Update

It has been a while since a post.  That isn't because nothing is happening, but because there isn't much new to report.  But I do want to provide a little update since some of you have been asking. 

Our current status for Arizona clearance is that we are waiting.   Our completed homestudy and fingerprint clearance (that was something we were waiting for a while back, but finally came in on 11/29 and we couldn't move to this step until we had it)  are probably sitting in a pile on a judge's desk somewhere in Maricopa county and when he gets to our paperwork then he will deem us approved to adopt in the state of Arizona. 

Before we can do anything for national clearance, we have to get the state's approval.  So in the meantime, we are working on more paperwork!  On December 12 we got a phone call from West Sands that they would be sending over our dossier and we can begin working on that.  This consists of things like:

•  a letter indicating why we want to adopt from Ethiopia, signed & notarized by both of us
• gathering government issued birth certificates (not copies) for Brent and Allison
• obtain a new government issued marriage certificate (not a copy)
• we need to get a "Good Conduct" or local police clearance letter for each of us
• more medical reports for each of us that must be notarized by the doctor
• write a financial statement and get it notarized by both of us
• Brent needs a letter of employment verification letter and it must be notarized
• a letter from our bank saying we are in good standing
• a letter from our insurance company for life and health
• more letters of recommendation, but we will just use the same as we did for the homestudy.  but this time they must be notarized!
• passports, which we got our photos taken last week.
• and a few more papers that we need to sign and take to a notary.

It really doesn't sound like too much but a lot of it just depends on how fast the companies are with getting us the letters back.  So this is what the dossier is and this is what we are working on in free time!!  It really isn't so bad :)

Other than that, we are going to go to the Post Office on Thursday to apply for the passport and then we will wait for those to come in. 

Until next time, thank you for praying for us.  May God be glorified!

Fundraiser #2

Our last garage sale, held on November 26, was such a HUGE sucess that we thought we would hold another one!  We have some items left from our first sale, but we are still in need of more items.  Our sale is going to be on Saturday, January 14.  If you would like to donate any old items or clothes of any kind, we would greatly appreciate it.  This is one way that you can be a part of something big!

Give us a call or email if you would like to donate something.  We will come to you to pick it up to make it as easy as possible.  Thanks:)

Yard Sale Update

First of all, a HUGE THANK YOU goes out to all of the people who donated items for our yard sale.  Thank you also to the Frazey family for letting us invade their garage for a couple of weeks and for all the work sorting, pricing, and selling.  We could not have done it without you!!

We are so excited to report that with all our donated items we were able to raise......
$799.86


Thank you to those that prayed for this to be a successful fundraiser.  We had a great turnout and never expected to raise this much for our adoption! We are overwhelmed by the generosity of those that donated.

THANK YOU!!!

Approved!

Today we received a phone call from West Sands to let us know they have looked at our application and we are approved!  We continue to be very impressed with this agency.  We mailed the application to them on Monday and they call us on Thursday! Angela and I chatted on the phone for several minutes about all sorts of things. I thought it was nice they called us rather than emailed.  

 Once we send them more money (of course!) they will send us the dossier (more paperwork) and the process will continue.  In the meantime, we still wait for our fingerprints and look forward to our meeting on Saturday with the social worker.  She said we are ahead of most at this stage because we already have the home study completed rather than waiting for acceptance then getting the home study done. 

A New Direction

"The mind of man plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps." Proverbs 16:3

If you have been following our adoption from the beginning, you know that we wanted to do a domestic adoption.  Not that we were opposed to international-in fact, from the beginning we said would love to do that someday.  We really wanted an infant and we still do.  It is pretty much impossible to get a newborn into your home with an international adoption. We also thought it would be less expensive to do a domestic adoption. But were our reasons for wanting a newborn from the United States selfish or selfless? This conviction, along with some other factors, are what God has used to change our direction to Ethiopia. 

We wanted a newborn so that we could have it in our home from the very first days of life.  That would help us to bond, right?  We want the child to be in our home from the youngest days for training and disciplining.  It is much harder to train a one year old than if you start from the beginning.  But don't one year old children need homes too?  Adoption is not going to be easy so why fool ourselves to thinking it is?  Adopting a child that is a little older will have its challenges. No matter where the child is from, there will be challenges.  There are challenges when the child comes from your womb, aren't there? But I'm pretty certain the Lord didn't promise things to be easy and we cannot ignore His call and His leading us to the other side of the world.  He commands us to deny ourselves and take up our cross to follow Him. 

