Referral Guessing Game

DECEMBER 17 UPDATE- We received our referral yesterday, December 16th and someone actually guessed that day! Zach! Zach, I contacted you through your blog so hopefully you will get the message.  

Since we are getting close to the average wait time for a referral with our adoption agency, I thought it would be fun to play a little game.  If anyone guesses exactly, they will get a big prize package which includes two t-shirts, an ornament and a necklace! Here's how to play.  Leave a comment below with answers to the following:

1.  Date you think we will get our referral
2. Will we be referred one boy or two boys?
3. Age of boy/s

To help, we have been on the wait list for 16 months and 1 week (tomorrow).  We have asked for a boy or brothers between the ages of 4-8 years old.  The current average wait time for a child in this age range is 16.5 months.  That should help you narrow down your answers.

Once we get our referral, I'll look at all the answers that were posted before that time and see if anyone got it exactly right.  

Thanks for playing.

Guesses So Far:

Sandy Said:
November 3rd
2 boys
5 and 6 years of age.

Ellen Said:
November 9
1 boy
4yo

JJ Said:
November 10
1 boy
5 years

Missy Said:
Friday, November 11
1 Boy
Age 5

MustardSeed Blog
Friday, Nov. 11
1 boy
age 7

The Busters
November 14th
1 boy
Age 5

JoAnn Said:
Nov 15, 2011
1 Boy
3.5 yrs old

Lindsay Said:
1 boy
age 5.5 years
November 18

Suzanne Said:
Nov. 18
2boys
4yrs and 6yrs.

Lisa Said:
2 boys
4 and 7
November 22

Zach Said:
December 16th
1 boy
age 4.5

My Kid is Playing at House of Blues

 A few weeks ago, Emily and her friend entered a contest with House of Blues. They submitted a song for the 2011 Bringin' Down the House Musical Competition. Well, they were selected to play in the competition at House of Blues in Dallas on Monday, November 21st along with 9 other bands.  Tickets are $10 and all proceeds go to the International House of Blues Foundation which gives money to music and art programs in schools. 

Even if you don't live in Dallas and can't go, we'd love it if you'd buy a ticket. The band the sells the most tickets gets money for their school music program.  Here's how to buy tickets.

Go to this link to get to the Bringin' Down the House page.  Click on the BUY TICKETS button over to the right, (or click here) Once on the ticket page, you must buy your tickets under the band name ONLY THE WORLD, in order for their band to get the credit.

Thanks!  I will let you know how it goes next month.

A Great Giveaway

My friends JT and Natalie Henderson just started the process to adopt from Ethiopia again.  The Henderson's are having a big giveaway with lots of goodies.  I even donated two of my Africa ornaments for their event.  All you have to do is head on over to their blog.  Once there, find out how you can be entered to win some awesome prizes!

Another Update

Today we had our monthly Gladney conference call and it was reported that the average wait time is now 16.5 months for a referral.   We hit the 16 month mark on Monday so hopefully we are getting close to that phone call.

Month 16 on the Waitlist

I was just on the computer and noticed the date. It's already the 24th of the month?  Well, that means a new month in our adoption journey. Yes, it's hard to believe. Our average 6-9 month wait for a boy over the age of 4 has now turned into 16 months. Now you know why they say that international adoption is not for the faint of heart.  It has been the ultimate roller coaster ride.  Currently our agency is reporting that the average wait time for a referral of a child over 12 months of age is 16 months.  Last month the average was 15 months.  And, when we got to month 15, they changed it to 16.  This Wednesday, our agency holds its monthly conference call and we'll find out the new average.  We are joking around here that they will report it's 17 months now.  Sometimes we feel like a rabbit with a carrot being dangled in front of us and we keep hopping up to the carrot and it gets pulled away. All humor aside, we truly do know that God has a plan for our family and when God is involved, it's worth waiting for HIS plan. 

So, we will continue to wait.  We know that God is at work behind the scenes and will unveil his plan for us when He is ready.

The Agony of Waiting

We have been on the waiting list for a referral for 482 days. Next week, we'll hit the 16 month mark.   To be honest, it's not easy waiting.  I find myself getting all anxious every afternoon and by mid afternoon I give it up until the next day.  Blake and I had the discussion the other day about whether or not it's harder being close to getting a referral or harder being far away from getting a referral.

The only place we can truly go for any relief is to God. While reading my Bible the other day, I came across Luke 11 and was reminded that God wants us to continually pray. He want us to be persistent.  He uses the example of the friend knocking on the door in the middle of the night wanting loaves of bread. 

