Curveball Blessings

Okay, so I haven't been doing a great job at updating the blog.  But honestly there hasn't been much to say.  

We continue to be #20 on the wait list.  Referrals have slowed tremendously.  This is due to many changes going on within Ethiopia.  We are asking for our friends and family to continue praying for Ethiopian adoptions and that we begin seeing referrals again...soon.  Most of these changes are being put into place to benefit the many children needing families so desperately.  The goal is to make adoptions more ethical, which of course we support 100%.  It's just hard.  The waiting.  I want Townes home more than anything I have ever wanted.  

But that's not really the reason why I am writing this post.  We have some big news.  Some very shocking news.  Josh and I will be welcoming a little one this fall.  I'm pregnant and due September 19th.

  

WARNING: Okay, so this post is laced with honesty.   And it's not all pretty.  I'm sorry.  

The past year our main priority has been Townes.  Becoming pregnant wasn't even a thought.  So much, that it's been hard.  I felt I knew what God had planned for our family.  I had found my passion.  I felt my faith had never been stronger.  I finally had things "figured out".   How silly of me.  This is what He does, isn't it?  Once we think WE have our lives figured out...bam.  I know this.  God is showing us how to really rely upon Him.  But it's difficult when it happens.  Especially if it means possibly having to bring your son home later than planned.  

We know that children are a blessing.  We know we will love this child, just like our others.  This curveball blessing we've been thrown.  We know there are so many people who pray daily to be in our situation.  We know all these things.  And we are coming around to the idea.  Of 4 kids...gulp.  

The Gameplan: So my first question was..what does this mean for our adoption process?   Thankfully we will continue moving down the list as referrals come in.  They will however skip over us until this baby is 6 months old.  So that means there is a possibility that we COULD be at the bottom of the list when we are ready to accept our referral.  This is good news.  My fear was that we would be "stuck" at #20 until Baby T is 6 months old.  

So Townes will be a big brother.  He'll have a sibling closer to his age.  It's going to fun...right?!?!   

My Girls

Let me tell ya folks about these girls of mine.  They have been on this roller coaster ride since the moment we asked them about adoption.  They have been there during my emotional breakdowns.  They have been up late at night working on fundraisers and helping the "paperchase".  They have heard the stories of the sick, hungry, dying children around the world.  I'm going to be honest, there are times when my heart hurt so much I didn't think this was meant for us.  But not my girls.  They have supported us with the grace and love only a mother can pray for her children to have.  They are the real thing guys.  I think at times they are more excited to welcome Townes into this family than Josh and I.  Taylor even asked for a suitcase for Christmas.  They can't wait to witness Ethiopia with us on our first trip.

Wanna see what I'm talking about???  Good.  We'll start with Taylor.   This is a poem she wrote for an English assignment.  I now have it framed in my living room.


Those kids in Africa
I wonder how they live everyday
I hear the millions of babies crying for help
I see all the things they live without
I want them to have enough food and water
Those kids in Africa

I pretend to think they are loved
I feel heartbroken they have to drink muddy water
I touch their cold hands
I worry they could get sick and die before their 1st birthday
I cry knowing nobody wants them
Those kids in Africa

I understand the orphanage is better than the streets
I say God has you in His hands
I dream one day there won't be any orphans
I strive to help them in any way
I hope they all have somewhere warm to stay because
I know they will get adopted very soon
Those kids in Africa

Okay, now wanna see what Raegan has been working on with my mom?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjHAeQOqlSk

Oh my heart!  I'm praising God for bringing our ENTIRE family on this journey!

What This Christmas Season Brings

I love this time of year.  I cherish the time spent with family and the time spent reflecting the birth of our greatest gift, our Savior.  This year I have begun to see the Christmas season in a slightly different light.  While we are sitting in our warm homes, feasting on delicious foods and surrounded by gifts and family, there are children sitting in orphanages cold, starving, with no one to hug them and tell them how much they are loved.

When we received our unexpected, very low number in November my prayers began to change.  For the past year, my prayers have mostly centered around decisions and sadly timelines.  Josh and I prayed that God would lead our adoption journey, which He has.  Josh and I prayed that WE would not have to wait long for our son.  I did pray for our son but not in the way I do now.  In my heart I still felt like we had years ahead of us, so our son possibly was not born yet.  When we received November's number, I knew he was born.  He is alive and possibly a toddler.  Not a baby that doesn't know much of what is going on around him.  This breaks my heart.  I now pray that God has His arms wrapped so tightly around Townes.  That our son is being protected from a broken world.  I pray that my son will be fed today.  That he is clothed today.  That he is warm today.  I pray that he felt love today. That he was not harmed today.  That he is healthy today.  I pray he knows that he is not just another child, left fighting alone, without anyone to love him.  I pray that in his sweet little heart that he knows we are coming for him.  That we are fighting as hard as we can for him.

A mother shouldn't have to pray this.  This is what keeps me up at night.  Will you join me in my prayer?

I have Faith that God will heal our son's heart.  While adoption is a beautiful picture of how God adopted us, please remember it comes from broken place. In this season of thanks, Josh and I are so thankful God opened our eyes and broke our hearts close to a year ago.

