FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2006 04:56 PM
Today is Friday 9/29/06, exactly 3 weeks since our completed Dossier was sent to Colombia. We have not received any news yet and have tried to stay busy finishing up the 3 little photo albums and DVD we put together for the girls and had lots of fun shopping for the goodies to put inside the 3 little "care-packages/gifts" we are sending the girls (they will receive all of the above, if we get approved for them)!
Please, don't forget us & continue to pray for the Lord's perfect will regarding this matter and that we will know something "REALLY SOON", for as you can imagine, our emotional state is a bit "RAW" with all this WAITING!!! :>)
__________________________________________
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2006 11:45 PM
Today we had such a wonderful time with Michael's family. We attended the "New Home/Open-House" at his nephew Karl's and were very touched how after not seeing many of Michael's relatives for a while, so many of them were so excited to hear about the girls. There were many kids (really a ton of them) present and they had purchased a big "Bouncer Castle", it was just such a joy to watch all of them playing and having so much fun and day-dreaming of how soon our children will be some of the kids jumping up and down and having loads of fun.
It was wonderful to also meet a beautiful lady from Colombia "Rosa" & her adorable 6 year old Gabriella, she gave us so many good info about Colombia & 6 year old little girls! :>)
We also had the privilege to meet and socialize with a couple from Mexico and their 2 daughters ages 7 & 9, the oldest looked just like our Catalina, with beautiful long black hair and bangs. The lady was sooooooooooo helpful, giving us all kinds of info on 7 & 9 year old little girls, clothes, etc. The cool thing is that this ladies name was, yeap you guessed it: Luiza, just like my Mommy!!! :>)
__________________________________________
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2006 01:20 AM
God is soooooooooooo good!
This week we received news that our wonderful friends Ana Laura & Landy have adopted a beautiful baby girl from Brazil. The way God brought her into their lives was a real miracle, it was absolutely just meant to be!!!
We are so excited for them and cannot wait for Ana to return from Brazil with our precious little niece (not by blood, but by heart) Kyla Bianca - Wow, what a gorgeous name!
To find out more about their miracle gift, visit their caring bridge site at: www.caringbridge.com/visit/kylamazzotta
__________________________________________
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2006 08:10 PM
Today we had the wonderful opportunity to drive out to Grand Rapids and attend the annual picnic our adoption agency throws for all the families. We were thrilled to meet several families who have successfully gone through the journey before us. They were all so encouraging and could all relate to the hard time we sometimes have with the "waiting." It was awesome to meet all their beautiful children and just amazing to observe how they all had one thing in common: "They are all regular and good old fashion REAL kids!" :>)
We also had the pleasure of meeting and talking at length with Raul, the Director of the Colombian program and he just made us feel even more excited about our soon to be (hopefully), trip to Medellin Colombia. We believe that going to the picnic has re-charged our batteries to keep on waiting for our "Official Referral" and trip date to arrive!
We are extremely grateful to the couples we met, for sharing their stories with us and cheering us on!
May God bless all those amazing families!!!
Sharon & Michael
________________________________________
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 08, 2006 10:58 PM
Today we have absolutely AWESOME NEWS:
Our COMPLETED Dossier was mailed to Colombia today, this means that we are 100% done and now, all we can do is "WAIT" for Colombia's final decision to give us the "Official Match & Referral" for the girls. Of course as we have been told from the beginning, there is no guarantee they will approve us, but we are waiting on the Lord and His perfect will not just for us, but most importantly for the girls. Of course everyone knows what the desire of our heart is, but we will continue to wait on the Lord, because His ways are better than ours!!!!
Please keep praying as we hope to be hearing good news very soon and will be leaving for Colombia in the very near future!!!
*** Tentatively, and totally by faith, some of our dear family & friends are planning a "Shower" for the girls sometime in November (after we receive the "Official Referral" & prior to our trip to Colombia), you will receive more information about this in the mail as it gets closer!
Much love & gratitude,
Sharon & Michael
___________________________________________
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 06, 2006 11:26 PM
YEAH, BANG, BOOM, CAN YOU HEAR THE FIRE-WORKS?????????????????
NEW & RE-DONE BIRTH CERTIFICATES FINALLY ARRIVED FROM ILLINOIS & BRAZIL LAST SATURDAY AND TODAY WE RECEIVED OUR I-171H APPROVAL FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF HOME LAND SECURITY (FORMER IMMIGRATION), IT WILL ALL BE FEDEXED TO THE AGENCY FIRST THING TOMORROW AND THEN SENT TO COLOMBIA FOR TRANSLATION & LEGALIZATION AND IF ALL IS KOSHER AND THE COLOMBIAN GOVERNMENT APPROVES US FOR THE GIRLS, WE SHOULD GET THE "OFFICIAL MATCH"!!!!
ONCE WE GET THAT, COLOMBIA ASKS FOR 1 MONTH TO PREPARE THE GIRLS FOR THE TRANSITION WITH THE HELP OF PSYCHOLOGISTS/SOCIAL-WORKERS. WE SHOULD RECEIVE OUR TRAVEL DATE FOR ANY TIME AFTER THAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
PRAISE THE LORD, WE HOPE THAT SOON AND VERY, VERY SOON, WE WILL BE ABLE TO BRING OUR DAUGHTERS HOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
MUCH LOVE AND GRATITUDE TO ALL OF YOU WHO ARE SO FAITHFULLY GOING ON THIS JOURNEY OF LOVE WITH US, THE GIRLS ARE ALREADY SO INCREDIBLY BLESSED TO HAVE SUCH WONDERFUL AUNTIES & UNCLES!!!!
SHARON & MICHAEL
________________________________________
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 01, 2006 02:06 PM
Happy September 1st everyone!!!
It has now been 5 months since we started the process to adopt the girls from Colombia. Yes, we are a bit discouraged that it seems to be taking longer than we expected, however we are grateful that things are still flowing and we are still on schedule based on the approximate 6 to 8 months time-frame we were given. We just want the rewarding end of process to arrive "YESTERDAY" and absolutely cannot wait until we will finally hop on a plane to Colombia to go pick up our daughters, who although we haven't met, we have come to love so deeply already. We pray that the Lord will be merciful to us, supplying all that we need to bring them home ASAP!!!
Thank you for your many prayers & all the support!!!
Much love,
Sharon & Michael
Friday, September 29, 2006
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
ORIGINAL "CARINGBRIDGE" ENTRIES FOR AUGUST 2006!
TUESDAY, AUGUST 29, 2006 01:22 PM
Today we are feeling very encouraged, we had a conference phone call with Raul V. (the Attorney heading the Colombian program for our agency) and our new Case Manager ( who has been so wonderful & patient with us, always answering our thousands of questions). They were very thorough, covering a lot of important information and clarifying some things that needed to be clarified so that we are all clear and in sink about the process. We are so excited that they will be able to send our dossier to Colombia as soon as they receive our birth-certificates (Michael's is already back & mine should hopefully be back from Brazil no latter than next week). The only thing we will need after that, is for the I-171H approval form (Immigration), to hurry up and get here, then we are all set!!!
We are sooooooooooooooooooo excited that hopefully soon, VERY, VERY SOON, it will all be done and we will hopefully be approved for the girls without any problems and will get a travel date to go get our precious daughters and bring them home!!!!
Of course we were reminded today, that nothing is certain (as far as the ICBF approving us for those specific girls), but by faith we are waiting for God's perfect will and the very best for those dear children, who we have already come to love, if we are the ones meant to be their parents, IT WILL HAPPEN and what a blessing that will!!!
Thank you to all of you, beloved family and friends, who have been praying, and even already dreaming with us, about our future family, which by faith, we are committed to, even while still waiting for the outcome!!!
Love always,
Sharon & Michael
_____________________________________
MONDAY, AUGUST 28, 2006 11:41 PM
Today, we had so much fun going through some albums and looking for some recent pictures of ours to put in the 3 little albums we are putting together for the girls.
This week we are also planning on taking a lot of photos of their school, local library, YMCA, our church and many of our dear friends. We want to make sure the little albums we lovingly prepare for our daughters will give them a great idea of who we are, what their lives will be like, the great places they will go to and the many wonderful family and friends they will have.
It's really wonderful how the agency not only prepares the children, but the parent also. This whole experience has made Michael and I want to become strong and outspoken advocates for "older Children " adoption and "Sibling group" adoption. There is such a huge need all over the world and so many people who have the love and the financial means to do it, if fear of the unknown wasn't a factor (which hopefully, as more people become educated about the process, it will not be an issue anymore)!!!
We pray that God will use us and our experience to open the eyes of many other families, so that more children may find a home and their forever families. Where they can grow and mature in love and safety, to become the wonderful human beings with all the potential God created them to become!!!
_____________________________________
FRIDAY, AUGUST 25, 2006 12:34 PM
Yesterday, Michael's new & re-done apostilled Birth Certificate arrived from Illinois and our friends from Brazil emailed us that they had already received mine and were processing it for me (what would I have done without them)?
We are also so encouraged, to have had the chance to meet a couple (through email) who are adopting two little girls from Colombia, from the same agency. They have already been approved and have a travel date all set. We are so excited for them and hearing their story has inspired us both BIG TIME!!!
