Our Adoption Journey: It Just Got Real!

Our profile book is finally done and copies are at our agency! We'll spare you the gory details but we are so glad it is done! As of last Thursday, we are now officially on the "active" list of adoptive families with our agency, which means that they will be informing us of expectant mom situations. We will have the opportunity to review and pray about every situation and decide if we want our profile book shown as a potential match. Expectant moms could be due in a few days, weeks, months or could have already given birth! The reality of this is slowly setting in - we could be a family of 4 as soon as tomorrow! We also know that it comes with a lot of uncertainty but we are very excited to get going with this next step in the process!!

We do know that there is a growing sense of urgency. This adoption just got real! We've kicked our prep up a notch and have a lot to do to get ready since the process could move very quickly. This adoption is and will continue to be so different than Bailey's, not to mention that we've not experienced raising a newborn - that sound you hear is my heart beating out of my chest!

Now that we know more about timing, we're ramping up our fundraising. We're so thankful for the many that have supported us through donations, helping with our garage sales, participating in our Chick-Fil-A (x2) and other fundraisers. Special shout out to Megan, Rinele and Kimberly for blessing us through their Jamberry, Pampered Chef and Noonday businesses! God has blessed us with very generous friends and family!

We've met ~2/3 of our goal and are still praying for God to provide the remaining 1/3, at least $10,000 more to meet the expected adoption expenses. We're still waiting for news on a few grants so please pray for a positive response to those applications. If you would like to donate, please click the PayPal donate button in the right sidebar of our blog. Thank you for considering us!!

We're finalizing the designs for our shirt fundraisers and those should be ready for preorder at the end of this week. Once we've got the details, we'll provide more information.

On the home front, we've been busy with Bailey - preschool, gymnastics, 3-year-old drama, all things Frozen, Halloween festivities, and all sorts of other fun. I was gone for two weeks in early October and I struggle with how much she grows in such a short period of time. I hate missing so many of those moments but I'm so proud of her and her adventurous, creative, curious, fun personality.

Some friends have asked us if and how we're preparing Bailey for bringing a baby brother or sister home. We've been trying to explain what's going on as much as we appropriately and effectively can with a 3-1/2 year old. We've been trying to explain to her that soon we'll be bringing a baby brother or sister home to her. As we've shared with her about her own story, her baby brother or sister will grow in another woman's belly but they're growing in our hearts. She's very excited about the idea of being a big sister and she keeps referring to her sibling-to-be as a brother. So maybe she knows something that I don't...

Please pray for us as we get further into the process, continuing to trust God for the provision of funding, and for Bailey as we continue to prepare her for when our baby arrives. Please also pray for our future birth mother and that God will guide her no matter what decision she makes.

And with that, some pictures!