It's a cold, snowy day in Kentucky and we are only a few days away from having all documents completed for our 36-Month Homestudy Update. It's been a stressful six weeks or so...but there has been definite progress. Your thoughts and prayers have certainly helped us get through this overwhelming part of the adoption process. Thank you so very, very much!
Would you be so kind to pray specificially for the ONE LAST DOCUMENT to arrive at our agency? This is a document that had to be sent out-of-state and we are now waiting for it in order to complete the homestudy. As I've written before, adoptive parents will tell you that there is usually that "ONE LAST DOCUMENT" that brings great stress because so much depends on it. Well, that's exactly where we are. This document has been the most challenging to complete and obtain...but we are anxiously waiting for it before the expiration date soon arrives. So please, please pray!!
Two other documents were also of concern but we now have those in our hands! Yay! I haven't made a complete count just yet, but I believe this homestudy update required somewhere around 36 to 40 separate documents/letters, etc.!!! So we're on the homestretch and will be extremely relieved when the last one is complete! It's been a challenging time with new regulations, less time to complete the tasks at hand and added pressures of the holidays, illness, etc.. BUT we are very thankful for the many ways so many precious people and prayers have brought us this far.
We know that each step of this journey brings us closer to our little girl/s and that God's timing will be so perfectly designed. I recently found a picture of a little sweetie from China in some literature and posted it on our desk. Her little arms are reached out as if to say, "I'm waiting for you" and she is precious! Each time we sit at our desk to work on more documents, emails, letters, etc., we look at her picture to remind ourselves that there is a tremendous blessing waiting in China and every moment we spend in paperwork, prayer, sleepless nights and hectic days is very worthwhile!
So...dear Jenna Elizabeth +Chinese name, aka "JennaBeth" (and maybe Emma Katherine +Chinese Name aka "EmmaKate"?)...we're getting closer each day and each document to holding you in our arms and bringing you home. We love you so much already and you are surrounded by the hearts, prayers and efforts of so many wonderful people. Hold on, baby girl/s! Our journey has been extremely long, but our hearts are already with you. This "paper trail" certainly brings us closer and closer to you, too. It will be such an incredible day to finally see you. And the joy of you joining our Forever Family will be far more precious than we can even imagine. Meanwhile, know that you are already in our hearts, family and lives. We simply must wait to bring you home!!!
Thank you, dear friends, family and everyone involved in our journey...for your prayers, encouragement, thoughts and kindness. Knowing you are walking beside us and praying us through makes all the difference. PLEASE keep praying for that ONE LAST DOCUMENT...and we'll keep you posted. You are such an amazing part of our journey of blessings!
Cherishing each step of the journey...
Terri & Family
Jenna Elizabeth (aka "JennaBeth") Song Lorenz
Waiting For Our Little One To Come Home From China!
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Monday, January 18, 2010
33 Months of L.I.D. & Still Moving Forward!
Our hearts have been on such a rollercoaster ride lately...and I'm not even referring to our own adoption process...yet. To hear from the Colliers while they were in China, (they even sent the picture of them blowing kisses to our baby girl/s...which I'll post as soon as I get some direction!) and to see pictures of them in the PRC as well as when they arrived home...have been very exciting and encouraging. Their family is precious! Three biological sons and now three little daughters from China are tremendous blessings to this wonderful couple. Forrest and Robin are full of love, patience, generosity and joy. They truly reflect God's love in countless ways. It is a joy to see their family grow in number, love and outreach. What a wonderful message they are living and sharing with this world! Thanks Forrest, Robin, Andrew, Aaron, Stephen, Laura, Shiyan and Maria for shining so beautifully for Him! It is a blessing to know and love you all!
Meanwhile, our hearts have also been touched by the Haiti earthquake and the lives lost, touched and shared in that situation. As many of you know, our daughter, Rachel, spent about two weeks in Haiti last June on a mission trip. The pictures she brought back as well as the accounts of her experience moved our hearts deeply. To know that the cities she visited and people she served have all been affected deeply by this disaster is shocking. Yet we see people from all over the world sending assistance, rescue workers and supplies which proves there are definitely wonderful hearts and lives in this world! The outpouring OF so many TO so many brings us all back to the basics of the way it should be! Let us never lose sight of the importance of helping one another along this life.
