Hopefully Optimistic

A week after receiving news the that made our hearts ache and our knees weak, we are hopeful. One week ago we had no idea what the announcement of the DGM suspension might mean for us and our children. It is still too soon to really speculate what kind of delay we may be facing, but we continue to trust God to lead and orchestrate the timing of our children's homecoming. We have since learned, that at this time, the US Embassy in Kinshasa will continue to issue I600's (our next step) and conduct orphan investigations. The Congolese government will also continue to process adoption cases. We were previously unaware if any forward motion would be taking place during this suspension. We are so thankful that even though there is a suspension in issuing Exit Letters, some things will continue to take place. The Exit Letter is the very last document issued, once in country, to be able to leave the country with our children. So, we are praying that our case will continue to process as planned and that the suspension will be lifted soon, very soon, minimizing the degree of backlog in issuing Exit Letters to waiting families. Our hearts are aching for families who were so close to being able to travel to meet their children. Currently our agency is not permitting families to travel, leaving these families, after such a long adoption journey so close, but yet so far away. Please continue to pray that the DGM suspension will be lifted quickly, so these families can travel soon to bring their babies home and that all of the sweet children waiting in the orphanage will be able to be united with their waiting families, SOON... As much as we long to hold our children, this is not about us. This is about our children and this is about freeing each of our children from, life as an orphan. Please continue to lift them up in your prayers. We have been reminded again that Satan, loves orphans. We know he will take any opportunity to discourage us and to make them wait to come home. My dad shared this very fitting Bible verse with me this week,

 Lastly, be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of his power. Take up God's instruments of war, so that you may be able to keep your position against all the deceits of the Evil One. For our fight is not against flesh and blood, but against authorities and powers, against the world-rulers of this dark night, against the spirits of evil in the heavens.    --Ephesians 6:10-12

We will continue to remain hopeful,  as we fight to bring them home!


Some of my favorite pictures from this last week... We are so blessed...

God is Bigger than the Boogie Man

For any of you with kids or anyone ever around kids, I'm going to go out on a limb and assume you are familiar with Veggie Tales. This being said, I'm also going to assume you are familiar with "Junior". In one episode, Junior is dealing with facing his fear of the dark and being alone. Yesterday morning I awoke to the little voice of Junior playing over & over in my head "God is bigger than the boogie man..." Let me tell you, the boogie man seems really big right now. The boogie man is manifesting himself as a government who has said "No" to processing all international adoptions and allowing orphans to leave the country with their adoptive parents. The boogie man is making it look very likely that our babies will spend at least an extra year of their lives living as orphans in the orphanage, regardless of the fact that we are already declared to be their parents. The boogie man is making everything feel really bleak for us and our hopes of having our family together anytime soon. But, praise God that "God is BIGGER than the boogie man"!!! It's time again not only for prayers but for BIG prayers...we will not sit back and allow our children to be stuck in the middle of this! We know that the Congolese government has issued this suspension with the intentions of protecting "their" children. We pray that their eyes will be opened to the reality that the vast majority of adoptive parents truly want the best for their children. We ask you to specifically pray for the officials who are making decisions within the government. That this suspension will be only temporary and that they will at least proceed with processing cases like ours, in which our adoptions have been already completed in Congo. Pray that although Satan is working hard to keep our children in the orphanage, that God will use this opportunity to once again show Himself in a big way. We believe in miracles, and right now, our babies need a miracle. God is so much bigger than the boogie man and we know that God hears our prayers...

"And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive" Matthew 21:22

I read this last week having no idea how much I would need to hear this...yep this is going on my mirror...

"Get your "YES" straight at the very beginning. Decide on it. Roll around in it. Put it on the table and shellack it. Because you cannot let every delay and snag derail your certainty about adoption. When you say YES, you are saying YES to enter the suffering of the orphan, and that suffering includes WAITING FOR YOU TO GET TO THEM. I promise you, their suffering is worse than yours. We say YES to the tears, YES to the longing, YES to the maddening process, YES to the money, YES to hope, YES to the screaming frustration of it all, YES to going the distance through every unforeseen discouragement and delay. Do not imagine that something outside of "your perfect plan" means you heard God wrong. There is NO perfect adoption. EVERY adoption has snags. We Americans invented the "show me a sign" or "this is a sign" or "this must mean God is closing a door" or "God must not be in this because it is hard," but all that is garbage. You know what's hard? Being an orphan. They need us to be champions and heroes for them, fighting like hell to get them home. So we will. We may cry and rage and scream and wail in the process, but get them home we will." --Jen Hatmaker


Official statement about DRC adoption suspension


Thank you for your prayers and please share this with friends and family...we will trust, and we won't be shaken!

