tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59289794519472993512024-03-05T09:09:27.685-08:00Our Adoption AdventureMary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5928979451947299351.post-82755184365687677762017-01-31T10:28:00.003-08:002017-01-31T10:35:03.031-08:00We Are Home!<br />
Hello Everyone!<br />
<br />
Thank you for continuing to follow along on our journey to a family. This is the post we've been waiting many years to write - OUR KIDS ARE HOME! We are thrilled to finally be under one roof as the DeArmond 5.<br />
<br />
We've been meaning to write this post for about 5 weeks now, so thanks for still being interested enough to read, ha! It's a long one, folks.<br />
<br />
It was a whirlwind getting ready for the trip to pick the boys up as we had about 10 days notice (similar to when we went in the summer to meet them). As prepared as we felt, there were a lot of little things to get done and finalize once we had their homecoming date on the calendar. We got all of our stuff, the boys' stuff, and some things that the adoption agency asked us to take, into 4 suitcases and a carry on - ACCOMPLISHMENT! It was overwhelming to pack not only clothes and essentials, but things to do for 3 active boys on a 10 day trip! We packed as many little activities as we could and said a prayer for nice weather so we could get outside. Mom and Dad Eckert picked us up on December 13th in a snow storm and off we went to the Indianapolis airport. Thankfully, we had uneventful flights there - smooth skies and no delays. Praise!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQf3wo8-uf7vIP1D0UC3S93D-xSjy_fVu0O3PBIHzTeMBNx6TpFAMm2IFNm1n2m8r9pJWfNbKZ66dR9LdfPIAqvCv9kIRfHpercoLpl5BFOPJ1Ve0f2Jx-3lUGHfTmE4_dRuLmif8N0vg/s1600/IMG_3924.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQf3wo8-uf7vIP1D0UC3S93D-xSjy_fVu0O3PBIHzTeMBNx6TpFAMm2IFNm1n2m8r9pJWfNbKZ66dR9LdfPIAqvCv9kIRfHpercoLpl5BFOPJ1Ve0f2Jx-3lUGHfTmE4_dRuLmif8N0vg/s320/IMG_3924.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
It was about 18 hours of travel time, plus they're 7 hours ahead of Indiana, so we arrived in Bulgaria on December 14th. We got off the plane only to be greeted with "Hi! Welcome back! We've got some bad news." Our hearts sank. Our adoption agency had been notified by William's foster mom that he'd been diagnosed with the chicken pox just a day or two before our arrival. They were primarily concerned with whether or not we had had the chicken pox before - both of us had so there were no issues there. <u>Our</u> biggest concern, though, was whether or not they would allow us to travel home on December 23rd. We were so excited to have them home for Christmas, that we were devastated at the thought of being delayed. But, we said we'd take it as it comes and if we were delayed, so be it! We said we'd take it one day at a time and adjust the return schedules if needed. Chicken pox wasn't going to get us down - we were one day from having them with us forever! From the airport we headed to our apartment for the week, which was the same one we stayed in for a couple of days over the summer. We unpacked (3/4 bags made it there - the 4th came a few days later) then went out and enjoyed our last meal out that didn't include childcare plans :).<br />
<br />
We were picked up bright and early on December 15th to make the trip to the boys' home town, which was about 3 hours from the capital city of Sofia. We made it there at exactly the same time as the boys... we were reunited on the street right in front of the social services office. We will never forget that moment - we turned the corner and saw them climbing out of their car. We jumped out as quickly as we could and heard "MOMMY! DADDY!" and they came running to us.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Finally... together forever. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Colin Bozhidar DeArmond, 03/05/2008</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">William Mincho DeArmond, 05/01/2010</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Benjamin Atanas DeArmond, 03/05/2012</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4Cz3IDPfjRorrIPL8Eh8JZG4DAoULiN2k8cbbCCaIBUHgiqNypwJx1yNsWHKOmuki3afOk1j1s2-_pQBasEP5YAs3oDNqrZNAftwjvKzPFlr_mrbhM-AzQnIJxLek_l6xRAZs9PF-Nwg/s1600/IMG_3939.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4Cz3IDPfjRorrIPL8Eh8JZG4DAoULiN2k8cbbCCaIBUHgiqNypwJx1yNsWHKOmuki3afOk1j1s2-_pQBasEP5YAs3oDNqrZNAftwjvKzPFlr_mrbhM-AzQnIJxLek_l6xRAZs9PF-Nwg/s320/IMG_3939.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3vvPqnIwrcnX1WwQytJYoROwHPjjKfEJi2BGjz9fMPJrvf-O0C46Nhu7RU7M0zojUX6qwnDmCh7Ppsg6bECnKaCi62V7vQhi0dFrFjEf5EH3vMBbnjU83LkSEQJCOsfZxMGZcZFNW5WU/s1600/IMG_3986.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3vvPqnIwrcnX1WwQytJYoROwHPjjKfEJi2BGjz9fMPJrvf-O0C46Nhu7RU7M0zojUX6qwnDmCh7Ppsg6bECnKaCi62V7vQhi0dFrFjEf5EH3vMBbnjU83LkSEQJCOsfZxMGZcZFNW5WU/s400/IMG_3986.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinT-66vEIMESny6VX7P23mmmxboZxfTyqhtWJfmgZJ3dtdk9Oq9Jkx3qNxLOPIqgUeO71uPLgm3XpuJx-FjpXPm8CdoCOVLbb_cmOsQLz6PZfNNxT_jEBo_aX51UxkOVDniMozWPONjRs/s1600/IMG_3949.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinT-66vEIMESny6VX7P23mmmxboZxfTyqhtWJfmgZJ3dtdk9Oq9Jkx3qNxLOPIqgUeO71uPLgm3XpuJx-FjpXPm8CdoCOVLbb_cmOsQLz6PZfNNxT_jEBo_aX51UxkOVDniMozWPONjRs/s400/IMG_3949.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These two women will always be a part of our family<br />
<br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
We all went into the social services office, the DeArmond 5, our agency rep, and the boys' foster moms. We had time there just waiting around for paperwork - we were in awe of the fact that we were finally together again. The boys hugged and loved on us from the first moments, they sang some songs with their foster moms, and we were able to give their foster moms a gift. These moments were so precious to us not only because we were finally all together, but because we were able to personally thank their caregivers for providing such loving and nurturing care for them over the past several years. These women have sacrificed so much and cared for our boys so well... we love them and pray blessings over them for the truly selfless and incredible work they've done. We'll never be able to thank them enough for standing in the gap between their beginnings and the present. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Once we signed the paperwork and shook hands with the social service Director, we said our tearful goodbyes to their foster moms. The boys did wonderfully and Mary and the foster moms were the most emotional of anyone! It's tradition in Bulgaria to throw water on the ground to walk or drive through for big occasions. It symbolizes health and blessings on the next adventure. We were so touched when Colin and William's foster mom threw water on the ground in front of our car and prayed blessings over our new lives together. We waved goodbyes and off we went, back to Sofia. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1vlThqI31mEGsrsgVTHwJQJOhL_k8B3EMeBm1pk64O4FkA0LGSusILvJ4CniUNrtwRXTK-qIeHQxr2qdMvb8DyTrJPlO5OVDoi614dErgPwrTgNdNiA_9v4B1Cd5tHeovPioCD2hpoT0/s1600/IMG_0515.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1vlThqI31mEGsrsgVTHwJQJOhL_k8B3EMeBm1pk64O4FkA0LGSusILvJ4CniUNrtwRXTK-qIeHQxr2qdMvb8DyTrJPlO5OVDoi614dErgPwrTgNdNiA_9v4B1Cd5tHeovPioCD2hpoT0/s320/IMG_0515.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
We went directly to the passport office to have their photos taken, then finally back to the apartment. Our first meal as a family was Domino's Pizza... pretty fancy, huh? What a day! The first night went well all together - we moved all of our beds into one room and all slept soundly together. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
We woke up on Friday, wondering if the day before had actually happened! We heard "Hi Mommy! Hi Daddy!" and tears fell for me (Mary), as I made breakfast and watched our sons sit around a table and enjoy breakfast together. Praise God for these gifts and for entrusting them to us. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
We were also kind of at a loss for what to do. The way our trip fell, we picked the boys up on Thursday and had no more appointments until Monday - so we had three full days with no plans. It was also very cold and snowy, so running around at a park wasn't ideal. We filled the day with a couple of meals out and the few activities we did have (most of their toys were in the missing suitcase). Thankfully, the adoption agency kept quite a few toys at the apartment for new families to use, so the boys busied themselves with that. Behavior-wise, quite a bit of testing began on Friday. The boys were clearly wondering what their new boundaries and structure would be and we learned how to manage their behavior and needs while cooped up in a small apartment with little to do. With everyone needing winter gear, us not being able to speak the language, and all still learning each other, going out was quite the trip! But we survived our first full day together and, quite honestly, were all looking forward to Grandma DeArmond's arrival the next day so we would have some man-to-man <strike>defense</strike> bonding time :). </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Scott's Mom arrived on Saturday and we were all so excited for Grandma to be there! The boys had been reviewing their photo books that we gave them over the summer introducing the families, so they knew who Grandma was and couldn't wait to have her there! Once Mom arrived we all went out to dinner and to show Grandma the strip of shops and restaurants that we were close to. Grandma hadn't slept in almost 2 days due to the flight and was fighting a migraine, so we headed back to the apartment fairly early after dinner. Well, we tried to. When we tried to unlock the apartment, we found out the lock was broken and had to call our agency late on Saturday night to come and have it repaired. Unfortunately it took about 3 hours so we got to know the strip really well!! The boys did great, though, and we made the best of a bummer situation (that may or may not have been caused by one of the boys sticking coins into the lock. Oopsies!) </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHcPv-f7vSgiK74AVafUhWoP___Za4Ipb-w1FOFh2GU2qsqCSOjEHzPNJ-7hqLJeX26wyeoeUNkkZRUodgO4Z-ZeKDAuxA-GQjNJpOZ3l7xx9btmccQskDD2yorC5Qy5e5w1_vwk0pdtM/s1600/IMG_0631.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHcPv-f7vSgiK74AVafUhWoP___Za4Ipb-w1FOFh2GU2qsqCSOjEHzPNJ-7hqLJeX26wyeoeUNkkZRUodgO4Z-ZeKDAuxA-GQjNJpOZ3l7xx9btmccQskDD2yorC5Qy5e5w1_vwk0pdtM/s320/IMG_0631.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bored, but at least Grandma's here!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: left;">
The rest of the trip was filled with figuring things out to do and tending to several appointments including the Dr. two times and the US Embassy for VISAs. Great news came when the Dr. said nothing about the chicken pox, meaning our trip home would go on as scheduled! </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Our biggest struggle was keeping the boys occupied and quiet in the apartment (we had people above and below us) and beginning the process of understanding behavior expectations and attachment. There were hard times on this trip, as we all struggled to understand each other, deal with the trauma of leaving the foster moms, and work through the highs and lows of the emotional journey we were all on. All while battling major sleep deprivation and sickness. The trip was wonderful in that we were all together! But we would be lying if we didn't say it was difficult and exhausting, too. It's hard to be in another country, not speak the common language, and be navigating how to parent three little boys all at the same time. There were tearful times both from great joy and great difficulty; all part of this amazing journey. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Here are some pictures of the activities from the rest of the trip!</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxYYVSXeujHO65kXshlza1O5mM9-Kl6ds-4ClQz6fFQfSdENF8c6pViOwQRdJCBnRTuq36TQ-0BvkpZ8g8jOku8DTAL_CgjmQbixM_fEMySj3kZZUuF3vtHJH23CZRoBtCqyFy-5AnYHg/s1600/IMG_4018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxYYVSXeujHO65kXshlza1O5mM9-Kl6ds-4ClQz6fFQfSdENF8c6pViOwQRdJCBnRTuq36TQ-0BvkpZ8g8jOku8DTAL_CgjmQbixM_fEMySj3kZZUuF3vtHJH23CZRoBtCqyFy-5AnYHg/s320/IMG_4018.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coloring and sticker books</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIe41SkmfbNq02a-nPtk5mW0E4sbrc125W-TKUKAK5OGrKwQr-ZwbOJzMU5r5EgZdwrYg1KlYCVGjZV12RLmeC9Ci8n9KwG2gOcjnXWXIqgXJ71fDyk8arzd2mveovkRj04epbWWiACvs/s1600/IMG_4020.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIe41SkmfbNq02a-nPtk5mW0E4sbrc125W-TKUKAK5OGrKwQr-ZwbOJzMU5r5EgZdwrYg1KlYCVGjZV12RLmeC9Ci8n9KwG2gOcjnXWXIqgXJ71fDyk8arzd2mveovkRj04epbWWiACvs/s320/IMG_4020.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So, we intended to save their new tablets for the flight home. I believe this photo was taken on day 2. Don't judge. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitGw423FPVHjpuoQXMC7vMo4LOT6nOsWgtmmKKtYskE70jLG7hod0ZfnLLBrTRx5iDBrptw0YmIj2JgYOgl1Lw8cpwFyp9hgPlZXmakr32FvKtysQHk_iFHkxBQ_RMOiBR8CH8DZO7a50/s1600/IMG_4044.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitGw423FPVHjpuoQXMC7vMo4LOT6nOsWgtmmKKtYskE70jLG7hod0ZfnLLBrTRx5iDBrptw0YmIj2JgYOgl1Lw8cpwFyp9hgPlZXmakr32FvKtysQHk_iFHkxBQ_RMOiBR8CH8DZO7a50/s320/IMG_4044.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We went to the zoo and had the whole place to ourselves! (yes, it was as creepy as you'd imagine)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg53E61bMFvH9CDSvjW_uL77bWjZM3gxboxzce6V2LkmepnWY10p6yHzDJb9Mtg_vXCBIHjZWRi8xM1AOrfXp_CCjdJJ98jn5qpcw1pIgh3pj8w5xon1LJLqPq-8m6b0xUzSDMbKTN-UBQ/s1600/GOPR0205.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg53E61bMFvH9CDSvjW_uL77bWjZM3gxboxzce6V2LkmepnWY10p6yHzDJb9Mtg_vXCBIHjZWRi8xM1AOrfXp_CCjdJJ98jn5qpcw1pIgh3pj8w5xon1LJLqPq-8m6b0xUzSDMbKTN-UBQ/s320/GOPR0205.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Snow piles were more interesting than the zoo</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQt8_06Swna3PYfvR2c5LJ4dfioGikxDruVgzdfjzKAb4oyBkVSnygX5t1Bashuo4PiPrSwMsKWM8nL4H_x3m4FZ8mTglGx5RGadOuPDmM9aS-p89dNrO_ljXhkWmql61oAgFUXpy_76o/s1600/GOPR0238.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQt8_06Swna3PYfvR2c5LJ4dfioGikxDruVgzdfjzKAb4oyBkVSnygX5t1Bashuo4PiPrSwMsKWM8nL4H_x3m4FZ8mTglGx5RGadOuPDmM9aS-p89dNrO_ljXhkWmql61oAgFUXpy_76o/s320/GOPR0238.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The zoo had a playground!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4YkFU5u9CTlwgjtK5kY33pZibByDFniygFcbjVtiJUXD7QvbPsVVnh9idRlDoE7YJBmiR0XAyzSJkMlbJrv0UsJTu2GSxdWUMX4Hts91pa-2-kkoSUZKs9OxOdKgDBaOeyJEE6EPzjSU/s1600/IMG_1334.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4YkFU5u9CTlwgjtK5kY33pZibByDFniygFcbjVtiJUXD7QvbPsVVnh9idRlDoE7YJBmiR0XAyzSJkMlbJrv0UsJTu2GSxdWUMX4Hts91pa-2-kkoSUZKs9OxOdKgDBaOeyJEE6EPzjSU/s640/IMG_1334.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1rykLiGe0fPeVZU6qqb-wEoAIWVKDCEn4D4afuc9cpSCF_iVuEDkJSMBU9KYcO_j53_O1Ti1fJ4hHrsBflDc7G9XFZ7mGKeF8HJThimHXpLwPPPXLv0vxBMfGGQl2kdKKkDm6fiGqz8I/s1600/IMG_0545.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1rykLiGe0fPeVZU6qqb-wEoAIWVKDCEn4D4afuc9cpSCF_iVuEDkJSMBU9KYcO_j53_O1Ti1fJ4hHrsBflDc7G9XFZ7mGKeF8HJThimHXpLwPPPXLv0vxBMfGGQl2kdKKkDm6fiGqz8I/s320/IMG_0545.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Checking out the strip</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRwUBy63eez9f3QQuzwIubO2b-EDU1IE6qEHkQOxCeIg0xR-C3rpLze-zVpUjvH0df4kHZd7y7EVuXwEBgMuy9EykW8_kic34bpvTorE21VhM84BepjhM6SwBf7YKQl906ktZ7I3voxgw/s1600/GOPR0247.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRwUBy63eez9f3QQuzwIubO2b-EDU1IE6qEHkQOxCeIg0xR-C3rpLze-zVpUjvH0df4kHZd7y7EVuXwEBgMuy9EykW8_kic34bpvTorE21VhM84BepjhM6SwBf7YKQl906ktZ7I3voxgw/s400/GOPR0247.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Walking to an indoor playground!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6biSy7K0OALyFuV7MDwJlptmFl4esMyITeMy2cXUlcujnXacxG1Q6fUdxhbA8cC8YQkCkQOzhk3jqKuvpFP0HYgLdYGxvcJbgnLVL-VYtOiPzekgN0etDS8oyHCTExgYXbjKEUfKg_ro/s1600/GOPR0242.