Wayyyy overdue...

This should have been posted a long time ago (like I said I was going to), but any words worthy of a post have completely escaped me. I have been at quite a loss as to what to blog about, other than just little details here and there, so every time I sit down to write I end up just getting right back up. Not to mention, I've been pretty busy with church stuff, a recent weight-loss journey (which resulted in a gym membership that I've been working my butt off to keep up with), home study visits, and a pretty horrible stomach bug that knocked me down a couple of weeks ago. Not gonna make any promises that I'll be any better about updating in upcoming weeks, either, because I know I'll probably fail you. BUT, I will try my best.

Nonetheless, our journey continues forward, and we have officially completed our home study. If you've been following along, I'm sure you have concluded that my last update wasn't necessarily a positive one other than the fact that we were nearing the end. Since then, we had our last visits/interviews, and our specialist is currently in the middle of finalizing our home study document of APPROVAL!!! All I can say to that is Thank You, Jesus!! Grateful for the experience, but couldn't be happier that that part is over :-)

So where do we go from here? Grants. Waiting. Building our profile. Waiting. Classes. Training. Connecting with other adoptive families.... All of which we are so excited about.

Now that our home study is complete, we can begin applying for grants to help with some of the cost of the adoption. It's been a while since I posted anything about where we stand financially, so I figured it is about time for that again. If you know me at all, you know that this is not my favorite topic of conversation..but it's a necessary part. When we knew that this was the path we were going to take to have children, we also knew that it would be impossible without reaching out for help from people around us; partly financial help. We have been blessed beyond measure already, and God has been completely faithful to see us through to this point. Thanks to those of you who have donated, we have been able to pay for all of our application fees & our home study in full. The fact of the matter, though, is that it is not over.

Our hope and prayer is that the two grants that we are applying for will come through, potentially covering a lot of the upcoming costs. About a month ago, we signed an updated financial contract. Although it doesn't minimize the total cost of the adoption, it did provide us with a new breakdown of fees, which over time, will help alleviate some of the stress of huge chunks of money being due at once. You can find the old breakdown HERE. The new breakdown is as follows:



1.) Formal application fee (due at application)......................$550.00

2.) Adoptive home study fee (due prior to assessment interview)....$1,000.00

3.) Education Fee (due at domestic infant training in October).......$750.00

4.) Support Services Fee (due at time of home study approval)........$750.00

5.) Birth parent services fee (due at first match).................$5,500.00

6.) Post placement supervision and services, finalization fees,
and post adoption services (due at term. of parental rights)...$6,000.00

7.) Placement/Legal fees (due at child's placement)................$7,000.00


All of that to say, in addition to applying for grants, we are opening it back up to anyone who would like to donate towards our dream. Just like before, there is a box on the right hand side of this page where you can "chip in" to help bring our baby home. I hate asking people for money, and so much inside of me wishes that we just had the money laying around to go ahead and pay it and get it over with. But that's not the case. God has led us down this road with many unanswered questions of how this will be possible financially, but He is also requiring us to just trust that it will. So we move our prideful selves aside, and we open ourselves up to anybody who may want to help. So I ask. I ask you to give if you are moved to do so. No amount is too small. I ask you to pass our story along. I ask you to pray.

I've also been throwing around some talk about fund-raising opportunities outside of the blog, and I just want to assure you that these things, although still under-wraps, are in the making!! So keep checking back as we enter into some cooler weather, and as we get further along into the process, for info on how you can be a part of that as well! It's exciting stuff.

And I say THANKS. Again, and again, and again..thank you. We have both been completely humbled by so much generosity, and we have witnessed the love of Christ through each person who has given. This process, already, has changed us. It has changed our lives. But I also know that whichever child we are chosen to be mommy and daddy to will have the greatest impact. This child that you have so kindly chosen to give a great life, home, and family to is going to change lives. My life. My husband's life. My family's life. And yours, too.