A Great Update!

When Kayla and I first discussed starting a blog I said that we needed to be diligent and update the blog once every 7-14 days. While that was certainly a great goal I failed to take something into account … life.

It has been over a month since we have last updated the blog and that is partially because there was not much to report and partially because things were very busy and extra time was minimum.

There are however some very  big things to announce and update everyone on! I am going to start “small” and work up to a “big” announcement!

Envelope Fundraiser 

Kayla’s last update (and numerous social media posts from both of us) announced our biggest (and possible last!) fundraising event. If you have not heard about our Envelope Fundraiser I really suggest you go back and read the previous blog entry.

So many of you have been awesome about selecting envelopes, including some of the larger envelopes. Thank you! If you selected an envelope and have received it, please feel free to send it (and the note!) back at any time.

If you have not yet selected an envelope, it is not too late! We have all ranges of money left (no amount is too small, I promise!) and would love to answer any questions you might have. So many of our non-Tennessee friends and family have asked how they can help financially support our adoption … this is the perfect fundraiser to do so!

Adoption Training/Conference 

On Friday, March 13 Kayla and I attended a meeting at the Bethany Christian Services offices here in Knoxville. They were hosting a full day training event/conference. This event/training is required by the State of Tennessee to be eligible to adopt. While I was not at all dreading this meeting it was taking place during a very busy weekend and the timing did not seem ideal. As is usually the case, I was wrong. The event was not only extremely informative but was also very refreshing.

During the morning (9-12:30ish) we were able to hear from a panel of people whose lives have been changed by adoption. This included two birth mothers who placed children for adoption through Bethany, a husband and wife who adopted through Bethany, a teenage girl who had been adopted through Bethany as an infant and her mother who was also adopted (the mother during the ‘dark ages’ of adoption).

It was not only informative to hear from those people but it was very enlightening. The birth mothers helped crash down stereotypes that tend to be associated with them, the adoptive families helped shed some light on the adoption journey, and the now teenage adoptive child showed the long term road of adoption.

However, perhaps even better than the panel was the afternoon session when those of us attending the training (about 5 other couples) were able to sit and share some of stories, thoughts, and adoption journey progress. Here were a dozen people varying in age, careers, and backgrounds, who shared similar passions (and at times struggles). We are blessed to have an amazing support system with our church and families but talking with people who are experiencing the same thing at the same time was nice.

Home Study …. APPROVED!

Finally, I can VERY happily announce that our Home Study has officially been approved! We learned at the training meeting that our HS packet was on the head social workers desk and was in the final stages of being approved. We were really hoping for a call last Monday but although last week passed without a call, Kayla was contacted by Carrie (our caseworker) who told us that the Home Study was 100% approved!

This means that we are now officially a “waiting family”. This means that placement could technically happen at any time! It also means we could still be weeks, months, or even years away from being selected as adoptive parents.

Every part of this process so far has been to get us to this point. We have been going through the adoptive process for roughly six months now. From my understanding, being a waiting family in just six months is pretty impressive. However, the waiting is just beginning! We have heard so many stories of people being placed within just a few weeks of being approved as a waiting family. While that would be incredible (and also a little scary!) we know we cannot think like that.

When I tell people “placement can happen at any time” I am not saying it is about to happen but rather “nothing is preventing it from happening”. There are no more studies, forms, or meetings we have to attend. Ultimately, it is now in God’s hands and we know that He will unite us together with the child He has chosen for us to parent. Our theme verse for this process is 1 Samuel 1:27, “For this child I have prayed, and the Lord has granted me what I asked”. We are still holding onto the first portion of that verse- praying for our child- and cannot wait to be able to claim the second part of that verse as true as well!