One step closer....

We had a great meeting with Kimberly this afternoon. We felt instantly comfortable with her and liked her immediately! Of course, neither of us are really all that difficult to like or talk to :)

Kimberly said that we had one of the most thorough homestudies that she's ever seen in her years of being a caseworker. Thanks, Robyn! At least one positive thing came out of our experience with our former agency. Because of this, her addendum will just be a short addition to our homestudy. She hopes to have it completed by mid-week and then it will be sent off to Austin for the State to assign us a number and officially put us in the system. This usually takes aoubt 5 days, so we're hoping that everything will be completed and official by mid-June!

Now, quite a few of you have asked why are we having to resubmit everything to the State when we've already been approved. Well, after we transfered our case to H4G, we found out that while LSSS approved us, they never submitted our paperwork to the State, and therefore, although we were truly waiting...it wasn't on the State, but rather on the agency. So, in the end, we left the agency without an official approval from the State.

Had we known this before the transfer, we wouldn't have transfered the case. Because in all reality, according to the regulations of the State of Texas, we should have had to start everything all over when we moved to H4G. BUT GOD in His infinite wisdom and power, allowed us to make the move without us knowing this, trusting in Him and in His ways, and He made a way, when there really shouldn't have been one.

I honestly don't know how people go through this life without Christ. How do they handle the pressures of every day life, let alone the deeper struggles of building a family through adoption or fertility treatments, health problems, financial struggles, job security, rising gas prices? (well, let's not go there!) It is BECAUSE of our personal relationship with the Lord and our faithfulness to follow Him, even when we didn't know where we were going, that we are where we are today. Nothing happens by accident. There is a reason for everything . God's timing is perfect. He is all knowing.....and even when we have no idea of what is going on or where we are headed, it's comforting to know He does!

Thanks so much for all your prayers and encouragement today. Your love was felt in ways you'll never know! We are so thankful for our family and friends and the wonderful support system that you all are to us. Hope everyone enjoys the long weekend. Let's not forget those who have made the sacrifices for the freedoms we so easily take for granted.

Tomorrow 2pm....

We will be meeting with our caseworker tomorrow at 2pm for our final home visit and to complete the addendum to our homestudy. We appreciate your prayers as we get this much closer to bringing our kiddos home. We'll keep you posted!

Homestudy...Part 2

My cell phone rang on Monday from area code 936....which is always an exciting moment because that's the area code of our agency, and that must mean that someone is calling us about our homestudy....Sure enough, it was. The caseworker said she tried to call us last week and left a message on our home phone, but we never got it. Well, at least it was nice to know that she did attempt to call us in the timeframe they said she would :)

We talked for a few minutes and I shared a VERY short synaposis of where we've been, what we've gone through, etc. to get us to where we are today. She couldn't believe it (no one ever can!). So...on to the homestudy. She wanted to know if LSSS had closed our file yet. I told her that I had been told that they had, but they weren't supposed to. Apparently, when transfering your file, the state has very strict guidelines and regulations that have to be followed. Is anyone surprised to find out that they weren't?!? Well, we aren't. Basically, when transfering from one agency to another, the state requires the first agency to close the file on let's say May 10, 2008 at 12:00 noon, and the new agency has to open the file on May 10, 2008 at 12:00 noon. Basically so that there is no lapse in the file.

So, how does that affect us? If LSSS closed our file, then our homestudy would be invalid and a completely new homestudy would need to be done. If our file is still open, the caseworker would just need to do an addendum to our current homestudy, since it is so recent.

Kimberly said she would contact LSSS to find out if we were open or closed and she would call us back to schedule the homestudy/addendum. Of course, we were hoping that an addendum is all that would be required, but we told Kimberly that we would do whatever was necessary to make things happen, even if we had to redo the homestudy.

Kimberly called yesterday and said that she went to the Director, discussed our situation, and the Director said that she could just do the addendum for us. PTL!

Our meeting with Kimberly is scheduled for next Friday, March 23rd at 2pm. We are more than anxious to get this completed so that we can finally be on the matching list.

