Friday, March 26, 2010

Navigating the turning of many new corners...

Well, as the post suggests, we are turning some new corners in our life lately...as people new to the world of bloggers AND a new corner (or branch perhaps) in our passion of defending orphans and children in poverty, as we are striking out on the path of international adoptive parenting. I feel it is only right to warn you before you continue, that I tend to be long winded. If you've talked to me for any length of time, this probably doesn't surprise you...but I felt it was only fair to give you a disclaimer...just so ya' know. :)



I can pinpoint the exact date that we started deliberately to pursue God's calling to care for the orphaned and impoverished children of the world (There are so many!). A fellow church member spoke during Compassion International's Orphan Sunday. What began in 2008 as a search for a child we felt drawn to sponsor, ended up in the sponsorship of 3. Two boys, now age 12, from the Dominican Republic and 1 more boy, now age 9, from Ghana. But this is not where our journey began. I can remember with absolute clarity watching videos with my aunt as she and my uncle began their journey of adoption. I cannot express the overwhelming emotions I experienced that day as I wondered how it was possible to know you could only claim one or two orphans to bring home. I felt they had a difficult task ahead of them as they proceeded through their adoption, and my life was forever altered that day as I felt God's prompting to someday pursue adoption. This leading came sooner than I expected...I think there are probably many who, like me, thought that adoption would take place after their own biological children. I have learned, or am learning (again and again) that God's ways are not my ways. :) It takes me awhile sometimes. So EJ and I submitted our paperwork to All God's Children International. We chose them because in addition to adoption, they also have a heart for rescuing and caring for orphan and impoverished children around the world (not just adoption alone). So we are seeking to adopt a child from either Ethiopia or Rwanda. It is a big task, and we are anxious to see how God moves and directs our journey.


You may be wondering why the title of our blog spot is "I sing you 2 me". If you know me at all, you know that I have a passion for movies. This phrase comes from a boy whose character stole my heart in the movie Australia. As a child cast away by his people, Lady Ashley (played by Nicole Kidman) takes Nullah under her wing after his mother dies. When they are separated by the circumstances of an era in Australia that did not acknowledge children of mixed heritage, he assures Lady Ashley that they will find each other again, by stating "I sing you to me." (Tear jerking, I know. :) That phrase carries so much meaning to me. As a future adoptive parent, it speaks to me of our future child(ren) "singing themself/themselves to us and EJ and myself to them. On a grander scale, it speaks to me of God singing himself to us, leading us step by step, note by note, experience by experience, drawing us closer to Him each time that we seek Him. (And believe me, I've been doing that ALOT lately!) :) I have been amazed by the ways He has already shown His leading, in places I least expected it. Although I cannot detect the path's end, I am at peace as he divulges each next step, affirming our direction in little and big ways. So if you don't mind long-winded ramblings and updates, come along on the ride with us! Happy Friday to you all!



NRS

No comments:

About this blog

Welcome to our blog! Thanks for dropping by and visiting us! This blog was created for those of you who wish to follow along with us in our journey as we answer God's call to adoption. Ultimately it is our opportunity to rise up and do what we can to fulfill and make known to others the mandate of James 1:27 - "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after the orphans and widows in their distress and to keep onself from being polluted by the world."

About Us

My photo
We are a mid-west married couple of 9 years, striving to care for the 147 million orphans around the world!

Our Adoption Timeline

11/28/11 - We are back to waiting for a new referral
11/22/11 - We receive word from our caseworker that we have lost our referral
9/21/11 - Referral paperwork and international ped review completed and sent!
9/4/11 - We receive our referral! A precious 6 yr old boy!
6/27/11 - We have finally arrived to the waitlist!
6/17/11 - re-doing some documents for the dossier
6/8/11 - Sent dossier off to our agency for review
6/4/11 - Our FDL FINALLY ARRIVES! Yahoo!
5/24/11 - We get word from our Case Manager that we may submit our dossier without our FDL! Yea!
3/30/11 - USCIS fingerprint appointments for Dept. of Homeland Security

2/9/11 - Notarized homestudy rec'd and re-mailed to AGCI!
1/7/11 - We close on the sale of our house in NW Iowa
11/30/10 - 3rd and final homestudy visit, dossier paperwork completed
11/24/10 - house back in NW Iowa finally goes on the market for sale
10/26/10 - 2nd homestudy visit
10/15/10 - Eric is finally able to secure his company transfer and relocate himself as well
9/30/10 - After securing living arrangements post-relocation, we have our first homestudy visit
8/17/10 - We receive notification that some paperwork families will be transferring caseworkers...we are transferred to Toni!
8/17/10 - Nic relocates to central Iowa to begin new teaching position the following day...a move is in the works...adoption paperwork, education and homestudy arrangements put on hold
8/13/10 - Nic rec'd call from a friend to interview for a last-minute teacher opening in central Iowa
6/7/10 - First paperwork call with our caseworker, Brandi; we begin the adoption education and dossier paperwork process
5/15/10 - Mailed orientation packet documents and first payment
4/13/10 - AGCI adoption orientation packet rec'd in mail
4/8/10 - AGCI international adoption application as part of the Ethiopia program approved!
3/16/10 - Official adoption application submitted to AGCI with initial fee
11/01/09 - Pre-application submitted to AGCI
10/27/09 - Request for more information on international adoption received by our (now) agency, All God's Children International

Organizations I Support

Followers