Listen to this inspiring song: We Won't Be Shaken

And just so you can have this stuck in your head too! You really should watch this :-)
God is Bigger that the Boogie Man

View Jen Hatmaker's Blog here

Waiting

Waiting to hear His voice…waiting to feel His strength…waiting to have my family complete…waiting. But what is it that we are really waiting for? Aren't we all just waiting for the next big thing? Did people before us know more about living in the moment than we seem to, or has it always been this way? Are we really so sure that the next thing to come our way will be any better than the present? Maybe happiness is right now. Right. Now. I want to live in this moment. I want to live with a hope and a purpose of what's to come, but I don't want to loose sight of right now. It is really all that I have. This Moment. Maybe finally bringing our children home will mean a home full of happiness, warmth and laughter. Or maybe it will be utter chaos, tears and heartache. I don't know, but I do know it if I weren't "waiting" my life would feel nearly perfect. I must admit that "waiting" holds a cloud over what seems like it should be a perfectly blue sky. I'm struggling with not letting the wait, cloud my view of what it is that I have. Right. Now. A perfectly healthy and adorable kindergartener, who never holds back when she feels the urge to throw her arms around my neck and plant the biggest, longest kiss on my lips. My health, the health of those that I love. Being surrounded by loving and supportive family and friends. A partner in life (who happens to be my high school sweetheart) by my side; someone who grew up with me and knew me before I became the adult that I am today. And most of all, a God I know I can depend on. But even with all this, I feel the need to be "waiting". I'm tired of waiting. Although physically waiting is hard, emotionally waiting is exhausting. Although the physical wait is far from over, I refuse to emotionally wait any longer. I know the road of adoption still stretches far into the distance, but I'm ready to celebrate TODAY. Today, I am blessed. Today, I will tuck my daughter in bed and lay down for a minute longer than usual. Today, I will celebrate that we have "passed court" in Congo. Today, I will celebrate that we now hold documents in which a Congolese judge has deemed it favorable for our children to be adopted, not just by an american family, but by OUR family! Today, I celebrate my relationship with Jesus which gives me strength and hope. Today, I realize that the only thing worthy of waiting for is the second coming of Jesus. Only then, will the wait truly be over. In the mean time I'm going to celebrate TODAY...

Celebrating...

 friends...

new beginnings...

memories...

family...

Watching Him Work

Never, in a million years would I have guessed we would have raised $3,400 from a yard sale!!! Absolutely AMAZING! We feel like we once again saw Gods hand at work. As we sorted through items beforehand we knew we had A LOT to sell, but would there be A LOT of people to buy it??? Not only did a lot of people stop by to shop, we continued to receive more donations once the sale was underway...as word got out about what we were doing we had a steady stream of shoppers and donations. Along with the yardsale items, we had a bake sale table with a large donation jar, we saw that jar fill...collecting $350!!! This fundraiser far exceeded our expectations... Thanks to all of you who generously donated items, spread the word, and invested time and effort into making this a wonderful success! God took your efforts & brought the people we needed! As a bonus, the end of the sale was much less work than we had anticipated! The day before the sale was to end, a friends mom was talking with a lady in the community. This lady stated that she was involved with her churches women's missions group and they were in the process of gathering items for their upcoming fundraising yardsale. She mentioned that although the date of the sale was approaching they had not yet collected a lot of items...we were so happy to be able to donate all of our left over items to this church group to help with their fundraising efforts! They are raising money for an upcoming mission trip and they also collect clothing and shoes to send to Honduras. The items we were able to pass on to them will be used for a great cause and... they arrived one hour after our yardsale ended and loaded up everything in their trucks! How fun to watch God orchestrate even the smallest details!

Recently, there has been a slow down in Congo for international adoption. We knew this process would be filled with challenges, but we continue to press forward in trust. We saw His work in this fundraiser and feel like He is still nudging us forward. We believe God has placed us right where He wants us and we are trusting that He will help us soon bring our babies HOME! A fellow adoptive mom who is at the same stage in the adoption process, and who's children are at the same orphanage as ours, shared Ephesians 3:20 with me today, "Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us..." I love this. God has shown us time and time again that His plans are so much bigger than ours! Thank you for continuing to pray for our family and children and for the outpouring of support! It is much needed and so appreciated...

Yard Sale Update!

The first day of our yard sale was a HUGE success!!! 

We have been so overwhelmed as we have continued to receive generous donations of items to sell even throughout the day  today

Our sweet cashiers who took their job very seriously and did a great job! It was a really long day and they were such good sports about it...

In addition to collecting money, Emmaline did a great job of making signs! She enjoyed  being referred to as the Big Sister as we explained to people what the fundraising was all about!

The donation jar continued to fill as the day went on...


We are excited as the sale continues tomorrow and Sunday. I am looking forward to updating our fundraising thermomether next week! Thank you to each of you who are keeping this fundraiser in your prayers , have donated items,  have stopped by to shop and have invested time and effort into making this a reality! We are so grateful...

Fundraising Underway!!!

Preparation for our upcoming yard sale is underway! We are busy collecting items, sorting, pricing and organizing! We have been overwhelmed watching donated items come in and are so excited to see how the sales go next week. I wanted to share the flyer we are posting. If you are local we would love to have you stop by (or donate!)...please keep this event in your prayers and pray that we will have nice weather and a great turnout next week! 

