Orphan Care Shirts

IF...

you are interested in showing support for orphan care 

AND 

want to help spread the word about the orphan crisis and adoption

AND

 want to help us bring our little guy home

THEN...

here's an opportunity to do so:

We are partnering with mycrazyadoption.com to offer these t-shirts.  

All proceeds will go towards our upcoming agency and processing fees as we submit our dossier to China.  

All of the shirts are available in adult and youth sizes.  The women's cut shirts tend to run small, so order up a size or two.  

They are $25 each and are available through the tabs on the right side of the blog.

Man Up Shirt

"PROTECT AND LOVE THE FATHERLESS"

Size Specs

Size    Length         Width

S        28                19

     M       29                20 ½ 

L        30                22

XL      31                24

XXL   32                26

Simply Love China Shirt

"LOVE WILL ALWAYS FIND A WAY"

Size Specs
Ladies Cut

Size    Length         Width

S        25 3/8         16 ¼ 

M       26                17 ¼ 

L        26 5/8         18 ¼ 

XL      27 ¼            19 ¾ 

XXL   27 7/8         21 ¼ 

Spec for Unisex Cut 

Size    Length         Width

S        28                19

     M       29                20 ½ 

L        30                22

XL      31                24

XXL   32                26     

Whole Wide World Shirt

"God loves each of us as if there were only one of us." - St. Augustine
Size Specs

                                   Small          Medium             Large            X-Large            2X-Large            3x

Width (A)                                           18"                  20"                   22"               24"                     26" 

Length (B)                                         28"                 29"                   30"               31"                     32" 

Sleeve (C)                                         7.5"                   8"                  8.5"               9"                       9.5" 

If you are local, I'd be happy to deliver them to you.  If you're out of town, there is a $5 charge for shipping, but that will cover as many shirts as you'd like. :)  

Most of all, though, we'd really just like to ask for your prayers.  

Please pray that the paperwork will continue to move quickly and that our little guy is being cared for in the best possible way.

Where we are...

I've been asked to share "where we are" in the adoption process. The answer is somewhat complicated because the process is so detailed and I'm honestly still familiarizing myself with it. Those who know me well have heard me say that if I didn't personally know people who have adopted from China, I may just think it was impossible. To say that the paperwork can be overwhelming, would be a gross understatement. However, there is great joy in accomplishing each task and knowing that it brings us one step closer to our little guy. I recently had a friend refer to me as "paperwork pregnant" - HA!

We just completed our home study. This involved compiling documents (birth certificates, financial statements, utility bills, marriage license, etc.), background checks/fingerprints, fire inspection, proof of animal vaccinations (yep, you read that correctly), dr. appts for all, and multiple interviews. We were really pleased with our social worker and she submitted the 16 page study to our adoption agency yesterday. Once it is approved, we will submit it (along with other documents) to U.S. immigration along with a form called the I-800a. Basically, this is USCIS evaluating if we are suitable to adopt a child from China. Currently, we've been told that this process can take 60-90 days. Once we get the approval and have all of our other documents together (too many to list here), we must get all of the documents notarized, certified by the county clerk, certified by the Secretary of State of Ohio and sealed by the Chinese Consulate in NY. From my understanding, the consulate does not accept mail, so the documents will be sent by courier. Once we have all of the documents back, I believe we can submit our dossier to China. After receiving and approving the dossier, we will receive a log in date (LID) to China's system. We can then be matched with our little boy. After match, we can expect to travel to China in 4-6 months. I hope this makes sense and that I have the details correct. Please give me grace, as all of this is still a little confusing to me. ;)

So, if you're still with me, that's "where we're at." I've been praying that all of this will move as quickly as possible. Not necessarily for us....but for our precious boy. We want him to know the security and love of a family, the joy of siblings, and the peace of sleeping safely in his home...

Fortunately, we are blessed to serve a God who delights in "placing the lonely in homes" (Psalm 68:6). During our last home study interview on Monday, our social worker informed us that she would work really hard to finish the report and present it at her staff meeting on Tuesday. She said that if she didn't do it then, she would have to wait until their meeting next month to present it. One day made a month's difference. This was not lost on me. When people have asked us what they can pray for, I've asked them to pray that for every timeframe we're given, each step will be completed in the fastest time possible. God knew when that staff meeting was when I scheduled the interview. I, of course, had no idea. We are thankful that He is in the details. I know that this is an unpredictable process, but it brings great peace to know that not one small detail of it is unknown to Him.

We're Expecting...

Yep, it's true, we're expecting again!

• Expecting God to do great things in our family.
• Expecting Him to provide and remind us that He funds what He favors.
• Expecting to be awed by His delight in placing the lonely in families.
• Expecting Him to show Himself to us in new ways and challenge us to trust His timing.
• Expecting Him not to leave us unchanged after this journey we've begun.

We have recently begun the process of adopting a little boy from China.

Honestly, I've typed, deleted & re-typed all of our motives and line of reasoning (just as an explanation for those of you who may think we've lost our minds!). We have been asked by those we are working with..."with a house full of 5 children already, WHY would you want to do this?" In our most vulnerable moments of this already exhausting journey, we've asked the same question ourselves! There are many motivations, many reasons, many thoughts behind this decision and if you'd ever like to stop over for coffee, we'd be happy to explain. :)

Please pray for our precious little guy somewhere on the other side of the world.

Please pray that we can be united with him as soon as possible.

Cow Appreciation Day

It's amazing what we will do for free food!

Actually, Andrew and Lily had a great time constructing our costumes for Chick-Fil-A's Cow Appreciation Day.

If you dress like a cow, they will give you a free meal - brilliant!

Our kids thought they were living high on the hog when they each got their own kids meal - ha!

Our total came to around $28 and it was all FREE.

Have I mentioned that I love a bargain? ;o)

Blueberry Picking with Caroline

I love having a full house; however, I also treasure one-on-one time with each of our blessings.

Caroline and I had a wonderful time picking blueberries this year - a first for both of us.

I enjoyed picking them so much more than other berries!

We went on a cool morning in July and had the field all to ourselves.

We talked about how to pick the best berries.

She was very proud of herself!

Precious times with a precious girl. =)

Growing, growing, growing!

Oh how we love our little Lucy.

It always amazes me how much little ones grow and change during their first year!

We are so very thankful that she is growing as she should and that she is healthy.

She has brought even more joy to our home.

Her smile makes my heart leap!

Here are some pictures from her first, second & third months.

One Month

Two Months

Three Months

It is such a blessing to spend my days with her and watch her as she changes and grows.

Father's Day 2011

Obviously, I love my husband. I also happen to really like him a lot. ;o) Beyond that, though, I can honestly say he is one of the best men I've ever known. He truly loves God and strives to do what is right. I am so blessed that he loves me not just with his words, but by the way he lives every single day. He loves his children so much and shows them so by spending time with them, saying "yes" as much as possible, praying for them, and lots of other ways. He takes the time to play, puts them to bed with books, kisses and prayers and leads them in family worship. He works hard to support his family and (more importantly!) bring glory to God and serve others. He is certainly a servant leader. He isn't perfect, but he's pretty amazing! We are immensely blessed to have him & I thank God for him!!

We started the day with cinnamon rolls - one of Daddy's favorites!

We were excited to have both sets of grandparents with us for Father's Day. This is not something Sven & I take for granted!

Sven and his father, Frank

Me and my Daddy

Ending the day reading "Dance Me, Daddy"