Miracles Upon Miracles

We've had some good ol' fashioned miracles around here...

TWO WEEKS AGO: I have a meticulously color coded spread sheet for this adoption tracking fees, grants, fundraising, donations, thank you cards, etc.  It's a work of art, if I may say so myself.  I access it almost daily double checking as my To Do list and making sure there is accountability.  One evening recently, I sat crunching the numbers...there was a $2,500 fee that we didn't have covered yet. With just the yard sale still pending our season fundraising is essentially completed; there just isn't room on the calendar---or space on the spreadsheet!--for one more event. Dang it. Where are we going to find $2,500?  I can't think about this right now...I'll work on some work-stuff:  

Open the email.

Delete a few items.

What's this...?

"Congratulations Desiree, you have qualified for a $2,500 bonus that will be paid out in a lump sum next week."

Wait, WHAT!!!!

I literally have emails from the top of the administrative ladder saying that my job position does NOT fit within any bonus structures. I had forfeited any bonuses in order to have my current flexible schedule, and yet...

THANK YOU JESUS. 

ONE WEEK AGO: On my pressing To Do list (see above spread sheet) has been to arrange my maternity leave from work. This has been a stressful process in my head as I have only been with this company for 4 years and do not have the miles of Paid Time Off saved up like I did with my previous employer (I essentially had 6 months paid leave with Isaac's arrival). I've been watching the corner of my pay stub with my leave hours ticking upward, but only a few hours every week.  Ugg. How in the actual world am I going to be able to be in a foreign country for 4-6 weeks (was originally 8-12!), be able to transition a non English speaking teenager into a totally new normal, get school started, and all the medical appointments, not to mention bond with the poor girl...AND pay the mortgage?  Good lord, I don't want to start this maternity leave process knowing we are basically doomed:

HR Lady: ...Sure, you qualify for maternity leave. You'll need to use your Paid Time Off first... (yeah, I know, lady. That what I don't have enough of...)

Wait.

ME: Um, ma'am? What do you mean FIRST?  Is there a SECOND?

HR Lady: Yes. You have Extended Illness Time available but only if you or a family member has medical needs requiring multiple medical appointments during your leave. You have well over 300 hours of that.

ME: So...let me ask this: If I am adopting a child with a medical diagnosis that required multiple medical evaluations during my maternity leave, I can use BOTH the Paid Time Off AND the Extended Illness Time?

HR Lady: That is correct. 

Praise Jesus---I now have nearly FOUR MONTHS OF PAID MATERNITY LEAVE!

YESTERDAY: The grants are starting to come in, HALLELUJAH, however thus far we have been awarding 'matching grants' meaning the ministry will award us say $3500 IF we fund raise the first $1700 for example. It is WONDERFULLY generous but I've struggled to wrap my brain around how to add even more fundraising to our now dwindling schedule. June is just in 6 weeks.  With the miraculous $2500 provided above we still owed $4500 to pay off the last of our agency fees and the direct grants I expect we'll be awarded aren't scheduled to be paid out until AFTER we are in Albania. The adoption agency contract clearly states you can't travel unless ALL fees are paid (which totally makes sense and I have no issue with).  OK Jesus, your turn.  I literally tell NO one about this.   
Fast forward to yesterday. It had been a full day sorting garage sale items and visiting with friends that had stopped by to help. We were taking a Isaac break in the back yard when my phone dinged:

Great News! 

AdoptTogether has received a donation from *** for $4,000.00 designated to your family's fundraising profile.

Are you kidding me?! 

My friend of 20 years stared at me..."Are you OK?!"

I was absolutely speechless.

