Plugging along on the paperwork :)

 The adoption process is funny because its definitely a hurry up and wait process.  Paul and I have the philosophy that when the ball is in our court we are going to work diligently to get our things done so we can turn it in and wait for the next step.  We set goals for ourselves and make time to get our things done.  So as of right now we are in the waiting stage, we have sent off all the paperwork we have and scheduled our first home study meeting.  So as we wait we are looking at fundraiser ideas, praying for our new kid(s) and for help to trust in God's timing :) 

Emma is a champ!

We traveled to visit my parents for the Thanksgiving holiday.  This was Emma's first road trip and we set really low expectations.  We decided to give EmG her normal night time bottle then put her in the car seat and see how it went.  Never did we think the first reason we would stop would be to stop for gas but to our shock after being in the car for 5 1/2 hours we stopped for gas and she continued to sleep.  At about the 7 hour mark (3am) she started to wake up, I climbed in the backseat, gave her some bottle, and she was back out.  After 9 hours and 1 minute we pulled into my parents driveway about 5am, we have never been able to make that trip so quickly.  As soon as we got here, we prayed and thanked the Lord for the amazing trip.  I am currently trying to adjust my expectations back to low because I am really not sure if we will get that lucky when we try to drive back home. 

So thankful for our family, parents, safe travels, new experiences, and future kiddos :)

I am a little late in starting this but better late than never :)  I want to have a place to look back and remember our journey to adding to our family! 

I, Jess, have always wanted to adopt internationally.  I have loved Africa since the teenage years and after traveling there 3 times I truly fell in love.  Thankfully my husband is a supporter of my passion :)  We traveled to Africa together in 2011 and I think he knew at that time just how strong my love for this continent and people was. 
Fast forward to June 2012, we had our baby girl-Emma!  She is an absolute joy and blessing.  Paul and I immediately fell in love and had an even deeper understanding of God's love for us.  Holding her and feeling overwhelmed  by our love for her made it even more meaningful that God would send his only son to die for me....mind blowing!!!  In August, we began discussing (and doing lots of praying about) adoption for our family. We began to talk with friends who had adopted and looking into agencies.  After a few information sessions and a talks with friends we decided on an organization in Indiana that does adoptions in Africa.  We couldn't be more excited for this journey :)

October 29th:  Submitted our application
October 30th:  Approved!!!
November 1st: Sent in our adoption agreement and payment schedule
November 7th:  Became official clients :)