We Passed!

We passed court on December 27th (on our court day).  I should have posted this a few weeks ago, but life has been nuts.  I will post again soon with more details from our trip.  In the meantime, here are some pictures.   The next step is US Embassy.  Hopefully we will hear something in the next couple of weeks.

T-Shirt Fundraiser & We Got a Court Date!!!!!

I got a very exciting call this morning from our caseworker...we have a court date!!!!  December 27th...which means we will arrive in Ethiopia on Christmas Day!  We will meet our precious one on the 26th and appear in court on the 27th!  We are ecstatic!  

Things have moved so fast, and we still have some funds to raise.  (A little more than we thought...if you thought flying to Africa was expensive, try flying to Africa at Christmas.)

We have teamed up with Adoption Bug and Show Hope for our latest fundraiser.  We are selling several different super cute designs to help raise some of the remaining funds.  Just go to our family's page at adoptionbug.com/TheCrispins, and order a shirt.  We decided to include several Show Hope shirts in our fundraiser because they have become an important part of our adoption journey through a very generous grant.

Here are just some of the T-shirt designs.  Please click on over to our site at Adoption Bug, place an order, and help us bring get to Ethiopia this Christmas!

Click here to see the rest of the designs!

Just Love Coffee!

I know I have some friends out there that are coffee connoisseurs.  Now you can purchase some yummy coffee AND support our adoption at the same time!  Just click the link below and you will be taken to our Just Love Coffee store.  A portion of each sale benefits our adoption fund!

www.justlovecoffee.com/TheCrispins

Referral!!!

Well, it actually came a couple of weeks ago, but we were waiting to post because some family members were on vacation and we had to share with them first.

I know what you are thinking though...”I thought you still had like another year or more on the wait list?!”  I know...so did we.  We got our referral on August 17th.  Exactly one year since we started the process.  We had been on the wait list for a little over 3 months, and the current average was over 15 months.  To say that we were surprised is the understatement of the century.  Because we were open to medical needs, we knew it was a possible to get a faster referral.  We just weren’t expecting it because everything else about this process has been so much slower than all of the estimates.  

We accepted the referral of a precious 14 month old, and because of the nature of the medical need, we really can’t share any more information at this time.  I wish we could post a picture, but we can’t do that either until the adoption is finalized.  I will just say....Oh.my.goodness!  I cannot wait to have this precious one in my arms.  

As if we didn’t know already...God has shown that He is still ever in control of this process.  The referral a year ahead of schedule had us a little panicked because we thought we had another year or more to save up for the remainder of the cost.  We had applied back in April for a Show Hope grant and for whatever reason had still not heard back.  We got the letter in the mail yesterday...we got the grant!  I am continually amazed by what He has shown us throughout this process.  I can’t wait to see what else He has in store for our family!

2 Months Down, ?? to Go

Last week we passed the two month mark on the wait list.  Keeping track of the months has become somewhat futile though because the timeline is now so unpredictable.  For now though, we just wait and pray.

I know I have not been posting much.  It has been a rough several months for us, and I don't want to have a depressing blog.  My grandma passed away yesterday.  That's 3 parents/grandparents for us in 4 months.  I just feel kind of numb right now.  I just can't believe I won't be going to visit her again, and that I can't pick up the phone and hear the excitement in her voice when she realizes it's me on other end.  I won't hear my grandpa's stories anymore, or hear him volunteering my grandma to go pick up ice cream. :)  My kids won't get to know their grandpa either.  The oldest two will just have a few memories from the months he was sick.  I am just ready for this season to be over.  It has been too much at once. 

On a brighter note...yesterday was our anniversary.  We have been married 8 years!  We managed to get out for a date night thanks to some sweet friends that kept our kiddos for a few hours.  

1 Month Down and Some Thoughts on the Wait

Earlier this week marked one month officially on the wait list for our adoption.  As things now seem even more uncertain in the process, I don’t necessarily know if that means we are one month closer, but the month did seem to go by pretty quickly.  (By the way, the pic below is 3 years old, but I couldn't resist posting Ethan's "thumbs up" as our number one.  Was he ever really that little?!?)

I have heard a lot of people talk (and read a lot of blogs) on the subject of waiting when it comes to adoption.  The general consensus seems to be that the entire process will go according to God’s timing and His plan, therefore I should not be praying that the process goes quickly.  

I think I am gonna have to disagree on that one.  

While I 100% believe that God is sovereign and can make this adoption happen at any moment, I do not believe that it is His will that orphans remain without families while there are holdups in the process for whatever reason.  When adoptions slow down in any country, fewer children are united with loving families.  They remain in institutions or without a home altogether.  They may not get the food or medical care they need, and ultimately some of these kids will not survive.  

I was talking to a friend last weekend who runs an orphanage in Africa.  Her orphanage is probably one of the best there is, but as she herself put it, no matter how good of a job they do, “it is still an institution.  It is not a family.” 

I believe that the delays are evidence of the fallen world that we live in.  In a perfect world, children would not have to wait on paperwork to be completed before they can be held by their mother.  (Of course, in a perfect world, there wouldn’t be a need for adoption either as there would be no death, disease, poverty, or any other situation that would lead to a child being without a family.)  The fact is, our world is not as it should be...as it was created to be.  The consequences of sin are evident all around, and this process is no exception.  (By the way, I am in no way blaming any one earthly organization for the delays.  The very reason that added scrutiny is needed is because we live in a world where not everyone is looking out for the best interests of children.  Those involved are trying to determine a way to make sure these kids are kept safe.  Our battle is not against flesh and blood.)

God tells us in his Word that “all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”  (Romans 8:28)  This does not mean that everything that happens will be good, but it does mean that He can bring about good from really crumby situations.  He will use the holdups to bring the specific child He has planned to be in our family.  He will also use those delays to teach us and grow us in ways that we never would have imagined.  He will use the delays to show us more about who He is, but I do not believe that He is the creator of the delays.  After all, “God sets the lonely in families.”  (Psalm 68:6)  

I also do know that at many points in this process, God will steer the decisions of everyone involved, and He can intervene and bring our child home tomorrow.  He sees this entire process from beginning to end, and is watching out for our kids wherever they are...because they are His kids.  He loves them more that we ever will.  My God is sovereign, powerful, and He loves us.  He wants kids to have families.  He wants us to grow in Him.  And he wants to bless us...and I can’t think of a better blessing that the precious kiddos He will put in our lives through this process.

So, I will be praying that this process moves quickly...for us, for the other families that are waiting on their kids, and especially for the sweet children that wait in orphanages around the world for their mommies and daddies to come and get them.  I will be praying that the hindrances to children being placed in loving families are removed.  I will be praying for wisdom and guidance for those who make decisions in all stages of the process.  The lives of children hang in the balance.

Longest Pregnancy Ever!

I just realized that we have officially been in this adoption process for 9 months...meaning if I was pregnant, I would be having a baby right about now.  This may be the longest pregnancy ever.  The thought is making my back ache...and I may need a foot rub.