Surprise!!!!!!
Maybe it’s not actually much of a surprise. Maybe you guessed it after the the first post. But to us, this felt like a huge surprise in our life.
Yes – I always thought adoption was something we might do. However, whenever we seriously pursued it in the past, both Seth and I didn’t feel the call to adopt. We didn’t know why. However, now we know that God was not saying “no.” He was simply saying “not right now.”
So what was the mysterious thing that happened after the last doctor’s appointment? The mysterious thing was that God changed both of our hearts at the exact same time.
The day after the appointment, I remember cleaning the house, and I started cleaning like a madwoman. Seth knew to stay out of my way, and I think maybe he actually thought I was mad at him. I wasn’t mad. I was just figuring out my feelings because everything was rushing at me all at once. I felt it. God was turning my heart around, and it wasn’t scaring me. I was getting so, so excited. I wanted it. I wanted to adopt. And I was trying to figure out what to say to Seth.
So finally I just said it. “I want to adopt. I want to adopt a little girl from South East Asia.”
“Yep, me too. Let’s do it,” he said.
WHAT?
To be honest, I thought this was going to be a lot longer conversation. I thought he would be open to the conversation, but would need time to really jump on board and get excited. But no. You see – God had been working in his heart, too. And while gender or geographical location weren’t things he was as set on, he was sure on his feelings on adoption. He wanted it.
We both wanted it. Really wanted it. At the same time. And that is a mysterious miracle that has no explanation other than closing the door on another biological child on our terms allowed us to happily and joyfully open the door to adoption. And no one could have orchestrated that better than God.
We left it there for a bit. We had a busy weekend coming up, and we didn’t have a chance to talk about it much. But we both kept thinking about it. And when things slowed down, and we had a chance to talk, we were still on the same page.
So after a lot of research, a lot of prayer, a lot of trust, and a lot of peace that comes when you know that you are following God’s will for you, (which really just makes you over-the-moon giddy with excitement) – we are officially on the adoption road.
To answer some of the questions you may have:
Where are we adopting from? We will be adopting a little girl (2-3 years old) from Thailand.
When will we get her? Hard to say, but the process takes about 2 – 3 years, so she may or may not be born yet.
Where are we in the process? We are currently in the middle of our Home Study. We are working with a Minnesota agency to get that done, and then we will work with Holt International to deal with all the international aspects with Thailand.
Why did we choose Thailand? There are so many reasons. Overall, as we looked at all the countries, this program just seemed like the best fit for us. One draw is that in this program, she will be placed in a foster home instead of an orphanage, so we are hoping that means she gets more loving care until we can get her.
How are we feeling? We are feeling so excited. Really, really excited. We always thought adoption should never be a consolation prize – never a second choice. And it’s not. This is our first choice now, and we’re so excited to get the 4th face of our family through adoption. You guys – we are so giddy about this.
We are also nervous. This will be an entire new way to parent with a whole slew of needs that we haven’t had to deal with with our son. However, we are confident that God is calling us to do this, and we are sure the rewards of adding this girl to our family will be great!
What have we told Abram? We told him he’s going to be a big brother, and he’s getting a little sister. We told him we will fly on an airplane to get her from Thailand, but that we are going to have to wait a long time – mom and dad are figuring it out. We pray for his little sister every day, and when we talk about her he says, “I’m so excited!” It’s still very abstract to him, and it’s a long way off, but we’re planting the seeds now, and it’s very sweet to hear him talk about her and pray for her. And he’s really excited to fly in a airplane in the nighttime. 🙂
What do we ask of you? Can you please cover our sweet daughter in prayer? It’s hard not having any control to what happens to her in her first few years of life. Please pray for her birth parents, her foster parents, and for her protection – both emotionally and physically. Please pray for us as we pursue her and as we prepare Abram for her. It’s funny but both Seth and I have said that we already feel her presence in our family. She has already carved out a section of our hearts and minds, and we think about her so much.
So there you have it. You have read the part of our story that is already written, and now we boldly step forward into the unwritten part. We still have no idea what will happen, but as we look back on everything – the Author of our story has been and will always be in control. And we’ll keep trusting our rising action.
**I’ll post updates on here from time to time (when there is something to update). Thank you to all of you who have taken time to read our story. It’s been an interesting process, and I have appreciated the support that so many of you sent our way.