 and 9.
I called her this afternoon. She told me flat out all that they went through during the long adjustment period. She didn't glamorize or sugar-coat any of it. But she concluded our hour-long conversation with, "It's a wonderful experience. I wouldn't trade it for anything."
I can actually relate. Because that's how I feel about having had 5 kids in 5 1/2 years. Yes it was crazy and tiring and hard, but I wouldn't trade it for anything. And I would recommend it to others.
And trust me, after the conversations I had Sunday with the horror-story people, I was not sure.
By the way, I did ask her if she was just an easy-going person. She said absolutely not. She is type A, likes to get things done in a certain time frame, but she has learned to slow down and appreciate things more through all of it.\
It was a great conversation and I'm sure I'll be calling her again.
Photos: Bringing Iris home from the hospital. Emma (5), Gray (4), Jackson (almost 3), Charlie (1 1/2). I had just donated my hair to Locks of Love. I do not recommend making major decisions like that right before having a baby!
July 19, 2010
It's Not a Fad
I am not a trend follower. If "everyone else is doing it," I won't.
Since we announced that we are adopting, several people have asked me if we read about adoption in the book Radical. Because we are reading the book at the dinner table with the kids, we have just started chapter 3. I don't know when David Platt discusses adoption but we haven't made it there yet.
I say all this to clear up the idea that we have jumped on some sort of bandwagon. That this is just a whim and we haven't seriously considered it for years. That we may have "misunderstood" God's leading because we were caught up in a moment.
When we began this process by making an appointment with our local Baptist Children's Home, we went in completely open to God opening and closing whatever doors He chose. We didn't know if He wanted us to foster or adopt, but it was quite clear that He wanted us to do something. At the meeting, the door was immediately closed on fostering - we can't have more than 4 children to foster.
The next closed door was at the Community Awareness meeting we attended a couple weeks later. They basically told us we can't adopt any kids in the state under 9. Yes, you heard right. Because the state tries it's best to allow parents time to get on the right track, kids will stay in foster care for years. If parental rights are terminated, foster parents get first dibs. We left with questions but felt a definite door closed there.
In the meantime we had met with Jessica who had just adopted her two sweet, beautiful girls from Ethiopia and Roddy and I felt this was a direction we needed to pursue with the complete commitment to allow God to lead us.
This isn't about us! We want to do what God wants us to do. We want to help children who need a family to love them and care for them. They may have issues. But they will have those issues regardless of whether we take them in or not. At least we can introduce them to Jesus. At least we can give them a chance.
God may completely close the doors for us to adopt. Who knows, but we're going to find out.
Since we announced that we are adopting, several people have asked me if we read about adoption in the book Radical. Because we are reading the book at the dinner table with the kids, we have just started chapter 3. I don't know when David Platt discusses adoption but we haven't made it there yet.
I say all this to clear up the idea that we have jumped on some sort of bandwagon. That this is just a whim and we haven't seriously considered it for years. That we may have "misunderstood" God's leading because we were caught up in a moment.
When we began this process by making an appointment with our local Baptist Children's Home, we went in completely open to God opening and closing whatever doors He chose. We didn't know if He wanted us to foster or adopt, but it was quite clear that He wanted us to do something. At the meeting, the door was immediately closed on fostering - we can't have more than 4 children to foster.
The next closed door was at the Community Awareness meeting we attended a couple weeks later. They basically told us we can't adopt any kids in the state under 9. Yes, you heard right. Because the state tries it's best to allow parents time to get on the right track, kids will stay in foster care for years. If parental rights are terminated, foster parents get first dibs. We left with questions but felt a definite door closed there.
In the meantime we had met with Jessica who had just adopted her two sweet, beautiful girls from Ethiopia and Roddy and I felt this was a direction we needed to pursue with the complete commitment to allow God to lead us.
This isn't about us! We want to do what God wants us to do. We want to help children who need a family to love them and care for them. They may have issues. But they will have those issues regardless of whether we take them in or not. At least we can introduce them to Jesus. At least we can give them a chance.
God may completely close the doors for us to adopt. Who knows, but we're going to find out.
