Tuesday, May 2, 2017

Remembering: May 1st, 2015

I'm just going to come out and give you a warning: this may get long! Proceed with caution...or coffee! 

I never dreamed that anything would happen. I knew being matched could take anywhere from a few days to months. I was counting on months. I was completely unsuspecting when I got a call from our family coordinator on that Friday morning. I figured she was calling to ask another question about our dossier, or ask for some more paperwork.

I have never been so happy to be wrong completely wrong. 

The moment that our family coordinator asked me if I had a some time to talk, I knew something was up. Then, the magical words were spoken. "Well, I have a little girl that I think would be perfect for your family. Would you like to hear about her?!" 

Ummm, yes please!! This was the moment we were waiting for! 

She began to give me basic details over the phone about this little girl:

Her name is Pallavi.
Her estimated birth date is September 17, 2012. She's 2.5.
She's at an orphanage in Machilipatnam, Andhra Pradesh.
Her adoption would require two trips and likely, a longer process.
She had a tumor in her left eye which was operated on and removed.

Her file was bare. No medical reports, no child study reports. Typically, a file would include these things for prospective parents to review. The above information was all we had.

Of course, my mind was spinning with so many questions.  "What kind of tumor was it?", "Was it cancerous?", "Can she see?" "Did she have chemotherapy or radiation?" "Is that a real eye, or a prosthetic eye?"

The only response our family coordinator had for me was. "I don't have any other information to give you right now."

Towards the end of our conversation, she told me that she did have four pictures of her that she would send if we wanted.  These were the first four pictures that we saw of our daughter.







When we saw those pictures, our hearts melted. Mark immediately said how beautiful she was, and this mama just couldn't get over how sweet her little lips were! She was precious.

After staring at her pictures for a while, I knew I had seen her little newborn face before. In the beginning of our process our agency had a password protected waiting child photo listing (they have since removed this due to remaining compliant with India's guidelines for sharing orphan's photos) that I would look at pretty often. I had seen Pallavi's baby picture before. I remember clicking to learn more about the sweet little baby with a blurry picture.

I remember seeing "tumor, vision impairment/partial blindness, 2.5"

I remember thinking "scary, not so sure about serious vision issues, and that 2.5 seemed old."

I still think it's funny that I remember her so specifically. I think it's definitely one of my favorite Proverbs 16:9 (we make plans, but the Lord directs our steps) moments. She was not quite what I had imagined for our family. Honestly, I imagined being matched with a child that was around a year old...maybe bringing a 2 year old home. Thankfully, He is in control and I am not.

We began to fall in love. We studied those four photos like it was our job. Since it was Friday, we took the rest of the weekend to pray for wisdom and guidance and clarity. The fact was, we had seen this sweet girl. Even with all the unknowns, we didn't know how we could walk away from her...

Sunday, April 30, 2017

Remembering: April 30th, 2015

I've decided that I want to go back and share the moments and thoughts that we experienced during our process that I wasn't able to share as they were happening.

Remembering these moments is good for me. They remind me of the Lord's faithfulness and His sovereignty over everything. We are still adjusting and learning our "new normal", but Our Sweet P is finally home!! I got to read her a bedtime story, give her a kiss, and tuck her into bed tonight. We are so incredibly thankful for this journey.



April 30, 2015 was a day that we had been waiting and praying for. It took an excruciating 2.5 months from CARINGS registration to approval. Families who were registered after us, were being approved before us. Little did I know, that would be how our process would continue.

But God knew. He took all the waiting and tears and turned them into something beautiful. Our daughter. 

Two years ago, my phone rang at 6:59 am and our family coordinator from our agency told us that we had been approved by CARA and we were officially waiting for a match!

Two and a half hours after that phone call, I got another phone call from our agency. It was our family coordinator calling again to ask how close we were to finishing our dossier. We were close. We only needed a couple more documents to complete it. She told me to keep working and to get it finished as soon as we could.

I never imagined that in the following 24 hours after our approval that our lives would be forever changed. That we would see the face of our daughter. The one who God had planned for our family...


Saturday, April 29, 2017

5th month of forever

On April 20th, we celebrated five months home with our girl! This little cutie is such a gift to our family! We love her so much.



Things to remember:



-We went to the Renaissance Festival as a family! Maya did so well, considering it was quite the overwhelming experience.
-She's been attending the preschool class in church and doing pretty well!
-The boys introduced her to "Bamboozled"...the gross tasting jellybean game. Her facial expressions were hilarious.
-Maya had her first Easter, complete with THREE egg hunts (and Starbust jellybeans, which actually taste good)! I guess we just made up for the lost years. ;)
-She took our her conformer twice in one week!
-First dentist visit. She did great and has perfect teeth! Yay!


