Medical Forms, etc.

One of the things we all need for our home study is a completed medical form. Jim and I had to get TB tests as well but the kids just needed their forms filled out...except for Allen. He was the only one who didn't have a physical within the past year so here he is getting checked out by our wonderful nurse. He passed with flying colors and didn't need a single shot! :)





Since I'm determined to document every step of this amazing journey, I just had to take a picture of our pediatrician with all of the kids. He's a huge Carolina Hurricanes' Fan (as we are) so we always enjoy spending time in his "Hurricanes Theme" exam room.

Speaking of medical forms, here's a classic. There's a pretty critical question on the parents' form that asks, "Does the patient have the emotional and physical stability to parent and care for a child?" As I scanned Jim's form before copying in triplicate, I happened to notice that for that particular question, his doctor checked the box that said NO. Kind of a deal stopper don't ya think??? (Sigh--another form to be re-done)

I realized over the past week that I can get a whole lot accomplished towards our adoption if I just follow 3 simple rules:

1) Let the kids homeschool themselves.

2) Pick up Mcdonald's for lunch and eat frozen pizza for dinner.

3)Make sure everyone wears the same clothes a few days in a row to cut back on laundry.

I've really wanted to get a lot checked off my list this past week because we meet with our social worker on Monday for our first home study appointment, and then on Tuesday, Jim and I fly out to Colorado for some business and skiing!!! The exciting part about this trip (other than spending some much needed alone time with my husband) is the opportunity to meet a blog friend who is also adopting from Eastern Europe. I had been reading her blog for quite awhile, in fact, it was on her blog that I discovered Reece's Rainbow. God really used her adoption story of not one but now 2 little girls with Ds to speak to my heart and prepare me for this adventure we're now on. How fun! The only sad part is I don't get to take my sweet friend Lisa along, who was the one who "introduced" me to Adeye. (You can check out both of their blogs on my side bar--Lisa is "Awaiting Kate" and Adeye is "No Greater Joy Mom" to read more about both of these gals!)

OK, time to go put in the frozen pizza for dinner--oh wait, maybe I can get Jim to drive through McDonald's instead.

Morning Sickness

One of the really neat people I've met so far on this adoption journey is a Mom who is adopting from the SAME ORPHANAGE as Nadia (her blog is on the right called, "Loving Alina"). She has referred to the paperwork as the "morning sickness" phase of the adoption process. Since I have had the blessing of never experiencing morning sickness with the 3 children I have birthed, I started this phase thinking that the "overwhelming" nature of adoption paperwork was a little overstated. ha ha ha

The first signs of "nausea" occurred yesterday around 3:30pm when I tried to get some answers as to whether I was allowed to send in the i-600a form without a completed home study. 5 hours later (I kid you not), I was definitely "hugging the porcelain bowl" when I realized that yes, I can send it in now but I had filled it out incorrectly for the 4th time (and printed it out in duplicate each time).

The "dry heaves" set in last night around 11:00 when I printed out the form for what I thought was the last time but then noticed that something needed to be changed AGAIN!

Today, after gobbling down some saltines to stave off any new waves of nausea, I headed to the post office to mail the dreaded form. I was so thrilled to hand this particular document over to the postal worker that I had my son, Allen, take a picture to document this event!!

OK, so I learned a couple of things. I must pray before I fill out any form or for that matter before I attempt any step in this process. God was very clear in reminding me of that when I woke up this morning. He also convicted me, once again, of my prideful thinking that I'm the one who is going to make this adoption happen as quickly as possible. He reminded me that He has Nadia's days numbered and knows exactly when she will officially be a part of our family. I just need to rest in His promises and work within His timeline without a preconceived idea of what that should look like.

Ah, yes, isn't it just like God to use a 2-page form to continue to mold my character and remind me of His Sovereignty!!! Guess I'll put the saltines away and get my bible out--and some CHOCOLATE of course!!! :)

Paperwork

Ah, the joys of paperwork. Thankfully I like filling out forms and because I'm also quite competitive I'm on a mission to be the fastest adoption ever!!! ha ha OK, I also realize that this is all in God's timing and that this is His child He is bringing to our family so I'm trying to maintain a healthy balance between the two. :) So, how many of you can remember all of the addresses you've had since 1975? I'm lucky if I can remember what I decided to cook for dinner on any given night so that was a tough one. Here is sweet Josi who prays every day that Nadia will come home TODAY! She's still not quite getting the whole lengthy process thing--which quite frankly I have a hard time with as well.

"OK, Mommy, I'm ready to help you fill out the forms to bring my sister home."Let's get started!"

"Are you serious? There are how many more forms to fill out?"

" OK, I think I've had enough of this. May I go out and play now???"

Our Chubby Little Girl

Wow, can you believe how chubby Nadia was? Not sure when this picture was taken but it sure looks like she was well taken care of as a baby which warms this Mama's heart. From the few pictures we've been given, it "seems" as if Nadia's orphanage is one of the nicer ones.

It breaks my heart to see the pictures on Reece's Rainbow of the children who are obviously undernourished and needing medical attention. You can help save their lives by considering a donation to the general Reece's Rainbow fund or to an individual child's adoption fund. RR just had their biggest fundraiser for the year and it's phenomenal how many families have stepped up to adopt a child (or children) because the financial aspect of adopting has been helped along by those donations.

Anyway, just wanted to share another picture and to put in a plug for this wonderful ministry. Click on the website and look under sponsorship to see just how many families are adopting children out of these orphanages. It's pretty amazing. http://www.reecesrainbow.com/

Getting Started

It's about time to get this blog started and I've been suffering from severe writer's block not knowing how to begin. Today is finally the day so here goes.

Jim and I have been married for over 15 years and have 3 children. Our boys are Allen (13) and Michael (almost 10). In between these two wonderful sons is a special girl named Josi who is almost 12. Josi has Down Syndrome and has allowed her family and friends the gift of experiencing life outside of the box since day one.

Over the past year and a half, God has placed a desire in our hearts to expand our family. Over time it became evident that perhaps the door for having more biological children had been closed. God then began to speak into our hearts about adoption. But not just any type of adoption. We were definitely being pointed in the direction of adopting a little girl with Down Syndrome. After much prayer and lots of time on the Reece's Rainbow Website, http://www.reecesrainbow.com/ , we have chosen a sweet little 2yr. old from Eastern Europe. Her name will be slightly altered from Nadine to Nadia, both of which mean "hope", and we're so eager to bring her home to be part of our family.

Our adoption journey officially began a few days ago so if you care to follow along, I'd love for you to join me as I blog about the ins and outs of adopting a special needs child internationally. Thanks for joining me!!!