I am thrilled to be at the point in the adoption journey where I can write this blog.  Adoption is a journey that does not end with bringing a child into their forever family. Once started on the adoption road the journey continues for the rest of life.  The point in the journey when you hold your child for the first time and bring them home has to be one of the greatest moments in the journey!

We got to experience this for the 2nd time May 1st! We welcomed Judah Robert into our family when he was 10 days old!  IMG_5580Though we knew God would bring a baby into our family at some point we did not know His timing and the waiting was not easy.  We prayed nightly with our 2 older children that in God’s perfect time He would bring a baby into our family.  We got the call on Tuesday that our portfolio would be shown the next day to a birth mom who had a baby boy the day before.   We waited to find out if this was the baby the Lord had for us.  We didn’t get a call Wednesday. Thursday morning as I journaled and prayed the Lord led me to Psalm 69:13 “But as for me, My prayer is to you, O Lord, at an acceptable time O God, in the abundance of your steadfast love answer me in your saving faithfulness.” I was filled with gratitude that my life was so enjoyable and that I was not in a place of desperation, like the Psalmist David was. I was also reminded of the nightly prayer I prayed for God to bring a child into our family in His perfect timing or as this verse stated, in an acceptable time.  I wrote in my journal April 23rd, ” Help me to trust in your timing, I know you know what is best, but my desire is still to have this baby boy now.  I ask you to give us a call this morning with an answer either way.”  The cool part was not only did God use His word to remind me of His sovereign timing, His steadfast love, and his saving faithfulness but He answered my prayer for the adoption agency to call that morning.  We received a call at 10:45am with the words that brought me to tears! We were chosen and this baby boy was in the arms of the cradle care mom.  We were overjoyed and yet it brought us to another period of waiting. We had to wait for the window of time to pass in which the birth mom could change her adoption plan.  In this waiting there was grace as well. (Because this past fall we traveled to adopt a baby boy, however once we arrived to get him the birth mom was unable to follow through in her adoption plan.)  Our hearts were full and yet guarded a bit as this baby was not legally ours just yet.  We got word that the birth mom had expressed she had more love for this baby and her other 3 children than words could express and because of that love she was following through with her adoption plan.  (What a self-less choice!) We made the drive south to bring our son home on Thursday. Friday morning the waiting period to hold our new son in our arms was over!! Our stomachs were doing flips and our hearts were full of excitement as we drove into the driveway where the adoption agency held our son.  What joy to finally have a his long awaited for baby in our arms.

We are home now. Our sweet Judah is sleeping well, nursing well, and our family has adjusted great to becoming a family of 5.  We know that God is working out His perfect plan of redemption in all things. We believe adoption is a beautiful picture of how He is able to to take brokenness and make it beautiful. Our God is able to supply all we need and it is a gift that we have experienced Him in this way through adoption.