Pea Pod

We bought a pea pod for our trip a while back. They remind me of baby tents. They seem to be really neat b/c your baby can sleep in them and they fold up to where they are small and light weight (about the size of a car window shade). I saw a blog, that someone had written right after they came back from Ethiopia, where they mentioned that they wished they had brought a pack and play. Cribs can be hard to come by at times and so they recommended you bring something for your baby to sleep in. I hauled my pack and play across the living room and decided that I was for sure not bringing that on our trip. So, I did some research and found these. They seem to be perfect for traveling esp. when you aren't sure if you will be provided with a crib or not. Plus, they have screens which keep mosquitoes out. Not that we plan on having tons of mosquitoes in our hotel room...

Wyoming!

My Grandpa's birthday dinner!
Mountains, sage brush, and snow!
Outside of Buffalo

Let it snow!

Just another day...

There is an Addis church! It is a Christian church...they said they were non denominational with Church of Christ roots. They currently rent space in a building. The church is pretty small, probably 20-25 people. I think this is very neat. I will have to send a few e-mails to find out more information!

My sister wanted me to look and see how to pronounce grandma, grandpa, aunt, and uncle in Amharic. I found this site while looking: http://www.amharic.com/ I might have to look into getting something to help learn the language and keep our child using the language!

I have also seen a few onesies that I am going to make for our baby!

My Turn

This is actually the first time I have been able to get on the blog site and post myself. Before I was e-mailing David and he was posting for me. He had been working so much and forgot to give me the access info. Now I have the passwords, etc. so that I can add, edit, etc. also! My next goal is to get our blog on the Gladney site.

Congratulations to Matt and Renee! They go and get their son the week of 01/14/2008!! We are very excited for you and pray that everything goes well for you! Check out their link (located to the right) "Our Ethiopian Adventure" it's really neat. They have opened their arms to adopt an older child. We are proud of your guys & know that you'll make great parents.

Renee and I were talking and we want their son to teach our child some words in their native language. We know our child, being so young, will loose most of the language but it will still be neat to know some words. Plus, it will be neat to have two kids from Ethiopia in the family.

Here is a post I wrote December 21st- I just haven't had time to get it put on our site.
Today I spent part of the day looking at blogs- I think I looked at just about every blog posted on the Gladney site. It was really neat b/c I have spent a good deal of time looking at these blogs before, but I felt like I was seeing them for the first time. I am at my grandpa's house in Wyoming and he has cable. Thanks grandpa! All we have at our house is dial-up (which is fine for most things). But, with cable the pictures came in clearly and it didn't take 1-2 hours to open a site or 4-5 to download a video clip!! Plus sites didn't just close down on me b/c they were too much to handle. I was excited to see David add the video clip "One Year Later" it is a really cute video and we have really enjoyed watching it. So, those of you that have something more than dail-up check it out! ;)

The blogs are so cute. They make me even more impatient for our referral. We still have our home study to do and our dossier but I still look forward to that day. One agency we looked at called the paper case the "paper pregnancy." I think thats a neat way to think about it. Its fun to read what everyone has been up to and how their adoption is unfolding. It is unbelieveable how many people are waiting for their referral on the Gladney site. I think its neat how more people are adding to their families through adoption. We recieved an e-mail that there were so many people working on adopting through Ethiopia that Gladney is having to add to their staff. I am not surprised after seeing all of the blogs.

Reflection on Adoption

Psalm 10:14 states that God is the helper of the fatherless. A few verses down (v.18) the writer states that the Lord hears the "desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry, defending the fatherless and the oppressed, in order that man, who is of the earth, may terrify no more."

Who out there does not need comfort? Who out there has never been terrified? The Bible speaks frequently (literally and figuratively) concerning adoption and those who are fatherless. Do we understand fully the emphasis that is placed on us being adopted by God through Jesus? Do we understand fully the importance of widows and orphans being taken care of?

The above verses for some reason struck within me today. We serve the God of comfort. It is not lost on (the one true) God the plight of those who are afflicted, those who are in pain, those that are struggling, those who are oppressed, and those who are fatherless. Coming face to face with the adoption of our child has given me new incite into passages of the Bible that tell us we can share in the sonship (or adoption) of God. It is of tremendous comfort to know that God has placed things in motion so that we may terrify no more, as well as enjoy the benefits of being apart of the family.

