My heart is heavy today.  Our children are hurting and in danger and yet, they remain half-a-world away.  My only action today is to fall to my knees and lift them up to their Heavenly Father.  Please pray with me!  I'd also ask you to read Our Director's Blog and help if you can.

Jeff will be talking with our Agency this afternoon to see exactly where our family is in the process and what our best course of action will be.  I'll keep you up-to-date once we know more.

These are pictures of little A and J's feet.  

There have been and will continue to be many unknowns and challenges in this journey, but we know beyond a shadow of a doubt, that the One who has called us is Faithful!

Just a Little Update

It's been awhile since I've posted an update on our adoption journey, so here it is...

We're still waiting!!

Here's the latest -

On July 5th we found out that we had passed Court - woohoo!  However, because we already have 3 bio children (the Congolese gov't likes for you to have 2) we needed a Presidential Authorization.  We were told it could be 3-4 weeks before our lawyer would have that in hand.

Then, on July 31 we found out that the law requiring you to have only 2 bio children was changed (effective immediately) so our Presidential Authorization was no longer needed.

As of now, that's all we know.  

Our agency has been trying to get a concrete update on our specific case since.  We try to wait patiently, understanding that communication with our lawyer is difficult.

We know that a 30 day wait period is up next (giving anyone who may want to appeal the Court's decision the opportunity), but we're not sure if we are officially in that wait period or not.  

Waiting is never easy, but we do have absolute faith in God's timing!  For us "God's perfect timing" is not a cliche, it is simply the place where our hearts rest.

"Let the morning bring me word of Your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in You.  Show me the way I should go, for to You I entrust my life."  Psalm 143:8

Each day is a new day!  We'll continue trusting in God's timing and resting in His unfailing love for us and for our precious little ones!

We'll keep on waiting and praying!

Abbi's 17...What?!

Yesterday we celebrated Abbi's 17th birthday.  Seventeen years have flown by and we are standing at the brink of her senior year in high school.  When I think about the fact that she has one year left under our roof, the swirl of emotions are too many to even try to explain.

We have definitely made our fair share of "first-child" mistakes, but when I look at the incredible young woman Abbi is, I am amazed - and so thankful for the power of prayer!  We have prayed our way through a lot of "what in the world do we do?" kind of moments.  

I've prayed a verse for each of my girls since the day they were born - Phil. 1:6 "being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."  God has been incredibly faithful as He continues to work out His good plan in Abbi's life!

Abbi,
We know God has big things for you!  We can't wait to see what the next days, weeks, months and years hold!  Keep your eyes on the One who holds all things together!
We love you beautiful girl!
Dad and Mom

Happy 15th Birthday Averi!

Today we celebrate our sweet Averi!  Fifteen years ago today she graced our family with her presence!

There are so many words that come to mind when I think of our girl - sweet, sensitive, loyal, calm, caring - and as you can see, the tallest of all the girls in our family! :)

Averi,
What a blessing you are to our family!  It takes a strong girl to handle "middle-child" status with such grace.  Thank you for being our encourager and our peacemaker!  You're beautiful, inside and out and we love seeing how God continues to mold and shape you.
We love your passion for serving others, especially our little ones in The Cove!  You shine with God's love and we could not be any prouder of the young lady you have become.  We adore you and enjoy each moment we get to spend with you!
Continue to listen and follow after your Heavenly Father - we know He has amazing plans for you!
We love you -
Dad and Mom

Milestones

We celebrated 2 milestones in the Thomas family.  First, on May 30, JT and I celebrated 20 years of marriage!  We've always said that we are the poster-couple for "opposites attract".  As a result, our marriage has certainly had it's ups and downs, but we've grown up together and over the course of 20 years have discovered so many things about ourselves, our relationship and what it means to "meet in the middle".  More now than ever, I'm so thankful for a husband that truly leads our family and consistently points each one of us to Christ.  We're so excited to see what the next 20 years holds for us as a couple and for our ever-expanding family!

On June 3, we celebrated milestone #2 - my 40th birthday!  I really hadn't thought too much about this birthday - I know 40 is supposed to be the "big one", you know "it's all down-hill from here".  But I really don't feel all that old and I do feel like my best years are yet to come - I think if I keep saying that, it'll really be true! :)

My husband is awesome with surprises and he always seems to have something up his sleeve when it comes to birthdays - one of the many things I LOVE about him! This birthday was no exception! The Friday before my birthday, he had my friend, Amy, kidnap me from work.  He had arranged for us to have lunch, pedicures and manicures.  He also had arranged babysitting for her kiddos - now that's a real man!  I was thrilled to spend an afternoon with my sweet friend and you just can't beat the massage chair while getting a mani/pedi!

After a fun afternoon, I headed home to get ready to go out to dinner.  JT and I  headed to one of our favorite restaurants.  We opened the door and were met by so many of our amazing friends and of course, "surprise"!  

I truly was surprised and so thankful to spend the evening with incredible company!  We had dinner and then headed back to our house (which had been cleaned by our girls) for cake and champagne.  It was a perfect night that I will always treasure!  

On Sunday, my actual birthday, our girls gave me the gifts they had made. Priceless!

I love my girls and their beautiful hearts!  The verse they wrote on the mug is Proverbs 31:26 "She opens her mouth with wisdom and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue."  I pray I'm that kind of woman!

I think about all that this next year holds and I feel so blessed by the amazing people God has surrounded us with to share in it!

Congo on our Mind

We're still waiting...

Waiting to hear if we've passed court.

We're praying that our little ones will be home soon.  

And continuing to believe that God's timing is perfect!

So thankful for the encouragement we find in God's word.

Romans 15:13  May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

I love this picture of our girls and thought I'd share it.  

We definitely have Congo on our mind!

Thanks Jaclyn McNeal for taking this perfect picture!

Double Digits!

Today we celebrate our 10 year old Anni!  We had a little family party for her last night - here's the recap

We gave her tree fort a little make-over! :)

You ask a 10 yr old what they want to do on their birthday and this is what you get! 

Our Lovelies! 

Dear Anni,

You've always been our determined one!  As a baby, you were determined to eat RIGHT NOW and sleep on your schedule.  You were determined to be heard...loud and clear!  

You were determined to be held by Abbi, because most of the time, she was the only one who could calm you down! :)

We've always believed that God would use your determination to do BIG things for Him and now as you grow, we're beginning to see glimpses of that more and more.  

We see your determination on the soccer field, as you work hard and give your best effort.  We see you cheer as you win and see the tears well-up as you lose and all the while you're learning what it means to be a good team mate and a good sport!

We see your determination to be a good friend to those around you and most importantly, to make sure your friends know about Jesus!  

We see your determination as you pray that God will help you be a good sister to little A and J, even though it means that you'll no longer be the "baby" of the family!

We love your heart sweet girl - so tender towards others!  You connect with people quickly and once you've made that connection, it's for life! :) 

Hellos are always exciting and Goodbyes are always hard. 

 

As God continues to mold your heart and determination for Him, we can't wait to see what will happen!  You're one of a kind and we're so thankful that you're ours!

We love you!

XOXO