Congratulations Adam and Mary

Adam and Mary didn't have the kind of Christmas they had planned for. Far from it in fact.

In the days leading up to Christmas, Mary had been uncharacteristically preparing their nursery; organizing, cleaning, and nesting.  And on Christmas Eve morning, Mary had been praying specifically for their adoption and their little one who would someday be in their arms.

Christmas Eve afternoon they got the call that a little girl had been born. A little girl who needed a family. They held their breath and that evening found out the birth mother had chosen them to be her parents.

So Christmas day was spent traveling several hours in anticipation of a moment they had dreamed of. A little girl to add to their family of three little boys (boys who were all eagerly praying for a sister).

A sweet girl who was the answer to all of their prayers.

Sometimes our plans for timing, or holidays, or life don't work out quite as we anticipate. 

But God's ways are higher.

God's dreams are bigger.

And God's plans are always better than ours.

Merry Christmas, Adam and Mary. I'm so thankful we serve a God who gives such good gifts.

Congratulations Jay and Brandi

This year, these sweet little girls are bringing home a baby brother for Christmas.

Their parents, Jay and Brandi began with me at Christian Adoption Consultants in June. Three months later, they were matched with their beautiful birth mother. And just this past weekend, their son was born.

The best gifts come in small packages. This one was exactly 7 pounds, 6 ounces.

It will be a very Merry Christmas for Jay and Brandi and two very proud big sisters!

Congratulations Matt and Jayme

This is another adoption story that can only be explained by God and his amazing timing...

Matt and Jayme started their adoption process in November. When I say started, I mean they began with me at Christian Adoption Consultants and with their home study process just over five weeks ago.

I need to track the dates just so you can appreciate their story:

November 7th - began with CAC and started their home study 

November 21st - I created and printed their profile for prospective birth families 

December 5th - their home study was approved

That day when they emailed to say their were home study approved, this was our conversation via email:

Jayme: So - what are the chances of us having our baby by Christmas?? LOL!! I know, slim to none, but a girl can hope, right? :)

Me: I would say the chances are slim but totally not impossible. We'll see about God's timing!!!!

And then, not 5 minutes later I sent her a situation. A birthmama from Jayme's hometown, due in several weeks and wanting to make an adoption plan.

For Matt and Jayme, there was no hesitation. They sent their profile and a heartfelt letter to the birth mother and a unabandoned "yes" to whatever God had for them.

December 13th they were matched.

December 14th they got the call that their birth mama was in labor.

Hours later they were parents. 

Jayme was right. A girl can hope. A family can be made before Christmas. 

And God can surprise us all with his seemingly impossible timing.

It Was Not a Silent Night

It was not a silent night, there was blood on the ground...

The beginning to Andrew Peterson's ballad, Labor of Love aren't the typical jovial Christmas lyrics we're so used to hearing this season. More the norm in coffee shops and stores are songs of sleigh rides, decking the halls, and having a holly, jolly Christmas.

The Christmas holiday is filled with warm memories, lighted nativities, family traditions, and good cheer. We focus on a chubby little baby; laid in a manger. The sweet smelling hay and the young mother with an angelic look on her face. I had someone recently tell me that although we think of Christmas as being all merriment and cheer, that wasn't God's design at all. 

The first Christmas was a declaration of war. It was God coming into the world to change everything.

He came to declare war on suffering, sin, and sadness. The chubby baby in a manger would later calm storms with just a word. The mother with an angelic look on her face would someday watch her son hang on a tree like a criminal. 

Christmas acts to magnify everything in our lives. It highlights our joy and our pain. Our celebrations and our heartaches. Togetherness and loneliness. I have to be honest. This year I'm banking on the fact that Christ came into the world to change everything. There will be no sentimentality in our home this year; there is little room for it.

But there will be advent to celebrate. 

Living in the tension of a God that lived in skin and walked on this Earth. Who came to start the war on death and brokenness. And that someday, he will come again. To make all the sad things untrue and fix the heartache.