^{Luke 5-6}Then he said, "Imagine what would happen if you went to a friend in the middle of the night and said, 'Friend, lend me three loaves of bread. An old friend traveling through just showed up, and I don't have a thing on hand.'

 ⁷"The friend answers from his bed, 'Don't bother me. The door's locked; my children are all down for the night; I can't get up to give you anything.'

 ⁸"But let me tell you, even if he won't get up because he's a friend, if you stand your ground, knocking and waking all the neighbors, he'll finally get up and get you whatever you need.

 ⁹"Here's what I'm saying:
   Ask and you'll get;    Seek and you'll find;    Knock and the door will open.

^10-13"Don't bargain with God. Be direct. Ask for what you need. This is not a cat-and-mouse, hide-and-seek game we're in. If your little boy asks for a serving of fish, do you scare him with a live snake on his plate? If your little girl asks for an egg, do you trick her with a spider? As bad as you are, you wouldn't think of such a thing—you're at least decent to your own children. And don't you think the Father who conceived you in love will give the Holy Spirit when you ask him?" 

God won't give us everything we demand when we want it.  But he wants us to ask.  While I may not get my request to get our referral in one minute, I can be direct with God and talk to him and wait for him to answer our pray in his perfect timing. He wants us to be be like little children, coming before their father.

That's the beauty of trusting in Jesus.

Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live.   1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18

The Orphan Crisis

Mission Trip Ornaments and a Contest!

It's time for another contest because I've come up with something new! I'm making ornaments for people that have gone on mission trips to Africa.  I thought I'd share a few of the designs with you.  Each ornament can be custom made to commemorate your mission trip. I can add dates, names, cities, etc.  They are only $10 plus $2.50 shipping and you can email me to place an order.  The items are made from wood which I stain. Then the paper design comes into play and it's finished off with a hemp rope that you can hang on a Christmas tree or keep out year around.  If you went to a country other than Africa, I can custom make a country out of wood for you as well. Just ask.

If you know of someone that went on a mission trip to Africa, one of these ornaments would be a great Christmas gift!  So now, here's a peek at a few of the ornaments I sold in my Etsy shop this past week.

Now for the contest.  There are a few ways to enter.  
1.  If you went on a mission trip in 2011, comment below and tell me where you went and your favorite memory from the trip.
2. If you went on a mission trip and commented below, you can get an extra entry by mentioning my contest on Facebook and/or Twitter.
3. If you went on a mission trip and commented below, you can get an extra entry by writing a blog post about my ornaments and this contest and link back to my blog.
4. If you did not go on a mission trip in 2011, you can enter by writing a blog post about my ornaments with a link back to my blog.
5. If you did not go on a mission trip and you wrote a blog post about my ornaments, you can get a bonus entry by posting about my ornaments on Facebook after you've written the blog post.  If you don't have a blog, you can post on Facebook.

Please leave comments below as you have an entry completed. On October 24th, a name will randomly be selected from the entries and I will be giving away this ornament:

Home Study Update

It's hard to believe that 19 long months ago, we had our very first home study.  USCIS approval only lasts so long and in order to renew it, you have to submit a new home study. So, today a social worker from Gladney came and paid us a visit.  The visit went great and in a few weeks, we will have the final copy ready to send in and then we can apply for updated CIS approval.

And in other news, we are 12 days away from the current average wait time for a referral with our agency.  Remember the key word is AVERAGE.  Just because we get to month 16 doesn't mean that magically our referral phone call comes.  But, it gives us hope that with each day, we are one step closer.  For months now, I have wondered where I'll be when we get the phone call.  From what others have told me, usually you're in the middle of something and really busy and it comes when you're not expecting it.  My phone is ready though.  I set up a special African drum ringtone that is assigned to the Gladney phone numbers in my iPhone list.  That way, if someone from Gladney calls, I'll hear the drum and assume that's our referral.  I have contemplated though that I don't have all the Gladney numbers in my phone list and so that fun little game might not work out as I have planned.  I'll let you know when the time comes how that one went.

So, stay tuned. We are anxiously waiting to see what God has planned for us.

Last Week to Get a Free "Defend Orphans" Shirt

This is the last week to get your free "Defend Orphans" shirt.  Find out the details here.  Orders are being placed this Friday, October 14th.

Get a FREE Africa Shirt

For those that order a shirt from our 147 Million Orphans fundraiser, I will give you one of our adoption shirts for FREE.  For each shirt you buy from the link above, you'll get one of the following shirts for free.  While supplies last.  Have questions, email me.