Adoption Update

I have been dreading this post. Not because I am upset about it, but because it would all make it more "real". We have great news, but with big news comes big stress. Stress coming from things that are completely out of my control which makes it all the more stressful.  This entire process has brought me so much closer to the Lord and taught me how much He loves me and wants to be in control, I just had to let go (silly of me to think that I was actually in control, right?). I have definitely learned a lot about what faith actually means.

I will give you a quick timeline:
- We felt the push from God, telling us to GO and that adoption is OUR next step. Read about it here
-May 15th, 2012- We began Foster classes so that we could be approved to Foster children through DHS and later adopt then.
-August 23, 2012- We realized that adopting through DHS was going to be nearly impossible especially while trying to not adopt out of birth order for Isabelle and doors were slamming in our face going that route. I now see that God was protecting us from going that direction, while still preparing us for what was ahead.
-September 19,2012- Learned more about a non profit organization in Tulsa called Crisis Pregnancy Outreach that gives women alternate choices instead of abortion. Their goal is to minister to birth moms as well as encourage birth moms to choose the best option for their child (either parent with classes or adoption). We were informed that they would not be taking any more adoptive parents applications, but then learned that I was Native American so they encouraged us to put in our application immediately! (Thank you GOD!)
-September 27, 2012- Met with our Crisis Pregnancy Outreach (CPO) for an entrance interview. We fell even more in love with the organization and they decided that we were also a good fit.
-September 28, 2012- We made our Life Book. This book was to be a short book that captivated EVERYTHING about us, with little words, yet not too overwhelming that the "reader" didn't have questions. We would turn this into CPO who would show this to potential birth moms that wanted an adoption plan. We were told that our book would only be shown if the birth mom showed interest in a family that was like ours (mother, father, child, dogs, etc.) We were also told that this process could take anywhere from a few years, to a few minutes. We prepared for the longest and prayed for the best and turned in our book to CPO with no regrets. Read about it HERE
-October 7, 2012- We had our FIFTH "home study" done, but this one was our first private home study. Every study is just as nerve wracking as the first.
-October 12, 2012- Mr. T leaves for Europe for two weeks. I was going to meet him in Paris in a few days so we knew this was just the break that we needed from the stress of life.
-October 16, 2012- I get the call from CPO that we were chosen by a birth mom! Of course, we needed to meet with her and she needed to think we weren't annoying weirdo's, but we hoped to pass with flying colors. I got the call at around 4pm, which means it was the middle of the night for Mr. T in Europe. I called him, but his phone was shut off. I emailed him quickly and told him all that I knew. He was elated and called me as soon as he could.
-October 18, 2012- I left for Paris to meet Mr. T for a few days. It was a perfect vacation and a perfect "babymoon". We had a blast and were excited to get back in town and meet our "baby mama". :)
-October 30, 2012- We met our birth mom at the Olive Garden at 5:15. You could say our nerves were going crazy. It was the most awkward, scary first date jitters ever, but as soon as we met her and she met us we knew that everything would work out. She is an amazing woman and has so much strength. I immediately felt a connection to her and took on a big sister role (I have never been a big sister).
-November 1,2012- We attended our first Dr's appointment with her. We heard the heart beat and it was just as beautiful as ever. We also find out that we are having another GIRL!

We are due on April 2, 2013. Everything is going perfectly, but of course we still need lots of prayers. There are a few things that I won't share publicly to protect our birth mother, but I will say that baby looks healthy and we know that this is the child that God has given us. We feel incredibly blessed to be in this position and can't wait to start our new life with our new daughter and our new family. I will post more as more happens.

Thank you for ALL of your kind words during this tough journey. I can't wait to share more with you.