I must admit that I wish I could travel to Haiti and bring back several precious children who need a forever family. My heart aches for those families in the middle of their adoption processes with Haiti. I pray the process will be accelerated so those sweet children can join their loving families very soon. They need one another more than ever! I know they would all appreciate our prayers!
As we well know by now, the adoption process is not one for the weary of heart or impatient temperaments. :) We continue to secure final documents for our 36-Month update. We have the majority of our documents and appointments complete. But, as adoptive parents know all too well, there are always those "last minute down-to-the-wire" papers we are hoping and praying will arrive each day! Please pray for those documents to arrive very, very soon since time is quickly running out in our rush to meet this deadline. There have been so many, many wonderful people helping us along in this journey. Each precious soul who has prayed, completed forms, written letters, notarized, etc. has been an incredible and vital part of making this possible. We are so thankful for each of you!
I want to share a bit of news with you. Yesterday our social worker, (another true angel sent from heaven!), visited our home to interview our son, meet with us, collect paperwork and do a "home tour" of our house for the homestudy requirements. Tim and I had previously discussed the possibility with her re: special needs options. Yesterday we confirmed that we are willing to parent healthy and/or mild special needs little girl/s from China. We have been praying about this for a very long time and now the door is open "just a bit wider" in this capacity. We know that at our ages, we could not assume care of any major special needs child. But there are so many little children with very mild and treatable needs and we feel led to open our hearts and family to what (and who!) God has in store. So please continue praying that in His perfect timing and design, God will lead us to the very specific little girl/s that He has already selected to join our family! Hold on, dear JennaBeth...(EmmaKate?)...we're moving closer and closer to you each day!
Yes...we're still moving forward...slowly but surely. It's been 33 months since we were logged in China's system and almost four years since we first applied to adopt. The wait is much longer than we ever anticipated...but the joy and love will definitely exceed every concern, frustration, moment and action involved in bringing our daughter/s home. May God bless you all as abundantly as you have blessed our lives along this journey! May we all move forward...and reach out to those who need our help to do so...as we all continue our journeys of blessings!
Cherishing each step in the journey...
Terri & Family
Meanwhile, our hearts have also been touched by the Haiti earthquake and the lives lost, touched and shared in that situation. As many of you know, our daughter, Rachel, spent about two weeks in Haiti last June on a mission trip. The pictures she brought back as well as the accounts of her experience moved our hearts deeply. To know that the cities she visited and people she served have all been affected deeply by this disaster is shocking. Yet we see people from all over the world sending assistance, rescue workers and supplies which proves there are definitely wonderful hearts and lives in this world! The outpouring OF so many TO so many brings us all back to the basics of the way it should be! Let us never lose sight of the importance of helping one another along this life.
I must admit that I wish I could travel to Haiti and bring back several precious children who need a forever family. My heart aches for those families in the middle of their adoption processes with Haiti. I pray the process will be accelerated so those sweet children can join their loving families very soon. They need one another more than ever! I know they would all appreciate our prayers!
As we well know by now, the adoption process is not one for the weary of heart or impatient temperaments. :) We continue to secure final documents for our 36-Month update. We have the majority of our documents and appointments complete. But, as adoptive parents know all too well, there are always those "last minute down-to-the-wire" papers we are hoping and praying will arrive each day! Please pray for those documents to arrive very, very soon since time is quickly running out in our rush to meet this deadline. There have been so many, many wonderful people helping us along in this journey. Each precious soul who has prayed, completed forms, written letters, notarized, etc. has been an incredible and vital part of making this possible. We are so thankful for each of you!
