Oh What a Weekend

         Like most things, our adoption journey has taken a little while to get off the ground. Like a train leaving the station, things have been moving pretty slowly, so we tend to get excited (sometimes too excited) when anything of any real consequence happens. This weekend got us very excited.

        On Saturday afternoon we went to Winchester, Kentucky and met with 2 wonderful ladies who run a ministry called “Choosing to Love”. We were put in touch with them through their pastor (Ashley’s step-brother), Brian Walton, and they agreed to meet with us Saturday at a coffee house downtown. We were excited all week about this meeting, but to be fair, by the time Saturday arrived, I was getting a little pessimistic. Maybe it’s just how my brain works, but I’m always thinking about what might go wrong. I was half expecting that we’d meet with them and they’d say, “Yeah, you guys shouldn’t adopt a kid” or “Seriously? You think you guys can afford this? Good luck with all that!” After all, we were close to Lexington, which as all good IU fans know is the heart of the evil empire.

      Anyway, we took off from Salem around lunch and made the drive into hostile territory. Ashley wore an IU shirt, which made me both proud and concerned for our safety. (Seriously though, an IU shirt right down the road from UK? She’s awesome.) When we got to the coffee house we found Kristy and got a table. Almost immediately our concerns were gone. Kristy was so open with us about sharing her family’s adoption story and talking to us about ours. When her associate, Christie arrived (yeah, I know, Christie and Kristy, it’s confusing to me too, but bear with me) she was equally open about her family’s experience. They were genuinely excited about us going through this process, which not only calmed our fears, but got us more excited. It was like we were having an adoption pep rally and Christie & Kristy were there to cheer us on.

     We stayed and talked with them for about an hour and a half, but we could have stayed there all day. They were so uplifting, more than we ever could have imagined, and so willing to help with anything we needed. On the ride home, we couldn’t even describe to each other how much this meeting exceeded our expectations. Finally, we were able to sum it all up in 3 words: They get it. These 2 women fully understand how important this is to us. They understand what it’s like to have God call you on this mission and to be willing to stop at nothing to see it through. I came away more convinced than ever that God finds ways, sometimes out of nowhere, to put His people in your life to provide you with guidance, wisdom, and courage when you need it. We found two strangers 100 miles away from home that treated us as friends and wanted to help us without anything in it for them. That doesn’t happen unless they are led by God.

     So that was our weekend. When thinking in terms of the marathon-like endurance race that is the adoption process, this wasn’t a huge event. But to us, it was monumental. It’s the same for us when people read this blog or ask us about how our adoption process is going, even though it’s just beginning. Those things are so encouraging to us because you’re taking an interest in our family. We appreciate all of your love, kind words, and prayers more than you will ever know. And someday soon, we’ll be able to introduce him to all of you who were so anxiously awaiting his homecoming.

(www.choosingtoloveadoptionministry.com)

P.S.-We’ve also finished the design for our t-shirts and are about to place our first order. If you want one, they’ll be $20, but please be patient. We’re placing these orders in bulk when possible to save money on printing, so it could take a little while. However, we’ll be placing our first order on Thursday, so if you get us your information and money before then, we’ll be able to get yours in about a week.
 
We are also selling silicon bracelets. They are $5 Blue with yellow writing that says Jeremiah 1:5

The shirts will actually be blue instead of yellow. The Front is the one that says WillPower and instead of being big on the front it will be a smaller logo in the upper left hand side of the shirt.

Oh those Hoosiers

Ashley and I were among the 17,000+ who were lucky enough to attend Hoosier Hysteria in Bloomington Saturday night. I say "lucky enough" because apparently there were about another few thousand who were turned away once Assembly Hall reached full capacity. But while we were there, something caught my eye and turned my mind toward our future child. Little, tiny, IU jerseys. They were everywhere! Little kids decked out in their jerseys with their favorite player's number and red & white striped pants were all over the place. And since we had to wait 3 hours outside in a line, we got to see all of them. There were some running around with basketballs. There were a few in the grass throwing footballs and frisbees. Some just sat in line with their parents and occaisionally whined about being bored or how cold they were. One group of kids caught my attention though. They were running up and down a small hill in front of Assembly Hall, which seemed normal enough, but when I looked over there again I saw one in a white IU jersey, with his red and white striped pants....sliding down the hill. My first thought was, "Grass stain! Mud! That's a white Cody Zeller jersey! Those pants will never come clean!" I realized that I've crossed a line. I've become one of the old people.