They also introduced us to another couple's blog, who just recently returned from Colombia after adopting a little brother & sister. Because of a judges strike, they ended up having to stay in Colombia for 7 weeks, waiting for the adoption to be finalized so they could bring the children home. We have gained new strength to keep on waiting, after hearing all these experiences, knowing that in the end it will all be well worth it, when we finally have our children with us, being able to hug'em, kiss'em and bring them home, YAHOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
*** Here's a link with lots of great pictures from other families who have adopted from Colombia: http://www.childrenshopeint.org/colombiaupdate.html
______________________________________
TUESDAY, AUGUST 22, 2006 01:30 PM
Praise God, things may get complicated at times, but He is still in control!!! Our friends in Brasilia were more than willing to help us out, the documents have already been FedEXed to them and now it's just a matter of "waiting" for them to be returned to us, so we can send it to the agency to send to Colombia (so there's still a chance that the kids could come home before Christmas)! :>)
It's amazing that although it was a bump on the road, the Lord provided for the necessary office to be in a city in Brazil where we actually have good friends living. With Him as our Father, there's ALWAYS a way!!! :>)
_______________________________________
THURSDAY, AUGUST 17, 2006 06:13 PM
Today we found out from our new Case Manager that my birth certificate would not be accepted in Colombia. It was very disappointing for our original case manager never told us there was a problem, when we submitted everything in for our dossier. I had to do some research and call a few places in Brazil and our new and C. Mngr did help out quite a bit by digging up the contact information for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs office in Brasilia - the capital of Brazil, to issue me a "legalized and certified copy" of my Brazilian birth certificate. We are hoping to have some friends in Brasilia assist us in processing this in an expedited manner, once that is done, it then has to be officially translated into English and Spanish, sent to the Colombian embassy in Brazil, which in turn will send it back to us, to send to the agency, to send back to Colombia. Needless to say, we are a bit stressed and disappointed that just when we thought we were all done, this will now cause more delays.
Please keep praying for us, during this "waiting" period, which is becoming a bit hard, considering we were hoping to have the girls home by fall, but now we are lucky if they are here before Christmas!!!
The Lord is good though, ALL THE TIME and He is in control, no matter what the outcome will be!!!
_____________________________________
FRIDAY, AUGUST 11, 2006 10:32 PM
Wonderful news:
Today we finally had our fingerprint appointment for the Department of Homeland Security (former Immigration). It was at 8am, all the way downtown Detroit; we were so afraid of being late or anything going wrong (ie. traffic, construction back-ups, etc.), that we got up sooooooooo early (even before the birds & the chickens)! :>)
Praise God, that is done, now all we have to do is wait for their approval to come in the mail. It does sound simple doesn't it? but guess what? "WAITING" is the operative word here, something that we are having a hard time with. Hey, no one said this wouldn't be an experience of growth and more character building!!! :>)
Have a wonderful weekend everyone!!!
______________________________________
TUESDAY, AUGUST 08, 2006 11:05 AM
Today we received word that our Case had to be reassigned because our Case Manager no longer works for the agency. Boy oh boy, that is a real unexpected surprise and not of the "good kind", specially when I had just talked to her at length last week and she never mentioned she was leaving! We are going to remain hopeful though, that the new Case Manager is ready to take over and process everything without any delays and that we will continue to stay on track. This can be a stressful time and this news doesn't help, but the Lord knows all things and our faith and trust has to be completely in Him!!!
______________________________________
TUESDAY, AUGUST 01, 2006 06:08 PM
Hello,
Good news:
We had been told that due to backups, there was a delay in the processing time-frame for applications at our local Immigration office. However, we are thrilled that today we got the letter with the appointment date for us to go in and submit the required fingerprints. Our appointment is for 8/11 at 8am and after that is cleared through FBI, they basically have everything they need to go ahead and approve the I-600A form we submitted ("Application for advance processing of orphan petition" - it's the form we have to file prior to the one we will file at the American embassy in Colombia, which is the I-600 "Petition to classify orphan as immediate relative" - thus authorizing us to bring the girls back with us, already as US Citizens)!
Basically, what it means is that once the Immigration is done and submit the approved form back to us, it gets immediately sent to Colombia which by then will also have our dossier and then, is all a matter of waiting to get the final "Official Match" approving us for the girls, which means we can travel a month or so after that
We understand that this can still take 2-4 months, we have accepted the fact that we may not have the girls with us in the early part of fall, we also know that it really shouldn't matter, but to be honest we would absolutely REEEEEEEEEEALLY love to be able to have them home with us before Christmas!!!
Please, we ask you to pray that the people that get a hold of our applications (both here at Immigration & in Colombia for the final decision), are efficient in their use of time and don't delay or linger in their processing of documents and that they would somehow see our heart for these girls and approve us without problems!
Thank you so much for being a part of this journey!
Love,
Sharon & Michael
Today we are feeling very encouraged, we had a conference phone call with Raul V. (the Attorney heading the Colombian program for our agency) and our new Case Manager ( who has been so wonderful & patient with us, always answering our thousands of questions). They were very thorough, covering a lot of important information and clarifying some things that needed to be clarified so that we are all clear and in sink about the process. We are so excited that they will be able to send our dossier to Colombia as soon as they receive our birth-certificates (Michael's is already back & mine should hopefully be back from Brazil no latter than next week). The only thing we will need after that, is for the I-171H approval form (Immigration), to hurry up and get here, then we are all set!!!
We are sooooooooooooooooooo excited that hopefully soon, VERY, VERY SOON, it will all be done and we will hopefully be approved for the girls without any problems and will get a travel date to go get our precious daughters and bring them home!!!!
Of course we were reminded today, that nothing is certain (as far as the ICBF approving us for those specific girls), but by faith we are waiting for God's perfect will and the very best for those dear children, who we have already come to love, if we are the ones meant to be their parents, IT WILL HAPPEN and what a blessing that will!!!
Thank you to all of you, beloved family and friends, who have been praying, and even already dreaming with us, about our future family, which by faith, we are committed to, even while still waiting for the outcome!!!
Love always,
Sharon & Michael
_____________________________________
MONDAY, AUGUST 28, 2006 11:41 PM
Today, we had so much fun going through some albums and looking for some recent pictures of ours to put in the 3 little albums we are putting together for the girls.
This week we are also planning on taking a lot of photos of their school, local library, YMCA, our church and many of our dear friends. We want to make sure the little albums we lovingly prepare for our daughters will give them a great idea of who we are, what their lives will be like, the great places they will go to and the many wonderful family and friends they will have.
It's really wonderful how the agency not only prepares the children, but the parent also. This whole experience has made Michael and I want to become strong and outspoken advocates for "older Children " adoption and "Sibling group" adoption. There is such a huge need all over the world and so many people who have the love and the financial means to do it, if fear of the unknown wasn't a factor (which hopefully, as more people become educated about the process, it will not be an issue anymore)!!!
We pray that God will use us and our experience to open the eyes of many other families, so that more children may find a home and their forever families. Where they can grow and mature in love and safety, to become the wonderful human beings with all the potential God created them to become!!!
_____________________________________
FRIDAY, AUGUST 25, 2006 12:34 PM
Yesterday, Michael's new & re-done apostilled Birth Certificate arrived from Illinois and our friends from Brazil emailed us that they had already received mine and were processing it for me (what would I have done without them)?
We are also so encouraged, to have had the chance to meet a couple (through email) who are adopting two little girls from Colombia, from the same agency. They have already been approved and have a travel date all set. We are so excited for them and hearing their story has inspired us both BIG TIME!!!
They also introduced us to another couple's blog, who just recently returned from Colombia after adopting a little brother & sister. Because of a judges strike, they ended up having to stay in Colombia for 7 weeks, waiting for the adoption to be finalized so they could bring the children home. We have gained new strength to keep on waiting, after hearing all these experiences, knowing that in the end it will all be well worth it, when we finally have our children with us, being able to hug'em, kiss'em and bring them home, YAHOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
*** Here's a link with lots of great pictures from other families who have adopted from Colombia: http://www.childrenshopeint.org/colombiaupdate.html
______________________________________
TUESDAY, AUGUST 22, 2006 01:30 PM
Praise God, things may get complicated at times, but He is still in control!!! Our friends in Brasilia were more than willing to help us out, the documents have already been FedEXed to them and now it's just a matter of "waiting" for them to be returned to us, so we can send it to the agency to send to Colombia (so there's still a chance that the kids could come home before Christmas)! :>)
It's amazing that although it was a bump on the road, the Lord provided for the necessary office to be in a city in Brazil where we actually have good friends living. With Him as our Father, there's ALWAYS a way!!! :>)
_______________________________________
THURSDAY, AUGUST 17, 2006 06:13 PM
Today we found out from our new Case Manager that my birth certificate would not be accepted in Colombia. It was very disappointing for our original case manager never told us there was a problem, when we submitted everything in for our dossier. I had to do some research and call a few places in Brazil and our new and C. Mngr did help out quite a bit by digging up the contact information for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs office in Brasilia - the capital of Brazil, to issue me a "legalized and certified copy" of my Brazilian birth certificate. We are hoping to have some friends in Brasilia assist us in processing this in an expedited manner, once that is done, it then has to be officially translated into English and Spanish, sent to the Colombian embassy in Brazil, which in turn will send it back to us, to send to the agency, to send back to Colombia. Needless to say, we are a bit stressed and disappointed that just when we thought we were all done, this will now cause more delays.
Please keep praying for us, during this "waiting" period, which is becoming a bit hard, considering we were hoping to have the girls home by fall, but now we are lucky if they are here before Christmas!!!
The Lord is good though, ALL THE TIME and He is in control, no matter what the outcome will be!!!
_____________________________________
FRIDAY, AUGUST 11, 2006 10:32 PM
Wonderful news:
Today we finally had our fingerprint appointment for the Department of Homeland Security (former Immigration). It was at 8am, all the way downtown Detroit; we were so afraid of being late or anything going wrong (ie. traffic, construction back-ups, etc.), that we got up sooooooooo early (even before the birds & the chickens)! :>)
Praise God, that is done, now all we have to do is wait for their approval to come in the mail. It does sound simple doesn't it? but guess what? "WAITING" is the operative word here, something that we are having a hard time with. Hey, no one said this wouldn't be an experience of growth and more character building!!! :>)
Have a wonderful weekend everyone!!!
______________________________________
TUESDAY, AUGUST 08, 2006 11:05 AM
Today we received word that our Case had to be reassigned because our Case Manager no longer works for the agency. Boy oh boy, that is a real unexpected surprise and not of the "good kind", specially when I had just talked to her at length last week and she never mentioned she was leaving! We are going to remain hopeful though, that the new Case Manager is ready to take over and process everything without any delays and that we will continue to stay on track. This can be a stressful time and this news doesn't help, but the Lord knows all things and our faith and trust has to be completely in Him!!!