Here is the place I find myself now: Expectant Awe.  I want to live with a heart that declares "of course,the Lord will provide" AND in constant reverence of His unending, faithful, loving provision for me and my family. I don't ever want to take it for granted but stand confidently in faith that He will indeed do what He said He would do, without any disrespectful familiarity.  There is an old Point of Grace song that says this:

The more I know your power, lord

The more I'm mindful

How casually we speak and sing your name

How often we have come to you

With no fear or wonder

And called upon you only for what we stand to gain

God forbid, that I find you so familiar

That I think of you as less than who you are

God forbid, that I should speak of you at all

Without a humble reverence in my heart

God forbid

Lord, I often talk about your love and mercy

How it seems to me your goodness has no end

It frightens me to think that I could take you for granted

Though you're closer than a brother

You're more than just a friend

You are father, God almighty
Lord of lords, your king of kings
Beyond my understanding
No less than everything

I write these things down not for you (although I hope you are encouraged by the testimony), but for myself as an altar of remembrance. The Lord did THIS HERE and I will stop and give Him praise!  But also for my coming daughter: My Sweet Flower of Hope, the Lord loves YOU so very much--you are worth moving a mountain for; you are of such high value to the God of the universe's heart, He will split the sea He created just for you. He will provide for your at-times faithless momma so we BOTH know how deeply He desires to care for us. He is that GOOD. <3  

The Wait 2.0

The Wait...the horrible party of the adoption journey after all the paperwork is done and before you actually know when you are going to meet your child. It's awful. There is literally nothing you can do to propel the process forward...you just wait. 

The Wait with Isaac was particularly hard. The month I expected to travel to China came and went, then three more months came and went. Somewhere in the middle of it all a bleeding ulcer came...and didn't go. It wasn't necessarily about getting my baby in my arms, it was knowing WHEN I was going to have my baby in my arms. 

This Wait has been different. Being able to focus on Isaac has been a huge distracting blessing. I find myself snuggling him a little longer knowing he won't have my undivided attention soon, and that my girl hasn't had momma-snuggles--maybe, somehow I can make up for that by squeezing Isaac a little bit longer.   I've also had a long To Do list of things to get ready before my Sweet Girl comes home...which hasn't necessarily decreased the nesting!  Good heavens. The closets are CLEAN. The new office area is ORGANIZED...I'm talking label-maker level organized. ie: I desperately want to show off the choir of angels that burst forth when you open the new cabinets..but I also know you'll probably roll your eyes at me so you'll just have to trust me.

Outside of getting my OCD-on, I've had the month of June to hold on to throughout our whole journey. The first conversation I had with our adoption agency focused on the small window of time we'd be able to travel to pick up my girly: a two month window between letting both my boy AND girl finish their school year and when the entire Albanian government shuts down for an entire 4 weeks effectively halting any adoptions currently in process. We've been so focused on hitting that window that my poor international social worker starts every phone call with "Hey Desiree! We are still on track for June. Here is the newest update..." God bless'm.   Even now as we are barreling down into June, I have been so thankful for the gift of knowing WHEN...the lining of my stomach is definitely thankful. 

Both Waits have been a sweet time to hear from the Lord. During Isaac's Wait, He showed me how Jesus is even now waiting to bring US home; His heart both breaking for those still denying Him and bursting with joy for all those who will be in His arms soon.  I'm pretty certain Jesus doesn't get ulcers, but the dichotomy seems ulcer worthy.   This time, the Lord keeps bringing me back to the parable of workers in the vineyard (Matthew 20: 1-16).  Do you remember that one?  The workers that only worked an hour in the vineyard get paid the same as the workers who labored all day? I've tried to brain my way through the parable, but my heart keeps hearing: it's never too late.  His promises are the same for my girl as they are for my boy. Spending 13 years in an orphanage and all the baggage that may include doesn't decrease the hope she has in Him. She is worthy of being pursued, of being given full access to the Lord's table. In fact, her one hour of labor in the vineyard is vital to the Kingdom of God. It's NEVER too late. 

Littlest Warrior Update

Have you ordered your shirt from The Littlest Warrior yet?  I'm so excited that this Christian company is donating 10% all their sales in April to our adoption <3 As the owners also have a son with Down syndrome they are especially passionate about all things chromosomal!

