Monday, March 9, 2015

Weekly Prayer Requests

First of all, here is an update from last weeks:

  1. That our USCIS approval comes this week. - it didn't come. We still don't have it, and my officer hasn't called me back. I'm hoping to hear from her tomorrow and I will update. 
  2. That our fundraising efforts are blessed. - We met our weekly goal for our first week, which was $1,000! We also have made progress in a lot of planning and our online auction starts Thursday. 
  3. That we encounter no delays in the process. - please continue to pray for this intention 
  4. That baby "Truman" is being well cared for and is prepared by the Holy Spirit to have a family. - please pray for this intention fervently. 
  5. That baby "Truman's" paperwork is in order and we don't hit any snags as far as that goes. - please continue to pray for this 
  6. That our process in his country goes smoothly and that we are kept safe. - and this :)
  7. That our family handles the process and transition with grace. - and this 
  8. That our extended family realizes what a blessing this baby is and begins to support us. - and very little progress made in this department... So please keep praying. 
  9. That The Lord provides for us a car that can fit all of our children. - please keep praying for this.
  10. The numbers won't go away on this horrible blogger app!!!!
  11. I'm not going to add anything this week, but I am praying for all of you, and I appreciate everyone that joined last week's prayer request post. Please let me know how I can pray for you. If you'd like to keep it private, tell me. My comments are moderated. 

16 comments:

  1. I'll keep praying for your intentions. I pray for you at daily Mass when I attend.
    Stay encouraged.

    Another point on your vehicle situation:
    In case you're concerned about trade-in value or anything concerning your present vehicle, you have the option of donating your vehicle and getting a deduction for fair market value, no matter its condition, through certain charities. Charity Motors is a good one, but they have limited locations. They take care of transfer of title, and they let you choose who gets the proceeds from your donation, too.
    That's all only if you needed to know about it, of course... praying you find the kind of transportation you need.

    Please pray that I continue to discern whomever else needs to receive 'a cup of cold water in His Name'. This message is a neon sign this week, both mystically and practically speaking, and I don't want to miss where the Ancient of Days is directing me on this.

    All the best.

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  2. How many seats do you need in a car?

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  3. We need to upgrade to a 12-15 passenger. We have 6 kids and the baby will be #7 but our Suburban only seats 6 in the back. :)

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  4. Check out this website. You can order a 4th row for your Suburban. I know a family who did this with theirs. http://www.littlepassengerseats.com/suburban.html#.VP8bW0dHarU

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    1. I've seen those, but o have also read that they're not safe. We are so squished in our suburban right now, we really need more space, not just more seats. :) thanks for the idea, though.

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  5. Be careful what MY you consider for 15 passenger vans. Those are built on truck platforms. Handling is very different. Powertrain is different. Correct tires, pressure, etc., is very important.

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    1. Yeah, I really would rather have a 12 passenger.

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  6. Continued prayers for you. Thank you for so generously sharing your family's journey. It's really very helpful to discerners like ourselves. I see that support from extended family and the various impacts of adoption on your children are concerns, and those things would be for us as well, and so if you ever feel led to share more about those areas and feel that it's appropriate to do so here, I would welcome learning from your experiences and insights. God bless you all in this week ahead.

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    1. I'm very glad it is helping you! I can expand on it a bit here, and then hopefully more later.

      Having a child, whether it be through adoption or biologically changes a family dynamic. All of my children have had to adjust when a new sibling joined the family. Our last adoption was different because i was gone for 5 weeks. When I got home everyone needed me, and that was very stressful. We got through it, found our new normal, and here we are.

      This time, I will take 2 shorter trips, which should make the transition much easier on all of us.

      As far as support from extended family, it's not a huge deal, really. But it hurts a little. So far, most people in our family are ignoring our news. They thought we were crazy last time (it IS crazy, but it's beautiful), and I'm sure they do this time. But they love our other son, and I know that they will love the next one too. I just wish I didn't have to wait for that until he gets home...

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    2. Thanks for taking the time to respond, given how busy you are! I can definitely relate to dynamics changing when a new sibling is added...that can be so hard on little ones, even when they're excited about the new brother or sister. I'm sure adding in travel makes it that much more difficult. Hopefully, as you say, mama traveling for shorter lengths will help everyone. I don't know for sure how our extended family would react, but I'd expect some concerns and resistance at least at first, maybe straight through. But since you've already done this once before and adoption has been a blessing to your family, I hope that your family comes around soon. I'm sure they're going to love him to pieces, too! :)

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    3. We are also having someone come to take care of the kids in our home and my husband isn't traveling. So, it should be easier all around.

      Lots of prayers for your discernment.

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    4. Curious, did you zero in on a particular country's program because of the travel requirements, or did you find 'Truman' first and then the travel was secondary? I can see good reasons for either approach, just wondering on how you looked at it. Travel requirements (length, frequency, two parents or one, etc.) would definitely be considerations for us as well. TU for the prayers.

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    5. When we started the process for our first adoption, it was because we fell in love with a little boy in Russia. Russia closed, and we ended up switching to another non Hague country. This time around it just happened that the sweetie we loved was in the same country we've adopted from and already know the process, so it's been very easy. Almost too easy, since now we are about to finish our dossier and could travel really soon.

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  7. Are things going so quickly because you've already done this once before and know what you're doing now, or are things expedited in Truman's country because you have already recently adopted from there? Either way, very happy for you all that you got your approval and that everything is moving along so smoothly. :)

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    1. Mostly because we have done this before and know what we're doing. But also, because we already had our USCIS approval extension in the works.

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"If you can't say somethin' nice... don't say nothin' at all..." ~Thumper