Since announcing our adoption in the Spring, Mitch and I have had SO many questions about different parts of this process. Because of that, I thought it would be helpful to answer some of these in a central location so that we can update everyone on where we currently stand in the process and what the next few months will look like for us!
1. Are y'all still adopting?
YES! We are definitely still adopting. However, we are currently in the middle of a (very) long waiting process which is why we have been pretty quiet on the subject- because there just isn't much new information to share!
2. Where are you currently in the process?
We are currently in a season of waiting for 2 different things to happen. First, we are waiting for our i-800a approval. This is approval from Homeland Security that will eventually lead to us being allowed to bring a foreign citizen into the United States and make them a citizen. We have been waiting for our i-800a approval for about 12 weeks and HOPEFULLY should be hearing something back really soon! Secondly, we are waiting for what is called "Initial CARINGS approval". What this basically means is that we have sent our homestudy, etc. to India and we are waiting for them to approve us as fit to adopt. Prior to this fall, this process normally took 6-10 weeks. However, due to some different reasons in India, this process is now taking about 20-25 weeks. We are currently almost 15 weeks into this waiting process and we are hoping and praying that it starts speeding back up a bit! But if not, we are prepared to wait another 10 weeks or so.
3. What is next?
After we receive our "Initial CARINGS Approval" we will then begin waiting for a match! Matching normally takes an average of 6 months. During this process, Lifeline will work alongside of India to find us a match based on our age approval, travel restrictions (1 trip or 2), and severity of special needs. Once a potential match has been found, we are given about a month to look over the child's file, consult with doctors in hopes of better understanding current and future medical needs, and most importantly, pray about whether joining our family would be in the child's best interest! If we feel like our family would be unable to provide the best home for the child, our family's file will go back and we will begin the matching process again. If we feel like our family could adequately provide the best home for the child, we say YES! And then our potential match goes back for another round of approval through India.
4. Where do you guys stand on funds?
Up until this point, Mitch and I have paid completely out of pocket for all of our adoption expenses (homestudy, agency fees, medical, etc.). However, because of how expensive it is to adopt and how we are called to care for orphans as a church, Mitch and I have just started fundraising for the remainder of our adoption expenses. This is something that is so very much NOT easy for us to do. We don't like asking for money anymore than the next person. But, if we choose not to raise support for our adoption, several things would happen: 1) We would not leave room for the Lord to provide for us. Pride and independence are two of my biggest short falls and I struggle to want to do this "on my own". However, nothing about adoption is meant to be done alone! By raising funds, we are enabling the Lord to be our sole provider. 2) We would not leave room for the Lord to work in other people's lives through our adoption. Although not everyone is called to adopt or foster, the Bible is clear that everyone IS called to orphan care. For some that looks like volunteering, for others it looks like defending orphans/children in need in everyday jobs such as social workers or lawyers who defend children in state custody (I'm looking at you B.W.!). And for some, that means using the financial means the Lord has blessed them with to help finance the adoptions of those the Lord HAS called to adopt! If we refuse to ask for help from the people around us, we are refusing to allow people to give in the way the Lord may have called them to.
5. What do the boys think?
Very little because we have shared very little with them so far! As with most young children, our boys do not comprehend periods of time greater than "4 or 5 sleeps". Because of this, and because of the uncertainty of adoption as a whole, we have spoken very little with them about the adoption. However, once we officially match, we will begin to talk openly about their new future sibling!
6. What does the current timeline look like?
Because of the program-wide set backs that have happened over the past 6 months, our timeline is looking a good bit longer than we originally thought. Currently, a safe-guess would be to say that we hope to be home from India with our daughter by Spring/Summer of 2021. If everything was to go smoothly and on schedule, we MIGHT have a possibility of travelling at the very end of next year. However, we are currently playing the long-game and planning for 2021- anything else will be an exciting surprise!
7. Will your child have special needs?
YES! Mitch and I specifically chose an adoption program that was solely children with special needs. As far as the specific special need(s), or the severity, we will not know those details until we match. However, Mitch and I did fill out several pages worth of questions concerning what type and severity of disability we felt our family could financially handle.
8. How can we help?
Most importantly, PRAYER! We covet your prayers: for the process, for our adoption agency and social worker, for the staff in India, and for the physical and spiritual needs of the child who will one day join our family. Secondly, we would love any and all advice and information. If you have adopted before, tell us about it! We would love to hear your experiences, your favorite resources, information about grants you applied for, fundraisers you did, and advice on transitioning home with a child who has experienced trauma. Lastly, like we addressed in question 4, financially. We would not be able to do this without people's generous financial donations to help us offset some of the large cost of this adoption. So, if financially giving towards our adoption is something you feel the Lord is moving you to do, we would love to partner with you! Put us to work: If you need a house sitter, dog sitter, baby sitter, yard worker... you name it, we will do it to work towards raising the funds we still need!
Currently, we are doing an Adoption Puzzle Fundraiser!
• Each puzzle piece is $10. Buy 1, 2, 10, or how every many you desire!
•For each puzzle piece you purchase, your name will be written on the back.
• Once we sell all of the pieces, we will frame the puzzle in double-sided glass to forever serve as a reminder of how the Lord provided for us through each generous donor to our adoption! Click here to read more about our needs or to give towards our Puzzle Fundraiser! ( you can also use paypal if you would prefer by clicking HERE ) If you have any questions at all, we would love to talk to you!
Keep those questions and prayers coming! We love to feel and know the presence of our "village" as we walk this journey!
