Come thou long expected ... nope, wait a little longer.

Well, it's been a few months since the last update because we didn't have any news to report.  As most of you know, the Ghanaian government issued a moratorium on international adoptions late spring and we've been "on hold" ever since then.  Originally the Ghanaian government had said they hoped to lift the moratorium and again begin adoptions by the end of 2013.  They are working hard on revamping their system to streamline and insure only ethical adoptions take place.  We are so glad they are doing this and it feels good to know that we are adopting from a country that is concerned about the well being of the kiddos there.  In the meantime, since it's been over a year since we started this process, we've had to update our home study and do a little more paperwork to keep everything up to date on our end.  We have increased the age limits for the children we hope to adopt (since our kids are another year older) and said we would still take 1 or 2 children and as long as one child is under 6 the other could be as old as 10.

Well, we got an update yesterday from our adoption agency and it looks like we'll be waiting even longer.  This was not the news we had hoped for, but honestly, it's the news we expected.  They are now saying they hope to be ready to lift the moratorium by the end of the 1st quarter or mid-year.  So, we will continue to wait but it's looking very possible that we won't even bring children home in 2014.  (even if we'd get a referral in June it would have to move quickly to have kids home by next Christmas)  We have been told to also anticipate changes to the travel requirements for international adoptions in Ghana.  We have no idea what they will change them to and we are just praying that whatever changes they make to their standards are possible for our family.  (Take for instance, Kenya.  They require you live in Kenya for 3 months before you can even start legal proceedings to adopt a child there and you must stay until it's complete ... and the proceedings can take about 2 years!)

We still feel called to adopt.  We still feel called to adopt from Ghana.  We still know that the Lord's timing is not our own and that He has a great master plan for our family.  For now we are learning a lot in the waiting and finding patience and peace we didn't even know we had.  We still appreciate your prayers for this "bump" in the road.  As we celebrate another Christmas with our kids still in Ghana we are leaning on the Lord for our endurance and patience.  God is so good.

Colossians 1:11 "Being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience"

Merry Christmas!

Robin

Good News!

We have good news to report ............ we have t-shirts!  (come on, were you really thinking we'd have THAT news??)  My brother-in-law, Jim, designed these awesome t-shirts for us and we just love them.  All of the proceeds made from these will be used to buy toys & supplies that we can leave at the orphanage in Ghana when we finally go and visit.  (hopefully we'll have enough to bring supplies on both of the trips we will need to take)  We hope you will consider wearing these with pride while you support orphans in Ghana.  They are super soft short sleeve t-shirts available in 4 colors.  Simply click on the link on the right side of the page to see them and shoot me an email to order.  Thanks again for your constant prayers and support of our adoption!

On a side note, the only news we have is that the Ghana government released a statement last week that said they hope to remove the temporary hold on adoptions around the end of the year.  They have made good strides in their reorganization of their adoption processes there and are continuing to move forward.  We trust the Lord has all of this timing and we will continue to (try) be patient in the mean time.

Thanks again!
Robin

Well, 3 weeks from today school starts up again for our kids.  This is the first year I will be sending all 3 kids to all day school.  *insert sobs here*  I didn't really have any problem sending the first two kids, but this last one is going to put me over the edge ... I'm going to miss my little buddy during the day!  And, honestly, I thought there was a chance we'd have kids home from Ghana by now to distract me from the fact that Cade wasn't around ... or I'd at least know the names of who we'd be preparing for.  But, again, the Lord has other plans and we are ok with that too.  We are still very eager to get "the phone call" but Greg & I have really felt a peace about the wait time lately.  Maybe the reality of the situation has finally hit us as we have finished our required training and now have been enlightened to the trauma, grief and hurt that our new kids have already experienced by loosing their first family and will experience by us dragging them to the other side of the world to new people, new rules, new language, new food, new smells.  We are these kid's 2nd choice ... not their 1st.  They will have experienced a loss that we cannot relate to, a hurt we've never known and we can only hope we will be able to lead them through their adjustments and grief process with the courage and love of Jesus.  For now, we will continue to read and research how to bond with adopted kids while we pray for our unknown children hurting and yearning to be loved on the other side of the world.

Truth be told, I had been holding off on updating pictures of our kids hoping to add one or two more adorable faces to the next group shot that we sprang for.  But, I've decided to take advantage of my photographer sister-in-law's visit next week and we are going to bite the bullet and get new pics taken.  So now I'm scrambling to find coordinating outfits that will work out of what we already have but I'm secretly hoping that this is all it takes to get the phone call with news of more kids joining our family.  :)

The latest update we received from our agency was good news:  they are continuing to work even though there is a temporary hold on adoptions in Ghana, there were referrals given out in July by our agency, and they are continuing to work with the government there to make sure all adoptions are ethical.  We are so grateful that there is a wonderful team of people on the ground in Ghana working for us and serving the same Lord.  From what we hear from people who have been there recently for court dates and to pick up their kids, these amazing individuals are overworked and understaffed but are working diligently to help us unite with children who need us.  I cannot wait to meet them.  They are truly carrying out Jesus' work on earth.

In the next few weeks we will be holding a little fundraiser.  My wonderful and talented brother-in-law, Jim, has designed a t-shirt for us.  They are really cool (at least I think so!) so you'll want to buy one for everyone in your family.  ;)  Still working with the printer so I'll let you know when we are ready with samples and we can take orders.