Click on the link HERE to order. 
Make sure to share widely with your friends, family and coworkers!

Non-Facebook update

For our non-Facebook friends--here is what has been happening in the last 10 days:

April 6 at 7:09pm

The last piece of paperwork needed arrived from Albania today! Getting a few things notarized in the morning for immigration and we have forward movement again. Things are going to be moving pretty quickly now. June is right around the corner!!

April 10 at 10:48am

1045am and its already been a full day!
Needed to take an unexpected trip to the Secretary of State office today to have our Albanian court documents signed--in and out in 10 minutes! (See photo)

Received confirmation that our papers received last Friday were delivered to the immigration office this morning. Score!
And received an email that we are in the final consideration group for a sizable adoption grant. Hallelujah!
I'm coming to get you Sweet Girl. You wont have to wait for a family for much longer❤

April 10 at 7:53pm

Lots of calls & discussions with the medical team that will be supporting my girly when she gets home. And first appointment made! Get ready, sweet heart--August 21st is dental day! Isaac LOVES our dentist, you've got nothing to worry about. #smile

April 11 at 11:28am

Received an unexpected grant from A Child Waits Foundation (different than yesterday's notification)! Thank you A Child Waits! Thank you Lord!

April 12 at 1:19pm

Great conversation with the International Adoption Clinic today and with area schools planning for how to help my girly stay healthy & thrive! The team is coming together. Also confirmed with our adoption agency that we are about a month away from getting firm travel dates in June. Really--in less than 8 weeks we'll be in Albania!! EEEEEEEK. #albaniaiscalling #weareanswering#soonandverysoon

April 13 at 2:01pm

Its been a busy day as I coordinate my Sweet Girl coming home between my clinic patients:
A cardiology appointment has been made with Isaac's excellent cardiac team--she doesn't have any heart issues that we are aware of, but is at high risk given that extra chromosome so we'll get a good double check shortly after coming home.
We received a another grant from Brittney's Hope! Hallelujah!
And we got an estimate on our airfare...which was HALF of what I was expecting! Praise the Lord!!

April 14 at 10:01pm

Her room is nearly done ❤

Vajzë e dashur, ju mund të bëni gjëra të mahnitshme!

Fundraising Update

The last grant application was submitted this evening...application #20. Whew. I now have ALL the details of my 2016 & 2017 taxes MEM-OR-IZED.

Formal fundraising is wrapping up this month with our sponsorship by The Littlest Warrior and our yard sale. I suspect that we will cross the $20,000 mark in donations as we go into May because of everyone's MOST GENEROUS donations. I can not thank you enough! Every $20, $100, $1000 is helping to bring my girly HOME...and writing you into her story forever <3

I stand now believing the Lord will provide the remaining $35,000 in fees & travel through grants and scholarships before we leave in June. It feels like a lot, but I know that our God has a habit of providing EXACTLY what we need EXACTLY when we need it. I am sure somewhere in those twenty grant applications is our EXACT provision.

Thank you for your continued prayer support!

Lunch Over Costco Sandwiches

Last Spring I got a message from our local Bethany office asking if they could connect me with  the Bethany missionaries in Albania who happen to be from my town.  "They have some questions about the Bamboo Project. Would like to discuss starting something similar in Albania".  Yeah, sure! I'm always happy to talk about the Bamboo Project and hosting missionaries is always cool.   We exchanged polite emails and our schedules aligned for late July when they would be in town. 

It was a delightful afternoon. For several hours we chatted about missions, adoption, Down syndrome, governmental bureaucracy, the entire adoption process in Albania vs. China, focused advocacy efforts, etc. They met & played with Isaac. Perused the gallery of photos I have on the wall. We chatted about our home churches. (If you haven't already figured out the timeline, this lunch was MONTHS before I knew I would be adopting again. It wasn't even on my radar!)  As they left, I remember thinking, "boy, I hope I get to meet them again some day. What awesome people" as I put their prayer card on my fridge.

