A Year Makes a Difference

It is so crazy to think that this time last year, I was getting ready for my 2nd surgery in 3 months. I had no idea what would be in store and what my Dr. would actually find during surgery. Granted I knew I was having surgery to remove 2 cysts on my ovary, but I wasn't prepared for what she would tell me after surgery. Kyle and I were on our way down the adoption road by this point and our entire dossier was done and we were on the waiting list. But, I still wondered if there was some hope that we could still get pregnant though. After my follow up appointment, I knew my thoughts should start to change.

I won't lie, it was a hard time for me. You never expect the Dr. to tell you how difficult and practically impossible it will be to carry let alone conceive a child. There were some really hard days in the months following. The more we watched ourselves climb up higher and higher on the wait list, it started making things easier. During this time, I had a ton of people message me on Facebook and ask me questions about adoption. There were people from my childhood, people from high school, and just other random people that knew about our story. That was a reminder that God had called both of us into something bigger than ourselves. Something that He was going to use both of us and especially use to heal me.

God was healing me in all of those moments, and even though I didn't always see it in the moment, I can look back now and totally see it. As the year went on, I could tell God had healed my heart about carrying a child of my own. I was now just carrying my child in my heart and that's all that mattered. I am still carrying my child in my heart right now, but I cannot wait to see who God is giving me to be my daughter. He will build our family  in such a beautiful way. It's going to be very different than most, but that's why God called us to do so. We have the support of an army and the love of God through so many people.

I want to say thank you to everyone who reads, our family, and our friends. You have all helped heal me in ways you may never know. Without your questions, without your positive feedback, and without your support I wouldn't be where I am today. You have all helped me grow into the soon to be mother and woman that I am today. Thank you so much and what a difference a year makes!!! :)

This time last year we were # 22 on the toddler girl list, now, we are #1!! What?! How amazing is God?

Rollercoaster of Waiting

Just a quick update to let you know that we are still waiting. I know there hasn't been a lot of exciting news, and believe me when I say it's 100 times more disappointing for us.

A lot of people say that life is like a roller coaster. You have ups, downs, and just plain plateaus. You go to highschool, then you have to decide what you want to do forever, then you go to college, yay! Then you're done and all your friends move away and you have to find a job, then you find a job, yay!! Then people worry about being single, then you meet the one, yay!! You wait to get married, then the day happens, yay!! You spend time together then have kids, yay that was easy!! It goes on and on for the rest of your life. There are times when you want to talk about all of it, and there are times you don't want to talk about any of it.

That is the point that Kyle and I are getting to. Adoption is like a roller coaster as well, and we knew that going into to, but it doesn't make it any easier. After getting on the list, we were so excited, then we would plateau for awhile, until there was another referral and we would move up a spot. Once we got to the top of the list, we were so so excited!! We had heard that it wouldn't be out of the question to think we could have a referral by Christmas. So, as we decorated this year for Christmas we were just so excited and it felt like cloud 9. Thinking we were decorating this year for the reveal of our daughter was so exciting.

After talking to our caseworker yesterday, she can't give a lot of information and I understand why, but she said she really has no idea and she is crossing her fingers. Lets just say we are now at another plateau and it is so discouraging. It really took the Christmas spirit out of both of us last night. As we were praying last night, I prayed specifically for us to remember what the Christmas season was about, about the birth of our King, and the fact that we get to adopt and that were called to adopt. As Christmas is approaching we are doing our best not to think about our adoption right now. We want to be busy with our jobs, our family, and the true meaning of Christmas. So, with that, ask us how life is going, or our jobs or funny stories about our nephews. We are still waiting and we will definitely fill you all in when more news comes up. We both want to think about the good and the excitement of life, not the reminder that we are still waiting for our precious daughter.