And to ultimately save and redeem everything.

This is what makes Christmas something to celebrate. Not a sentiment to write on a Christmas card, but a reality that we can put all of our faith in a Savior who came and a conqueror who will come again.

This is the real good news of Christmas. For all of us.

Andrew Peterson's Labor of Love

In Their Own Words: An Adoptive Mama Shares How Their Adoption is Affecting Others

I have the honor and privilege of walking with some amazing families. And sometimes I'm lucky and they become dear friends. This was the case with Brandy, an adoptive mama with an amazing story of how their daughter came into their family. If you missed it, take a quick moment to get the back story here. After Thanksgiving, Brandy recently shared these thoughts with me about their adoption, it's impact on those around her, and her insight from this side of her journey....

It's all about perspective...

This post will be a nice little mix between personal story and insights.  In my life it is difficult to divorce the two.  My best insights come from living my life and learning along the way.  I do confess, though, that there are times I would rather learn the lessons without the living it first.  But we all know life doesn't work like that, right?

So, several weeks ago we celebrated Thanksgiving and as usual, I wrestled all month to be thankful...not because I didn't have things to be thankful for, but because gratitude is not my primary mode of emoting. I normally get caught up in the day-in-and-day-out of living that I forget to be grateful. And even more than that, I often forget to direct my thanksgiving to the Lord - the Giver of Everything.

We traveled to see family for the holiday. And while I love visiting family, it is always a test of patience with five kiddos. This year, though, we were able to take along our newest kiddo and introduce her to several family members and friends for the first time. Obviously, all these people knew we were adopting, had brought home a baby, etc. etc. What I didn't realize, though, was the magnificent affect our obedience would have on different people around us.

We were asked question after question, many times the same ones we just answered. I was tempted to feel a bit like a broken record or like I was trying to prove that Eden was as wonderful as she is. But then, perspective hit.  These people were rubbing up against our decision of love and obedience and now had to decide how they were going to respond - to either be pressed on in their journey with the Lord or to hold back and shut off the opportunity. It was actually interesting to watch peoples' faces. And I am very grateful to have married into a family that generally wants to press deeper into God's heart - to obey and try to count the cost. Personal obedience to the Lord always affects those around you. It is never really just about you.  Just as iron sharpens iron, our choices to obey make a witness of the Lord to those around us.

Another epiphany struck me over this past holiday. I was at my in-laws holding my new bundle of joy (she really is so joyful!) and I realized, God really does know what He is doing. Twelve months ago, I was a jumble of hurt and disappointment and was ready to just give up. Then as the year turned and we matched with a birth mother rather unexpectedly, my hopes soared. Then they were crushed again as that birth momma delivered her daughter without contacting the agency and walked out of hospital rightfully choosing to keep her baby. That was so hard for me as I would never ever want to separate a mom from her child, but I had placed so much hope and expectation in that potential. So many other things this year came cascading down.  And it was a real war in my heart to trust the Lord and His plans for our lives. 

And then there I was, sitting at my in-laws, holding Eden, and the Lord sweet reminders began to sink down into my mind and heart. God knows...He knows what He's is doing. 

He knows the process He is taking each of our families through. He knows the why. He knows the how. He knows the length of time. 

He knows the hurts we will walk through and He know the joys He will explode in our hearts.  

A Link Too Good Not to Share

Last night I read a blog that was linked to my facebook page. As I sat at my computer at my dining room table, sipping coffee in my yoga pants, I wept.

I know I'm late to the game since it was first posted in September, but it's good enough to post. And share. And shout.

The Generational Effects of Adoption

Adoption brings significant, far-reaching, eternal change.

Adoption is a multi-generational love story.


Adoption, at it's truest, reflects the gospel.


Read it.  And while you're over at Jason's blog, read more under his Orphan Care tab. Good good stuff.

