We have been anxiously waiting for the day we could write this blog post and share a little more of our adoption story with you. I have been privately journaling this last year and today I will try my best to give you the short version but I have to be honest it will probably be pretty long. :)
January 9th, 2014- We applied to work with our home study agency, All Blessings International.
January 13th, 2014- Our family was accepted to work with All Blessings.
January 29th, 2014- Our family had completed all the paperwork and meetings needed for our home study.
February 3rd, 2014- We were accepted into the Ethiopia Program with our placement agency (Illien Adoptions)
February 11th, 2014- We received an email from our placement agency with information on 2 boys that were orphans but not yet available for adoption because of paperwork.
They want to know if we would consider hosting them for medical treatment. We agree to get in touch with doctors to share the boys information, find out what they would need and to pray about if this would be something we would be willing to do.
Over the next several weeks we would be told countless times that the first boy was not a candidate to come for medical treatment because of his severe diagnosis. God allowed a time of brokenness in our lives over the injustice of this world and broke our hearts for the way special needs somehow changes a child's worthiness of time, effort and love.
Looking back we know this was God closing one door to open another. The door that would eventually lead us to our son (boy #2) but we still believe God used this other precious boy to break our hearts and shape our view of Christ's love for special needs children.
April 2nd, 2014- Unfortunately, it would be April before our home study would be finalized. Little did we know this would be the first of many times God would teach us patience in the coming year. :)
April 10, 2014- Our I-600A would be officially filed with USCIS
May 4, 2014- My Birthday!!! We would drive to St. Louis to be fingerprinted and eat at an amazing authentic Ethiopian restaurant. My wimpiness with Ethnic food would be confirmed yet again and my wonderful husband would go through the Steak and Shake drive through to get me chicken tenders. :)
May 6, 2014- Our I-600A would be approved just 2 days after we were fingerprinted.
This would be the only part of our process that went smoothly, quickly or "ahead of schedule". Yay!!! :)
We would spend the next couple months in the "paper chase" stage working to complete our dossier.
June 30, 2014- We FedExed off our signed, notarized and authenticated dossier to our placement agency. From there is was sent to Washington D.C. to be authenticated at the federal level and translated. It would then be sent to Ethiopia.
July 4th, 2014- I would get to speak on the phone, for almost 2 hours, with someone who had just spent the last week at the orphanage with our little guy. She had pictures and stories to tell me about him. She would become a big blessing and dear friend as the days moved forward and we pursued a medical visa for him.
*** She had actually met our little guy in October of 2013 and her family had been praying that God would bring him a family.***
July 18th, 2014- At 4 pm on a Friday I would receive the news that our little guy had been taken to the hospital for a brain MRI because he was experiencing full body weakness and loss of appetite. It was the longest weekend of my life!!!
July 22nd, 2014- A dear friend that was traveling for court for her adoption would be gracious enough to go visit our little guy. She would take a care package to him and bring back videos and photos that are so precious to us.
After receiving the news that he was declining and not doing well at all we would refocus our energy on the pursuit of a medical visa. We spent the next several months recruiting a neurosurgeon who would donate spinal surgery if needed, a hospital that would donate all additional care, an airfare donor that would pay for his and his escorts airfare here and back to Ethiopia and collecting the needed documents to apply.
October 22, 2014- The long awaited day had finally arrived. He would finally be seen at the Embassy to request a medical visa to come to the U.S. for medical treatment he desperately needed. We were confident, our agency was confident and our Ethiopia staff was confident that he would be granted the visa. We set up his bed, bought some clothes and toys and prepared our family.
However, he would not receive the visa. In fact the official at the Embassy would not even look at his packet of letters we had fought to get for months...we were devastated.
October 26, 2014- Brandon and I would have the opportunity to speak in front of our church about God's sovereignty in adoption and what He was teaching us through this process. It was hard to stand in front of so many others and share in such a raw way just four days after hearing that he did not get the visa. At the end of each service our pastor had our whole church congregation circle around us and pray for our family and that God would move any obstacles preventing our child from coming home. It was such a beautiful reminder of all the people praying, supporting, fighting with us and loving us. I am not sure there was a dry eye in the place.
Our agency would reapply but would need to get additional documentation which would take time.
January 2015- We would end one year and begin the next discouraged and weary. There was still no progress on the adoption or the medical visa. We would began to talk with our home study agency about updating our home study.
While there was not much progress being made in our process we decided to host a fundraising event, on February 28th, 2015, with friends that had started the process to adopt from Uganda. It would allow us to be financially ready when our process did move forward and would be a welcome distraction. We threw ourselves into planning the event and joked that based off of past experience God would probably choose to have the Embassy appointment fall right in the middle of the event week.
January 30th, 2014- We would receive an email that little man had finally been granted another appointment at the embassy to apply for the medical visa. Just as we had assumed God would choose to put it right in the middle of event week. He would be seen at the embassy at 8:30 AM on February 23rd, 2015.
February 23rd, 2015- We received an email that his visa appointment had been canceled and pushed back. We were discouraged we did not know sooner but chose to look at the good side...at least it would not fall during event week. It was rescheduled for March 4th, 2015.
February 27th, 2015- We would receive an email from our agency that they had received the last needed document ( Regional Letter) to move forward in the adoption process for little man. I cannot event tell you how exciting this day was for us!!!
February 28th, 2015- Our event, Two Families...One Call, would be snowed out and rescheduled for the following Saturday, March 4th, 2015. Guess what that means?!?! Visa appointment date is now during event week for the 3rd time!!! Do you think maybe God is trying to teach us something? ;)
March 4th, 2015- We would receive a conference call letting us know that the visa appointment went the same as last time...He did not get the visa. We were discouraged but thankful to at least know that there is some progress being made on the adoption side this time.
The super exciting news that also came on March 4th, after 13 months of waiting, was that we would officially be offered little man's referral!!!!!!
I would LOVE to share his picture all over this blog but unfortunately we are not allowed to do that just yet. There are a few things I can tell you about him though. :) :) :)
1.)This one will be obvious if you have been paying attention but...IT'S A BOY!!!
2.) He is 3.5 years old
3.)We will call him Nati Solomon
4.)He has the most gorgeous curls, the most amazing eyes and the most beautiful smile.
5.) He is absolutely PERFECT to us!!! :)
Thank you so much for praying for our family and supporting us up to this point. We could not have done it without your giving, praying and fighting along with us. We are so thankful that God has surrounded us with so many that are praying for our boy daily. Please continue to pray for us as we still have a long way to go. Pray that God would receive all the glory through Nati's story. God is good.
*** The next step in our process will be to submit to the PAIR process. We are still waiting on 2 documents from Ethiopia to be able to submit. Our agency is estimating that it will take a month to obtain them. Pray that if it would be God's will we would be able to obtain them QUICKER. We believe that God already knows the USCIS officer that we will be assigned. Please join us in already praying for the officer that will specifically handle Nati's case. Pray that we will move through PAIR as smoothly and quickly as possible. Pray that this part of our process will move along better than the first part and that if it would be God's plan we could travel for court before rainy season in Ethiopia.***