We may still get a young child, but it is not likely.  We have sent in our application to an agency in Utah and we indicated that we would like an infant 0-6 months.  So this means that when the baby is referred to us, he or she will be this age.  However, from the time of referral to the time the baby comes to live in our home could be another 3-4 months, and this is why the age will be increased.  But maybe the Lord will grant us a very speedy process of a newborn.  We do not know what He has in store for us!

So where do we go from here?  We are waiting to hear back from the agency for acceptance.  Once we are, Lord willing, accepted to their program, we will receive a dossier packet to be completed.  We did have our home study done but that was for a domestic adoption, so now it needs to be updated and changed.  We have a meeting with our social worker this Saturday.  This doesn't put us back at all because we are still waiting for our fingerprint clearances.

On our application we indicated that we would be open to either a boy or a girl.  The woman on the phone told us that girls are in higher demand so if we do not have a preference we may not have to wait as long for a boy.  She said that we would be #32 on the list (this was last week).  This means that we are #32 of all families they are working with.  This agency does not break down the categories any further than that.  So, for example, we could be #32 on the list but truly be #5 for a 0-6 month old child.  So we will just have to be ready at any time!  I will post more about the agency we chose and why we chose Ethiopia soon.

Adoption Yard Sale

We are looking forward to our first fundraiser!  We are having a yard sale the Saturday after Thanksgiving.  Brent and I are both raiding our closets and clearing out all those clothes that we are holding on to because "I'll wear that again someday" that we haven't worn since high school.  (Maybe Brent doesn't do that, maybe it's just me!)  We don't have a lot other than clothes to sell, but they are in great condition, so hopefully we will raise a nice amount of money to put into our adoption fund.  I will be reporting the amount raised after the event!

If you have anything that you would like to donate to our yard sale, we would appreciate it! Just let me know and I'll come pick it up from you.  Every little bit helps! Thanks:)

Dear Orphan,

Dear Orphan,

I saw your picture today and heard about your plight. Your face is so beautiful and sad, and it tugs at my heart.


I hear you don't get enough to eat, and that there isn't always medicine if you get sick. You sleep in a room with many children, but you still feel alone.


You have never had anyone wish you a "Happy Birthday", give you a gift, or even sing you a lullaby goodnight. No one has ever told you about Jesus or that He loves you.


I wish we could adopt you, but....

It is such a long way to travel, it would cost so much money, and it involves so much paperwork.
Our home isn't very big, and we already have children. Adding another child to our family would mean they would have to share a bedroom as well as our love and attention.
What if you have health issues or special needs that are not yet diagnosed?
You might have a hard time adjusting to a family after never knowing one, or have "issues" from years of neglect, malnutrition, mistreatment, or abuse.

I'm sorry, it just feels like too much of a risk and sacrifice. Adoption doesn't really feel like our "calling". Maybe there is another family....


Written by Amy B.
http://justamomofseven.blogspot.com/2011/11/i-wish-i-could.html

Complete!

The homestudy is now complete!  Our social worker sent us a copy and in it she recommends us to be adoptive parents! Whew, we passed:)  We are still waiting to hear from the courts about the fingerprints.  We see that they cashed our check on September 9, so we know they have received the documents in the mail.  So for now we wait.  As soon as we get that clearance back it will be submitted to Maricopa County Courts to go to the judge then it will really be official!

Thank you for your continued prayers for our baby and for a smooth process. God is so good to give us a peace and contentment that we know can only come from Him.  Each pause in the process is part of the timing that is needed to bring the child that He has for us home.