Likes:




-Band-aids
-Daniel Tiger
-Paw Patrol
-bubbles
-being outside
-playing with her brothers
-legos
-Moana
-puzzles
-reading books
-sleep (I finally got a child who doesn't wake up at 5:30am!!!)

Dislikes:



-having to take time out of your Easter celebration to take a couple photos because you've been home for 5 months. (Resulting in the photo above).
-syrup
-cinnamon rolls
-I can't come up with a lot of these because she's a pretty joyful kiddo!



Wednesday, March 22, 2017

THIRD and FOURTH months of forever.

Well, it's time to catch up the good old blog! Since I never got around to posting about her third month, I'll just combine! :)

Things to remember:


{Month THREE}



-Went to her first Daddy and Daughter dance!








-Received her Certificate of Citizenship on February 2nd!

-Met her Nanny Judy and Papa Tim (her amazing sponsors who loved her and cared for her financially while she was in the orphanage. In an effort to keep this post fairly short and sweet, I'll just mention that we serve an AWESOME God. He had his hand on Maya and stirred Judy and Tim's hearts to meet our girl's needs from afar. We are so thankful for them!!

-First time being really sick at home

-Watched Trolls like 7,698 times...she can recite the parts of the movie!

-Went to homeschool group for the first time.

-Said, "I love you, Mommy." unprompted for the first time (February 27th)

-Said "I like Mommy, but I want to play with my brothers now". (We were having a tea party, but she had much more exciting things to do with her big brothers)


{Month FOUR}




-English is really starting to improve! So proud of Maya and her ability to learn.

-Mommy and Maya pedis

-Listening to Maya sing "The Name Of Jesus" by Hillsong worship while we were driving in the car. This girl loves to sing.

-We had our own little Holi celebration. Holi is the festival of color that celebrates the victory of good over evil, the end of winter, and the arrival of spring. All the kids LOVED throwing the colored powder at each other!






-Maya refers to Mason and Maxden as "my boys"


Likes:

-Still Trolls ;)
-Horses
-Nerf Guns
-Basketball
-Playing outside
-Riding bikes and scooters
-swinging
-coloring
-listening to music (mostly Trolls soundtrack and worship music)
-having her nails painted
-pink and purple
-salad
-"reading" books

Dislikes:

-macaroni and cheese
-ham
-doing something different than her big brothers
-monkeys

Our sweet P really is a such a sweetheart! We're so thankful to have her in our family. She's such a wonderful reminder of God's faithfulness.

Here's a little video from her fourth month! Enjoy!



Tuesday, January 24, 2017

Second month of forever


This is being posted a little late, but life is crazy! Our sweet girl has been home for two months as of January 20, 2017!  


Things to remember

  • You were HOME for Christmas...what a dream come true!
  • You can ride a bike!
  • You prayed for the first time on your own. 
  • You got to play in the snow...and you loved it!
  • You got your first pair of glasses.
  • We painted your toenails! 
  • Fist visit to the ocularist on January 13th. 
  • Got a conformer for your eye.
  • Went to Sunday school for the first time (mommy taught preschoolers so you went in too!)
  • Your first tiny ponytail! 




Likes

  • Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches
  • Swinging on the swing set
  • Paw Patrol, Super Why, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Sofia the First
  • Dancing to the Trolls soundtrack...and just dancing in general
  • Praying to Jesus
  • Nerf guns
  • Dressing up in princess costumes




    Dislikes

    • Being told "No"
    • Not doing EXACTLY what your brothers are doing
    • Wearing clothes that aren't "girly" colors 
    There's really not much that you dislike. You're a pretty joyful kiddo!


    We love you Maya Pallavi. You are a true testament to the Lord's faithfulness. We're so blessed to have you in our family!

    Here's a little slideshow of Maya's second month home.



    Tuesday, December 20, 2016

    First month of forever.

    I know, I know.

    I am AWFUL at this blogging stuff. The last time I updated the blog was in September. We found out that we did not pass our first court hearing and were waiting for our second hearing on the 26th of September.

    Well...I have some catching up to do, but in case you didn't know...our sweet Maya Pallavi is finally HOME!! Back in the beginning of September, I really thought that we would go another Christmas without our daughter, but the Lord made a way for her to be home before Thanksgiving!

    We arrived in Phoenix on November 20, 2016 at 12pm after being in India for a month!