July 16, 2010
Some Time is Finite
Last night I got to listen to my friend present: An Evening of Ordered Steps
She shared with a roomful of moms how she has simplified, organized and ordered her home in order to be more efficient with the time she has been given with her loved ones.
There were many things that stood out but the one I wanted to share with you all was this:
We have a finite amount of time with our loved ones.
We have a finite number of visits with our parents.
We have a finite number of dates we can take our children on.
Her point was, what are we missing out on because we're doing so many other things? We may be doing a whole lot of great things but are we choosing what is BEST?
We need to evaluate how we are spending our time. What are our priorities and are they lining up with God's Word? Ministry is a great example. Of course God wants us to minister to others, but not at the expense of the little ones we have at home.
Our children were given to us to love, train, instruct, disciple and discipline. We will be the ones who stand before God and give account for every careless word.
It is a responsibility not to be taken lightly.
July 14, 2010
Home Study Today
Last night we met our Social Worker at Barnes and Noble with another couple, who is also adopting, for a little "Here's What You Can Expect" session. Debra is super nice and put us at ease for our Home Study which is happening in about 3 hours!
Mom and Dad were here all day yesterday helping me with this and that. They made lunch and dinner. Dad ran errands and fixed things. Mom did everything! It was a huge blessing. I'm so excited about all we've gotten done the last couple of weeks. Not only for the home study but also before starting back to school.
I have one more bathroom to clean, the downstairs to vacuum, and some laundry to put away. That's it. Oh and a few papers we need to have notarized at 4:30pm.
I made bean soup this morning and have had it cooking all day so I wouldn't have any work to do at dinner time.
Dad came by again today and fixed lunch again for us and mom ran through and straightened the kids' beds up. What would I do without them!?!
If you look up spoiled in the dictionary, you might find my picture next to it! :)
Hi Ho. Hi Ho. It's off to bleach the bathroom floor I go!
Mom and Dad were here all day yesterday helping me with this and that. They made lunch and dinner. Dad ran errands and fixed things. Mom did everything! It was a huge blessing. I'm so excited about all we've gotten done the last couple of weeks. Not only for the home study but also before starting back to school.
I have one more bathroom to clean, the downstairs to vacuum, and some laundry to put away. That's it. Oh and a few papers we need to have notarized at 4:30pm.
I made bean soup this morning and have had it cooking all day so I wouldn't have any work to do at dinner time.
Dad came by again today and fixed lunch again for us and mom ran through and straightened the kids' beds up. What would I do without them!?!
If you look up spoiled in the dictionary, you might find my picture next to it! :)
Hi Ho. Hi Ho. It's off to bleach the bathroom floor I go!
July 12, 2010
This Week
Let me start by saying I don't know what is wrong with my blog and the gray off-centered frames! Any suggestions?
This week is a busy one. Tomorrow night I have my monthly Bible study.
Tuesday night Roddy and I will have a 2 hour adoption information meeting with our Social Worker.
Wednesday night the social worker will be coming over at 5:00 to do our home study! Yikes! We're being graded as to whether we are fit to adopt and also how many we can adopt. Will you pray for my nerves?
Monday through Wednesday I'll be getting the house ready for the social worker to come over. Jessica already told me she's not going to be checking to see if I cleaned the tubs or organized my cabinets under the sinks, but I'm cleaning 'em anyway!
Thursday night my friend (mom of 6) is going to be sharing her organizational/simplifying tips.
Friday night we're going to pick up a FREE trundle bed. A friend was going to donate it if no one wanted it, so I snagged it. Did you read FREE? Hello...answer to prayer!! We put on our "Needs" list in my adoption binder "2 bunk beds." A trundle will work, right?
Speaking of adoption binder....Just about the time I was starting to feel a lot less overwhelmed about our adoption paperwork, our binder from the agency arrived.
Good grief!! We're supposed to read it at least twice and study it like we're studying for an exam. Not my words, the agency's.
Look at all those tabs!
And it came with a check list of ALL the new things to be done for the dossier. Thankfully Jessica gave me a heads up so I've been working on some things.