Making Progress

We have officially handed in everything on our end for our homestudy!  Before Brent left for Michigan, he dropped off all of our final papers and reference letters to the social worker.  We spoke to the social worker last week and she said that she is working on the draft now.  We are still waiting for the FBI fingerprint clearance to come back and nothing can happen until we get that.  She said that Maricopa courts are taking about three weeks to process the papers once handed in.  So once we get the fingerprints back and she types the homestudy report, it will get handed in to the courts to decide that we are able to adopt in the state of Arizona!  So for now, we wait. :)

Adopted For Life

I want to suggest this book to you!  Brent has already finished it and I have just started it.  I hope to post about what I'm reading along the way.  Here is something Russell Moore says in his book,

"Adoption is, on the one hand, gospel.  In this, adoption tells us who we are as children of the Father.  Adoption as gospel tells us about our identity, our inheritance, and our mission as sons of God.  Adoption is also defined as mission.  In this, adoption tells us our purpose in this age as the people of Christ.  Missional adoption spurs us to join Christ in advocating for the helpless and the abandoned."

Do you think you should read this book?  I do.  Here's why:

"Adoption is not just about couples who want children-or who want more children.  Adoption is about an entire culture within our churches, a culture that sees adoption as part of our Great Commission mandate and as a sign of the gospel itself.  This book is intended for families who want to adopt and wonder whether they should.  It is also intended for parents with children who've been adopted and who wonder how to raise them from here.  It is for middle-aged fathers and mothers whose children have just told them they are thinking about adoption.  But this book is also, and perhaps most especially, for the man who flinches when his wife raises the issue of adoption because he wants his "own kids"-and who hates himself a little for thinking that.  It is for the wife who keeps the adoption application papers in a pile on the exercise bicycle upstairs-as a "last resort"-but who is praying fervently right now for two lines of purple to show up on her home pregnancy test.  It is for the single twenty-something who assumes he will marry after a couple of years in the post college job force, find a nice girl, have a honeymoon for three or four years, and then they'll start thinking about getting pregnant.  It is for the pastor who preaches about adoption as an alternative to abortion on a Sanctity of Human Life Sunday but who has never considered how to envision for his congregation what it would mean to see family after family in the church directory in which the children bear little physical resemblance to, and maybe don't share the skin color of, their parents.  It is for the elderly couple who tithe their Social Security check, dote on their grandchildren, and wonder how they can tangibly help the young couple who ask for prayer every month that they might be parents-and who never seem to show up for Mother's Day services."

I could go on and on quoting from the book.  It's one of those books that I want to underline every other sentence.  I know we have one left in the GCC book room, or if you click on the book above it will take you to amazon.com!

A Visit to Our Home

Today our social worker came to our home to visit.  First she met with both of us to discuss how we met, how long we dated, what we like to do for fun, what our parenting style is like, and how we plan to discipline.

She also met Raelynn for the first time and asked her what she thinks about getting a new sister or brother:)  She agreed that Raelynn has a very good temperament and will adjust to getting a new sibling very well.  Raelynn could be almost two years old by the time our child comes home, and we will teach and train her how to be an older sibling.  Since our child will be a newborn, we feel the adjustment will be fine and would be no different than if it was a biological child.  We explained to the social worker that Raelynn is very social and has a lot of little friends at church and spends a lot of time with her cousin Jackson.

Next, we had private interviews with the social worker.  Before the meeting, we filled out our intake form with a lot of family history and personal information.  In our interviews, we basically just reviewed that information and told her about ourselves.  We had to tell her how we were raised, what our relationship with our family is like, and what high school was like for us.

Last, we gave a tour of the house.  This was really simple and I'm glad we didn't stress over it.  She just looked through the house at each room and of course had to make sure we had our firearms safe.

Today we have our doctor appointments to have a physical exam and then we will turn in that paperwork for our file.  We also need to get the most recent vet exam for Ike.  Otherwise, our file is complete.

The social worker said our CPS clearance came back so we are just waiting on the FBI fingerprint clearance to come.  She hopes to get a draft of our homestudy to us by the end of September and have the final copy by October 12.

Thank you for your prayers.

Our First Meeting

Today we met with our social worker from Southwest Adoption Services.  We handed in our paperwork and copies of our birth certificates, marriage license, and other important documents.  She went over our personal information with us and we discussed our reasons for adopting.  It was very relaxed and everything went well.  Our next meeting with her is on September 20.  She will interview each of us individually at our home. 

