Where is the Baby?

Yesterday, we sat up the baby bed in the room. My mom made the bedding and it looks GREAT! Thanks mom from all your hard work!




But....the funniest part of the day was last night when Eric and I were taking pictures of the bedding to post on the blog. The dogs were in the room with us and they were very interested in the bed. Tucker was very curious and determined to see what this bed was all about.

The Backsplash is Done!

Woohoo! The kitchen backsplash is finished. Thanks to my wonderful husband I have an AWESOME slate backsplash. Eric started working on the backsplash a few weeks ago as a birthday present to me. I know Eric is so glad that this project is behind him. I am very thankful to have such a hard working and talented husband who is very very handy around the house.

Pictures of the Backsplash

The Beginning of the Project

Grouting the Tile

The Tiling is Finished

The Finished Project

Our New Kitchen

Waiting!

I e-mailed the adoption agency yesterday to check on the progress of the home study. Margaret, the head case worker, said that they were working on putting all our information into the computer so they could easily send it to their Tyler office. She said that a computer problem had made the process go a little slower but they were working on getting it fixed yesterday morning.

This morning, around 10:00, a lady from the Tyler office called to say they had received our paper work and had assigned us a case worker. However, our case worker is on vacation till the last week of June. She is suppose to get in touch with us as soon as she returns. I asked when our study would be scheduled and she said probably the middle or last of July. We were hoping it would be a little sooner but we also know that God's timing is perfect.

Since I am home all summer I have been trying to work really hard on our house. If you don't know Eric and I moved into a house last May that needed to be completely remodeled. We have make a lot of progress but there are still things to be done. I just finished painting the baby's room and Eric is working on tiling the backsplash in our kitchen. I will post pictures as soon as both projects are complete.

In this picture Toby and Tucker are laying right outside of the baby's room as I paint. Tucker, the yellow lab, looks bored out of his mind and Toby has just decided he might as well sleep.

Thanks again for your prayers!

First Aid Certified

YEAH! We are officially First Aid Certified. After I wrote the blog on Thursday, I decided to call the First Aid instructor, also an ECLC nurse, and see if she knew when our certificates would arrive. I was so glad that I decided to call because she had left the certificates in my staff mailbox at ECLC on the last day of school. So, I immediately left the house and went to the school to get the certificates. Then I went to Eric's office and Uncle Pistol, my brother, scanned them into the computer for us so we could quickly e-mail them to the agency. I received an e-mail from the agency shortly after saying everything looked great. We are hoping our interviews will be scheduled very soon. I will let everyone know as soon as we hear from them.

We did have the garage sale this weekend and everything went very well. There were lots of shoppers who came by on Friday and Saturday. We are thankful for the money we made that can go in our adoption saving account and very very thankful that our garage is now junk free! Also, thanks to a few people who came by to support us during the sale.

Thank you to everyone for praying that the certificates would come quickly. It is amazing how quickly God can answer our pray.

Garage Sale

We are having our second garage sale this weekend. All the money that we make from the sale will go into our adoption fund savings account. We are praying for great weather and lots of people to come and buy lots of stuff. The sale will be at 231 McCann. If you know of anyone who loves garage sales send them on over. Here is a copy of the ad so you can see all the great items we will be selling.

Garage Sale Ad

Five-family garage sale. Friday and Saturday, 7 - ?
Furniture, baby items, curtains, clothes, much miscellaneous.
231 McCann (one block south of Radio Shack).

Also, I talked with the adoption agency this morning and they said we are only waiting on the First Aid certificates and then they can get our interviews and home study started. We took First Aid on May 20th so hopefully our certificates will arrive in our mailbox very soon. Pray that the certificates will arrive soon so we can move into the next phase of the process.

Where We are Today

Eric and I have started this blog to keep all of our family and friends up to date on our adoption progress. Since you received the e-mail from us about our plans we have been very busy.

At the end of April we attended an adoption seminar at Christian Homes in Abilene. Eric and I learned so much from the seminar and confirmed that this is exactly what God has planned for us to do. After the seminar we had lots and lots of paper work to complete. The task was a little overwhelming at first but we took it one step at a time and were able to get it completed in about three weeks. As I type this message I am proud to say that Eric and I are CPR and First Aid Certified, Trained in Infant Care, HIV Negative, and have been fingerprinted by the FBI. Those are just a few of the items we had to have done in order to turn in our application.

As of today we are waiting on the agency to schedule our office interviews. We hope this will take place sometime at the end of this month. We will be interviewed individually and together by our social worker out of their Tyler office. After the interviews are complete they will schedule our home study. We are ready to get our interviews and home study complete because when those are finished we will get our approval letter. After we receive our approval letter we will be able to receive a child. At this point we will just be waiting on a call to say we have been selected by a birthmother. We could get a call the next day after our approval letter or it could take several months. So every time the phone rings we will be wondering if today is the day!

Our Adoption Story Begins

Family and Friends,

We hope this letter finds you well. We wanted to communicate to you all a matter that is very important to us and thought this letter would be the most efficient and “fair” way of doing so. So here we go.



WE’RE EXPECTING A BABY!!!



Now that I’ve got your attention, let me explain.

I have learned through my life, thus far, just how much the events of our lives mold and shape our character, desires, and relationships along the way. Trial, tragedy, and triumph all leave their marks on our lives in ways we could never predict. Sometimes these events, before we even realize it, seem to spawn compassion deep within our hearts for those enduring similar circumstances. These events that influence our lives instantly allow us to relate to others in ways we previously could not.
Sometimes, God chooses to gift us with capabilities that become part of and help to define who we are. Similar to the events that impact our lives, these gifts can seem to intensify or cultivate compassion deep within.
Over the last two years, Mandy and I have tried to conceive a child on our own as well as with some medical assistance. Instead of pursuing our goal with further medical intervention, we feel strongly that God is leading us to make the choice of adoption. Circumstances in our lives and a realization of the gifts God has given us continue to affirm this decision we are making. AND WE ARE SO EXCITED ABOUT IT!!! So, yes, we are expecting a baby. Just in a little different manner and time, I guess. As of this month, we have officially begun the process of infant adoption. Our initial application has been completed, but there are so many more steps along the way.
So we want to ask you to pray with us. First and foremost, pray that God would continue to unfold his plan for us as the birthmother selects the “best” adoptive family. Next, pray that the birthmother would make healthy choices that benefit the baby during the pregnancy. Pray that the love that already floods our hearts for this child would continue to grow. I’ve heard it said that the only difference between adopting a child and birthing a child is that the child grows in the heart rather than in the womb. Pray for the birthmother and the internal struggle she will face when deciding to keep or put the child up for adoption. She has 48 hours after birth to sign over rights of the child. Pray that she does what is best for all parties involved. Finally, thank the Lord for the work He is doing in our lives and how He is allowing us to grow our family.

Thank you for being a part of this special time in our lives,
Eric and Mandy