I want to share a bit of news with you. Yesterday our social worker, (another true angel sent from heaven!), visited our home to interview our son, meet with us, collect paperwork and do a "home tour" of our house for the homestudy requirements. Tim and I had previously discussed the possibility with her re: special needs options. Yesterday we confirmed that we are willing to parent healthy and/or mild special needs little girl/s from China. We have been praying about this for a very long time and now the door is open "just a bit wider" in this capacity. We know that at our ages, we could not assume care of any major special needs child. But there are so many little children with very mild and treatable needs and we feel led to open our hearts and family to what (and who!) God has in store. So please continue praying that in His perfect timing and design, God will lead us to the very specific little girl/s that He has already selected to join our family! Hold on, dear JennaBeth...(EmmaKate?)...we're moving closer and closer to you each day!
Yes...we're still moving forward...slowly but surely. It's been 33 months since we were logged in China's system and almost four years since we first applied to adopt. The wait is much longer than we ever anticipated...but the joy and love will definitely exceed every concern, frustration, moment and action involved in bringing our daughter/s home. May God bless you all as abundantly as you have blessed our lives along this journey! May we all move forward...and reach out to those who need our help to do so...as we all continue our journeys of blessings!
Cherishing each step in the journey...
Terri & Family
Friday, January 8, 2010
Still in Motion!!!
Christmas has come and gone. New's Year's also came and went. Micah's 18th birthday, (New Year's Eve), came and went way too fast. Rachel returned to school last weekend and Micah went back this past Monday. Our 2010 is off to a fast and furious start. One thing is for sure....there is never a dull moment in our home or lives!
Meanwhile, Micah has been a bit ill. Rachel changed rooms in the dorm, (and yes, we drove up there and helped her move.) We've had a pretty decent snowstorm this week. And...Tim's Dad had open heart surgery this morning. Thankfully, everyone seems to be doing ok and we are very grateful for that. As I told Tim earlier this week, it's a bit like those commercials on tv when the dog is barking, the children are yelling, the doorbell is ringing, the phone is also ringing, dinner is boiling over on the stove...and someone wishes "Calgon" would take them away.
But we don't want to go away...except to China! :) So we continue doing what has to be done in order to complete our 36-Month Homestudy in the next couple of weeks. And life is definitely still in motion! Are we stressed? Sure. Are we exhausted? Absolutely. Are we going in several directions at one time? Seems like it. But are we grateful for all the blessings? That's a definite YES!
As I type this entry, our dear friends are in China receiving their third daughter. Forrest was a friend in college and his wife, Robin, was my roommate. They are an incredible family. They have three biological sons who are wonderful young men. And their three daughters from China are precious, as well. As I read their blog each day, I am reminded so vividly just how worth it this journey is when we look at "the big picture." Although the last few weeks have been hectic, tiring and full of a mountain of documents, appointments and continuous running, it doesn't take long to realize that the reason behind all of our activity...is indeed worth every moment...and every step to our little sweetie/s in China.
Before Forrest and Robin left to receive their youngest daughter, I asked them to "blow a kiss" to our little one/s while there. I believe that Forrest and Robin planned to blow that kiss to our baby girl/s from the Great Wall of China. How amazing to know that our friends are now in our daughter/s' homeland...and have even thought of her during their very busy schedule. Somehow, it just makes our recent "mad rush" so worthwhile. For now we see papers, bills, to-do lists, etc.. But someday...we will see our little girl/s...and we will put our arms around her and bring her home to be a part of our family...forever!!! Now THAT'S worth it all!!
Please continue to pray for our sweet daughter/s in China, for our dear friends who are there right now, and for all that needs to be done in the coming weeks. We have had some documents coming in right on schedule while others have not. We have more appointments, meetings, interviews, expenses, a home tour with our social worker next weekend and more forms to prepare...just to name a "few" steps ahead. Would you please keep all of these in your thoughts and prayers? It is so overwhelming but possible with His help and your prayers!