    We've had an awesome first month home! We're finding our new "normal" and she is adjusting better than we ever could have expected. Yes, there are extremely hard moments, but this adoption process is continuing to remind of the grace that we can extend because of the grace we are so freely given.



    My amazing sister in love took these photos for us on Thankgiving! Never have to hold a picture frame again! It's still so surreal to see her in our family photos! We are so very thankful.



    Our little Christmas blessing. We prayed for this. God is so faithful!






    Things to remember:



    • You weigh 33lbs. 4oz. and are 40 inches tall! You've gained about 2 lbs! 
    • Your goofy dance moves.
    • How absolutely terrified of the dogs you were...it took 8 days for you to be OK with them. You're still not so sure about Miles. Molly is becoming your little puppy pal! You like Mitzy...Mitzy is afraid of you! 
    • You have had your share of meltdowns, but are calmed by rocking in the glider with mommy. Usually, at the end, you open up about your past. You love talking about Babies Home and all your friends there. 
    • You learned how to how to pedal a tricycle.
    • You're learning to speak in phrases and short sentences. You understand so much of what we say to you!
    • You love music and dancing
    • You are very expressive. You have the best facial expressions!
    • We ordered your first pair of glasses.
    • How you ask to be carried in the Tula carrier. 
    • You love your baby cousins Edison and Lylah.
    • You sing "Jesus Loves Me" and "Jingle Bells".
    Likes:



    • Minnie Mouse
    • Eating (Seriously, you can eat man-sized portions of tacos and spaghetti...you also like pizza, carrots, apples, bananas, oatmeal, salmon, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and potato chips. You LOVE chips.  )
    • Sleeping (you sleep from 7:30pm-7:30am!)
    • Princesses and playing dress up
    • Playdough and painting
    • Trolls
    • Playing outside
    • Dancing and listening to music
    • Playing with your brothers and their friends! You love all the Nerf guns, superheros, and toy cars that we have here! ;)
    Dislikes:



    • Cheese
    • Not getting your way
    • Sweet breakfast food like cinnamon rolls, muffins, or donuts (we're working on it! LOL!)
    • When other people have shoes on in the house and you don't!


    And as if that wasn't enough picture overload, here's a little slideshow of our first month home! 



    Friday, September 2, 2016

    And if not, He is still good.

    Sometimes things just don't go the way we want.

    Sometimes you can pray all the prayers, believe all the things, have all the hope...

    And still find yourself in a place of disappointment.


    This is where we are after our court hearing on Wednesday. A familiar place of sadness, disappointment, and more waiting.

    Unfortunately, we did not pass in one hearing, and our next hearing is scheduled for September 26th. A little over 3 weeks from now which seems like an eternity, but I know it will come quickly.

    Today, our family coordinator offered a bit of encouragement. "It's not the movement that we had hoped for, but it's movement, and any movement is still good." She's right. She will come home. It may not be in my timing, but someday we'll finally get the call to book plane tickets and hotels. Until then, we just have to keep trusting, praying, and hoping.

    The crazy thing is late that night on the 30th, something in my heart knew that things wouldn't go the way I wanted. The same experience happened on the way to my OB appointments where we found out that we were miscarrying a few years ago. As I scrolled on Facebook, these two posts were literally one right after the other. God really used these words to comfort me, even before the hurt began...


    "Really, right now: you're going to be okay... 
    There is a plan & there is a purpose & there is a God in heaven who didn’t just ink you onto the palm of His hands but etched your name right into Himself with nails & He’s hasn’t just got your number, He’s got your heart. He sees you, hidden in Him, & you aren’t ever forgotten because God can’t forget those right in Him.
    His perfect love absorbs all your fears tonight & His perfect grace carries all your burdens, & your story is a happily ever after because Christ bought your happily ever after --- so you *always know how this story ends*: 
    You’re going to be okay."

    -Ann Voskamp



    "..sometimes it's ridiculously hard to know how to live through the stuff we're facing & you know, maybe this is it:
    "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." 1Thess5:18

    So maybe there's our map through our Wednesday -- we will crush our complaints with thanks -- we will not give in to cynicism, we will not give up to discouragement.
    Let's be cheerful, prayerful, thankful -- to keep the day from becoming: awful.
    Today's game changer: There is always, always, always something to be thankful for."


    -Ann Voskamp


    So, here were are yet again in another month of waiting. Please continue to lift our family up in prayer. We appreciate your prayers, hugs, encouragement, and support more than you'll know. I'm praying that September 26th will be our final court hearing.



    "But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up." 
    Daniel 3:18