Preparing for Fall

September has been a crazy month so far, it has marked the end the home schooling in our house for now. Our fifteen yr old daughter is attending the local public school and our son attending an online Christian school. Everything is super busy, but I'm loving it. I thought I would be sitting around the house missing home schooling, but I find I'm even busier than before. The online Christian school has been a true blessing for us, Aubrey attended last year and did so well with it that we decided to enroll Anthony. If anyone is looking for a christian alternative at home the website is www.christianlegacyacademy.com .

Our adoption process is moving along at a steady pace. We just received notice that the embassy has asked for Ben's Visa pictures and that they have been sent so article five should be right around the corner. The Courts in India usually close for most of October due to holidays so we won't see any movement for the next month. There has been a group of approvals in the last month that moved super fast so that gives me hope for when it's our turn.

I can't help but be excited for the fall weather. I love being able to walk outside and actually smell fall. I love wearing a sweater and drinking apple cider. I love visiting the apple orchards and all the harvest parties:-) What can I say but I LOVE THIS TIME OF YEAR.
"A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!" Proverbs 15:23

"The Call"

On Friday afternoon at Five o'clock in the afternoon we received a phone call from Tami Davidson of Dillon International asking if she could talk to us about a little boy. I sputtered, I coughed, I pinched myself and then said WHAT! How? We have only been on the waiting list for two weeks. She explained that we were open to more special needs and open to a boy so we were next for this little one. To say that I was shocked is an understatement, I went about the rest of my day in a mist. But now that we have seen the face of our son, and accepted his referral my feet are coming back to the ground and I must say GOD IS AMAZING!!!

First I have to tell you that we were convinced we were getting a girl. Early on in our adoption process my mother when praying for our baby saw a flash of pink. To give you a little background my mom is often given small visions like this when she is deep in prayer, and I have never known her to be wrong. So when Tami called about a boy, I was thinking this couldn't possibly be our baby. But the more she talked the more I felt pulled to this child. I can only explain it as tingling from head to foot. I asked God to help us know if he was the right one and guess what HE DID. In his most recent picture the baby had on a pink shirt!!!!!!!!! Isn't God awesome? I am always amazed at him. So anyway we accepted the referral of little "Chirag" Our name for him will be Ben Avery McClelland.

"Magic Number"

Here it is the magic number 12! I'm so excited to finally be on the waiting list, I really thought the number would be much higher so it is a pleasant surprise! Thank you for all of your prayers, I know we have a long way to go but I'm just so happy to have finished another step.

"Happy Dance"

Today I am doing the Happy Dance. We officially finished our Dossier this afternoon, it is not only finished but on its way to Dillon as we speak. I am overflowing with Joy, I thought this day would never come! After all the problems with our home study this Dossier just seemed to easy, so in complete Liberty style I sat back most of the afternoon waiting for whatever it was that was going to burst my bubble. But guess what it never came!! I can't wait to receive that magic little number that puts us on the waiting list, I'm not sure how it will come but just knowing it will is so exciting:-)

"You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows." Psalms 23:5

Moving along

We are almost finished with the dossier paperwork. I'm hoping in the next week or so to be able to send it to be apostilled. I can't even believe that I can pronounce those two names. I would have never been able to do that two years ago. The waiting list is going to seem so sweet after waiting so long just to be on it. I think just having that number will relieve some of the stress of paperwork, I know months later I'll be pulling my hair out waiting for a call from Tami though.

Things are changing in our family, we have been Home Schoolers for the past 10 years, and next year our daughter (who will be a sophmore) asked to go to school. After lots of prayer and crying, Jason and I have decided to give it a try. This is so hard for me letting her go, but I really feel it will be good for our relationship and for her to stand on her own feet before college.
Our Son will be in the 7th grade and he will be joining an online Christian School this year. So no homeschooling for me. WHAT AM I GOING TO DO WITH MYSELF?

I can feel Gods presence though! He is an ever present help that I sometimes take for granted, but just when I need him I feel him surround me!

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Psalm 46:1

What was I whining about again?

It's been a while since I last posted. We were just having one delay after another with our home study, and I was getting more and more discouraged. One of my dear friends in our area started her adoption process the same time Jason and i did and she is traveling to pick up her precious daughter from Russia this month! This was very healing for me because we've been really involved in praying for them and helping them in any way we could.

OUR HOME STUDY IS COMPLETE! If I could have I would have had the drum roll sound before that little announcement!!! Anyway our I800a has been sent in, our passports applied for and our Dossier started. WOO HOO! Things seem to really be moving now, but I know that there will probably be more delays. That's just part of the adoption process I think, I do know however that even in the midst of the despair that Jason and I are hooked. This will not likely be our last adoption story, there are just so many precious children around the world with no home.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him; bless his name!

—Psalm 100:4

Struggling

We received the notarized copy of our homestudy today, I was so excited I could hardly sit still as I read it. Well, there is a mistake on it and when I called they told me it was significant enough that it has to be fixed. I'm really struggling, I know God has a plan and it's his timing. But in times like this you just want to cry in frustration.
Jason is really keeping his spirits up and trying to keep mine up also. He just keeps saying at the end of all this it will have been worth it. I just really praise God for such an amazing husband, if he was in despair I just really think I would have completely lost it by now.
Please for those of you that read this pray for our family and our peace as we walk this journey with God.