Countless children still await the adoption call similar to the one that has been offered on behalf of God. They are the oppressed, as they have no voice. They are often afflicted as they fail to receive the time, love, and devotion a forever family can provide. Please consider the lessons God demonstrates in the Bible as far as how He views us - as adopted children and how He views those in lowly places. Where would you be without Him? Where would you be without a father, or a father-figure? Where would you be if someone had not made you a priority in their life?

If you are unable to assist directly in the lives of orphans (fatherless), consider the impact you may have indirectly - and figure out ways to help them. They too are highly esteemed by God. They too are our future! Don't forget them - just as God did not forget you...

By the way - the adoption process is a significant test of patience and understanding - please remember all those who are currently engaged in the process (they need it!).

Also be sure to check out the new link to a YouTube video that Chelsea and I really enjoy regarding adopting from Ethiopia. Perhaps that will be us in the not so distant future...

In case you're wondering about the need for adoption in regards to Ethiopia, here is a quote: "A recent UNICEF report states that six million of Ethiopia's children are orphaned due to poverty and illness," Gladney Communications supervisor Nancy Robbins said."

What a SLACKER!

I feel like such a slacker for not having written on our blog! Each day it seems like our adoption takes more and more precedence in our lives. We're becoming increasingly focused on our prize. We've successfully knocked out a couple of more steps in the adoption process, as we have applied for our CIS I600, and now eagerly await our fingerprint appointment. In addition to this we have also filled out and mailed a majority of the documentation for step 2 and have almost all of our documents for step 3. I think we're getting to the point where we'll only need the CIS approval stating that we'd be great parents, our home study and approval from Gladney, and the Ethiopian governments’ approval and referral. Obviously there are steps associated with each of those, but we can see our progress (almost daily), and it is very exciting.

It's amazing and kind of unbelievable (all at once) to think that this time next year, we'll be celebrating our first Christmas with our new addition. This year is different because we're trying to complete paperwork like crazy, I'm on my fourth month at my new job, and Chelsea is in Wyoming for Christmas (since I'll be working all around it!). My how things change!

We also want to thank everyone who has and continues to visit our blog! It is fun to see where everyone has visited from which encourages us daily! Please feel free to leave any comments or questions on here, or email them to us! We hope this helps keep you up to date on us, as well as what some of the steps are like as we continue pressing on.

It is our prayer that God will bless and be with you, just as He has and continues to do for us...

Each New Day

Wasn’t Chelsea’s blog entry awesome! Her heart never ceases to amaze me. The process of adoption has already been an interesting adventure for us.


Today Chelsea and I were trying to imagine what our plane ride will be like to get our child. Anyone who knows Chelsea knows she doesn’t exactly travel well. By that, I mean she gets motion sick. While this is not a commercial for Dramamine, I think we’ll be purchasing some, because I’ve seen it work! We were joking that she’d probably better take the non non-drowsy kind! That way she’ll be out for the longest part of our flight. Personally, when I fly, I never get sick. On the other hand, I can’t seem to sleep. Airplanes are the only place where I just can’t seem to relax enough to fall asleep (for long periods of time 1hr. +). So, I guess what I’m saying is that I may need a few suggestions on how to relax and rest on the very long flights we’ll be taking – I can just imagine being awake for most of the flights and our connections, and then being a total crab once we finally reach Ethiopia. In many ways this has seemed like Christmas to me (the excitement and anxiety of it all), or even starting a new job. The emotions are absolutely crazy that we seem to feel. I’m assuming that’s typical of any new parent to be…

Anyway, Chelsea has traveled overseas before, and I haven’t. I have been to Mexico several times and she has been to Braz(s)il where her aunt and uncle are missionaries. So I would guess the longest flight I’ve been on is either to Portland, OR or Albany, NY - never had to worry about jet lag before. I’ve never had to worry about flying with an infant either! Lot’s of new things for us on the horizon.

