In His Timing

I will never tire of hearing stories of God weaving families together through adoption. Just look at this beautiful family and read in Beth's words the amazing way they became a family of 7. 

My husband, Jim, and I knew from the beginning of our relationship that adoption would be part of our story.  We both felt called to adopt and decided early on in our marriage that Haiti was where we were headed.  After three biological children and eight years of praying and saving, we began the process to adopt from Haiti.  Initially, we decided that a toddler boy would fit best into the dynamics of our family and we were matched with our sweet little guy.  He was malnourished and tiny but began thriving in the orphanage.  I, then, felt that God was calling us to adopt a daughter, as well.  I knew she should be about four years old; around the age of our oldest son.  Circumstances prevented us from adding another child to our adoption process at that time, and I was a bit discouraged, but we moved forward and were finally able to bring our son home after two agonizing years of waiting.

I always felt that there was a daughter missing from our family.  I had originally thought she was in Haiti, but maybe I was wrong?  We looked into adopting out of foster care but the timing just never felt right or lined up.  This past February, at an adoptive moms retreat, a dear friend found out about a little girl who was in need of a forever family.  She had been living in a group home for the past four years and she was originally from… Haiti.  Four months ago, we brought our newest daughter home.  She is the age of our oldest son.  In all of this, we have seen God’s sovereignty and have learned, even more, to trust in His perfect plan and timing. 

Psalm 27:14 

Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!

Smile!

Smile!

That's what I do every, single time I see a photo of this precious family! I loved watching them walk through their adoptions with such grace. Hannah was gracious to share a little about adoption & you can catch up with her over here on her blog. 

Adoption was nagging at me for a couple years. When I read adoption blogs, I’d cry and ask my husband to donate to their cause. I talked about adoption all the time and tried to convince everyone I knew to adopt. Except myself. 

We had two kids keeping me on my toes and I was set in my ways. So I was good at talking myself out of adoption. But it wouldn’t stop nagging at my heart.

One day my husband came to me and said he felt that God wanted us to pursue adoption. And suddenly all of my hesitancy melted away, because I knew this had been a long time coming. I just needed someone else to push me over the edge!

Saying yes was just the beginning of the process. There was paperwork to fill out, phone appointments, meetings, doctor visits, and more paperwork. But we rushed through the early stages as fast as we could! And then came the waiting. And more waiting.

The path that led us to our two babies was bumpier than we expected. It didn’t always look the way we envisioned and definitely wasn’t as smooth as we’d hoped. But it was so worth it.

Because when we started the adoption process, I thought it was something we were supposed to do because babies needed us. But I was so wrong. We were the ones who needed them. The joy they have brought into our family, the laughter, the love: we needed them to complete us.

Chris & Hannah,

Isaiah, Leah, Enoch & Phoebe

In honor of National Adoption Month, I'll be sharing many beautiful adoption stories. 

It seems most appropriate to begin this series sharing a dear friend's story who walked hand in hand with us to bring home our sweet little man. Through being an adoption consultant, she has helped 100's of families grow through adoption. 

Tracie, John & their beautiful family are treasured friends. Check out their amazing family here.

Ephesians 1:5

 He predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will.

So, There's This Guy....

So, there's this guy that stole my heart. In my eyes, he's beyond handsome. And ever so charming. He can be rather hilarious. He's definitely a keeper. In fact, 21 years and counting. 5 kids & 4 grandkids later. 

                                  

                              

There's been some for better and for worse
There's been some in sickness and in health.
There's been some for richer or for poorer. 



Plus some. For sure. But everything we've experienced, the rough times and the smooth times, have enriched our marriage for the good. Through the grace of God, we are a couple. And for that, I'm grateful.  

You, Mr. Langston, still make my heart go pitter-pat.
Happy 21st Anniversary to my very best friend.
I love you so very much. 

Could There Possibly Be A Reason For An Update?

And the abandoned blog gets revived. Why, you ask? Because maybe, just maybe, we have some news to share. 

We've been quiet. But, that doesn't mean God has been. We've been waiting. But, that doesn't mean God has been. Our journey has seemed so very long to us. But, not to Him. He has been changing us and preparing our hearts through every single "No" we've heard along the way. We've answered His call with a resounding "YES", and He is faithful. Oh, so very faithful. 

In the midst of our waiting & wondering, growing & changing, praying & crying, He was preparing a young woman's heart to also say "Yes". Yes to the life growing in her womb. Yes to the family who she would choose to raise her baby. 

The tears are still flowing, but they are sweet tears this time. Our "Yes" has come. We will be welcoming a precious baby boy into our family very, very soon. The due date is May 11,  our 22nd anniversary, but he could arrive any day now. 

Please remember us in your prayers.  And if you would consider helping us bring him home, the best way at this point is through THIS link. Thank you! 

Lamentations 3:22-23 (NIV)

 Because of the Lord’s great love

  we are not consumed,
   for his compassions never fail.

   They are new every morning;
   great is your faithfulness.

The Truth Is...

The truth is, I'm happy a new year is beginning. I'm usually not that great with goodbye's, but I'm really ready to say "Goodbye" to 2012. For us, it has been a tough one. I don't want to relive specifics, but we've been through some battles emotionally, spiritually, physically and financially. I know these challenges have stretched me and caused my heart to be changed.  I totally realize my tough times are relatively small in comparison to what many have faced this past year. I will continue to pray for others and won't dwell on me.  Movin' on! 

I'm looking forward to a fresh start. There is excitement stirring from within to get recharged and refocused on our adoption journey. Our road hasn't looked how we thought it would, that's for sure. We can't wait to see how God leads us in this area of our lives. Keep us in your prayers as we continue to say "Yes!" with no reservations. We're blessed to have an adoption consultant and friend who has held our hands and loved us through this roller coaster ride called adoption. She's priceless. If you've considered adoption, let me tell you first hand, Tracie is the first contact you should make! Read here to see some of the beautiful families whose lives have been touched by adoption because she walked beside them on their journey. Amazing! And also, read here to see what another precious friend has to say about Tracie. 

How are you starting your New Year? Any resolutions? I've always made the cliche' ones, you know, lose weight, eat better, etc. Not going to go there this year. Do I want those things? Yes, but my focus is simply less of me, more of Him. I want to be more of His hands and His feet. That should pretty much cover everything else! I pray 2013 is truly a year of God's richest blessings for each of you and your precious loved ones.

Salt and Light

¹³ “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.

¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. ¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. 

Matthew 5:13-16

Wait! What? Summer is over?

I do still realize I have a blog. I haven't abandoned it completely. Really, I haven't. 

The last post I wrote was wrapping up the end of a school year. And, poof! Summer came and went. One trip to see family in North Carolina is all we squeezed in before the new school year began. We are now back in high gear with 2 college student schedules, 1 middle school, 1 elementary and 2 preschool. I now have a HUGE desk calendar and I shall do my very best attempt at keeping up with everyone. The first week was a success. I didn't forget anyone or leave anyone stranded. ;)

Our area has just dodged a major storm, but we're remaining prayerful for those in the path of Hurricane Isaac.

In adoption news, a few changes have occurred over the last couple months. The wonderful agency we've been working with has decided to close. We're getting refocused on this journey and hope to share more news soon. Our fundraising efforts are still if place and if you feel you'd like to help us, check out one of our sidebar links. 

I leave you with one of my favorite quotes. =)

"If God is calling you to take a step of faith that defies

earthly wisdom, put obedience first and let logic catch up. If

 you can't understand the why, trust the WHO." UNK