On another quick note, I'm starting a new job today at our church. I will be the Early Childhood Director. I am looking forward to jumping in and being so immersed in learning how to do this job, that I soon put our adoption on the back burner for now. I am becoming consumed with checking my email and having my phone with me at all times, so this is a good feeling today to start something new! :)

Have a happy Tuesday friends and here's another nice note... We chose a name!! It's not final yet because we don't know what her name will be to make her middle name, but the name we chose means peaceful. What a great feeling that she has a name in our hearts and in our mind. :)

Inspired and Amazed by YOU

Hey all!! I've been trying to blog for the past couple days and everytime I tried it wouldn't work. I have been wanting to give an update on how amazing YOU all were for our Ordinary Hero Grant Contest! Our grand total earnings were $2526.29!!! That goes straight to our agency and into our pot for when we get matched and have to pay our agency fee! :)

So here were the grand totals of items that you purchased to help kids or families in need:

7 donation combos = 14 children got raincoats, and 7 kids got a blanket and water shoes!!

7 sheep = you fed 280 children!!!

3 Amarhic bibles = 3 kids and probably their families and friends can now hear the Word of God!

3 backpacks = 3 children don't have to carry their books to school anymore!

3 half sheep = you fed 60 children!!!

3 raincoats = 3 more children can stay dry when it rains!

1 donkey = you are helping a family survive so a woman can carry everything she needs to make money!!!!

3 aqua shoes = 3 more children don't have to walk around barefoot!

2 fleece blankets = 2 more kids can be warm at night!!!

I mean YOU are all seriously amazing!!! I love seeing how many children and families YOU helped provide essential needs for. God really put it on my heart to challenge others to purchase for others this year, and with that they will be helping bring our daughter home. That's exactly what YOU all did!!! :) 

 

I have to be prideful of our little sisters real quick here. Now, I know everyone sacrificed by giving, but our little sisters are 11 years old. They have the biggest hearts and I could cry right now thinking of what they did for us. So, my mother-in-law asked them if they wanted to give to this as part of their Christmas, and they were both on board. The girls asked how much their parents spend on them, and she told the girls. The girls each said they wanted to spend half of their Christmas money, each on buying something for someone else in need!! Half each of their Christmas's!! They looked through the website and chose a sheep and a pair of tennis shoes. Those are big compassionate hearts right there! They are 11 and still kids, but they understand there are children and families who don't have enough. Their parents have instilled that in them, and God has wired them that way and we couldn't be more proud. Again, I know and I appreciate everyone else that gave and gave above and beyond, but I just wanted to point out that childlike faith as a reminder. :) 

 

We still don't have a timeline, but Kyle and I have been praying to be matched by Christmas. We just think that would be the most wonderful Christmas present this year. God always works in His time, but He is also a God of miracles, so we can't wait to see what He does. Some days are harder than others and I become inpatient, but I have to remember that God didn't call us to adopt because it was easy. God reminds me of how hard it must be for our daughter who has no one right now. We pray every night that God will give her peace and a sense of comfort, because I can't begin to fathom how she must feel on a daily basis.  So, if you get a moment or you think about it, pray for our daughter and pray that we get matched soon so she knows that someone is coming after her to bring her home!! 

 

We love YOU all and we are so so BLESSED!!! 

Food for Thought

Well you guys helped us WIN on day ONE!! Thank you so so much! We got the $100 for the day on top of our sales, that so put us at 227.89 that goes straight into our account at our agency to use when we accept the referral of our sweet little one. You all ROCK!!

With that being said, I wanted to have some food for thought today and do a little challenge. Could you imagine walking a mile or more to get your water, then carrying that giant jug of water back another mile on top of your head or on your back? Could you imagine carrying in ALL of your groceries by hand with no bags or boxes. Could you imagine making meals out of nothing and having no protein in your diet to keep you strong and healthy?

This is a very real reality for many villages and families who live in Ethiopia. They have to walk to get their water, then carry it back, then boil it when they get home. I don't know about you, but I would be exhausted!! If YOU or some friends could go in together and buy a donkey or half of donkey (that will be paired with another person who bought half) could help a village or family not have to carry their water or their food for miles. What a blessing YOU could be to a village or family. Maybe you'd like to purchase a sheep and provide 40 kids with a meal and some extra protein in their diets. How amazing would this be to have as a Christmas present that you tell your kids about?! Explain to them how many kids they are helping feed, by having 2 less presents this year. I think kids would jump on board and I think families would jump on board with this idea. I would love to know that I was helping feed 40 kids rather than having another scarf, and giving Kyle another book. These are all these things are nice to have, but it is a NECESSITY for kids to eat and not go hungry.