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6biSy7K0OALyFuV7MDwJlptmFl4esMyITeMy2cXUlcujnXacxG1Q6fUdxhbA8cC8YQkCkQOzhk3jqKuvpFP0HYgLdYGxvcJbgnLVL-VYtOiPzekgN0etDS8oyHCTExgYXbjKEUfKg_ro/s320/GOPR0242.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWPaIncHlSrqpiL3T5Nal9M500NQ4h9bzuUhvGJkzlBAEVyyKbtoZKSv7bXizXNcbQkKvRwQaiOZYPQqrBqWLXq3T1VwDcNhMJBunbO15_XIC70VyRn-_AVHFPnSMOPCiq4pJAMU2qHhA/s1600/IMG_0567.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWPaIncHlSrqpiL3T5Nal9M500NQ4h9bzuUhvGJkzlBAEVyyKbtoZKSv7bXizXNcbQkKvRwQaiOZYPQqrBqWLXq3T1VwDcNhMJBunbO15_XIC70VyRn-_AVHFPnSMOPCiq4pJAMU2qHhA/s320/IMG_0567.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Batman!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Th2KdgalsyO35AGHgcVWOM8bCVERojcEPsFIpd2PtLyEdk2069xVPFoKo5Q_oNAPcKxqSDifYYMzgAk62yBk7cL28Zt07lbUGHd8vwXW4P9y6jHBOZT1aLBpJkEDX5EvXevKk920oog/s1600/IMG_0577.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Th2KdgalsyO35AGHgcVWOM8bCVERojcEPsFIpd2PtLyEdk2069xVPFoKo5Q_oNAPcKxqSDifYYMzgAk62yBk7cL28Zt07lbUGHd8vwXW4P9y6jHBOZT1aLBpJkEDX5EvXevKk920oog/s320/IMG_0577.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daddy/William bonding</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIT_tRJ5vTyyrUXjzj6nMphMCJVT0LF7_8yqX7oLEmaVIE4xuNbsXQ_ljuDMazhyphenhyphen6YI958ACXwTRCKrYIl0-VY-Oxb0F5q2ZUhCY5BrCqjuEaesCx4nkvhNl2BN1Aks99GxYOAuMPPfvg/s1600/IMG_0591.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIT_tRJ5vTyyrUXjzj6nMphMCJVT0LF7_8yqX7oLEmaVIE4xuNbsXQ_ljuDMazhyphenhyphen6YI958ACXwTRCKrYIl0-VY-Oxb0F5q2ZUhCY5BrCqjuEaesCx4nkvhNl2BN1Aks99GxYOAuMPPfvg/s320/IMG_0591.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdbxajVHSmSoiwge_OJXdsnbY6gYLSptdWvK4tKa3D_JNFU_bjKrvFtlRPpj8MOxizKyLd4hbg-ErL302GrRnifQP-Np5kQIvEpYvH5HmQq_7Q8yB9fFmFazljYu-5wrveKscCxIglPSc/s1600/IMG_0704.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdbxajVHSmSoiwge_OJXdsnbY6gYLSptdWvK4tKa3D_JNFU_bjKrvFtlRPpj8MOxizKyLd4hbg-ErL302GrRnifQP-Np5kQIvEpYvH5HmQq_7Q8yB9fFmFazljYu-5wrveKscCxIglPSc/s320/IMG_0704.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Playing a game Great Aunt Diane sent!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsaa8gvjFU-h4uIWTvMYv8eJ6CmcTJr3CMB7c0KRu_pd2yXHQWTuOzhBIQEbJm2gh7nAS0AKm89vm-xhXzxsrA331TcEm05ev2jWinSabWCRXPt7KPD6HVWIOwoJW2OwfnTy6TxQJ-BrE/s1600/IMG_0687.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsaa8gvjFU-h4uIWTvMYv8eJ6CmcTJr3CMB7c0KRu_pd2yXHQWTuOzhBIQEbJm2gh7nAS0AKm89vm-xhXzxsrA331TcEm05ev2jWinSabWCRXPt7KPD6HVWIOwoJW2OwfnTy6TxQJ-BrE/s320/IMG_0687.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Found a creepy mechanical Santa</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPKLICu7EKWqrqUIa89uFmlFzfGW3YyMpCKsuQf7XBAkDq8nLaOBJFP2ZvPHdAlgfKldVnRq8w2gljRCN2x7z9Ap9ZoyBGkp5F5ukIWyLrQJLRzkV4-cjNR6sorNA5_jQq9IeEF7eqjgo/s1600/IMG_0609.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPKLICu7EKWqrqUIa89uFmlFzfGW3YyMpCKsuQf7XBAkDq8nLaOBJFP2ZvPHdAlgfKldVnRq8w2gljRCN2x7z9Ap9ZoyBGkp5F5ukIWyLrQJLRzkV4-cjNR6sorNA5_jQq9IeEF7eqjgo/s320/IMG_0609.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Snuggled with Grandma!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0yUL_SUHkwFjCGDTP-2EiLidK15YkbEgaU4LKJR9DXKy4C0TASJbEsiN_E9VYfbVjt6_-J-v0BtWzwS9OFass0kLueGaQGLPASox-FJ_xzSJHr4fxPvZYwvdiP7a0JEPaUK9kn9uCAM0/s1600/IMG_0744.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0yUL_SUHkwFjCGDTP-2EiLidK15YkbEgaU4LKJR9DXKy4C0TASJbEsiN_E9VYfbVjt6_-J-v0BtWzwS9OFass0kLueGaQGLPASox-FJ_xzSJHr4fxPvZYwvdiP7a0JEPaUK9kn9uCAM0/s320/IMG_0744.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Doctor! (one of my favorite things is watching the older two help Ben)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV1U9fWVRm_V3jgUNpntyPVFVRNf-0EsTb2ic63hODeJGxfuu59O00pGJRvqw2R0o7bk0gnxfhEUYqQCBV2KMF9_Zg4k6_xev-75aXWIW5qStadecS0V6cYjwOMZax-2JQPFuLDZwEhnU/s1600/IMG_0771.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV1U9fWVRm_V3jgUNpntyPVFVRNf-0EsTb2ic63hODeJGxfuu59O00pGJRvqw2R0o7bk0gnxfhEUYqQCBV2KMF9_Zg4k6_xev-75aXWIW5qStadecS0V6cYjwOMZax-2JQPFuLDZwEhnU/s320/IMG_0771.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Made mean mug faces when our kid demanded we rub his feet and take about 3 hours to fall asleep :)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMaiPqPZ3Aw8b6Z3ZviW24SO8Lmem71jgqjEwyXgqkCSX1vKyKrWwLht55quWBF6vB5WfK4vveYo8SnpWw8nxO2tQvO0_PwnvGpufVv1bJ3O2Le0T2yS6qskpRCmtC0HVvfidhKQgHdps/s1600/IMG_0783.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMaiPqPZ3Aw8b6Z3ZviW24SO8Lmem71jgqjEwyXgqkCSX1vKyKrWwLht55quWBF6vB5WfK4vveYo8SnpWw8nxO2tQvO0_PwnvGpufVv1bJ3O2Le0T2yS6qskpRCmtC0HVvfidhKQgHdps/s320/IMG_0783.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another playground!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
On our last night there, we met with our agency for a final time to go over all of our official paperwork and discuss the boys' entrance into the United States. Once that was all squared away, we put the boys to bed and spent the evening packing up 6 people from a 10 day trip. We were set to be picked up at 4:30 am, so none of the adults slept much at all - partly due to being up packing and partly because of the anticipation of travelling with the boys and finally being home.<br />
<br />
We left on December 23rd! The day started very early - the boys got up around 3 am and just watched as we got everything ready. We made it to the airport and check in went well. We boarded the first flight from Bulgaria to Amsterdam and the boys did great. This was about a 3 hour flight and they enjoyed it. We, thankfully, didn't have a long layover in Amsterdam so we hustled through that airport and boarded the long flight from Amsterdam to Detroit. This was about a 9 hour flight. We were split into three separate rows, so each adult sat with one kid and kept them occupied for the long trip. The flight went well! Ben slept for about an hour total, but the other two rallied on with no sleep. We certainly had antsy moments but overall the trip was better than we could have even hoped for. When we landed in Detroit, we breathed a HUGE sigh of relief. Being on US soil meant the boys were officially US citizens and we didn't have to worry as much about something happening during travel. We made it through customs and immigration without any issues and anxiously awaited the quick flight home to Indianapolis.<br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrBGN_JZp0HshtiXJ0z3jPae5cnN7p27ZFvSmNbfKxOhw8yk7ONYymhKgYM6VCyahjla_DyUTZxk0BldQNHBNj5ca0XT6XYrXM5XaSV2qqcbjJRJcHZeSB_8ERkXx2FVcAy98rij3if5c/s1600/Mary+trip+two+%2528163%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrBGN_JZp0HshtiXJ0z3jPae5cnN7p27ZFvSmNbfKxOhw8yk7ONYymhKgYM6VCyahjla_DyUTZxk0BldQNHBNj5ca0XT6XYrXM5XaSV2qqcbjJRJcHZeSB_8ERkXx2FVcAy98rij3if5c/s400/Mary+trip+two+%2528163%2529.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getting ready to head home to America!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbUHf88mPHXTvllg5-G7Dl8B3pFrGw3drp4Eo1rMN8TW_V6f2ritg3VgWmQXGNCnsAo9wFZSDFhMWUfnyMJuWhFl_1bdJpQFQSfVoPvDalq9pm4ASwc3g6U39qqbEHzzrSdrqE4N8l84o/s1600/Mary+trip+two+%2528167%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbUHf88mPHXTvllg5-G7Dl8B3pFrGw3drp4Eo1rMN8TW_V6f2ritg3VgWmQXGNCnsAo9wFZSDFhMWUfnyMJuWhFl_1bdJpQFQSfVoPvDalq9pm4ASwc3g6U39qqbEHzzrSdrqE4N8l84o/s320/Mary+trip+two+%2528167%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Checking in at the Sofia airport</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtEP91HkDpEwenbfSp1Z8qmmfL4nK_B-UlHRddfZgzDk8WbINd9YyNckg7biHPW8L6vgwRcuXuNPkaFt1FRaP8Hb1qSHNOdLIkS27r2KsdOWIsWnZX2vvR_ddCfuGRvizCTkFNBsqMb94/s1600/IMG_0844.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtEP91HkDpEwenbfSp1Z8qmmfL4nK_B-UlHRddfZgzDk8WbINd9YyNckg7biHPW8L6vgwRcuXuNPkaFt1FRaP8Hb1qSHNOdLIkS27r2KsdOWIsWnZX2vvR_ddCfuGRvizCTkFNBsqMb94/s400/IMG_0844.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Life is tough when you're Benjamin DeArmond. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuKc8rOwt_Qmr5GisOz_6sxdYRbgJnyt9wrDhAgYDc8mApwYtlutTWz2oAZF5WEsLhzIB6rzIbIFNcXSYD8CkB1cBleJHIe4x4g-bNCXNHXlkBy6E6ioZDovwT-76P5ede2Fa6LV2hFVY/s1600/IMG_0807.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuKc8rOwt_Qmr5GisOz_6sxdYRbgJnyt9wrDhAgYDc8mApwYtlutTWz2oAZF5WEsLhzIB6rzIbIFNcXSYD8CkB1cBleJHIe4x4g-bNCXNHXlkBy6E6ioZDovwT-76P5ede2Fa6LV2hFVY/s400/IMG_0807.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq6YnOfMWqfEgNs52WTu9hYTfFwTH4Mk5RhU3G-kOVayz3FQnXfLq7CeiPkwqPGpj0RAoopOievCD84bPYYR4GGfvkL_tglwbmJm8KhAOf8U_19bn0G0dFRQTh4vsoImMw98LhHoGC-PU/s1600/Mary+trip+two+%2528170%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq6YnOfMWqfEgNs52WTu9hYTfFwTH4Mk5RhU3G-kOVayz3FQnXfLq7CeiPkwqPGpj0RAoopOievCD84bPYYR4GGfvkL_tglwbmJm8KhAOf8U_19bn0G0dFRQTh4vsoImMw98LhHoGC-PU/s400/Mary+trip+two+%2528170%2529.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Delta airlines gained a few Hot Wheels that day as they rolled down the aisle</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
It was a quick 30 minute flight from Detroit to Indianapolis. We can't quite explain the feeling we had when landing in Indianapolis. Finally home. What a journey. The years of fertility heartbreak, the years of longing, the ups and downs of the adoption process... we were finally home. We had a homecoming at the airport that we will never forget! Our family and friends were there with signs and open arms to welcome all of us home. It was such an awesome feeling to round that corner off the plane and see so many members of our "village" there... ready and waiting. We've had such an incredible amount of support through this entire journey and the boys' first moments in the United States were no exception. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim5gbkYIuir_tedkjfsn3MDVbXYtkVBpEt4aoELZ_7CpHXrC-TLmKO_DJJtJF0i9KbRqyoLMuck2k2rt2hnySK6bTpOjMyuQ_Kkfho4eJJAxazEclf2-gnvtCc3u4Op3IdkZ1hKdUkS80/s1600/IMG_4078.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim5gbkYIuir_tedkjfsn3MDVbXYtkVBpEt4aoELZ_7CpHXrC-TLmKO_DJJtJF0i9KbRqyoLMuck2k2rt2hnySK6bTpOjMyuQ_Kkfho4eJJAxazEclf2-gnvtCc3u4Op3IdkZ1hKdUkS80/s640/IMG_4078.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ready as we rounded the corner!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN6qwQFIsBoNP3kkXH6lo42xafSpcR3Upgz1jhEhSFxK3sqv6IU1LIOsu-yzVk0TFiquaafreL1WODYd2wjo_X_WWuxTvX7Og7_DZpIZcwTCjP-laqe_To897deEMd2abI4V3KpnB-ecI/s1600/IMG_4077.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN6qwQFIsBoNP3kkXH6lo42xafSpcR3Upgz1jhEhSFxK3sqv6IU1LIOsu-yzVk0TFiquaafreL1WODYd2wjo_X_WWuxTvX7Og7_DZpIZcwTCjP-laqe_To897deEMd2abI4V3KpnB-ecI/s640/IMG_4077.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">12.23.16 - Home. Together forever!<br />
<br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="https://youtu.be/xuQrgesooJI"><b style="background-color: yellow;">Here</b></a> is a link to a video of our homecoming, if interested!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
This is already a long post, so we will wrap it up. But in the 6.5 weeks since we've been home, we've had a lot of fun and hit many major milestones! Colin and Benjamin did end up getting the chicken pox as well, so that altered our holiday plans a bit, but definitely gave us a little more time to combat jet lag! We had Christmas as family, celebrated with the Eckerts and the DeArmonds, hit the Children's Museum, Indy Zoo, had our first days of school, everyone has had at least one round of respiratory "stuff," had two ear infections, a black eye, several trips to multiple doctors for baselines, celebrated Grandpa Eckert's birthday, celebrated cousin Henry's birthday, went to another friend's birthday party, had visits with our aunts/uncles and cousins, went to Church, etc. It's been busy, to say the least! The first couple of weeks home were really hard as the boys weren't combating just a little bit of jet lag, they were permanently changing their internal clocks back by 7 hours! It didn't take long, though, and most of us were sleeping normal hours. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
The boys have done wonderfully with the transition to school and all look forward to it every day. We are making strides day by day with language development, attachment, behavior, and finding a new normal. We cannot begin to understand everything the boys are experiencing - the feelings of loss and grief, the new tastes, sounds, smells of home, learning how to be a forever family, learning what a Mommy and Daddy are, etc. We are continually amazed at how brave they are, how resilient they are, and how well they're transitioning. When the moments are tough, we are reminded of the journey they've had and thankful for grace. Grace for ourselves as we learn to be a Mom and Dad. Grace for the boys as they learn to be sons. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
If you read nothing else in this blog, please read this: Thank you. We cannot begin to tell you all what your support has meant to us over the past 2 years as we've been on this journey of adoption. The prayers, notes, messages, financial contributions, bracelet sales, t-shirt sales, trivia night donations, garage sale donations, clothing/toy donations, showers, and love have meant more to us and our family than we could ever tell you. We have been humbled over and over again by your support, encouragement, and love and we are so grateful. We'll never be able to adequately describe how much it has meant to us. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
And we'd also like to say thank you to our families, who have not only walked this entire journey with us, but have been there to encourage us through these first weeks as parents. They've known just when to call, pop over, send a note of encouragement, etc. as we've been working to settle in. We couldn't have gotten through it without you. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
We're going to keep this blog going as the boys continue to transition, so feel free to pop back in periodically! </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Lots of love, </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
The DeArmond 5</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
Mary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5928979451947299351.post-61435297032715945562016-11-02T16:22:00.000-07:002016-11-03T04:21:06.945-07:00We Have A Court Date!!<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hello!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Thanks for checking back in, everyone - it’s update time!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">WE HAVE A COURT DATE! </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is exciting, people. Very
exciting. As we discussed in our last post, we had a major delay that caused
the time between trips to be a little longer than anticipated. But now we are
moving right along again and getting the court date signals the beginning of
the end; that is the last big piece standing between us and our return trip! Getting that date was a big day! We are
one step closer to having the boys home forever. With the excitement of getting
the date (which is late November, by the way), came the mixed emotion of
hearing that the boys may not be home for Christmas. Due to the timing of our
court date and the holidays, we were originally told to anticipate returning
mid-January. </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the last couple of days, though, we were told</span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> that we should be prepared to </span><i style="font-family: "helvetica neue", arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">potentially</i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> go and pick them up in December. As you can imagine, this has been a </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">flurry of high and low emotions as we were thrilled
to have a date but devastated to know they wouldn’t be home for the holidays, but then became hopeful that there is still a possibility that they will be. </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So, who knows! We will be prepared for December, and we
will be prepared for January – we’re ready to go and get them as soon as they
say “GO!” so, we will see when that is! We will be honest – the hope of having them home for Christmas is SO exciting. But we
are cautious in this emotion as it’s a very real possibility that it’ll be January. Either way, it is exciting to know that people are trying to get them home as soon as they can.