______________________________________
TUESDAY, AUGUST 01, 2006 06:08 PM
Hello,
Good news:
We had been told that due to backups, there was a delay in the processing time-frame for applications at our local Immigration office. However, we are thrilled that today we got the letter with the appointment date for us to go in and submit the required fingerprints. Our appointment is for 8/11 at 8am and after that is cleared through FBI, they basically have everything they need to go ahead and approve the I-600A form we submitted ("Application for advance processing of orphan petition" - it's the form we have to file prior to the one we will file at the American embassy in Colombia, which is the I-600 "Petition to classify orphan as immediate relative" - thus authorizing us to bring the girls back with us, already as US Citizens)!
Basically, what it means is that once the Immigration is done and submit the approved form back to us, it gets immediately sent to Colombia which by then will also have our dossier and then, is all a matter of waiting to get the final "Official Match" approving us for the girls, which means we can travel a month or so after that
We understand that this can still take 2-4 months, we have accepted the fact that we may not have the girls with us in the early part of fall, we also know that it really shouldn't matter, but to be honest we would absolutely REEEEEEEEEEALLY love to be able to have them home with us before Christmas!!!
Please, we ask you to pray that the people that get a hold of our applications (both here at Immigration & in Colombia for the final decision), are efficient in their use of time and don't delay or linger in their processing of documents and that they would somehow see our heart for these girls and approve us without problems!
Thank you so much for being a part of this journey!
Love,
Sharon & Michael
Saturday, July 29, 2006
ORIGINAL "CARINGBRIDGE" ENTRIES FOR JULY 2006!
SATURDAY, JULY 29, 2006 12:34 PM
We had posted this article in an earlier journal entry, but because reading about this wonderful family has become such an inspiration to us, we'll post it again for your enjoyment and remember to pray for them. Can you imagine becoming the parents of 7 children, isn't that just awesome??? :>)
http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060608/NEWS08/606080402/1010
www.caringbridge.com/visit/troyralston
______________________________________
WEDNESDAY, JULY 26, 2006 03:04 PM
Yesterday we found out from our adoption Case-Manager that the Immigration office in Detroit is pretty backed up and it is averaging 2 months to complete most adoption approvals forms. Colombia will not finalize the process & give the "Official Match" until they receive the Immigration approval. Needless to say, we were a bit disappointed for we were hoping that the entire process would actually be completed in 2 months, but this may mean it could drag to 4 months!
We were assured that we are still "on schedule", for from the beginning we were told that the whole process would take on average 6 to 8 months, but because we are sooooooooooooooo ready to bring our girls home, any delay makes it seem like we will still have to wait for eternity!!!
Please pray that the Lord will give us peace & patience during this time, WAITING is not something we are both good at! :>(
Much Love,
Sharon & Michael
____________________________________
TUESDAY, JULY 25, 2006 03:06 PM
Today is Michael's 40th birthday and he asked me not to do anything special for him. Not that he doesn't want his B-day to be celebrated, he just wants to wait to celebrate it in Colombia! By faith, he wants to wait until he receives the greatest gift he could possibly get for his big 40th and that is: "His Children!!!"
Boy oh boy, I can't wait, that will be some birthday celebration huh??? :>)
_____________________________________
THURSDAY, JULY 13, 2006 02:29 PM
Hello there,
We have some great news to share with you: yesterday, we FINALLY received the remaining documentation we were waiting for, in order to have our Dossier completely translated and FedExed to Colombia. We are sooooooooo happy this tedious part is done, for it was soooooooo demanding (medical exams, psychological evaluations, Home-Study, Police & FBI clearances, income verifications, etc., etc., etc.), as Michael often says: "if everyone who has a child had to go through everything adoptive parents have to go through in order to be approved as parents, maybe there wouldn't be so many people having kids and then not really caring for them the way they ought to be treated!"
Now, it's the hardest part of all, when all we had to do is done and it's completely out of our hands. All we can and have to do now is "wait" for the final approval from Colombia and the Immigration (which if all goes well, should only take between 2 to 4 months - the latest) and as soon as we get the word, we are expected to leave within 4 to 6 weeks to pick up the girls (yikes)!!!
To make the waiting "not so hard", we are going to keep busy by starting to prepare their rooms and have already started doing some shopping for clothes, educational stuff, etc. OK, I hope this is a good update for y'all. Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease continue to pray for this situation which we are entering completely by faith, we reeeeeeeeeeeeeally mean it when we say: "We covet all your prayers!!!"!
By the way, for all of you who have not yet signed our online journal's guestbook, please do so whenever you have a chance, for we will be printing the whole thing in book form once this process is done and it will be a keep-sake treasure for the girls. Also, during our stay in Colombia, you will be able to check for daily updates and communicate with us directly through the journal.
Much love & gratitude,
Sharon & Michael
_____________________________________
THURSDAY, JULY 06, 2006 12:00 PM
Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday weekend & week! Please continue to pray that we receive the last 2 docs we are still waiting for ASAP, so we can finally send the completed dossier to Colombia!
Although we have to be pretty flexible when going through an international adoption (for as the agency keeps reminding us "anything can happen"), please start looking at your calendars & considering/saving the possible date of November 5th, when some of our dear friends are planning to throw a shower for the girls (if by then we know we are "officially approved for the girls." They will be sending invitations in plenty of time with the exact date and more details as it gets closer!
Thank you & love to all,
Sharon & Michael
____________________________________
TUESDAY, JULY 04, 2006 01:00 AM
Happy 4th of July everyone!!!
We were enjoying some beautiful fire-works and started to think of what an awesome time we will have sharing all the wonderful "All American" experiences with our girls when they come home! Men, all the holidays will certainly be a lot more fun!!!
Hope you are all enjoying the day with loved ones!
Michael & Sharon
We had posted this article in an earlier journal entry, but because reading about this wonderful family has become such an inspiration to us, we'll post it again for your enjoyment and remember to pray for them. Can you imagine becoming the parents of 7 children, isn't that just awesome??? :>)
http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060608/NEWS08/606080402/1010
www.caringbridge.com/visit/troyralston
______________________________________
WEDNESDAY, JULY 26, 2006 03:04 PM
Yesterday we found out from our adoption Case-Manager that the Immigration office in Detroit is pretty backed up and it is averaging 2 months to complete most adoption approvals forms. Colombia will not finalize the process & give the "Official Match" until they receive the Immigration approval. Needless to say, we were a bit disappointed for we were hoping that the entire process would actually be completed in 2 months, but this may mean it could drag to 4 months!
We were assured that we are still "on schedule", for from the beginning we were told that the whole process would take on average 6 to 8 months, but because we are sooooooooooooooo ready to bring our girls home, any delay makes it seem like we will still have to wait for eternity!!!
Please pray that the Lord will give us peace & patience during this time, WAITING is not something we are both good at! :>(
Much Love,
Sharon & Michael
____________________________________
TUESDAY, JULY 25, 2006 03:06 PM
Today is Michael's 40th birthday and he asked me not to do anything special for him. Not that he doesn't want his B-day to be celebrated, he just wants to wait to celebrate it in Colombia! By faith, he wants to wait until he receives the greatest gift he could possibly get for his big 40th and that is: "His Children!!!"
Boy oh boy, I can't wait, that will be some birthday celebration huh??? :>)
_____________________________________
THURSDAY, JULY 13, 2006 02:29 PM
Hello there,
We have some great news to share with you: yesterday, we FINALLY received the remaining documentation we were waiting for, in order to have our Dossier completely translated and FedExed to Colombia. We are sooooooooo happy this tedious part is done, for it was soooooooo demanding (medical exams, psychological evaluations, Home-Study, Police & FBI clearances, income verifications, etc., etc., etc.), as Michael often says: "if everyone who has a child had to go through everything adoptive parents have to go through in order to be approved as parents, maybe there wouldn't be so many people having kids and then not really caring for them the way they ought to be treated!"
Now, it's the hardest part of all, when all we had to do is done and it's completely out of our hands. All we can and have to do now is "wait" for the final approval from Colombia and the Immigration (which if all goes well, should only take between 2 to 4 months - the latest) and as soon as we get the word, we are expected to leave within 4 to 6 weeks to pick up the girls (yikes)!!!
To make the waiting "not so hard", we are going to keep busy by starting to prepare their rooms and have already started doing some shopping for clothes, educational stuff, etc. OK, I hope this is a good update for y'all. Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease continue to pray for this situation which we are entering completely by faith, we reeeeeeeeeeeeeally mean it when we say: "We covet all your prayers!!!"!
By the way, for all of you who have not yet signed our online journal's guestbook, please do so whenever you have a chance, for we will be printing the whole thing in book form once this process is done and it will be a keep-sake treasure for the girls. Also, during our stay in Colombia, you will be able to check for daily updates and communicate with us directly through the journal.
Much love & gratitude,
Sharon & Michael
_____________________________________
THURSDAY, JULY 06, 2006 12:00 PM
Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday weekend & week! Please continue to pray that we receive the last 2 docs we are still waiting for ASAP, so we can finally send the completed dossier to Colombia!
Although we have to be pretty flexible when going through an international adoption (for as the agency keeps reminding us "anything can happen"), please start looking at your calendars & considering/saving the possible date of November 5th, when some of our dear friends are planning to throw a shower for the girls (if by then we know we are "officially approved for the girls." They will be sending invitations in plenty of time with the exact date and more details as it gets closer!
Thank you & love to all,
Sharon & Michael
____________________________________
TUESDAY, JULY 04, 2006 01:00 AM
Happy 4th of July everyone!!!
We were enjoying some beautiful fire-works and started to think of what an awesome time we will have sharing all the wonderful "All American" experiences with our girls when they come home! Men, all the holidays will certainly be a lot more fun!!!
