Thankful Thursday

Just a quick post this evening...

As I opened my car door tonight after pulling into the garage, I was amazed at the noise from the birds out in the yard. It truly was a beautiful sound and I am so thankful that spring is on it's way!!

A couple of nights ago, there were so many thoughts and ideas going through my head regarding our adoption path.  I just needed someone to kind of let me talk through and process everything. My MIL, Joanne listened patiently for nearly an hour as I went on and on. I am very thankful for her and know that God has really blessed me in the "in-law" department. I've heard others refer to their in-laws as "mother-in-love", etc - I think that is a much better term!

Friends who are praying for our adoption. Isn't it a comforting feeling to know that others are praying for you? Even for those of you who don't consider yourself "religious," doesn't it feel good to know that friends have you in their thoughts? Several people reminded me today that they are praying about our adoption journey.  I can't even begin to express how thankful I am for those prayers!

What are you thankful for today?

Update and a little bit of a roller coaster ride

I had hoped to post an update on Monday, but it just didn't happen...

Our consultation at the international adoption clinic went very well. We took information that we had regarding several special needs kids so that we could ask questions and get input about their needs.  The physician that we met with was awesome!  She is a Korean adoptee so had personal insight for us as well as general information as well. I won't bore you with all of the details, but we had a LOT to talk about on the drive home.

At the end of the day, we decided that there were a couple options that we wanted to seriously consider. One of those options involved a beautiful little girl on RR. I had already made a few inquiries about her (as well as some other RR cuties) and had been waiting for our consultation before we went any further. Tuesday saw a flurry of emails flying back and forth between Andrea (at RR) and me. She had obtained some additional information for us that was very positive! I was starting to feel a little excitement that maybe we would be  making a commitment to bring this precious child home. But... God has other plans for her - another family had been considering her as well and when they received this additional information yesterday, they committed to become her forever family. So... I am VERY happy that she will soon have a mommy and daddy to tuck her in at night. That is more important than anything - however, the tears are flowing and my heart is aching a little bit, too because it won't be us.

I'm in the process of making some inquiries about the other options that we are considering. I apologize for being very vague right now. Because of our schedules this week, Mark and I have not had the opportunity to really talk about next steps and it will probably be late this weekend before we get the chance to do so. If you want more specifics, feel free to contact us privately - I'm just not quite ready to share everything here on the blog yet, but yes... more will be coming - hopefully, soon!

Please continue to keep us in your prayers.

Just the weekend

We had a nice weekend. Dinner on Friday evening with Bonnie and Wally (my first in-laws) and Cheryl ( my SIL). Then yesterday, I spent much of the day working on a school project. I am going to be doing some staff education at a local nursing home later this month so I am trying to get information pulled together for that. 

Today - church this morning, then lunch at our local high school - they were having a post-prom party fundraiser. Dinner tonight with Jeanne, Ken, and Tasha - we just don't get together often enough. But, hopefully that will change in the near future.

School has made friendships take a lower priority than I would like over the last couple of years. I have really missed the time with many of my friends - so I am looking forward to the near future when I can enjoy my time with friends without feeling like I am neglecting my studies.

Tomorrow is our meeting with the international adoption specialist. Looking forward to learning as much as possible!

Saturday

A few years ago we had some water backup in the basement. That got high enough to get into the electronics of the water heater. I was able to keep it running for a few years, but it was getting worse. So I put in a new one.  The problem in doing this was we have a powervent water heater.  That means the vent for this gas water heater goes out the side if the house and that needs a fan to push the exaust out.  Not a problem to do but it makes the price of the water heater around $800.  Oh well easy come easy go.

Mark

Our high school talk

As I mentioned in my last post, Mark and I were asked to speak to a high school class yesterday about our adoption. I prayed yesterday morning that God would guide our talk with the class in whatever way He felt was right. So... we arrived at the school and Shelby took us to her classroom. We met her teacher who was very nice and were introduced to the students. There were about 25 kids, about 75% boys. At first, it seemed like time was going pretty slow. Although there was no minimum time, we'd been told we could have the whole period (about 50 minutes) if we needed it and I was wondering if 15 minutes was going to be too much - lol! 

As with any high school group, there were definitely kids with that glazed over look in their eyes. But, we had a few kids who were definitely engaged, asking questions, nodding their heads, etc. All of a sudden, the teacher said "We've only got 2 minutes left."  We had to finish questions after the class. One sweet girl came up and told us that if she was pregnant, she would ask us to raise her baby. What a special moment that was - it touched my heart deeply!

We may never know the impact (if any) of our talk, but I believe and trust that there was a purpose in us being in that classroom yesterday to speak with that specific group of kids. If nothing else, I enjoyed it immensely and would do it again if I had the chance.

Great Giveaway

My friend Sarah has an awesome "give-a-away" blog! I'm almost reluctant to tell you about today's give-a-way because I would really like to win it myself, but check this out! 

Thankful Thursday - Opportunities

Good morning, everyone!

I'm going to try to get this done early today... I am here at my clinical site and have a late start to the morning so I will use a few minutes to share what I am grateful for.

#1 - This morning, I had a perfect drive. There was no fog for a change, it was warm enough that I didn't have to be concerned about slippery roads. The sky started to get light about 45 minutes into my drive. I was able to set the cruise and spend some time in prayer.

#2 - Tomorrow, Mark and I are speaking to a high school class about our adoption journey. The daughter of one of his friends asked if we would be willing to do this. What a great opportunity to share our story and perhaps impact the lives of some of the kids we interact with.  I believe that God has a purpose in this and am excited! I don't have expectations for it impacting our adoption, but hope that we can bless someone's life.

#3 - As I've shared recently, Mark and I have been kind of rethinking how our adoption journey might look. We've decided that we want to explore our options. So... on Monday, we are meeting with a physician who specializes in international adoption for a consultation. She will explain medical terms used in other countries, challenges specific to different countries, and basically provide information that may help us decide if we want to consider international adoption. I am thankful that we live close to an international adoption clinic and have this resource available to us, both as we consider this option and then if we choose to take that path.

What does your day find you thankful for??