Speed Bumps

     I love that the title of the series our Pastor is doing is called "Speed Bumps. "  We have been waiting for over a year now for our adoption.  For those of you that do not know, we are held up right now.  Taiwan changed their laws earlier than expected and we are waiting for them to transition.  We got our paperwork done right after the deadline of them taking paperwork. (Speed Bump 1)
     Two days after I posted my last blog I had a bit of a health scare.  I was overdosed on Vitamin D and thyroid medicine that my doctor had prescribed.  I have been on thyroid medicine for 3 years because mine is a little under active.  The doctor had not been watching my blood work and they gave me too much.  Needless to say my body did not like that at all.  At the same time Kent had to have rotator cuff surgery.  He had hurt his shoulder at work.    It was suppose to be a simple orthoscopic surgery.  His surgery ended up taking 4 incisions and 23 staples to fix the tear.  (Speed Bumps 2 & 3)
     While all of this was happening we also got some more news.  Lifesong will not match our fundraising funds for the adoption. (Speed Bump 4)
     I have to say that during all of these speed bumps we had a lot of time to just take in each other and take in the Lord.  We talk all the time about his timing being just right.  Here is an example of how his plan is greater than ours.  All of these events happened the summer of the drought.  This means since it is summer the kids were home.  We had extra help around the house.  Since it has been so dry the grass has not been growing and Kent has not had to mow much.  Normally Kent has quite a few burials.  If he has a full burial it takes so much more work than a cremation.  The last full burial he has had to do was the day he hurt his shoulder.  He has had many burials since that day but they have all been cremations, lifting a huge amount of work off of him.
     I have learned so much about my Father through out this whole experience.  There was one specific night when I was having a really hard time sleeping.  Kent had just had his surgery.  He had taken pain medicine that made him rather sleepy.  I did not want to wake him to tell him I was having a hard time.  I laid out like a cross on the bedroom floor praying with all I had to my Father.  I then heard him say "Monica why don't you come to me more often when you are in need?  I am your Father and you go to Kent to help you instead of me.  He is your husband but he is human just like you.  If you want supernatural help you have to come to the inventor of supernatural".  Big lesson learned right there!
     We just received our 5th speed bump in the last couple of months.  We were going to be able to adopt from the Organization that we were because they did not have the rule that you must have to have $80,000 in assets to be able to adopt.  Our home and Kent's truck are part of his pay at his job.  Since we do not have our name on them because they are provided through his employer we are not eligible to adopt from most agencies that have a Taiwan program.  This organization was different, we were so excited.  Now that they have to partner with an agency we do not know if the Taiwan door will stay open for us.  We talked to our social worker about foster adopting is the US.  In order for us to have that option and keep our hearts open to Taiwan we would have to switch agencies and maybe start our home study all over again.
     Now what?  We pray!  We pray that we know God put all of those speed bumps there for a reason.  We pray and ask for direction and guidance.  I know that it is his will not mine.  I want whatever he has for my life and nothing less.  So I pray that the doors that are suppose to be open will open and our hearts will spot them.  I pray for our child and for their mother.  I pray that my Father uses our story to inspire or help someone who is walking or will be walking this same path.  I pray for all of you.  I pray that you know when you have hit a speed bump.  Those speed bumps all of them are there for a reason.  Take that time to deepen your faith and get closer to the one that longs for you to be close.  Our God is taking care of our family.  He is doing it in a much different way then I imagined or would have picked but that is why he is God and I am not.

Mathew 18:5 In whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me!

     I want to start off by saying how sorry I am for not updating the blog in awhile.  Not a lot has changed in our adoption process until this last week.  If any of you have been through the adoption process, there is a lot of waiting.  We have waited every step of the way.  You turn in a little bit of paper work then you wait until you turn in more just to wait.  We are getting closer and closer!

     We went to Naperville this last Monday and got fingerprinted for the last time.  The paperwork is now in the hands of immigration.  This is the last stop our paperwork has to take before we send it to our friends in Taiwan.  We are praying that the paperwork gets through in a very timely manner. 

     We just found out a couple of weeks ago that they are changing adoption in Taiwan quite a bit.  We are adopting independently through a Christian organization in Taiwan.  They have been allowed to give referrals for families adopting.  As of June 1st they will no longer be able to do that.  We are hoping and praying that God stays in the lead on this journey and that he helps our paperwork to get through and in their hands in time.  If not then we wait until this Organization partners with an agency and then we could get a referral. 

     We have learned that the adoption process can definitely be very hard because laws change all of the time.  We also know that getting all stressed out will not do anybody any good.  God has had this whole journey planned out from the beginning and he knows how it will work out all the way to the very end.  We are so thankful that we know and trust in him and he has it all under control.

     We are waiting to hear back from LifeSong an organization here in Illinois that helps financially with adoptions.  We should be hearing back from them any day now.  They help match donations up to a certain amount.  We are planning on having another garage sale/bake sale as soon as we find out.  I still have a ton of stuff from our last garage sale in the basement just waiting to find a new home.  If you would like to donate or help out with the garage sale/bake sale just let me know.

     All together the cost of the adoption is between $26,000 - $28,000.  We still have a long way to go financially but we are getting closer and closer everyday to getting our pictures of our soon to be little one.  I can not wait to see our new family member.  Our hearts are so full of love for this little child that we have not even seen yet.  We know that they are waiting on us right now and my heart aches to hold him or her and let them know how long we have waited and how much we love them. 

     Thank you all for being an incredible support system for us while we have been on this journey.  We know that God has so much more in store for our family.  This is about so much more than adoption.  It is about listening to his prompting and following him to places we never thought we could go.  I really feel that God has a calling for our family and I can't wait to share it with all of you after we bring our little one home. 

     I am sorry once again that it has taken so long for me to update our journey.  As many of you know months fly by really fast sometimes. We love you all and we appreciate your prayers!

Staying on His course!

     I love that when I opened my Bible tonight the first thing I read was Psalm 19:1-8.  It is about staying on God's course.  It says that as long as you keep walking His course and keep seeking him then you will be blessed.  Kent and I just started the 21 day Daniel fast.  We are seeking him deeply and know that he has amazing plans to bless our family.

     As many of you know we have been waiting and waiting for our home study to be finished.  We just found out it will probably be another 8 weeks before it is finished.  It would be so easy to get stressed out and impatient while waiting, but God has given us this extreme feeling of peace.  We know it is going to happen and it will happen right when it is suppose to happen.  God's plan is always on time and his timing is always right. 

     We have got to watch some friends of ours go to Taiwan and adopt there little baby girl through pictures on facebook.  It has been so exciting to get to watch and see the same path being walked that we are walking.  We have got to see the whole thing unfold.  Walking this adoption journey with others that are right there too is so comforting.

     We know that we still have a ways to go.  We have to wait on the paperwork first.  Then we can go to Lifesong For Orphans and they will help us in raising funds.  We are still so far away from our goal but God loves doing miracles and it is so awesome being able to have front row seats to this one.  He has already shown us that he can work through anybody.  He loves to show us his love in so many ways and it is so fun to see it coming from directions that you never expected.

     We are taking this time of waiting to get closer to him everyday.  It is so fun watching him and the closer to him I get, the more I see him everywhere and in everything.

     We love you all and thanks for all of your prayers and support.  There is not a day that goes by that someone does not ask us about our adoption.  We are so blessed to get to have you all walking beside us on one of the most amazing adventures of our lives!