Thanks to everyone for your continued prayers.  Every time someone asks us how the process is going we love it, it let's us know you care and it let's us share our excitement ... even if we don't have any new information.  :)

Robin

Happy Summer Everyone,

Well, in Wisconsin is surely hasn't felt like summer yet but the kids are out of school so it must be!  We are busy with swimming lessons and day camps for the kids and we are gearing up for Walking On Water Ski Camp to start in 3 weeks.  This is the 5th year that we will be doing the ski camp with our friends and it's always a fun but tiring part of our summer.

We just wanted to update you and let you know that there is really no news to report on the adoption front.  We received a phonecall about a week and a half ago from our social worker asking if we'd consider increasing our age range to include a 6 1/2 year old.  (the range on our initial application said 0-6 year olds and then we changed it to 0-5 year olds when we changed to the Ghana program since the adoption could happen sooner and we couldn't be certain that Cade would be 6 by the time it would take place)  So, Greg and I discussed it and we felt that we should stick to under 5 years old in order to keep the birth order of our bio kids intact.  What that means is that we will continue to wait for our referral.  Our social worker made it clear that even if we had increased our age range it didn't mean for sure that we'd get the referral of any of the 6 year olds they had ready at that time, it was only a possibility and they just wanted that clarification on our home study paperwork.

In the mean time we will be attending more training seminars this weekend as part of our required adoption training.  Our agency requires us to have 10 hours of training before our dossier was submitted ... check, 10 more hours during this waiting period ... check after Saturday, and 10 more hours once you have your referral so you can take education courses or read books that are more specific to any special needs or concerns you may be dealing with your individual child.  (like a course on doing African hair for me will be necessary if we are getting a girl!)  We have found these classes and books SO good and have learned so much that we never even imagined when we answered the call to adopt.  When we think of adoption we think of happy endings and easier lives for the kids but what I had never thought about is the transition and the hurt that they have endured already in their lives.  This can leave them with emotional scars and behavioral issues that we have not had to deal with yet as parents.  Our agency is doing such a wonderful job of preparing us as best they can for this and nothing is sugar coated ... it's so good.  This weekend's courses will also include panel discussions with families that have already adopted, I love that part - so informative!

Please continue to pray for Ghana as a country and for their government as well as the wonderful workers from Bethany Christian Services who are working there for our sake as well as the sake of other families in this new program.  They are working their tails off night and day over there!

Thanks everyone!
Greg & Robin

Here we go...

Well, you found our blog.  It's not too exciting yet, but we hope to be able to keep everyone updated through this blog as we enter more deeply into the adoption process.  Here is a little background as to how our adoption journey got started and where we stand right now.

For several years we thought we were finished having kids.  Braden is now 11, Caris is 8, and Cade is 5 and all seemed perfectly content and it was almost, dare I say, getting easy!  That's when it started ... you know, that "feeling" that the Lord is trying to tell you something and prepare you for something.  That clear feeling that contentment isn't God's will in our lives.  While we were pondering these feelings, it seemed that everywhere we turned someone was talking about adoption or orphans.  Our hearts and minds were opened to the possibility that maybe the Lord was saying we may be done having our own bio kids, but our family was not complete.  We heard several speakers, read several books, and after about 2 years of prayerfully considering our family adopting a child, we "pulled the trigger" as Greg likes to say.  Not for just one child, but hopefully 2!

We started the formal adoption agency application process in September of 2012, sent in our country specific application and medical clearances in November 2012 and our full dossier was sent to Ghana, Africa on March 4, 2013.  We are hoping to adopt one or two children of either gender under the age of 5.

Right now we are currently in the "sit and wait" phase.  The endless hours of paperwork and research are done for now.  We are waiting for a referral from our adoption agency.  They will match us to a child/children and call us with the info.  Then they'll forward any pictures, medical files and all other information they possibly have on the children to us for us to decide if we want to adopt them.  Once we accept a referral we will travel to Ghana a few months later to offically meet and adopt the children in Ghana court.  Then, we will return home to file for visas and passports to bring the children home.  Once the visas and passports are in place we can again fly to Ghana to bring them home for good!  That all sounds easy but there are a ton of steps in that process that need to be orchestrated before any homecoming happens.

We have already had a few roller coaster moments in this process and from what we are told, it's most likely just the tip of the iceberg.  We know full well that these moments will only make the day we bring our kids  home to this family even more sweet.  Through this process our family is discovering such amazing feelings of our own redeeming love from God.   We have been adopted through our belief in Jesus Christ - what a great picture of God's family!  All colors, all nations, all under God's roof.

John 1:12 - But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God.

We appreciate your prayers for us during this next phase of our lives.  Here are some ways you can be praying for us:

• For patience and peace during this sometimes LONG waiting period.  (we don't even have any estimate of how long it could be)
• For Braden, Caris & Cade who are extremely excited about having more brothers or sisters but may not fully grasp the many changes this will bring for them.
• For our kids in Ghana.  Pray that they may be getting loving care, enough food, and attention.
• For us to continue our education to be ready and equipped to take care of these new kiddos that will mostly likely be coming with deep hurt and sadness in their hearts.

We will try to update this if or when we get new information regarding our adoption.  Thanks for loving us enough to read it!

Greg & Robin