I think Chelsea answers and has answered the adoption questions very well. It is amazing to me that people can’t see the importance of the orphans worldwide. This is one problem where individual families can actually make a difference. Imagine if only one family from every two thousand people who lived above the poverty line across the world would choose to adopt a child. How much difference would there be in the number of orphans? Adopting children not only provides great joy to the parents that adopt them, but also gives the children forever homes. If you have ever experienced inconsistent lifestyles, if you have ever not known where food was going to come from, or had to wonder why you didn’t have parents like everyone else – you might be able to understand on some scale what these children endure – through no fault of their own. We are so pleased and excited to be in the position that we have the opportunity to add a child to our family. It is our prayer that those who are able will also consider the great joy of adding to their families through adoption.

A penny for your thoughts

We find it funny because in response to our adoption, people so often ask “Why don’t you (adopt somewhere else, have your own, go through this agency, adopt a different culture, etc)… instead?” We have decided that that is going to be an often heard comment. However, this does not bother us. We welcome the questions. We know why we want what we do, but others don’t. Our first thought is “Why would we WANT to change anything?” But we do realize that everyone asking the questions cares about us and wants to make sure that we are ready for this and realize what is to come. David and I have always known we ARE different and desire different things than most people. We feel we have always been a shock to our friends and family. Not that we look to be that way, just that we are that way. What we desire and what they desire are often two totally different things. So we knew when we decided to pursue this adoption; we would receive lots of questions, concerns, etc. We know the road ahead is going to be a long, bumpy road, on the flip side we know that there will be plenty of good times also. Yes, this is something that not everyone can do but we both feel confident in our decision.

Why don’t we adopt somewhere else?

We know that Ethiopia has a great need and that is why we decided to adopt from there. We are happy with this choice. The color of a person’s skin isn’t what matters to us. We are all made in God’s image. It is man that looks at the outside, God looks at the inside/heart. We’re all people in need of a Savior. I have thought a lot how different people will respond, as well as the unfortunate challenges he may have to face when it comes to his color or the makeup of his family. It saddens me that this is something we even have to consider. Obviously we have next to no experience being discriminated against for our color, and for our family make-up (for right now). So we know that it is important that we are aware of, educated, and ready to face some of the issues that come along.

Why don’t we have our own?

We plan on having our own some day, but we know that there are kids in the world that don’t have a home and a family. This is something that weighs heavily on our hearts and if we can provide one child with a home, then that is one less child that is w/out a home. We know that we can’t give every child a home but we look at it in that: why bring another child into the world when there are children out there that don’t already have loving families and homes? To us, this child will be our own. Although the child will have a birth mother and father, we will be the child’s forever mother and father. To us adoption isn’t second best - it is God’s plan for our family. Adoption is Gods plan and it is HIS IDEA ("God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure." Ephesians 1:5). We were all orphans before God adopted us in his family (Rom. 8:15-16). We feel the best possible home for an orphan is in a home where God is put first and the child is raised to know Him. We feel blessed that we can adopt that God is giving us this option and giving us to this child and we get to care for him/her. Children are a gift from God no matter where they came from. One lady that I talked to recently said “Do you know God picked that child for you before the earth was ever created?” I really thought that this was so true and such a neat thought.

Why are we adopting a baby?

Because we have no kids of our own yet and want to grow with the baby (as far as knowledge to raising a child) as the baby grows. We feel that we are not ready for an older child. Maybe some day, but for right now we want a baby. We want to experience as much of our child’s life with him/her as we can.

Other reasons to adopt:

God commands us to care for orphans. There are 115,000 orphans in America's foster care system, 143 million abandoned or orphaned children internationally. The Bible contains at least 40 verses that, for various reasons, command God's people to look after orphans and the fatherless. God has given us all different talents. Some take care of these by monetary means, etc. David and I want to raise a child that knows God and maybe some day our child will want to adopt also!Don’t get me wrong, we do have concerns like: Are we ready to be parents? We know that our time together will have to be shared w/a child. Can we afford it? Is it irresponsible to bring an African child into a mainly white culture? However, most of these questions are ones that people have when they are pregnant. We know that God will provide for us in ways we can never imagine. We believe that God’s and his blessings will be sufficient. Although adopting will bring tremendous strife (just like God went through with his Son) in the end we are sure that joy will greatly outweigh everything else. So here we are trying to adopt with our eyes wide open, and ready to go where He leads.