Congratulations Romin and Audrey

Romin and Audrey began their journey with Christian Adoption Consultants in May. After seeing many, many situations of possible birth families and babies that might be a good fit for their family, one finally came through in September that seemed to stand out.  

So, they put their "yes" on the table. They were presented to a birth mama as a family who would love to raise her son if she felt adoption was the best choice.

But when an adoptive family says "yes," they are saying yes to more than a situation.

They are saying yes to the sacrifice of finances.

They are saying yes to making room in their homes.

They are saying yes to honor a birth mother's brave decision for life.

Ultimately, they are saying yes to God's call in their lives.

After days of waiting, they were chosen.  After months of planning, they had a due date.

And over Thanksgiving weekend, their "yes" to adoption was answered by this precious little boy.

God does miraculous things with our "yeses." For Romin and Audrey, their blessing is this little guy.

Counting the Days

In a season full of hustle and bustle, we try to be intentional as a family about slowing down our lives and our hearts to remember the real reason we celebrate. That it's not about the gifts, the parties, or even family and traditions. Christmas is about God's great rescue plan to redeem a dark and broken world.

In past years we've done a Jesse Tree, a beautiful tradition of using ornaments and scripture to tell God's grand redemption story. This year, we're counting down the days to Christmas using The Jesus Storybook Bible (more here on how much our family loves this little book).

Every night, the kids will grab a little bag filled with the story and scripture we'll read together. I love how The Jesus Storybook Bible tells the entire story of why Jesus came in the first place. It "tells the story beneath all the stories in the Bible...and at the center of the Story, there is a baby, the Child upon whom everything would depend. From Noah to Moses to King David every story whispers his name. Jesus is like the missing piece in a puzzle - the piece that makes all the other pieces fit together." 

I found this fantastic printable over here at Home with the Boys.

Update: another great resource here, The Jesus Storybook Bible Advent calender printable!

We'll also be going through this brand new little book, Counting the Days, Lighting the Candles: A Christmas Advent Devotional. There are daily readings for adults as well as for our kids and a weekly family activity created by my sweet friend, Jami. 

Too often, we only remember part of the story this season. We recite the narrative to our children of an angel that came to a young mother, a crowded inn, the animals in the stable, the visiting magi, and a baby in a manger.

But the story is so much bigger than what happened in Bethlehem so many Christmases ago. It's a story that began with a lie in a garden, a promise to an elderly couple, laws that were given that we could never measure up to on our own, and prophets who pointed us to one who would keep the law perfectly in our place. It's a story of hardship and struggle and sin and brokenness. But it's also a beautiful story of hope.

More than anything this year, our family needs to be reminded that we're in the midst of a greater, grander story. That God had a universal rescue plan. I want my kids to see more than the roughly hewn stable in Bethlehem this season. I want them to see the rugged and bloody cross on a hill outside of Jerusalem. 

I want them to see Jesus this Christmas.

A King who serves.

A Savior who rescues.

And a God who redeems everything that's broken...

In Honor of National Adoption Day

Today was National Adoption Day, a collective national effort to raise awareness of the more than 100,000 children in foster care waiting to find permanent, loving families. This annual, one-day event has made the dreams of thousands of children come true by working with policymakers, practitioners and advocates to finalize adoptions and create and celebrate adoptive families.

In total, National Adoption Day helped nearly 44,500 children move from foster care to a forever family. Communities across the county celebrate the Saturday before every Thanksgiving. In 2012, more than 4,500 children were adopted by their forever families during the 13th annual National Adoption Day celebration in almost 400 cities across the United States. (Info taken from nationaladoptionday.org).

It's estimated that over 4,500 children were legally adopted today.

Today, I guest blogged on Kansas City Mom's Blog. Swing by and hear what advice I have for adoptive and birth families and what I wish people knew about adoption. You can also hear how one of my adoptive mamas, Elizabeth and her son is doing and another mother's passion for adoption and foster care.

Want to see more of what the legal process and get a peek into a courtroom finalizing an adoption?