Hope you are all enjoying the day with loved ones!
Michael & Sharon
Friday, June 30, 2006
ORIGINAL "CARINGBRIDGE" ENTRIES FOR JUNE 2006!
FRIDAY, JUNE 30, 2006 04:32 PM
Hello everyone!!!
We have been imagining and wondering what it's going to be like on the very first day we meet the children (the day we actually "get them"), so last night we found a wonderful story that just melted our hearts, it's about a couple who adopted a little boy & girls (siblings from Colombia). They share the experience of the "Day they first met their children" so beautifully & vividly, you almost feel as though you were there!
Check it out & enjoy:
http://www.childrenshope.com/Colombia_Sulhoff.htm
______________________________________
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 28, 2006 06:35 PM
Just a note to thank all of you who have "Initiated" our guestbook. Sharon & I really look forward to reading your encouraging messages and can't wait to hear from the rest of you. Don't forget to keep coming back to read our updates and leave us more messages!
____________________________________
TUESDAY, JUNE 27, 2006 02:20 PM
Hooray!!!!!!!!!
Today we finally got Michaels Birth certificate from the state of Illinois, only waiting for a couple more things and the dossier can FINALLY be sent (hopefully no more than 2 weeks)!!!
Here are a few very encouraging stories for you to enjoy:
1- A wonderful couple (we would some day love to meet) who just recently adopted a sibling group of 5 kids from Colombia, YES, 5 kids at once (and guess what? they already had 2 kids at home)! http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060608/NEWS08/606080402/1010
2- Another wonderful couple who adopted 2 little girls from Colombia: http://www.commonwealthadoptions.org/stories.php?story_num=23
3- Just like we hope to do, this other great couple adopted 3 sisters from Colombia (scroll to bottom of page to read their story: http://www.childrenshopeint.org/colombiaupdate.html
_____________________________________
THURSDAY, JUNE 22, 2006 10:43 PM
Madison, our 8 year old big Mutt hurt her left back paw while playing outside (she tore a nail); although she was in pain, she refused to have me take care of her and wouldn't let anyone touch her paw until Michael came home from work at night. Michael was just so kind and gentle, washing and cleaning her paw, taking care of her with such tenderness and watching him really made me grin with gratitude. Boy oh boy, if he is that kind to our animals, I can't wait to see how wonderful he will be as a father taking care of our little girls!
OK, enough mushiness for today!!! :>)
______________________________________
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 21, 2006 07:26 PM
Great news!!!
Today we finally got the FBI clearance fingerprint cards returned to us. We were told that after sending them in, it would only take 2 weeks to get them back, but it had been over a month since we sent them in and we had still not heard from them. We were about to start the process all over again: going to the local police, getting fingerprinted and then sending it all over again to the FBI headquarters in Washington (terrified that it would all get lost again). We prayed and asked the Lord to pleeeeeeeeeeease intervene, so this wouldn't cause the process to be delayed 1-2 months. Praise the Lord, He answered, we got the cards back, now we just have to send them in to a different office in Washington for the official Secretary of State seal and then, when we get them back (hopefully in 2-3 weeks) we can send them to Colombia!
___________________________________
SUNDAY, JUNE 18, 2006 06:38 PM
Happy Father's Day!!!
Today, by faith we went shopping for a few outfits for the girls (we say by faith because besides not having received the Official "yes" from Colombia yet, we don't even know their true sizes). As we shared with you on "Mother's Day" (when we also shopped for them, we cried when we found out that the day we meet our daughters for the very first time, they will literally come to us with just the little clothes on their bodies. It surely made us think of how much we take for granted and opened our eyes to how many times we are so ungrateful!
On a happier note though, I (Michael) got a wonderful Father's day gift from Sharon: "a complete Spanish Language course on CD's (don't you just love Costco)?" I will be working hard studying everyday on my long commute back and forth from work, so that I'll be able to communicate with our girls!
___________________________________
FRIDAY, JUNE 16, 2006 11:02 AM
Today we got a beautiful and very encouraging card from our friend Theresa. It had 3 very girly & feminine little shopping bags on the cover and it made me laugh and Michael cringe (when he thinks of the "4 of us girls" going shopping), yikes!!! :>)
Tomorrow is Father's Day and this year, Michael actually has "a spring in his step when he thinks about it"!
_____________________________________
THURSDAY, JUNE 15, 2006 11:09 AM
Hooray!!!!!!!!!
Today we received our completed Home-Study (yes, it definitely took longer than the originally promised 4 weeks), but we are thrilled to announce that we have been fully approved (at least by the State of Michigan) to adopt the girls!!!
Now we just have to receive all the remaining documentation we are waiting for, so we can send the complete Dossier (packet of all certified documents) to Colombia. Then we just wait for the "Official" match and approval from Colombia. Praise the Lord!!!
___________________________________
SUNDAY, JUNE 11, 2006 09:53 PM
This weekend we drove to St. Catherine's Canada to visit our brother Fred & his family. On Saturday night we went to their church to see a performance of the "Watoto Children's Choir from Uganda " and it was just marvelous!!!
After the concert, Fred & Marina gave hospitality to 3 of the "Watoto kids" and their chaperone, we were so blessed to be able to meet them and spend some time with them. They were 3 little orphan boys (between 9 and 10 years old) who had at one time been left to fend for themselves in the streets, after loosing both parents to the aids epidemic that has been going on in Africa. It was wonderful to experience first hand what the love of God can do, when demonstrated in a practical manner by those who care not just in words, but in action!
Please visit: www.watoto.com
_____________________________________
SATURDAY, JUNE 10, 2006 10:34 AM
Yesterday I (Sharon) had lunch with my friend Theresa and was just so incredibly touched to see the love she already feels for the girls, even though by faith we are all still waiting for the final outcome and of course she hasn't even met them yet!
She was in tears (of great joy) to know that we had decided to fully pursue the adoption and after she was done shedding her "tears of joy" and could actually speak, the first words that came out of her mouth were: "I want to give you guys a shower, I'm going to call all your friends so we can plan!"
Both Michael and I are just amazed at the love that is flowing so abundantly toward us during this time of excitement and expectation. As We said before, we are soooooooooo blessed to have such wonderful people in our lives and soon these people will also be in our children's lives, how awesome!!!
___________________________________
FRIDAY, JUNE 09, 2006 06:48 PM
Psalm 139 (NIV):
1 O LORD, you have searched me
and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
3 You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.
4 Before a word is on my tongue
you know it completely, O LORD.
5 You hem me in—behind and before;
you have laid your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.
7 Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
11 If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,"
12 even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.
13 For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
16 your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
17 How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
18 Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand.
When I awake,
I am still with you.
19 If only you would slay the wicked, O God!
Away from me, you bloodthirsty men!
20 They speak of you with evil intent;
your adversaries misuse your name.
21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O LORD,
and abhor those who rise up against you?
22 I have nothing but hatred for them;
I count them my enemies.
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.
___________________________________
FRIDAY, JUNE 09, 2006 06:46 PM
Some of you have requested an "Adoption Update" since our return from New York (when we met with the birth-mother interested in us for the adoption of her unborn baby), we hereby share our hearts with you:
As you know, we have been married for 18 years & have longed to become parents for many of those years, but not until recently did we feel ever so ready to become parents. The truth is that 2 very different but wonderful opportunities came into our lives and we seriously considered both options. There was in-depth reflection on the fact that we had never been parents before and would immediately become parents to 3 children (who are older, from a different culture, different language & any issues that may come). Also, considering a baby. Honestly, we also wanted to protect ourselves, for in the process of adoption many things can be uncertain and because we already felt very strongly about one of the options, for our own peace of mind we thought wise to reflect on the other!
Upon our return from New York we had peace about our decision, believing that it would only be right to fully disclose the options that had been made available to us, to both the birth-mother and adoption agency handling the Colombian process. We were pleasantly surprised when the birth-mother showed no strong objection, but our case manager informed us that the Colombian Government would not consider our process any further and would deny our application to adopt the sibling group, if they knew that we were even considering an infant adoption at the same time.
As you can imagine, this has probably been one of the most emotionally intense times in our lives, where we had to be 100% sure inside our hearts that we were making the right decision. A Bible verse that had been so lovingly shared with us a few weeks earlier by our brother Roddy, was just what we needed to sustain us during this time 1 Peter 5:7 - Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
We knew that we would have no difficulty falling in love with the unborn baby (which we found out would be a little girl) and pondered on the fact that prior to falling in love with the 3 little girls from Colombia, we had always longed for and dreamed of holding a newborn baby in our arms, experiencing the more natural process of development as a family that this particular option would bring, but at the same time we were so happy to have found the three little sisters from Colombia.
We knew that by saying "NO" to the baby, the birth-mother would still be able to choose from probably thousands of wonderful adoptive parents (in the US alone), who would be more than ready to jump into our place. We also knew that if we said "NO" to the sibling group adoption, God would still provide them with the right parents, but there still aren't enough families who are willing to jump at the opportunity of giving "a future and a hope" to 3 older children who have already been waiting for a family and if none would come, could quite possibly just become part of the statistics, the forgotten and throw-away generation (like so many throughout the world). We ourselves were part of the group that would have never seriously consider this option until these 3 little girls came into our lives unexpectedly, tugging at our hearts so strongly and not letting go. There was indeed much praying, introspection, weighing of pros, cons and a few tears were shed prior to making having made our final decision.
For those of you who have not been following our journal and prior decision & commitment, we rejoice in sharing with you our precious and dear ones, that we made our decision based on the peace we felt in our hearts and the love that has already began to flourish, knowing by faith that the Lord in His great loving kindness will honor our decision and supply us with all the grace and wisdom needed to become the best parents possible to what we hope will soon be "Our Chosen Three Little Colombian Daughters!!!"
