Our First Conversation

This past weekend Jacob started answering questions!!! He is so darn cute!! Our first conversation went like this:

Jacob babbling from the highchair
Me: "Hold on Jacob, I'm getting you some juice"
Jacob: "Juice"
Me: "Did you say just juice?"
Jacob: "Yes"
Me: "You just answered me, you are getting so smart!"
Jacob: "Yeaaaa"

Oh.melt.my.heart!!!!
Ever since then he has been answering "yes" or shaking his head "no" to answer questions. He amazes me everyday with all that he is learning!!
I'm so lucky to be his mama!!!

Please pray for paperwork

Will you guys please pray for our paperwork?? We are still missing our I-171h and the office still hasn't assigned us an officer (from 3 weeks ago). We know of another family that was fingerprinted the same day and has had theirs for almost 2 weeks now. We need this to pass court. They aren't being cooperative and we think we have been moved to the naughty (annoying) pile after contacting our congressman. Brad just had a discouraging phone call with them. We are praying for God to move this mountain!!!
Thank you!

Health Update on the boys

When we receive the referral, Kaleb had been sick 19 times with different things, many times Wheezy bronchitis, among some other things. This also means he has been on antibiotics about 19 times. This was all in the matter of about 9 months. Ugh. I wish he wasn't sick so much, he has to be miserable and he barely gets over it before something else gets him. Poor kid, he's feeling miserable way more than he is healthy. We just got another email that says he is sick yet again. Last week they told us he was sick and on antibiotics. Today we got another email saying he finished his antibiotics, but unfortunately he is sick again. Please pray for him! Please pray all these illness don't have lasting affects. We know he has some health issues (different than these) that we really want to get him home and get him treated and healthy.
Also this is first time he has been sick that we know of. He is having some pain, so pray for him too.
Its hard hearing these things about your kids and just sit here for 3 more weeks. We leave in 22 days, and I hope this is the last time they are sick without having their mom and dad take care of them.
Thanks for your prayers. We know the Ultimate Healer is always in charge and capable of anything!!

Things we Remember about Isaiah

Since we spent a lot of time with Isaiah while we were in Ethiopia adopting Jacob, we have some fun memories with him. Here are a few:
-he loved to read the Five Little Monkeys book and he would say in his accent "own little monkey jump-ed-did on the bed"
-he asked for a watch, we looked all over Addis and we only found a Hannah Montana watch; he didn't seem to mind one bit :)
-Brad got to take him across the street for a Coke on his birthday
-he was so proud of his brother and loved when Brad would go get Kaleb and bring him outside
-he didn't know that Kaleb could walk until Brad showed him
-he is really good at soccer and showed off his tricks; but he liked to play volleyball with Brad too because he knew that Brad liked volleyball
-he was proud of his school work and brought it out to show Brad when he did something well
-he has a beautiful smile

We are so looking forward to seeing these sweet boys in less than a month!! We can't wait to hug them and tell them we love them!!

Donations-How you can help!

Several people have been asking how you can help donate things/money for orphanages in Ethiopia. Here are some of the current needs:

-clothes for children age 11-14 years
-crocs and shoes for children age 11-14 years
-toothpaste and toothbrush
-towels
-scrubs for nurses and nannies
-crocs for nurses and nannies
-wipes
-vitamin drops
-fruit snacks/granola bars/beef jerky
-children’s dvds
-money to buy formula over in Ethiopia
-soccer balls (that can be deflated and we will inflate in country)

Since we plan to stay in country between court and embassy clearing, we don't have tons of room for donations, but we would love to deliver some things to the orphanages that we visit (we will vist 5 different ones because we are going to the ones the boys were all in). Jacob was in 2 different orphanages, Kaleb and Isaiah were in 2 different ones and then all 3 boys were at AWAA's Transition Home.

Thank you for considering blessing the children that are in Ethiopia waiting for their families!!

Dedication Day!