We truly thank you for your prayers as our "marathon" continues. We are grateful for all the wonderful folks who are helping us along our journey: our doctors, nurses, notary people, social worker, agency advocate, bank employees, government office folks in OH, VA and KY, sheriff's office, attorney, Tim's employer and office workers there. There are also our friends, ministers, family members and other adoptive parents who keep encouraging us. Hearing your words of hope, kindness, understanding and support are priceless! From the bottom of our hearts, thank you so very, very much. Honestly, we are extremely tired and the road is not always easy...or inexpensive...or smooth..or quick. But it is always worth it! You are such a blessing to us along this journey and we thank God for shining through each of you. You share light along this path and as we see your smiling faces and hear your loving kindness...we know we aren't alone. Neither is our precious JennaBeth (EmmaKate?). May God bless you all as you touch many lives, including ours. May you be blessed as you continue being a blessing in this world.
Cherishing those lighting our journey,
Terri & Family
Meanwhile, Micah has been a bit ill. Rachel changed rooms in the dorm, (and yes, we drove up there and helped her move.) We've had a pretty decent snowstorm this week. And...Tim's Dad had open heart surgery this morning. Thankfully, everyone seems to be doing ok and we are very grateful for that. As I told Tim earlier this week, it's a bit like those commercials on tv when the dog is barking, the children are yelling, the doorbell is ringing, the phone is also ringing, dinner is boiling over on the stove...and someone wishes "Calgon" would take them away.
But we don't want to go away...except to China! :) So we continue doing what has to be done in order to complete our 36-Month Homestudy in the next couple of weeks. And life is definitely still in motion! Are we stressed? Sure. Are we exhausted? Absolutely. Are we going in several directions at one time? Seems like it. But are we grateful for all the blessings? That's a definite YES!
As I type this entry, our dear friends are in China receiving their third daughter. Forrest was a friend in college and his wife, Robin, was my roommate. They are an incredible family. They have three biological sons who are wonderful young men. And their three daughters from China are precious, as well. As I read their blog each day, I am reminded so vividly just how worth it this journey is when we look at "the big picture." Although the last few weeks have been hectic, tiring and full of a mountain of documents, appointments and continuous running, it doesn't take long to realize that the reason behind all of our activity...is indeed worth every moment...and every step to our little sweetie/s in China.
Before Forrest and Robin left to receive their youngest daughter, I asked them to "blow a kiss" to our little one/s while there. I believe that Forrest and Robin planned to blow that kiss to our baby girl/s from the Great Wall of China. How amazing to know that our friends are now in our daughter/s' homeland...and have even thought of her during their very busy schedule. Somehow, it just makes our recent "mad rush" so worthwhile. For now we see papers, bills, to-do lists, etc.. But someday...we will see our little girl/s...and we will put our arms around her and bring her home to be a part of our family...forever!!! Now THAT'S worth it all!!
Please continue to pray for our sweet daughter/s in China, for our dear friends who are there right now, and for all that needs to be done in the coming weeks. We have had some documents coming in right on schedule while others have not. We have more appointments, meetings, interviews, expenses, a home tour with our social worker next weekend and more forms to prepare...just to name a "few" steps ahead. Would you please keep all of these in your thoughts and prayers? It is so overwhelming but possible with His help and your prayers!
We truly thank you for your prayers as our "marathon" continues. We are grateful for all the wonderful folks who are helping us along our journey: our doctors, nurses, notary people, social worker, agency advocate, bank employees, government office folks in OH, VA and KY, sheriff's office, attorney, Tim's employer and office workers there. There are also our friends, ministers, family members and other adoptive parents who keep encouraging us. Hearing your words of hope, kindness, understanding and support are priceless! From the bottom of our hearts, thank you so very, very much. Honestly, we are extremely tired and the road is not always easy...or inexpensive...or smooth..or quick. But it is always worth it! You are such a blessing to us along this journey and we thank God for shining through each of you. You share light along this path and as we see your smiling faces and hear your loving kindness...we know we aren't alone. Neither is our precious JennaBeth (EmmaKate?). May God bless you all as you touch many lives, including ours. May you be blessed as you continue being a blessing in this world.
Cherishing those lighting our journey,
Terri & Family
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