In conclusion, our hope is that in the end, once all the documents are submitted and reviewed by the authorities in the Colombian government, we will indeed be approved to become the parents of these 3 precious little girls. Most importantly though, our prayer is that the Lord in His amazing love and awesome mercy would honor our decision and bless us with His grace and wisdom so that we indeed (as already mentioned) can be the best possible parents for these precious little girls, who He knew before the foundation of the world and were beautifully and fearfully made by Him.
Words can not express how grateful we are for all your love and support during this incredible journey of faith "Our Pregnancy Of The Heart!"
_____________________________________
THURSDAY, JUNE 01, 2006 10:32 AM
James 1:27 (NIV):
Religion that God our father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
Hello everyone!!!
We have been imagining and wondering what it's going to be like on the very first day we meet the children (the day we actually "get them"), so last night we found a wonderful story that just melted our hearts, it's about a couple who adopted a little boy & girls (siblings from Colombia). They share the experience of the "Day they first met their children" so beautifully & vividly, you almost feel as though you were there!
Check it out & enjoy:
http://www.childrenshope.com/Colombia_Sulhoff.htm
______________________________________
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 28, 2006 06:35 PM
Just a note to thank all of you who have "Initiated" our guestbook. Sharon & I really look forward to reading your encouraging messages and can't wait to hear from the rest of you. Don't forget to keep coming back to read our updates and leave us more messages!
____________________________________
TUESDAY, JUNE 27, 2006 02:20 PM
Hooray!!!!!!!!!
Today we finally got Michaels Birth certificate from the state of Illinois, only waiting for a couple more things and the dossier can FINALLY be sent (hopefully no more than 2 weeks)!!!
Here are a few very encouraging stories for you to enjoy:
1- A wonderful couple (we would some day love to meet) who just recently adopted a sibling group of 5 kids from Colombia, YES, 5 kids at once (and guess what? they already had 2 kids at home)! http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060608/NEWS08/606080402/1010
2- Another wonderful couple who adopted 2 little girls from Colombia: http://www.commonwealthadoptions.org/stories.php?story_num=23
3- Just like we hope to do, this other great couple adopted 3 sisters from Colombia (scroll to bottom of page to read their story: http://www.childrenshopeint.org/colombiaupdate.html
_____________________________________
THURSDAY, JUNE 22, 2006 10:43 PM
Madison, our 8 year old big Mutt hurt her left back paw while playing outside (she tore a nail); although she was in pain, she refused to have me take care of her and wouldn't let anyone touch her paw until Michael came home from work at night. Michael was just so kind and gentle, washing and cleaning her paw, taking care of her with such tenderness and watching him really made me grin with gratitude. Boy oh boy, if he is that kind to our animals, I can't wait to see how wonderful he will be as a father taking care of our little girls!
OK, enough mushiness for today!!! :>)
______________________________________
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 21, 2006 07:26 PM
Great news!!!
Today we finally got the FBI clearance fingerprint cards returned to us. We were told that after sending them in, it would only take 2 weeks to get them back, but it had been over a month since we sent them in and we had still not heard from them. We were about to start the process all over again: going to the local police, getting fingerprinted and then sending it all over again to the FBI headquarters in Washington (terrified that it would all get lost again). We prayed and asked the Lord to pleeeeeeeeeeease intervene, so this wouldn't cause the process to be delayed 1-2 months. Praise the Lord, He answered, we got the cards back, now we just have to send them in to a different office in Washington for the official Secretary of State seal and then, when we get them back (hopefully in 2-3 weeks) we can send them to Colombia!
___________________________________
SUNDAY, JUNE 18, 2006 06:38 PM
Happy Father's Day!!!
Today, by faith we went shopping for a few outfits for the girls (we say by faith because besides not having received the Official "yes" from Colombia yet, we don't even know their true sizes). As we shared with you on "Mother's Day" (when we also shopped for them, we cried when we found out that the day we meet our daughters for the very first time, they will literally come to us with just the little clothes on their bodies. It surely made us think of how much we take for granted and opened our eyes to how many times we are so ungrateful!
On a happier note though, I (Michael) got a wonderful Father's day gift from Sharon: "a complete Spanish Language course on CD's (don't you just love Costco)?" I will be working hard studying everyday on my long commute back and forth from work, so that I'll be able to communicate with our girls!
___________________________________
FRIDAY, JUNE 16, 2006 11:02 AM
Today we got a beautiful and very encouraging card from our friend Theresa. It had 3 very girly & feminine little shopping bags on the cover and it made me laugh and Michael cringe (when he thinks of the "4 of us girls" going shopping), yikes!!! :>)
Tomorrow is Father's Day and this year, Michael actually has "a spring in his step when he thinks about it"!
_____________________________________
THURSDAY, JUNE 15, 2006 11:09 AM
Hooray!!!!!!!!!
Today we received our completed Home-Study (yes, it definitely took longer than the originally promised 4 weeks), but we are thrilled to announce that we have been fully approved (at least by the State of Michigan) to adopt the girls!!!
Now we just have to receive all the remaining documentation we are waiting for, so we can send the complete Dossier (packet of all certified documents) to Colombia. Then we just wait for the "Official" match and approval from Colombia. Praise the Lord!!!
___________________________________
SUNDAY, JUNE 11, 2006 09:53 PM
This weekend we drove to St. Catherine's Canada to visit our brother Fred & his family. On Saturday night we went to their church to see a performance of the "Watoto Children's Choir from Uganda " and it was just marvelous!!!
After the concert, Fred & Marina gave hospitality to 3 of the "Watoto kids" and their chaperone, we were so blessed to be able to meet them and spend some time with them. They were 3 little orphan boys (between 9 and 10 years old) who had at one time been left to fend for themselves in the streets, after loosing both parents to the aids epidemic that has been going on in Africa. It was wonderful to experience first hand what the love of God can do, when demonstrated in a practical manner by those who care not just in words, but in action!
Please visit: www.watoto.com
_____________________________________
SATURDAY, JUNE 10, 2006 10:34 AM
Yesterday I (Sharon) had lunch with my friend Theresa and was just so incredibly touched to see the love she already feels for the girls, even though by faith we are all still waiting for the final outcome and of course she hasn't even met them yet!
She was in tears (of great joy) to know that we had decided to fully pursue the adoption and after she was done shedding her "tears of joy" and could actually speak, the first words that came out of her mouth were: "I want to give you guys a shower, I'm going to call all your friends so we can plan!"
Both Michael and I are just amazed at the love that is flowing so abundantly toward us during this time of excitement and expectation. As We said before, we are soooooooooo blessed to have such wonderful people in our lives and soon these people will also be in our children's lives, how awesome!!!
___________________________________
FRIDAY, JUNE 09, 2006 06:48 PM
Psalm 139 (NIV):
1 O LORD, you have searched me
and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
3 You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.
4 Before a word is on my tongue
you know it completely, O LORD.
5 You hem me in—behind and before;
you have laid your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.
7 Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
11 If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,"
12 even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.
13 For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
16 your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
17 How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
18 Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand.
When I awake,
I am still with you.
19 If only you would slay the wicked, O God!
Away from me, you bloodthirsty men!
20 They speak of you with evil intent;
your adversaries misuse your name.
21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O LORD,
and abhor those who rise up against you?
22 I have nothing but hatred for them;
I count them my enemies.
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.
___________________________________
FRIDAY, JUNE 09, 2006 06:46 PM
Some of you have requested an "Adoption Update" since our return from New York (when we met with the birth-mother interested in us for the adoption of her unborn baby), we hereby share our hearts with you:
As you know, we have been married for 18 years & have longed to become parents for many of those years, but not until recently did we feel ever so ready to become parents. The truth is that 2 very different but wonderful opportunities came into our lives and we seriously considered both options. There was in-depth reflection on the fact that we had never been parents before and would immediately become parents to 3 children (who are older, from a different culture, different language & any issues that may come). Also, considering a baby. Honestly, we also wanted to protect ourselves, for in the process of adoption many things can be uncertain and because we already felt very strongly about one of the options, for our own peace of mind we thought wise to reflect on the other!
Upon our return from New York we had peace about our decision, believing that it would only be right to fully disclose the options that had been made available to us, to both the birth-mother and adoption agency handling the Colombian process. We were pleasantly surprised when the birth-mother showed no strong objection, but our case manager informed us that the Colombian Government would not consider our process any further and would deny our application to adopt the sibling group, if they knew that we were even considering an infant adoption at the same time.
As you can imagine, this has probably been one of the most emotionally intense times in our lives, where we had to be 100% sure inside our hearts that we were making the right decision. A Bible verse that had been so lovingly shared with us a few weeks earlier by our brother Roddy, was just what we needed to sustain us during this time 1 Peter 5:7 - Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
We knew that we would have no difficulty falling in love with the unborn baby (which we found out would be a little girl) and pondered on the fact that prior to falling in love with the 3 little girls from Colombia, we had always longed for and dreamed of holding a newborn baby in our arms, experiencing the more natural process of development as a family that this particular option would bring, but at the same time we were so happy to have found the three little sisters from Colombia.
We knew that by saying "NO" to the baby, the birth-mother would still be able to choose from probably thousands of wonderful adoptive parents (in the US alone), who would be more than ready to jump into our place. We also knew that if we said "NO" to the sibling group adoption, God would still provide them with the right parents, but there still aren't enough families who are willing to jump at the opportunity of giving "a future and a hope" to 3 older children who have already been waiting for a family and if none would come, could quite possibly just become part of the statistics, the forgotten and throw-away generation (like so many throughout the world). We ourselves were part of the group that would have never seriously consider this option until these 3 little girls came into our lives unexpectedly, tugging at our hearts so strongly and not letting go. There was indeed much praying, introspection, weighing of pros, cons and a few tears were shed prior to making having made our final decision.
For those of you who have not been following our journal and prior decision & commitment, we rejoice in sharing with you our precious and dear ones, that we made our decision based on the peace we felt in our hearts and the love that has already began to flourish, knowing by faith that the Lord in His great loving kindness will honor our decision and supply us with all the grace and wisdom needed to become the best parents possible to what we hope will soon be "Our Chosen Three Little Colombian Daughters!!!"