And guess what? I've been praying that God would allow this to be the fastest adoption the agency has seen ~ meaning paperwork would be processed extraordinarily fast with no hiccups or delays due to errors, or anything. These kids have been in the orphanage a year already. I want them home ASAP! Well, I sent off for our birth certificates and marriage certificate on Tuesday. We got them back Saturday! FOUR DAYS! I expected at least a couple weeks. Thank you, God!!! Isn't that exciting?
We've also started a "Bring the Children Home Fund." So while the kids and I have been working on cleaning out their rooms, we've been putting any money we find into the box.
Then, one day last week Roddy came home and told the kids he got a bonus for meeting his quarterly goal. $200!
Will you pray with us for the paperwork to be completed seamlessly and in record time? And will you pray for God to continue to meet the financial needs for the adoption? And for the home study this week. The woman doing it is a Christian, homeschooling, adoptive mom of three. That does put my mind at ease...a little. (I'm a perfectionist, remember? I want an A++)
Thank you so much!
This week is a busy one. Tomorrow night I have my monthly Bible study.
Tuesday night Roddy and I will have a 2 hour adoption information meeting with our Social Worker.
Wednesday night the social worker will be coming over at 5:00 to do our home study! Yikes! We're being graded as to whether we are fit to adopt and also how many we can adopt. Will you pray for my nerves?
Monday through Wednesday I'll be getting the house ready for the social worker to come over. Jessica already told me she's not going to be checking to see if I cleaned the tubs or organized my cabinets under the sinks, but I'm cleaning 'em anyway!
Thursday night my friend (mom of 6) is going to be sharing her organizational/simplifying tips.
Friday night we're going to pick up a FREE trundle bed. A friend was going to donate it if no one wanted it, so I snagged it. Did you read FREE? Hello...answer to prayer!! We put on our "Needs" list in my adoption binder "2 bunk beds." A trundle will work, right?
Speaking of adoption binder....Just about the time I was starting to feel a lot less overwhelmed about our adoption paperwork, our binder from the agency arrived.
And it came with a check list of ALL the new things to be done for the dossier. Thankfully Jessica gave me a heads up so I've been working on some things.
And guess what? I've been praying that God would allow this to be the fastest adoption the agency has seen ~ meaning paperwork would be processed extraordinarily fast with no hiccups or delays due to errors, or anything. These kids have been in the orphanage a year already. I want them home ASAP! Well, I sent off for our birth certificates and marriage certificate on Tuesday. We got them back Saturday! FOUR DAYS! I expected at least a couple weeks. Thank you, God!!! Isn't that exciting?
We've also started a "Bring the Children Home Fund." So while the kids and I have been working on cleaning out their rooms, we've been putting any money we find into the box.
Then, one day last week Roddy came home and told the kids he got a bonus for meeting his quarterly goal. $200!
God is good!
Will you pray with us for the paperwork to be completed seamlessly and in record time? And will you pray for God to continue to meet the financial needs for the adoption? And for the home study this week. The woman doing it is a Christian, homeschooling, adoptive mom of three. That does put my mind at ease...a little. (I'm a perfectionist, remember? I want an A++)
Thank you so much!
July 8, 2010
July 7, 2010
A Place Called Simplicity
There are a lot of things I like about this post at A Place Called Simplicity. Maybe you'll find something inspiring, too.
July 6, 2010
Being Productive
If you've ever done one of those personality tests, you know there are 4 main personality types and each person is a blend of two of those. The two I score highest in are both task-oriented while the two I score lowest in are the people-oriented personalities. I LOVE getting stuff done! So this weekend was great for me.
We had no where to go except church on Sunday so we were able to work, work, work! Ahhhhhh. I love it.
Saturday we worked in the front yard pulling weeds and trimming plants from the landscaping; straightened up part of the garage; mowed; and did a few loads of laundry. I can't remember what else we did except play Scrabble.
Sunday I had a photo shoot with the kids. Dowloaded those pics then started working on a photo book to send to the kids in Ethiopia whenever we're allowed to do that.
We had no where to go except church on Sunday so we were able to work, work, work! Ahhhhhh. I love it.
Saturday we worked in the front yard pulling weeds and trimming plants from the landscaping; straightened up part of the garage; mowed; and did a few loads of laundry. I can't remember what else we did except play Scrabble.
