Classes Done!

We are happy to report we are FINALLY done with the required classes for our adoption!  We completed 12 hours of online courses and 24 hours of classroom courses.  We are glad to have our Saturday’s back! When people hear that we have to take classes as part of the adoption process they always wonder just what is it that we are learning about.  Well, we took classes on the following topics:

·         Attachment

·         Attachment II

·         Child development

·         Parenting through your child’s development stages

·         Basic child care

·         Grief and loss in adoption

·         Talking to your child about adoption

·         Being a multi-cultural family

·         Adopting black children

·         Adopting from African countries

Some of the courses were interesting and some seemed like they were repeating all the information we covered in a prior class.  I have said it before but will say it again, we should have received our PhD in parenting with all the classes we have had to take! 

Glad to have our courses behind us, it is time to move on to focusing on the quickly approaching Christmas season!  I took the opportunity today while my husband was watching the Broncos game to hit the stores to start my Christmas shopping.  I have to say I got quite a bit done in just a few hours.  I even felt motivated enough when I got home to wrap the gifts!  It feels really good to have the majority of my shopping done; this is by far the earliest I have ever started and it has me thinking I should make this my routine from now on.  I am looking forward to having it all done so I can focus on the spirit of Christmas and actually enjoy it without the headache of trying to get everything done in such a short amount of time.  I even finished ordering my Christmas photo cards tonight!  Next weekend, I might just start digging out the Christmas decorations and try to get a jump on decorating!

Heartbreaking.

My heart continues to break today for the Congo as I looked at blogs from families who have adopted from the DRC.  I know the DRC is poor.  Poor is an understatement, in fact it is one of the poorest countries in the world but seeing the true poverty is hard to comprehend.  6 out of 10 children will die before their 5^th birthday. 

Heartbreaking. 

There are 5 million orphans who live in complete and utter poverty.  5 million orphans who can’t even have their basic needs met.  Orphans who if they are lucky may receive a meager 1 ‘meal’ a day (mix of beans or watered down formula).   

Heartbreaking.  

Orphanages that don’t even have enough beds for all the children.  There is one orphanage that has 130 children and only 15 beds (if you can even call it a bed). 

Heartbreaking. 

Orphans who will die because they won’t receive the inexpensive medication to combat malaria. 

I feel guilty for having been born in America, while these children are born in a war torn country.  I feel guilty for having a nice home while these children don’t have a bed to lay their head on or even a roof over their head.  I feel guilty that we have 3 vehicles and recreational vehicles.  I feel guilty that I have enough food to never truly know what hunger is and that I waste food when there are millions of children who don’t even receive 1 meal a day.  I feel guilty that I can go out shopping and in one trip spend what families in the Congo make in a year.  I feel guilty that I have been so complacent in life and have taken for granted what I have been blessed with. 

Heartbreaking. 

God has been opening my eyes more and more over the last year to the heartache across the world. I am thankful that God is breaking my heart for orphans and showing me where my priorities in life need to be.  I pray that God continues to break my heart for the orphans and shows me ways in which he will use me to help reach the least of these in the world. 

Video on DRC 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgViwIbVHZw&feature=player_embedded