In conclusion, our hope is that in the end, once all the documents are submitted and reviewed by the authorities in the Colombian government, we will indeed be approved to become the parents of these 3 precious little girls. Most importantly though, our prayer is that the Lord in His amazing love and awesome mercy would honor our decision and bless us with His grace and wisdom so that we indeed (as already mentioned) can be the best possible parents for these precious little girls, who He knew before the foundation of the world and were beautifully and fearfully made by Him.
Words can not express how grateful we are for all your love and support during this incredible journey of faith "Our Pregnancy Of The Heart!"
_____________________________________
THURSDAY, JUNE 01, 2006 10:32 AM
James 1:27 (NIV):
Religion that God our father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
Friday, May 26, 2006
ORIGINAL "CARINGBRIDGE" ENTRIES FOR MAY 2006!
FRIDAY, MAY 26, 2006 09:00 PM
Tomorrow morning we leave for New York, where we will meet with the birth-mother who is interested in us for the possibility of adopting her unborn baby. We have been praying for wisdom and guidance about our meeting with her, but being human we must confess that we are feeling a bit overwhelmed and nervous (good reasons to turn to the Lord in prayer even more). The reason being that we already made a decision and committed to adopt our 3 little girls from Colombia (and we have no doubt), but feel it's only wise to go ahead and meet this birth-mother, so that years down the road we will never have any regrets!!!
We will definitely update y'all on the outcome of the meeting upon our return!
__________________________________
SUNDAY, MAY 21, 2006 07:14 PM
Hello!
"In all things give thanks right"?
Yesterday, as we were working hard cleaning and preparing the house from top to bottom for our "home inspection" meeting with the Home-Study Social-Worker today, we couldn't figure out why we couldn't flush the toilets, later to find out that our septic system was completely backed up (hey give us a break, now that we're country bumpkins, it's still taking us a while to get used to a septic system & well-water). We had to call a bunch of places to get someone to come out and clean it before the meeting and then we ended up also having to call a plumber to clean out and flush the pipes, perfect timing huh??? Thankfully, it all worked out and got accomplished exactly 2 hours before the Social-Worker came over (and she never even used the bathroom after all but hey, at least our home passed the inspection)! :>)
__________________________________
FRIDAY, MAY 19, 2006 09:43 PM
Today we had our "Psychological Evaluation" with the PHD, It was pretty intense questioning and then a "personality assessment" test. Boy oh boy, if everyone who has kids had to go through all the requirements that we are having to go through in order to adopt these kids, maybe the world would be a different place huh?
We do appreciate the preparation though, it's making us finally "grow up" pretty fast (we hope)! :>)
__________________________________
SUNDAY, MAY 14, 2006 05:28 PM
Happy Mother's Day!!!
I (Sharon) must confess that this holiday had started to become a hard one for me in the past few years, but today Michael and I had so much fun celebrating my future "Motherhood" by going shopping for a few outfits for the girls. We were informed that when we first meet them, they will come to us with absolutely nothing else but the clothes on their little bodies. We both cried when we found this out, it just showed us that no matter what we think we have or don't have, we really just take so much for granted!
We thought of the song: "Just as I am without one plea", yes, He cares for the birds in the skies and the lilies in the field, how much more for those little ones"!!! We also read an awesome article today featured on the cover of The Oakland Press newspaper (about a family that went from zero to 5 children): http://www.theoaklandpress.com/stories/051406/loc_2006051402.shtml
Tomorrow morning we leave for New York, where we will meet with the birth-mother who is interested in us for the possibility of adopting her unborn baby. We have been praying for wisdom and guidance about our meeting with her, but being human we must confess that we are feeling a bit overwhelmed and nervous (good reasons to turn to the Lord in prayer even more). The reason being that we already made a decision and committed to adopt our 3 little girls from Colombia (and we have no doubt), but feel it's only wise to go ahead and meet this birth-mother, so that years down the road we will never have any regrets!!!
We will definitely update y'all on the outcome of the meeting upon our return!
__________________________________
SUNDAY, MAY 21, 2006 07:14 PM
Hello!
"In all things give thanks right"?
Yesterday, as we were working hard cleaning and preparing the house from top to bottom for our "home inspection" meeting with the Home-Study Social-Worker today, we couldn't figure out why we couldn't flush the toilets, later to find out that our septic system was completely backed up (hey give us a break, now that we're country bumpkins, it's still taking us a while to get used to a septic system & well-water). We had to call a bunch of places to get someone to come out and clean it before the meeting and then we ended up also having to call a plumber to clean out and flush the pipes, perfect timing huh??? Thankfully, it all worked out and got accomplished exactly 2 hours before the Social-Worker came over (and she never even used the bathroom after all but hey, at least our home passed the inspection)! :>)
__________________________________
FRIDAY, MAY 19, 2006 09:43 PM
Today we had our "Psychological Evaluation" with the PHD, It was pretty intense questioning and then a "personality assessment" test. Boy oh boy, if everyone who has kids had to go through all the requirements that we are having to go through in order to adopt these kids, maybe the world would be a different place huh?
We do appreciate the preparation though, it's making us finally "grow up" pretty fast (we hope)! :>)
__________________________________
SUNDAY, MAY 14, 2006 05:28 PM
Happy Mother's Day!!!
I (Sharon) must confess that this holiday had started to become a hard one for me in the past few years, but today Michael and I had so much fun celebrating my future "Motherhood" by going shopping for a few outfits for the girls. We were informed that when we first meet them, they will come to us with absolutely nothing else but the clothes on their little bodies. We both cried when we found this out, it just showed us that no matter what we think we have or don't have, we really just take so much for granted!
We thought of the song: "Just as I am without one plea", yes, He cares for the birds in the skies and the lilies in the field, how much more for those little ones"!!! We also read an awesome article today featured on the cover of The Oakland Press newspaper (about a family that went from zero to 5 children): http://www.theoaklandpress.com/stories/051406/loc_2006051402.shtml
Saturday, April 29, 2006
ORIGINAL "CARINGBRIDGE" ENTRIES FOR APRIL 2006!
SATURDAY, APRIL 29, 2006 03:05 PM
Today marks the 1 month anniversary since we made the decision to pursue the adoption and gave the agency our official OK to start the process. We have an incredible amount of documentation paperwork to complete, it can be a bit scary and overwhelming but as our friend Theresa keeps telling us: "just look at it one step at a time, it will all come together and it will all work out in the end!"
_____________________________________
TUESDAY, APRIL 25, 2006 09:54 PM
Today we went to our family doctor for a complete physical (a requirement for the adoption). We hadn't seen our wonderful doctor in quite some time and he was absolutely thrilled for us about the adoption and even started to practice some of the little Spanish he knows with us, it was just so encouraging. Everything was good with our health (other than of course, both of us needing to lose some weight)! :>)
_______________________________________
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 19, 2006 08:21 PM
Now it's more than official, today we had our first "Home-Study" meeting with the Social worker. When we first got there we were both quite nervous for we didn't know what to expect, but the 2 1/2 hour meeting went so smoothly and it was much better than we expected!
____________________________________
SUNDAY, APRIL 09, 2006 09:31 PM
Today we went to a wonderful get-together at the lovely home of our friends Ana Laura & Landy. They are probably one of the most hospitable couples we know, always opening their home for friends and family, making us all feel so at home and ALWAYS having the most delicious meals!
We were soooooooooooo touched that everyone there wanted to hear about our decision to adopt the girls (we probably talked everyone's ears off, we just get too excited about it) and right away some of them were fighting for the few pictures we had taken to share. Needless to say, we didn't have enough pictures for all who wanted, this just shows us that the kids will have many aunts & uncles to spoil them rotten! :>)
We are so blessed to have such awesome people in our lives!!!
____________________________________
SUNDAY, APRIL 02, 2006 10:00 PM
Today, while driving home from the morning service at Northridge Church, we started talking about all the doubts and fears that creep into our minds regarding all the unknows about these adoption options (which we were told by other adopting couples, is a natural thing once you've made the commitment). We kept asking each other the question: "How does one really know if they are doing the Lord's will, etc., etc., etc.", then instead of going on fretting we decided to hold hands and pray, pray and pray some more and actually asked the Lord to make things even more clear for us and just give peace in our hearts. Then, before going home we decided to stop at Walmart to get some dog food, so as soon as we got into the store we went to the kids department and there was a big hanging sign above the kids clothes department with a beautiful little Hispanic girl and in huge letters above it was the word: Catalina (which just happens to be the 9 year olds 2nd name)! We had goose-bumps, but just shook them off saying that we aren't going to be silly and call that "a sign", so we went in the back and I saw a little stuffed animal that we ended up buying for Sophia (the little daughter of our friend Theresa) and after we took it home and were taking the tag off to gift-wrap it, we found that there was only one word on the tag and that was the word: "Commonwealth" (which just happens to be the name of the agency handling the adoption). So we said OK Lord we're stubborn, but maybe you are trying to tell us something here!!!
Of course we went ahead and bought a couple of little outfits for the girls (by faith)! :>)
Today marks the 1 month anniversary since we made the decision to pursue the adoption and gave the agency our official OK to start the process. We have an incredible amount of documentation paperwork to complete, it can be a bit scary and overwhelming but as our friend Theresa keeps telling us: "just look at it one step at a time, it will all come together and it will all work out in the end!"
_____________________________________
TUESDAY, APRIL 25, 2006 09:54 PM
Today we went to our family doctor for a complete physical (a requirement for the adoption). We hadn't seen our wonderful doctor in quite some time and he was absolutely thrilled for us about the adoption and even started to practice some of the little Spanish he knows with us, it was just so encouraging. Everything was good with our health (other than of course, both of us needing to lose some weight)! :>)
_______________________________________
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 19, 2006 08:21 PM
Now it's more than official, today we had our first "Home-Study" meeting with the Social worker. When we first got there we were both quite nervous for we didn't know what to expect, but the 2 1/2 hour meeting went so smoothly and it was much better than we expected!