Sunday I had a photo shoot with the kids. Dowloaded those pics then started working on a photo book to send to the kids in Ethiopia whenever we're allowed to do that.
Monday was awesome. I wanted to get our games cabinet cleaned out. Here's the before...
...and after.
I needed to find space on the bookshelves for all the books I bought at the used curriculum sale. Roddy did that for me. See how they were just sitting in stacks before.
The girls and I worked in their room...
cleaning out bins and drawers of toys that have gotten mixed together. We still have a lot more to do.
In the afternoon, I worked on cleaning up my garden. It had become overgrown with weeds and pests.
Rodents like this one have been eating my tomatoes and cantaloupes before we can pick them!
Worked on some of our adoption paperwork. It is sooo overwhelming. I had to get it organized so I made this notebook with dividing folders.
We have only four weeks left until school starts! I've gotten a lot done but still have so much more I want to do before the majority of my energy is required for that.
~Here is the stack of books I'm working on - some myself and some with the kids.
~I also want to read my camera's manual and get a better handle on my picture taking.
~There is storage under our stairs that I would like to clean up.
~I need to get a schedule planned for school.
~I want to purge the closet room of clothes that are too small but still hanging up.
~The top drawer in my nightstand is a disaster. Whenever the kids have their computer time, they look for paper in there to write down their time so they can remember when it is up. And, well, this is the result.
~I have stacks of papers to be shredded and removed from the guest room.
~I'd love to get some pictures enlarged and put up in the office/school room or in the hallway.
~And when all that is done, I'm sure I'll find more to do.
Hope your summer is productive or fun or whatever your personality type enjoys!
July 5, 2010
PJs
This was taken the night Jessica and Nick came over to answer our questions about adoption from Ethiopia. She brought pjs for her kids to change into in case they crashed on the way home so some of ours joined in and put theirs on too.
July 4, 2010
Independence Day
Happy 4th of July weekend!
I've been busy with adoption paperwork but hope to catch up this week.
June 30, 2010
Imagine
I need you to imagine yourself as 10 years old again. That would be 4th or 5th grade. Do you remember your elementary school? The school bus or your mom picking you up?
Now think about the home you lived in at that time. My parents still live in mine. Do you remember your room? Mine was lavendar at one point with unicorns.
Did you share your room with a sibling? Did you have dressers or desks? I'm sure you had toys.
Think about the kitchen and where your parents kept the food. We had green lanolium flooring with a green refrigerator and I think pineapples on the wallpaper. It's been updated since then!
Now I want you to imagine all of that being taken away from you. Better yet, take yourself completely out of America and place yourself in Africa.
Imagine that either one or both of your parents have died from HIV or pneumonia or malaria and because your extended family is so poor no one can afford to take care of you, you are put in an orphanage.
Imagine sharing a bed with 3 other children. Imagine being grateful for the same meal 3 times a day, 7 days a week because at least you have food. And Imagine knowing that in a couple of years you're going to age out of the orpanage.
At 13, you'll be sent out to the streets to fend for yourself. If you are a girl, you'll have to prostitute to get a meal. Your stomach will hurt because of parasites and you'll itch all over because of the lice and/or scabies.
Now, imagine your own child in that situation.
What would you do to protect them from that?
I'd do anything! Pay anything! Wouldn't you?
For the last few years, adoption has been something Roddy and I have talked off and on about. Last year we had decided to start the adoption process but then after lots of discussion decided to go the reversal route.
In the back of my mind I still wanted to adopt whether we had more of our own or not, but just didn't actively pursue it after that.
Well a couple of weeks ago, I quit thinking about it and called the local Baptist Children's Home which now has an extension on our church property. We went to meet the lady and decided to see what doors God would open and close for us.
Then last week I was at a friend's house and she was telling me about her friend who had just adopted 2 sisters from Ethiopia in January. Later that day, she sent me a link to this friend's blog.
One of the first posts I read was about 3 children she had met in Ethiopia who were on a waiting list with her agency. They are older children and have been there a year already. Why? Because of their age. No one wants older kids. Everyone wants cute little babies.
