Eric Ludy - Depraved Indifference

My Struggle

I hesitate to write this because I don't want to seem like I'm pointing a finger....believe me this is not my intent. I am writing this because I want to keep a "journal" of the highs and lows of our adoption to our beautiful baby girl. Okay well here it goes! I have been struggling, alright I admit a lot. We have a ticking clock set before us to raise so much money to even start this whole adoption and I am freaking out. Sadly our fundraiser is not going tremendously well and we have yet to come across an envelope with thousands of dollars in it. :) It seems that I rack my brain everyday on what we could be doing, what aren't we doing right, and what more should we be doing. I admit I am horrible at waiting, especially for something that I really want. In my feeble human mind I am terrified that we will not be able to raise or come up with this money. Now on a different level my communication with God is at an all time high. The other day He finally had enough of my whining I suppose and helped me shift my thinking. I flat out thanked Him for what He is going to do and also just thanked Him for giving us this opportunity. Wow! What an opportunity we have. We are going to be adding a precious, beautiful addition to our family. Someone else to cuddle and kiss and watch grow! Awesome!!! He also pointed out to me that since Christmas is coming up I need to be thinking about and praying for those 147 million that don't have a family this year to celebrate with. What a heart breaking thought. Well, that really just slapped me in the face and I admit I needed it. I encourage you to think about what you can do for those little ones....pray, donate money to an organization that helps or a family that is adopting, or think about adopting yourself. Praise God that He is with these little ones when we can't be. I came across the above video from another friend's blog and just had to share.

Gavin turns 7

October 28th....I'm a little behind.

My silly Claire Bear!

I just love this girl!!!

Since we have shared our news on adoption we've gotten a huge spectrum of responses and questions. We realize that this is quite a shock for some and honestly doesn't make a whole lot of sense for others. Yes, we do have three children already of our own and yes we are very happy and content with our lives right now. The only way to describe it to others is that God has put this on our hearts as His desire for our lives. Taking on an endeavor that costs thousands of dollars that we don't have and bringing a child that we've never met from across the world that's of a different ethnicity seems crazy to most. I understand that but I can't turn a blind eye to God's command and to all those beautiful children that need love and attention. My husband knows that if I had the chance I would bring every child that I could that was hurting from this country and around the world home with me if I could. I'm not the best mom around, we don't have a huge money tree in our backyard and our house isn't a mansion but we can help at least one. There can be one less that sits alone in their crib all day, that cries but no one cares to pick up and hold, that always longs to be in a loving family of their own. I don't know how we are going to do this or what the future holds but I know that my God is bigger than all these questions,worries, and concerns. I know that He alone can do this and that He has for some reason chosen us to care for the one special child. What a blessing! What a time to build our faith and trust in Him.

Adoption

Well, we are very proud to announce that we are indeed adopting! We have decided on the lovely country of Ethiopia to bring a little girl home from. Many have asked how this all came about for us and it started around 2008. The year before we had lost our twin babies in a miscarriage and really came to the realization that all life is so precious. There were friends of ours that were adopting and we got to see through them the whole process. It was so exciting but yet full of its own ups and downs. God at this time planted a seed in us that this might be what He wanted for us, too. Stepping out in faith we sent in our preapplication and shortly after found out that I was pregnant so this abruptly stopped any ventures into adoption at that time. We were told that once the baby was 9 months old we could procede again. The thought of adoption never really left our minds and really intensified within this past year. When we first started the process we were thinking of going the domestic route but I really felt a pull towards international. Through lots of prayer and research we decided to put Ethiopia down for our first country of choice and the US for our second. In October of this year we were approved for Ethiopia and thus starts our journey. We are very excited but also completely trusting God because we can not do this on our own. The expenses alone are overwhelming and seem impossible but I am reminded over and over again that "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible. " Matthew 19:26. In saying that we have until January 19th to come up with our first installment of funds to really start this process. We are doing some fundraising to help us out and have already been blessed beyond measure by the outpouring of love and blessings by others. Please feel free to follow along with us while we start this awesome adventure to where God is leading.
Please visit our Fundraising Page above and notice the paypal on the right to get your Tie Fleece Blankets!

Brodie's 1st Day of Preschool.

Brodie's 5th Birthday!

Claire's 1st Birthday!

Okay I realized recently that I haven't blogged in forever. A lot has happened in our lives since I last posted anything and thought that I should get caught up. It might take me awhile but I'll get there. We obviously have a new addition to our family Miss. Claire Kathryn Bailey. She is such a joy and delight for all of us. Gavin just recently started 1st grade and will be 7 soon. Brodie starts preschool in a couple of weeks and soon will be turning 5. Man does time fly by! We have made some serious renovations to our home and are loving it! I can't believe that summer is almost over and that my little baby will be a year old in just a few weeks!!! There's so much to share but that will come later.