April check-in

Good morning, friends!


Not much to update other than we just wanted to check in to remind you that we are here. No news from Angel recently regarding birthmothers. We get updates every month letting us know how many times our profile went out to expectant mothers. For the month of March, our profile was sent out 5 times, and our web profile was viewed 374 times (thanks to all of you). Angel reminds us that expectant mothers can hold on to profiles for several months before deciding what to do, so we have to keep the faith that we will be connected at the right time with the right person.


Thankfully, and by the grace of God, I have had a spiritual awakening. I have more faith than ever, and I believe good things are headed our way. So much in fact, that I have started collecting baby items again. Little by little. Jim and I put together the bookcase that we bought several months ago. I snagged a few *new* favorite baby books, and as small of a gesture as it may seem, the door to the nursery is kept open again. It's a beautiful room; full of light, and hope. Now when I walk by, it brings a smile to my face and visions of the blessings to come.


Have a great week!

Time to share again!

Can I ask that if you came to our blog today, that you share this with someone? Below is the link to our adoption profile. What about an email to friends and family to let them know you have a connection to someone hoping to adopt? Maybe someone in your Book Club has a connection you are unaware of? Share our profile with a brief description of how you know us on Facebook. Church groups are an excellent way to spread the word and create connections and support!


http://www.angeladoptioninc.com/adoption-family/profile/jim-anne/


Thank you in advance.


xoxo,
Anne & Jim

Local News

I debated sharing this story on our blog. But it's relative to our life that I feel that it's necessary. It's hard for me to find the words to express my sadness about this. My heart breaks for this young mother that didn't understand her options. Of course we do not know the details of this woman's situation, and I don't presume to. But I can't help but wish she knew that there are families waiting for babies to love and cherish. That there are resources to support pregnant women. What if she knew of us, would she have made the same decision? I weep for this baby that entered the world to be taken out so brutally. Why??? We have so much love to give. We pray everyday to have our little one(s) find us. Then we read the LOCAL news to see this. Absolutely heartbreaking. I pray this young woman finds peace and that this angel baby is in Gods loving arms being cherished as he deserves.


Please share our adoption profile over and over again. Let the world know that we are here and ready to become parents.


Please pray for this woman and her angel baby.

Thanks for sharing

Our Angel Adoption profile has been shared 23 times on Facebook. We appreciate all of the "likes" and "loves". We are so very grateful for your continued love and support. All of your texts, emails, and prayers keep us strong and hopeful. Keep doing what you're doing! Share this blog , Share our adoption profile , Share our story. We've got a feeling that with your help, 2016 is the year!

Can you do us a favor?

We are reaching out to all of you to help us find our little one. You never know if your friends cousin, neighbors daughter, co-workers niece, college students friend, might be expecting and considering adoption. Sure, it sounds like a long shot, but it does happen. We know couples that have made connections privately through friends and family. So please keep your ears open, reach out to your friends, church, relatives, etc.. We welcome all the help we can get. Please share this blog with your friends, family, and co-workers.


A few things for you to know:

• We are certified for domestic adoption
• We are open to any race and gender
• We are open to any afterbirth scenario (closed, semi-open, or open)
• We are CPR and First Aid certified
• Our email is JimandAnne1112@gmail.com
• We are not certified for Foster care

We have considered making an adoption Facebook page, website, photo books, etc.. If you think you need something to help us get the word out, let us know! We welcome suggestions. :)


Thank you for your continued support.


Anne & Jim

Checking In

Not much happening these days so that's why the blog has been pretty quiet. Please keep us in your prayers as we wait for our little one... Whenever that may be. 

Xo

Inspiration

So it’s not like we choose to put ourselves in certain situations – trust me, we never on our own would have written this script. But what I have learned along the way, and even more so this past year, is what you can make of your journey – regardless of the path. For example, we are so blessed to have supportive friends and family. It's overwhelming. Particularly, I have been drawing strength and inspiration from a dear friend that has been fighting cancer. Through it all, her positive attitude, strength, openness, and her ability to engage fully in her activities, has allowed me to rise above (transcend if you will). Oh, it’s still hard. I still get mad. I still question my faith. I still get jealous.  But as Libby, said “Allow those thoughts to happen. But set a limit to it. Maybe allow five minutes of negative thoughts and then force your mind back to the good.”  I have taken this advice to heart and use it everyday.


We will all struggle with something in our lives, many things perhaps. What is so important to remember is how much our actions and reactions affect others. You may not realize how your strength, your hope, your words, encourage someone else to keep fighting, keep praying, keep smiling.

2016

I ended the year with a cold/flu, and Jim unfortunately has began his new year with the same sickness. Other than that, we are ready to begin this new year strong, with uplifted spirits and hope for better things to come! We spent New Year's eve with two close friends celebrating at home boiling lobster and drinking champagne. It was a good way to end the year that unfortunately wasn't the greatest.

Thankfully, I woke up Friday morning full of energy and peace. The beginning of a new year is time for reflection. Time to heal. Time to pause. Time to let go and transcend. I have to say, we're a little bit tired of thinking and saying "next year is the year" but really that's all we have to hope for. We are very grateful for friends, for family and for our health. May 2016 bring all of us the best that it has to offer. 

