A Roadblock!

In Wes Stafford's book Too Little to Ignore he talks about how orphans/vulnerable children are easy targets for Satan.  They have very little voice, no political connections, do not contribute economically or possess any power.  Therefore, orphans are unprotected, uncared for, and often times not even noticed or acknowledged.  It is easy for Satan to fill their minds with the deception that there is no Hope.

I truly believe that is a big reason that adoption is so difficult.  Satan wants to hang on to those children so they never learn about the Hope of the world, Jesus Christ.  It seems as if this is evidenced in almost every adoption story that I know.  Families go through challenge after challenge in order to bring children home.  I am thankful for so many families who do not give up and God brings victory in their pursuit.  There is story after story where God intervened in an amazing way to bring these children home.

Having said that, we got some disheartening news this week about the two children (Will and Lena) that we are in the process of adopting.  All we need in order to go forward with Will's adoption is for SOMEONE in the Ministry of Social Protection in Moldova to make copies of info they already possess and release to us. We continue to wait.  In regards to Lena, the Ministry has placed a condition in her case that must be met before we can move forward.  Without going into detail, we need a miracle! Without God's intervention the Ministry probably will not take the necessary steps or they will take months to get this accomplished.

They have all of our information, know we want both children, and know we have had a successful adoption from Moldova with Hope.  They have chosen to place this roadblock in our path that makes absolutely no sense and will accomplish very little if anything at all.

We could focus on the injustice of it all and become angry and frustrated.  However, we know without a doubt that God is leading us on this journey and believe that Lena and Will are our children.  We are believing God (not just believing in Him)!  He is certainly bigger than this road block and any of the "players" involved.  We have the Power of the Resurrection on our side!!!  We are looking expectantly of how God is going to work this out - it should be interesting.  We invite you to join us in praying that we would remain focused on Jesus and that He will be glorified through this!!!  Please also pray for our patience for God to move - it is hard!!!

Waiting!

Well, it is July 5th and we have not made our first trip to Moldova.  We were told that Lena (our little girl) would be off the national registry at the end of May but then were told it would be the end of June.  We are also waiting on the Ministry in Moldova to release information that will allow us to file yet another application with the US Govt.  So, we are just playing the waiting game.  It may be the first of September now before we can make our first trip.

Update!

Well, we thought we would make our first trip to Moldova in June but it doesn't look like that will happen.  I think I mentioned this before but children in Moldova (and other countries) are required to be on a national registry for adoption for a certain length of time.  Once this time frame is complete and a national family hasn't adopted then they are available for international adoption.  We were told Angelina would be available by the end of May but now the country is saying it will be the end of June.  Moldova has undergone recent elections which are always complex and drawn out.  From what I hear things are settling down and hopefully adoptions will resume.  The last year a child was adopted from Moldova through our agency was 2011.  The country now has new procedures for adoptions but we are not real sure what they are!

Having explained that, it looks like we will make our first trip either the end of July or August.  It is really hard not being able to plan this trip with all that we have going on with Andy's work, Dow starting Auburn in the fall, and Beth going to Haiti for a month and then returning to Trinity in August.
However, this is the least of my concerns.  There are times when I am so overwhelmed by the magnitude of adding two more children to our family.  When I think about the reality of this, I almost can't breathe and begin to reeeaaaallllyyyy panic! All sorts of things run through my mind:

     how will I have the energy?
     will I be able to be a good mom to Dow when he is in college?
     how will I be there for our teenage daughter, Beth?
     will I ever have any more special times with Hope - just the two of us?
     how will this impact our marriage?
     will I ever make it to exercise again?
     how will I ever have another quiet time with God?
     how will we even make it to church on time or make it all?
     will I be able to maintain other relationships with friends, etc?
     how will we be able to teach Angelina and Will all they need to know and are behind on?

Well, I guess you get the picture!  Then I am reminded that God did not give me a spirit of fear and I think about the Cross and all of the Power and Love that it represents and I calm down.  God gently reminds me that He has called us to do this and His strength is sufficient in my weakness.  I think if I am going to fear anything, it would be disobeying God's call.  I had rather be facing trials and challenges in the center of God's will than facing a broken relationship with Christ for disobedience.