It doesn't seem like all that long ago that I would have noticed kids sliding down a hill and thought, "That looks like fun." But there has been a fundamental shift somewhere in my brain that makes me immediately think about how that jersey will never look white again, or how much those candy-striped pants cost their parents. As troubling as the fundamental shifting of my mind might be, I think it's a good thing. I look forward to being frustrated with my child for doing the ridiculous things like that that I'm sure he'll do. (by the way, using "he" because it's easier, "she" would be fine too.) I look forward to being frustrated with him because I look forward to having him around. As we get deeper into this process, even in the researching phase, we become more aware at just how difficult this process is going to be. But the more I see kids the way we did Saturday, outside having fun, spending time with their parents, the more I am convinced that what we are doing is the right thing. Yes, we will have to fight through all of the hurdles that come our way through this process, but we know that when we get our child home, it will be worth every minute of the struggle.

I can't wait to take our child out to things like what we went to Saturday. To take him to IU basketball games and teach him to count by 2's and 3's when players make a shot. To see him light up when he gets to see his favorite players in person for the first time. And to explain why we cheer everytime they show a picture on the screen of that guy with the red sweater and white hair (and clarify that it's not an angry Santa Claus).

So if any of you happen to be at an IU basketball game a few years from now and see a guy and little boy wearing matching candy-striped pants who stand everytime they play the fight song or the William Tell Overture and cheer loudest when Calbert Cheaney takes his seat on the bench, feel free to come say hi. Just ignore our grass-stained pants, because I'm a big softy and if he asks to roll down the hill a few times before the game....I might have to join him.

Short and Sweet

We have updates! Ok, they're minor updates, but updates nonetheless. First of all, last week we asked for your t-shirt ideas. This week we're asking you to get your t-shirts done...quickly. We're going to need all of your ideas by this Saturday, Oct. 20. I know that's not a lot of time, but we're hurrying you along for a good reason; it's all because.....WE HAVE OUR FIRST FUNDRAISING OPPORTUNITY! We'll have more details later on, but we're going to be selling concessions at an auction in Salem on Nov. 10. We know we're probably not going to make a million dollars, but we're so happy and thankful to have this first opportunity to raise some money. If anyone would like to come help us cook, serve food, or take money, we'd love to have you. If you can't do any of that, feel free to stop by and see us. I'm sure we'll have a variety of good food for you, plus you can check out the auction items and help out a good friend of ours.

Also, we've started talking to some fantastic people in Kentucky who work as adoption consultants in association with Calvary Christian Church. They've worked with people who have done adoptions both in the U.S. and overseas, and we think that they'll be able to give us some great advice on how we go through this process. Even though we aren't officially "starting the process" until the first of the year, it's so exciting for us to see things starting to move forward. While we know that the things we're doing now are only a drop in the bucket (or maybe the ocean), we know that each small step we take puts us one step closer to bringing our child home. Thanks for joining us on this ride.

(email your t-shirt ideas to adambrown47108@gmail.com or leave them in the commets section here)

GIVE ME YOUR MONEY!...Just Kidding :)

     Here it is, the moment you've all been waiting for. It's the time when we ask for your help. Come on, you all knew it was coming. From the time you read the first post on here, you thought, "That's great, but I bet they'll come to me with their hands out sooner or later." It's ok, because today is the day. Now, as we all know, adoption can be very expensive (as you all grip your wallets a little tighter), and a lot of people choose to do fundraisers to help with some of the cost (now you're thinking of your excuses to say no). So take a deep breath and listen to what we need from you. Ready? Here it is......we don't want your money. I mean, don't get me wrong, if you happen to have some cash sitting around that you don't need, we'll be glad to take it off your hands, but we're not asking for any money from anyone right now. What we want from you is your brain. And no, not in like a zombie/Hannibal Lecter way. We want you to help us be creative.

