Adventures in Our Home & Hearts: Praises & Pics - Update on our adoption journey

Match Meeting - May 17th

2 parking meters that ran out of time... $40

1 great match meeting... priceless!

Praise: The Lord giving wisdom to us and our birthmother, Jeana, to confirm our match!

Then Job answered the LORD and said, "I know that You can do all things, and that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted." Job 42:1-2

Our Match Meeting setup:
*We met for a couple hours over lunch at a Mediterranean restaurant downtown Springs:
Jeana - birthmother
Wes & me - adoptive couple
Rachel - caseworker
Heather - support & good friend of Jeana's (online school principal)
Melissa - support & good friend of Jeana's (online school counselor)

We were on the same page about big aspects & also little details:
*parenting with Christian faith but not forcing faith - Jeana is open to our faith in Jesus Christ
*homeschooling - discipling & investing but not sheltering
*name tag-teaming; us coming up with first name & Jeana choosing an Arabic name for the middle name
*my being a stay-at-home mom
*hospital - it is important to Jeana to see us loving baby
*having a pet
*homemade baby food
*desire for Jeana to provide milk for baby (pump) - Jeana actually brought this up and asked our permission; we said, "That would be wonderful!" We didn't expect our birthmother to do this.

What we have in common:
*similar religious views: us - Christian faith; Jeana - open to Christian faith
*value of family
*sense of humor
*heat/spicy in foods (Wes)
*hiking
*sports (basketball)
*not into secularized American holidays
*chocolate
*eating and appreciating good food

More insight into why she chose us:
*We are darker complected, & she wanted her child to not stand out too much.
*Sense of humor/sarcasm in profile book - though I do not know what sarcasm she noticed because I put together our profile book, and I am not very sarcastic.
*Kind of pet - she likes cats & dogs; we have a dog
*The Lord! Jeana's support (school counselor & school principal from her online school) & her caseworker encouraged Jeana to pick another adoptive couple, but Jeana strongly sensed she was supposed to choose us, which she usually follows the counsel of her support since they are wise women. After our match meeting, everyone agreed that we were a perfect match for her, and they told Jeana that she was right. :) Jeana now acknowledges that it was the Lord guiding her to us.

Interesting info:
*Jeana knows 4 languages = Arabic, Spanish, English, & Dutch

Praise: The Lord giving us creative ideas to show our birthmother, Jeana, Christ's love in tangible ways.

Ex. "Goodie Bag" that we gave to Jeana at our match meeting. We filled it with artwork Noah made for his sibling, pampering items, a journal (which we later found out she likes to write), a book on God's Promises in Scripture for Women, yummy snacks, and of course chocolate. :)

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May 21st

Praise: The Lord opening up an opportunity for Jeana to live at a Christian ministry home rather than a shelter.

*There had to be an opening (and there are only a few spots), and there was an opening.

*Jeana also had to apply and interview in order to be considered.

*Jeana got accepted, which was a huge blessing for her and an opportunity for healing, growth, & equipping!

-Required worship at church on Sundays

-Required small group Bible study

-Required family dinners

-Chores

-Responsibility of cooking a meal for those at the home once a week

-Christian counseling

-Program that includes 3 phases of equipping

-Own room (Jeana's never had her own room before)

-Minimum requirement of time = 6 months & maximum time = 2 years

Praise: As a result of living at the ministry home and closer to Parker, Jeana would be working with the wonderful staff and delivering baby at Parker Adventist hospital, which we had been hoping (before being chosen by Jeana) that our birthmother would deliver there since it is known for having a strong adoption support program.

Praise: The time for the birthfather being able to contest has passed, which he would not have been a good candidate to parent for various reasons.

Praise: Some important medical testing about baby showing good results.

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Meeting Noah & Spending Time Together at Our Home - May 22nd

L to R - Melissa (online school counselor) & Heather (online school principal) - Jeana's support & wonderful friends, Jeana, Noah, Christina, & Wes

Pregnant poses :)

Moms united instantly through love for the same baby - the Lord's plans are powerful!

Praise: Noah won Jeana over, and she definitely has a soft spot in her heart for him. :)

Sierra (our dog) warmed up to Jeana right away, so Jeana is a Sierra fan too.

Praise: Jeana liked our home, neighborhood, & neighbors.

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May 26th

Praise: The Lord giving Jeana a desire to continue to have an open relationship with us after delivery (previously she only wanted pictures and updates). Jeana shared this with me on a Saturday evening when we were talking on the phone.

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Dr. Appointment - May 30th

Beautiful hospital in Parker, CO

Approximately 1 hour from CO Springs

Strong adoption support program - big blessing!

Entrance of Parker Advent Hospital

Praise: Jeana wanting me to join her for dr. appointments.

This appointment was far from a typical routine check up. Jeana had to undergo extra monitoring through a stress test due to a health condition. Baby was not having the appropriate number of heart accelerations (they are measuring baby's reactive response), which could indicate that baby is under a lot of stress or not doing well. This could possibly even lead to inducing immediately if further in-depth testing shows that baby is not doing well. We had plans that evening that I had to get back for, so I had to leave to go back to the Springs just as they were sending Jeana over to "Labor & Delivery" for more in-depth testing through advanced ultrasound.

