Aristotle, Greek philosopher and scientist
Moses, major prophet in Christianity, Islam, and Judaism
Muhammad, central figure in Islam
Saint Nicholas, patron saint of children
Alexander Hamilton, US founding father
Herbert Hoover, US president
Nelson Mandela, president of South Africa
Eleanor Roosevelt, US First Lady, civil rights activist
Tecumseh, Native American leader
Malcolm X, political and civil rights activist
Edgar Allan Poe, author
J.R.R Tolkien, author
Louis Armstrong, musician
Johann Sebastian Bach, composer
Ray Charles, singer
Ella Fitzgerald, singer
Faith Hill, singer
Billie Holiday, singer
John Lennon, musician
Kristin Chenoweth, Broadway singer
Carol Burnett, entertainer
Ice-T, actor
George Lopez, comedian
Marilyn Monroe, entertainer
Babe Ruth, baseball star
Scott Hamilton, figure skater
George Washington Carver, scientist and inventor
Dave Thomas, founder of Wendy's

What do all these people have in common?
They are all orphans! Some were adopted as infants, some raised in orphanages, foster care or by relatives. Its amazing to think of how some had come from nothing, yet grew up to be someone who had so many amazing things to offer. As National Adoption month is coming to an end please remember to pray for the world's orphans, the people who care for them, adoptees and the families who will encourage them to face adversity and become all they can be.

May the Lord bless you and protect you.
May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace.

~Numbers 6:24-26

Happy Thanksgiving!

Update

It's been a little while since I have had a chance to update everyone on everything that is going on.

The Adoption: Many of you already have heard that we have finally been approved by Ecuador! So now we have an "idoneidad". We also found out that our dossier has been sent to 3 regions in Ecuador; Quito, Cuenca, and Riobamba (I think Riobamba is the 3rd region). Normally dossiers were being sent to just one region. I am not sure if they changed this for everyone or just for us. This all means that we are officially waiting for a referral. We were also told that they just got a new referral for one of their regular program families (same program as us). So things are SLOWLY starting to move again. They reiterated that still no family has waited longer than 18 months for a referral.

My Dad: I took a flight to St. Louis late last Thursday. I was able to see my dad the following Friday. He seemed to be having a very good day. In the late afternoon when I returned for the second time with my sisters, he was all dressed and asking if we were going anywhere. We asked him if he wanted to go get something to eat. We ended up just doing to Stake 'n Shake (some thing kind of fast). When they brought him his food he had the look of 'what the h _ _ _ is this!' Although he ate very little, it was good for him to get out. He had been in bed for over a week. He was pretty good on Saturday too. It was a nice day outside so we were able to sit outside and enjoy the weather. The last couple of days he has started going down hill again. Very tired, staying him bed, confused, and not eating. He still seems in good spirits and will crack a joke every now and then. The hospice nurse said his good days could have been because of the excitement of having everybody back home again. Tomorrow we are hoping he will be well enough to make it to my sister's house for Thanksgiving dinner. If not we will take Thanksgiving dinner to him.

New Job: On Friday I was finally offered a new position at work. I have been working temporarily in this position for the past month and absolutely love it! I will be teaching kindergarten -2nd grade students with Autism. I am so excited for this opportunity! Even though I will have to go back to school once again to get an endorsement in Autism. But this is definitely what I should be doing and were I belong.

So even though things are difficult with my dad and our adoption journey has had many twists and turns there are some good things happening for us. We will continue to try to stay positive and be thankful for all the blessings we have.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Yesterday...

Yesterday I turned 31...
Yesterday I found out my dad might have only two weeks to live...
Yesterday I found out we have finally been approved by Ecuador...

So many emotions but my profound sadness overwhelms them all!

A Broken Heart

My heart is breaking today! We received some disappointing news. I got an e-mail from CHSFS (our Ecuador adoption agency) and it was not the news we wanted to hear. The e-mail informed us that they have observed that families are experiencing a longer than anticipated wait for a referral. There have also been recent changes in staffing at the Central Authority in Ecuador and changes in adoption officials in several regions throughout the country. They are not able to specifically predict how these changes will impact the adoption process, but they are anticipating a slower process during the transition. Due to all this, CHSFS is adjusting the estimated referral timeline. They now are estimating the wait for a referral to be approximately 1-3 years after the dossier submission ( it was 3-18 months). They are encouraging families to explore the possibility of dual-listing with another international or domestic program. Through dual-listing, families are able to pursue a single adoption while waiting in two different international programs for information about a child in need of permanency. When the family receive placement of a child through one program, their application in the second program is automatically withdrawn.
Reading this e-mail brought tears to my eyes. I could feel my heart breaking in my chest. Even as I write this post, I feel my chest tighten and its hard to breath. We knew when we decided to adopt that the adoption process is unpredictable at best. I knew that with my type A, control freak personality the waiting period would be extremely difficult. But to wait THREE MORE YEARS! I just don't think I can do it. I know I should try to stay positive. I know I should have faith and trust in God. I know that God has a special plan for us. I just wish it was a little easier. I wish God would share his plan with us.
I don't know exactly what we will do. Just wait it out. Dual-list with another country. Dual-list domestically. We have a lot to talk about. A lot of questions to ask people. Could we even financially afford to dual-list?

Just when I thought we should be getting closer...