Saturday, April 20, 2013

Big News from The Thurman's

That's right, we have some BIG news!  After months of prayer (and many conversations with God that always seemed to begin and end with "Are you SURE about this?") we are thrilled to announce that we will be adding to our family through International Adoption.  We have embarked on the journey to find our son in Ethiopia. 

Okay, so I know you must be thinking how in the world did this come about.  Let me give you a litte bit of a background.  Josh has always said that if we were to have a child, he would want to adopt.  I thought he was insane and was very content with our family of 4.  Last year we decided to "try for a boy".  I began to follow the Shettles Method but something just didn't seem right.  We realized that this wasn't meant for us and that we were happy with the way our family was.  Life went on.  Until one day when I began to feel a tug at my heart.  This tug turned quickly into a full on ache.  I began to research adoption and nervously sent Josh a text.  He was home within minutes.  He too had been feeling the same pull that I had been.  We both knew that God was moving within us.  We continued to doubt that this was what God wanted for our family.  Many times I asked God to "show" me.  He would and I would ask again.  Then He lead me to this...

"Once our eyes are opened we cannot pretend we do not know what to do.  God, who weighs our hearts and keeps our souls, knows we know and holds us responsible to act."  - Proverbs 24:12
 

We began to pray that He would open our eyes.

And Our Eyes Were Opened. 

We began to pray that He would break our hearts.

And Our Hearts Were Broken For What Breaks His. 


We are currently on the "paper chase" and had our home visit this week.  It went so well that Josh made reservations for the 4 of us to go to Maggiano's tonight.  The girls are thrilled.  About supper, yes, but mostly about becoming sisters to a little brother!  When asked by our social worker how excited Raegan was she proudly stated "1,000 out of 10".   Taylor can't wait to start babysitting. 

We have a very long road ahead of us and our agency is preparing us for around 18-24 months.  This is hard for a momma to hear since many nights my heart begins to ache thinking of the possibility that my son is already born and is halfway around the world.  What if he is alone, hungry, sick?  See, we are asking for a boy age 0-4 so the chance of him already being born is substantial.  So I am doing everything in my physical power to speed this process along.  I do understand though that the process of adoption is filled with so many unknowns and very hard, long waits.  This is why Josh and I have turned everything regarding our adoption over to God.  He brought us to this and we trust with everything in us that He will carry us through it.  And what a wonderful finish line we have to look forward to!

Anyone who knows me, knows that I am NOT the "blog-type" mother but I will try my best to keep everyone updated.  The average cost of an Ethiopian adoption is around $34,000.  We can not do this alone.  I won't lie...this part scares me.   But I do know that we have a wonderful support system and with prayer, God's love, and the help of friends and family we will be able to do this.  With that being said, please look for future fundraisers that we will be having.   Also, please keep our family in your thoughts and prayers.  Thanks for following this exciting journey! 

Mandy




3 comments:

  1. I'm so excited! And so thankful, and that little boy will be loved beyond words. xoxo

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oh I can't tell you how excited I am! I already love him so much!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Everything about this makes my heart so happy!

    ReplyDelete