More Communication from Mommy D

Good morning!  I try to be in the habit of regularly checking my email first thing in the morning and this morning was no different.  Except that we received an email from our social worker, which is VERY rare.  I didn't expect to hear from her for a few days at least due to her surgery today.  Anyway here is what her email said:

D gave me a letter to send to you today-   

Dear Skeeter and Joy,  I am so hapy to hear that you have decided to allow my child in your home.  I am sure you will be terrific parents to her.  I am looking forward to meeting you again and I apologize for my rush.  I am blessed that God has allowed you to enter our lives.  Be safe, careful, and keep praying for us (me and baby).  I just met you but I love you.  Until next time, D

What an awesome way to start the day!  Will you join with us in praying for Mommy D and for her baby girl?  Continuing to pray that we can show her the love of Jesus!!

Have a great day!

  

Missing Expectant Mother Appeared

We had last written about the meeting that was planned with an expectant mother that had fallen through due to her not showing up.  We received an unexpected call this weekend from our social worker that this mother was wanting to meet with us and move forward.  So we planned a time to meet and prayed that this wouldn't be another dry run!

She was late to the meeting, but she showed up!  The first thing she said was that she was nervous and handed us a letter that she had written to us.  I would like to share this with you ~

I'm different from the normal.  I am a Christian who is frequently not able to understand why,

no matter how hard I try.  Nobody sees the person that I am.  Why would I keep a child 

when I can't take care of myself.  I'd rather give her to someone who can show her 

a better life than I can.  So thank you for wanting her.  I choose you to take her hand.  

Take care of her and love her and let her know I would have kept her but I can't.

Reading this in McDonald's with everyone around me was the only thing that saved me from bursting into tears!  This dear mother has had 4 other pregnancies and is not parenting any of them.  She has had quite a rough lifestyle and wants to do what is right, but she is so lonely and just wants someone to love her.  She was abandoned as a baby on the side of the road.  She was then placed into a foster home, and my understanding was that she was adopted.  When she turned 18, she desired to find out about her biological family, and as a result her adopted family "disowned" her as well.  Now she has no one!  She never did find her biological family.  What a lifestyle!  How sad that she had to grow up feeling rejected over and over and she is now searching for that love, however in all the wrong places.

We are choosing to proceed with gathering more information about this case.  Since we don't know who the birth father is, they will have to run an ad in the paper for 3 weeks after the baby is born to see if anyone will step up to the plate to parent.  She is due with a baby girl at the end of August. Our social worker is having surgery tomorrow so I don't know how the rest of this week will shape up, but will continue to trust in His plan. 

Meeting with her was quite interesting - - she isn't what most people would call "normal".  She is definitely not one with whom I would regularly connect with.  The words of a popular song keep going through my head - -

Show me how to love the unloveable.

Show me how to reach the unreachable.

Help me now to do the impossible.

Even though this song is speaking about forgiveness, these particular words are what my prayer is for how I want our relationship to be with this mother.  God is stretching us and taking us into an unknown and unfamiliar world!  Praying we can be a light for Him.  

Please continue praying for us!

Learning to trust....