Praise: Baby looked fine after in-depth testing and was sleeping (which explains why baby was not responding or reacting to stimulation).

The ultrasound did show that our baby was a BOY and not a girl. The Lord planned all along when He fearfully and wonderfully created our baby that He wanted our baby to be a boy (Psalm 139:13-14). We see the Lord's perfect timing in some powerful ways of why He revealed the gender at 36 weeks and not earlier or later. His plans are so good and perfect! Wes and I continue to be grateful for Him blessing us with a precious baby and are just as thrilled and excited at having a boy as we were at having a girl. However, this news was extremely difficult for Jeana, for a variety of reasons. We have been praying 1 Corinthians 1:3-5 & James 4:8 for her. God is doing some powerful things in her heart and life. We sense the Lord is going to do some powerful redemptive work through this precious boy, and we look forward to continuing to see His perfect plans unfold.

Praise: The Lord revealing that we are having a BOY and giving us a powerful new name for our child! :)

Previously, we had named our baby "girl" - Josie - which means "the Lord will increase." Now with having a boy, the Lord led us to name our son - Josiah - which means "the Lord heals, the Lord will support, the Lord saves." It is so strongly evident to us that Josiah is the name the Lord had in mind for our baby all along. The meaning has a lot deeper meaning in our lives personally, and we sense it will in Jeana's life as well. Also, in the Bible Josiah was a strong, godly king in the midst of a time of many wicked kings, which this also has strong meaning for us and Jeana.

Also, Jeana feared that we were going to leave because of the change in gender and that she would have to start the adoption process over again, so it was very powerful for her when we told her that we were not going anywhere and that we were just as excited and thrilled about having a boy as we were about having a girl. At one point, Jeana said, "If he turns out like Noah, I will be happy." This gave me a glimpse into another reason why the Lord led Jeana to choose us (since we had a boy that had already won over her heart).

Praise: Noah adjusting with the news that he would be having a baby brother rather than a baby sister.
Noah took it the hardest out of the 3 of us. When I explained to him that he would be having a baby brother instead of a baby sister, he got really sad and started tearing up. :( I began telling him how he would be able to wrestle his brother (which he loves wrestling), play rougher, and do other kinds of brother activities, and he liked that. From time to time, he still seemed bothered about not having a baby sister, so I said maybe the Lord will bless us with another baby, and you might have a baby sister next time. Noah was excited about this idea. So, each time he prays, he now prays for "Ms. Jeana, baby sister next time, and baby Josiah (or baby brother) this time." Precious!

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Garage Sale for Adoption - June 1st & 2nd

Wes & Noah welcoming customers :)

All the goods

Praise: The Lord blessed us with over $500 that went towards our adoption costs.

Thank you to everyone who kindly donated items and helped make this possible!

Jeana's High School Graduation - June 2nd

Super excited about her graduation gift of a zebra body pillow ;) * Holding that diploma proudly

Melissa, Jeana, & Christina * Having fun celebrating ;)

Heather, Melissa, Jeana, Christina, & Brooke (assistant director at the ministry home)

Praise: The Lord giving Jeana perseverance to graduate from an online high school called GOAL Academy.

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Dr. Appointment - June 6th

Praise: Jeana including us in many important aspects of her hospital plan.

Praise: The Lord blessing me with an opportunity to support Jeana during a tough moment in her birthing class that we went to together. The Lord moved my heart with compassion and empathy for her and helped me know how to respond in a way that was helpful to Jeana.

Praise: Josiah "looking good" as the doctor put it during the stress test monitoring.

Praise: The Lord giving the doctor wisdom with making decisions about delivery with Jeana's and Josiah's health and best interests in mind.

The doctor decided to induce Jeana a week early (June 20th; due date had been June 27th) because she has a health condition that has been getting significantly worse as time passes, and this health condition more than likely impacts Josiah too. The doctor thinks that Josiah is doing fine, but she thinks it would be best for Jeana and Josiah to deliver him a week earlier. This is a blessing in many ways:

*Jeana's support & good friends, Heather & Melissa, will definitely be able to be there for the delivery, and they may not have been able to make it if she had delivered around her due date.

*Wes' parents arrive June 21st, so they will have almost a full week to enjoy Josiah.

*I enjoy planning ahead, so I am excited to know the exact date Josiah will be joining our family, though Jeana could go into labor earlier...

*Wes already had taken leave from work for the week his parents are going to visit, so he will probably not need to take additional leave from work to stay home when Josiah arrives.

*We will definitely be able to qualify for the 2012 adoption tax credit.

Praise: The Lord doing a "180" in Jeana's heart toward Josiah.

Jeana had been having a difficult time with the news that she was having a boy... At this appointment, only one week later, she was no longer calling the baby "male" and was referring to baby by name - Josiah or Mr. Josiah - in endearing ways. Jeana commented that she was starting to get used to the idea of having a boy and even getting a little attached (in a good and healthy way). She also shared that she still wanted to pursue an open relationship with us, which she was not sure after hearing she was having a boy.

Praise: The Lord blessing me with continued opportunities of sharing truth - especially the gospel with Jeana!

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