Starting Over...Almost

Well, I'm really feeling like we are completely starting over in this process lately. And we really kinda are. We have a new agency, almost had to start over with fundraising, new grant applications, doctor appointments, background checks, an extremely different dossier (even though we'd already had one translated for our old agency) and so on...

I know that this was the right move, the ethical move, and, most importantly, the move that pleases God but it's hard not to get discouraged and bogged down by the feeling of "starting over." I remember how long we saved for the first set of dossier fees and how excited we were to finally be on the wait list and now we are saving again and praying we have enough money to submit a new dossier to a new agency in about 3 weeks after my doctor appointment.

I just want to see our child's face! No, that's not entirely true - I want to hold our child in my arms and never let them go! I want them to have the assurance of a mommy and daddy's love, plenty of food to eat, and the knowledge of our Savior who died for them.

I know many people have been in this process longer than we have but it's been 16 months and we are practically starting over. Although hopefully, with ALBB the process will truly be finished in the next 9 months. I'm just tired and ready to be done...I know it will be finished in the Lord's timing but I'm ready...

Yay!! Shirts are in!!

I'm so excited!! Our shirts came in today! I can't wait to pass them out!! If you didn't get a chance to order one yet, we ordered lots of extras so just let me know what size and color and we probably still have it.

In other news, since we switched agencies, we are working on a new dossier and this one is much more detailed than the first so it's taking a little longer than we hoped to get it completed. However, that gives us more time to save for our referral fee.

We are also busy applying for a few more grants. Oh, and about those 4 little girls I mentioned, I found out a family is praying about them so I'm hoping they will be led to adopt them!

Thanks for following!!

More Details

Okay, I thought I should give a few more details about what's going on with us. We have switched to a new agency and are very excited about this! We did much research this time around and are confident that we are now working with an ethical agency that truly cares for the children and families they are working with. With this switch, we unfortunately lost a lot of money but we are confident the Lord will provide every penny we need to bring our child home. He has provided already for us in several unexpected ways since making the switch. We also have several fundraising opportunities/events coming up in the next few months. One of those fundraisers is a t-shirt sale. I would upload a picture but am not sure how to do that with a phone. If you are interested in seeing/ordering our shirts you can email me at koenigkristen@yahoo.com and I will send you the picture :) The Lord has really blessed this fundraiser so far!! We recently found out about 4 sibling girls that our agency is trying tomato with a family. Please pray with us that they will be matched soon and not have to be split up. Thanks for all your prayers!!

It's Been A Long Time

Wow, it has been a really long time since I have updated our blog! We have been without a computer for a long time and so I have been unable to update this. However, we are still in the adoption process and actually have had some pretty big changes!! Recently it came to our attention that our agency was participating in some unethical practices. We desire an ethical, upright adoption that reflects Jesus at every step. Therefore, after seeking counsel from some elders at Our church as well as some families that have already adopted, we terminate our contract wih that agency and have switched to A Love Beyond Borders. We are very excited about this new agency! Abbey is up from a nap so I must go for now but I will update more soon! Thanks for your continued prayers!!

Getting Ready...

My first craft show of the spring is the 31st and I've been busy getting ready for it. I've made over 50 flower bows and still have another 50 to go...I've also been working on regular bows, clips, cute bow holders, and fleece baby snuggle blankets...Plus we have our necklaces, cookbooks, and headbands as well...It's a busy week but I'm excited to bring in some more money to bring our child home! Thought you'd like to see a few pics of our merchandise. If there's anything you'd like, let me know :) I will be adding more pics later this week.

 

Exciting News

Well we just found out that we have a new number!!! We are now number

Please ignore the date at the bottom...I just though this was a cute image.) This means we jumped 3 spaces in 5 days!! Woohoo!!! Only 2 families in front of us now!! It's getting so very close! I can't wait to see a picture of our child and find out if it's a boy or girl!

This means that we have got to get on the ball with fundraising - we still need approximately $10,000 (maybe a little more) to finish this race. You can still donate to our matching grant at Lifesong for Orphans (we need another $2,600 to fully fund this grant). Let me know if you want the address to mail the check. We are also selling African necklaces, cookbooks, bows, fleece blankets, and headbands if you are interested. Send me an email at Koenigkristen@yahoo.com if you'd like to somehow contribute financially to our adoption.

Please join us in prayer as we are entering the final stretches for the referral process. Please pray that the Lord will begin to prepare our hearts and our future child's heart to become a family. Please pray for the orphanage and the workers - that they will be kept safe. Please pray that the Lord will be glorified throughout this process. Also, this is a long stretch, but nothing is too great for the Lord - we are in this process with some good friends of ours who are also adopting from the same agency/orphanage. They received their referrals a month ago. It would be AMAZING if we could get our referral quickly and potentially travel with them to pick up our children.

Thanks for reading!!

African Necklaces

I'd like to introduce you all to our newest fundraiser.

No, we aren't selling our children :) Our precious girls are modelling our African necklaces that our dear friends, Keith & Julie, brought back for us when they brought home their daughter from Ethiopia. These necklaces were made by African women to help support their families. Each individual bead takes approximately 24 hours to make. They are made by rolling up any kind of paper they can find, then dyeing the beads and putting them all together. Even though they are made of paper, they are very durable and feel as though they may be shellacked (sp?). You can wear them as one long strand (like Abbey is), double them up (like Hannah), or even wrap them a third time.

We have lots of multicolored necklaces, some even have some larger beads mixed in, some yellow, green, purple, gray/black, and 1 blue necklace as well. I am not the world's greatest photographer, and these pictures don't really do these beautiful necklaces justice :) We are selling them for $10 apiece and if you need them shipped, please add $2. These would make great gifts (even for Mother's Day in May). *IBC people, we know there are some other families also selling these for their adoptions so please do not feel any pressure to buy from us :) We love to support adoptions and totally understand if you choose not to buy one from us and buy one from another family instead!!

We are also still selling our cookbooks, blankets, hairbows, and headbands (check out our fundraiser link) if you are interested.

Thanks again!!