Those moments of fear still come, but then I quickly think about the Cross.  I was also reminded through a devotion by Henry Blackaby that further explained the Fruit of the Spirit.  The Holy Spirit will lead me to the identical PEACE that guarded the heart of  Christ as He was beaten and mocked and prepared for the cross.  When I think about Jesus having peace in His circumstances, I know the Holy Spirit is able to bring about that peace in my life as well.  So thankful to be a child of the KING, adopted into His family and given the keys to His Kingdom and all that my inheritance provides!

May Update!

When we began the process to adopt two unrelated children, we knew Moldova had to approve and our agency had to approve.  Moldova approved it early on, so we assumed our agency had as well.  I was called recently by our adoption worker and was informed that the agency's adoption committee would be meeting regarding our request of two unrelated children.  I was asked to write an appeal to the policy for the committee to consider.  I wasn't surprised about needing to do this but was surprised that it was so late in the process.  However, we both knew that God has plans for these two children to be part of our family, so we just left it in His hands.  He is faithful as always, and we were approved.
We do have to submit a second dossier but this mostly will be copies of the first but will just need new notarizations and another trip to the Sec. of States office to get them apostilled.  Paperwork I can do - this will be an easy fix.  We were told we will make our first trip in June but still do not know exact dates or for how long.

This past week we also celebrated Hope's 4th Gotcha Day.  We celebrate this day by releasing one balloon for each year she has been with us.  We also eat at Bonefish Grill where Hope loves the bread and drawing on the "tablecloths."  Hope has and continues to be such a blessing to our family.  I am so thankful to be her Mother.

USCIS Approval!

We have been waiting on our USCIS/Homeland Security approval for adoption, and I just had a feeling that it would come in the mail on Friday.  Andy and I left for Haiti early Friday morning but had Dow and Beth checking the mail.  Guess what?  It came, and we got our approval letter.  Now we are just waiting on Moldova to say we can travel for our first trip.  We still do not know how long we will stay in Moldova - it could be up to 30 days.  Please pray that since we have successfully adopted once from Moldova that they will not require that long.

Our newest addition to the family - Hope's dog Max (short for Maximus)

He had been digging in the dirt.  Max is a Cavapoo (cross between Cavalier King Charles and a Poodle

Hope ready for her first gymnastic show

Telling Dow a secret

Adoption Update!

 We are still in the "waiting" stage.  US Immigration (Homeland Security) had a question about our Home Study, so hopefully this info will be submitted to them next week. While all of our info has been in Moldova for about six weeks, US Immigration has been reviewing our home study in order to approve us for adopting.  We have our second round of fingerprinting on Monday, April 29 in B'ham and then we should receive our approval letter from US.

As far as Moldova, I learned a few more things this week.  Moldova was without a President and a Parliament for some time but now those have been filled.  Their departments are referred to as "ministries."  The heads of these ministries did very little during the time of uncertainty with ruling officials not in place.  The adoption agency's contact has not been allowed in the orphanages for some time which explains why none of our questions have been answered.  Our contact is beginning to see some activity in moving ahead with adoptions.  Please pray for favor from the Moldovan officials to approve our adoption and allow us to make our first trip.

No News!

Not much going on and we can't seem to get answers.  I know this probably sounds very familiar to many of those of you who've  adopted or are in the process.  Our dossier has been in Moldova for translation several weeks!  Still no word other than "they continue to work on our case."  We received our appt. for biometrics (second set) in Birmingham which is required by US Immigration/Homeland Security.  However, we had a conflict and have requested another appt.  They have been very timely so far, so I hope this does not slow us down.  I would say we are at the mercy of governments but we know who works all things out for the best!  God is in charge of this process; however, this is hard to remember at times!

Hope in the snow in Deer Valley, Utah

Hope in her skiing gear minus her skis

Hope and Mom tubing 

Easter:  Beth, Hope and Dow

Silly Hope

The Birchfield Family

Hope with her very special cousin, Matthew

Exciting Update!