On Sunday we had Jacob Dedicated at church. It was a very nice service and 14 family members came up front with us to all show they love and support Jacob and want to help teach him to love the Lord. We are so blessed by our families and thankful that God chose us to raise Jacob!
Here's some pictures from the day:

Brad and Jacob wore their traditonal Ethiopian outfits. They couldn't get me in my ET dress though :)

Brad reading Jacob's life verse

Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

Celebrating Jacob's Birthday

Yesterday we had Jacob's birthday party. He is so loved, 34 people came to celebrate this sweet boy! It was so fun to have a house full of people and 11 kids! Brad's sister has a bouncy house that we set up in the garage (too cold outside) and the kids played in that and rode the little toys around the garage. It was a perfect place for the kids to have fun! Here are some pictures from the day:

6 Month Post-Placement Visit

We had Jacob's 6 month Post-Placement visit tonight with our wonderful social worker. It's crazy to think that we have been home from Ethiopia for 6 months now and we are starting to pack to go back! CRAZY!!
Jacob has adjusted wonderfully and we are so thankful to have him in our family!! We can't wait to see him interact with his brothers. In 5 weeks and 3 days we will have our whole family together in Africa!!!! We can't wait!!!

A Different Perspective

Here's a post that I read on another adoptive mama's blog. It gives you an idea of what our boys will be experiencing soon.


Imagine for a moment…

You have met the person you've dreamed about all your life. He has every quality that you desire in a spouse. You plan for the wedding, enjoying every free moment with your fiancée. You love his touch, his smell, the way he looks into your eyes. For the first time in your life, you understand what is meant by "soul mate," for this person understands you in a way that no one else does. Your heart beats in rhythm with his. Your emotions are intimately tied to his every joy, his every sorrow.

The wedding comes. It is a happy celebration, but the best part is that you are finally the wife of this wonderful man. You fall asleep that night, exhausted from the day's events, but relaxed and joyful in the knowledge that you are next to the person who loves you more than anyone in the world…the person who will be with you for the rest of your life.The next morning you wake up, nestled in your partner's arms. You open your eyes and immediately look for his face.

But IT'S NOT HIM! You are in the arms of another man. You recoil in horror. Who is this man? Where is your beloved?

You ask questions of the new man, but it quickly becomes apparent that he doesn't understand you. You search every room in the house, calling and calling for your husband. The new guy follows you around, trying to hug you, pat you on the back,...even trying to stroke your arm, acting like everything is okay. But you know that nothing is okay.

Your beloved is gone. Where is he? Will he return? When? What has happened to him?

Weeks pass. You cry and cry over the loss of your beloved. Sometimes you ache silently, in shock over what has happened. The new guy tries to comfort you. You appreciate his attempts, but he doesn't speak your language-either verbally or emotionally. He doesn't seem to realize the terrible thing that has happened...that your sweetheart is gone.You find it difficult to sleep. The new guy tries to comfort you at bedtime with soft words and gentle touches, but you avoid him, preferring to sleep alone, away from him and any intimate words or contact.

Months later, you still ache for your beloved, but gradually you are learning to trust this new guy. He's finally learned that you like your coffee black, not doctored up with cream and sugar. Although you still don't understand his bedtime songs, you like the lilt of his voice and take some comfort in it.More time passes. One morning, you wake up to find a full suitcase sitting next to the front door. You try to ask him about it, but he just takes you by the hand and leads you to the car. You drive and drive and drive. Nothing is familiar. Where are you? Where is he taking you?You pull up to a large building. He leads you to an elevator and up to a room filled with people. Many are crying. Some are ecstatic with joy. You are confused. And worried.The man leads you over to the corner. Another man opens his arms and sweeps you up in an embrace. He rubs your back and kisses your cheeks, obviously thrilled to see you.You are anything but thrilled to see him. Who in the world is he? Where is your beloved? You reach for the man who brought you, but he just smiles (although he seems to be tearing up, which concerns you), pats you on the back, and puts your hand in the hands of the new guy.

The new guy picks up your suitcase and leads you to the door. The familiar face starts openly crying, waving and waving as the elevator doors close on you and the new guy. The new guy drives you to an airport and you follow him, not knowing what else to do. Sometimes you cry, but then the new guy tries to make you smile, so you grin back, wanting to "get along." You board a plane. The flight is long. You sleep a lot, wanting to mentally escape from the situation.
Hours later, the plane touches down. The new guy is very excited and leads you into the airport where dozens of people are there to greet you. Light bulbs flash as your photo is taken again and again. The new guy takes you to another guy who hugs you. Who is this one? You smile at him. Then you are taken to another man who pats your back and kisses your cheek. Then yet another fellow gives you a big hug and messes your hair.

Finally, someone (which guy is this?) pulls you into his arms with the biggest hug you've ever had. He kisses you all over your cheeks and croons to you in some language you've never heard before.

