Taking the good with the bad...

So, lots of people have been wondering where we are in the process...and it is just that, a process! Yesterday we finally heard back from Latvia that we are able to move forward with our paperwork here in America and that Lilie wants to be adopted!!!
While this is wonderful news, we are still hesitant to celebrate just yet. We also learned that there is paperwork in the Latvian courts that needs to be completed before she would be considered "available" for us to adopt. This may take as long as a couple of months to be done, so again, we wait.


First time through a carwash! Hilarious!



However, we know that we serve an awesome God who is able to move mountains. So, we are forging ahead with hopeful hearts, that by the time we finish our homestudy, Lilie will be "available" and we can continue to move forward with completing the adoption!



Please continue to pray for our family as we face the challenges that are sure to come with any adoption. Pray specifically that doors will be opened and paperwork completed in a timely manner. And, as always, continue to pray that Lilie's heart is protected from any harm, that she feels loved and comforted by her Father in heaven as she waits to come home!



Rachel and Lilie at the movies, love the glasses!



What are you doing?

^{JAMES 1:27
27} Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

God commands us to look after widows and orphans, those who cannot care for themselves. What are you doing to keep this command? Or, do you, like so many Americans, turn away when you see images of those in distress? Is it diffcult to sit it the warmth and comfort of your home and face the reality that there are millions who have no warmth, no home, no family, no one who loves them or cares for them? I don't know about you, but I want to live my life the way that Christ lived his, loving others and demonstrating that love in a real and tangible way. I want to reach out and be His hands and feet. Often that means stepping outside of our "comfort zone", being willing to take a risk, and being willing to allow God to work! Do not allow the world to "pollute" you by telling you how crazy you are for trying. Do not let the world "pollute" you by telling you that it costs too much, that it will hurt too much, that it's only one child...
You may be the only way that that one child will ever know love, ever know God! Isn't that worth it? So, I will ask you again...What are YOU doing?

Phone call to Lilie (2)

Today was exciting when we got to speak with Lilija. We had our disappointment as you may have read are last blog. Today it was set up with a friend of ours and social worker who works with Lilie. It was schedule at Noon, 7pm Latvia.

Its always so great to hear her voice that its hard to believe. Its like a dream. I can picture every facial expression and thought going through her head. I can tell she was smiling and happy. Not a lot of conversation on her part but I think because of the language barrier. We get the " I love you" and "I miss you too" and that really is all we needed to hear.

Disappointment

Today, I have learned a lesson...don't get your hopes too high! The last time that I arranged a phone call with Lilija through her director, it went so smoothly. So, I guess I had an expectation that it would be this way today when I called at my pre-arranged time. But, to my disappointment, no one who answered my several phone calls seemed to know who I was or why I was calling and hung up on me the minute they heard Lilija's name.
I'm praying that things can get arranged again for Friday. I just really need to hear her voice!
Please pray that Lilija isn't thinking that I just didn't call. Pray that she didn't even know that I was supposed to call, so that her heart is not broken. We would never want her to think that we just forgot about her or didn't care enough to call.

Letter from Lilie

Today, we woke up, ate breakfast, showered and dressed our children and went to church...much like any other Sunday. And, just like every other day, I was filling a little bit empty, missing this child of mine who is thousands of miles away yet constantly present in my heart and mind. Church was great, a message on patience! It couldn't have been much more appropriate, right? So, we headed home and began to feed our hungry children...and then, God moved me into the office to check the e-mail. Thank you, God! There it was! Our letter from Lilija, translated by Inese for us to read in English!
Oh, how good it is to hear from our sweet girl. To know that she is thinking of us and of her time here in our home. To know that she is grateful. I am overcome with emotion today (as usual!). So thankful to be blessed by someone like Inese who can relay these kinds of messages to us and to Lilie. We tried to call her today. But, the woman who answered the phone at the orphanage either didn't understand what I was asking, or wouldn't allow Lilie to speak to me, so she hung up. We are craving her voice...just to hear her say "I love you, big!" So, until we can talk to her again, we are going to cling to this letter. Reading every word over and over again. I imagine her writing it, her face, her thoughts, her emotions...oh, how I want to hold her in my arms and tell her that I love her! That I want her here with us! Until then, we know that God is good and that his ways are so much better than our ways! He is giving us a peace that passes all understanding and showing us each day in very real and tangible ways just how much he cares...today, it was through this note from our beautiful daughter across the world!

Lilija's note to us:
"Thank you, I will not forget you. I love you very strong and I liked there, I pray for you. I know that you love me and I loved be with you. I miss you and I will write to you when I can. Thank you about my Birthday, thank you for gifts, thank you so much, I want see you and I love you.
How are doing?
Rachel, I love you and I liked play with you. Say to your friends "hello" from me.
I love you all!
from Lilija"

Welcome!

Welcome to our blog. We hope you will follow along with us on this journey of adoption. Many have asked us what they can do to help and many more have asked how things are going. We hope that this blog allows anyone who wants to stay up to date on our progress to do so. We will update prayer concerns, fundraising, and where we are in the process as often as possible. For me, this will be a great way to document my feelings along the way. Thank you for your prayers and your support!