Do you love coffee?

Do you love coffee? If so, we have a just the opportunity for you! The company "Just Love Coffee" has a great fundraising program for adoptive families. The Webb's, who own the company, are adoptive parents themselves of two girls from Ethiopia. They wanted to help help orphans and they have experience in the coffee roasting business, so they have started this great program.

You can sign up to receive a bag or bags of coffee every month, every other month, or you can just make a single purchase. Each pound is $12.95 and we receive $5 for each and every pound of coffee purchased. We also receive a percentage of all products purchased~T-shirts, mugs, scoops... The beans are freshly roasted~as in you place an order, then they will roast them for you! Christmas is coming~this would make a great gift and will help us bring our son home from Ethiopia at the same time!

We are so appreciative for the opportunity to share their great products. So, if you LOVE coffee, please check out our storefront by clicking the link here: https://www.justlovecoffee.com/AdamsAdoption

We are so thankful for your support!

I promise...

...to post more about our postponement. Honestly it is just easier for me not to think and or talk about it right now so I haven't wanted to post. I will though...once I can pull myself together a bit. I want to record every aspect of this journey for us and for our son.... thanks for being patient with me and thanks for our support.

We were postponed

Our court date was postponed to Nov 23rd.

Today Was The Day

The key word is WAS. Today is almost over and I wish I had something to share, something to report. But alas I do not. I knew this would be the case, but it doesn't make it any easier. Our agency (Holt) in all its conservative ethical glory has recently changed their policy and doesn't confirm passing court until they have the formal paper decree in hand which takes the court about 5 days to issue. I guess there are often contingencies on the ruling that is issued (i.e. tge Ministry of Womens Affairs in ET had errors in their paperwork or forgot some paperwork or something of the like) and Holt's staff in ET does not feel comfortable sharing the news until they have the paper decree in hand.

To say that today was anticlimactic and difficult all in one would be an understatement. The fact of the matter is that legally Cullen could be our son already, but we have no idea if this is the case or if we will have to wait another 4 months for those sweet words to be true. It is probably my fault...I built this day up in my mind so much. It was our day of reckoning. We have already waiting almost 4 months since first seeing his sweet face including a 2 week delay from a reschedule from our first date of Oct 7th. But today came and I spent it crying rather than celebrating. It seems like an unfair joke, that we have to wait an extra week when he could already be our son. I am frustrated and sad. I am mad at my agency (even if they have good reason to do it). I need to pull myself out of this slump. Monday we should at least be able to find out if we were rescheduled or did not pass...if we don't get word of that on Monday, then we are allowed to assume that we are just waiting for the official paper decree to be issued (i.e. we passed). I am just emotionally spent. I have said it before and I will say it again...it feels like I am running a race and someone keeps moving the finish line on me. Fortunately this is more like a mile marker...the finish line should still be the same if we have passed but this step in the process is just a mile longer than it was supposed to be.

Okay...I need to distract myself again or the insanity will take over. I have no idea how I will make it to Monday, let alone Thursday or Friday.
I WANT MY BOY HOME!!!!!!!!

36 Hours?

So in about 36 hours our case will hopefully have been heard and approved by a judge in Ethiopia. I am praying that all the pieces fall into place for us to pass. That the power doesn't go out, that they didn't schedule too many cases and actually get to ours, that the Ministry of Womens Affairs did not make any mistakes in their paperwork, that his mother shows up. Please pray with me...our little boy needs to be home.

From RI To AZ to ET...

And so...my friend Bethany and her husband just got back from ET and bringing home their beautiful 3 year old daughter Mikayla. Unfortunately Bethany got sick on the way home and has been battling a nasty bug since Friday so we haven't heard much from them about their trip. But, I have gotten bits of info from her over the past few days (unfortunately not much about their trip/daughter except the snippets from short posts, etc) and I am truely grateful to her and amazed again at God's grace.
I will give you the short of the long of it...but basically, Bethany was able to see and touch our son while she was in ET last week! To say this is nothing short of a miracle would be true...for all the children in the care center and the fact that he is a baby in the nursery and not with the children her daughters age and that our agency does not let families look for other families children, that she was even able to see him is beyond my expectations. But the fact that she was able to grab his little hands and touch him...love from his mommy in RI to AZ to ET. Who else but God can make something so small, but so meaningful, possible?
She said you can recognize him right away because of his cheeks (if you have seen his pictures you know what I am talking about...the sweetest baby cheeks you have ever seen). And that he chunky and healthy!!
On the heels of the disappointment of delayed court this is a sweet way for God to sustain me!!!!!
Thank you Bethany!!!

It's Oct 7th in Ethiopia Already...

Enough said for tonight. I am wallowing in self pity. I will try to pick my head up tomorrow. But for now, I am nursing my aching heart.
Godspeed my little man. Mommy loves you.

Bad News

So we just got word that our court date for Oct 7th has been rescheduled. I am so dissappointed. We are waiting longer than most families as is because the courts have been closed for the past 6 weeks and now we learn today that our wait will be another 2 weeks longer.
So I had been hearing rumors that the courts were not planning to open as scheduled next week in time for our court date. I didn't believe the rumors at first because they run rampant among families waiting for any news of progress. And our agency had not heard news as of yesterday. But then today I heard definite news from families with other agencies who had court dates for next week that had just been postponed. When I finally got in touch with our Agency today, just a few minutes before the email went out to notify us of what they had learned, we found out that our date was rescheduled for Oct 22nd because the courts were not hearing cases for an additional 2 weeks after reopening because of "staff training."
That is the only good news in all of this. Rather than just having our date canceled, it was fortunately rescheduled for just 2 weeks later. I am trying my best to stay positive but I really am so bummed about this news. It feels like my friend Robyn put it, like we are running a race and the finish keeps getting moved futher and further back the more we run.
Anyway...welcome to the uncertainty of interantional adoption. This is the way it looks folk. Its not easy and its not fun. Please pray that our date actually happens this time on the 22nd and that we pass on that date (it is very possible for us to not pass through because our case wasn't heard because there wasn't enough staff, the electricity went out, they scheduled too many cases for the day, etc.). Without having to have 2 or 3 or 4 court dates, we are still way longer than most any families to pick up or son. I really can't handle another setback. Also, please pray for Cullen and those caring for him. The best place for him is in the arms of his family. Arms that are aching to hold him and bring him home. I HATE all these obstacles. I know these two weeks will be a blip on the radar screen one day but for today they are so difficult.