So, be challenged and think about purchasing a donkey or a sheep or half of an animal and help a village or family in need. What a blessing YOU all could be. You can also help bring our little girl home. Don't forget to choose Megan Chaffee in the drop down box next to Affiliate Name at http://www.ordinaryherostore.org/Donations-For-Children-In-Need-c15/

Thanks again!!!

Challenge Accepted

Okay friends... its HERE!!! It's our last chance at the Ordinary Hero Grant Contest for the month of October.

You have ONE week, but we need YOU everday!!!

This months challenge is a daily challenge... each day is a contest. If we get the most in sales each day, then we will win $100 on top of the 40% we recieve when you purchase something. If YOU help us WIN each day, then we get an extra $500 at the end of the week. That can add friends and all that money will literally help us bring our daughter home.

We are hoping to get to see the face of our new daughter in the next couple months. We will get the picture and medical history of her, and then make decision to accept her match and pay our fee. If you all help us WIN this grant contest, it will be helping us pay for our match :) How exciting is that?!

I had posted a couple weeks ago about praying and thinking about stretching your thinking of this contest. Let's see what we can do for OTHERS. :) There are some cute items in that store right now, and I would love to see people wearing the Ordinary Hero gear around to help raise awareness. Kyle and I would also love to see people step out in faith and buy for others in need. Like I said a couple weeks ago, maybe there is someone in need of some clothes in your community, you could buy them a shirt, maybe someone needs a bag to carry things back and forth to work, but they can't afford that bag... That's where you can come in. Maybe you want to start buying Christmas presents... Great!! You can buy items for them, or you can buy a sheep and help feed a village. How cool of a present would that be to get?! I would love to know that I was helping out others who can't eat on a daily basis, when I have pantry full of food that I pick and choose what I want to eat.

So today... think about what you can do someone for else. Find some friends and go in together to buy a donkey, a sheep, a box of bibles for people in Ethiopia! Think about this too... we need to win EVERYDAY, so maybe you want to purchase a couple things.... great, buy one each day so that we can get tha credit each day of the week to increase our chances to win each day!

Love you all and be prepared to see this all over facebook and in emails... each day I will challenge YOU to purchase something different. Thanks in advance and we are so thankful for all of you!!!

Get Ready for a Challenge

Good Morning Friends!

Well I said I would post again about something I want to challenge you all on. I'm not sure if you all remember last year when Kyle and I did the Ordinary Hero Grant Contest. I filled up Facebook about it, and you probably got far more emails than you were hoping for. Well, we won that contest and it helped a lot towards our adoption costs for our agency, and it was such a humbling experience for us to see all the people who stepped up and purchased something and helped us through our process.

There is a grant contest going on right now, and there will be another coming up in October. They have gotten a lot of new merchandise that is super cute, they have also added a lot new items to purchase for villages, kids, and families in need. This is where my challenge is going to come in.

I brought this idea up to Kyle and we talked about it, and want to encourage and challenge other people with it. So here it is: We want to challenge YOU and/or you FAMILY to purchase something for someone in need. We want you to start thinking about it, praying about it, and searching out what might be a possibility for you and your family. I also want to encourage you to reach out to others and go in on something if it is a more expensive item, how cool would that be?! Now, we are not saying don't buy anything for yourself or someone in your family as a gift or just because you want them to have it. We would love to see other people promoting Ordinary Hero and all that it stands for. :)

Maybe, you know someone in need at your church, and you could purchase them a shirt, or sweatshirt. Maybe, its someone across the world that you want to purchase a goat for and feed their family. There are so many people out in the world, and in our communities in need. So, I urge you to stretch your mind and your heart about this.

