Encouragement for the trip

I have been running across different scripture, some are new and some are old verses that I have marked and I thought that I would try to share one every so often with the hope that they might lift and encourage my fellow bloggers as they have encouraged Jeff and I on our journey.

The vision is yet for the appointed time; It hastens toward the goal, and it will not fail.  Though it tarries, wait for it; For it will certainly come, it will not delay.  Habakkuk 2:3

The JOY that comes after the trials

No, this is not an announcement pertaining to the joy that comes after much trial and suffering, but rather a personal revelation.  It is often times difficult to keep feelings of happiness and excitement and anticipation in adoption as month after month goes by with little movement or news.  Just the other day I was experiencing one of those down days, you know the ones where you go to the room that you have designated the baby's room and feel all sad that it is just a room you are looking at and not a baby sleeping in that room, well, after much prayer and thought and more prayer I began to see my way through the fog and found my faith on the other side.  This process is long, it is hard, it is painful and arduous, but is it worth it...yes!  And I haven't even gotten to the end of my journey, whatever end that may be.  It grows us all in some way.  All these thoughts were summed up this morning by something I heard in church.  "[Jesus] looked to the Joy after the cross; after the suffering."  That was how he got through the horrible ordeal of the cross, by looking to the joy that came afterward.  Now do I think that my adoption journey compares to the suffering on the cross... not even close, but it is suffering none-the-less.  As Halloween approaches I am reminded of the plans we had for picking out pumpkins this year with our Baby G, that is not going to happen this year, but oh how much greater the joy it will be when we DO finally get to enjoy it with our little one in tow! Christmas will be so much sweeter and all the days in between that we get to share and learn and grow with Baby G.  Do I wish that all this was happening now, this year... yes, but I am going to choose to look to the joy that comes after the trials and the waiting and waiting AND waiting.  For now I will take up my cross daily knowing that joy comes in the morning!  

What a ride

So it's that time again, time for me to come up with something provocative to say, something full of meaning and significance, a profound announcement, but alas that is not the case. The most recent news was from the Committee of Child Rights Protection stating that dossiers that specified a gender would be returned.  I felt sick for all the families that have come so far in the process only to have to start the wait over again if they chose to continue in their decision to adopt from Kaz.  Not to say that a childisn't worth the wait, because he or she is, but the wait is the hardest part...Well, needless to say Jeff and I are not among these PAPs and do not have to make the difficult decisions they are.  We determined early on that we didn't care if we were gifted with a boy our girl, we just wanted a child to share our home, hearts and lives with.  So where does that put us, the same place we have been for the last four months, the MFA.  Yep we haven't moved.  We are gearing up for the fall and as we do we find ourselves thinking, "Last year we thought we would have our baby here to share this with."  I love Halloween, it rates just above Christmas as far as I am concerned and last year aswe searched and found a local pumpkin patch we became excited about the prospect of sharing the experience with our child this year, not to be.  Well the point of this entry wasn't to be sad.  On a happier note, we have added a new furry family member.  His name is Mooshoo and as soon as I get a pick I will add it to the blog.  This was an unplanned adoption, someone dumped him by our house and he found his way into our yard.  He is a little yellow tabby, though when he arrived he was a little worse for the wear.  He had a ouchie on his nose (usually caused when they throw them from the vehicle in a hurry) and his front canine is missing (I don't know if it will come back or not)  He has adjusted quite well with the rest of our motley crew and even our older cat, Chopstix, plays with him and doesn't his at him anymore.  If this adoption doesn't go through soon we may have to open a zoo at this rate!  Actually, no more pets we are at maximum capacity.

The other exciting thing is our chili cook-off.  We have in in October of every year, actually this is just the third year for the cook-off, but for two

years prior we had a halloween party. Anyway, I have been working on a theme and decorating ideas for the house and of course what I will wear for a costume.  It is always great fun and good food!  This year I am going with a mad scientist lad and running the invitations like a want ad and old newspaper clippings, but the best part of all is the picture I photoshopped of Jeff...

Yes, I set his eyebrows on fire, no it is not supposed to look totally real, think more tabloid sensationalism!  I laughed the whole time I did it.  At any rate it will be fun.  

With all the uncertainty in the IA world especially as we are experiencing it, I have had a lot of encouragement from some unlooked for sources, but I will just end with we started this race and we intend of finishing strong 

Therefore, since through God's mercy we have this ministry we do not lose heart...We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.  II Corinthians 4:1, 8-9 

What a FUN Video!!

Anyway, My brother sent me this video and I thought it was great and well, doesn't really have anything to do with adoption , but it does show that no matter where you go in the world people are people and we aren't really all that different!!  Enjoy!  Do you think they would dance with me in Kazakhstan? LOL!  It on the left side of the page!

Ramblings of a mad woman and other such nonesense

So, I have just been wanting to post on our blog, but with no new news to share and nothing exciting happening I have been at odds with myself trying to think of what to write about.  I have finally given into my urge to write and am dedicating this entry to my mad ramblings.  