While our home study took longer to get completed than we had hoped, we finally mailed the approved, notarized and apostilled copy to our placing agency in North Carolina on Friday.  This was the last piece of the dossier needed in order to send all of our paper work to Moldova.  We have been told that they are waiting on home study and ready to move forward!  We also sent our approved home study along with an application referred to as the I800a to US Immigration on Friday.  We also need permission from this agency to adopt.  This will include another round of fingerprinting at a special office in B'ham which is by invitation only!  We are getting excited.  We hope to make our first trip in June and bring the Children home on the second trip which we hope to be in August.  Of course, this is all according to "our timeline."

For those of you who haven't seen Hope recently, I included a pic of her in traditional Moldovan clothes.  Her kindergarten class at Eastwood Christian School presented a program in which they traveled around the world.  In May, Hope will have been home with us for four years!  She will be six in June.

Our Adoption Call!

In November of 2011, Andy and I began to sense God's call to adopt.  Once again, I presented my case to God that we were too busy with Children's Hope and could barely keep up with the growing ministry.  Thankfully, God is gracious and reminded for the umpteenth time that He was in charge and my job was to be obedient.  He knew better than I did the challenges ahead and the needs of the ministry and what it would mean to enlarge our family.

Andy and I shared this with the kids and they were immediately on board.  Their request was a little brother from an African country.  However, a couple of months later, God spoke through the Holy Spirit to me during a quiet time that we were to return to Moldova for this second adoption.  There was not doubt that God has spoken to me, so I called Andy and he said okay!

I immediately called our adoption agency in North Carolina and was told that they were not taking any applications for Moldova at that time.  We were told that the Ministry of Social Services in Moldova was dragging their feet in clarifying their new adoption laws.  As a result, CAS did not feel they could take a family's application without being up front with them on the requirements.  They had three families already stuck in the middle of Moldova adoptions due to the changes, and they did not want other families to experience this.  Of course, I was thinking, okay God, what is up with this?  You clearly told me Moldova!  Thus, began my monthly check in with CAS about any headway the Moldovan Gov't may have made with finalizing adoption changes.

A couple of months later, Beth wanted to verify with me that we would be adopting a girl.  I stopped in my tracks!  I realized that when I thought about the adoption I always had a vision of a little girl and a little boy close in age.  When Beth asked this, my thoughts came very real and concrete.  I shared this with Beth and she immediately asked, "have you told Daddy."  My response was that I just didn't think I could tell him.  I mean ever adopting one more child was going to be a stretch in every way imaginable; how could we handle adopting two.

I prayed that if I was right about this, that God would speak to Andy completely independent of me.

In October of 2012, I made my monthly call to CAS after seeing an update on their website about a little movement in Moldova.  They shared with me about two children with special needs that they had just received info. on.  The little boy was five and the little girl was two.  They shared this information with me as an either/or choice having no idea about my sensing that we were to adopt two children close in age and one boy and one girl.  I still needed Andy's independent affirmation and continued to pray.

We shared the info on the two children with the kids and began regular prayer/family meetings.  Beth nor I shared the idea of adopting both.  Andy would discuss the practical side of adopting the two yr. old and then later he thought maybe it would be better to adopt the five yr. old.  Then one day, he called and said, "I think we need to adopt both of them!"  I was driving and almost lost control of my emotions.  I finally shared with him my "visions" and how God had been leading me.  We were both so overcome with God's goodness and love and how He answers prayer!  I hope I never grow jaded by the wonders of our Heavenly Father!  I can't really express my emotions during and after that phone call.  I will also play it over in my mind as we journey through this adoption process knowing that was such confirmation of God's calling.

As soon as I could, I called CAS and told them we wanted to adopt both children.  This took them by surprise but they were ready to accept our application.  Thus, the journey began!

I can't post pics of the children at this point but can share some pics of our current family members.

The Birchfields at Christmas 2012

Dow, Beth and Andy after just completing the TreeTop Adventure at Callaway Gardens, Dec. 2012

Hope at Christmas, 2012 (she is five and 1/2)

June 13, 2011-Hope's 4th Birthday!

Hope's 4th Birthday was celebrated in red, Clifford the Big Red Dog that is!!!  

Two red puppies pretending to sleep.

Matthew and Beth giving Hope some help with her candles!

Hope enjoying a Clifford book

The too cute to eat Clifford Birthday Cake

Our little Red Dog

Two Years!

