Adoption News Update

We have so much to be thankful for...and that is such an understatement.  Happy, healthy children.  A warm, wonderful home.  A daddy and husband who goes above and beyond to provide for us and works tirelessly to help bring orphans home to their forever families.  Wonderful family and friends.  And an opportunity to journey in, what is starting to feel pretty long, adoption. 

{I interrupt this part of the story to say that I finally cut off Noah David's beautiful, long blond curls.  He was starting to get a few "girl" comments here and there, and because he's so aware and offended, I knew it was time.  My face dramatic you say?  Perhaps, but I really did have to fight back tears for this, people! His curls were one last thing that I was holding onto in his "babyhood".  And while he's long been declaring that he's "BIG", I still know as his mama, he's got lots of good baby left.  The cheeks, the chubby legs and belly, the nursing, "hold me", the co-sleeping, the voice....the curls.  Ah, but the curls had to go, and he looks so old now.  And so adorable.}

There is an excellent "system" we've established for hair cuts.  Each boy gets to pick his color lollipop and his favorite cartoon to watch.  It buys me a good 20 minutes of stillness.  Until hair gets stuck on the lollipop.  Then Daddy is called in for emergency washing.  Then stillness resumes for a brief moment.

His big blue eyes are even more visible and shine right out of his precious round face.  He seriously captivates me.

{BUT!  And I declare, BUT!  God is SO good to me.  Just after cutting this baby/big boy's beautiful curls off (and yes, I did save all of them in a zip loc) and I was sad, Daniel checked the mail, to low and behold discover that our USCIS APPROVAL WAS HERE!}

 Last January we officially applied to adopt and started the whole process.  After waiting 5 long months for fingerprints to return, our home study was approved.  The USCIS approval is basically the United States Government giving us approval to bring in 1-2 children under 15 months of age into the US.  So NOW, we're officially on the waiting list for our baby or babies.  This waiting period could be a few months, 6 months, 12 months or longer.  We have no idea, but we do know Who knows, and we're down with that.  He doesn't just have the whole world in His hands...He's got His big hands holding our baby and holding the birth family and orphanage workers, too.

 One of Daniel Isaac's favorite things to talk about is how God and Jesus and the Holy Spirit are the only "real" superheroes.  (No fear, we're still really into the pretend ones, too, but let's be honest, they don't hold a candle to the REAL Ones.)  He'll say, "Mommy, God...He's so strong, He can walk right through walls without anyone even knowing it!  And Jesus...He's so powerful, He can dig a huge hole right down in the ground just with his pinkie finger.  And they have all the other super powers, too, like flying and mind-reading, and force fields and super strength and speed.  And they don't even ever have to sleep!"  And I'm all like, "Uh, yeah; you're so right.  How awesome is it that we're on HIS team??"  And he's all, "Yeah, Mommy, because God's team ALWAYS wins!  And we're gonna kick Satan and beat him up!"  For real and amen, DI!  And when Mama is feeling all sad inside because she wishes our baby could just hurry up and be with us, what a fantastic reminder it is that God's timing in the whole entire formation of our family is essential and perfect and wonderful.  And when the boys talk about how they're going to rock and feed and hold and play with and teach and snuggle with and care for their new baby brother and sister, it's such a sweet reminder of the preparation that is taking place...the very necessary preparation.  And when Daniel Isaac explains to us that his favorite pillow pet "Sushi" wasn't actually a birthday gift but was adopted from an orphanage and that's how he became his son, we smile deep within our beings, because he's getting it.  So please continue in prayer with and for us.  We need it, we feel it, and we value it.