our first fundraiser

Today, I have began the adventure of starting to plan our first fundraiser. Being a missionary I have a lot of experience fund raising but there is something different about fund raising for the adoption. It feels different and I don't know how to explain it.

We will be going to the Northwest in November and we have decided to do a fundraising event. None of the details are worked out but I am excited and a little scared. I am looking forward to share about the adoption and see people we love.

There is so much to do in the next two weeks before we are Northwest bound. Plan our trip, plan the event, and finish the quarter at Tech. I am excited to go back to Washington, it is always great.

latest update

We are in a very different season in the adoption process. The dossier stage was a continual to-do list, while the wait list stage is complete lack of control. There is plenty we can do during the waiting stage but nothing we do will speed up the process.

Currently, I am enjoying being out of control and trusting God's timing in all of it. It is good. Everyday life is out of my control but too often I am under the illusion that I can control things. So it is refreshing to embrace the reality that the only thing I can do is trust God. I like knowing that God can take care of the adoption without me doing anything because He deeply cares about adoption.

Here is the update on our wait list number. AGCI will be giving us monthly updates on our wait list number.
Girls list - 85
Boys list - 62

It was a busy September

I can't believe that it is already October. We wanted to give you the highlights of the crazy month of September and an apology for not updating the blog.

September 7th - We drove to Jackson, MS to get our fingerprints done for US Citizen and Immigration. It was a wonderful 2 hour and 30 minute drive there, 20 minutes getting our fingerprints, and 2 hours and 30 minute drive back to Ruston. It may have been a lot of driving but it was worth it.

It was also an afternoon full of events. Leland had a bunch of errands to run, so he dropped me off at Office Depot and I began to make photocopies. Our dossier got completed and we needed to make three photocopies of everything before it could be mailed off. After I completed the photocopies, I went to Applebee's and sorted the copies. The picture is from me sorting with a Coke Zero and chips and salsa.

September 8th - Leland took our dossier to UPS to get mailed off. The picture on the right is everything that got mailed off.

That day I was amazed at God's goodness. When I began working on our dossier I asked God for it to get completed before school started. Since both of our professions revolve around the university, we have limited free time when school is in session (especially the beginning of the year). When I began the dossier I knew it was an achievable goal but when I got injured with tendinitis I gave up on this happening. God still answered by prayer, we mailed if off the day before school started.

September 10 - Chi Alpha had our biggest event of they year, BBQ and concert, we normally feed at least 300 students. It was a great event. While I was there I received a phone call from AGCI, they had our paperwork and we were notified of the minor corrections needed.

September 14.15, or 16 - We received our letter of favorable determination from US CIS. It is the governments approval for us to adopt and allow the child to become a US citizen. Normally I might remember the day that happened, but it was the first week of school and chi alpha had my full attention. I actually told AGCI over 10 days later, they were very surprised I did not notify them earlier.

September 24 - We received another phone call from AGCI saying our dossier is complete and we are on the wait list. We are 98 on the girls list and 65 on the boys list.

So now we enter the season of waiting. We have lots of plans for our waiting season...but I can share those later.

finish line is in sight

Right now we are at the home stretch of our dossier and the finish line is in sight. This morning I took the pictures of our house, so all we need to do is get pictures printed and make lots of photocopies. The end is so close and it is exciting to get the paperwork out of our house and to the agency. I am currently praying that God multiplies time and allows everything to get done before school starts (my prayer all summer).

we got mail

On Saturday we received some important mail but it was also confusing. We received a finger printing appointment for me...but not one for Leland. With the office being closed on Saturday, all we could do is wait and hope another piece of mail comes on Monday.

Today, we got Leland's appointment. So the day before school starts we will be driving to Jackson, MS for our fingerprints.

All summer I have been asking God that all the paperwork gets done before school starts. There is a bunch of small things to wrap-up but I am excited to see God continue to help out.

home study finished

Before we started the adoption I did not really understand the process or the work involved. I knew it was not easy but the details confused and overwhelmed me. We have come a long way since we started working on our dossier paperwork in the beginning of June.

This past week we hit a milestone by receiving our notarized home study. A home study is a report written by a social worker and is a key component to the dossier. One of the reason the home study is significant is because it allows us to apply for the last government clearance needed for a completed dossier.

It is exciting to finish something and get the last major thing started. While we wait for it to be completed we will be working on smaller parts of the dossier that we do ourselves.

Jenni's thoughts

When I first started this adventure, called tennis elbow in both arms, seven weeks ago, I would have never thought it could take this long to heal. Nor would I have thought that God could teach me so much through it. I am physically starting to get better because I have pretty much tried to stop using my arms or I set a timer while doing activities. Things that used to hurt, like making the bed, no longer hurt. I am grateful for the progress and am blessed to have Leland and a physical therapist helping me.

It may seem strange to talk about tennis elbow so much but it is impacting my life greatly. It has made me ask questions of myself. Today, I recognized that I was feeling bad that I can't do things and worried what others think of me. I think, "People are working on the Chi Alpha house, therefore Jenni should work too. Leland is cooking dinner, therefore Jenni should help cook too."

