Waiting... (from Brenna)

WAITING...It's so hard! You hurry up and finish this bit of paperwork; get these documents taken care; fill out this essay about your life. All this while still waiting! But every minute, hour, day or week is one step closer to your child. I can only imagine that the times of waiting will melt away when you finally have him/her in your arms!

I've been told several times before that "adoption" is a process of hurry up and wait! I've heard and didn't really think anything of it, until we started this process. I watch as friends wait for the day they fly to Latvia to get their two young girls. I've watched as another friend waits for the courts to make a decision about her little girl in Kazikstan; a decision that will benefit this precious baby. I'm watching yet another friend as she waits to be moved down the list for her little baby from Ethiopia.

A friend of mine said that this will definately refine the virtue of patience in us. If you look the word patience up, you'll find a definition that doesn't sound like what you hear everyone talking about. Patience means perserverance! To press on and keep going in spite of the waiting and difficulties that may arise. Patience takes on a whole new meaning for me when I look at it that way.

We are blessed by the family and friends that are supporting us through this amazing and life-changing time in our lives. We are blessed to have found Christian agencies to work with while we wait for our Meggie!

Okay, Random thought/info.: We were able to get Meggie's address yesterday and sent off our first letter her today. We found a web-site that translates our English text to Latvian. So she will understand what we have written. The last time I wrote a letter to her, I apparently didn't put the right symbols around the vowels and instead of saying, "we have four dogs", she read "Daddy eats the dogs". Hopefully, this time, there will be no confusion!

Brenna's Take on Good-byes!

As I write this, Meggie is back in Latvia. We had an awesome time with her on Wednesday, the day before her departure. We laughed, played, did craft things and enjoyed a great meal together. She requested spaghetti with ketchup and Olive Garden delivered to order.


The only gliche in the day... I didn't get to say good-bye to her. When we dropped her off I had planned to come back with pictures to put in her photo book but things didn't work out. I didn't get to give her a huge hug and tell her good-bye. But you know what I truly believe with all my being? God ordained it to be that way! I would have been a basket-case and she wouldn't have understood that. She cried most of the night because she didn't want to go back to Latvia and that would have broken my heart even more to have witnessed that.

So, for me, I told her "See you Later"! Which I will!!!!! How awesome is that? It may take months of paperwork, tears and frustration but she is so worth the effort. I've done it for 14 + years with my biological children. I can surely do this for the child conceived in my heart!

By the way, we have paid 1/2 of the finder's fee to New Horizons for Children (hosting program) and the $50 Application Fee for Home Study. We know that God will provide the funds to bring Meggie back to her forever family. I've been reading an incredible Adoption Bible Study and something that has stood out to me is this: Christian Adoptive Families are missionaries that are bringing the mission to them. They are not only giving them a permanent family to call their own but they introduce them to their Lord and Savior, so that they can have a permanent family in Christ. That's adopting them twice!

Meggie is going home tomorrow and I knew I would be sad. I was not expecting this hug, but I got it. This is the very first hug Meggie gave me and I am so excited that Brenna for whatever reason just happened to have the camera on her phone ready. I am going to keep this blog short by saying that I will be looking at this picture a lot! My first hug!

First big step of faith

So it begins. We've told God that we are going to trust Him, and now is the part where the rubber meets the road. There is a $200 application fee, $2,500 mandatory donation (finders fee), and a $1,500 home study fee. These are what actually gets the ball rolling. Before these things are done, it is all just talk.

We have our support letters written and a list of God's children to send them to. Note: If you want to be on that list, give me you address:)!!! My email is shccjoe@socket.net. Remember it doesn't have to be a huge donation, it can be 5, 10, or 20 dollars just whatever you can spare. But remember the more you spare the sooner we get Meggie! We have even bought the envelopes for the support letters. Now the fun part of addressing them begins.

One thing you might face in this process if you ever choose to adopt is, PRIDE. Your pride will get in the way and you will fall into the trap of self-effort to come up with the funds. Remember if this happens, you might get the money saved, but it will probably be after they turn 16 and are kicked out of their orphanage to allow younger kids to come in. Their chance of learning what Jesus did for them and turning their life over to him drops immensely.

Their is a children's movie called, "Up" and in it this couple want to build a house near this beautiful water fall. They start saving their money, but everytime they get some saved something happens. The car breaks down, they need a new roof, medical bills, etc. Before they know it they are old and the wife dies and they never got to fulfull their dream. This happens in real life everyday, don't let it happen to you. If the Holy Spirit is leading you to adopt, suck up your pride and let Him use His children (you and me) and resources to do it.

Men painting their daughters nails

They say that a person will treat their spouse like they treat their brother or sister, or their mom or dad. I don't have a sister but I love my mom tremendously. Growing up I would do things that would make my mom feel loved such as, rub her feet, french braid her hair, and even paint her nails. I still do that kind of stuff today with my wife and daughter. I especially like doing those things for my daughter because I want her to look for a man that will be interest in making her feel loved. I need to be the type of man that I want my daughter to marry.
Meggie is not big on touch, and she is also very shy. This stems from all that she has been through in her short life. (things that no child should have to go through) So, I have been doing everything I can to break down those walls. Yesterday was awesome, and much progress was made. She let me paint her nails! This may not seem like a big deal but she is trusting me more and more every day. She picked out the color red for her nails. When I started the second hand her forehead itched and she scratched it with her thumb nail leaving red finger nail polish all over her forehead. She realized she did it right away when she looked at her thumb and all the polish was gone. We all got a pretty good laugh out of it and I repainted the thumb. More quality time, I'll take it!

Overcoming fear

I was telling someone the other day that for me to say, "We are adopting Meggie" is one really scary thing to do. I guess the biggest reason for this emotion would be a lack of confidence on my part. Not a lack of confidence in that we should adopt her. But a lack of confidence in getting the money to adopt her. I am 100% sure that God wants me to do this. How can I be so sure? I asked for a sign and I got one. So with that prayer answered, I just need to have faith that since this is God's will He will make it happen.
Now listen this is the most important part. My LACK of faith in raising the money DOES NOT determine whether God will provide it or not. If it is His will and I have accepted that and turned it over to Him then it is in His hands and He will do it. Praise You Lord!
So if you have prayed for something and He has given you the answer, have FAITH! Get excited and shout it from the roof tops because He will bring it about.
We are getting Meggie today and going to Bass Pro Shop and then the book store. I will tell you that when we are with her, I can't stop looking at her. My heart aches that she will be going back to Latvia while we or rather God raises the funds to bring her here. Oh how I wish there wasn't such a language barrier. I have so many questions. I want to know everything in her life for the past 9 years. Did you feel loved? Were you hugged very much? What is your greatest fear? What do you remember about your parents? Did you ever know your dad? So many questions. Maybe it's because I am a guy and I just want to fix everything. I think most of all I want to give her something that she has never had. Security. Have a great day y'all.