Sunday, March 2, 2014

Adoption and our Finalization!

     Well, I can hardly believe this day has come and gone.  February 3, 2014 we finalized our adoption to Ezra!  Those 6 months flew by and this little boy is officially ours!!

      When God put us on this journey, I was shocked!  It was one of those things like homeschooling was for me.  Are you sure Lord?  Is this really what you want?  Or is my heart just grieving for my daughter and other babies of mine that I am longing to hold again in my arms?  He made sure that we were aware that this was the journey for us.  We met opposition from close friends and from people we really didn't even know.  People questioned why we were doing this.  I wish I would have made clear to them that this was God's path, not ours, and only He knows why.  Alas, I just kept to myself about this.  This was a journey that our family dealt with mostly on our own.  From a fundraiser, to the paperwork, to the tears from waiting.  It was a very quiet journey on the outside, but on the inside I felt like I was falling apart.  Praise be to God for making  me stronger every step of the way!  I learned that my hope, peace, and love came from the Lord during this time.  His provisions are sufficient!  God was working in my heart and in my life every minute of every day.  His grace truly is sufficient!  I have been living in His grace for quite awhile now.  I walk in it daily!  Thank you God!!
     One thing that I have learned is adoption to me has been a life changing process that so rocked my world!  I almost don't even recognize myself anymore.  It has beautifully grown not just our family, but my heart, joy, and dreams.  It has been a beautiful, frustrating, heart-breaking, and miraculous journey.
     God chose us for this journey.  God chose us to have a son who is now 6 years old, lose a daughter that would have been 4 on the 19th of this month had she lived, and lose 2 more babies in May and December the following year.  God also chose us to adopt this beautiful little boy.



     He chose us!!!!  Despite what others thought, despite what we thought, He chose us to be the parents of this miracle child.  You see, God puts families together through physical birth and through adoption.  From the beginning of time, we were all ordained and thought of.  God knew all along that we would add to our family through adoption!  Sends goose bumps just thinking about that!  All those tears that I shed, were so worth it!  Every crack that has been formed in my heart, has drawn me closer to God.

     Some pictures of our big day!!


Patiently waiting!!
God sure has blessed me with 2 handsome young boys!!


The door to the courtroom!


Big brother getting the okay to bang the gavel making it official!!



I love this family!


Chocolate pudding for a celebratory meal!



Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.  James 1:27

Not everyone is called to adoption.  Everyone is called to take care of the fatherless though.  I am truly blessed that God chose our family and that we were obedient in His calling.  I look forward to the coming years as He continues to work on our family and in making us closer to His image.

Blessings!!




23 comments:

  1. Congratulations on your one month with your darling son.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Congratulations and may God bless your precious family. :) Gentle Joy

    ReplyDelete
  3. What a blessing! Two of our grand babies are adopted. We couldn't love them more!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Congratulations Cathy!!!!! We are about to do our 5th adoption. Its so much fun to see who God brings to our family!! Its wonderful that you finalized so soon. God Bless you for opening your heart and home to a child in need.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Congrats!!! We just celebrated SIX YEARS since we first met one of our precious gifts through adoption. May The Lord continue to bring you joy in the journey!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Congratulations. You do have two very handsome sons.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Congratulations! I can't imagine how much joy you must feel in your heart.....
    :)
    xx Crystelle
    Crystelle Boutique

    ReplyDelete
  8. Found you through the Wedded Wednesday Link-up! Congratulations!!! What a joy... thank you for sharing your story.

    ReplyDelete
  9. How wonderful for your baby boy to be welcomed into your loving family. You are a special person and will be a wonderful mom to him! Congratulations on your new addition.

    ReplyDelete
  10. You sure do have two wonderful precious little boys. Congrats! Visiting from Wake up Wed Linky!

    ReplyDelete
  11. God chose you to be the parents. I love that perspective! I praise God with you that you have this sweet family (and grieve the losses you experienced for those not with you in body). Both your boys are beautiful. Thanks for sharing this piece of your journey.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Congrats!!! that is super exciting news :) Love the pic of lil baby eating some pudding...found your blog today on Thrive Thursday & a new google follower :)
    Rachael @ Diamonds in the Rough (http://www.parentingandhomeschoolinginfaith.com)

    ReplyDelete
  13. What a beautiful family, may God continue to bless you. And what a lovely testimony, you've touch my heart.
    Jeannie

    ReplyDelete
  14. Congratulations to you all. I can still recall that day for us 20 years ago with our son, who was the first of 4 children the Lord blessed our lives with through adoption. May your lives be blessed with many more days to enjoy and celebrate!!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Such a beautiful story. We are in the middle of our second adoption. God is so good!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Thanks for sharing your story. My husband and I are dealing with infertility and are excited to see what means God has planned to grow our family: biological children, adopted children, or both.

    I'm stopping by from the Faith Filled Friday blog hop. God bless!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Congratulations on your newest family member! He is just beautiful! (visiting from Fellowship Fridays)

    Beckey
    http://www.etsy.com/shop/queenbsbusywork
    http://reallyreallyrealhousewives.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  18. Love love love! What a great blessing, and testimony to obeying the Call of the Lord. Thank you for sharing with Salt & Light, so inspirational.

    Marissa
    http://raysofgraceandjoy.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  19. What bliss! I know your joy. April 1st is "Gotcha!" day for our sibling group of 3 from Bogota, Colombia. It will be ten years since we brought them home. One is graduating from high school this May...where does the time go? We adopted after raising five biological children. Our friends and family thought we were crazy. Many asked "why?" We always thought that if you have to ask why, you wouldn't understand anyway. Sometimes you just have to obedient to a calling. Best wishes to you and your beautiful family!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Congratulations from a fellow adoptive mom!!

    I followed a link from The Weekend Brew.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Congratulations! Such a moving post. Bless you all as a family.
    Thanks for sharing at Essential Fridays.
    Blessings
    Mel from Essential Thing Devotions

    ReplyDelete
  22. Congratulations! What a wonderful story. Wishing you a blessed life as a family! Thank you for sharing this at the HomeAcre Hop; I hope you'll join us again this Thursday.
    Kathi at Oak Hill Homestead

    ReplyDelete