If it doesn’t happen before Christmas, it doesn’t happen, but we are so thankful to have the
best of the best working on our case both here and overseas. We are confident that they'll be home sometime between mid-December and late January. Having a court date scheduled and a relatively small window of time for their homecoming is a wonderful feeling. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />
Process between now and then: </span></div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Our file is prepared for court</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Court happens overseas (we will not be there, we have an agency representing
us) – we become the DeArmond Party of Five this day! WAHOO!!</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Decree is signed making it all official</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">They schedule travel dates for us</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">WE GO AND BRING OUR SONS HOME!</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Let the countdown BEGIN! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As we have been waiting to receive our court date, we’ve
been having a GREAT time celebrating our boys. We’ve been blessed beyond
measure by our family and friends. We had a shower in St. Louis with Mary’s
family thrown by Mary’s Aunts, a shower here in Indy with our friends thrown by
Mary’s sisters and Mom, a shower at BOTH of our employers thrown by our
colleagues/friends, and a shower in Berne with Scott’s family thrown by Scott’s
sisters and Mom. Add to that Mary's friends making our annual Christmas get-together a shower celebration and still to come: the ladies in Mom and Dad E’s neighborhood
are throwing a shower in a couple of weeks. HOW FUN! We are SO grateful for the
incredible love and support everyone has shown. From step 1, we’ve had a
village walking along with us and we are so grateful! The boys’ rooms and toy
boxes and closets are all stocked thanks to all of you! Here are some pictures
of all the celebrations for our three superheroes. We’ve had such a GREAT time
celebrating!<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPLn1Tdwr1gzvYSEZxrg25BotOMKLvP4e5dDm4-_bg41VIN-m70Zj83wcwOl4vuznJwTS0YuODRuVpee-0fm7BNeTO_c4W0rNSxxGzrHZtehSNPqQd0AJ_UY2gLi1h_FV3Jclskvbu-78/s1600/unnamed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPLn1Tdwr1gzvYSEZxrg25BotOMKLvP4e5dDm4-_bg41VIN-m70Zj83wcwOl4vuznJwTS0YuODRuVpee-0fm7BNeTO_c4W0rNSxxGzrHZtehSNPqQd0AJ_UY2gLi1h_FV3Jclskvbu-78/s320/unnamed.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLN0EGE07J3U40zbq9kN30lUiPF7-XMC-kcr0n-RGHMcbv_n8nn9joikVeegJuXu21-ITyuFjHBXNzrywhngO8nmNr9FzEaVxDV7Sa5Go2fWejk-5Cw8xfX0r9pxwK-uuhDrhUKPmX0Bw/s1600/Copy+of+IMG_3027.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLN0EGE07J3U40zbq9kN30lUiPF7-XMC-kcr0n-RGHMcbv_n8nn9joikVeegJuXu21-ITyuFjHBXNzrywhngO8nmNr9FzEaVxDV7Sa5Go2fWejk-5Cw8xfX0r9pxwK-uuhDrhUKPmX0Bw/s320/Copy+of+IMG_3027.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxQ07rCQD-QywC7DT_GTln5yAaH-jEqMMFb-NCtyxg8wPwB1lvQBVXyva_3FtlQYGt6RtvOa8ogF9zrQuCF2TCYEvSMdJXAzPeA-Gllt9oiME-Q-VARuGzwA5jKtDAnuvTK0m0xZ0wRmE/s1600/IMG_3537.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxQ07rCQD-QywC7DT_GTln5yAaH-jEqMMFb-NCtyxg8wPwB1lvQBVXyva_3FtlQYGt6RtvOa8ogF9zrQuCF2TCYEvSMdJXAzPeA-Gllt9oiME-Q-VARuGzwA5jKtDAnuvTK0m0xZ0wRmE/s320/IMG_3537.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDEv_1_gy7pCRc_JPaAERErfH21uW0OLoBeH2GqC8oHqPnkMpXy4MoTjQjmYOXBAizvt_NAHNfvTZf49a6u_DuVyK1ywR2FyL62elNEl6YL-UACe_qgUrAVZ74DO_smLdoUF5jWD6y7lk/s1600/IMG_3073+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDEv_1_gy7pCRc_JPaAERErfH21uW0OLoBeH2GqC8oHqPnkMpXy4MoTjQjmYOXBAizvt_NAHNfvTZf49a6u_DuVyK1ywR2FyL62elNEl6YL-UACe_qgUrAVZ74DO_smLdoUF5jWD6y7lk/s320/IMG_3073+%25281%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGp4XkCDfaiyPJ2uEClZYs4_ad5vP8ul31GmF0VntOKafQDkPRuxZTX9I8X0ofCH1dLpLaZKezKQVr_p7vO-dJDJhMfG1tyK43Jdj4YmH7boLGWAC1moTkqA2JimTLIpOJT4T7ANCvtOQ/s1600/IMG_3094.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGp4XkCDfaiyPJ2uEClZYs4_ad5vP8ul31GmF0VntOKafQDkPRuxZTX9I8X0ofCH1dLpLaZKezKQVr_p7vO-dJDJhMfG1tyK43Jdj4YmH7boLGWAC1moTkqA2JimTLIpOJT4T7ANCvtOQ/s320/IMG_3094.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkrzhkM1yTLZED1IDjj1mE8xWtfYKxmY6jdDG_mJoT00j1olYXhEK11CM4OTvBAWQn8GmA9101p1FjY5UWmbPaAX6LdfdcFyDDEIhcgKYQBv3-aMHVY1E297xLt6X6qTZBZMqWg73fgcw/s1600/IMG_3146.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkrzhkM1yTLZED1IDjj1mE8xWtfYKxmY6jdDG_mJoT00j1olYXhEK11CM4OTvBAWQn8GmA9101p1FjY5UWmbPaAX6LdfdcFyDDEIhcgKYQBv3-aMHVY1E297xLt6X6qTZBZMqWg73fgcw/s320/IMG_3146.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE-LxIOGWEEpqCBmFQWqcKWGDxGBeHUZ_XI9MrFdv38-zZvWxt4w95HOsVdWEOTw64hyphenhyphenTdIQdr00FBXBcr3j_2fcL0cZCGLTVcGhyphenhyphen5RxFLdCez0GOdirH2lDjgcvovawI51iG1Ng39K84/s1600/IMG_3220.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE-LxIOGWEEpqCBmFQWqcKWGDxGBeHUZ_XI9MrFdv38-zZvWxt4w95HOsVdWEOTw64hyphenhyphenTdIQdr00FBXBcr3j_2fcL0cZCGLTVcGhyphenhyphen5RxFLdCez0GOdirH2lDjgcvovawI51iG1Ng39K84/s320/IMG_3220.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We have been talking with the boys on Skype every weekend.
It’s incredible the progress they’re making in learning English and the
excitement they have as we show them pictures of their rooms coming together
and toys they’ve received.
We continue to be SO grateful for their caregivers, who are preparing them so
well for the transition to come. And we are so grateful for technology that
allows us to give virtual hugs, kisses, and high fives! Mary even got the most
precious “Happy Birthday” videos a couple of weeks ago. Skype has allowed us to
continue bonding through this wait and help prepare them for the new beginnings
to come. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Thank you for continuing to walk this journey with us! Next
post should be the biggie – our “they’re coming home!” post!!!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Love, <br />
Mary and Scott</span><o:p></o:p></div>
Mary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5928979451947299351.post-79461137775875630232016-08-25T15:49:00.000-07:002016-08-25T15:51:21.649-07:00Frustrating Delays<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hi All!</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We’ve been home from our trip to meet the boys for nearly 9
weeks. We said “see you later” to them 9 weeks ago today, to be exact. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This part of the adoption is hard. No, it’s not hard, it’s excruciating.
Our hearts are halfway across the globe and while Skype is a beautiful
BEAUTIFUL thing, it hurts to be away from them. We say our prayers of thanks
every day that they’re in a healthy, nurturing environment. We really do not
know what we’d do if that weren’t the case. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Around 7 of the 9 weeks have also been incredibly
frustrating. We are experiencing a delay in paperwork that is beyond anything
we could have imagined. We’ll try and make this as short of a long story as
possible. The rundown: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
</div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">We need an approval from the U.S. to adopt the
boys (it’s like an “update” to our approval to adopt in general…we have to be
approved to adopt them specifically</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue", arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">We applied for that approval before we left on
the first trip</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">We found out about a week after we returned that
there was a slight issue with some of our paperwork – pretty quick fix overall
– we obtained the updated documentation from our agency and over-nighted the
paperwork there. We expected a 1-2 week delay to process the updated paperwork.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Meanwhile, our fingerprints with the U.S. agency
expired. <b>This was the point where things took a turn.</b></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">After days upon days of trying to get a hold of
someone, we found out that it takes 2-4 weeks to have our fingerprints
refreshed. We finally had an answer and a time frame… difficult, but at least
we knew what was happening with our case at that point.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Well, the 4 week mark came and went and again,
we called and emailed until we were blue in the face waiting for a response. We
finally got a hold of someone, only to be told “we should have it in the next
24 hours.”</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Well, as you might expect, 24 hours came and
went and when we finally got a hold of someone for an update, they shared that
they submitted our fingerprint refresh incorrectly (clerical error) and now
we’ve been told we need to wait an additional 2-4 weeks for the correct
fingerprint refresh to happen.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">And now we wait. <i>Again</i>.</span></li>
</ul>
<!--[if !supportLists]--><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It’s frustrating because it feels like it was a 5 week delay that could
have 100% been avoided had the representative submitted the paperwork
correctly. While we certainly understand that mistakes happen – we are human
and we all make them every day – when considering 5 “extra” weeks away from our
kids… it’s heartbreaking. And now it’ll be an additional 2-4 weeks to tack on
while we wait for the approval for a 2<sup>nd</sup> time. And the infuriating
thing is that this delay is halting any progress being made on the adoption.
This approval is needed for the next step and nothing can happen until it is
obtained.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We do not want to be negative, as we try and stay very
upbeat and level headed. We knew there would be a time frame between trips and
we were prepared for that to be a difficult time. But making the wait longer
than it needs to be is hard to swallow. All we can do is keep moving
forward and keep reassuring our precious sons that we will be back as soon as
we possibly can. They ask their caregivers daily if we’re on the airplanes that
they see in the sky… <i>we cannot wait until we can say yes. </i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Things to be thankful for in the midst of the frustration: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
</div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">We are able to Skype with the boys </span><i style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">at least</i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"> once a week! These sweet calls
are what we live for. We see their smiles, hear their voices, and get to tell
them we love them. This is such a BLESSING! </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">The boys have gotten to meet both sets of
grandparents, along with several aunts, uncles, and cousins the last few weeks
via Skype.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">The boys have a family friend who is teaching
them some basic English!</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">The boys received a package we mailed and were
excited to get treats from Mom and Dad (Seeing the video of them opening this
made us extra excited for Christmas! We sure hope they’re home by then!)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">The boys are in excellent care and we are so
grateful for their incredible caregivers.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">We have a village of support to hold us up as
we’re feeling very down about this delay.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">We got the boys’ rooms and the main living area
of our house painted (thanks to our families)!</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">We have been blessed to have several showers
planned for us that we have to look forward to in September!</span></li>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is a hard post for us to write. Mainly because the
delay just flat out stinks. But also because we are very positive people and
it’s important to us to stay up beat. This is a reality of our journey
right now and we want to remain approachable to people who have hiccups along
the way in their fertility or adoption journeys. Now we can say “we’ve been
there” for this kind of thing. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Say a prayer for an expedited fingerprint refresh (round 2!) and that
the steps move quickly afterward to make up as much time as possible. Pray for
the precious hearts across the ocean to know Mom and Dad are doing all they can
to bring them home. And pray for us to find peace in the wait. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Love, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Scott and Mary</span><o:p></o:p></div>
Mary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5928979451947299351.post-23096814777895990992016-07-03T12:21:00.002-07:002016-07-03T12:21:53.820-07:00Trip One<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's official: three little boys across the ocean have our hearts. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On June 18th we left from Chicago to make the trip overseas to meet our precious sons. Total travel time from Chicago to the capital city in their country was about 12-13 hours. The flights were smooth and uneventful - exactly the way they should be. We were relieved to have our own little personal televisions on the long flights, which helped pass the time as we watched movies and dozed off on the long leg of the flight (about 9 hours). This was a blessing as it was a major source of anxiety for me (Mary), but the time we boarded the flights my mind was at ease. Praise God for that!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOizQhHNjNjLNGhyphenhyphenNRrlqS2IEm_kvgh8FIMHvja3dwkPwE8_ZszWWFq_rmtbf5FnZYsX8nKfjWfSe8f_PM2WEgkDyEy5ZFHdgbtpd5kzIJim_3XWiossMIDvE-QxYs0DVm_aMKyEIwgF4/s1600/IMG_2041.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOizQhHNjNjLNGhyphenhyphenNRrlqS2IEm_kvgh8FIMHvja3dwkPwE8_ZszWWFq_rmtbf5FnZYsX8nKfjWfSe8f_PM2WEgkDyEy5ZFHdgbtpd5kzIJim_3XWiossMIDvE-QxYs0DVm_aMKyEIwgF4/s320/IMG_2041.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here we go!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We arrived on June 19th in country and were picked up at the airport by our agency representative and translator. He took us to our apartment, then helped us exchange money and showed us around the pedestrian district so we knew where we could find the grocery store and a restaurant to eat dinner. He left us then, confirming plans to pick us up the following morning. After being up for over 24 hours and eating only airplane food, we were tired and hungry so enjoyed an early dinner and went to bed around 6:30 pm local time. While we were so excited and anxious in anticipation of meeting our sons the next day, the travel had left us so exhausted that we had no trouble falling asleep. We ended up waking up at about 2:30 in the morning and laid there chatting about the reality that we would be meeting our kids that day! Good news is that the only real "jet lag" issue we had was the early bed time/wake time our first day; we adjusted quickly overall and didn't have any problems with the 7 hour time difference. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On June 20th, our guide picked us up around 7:30 am and off we went to the boys' home town. It was about 3 hours from the capital and we chatted with our translator the whole time - talking about the process, the country, the traditions, etc. We arrived to the social services office just before 11:00 am and met the social worker, who told us the boys were on their way! We anxiously waited and soon saw them through the doors. It happened very fast - Scott said, "oh, there they are!" and next thing we knew we were looking our kids in the eyes. The first meeting was sweet. The two older boys shyly gave us hugs, while the youngest clung to his caregiver and checked us out from afar. It was a moment we will certainly never forget as we were finally able to hold them in our arms. Our hearts melted as we left the office and began walking to the park - the boys immediately took our hands and were looking up at us, anxious to check out their Mom and Dad. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">From there, we went to a park and played with them for an hour or two, then had lunch together. The boys were excited to interact with us and we loved watching them play. It was so fun to witness their relationship as brothers. The love they have for each other is very apparent and we are so thankful for the bond they share. Their caregivers have done an incredible job of keeping them close. After lunch, they went home and we headed to the hotel to check in; we spent the afternoon getting settled, then had dinner with our guide. We were thankful to have such a comfortable and nice hotel, with a restaurant right on the property that we could enjoy. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The next two days, we met the boys in the morning, took them to a park and to lunch, then got to play some more before they returned home and us to our hotel. We got to spent 5 hours with them each day and loved playing with them (despite the 90+ degree weather!). On the way back to the meeting place every day, we would stop and get ice cream or slushies for the kids and it was fun to take our time exploring the city, parks, and the pedestrian district in their home town. As the week went on, the boys continued to get more and more comfortable with us and we loved learning their personalities. It is amazing how much you can learn about people, even when you do not speak the same language. Our translator/guide was wonderful and truly helped us to foster those bonds and break through the language barrier to do so. It was also fun to share photo books with them that we had made - photos of us, their grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins, along with photos of the house, church, school, nearby pool and playground, etc. As the translator read the books to them, the boys were intently listening and excited to see their new home (especially their dog and the nearby playground). We spent the evenings having dinner with our guide - we talked a lot about the country and their history/traditions, had him outline some key phrases for us in the boys' language, and were introduced to some of the foods their country is known for. We loved this time with our guide and the information he shared with us was invaluable. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The final day with the boys (Thursday) was heartbreaking, as we expected. We got to spend three hours with them that day and followed a similar routine - took them to the park and to get slushies after playing. We were able to give them their quilts that day that Grandma Eckert had made with lots of love. The quilts were beautiful and Grandma had even personalized them with their names before we left. They were excited to receive those and it was such a special gift to be able to give them to keep during the wait between trips. We hugged them extra tight and told them how much we love them and would miss them the next few months. We said tearful goodbyes to the social worker and their caregivers as we felt immediately attached to them as well; it is undeniably apparent how well they care for our children. