We can't put into words how blessed we have felt since announcing our adoption yesterday. Thank you for all the love, encouraging words, and for simply celebrating with us! Baby M is going to be one loved little baby! Today we wanted to give more details about the adoption, answer some frequently asked questions, and share how you can continue to support us. Feel free to ask us more, so you can learn as we learn!

"Adoption! International or domestic?"

We are pursuing a domestic adoption through Faithful Adoption Consultants (FAC), based in Atlanta, GA. Instead of working with just one adoption agency, we are working with adoption consultants. The consultants will act as “middle men” and share our homestudy and profile book between us and agencies across the country. Because they have so many connections with agencies, their match time tends to be quick.

“How old? Gender? Race?”

We are adopting a newborn. We are hoping to be there (wherever that may be!) the day our baby is born (or as soon as possible). We are open to either gender and any race. We are excited to see what the Lord’s will is for our family and to meet Baby M!

"Will you know the birth family?"

We desire an open adoption. We think this is such a good opportunity to love another family and to truly include them in our child's life. We trust the Lord's plan in this, but we do desire to love and have a relationship with our birth mother!

“Where are you in the process?”

We are currently working on ALL THE PAPERWORK in preparation for our home study which in all reality should really be called a life study. Once we have the paperwork completed, we’ll send the information to our social worker prior to our home visit and then she’ll begin typing up the home study. We are also gathering paperwork for Faithful Adoption Consultants and will soon start working on our profile book that the agencies will present to birth mothers. Once the home study, FAC paperwork, and profile book are complete, we will be an active waiting family!

“How can we support you in this journey?”

Pray for us and our birth family- Above all else, this is the main thing we ask of you! We will need your prayers as we walk through our home study, wait to be matched, wait for the birth of our baby, and wait to take our baby home. Please pray for all of the birth mothers that are making the difficult, brave decision to place their babies for adoption. We have no idea what kind of situation our birth mama and her family are going through, but we know this won’t be easy. Pray for her heart and that she chooses life for her baby.
Celebrate with us- Just like any first time pregnant couples, we are first time parents! Yes, our process will look a lot different than a pregnant couple, but we are just as excited about this adoption as we would be over a pregnancy. We want you to celebrate with us and enjoy this season of preparation and waiting for Baby M.
Giving- Adoption is costly, but we are trusting that the Lord will provide. We are expecting our adoption will cost about $40,000 (We are planning on writing an entire post on the financial aspects of adoption soon to talk about the details of what this cost covers!).
Spread the word- The more people that know about our adoption, the more opportunities we'll have to fundraise to help get Baby M home! We would be humbled if you shared our story with people that you know.

We couldn't be more grateful for how y'all have already supported us in this decision to pursue adoption. We are thankful that you get to walk this road with us! Every dollar, every prayer, every encouraging text, every hug matters. We want you to feel like you are part of our community when you pray for us, love on us, and support us financially.

PUZZLE FUNDRAISER

We are officially kicking off our first fundraiser! For this fundraiser, we purchased a blank, 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle (see above). Each puzzle piece will “cost” $30. So, for example, if someone gives $90, they would have “purchased” 3 puzzle pieces. We hoped this was a good way to get everyone involved if they desire. Donations of all sizes are needed and it is a clear representation of what can happen when a community comes together!

To “buy” a puzzle piece:

1. Click HERE

2. Place a donation

3. Done

We’ll write your name on the puzzle piece(s) and put it in the puzzle!

We intentionally purchased a blank puzzle to write the donor’s name on each puzzle piece that they purchased. We wanted to be able to have a physical representation that captured each and every person who supported us in our walk through adoption and who helped make our adoption possible.

Once completed, we’ll frame it and hang it Baby M’s room. This will serve as a reminder to our child that nothing is impossible to God and that there were people who made a way for them. Each puzzle piece is a person and added all together makes up our community. Each puzzle piece is a life who made life possible for someone else. Our child will see that and, for the rest of their life, know that they are loved.

We are THRILLED to announce that we have started the process of adoption! We decided to start this blog so that we could bring our family, friends, and those we have yet to meet along with us on this adventure.

We have always been interested in adoption. Even when we were engaged, we talked about how down the road after a few biological kids and with A LOT more money we would look into it. Six months into our marriage, we began trying to grow our family with no success. The past few years have involved many doctors appointments, lifestyle changes, and a few surgeries to try and get to the root of what is wrong and fix it. It was a season of praying, crying, doubting, and declaring promises with what faith we could muster up. We don’t want to downplay or dramatize this season, simply put: infertility sucks. We are confident that Jesus has a beautiful plan for us and has given us time to process, grow, and grieve while continually drawing us to His heart. He used this grief to strengthen our marriage and taught us that every story, no matter how hard and trying, brings us closer to Him.

At the beginning of this year, we started to research, read, and google all things adoption. The more we learned and prayed about adoption, it seemed as if we were stepping into this incredible, beautiful story that He was already writing. We are overwhelmed that we get the opportunity to experience the Gospel in a whole new way as we enter into the adoption process. We have really been praying about the lengths God went to adopt each person on this Earth. He pursued you. He sacrificed for you. He loved you even before you knew anything of Him. Our hope is that this process of bringing Baby M home will mirror God’s great love and His adoption of us as His children. God has already used adoption to show us more about His heart and His character. Through it all, He has been so patient, gentle and such an incredibly good Father.

Baby M, our hearts are bursting for you, and we can’t wait to get you in our arms and love you forever!

We would love for you to read our next post for some detailed information and a few ways that you can support and encourage us!