Luke's first day of 1st Grade- what a cutie!  He loves it so far.

Max is holding Jake and Sydney- my friend Natalie's new babies and the two cutest three month old twins on the planet!  I was told that they did not appreciate my comment about Charlie and Sophia, so I had to post this picture to clarify!

The Fingerprint Saga

Jake and I spent a couple of hours two weeks ago getting our fingerprints done for our I-600A form.  Let's just say it did not go according to plan.

Jake sailed right through the procedure, which was having each of his fingers scanned on a digital machine.  Apparently, his fingers are perfect specimens!  I, on the other hand, had a different experience.  The technician took A LONG, LONG time trying to get my prints, but concluded that they are undetectable.  They said that 1% of people have "the wrong type of skin" and that it is hard to get clear prints.  I feel so special!

Naturally, I asked what the procedure would be from there.  They said that they would send what they were able to get (2 of 10 fingers) and wait for the FBI to determine them insufficient.  They would then send me a letter (probably a few weeks later) with a rescheduled appointment date (probably a few weeks after that).  Although my skin isn't changing, I then get to try again the digital way.  If it doesn't work the second time, I will wait for another letter (again, a few more weeks) and be instructed to go to my local police station for ink prints.

Of course, when I asked if we could bypass all this and just do ink prints (there was an ink pad sitting right there on the table), I was told no and that we "have to follow the procedure."  Of course!  That makes lots of sense, right?

Anyway, I am hoping that the next time will take.  I already received my letter with my new appointment time.  Of course, it's on a day I'm supposed to work, but I'm afraid rescheduling would be a bad move. 

Government- you gotta love it!

Summer Fun

Here are a few more recent pictures of our family.

Grandma, Grandpa, the boys and their cousins Charlie and Sophia-

the cutest twins ever.

Max and Charlie

The Three Amigos-  don't they look like they're up to something?

What to Pray...

Last night I had a hard time going to sleep.  My thoughts were all over the place.  I'm starting a new part-time job, the boys are starting a new school year tomorrow, and this baby is on her way!  I am trying to take Philippians 4:6-7 to heart:  "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.   And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

I am a natural worrier.  I guess most moms are.  But I am praying that God will help me to turn my worries into prayers.  When an anxious thought comes into my mind, I am trying to make it a little prayer of the heart.  It definitely takes the stress off.

Right now, Jake and I are praying for our baby girl.  If AIAA's timeline stays close to what they are predicting (up to 6 months to a referral), she may be born now or will be born any day.  So of course we are praying for her birth mom and that she will have peace in her heart as she makes this very brave and difficult choice.  We pray that somehow she will know that her daughter will be protected, cherished, and loved with all of our hearts.  We pray for a healthy pregnancy and delivery.  We pray for the foster parents.  We pray that they will provide a safe and loving home for her and that she will know her first loving relationship in their arms.  Wow... there's so much to pray and I'm just getting started!

It's so good to know that God is in control.  We trust him to keep her safe and to lead us to her.

On a side note, my sister-in-law Casey sent over some girl baby clothes today.  They were some outfits from her daughter Sophia.  How crazy to hang little pink things in the closet!  This is gonna be fun!

Kelly

Here we are on the Fourth of July.  We had a wonderful time!

Max is always such a cutie!

Here is Joshie- check out that curly hair!

Grammy and Papaw came down for part of our visit.

Luke had a great time at his pool party today-  and he really racked up the cash! 

 Here he is rejoicing in his newfound wealth.

The Blog Begins!

Sunday, August 22nd

Well, I can't believe it... but I think I have officially started a blog!  And I didn't even need anyone's help to get it started (hence the very pitiful-looking design scheme).  For those of you who know me, you will know that this is truly a small miracle.  I am technologically-challenged, to say the least. 

Anyway, this is a blog about our journey to adopt our baby girl from Korea.  We titled it "Born in Our Hearts" because our love for her has been growing in our hearts for quite some time.  We began our journey years ago, when we became involved with a local non-profit group in our town that helps provide grants to families who are adopting.  Jake and I had both discussed adoption as a possibility for growing our family since the beginning of our marriage, but our desire reached a whole new level after attending a benefit dinner sponsored by this group.  The speaker was a man who was adopted as a young boy, and his story was a very powerful one.  Leaving the dinner that night, we decided as a couple that adopting a baby was something that, God willing, we would do one day.

At that dinner five years ago, I truly believe that God planted a seed in both of our hearts.  It has been growing ever since.  We have prayed about adoption for quite some time, and are very excited to announce that we are officially "waiting" for a referral!  Our paperwork was sent to Korea on August 12th, so we are praying and waiting to finally see the picture of our baby girl.

Of course, life is keeping us VERY busy while we wait.  We have been blessed with three beautiful boys, and they keep us on our toes all the time.  Luke will be seven in a few weeks, Max is five, and Josh is two.  So...lots of people think we are crazy for adopting a baby at this point.  We figure we are already outnumbered, so why not?  We can't wait to meet our precious baby girl and love her so much already.

Here are some pictures of our recent beach trip and of Luke's birthday party.  He's not quite seven yet... but he had his party a few weeks early.