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We left their city and headed back to the capital. The ride home was somber and quiet as we were slowly processing the events of the past 4 days. We got back to the capital city and enjoyed dinner just the two of us, including some ice cream to drown our sorrows :). On Friday, we had one appointment to sign some legal paperwork, then spent the rest of the day touring the capital city and packing everything up to head home. A two hour free walking tour of the city was very interesting and we loved learning more about the history of the country. We walked up and down their pedestrian district several times and soaked up the time talking about our sons and the plans we have to prepare for their homecoming. Despite the heartbreak of leaving our boys, we enjoyed Friday to regroup and reconnect after such an emotional and life-changing week. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibYElMOGnr321tOzLmkQCVKB83eiw-jFjWqqhVMgII8MrbpuT4VtDW2NoxuXLbj-lylSSXAeuBbfSgo8Fip8Tf38awQsym-plrNLbzQWWR9v3djN67mHBIBL4TiLox0LaIOwk-5HsaH60/s1600/IMG_0786.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibYElMOGnr321tOzLmkQCVKB83eiw-jFjWqqhVMgII8MrbpuT4VtDW2NoxuXLbj-lylSSXAeuBbfSgo8Fip8Tf38awQsym-plrNLbzQWWR9v3djN67mHBIBL4TiLox0LaIOwk-5HsaH60/s320/IMG_0786.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yum!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On Saturday, our guide picked us up and took us to the airport. We said another tearful goodbye to him as we got very attached to him throughout the week - it isn't every day someone assists you with meeting your children and walks with you through such an eventful time! We had about 12-13 hours travel time on the way home and again had uneventful flights. A very tired drive home from Chicago included multiple driver changes and some intense singing to Beyonce' to stay awake, haha! We arrived safely home around 2 am on Sunday morning. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We've spent the last week watching and re-watching the videos we took, looking at the photos over and over, and sharing the events of the week with family and friends. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEDj_zrLbPxdESUUh9tIAN942i8JROe8F0xe3CF4ZkDJoVGOs5oxjp92IZ3xfSIxonG4HmDzZgBi3xaNHJjPDO0nddsIaBfZXhIXzf4EaJWyTZFl6ikMvUYorr2fVuBHy79nTUVkFtU2k/s1600/IMG_2435.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEDj_zrLbPxdESUUh9tIAN942i8JROe8F0xe3CF4ZkDJoVGOs5oxjp92IZ3xfSIxonG4HmDzZgBi3xaNHJjPDO0nddsIaBfZXhIXzf4EaJWyTZFl6ikMvUYorr2fVuBHy79nTUVkFtU2k/s320/IMG_2435.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We cannot praise God enough for the incredible blessings of the week. Our children are safe and healthy. The boys were open to meeting us and began to attach to us as the week progressed. Their caregivers are absolutely amazing and have prepared/will continue to prepare our sons for adoption and the transition. Their caregivers happily answered our countless questions about the boys and their personalities/health/etc. Our travel was unbelievably smooth. Accommodations were nice and safe. Our guide was helpful, kind, and very easy to talk to. The financing came together for the trip. We could go on and on about the ways we have been blessed and as we have leaned on faith through our entire adoption journey (and fertility journey that preceded it), there is no question about God's hand in this adventure. We met our boys and in that instant, the ups and downs of the last 4+ years immediately came into focus. We knew that it had all led up to these three precious boys and we feel that our greatest blessing is that He has chosen us to be their parents. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The next few months will be full of preparation for them to come home as the legal process takes its course. We are completing the additional paperwork on our end as our agency represents us in country to complete the adoption. We anticipate the process taking 4-5 months and we look forward to returning this fall to bring the boys home. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXxQOu2_XzTI3pOa0tyyp6cXsNmpdzq76GPVhYk3WPoOtWvMa5CGqibpf1ngjU6e5CveIOLCCA-r7WUGhOm6VewsQk9fflL_8ifaF2cP7fCjUTwFHpygEDchT9IEwoG4kyJoiUobaBnQs/s1600/IMG_2438.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXxQOu2_XzTI3pOa0tyyp6cXsNmpdzq76GPVhYk3WPoOtWvMa5CGqibpf1ngjU6e5CveIOLCCA-r7WUGhOm6VewsQk9fflL_8ifaF2cP7fCjUTwFHpygEDchT9IEwoG4kyJoiUobaBnQs/s320/IMG_2438.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We appreciate all of your prayers through this journey. Our prayer requests for the next few months are that the boys' hearts would be prepared for the transition to come home. There will be so much for them to process and understand as we transition home and we pray for them to begin that processing now. We pray for their caregivers as we anticipate this transition will not be easy for them either. We pray for the legal process to go smoothly and without delay, and for our hearts and home to begin preparing to officially become a family of five. We pray that we can all move through this wait time and stay focused as we feel our hearts are halfway across the world. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thank you for being on this adventure with us. It is such an awesome feeling to be sharing this post with you - we have finally met our children!! Thank you for your continued prayers for our sons and our family and we will continue to keep you updated on the process as it unfolds. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Love,<br />Scott and Mary</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Mary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5928979451947299351.post-66082061013543070592016-06-02T14:18:00.000-07:002016-06-02T14:18:16.632-07:00And Then Friday Happened. <br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So last week, we were talking about how we needed to write a blog post. We really didn't have anything to say, but at least wanted to say "yep, still waiting." And we procrastinated. And then Friday happened. Friday, May 27th. Suddenly, we did have something to say - a little something(s) that will change our lives forever.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You know how sometimes you get something in your mind and you just latch onto it like it's written in stone? Well, for us, it was that THE call would come on a Tuesday. Our friends received their call on a Tuesday. We had other communications that had come from our agency on a Tuesday. Tuesday it was. Tuesday it would be. Note that the basis for this thought is shaky at best, but you know, you hang on to what you can during the wait. So Tuesday came, and Tuesday went, week after week. We always have our phones with us, but we held them extra close on Tuesdays. After another disappointing Tuesday last week, we decided to just look forward to Scott's last day of school/beginning of summer break on Thursday, then Memorial Day Weekend to enjoy time with family. And then, as noted above, Friday happened. Beautiful, glorious, wonderful FRIDAY.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I was spending my Friday running an interview day at work (which was quite successful, by the way), and Scott was enjoying his first full day of summer break building Adirondack chairs with his besties (they love when I call them that). I was daydreaming as my last interview was happening in the room next door and my FitBit vibrated signaling a call. I looked down to see a number I didn't recognize... ugh... telemarketer. Begrudgingly, I answered.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">L: "Mary? This is Lydia" (Program Director for our agency)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Oh my gosh. It's LYDIA??? Lydia only calls for one reason. LYDIA ONLY CALLS UNANNOUNCED FOR ONE REASON. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Me: "Yeah?!????? OH MY GOSH!!!! LYDIA! OH MY GOSH!!!"</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">L: "Are you by a computer and are you with Scott?"</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Me: "*sob* No ... to... both.... can *sniff* we call Scott??"</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">L: "Give me his number and we'll conference call"</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Next thing I know, I hear Scott join the call and Lydia shares the most wonderful news with us. She said she hoped we had thought of some boy names as we had been matched with three little guys across the ocean. The call was brief as I was crying, she was crying... it was a whole mess. So she said she'd email the referral to us, we should take the weekend to read, discuss, celebrate, etc., and then we'd touch base on Tuesday. And just like that, our lives were changed. With one 7-minute phone call.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SO! Now that I've painted the scene, let's get down to business!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Our boys are beautiful. We are reading and re-reading the information we have about them just to soak up every last drop. We're so anxious to get more information on them as the process moves forward. We hope to travel to meet them as soon as possible. We anticipate getting those dates in the next week!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You might be wondering a few things - what country they're from, what they look like, ages, etc. We appreciate, so much, your interest in our sons and we excitedly share all we can - but there is a lot of information that we're just not permitted to post on any electronic media. It's for the protection of the kids and the adoption process, so we will have to wait on a lot of those details for now. Don't worry, when they come home, we'll bombard your news feed :). You may see us share a thing or two from our agency that gives more information through that avenue rather than directly linking us to the details.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So now what? Now we wait for dates to travel to meet the boys. We fill out some paperwork to get the process started and enjoy the time celebrating with our family and friends. We will travel to meet them and be with them for about a week. After that, we'll come home and return 4-6 months later to bring them home forever.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We truly couldn't be more thrilled. We're nervous, anxious, overwhelmed, and excited in every way you could possibly think of. It's been an incredible 6 days sharing this news with our family and friends and we are so excited to have everyone along for the rest of this journey. It's been an adventure so far and we know it is just beginning.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Here are some fun pictures we took over the weekend as we celebrated with our families! One of the things we've been most excited about is making our parents Grandparents again, making our siblings Aunts/Uncles, and adding cousins to the crew... what a joyful weekend full of screams, tears of joy, and lots and lots of love! It was a weekend we will never forget - we've waited a long time to share news like this with our families and it was so exciting to get to finally surprise them!!</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLcZntTgX9htMGoZQYH7NQwwTMHSgtlcRuKSfjhB5BiIRzxUT_TAE5_MLIGt_ZiXP8731DVUj0PSaxJVNn2JJOSXpdc8JQTJdNeFjbAxLyEZl94hDTvvWEdv9-NESRXr8199mINqudCs0/s1600/IMG_1775.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLcZntTgX9htMGoZQYH7NQwwTMHSgtlcRuKSfjhB5BiIRzxUT_TAE5_MLIGt_ZiXP8731DVUj0PSaxJVNn2JJOSXpdc8JQTJdNeFjbAxLyEZl94hDTvvWEdv9-NESRXr8199mINqudCs0/s320/IMG_1775.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ready to surprise everyone!!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3t34iNkrbClS-dPctOeWkttwIWIwCaRMtCbXs4Jzptm5_Ph5sKbxul9eo8GINnQN6nHJ7biyKZawK2BomXetuwtz2Y74f2bDBgWl4XB-o5VxhHLGwTcBT2eBg2QeLKwTHrmUrOpQnUhY/s1600/IMG_1779.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3t34iNkrbClS-dPctOeWkttwIWIwCaRMtCbXs4Jzptm5_Ph5sKbxul9eo8GINnQN6nHJ7biyKZawK2BomXetuwtz2Y74f2bDBgWl4XB-o5VxhHLGwTcBT2eBg2QeLKwTHrmUrOpQnUhY/s320/IMG_1779.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We had boxes filled with goodies from our sons' home country and a balloon ready to pop out with the news!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD9sy2ruBNZzwR_0waxOA4gfK-euYH5sIVG_3ZKGvT4IbrFx2icPMY-T39PE75DFcK06aD8g9zJIVjAsFFlzxSdoTq1Vvn9I4UdtB1MN_BDCsCs8lXbsRKAe5imG9XWG7mwYgAdUS5tLs/s1600/IMG_1783.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD9sy2ruBNZzwR_0waxOA4gfK-euYH5sIVG_3ZKGvT4IbrFx2icPMY-T39PE75DFcK06aD8g9zJIVjAsFFlzxSdoTq1Vvn9I4UdtB1MN_BDCsCs8lXbsRKAe5imG9XWG7mwYgAdUS5tLs/s320/IMG_1783.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So excited to share the news!!!!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmONs8T4n_yR6hAqR1-dZYTDiL-zAKkuiWiNUc90IFGZfktQ-lSyUDc0byxcCb5rauYa3kq9gusatc9okpG72elYXekbRDofc7w0KytDfafMm7q2qXxNTPNvI9WompEdrBUJKPY6Qab_8/s1600/IMG_1785.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmONs8T4n_yR6hAqR1-dZYTDiL-zAKkuiWiNUc90IFGZfktQ-lSyUDc0byxcCb5rauYa3kq9gusatc9okpG72elYXekbRDofc7w0KytDfafMm7q2qXxNTPNvI9WompEdrBUJKPY6Qab_8/s320/IMG_1785.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With Grandma and Grandpa DeArmond</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3PH4zM_LSEktbob0u_6M2VfOp8JVvsR1D-pvKWagISH8oBpDx23N1nLgjtN4rEm7gVfFGYQTR62ScovbWpdTF9dH04z0ahYOBwoBawNBGyoIxdadrAq8Y0231wgon4-w4oormaN-wPS4/s1600/IMG_1792.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3PH4zM_LSEktbob0u_6M2VfOp8JVvsR1D-pvKWagISH8oBpDx23N1nLgjtN4rEm7gVfFGYQTR62ScovbWpdTF9dH04z0ahYOBwoBawNBGyoIxdadrAq8Y0231wgon4-w4oormaN-wPS4/s320/IMG_1792.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Aunt Stef, Uncle Jeff, Cousins Leah, Trevor, and Mya!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJrgB1YllfpHvb27QN4tbnrd30CBRtVDzfnQvd4urqEMAHJ7FKa0m_kO9bn4-2yfWakXncTK9p2-VIlpr-qewRVuYBkWfs0dy2gA3VZZvhNqV3KRJkNxmloMeh1la2Z8yyYX6S83kjD90/s1600/IMG_1804.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJrgB1YllfpHvb27QN4tbnrd30CBRtVDzfnQvd4urqEMAHJ7FKa0m_kO9bn4-2yfWakXncTK9p2-VIlpr-qewRVuYBkWfs0dy2gA3VZZvhNqV3KRJkNxmloMeh1la2Z8yyYX6S83kjD90/s320/IMG_1804.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ready for the Eckert reveal - "pool toys for the kids" haha :) </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Ptn9G8CiFp9OhCNQbDv4NpBD9spHvWMid1U0hRT-YR1rdh84FGF3SpKBaEZnanQzJ9uL5ekM4od7IomkvipBdD-C5opdH3HiTv6SDu6ChyjpaGPYmAiz-EidVJslf2NOkCR72jI6_Ns/s1600/IMG_1842.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Ptn9G8CiFp9OhCNQbDv4NpBD9spHvWMid1U0hRT-YR1rdh84FGF3SpKBaEZnanQzJ9uL5ekM4od7IomkvipBdD-C5opdH3HiTv6SDu6ChyjpaGPYmAiz-EidVJslf2NOkCR72jI6_Ns/s400/IMG_1842.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With Grandma and Grandpa Eckert</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkb9qFxINjY93Fo2lag01feLVDmA7RVW3MluB0RPlkdMkBu5PS1feypHbG5l4RlohUnH6nxSnP7T1q_WNmQPwb0pQ7O5xu4TxAopTk2Fs8IZXsnRJSYGJGoXdE7OBQ_pRQydttc95flIU/s1600/IMG_1836.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkb9qFxINjY93Fo2lag01feLVDmA7RVW3MluB0RPlkdMkBu5PS1feypHbG5l4RlohUnH6nxSnP7T1q_WNmQPwb0pQ7O5xu4TxAopTk2Fs8IZXsnRJSYGJGoXdE7OBQ_pRQydttc95flIU/s320/IMG_1836.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Aunt Sarah, Uncle Larry, and cousin David toasting the newest family members!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTTGJ_4py1pNmimkq1PrM7QR38WV2v1_q9s4LenAZUe5h2uiaKkF0c_SrqOCbnn9vGzKYHXXl8MZesk14Udhr6XRwgIZEei5ovTDIg-jw2wk2JdR1oZ3mhct-sLJ_vANeQcGot_bUgpnk/s1600/IMG_1839.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTTGJ_4py1pNmimkq1PrM7QR38WV2v1_q9s4LenAZUe5h2uiaKkF0c_SrqOCbnn9vGzKYHXXl8MZesk14Udhr6XRwgIZEei5ovTDIg-jw2wk2JdR1oZ3mhct-sLJ_vANeQcGot_bUgpnk/s320/IMG_1839.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Such a fun night!!!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We cannot thank everyone enough for the incredible love and support you've shown us through this journey. As we type this, we're receiving messages and comments on Facebook, emails, texts, and calls. We truly feel like you all have prayed and loved our family home. Our prayer request now is that our sons' hearts and ours are prepared to become a family of 5. We pray for a seamless process over the next 6ish months to bring them home, and that the transition is smooth. We are so thankful for our amazing village and cannot wait for the rest of this adventure to unfold. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Love, </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mary, Scott, and the three newest DeArmonds</span>Mary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5928979451947299351.post-87560874019613794252015-11-02T16:16:00.002-08:002015-11-02T16:16:39.149-08:00November Update<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hello all! It has been a couple months since we last updated this, so we thought that we would let you know what has been going on with the adoption. Things have calmed down recently as the paperwork has been completed and we wait for our referral. We are enjoying the increase in down time and have been making the most of this time before our children come home.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We don't have much to say in terms of updates on our process and at this point it's basically a waiting game. It has been fun, however, to connect with other couples working with our agency who are further along in the process than we are. This past Friday night we actually got to meet some friends at the airport as they were bringing their new children home from the same country we will be adopting from! It was incredibly powerful to experience this, and we are so excited to someday share that moment with our friends and family. We are thankful for the wonderful community we have through our adoption agency and are grateful for the lifelong friendships we have built.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This past month, we sold our last MudLove bracelet, bringing our total up to 600! That number is a little crazy and we have been blown away by all of you buying these. Thank you so much! The amount of money we raised by selling these more than covers two round-trip plane tickets to Eastern Europe, so this is a big deal. Your generosity continues to amaze us!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">During our Trivia Night/Silent Auction this past March, some friends surprised us with shirts that they had designed for our adoption. Many of you have asked about these and whether or not they were available for purchase. We have decided that we would like make them available for those who are interested.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you would like to order one, we have two design options to choose from (see picture below). Thank you to our dear friends for both of these designs! Shirts can be ordered by clicking <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1IX1-Ka9WJFJjGw9dQxqBF6f47NyikNzLeIitQR9QCa4/viewform">here </a>and completing the form. We will be taking orders until 11/23 and we will be placing the order shortly thereafter. The cost is $15 per shirt, with an extra $5 if you would like it shipped. (Note to Berne and St. Louis residents: we will be in town over the holidays and can deliver your shirts to you at that time to save you the shipping costs. If you live in the Indy area, we will deliver them to you as well.) If you are interested in ordering more than one shirt, you will need to fill out a separate form for each shirt. Payment will need to be received by 11/23 in order for your shirt(s) to be ordered.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixHKzPdHjReW7MmaOV2SKlE9XqVJmdW8n9hlMSCMvhXohNZKKUYQIdg2kekCRKS7XvzBUzvr4ke6cauJ56TP9vgquFCbujvucQDXV4RsyY4UhkdUx1Mm8lxVO-81DkW_w20ocQh6PfulQ/s1600/LOVE+CROSSES+OCEANS+%2526+HOME+%25281%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixHKzPdHjReW7MmaOV2SKlE9XqVJmdW8n9hlMSCMvhXohNZKKUYQIdg2kekCRKS7XvzBUzvr4ke6cauJ56TP9vgquFCbujvucQDXV4RsyY4UhkdUx1Mm8lxVO-81DkW_w20ocQh6PfulQ/s640/LOVE+CROSSES+OCEANS+%2526+HOME+%25281%2529.png" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On the gray shirt, the heart is located over the capital of our children's birth country. On the green shirt, the funny looking word underneath the word "Home" is the word for home in our children's native language.