Contentment

Well, thought it would be a good idea to update the blog regarding our adoption. Unfortunately, there is not much to tell. We have been on the "waiting list" now for about 5 months and have officially passed the one year mark from when we started the process. We still do not have our own adoption worker here in Champaign, but our agency is hoping to hire someone new around the graduation time as there may be many qualified candidates from the university. We have been working closely with the intern through the Bloomington office and really like her a lot. She ran the February and March support group and did a great job of balancing some teaching and discussion among those of us adopting. The one thing I really like about her is she and her husband plan on adopting one day, so I feel like she is "one of us." She will be at our April meeting, but it will be her last. :(

I continue to be stretched to remember that God is in complete control of this adoption. He knows who our future son or daughter is, and He knows when the best time for this to happen is. In Sunday School yesterday, we were challenged to enjoy our work here on earth, but to be content with where God has placed us. It is so easy to get into a pattern of always thinking about what's next instead of just enjoying today.

Ecclesiastes 5:18-20

¹⁸ Then I realized that it is good and proper for a man to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in his toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given him—for this is his lot. ¹⁹ Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work—this is a gift of God. ²⁰ He seldom reflects on the days of his life, because God keeps him occupied with gladness of heart.

On our toes!

Today was the date scheduled for our second walk through with our new adoption worker. I woke up with a HUGE headache and (as I am so good at doing) I waited until the last minute to get into the shower to prepare for our visit. It wasn't really last minute though... Our first walk through taught me to be prepared early as our worker showed up about 10 minutes early then. So today, I gave myself a 30 minute buffer...or so I thought!

As I climbed out of the shower, the dog started barking ferociously, as she does when someone comes to our door. "No...." I thought, "they couldn't be here this early!" Wrong! They arrived 35 minutes early. Oh well, what could I do but throw my clothes on and brush my teeth quickly? As I walked into the living room, I found out that our worker and her intern thought that our meeting was supposed to be at 10...so they thought they were running late. When Derrick told her that we thought the meeting was at 11, she looked at her calendar and realized that she was indeed 35 minutes early. Oh well! We have to stay on our toes!

The walk through went well and we are not scheduled for another one until July. So again, we are waiting. I helped plan my sister's baby shower this weekend. It was a lot of fun! A good friend was so sweet to email me this morning to remind me that my baby shower would be next. I thank God daily for the people He has placed in my life who are encouraging and praying for Derrick and I as we wait to meet our beautiful son or daughter.

Firm Footing

I know I haven't posted anything in quite a while...that is because nothing has really happened in quite a while! In mid-October, Derrick and I signed our final paperwork and met with the woman who will take on our case. She is the case manager from Bloomington. The agency has not yet hired someone new for the Champaign office, but has a plan for how to handle the case load until May. They are hoping that there will be a larger pool of applicants once many social work students graduate in May.

Meanwhile...with the help of many good friends, we finished dry-walling and painting the nursery. It is a very pretty pale yellow. Derrick is very happy that the room is now functional, as the demolition began in June and the room wasn't finished until late November. Now that the holidays are over and my long term subbing position has ended, I plan on painting a mural on one of the walls. I will definitely post pictures when it is finished!

We have now attended two support group meetings. The one in October was changed and no one told us, so we missed it; and the December meeting was canceled due to the weather.

So, this coming Tuesday, our new worker will be coming to the house for a walk through of our home. This is just in compliance with our foster care license. Every several months she will come to make sure our home is still safe enough to raise a child.

Meanwhile, I am reminded that God has a purpose for our waiting time. Psalm 143:10 (NIV) says, "Teach me to do Your will, for You are my God. May Your gracious Spirit lead me forward on firm footing." I know without a doubt that adoption is God's will for Derrick and I. My prayer is that I remember that in Him I don't need to worry about timing. It will happen in His perfect timing!

Psalm 31:24 (ESV)
"Be strong and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the Lord."

And we're in!

It seems the first leg of our wait is now over! Derrick received an email last night (at 11 p.m.) from our temporary adoption worker that we were accepted by the committee last Thursday and have been put into circulation for our adoption! This means that our profile and DVD are available to be matched to any birth mother in central Illinois!