He leads you to a car and drives you to another location. Everything here looks different. The climate is not what you're used to. The smells are strange. Nothing tastes familiar, except for the black coffee. You wonder if someone told him that you like your coffee black.

You find it nearly impossible to sleep. Sometimes you lie in bed for hours, staring into the blackness, furious with your husband for leaving you, yet aching from the loss. The new guy checks on you. He seems concerned and tries to comfort you with soft words and a mug of warm milk. You turn away, pretending to go to sleep.

People come to the house. You can feel the anxiety start to bubble over as you look into the faces of all the new people. You tightly grasp the new guy's hand. He pulls you closer. People smile and nudge one other, marveling at how quickly you've fallen in love. Strangers reach for you, wanting to be a part of the happiness.

Each time a man hugs you, you wonder if he will be the one to take you away. Just in case, you keep your suitcase packed and ready. Although the man at this house is nice and you're hanging on for dear life, you've learned from experience that men come and go, so you just wait in expectation for the next one to come along.

Each morning, the new guy hands you a cup of coffee and looks at you expectantly. A couple of times the pain and anger for your husband is so great that you lash out, sending hot coffee across the room, causing the new guy to yelp in pain. He just looks at you, bewildered. But most of the time you calmly take the cup. You give him a smile. And wait. And wait. And wait.

--Written by Cynthia Hockman-Chupp

This just gives you a taste of the pain and trauma that adopted (and foster) children face during their transition.

Jacob is One!!!

I can't believe that we have seen Jacob's face for 10 months already. He was two months at the time of his referral, and now we have spent everyday for the last 8 months with him. He is the JOY of our lives and such a happy boy!!!
I am so thankful I get to be this sweet boys mama!!!

He is talking up a storm. Most of the time (I say that because a few times if I put him on the spot he won't do it, but on his own he will) he can say: hot, hat, go, up, dow (down), cat, ball, pop (for Hop on Pop book and for Poppa), dada, mooooom (when he cries for me), and I'm sure I am missing a few. :)
He continues to sign "more" and "all done" when eating and he puts his hands up for a touchdown and he puts one finger up if you ask him how old he is.
He has the greatest laugh and he loves to laugh all the time. He has started to try to wrestle a little bit. I'm not sure if this is coming from the sitters or just the boy in him. But he thinks wrestling is so much fun and he laughs the whole time you are playing with him.

We look forward to celebrating his birthday with friends and family this weekend!!

We have a Court Date!!!!!!

We are in shock-we have a court date!!!!! On December 21st we will be going before the judge to state our consent of wanting Isaiah and Kaleb in our family FOREVER!!! That’s right, we will be leaving in 5 ½ short weeks to hold these boys as our sons, to tell them we love them and we are their mommy and daddy!! Ahhhh! Time to start packing. I still have one suitcase that I haven’t unpacked from when we returned from Ethiopia in May (I’m not kidding).
We are so excited to spend Christmas with all THREE of our sons in Ethiopia!!!!
We are planning to stay in Ethiopia until we can bring the boys home. We once again have no idea how long this will be. Brad will be able to stay for the first month or so, then it will be me and three boys!! We are praying and hoping that we pass court the first time, so we aren't there without Brad for too long. Please pray for this!! Also please pray for us to figure out how we are going to fund the rest of this adoption. We figure we need $16,000-$20,000 to pay for flights, in-country expenses, guest house (hotel), food, drivers, and any other costs that may arise. We are looking into loans, etc now. Just please pray for wisdom and guidance as we do this. We will have to pay about $8,000 before we even leave. But if there is anything we we have learned in this process it is that God is bigger than anything we think might get in the way!

Update on our boys

This past week Shannon DeVol and family have been in Ethiopia. They got to meet their precious son and she was kind enough to spend some time with our boys too! She gave them both a photo album that I sent her with photos of us and Jacob. She said that Isaiah looked closely at all the pictures and that Kaleb kept trying to take Isaiahs photo book from him. :) She also asked Isaiah if he liked the name Isaiah for his first name and his Ethiopian name as his middle name. He said he did and came back a few mintues later to ask what his name is again because he didn't want to forget it. Shannon also said that Kaleb was the life of the party and a really happy boy!! He has changed so much since we have been there. We can't wait to have them in our arms again- this time as our sons!!!!
Even though we have met the boys before, this is the first time they have had our picture and known that we are Mom and Dad. We can't show their faces, but here's a few pictures of them looking at their photo albums.

Thank you Shannon for loving on our boys and sending ALL the photos!!!!