Two years ago today our lives were forever changed! On May 22, 2009 we took Hope out of the orphanage she had been in for 18 mos. She was almost two years old. I am thankful we have that time well documented, because it seems as if she has always been a part of us. I am so thankful that God chose us to be her family and that we were obedient! We are so grateful that we didn't miss out. I am thankful that I was once considered "the least of these" until my adoption into God's family. All Christians should be able to relate easily with the adoption process!

While these two years have not always been easy; in fact, they have been challenging, I would not trade them for anything. There are soooo many children around the world that need a loving home, and am so humbled that the Lord grafted her into our family. I heard her playing the other day and telling her stuffed animal about how much she loved her family. Our prayer is that one day she will be adopted into God's family. She told me the other day that she loved me BIGGGGG much! Talk about melting my heart!

Hope's transformation has been such a blessing to watch. She has gone from a sad little girl to one who has sooo much fun everyday regardless of what is on the agenda. Everything is an adventure ready for her to experience. Whether it is digging for rolly pollies or going on an airplane ride, she is ready! Hope is excited about turning four next month and ask us everyday if she is four yet. She is planning a Clifford party. Hope just hit the 25 lb mark which was cause to celebrate. Two years ago, she was 16.5 pounds, so she is growing.

Dow and Beth have done an incredible job as big sister and big brother over the past two years.

There love for her is so deep and their acceptance of her was immediate and has never faltered.

They even kept her for three days recently getting her ready for school, in bed, and hopefully fed:) They did a great job!

Thanks to everyone who loves Hope and continues to be interested in how she is doing. We are counting our blessings and you are definitely among them.

Christmas 2010

I love Christmas and the amazing story of how our Savior came to dwell among us. The story never seems to lose its wonder, and I continue to be reminded of God's great love for me. This year was no different. As I contemplated on who came to see Jesus (shepherds and wisemen), I am reminded once again at how Jesus is the Savior for all people regardless of where we live, how we live, or with whom we live. Jesus wants to draw all people to Him not leaving any one person without a Savior. Wow, what a Christmas present!

Having a little one in the house sure adds to the joy of Christmas. Hope really began to understand that we were celebrating Jesus' Birthday and liked helping Beth make His Birthday cake. She was even so brave as to sit on Santa's lap!

What If?

Hope enjoys a pony ride

Petting zoo

Swinging in the back yard!

I can’t believe it has been almost five months since I have posted an update! We have been very busy helping with a new orphan ministry with our church called Children’s Hope. The focus is on providing different avenues for our church members to become involved in reaching out to orphans and vulnerable children through adoption, foster care, and orphan support. We are so thankful to our church in embracing this new ministry.

As Hope continues to grow and experience new things, I am constantly reminded of what a blessing it is to be a part of her life. Lately, thoughts of “what if” keep entering my mind. If the Lord had not called us to adopt or if we had not obeyed, what would Hope’s life be like? This got me to thinking about all the seemingly guaranteed privileges and blessings that we take for granted . When you look at life through the eyes of a child that may never have set foot out of an orphanage until she was 16 (only to be faced with a harsher reality), you really see everyday occurrences with a different perspective. For example: What if...

Hope never knew what it was like to celebrate holidays with a family?

Hope never had a big sister to braid her hair and teach her how to dance?

Hope never had a daddy whose face lit up at the mention of her name?

Hope never got to cuddle on the couch with her mommy and watch tv?

Hope never knew what is what like to receive her first “pink” Bible or be loved

by Sunday School teachers?

Hope never experienced the awesome taste of gummy bears?

Hope never had a big brother to tell good night and give her a bear hug?

Hope never got to eat rice at Zoe’s or chicken nuggets at Chick-fil-et?

Hope never got the chance to drive two dogs crazy?

Hope never had the opportunity to steal her grandparents’ hearts?

Hope never got to ride on a boat and say “faster, faster?”

Hope never knew that God loved her and created her for a purpose?

Of course, I could go on and on, but I am sure you get the picture. I am so thankful Hope gets to experience all of these things and so much. My heart breaks for the millions of orphans around the world who will never have a family. While not everyone is called to adopt, all Christians are called to be involved in caring for orphans. God’s Word is very clear concerning this mandate. Please ask yourself this question, “How does the Lord want me to be involved in reaching out to orphans?”