Fast forward three months--God says adopt the girl in the purple shirt in Albania. ALBANIA?!  Bob & Cathy's Albania?!  What are the chances that I 'just happened' to have had the missionaries who have known my daughter for nearly the length of her life in my home for lunch??  But God. 

What I clearly didn't realize then, was the Lord was putting into place a very important relationship. 

At the beginning of March, I received a call from the adoption agency: There is a bit of a hiccup on the Albanian side, but our team there is working on it.  Ok.  

One week later: This is more than a hiccup. We need be thinking strategically and prepare for a different process than is normal. The team in Albania has some suggestions. Okkkkkk. 

Three days later: Desiree, Bob & Cathy need you to pray.  Yes sir!

What I would find out later (today, actually after a delightful phone call across 9 hours time difference), is that God needed Bob & Cathy to have had a relationship with me and my child, my home, my heart and my character to advocate for our Sweet Girl's new future. A mountain needed to be moved and the Lord had set things in motion months and months before any of us could have foreseen the impossibility that stood in front of us last month. After today's conversation, I would hear that for nearly 6 weeks Bob & Cathy were fighting spiritually and advocating for my little family before I even knew what was happening. "I even told them you make great sandwiches!"  "Bob!" I hesitated to say, "I got those from Costco!"    "Well", said Cathy, "all good moms have a Costco card, that's even better".   (These people get me)

We will meet again this summer, this time in Albania--Bob & Cathy have known my girly since she was just a year old so familiar faces will flank mine as she sees her forever Momma for the first time.  And because they come home to the PNW on an annual basis, my Sweet Girl will see her Auntie Cathy & Uncle Bob on a regular basis. I can't imagine what comfort that will bring to her little heart...and to mine.

God has a funny way to putting all the pieces together, even over a lunch of Costco sandwiches. 

The Littlest Warrior Fundraiser

Our adoption friend Kallie nominated our family to be supported by The Littlest Warrior apparel company. 10% of ALL sales in the month of April will be directed to our adoption fund!!  Thank you, Kallie!!

The Littlest Warrior has awesome tshirts (men & women and kids!) as well as onesies for the little ones and tote bags. Here are a few of my personal favorites:

If you'd like to have a super cool shirt AND support our adoption, you can click on the link below.
THANK YOU!!

The Littlest Warrior Fundraiser

Easter 2018

Remembering all the firsts Isaac has had in the last 5 years and thinking ahead to all of the firsts that our girly will have when she gets home. (Isaac's first Easter egg photo absolutely slays me every year!). 

Celebrating Christmas and Easter is going to particularly special. The Lord has had His hand on my little family LONG before we three were/are together. Someone shared the precious Gospel with the beautiful foster mother that loved and protected Isaac for 15 months. She loved Jesus by loving my boy. Now, my daughter knows the sweet offerings of prayer as she has been raised and is shepherded by the Sisters of Charity--women who love our Savior with passionate service. While I was never meant to be my childrens' first mother, I stand in full awareness and have the great joy of standing next in line to point their hearts towards their Heavenly Father. The mantel of spiritual parenting of my Little One and Sweet Girl is being passed to me by people who have worn it well. Can you imagine, on that day of days, when we all stand with our Risen Savior the JOY that will knit us eternally together?? I am so very excited to meet the long lines of people who loved Jesus into my family <3 

********************************************************************************************************

We celebrated our Risen Savior this weekend---my sensory loving kiddo LOVED dying eggs in shaving cream!!  (His slightly OCD mother did NOT enjoy dying eggs in shaving cream and proceeded to call her BFF begging to be reminded as to WHY we put ourselves through this.  She offered some Hallmark card nonsense about childhood and memories or something crazy like that.)

The truth is, memories ARE being made. While I speak life into my child about Jesus's love for him and His death & resurrection, my boy offers his heart's interpretation:

Jesus go UP and be right back! 

That is exactly right, buddy!  Jesus rose from the dead, He went up to Heaven and He is coming back to get us, now we have Easter!