Tim the Tool Man Watch Out!

We are trying to get a few things around the house done in order to be proactive for the upcoming home study.  Dean worked tirelessly over the last couple weeks to complete the work on the back patio.  We re-landscaped our backyard and put in a brick patio a couple years ago, but the patio settled making parts of it uneven and we needed to complete the steps down to the yard.  So Dean strapped on his tool belt and worked hard to get it completed.  The finished product looks great. 

Next tasks on the Honey Do list- all COMPLETE!

ü  Install a new lighting fixture for the back patio

ü  Install large fire extinguisher

ü  Install new screen door (since Chardonnay our loveable yellow lab decided to push her way through the door to get inside)

ü  Install baby locks on the cabinets where the cleaning supplies and chemicals are housed

ü  Window well covers (ok, we had these professionally installed but Dean could have done it had he had a welder- or so he says!)

She looks guilty doesn't she?  She's the reason why we had to replace our screen door.

I am so thankful I have a husband who is handy around the house…now what else can I find that needs fixed?!

Back to School?

Our placing agency received our contract and all of the other mountains of paperwork we sent in, so the next step is to complete the education classes required.  I feel like I am back in school…ugh!  At least these courses are online, but I get rather sleepy trying to watch hours upon hours of 2 women talking.  I need something more exciting, perhaps throw in a loud noise like a firecracker to keep me awake or a short break for Angry Birds or a clip from The Office for a change of pace.  This stuff is pretty dry.

It is really amazing to see all of the hoops that adoptive parents have to go through to even be ‘qualified’ to adopt.  Our placing agency requires a certain number of courses to be completed and then the State of Colorado requires an additional 24 hours of classroom time.  By the end of this we should have our doctorate in parenting!

It is crazy to think that there are people out there who can just have babies without a second thought as to how they will afford them, take care of them and parent them. Come to think of it I am actually financially supporting many of these people’s kids through my taxes!

In the end, we know it will be worth it, it is just another step toward our dream of becoming parents.  We know that we will be better parents for taking these courses…they just need something to make it more interesting!

Our Needs Continue to be Met!

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. Hebrews 11:1

God continues to answer our prayers.  When we started to really think seriously about adoption I was ready to jump right in but Dean on the other hand had a few reservations about how we were going to be able to afford adoption without going into major debt.  Totally understandable reservations, right?!  He is so logical sometimes (he may think he is logical all the time)!    I on the other hand kept thinking that it would work out one way or another because God has called us to go down this journey and would meet all of our needs. Although, my faith was tested when we encountered a significant financial speed bump with an incident to one of our vehicles, I should have known God was in control.   God showed his incredible love by providing a large chunk of the funds we would need for adoption.  But God didn’t stop there, this past weekend after having lunch with my parents they decided to pay for our home study and the immigration fees!  We can hardly believe how God is working in our lives and touching the hearts of others who feel called to help us bring our child (or possibly children) home.  I am always amazed by God’s perfect timing~ when we finally stopped worrying about the ‘how’ and put our trust in God, he proved to meet our needs.  We now have raised almost 2/3 of the cost for our adoption!

Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies. Psalm 36:5

Fingerprint Cards Mailed

We went to the police station a couple weeks ago to get fingerprinted and today we sent off our fingerprint cards to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation who will then forward them to the FBI.  It feels great to have one more thing checked off our list.  Hopefully, the background check process will go quickly and smoothly. 

Up next…doctor’s visits to have them sign off on our health. 

Placement Agency Contract Mailed!

ü  Signed and notarized contract

ü  Home Study Agency information

ü  Consent to release

ü  Payment

After completing another stack of paperwork we finally mailed off our placement agency contract!  The agency should receive early the week of July 18^th and should then assign a social worker. 

Next up we need to finish up all the required documents so we can submit everything to our home study agency.  There is another mountain of paperwork, we need to get doctors letters to sign off on our health and ability to raise a child, draw out a floor plan of our home (don’t ask me why this is needed since they will be coming to our house multiple times), send payment, etc, etc, etc.  I think my hand is going to fall off from completing all the paperwork! 

Happy Birthday America!

As we celebrate the 4th of July I can't help but think of how blessed we are to live in such a wonderful country. There are so many in this world that are less fortunate than we are and it really makes you realize just how lucky we are. 

If you take the U.S. and compare it to an African country you can see how fortunate we are:

   vs.  


U.S.

20.1% of US population is 14 years or younger

Median age is 36.9 years old

12% of population is below poverty line

Infant mortality rate- 6.06 deaths/1,000 live births

Literacy Rate: 99%

African Country

44% of population is 14 years or younger

Median age is 17.4 years old

71 % of population is below poverty line

Infant mortality rate- 78.43 deaths/1,000 live births

Literacy Rate: 67%

On a lighter note, we spent a wonderful weekend celebrating D's birthday, our anniversary and the 4th of July in the mountains camping.  We went to the Taylor Park area where we rode our 4-wheelers over 155 miles on fun and rough 4 wheel drive trails.  It was a nice break to all the adoption paperwork we have been completing and a nice break from work (it was the first day off I have taken since we returned from New Zealand in November).  The puppies had a fabulous time as well.  Angel enjoyed roasted marshmallows, just not the stickiness of them!

The view from our campsite

Exchanging anniversary cards, Charddy wondered where hers was



Pretty and unique scenery



The trail we were attempting was just about impassible, Mirror Lake was about 8-10 feet higher than normal

Angel enjoys marshmallows...however when they stick to the sides of her mouth she gets a little irritated!

We hope that everyone had a wonderful 4th of July!