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thank you all for continuing to check in with us regarding our adoption process. We love the questions, and never get tired of telling people all about it! Your support and encouragement makes this wait easier to bear.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Love,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Scott and Mary</span>Mary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5928979451947299351.post-18092878311679126282015-08-27T17:15:00.000-07:002015-08-27T17:15:46.640-07:00August 7th<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hi All!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We are comin' at ya with an exciting update! As we previously posted, we submitted our dossier to our adoption agency on June 16th (Happy 30th birthday to Scott on that day, too!). They told us that it would be sent to Eastern Europe and we should expect to be on the registry in country in approximately 8 weeks. What does it mean to be on the registry? That means that the dossier is officially translated, reviewed, and approved - live and available to be matched with an orphan(s). As a matter of routine, they do not notify us when we're registered. It is kind of the "no news is good news" type of thing for the 2-3 months following the dossier being submitted. They said they would notify us if it was missing anything or hit any snags, but otherwise we were to assume it was registered around 8 weeks following submission.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">They also told us that if we asked about it being registered, they would be able to ask the agency overseas and find out the date we were registered. We knew from approximately day 1 of this process that we would be asking :). <strike>We </strike> Mary knew that <strike> we </strike> she would need to know the date for <strike>our</strike> her sanity.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So <strike>we</strike> Mary decided to wait until it had been ten weeks and then ask for the long-awaited confirmation that we were registered! 10 weeks was this past Tuesday and our agency was able to get a response from overseas in record time... and... drumroll please... </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: red;"><b>AUGUST 7th!!!</b></span> </span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our dossier was translated, approved, and went "live" on August 7th! WAHOO!!!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is significant for a lot of reasons: </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1. There were no hiccups with our paperwork and all was in order and complete</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2. There were no delays with translation or review</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3. We are able to be matched with our children AT ANY TIME!!!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4. See #3</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">5. #3 is really important. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img height="320" src="https://rfclipart.com/image/thumbnail/42-5c-44/calendar-icon-august-7-Download-Royalty-free-Vector-File-EPS-17120.jpg" width="320" /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, what is next? Now, we wait. We officially wait for that beautiful day when we receive a phone call notifying us that we've been matched to our children. While the wait is arguably the most difficult part of this process, we are relieved to be to this point. We've had a long road to have a family and this wait feels incredible because even though we don't know how long it will be, we are confident that this wait will result in meeting the children we know God has planned for us. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the meantime, we're doing a lot of continuing education - books, podcasts, etc. - and becoming as prepared as possible to be parents. We are also enjoying this time together and with Leo as we know these will be the last handful of months that it's "just the three of us."</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Common question: How long? We do not know how long the wait will be. <i>Average</i> wait time from now to a match is around a year. So, we will see! We told ourselves from the beginning that this wait would be at least a year, so we are working on being mentally and emotionally prepared for this time (though it is a daily decision to practice that patience we have been taught over the years!).</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Before long, we will work to post a timeline of what the process has looked like so far. We are thankful that people have been encouraged to consider adoption through our story and have asked what the total timeline looks like - we will plan on posting that soon as this post is getting a little long already :). </span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We are excited to add August 7th to the list of exciting days on this journey to adopt! </span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thank you again for all of your incredible love and support. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Scott and Mary</span></div>
Mary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5928979451947299351.post-89026160677823230842015-07-21T10:57:00.002-07:002015-07-21T10:57:26.320-07:00Garage Sale<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hi All, </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thanks again for checking in! We wanted to write another update since we had a hugely successful weekend in regards to fundraising. </span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiutsALiv93MWZjNImNXeTM1CT6yYj_4Ob5w2ZtRTu9-nmjVAI7PE5AU7mGW8pOJztT2dwVRAYNavUIgk5KZxfwVA13v4qIotBnFZpbKy-dTSskKNMtiB03kC5CYizOPvkZyWVnPVSBTMU/s1600/IMG_0178.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiutsALiv93MWZjNImNXeTM1CT6yYj_4Ob5w2ZtRTu9-nmjVAI7PE5AU7mGW8pOJztT2dwVRAYNavUIgk5KZxfwVA13v4qIotBnFZpbKy-dTSskKNMtiB03kC5CYizOPvkZyWVnPVSBTMU/s640/IMG_0178.JPG" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Garage Sale!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When we started brainstorming fundraising options late 2014/early 2015 with our families, the idea of a spring or summer garage sale came up and we decided it would be a great option! When the dust settled from all the paperwork and getting our dossier off to Eastern Europe, we finally felt ready to tackle this next event. We set a date and then put a message out to our family and friends on facebook asking if anyone had anything they planned to get rid of and would like to donate to the sale. We were, once again, overwhelmed by the response! Next thing we knew, our garage was literally packed to the brim with donations of furniture, clothing, home decor, kitchen stuff, etc. Once we started organizing it all, the items continued to pour in and our garage and living room were like a tetris game - precisely packed with the makings of one EPIC garage sale. Thank goodness the "Hoarders" tv crew wasn't around... we would have made an appearance for sure. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBoMd3jk1yrQz_OZ1hzdT-VVF79LnR256fLkBGKnLvn_2XcdQo8QSXCJ9p_lEd1IhvnXDyaLqTewKCbU_i4P9NG6pYvRlalVbvyRk5Wa3lI4ZqrDtoeEV_uNYfUFFWaoD_a0IJmxuqjhA/s1600/IMG_0179.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBoMd3jk1yrQz_OZ1hzdT-VVF79LnR256fLkBGKnLvn_2XcdQo8QSXCJ9p_lEd1IhvnXDyaLqTewKCbU_i4P9NG6pYvRlalVbvyRk5Wa3lI4ZqrDtoeEV_uNYfUFFWaoD_a0IJmxuqjhA/s320/IMG_0179.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Driveway Side 1</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwCC21Nvk7tONHaHx1LQxM4x_LhWBdUynwYsvjYuKxyvSmNi79Z9GXdtsyKa8VFouYX6Kw2Dw0aMsCUWsFBmtOydlyG1UDKKE1OKBvOfygOZtaEoxRRuKAYW6bCShFDeg-lzXDucPAQGM/s1600/IMG_0180.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwCC21Nvk7tONHaHx1LQxM4x_LhWBdUynwYsvjYuKxyvSmNi79Z9GXdtsyKa8VFouYX6Kw2Dw0aMsCUWsFBmtOydlyG1UDKKE1OKBvOfygOZtaEoxRRuKAYW6bCShFDeg-lzXDucPAQGM/s320/IMG_0180.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Driveway Side 2</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFNnrVJe7sLm_DjoafAmzBuJFw0Cer5kUpZKwVjHfVfdLJe1GZukqR-M83OQO2lI1sOzDJSwiKv3FGaj09YD13IclQGXz7NKORB3jNhG_LwonolJHpK-R1kXSoA4GpYYZRb3M8YRv9w2I/s1600/IMG_0182.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFNnrVJe7sLm_DjoafAmzBuJFw0Cer5kUpZKwVjHfVfdLJe1GZukqR-M83OQO2lI1sOzDJSwiKv3FGaj09YD13IclQGXz7NKORB3jNhG_LwonolJHpK-R1kXSoA4GpYYZRb3M8YRv9w2I/s320/IMG_0182.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Aisle 1</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We worked every night for a week organizing all of the items into categories. We even put a few of the bigger items on Craig's List before the sale as we ran out of room to store everything, even for just a few days. Folks, we cannot explain to you how much stuff we had - it. was. incredible. A couple of days before the sale, some friends and family came over to help us put prices on everything. We also borrowed tables, bins, clothing rods, etc. from friends and family - this was truly a team effort! Finally Friday was upon us and we woke up ready to go at 5:30 am. We put up signs all over the area directing people to the sale and started setting up the sale out in the driveway and yard. Mary was a little stressed at first because honestly, it didn't look like it would all fit in the driveway, garage, and yard. BUT, we made it! We created a couple of aisles and everything. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_KNk8lXfrGUg2idA4iZEJGDS8sUyZhLSot09kgpEc4mFivShUrDeADXbQPYY3ehMePwXjiOHHRK-oYvh6zUSip0gm0VkisR7ZjcXuxnXKx4QGAxYQkRowtCpabMM2GLLJeKd1WlquSQ0/s1600/IMG_0183.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_KNk8lXfrGUg2idA4iZEJGDS8sUyZhLSot09kgpEc4mFivShUrDeADXbQPYY3ehMePwXjiOHHRK-oYvh6zUSip0gm0VkisR7ZjcXuxnXKx4QGAxYQkRowtCpabMM2GLLJeKd1WlquSQ0/s320/IMG_0183.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Aisle 2</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The sale was awesome. We had a steady stream of shoppers for two days straight. We had people we didn't even know making donations to the adoption without even purchasing a thing from the sale - humbled is an understatement. We are so grateful to everyone who came out. We had family and friends there to help and keep us company both days, people who drove from all over central Indiana to come and show their support, and lots of phone calls and messages anxiously awaiting updates. Like every step of this process, it has been the most overwhelming and incredible thing to see the support and encouragement for our family and for orphans across the world. We are so blessed to have such a team with us on this journey. Thank you so much!!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIjZetleY8l363KBE8WWTFvBYnFDO0noKgjj-VOO2LyejjglWi-IqgCENjYV9OL5aqhsQ-2OUAduu35yuAnXao9jT45eqahu-crcFsTUU4hydQCV_WyNtlXpa0A6KkDpDdjtpezFeg5E4/s1600/IMG_0184.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIjZetleY8l363KBE8WWTFvBYnFDO0noKgjj-VOO2LyejjglWi-IqgCENjYV9OL5aqhsQ-2OUAduu35yuAnXao9jT45eqahu-crcFsTUU4hydQCV_WyNtlXpa0A6KkDpDdjtpezFeg5E4/s320/IMG_0184.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">David and Grandma modeling a sale item and being cashiers!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The garage sale raised over $1,900. WHAT? Yes. Incredible. The cost of adopting can feel huge, but we take it one step at a time and it has all come together and been such an awesome blessing. An average round trip plane ticket to Eastern Europe is about $1500-$1800, so the garage sale will pay for one of our tickets, plus a good chunk of another. Or, another way to look at it, a one way flight from Eastern Europe to America is around $900, so the garage sale paid for two children to come home when we are matched!!</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another awesome weekend in our journey to a family!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6XqTddSDXsGXb9A3tPkukB-1Lun5My5cKH4yGsm0YlHlqG-xqc6IXy79UuOzpA8VpMBGi2J1KqeaVFz-gkDmu5L0TJoPb2zypx_5FFSuOVSj271xtuPqEOjHZjHIN9Vupj-_9n6JQaek/s1600/IMG_0189.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6XqTddSDXsGXb9A3tPkukB-1Lun5My5cKH4yGsm0YlHlqG-xqc6IXy79UuOzpA8VpMBGi2J1KqeaVFz-gkDmu5L0TJoPb2zypx_5FFSuOVSj271xtuPqEOjHZjHIN9Vupj-_9n6JQaek/s640/IMG_0189.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thank you for all of your incredible support!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lots of love and gratitude, </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mary and Scott</span>Mary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5928979451947299351.post-18764305912221742752015-06-16T17:36:00.001-07:002015-06-16T17:36:56.858-07:00Love Crosses Oceans... and so does our dossier!!!<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hello everyone!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, today is the day we've been waiting for since we started this journey (besides, of course, the day we are matched to our children and bring them home). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: red; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-size: large;">Our dossier is heading across the ocean this week!!</span> </b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: red; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: white;"><br /></b></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hallelujah! We are so excited and THRILLED to be sharing this news!!!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As we described in our last post, we received our USCIS approval over Memorial Day weekend and have been waiting on one final document from the FBI to come in the mail to finish our dossier. Well, I saw that beautiful little envelope peeking out of the stack of mail this past Thursday and there it was! We immediately called our agency to let them know we had everything back, including notaries and apostilles, and were ready to rock and roll! Our program director at the agency met with us today to go over everything and we were given a green light!! </span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHulNZPAj5TgHoQHCMdlOq9vyta4Lc6Q2NRwka43NcxPaWwF_DZvPREAan6st-m9M06KHUrASYOpMAltFHI6YWsmuK2TKJ4GmLMtH0AKD20x8qSsWvztlQPrBxwGmtCvMHOSI-DU2mQjA/s1600/IMG_3782+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHulNZPAj5TgHoQHCMdlOq9vyta4Lc6Q2NRwka43NcxPaWwF_DZvPREAan6st-m9M06KHUrASYOpMAltFHI6YWsmuK2TKJ4GmLMtH0AKD20x8qSsWvztlQPrBxwGmtCvMHOSI-DU2mQjA/s320/IMG_3782+%25282%2529.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We got our last document!!!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here are what the next steps look like:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our program director reviewed our paperwork today and confirmed we have all we need. She will request a signed agreement from our agency in Eastern Europe today. (Sidenote: We have two adoption agencies - one that represents us here with the U.S. and one that represents us in the country we are adopting from). This agreement allows the other agency to represent us in that country. They will send back the signed agreement within 48 hours and then our dossier will be shipped to Eastern Europe (EE). Once in EE, they will translate our entire dossier and check again for anything that is missing. Once it is translated and all in order, our dossier will be registered with the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) in EE. The MOJ are who govern adoptions in EE and are in charge of matching adoptive families with orphans. Once we are on the registry, we could be matched to our children at any time. When we are matched, we'll travel within a month to EE to meet our children. We will then come home after being there for 1-2 weeks and fly back to bring them home approximately 4-6 months later, once the entire legal process has run its course in EE.</span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">
</div>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Average wait time from the time we drop our dossier off with our agency (which was today) to the time of a match is currently running 15.3 months. It may be longer, may be shorter, but that is their average right now.</span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTbjym1W-fnnyzwwg3z7gGEZfN9pppJvWl5oAADkNSv9QmV4a0XMF6-2bkAnZ-9i8fvlAjADQWUqQOwaFMRMI1cprXSMm1Bib1NzpROkMc4QPQnyO0X-FdgUbUfoSv6NsbKmXCUrdIVOs/s1600/IMG_3818+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTbjym1W-fnnyzwwg3z7gGEZfN9pppJvWl5oAADkNSv9QmV4a0XMF6-2bkAnZ-9i8fvlAjADQWUqQOwaFMRMI1cprXSMm1Bib1NzpROkMc4QPQnyO0X-FdgUbUfoSv6NsbKmXCUrdIVOs/s320/IMG_3818+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Two original sets, a copy, and a digital copy of our dossier. Mary and Scott in paper form :)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #222222;">So, to put it briefly: </span><span style="color: red;">Now, <i>we wait</i></span><span style="color: #222222;">. All of our paperwork is completed and on its way... we just anxiously wait to be matched to our sweet little ones. </span></span></span></span></div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi83bow_G-Ax08sLXEzR71lcR-YPrrAPK4Zw2XcakYKEZ0q9Ab7frXQJSCKPZeKB2A4BKQ9LSNvFRu47uxGOvpj9dvDl-3vBxL4l34QdkAAdRo9zKxq8u5x2O1Gc_JXnC3SgHzhGixNIIE/s1600/IMG_3614.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi83bow_G-Ax08sLXEzR71lcR-YPrrAPK4Zw2XcakYKEZ0q9Ab7frXQJSCKPZeKB2A4BKQ9LSNvFRu47uxGOvpj9dvDl-3vBxL4l34QdkAAdRo9zKxq8u5x2O1Gc_JXnC3SgHzhGixNIIE/s320/IMG_3614.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Love crosses oceans</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">We appreciate the incredible </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">support and encouragement we have received beyond words. From the encouraging messages, the financial support, attendance at our trivia night, mudlove bracelets, etc. - it has all truly meant the world to us. We have the most amazing team with us on this journey and we cannot say thank you enough! We are so blessed to share this exciting milestone with you!</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Love, </span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Scott and Mary</span></span><br />
<br />
