Ah...this July weather is wonderful! We have finished our profile and now are waiting. We plan to paint Baby Miller's room this weekend. Our crib and changing table arrived a couple of weeks ago, we have registered at Baby-R-Us and Target, and we are beginning to feel like expectant parents. The journey will continue....
We are keeping a journal for Baby Miller, so they know the story of how they came to our family. Feel free to post anything here for the journal and we will add it.
Nursery pics will be posted when painting is complete.
Thanks again for your prayers and support.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Adoption update in June 2010
Dear family and friends~
At this point in our journey I am drawn again to Jeremiah 29. "For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord. 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." We just finished our home assessment this week and we have so much hope. We,now more than ever before in this journey, know that this is God's will for our family. We are filled with so much hope for what the future brings. A plan to prosper us and not to harm. This journey has not been easy and at times it has been painful but we know the plans our God has for us are good. And He has brought us through this journey stronger then we started it. We still need God's guidance in our lives as we walk down the path that leads to Baby Miller. We would like you all to join in prayer with us for a couple of things. First that our condo in Syracuse would sell. I would like to take a proper maternity leave and can only do that if the condo sells. Secondly, be in prayer for our birth mother, whomever she may be. Pray that when we meet her we will know instantly. We know that God's already knows, we just pray that when we are presented with His will that we will know it. Thanks to all of you who have prayed for us and continue to pray for us. We know there still could be pumps in the road as we complete this journey, but there is a renewed hope to reach the end now.
Many Blessings,
Matt and Mandy
At this point in our journey I am drawn again to Jeremiah 29. "For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord. 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." We just finished our home assessment this week and we have so much hope. We,now more than ever before in this journey, know that this is God's will for our family. We are filled with so much hope for what the future brings. A plan to prosper us and not to harm. This journey has not been easy and at times it has been painful but we know the plans our God has for us are good. And He has brought us through this journey stronger then we started it. We still need God's guidance in our lives as we walk down the path that leads to Baby Miller. We would like you all to join in prayer with us for a couple of things. First that our condo in Syracuse would sell. I would like to take a proper maternity leave and can only do that if the condo sells. Secondly, be in prayer for our birth mother, whomever she may be. Pray that when we meet her we will know instantly. We know that God's already knows, we just pray that when we are presented with His will that we will know it. Thanks to all of you who have prayed for us and continue to pray for us. We know there still could be pumps in the road as we complete this journey, but there is a renewed hope to reach the end now.
Many Blessings,
Matt and Mandy
Adoption Update April 2010
Psalms 37:23-24 23 If the Lord delights in a man's ways, He makes his steps firm,24 though he stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with His hand.
Dear family and friends:
This is a verse that I stumbled upon today when I was thinking of this email and what I wanted to express to you about our adoption process this far. I was thinking how this journey involves so many steps but that each one has taught us something and reaffirmed what we feel God leading us to do. God is continually reminding us that what we are doing is His will for our lives. This journey has not been an easy one for me. At times it has felt very invasive and I will admit, that at times, I have questioned where He was in all this. Then I am reminded through a song on the radio or a verse that He is beside us walking this path with us and I take one more firm step forward. The most recent step forward in adoption process was to finish and send in our formal application. We finished up our application this week and sent it to Bethany on Tuesday. Then on Thursday night we received a call from Kelly Richards, our adoption specialist. She talked to Matt and explained some of our next steps. We hope to begin to meet with her in the next couple of weeks. Thus, begins our next step, the homestudy. I am sure like the steps so far it will come with much learning and possible hard times, but we will step firmly into it. We request that you keep us in your prayers in the next three months during this homestudy. We have a lot to learn about adoption and I know that God is still preparing us, as well.
Thanks again for all your support!
Mandy and Matt
Dear family and friends:
This is a verse that I stumbled upon today when I was thinking of this email and what I wanted to express to you about our adoption process this far. I was thinking how this journey involves so many steps but that each one has taught us something and reaffirmed what we feel God leading us to do. God is continually reminding us that what we are doing is His will for our lives. This journey has not been an easy one for me. At times it has felt very invasive and I will admit, that at times, I have questioned where He was in all this. Then I am reminded through a song on the radio or a verse that He is beside us walking this path with us and I take one more firm step forward. The most recent step forward in adoption process was to finish and send in our formal application. We finished up our application this week and sent it to Bethany on Tuesday. Then on Thursday night we received a call from Kelly Richards, our adoption specialist. She talked to Matt and explained some of our next steps. We hope to begin to meet with her in the next couple of weeks. Thus, begins our next step, the homestudy. I am sure like the steps so far it will come with much learning and possible hard times, but we will step firmly into it. We request that you keep us in your prayers in the next three months during this homestudy. We have a lot to learn about adoption and I know that God is still preparing us, as well.