My parents taught me a strong work ethic and I am incredibly grateful for it. The problem is that I can't work. The only way I can get better is if I experience the pain of not doing things, my tendons need to heal. So, I am still learning to do less/nothing.

The greater problem is that I am recognizing that I place my value in my ability to work. When I place my value in what I can do, I fail to recognize my true value. As a follower of Christ, I believe my identity and value is in Him. Being forced to limit all activity with my arms (which you can not believe how much that actually included) is also forcing me to recognize that I need Jesus to heal my perspective of my value as well. One thing I love about Jesus is that He will use the circumstances in my life to teach me...there truly are lessons through the pain.

rainy day thoughts

I am sitting in the house listening to the thunder, seeing the sky light up and the rain pour down. I never experienced thunderstorms like this until I moved to Louisiana two years ago. I don't know how to describe them and sometimes I am still scared by the storms.

Today, I am just reminded of how grateful I am that we have a roof that does not leak. It seems like something you don't think about but for the first year and a half we lived here we had a leak. During storms like this, you could hear the drops in the bucket from the failing roof.

Here is a picture of the project. I often times consider this the process of our house being healed, stripping it down so it could be built back up.Thank you God, for a roof that does not leak. I am so grateful for your provision and taking care of our needs. Each rainstorm without the dripping bucket reminds me of how faithfully God took care of our needs.

just waiting

Adoption is a unique process. It includes lots of work, lots of waiting, and a complete lack of control. If someone is a control freak, adoption is definitely something God will use to refine them. We are in a short season of waiting, just a little preparation for the long season of waiting to come. I am also reminded that it is out of our control.

On Monday, we mailed off the workbook that we have been working on for months. It is the last thing needed for our home study to be approved, which allows us to move forward with another portion of the dossier. All we can do is check FedEx and see that the package is still in transition. And once it arrives at the agency, we don't know how long it will take to finalize the home study, a day, week, weeks...who knows.

There is some more paperwork I could work on but it is not pressing. Or I could work on starting some fundraising ideas but my tennis elbow is suppose to keep me off the computer. So I am learning to wait patiently and take it easy because we are committed to me healing.

We know that God has a plan for everything and has the ability to take care of it all. Maybe the season of waiting is just part of God's plan to help us be with the child He has in mind for us.

working together

For the adoption Leland and I have been working on a workbook for the past two months. The workbook challenges you to think through adoption from the eyes of the child. It has prompted some great conversations and encouraged us to think about new things.

The book is twenty chapters and it takes us around 45 minutes to finish a chapter. Simple math shows we have spent a lot of time on the book. We have created a routine of going to McDonalds, getting a dollar soda, and finishing about two chapters.

Right now our time of working on the book is come to an end, we have two chapters left. It has been great to turn it into a unique date but we are also excited to almost be done. Finishing the workbook and the revisions are the last things needed for our homestudy. It will be nice to finish one part of the paperwork and focus on the next.

while I was away

I went on a whirl wind tour of the northwest and surprised my sister in Idaho. We went to a family reunion in Montana and afterward spend two days with my parents in Washington. While I was away, a lot of things happened for the adoption, thanks to Leland.

We received the all the documentations for our home study and we passed it on to the social worker. Currently he is working on the home study, so we can move forward.

Things are coming together nicely and it is good reminder that God can take care of things while I am gone.

Ethiopian food

This past weekend Leland and went to the Dallas / Fort Worth area. It was a great opportunity for us to get away and spend time together. We also capitalized on the opportunity to try Ethiopian food.

We enjoyed our experience, since we like trying new things. We had two different meat dishes and vegetable dishes. We also had injera, which is a spongy bread that is used for the plate and utensil. Injera reminds me of a crepe and tastes like a sour dough. Leland really enjoyed the injera and it will be an acquired taste for me (I have never enjoyed sourdough breads). I did love using injera as a utensil.

Next time I have Ethiopian food I will remember to take pictures before the plate is almost finished. I finished plate does help you understand the food, it just shows we liked it. I also look forward to trying to cook dishes.

our life lessons

It amazes me how everyday circumstances can provide life lessons and character development. One of the things I appreciate about God is that He does not waste circumstances in our lives...He will use everything to teach us.

About two weeks ago, my wrist began hurting. I decided it would be best to not paint the chi alpha house and give them a season to rest. A week later, we went to the doctor for some adoption paperwork and I shared with him about the pain. He was quick to diagnosis it as tennis elbow with Leland grinning because he earlier told me it was that. I have started physical therapy and have begun the 6-8 week healing process.

On Sunday, I was praying and asking God to teach me whatever He wants through this process. I have learned that if God wants to teach me I want to learn quickly. Especially if pain is involved. I quickly realized that I was placing value in my ability to work...I need my value to be in Christ (not my daily achievements). I shared with Leland what I was learning and he quickly responded, I need to learn how to serve better.