Again, this isn't until next month, and I will be posting about the dates when I find them out, but I just wanted to get you all thinking and praying. Last Christmas Kyle and I did this for his parents and his sister and brother-in-law. They didn't need anything, so instead we used that money we were going to spend on them, on someone else. We then presented them with a certificate I made up to show them what the money went towards. Maybe, this Christmas you want to open a new idea to your children and explain that not everyone in the world gets Christmas presents, or Christmas dinner, so you used some of the Christmas money for that. What a great thing to start early, and have your kids get excited about helping out a person or family in need. I know its October, but I'm sure its something you can talk to older kids about it, or if your kids are younger just wait closer to Christmas.

Thanks for listening to my challenge, and I can't wait to see what God does through all of this. It will not only help bring our little GIRL home, but I truly believe YOU will be touched through this experience. Have a wonderful day friends!!

A minor Change

Hello Friends!!

I have been wanting to post for almost 2 weeks now, and have just been so busy. Again, I'm sure many people are laughing and thinking, "You think your life is busy now?!"

Well on that note, we have some news... Kyle and I have decided to go down to one child and we are waiting for a toddler girl. We said age 36 months or under, but we are willing to go up to 47 months. We will see how the timing goes, but we are pretty high up on the toddler girl list... like unofficially #2!!! :)

Now, I have to admit, I felt kind of bad about going to down to one child, and I was going to let people down because we said we were adopting 2. Kyle and I have had many conversations about this, and he more than myself has had reservations about bringing home 2 children at once since the beginning. Like I said Kyle and talked in depth about this topic and we want to be able to dote over our little girl, spoil her, and make sure she adjusts well here in the US. If we had a baby within that mix of a toddler, we often wondered if we would pay more attention to a baby because they need the attention, or if we would be a little bit of a house divided, trying to make it all work well. We want to keep our marriage strong and we like the idea of building our family a little more naturally, as in typically 1 child at  a time.

We would like to put in our paperwork shortly after we get our little girl home and go on the infant list and wait for whatever gender comes first, which will more than likely be a boy, but you never know! There is a certain amount of time that has to be between adoptions and we want to make sure she is well adjusted and making sure she has her place within our family.

This weekend we are going to get her bed and a possibly a dresser. Kyle and I are getting so excited about this next adventure! :)

I will be posting again this week, hopefully, about another Ordinary Hero Grant contest. It's going to be a bit more of a challenge this time go around, so we will see. :)

Companionship

Again, it's been awhile, but we are still in such the waiting game stage, that there isn't a ton to post about when it comes to the adoption. We are still in the process of updating our home study, but we are waiting for a little longer because of another opportunity. I unfortunately can't say anything about it at the moment, but as soon as I know more, I can let some other people know. :)

Today, Kyle is on his way to Kentucky to visit family and I'm really going to miss seeing all of them. I am in Kokomo visiting with my grandma and aunt who are in from Ohio. I won't be able to see them probably until January, just because the holidays get so crazy. So, we decided to both visit as much family as possible today.  I am away from Kyle daily because of work, but today as I was driving to Kokomo I started to realize how much I truly missed being with him. Now, I drive to Kokomo a lot by myself, but he is usually at work or something. I was thinking just how truly blessed I am to have the companionship of Kyle.

When I was growing up, all I wanted was to have children. I just wanted to be pregnant, and have kids. There were many times I honestly didn't think I would get married, but I knew I wanted to have children. Yes, yes I know... that shouldn't have been a thought without the thought of a husband. That's just how I was wired to be honest. Now, after all Kyle and I have gone through with the infertility and this whole adoption process, I could NOT imagine doing any of this without Kyle. We of course still want children so so much and we are so excited to build our family this way. But if for some reason we weren't able to build our family through adoption, then I would be happy just to be with Kyle. He makes everyday better. I know how much we love each other, have respect for each other, and just have so much fun together.

A lot of our conversations revolve around kids, whether it's our sisters, nephews, or friends. We love everything about kids and enjoy talking about kids. When we have these conversations I can just see how wonderful Kyle is going to be as a dad. He is a wonderful uncle and brother and friend, so I can't imagine what he is going to be like as a dad. I can't wait to go down this road of parenthood with my companion. :)

Happy day off tomorrow!!