Our Decision

Deciding to adopt has been the easiest thing for us. It is something I, Chelsea, have always known I have wanted to do. When I asked David what he thought of adopting he was very open to the idea and excited, due to his own background. I thought I knew right away that I wanted a little girl from China but as I looked into China's process I was not thrilled to say the least. You had to be 30 and we were far from it. The country soon became popular because they typically only adopt out girls and the waiting list grew into 1-2 year processes. Heartbroken I looked into the other countries. Vietnam was closed when I started looking due to baby trafficking. So we searched for information on Russia and Ukraine. We were pretty excited about that but the cost was by far too much for us. Guatemala and Korea were looked at but never seriously considered. Then I found out Vietnam had re-opened and was ecstatic. I began searching sites on who was and was not licensed to work in Vietnam. I quickly requested information packets and began researching. I became upset again b/c a lot of the agencies would not let you pick a boy or a girl. You were automatically placed with a boy and I wanted a girl. I found a few places that let you pick boy or girl but it was hard to tell if they were credible agencies.

Earlier this year at our nieces’ birthday party a family member told us more about Ethiopia b/c that is where they are adopting from. We had never considered an African country mostly due to aids, etc. She started telling me how most of the boys don't get adopted out and a lot of them die in the orphanages before they are 10 years old. She showed me blogs of people who have adopted from there. I began researching Ethiopia and sharing my findings with David. We fell in love with the people and the country. We loved how happy the babies are and how well taken care of they are (with Gladney). We loved that Ethiopia was one of the Christian countries in Africa. It was very exciting b/c David became the most involved I have seen him. Our hearts were touched by these people. Out of all of the information packets we had received Gladney's stood out to us the most. Now the decision was between Ethiopia and Vietnam. We looked over everything and decided that Ethiopia was a better fit for us for now (we still plan on adopting through Vietnam in the very distant future). We never could overlook the fact of how poor this country was. I asked a Gladney representative one day when I was calling to ask some questions I had between Vietnam and Ethiopia- which had the greatest need? Of course she said they both had a great need but then confirmed what was said about the Ethiopian boys often not being adopted and them dying in orphanages. She said that Ethiopia did have a greater need and that people were more apt to adopting from Vietnam. I told her right then that we wanted to adopt from Ethiopia and we were ready to begin the process (I knew David was already leaning toward Ethiopia). As far as Gladney is concerned, we loved the fact that our child could get free counseling all throughout his/her life if need be. We also loved that they provide their own home studies. Many organizations left that up to the families. There were tons of "little" perks that Gladney offered that most other groups did not. So after much thinking, talking, praying, hair pulling, etc. we sent in our first check and packet. David was working and not able to attend our orientation phone meeting so I read the packet we received by e-mail before the orientation. I think the lady that called was surprised that I printed out the whole document and how prepared I was. When she would mention what she was going to go to next and was searching for a page number I often gave it to her before she told me what number it was. My packet was extremely highlighted and was covered in multi-colored page markers labeled by what each section contained (not at all ocd). I was able to ask some questions about some conflicting information about our I-600 A. I just wanted to be ready since David was going to be unable to attend. Also, I was excited and needed something to do with the nervous energy. The orientation went well and we were mailed a second packet of information. We completed a lot of this over the Thanksgiving holiday. It was a LOT of work and took HOURS. We still have a couple more "things" to get together but luckily they don't have to be sent in just yet. We also decided when we were filling out our child preference profile to put either, as far as, “do you want a boy or a girl?” I said earlier we decided on a boy - however we decided to leave this decision to God. We also know that we are the MOST likely to get a boy b/c almost everyone requests a girl.

So here we go… Our journey has already been long, time consuming, and tedious but we know it will be well worth it.

Unreal!

We would like to welcome everyone to our blog! We are embarking on one of our greatest journey's together, as we seek to start our family through international adoption (Ethiopia).

For those of you who have already adopted and post blogs - thanks! - you have encouraged us in countless ways! We love reading your updates and all of your new adventures!

For those of you who are thinking about international adoption, and specifically Ethiopia, we hope we can shed some light on what you're considering. If you're like us, you will add various blogs to your favorites list, read them, post on them, and incorporate them into your life. It is unreal!

For everyone else - we hope this helps keep you up to date on our progress! Thanks for your continuous support!

We couldn't be here without all of you!