So, right now we are learning to do less...and learning to serve more.

miracles along the way

On Thursday, I saw God answer a surprising prayer and I want to share. Before I do, I want to give a little background information. Adoption paperwork is different than most things I have worked on. We are currently working on about 10 different things for the dossier and many of them are dependent on different government agencies or people. Adoption teaches me life lesson, that I am not in control.

Thursday morning, I was talking to God about the FBI clearance paperwork. The FBI paperwork takes 6-8 weeks to receive and I have heard of people waiting up to 14 weeks. I started asking God for us to receive it in the mail soon. Then I realized I mailed it in June and it was unrealistic for God to get it to us...so I changed my prayer to, "God can we get it earlier than expected."

I got home and found these envelopes in the mailbox...our FBI clearance. Friday I talked to someone from AGCI (All God's Children International) and she was shocked that we received them so fast. She has never heard of anyone mailing in the fingerprint cards and receiving the paperwork in 3 weeks.

Thank you Jesus.

roadtrip

This past week, Leland and I took a mini-vacation to Vicksburg, MS and Jackson, MS. It was a great opportunity to let leave our busy schedules and simply relax. It was also interesting to explore some history in the area.

Here are some of the things we visited.

The train station in Vicksburg. It must have been a hopping place during its peak.
The bridges in Vicksburg across the Mississippi.
Mississippi state capital.
The southern states know how to make elaborate state capitals. It is indescribable.
We ended our trip finding the old train station in Jackson, it was a surprise.

the garden

Here are a couple of pictures from the garden. The vegetables are looking wonderful. They are also demanding a lot of water because this week the temperature is in the 100s.
The tomatoes are starting to turn red...now we are just waiting for them to get ripe.

We have a couple of little peppers.

It is wonderful to be able to cook with fresh herbs.

We doubted that the zucchini would actually produce fruit, this is the first glimpse at the possibility of having some. I am excited to see what happens.

joy of paperwork

I knew when the summer came and students left my life would change drastically. When you spend the majority of your time hanging out with people, the mass exodus of summer changes things quite a bit. Things with Chi Alpha are keeping me fairly busy, moving facilities is a lot of work.

The biggest change of the summer for me is focusing on administrative things. I am working on the paperwork for our Dossier. It has been a long time since I have done an administrative project, so this is a stretching for me. I am growing through this process and remembering how to focus on details again.

I am focusing on one thing at a time and I am slowly plugging away at this project. I can see how God is going to change me through this process.

We are also celebrating the small victories. Here are some of them:

• FBI fingerprints are in the mail and being processed.
• We collected the addresses for every place we have lived since we were 18. It included 5 states for Leland and 10 Washington addresses for Jenni. Interesting fact from the process: WSU's recorded did not go back to my freshman year.
  
• For every state we have lived in we have child abuse clearance we need to receive...the paperwork for them is completed.
• We have finished a homestudy.
• Three of our adoption education courses are completed.

Adoption is a unique process that includes a lot of paperwork, government departments (state, US and Ethiopian), and lots of waiting. The process is full swing forward and we are trying to take it one thing at a time.

adoption update

We have not written much about the adoption process, mainly because we were in a stand still.

In May, we officially contracted with All God's Children International. Now we are in the paperwork phase. We received our planner and a workbook in the mail.
The paperwork phase of the adoption has officially begun.

break in a storm

the yard

This spring has flown and the summer is quickly approaching. We have slowly began making headway in the yard. This spring we rented a mini excavator and dug up shrubs in the yard. Here are a couple of before and after pictures.

We removed shrubs and trees at the front of the property and it opened up our front yard. The section was overgrown and had more vines than anything else. We are simplifying the yard and planting grass.

This is the side of the house and these shrubs left because they were too close to the foundation. I planted a garden because this spot gets more sunlight than any other location in the yard.

The little garden has tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, basil, cilantro, chives, parsley, dill, rosemary, and oregano.

Current picture of the garden. I have enjoyed using herbs from the garden and can't wait for some vegetables.

We dug up these shrubs because they were over grown. They are currently twice the size they should be so we decided it was easier to start over.

We planted 5 hydrangea in front of the house. They will look nice when they get bigger.

snow in Ruston

We got our first snow storm since we moved to Ruston. School was closed. Students on campus were up till 4 am building snowmen and having snowball fights. We just enjoyed the comfort and familiarity with snow.

Looking down our street



This is a tree blooms from the end of November through February.

The snow started melting yesterday and will be all gone by the afternoon.

adoption

This blog is an avenue for us to share about our lives. I realized that we have not really shared anything about our plans to adopt a child from Ethiopia on the blog.

We have begun the process have been accepted by an agency that has Hague Accreditation. Right now we are working on saving and fund raising so we can submit our contract and begin the home studies & paperwork stage. Adoption is a slow process and there are many steps along the way.

This Christmas we received the first present for the baby. My parents gave us the piggy bank in the picture. It really represents where we are in the adoption process...saving, fund raising, and saving some more.

We will keep you updated as we come up with more concrete ways to fund raise.