Guardrails

It's been awhile, but honestly there hasn't been a whole lot going on with the adoption stuff. Although, we are still climbing in our numbers. I'm sure we still have quite a wait, but I have to remind myself that we haven't even been on the waiting list for a year yet, and we are a lot further than I really expected. When we first got on, I was hoping we would have our kiddos home by Christmas, but I came to a quick realization that wasn't going to happen. That's okay though. Of course I have my days where I don't think it's okay, but majority of the time, I know that it is all in God's timing. (So tough to learn...) We are beginning to update some paperwork for our Dossier. We by no means have to re-do any of it, just updating our homestudy. A lot of that was because I changed jobs, so we have to release that information to our homestudy agency. Kyle and I started listening to a sermon series by Andy Stanley. He is from GA, and he is just an amazing speaker that God has truly blessed with wisdom and a way of speaking right into people's hearts. The sermon series is called Guardrails. We are really liking it and it has sparked some really great conversations for us. One of the main points in the first sermon was playing with that line of sin. Now, I know we all play with that line on a daily basis. However, the examples were a little bit more than I was thinking, like drinking, lust, etc. Kyle asked me what mine would be and I said honestly, I play with the line of not thinking I need to be in the Word as much. I listen to Christian radio, I read Christian books, I go to church, I went to a Christian elementary school and college and I know a lot of the stories. This might not seem like a big deal, but it is HUGE deal. God's Word isn't just stories, but it's a daily guide for us to use. I think so often we forget that, and just pray about things. Which is great, but we also need to be seeking God's Word wit that. With that being said, I'm going to strive to get into the routine of being in the Word daily. I'm also grateful that I have this time while we wait for our kids. I want my children to see me in the Word, I want them to see how important it really is. Kyle on the other hand is leaps and bounds ahead of me and I couldn't be more proud of him. So today, I challenge you to think and think hard about what line of sin you are playing with. I also challenge you to listen to the sermon series by Andy Stanley, and see how much you grow. Kyle and I are actually going to do the study for the series and we are so excited :) Blessings to all today!!!

Choosing to See

Yes, yes, I know this is the title of a really great book, but it seemed fitting today. By the way, if you haven't read Choosing to See, by Mary Beth Chapin you really should, it's so good. Be ready to cry, happy and sad tears :)

Anyway, Tuesday wasn't the greatest day I've had in awhile. So far, through this process I've done my best to stay positive and be truly happy with how things are going even if it's slow. Tuesday just wasn't one of those days. As Kyle and I talked about how we were feeling on Tuesday he said something to me, " maybe you should take this time to work on you." At the time it seemed a little hurtful, like maybe I wasn't doing enough or doing things well. (this is always where my minds goes, Kyle by no means meant it that way). I continued to think about this and really focus on that phrase.

So, I'm Choosing to See the good in things. It's a good thing we are waiting as long as we are, no matter how long it is: It gives Kyle and I more time to focus on just our marriage, it gives us more time to save up money, it gives us more freedom to do things on the weekends, it gives us more time to make memories to tell our children, it gives us time to work on ourselves, it gives us more time to know the Lord, it gives us more time to dream, it gives us more to serve, it gives us more time to get healthy, it gives us more time...

These may not seem like a big deal, but when I look at them, I realize these really are great things to focus on. To be focused on the positive, to be focused on making ourselves better for our children. There are parts of me that feel selfish for wanting to do these things. I also know that it's probably good to be a little selfish now, so we can be good positive parents when the time comes.

 I love that God brought Kyle and I together to do life together. Being with Kyle is something I never imagined, and he is such a rock for me with everything we have been through. I can't wait to see him holding our children, to be kissing them, and to hear him talk about them. We talk about our nephews or our little sisters probably on a daily basis, and I can hear in his voice how proud he is of them. I can see the light in his eyes when he talks about them because he loves them so much. I love hearing his laughter when we talk about funny things they have said or done. I can't wait to hear in his voice how proud he is of our kids, the light in his eyes, and the laughter that will be coming out of him with our kids :)What a blessing that day will be, and it will come at the perfect time.

