One Chapter Closes...

I have sat at my computer many times and tried to write this blog post only to either delete my words or just walk away. There are just some things in life that are not easy to put into words.  Many of our readers have been asking how things are going with Warrior now that we've been home almost two months. In short, beyond HARD!!! We didn't go into this adoption expecting a cake walk, and we knew the journey would be hard.  But we never could have imagined how this story would end and end so quickly.

A lot of people knew we were having struggles, but many did not.  We chose not to let everyone know all of the details.  After much prayer and seeking Godly counsel, it was abundantly clear that our family was not the family that Warrior needed to grow up in.  He needed to be in a home without children, or with children that are mostly grown. Even through our physical and emotional pain, we only wanted what was best for our Warrior in the end.  Matt and I don't want to go into the details at this time because some are just too painful to talk about. I will tell you that Matt and I have complete peace about this decision.  The "peace that passes all understanding" which can only come from God above.

"Bringing Our Warrior Home" - Warrior leaving court

On September 17th, we gave notice to our adoption agency that we were ending the adoption.  Within 12 hours, we were given a court date and time (September 25th) in which Matt had to appear with Warrior to turn him over to the orphan court in his region.  Needless to say, we frantically pieced together airfare, hotel and transportation.  Matt and Warrior traveled this past Sunday and Monday.  They arrived in L@tvia on Monday afternoon.  After two days of walking around the streets of Rig@, they appeared in court.  Matt prepared a two page statement that he read to the court.  The entire statement (with translation) took about fifteen minutes.  The statement contained recommendations for the type of family Warrior is suited for.  We know that the court accepted these recommendations and will add them to future hosting and adoptive descriptions to potential families.  Warrior was in the room the whole time.  The court did not ask any further questions of Matt as they had been made aware of our struggles previously.  At court, they were very appreciative and were sad that we had gone through what we had.  They were glad that Warrior was happy to be "home".  At the end of the court proceedings, Matt was able to say goodbye to Warrior.  This goodbye wasn't reciprocated, however, as Warrior was eager to see his friends and his home.

Prior to the trip, for the past two weeks, Warrior had been saying repeatedly that he wanted to go "home", "L@tvia", "Rig@" - not only during rough moments, but also during the good moments.  We took this as additional confirmation that we were making the right decision.  Our Warrior was telling us that this house was not his home.  On the night before the flights, Matt told Warrior he would be travelling to L@tvia with Papa in the morning, and  Papa would be returning to America.  He understood he was leaving America and returning to his orphanage.

Even though we were only a short chapter in Warrior's life, our prayer is that it will be one which will have a huge impact on the rest of his life.  Before Matt took Warrior to court on Wednesday, he prayed with him and told him to keep Jesus in his heart and to be a light to others.  Matt and I may never know what seeds were planted and how they will grow, but we know our God loves Warrior so much more than we ever can.  He will protect him and watch over him.  When Matt and I started this blog, we never realized the impact our blog title would have until recently. Warrior is finally "home" with his caretakers and his friends.  Our family will advocate for this child in hopes that he will find a home that will be the environment he can grow and thrive.

We are thankful to all of you who have prayed for us along this incredibly difficult journey. We are also very grateful for the meals and words of encouragement. Matt and I never saw this day coming, but God did. Even through our mourning, God has made his presence known. He is ALWAYS faithful and ALWAYS on time!!!

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." -Romans 8:28

As we close this chapter for our family and take the time to heal, we know only good will come out of this situation.  Our kids have seen a part of the world that very few people will ever see in their lifetimes.  Our kids have seen the scars decades of Communist rule has left on this small Baltic country.  Our kids have seen homeless children play instruments on the street to make money for food.  Our kids have given clothes and money to homeless L@tvian children and adults.  Our family has answered the call to host an orphan child.  Our family has answered the call to adopt, even though the ending is far from what we expected.  Our family has experienced an emotional roller coaster, but through it all, I hope that our kids will see the faithfulness that our whole family exhibited.  It has been amazing to watch the hand of God work through all of this; from the beginning to the end for our family. Our family was only a part of one chapter in Warrior's life, but I can say I know God is not finished with our Warrior. There will be many more chapters to come. Warrior, we love you and we will pray for you as long as we are alive! You will always hold a special place in our hearts and family.

Rainbow Matt saw when leaving court in Latvi@. Warrior was happy to finally be going "home"

Please continue to pray for us as we grieve and process all that has happened recently.   Please also pray for us as we become a family of six again and begin to heal.  We know many may not understand why this happened, and why we decided to do what we did, but please respect our privacy and know that we did just what God asked us to do.  We know that this was in the best interest of our family and Warrior.  Sometimes obeying God doesn't always make sense to others. As we have found out first hand, the hardest things to do in life are to trust that God knows what He is doing. Let me tell you He does...ALL the time! We may never know why this happened, but we do know God will be glorified through all of this!

"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven..." -Ecclesiastes 3:1

Tweens and Cell Phones

This week will be bittersweet.  This Wednesday, our nation will remember the lives lost on September 11th, 2001.  I will never forget coming home from work early that terrible day twelve years ago to find my 9-month-pregnant wife standing in front of the television watching the news coverage having labor pains.  Two days later, on September 13th, 2001, 2:07 PM, we had our first child, Rebekah Faith.  So, this Friday, we'll celebrate our twelve year-old's birthday!

Last night Rebekah was so proud to show me her new cell phone:  a very small toy phone made out of Legos!  She had made this as a joke.  She said that many of the girls on her soccer team (Rebekah is the oldest player!) have a cell phone, but she's one of the ones that do not.  I asked her how that made her feel, and she said she doesn't care, and that it doesn't bother her at all.

This week, as we celebrate her birthday,  I am one proud "Papa".  I have a tween who doesn't care that she's the only girl her age without a cell phone.  She is an excellent homeschool student.  She is a fantastic soccer player, and she's been a great sport through this adoption journey so far.  She has been a tremendous help to her mom and me with her new L@tvian brother.  Happy Birthday Rebekah!  I love you!

Words That Sum Up How I Feel

This article, written by Elliott on his blog, sums up how I feel.  I'm glad he was able to put this into words.  I do not think that it is by accident that he wrote it on August 29th, 2013, which happened to be our darkest, most fearful day of this entire process so far.  I read this blog post on Saturday the 31st, and I shared it with Kristie later that day.  If you have the time, please read it in its entirety.

http://snapshotsfromourjourney.blogspot.com/2013/08/superheroes-not-needed.html

"Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart."  ~ Prov. 3:3a ~

"I will sing of the Lord’s great love forever; with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations."  ~ Psalm 89:1 ~

"I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness."  ~ Jeremiah 31:3b ~

"Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,  for his compassions never fail.  They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."  ~ Lamentations 3:22-23 ~

The Henrys and the Puzzle

The Henrys are a great family in Illinois that are also in the process of adopting an orphan boy from Latvi@.  Like us, they hosted their child last winter, the same time we hosted Warrior.  They were able to host their child a second time this summer.  They are raising money to fund their airfare for their Trip 1 to bring home their child.  Please consider donating to their "puzzle" fundraiser...

http://thehenryswish.blogspot.com/

On another note, we have been home one month now - which is so hard to believe.  We've had our Warrior almost seven weeks!