Noonday Collection Trunk Show Fundraiser

I forgot to do a post about this, but back in November, Annette Pittman hosted a Noonday Collection Trunk Show as a fundraiser for us. It was a great morning of meeting new people, talking about adoption, learning more about the Noonday products, and of course eating yummy food!

The Noonday Ambassador was Katie Eller and I was so blessed to meet her! Not only is she and her husband in the adoption process as well, but we discovered that she is using the same consultant as us, Tracie Loux, from Christian Adoption Consultants. It was so neat to be able to talk with her. What a blessing from the Lord!!

Noonday Collection has a two-fold mission. They sell beautiful products like necklaces and scarves that are made by people from around the world. This helps to create jobs for the artisans, so that they make an income to sustain their families and have an impact on their community. And, anyone that is adopting can earn funds as well.

So, after a fun morning, we were able to raise $212 that was sent straight to our agency. A big thank you to Annette and everyone that stopped by to shop and support us!

Trip to Florida...

So, how much can you fit into 30 hours?? We made a whirlwind trip to Florida to meet our new birth mom that we have been matched with, and even made it to the beach!
We flew into Tampa and our visit started at McDonald's...meeting our birth mom and her children, along with one of the agency representatives. We got them all something to eat, let the kids play and got a chance to talk. They were all very outgoing and it was a pleasure to spend time with them. After that, Josh and I headed to downtown St. Petersburg and had a nice dinner and walked around down by the water looking at Christmas lights and reflecting on the day.
The next morning we met her and another one of the agency social workers at a 3D/4D Ultrasound place. Having an appointment at the doctor's office for an ultrasound didn't coincide with our trip, so the agency set this up. Although it was a little awkward at first and she didn't talk much, it went well. The baby cooperated and we got to see her in action. And yes, they confirmed that it is a girl. She kept winking at us and at one point was sucking her thumb. We had mixed emotions, but were thankful to be included in this experience.
Next, we headed to lunch at a local place called Cheddar's. The 2 agency ladies, both of which are super nice, joined us for lunch. We had great conversation and got a chance to get to know her better. Josh was even able to pray with her before we left. I won't go into all the details of her situation, but we feel more at peace now that we've met her.
She reminded us that it's only 9 weeks until her due date. Because she is moderately high risk, she'll begin going to the doctor weekly for ultrasounds and NST's (Non-Stress Tests). So, now we wait...

Oh, but before we headed home I told Josh we HAD to at least put our feet in the sand and water for a few minutes. So, we drove over to Madeira Beach and actually had about 1 hour to relax. We walked on the beach, found some chairs to sit in, collected a few sea shells for Rachel and enjoyed the sunshine and 80 degree weather!! We thought it was fairly comical to have the A/C blasting in the rental car and then about 4 hours later, to be back home and blasting the heat. I definitely see why people like to live in FL during the winter months.

So, that's the most recent happenings with our adoption journey. We hope to do one final fundraiser starting next week. We've got about $4,000-5,000 left to save/raise over the next month and feel fortunate to have come this far over the past year or so as we've been working towards our goal. We continue to pray daily for this sweet mama and her baby. We're praying for God's will and that He'll continue to lead us all. Join us!

The Ups and Downs of Adoption!

It's been 2 months since I posted a new update. But, it's not because nothing has been going on. On the contrary, there's really lots to write about. So, let me start with the facts...

After getting matched in October, we went and met the birth mom in Georgia, along with her son and other representatives from the agency, AmericanKidz Adoptions. Although it was a long and quick trip, it went well. We felt really good about things and enjoyed meeting her.

Then, more recently we got a call from the agency that she had changed her mind. She told them that while she knew she couldn't take care of another child, she didn't think she could give her up either. Josh and I were really not that upset...God had been preparing our hearts. We both felt like she might do this, and honestly we were thankful that she made this decision now and not in February. We felt like it took a lot of integrity on her part to do this, knowing that all financial assistance would now stop. We are continuing to pray for her...that God will help her be able to take care of this baby and that she'll come to know Him as her Savior.

So, after hearing about this, we were told about another birth mom in FL. It's a long story, but basically after choosing a family they had another immediate situation come up for another baby and adopted that child. So, she was back at square one--like us. We looked over her information, prayed and talked, and made arrangements to speak with her over the phone. We didn't feel complete peace, mainly just because it came up so fast and we didn't have time to get all of our questions answered. However, we felt like we should just trust the Lord for what He might be doing and to step through this next open door. So, we've made plans now to go and meet her next week. We'll also get the chance to accompany her to an ultrasound appointment.

Now, aside from the facts...there's lots of feelings. It's been quite an emotional roller coaster. Last Sunday in Rachel's Sunday School class we were studying the story of Jacob wrestling with God. I could totally relate because that's what I've been doing. But, in the end it always comes back to trust, faith and surrender. I have to believe that the Lord has a perfect plan and that He is faithful!

So, we ask for prayers in the weeks ahead....and I'll try to do a better job with updates.

"Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful." Heb. 10:23