<br />Mary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5928979451947299351.post-30866922309117701842015-05-25T17:33:00.000-07:002015-05-25T17:34:15.293-07:00USCIS Approval!<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hello! We hope you're having a relaxing and enjoyable Memorial Day weekend. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We have a BIG news to share with everyone and are thrilled to have such a significant update... </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">OUR APPROVAL FROM THE USCIS HAS ARRIVED!!! </span></div>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That's right... I'll say it again... </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">OUR APPROVAL FROM THE USCIS HAS ARRIVED!!!</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On Friday, we received our approval in the mail and are ECSTATIC! This approval is the last (and most important) piece of our dossier and we've been waiting for weeks for this short little piece of mail to show up in our mailbox. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7hR8LwuDWaB60liyP3zopPHzpl0eNlLSzyo3Rz7uHf0MK0AOEvx0nNj2JU0-6Zbix7glc1tT1c9eFLk9msMKGOSSLPMX2qYgQDhx0lHoJEbq_KqEMabjYwwSsYtmdA_hXMhNB3aBzTrw/s1600/unnamed+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7hR8LwuDWaB60liyP3zopPHzpl0eNlLSzyo3Rz7uHf0MK0AOEvx0nNj2JU0-6Zbix7glc1tT1c9eFLk9msMKGOSSLPMX2qYgQDhx0lHoJEbq_KqEMabjYwwSsYtmdA_hXMhNB3aBzTrw/s640/unnamed+%25281%2529.jpg" width="480" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yes, I took a picture of the approval. :) YAYAYAY!!!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The USCIS approval is, in short, the U.S. government deeming us suitable to adopt up to three children from Eastern Europe. It's a bit of a process to obtain this approval. You have to have a completed home study, then you submit the application to the government, then they send you an appointment time to go have more fingerprints done at the USCIS office (think BMV type of place with armed guards and metal detectors... including grumpy people and few smiles), then you wait for the approval letter to come. This can take anywhere from 1-4 months, so while we knew the approval could come at any time, we didn't really have a good idea of when that would be. We submitted the application on 4/4, had our appointment for fingerprints a couple weeks later, and got the approval letter on 5/22. We are so thankful to have been on the shorter end of the approximate time frame! Like we said in our last post, obtaining this approval is one of the last steps to getting our dossier across the ocean, so we're excited to be one step closer to that day!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While we've been waiting on our USCIS approval, we've been busy preparing the rest of our dossier, which includes a lot of additional paperwork, medical approvals, education documentation, etc. We have everything ready to go now that we have our USCIS approval, so we're ready for the final steps of preparing our dossier. This will include having everything notarized and apostilled. Both of those steps should just take a couple of days, then we just have to check off our final FBI background checks and it'll all be mailed to Eastern Europe. Once the dossier is in Eastern Europe, it'll take approximately 8 weeks to be translated, then we'll go on the registry in that country to be matched with our children. </span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO98QI1GoddN-VE3oZTnrIEwNevYnvKI2aIMpldR7JAYoioqkhf9QKbpVsiloQEHgc5O72Spj7tOg8Rcgpai9aEvBmW4a5qgECCkJ0Ne7yDVHhRUclU7sE3zkwld-KmchRBHSVUv9HgJU/s1600/unnamed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO98QI1GoddN-VE3oZTnrIEwNevYnvKI2aIMpldR7JAYoioqkhf9QKbpVsiloQEHgc5O72Spj7tOg8Rcgpai9aEvBmW4a5qgECCkJ0Ne7yDVHhRUclU7sE3zkwld-KmchRBHSVUv9HgJU/s400/unnamed.jpg" width="298" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Organizing dossier paperwork.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The last handful of weeks have been exciting in more ways than just approvals and paperwork mania. We completed our adoption education and also attended an open house with our adoption agency for families who have adopted or are in the process of adopting from our country in Eastern Europe. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The adoption education was super helpful and interesting for us. We loved hearing from other adoptive families about their journeys and the trials and triumphs during their children's first months of life in the U.S. We learned a lot about what to focus on and what unique needs our children will have being that they will come from another country, culture, and environment. We learned techniques for parenting that we will carry with us and work to implement with our children. We know we still have a lot to learn, but are thankful for the education we have been provided from our agency and are anxious to keep learning more. We plan to re-read the information our agency gave us at least once, and also take suggestions and read recommendations from family friends of us ours that have adopted internationally. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The open house that our adoption agency hosted was for all families who have adopted or are in the process of adopting from the country we have chosen in Eastern Europe. We were nervous to go as we really didn't know anyone, but were very excited to connect with others along this journey. It was the BEST day! We got there and immediately sat down with a family that we spent the rest of the afternoon talking with. They brought two of their five children (boy/girl siblings) home about nine months ago and we absolutely loved hearing all about their journey. We pummeled them with questions for two hours straight :). We talked with their kids, as well as several other children who have come home, over the course of the afternoon. We asked everything from how the children were handling the transition emotionally, physically, etc., to how the food was when they traveled. The couple we talked with were so willing to address every anxiety we had and so joyfully shared their adoption story. We learned about the discrimination against the children that this couple witnessed first-hand when visiting and picking their children up to come home. We learned about the language barriers (we were so impressed that in nine months of being home, the children spoke nearly perfect English), the educational differences, the social difficulties, etc. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We left feeling so encouraged and (we didn't even know this was possible) even MORE sure this is the absolute definite path we are meant to be on. We know our children are chosen and we cannot wait to be united with them as a family. We are looking forward to going to an open house in the future and introducing our children to a nervous couple embarking on this journey. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thank you for walking this journey with us. It is so exciting to share these updates with an incredible team of supporters - we are so blessed and so thankful!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Love,<br />Scott and Mary</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Mary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5928979451947299351.post-67584625877912486802015-04-18T18:08:00.000-07:002015-04-18T18:08:21.152-07:00I Say Paper...<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">... you say WORK!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">PAPER... (I'll assume you just screamed WORK!).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hi there!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We have a lot to update you on since trivia night, so this will be a lengthy post - consider yourself warned. :)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">March brought some exciting updates in the process of getting our paperwork to Eastern Europe. First and foremost, our home study was approved! We received the draft from our agency after meeting with them a couple of times, made a couple of updates to what they had done, then sent it back. It was approved through all the proper channels and we picked up the four copies that we'll need in the coming month or two. Woohoo!! The home study is a large and important chunk of what will go to Eastern Europe, so it's a big deal that that step is complete. CHECK!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Once our home study was approved, we received our second big step from the agency - dossier prep paperwork. The dossier is the packet of paperwork that will go to Eastern Europe to be a "profile" of us that will be reviewed by the powers-that-be to match us with our children. The dossier includes a lot of biographical information us, but also a lot of legal paperwork and background information. So, we've been diligently working on that! We had our fingerprints done again (3rd time and counting) for an FBI background check, filled out another checklist of characteristics we are seeking for our family (2-3 children, ages 5 and under, etc.), did a "condense your home study into a one page document" application, applied for new copies of our marriage license (have to have new ones), talked with our doctor for some additional check offs from him, etc. It's been a lot and slightly daunting after doing what I thought was the mega-load of paperwork for the home study. But, all is moving along well! Several of these items take time to get as we have to submit paperwork to retrieve it, send money, yadda yadda yadda, but it's going well. We just about have everything that we need to gather, then we'll take it all to get certified (more on that in a minute). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We did have a laugh today... we received the copies of our marriage license and check it out:</span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRhJ0JbnAZGq_KKafBSzVZx6S1IQswfVpdlIPOOxu5BUcKwsu9iua42IsBYLbbRp009UIdf1AlbpzuAlk0yNzRlR_0Ki8y3vs_jp0-6WW06Gl1dO-CZ3KYG6acRImbzkuO43ddxYj2NaY/s1600/bad+marriage+license.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRhJ0JbnAZGq_KKafBSzVZx6S1IQswfVpdlIPOOxu5BUcKwsu9iua42IsBYLbbRp009UIdf1AlbpzuAlk0yNzRlR_0Ki8y3vs_jp0-6WW06Gl1dO-CZ3KYG6acRImbzkuO43ddxYj2NaY/s1600/bad+marriage+license.jpg" height="320" width="239" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I, Mary Ann Eckertett, take you Scott Andrew DeArmond...</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A couple things that are especially funny are that my last name is spelled wrong, and also that it's an 'authenticated copy' of our original marriage license... really? Because on our marriage license my name is spelled right. They also spelled our marriage official's name wrong on the original and correctly on this "copy"... So yeah, we'll be calling them on Monday. Try again, please, clerk's office!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In addition to all of the paperwork we are gathering, included in our dossier will be approval from the USCIS (U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services) to adopt. This, obviously, is a huge deal. Without this approval, we do not adopt. The first step in the dossier prep was getting that application sent to the USCIS and we did that as soon as our home study was approved (they review your home study as part of that application). That generally takes 1-4 months to be approved (hello, huge window of time!) and we use that time to gather all of the rest of the documents. We received mail this week from the USCIS and I about fell out of my chair... did we just win an award for fastest approval EVER?... it was just a notice that they received our application. Oh. Ok... well that's good at least :).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Next steps: once we receive our approval from USCIS (you'll hear us scream excitement across the country, so you'll know that day when it comes), we take the approval notice and all of the other dossier documents we have gathered and all of them will be notarized and then <a href="http://travel.state.gov/content/travel/english/legal-considerations/judicial/authentication-of-documents/office-of-authentications.html">apostilled</a>. That will likely take a little bit of time to get it all apostilled, but after that - it's off to Eastern Europe!! WAHOO!!! Our agency told us it generally takes 4-6 months to get the dossier to the country you're adopting from and we are right on that schedule. Depending on how long it takes to get our USCIS approval, we anticipate having our dossier submitted by July at the latest (which would be 6 months). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The other piece of the journey we've been working on in addition to dossier prep is education. We have education from our agency and also from the National Council for Adoption (NCFA). We just finished our NCFA education today - yay!! We only have two more classes from our agency to complete and then a book to read and the requirements will be met. That's exciting because education has to be complete prior to dossier submission, so that's another step complete! We do plan to continue our education, though, as we want to learn as much as we can before we bring our children home. We have really enjoyed this part of the process - the education has been very insightful for us and helped us to gain insight into what unique needs our children will have and how we can best transition both our children and ourselves into life as a family of 4-5. We have learned so much and are excited to continue that process as we anxiously await our match. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another event we have been very anxious for is for Dad Eckert to shave his head!! Back in January, Mary's Uncle Jim challenged us to raise $2500 into our AdoptTogether account by March 13th - he said that if we did, we should get Dad to shave his head and Dad agreed!! As another fun bonus, Uncle Jim said he would shave his head for $5000. Thanks to everyone's INCREDIBLE generosity, we reached our goals and Dad shaved his head a couple of weeks ago! It was a fun night celebrating! We know it's a fun thing for Dad to shave his head, but what this meant to us was very serious - the love, support, and encouragement is absolutely incredible! Thank you so much to everyone!!</span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_rYAoyagA_29Q4dz1xQqCumDREW7yiq83AZ9IYLnPA7XjBUh_KnzkZ-o0PM0xZLTd018iuEY-x6qnrpJAgBbo76ZVFkr09WEcGnbjt6lfkeqQVAAhyk2aeeLo15X48C_dGBP1SS_g9II/s1600/IMG_3632.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_rYAoyagA_29Q4dz1xQqCumDREW7yiq83AZ9IYLnPA7XjBUh_KnzkZ-o0PM0xZLTd018iuEY-x6qnrpJAgBbo76ZVFkr09WEcGnbjt6lfkeqQVAAhyk2aeeLo15X48C_dGBP1SS_g9II/s1600/IMG_3632.JPG" height="200" width="150" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Before!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigqhLoTpF7U-3LXW4ttkEV4_kGrGu3XJis0nDrLz7H-IecANhpxmSZ1D9o6hfOZh4MVKCQP7dd-GG4TckmPWGE2_7m_wv7OkhPZ8pLJ_IRjy1rQZHflU_CLYE8MpSY_UyXao6sNBonav8/s1600/unnamed+(7).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigqhLoTpF7U-3LXW4ttkEV4_kGrGu3XJis0nDrLz7H-IecANhpxmSZ1D9o6hfOZh4MVKCQP7dd-GG4TckmPWGE2_7m_wv7OkhPZ8pLJ_IRjy1rQZHflU_CLYE8MpSY_UyXao6sNBonav8/s1600/unnamed+(7).jpg" height="200" width="149" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">During</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE0uxLsoQNZxo8zBC7q_uUo-pxVPjnBKBQ9ZGZJllSTTbBJ39xW3ErcQHMRSAny1TviXO5Cwgc8qgYlYZ6sZxM_LgzeEEI1XorhfXQ4CpZgb3gPQdTk6b3MmvCMg7UlnOQ8qQ48jRtEuo/s1600/IMG_7772.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE0uxLsoQNZxo8zBC7q_uUo-pxVPjnBKBQ9ZGZJllSTTbBJ39xW3ErcQHMRSAny1TviXO5Cwgc8qgYlYZ6sZxM_LgzeEEI1XorhfXQ4CpZgb3gPQdTk6b3MmvCMg7UlnOQ8qQ48jRtEuo/s1600/IMG_7772.JPG" height="200" width="173" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After!!!!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivmZQIiI-mUYRGqYVnIqe7nE3YP0oyS4I5avSxBo1LwDgA5hNvCkmbMfLmNVNgX4AIKHPuft5R1rqXIEct1yOuKznFUXuv4dchV1-ttnC2nFOEy0j0FlH-a40AHyBurILGhdnOXyujq-g/s1600/IMG_7775+(1).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivmZQIiI-mUYRGqYVnIqe7nE3YP0oyS4I5avSxBo1LwDgA5hNvCkmbMfLmNVNgX4AIKHPuft5R1rqXIEct1yOuKznFUXuv4dchV1-ttnC2nFOEy0j0FlH-a40AHyBurILGhdnOXyujq-g/s1600/IMG_7775+(1).JPG" height="149" width="200" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thank you for your support, Grandpa!!!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The other thing we've been up to since our last post was a cruise!!! Mom and Dad DeArmond treated our entire family to a beautiful cruise to Key West and Cozumel at the end of March/beginning of April and it was an incredible trip. We left on our 6th anniversary and what a great celebration! We had such a wonderful time with our family and enjoyed the sun, sand, and warm weather. We are so thankful for their generosity - we are diligently saving for the adoption, so of course a vacation was out of the question! Being able to take a week to reconnect, enjoy time with family, and get away was so refreshing and just what we needed. </span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIO3QHzciKI5d8IPr8jeA_jhhuufVDUdBj3rDUPPmnEGzMtP36hA3lLLqWDZd6ECu2TdVXj-1rtEOlJ6QLqSTzpMDfcG-yiZLCLpYNFpC25XnU9d4O1-FkPxMwt1PzDPfSPrtwEcpWV0U/s1600/IMG_0333.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIO3QHzciKI5d8IPr8jeA_jhhuufVDUdBj3rDUPPmnEGzMtP36hA3lLLqWDZd6ECu2TdVXj-1rtEOlJ6QLqSTzpMDfcG-yiZLCLpYNFpC25XnU9d4O1-FkPxMwt1PzDPfSPrtwEcpWV0U/s1600/IMG_0333.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Off the ship in Cozumel</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJuTCOEPa7eHCKVCGPAR3y9saO0Weo4Va9cl0i1A-h88SAQfiUsP9r4ofOQ7fdQLwQWifvP92sucac-ef6tJg71Sa0KGC8vRWsepWyNZDDP0Su9NEKW2xlcRN6xFBcHlf4lua1g6ynu0Q/s1600/IMG_3619.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJuTCOEPa7eHCKVCGPAR3y9saO0Weo4Va9cl0i1A-h88SAQfiUsP9r4ofOQ7fdQLwQWifvP92sucac-ef6tJg71Sa0KGC8vRWsepWyNZDDP0Su9NEKW2xlcRN6xFBcHlf4lua1g6ynu0Q/s1600/IMG_3619.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Key West!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Needless to say, we've been busy!! While it does get overwhelming at times, we are so thankful to be working on this process - there will never be a more important journey than bringing our children home and we are joyfully doing whatever it takes to get there. We know that soon, we will "just" be waiting for a match and going crazy with nothing to do... so until that time, here's to paperwork!! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We will leave you with this, one of our favorite pictures from our awesome week on the cruise... </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoNtQcRzdgsPy9zujkzbLcKnuIkVWKcmjC2gB9CVB31xWYviSGa-9vFMgnptXA8PVVShaPsH_tPWSDzXAoKQw1UafyYk1GoslPeNApayy_vnGQkrq0yUexUBdsHlg3qc4ifD0EYJ_yMdo/s1600/IMG_3606.JPG" height="480" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: start;"> Love certainly does cross oceans... </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoNtQcRzdgsPy9zujkzbLcKnuIkVWKcmjC2gB9CVB31xWYviSGa-9vFMgnptXA8PVVShaPsH_tPWSDzXAoKQw1UafyYk1GoslPeNApayy_vnGQkrq0yUexUBdsHlg3qc4ifD0EYJ_yMdo/s1600/IMG_3606.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until next time, </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Scott and Mary</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />Mary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5928979451947299351.post-70926028363701769942015-03-09T17:36:00.000-07:002015-03-09T17:36:34.880-07:00Unforgettable <div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Saturday was an evening we will never forget. This weekend
left a mark on our lives that is truly incredible and we will never be able to express what it meant to us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When we first announced to our families that we planned to
pursue international adoption, fundraising came up quickly as part of the
conversation. While we were resistant at first (it can be awkward and
uncomfortable), we quickly realized that in order to pay the fees associated
with bringing our children home in the relatively near future, we would need to
ask for help in some form or fashion to supplement our savings plan – fundraising,
grants, loans, etc. We attended a seminar through our adoption agency on
affording adoption early in our process and learned a lot about all of the different
ways to raise funds; this started the discussion on how we would move forward,
step by step, to make this part of the adoption process a reality. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mary’s family had the idea of a trivia night and silent
auction and ran with it from the start. The planning started around
Christmas and the outpouring of support was overwhelming from the
beginning. Donations of silent auction items and reservations to attend came
pouring in and the next couple of months were full of plans and excitement.