This is an excerpt from one post:
So I read a couple of Jessica's posts and that night made Roddy read them. I said, "What do you think?"
In my mind I had always pictured a sibling group of 3 younger than Iris (5) because in all our talks, we had said we wouldn't get anyone older than her.
His response was, "I think we should adopt them."
Yes!! I was hoping he would say that.
So I emailed Jessica to see if we could get together to ask her some questions. This was Wednesday of last week. Saturday night their whole beautiful family came over for dinner and answered all our questions.
That night I emailed the agent and told him that we were interested in adopting K, M & MM. K is a 10 year old boy, his sister M is 7. And the other girl, MM, is 9 or 10 and has no siblings. The agent told me someone is considering the single girl but I told him to let me know if the family changes their mind.
Anyway. Long story, not so short, we are filling out lots and lots of paperwork right now in hopes of bringing home our children in the next 6-9 months.
The kids are thrilled. They pray for them everyday at meals and bedtime and Bible time. They pray that God will let us bring them home soon and that He will give us the money to adopt them.
We've never considered overseas adoption because of the cost but because we feel this is His will for us, we know that God will provide! Money is nothing to Him. And how could the cost ever be considered too high to keep our children from the suffering they are otherwise destined to endure?
Now think about the home you lived in at that time. My parents still live in mine. Do you remember your room? Mine was lavendar at one point with unicorns.
Did you share your room with a sibling? Did you have dressers or desks? I'm sure you had toys.
Think about the kitchen and where your parents kept the food. We had green lanolium flooring with a green refrigerator and I think pineapples on the wallpaper. It's been updated since then!
Now I want you to imagine all of that being taken away from you. Better yet, take yourself completely out of America and place yourself in Africa.
Imagine that either one or both of your parents have died from HIV or pneumonia or malaria and because your extended family is so poor no one can afford to take care of you, you are put in an orphanage.
Imagine sharing a bed with 3 other children. Imagine being grateful for the same meal 3 times a day, 7 days a week because at least you have food. And Imagine knowing that in a couple of years you're going to age out of the orpanage.
At 13, you'll be sent out to the streets to fend for yourself. If you are a girl, you'll have to prostitute to get a meal. Your stomach will hurt because of parasites and you'll itch all over because of the lice and/or scabies.
Now, imagine your own child in that situation.
What would you do to protect them from that?
I'd do anything! Pay anything! Wouldn't you?
For the last few years, adoption has been something Roddy and I have talked off and on about. Last year we had decided to start the adoption process but then after lots of discussion decided to go the reversal route.
In the back of my mind I still wanted to adopt whether we had more of our own or not, but just didn't actively pursue it after that.
Well a couple of weeks ago, I quit thinking about it and called the local Baptist Children's Home which now has an extension on our church property. We went to meet the lady and decided to see what doors God would open and close for us.
Then last week I was at a friend's house and she was telling me about her friend who had just adopted 2 sisters from Ethiopia in January. Later that day, she sent me a link to this friend's blog.
One of the first posts I read was about 3 children she had met in Ethiopia who were on a waiting list with her agency. They are older children and have been there a year already. Why? Because of their age. No one wants older kids. Everyone wants cute little babies.
This is an excerpt from one post:
What an awful thing for a child to have to hope for-that they are good enough, cute enough, young enough or healthy enough to be desirable and worthy of a family. My husband and I met 3 of the children that are on the waiting list-two of which have been waiting since at least September when we first saw our girls. I've seen the children who still wait standing eagerly beside the visiting adoptive families, hoping to hear their name called to come and get a package from home. I've witnessed first hand their disappointment when their name is passed by. How does that feel??? To know you have not been placed. After a while, it would be hard to keep hoping. Do they conclude that they are undesirable? Do they start to believe that they are unlovable?
So I read a couple of Jessica's posts and that night made Roddy read them. I said, "What do you think?"
In my mind I had always pictured a sibling group of 3 younger than Iris (5) because in all our talks, we had said we wouldn't get anyone older than her.
His response was, "I think we should adopt them."
Yes!! I was hoping he would say that.
