Kristyn's Final Update

We got the final update on our daughter today!  She is almost 6 inches taller than her brother and 10 months younger.  We were surprised to see they cut her hair.  I will need to pack more hair bows and other accessories!  This makes me pretty happy, since I LOVE hair accessories!  She has also lost FOUR teeth.  Again, I'm missing these experiences.  Sigh, I just want to go get these sweeties!  We are so close!  We hope to leave for China soon (early next month)!

Puzzle Update

Click below for the latest update!!
http://crazyandersoncrew.blogspot.com/2015/04/puzzle-update-2.html

Check out the puzzle!! 

58 pieces have been donated!! Please continue to pray and share. We are praying to be fully funded before we get Travel Approval. Praying to complete the puzzle before April 20th. Again, there is a donate button on the upper right hand corner of our blog. THANKS!!!

For information about why we are fundraising, please click on the post below:
http://crazyandersoncrew.blogspot.com/2015/03/help-be-piece-of-puzzle-that-will-bring.html


For information about why we are using Lifesong and the AMAZING matching grant that we have been awarded, please click on the post below:
http://crazyandersoncrew.blogspot.com/2015/03/puzzle-fundraiser.html

A Day of Blessings - Greyson's Final Update

We found out last night that our visas are ALL being processed!!  We usually have to solidify travel plans and then wait for Mark's visa to be processed and sent to us.  Since he is a pastor, he has to enter the country within 30 days from the visa being issued.  HOWEVER, our courier was able to get a certain clerk at her window.  He gave Mark a THREE MONTH VISA!!!  They will be mailed back on Thursday and we can leave as soon as we are ready, no waiting!!  What a Blessing!!

Our Article 5s were dropped off on Thursday!  They will be picked up April 13th.  Usually it is exactly 2 weeks, but there is a holiday in there that will cause a slight delay.  After that, they will be overnighted to Beijing and we wait for Travel Approval.  This takes 7-10 days (April 21st  - April 24th).  This means we should be able to schedule our leaving time for about the first of May, or close to it.  Love God's timing!!!

And if that wasn't enough...

We received our final update for Greyson today!!  This means we are getting VERY close!!  He is a tiny little thing!  I can't wait to hold him and love on him and feed him big, giant, juicy hamburgers!

As much as I LOVED getting this update, I must admit I cried!  Did you catch that?  He lost his first tooth!  And I missed it!  We don't want to wait much longer.  If you can help, please use the donate button up at the top right of the page. 
WHAT A GREAT DAY!!

PUZZLE FUNDRAISER!!!

Help be a piece of the puzzle that will bring our family together.

What is the great news?

Thank you so much for your prayers!!  We have been awarded a $3000 matching grant from Lifesong in partnership with Chosen & Dearly Loved!  God is doing amazing things!  We are $10,000 short on the funds we need to travel to China.  Today, we found out that we received this matching grant.  If our puzzle is completed, that will be $8000.  I stand amazed at how God provides!

What is a matching grant? 

This means that every dollar donated to our account is doubled up to $3000!  If $10 is donated, $20 goes towards our adoption!  If $50 is donated, $100 goes towards our adoption!  What a blessing!!

How can you help?

We find ourselves needing to trust Him for the funds we will need to go get our kiddos.  The beauty is that YOU can help!  You can be a part of our story!!  You may not be in a position to bring home a child of your own, but this is a chance to provide a home for two children that are in China and have each been waiting for a family for over half a decade.  This time around, we are trying something new, a puzzle fundraiser.  We felt that this is a tangible way for our children to see God provide and how He orchestrates this through the heart of others.  For every $10 you donate, we will write your name on the back of a puzzle piece and “build” our family!  (Thanks to the matching grant, $20 will go towards our adoption expenses.)  When the puzzle is finished, we will frame it in a double-clear frame and display it.  This will serve as a constant reminder of all of you that contributed so that our family could be together.  Thank you for considering a donation! 

How can a donation be made?

We are now accepting donations directly! :)

THANKS FOR HELPING US BRING THESE TWO KIDDOS HOME!!!

i800 - Getting So Close!!

We got our i800s in the mail today!!

This means that the US government is notifying China that they will issue a visa to our children, so that they can return home.  From here, that notice goes to the NVC (National Visa Center) and they send us a letter that the approval has been cabled to China.  Now, EVENTUALLY it will make its way here via snail mail... But, you know me! :)  We have emailed and received PDFs via email MUCH earlier the last two times.  So, knowing that they have had a week to process, I will email the standard request Sunday night.  This way it is sitting in their inbox first thing Monday morning!

When we get this PDF, I will forward it to our social worker.  The China staff takes over and drops off some important paperwork for our NEXT TO LAST STEP (Article 5)!  It takes exactly 2 weeks for Article 5 (they determine pick up from drop off date).  After this, we wait for TRAVEL APPROVAL!!  The average is 10 days!  

WE ARE SO CLOSE!!  We will not travel until the beginning of May.  We need to fundraise yet (we don't have the money to leave right now anyways) and the Trade Fair will double or triple hotel prices and airfare at the end of April.  However, I will rejoice when I know we CAN leave!!  :)  Exciting times!!

Hope-Filled Day!

What a difference a day and prayers of faithful friends make!!  Yesterday, I was depressed and defeated.  Today, I am joyful and hopeful!  We found out yesterday that we didn’t get one of the grants that we applied for.  It was a big one (and to be honest, one I thought was a sure thing).  I started to doubt.  Then, a new day dawned this morning.

I started today with my devotions.  The passage today was James 1:2-12 “ Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.”  Now, I know that this particular passage mentions wisdom, but God started to speak to me.  Where was my trust?  Was this all it took to start believing He couldn’t provide?  Was it no longer a possibility simply because my human mind wasn’t able to comprehend how it would happen?

