Goodbye, My Childhood Home

This weekend I'm in NC helpin' my folks pack-up to move in a few weeks out of the house that I grew up in. It's a bittersweet transition, but God has shown His tenderness and given much encouragement to all involved. I am going to miss this house tho. It's not the biggest house I've ever lived in, or the fanciest or something, but it was home for me for much of my young years and I'll always love it.

It's sad to not be coming back to it for Christmas and vacations. My favorite little pets are all buried in the backyard, my initials are carved in some of those trees too. The walls have dents from my laundry basket and notches where I proved that I was taller than my brothers (that was a long time ago!). The sidewalk displays my initials, the little tree I planted for Mom has grown up like I have, the stairway walls skinned my knuckles multiple times, and I'm still not telling where I hid the time capsule. I've definitely left my mark on this house and it's left it's on me. When I go home to my Virginia today, it will be the last time I close the front door of my childhood home. There's a lot of sweet and silly memories within those walls. From food fights to pillow fights, to composting in the turtle-pen (don't ask), to reading American Girl books on the catwalk with Diana, teaching Tay how to flip play pancakes in the cubby hide-out, sleeping crammed together on the lumpy futon with my Jeni and Liz, trying to be the center of attention at every teen party, family devotions around the breakfast table, the summer of ice cream socials, and the pressure washer shower head. I'm so grateful for the sweet family heritage that this house has been a part of thru the years. In this house I helped teach Patrick to walk, celebrated the "tube-sock Christmas," made best friends, gave my heart fully to Christ, graduated high school, learned to drive my first car, fell in love, got ready for my wedding, and introduced Eva to her great-grandparents. What a special place this has been and will always be.

So, dear old house, I leave my childhood and a little bit of my heart with you. Goodbye.

Adoption Update: Social Worker Assigned

We received a phone call a couple days ago from a social worker from CCDA (the agency we're working with) saying that they were eager to get our home study going and "get us into the system." Apparently they don't get a lot of applicants saying they'd be willing to consider most any baby, and they said we would be a "valuable resource to have on hand" for mothers that come to them. Sounds good to us! So we've been assigned a social worker (got the letter today), so now our home study can begin.



Doughnut Love

oh how he loves me : )

1,2,3... 4? Lord, please send us (soon) one more!

This has been a long time coming, but today is the day we get to take the first big step on our journey towards adoption. Adam and I have been praying, searching, reading, going to meetings, calling, studying, reviewing, praying more, talking, comparing, weighing, and praying again for about five months now about adoption and the who, what, when, and where of it all. This week we settled on our agency and were so excited to fill out their application and put it in the mail today together as a family. Our mail lady was even so kind as to take our picture. : )

In the next few weeks we will be assigned a social worker and begin the heaps of paperwork preparing for the first home study meeting. Please be praying with us for provision, direction, faith, and peace, as well as for God's protection and tender love to be on the birthmother and baby we have yet to meet. We don't know how long it will be before we welcome that next little one into our home (maybe by Christmastime, dear Lord?), but we'll keep everyone informed here on the family blog as we walk this unknown but (we pray) joyful new road.

    my Little Helper signs some paperwork with me yesterday

Adoption is such a beautiful picture of God's heart of love and we're so grateful to be able to pursue this path for growing our family now. For me, it has been a life-long desire, and for us as a family it's always been part of the "picture" we had in mind when we thot about what we'd like "us" to be. We're also so grateful to be walking this road with so many cheerleaders on each side. (That'd be y'all.) That baby, wherever he or she is, I know, is already so loved. Y'allguyses' (southern homeschoolin' there, for ya) love for us is truly amazing and completely faith-building. Already, before we even had a agency picked, the cheering and gift-giving began. How humbling and how sweet. Our dear Church Family stretches across states and even continents. We so often have our breath taken away by God's love thru so many. We love our Savior more because of you.  And we love you back, folks. Thank you. And thank you, Jesus, for giving your life so we all might be adopted by and reconciled with Our Heavenly Father who's love propels our own.

O LORD, you are my God;

I will exalt you; I will praise your name,

for you have done wonderful things,

plans formed of old, faithful and sure.

Isaiah 25:1

"And then the mail truck chugged slowly away, carrying within it's faded blue and white tin frame their postmarked hopes and dreams..."

this week's LOVE-ly busywork