It looks like love. It looks like family. It looks like redemption. 

Friends, adoption looks like the gospel.

Zion's Adoption Day Film from Anecdotally Yours (Jeff Short) on Vimeo.

Congratulations Nik and Megan

Nik and Megan became a family of three last week in a whirlwind that could have only been orchestrated by God himself. As part of the preparation process, we review things like emergency placements or "stork drop" situations and how to prepare for the "fast and furious" type adoptions. Most families tuck the information away, but last Monday, after giving Nik and Megan the news that they had been chosen, that became their road map as they needed to catch the earliest flight and work out dozens of details to meet their son. I'll let Megan fill in the rest of their story...

  
You know when something happens in your life and there is not an explanation except for God? 

Getting Elijah is at the top of that list. Without God, there is no way we would be holding him in our arms right now.

To start, Nik and I just decided to pursue adoption at the beginning of September. We hired an adoption consultant (Susan at Christian Adoption Consultants) and started working on our home study through a local agency (All Blessings International). This is where the story gets a little nuts…

On Tuesday, November 5, our Home Study was finalized. We sent a digital copy to our consultant (who works with several agencies) and started working on our applications to a handful of domestic agencies. Those applications, though, are still sitting on our dining room table…unfinished.

On Thursday, November 7, we received an email about an urgent situation. A baby boy that had been born the Sunday before (on Orphan Sunday!) was in desperate need of a family. His birth mom, had not made an adoption plan, so this sweet baby boy was just waiting at the hospital for his forever family. On Friday, we decided that we wanted to pursue him. So we sent our Family Profile and waited. The weekend came and went with no word.

On Monday, November 11, we got THE call. He was ours! The agency had sat down with 7 or 8 other profiles and had picked US! We had prayed over the weekend that this boy would go to exactly who he was supposed to. 

We frantically pulled ourselves together. We did not have our financials together, we didn't have all our paperwork completed…we hadn’t even applied to the agency yet! But, we hopped on a plane as fast as we could to meet our boy. Somehow, it all came together. Our family graciously bought our plane tickets. We got a free place to stay (at my SIL’s mom’s house) and one of our pastor’s friends lent us a car. People have donated money and baby supplies. It’s been overwhelming the love and support that we have felt. We cannot even begin to express how grateful we are for our community of friends and family.

Elijah is doing amazing. Elijah is a miracle. It just is crazy to me how well he is doing; how perfect he really is.

At this point, we are hoping to head home late this week. We can’t wait to celebrate the most thankful of Thanksgivings ever!

-----------------------------------------------------------

Nic and Megan's story is a beautiful reminder that God's timing is perfect. That He works in the details. That His provision is enough.

Although this little guy was born on Orphan Sunday, his Heavenly Father had already ensured that this precious boy would never be an orphan - not for a moment. He was wanted and loved from the very beginning.

Nik and Megan began the adoption process just two months ago.  But God had been preparing Nik and Megan to be his parents since the beginning of time.

Congratulations Shawn and Holly

One of the matras I have in counseling couples on the adoption journey is to "love big." 

Shawn and Holly have been a beautiful example of loving big, particularly when it comes to their sweet birth mother. They met her at a sandwich shop for the first time just a month after their home study was ready. What always begins as an awkward meeting ended in praying over the expectant birth mother and hugging her neck. 

I watched over the next few months as they continued to build a relationship with her. Catching up through phone calls and texts, planning for the baby's arrival, and praying over her, her family, and the baby they would all call their son.

But loving big always involves risk.

Will this turn out the way we planned?

Will our hopes finally come to fruition?

Will everything go smoothly?

Can we trust that God will be faithful?

Shawn and Holly entered into all the questions, all the risks, and all of the unknowns and fully embraced all of the bittersweetness of adoption. They grieved with their birth mama. They celebrated their son's life. They held their breath in the waiting and marveled at God's goodness in the fulfillment of their dream.