Last Night's Meeting

Monday, the kids and I headed to Wichita, so that Anne would be ready to start her testing the next day for school.  While down there, we had hoped to arrange a time to meet with a prospective expectant mom.  Monday ended up not working out as the mom's phone had been shut off and the social worker didn't have a way to contact her.  Tuesday came and went and her phone was still shut off.  Finally, yesterday, Wednesday, she had her phone back on.  The social worker contacted me yesterday afternoon, to see if we could get together and meet the mother that evening, and set the time for 6:30 p.m.  I contacted Skeeter at work, to find out if that would work for him, since he would need to travel to Wichita.  He ended up leaving work early to get down to Wichita to join us for supper.  I was finishing getting ready, which was close to 6:00 p.m., when the social worker called to see if we could instead meet at 8:30 p.m. (per the mother's request) and we said yes.  She said that she would call us when she had picked up the mother.  By 8:00 p.m., Skeeter and I kept finding ourselves looking at the clock - - the minutes tick by slowly when you keep looking at the clock! :)  By 8:30 p.m., we still hadn't heard anything and Skeeter was wondering how long he should wait before heading back home so that he could avoid the storms as well as get to bed at a decent time for work today.  Around 8:45 a.m., we texted the social worker to see if the meeting was still going to work out for that night.  She said she was close to picking up the mother and that it should still work.  At 9:00 a.m., the social worker called and said she couldn't find the mother and that she wasn't where she said she would be waiting to be picked up.  By 9:30 p.m., we called the visit off, as the social worker was able to text the mother, who finally responded and said she wasn't coming.  There were reasons such as she had to work, she was tired, she was sick.......  Were they just excuses or legit??  Only Jesus knows!  So, dear Skeeter headed back home around 10:00 p.m.  I felt bad that he had to make a wasted trip to Wichita, but I guess adoption journeys come with a bunch of gambles, and this was one of them, which we lost.  What does that mean as far as our status with this case goes?  I have no idea!  Will see what God does!

Update on Adia's birth mother's pregnancy - - Monday evening, before the kids and I left, the birth father called to say that the mother had been admitted to the hospital as they wanted to monitor her and give her steroid shots to help the baby develop more quickly.  Last I had spoken with her, the baby was 1 lb and some ounces.  Now, he is almost 4 lbs, so we are glad that he is growing.  They called and left a message last night that they are now home, and she is still carrying the baby!  We pray that the baby will continue to grow and develop the way he should and that the rest of her pregnancy will go without too much drama.  Today, we celebrate Adia's 6th birthday!!  What a whirlwind we experienced 6 years ago today, but what a blessing!  After quite the emotional week, it will be nice to have a break and be able to celebrate our little girl!

Newest Update

Well, after the attorney had emailed and said that we needed to hurry and get him all the documents he needed, he never responded back to our attempts at communication.  So for now, the Marshallese situations appear to be a "no".  I am learning, that most attorneys and agencies want you to hurry, but they don't always follow their own expectations. :)

We would appreciate prayer though as there is a possibility of meeting with another prospective expectant mother.  This is another situation where they are needing to make a quick match as this mother is living out on the streets.  This opportunity has been on the back burner for a few weeks now, we just haven't said anything about it.  She is due in August and we may be meeting with her tonight if we can get all the details worked out.   

I will be out of town for the next several days with the kids, as Anne has testing in Andover, but will do my best to update you when we get back home.  Please be praying for all involved as this week, the social worker is wanting to make the match.  Pray for clear guidance and peace!  Thank you!

On another note, Adia turns 6 on Thursday!  Where has the time gone?!  So thankful for the Lord choosing us to be her family!

Busy Monday - -New Opportunities

After our loss with Mommy "S", it was nice to be able to spend Easter quietly at home with our family.

Today we may be starting another journey, only Jesus knows.  But I am praying because I think this opportunity would be amazing if it would pan out!  We heard that a Christian attorney in Arkansas was looking for couples who were ready to act NOW on some Marshallese birth mothers that he is working with.  I called the attorney as well as emailed him.  He emailed back this afternoon with some questions that needed to be answered.  I have faxed the answers to his questions as well as a copy of our paper profile.  I have also emailed the social worker in charge of our home study to pass that along to the attorney.  There are a few birth mothers he is working with, one being due the first part of May.  I don't know where the Lord will lead with this, but the expenses should be less.  From what I understand we won't have to use an agency.  However, we may need to find a local attorney??  I don't know all the details, but we are continuing to take the next steps as long as the door remains open.  I know nothing about the Marshallese culture, but would love to learn more. :)  These mothers are currently living in the states so we wouldn't have to travel overseas if any of his situations would pan out. 

We first learned about these opportunities through an adoption group that I am a part of on facebook and know that several others have emailed this attorney as well.  So I am trying to remember to give it to the Lord and LEAVE this in His hands and if it is meant to be, it will happen. We would appreciate your prayers as we seek the Lord's will in this new chapter.  We will keep you posted as we learn more.