Thanks again for all your support!
Mandy and Matt
Adoption Update from March 2010
Family and Friends:
As we begin to this update, it dawns on us that some of our family and friends whom we have not seen in sometime are uncertain about the subject matter of this message. Background: We learned late 2009 that we would not be able to naturally have children. We explored our options. Our faith lead us to the decision to adopt. We have been immersed in the world of adoption the last several months. There is an enormous amount of information available and we are learning! We have chosen to work with Bethany Christian Services. This is a nation wide adoption agency and comes highly recommended. Last night, March 16th, we attended our first general/orientation meeting with Bethany Christian. It was a great opportunity to learn more about the adoption process and how Bethany will handle various situations. We had many questions and will certainly have more as we continue the journey. We came away from the meeting encouraged, overwhelmed, and excited. Thank you for keeping us in your prayers! We received our formal application packet, which is the next step in the journey. We have many forms and questionnaires to complete as well as many decisions to make in terms of our preferences as it relates to a child. Upon completion and acceptance, we will begin the home study process. During this time, we will also be compiling a profile which includes but is not limited an autobiography and pictures, they described it as a scrapbook. (Note: We were in a small group with at least 4 teachers including Mandy.) Needless to say, this will be an area that Mandy leads. We may tap you on the shoulder for pictures at some point. This profile will be shared with perspective birth mothers. As you can tell we learned at lot, have a lot to do, and are excited about the next steps. Please feel free to let us know if you have any questions or would like more information. We are happy to share.
Thank You,
Matt and Mandy
As we begin to this update, it dawns on us that some of our family and friends whom we have not seen in sometime are uncertain about the subject matter of this message. Background: We learned late 2009 that we would not be able to naturally have children. We explored our options. Our faith lead us to the decision to adopt. We have been immersed in the world of adoption the last several months. There is an enormous amount of information available and we are learning! We have chosen to work with Bethany Christian Services. This is a nation wide adoption agency and comes highly recommended. Last night, March 16th, we attended our first general/orientation meeting with Bethany Christian. It was a great opportunity to learn more about the adoption process and how Bethany will handle various situations. We had many questions and will certainly have more as we continue the journey. We came away from the meeting encouraged, overwhelmed, and excited. Thank you for keeping us in your prayers! We received our formal application packet, which is the next step in the journey. We have many forms and questionnaires to complete as well as many decisions to make in terms of our preferences as it relates to a child. Upon completion and acceptance, we will begin the home study process. During this time, we will also be compiling a profile which includes but is not limited an autobiography and pictures, they described it as a scrapbook. (Note: We were in a small group with at least 4 teachers including Mandy.) Needless to say, this will be an area that Mandy leads. We may tap you on the shoulder for pictures at some point. This profile will be shared with perspective birth mothers. As you can tell we learned at lot, have a lot to do, and are excited about the next steps. Please feel free to let us know if you have any questions or would like more information. We are happy to share.
Thank You,
Matt and Mandy
Update from Feburary 2010
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11
Family and Friends:
The verse above is the cornerstone of current teaching series at NMC. The series started shortly after we made a series of difficult decisions. We believe this is more than a mere coincidence, its God speaking to us and assuring us we have made decision in accordance with his will for our lives. The verse and accompanying lessons have truly spoken to us. They have been a source of comfort and hope. It is our life verse as we trust and lean on God to guide us through this chapter in our Lives. A quick update on our adoption process: We will be attending orientation/interview on March 16th in Indianapolis with Bethany Christian Services. We are excited about taking this step in our journey. We continue to prepare ourselves for this will be a journey and look forward to what unfolds. Thank you for your continued support and prayers. Please feel free ask any questions you have.
Thank You!