We continue to be blessed in everything that we do with H4G. They have truly taken us into their family and gone above and beyond what we could've imagined. We are so thankful for how God has worked through them.

"This is my doing." (I Kings 12:24)

It has been such a comfort to know that whatever concerns me, concerns Christ too. That my weakness needs His strength and that my safety lies in letting Him fight for me. God is the God of circumstances. We did not get to this place by accident. We are exactly where He meant for us to be.

Mother's Day

With all of the activity on Mother's Day, people tend to forget about women who cannot become mothers. Mother's Day is an incredibly painful time for infertile women...whether they are in the midst of infertility treatments or have come to terms with the inability to carry their own child. You cannot get away from it...there are ads on the TV, posters at the stores, church sermons devoted to celebrating motherhood, and all of the plans for celebrating with your own mother and mother-in-law. I was even wished a "Happy Mother's Day" from a 16 year old boy this evening at Krogers. I guess I look like a mom?

Mother's Day is an important celebration and one that I know will relish in once I am a mother. However, it is very painful while I am waiting for my children. Remember your infertile friends on Mother's Day, and send them a card to let them know you are thinking of them. They will appreciate knowing that you haven't "forgotten" them.

I had hoped that this year would be different....but another year has passed and still no children in our home that call me Mama. But I have hope in the promises of My Heavenly Father and trust that next year will be different :)

I receive a newsletter every month from Bethany Christian Services, called Stepping Stones and there was a great article posted that I wanted to share:

This Much I Know Is True (by Autumn Schoeck)

*There are many things I don't know about God's plan for my life, but I have learned to be content. I believe His willf or each of us is that we will be content - content with our life, our surroundings, and every aspect of who we are. ~ Philippians 4:11-13

I have learned to be content because this much I know is true!

*Difficult times will come. John 16:33b

*We can be confident that God does not intend difficult times to defeat us. In difficult times, His purpose for our lives is always good. Romans 8:28

*The longer we endure difficult times, the more patient, humble, and trusting we become. Romans 5:3-5

*Time is but a fraction of eternity. Miracels are what they are because they don't happen every day. Give your miracle some time. Remember, God is able to do far more than we ask or imagine! Ephesians 3:20-21

*We cannot predict how and when God will bless us with the miracle He has in mind for us. To some, the miracle may come in the birth of a baby, to others in the adoption of a child, and to others in contentment as a family of two. In the meantime, sit back in confidence and watch your life unfold. Psalm 31: 14-15a

For those of us Moms in waiting...may you be encouraged by these verses and thoughts...and may you hearts be full of peace and confidence this weekend, and in the days/weeks/months to come!

On to the next stage....

Yes! We are on to the next stage! We have completed all the requirements (paperwork, classes, etc.) to officially have our file transfered from our old agency! YEAH!

We took our last class last week and our file was scheduled to be handed off to a caseworker yesterday. Once the caseworker is assigned, they will come out and meet with us and since our homestudy is current, they should be able to just attach an addendum to it and re-submit to the state.

We are in the process of creating our lifebook ~ which is basically a scrapbook of our life....pictures of us, our families, our friends, our house, pets, etc....this will be submitted along with our homestudy when we are being considered as a possible match. I've been stressing out about the lifebook....I think,no I know, I am making it much more stressful than it needs to be.

Again, the experience as a whole our agency, H4G, has just been amazing. It's such a stark difference from our last agency. You know how oftentimes you don't realize how bad something was, until you see how good something is.....well, that is definitely the case with us. There have been plenty of times when we have said...What if we had found them first? We'd probably have had children in our home a long time ago. But the thing is, we didn't find them first. We went through a lot of trying times to get to where we are now. Nothing is an accident. Nothing is in vain. God is in control. He is with us on our journey and we have learned more about ourselves than we thought possible. We also know that without a doubt, after all this time, that God has called us to do this, and because of that, it has been worth it.

Thanks so much for all your encouragement, prayers and support....stay tuned :)