Okay, so here is December's number:

We moved 1 spot...yay!  This is of course our Christmas tree.  Wouldn't it be AWESOME if Townes is here with us next year and gets to celebrate possibly his first Christmas with a mommy, daddy, sisters, grandparents, cousins, aunts, and uncles!

Giving God ALL the Glory

Wondering where our November picture is? 

Towards the end of October we were given the opportunity to switch placing agencies with the possibility of a shorter wait time for the age child we are approved for, 0-4.  While this was exciting news, it brought about many more emotions.  Fear, nervousness, doubt.   

Was this what God was leading our family to do?

Are we making a mistake?

Josh and I prayed about the change and nervously made the decision to switch.  I began the process of compiling another dossier, the VERY large portfolio of important documents and paperwork that is sent to Ethiopia.  This took me almost 3 months to do last time and I was not looking forward to doing it from scratch again.  But God sure had His hand in this!  We were able to complete and send off our new dossier in 2 business days, that even included driving to Frankfort to have documents authenticated. How else would this have been possible???  Now...

We know this is what God is leading our family to do!

So, with that being said we received our new wait list number yesterday!  Ready?!?!

Anyone who knows my husband knows he can't sit still.  He loves to rock and will sit in this chair and rock until it scratches the floor.  While this drives me crazy at times, I can't wait to see Townes curled up in his Daddy's lap rocking in this chair.

Big difference, huh?  I was in complete shock and even called my social worker to make sure this wasn't a mistake.  Looks like we might just have our sweet little boy sooner than expected.  This brings crocodile tears to my eyes and a lump in my throat.  We do not know when we will receive our referral, it could be soon or a year from now.  I am not going to act like this does not cause me anxiety.  The unknown.  But God knows...and we have FAITH that God will show us our son's face when the time is right. 

We thought we had 2 years to save up the money for referral and travel costs.  Yeah, probably not.  :)So we are trimming fat, so to speak, and going down other avenues to have our $12,000 referral fee when the time comes.  We are also currently selling sheet sets for $35/set, beautiful cross bracelets for $24, and t-shirts for $20. 

What a great Christmas gift right? 

 

The bracelets come in an assortment of styles.  They are handmade and gorgeous! The sheets are available in twin, full, queen, king, and California king.  They come in many different colors and are SO comfortable. 

 

If you are interested in helping bring Townes home by purchasing a fundraiser item, please email me at thurmanmandy@yahoo.com.   Also, please support us by continuing to pray for us throughout this journey.  It is exciting but HARD and all prayers are welcomed. 

 

-Mandy

First Official Number

We received our first official wait list number!  I thought it would be fun to keep everyone updated on our progress by taking pictures of our "number" in places we see our son being when he is home.  So every month when we get our updated number, I plan on taking a picture and posting.  I hope to compile all of the pics in a photo album someday, so when he is older we can show him how much we were in love with him...even before we knew who he was.

Okay, drum roll please.......

This picture is in front of our house. I so look forward to the day when we are able to bring him through this front door.  When he is finally home.

DTE

DTE meant nothing to me 11 months ago.  Back when I was content with my little family of four.  Back before I knew what God had planned for our family.  Back before my heart was beautifully broken.  

Now it means one step closer to our son.  

We are DTE(Dossier to Ethiopia) guys!!!!  Thank you Jesus!  Friday morning our dossier was signed for in Ethiopia.  This means we are officially added to THE list.  What happens next?  We wait....  We will receive our wait list number on October 1st.  As referrals come, we will move up the list.  We are looking at a possible 14-18 month wait.  I am so excited to finally join the list but I know quickly the excitement will fade and be replaced by the desire to be off the list, to receive OUR referral.  

Currently Ethiopia is in its rainy season and we haven't seen much movement in the term of referrals, children being matched with their forever family.  Please join us in praying for referrals and speedier movement in court and embassy appointments.  These children need to come home.  The rainy season is cold and wet.  At the Transition Home, the staff usually hang the clothes to dry, as they do not have enough dryers.  You can imagine that a cold and rainy environment is not conducive to this task.  So the children are wet and cold and many sick.  They need to be home.  They need their mommy and daddy.  

We continue to be overwhelmed by the support of our community.  You guys ROCK!!!!   

I600A Approval...did I really just type that?!

I feel like Steve Martin in The Jerk right now. "The phone books are here, the phone books are here!!!"  Okay, so if you have no idea what I am referencing put down your phone, computer, or any other devices and head directly to the movie store.  Rent the movie.  Then you'll understand. 

No, we did not receive a new phone book today.  It's even better.  We received our I-600A approval!  This means that the US Citizenship and Immigration Services has approved Josh and I to adopt!  This was the last piece we needed before sending our completed dossier to Ethiopia.  Our dossier is now on it's journey.  It must go to the State of Utah and Washington DC to be authenticated then it's off across the world.  Once it is DTE(Dossier To Ethiopia) we will get our first official number on the wait list.  😊

There are days when I never thought we would get to this point.  God has shown us so much about ourselves, our marriage, and our community.  Every time I scroll through Facebook, go to Walmart, or anywhere in this town for that matter, I see someone with one of our shirts on or have someone ask how they can help to bring our son home.  I can't explain the feeling I get.  I am overwhelmed and humbled. I pray, if our son is already born, that tonight he can feel all of the prayers and love.  He is BELOVED!!!