Physical

Its hard to believe all the things you are asked to do prior to adopting, I understand that not everyone should adopt, that is why they have such an enduring process. They want to weed out the creepers, those who shouldn't parent, and sadly those who are not fit for to make the cut.

I have been reading a lot lately, yes all pertaining to adoption. There is so much information out there, different ways to go about it all, its given us much wisdom and insight on how to go about this process.
One of my favorite things I recently read in "Called to Adoption" by Mardie Caldwell was "I believe the desire to be a parent in from the Lord, yet how we approach that desire when biological pregnancy does not happen easily also needs to include His plans for us. While many of us are called to become parents, few of us are called to adoption" Ever since we made the decision I have felt so free and full of joy again.

Physicals. Yes we had to get physicals, not just the regular before you can play sports physical....we also had to have drug tests and a TB(Tubercuosis) test, followed by paperwork our Doctors had to fill out. Not to worry we passed everything! I have to say I am thankful they do this, its wise to want potential parents to be healthy prior to taking on the life changing roll of a parent.

Thought I would share a few photos from my visit.

Waiting for the Nurse. 

Dr.Shadi Miller and I. 

She is so great if you don't have a regular MD

Many blessings to you! 

Paperwork

After doing the research of which organization to go with it was a huge blessing to find out we have a friend who works at the agency were using, with our decision to choose a Domestic Infant Adoption she too will be our caseworker. We were grateful to be able to meet with her privately to go over the services they offer, and what the process looks like.

We filled out our Pre-Application, to get approved for the actual Application, which moved along quickly. I thought to myself, “Wow that paperwork wasn’t so bad”…however a few weeks later we received a large manila envelope that was packed of information, forms, directions, etc. Oh boy, here we go. From fingerprints, background checks, references, family information, Infant First Aid and CPR certified and so on, it’s an overwhelming task.

This verse came to mind, “The Sovereign Lord is my strength; He makes my feet like the feet of a deer, He enables me to go on the heights.” Habakkuk 3v19 

I need to remind myself this and not get caught up in the long list of paperwork we have ahead of ourselves.

I found myself knee deep in papers, running in every direction all over town to get official forms; Marriage Certificate, Passports, Tax information. I feel like the people at the courthouse know me well now. It can be an exhausting task, but I am grateful to have such a loving and supporting husband to go through this with. There is a lot that they ask you to do before adopting a baby, I do understand why, we have to remain positive and productive and the Lord will see us through.

Just a little look into what some of my days are consisting of now, the desk, yes lots of desk time. 

The beginning of our journey.

Many of you know the struggle we’ve had with infertility the last 3 years, it’s been a whirlwind of emotions, you never expect to be the “one” who goes through it. Through the many testing, prodding’s, charting, appointments, procedures, drugs and so on, the Lord has always brought us through. I know that God is using this in our lives to strengthen our marriage, to build our character, and draw us closer to him. A verse that I meditate on often “Blessed is he who trusts in the Lord, and whose hope is in the Lord”. Jeremiah 17 V7

To get through those hard, dark, disheartening days where I felt so low and useless this was the verse that I clung to. That I must trust in him, his plans and his ways for they are far better then I could ever imagine. Traveling down the road of infertility is not one you choose, but one that God allows. A wise friend once told me, “The Lord finds you worthy to go through this”. Hearing that statement was a major reality check of what I am living this life for, not for me and my wants, but for the Lord and his plans.

In the end Matt and I know that we want to be parents, the beautiful thing is that there are various ways that this can happen. We came to a standstill in the medical world, do we do injections, or do we do in vetro fertilization? The cost to the “chance” was a big factor---spend thousands of dollars on something that there is no guarantee in the end you will have a baby, this left us without a feeling peace.  I also was struggling with the medications, hormones, side effects, and the unknown of the long-term effect this would have on my body. With much prayer I had to confess to my husband that throughout our process of wanting to conceive a child, Adoption has always been around me. We had always talked about adopting, you know “someday after we have a few of our own”. That someday is now for us. We could not be more happy to share that we are in the process of a Domestic Adoption. We do understand the cost is quite large, we trust that the Lord is going to provide for us, however he plans to do so. We have peace that in the end of this process no matter the cost, we will have a baby, what a gift that will be.

Thank you for following along, we hope you will join us as we have begun our journey in praying for us, provision of money, and our future baby.

Many blessings to you,

Emily