Choose to See the good today, even if it is hard.

Wishing I was Younger

I should really be enjoying my twenties. I hear they go fast, you learn a lot, you'll be in the best shape of your life, sounds pretty good to me. However, what most people don't tell you is how much pressure you have from the society that you should be a parent, or at least pregnant.

Today I was talking with someone where my mom and I get our haircut and we were talking about all that we have been through medically. We got on the subject of adoption, and I told her that I'm sure I'm going to get a lot of " why didn't you have your own children?" I should really be nice about it, but I'm sure I'll get to the point and just say, I can't bear children, and these are my own children. Let's be a little more open minded here people. Not 2 minutes later someone overheard that I was adopting, and then asked "are you going to have your own?" I mean seriously?! Not everyone is blessed with fertility, sorry I'm not one of them.

On my way home, I got an update that there was a referral today for an infant boy. Usually I get so excited and highlight a box from my list I made. Not today, I'm actually not excited at all. It took the family 1 year and 8 months for the referral. The baby isn't home yet, they haven't met him yet... there is still a lot to do and a lot of waiting.

My mother in law always tells me, adoption is not for the weak of heart. She is so right, and honestly I want to give up right now. I never in a million years wanted to wait to be a mother until I was almost 30. I guess that's when everyone laughs, and says well its not your plan, its Gods. Of course, everyone is right, but right now... I'm not too fond of this plan He has going in making me wait. This will be one of those times when I look back and say, boy I'm so glad God had us wait, or we could have missed out on whatever that may be. I can't see it now, which is probably the point, but it still doesn't make it easy.

I obviously don't know what it's like to be a mother yet, but there are so many people that just want their children home. There is no doubt that I'm sure they do, but most of them have a family already. They have kids, they have distractions. I wish now more than ever that I had that distraction. I wish there was a rule that if you don't have children you jump to the top of the list. I wish my babies were home right now and I didn't have to feel this way.

Wishing won't make anything happen though. I need to pray and pray hard, because God is a big God and He can still work miracles. I have to believe that right now and honestly hold on for dear life with that truth, because today it's hard.

Mother's Day

Last year around Mother's Day was just another reminder that I wasn't yet a mother... It seemed like it wasn't ever going to happen, at least not the way we were planning it to happen. At that point though, I had no idea what God was planning and what He had in store for the upcoming year.

I'm sure many of you would say I'm not a mom yet, and I guess in a way it's true. I don't have my children here with me everyday, I'm not taking care of them yet, and they aren't even on US soil. I would have a different opinion though. I am a mother, no I'm not going to be getting cute little handmade presents from my children, and I won't be celebrated like all the other mother's right now, but I am a mom to 2 beautiful children. I pray for them all the time, I think about them all the time, I dream about their lives, and I am constantly wondering where they are while I wait for them to be mine. I am a mother to 2 children who I don't even know yet, and they don't know me. I pray that they know someone is on their way to becoming their mommy and someone who is going to love them so so much and never let go, and always take care of them.

There are often times when I make up these fairy tales of what life is going to be like when we bring our children home, and I have created one even for Mother's Day. It is just a special day that I get to spend with my kids, and they make me things, and they tell me how much they love me. This is fun for me, but I don't want to dream anymore, and I hope I don't create these stories that don't happen the way I invision... I hope they turn out just the way they are supposed to, perfectly. Having our children home and with me will be enough of a Mother's Day present next year, I won't care about the little gifts or my special day. Everyday is going to be a special day with having those children safe in our arms. I hope we tell each other everyday how much we love each other, I hope we play together everyday, and I hope we make everyday special in some way. I want to celebrate their lives and our family not just on Mother's Day, but everyday.

