Where are we?

Still here!  I'm coming up for air.  We are still swimming in paperwork but I can see the transition area ahead (If you are not familiar with the triathlon, you have a transition area that you go to after the swim.  And then again after the bike.  It's where you get your bike and your running shoes.)

 (my first tri in 2008)

(Emily's first tri)

This adoption process feels kind of like a tri.  I have never done an Ironman (and really don't plan to at this point in my life) but I have done an Olympic and QuarterIron.  And I can say about both that it takes training, endurance, strength, perseverance, flexibility, and determination.  These same qualities I need as we navigate through the process of bringing 4 more kids home.

It's really kind of funny to see the look on people's faces when they find out we are adopting 4 kids....and that we already have three.  Mouths usually drop, eyes grow larger, and we either get, "Wow, you are crazy." or "I'll be praying for you" or "Wow, God is good."  That's my favorite.

God is good.

So why four more kids?  Why these kids?

You have to look back over my blog to see how God has moved.  Like when He showed me this verse last November

I Thessalonians 3:11

Now may our God and Father Himself and Jesus our Lord direct our way to you...

And last January I wrote about how I missed the son we do not know yet...

Everyday I think about him.  I don't know who he is yet and I don't know if he will come with siblings.  But I missed him on Christmas day when we were opening presents.  I missed him at church the other day when we got there a little late and had to sit on the second row.  (can you guess what kind of church I attend?) =)  We were all sitting there, all 5 of us, and I looked at the empty chair next to Wesley...missing him.

In March I shared about BIG DREAMS and how I finally came to my homeschool decision.  One of the reasons I wanted to start homeschooling this year was because I knew adoption was on the horizon....adoption of an older kid, maybe a sibling group, maybe from another country, and I wanted to have a year of homeschool under my belt before trying it new with everybody....whoever that everybody might be.

God was working on us and showing us many opportunities right here, right now to enlarge our family.  And we just started saying YES (yes there are 4 posts to that story!)

And we let Him say "No"

And He did say "no" or at least "not now" to a couple of opportunities.

Fast forward to July when we met 3 out of the 4.  How the girls shared a room with Emily and Wesley shared a room with the boy.

How quickly we bonded. 

How easily we loved.

Jeremy and I did not talk much about it the first week they were gone.  We knew we would make a decision soon but we needed to let everything sink in.  The day I put them on the plane to go back to Colombia, I came home and went to bed at 6:30 pm. 

It was hard to say good-bye. 

I really hate good-byes.

After a week of praying and listening, we knew.  Jeremy said he quit praying, "Lord, is this the right thing to do?" because he knew it was the RIGHT thing to do.  He started praying,

"Lord, give me the courage to do what you want me to do."

Like when we read stories in the Old Testament of God speaking to the Israelites and telling them to do something and they don't do it and we think, "You idiot!  Isn't it obvious?  Hello--God TOLD you."

Anyone reading our story, how it started as God opened our hearts to adoption the first time 5 years ago, how he gently started nudging again 3 years ago, how He showed us we could love an older child just as much as an infant.  So we pray and ask Him to show us where our children are and He.brings.them.to.our home! 

How could we say, "Oh, no these are not them.  Show us where our children are..."

Hmmm this post is getting long.  I have more to share but I need to get to bed.  Thanks for checking in and I will come again soon.