I have recently watched the movie "Nomad: the warrior".  I won't say that it was my all time favorite film and that it is a must see for everyone, but for me it was poignant and enlightening.  It enabled me to catch a glimpse at the beautiful country that our child is from and that glimpse only makes one that much more eager to immerse yourself into their culture and heritage.  The movie really excelled in getting across how much pride the people have in their heritage and traditions.  Their history is deep and is woven into the steppes that they call home.

On another note, my agency sent us a weekly update and with it was a link to a utube video of the Kazakhstan national anthem.  It was beautiful and like the movie reverberated the pride of the people, their unceasing and unwavering commitment to the country and the land they call home as well as their way of life.  Along with the link our agency also sent the english translation, but it didn't really do the anthem justice.  It is so much stronger and proud and hauntingly beautiful in the language it is sung in.  Unfortunately, I am not familiar enough with either the Kazakh language or the Russian language to differentiate between the two.  

So now I come to the part of my entry that really starts to ramble...the adoption, our wait, and my ever increasing eagerness to take one more, even small, step forward.  Everyday we wait for word that our paperwork has moved, wishing that it would and thinking of all the families before us that have been waiting that much longer.  One day we will be one of those families.  I also think about those families that are just a step or two behind us and wonder how they will weather this waiting game and what they will be thinking when they reach the stage that we are at.  I know that everyday that passes is one less day that we have to wait and one day closer to Baby G.  We still haven't made a decision whether we will both make two trips or if I will stay for the duration and only Jeff will make two trips.  I so want to make just one trip, to have the time not only to spend with our little one, but also to immerse myself into the culture and the people.  I love to experience the different cultures on a personal level rather than a tourist level.  Here I go rambling on about traveling and as far as we know we haven't even made it to the MOE, much less gotten a region assignment or LOI.  I am out of words or at least words that when put together create a coherent thought so I will sign off for now and continue waiting, knowing that everything has a season and will happen in God's perfect timing even the creation of our little family. 

Make-overs and the Fourth of July

Well, it has been another month since my last post and while adoption news has been slow with no new updates our lives have been pretty busy.  We have spent the last several weeks now doing little upgrades in our home, like replacing light fixtures and landscaping the front yard.  We have more to do and today begins our attempt to ceramic tile one of our bathroom floors.  These things have all needed doing since we moved in, we have just kept coming up with excuses why we couldn't...Well, here goes nothing!  On the fun side we celebrated Fourth of July with my parents.  It has always been a big holiday in my family, one because any excuse to BBQ and make homemade ice cream and light explosives all in the same day is a good cause for celebration, but it is also my sister's birthday.  For year's she thought that all the fireworks were for her.  I have met other people with 4th birthday's and they thought the same thing.  What a bunch of egotists!! LOL!  We had a wonderful time.  Saturday we tried to go out on my parents boat, but after much time spent working on it, we put it in the water and it would only go backwards!  I suggested just motoring around the lake backwards, but nobody was too keen on that idea!  My poor dad though he just works and works to keep the old boat going, but it is a 1977 Formula, that's as old as me and while I don't consider myself that old, that is REALLY old for a boat!  We then spent Sunday by the pool and visiting.  It was nice and peaceful.  Hope to have some adoption news soon!

Paka!

And the Wait Goes On

So anyone in the adoption world understands what it is like to wait.  So here we are waiting. Our dossier has been at the MFA since the end of April and we think YEA! We are finally getting somewhere...and then we wait.  We knew this going in and so with steely resolve we keep looking forward and counting each day that passes as being one less day we have to wait, but all the brave talk and resolve doesn't make this inevitable part of the process easier.  Friends that were pregnant when we started the process are now sporting the seasons latest in accessories, one year olds or very near, even those that got pregnant after the we started the process are nearing their delivery dates.  A friend of mine recently joked with us that they would feel really bad if they had their second one before we even got our first one!  It was not insensitive of her, she helps keep things light and is very supportive.  In fact, this week as I have read blogs about more delays here, longer waits there, I was really feeling down.  My friend didn't know this, but when we went to their house the other evening she says, "I got you something" and pulls out this book, "A Treasury of Adoption Miracles".  It touched me that she had picked it up for us, but what was even greater about it was how timely it was, just when I needed something to pick me up, to reassure me in our direction, her she hands me a book.  On the back cover it says, "No matter what struggles you're going through, no matter how many highs and lows, the truth is, adoption is God's handiwork.  It is a blessing, a calling, an absolute divine doing...Let God show you again the miracle of a child and the special miracle of adoption."  This is a high calling and worthy of all the effort. As the old saying goes, nothing worth doing is ever easy.  So here we are, waiting, wondering, hoping and always praying.  

As we near the end of the month of June Jeff and I will celebrate 5 years of marriage together.  It has been an adventure and yet doesn't seem like we have been married for that long (I know 5 years is a drop in the bucket for some!!  One day it will be for us!).  I can't think of a better anniversary gift than to hear that our paperwork has moved on to the next step, but I won't count on that just like I won't count on getting flowers from Jeff and if it happens it will be a very pleasant surprise!  Until next time!  Paka!