Matt and Mandy
Family and Friends:
The verse above is the cornerstone of current teaching series at NMC. The series started shortly after we made a series of difficult decisions. We believe this is more than a mere coincidence, its God speaking to us and assuring us we have made decision in accordance with his will for our lives. The verse and accompanying lessons have truly spoken to us. They have been a source of comfort and hope. It is our life verse as we trust and lean on God to guide us through this chapter in our Lives. A quick update on our adoption process: We will be attending orientation/interview on March 16th in Indianapolis with Bethany Christian Services. We are excited about taking this step in our journey. We continue to prepare ourselves for this will be a journey and look forward to what unfolds. Thank you for your continued support and prayers. Please feel free ask any questions you have.
Thank You!
Matt and Mandy
In December 2009
An Email after we visited specialists.
Good Evening All:
We have had another rough day in the family area and judging by the *sighs* in the background from Daisy, Mandy and I are not alone.
As you all know, we have been exploring our options for adding a child to our family. At this point in the game of life, we know that we will not be able to have a child naturally. This was confirmed by a recent visit with a fertility specialist. We went into the appointment with an open mind (as open as we possibly could be) knowing that we were willing to take certain steps to precure a family. The appointment started off good with the doctor noting that the report from our local doctor was not as grim as original described, which boosted our spirits. We discussed our medical history and therpy options that would work for our sitution. We spoke about the option we had in depth, yes we said "option". In most cases couples have several options however we only have one. We (Mandy and I) have fundamental spritual and ethical (not to mention financial) reasons to not pursue that option. Needless to say this has not been an easy decision, nor a decision we ever thought we would have to make. It is quite difficult to know why we find ourselves in this position or even why God would put this decision in front of us. This has been the hardest decision of our lives. The fact is that this decision is part of the path, part of the plan, set forth by God before we were ever born. How awesome it is to know that God is in control! This gives us peace.
As many of you know, we are exploring adoption as a means to increasing our family size. We know this can be a long road, therefore we would appreciate your prayers and support during this journey.
Feel free to reply with questions, we not sure if we're quite up to talking about it yet.
Good Evening All:
We have had another rough day in the family area and judging by the *sighs* in the background from Daisy, Mandy and I are not alone.
As you all know, we have been exploring our options for adding a child to our family. At this point in the game of life, we know that we will not be able to have a child naturally. This was confirmed by a recent visit with a fertility specialist. We went into the appointment with an open mind (as open as we possibly could be) knowing that we were willing to take certain steps to precure a family. The appointment started off good with the doctor noting that the report from our local doctor was not as grim as original described, which boosted our spirits. We discussed our medical history and therpy options that would work for our sitution. We spoke about the option we had in depth, yes we said "option". In most cases couples have several options however we only have one. We (Mandy and I) have fundamental spritual and ethical (not to mention financial) reasons to not pursue that option. Needless to say this has not been an easy decision, nor a decision we ever thought we would have to make. It is quite difficult to know why we find ourselves in this position or even why God would put this decision in front of us. This has been the hardest decision of our lives. The fact is that this decision is part of the path, part of the plan, set forth by God before we were ever born. How awesome it is to know that God is in control! This gives us peace.
As many of you know, we are exploring adoption as a means to increasing our family size. We know this can be a long road, therefore we would appreciate your prayers and support during this journey.
Feel free to reply with questions, we not sure if we're quite up to talking about it yet.
How we began this journey...
This is an email we sen to family and friends in October 2009
Good Evening All:
It is with a heavy heart that we are emailing you this evening. Its difficult to put this into words, we will do our best. We are faced with a life decision. We recently found out that we will not be able to have a child naturally to our family. Our options are limited but we do have options, well two. We can meet with specialist or adoption. Both are very difficult for us to process and both have positives. We are still in the shock phase but must move to the decision phase and make a decision by Monday in order to start the process with specialist. So, please keep us in your prayers the next few days. You are welcome to email us as we make this decision.
Matt, Mandy, Bud, and Daisy
Good Evening All:
It is with a heavy heart that we are emailing you this evening. Its difficult to put this into words, we will do our best. We are faced with a life decision. We recently found out that we will not be able to have a child naturally to our family. Our options are limited but we do have options, well two. We can meet with specialist or adoption. Both are very difficult for us to process and both have positives. We are still in the shock phase but must move to the decision phase and make a decision by Monday in order to start the process with specialist. So, please keep us in your prayers the next few days. You are welcome to email us as we make this decision.
Matt, Mandy, Bud, and Daisy
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