Right now we are waiting to get a letter from Maricopa County Court for our CPS clearance form as well as the clearance for our fingerprints from the FBI.  That takes 4-6 weeks and we cannot move forward until we get that processed.  We mailed those out on September 1, so Lord willing, by mid October we hope to have all this paperwork done so our social worker can submit the homestudy to the courts.  She said once it is submitted to the courts, it will be another 4-6 weeks.

John Piper on Adoption

Frequently Asked Questions

You ask "Why?" and we answer "Why not?"

God's timing is....perfect.  We have been pretty active with Crisis Pregnancy Center for the last couple of years.  Because of this, we have seen the alarming statistics on the number of the abortion in the United States as well as all over the world.  Our awareness of this, in addition to having our own daughter, as both a blessing and joy, is what God has used to place this desire on our hearts to adopt a child at this point in our lives.

We always thought we would adopt a child "when we were done having our own kids".  But as Allison was memorizing Ephesians 1:3-6, adoption was always at the front of her mind.  Not 15 years down the road, but now.  God had placed the desire on Allison's heart to adopt a child to be her own just as God has adopted her as His daughter. 

Allison brought this up to Brent, not expecting the response she got.  When Brent told Allison that he had already been praying about adoption for a while and he had the desire to adopt while continuing to have children of our own, Allison was very surprised and pleased. 

At this point, we prayed. and prayed. and prayed.  We sought counsel from others and felt that God was calling us to expand our family through adoption.

So, back to the WHY?
We wholeheartedly say to that question, "Why not?"  We cannot see any reason why we would not welcome a child into our home as our son or daughter.  We did nothing to deserve the grace and mercy that God poured out on us as His adopted children.  Through Christ's sacrifice and death on the cross, we are His blood bought children.  His death and resurrection has saved us from a life of utter destruction and an eternity in hell.  We have the opportunity to give that gift to a child, so why wouldn't we?  We can rescue a child from a life of poverty, foster care, or even no life at all as a result of abortion.  We can rescue that child as Christ has rescued us.  Not only will we give that child love and care, but we will raise the child in the fear and admonition of the Lord.  Our prayer is that one day we will not only call that child 'son' or 'daughter' but we will be able to call that child a brother in Christ.

As Christians, we feel that this is one way we can fulfill the Great Commission. We can bring the mission field home. We are called to care for the orphans and the fatherless. We want to bring God glory through our adoption.

International or Domestic?

At this time, we are pursing a domestic adoption. We are seeking a newborn baby with no preference towards race or gender.

How long will it take?

This is difficult to answer as the timeframe is different for everyone.  We obviously want it to be as quick as possible, but that may not be God's plan for us. First, we must complete a homestudy(which we have already begun that process). Once we are past the homestudy and are 'waiting parents' it becomes a waiting game until a prospective birth mother chooses us as the adoptive family.

Do you still want to have biological children?

Yes! We would be so thrilled if the Lord blesses us with another biological child.  We could very well end up with multiple children under the age of 3!  It is all in the Lord's hands and in His perfect timing our family will grow.

Isn't adoption expensive?

Yes, adoption can be very expensive and that is something we have taken into consideration. Yet, we feel very strongly that God has called us to adopt, and while it can be cliche to say "God will provide" it is still true. We truly beleive that God will provide the means for us to adopt. Whether it be through grants, donations, or some means we have not even thought of, we believe that God will be faithful to those who seek to bring Him glory.

How can you help?

First, we ask for your prayers and support. Just as God knit Raelynn in Allison's womb specifically for us, God is creating another child for us in the same way. We ask for prayer for us as we go through all the adoption steps.  We also ask that you would begin praying now for our child and for the birth mother. Finally, we would ask that you pray for God to provide the funds that we will need to adopt our child.

We will be having various fundraisers over the course of the next few months that we will need help and support to accomplish. We also have a PayPal 'Frazey Family Adoption Fund' account set up that you may donate to as well.

Let the Journey Begin

First of all, thank you for taking the time to read our blog.  As we begin this process, we decided that we want to share the "why?" and the "how-is-it-going?" with everyone along the way.  We want this blog to be a way we can communicate with our friends and family where we are in our adoption process, how you can be praying for us, and other ways you can support us.  We will provide updates along the way, so check back in from time to time!