Merry Christmas

It's Christmas Eve and everyone has left from our family dinner. The house is so quiet [not a creature is stirring, not even Leonard...]. Jim and I sit on the couch not saying much as I know we are thinking the same thing. We're thinking about how fun it would be to set out cookies for Santa. To wake up in the morning, snuggle with our little one in their flannel pajimjams, and open presents. Someday it will happen. And it might not be as glamorous as we imagine it to be, but it will be wonderful.  Our hearts are full of love that we are waiting to give our future child. We pray for him or her tonight, as always, that we will be together soon. 

Tonight we will focus on what we are thankful to have today. We are thankful for this life we live. Most of all we are thankful for our wonderful friends and family that we share this life with. 

Merry Christmas to you and yours. 

Love, 

Anne and Jim 

Broken Hearts

It is with great sadness that we tell you our adoption connection has failed ("failed" meaning the parents have decided to seek another placement for baby girl). This was unexpected news to us and we are absolutely devastated. For three months we have allowed our hearts to open to both birthparents and of course, this little baby girl. We slowly began to fill her nursery. We foolishly picked her name. Once again, we find ourselves mourning a child that never came to be. She will always be a part of our hearts, as are our other two babies. We are praying that she is placed with a family that will love and cherish her the way we do. Our hearts are broken and ache in ways we are all too familiar with.


There is never good timing for bad news or heartbreak. However, seeing that it is the week before Christmas, we just wanted to let you know that we probably don't want to talk about this in person unless we bring it up. We know you all care for us and want to show your love, but we are very raw and fragile. We thank you for your continued support and love as we work through this dark time.


Anne & Jim

Prayers

We need your prayers more than ever. The journey has taken yet another turn and we don’t know where this path will lead us. Please pray for peace in our hearts as we try to understand why some doors open and others close. Please pray for the well-being of this little baby girl and her future life – may it be with us or someone else. Please pray for Jim and I to stay strong, hopeful and calm.

Please pray for us.

Control

Control. This is something we have zero of. Control is one of the biggest challenges with the adoption process. Well, lack there of. I started to feel that in some ways, being matched with a birthmother was like being pregnant - meaning the natural fears of the well-being for this growing baby. How every time we went to a sonogram or appointment, I found myself deathly afraid of bad news. I thought it was because of our two pregnancies, we can only relate pregnancy to bad news. Luckily, my friends that are mothers reassured me that it's normal to feel that way. It's a mom thing.

But what is unlike being pregnant is that this child is not in MY belly. I can't control what the birthmother is consuming. Is she taking her prenatal vitamins? Is she not sleeping on her back? Is she's singing to our sweet girl like I would be everyday? Is she falling in love with this baby like I am? Is she going to change her mind? Ugh... that's the most terrifying one of all.

What if this doesn't happen?

Six months is a really long time to be matched with a birthmother. In some ways, it's beautiful -  especially for our daughter. She will know so much more about her birthparents than most adopted children. But selfishly, for Jim and me, it's exhausting. It's exhausting to stress every time I send a text message and she doesn't respond. It's exhausting to rely on someone else to fill us in with doctors information and test results. It's exhausting to want to plan and design a nursery, when in the back of your mind you are terrified that you'll end up having the saddest garage sale ever. It's exhausting to pick another name and be terrified that you won't be able to have it be a reality. It's exhausting to not be able to enjoy this journey 100% .

Today is one of those days where Jim and I really feel out of control and scared. For no particular reason, it's just one of those days. The fear creeps in and it takes over for a bit. Tomorrow will be better. We will find the strength to keep on down the road. We will grasp on to Hope and hold it close. It's all we can do.

You're safe with us!

This week Jim and I received our First Aid and CPR certification! Several weeks ago we took a 4 hour (mandatory) class at the Springer Center in Champaign. We learned Infant CPR, Adult CPR, Choking, Fist Aid, etc. Basically, you are safe with us. We've got you covered. Unless there are snakes involved - Jim is out. Or if you're vomiting - I'm out (should probably get over this before baby arrives *mental note*).  All joking aside, even though these classes, webinars, booklets, are expensive and time consuming, I'm glad we have developed the necessary knowledge that will keep baby Meek safe and healthy. And yes, the rumor is true, it's good to know the song "Stayin' Alive".


Want to learn more? Check out www.heart.org for classes near you!

Jacob Chen - An Adoption Story

Another video that makes me cry. Every single time. [Especially at 3:30] Enjoy.

Team Pink

Telling family we are TEAM PINK

A few weeks ago we celebrated Ellie's birthday at our house with family. Jim purchased several assorted balloons (including 1 pink, and 1 blue). After everyone was settled, we both grabbed a balloon, and told Ellie all of the balloons are hers, except one. As soon as my Mom saw we were both holding a balloon, she immediately started screaming, "IT'S TWINS?!" Ha, no! Quickly I let go of my blue balloon as Jim clenched tightly to his pink one, and we said "It's a Girl!". After the initial shock of everyone thinking we were expecting twins wore off, there were tears and praise of joy. It was nice to have a celebratory moment with family on this journey.  :)
Have I mentioned that we can't wait to meet this little bunny?!