Later, sometime after the first of the year, we're going to start doing some fundraising events. Now exactly what those are and when they'll be is a little up in the air right now, but we'll keep you updated. However, one thing that we're going to do is make t-shirts. We'll be selling these shirts to anyone who wants one or wants to help us along this process, and we'll probably also be wearing them at any of our fundraising events. We aren't expecting to get rich from these shirts, but we felt like this was a good way for people who wanted to help to be involved.

Here's where you come in: design our shirts. Nothing is off the table. You pick the color, design, wording, whatever; the ball is in your court. We've gone through a few ideas ourselves, but for the sake of not influencing you one way or another, I'm not telling you what we've talked about. What we're looking for is something that could be worn by everyone (if you make a pink shirt with rainbows and kittens, I'm not wearing it), something that relates to our goals (a shirt saying IU basketball is awesome might be true, but has nothing to do with our mission), and is visually appealing.

There's also talk of a bracelet, like one of those livestrong things, so if you want to include bracelet ideas, that would be great too. Either way, you can send your ideas to my email (adambrown47108@gmail.com), to either of us on facebook, or leave them in the comments section below. We're looking for a lot of participation on this too, so share it with your creative friends and family members.

So there it is, go get to work on your idea. Work on 5 or 6 ideas if you want, there's no limit. We'll let everyone know when we have shirts made and how you can get one when that time comes, but for now, let's all just have some fun with this. The best t-shirt gets....well, nothing really. But maybe we'll let you hold our baby sometime when he's crying.

-Adam

The Dogfather

When considering adoption, having questions is a very normal thing, so I'm told. Do we want an open or closed adoption? Do we adopt domestically or international? What precautions can we take to ensure the child's health? All of these are things that any reasonable people would consider. Although I'm not so sure we fall into that "reasonable people" category, these are all things we've talked about at length. There's one question that keeps popping up in my head though, and I can't quite come up with an answer to it: Are you sure they'll let us raise a kid? It pops in my head every day. Every time I do something stupid or immature (multiple times a day), I think, "How could anyone with any sense allow me to raise a kid?"

The question was never more on my mind than it was this past week. To be honest, we already have 3 kids, they're just furry, have 4 legs, and tend not to talk much. They're usually pretty well-behaved, but in the last week they've combined to run away twice, rip the curtains & curtain rod off the living room wall, and shred every newspaper and magazine in the house leaving us to come home to more confetti on our floor than at the end of a political convention.

It all started last week when Charlie, our 4 year old retriever, decided that 6 am would be a good time to run away. Unless people come over, Charlie is as relaxed as you could expect a dog to be. Even when he's excited, he's sweet. I've always thought that, if we ever had a burglar, that Charlie would lick him to death before he'd ever attack him. But that morning, my sweet little boy decided to test the strength of his collar and sprint to the end of his rope, snapping the collar and sending him off into the darkness. I panicked. Gus, our other dog, panicked. Our cat, Moose...cool as a cucumber. Eventually Charlie returned and all was well, but I think the way I freaked out for those 20 minutes he was gone set the tone for our week. I upset the very delicate ecosystem that is our home and sent Gus (our 1 year old, ball of energy) into a chewing frenzy.

Moose has been the only calm one in the house this week, which makes me even more nervous. I get the feeling that this little kitten is secretly running the entire show, ordering his brothers around, then watching as they get the blame. It's like The Godfather meets Animal Planet. Moose is Michael Corleone giving orders and running the show. Gus is Sonny, the volatile older brother. And Charlie is Luca Brasi, the muscle of the family.

This is what worries me. If we can't handle 2 dogs and a cat, who in their right mind is going to give us a kid? Besides, we need this kid to even things up, we're outnumbered! I've been assured that our dogs chewing things up doesn't disqualify us from adopting or mean that we're going to be bad parents, it's just something that happens. I hope that's right. Just to be on the safe side though, I'm going to be extra nice to Moose from now on. I don't want to end up like Fredo.