Saturday finally arrived and we had 28 silent auction items with 115 seats
reserved – this was well beyond what we could have even hoped for! The event
was such a fun time – Scott and I loved seeing teams of people from all
areas of our lives come together to have such a fun evening playing trivia! We had people
there from all over the country to support adoption – our family and friends traveled from all over Indiana, Ohio, Missouri, and Kansas to come to this
event. We wished we had the time to sit down and talk for hours with every
single table – it was so fun to have such a tremendous team there in support of
adoption and in support of our family! Like we've said many times before – it
takes a village to raise a child and we were so thankful for this time with our
“village” this weekend. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our families ran this event – from writing the trivia,
purchasing/baking all of the food, checking people in, setting up, tearing
down, managing the 50/50 raffle, keeping the food stocked, etc. – the event was
a success thanks to our family. We cannot say how truly grateful we are for all
of the time, money, and effort they put into this event!!! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">From the fundraising perspective, this event went beyond
what we could have EVER imagined. Close to $8,000 was donated on Saturday night
through ticket sales, the silent auction, MudLOVE bracelet sales, 50/50 raffle,
and additional donations. Like we said… speechless. We are adopting a sibling
group (will explain more below), which will be approximately $40,000 in fees.
To raise 20% of our total cost in one evening? Absolutely incredible. Your
generosity and hearts for adoption have humbled us in ways we cannot explain.
We appreciate your support more than words would ever be able to say. You have
all left an impression on us & our families that will last a lifetime. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We have some significant updates on the process, too!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our home study draft is complete! Woohoo!! We met with the
agency again last Wednesday to finalize any remaining questions they had, then
they sent us our home study draft on Friday afternoon! We are in the process of
reading through it and making any edits we need to – it will go back and forth
like that between us and the agency until everyone feels good and then it’ll be
complete! Yay! Once that is finalized, then we start on our dossier paperwork.
In the meantime, we also get to start on our education and we are very excited
for that. We received our education plan when we met with them and are anxious to get going on it. We are excited to learn about
parenting, parenting adopted children specifically, and all about different
techniques, stressors, etc. More to come on that as we complete it!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A very significant update that comes as part of our home
study is our wish to adopt a sibling group. We have said all along that we were
open to a sibling group, but what we did not anticipate as part of the home
study process was the recommendation of putting that we were looking to adopt a
sibling group specifically. Instead of, for example, putting that we are
looking to adopt 1-3 children, we now have that we are looking to adopt 2-3
children. So, a match to an individual child is highly unlikely since we have
made that more specific. While we are certainly open to an individual child,
they urged us to be very specific, which led to us the indication of a sibling
group. So now, our reference to “our children” rather than “our child” is very
purposeful! From the beginning of our adoption process, we have felt very led
to being open to a sibling group, but for some reason taking the leap to
putting that into our home study felt like a huge one. Rather than a sibling
group being a “possibility”, it quickly became a reality as it is in our home
study and will eventually go to Eastern Europe as part of our paperwork. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You might be tired of hearing it, but we will never be tired
of saying thank you. We feel that our words fall so short of expressing our
true gratitude to all of you for your support, encouragement, generosity, and
prayers. We are so thankful for our village. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Love, <br />
Mary and Scott</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A few pictures from trivia night!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiccJ9KVukTP0-SBWDFJlnF-ObOLhHXb4VVoRMvPOMTWTuPhSqUsQVEJoQVZXditl_9Cy62ERsaZ7ZuEgTvrAxYl2I8DdbTPdzbaRWXn9wnXPAiO4GT8fYFW60GYNsFVkPGqDyy1cIDIic/s1600/11038703_642583851030_5493606528881153311_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiccJ9KVukTP0-SBWDFJlnF-ObOLhHXb4VVoRMvPOMTWTuPhSqUsQVEJoQVZXditl_9Cy62ERsaZ7ZuEgTvrAxYl2I8DdbTPdzbaRWXn9wnXPAiO4GT8fYFW60GYNsFVkPGqDyy1cIDIic/s1600/11038703_642583851030_5493606528881153311_n.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So excited for an incredible evening!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3Pbn7MgW1bbD0_UO_xBkvRxZPYpbU0r0PUiDnHqAxQPggRe36_cr7bpYbq7EibZQHy1wnbVOk9TDNoTAnJBd7S4JU33gqcOkMZRab01x-0dVqu0fO6MlO8m_J1RF3CRvHJIn_PxWJD0E/s1600/11034170_661370467099_3533896554290724983_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3Pbn7MgW1bbD0_UO_xBkvRxZPYpbU0r0PUiDnHqAxQPggRe36_cr7bpYbq7EibZQHy1wnbVOk9TDNoTAnJBd7S4JU33gqcOkMZRab01x-0dVqu0fO6MlO8m_J1RF3CRvHJIn_PxWJD0E/s1600/11034170_661370467099_3533896554290724983_n.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of my best friends, Megan!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnj504KWKlN-ffdg9g0GE7470MUaUBqY8Mmdikz2HxNTP-2xPhlke2a7019XwKLl7StQfs-ZPPY1vZkatZz50clRrhpLrBEItOKIf4H4wYZaXoZYLvuBMUrHVw7LIstS8s17KkXmnsxHs/s1600/post9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnj504KWKlN-ffdg9g0GE7470MUaUBqY8Mmdikz2HxNTP-2xPhlke2a7019XwKLl7StQfs-ZPPY1vZkatZz50clRrhpLrBEItOKIf4H4wYZaXoZYLvuBMUrHVw7LIstS8s17KkXmnsxHs/s1600/post9.JPG" height="212" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Best friends that came all the way from Ohio!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt5hOlfWJ_sd8K-exORvzvQSnPGq_EeGftfd2_lPmOeYVJkFhl-mE7TJQHEX3XBOaZHzW_hG_IgpDVnzIy7CdCKusfRCflRO92hE8bOaEpa628cGXemLHLRKQ24M8uNKfpdc_d35-bkaE/s1600/post24.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt5hOlfWJ_sd8K-exORvzvQSnPGq_EeGftfd2_lPmOeYVJkFhl-mE7TJQHEX3XBOaZHzW_hG_IgpDVnzIy7CdCKusfRCflRO92hE8bOaEpa628cGXemLHLRKQ24M8uNKfpdc_d35-bkaE/s1600/post24.JPG" height="212" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Full house for trivia!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuIoMVLd8Nq2dA6IzmamJrIcG2ktBaoQ_DfDnoyw288hruKuCpXdKpTDt49U5Y2vONcLVHatJO7ZuQ_zB2SAJc2-qZ7K18xqlNnTMfpddY_o3jDDBJlFORcTSsGbOdhpL1mpSH58FqnUA/s1600/11043142_10153108772371665_4463392918473602327_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuIoMVLd8Nq2dA6IzmamJrIcG2ktBaoQ_DfDnoyw288hruKuCpXdKpTDt49U5Y2vONcLVHatJO7ZuQ_zB2SAJc2-qZ7K18xqlNnTMfpddY_o3jDDBJlFORcTSsGbOdhpL1mpSH58FqnUA/s1600/11043142_10153108772371665_4463392918473602327_n.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Dad emcee'd the evening and ran the trivia!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwq8P6Q4DJn4sX0GjsyeZubttcuP99-TT5hDYeAGjri7V6ngAwEhBjsIpPxfAKuczmUYhGH5_nfd2gjKyfmDCUMK0g6H8RRI04M3ZF6YEw620owFBgNffDvD9ea7Tz3iZlimjeVxUsmeU/s1600/11050655_10205186740661385_6892843311938319605_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwq8P6Q4DJn4sX0GjsyeZubttcuP99-TT5hDYeAGjri7V6ngAwEhBjsIpPxfAKuczmUYhGH5_nfd2gjKyfmDCUMK0g6H8RRI04M3ZF6YEw620owFBgNffDvD9ea7Tz3iZlimjeVxUsmeU/s1600/11050655_10205186740661385_6892843311938319605_n.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sarah modeling all of our beautiful MudLOVE options! Bracelet MVP/Coordinator</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_gE5vIcMRQQff5xYMBBURYI_z-sGAKek9GjJm0DnPCbvfcWteMc1k7IygI4Q2bLCx-DDPKnP4z2KVGl04IIC4iPGYtspzP1fqT4zka2fWRy4L_48JiVT9TxAC8AX2yG191Chcs034_Gg/s1600/post28.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_gE5vIcMRQQff5xYMBBURYI_z-sGAKek9GjJm0DnPCbvfcWteMc1k7IygI4Q2bLCx-DDPKnP4z2KVGl04IIC4iPGYtspzP1fqT4zka2fWRy4L_48JiVT9TxAC8AX2yG191Chcs034_Gg/s1600/post28.JPG" height="212" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The winning trivia team - so fun!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT5W3zUOgYMT6vOlRGZOnuzYuwaPHtUMlED43C5SO2gt1NxpjTQrTDmVWfYjXDtNC_AmfYDBpGMQxLS16gQKDJi3E_sdHgIIgfC7mPyMMeOAosjKF1mY5mlH5FEdn9oyansaR5qhg-o9I/s1600/post7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT5W3zUOgYMT6vOlRGZOnuzYuwaPHtUMlED43C5SO2gt1NxpjTQrTDmVWfYjXDtNC_AmfYDBpGMQxLS16gQKDJi3E_sdHgIIgfC7mPyMMeOAosjKF1mY5mlH5FEdn9oyansaR5qhg-o9I/s1600/post7.JPG" height="212" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sarah doing what she does best... bracelets!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXLhhErP9OP5Y7dQiykWEWTflmHsY3p0o33qjdkg9chbTUtpmPp60FT1xXuqbZfyfK-YTRPZhQG4wazI7baM1WCbFvjSHVuxfjRQTIAALaqqjaXlWeP53nlBMtIgCbElYxsw7F2_KzegU/s1600/DSC_0140.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXLhhErP9OP5Y7dQiykWEWTflmHsY3p0o33qjdkg9chbTUtpmPp60FT1xXuqbZfyfK-YTRPZhQG4wazI7baM1WCbFvjSHVuxfjRQTIAALaqqjaXlWeP53nlBMtIgCbElYxsw7F2_KzegU/s1600/DSC_0140.JPG" height="212" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dinner time! Our families kept all of our guests fed and entertained!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl22NidNW19trYTrqVK2PgDyVAXNskD5VRZuw1fYVtM0YAX_dbeRNDLoAbfqQcX6U82troejBG0DF5XgrdOKiJiT-GlY7H2pqux_nDIPFTK30kCzkSLoj25jso-exlKeK8KZpWksopF14/s1600/post8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl22NidNW19trYTrqVK2PgDyVAXNskD5VRZuw1fYVtM0YAX_dbeRNDLoAbfqQcX6U82troejBG0DF5XgrdOKiJiT-GlY7H2pqux_nDIPFTK30kCzkSLoj25jso-exlKeK8KZpWksopF14/s1600/post8.JPG" height="212" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My awesome brother and sister helping to run the event!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
Mary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5928979451947299351.post-17110780083192654432015-02-25T16:29:00.001-08:002015-02-25T16:29:52.356-08:00Good Point<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thanks again for checking in!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We wanted to write an update because this week we've taken some steps forward in the process and wanted to keep you in the loop.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Remember the binder-o-documents we discussed in the last post? Well, we finalized that and turned it in last Monday. It was approved (which basically means we had everything in it we needed) and we were contacted within 24 hours to schedule our first home study visit! That was scheduled for today and we just finished meeting with two representatives from our agency. I was anticipating them walking through our house, asking if we had smoke detectors, making sure everything was clean, and flushing all the toilets to ensure they were in proper working order. Turns out, they did tour our house (which took about 5 minutes), but the majority of the time was spent answering questions. The agency asked us questions about ourselves, our upbringing, our plans for discipline, our jobs, what we hope our children will grow up to be like, what parenting fears we have, etc. I'll be honest, it was fun :). It's fun to dream and be asked to talk about it. These are conversations we have all the time - conversations about the kind of parents we want to be, what we're excited about, what we're afraid of, etc.. But to get asked to talk about them was exciting! So anyways, we answered a bunch of questions and then scheduled home study visit #2 for a week from today. Once they review what we went over today, next week will be to follow up on anything and finalize the information they need to write the home-study. Once our interviews are done next week, our home-study should be written and through all the approvals (has to go back and forth a bit between us and the agency) within about a month. YAY!!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Once the home-study is complete, we move on to dossier prep. More on that later (because we don't know what all that entails yet, either!). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The visit today with the agency was exciting. It was also a thought-provoking time for us. Not only because we were asked things like "what would you do differently in parenting than your parents did?", but because we had the opportunity to hear some "cautions" from our agency. I appreciate our agency because they paint, what we feel, is a very realistic picture of international adoption. They have done this since our initial information session and throughout the process so far. When I say "realistic," I don't mean bad. I mean that they want us to be fully informed and understand the good, the bad, and everything in between. We appreciate that. Throughout our fertility journey, the only constant was that things were unknown... we never knew what would happen next, when it would happen, and if it had any chance of "working." We would rather hear the scary parts of international adoption than have an unrealistic idea of what everything will be like. Here's an example. When asked what we're excited about in being parents, I said (among many other things), that I am excited to be "that person" that our children run to when they are scared, or excited, or hurt, or confused, or anything... I'm excited for us to be those people who our children trust completely and love fully, and that we can experience the kind of love and relationship that we've heard only exists between a parent and child. Our agency rep said that she completely understood and agreed with what I was saying, but that she wants to make sure I realize that it won't be like that from the beginning. We will get there, sure, but unlike a biological child who has known their parents as their "go to" since their first breaths, we will be strangers to our children for a bit. They've known life in an orphanage, and to come home to a different country, different smells, tastes, sounds, and with people they're now supposed to call Mom and Dad is confusing. It's unsettling. And we might not be able to comfort them like a parent normally would when their child is scared. We won't have that trust yet. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><b>Good point. </b></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It is a lot to think about. This was one of a handful of times during the visit that our agency gave wonderful advice/thoughts. I suppose that is why we did research and chose an agency we trust, right!? They help us think about the things we haven't thought about yet. Of course we knew there would be a transition. We know our children won't know us as Mom and Dad when we first meet them, but sometimes hearing it from someone else makes it finally click. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The thing is, we can't wait to earn that trust. We can't wait to truly <i>become</i> Mom and Dad to our children. It will not be an easy road to travel, but we're excited to navigate it as a family. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I feel overwhelmingly thankful to have such a strong team guiding us through this. They're responsive, honest, compassionate, and helpful. They've been there, too. Many of the staff members at our agency have adopted internationally, so they know the emotions and the ups and downs - what a blessing to have people working with us who can relate on a whole new level. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And hey! Thank YOU for being on this journey with us, too! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until next time,<br />Mary and Scott</span>Mary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5928979451947299351.post-74828227032057701742015-02-09T17:07:00.000-08:002015-02-09T17:07:09.755-08:00February Update!<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thank you for checking in again! We cannot tell you enough how much it means to us that you've taken an interest in our adoption process and we appreciate you continuing to follow along!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We have a lot of things to update you on, so here we go!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The paperwork process is well underway. We submitted our contract and first payment to the adoption agency on January 2nd and by that following Monday, we had our paperwork available and next steps outlined for us. The first big step is the home-study and we have been working on that process since the first full week of January. We originally thought that someone would come to our house, make sure it's safe, and write a little report on that... home-study done. Turns out, we were wrong!! This process has included compiling documents, obtaining legal information, and writing responses to several autobiographical questions, etc. We have gotten our fingerprints taken twice, submitted background check paperwork for Indiana, Ohio, New Mexico, and Northern Ireland, both had physicals, obtained four letters of reference, figured out how to obtain said background check from Northern Ireland (which, turns out, is more difficult than one might think!), took Leo to the vet, and dug up all sorts of paperwork we never even knew we had :). We have compiled all of the needed information and are now submitting that to the agency for review. Once the agency reviews and approves that we have everything they need, a representative will come to our house and conduct interviews with us, check out the physical state of our home, interact with Leo, etc., and then write the home-study report. The report will compile all the information from our binder-o-documents along with what they hear/observe when here and that is what the home-study will consist of. Once that is done, we move on to the next step! The home-study will be <i>part of </i> the dossier that is submitted to Eastern Europe. The dossier is what the adoption decision-makers will use to match us with a child/children. So, that is where we are in the process! We have been working diligently to get all of the paperwork done as efficiently as possible as we're anxious to get our dossier across the ocean!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Fundraising has been the most incredibly humbling experience of our lives. We cannot tell you all what it has meant to us to receive your bracelet orders, reservations for trivia night, and donations to our AdoptTogether account. We currently have enough in our AdoptTogether and adoption checking accounts to cover our next two payments (one at the time of home-study completion and the other when our dossier is submitted to Eastern Europe). Thank you, thank you, thank you. This is over a third of our total needed and we never expected to be where we are financially right now; we cannot thank you all enough for your incredible generosity.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We are anxious for our home-study to be complete because not only will we be one step closer in the process, but a lot of grant applications require that the home-study be complete before submitting, so once that is done, we will be able to pursue grants more fully as well! Scott also passed his test and has received his insurance license (yay!!) - he'll be starting work in Larry's office soon to earn extra income for the adoption!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The home-study, bracelet sales, and trivia night have kept us busy and we are enjoying every step in this process. We know that there will be a time when we're simply waiting. Waiting to be chosen to be Mom and Dad to a sweet child/children, so we are relishing these days when we can do tangible things to move us closer to that!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In related news, have you all seen our new nephew?? Sweet Henry Michael joined our family on January 30th and we just can't get enough of him :). Spending time with this little man, along with all of our nieces and nephews, makes us even more excited to have our children home with us soon. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilQ1aaYWC3x71WWl0M5JnxeOhNVunO-CZitBUF16vIZ7GGWKHlPl0F3D0IqxaketDpBwm1ieL13W_Z6xm_D5F25X_JuW-hGRSsa2D1q3xe5WWKN3AW8kkTaz3HX2cXktYiiASphqfn2Po/s1600/henry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilQ1aaYWC3x71WWl0M5JnxeOhNVunO-CZitBUF16vIZ7GGWKHlPl0F3D0IqxaketDpBwm1ieL13W_Z6xm_D5F25X_JuW-hGRSsa2D1q3xe5WWKN3AW8kkTaz3HX2cXktYiiASphqfn2Po/s1600/henry.jpg" height="320" width="239" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Your prayers, support, and encouragement have meant the world to us and we cannot thank you enough for everything. We have all heard that saying that "it takes a village to raise a child" and that could not be more true for us as we move along this journey. Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Love, </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Scott and Mary</span>Mary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5928979451947299351.post-60307645311268784052015-01-10T14:14:00.000-08:002015-01-10T14:14:32.279-08:00Fundraising<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thank you for checking in again! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Wow. It is an understatement to say that we have been humbled over the last month or so since we announced our plans to adopt internationally. The comments, emails, phone calls, facebook messages, etc. have been overwhelming. Thank you so much for the support. It has truly been a life-changing time for us, and we haven't even adopted our child/children yet! From the bottom of our hearts, we cannot say thank you enough. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We have gotten a lot of questions recently about fundraising efforts and how our friends and family can support us financially. First of all, thank you for asking about this. We do have a plan (that we know will be fluid and ever-changing!) and would love to share that with you. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">First, we have developed a strict budget that will allow us to set aside a significant amount of money on a monthly basis for our adoption. For us, this means spending less money on "wants" and taking more care to assess a need versus a want. We've decided to cut out a lot of the things that we have become accustomed to doing, like weekend getaways, girls' nights, paintball weekends, etc. We have also taken a summer vacation nearly every year we've been married and this year we're thinking Indianapolis sounds like a sweet destination :). Scott's parents have generously offered to take our entire family on a cruise in March</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, but aside from that, we plan to stay put at home this year. We have re-evaluated what we spend our money on and will continue doing that in a more intentional way than we have in the past. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Scott is currently in the process of studying to get his insurance license to work part time with Mary's brother, Larry, in his office. This will be an opportunity for Scott to put some extra money into our adoption account as any income from that endeavor will go straight there. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We also have a couple of fundraising events currently in the works, and a couple in the future where our friends and family can get involved.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We are currently planning a trivia night/silent auction on March 7th (see previous post!). We are collecting silent auction items and selling tickets to the event. We hope to not only raise money for our adoption through this event, but have a great time as well! Larry Jr. and Larry Sr. are hosting the event... it'll be fun no matter what :). Let us know if you're interested in joining us for this fun evening!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We have purchased 150 bracelets from the company MudLOVE. This an Indiana-based company that sells the bracelets pictured below. MudLOVE is set up to help people with fundraising - we purchase the bracelets at a bulk price and sell them for $10 - this allows us to make a profit for our adoption account through the bracelet sales. The benefit to this fundraiser is two fold - they help us raise money for our adoption, and MudLOVE also provides a week of clean drinking water to someone in Africa for every product purchased. How great is that? </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Since we just launched our trivia night/silent auction on facebook, we haven't posted a lot about the bracelets, but if you're interested, just let us know! These are the words that are available - they come in a variety of colors (more than are shown in the picture)! The words are on a piece of clay and the bands are adjustable elastic. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlkicDrReJMSb8ejkoUzYUY01w7N-9ClZjeA-yHvf_xqq92bW_kMLLUdwsoRh2ez9NjQJYkc4wIAO__kBdRxu-TqOqH1pSfaC3K9XmThPcp_qi7atrPJ8S1mG37z7dTriC1HSKAz8iGWs/s1600/MudLove+Bracelets+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlkicDrReJMSb8ejkoUzYUY01w7N-9ClZjeA-yHvf_xqq92bW_kMLLUdwsoRh2ez9NjQJYkc4wIAO__kBdRxu-TqOqH1pSfaC3K9XmThPcp_qi7atrPJ8S1mG37z7dTriC1HSKAz8iGWs/s1600/MudLove+Bracelets+2.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We also have plans to have a garage sale or two this summer with items we have around our house and items that family/friends are looking to get rid of. This fall, a dance-a-thon is in the works, too. T-shirt sales have been another idea we are considering. As the process moves forward, we are going to constantly evaluate where we are financially and how to best move forward. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lastly, we have had several inquiries on whether or not we have set up a fundraising account people are able to use to donate directly to our adoption. We have been working to find the best option for this and became aware of AdoptTogether - an online fundraising platform that allows donations to be tax-deductible. We were recently approved for this account! If you are interested, please check out our link below: </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <a href="http://adopttogether.org/dearmondadoption">http://adopttogether.org/dearmondadoption </a></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Again, we want to thank you all for your support. We have been overwhelmed by the thoughtful messages we have received and are truly brought to our knees by the encouragement we have felt. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Love, </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Scott and Mary</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ps: of course we will post again soon, but things are moving forward in our adoption process and we're in full swing!!</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
Mary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5928979451947299351.post-14103923709032450912015-01-01T14:11:00.002-08:002015-01-01T14:11:43.511-08:00Trivia Night and Silent Auction!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hi Friends! </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Please check out the event below - We would love to have you join us for this night of fun! Thank you so much for your support!</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguM16KYOQnX0CWWG2AuK5nxupa1U-ioO5R2bUMD3CxfCJu4R9uQa7_5IsToQ6un3GhrGpW9Kkq9LxCKeuLBZ_d8mvvWKabsh87Kxt5IsXcB7d6rqKSM8p-c_DrFQZYJXZ4a2ZEmcAA3YE/s1600/Initial+Post+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguM16KYOQnX0CWWG2AuK5nxupa1U-ioO5R2bUMD3CxfCJu4R9uQa7_5IsToQ6un3GhrGpW9Kkq9LxCKeuLBZ_d8mvvWKabsh87Kxt5IsXcB7d6rqKSM8p-c_DrFQZYJXZ4a2ZEmcAA3YE/s1600/Initial+Post+2.jpg" height="640" width="494" /></a></div>
<br />Mary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5928979451947299351.post-80326222071146570542014-12-29T18:58:00.000-08:002014-12-30T04:12:48.683-08:00The First Part of Our Story<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Welcome back :)<br /><br />By now, you know we're adopting and a little background on why. Part of the purpose of this blog is for people to follow along who may be considering this path to starting a family. For some people, this decision includes a long battle with infertility and we know all too well that sometimes you just want to talk to or hear from someone who has been through it, too. So, we would like to take a brief pause from our adoption journey to make this one post about the first part of our story. Please do let us say, though, that the last reason we are posting this is for people to feel sorry for us. We are excited beyond belief to have the opportunity to adopt and the chapters below only brought us to this awesome point in the adventure to start our family. Again, we are posting this simply because we know there may be people in our lives who would receive comfort from knowing that someone else has been where they are. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We decided a few years ago to start our family. We tried to get pregnant on our own and after months of heartbreak, we were referred to a specialist to help us with our fertility. Fast forward many months, tests, supplements, and appointments later, and we were told "you have about a one in a million shot of getting pregnant on your own." Ouch. We cried. We told our families. Then we said, "ok, so what's next?"<br /><br />The answer to that was a visit to a Reproductive Endocrinologist... the fertility doctor. We went in to our first appointment with him and assumed we would have a few options to try and get pregnant with his help, but it turns out, we had <b>one</b> option - In Vitro Fertilization with ICSI. We literally asked in the appointment if we could do anything before we jumped to this step, as we knew IVF was "the big one." Turns out, given our particular fertility concerns and trends in our testing, it was IVF. Period. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">[Quick biology lesson for those not familiar with fertility treatment: In Vitro Fertilization with ICSI looks something like this ... Woman takes a lot of shots (hormones) to make her body produce more than the normal one egg she does in a given month. During the few weeks of shots, the doctor is taking blood and doing ultrasounds every other day to watch the formation of the eggs. The eggs are then surgically removed. After removed, the Embryologist inserts the guy's sperm into the eggs. Once the sperm and egg come together, the Embryologist watches the little embryos for up to 5 days to make sure they are surviving and thriving. Once the embryos are ready, one or two of them are put into the woman. Then everyone waits 1-2 weeks to see if the embryos attach to the uterine lining of the woman - if they do, a positive pregnancy test happens and you're pregnant!]</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, we talked and prayed a lot and decided we would try IVF. We were worried about it not working, but after a long and tiring road to even get to this point, we were ready to try whatever we could to have children. After a couple of setbacks in our timeline due to some poor test results, we did IVF with ICSI in December 2013. Needless to say, it was not successful. I produced 6 eggs. 2 of them held on through the fertilization process, they were not strong, but they were alive. They put them back in after 3 days and we received a negative blood pregnancy test a week or two later, just before New Year's Day. Some people end up with frozen embryos from their cycle (eggs that were successfully fertilized, but they won't put more than two back into the woman, so they save the extras for a pregnancy later). Unfortunately, we did not have any frozen embryos from our cycle, so we were back to the starting line. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">[For those of you who like science, here is a picture of our little ones just moments before they were put in to me!]</span><br />
<span style="background-color: yellow; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4tJkWLWySwEh3PfNmJXDnrDtjw2u5XUC_2nH0uY-uzO9if0cQu1mnpwy2VspLothkZr9ljg85nQdoyaxfA6EcvvO5izwuzwqsLuMnmFEpMQSIgZlmmLUw4qLnlW-4hdQUMGz3bQLVW28/s1600/IMG_1063.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4tJkWLWySwEh3PfNmJXDnrDtjw2u5XUC_2nH0uY-uzO9if0cQu1mnpwy2VspLothkZr9ljg85nQdoyaxfA6EcvvO5izwuzwqsLuMnmFEpMQSIgZlmmLUw4qLnlW-4hdQUMGz3bQLVW28/s1600/IMG_1063.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: yellow; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We met with our two fertility doctors in January 2014 for a post-IVF consult. They used many more words than this, but to keep it as concise as possible, our IVF cycle did not go well. Once they had our fertilized eggs under a microscope and could watch the process, they were able to see why 4 of our little ones didn't make it, and the 2 that did were hanging on by a thread. They said that they would not recommend we try IVF again unless some tests came back in a much better place. By this point, we had tried all of the medications, vitamins, procedures, etc, they recommended for us. They said that we may want to begin looking at adoption as a route to have a family. They also said that the last thing they would recommend to see if our chances at IVF success would improve, would be weight loss. They said they have seen it help test results, and they've seen it not help test results, but because we had tried everything else, that was their "last hurrah" to make this happen. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">IVF was emotional, expensive, and exhausting (70 shots, people. 70!), so we weren't sure that we would do it again, but we wanted the option and honestly, just were not ready to shut the door on that chapter yet. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, we decided to hit the weight loss hard. Since March of this year, Mary is down around 45 lbs and Scott is down around 90. We are SO excited to report those numbers! Calorie counting, carb counting, and exercise has been the name of our 2014 game and we are thrilled to be so much healthier than we were at this time last year. Yay for that!!! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We are sad to say, though, that the weight loss did absolutely nothing in regards to our fertility. We ran the same tests we did to determine the need for IVF and unfortunately, every single measure was exactly the same as it was before and during IVF. So, we met with the Drs for another consult and they had the same message as they did right after our IVF cycle... a second round of IVF would be a very risky route with slim chance of success. They said we could run the tests again at any time, but if we're ready to start a family soon, it may be time to turn the page.<br /><br />We had received a lot of bad news throughout our years of trying to start a family, but of course, this time it felt final. It felt devastating to think of the years of trying, all the tests, all the medications, all the procedures, all the stuff that went with IVF, and all the weight loss... all to come to a place where experiencing a pregnancy was highly unlikely. So, we had a few days of wallowing, blubbery cries with tissues everywhere, and wondering "why," but then we decided that it was time to move onward and upward. The one thing that didn't change through all of this was our desire to have kids, so we're ready to make that happen through international adoption. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you have questions about our fertility journey, please ask. There are things we will share and things we won't, but we'll tell you everything we can and no questions are "off limits" if there is something you're struggling with or wondering. We know that when you're in this process, sometimes you want more than anything to talk to someone who has been in your shoes... and we would love to be that resource and comfort to you if we can help in any way. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Love,<br />Mary and Scott</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">p.s.: by adding your email address to the bar at the top (under the blog title), you can receive an email notification when we publish a new post! Our understanding is that this has to be done via the web view and doesn't work if you try to subscribe on the mobile view.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Mary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5928979451947299351.post-12162342935944531842014-12-07T17:14:00.000-08:002014-12-29T18:48:18.813-08:00<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hello! Welcome to our blog! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">First of all, in case you missed the announcement... </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRwjMmWN0NdozfOQKekp1UiFblBA_PC7awFwqKgcCqskrGN5g6qKLZkbf7SIbSSrogWeJqQ82sWl6alThyphenhyphenrizssRQZat8SObNp4gDgbU1v3PY0OFNxSYFSK2kFNbzZY9CG1KY3RH_Ef9A/s1600/wereadopting.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRwjMmWN0NdozfOQKekp1UiFblBA_PC7awFwqKgcCqskrGN5g6qKLZkbf7SIbSSrogWeJqQ82sWl6alThyphenhyphenrizssRQZat8SObNp4gDgbU1v3PY0OFNxSYFSK2kFNbzZY9CG1KY3RH_Ef9A/s1600/wereadopting.jpg" height="285" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">... and we are SO EXCITED! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We would like to share our journey to adopt with you and hope this is a place where we can keep our family and friends up to date with the process. We hope to answer a lot through this blog, but never hesitate to reach out to us if you have questions! We hope to not only keep our family and friends informed through this blog, but also to be a resource to others in our lives who may be considering this path to starting or expanding their family. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For our first post, we would like to give you a bit of an overview on how we came to the decision to adopt, and further, why we decided to adopt from Eastern Europe.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We decided awhile ago that we were ready to start our family. We aren't going to go into a lot of detail on this post, but after years of trying and more tests, medications and supplements than we can count, plus an unsuccessful journey through in vitro fertilization, we were told that our chances of conceiving a biological child were "one in a million." (If you're struggling with infertility or are interested in reading more about this part of our story, we will be writing our next blog post about that, going into a lot more detail.). We were told we could continue to wait and hope for a miracle, but that it would be in our best interest to look at other options for having a family. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We had three real options that we were considering after we came to grips with the overwhelming news described above: embryo adoption, domestic adoption, and international adoption. All of these were very strong options for us and honestly, we were "sold" on each one at different points through our decision-making process. Let us also note that there are a few additional options for people at this point in their fertility journey, namely egg or sperm donation and adoption through foster care. We are not going to go into a lot of detail on these things, but to be brief: after considering those options as well, they were not right for us. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We hadn't heard of embryo adoption before we were to this point in our journey... there is a lot to this option, but to be concise: this is a situation where we would adopt a fertilized egg that had been frozen (presumably from another couple who had undergone IVF, had extra fertilized eggs from their cycle and froze them, but had no plans to utilize them for their own family). We would adopt the frozen embryo(s), they would be implanted into Mary, and we would carry and deliver the child. </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We like to describe it as being our own surrogate... so we would deliver our child, but the child would not be genetically tied to either of us. This is a really neat option to experience pregnancy, be in charge of our own prenatal care, and have our child from birth. There are also definite risks to this option, as it does carry the same success rates as IVF (many embryos do not survive the thaw and implantation process). We gathered a lot of information from our fertility clinic and the National Center for Embryo Donation on this option. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Domestic adoption is pretty well known. We would go through an adoption agency (or private attorney), put together a profile, be selected by a birth mom, and adopt a child from birth. We gathered information from three adoption agencies in Indianapolis and had also attended an information session earlier in the year with one of these agencies. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">International adoption is similar to domestic, except that we would be adopting from another country and adopting a child from an orphanage. We would be selected by an adoption governing body in that country rather than by a birth mom. We would likely bring the child home as a toddler due to the paperwork/processing times involved in international adoption. We did a lot of research on the agencies that do international adoption in Indianapolis and visited one for a one-on-one informational session to learn more. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After many long walks and evenings where we talked and talked (and talked) about each of these options, we both came to the decision that we felt called to adopt internationally. We like the guarantee of a family (which embryo adoption did not provide) and we like that international adoption tends to be more adoptive parent driven than domestic adoption. These are reasons that we can put on paper, but after a lot of prayerful consideration for each of these options, we honestly just feel a peace and comfort from the Lord about international adoption and are confident this is the path for us. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As far as "why Eastern Europe?" goes, we were drawn to this area of the world after our informational session with our agency. Out of the seven countries our agency supports, our desire to bring a child home as young as possible gave us three options. We heard about the specific need in each country, as well as the adoption process for each country, and we chose to move forward with Eastern Europe. (We know the specific country, but due to some agency guidelines, we cannot post it online). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, there you have it! To say we're excited is an understatement. We are so thankful to have this opportunity and we are ready to embark on this journey. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In our next few posts, we'll be giving more detail on our fertility journey (for people who may be reading this and in the process themselves), and also explaining the overall process of adoption from Eastern Europe. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We are so excited to share this journey with you and we appreciate your support more than words can say! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Love, </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mary and Scott DeArmond</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Mary and Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653247053252281221noreply@blogger.com1