The first thing Holly told me once they knew he was forever theirs? That her heart was heavy for their birth mother but that she has complete confidence in God's ability to supernaturally meet all of her needs and that she was in awe of this woman who has given their family so much. 

Loving big is so worth the risk. Especially in adoption.

Adoption Story: Chris and Shelley

Over the weekend, Shelley shared her story with Christian Adoption Consultants and our blog and I thought I would share it here as well! Shelley and Chris are former clients of CAC and are the parents of an absolutely darling little girl introduced to you earlier in the blog.  In her own words, Shelley shares her answers to the following questions about their journey:

Stricker Photography

Q: How did the Lord lead you to pursue adoption?

Adoption was something we talked about for years when we realized it wouldn’t be easy to have biological children.

But there was always something in the way — an element of fear — that excused us from pursuing it…

“Would we be able to afford it?”

“What about the health of the child?”

“How long will it take?”

It was when friends our ours adopted their son that we really felt a tug at our hearts saying, “Fear not!”

In February, we took the first leap of faith to call Susan at Christian Adoption Consultants.

Six months later, we were holding our baby girl in our arms!

Isadora Photography

Q: What was your journey to your child like?

Our journey to our daughter was a whirlwind.

Looking back, it went so fast, though I can tell you that some days were long and rocky.

A few months after signing on with Susan and CAC, we found ourselves presenting to a birth mother in Vegas who gave birth to a healthy baby girl.

She chose another family.

It was tough.

It was just a week later when Susan emailed us about a birth mother in Texas who was set to have her baby the next day.

Susan overnighted our information while we kept our hearts guarded and prayed over this birth mother.

Less than 48-hours later, we were on a flight to meet our daughter and her beautiful birth mother!

We had no bottles, no clothes, no diapers, no bows… but we had each other and the help of our families and CAC to welcome our precious little girl home.

Stricker Photography

Q: What has God has taught you about Himself through your adoption journey?

The biggest thing we’ve learned is that God has a plan, and it is perfect in His timing.

When we first held our daughter in our arms, we knew at that very moment she was meant to be ours all along.

Q: What did you appreciate about the help of Christian Adoption Consultants?

We love Susan and Christian Adoption Consultants.

Both will always be a part of our family.

Susan regularly emailed us and always knew how to keep us encouraged along the way.

Her experience of working with birth mothers and countless adoption agencies offered us comfort and hope along the way.

In a journey with so many unknowns, it was reassuring to know we always had her in our corner — a woman constantly praying for us, working with us, to make our dream of a family come true.

Susan’s constant support in the wavering waters of our adoption journey was more than we could have asked for.

We could never thank Susan and CAC enough for all they have done to lead us to our daughter.

Stricker Photography

Thank you, Shelley and Chris, for giving Christian Adoption Consultants the joy of sharing in your beautiful adoption journey!

Adoption Discount Extended Through This Week!

In celebration of National Adoption Awareness Month, we are offering a discount on our full-service consulting packages. 

Cole and Maria with their sweet little guy

10% off our top three, full-service consulting packages

15% off our top three, full-service Minority Adoption Program consulting packages.

This discount is effective now through November 15th!

*This discount does not apply to the DIY package, our returning client package, or our special needs program or with any other discounts. 

What is Christian Adoption Consultants?  Click here.

What does it mean to hire an adoption consultant?  Click here.

Want to get started or get an info packet?  Click here.

What if you have more questions?  Click here.

Today could be the first step you take on the journey towards adoption! 

Have friends who are thinking about adoption? Make sure you share this post! 

Running the Race

This past weekend was an especially hard one for me. Our family has been on a long, hard, messy, and beautiful road to healing for the past several years. If you're not familiar with our story yet, it's a good one.

And it turns out, it's a long one. We were recently told the healing journey takes at least two to five years. Next week marks a two year anniversary of sorts and that means we're not even to the mid-point yet. Of course, that's an average, but it's been helpful for me to have a grid for my heart.