Then, I read some Facebook friends’ posts.  The same theme seemed to run through all of them. 
From a social worker at our agency: “If I were actually in charge of my life, and if I were actually the main driving force behind making your adoption process happen, the Lord help us all! At first, I think it is scary to know that I am not in control over my life and my job. But honestly, it would be scarier if everything were actually left up to me! His ways are not our ways, and thank goodness for that! His plan and his sovereignty is so much greater than our own. Praise be to God, who I know, trust, and believe is the LORD over everything, so that I don't have to be.”   
From a fellow adoptive mama in the EXACT same situation (We are about 17,000 short and hope to travel at the beginning of May.): “John 14:12-14, 18, 21 NIV- “Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”  Praise Him for this assurance! I have NOTHING to worry about. So what if I have 4-6 weeks left to raise $12-15000! I am ready to see what God can do and when He does it, ALL glory will go to Him! There is NO way to raise this extreme amount of money in such a little amount of time. Only God can do this. One of the things I love (and don't love) about the adoption process is the growth. Its HARD. So today, I'm praying for faith that HE will provide. And that I will trust Him and not myself. In Jesus name! This is what grows our faith in Him the most. The tough stuff. Thank you Lord for the tough times. Without them, I wouldn't be growing closer to YOU!”

As if this wasn’t enough, the CD in my car happened to be at two songs that I needed to hear!  The first was “I Will Follow” by Jon Guerra.  The lyrics “I believe everything that You say You are.  I believe that I have seen Your unchanging heart. In the good things and in the hardest part
I believe and I will follow You.  I believe and I will follow You.”  This was followed by “Beautiful” by Dan Bremnes.  You really need to listen to these sometime!  The lyrics reminded me yet again that God is in control!  I am to follow Him and allow Him to shape me.

Adoption is the toughest, messiest, most joyous, amazing experience!  It takes you to the pit of brokenness, while soaring with the most overwhelming blessedness.  The complete contrast of the emotions that one experiences all at once is mind-boggling.  When I sit back and reminisce about the adoption journeys we have already been through, I am reminded of the extreme dependence on God that is required to endure this trip.  He is pulling me closer to Himself.  He uses these experiences on the journey to prove to me who He is and how I must depend on Him.  I know today as I type that He is preparing me for what will be the toughest, rawest, most beautiful part of this journey, when I hold my children for the first time and the days that follow as I get to know them and teach them what family is.  Thank you Lord for preparing my heart!  Thank you for directing my eyes back to you!  Thank you for pressing me to let you take control!

Help Be a Piece of the Puzzle That Will Bring Our Family Together!

We are beyond thrilled that we will soon be going to get our two newest kiddos from China.  It has taken a huge leap of faith to include our Bigs and Middles in this adventure.  Adoption, abandonment, healing, and love are topics that are addressed often and openly in our family.  We have spent many hours talking about how these two newest members might feel as they meet us for the first time and leave behind all that they have known for the past 5 and 6 years.  This will be a huge adjustment for them.  Kristyn’s and Greyson’s only experiences with families include disappointment and abandonment. We may see a variety of emotions and actions as they try and guard their hearts.  As a family, we have talked about how to react to these possibilities.  Meilynn has been able to share her story and her feelings, as a child adopted at the same age our son will be.  We are also fully aware that every child’s story is different.  It is our family’s hope that the Bigs and Middles can make this transition easier, as they demonstrate a parent/child relationship and sibling relationships in the context of a loving family.

We are also excited about what this trip will mean for each of our kiddos.  We hope that it will be a time of healing and connection for our daughters, as they visit China again.  This time they will be able to experience China with the knowledge that they are part of a loving, forever family.  We hope that they will be able to enjoy the culture and appreciate the beautiful country they came from.  We are excited that our sons will finally be able to be an integral part of the journey we have taken 3 other times without them.  We have shared as much of China as possible with them, through videos, books, talks, and endless reminiscing over photos taken during our trips.  They are very excited to finally be able to experience firsthand the country that brought us 6 of their siblings.

God teaches us a LOT during these adoption journeys.  The biggest lesson we learn each and every time is dependence on Him!  Every time we begin to think that “we’ve got this”, He reminds us that He is our Father and Provider.  When we started this journey last summer, He was gracious enough to provide a loan that would allow us to travel to China to get our son and include our 4 oldest children.  Since then, unexpected expenses have come up.  He also laid on our hearts to trust Him and bring home a daughter as well.  We have written for a couple of grants, but our timeline moved MUCH faster than expected.  We just received word that we will not be receiving one of these grants.  We are praying that the second will be awarded.  (We would appreciate your prayers also!)  However, we find ourselves needing to trust Him for the funds we will need to go get our kiddos.  The beauty is that YOU can help!  You can be a part of our story!!  You may not be in a position to bring home a child of your own, but this is a chance to provide a home for two children that are in China and have each been waiting for a family for over half a decade.  We are having a puzzle fundraiser.  We felt that this is a tangible way for our children to see God provide and how He orchestrates this through the heart of others.  For every $10 you donate, we will write your name on the back of a puzzle piece and “build” our family!  When the puzzle is finished, we will frame it in a double-clear frame and display it.  This will serve as a constant reminder of all of you that contributed so that our family could be together.  Thank you for reading and considering a donation!    The DONATE button is located up at the right, above the fundraising thermometer.  THANKS!!

Need to send a check? 

http://crazyandersoncrew.blogspot.com/2015/03/help-be-piece-of-puzzle-that-will-bring.html

Help be a piece of the puzzle that will bring our family together!