Eternal Perspective!!

This past weekend I had the opportunity to go to Nashville to be at the airport when my sister's 3 kids (through adoption) from Ethiopia arrived HOME for the first time!  It was really amazing to see them get off that plane and jump for joy!!  Knowing they were HOME for GOOD is something I'm sure they could not have ever imagined!!  But they are home now!!  And it is a great thing!!  The smiles that day were priceless!!

Watching all of this take place caused quite the stirring in my heart!!  Not only did I meet my new nieces and nephew, but at an adoption fundraiser I was able to meet and see many other kids who had been adopted by families in the Nashville area.  These kids were precious!  A part of a family!  It was very cool to see all this before my eyes knowing we will have Crew in a short time!!  And it was AWESOME to get to talk to a couple of people who have actually held Crew and spent some time with him at the orphanage!!

I'm ready!  I'm ready for Crew to be at our home and living our daily life with us!  We will all have to adjust a little here and a little there.  Just like at my sister's house, it will take some time to get to "normal."  But that will happen, just as it does when bringing home a newborn.  It's all new!  I kept thinking, "had they NOT brought these kids into their lives.....where would these kids be in a few years?  Just a few days ago they were in an orphanage!  Now they are HOME with their FAMILY!"  Whew!!!  Simply wonderful!!  Hard?  Maybe for a time.  Worth it?  Yes!

Eternal perspective!!  Without it, everything is hopeless!!

Thanks for all your prayers and support!!!  xoxo!!  Debbi

No biggee....it'll all work out!

So, we were delayed by a day....heading to OKC tomorrow, instead of today!!  I keep telling myself "GOD HAS A PLAN" and I believe it!!   :)

Then, heading to Nashville Friday to meet my new nieces, Kali (6) and Bennet (10) and my new nephew, Kaleb (6), who arrive HOME on Saturday from Ethiopia.  Cannot wait!!

Thank you to all of you who pray for us and this roller coaster journey we are on called adoption!!  What a ride!!!  MUCH LOVE!!!  xoxo!!  Debbi

I'm so exicted...I just can't hide it!!

Yep, soo excited today!!  Our Home Study is COMPLETE and the agency is overnighting us the forms we need to get our Dossier authenticated!!  Steve and I will go to OKC tomorrow to get'er done!!!  EEkkkk!!  This makes me so happy!!  It's another step and it is such a huge one!!  Once the papers are mailed off tomorrow, we will wait!!  I know I've done all I can humanly do.  I feel a lot of pressure off of me.....even though it truly is all God's doing.  I'm just the vessel.  Now we will anticipate getting our court date and we will start planning the trip for Steve to take to Ethiopia!!  I cannot wait for Steve and Crew to meet for the first time and for Steve to call me and tell me all about it!!  Part of me wishes I could go, too, but I just don't want to leave the other kids at home, so it is what it is and I will get to see pictures!!  And that's exciting, too!!  Steve is so awesome with kids, I know it will be such a neat moment for him to meet his new son!  Okay, I'm full of emotions, so this is all for now!!  I can't see through the tears anymore to type!!  LOL!!  Keep us in your prayers....and Crew!!  I know God is holding him tight until we can!!!  xoxo!!  Debbi

P.S.  A dear friend of mine, Cyndi, surprised us by doing a fundraiser for Crew.  She sells Silpada jewelry.  From now until March 1st you can order from her and the profit will go directly to our adoption for Crew.  What a blessing to us!!!  Her contact info is:

To Order please contact Cyndi Cagle
Silpada Representative
337-274-2412
cyndicagle@gmail.com
Orders can be emailed to Cyndi, Please leave contact information so she can contact you for payment info. All major credit cards are accepted. Orders cannot be placed on Silpada websites. You must contact Cyndi.

To view entire collection visit her website:
www.mysilpada.com/cyndi.cagle

THANK YOU, FRIENDS!!  Crew is coming HOME soon!!  :)

Kingdom sacrifice!

SUCH GREAT NEWS!  My sister and her family found out this week that they have the clear to go PICK UP AND BRING HOME their THREE kids from Ethiopia, ages 6, 6 and 10.  SOOOO EXCITING!!!  I can't wait to get to Nashville now, to help her with some last minute things before the kids get HOME.  AND I CANNOT WAIT TO HUG THEIR PRECIOUS NECKS and tell them I LOVE THEM!!!  And that I have a little boy named CREW in Ethiopia that will be here SOON and is their cousin!!!  Soo excited!!!

I wish everyone was as excited as I am!!  I guess it's like a new car in a way.  When some friends of ours got a new Suburban many years ago, they told everyone, "You have got to get a Suburban!"  I thought, "Yikes!!  Why would I want a Suburban!!  They're huge!!!"  But guess what?  I got a Suburban after I rode in theirs.  It's big!!  It's roomy!!!  And it was great having a Suburban with 3 kids under 5!!  And that's when I understood where their excitement came from!  They had experienced it!  I wish everyone could experience ADOPTION and be so EXCITED about it!!  I wish everyone wanted to adopt a child or a few....so they would know how awesome it feels to know you changed that child's life FOREVER!!!

But I know not everyone will adopt!  I get that!!  Not everyone wants a Suburban!!  LOL!  But if you don't, you can still be a part of it in another way!!  What they are doing by adopting is AMAZING!  It is SELFLESS!  It is LOVING!  It is a SACRIFICE!  And it is a CHOICE!!  But God did call ALL of us to help the orphans....so if you do not feel led to adopt a child, please support someone who is!!  My sister is bringing home THREE children.  The cost to do that is over $50,000......just in adoption fees.  Not living expenses!  YES, people who adopt know how much it is going to cost!!  That doesn't matter!!  They find a way!!  If it means getting a loan, they will!!  If it means getting a second mortgage on their house, they will.  If it means selling t-shirts and having fundraisers, they will!!  If it means a spending freeze on everything else, they do it!!  Nothing will stop them from this calling!!  But, wouldn't it be so INCREDIBLE if everyone they knew helped a little?  Maybe $10.  Maybe $100.  Maybe $1000. Maybe more!  And there is a benefit to the giver, besides the obvious blessing; it can be tax deductible!!  So maybe try skipping eating out one day this week....help an orphan who doesn't eat 3 meals a day!!  Forget that big vacation just once.....help an orphan who just wants a HOME!!  New pair of jeans?  How about for the orphan instead who only has 1 outfit (if he's lucky)!!!  Manicure?  Picture the little hands on that orphan and maybe you could do without one time and help an orphan get home!!   Think how awesome it would be to be a part of something sooo big!!!  Even if no one else knows.....GOD KNOWS!!!!  THIS has ETERNAL VALUE!!

James 1:27 says, "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world."

Please contact me if you want to help!! We have partnered with World Wide Compassion to help bring home orphans!!  When you give to WWC, it is tax deductible!  If you don't need a tax deduction, give anyway!  The reward will be worth the sacrifice!!  Kingdom sacrifice is what I call it!!  :)

By the way, we are just waiting for our homestudy papers so we can send off our Dossier!!!   After that, we wait again....for our court date!!!  One more step closer!!  It's all God's timing!!  *Crew, I can't wait until we are heading to the airport to bring you home, little buddy!!  Your family is waiting!!!!*