Yes, definitely long time with no post. Over a year. I have though about this blog so very often but have not had the courage or emotional strength to write anything...
A year has brought some changes for us. Some of these changes were BIG and some were small.
- We put our adoption on hold as we prayed about moving from NJ back to NC. The homestudy agency we were working with in NJ (based out of NYC) was, ummm...cold and very critical of our faith in God and His love for all of us. So, we also were praying for direction in moving forward with this agency or finding a different one. The decision was made to wait for 6 months, knowing full well that Dmitry may become available to another family while we prayed. What an incredibly hard decision to make!
- The doors flew wide open for a move so we packed up and headed south! It was incredibly hard to leave our family but we were coming home to our other family at Taekwondo and at church. We rang in the New Year with kisses, hugs and cheers at a gas station somewhere in southern Virginia (a first for all of us, my awesome mom included). Countless friends showed up at our new home the next morning and helped us unpack the truck and move in! (See, we came home to our other family!)
- My mom motivated me to unpack quickly (definitely NOT the norm for me. That's more likemy sister's kind of fun) and get our home set up. A few weeks later a mom and her two littles moved in with us during a separation from her husband. They were here until the end of March.
- Spring time came and I contacted our adoption agency to get the ball rolling again. I was so excited to make the call. It had been 6 months since we had prayed about putting everything on hold and it was time to move again. I heard back from the agency only it was not with the news I expected to hear. Dmitry was no longer available for adoption. WHAT?!?! That must be a mistake! I checked a few times during the 6 month wait and he was still waiting. Did his family come back for him, did someone else step up to adopt him? What happened? The agency partner on the ground in Russia inquired about him for us and did not receive a direct answer. It was a lot of beating around the bush, ask so-and-so, file lost, etc. After waiting a week we heard back that the agency partner is pretty sure that our sweet Dmitry passed away. What a heartbreak!
- Okay, stop everything! Back to our knees we go! Did we wait too long and it cost his life? Did God put him in our lives for us to pray for him until he went to heaven? Did his short life open the door for another sweet orphan to have the opportunity to love and be loved in a family? We still don't know that answer.
- Fast forward to July. I had been seeking The Lord on what to do and where to go with adoption. One morning I was crying out, tears streaming down my face, asking my heavenly Father why had has given us the desire to adopt but has not opened the door yet. We know that our family is not complete yet. We know we are commanded in Scripture to care for the orphans. We know we can share more love, laughter, joy and our family with more children. There is an incredible blog I follow called The Blessing of Verity. That very day I had been pouring out my heart to The Lord she had a post with so many pictures of children needing families. I decided to show Brian their pictures when he came home from work that night. Ask him if we can pray together about these children and find out if one was for us. He lost his job that day. We have to have a job to even be considered for adoption.
- One month later, August 15 th, I slipped into a shallow hole in the yard and broke my ankle in 3 places. 7 days later I had surgery to repair the bones. I was blessed with a very talented orthopeadic surgeon and now have a titanium plate about 6 inches long and 11 screws in my left ankle until the day my Jesus takes me home. It is the beginning of November and I am just now starting to walk around some and get regular things done.
- I have continued to pray and ask what I can do to help an orphan. We are not in a position to give financially. I can pray, that's for sure! But Lord, isn't there more I can do?
I am so excited to report that a door has opened and there is something more that I can do! From November 1 to December 31 I will be blogging, Facebooking, emailing, talking, praying and sharing some more. What will all this be about? A sweet little boy, sitting in an orphanage in Eastern Europe. I am his Christmas Warrior and will do my best to find a family for him and add $1,000 to his grant account.
Thank you for joining me once again! I look forward to the next part of this crazy journey!
~ One Less Orphan! ~
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