I am excited to celebrate all the mommies out there tomorrow, and I am so thankful for all the moms who have had an impact on me. I truly hope I can impact my children and even their friends the same way.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Passion

Well since there isn't always a lot to update on about our babies, I thought I could just update and give a little insight on what's going on while we wait :)

We have moved up a couple spots on our lists, but not a whole lot... Things are moving pretty slow over there right now. The Southern Region has pretty much been given up on, but there can always be hope and prayer for that to open up, because there are a lot of kiddos that need some mommies and daddies. Someone from our agency is going to ET sometime this week probably, to make sure things are going smoothly and as quickly as possible on their side. There are some kids in one of the orphanages, but they don't have their paperwork yet... moving on Africa time is what I'm presuming is going on. So hopefully everything will get worked out there and we can see some movement on that list!! :)

On to what's been going on. We are teaching a class at our church on Thursday's at 6:30 based upon a book called Orphanology. It went well last week, and we are hoping for the same tonight. There have been good conversations and I'm so proud of Kyle for being open to this and being a total rockstar last week. On May 18th, there is an adoption seminar at a church around the area in Zionsville, and we are going to that. I'm so so excited to go and meet some families, and learn more about what our life could and will be like. Our neighbor is also going, so we are looking forward to that as well. :)

That kind of stuff just gets me excited, I want to go to every conference, every state just to meet people and their families, anything to be involved in this world we are going to be in. I've been really trying to find out what my passion is lately. My number one passion is to be a mommy and be a good one. I feel like that's what God has made me to be. But... I can't do that right now. Not yet anyway, so I'm searching who I am and what I'm supposed to be and be doing. I love dreaming and dreaming big, but it sure can be scary at times. I want to learn how to rely on God and listen to Him and what He is telling me to do. I'm hoping and praying that God reveals to me what I'm supposed to be doing while I wait for my babies.

I'm often jealous of Kyle because he is such a natural at what he does, and he is so incredibly talented in what he does. Now, don't get any ideas in asking what exactly he does, because I can't explain it, but I do know he is amazing at it, and his co-workers and even his CEO think very highly of him. They are honored to be working with him. I love where he works too... almost all the men there are Christians, they have great families, and are just such a blessing to be around. I'm so beyond proud of my husband and all that he does for our family now and our family to be. He plans and provides in ways I never could.

As I start down this new journey I hope I learn a lot about what's around me, the people around me, and especially who I am. I know God has wired me to be who I am, I just need to find my place.

Spicing it Up

Not a whole lot to be updating on, but just thought I'd throw something out.

I decided to spice up my page a bit and added a couple things. I was feeling a little smart and thought I'd try to some things out. I changed up the color and the font and placed things in different places. Hopefully things will be easier to see and find. I added a button to my Etsy site. I don't know if I really told anyone but after we did our fundraising with Ordinary Hero I sent a picture of the thank you's I made to one of the girls who I had been in contact with. She had asked me to make 300 cards and donate them to the OH store. I made 100 Africa themed Thank You's, 100 China themed Thank You's and 100 generic Thank You's. They are actually featured this week in the store for the OH Grant Contest going on right now. If you want to pop over there and purchase any, don't forget to choose my name on the drop down box under affiliate. If you want wait, that'd be great too!! We opened up my Etsy site and those cards and many others will be on the site and ready for you to buy soon. :) All the proceeds will be going straight to our adoption account.  I also added a donate button if anyone feels led to do so.

As Kyle and I have gone down this road, we have wanted to do many things to encourage other people to adopt and just make people more aware of what's going on around us. We have thought about ideas, but never really settled on anything. Today at church one of our pastors who actually adopted 4 out of the 5 of his children was open to talk to us. I told him I've been reading a book called Orphanology and there was a Bible Study/Small Group Study to go along with it. They have something at our church called Northview University with different types of classes, and he asked us to pray about leading a class in about 5 weeks. We will be praying and researching and see what God calls us to do with this opportunity. :)

Kyle and I have also envisioned the type of family we see for some reason. We always saw a baby boy and a toddler girl. Now, we always say, if we were pregnant we wouldn't get to choose which gender. I also really wanted to have a gender reveal party and make it so much fun. However we have made the choice to bring home one of each. So, we are planning for a boy and a girl. :) We are so excited, and we still don't know for sure what the ages will be, but we are pretty sure it will be baby boy and toddler girl. We are very thrilled and will still probably throw some kind of gender party just for fun.