What's Happening Now???

"How's everything going with the adoption?", I love this question. This tells me even though it's been 15 months since we announced we are "having a baby" you haven't forgotten that we really are "having a baby"...yes, it's taking a lot longer than the traditional way, but it's still happening! This question is so hard to answer. Partly because there's so much to explain to tell you how everything is going and partly because I'm not really sure how everything is going...so not only for your sake, but for mine as well, I've compiled a little timeline of what happens next. Here it is...

After we accepted the referral for the twins in March, our I600a had to be updated approving us to adopt all 3 children. Once that updated form was received we were once again able to consider our Dossier complete. In  April, the updated Dossier was translated to French and  submitted to the DRC. Once the Congolese government received the Dossier they were able to begin the court process...

"Court"  is a 2 step  process... first, OUR documents are submitted (dossier, etc) to start the court process, which began sometime before the first of May. Then once we pass court (roughly 2 months) they have to collect all of the children’s documents, which typically takes another two to four months.

When court has "passed" for all of us, they will send us a copy of the court judgment saying that we have adopted the children.  They will also send the act of adoption (which is the official registry of the judgment.)

 After the act of adoption there is a thirty day waiting period. Once that waiting period has passed, we receive the CONA, or certificate of non-appeal, which means that no one appealed the adoption of the children.

Once we have all of the above documents, we will file our I600 with USCIS and wait for provisional approval – about 5-7 weeks.

 That approval (I600) will trigger the beginning of our investigation period with the embassy in Kinshasa – which at this point we have been told is expected to take 3-6 months. During the investigation, staff from the US embassy in Kinsasha will investigate the children, their biological family members and gather any information they can about the children. This is to determine that they meet "orphan status" based on US guidelines.

Once the investigation is complete, the Embassy will contact us to set embassy appointments, for about 2 weeks later. At that time we will submit the second round of documents.

Next, we will wait for Visas for the children. Once Visas have been issued we will be cleared to travel to Kinsasha! The last step before being able to leave DRC and bring our kids home to the US will be receiving an Exit Letter from the DGM in Kinsasha. This is expected to take about 2 weeks. Then...finally...we travel home!!!

So, back to where are we now?.... We are in "court" . We know that our court process began sometime before the first of May. They will not give us updates during the court process, only that it has begun and then we will be notified when we have "passed".  Please pray specifically during this time that all of the needed documents for the children will be located quickly and that court will proceed smoothly. We thought that waiting for our referral was the tough "waiting" phase. We see now, that we are only at the beginning of really WAITING…waiting is hard…waiting goes against every bit of my nature. I'm a "doer". Tell me what needs to be done and I'm on it. Tell me, there nothing I can do right now but wait, that's a different story...

 So, there will be no sitting around and just waiting here! It's so crazy to think back on the last 5 months and all that has transpired. We have so much to DO!!! Our home renovation is really moving forward…we have an entire bathroom and bedroom upstairs gutted, rearranging everything and getting ready for 4 little ones to have a place to brush their teeth, take their baths and feel right at home with their own space. Downstairs, the kitchen ceiling is completely torn out and the framing for the kitchen addition is beginning! I look back in awe at Gods use of timing…the damage created by the tornado so perfectly corresponds with the need for home renovations and additions…miracles…right in front of us.

We are also excited to be preparing for a fundraising yard-sale next month! Friends are graciously putting lots of time and effort into planning an adoption fundraiser for us! Donations are being taken, involving 3 different church congregations, our communities, family and friends. All items donated will be sold, generating funds for our adoption expenses!!! We are so so grateful for this! We have passed some amazing financial milestones, but we are well aware of the reality of expenses yet to come! If you are local and would like to donate items for our sale please contact me (caralitchfield@yahoo.com) and we will be happy accept items. I also plan to post a flyer for the sale for anyone who would like to come and shop, start planning now!

We were so blessed this last month to receive more photos and updates of Dauphin, Altess and Vincent. We were able to be in contact with a family traveling to the orphanage to pick up their son. We were able to send gifts to them to be delivered personally to our kids! We now have a picture of the 3 of them together and we also have a picture of Vincent holding a picture of Emmaline (who is holding his picture, in that picture)…that, messes with my mind to see! I am not able to publicly post their pictures but I have added the pictures of Emmaline wrapping their gifts and the pictures of her that we sent to them. We know now, that they at least know about us and know that there is a family here waiting to bring them home, together! Thank you for continuing to shower us with love and support and please please please continue to pray for our family and our sweet children, all FOUR of them!

Emmaline holding a picture of Vincent and our gift for him 

Holding a picture of Altess and her gift (including matching purse and bracelet)  

Wrapping everything up (Christmas themed wrapping compliments of  Emmaline)

Vincent wearing the shirt and shoes that we sent to him!

Holding a picture of Dauphin and his gift

Vincent holding Emmaline's picture and our gift

Passing the time at home...

WISH...

First visit from the Tooth Fairy!

Celebrating Five and a half!

I love this silly girl!