We are really excited about finally being here and now look forward to the next goal, being chosen and meeting the newest addition to our family! When we began the process, we were told that from this point we have a wait of on average two months to three years. This means that things could change dramatically for us very soon, or we could have a couple of years before that happens. I continue to be encouraged by those friends and family members who often remind us that they are praying for us and the birth family because they know that God has His hand in the outcome!

We meet up with our temporary adoption worker sometime next week to sign final paperwork. We are grateful that we have been assigned to the worker in Bloomington, as she was at all of our Home Study meetings. Although we haven't met one on one with her, she and Derrick do have a connection to PA. that they discussed back in the Spring. This is great, because she will hopefully remember who we are and be able to quickly learn more about our case. See...God is even in the small things...like meeting someone with connections to Pine Grove, PA!

Next step...our good friend from college is planning on coming to visit in a couple of weeks. His main goal will be to help Derrick finish mudding and taping the drywall and paint the nursery...now I just have to settle on a paint color!

Thank you again for your prayers! You all are a blessing to us! Corey and Derrick

The presentation...

Derrick spoke to the woman who is now in charge of our case at the agency today. She seems great on the phone-really willing to work with us considering the situation! We will be presented to the committee at the agency on this Thursday. If the committee "approves" of us, then we will be considered in circulation as of Friday! We are both excited and anxious at the same time!

When we began this process, we were told that from this point, the average wait time is between two months and three years. We will now begin attending monthly support groups as we wait for a birth mother to choose us. :)

A bump in the road....

Yesterday we received a letter in the mail from our adoption worker, saying that she is leaving Catholic Charities, and that today will be her last day. This is definately a bump in the road, as it will probably slow some of our paperwork, sitting in the Champaign office, down while they look into hiring someone new. The supervisor will be taking over while they look for someone new, however, she lives in Peoria (1 1/2 hours away from Champaign).

Please pray that our new worker is someone that we connect to quickly, as we really liked our current worker. Please also pray that this person is very organized and is able to quickly get working on current open cases.

Thanks!

Lamentations 3:25-26

"The Lord is good to those who hope is in Him, to the one who seeks Him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord."

As I type, Derrick is finished printing a label on our last dvd to turn in. We plan to go to Catholic Charities tomorrow in order to turn in our last required items: 4 dvd's, 4 profiles, and paperwork. Our profile is a scrapbook, which shows in 20 pages, who we are. Of course I loved working on this, as scrap booking is a great passion of mine! The 4 dvd's are a labor of love...both Derrick and I really didn't look forward to making a 10 minutes video talking about ourselves and why we should be "picked" as parents! In fact, we put off making our dvd until the last possible moment...and then begrudgingly worked on it one Sunday afternoon. Our final paperwork will be used to match us with possible birthmoms.

What I have learned in these past couple of weeks is that God is great! He has provided for Derrick and I in such amazing ways! I quit my teaching job last Spring, something that I was very nervous about doing. I didn't understand why God would ask me to leave a paying job when He also wanted us to consider adoption. I didn't understand how things would come together...which is fine, because God is in control and He knows exactly how it will come together! The above verse in Lamentations is one that I found for a Bible study several weeks ago. This idea of waiting "quietly" on God, was one that baffled me. When you are waiting on God to do something for you, it is REALLY hard to wait quietly! Of course, to everyone else, it may seem that I was waiting patiently, but God (and Derrick) know the truth...I am really good at whining! :)

So now that we are about ready to go into the "pool" of potential adoptive parents, a new wait begins. I hope that I can wait quietly, as I know that God has His hand in this entire adventure!

The following are some of the lyrics from a song by Addison Road. The song is titled, "What do I Know of Holy?"

I made You promises a thousand times
I tried to hear from Heaven
But I talked the whole time
I think I made You too small
I never feared You at all No
If You touched my face would I know You?
Looked into my eyes could I behold You?

(CHORUS)
What do I know of You
Who spoke me into motion?
Where have I even stood
But the shore along Your ocean?
Are You fire? Are You fury?
Are You sacred? Are You beautiful?
What do I know? What do I know of Holy?

I guess I thought that I had figured You out
I knew all the stories and I learned to talk about
How You were mighty to save
Those were only empty words on a page
Then I caught a glimpse of who You might be
The slightest hint of You brought me down to my knees