Saturday, July 23, 2016

Worth It

Anything worth doing is hard.  Like, real hard.  There are always blessings in the journey, however.

We completed our first homestudy in 2013, since then we have updated it two times.  We are coming up on our THIRD update to our homestudy this next month.  Over the past 3+ years, we have been tested for HIV, STDs, tuberculosis, and drugs.  We have been finger printed and screened.  Filled out mountains of paperwork.  All of this, not once, but multiple times.  Chuck and I have also completed many hours of training.  Part of our lives has been essentially on hold… prayerfully waiting.  First, there was our failed adoption in Uganda.  And, now Ghana has essentially stopped processing international adoptions.  It has been emotionally and financially draining. 

Based on advice from our agency, we made the difficult decision this week to not update our homestudy for international adoption from Ghana.  Our family will remain in the Ghana program, but our agency simply does not expect to have any referrals of children aged 0-8 years old in the foreseeable future.  We submitted our dossier in March 2015 and the last referral was May 2015.  We believe that God is in charge of the details and that He will continue to show Himself to us through this journey.

Our prayer still remains that someday we will be able to adopt a child that needs a family, but for now we feel like we have done everything we can do in regards to international adoption.  We plan to continue fostering children from within our community and explore foster care adoption in states where there are waiting children.  Over the past year, we have had four children in our home through foster care.  A four year old girl for one day.  A four year old boy for four months.  We currently have a three year old girl who has been with us for three months, plus a nine year old girl who is with us only for a few weeks.  Loving these children has been one of the biggest blessings in our adoption journey.  Something we almost missed out on because it seemed "too scary.”

The first thing many people ask when they find out we do foster care is, “isn’t it hard to let them go?”  Yes, yes… it really is.  However, Jason Johnson said it perfectly…

"Yet, as we weigh in balance what we stand to lose against what they stand to gain, the answer is simple - not always easy to do - but simple to see as worth it in the end. We can't let the fear of loving a child who might leave deter us; we must let the fear of a child never knowing love drive us."

Please join us in praying for children that are waiting for their forever family.  Blessings, Nicki

Friday, March 18, 2016

Adoption Update

It's been a long time since I last posted.  Unfortunately, there has not been much movement in our international adoption.  Our dossier was submitted to Ghana in March 2015.  The most recent referral in the Bethany Ghana Program was shortly after that.  We have not given up hope and will continue prayerfully waiting.  I'm not going to lie - the wait is so hard :(  However, we keep telling ourselves - God always has perfect timing!



We were blessed to have two children stay with us through foster care in the past 6 months.  A four year old girl for just 24 hours.  Then, a four year old boy for 4 months (he is 9 days younger than our youngest!).  We learned a lot about parenting a child who has been through trauma and also about ourselves.  Undoubtedly, there is still more to learn.  I've come away from this experience knowing in my heart... this is one of my life's true callings.  Yes, it is hard.  There are things I would do different, better next time.  But, loving a child through a very difficult time in their lives is one of the most fulfilling experiences I have ever had in my life.  Growing as a family in our faith.  Seeing our children make sacrifices to make someone else feel comfortable.  Making a difference.  Our daughter prays all the time that a child who needs a family will soon become a permanent part of ours. 
A sweet friend who recently adopted a child told me yesterday that God works in amazing ways when it comes to adoption.  She assured me that God will bring us through this in a way we'd never dream of.  So, today... I am clinging to this truth and His promises.
Blessings, Nicki