“Are there a lot of boys and girls without Mommies or Daddies in Africa?” he asked me. “Yes,” I replied, “lots and lots of boys and girls without Mommies or Daddies in Africa.” Tuck sat up from under his covers and pulled my face close to his, “Then bring them all home from Africa when you go.” I laughed, and my heart skipped a beat with pride in his compassion and sadness at the plight of orphans. “We can’t” I said. And he looked at me with his piercing eyes, pulled me closer, and demanded simply, “Why not?” And as I cuddled him close and explained that we couldn’t care for millions of children by ourselves, I remembered how often God had whispered that very question to us this past year. He whispered it when we asked how we (a minister and a stay-at-home mom) could afford to bring home a child from North Africa, when we thought a major tax error couldn’t be fixed for the good of our adoption process, when we doubted that we could raise more than $1,000 at a yard sale, when we thought we couldn’t go from renting to owning a home without spending our adoption savings … HE was there responding to our answers based on human logic and reason with His question of “I am GOD and WHY NOT?” Recently, we have gotten lots of questions from others about where we are in our adoption progress. I hesitate to even write this because I don’t want people to stop asking questions. We LOVE questions about our adoption -- how things are going, how much longer, how we are feeling (most of the time -- a little overwhelmed about the money, rather sad about the length of time, joyful to be experiencing both of those emotions if it’s part of the journey of bringing our child home), etc. Questions show us you care, that you want to know us, that you are invested (even if it’s a tiny bit) in our story. Sometimes, it feels a little lonely taking this course. It is definitely not the “typical” way of bringing home a baby (I laugh at myself at how hard I thought it was not knowing EXACTLY when our first two kids were going to come into our world … nine months or less seems a lot less broad now). So, in our desire to share the journey (and we are so grateful that you want to) … here is the “predicted” path (the red is what we have finished, the underlined blue part is where we are currently) … though as we are learning, not much is predictable in adoption. *Submit application 1 *Submit application 2 *Complete homestudy *Work on government paperwork (Dossier) and raise $5,000 so we can submit it *Wait and wait and wait for a referral (information and pictures) of our child (the wait is anywhere between 6-14 months) And in the meantime work on saving and raising lots of money! *Receive referral (after accepting the referral we wait 3-6 months before we go) *1st trip- Meet child and go to court to finalize adoption (about a week long trip) *Leave our child there (return home and wait about 6-8 LONG weeks before going back) *2nd trip- complete an Embassy appointment and receive child's visa (1-2 week trip). *Bring our child home with us!!! As you can see, we are currently in a holding place. We can’t move forward until we have the next installment of $5,000. We have debated over and prayed about how to raise this next payment, and we finally have a few ideas. So here are our current fundraisers: PARENT’S Pre-Valentine’s NIGHT OUT! The details: Ben and Beth Edfeldt are hosting Parents’ Night Out. The children (3 months to 5th grade) will enjoy a Valentine craft, pizza dinner, and more fun! Space is limited. Sign up soon! ALL PROFITS will go to our adoption fund! When: Saturday, February11th, 2012 from 6-9 p.m. Where: TBD Cost: by donation Click here to register (be sure to put how many kids and ages)
As you can also see we still have a rather lengthy road ahead. But it would mean so much to us if you would stick with us, consider supporting our fundraising efforts, encourage us, pray with us, and keep asking us questions.
*Let me say, I am really impressed and grateful that you made it all the way here to the last line of this very long blog entry. I stood this afternoon and watched her through the tiny crack in the door. Libby was supposed to be napping but instead she was using her beloved giraffe and owl to do a puppet show over the side of her crib. The light was streaming through her windows glittering across her face and her toddler babble tumbled out like sweet music. I stood enchanted by my little glimpse of her unaware.
He tugged at me while I was working on dinner and asked me to turn on the “Baby” music. I smiled and followed Tuck into the living room. I cranked up the volume to the The Supremes “Baby Love” and we grabbed hands and slid around the floor, spinning in our socks and Libby joined us laughing. The room danced with magic and my heart overflowed. I needed these moments. I needed the reminders. Libby kept me up most of the night, and she woke up this morning acting exactly like a toddler who got 5 hours of sleep the night before. Tucker woke up this morning seeming to have forgotten about obedience to me and kindness to his sister. After lunch, I found Libby with a marker in her hand and drawings on our rug, floor, and couch. And a few minutes later, I discovered the dog had gotten into the trash and shredded a diaper all over the kids’ room. My patience was low and my frustration was high. And then they were there, captivating me with their sweetness. Her creativity. His eagerness. Their preciousness. I felt overwhelmed by the privilege it was to be their mom, so grateful and humbled to be a part of this sacred task called parenting. People ask me why we want to adopt, and I think about moments like these. I think about how I see my children at their absolute cutest, funniest, kindest, and I see them when they’re throwing fits and drawing on furniture and glaring at me stubbornly and at all times my love for them is constant. And then I think about all of the orphans out there who may never get to experience the unconditional love of an earthly parent. The kids who have no one to catch them being adorable when no one else is looking, no Mommy to dance with, no Daddy to wrestle with, no one to tuck them in at night. And I can’t imagine not giving those things to at least one child. I can’t imagine missing out on more moments that take my breath away. I can’t imagine missing my third child’s lessons for me about laughter and grace and patience and love. And I pray that God, who sees all of my selfishness and pride and wretchedness, catches glimpses of goodness in me. I am overwhelmed that HE adopted me and pulled me out of the mire and took my hand to dance through life with me. I am overjoyed that He loves me with a beautiful- unfailing, unwavering, uncompromising love. He fills me up with this constant love. I just want to share it. -beth |
AuthorWe are a family of five (Ben, Beth, Tucker, Libby, and Zane). We started this blog during our 7 year journey to bring home a child through adoption. This is our story of how God is faithful in the good, the bad, and all the in between. Archives
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