Waiting...

       I know that this may sound strange, since we have been waiting for over 7 months...but, I feel like the true "waiting" has finally begun! Today, I mailed the last official piece of paper needed by Latvia. So, as of right now, we wait. We wait for a referral, we wait for a court date, we wait to be able to board a plane and fly to another country where our daughter is also...waiting!
       Still, there is never really a time where there is nothing to do but wait. The anticipation of making this journey and all that needs to be done to prepare is overwhelming at times. We are trying to do all that we can to prepare ourselves and our children. It's ironic really, that we must say "goodbye" to our children here at home this time, so that we can reach the child who we've had to say "goodbye" to twice before...we are so thankful that it will be such a short one! It's amazing how much we are able to get done in such a short period of time when it is required of us as well. Gathering funds, making arrangements for children, pets and our home to be cared for, and preparing documents, and the list goes on and on.
        It is remarkable really, how much peace we have been able to have in the midst of all of this. All of the things that would normally make me fall to pieces with worry and fear, have no control over me. Bob and I have spoken so much recently about how God has been working out every detail. We are so glad to be able to wait, even while we keep moving, with a sense of peace. We rest in the knowledge that He is working out every detail, and so we keep moving forward and...waiting! 

Adoption Journey Update...How far we've come!

                                  



Our Jigsaw Puzzle!



            It has been very busy past 7 months for our family. As many of you know, this past Christmas we hosted Lilia, a 13 year old orphan from the country of Latvia. Our family decided to bring the mission field into our home during this holiday season to teach our children a valuable life lesson, that giving of ourselves was more important than getting gifts. We also felt very drawn to the idea of impacting the life of an orphan through simply sharing our home, our love and our faith with a child who desperately needed to know that someone cared! The bible tells us to “go” and share God’s love, to “give” without expecting anything in return and to “love” as Christ loves us without any stings attached. So, on December 13, 2010, Lilia entered our home (and our hearts). Since that day, so much has happened, it would be nearly impossible to share all of it with you here. However, on January 15, 2011, when she boarded that plane and flew back to her country we knew without a doubt that she was to be our daughter and so our journey into the wonderful world of adoption began!

            Here we are 7 months later and 2 hosting visits with Lilia behind us. We have completed our homestudy and been “approved”, we have gotten passports, background checks, immigration approval and completed a dossier…All together we have spent countless hours and nearly $12,000 to get to where we are. God has been amazingly good to us. Through the kindness and generosity of others, we have raised nearly all of this money! It has been so amazing to watch how God supplies every need at just the right time. What a wonderful way for our children to learn about faith and God’s promises. Being able to spend 5 weeks with Lilia this summer was such a blessing. Our children were missing her nearly as much as we were and it did them so much good to spend that time with her. While she was here, Lilia was able to go with us on a trip to Harrisburg to have her dossier paperwork “apostilled”. This was a great experience for her that not many adoptive children get to be a part of. She was also there when I mailed all of this paperwork to a family who would hand deliver it to Latvia for us. Her excitement was overflowing. She is so happy to know that she is loved and wanted by us. Seeing us actually putting everything together and the confirmation that the adoption is really happening changed her world.

            So, as I sit here writing this today, we are on the final leg of this process and I would like to share our current needs with each of you so that you may be praying for us and supporting us in whatever way you feel lead. We exhausted our adoption fund to send the dossier and have it translated, and so we truly need to begin fundraising again. Our paperwork has now all arrived in Latvia, is being translated and submitted to the courts. Which means, that in the immediate future, we will be traveling to Latvia to meet with the courts and the embassy and, hopefully, bring Lilia home! While this is very exciting, it is also a little scary for us as we need over $10,000 to travel! We are certain that God will provide all that we need just when we need it, just as He has all along. However, we have continued to do our part by saving, selling whatever we can, and coming up with fundraiser ideas. We plan to continue these efforts trusting that God will move in the hearts of others and open doors for us financially.  

            We hope that you will consider supporting us in some way, either through prayer or giving, or both. Many of you have been so faithful in your support of us already and we want you to know how much we appreciate it. If you feel lead to give, here are some ways that you may do so:

-We have an adoption fund set-up through PNC Bank called “Love for Lilie” and money can be deposited into this account by anyone, anywhere in the US.

-We are having a jigsaw puzzle made from a family photo taken by our dear friend, Amy Craig who is a photographer. We are “selling” pieces of this puzzle for $5 a piece. Each piece will have one name written on it (we suggest buying one for each family member) and when it is assembled we will frame it and hang it in Lilia’s room as a reminder of all of those who helped bring her home! If you would like to buy a piece, please send us cash or a check made out to Love for Lilie with a note that includes the name or names you want written on the piece(s). Our address is 609 Spring St. Scottdale, PA 15683

-We are selling t-shirts through an adoption fundraising website called Adoption Bug. The link to our personal “store” is www.adoptionbug.com/loveforlilie

-We also have a coffee fundraiser going on at www.justlovecoffee.com/loveforlilie

-We will be selling Delallo hoagies again the second weekend of Sept. (the 10^th and 11^th)! This has been a very popular and successful fundraiser for us. Hoagies are made fresh on Saturday and Sunday and will be available for pickup/delivery on either of these days. They are made with all premium bread, meats and cheese from Delallos and include provolone, Virginia ham, hard salami, lettuce and tomato. If you are interested in buying and/or selling hoagies for us, please contact us immediately by phone or e-mail (724-806-0117 or fivecallens@zoominternet.net).

We have even more ideas and suggestions for fundraisers that we may be doing in the future, stay tuned.

Again, thank you all for your love, encouragement and support!! We truly couldn’t do any of this without those who God has brought alongside of us and words will never be able to express to you how much we appreciate each of you. We anticipate that we could be traveling to Latvia as early as September or October, so please keep us in prayer as we have a lot of preparation and planning to do before that time.

With love and gratitude,

The Callen Family

(Bob, Jamie, Rachel, Nathan, Jackson, and Lilia)