Recently, the weariness has been heavy.

The journey has been long.

And exhaustion has set in.

This weekend it all hit. Hard.

So I went on a run. To clear my head. To get some time to myself. It was getting late and looked even later because of the time change the night before.

This time, there was no music or podcasts. I had a lot to talk to God about. But for most of the run, my mind was blank. And all I could think about was how physically hard my run was.

So instead of hashing it out with God, this was happening in my head:

It's getting dark - I'm getting scared...

How much longer do I need to run? 

I can't go on, I'm so tired! 

I just want to quit!

But each time I had one of these thoughts, scripture would immediately follow.

It's getting dark - I'm getting scared...

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. (1 Peter 2:9)

How much longer do I need to run?

Do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised. (Hebrews 10:35-36)

I can't go on, I'm so tired!

We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame. (Romans 5:3-5)  

I just want to quit!

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith. (Hebrews 12:1-2) 

And I realized, about halfway in, that I WAS hashing it out with God. My weariness. My exhaustion. He was using my run to whisper to my heart what I really needed.

He is calling me to endurance.

He has called me out of the darkness into a glorious light.

He is using this season to produce character and hope.

And my job in all of this: simply to look to Jesus.

So here I am. Preaching the gospel to myself again. Because my heart needs to hear it over and over and over.

I like the King James version of Hebrews when it says, "Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God." 

I just need to keep running. Jesus will finish it for me.

Congratulations Chris and Jamie

For Chris and Jamie, their adoption journey has been a whirlwind. They began working with Christian Adoption Consultants late this summer. In just over 2 months, they were matched with their sweet birth mama. They welcomed their beautiful son last week. Three months to the day they began working with me this little guy was in their arms.

It's been a joy to work with Chris and Jamie. I've been amazed by their grace, faith in God, and passion they have had in their adoption journey. They have been a picture of a couple called, committed, and changed by adoption. They took the steps necessary, made hard sacrifices, risked their hearts, and are now a beautiful family of 3.

Yesterday, on Orphan Sunday, they held their son in their arms. Because of his birth parents and his adoptive parents bravery, courage, and sacrifice, he is one less who will never be an orphan. 

Congratulations, to all 3 of you...

Beyond Orphan Sunday

Yesterday was Orphan Sunday celebrating the cause of the fatherless.

A time to remember global orphan care

A time to celebrate adoption

A time to honor foster care

A time for the least of these

God did not leave us as orphans and has called us to partner with him to "defend the cause of the fatherless." (Isaiah 1:17)

But adoption goes past holding back tears from a touching video.

Caring for the fatherless is more than dropping in a few extra bills in the offering plate once a year.

Changing the life of a child takes more than that.  Adoption takes real steps, real risks, and real investment.

"A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families." (Psalm 68:5-6)

Is God setting the lonely in your family?

If you've considered domestic infant adoption, check out our services at Christian Adoption Consultants. 

This is Norah, a result of her parents taking the first step...

We are pleased to offer a discount this month to celebrate National Adoption Awareness Month. We will be offering 10% off all full service consulting packages and 15% off all consulting packages for those open to our Minority Adoption Program. (This may not be combined with any other discounts.)

This discount applies to all applications received by November 11th.

For an information packet, please email me at susan@christianadoptionconsultants.com

Happy Fall From Some Sweet Faces

Here's some sweet little pumpkins to brighten your day!

One of the biggest joys I get as an adoption consultant is to see these sweet little faces enjoying life to the fullest with their amazing families.  

Happy National Adoption Awareness Month!

And remember:

In celebration of National Adoption Awareness Month, we are offering a discount on our full-service consulting packages. 

10% off our top three, full-service consulting packages

15% off our top three, full-service Minority Adoption Program consulting packages.

This discount is effective from November 1st through November 11th.

*This discount does not apply to the DIY package, our returning client package, or our special needs program or with any other discounts. 

Contact me at susan@christianadoptionconsultants.com for more info!