34 Months

We've had a busy few months and I missed last month's update.  We just had our third home study and we're a week into our 34th month on the wait list.  Even though we're near the top of the wait list, from the way things are moving, it will be at least another six months to a year before we meet our daughters. 

When I start questioning why God led us down this path, I have to remind myself that this isn't just a time line for a random referral - this is part of our daughters' story & God's timing and plan for our family to come together.  Excited for that day!

I can't believe I'm writing this - yesterday marked 3 years since we started our adoption!  Crazy!  We just turned in our paperwork for our 3rd home-study/update.  Next month we will be resubmitting our 3rd USCIS paperwork approval/renewal. 

32 Months

32 months closer to our daughters.  We can't wait to meet you sweet girls - so hope it's someday soon!

31 Months

31 Months on the wait list (a few days late)! 

30 Months

30 months closer to our sweet girls!

The Sovereign Lord is my strength.  Habakkuk 3:19



 

29 Month Update

 

Tomorrow is our 29 month anniversary on our agency's wait list to adopt our daughters.    

{Sweet girls, we can’t wait to know you.  We think about you & pray for you so many times throughout each day.  It's so touching to see how much you are thought about and prayed for by our family and friends.  Especially your big brothers - they can't stop talking about you.  We all hope with each new day to see your faces and know you.  Praying that will be one day soon.}

We had a great Christmas break with the boys – I can’t believe it’s almost over!  We enjoyed Christmas with family around here, and then went to spend a long weekend with our family on Josh’s side.  We had such a great time.  Here’s a pic of us building our huge snowman at Mimi & Papa's house – right after this picture I was pelted by Hudson’s big snowball!  Little stinker!  :)

Remember Emu?  She is our friend from Onesimus in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, who has been staying here for maternity care.   It has been so much fun spending time with her these past few months.  I’m so excited – she’s taught me how to make several Ethiopian dishes.  I know the food might look different, but it’s so yummy!  

Emu gave birth to baby Benjamin Nega on November 29^th, and he weighed 3lbs 2oz.  He’s home from the NICU and doing very well.  He is now a little over 5lbs!  It was such a blessing and surprise – Emu’s husband, Nega, was able to come to America a few days after Benjamin’s arrival.  God is so good!!  Nega and Emu are so much fun to be around – they love to share about their Ethiopian culture, cook Ethiopian food, and LAUGH.  Most importantly, they both love the Lord – their faith is an inspiration to anyone who knows them.  

Here’s a picture of Benjamin shortly after he was born – he measured 11 weeks early just before birth.  It’s a miracle how strong he is.

 

Here’s his little arm!  Amazing.  I can’t wait until the day when he is taller than me, and I can tell him stories about how tiny, yet strong he was.

Here’s a picture of him last week – before he came home from the NICU.   He’s grown so much in the past month.

They will be staying in the U.S. for the next few months while Benjamin gains strength and gets his immunizations.  We’re soaking up every minute we have with them!

28 Months

Today is our 28th month on the adoption wait list.  We also drove to the USCIS office this morning to have our fingerprints made for the 3rd time.  Crazy to think it has been almost 3 years since we started our adoption paperwork!  I know once we see know our daughters we would do it all again in a heart beat, but seriously...this waiting is a killer.  The hardest part is having the hopes that our referral call will come with each new day - and constantly wondering who our girls are and how they're doing.  We're approaching the top of our agency's wait list -- somewhere in the top 6 waiting families.  I hope that we will soon be writing about getting that much anticipated phone call!! 

Since we now know that we won't be traveling to Ethiopia in this calendar year for our adoption, we had some vacation time to burn.  We decided to take the time that Hendrix was off school during Thanksgiving for a little vacation to Mexico, so the boys could join us.  It was tons of fun and much needed time away with family!  Hendrix and Hudson played hard all week and spent endless hours digging "houses" in the sand. 

They were so tired by the end of their daily digging escapades that they couldn't even stay awake through dinner most nights.

Here's a few more pictures of my favorite guys.  I adore the boys' sweet, sand covered smiling faces!  I just want to freeze them at this age (except for a few 3 year old behaviors that I could leave behind).  :)