____________________________________
SUNDAY, APRIL 09, 2006 09:31 PM
Today we went to a wonderful get-together at the lovely home of our friends Ana Laura & Landy. They are probably one of the most hospitable couples we know, always opening their home for friends and family, making us all feel so at home and ALWAYS having the most delicious meals!
We were soooooooooooo touched that everyone there wanted to hear about our decision to adopt the girls (we probably talked everyone's ears off, we just get too excited about it) and right away some of them were fighting for the few pictures we had taken to share. Needless to say, we didn't have enough pictures for all who wanted, this just shows us that the kids will have many aunts & uncles to spoil them rotten! :>)
We are so blessed to have such awesome people in our lives!!!
____________________________________
SUNDAY, APRIL 02, 2006 10:00 PM
Today, while driving home from the morning service at Northridge Church, we started talking about all the doubts and fears that creep into our minds regarding all the unknows about these adoption options (which we were told by other adopting couples, is a natural thing once you've made the commitment). We kept asking each other the question: "How does one really know if they are doing the Lord's will, etc., etc., etc.", then instead of going on fretting we decided to hold hands and pray, pray and pray some more and actually asked the Lord to make things even more clear for us and just give peace in our hearts. Then, before going home we decided to stop at Walmart to get some dog food, so as soon as we got into the store we went to the kids department and there was a big hanging sign above the kids clothes department with a beautiful little Hispanic girl and in huge letters above it was the word: Catalina (which just happens to be the 9 year olds 2nd name)! We had goose-bumps, but just shook them off saying that we aren't going to be silly and call that "a sign", so we went in the back and I saw a little stuffed animal that we ended up buying for Sophia (the little daughter of our friend Theresa) and after we took it home and were taking the tag off to gift-wrap it, we found that there was only one word on the tag and that was the word: "Commonwealth" (which just happens to be the name of the agency handling the adoption). So we said OK Lord we're stubborn, but maybe you are trying to tell us something here!!!
Of course we went ahead and bought a couple of little outfits for the girls (by faith)! :>)
Wednesday, March 29, 2006
ORIGINAL "CARINGBRIDGE" ENTRIES FROM MARCH 2006!
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 29, 2006 06:50 PM
Dear Friends,
After much consideration and prayers, it is with great joy that we come to share with you our loved ones, that we have made the decision to pursue the adoption of the 3 little girls (sisters) from Colombia!
We are overwhelmed with the love the Lord has already put in our hearts towards them and know with peace that if indeed this is what the Lord has in His will for us, but most importantly for the little girls, it will certainly come to pass!
By faith, we have given our Official go ahead for the agency to start the process, we've also officially submitted our letter of intent regarding the 3 specific girls to the Colombian Government (which will be attached to the lawyers letter, who is the representative of the Colombian adoption program for the agency). We're getting the Home Study packet "over-nighted" to us, and will be starting the work with the social-worker early next week. In the meantime, we need to get our criminal & medical checks started. We have received all the forms from the immigration, to be completed by us and submitted once the Home Study is completed (approximately 4 to 6 weeks).
We were told that the process can take as long as a year, but on average it has been 6 to 8 months for waiting older children, there is a couple from Northern Michigan however, who found their kids in a waiting list last November (right after Thanksgiving) and already left for Colombia this week to pick up their 3 children. The process may also be overwhelming, there will be lot's and lot's of paper-work and requirements (including bonding/attachment training and parenting classes) and we are never guaranteed until the final review of our documentation in Colombia, whether the girls will be released for adoption to us by the Colombian government. Currently, there are 2 other families who have shown interest in the girls (1 from Germany already has a completed Home Study). However, we are not going to fret and more than ever we have no other choice, than the best choice which is to be 1000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000% dependent on the Lord for the entire outcome!
As you all know, we had never seriously considered adopting older kids, let alone a sibling group and had not considered Colombia. We had thought that when the time came when we felt ready, we would pursue an infant adoption. Well, "the Lord can always dream a bigger dream for us than we can dream for ourselves" and He brought those 3 little sisters into our hearts in a "big way" just 3 days prior to us hearing the news that there was a birth mother who wanted to get more info about us and discuss the possible adoption of her unborn baby. After much prayer for the Lord to clearly show us whether we should pursue one, the other, both or none, the desire in our heart grew even clearer and deeper toward the 3 girls, so we are pursuing this calling. We have left the whole situation fully in the Lords hands and pray for the Lord to guide every step in wisdom!
Needles to say, we covet all your prayers more than ever and promise to keep you updated on every step of this adventurous journey of love we have decided to embark on!!!!
Much Love and deep appreciation for your friendship,
Sharon & Michael
_____________________________________
TUESDAY, MARCH 28, 2006 10:14 AM
Oh, just something very interesting to share with you:
Today we went to look at the original listing of the girls on the website where we first found them posted on a "Waiting list" (that interestingly enough had first posted their info on 2/7/06 - Sharon's birthday) and we just couldn't find them. So we called the agency to find out why all the listings from Colombia had been removed and were told that the Colombian government decided that they will re-do the way they list waiting kids and that their new way will not show any pictures or give too much detail info (for the kids safety and protection).
We were once again in awe of the Lord's goodness, do you realize that if we hadn't found the girls on the website on the weekend of 3/11, we probably would have never, ever seen them or known about their existence (now that their pictures and information have been removed)???
God's timing is just so awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
____________________________________
SUNDAY, MARCH 26, 2006 10:36 AM
Today we found out that the "birth mother" who is considering adoption for her unborn baby, finally read the profile we sent her on 3/15, now all we have to do is wait for her to make contact with us if she's interested in getting more information. We are doing this to have 100% peace of mind that we thoroughly checked all possibilities (for we believe it is the wise thing to do). However, we must say that we are really feeling our hearts opening up for the 3 little Colombian sisters as though they were meant to be our children all along!!!
______________________________________
THURSDAY, MARCH 23, 2006 10:59 PM
Tonight we spoke on the phone with "Raul" the lawyer from Tampa Florida who is in charge of the Colombian adoption program for the agency. He is a sort of a "celebrity" in the adoption world, for he is often interviewed and featured in the Discovery Channel's "Adoption Stories" program. He is so knowledgeable and proud of his country and beautiful culture and although very well known and highly regarded, he was one of the most humble and nicest persons. Talking with us from his home (after business hours) for over an hour on the phone. He answered all of our 1000 questions with patience and kindness and also gave us a ton of new info that we definitely found very helpful, now we are much closer to making a decision!
_______________________________________
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 22, 2006 11:53 PM
We are so grateful to our wonderful friend Ivani, who after working and going to school all day, spent a lot of time with us tonight, translating some of the documents we had received about the girls (the few things we were having a hard time understanding). We also loved and will always cherish the time at the end of our meeting, where the 3 of us held hands and prayed for those precious little girls, no matter what the outcome will be. We asked the Lord to surely give them "a future and a hope" and the best possible parents, no matter who He in His awesome wisdom chooses them to be!!!
_____________________________________
TUESDAY, MARCH 21, 2006 05:35 PM
Today I called our good friend Kely in Florida to share with her that we were seriously considering to pursue the adoption of the 3 little girls, boy oh boy, she was soooooooooooooooo thrilled and of course tears were flowing all over the place (from what I could hear on the phone)! :>)
The first thing she said was: email me some pictures right away, which I did and now her whole family is praying for the girls. Thanks Kelita, you rock!!!
____________________________________
FRIDAY, MARCH 17, 2006 09:31 PM
Yesterday we were feeling a little disappointed that it had been a few days already since we requested info by email and phone about the 3 little girls from Colombia, but still hadn't received anything. So late afternoon, when it was getting dark I (Sharon) went to turn the front porch lights on and for some reason decided to open the door to look outside and there it was, a thick FedEX envelope sitting on the doormat, just waiting for us! Of course I couldn't run back into the house fast enough, to tare open the envelope and read the contents. After opening the package, I had to put the little bit of Spanish I know to good use, for we were blessed to receive all the original documentation and history for the girls (something that usually only happens after the process has been started and the family has already been matched and approved for the specific children), God is just way too good, allowing and letting us know (before we even commit), some very important things about the girls which will help us decide with a clear mind and peace! Needless to say, both of us stayed up until the wee hours of the morning reading and discussing the documents. After Michael went to bed (around 2am), I stayed up until 4am reading the rest of the papers that I still needed translation for.
All we can and will say is that these precious little girls have gone through a lot, but instead of feeling scared, or wondering about the "what if's"??? We are now feeling even more love for them. God can make all things new and whole, they are little vessels that the Potter can definitely fix the broken pieces and make them into magnificent vases, fit for the Master's use!!! Isn't it just wonderful to know the Lord and have hope in Him???
_____________________________________
TUESDAY, MARCH 14, 2006 10:44 PM
Today we told our Mom (Luiza), our brother (Fred), his wife (Marina) and our nephew and niece (Liam & Kezia) about the adoption considerations and possibilities we have ahead of us. My goodness, were they ever thrilled for us!!!
It is just soooooooooooo wonderful to have such love and support and to know that whatever decision we make, our future children will be welcomed into our family with many open and very loving arms. We are blessed indeed!!!
_____________________________________
TUESDAY, MARCH 14, 2006 09:30 PM
Very interesting how things happen in life huh???
Today, while we are anxiously waiting to receive info about the 3 little girls from Colombia, we get a phone call from someone we know, stating that she has a friend that has a friend who is pregnant and because she is already a single mom with no financial means and does not believe in abortion (Praise God), she is seriously considering an adoption plan for her unborn baby.
Boy oh boy, we had always dreamt of having a "New born baby" and in the almost 18 years we've been married and networking for many of those, we never had an opportunity like this knock at our door. We had never seriously considered an "Older sibling group," but that was, until we met these 3 little sisters from Colombia (Who we are still waiting to get info on, but are already falling in love with). We will also try contacting this birth-mother to get more info, but must say we are a bit overwhelmed at how it has all come into our lives at the same time and questioning what we should do, but we have a solution and that is: "to turn to the Lord in prayer, seeking His guidance and wisdom and once again, learn to fully put our trust in Him for the outcome!!!"
