Headed down a new road....

Thank you for checking out our blog. This is the place where we hope to keep those interested up to speed on our experience with adoption. We entered the process in February of this year (2012) by attending our first adoption informational meeting at Bethany Christian Services in Jackson, MS. At the time, we were pursuing an international adoption from China. After some bumps in the road, and eventually a road block (which we'll have to tell you about later), the Lord revealed to Rachel and I that without us even having spoken to each other about it, He was aligning our hearts towards dreaming of a domestic adoption. More specifically, an African-American son. When we discovered that we both were thinking and praying over the same thing, we sensed a peace towards this redirection.

This lead to another informational meeting for domestic adoption through Bethany in March and we completed our application and awaited being assigned a case worker. Our case worker, Cassie, was assigned in June and we began the home study process. Honestly, I'm not sure how, or if, there is a difference in other agency home studies...Bethany began with a 63 essay question packet that Rachel and I both had to complete separately. I kidded with Rachel that the home study requirements felt like a sort of Senior project! The questions probed into several areas such as our family of origins, personal pasts, marital union and relationship and parenting approach with our children. As a therapist myself, I found it fun to reflect on these things, and it continued to teach Rachel and I about each other. For one, it was really scary how the majority of our answers were like one person writing them. I'm positive that Cassie must have thought we consulted each other before writing about our perspectives of our marriage and parenting styles, and even our perception of our children. It was encouraging to us both as we compared our writings AFTER we were finished. This definitely further bound us together and re affirmed the call to continue to head down this new road.

We were able to complete the packets by the end of August. Then came the individual interviews from Cassie. It was funny how Rachel and I prepared ourselves for this step in the process. I was again, looking forward to processing and sharing so many of the things that God had taught me in my life through both difficult and faith producing experiences. I always feel so overwhelmed by God's goodness and faithfulness when I reflect on the experiences of my past and see how God has woven them together in the greater story and purpose in my life. Rachel, surprisingly, was nervous. Rachel is much more of an external processor than me so for her to be nervous about externally processing was somewhat confusing to both of us. However, she went, she thrived, she conquered! Well, that is me talking for her anyway. I'm sure she would describe it with much less dramatic and anti climactic semantics (it sounded better from me, huh?).

A couple weeks later in the month of October, Cassie came to our house for the final stage of the home study...THE HOME STUDY. No, no, no, she didn't go around with a white glove on. It involved some paperwork, signatures and meeting our three daughters. Then, we waited for the official license from Bethany in order to officially wait some more!

That came in the form of a mailed letter around a month ago now. SO, we are officially official to wait...and possibly wait...and possibly wait some more. It is really as if we just found out that we are pregnant but we know the due date could be anywhere from, well, today to...whenever! Crazy, huh? It is almost surreal that today I lay my head down as a father of three and possibly tomorrow I lay down as a father of four! Either way, we have embraced this process and God continues to reveal that our only hope is found in the fact that He is directing, leading, strengthening, sustaining and preparing us for today and what is to come. We would covet your prayers and are so thankful for those of you who we know and love and find tangible efforts of support from, as well as those who we might get to know as you travel down this road with us in the blogosphere! God bless.