So I emailed Jessica to see if we could get together to ask her some questions. This was Wednesday of last week. Saturday night their whole beautiful family came over for dinner and answered all our questions.
That night I emailed the agent and told him that we were interested in adopting K, M & MM. K is a 10 year old boy, his sister M is 7. And the other girl, MM, is 9 or 10 and has no siblings. The agent told me someone is considering the single girl but I told him to let me know if the family changes their mind.
Anyway. Long story, not so short, we are filling out lots and lots of paperwork right now in hopes of bringing home our children in the next 6-9 months.
The kids are thrilled. They pray for them everyday at meals and bedtime and Bible time. They pray that God will let us bring them home soon and that He will give us the money to adopt them.
We've never considered overseas adoption because of the cost but because we feel this is His will for us, we know that God will provide! Money is nothing to Him. And how could the cost ever be considered too high to keep our children from the suffering they are otherwise destined to endure?
June 25, 2010
Am I Qualified?
A few weeks ago, I started a series on homeschooling in hopes that I could answer questions and encourage those who may be thinking about homeschooling.
If you missed it, here are the first three posts:
Homeschool Curriculum ~ Where to Begin
Am I qualified to teach them?
RC Sproul, Jr. has a great little quiz to answer this first question. It's the easiest test you'll ever take. This is a quote from his book, When You Rise Up, which I highly recommend:
Monday I will answer a question that sounds a lot like the first:
Am I going to completely mess them up for life?
If you missed it, here are the first three posts:
Homeschool Curriculum ~ Where to Begin
Now I want to discuss one of the two most common questions I think new (and maybe even not so new) homeschool moms have:
RC Sproul, Jr. has a great little quiz to answer this first question. It's the easiest test you'll ever take. This is a quote from his book, When You Rise Up, which I highly recommend:
"...wait until it is late at night. Then, very quietly, go from room to room in your house. Peek in carefully, and see if you find any sleeping children. Then be sure that these are your own children. If there are wee ones in your home during the wee hours, and if they belong to you, you are competent to homeschool. The true Expert on education is the very One who gave you these children."
Isn't that great!?
Now if that isn't enough and you still wonder how in the world you can teach them all they need to know, let me assuage your fears...YOU CAN'T. And neither can I. Victoria Botkin says,
"This is what it means to be an educated person:
Being able to teach yourself whatever you need to know."
So really if you can give your kids a love for learning about God and His world and show them how to learn things on their own, you've done your job.
Okay but you just want to teach them to read and how to add and multiply but don't even know if you can do that. Well you can. Here's the deal with the majority of curriculum...it tells you exactly what to say. People who have been teaching for years, decades, have put together curriculum that tells you just what they would say to their students.
Do you have to have a college degree to homeschool? Must you know how to do calculus or diagram a sentence? Nope! You don't even have to have a GED. Lots of people have already done the work and know how to teach all that fun stuff. You just use their wisdom and God's help and you'll all be just fine.
Monday I will answer a question that sounds a lot like the first:
Am I going to completely mess them up for life?
June 24, 2010
The Enemy
Be self-controlled and alert.
Your enemy the devil prowls around
like a roaring lion
looking for someone to devour.
I Peter 5:8
If you don't know it yet, let me assure you, YOU HAVE AN ENEMY. And that enemy wants to destroy you and your family!
He is a LIAR. He is the father of lies. He will deceive you, mislead you, discourage you, and wear you down with lies to make you ineffective for the Kingdom!
Roddy and I have been on a journey lately ~ actually we're just at the beginning of it ~ but already the devil is trying to discourage us and lead us away from God's desire to radically change our lives.
I wish I could share more specifically what God is doing but since we're not really sure where we're headed, I don't think this is the time.
What I can say is we are completely trusting God for doors to be opened and closed as He sees fit.
June 23, 2010
Surf's Up
We spent Saturday afternoon at the beach visiting Roddy's sister and neice who are down for the week.
Gray spent lots of time on the surfboard this trip. The waves were pretty calm but that's perfect for surfers-in-training.
A little male bonding.
Jay and Emma tried it out but weren't up for standing.
Charlie took a quick turn too.
Iris kept to the boogie board.
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