____________________________________
MONDAY, MARCH 13, 2006 09:11 AM
Even though we emailed the agency yesterday, we couldn't wait for an answer or details, so we called them today and a really nice lady named Marilyn called us, she will request that a bunch of info about the girls be mailed to us right away. We absolutely can't wait!!!
____________________________________
SUNDAY, MARCH 12, 2006 09:03 AM
Yesterday I received an email from Michael and it stated: "Don't say anything, just look at these pictures, read the story and pray about it, then we'll talk."
They were pictures of 3 little sisters from Colombia (ages 5, 7 & 9), who were on a "Waiting list" to be adopted. I had never seriously considered adoption of "Older kids" let alone a sibling group of 3, but there's something about these girls eyes, that just keep tugging at our hearts and not letting go (we can't stop thinking about them). So we emailed the agency to get more in depth info about the girls!
Dear Friends,
After much consideration and prayers, it is with great joy that we come to share with you our loved ones, that we have made the decision to pursue the adoption of the 3 little girls (sisters) from Colombia!
We are overwhelmed with the love the Lord has already put in our hearts towards them and know with peace that if indeed this is what the Lord has in His will for us, but most importantly for the little girls, it will certainly come to pass!
By faith, we have given our Official go ahead for the agency to start the process, we've also officially submitted our letter of intent regarding the 3 specific girls to the Colombian Government (which will be attached to the lawyers letter, who is the representative of the Colombian adoption program for the agency). We're getting the Home Study packet "over-nighted" to us, and will be starting the work with the social-worker early next week. In the meantime, we need to get our criminal & medical checks started. We have received all the forms from the immigration, to be completed by us and submitted once the Home Study is completed (approximately 4 to 6 weeks).
We were told that the process can take as long as a year, but on average it has been 6 to 8 months for waiting older children, there is a couple from Northern Michigan however, who found their kids in a waiting list last November (right after Thanksgiving) and already left for Colombia this week to pick up their 3 children. The process may also be overwhelming, there will be lot's and lot's of paper-work and requirements (including bonding/attachment training and parenting classes) and we are never guaranteed until the final review of our documentation in Colombia, whether the girls will be released for adoption to us by the Colombian government. Currently, there are 2 other families who have shown interest in the girls (1 from Germany already has a completed Home Study). However, we are not going to fret and more than ever we have no other choice, than the best choice which is to be 1000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000% dependent on the Lord for the entire outcome!
As you all know, we had never seriously considered adopting older kids, let alone a sibling group and had not considered Colombia. We had thought that when the time came when we felt ready, we would pursue an infant adoption. Well, "the Lord can always dream a bigger dream for us than we can dream for ourselves" and He brought those 3 little sisters into our hearts in a "big way" just 3 days prior to us hearing the news that there was a birth mother who wanted to get more info about us and discuss the possible adoption of her unborn baby. After much prayer for the Lord to clearly show us whether we should pursue one, the other, both or none, the desire in our heart grew even clearer and deeper toward the 3 girls, so we are pursuing this calling. We have left the whole situation fully in the Lords hands and pray for the Lord to guide every step in wisdom!
Needles to say, we covet all your prayers more than ever and promise to keep you updated on every step of this adventurous journey of love we have decided to embark on!!!!
Much Love and deep appreciation for your friendship,
Sharon & Michael
_____________________________________
TUESDAY, MARCH 28, 2006 10:14 AM
Oh, just something very interesting to share with you:
Today we went to look at the original listing of the girls on the website where we first found them posted on a "Waiting list" (that interestingly enough had first posted their info on 2/7/06 - Sharon's birthday) and we just couldn't find them. So we called the agency to find out why all the listings from Colombia had been removed and were told that the Colombian government decided that they will re-do the way they list waiting kids and that their new way will not show any pictures or give too much detail info (for the kids safety and protection).
We were once again in awe of the Lord's goodness, do you realize that if we hadn't found the girls on the website on the weekend of 3/11, we probably would have never, ever seen them or known about their existence (now that their pictures and information have been removed)???
God's timing is just so awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
____________________________________
SUNDAY, MARCH 26, 2006 10:36 AM
Today we found out that the "birth mother" who is considering adoption for her unborn baby, finally read the profile we sent her on 3/15, now all we have to do is wait for her to make contact with us if she's interested in getting more information. We are doing this to have 100% peace of mind that we thoroughly checked all possibilities (for we believe it is the wise thing to do). However, we must say that we are really feeling our hearts opening up for the 3 little Colombian sisters as though they were meant to be our children all along!!!
______________________________________
THURSDAY, MARCH 23, 2006 10:59 PM
Tonight we spoke on the phone with "Raul" the lawyer from Tampa Florida who is in charge of the Colombian adoption program for the agency. He is a sort of a "celebrity" in the adoption world, for he is often interviewed and featured in the Discovery Channel's "Adoption Stories" program. He is so knowledgeable and proud of his country and beautiful culture and although very well known and highly regarded, he was one of the most humble and nicest persons. Talking with us from his home (after business hours) for over an hour on the phone. He answered all of our 1000 questions with patience and kindness and also gave us a ton of new info that we definitely found very helpful, now we are much closer to making a decision!
_______________________________________
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 22, 2006 11:53 PM
We are so grateful to our wonderful friend Ivani, who after working and going to school all day, spent a lot of time with us tonight, translating some of the documents we had received about the girls (the few things we were having a hard time understanding). We also loved and will always cherish the time at the end of our meeting, where the 3 of us held hands and prayed for those precious little girls, no matter what the outcome will be. We asked the Lord to surely give them "a future and a hope" and the best possible parents, no matter who He in His awesome wisdom chooses them to be!!!
_____________________________________
TUESDAY, MARCH 21, 2006 05:35 PM
Today I called our good friend Kely in Florida to share with her that we were seriously considering to pursue the adoption of the 3 little girls, boy oh boy, she was soooooooooooooooo thrilled and of course tears were flowing all over the place (from what I could hear on the phone)! :>)
The first thing she said was: email me some pictures right away, which I did and now her whole family is praying for the girls. Thanks Kelita, you rock!!!
____________________________________
FRIDAY, MARCH 17, 2006 09:31 PM
Yesterday we were feeling a little disappointed that it had been a few days already since we requested info by email and phone about the 3 little girls from Colombia, but still hadn't received anything. So late afternoon, when it was getting dark I (Sharon) went to turn the front porch lights on and for some reason decided to open the door to look outside and there it was, a thick FedEX envelope sitting on the doormat, just waiting for us! Of course I couldn't run back into the house fast enough, to tare open the envelope and read the contents. After opening the package, I had to put the little bit of Spanish I know to good use, for we were blessed to receive all the original documentation and history for the girls (something that usually only happens after the process has been started and the family has already been matched and approved for the specific children), God is just way too good, allowing and letting us know (before we even commit), some very important things about the girls which will help us decide with a clear mind and peace! Needless to say, both of us stayed up until the wee hours of the morning reading and discussing the documents. After Michael went to bed (around 2am), I stayed up until 4am reading the rest of the papers that I still needed translation for.
All we can and will say is that these precious little girls have gone through a lot, but instead of feeling scared, or wondering about the "what if's"??? We are now feeling even more love for them. God can make all things new and whole, they are little vessels that the Potter can definitely fix the broken pieces and make them into magnificent vases, fit for the Master's use!!! Isn't it just wonderful to know the Lord and have hope in Him???
_____________________________________
TUESDAY, MARCH 14, 2006 10:44 PM
Today we told our Mom (Luiza), our brother (Fred), his wife (Marina) and our nephew and niece (Liam & Kezia) about the adoption considerations and possibilities we have ahead of us. My goodness, were they ever thrilled for us!!!
It is just soooooooooooo wonderful to have such love and support and to know that whatever decision we make, our future children will be welcomed into our family with many open and very loving arms. We are blessed indeed!!!
_____________________________________
TUESDAY, MARCH 14, 2006 09:30 PM
Very interesting how things happen in life huh???
Today, while we are anxiously waiting to receive info about the 3 little girls from Colombia, we get a phone call from someone we know, stating that she has a friend that has a friend who is pregnant and because she is already a single mom with no financial means and does not believe in abortion (Praise God), she is seriously considering an adoption plan for her unborn baby.
Boy oh boy, we had always dreamt of having a "New born baby" and in the almost 18 years we've been married and networking for many of those, we never had an opportunity like this knock at our door. We had never seriously considered an "Older sibling group," but that was, until we met these 3 little sisters from Colombia (Who we are still waiting to get info on, but are already falling in love with). We will also try contacting this birth-mother to get more info, but must say we are a bit overwhelmed at how it has all come into our lives at the same time and questioning what we should do, but we have a solution and that is: "to turn to the Lord in prayer, seeking His guidance and wisdom and once again, learn to fully put our trust in Him for the outcome!!!"
____________________________________
MONDAY, MARCH 13, 2006 09:11 AM
Even though we emailed the agency yesterday, we couldn't wait for an answer or details, so we called them today and a really nice lady named Marilyn called us, she will request that a bunch of info about the girls be mailed to us right away. We absolutely can't wait!!!
____________________________________
SUNDAY, MARCH 12, 2006 09:03 AM
Yesterday I received an email from Michael and it stated: "Don't say anything, just look at these pictures, read the story and pray about it, then we'll talk."
They were pictures of 3 little sisters from Colombia (ages 5, 7 & 9), who were on a "Waiting list" to be adopted. I had never seriously considered adoption of "Older kids" let alone a sibling group of 3, but there's something about these girls eyes, that just keep tugging at our hearts and not letting go (we can't stop thinking about them). So we emailed the agency to get more in depth info about the girls!
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