Some prayer requests:
For the Southern Region to open up soon.
For direction in our church and leading the class I talked earlier about.
To be chosen for a fundraising and grant we are applying for.
Most importantly for our children and their mothers. The infant is probably not born yet, and possibly not even conceived, so just for healthiness of the mother and peace for our children. We pray for this every night before we go to bed, but I'd love for others to jump on too. :)

Happy 23 hour day friends!! ;)

Finishing Touches

Everything with the USCIS takes awhile, but we are pleased to say that we were accepted to adopt and bring home to the US 2 orphans from Africa. YAY!!! :) 
We need to get the paper notarized and then Kyle will take it downtown to have the State Seal put on it, then it is sent away to CO. It will finally be complete as a whole.

IAN is wonderful and will let families be on the waiting list while they are finishing up the paperwork for the USCIS. It takes such a long time sometimes, that it could really set you back in time as to when you would get on the waiting list. Since the waiting list is pretty long as well, they don't worry about you getting a referral before having all the paperwork for USCIS done. Thank you IAN. :)

In other big news, Ethiopia has 3 locations of their orphanages, Northern, Western, and Southern. Right before Christmas the Southern region had put a hold on their adoptions and referrals, because they were unable to handle all the paperwork. Now, all the regions are run by different people, I guess to me I think of it as each state has a governor, and that's how the regions in ET are as well. So, IAN is still supporting the kids in the orphanage but we are still without answers if and when it will open back up. The other part that stinks beyond the fact that there are children there waiting to be adopted, is that a large number of the children came from the Southern Region. With that, it is making the wait time even longer. We will be looking at another year to 18 months probably before getting our referral or our match. We continue to pray everyday for our children, and their safety. I think we should also be praying for the Southern Region with those children as well, and praying that the Southern Region opens soon. If that were the case, the movement would be a lot on the list and so many families would get their children home a lot sooner and to a loving and safe place. Please join us in prayer for those things.

We are pretty certain what genders we will be getting by where we are on the list, so its great for planning, but also not great because now all I want to do is shop!! Haha, but like Kyle says, things will change and I'm going to want something different in a year or so. I have to hold back and wait, so I'm doing my best...

Other than the things above there isn't a whole lot going on with the adoption stuff. It's a slow and steady waiting game. We get excited about the referrals coming through though and watching ourselves move up the list. Its the little things that keep us going. :)

Like a Kid Again

Last weekend we had Christmas with my mom's side of the family. We did a white elephant gift exchange to have some fun. I was at Target and got a nerf gun, I thought it'd be a big hit, but it really wasn't except with Kyle and I. We had a blast with it, my mom started to join in too and we were laughing so hard at times. My cousin actually won the gift, but we played with it ;) Kyle kept saying I can't believe you bought this for a white elephant but not for me.

So on Monday I had to go out and grab a few things... along with that was 2 nerf guns for my husband and I. I was going to wait awhile to bring them out, but Kyle has been really busy at work and this was the first time all week we could sit down and talk. Instead of talking, we had an all out NERF WAR!!!! :) :)  We were laughing, running around, hiding in and behind things. This went on for a good 20 minutes. We had a BLAST! Needless to say, this was the best gift I bought for him and we are having so much fun with it.

We are longing for our kiddos, but we are enjoying the little things in life right now. God is good!

Lots of Love,
The Nerf Champ Chaffee's ;)

Blessed in 2011

Good morning friends!
I'm really not a morning person at all, but I was able to sleep in a little today, okay like an extra 20 min, but still it felt so good. :) Anyway, before I head off to work for this week, which is a full week of work, (whoa) I thought I'd update real quick.

Last year when we sent out our Christmas cards we wrote a note about our year and we sent it with our picture to lots of family and friends. As Christmas was approaching, Kyle and I thought we would skip out on the letter this year, because well it wasn't a great year for us. I completely agreed with this, but then I started thinking about all the ups we had this year too. So I'm going to just write about how blessed we were really are even though it wasn't our best year.

Sadly, we lost 2 grandmothers this year... With Grandma Chaffee we were not expecting it at all, and it was a big shock to everyone. She had been doing so well, looking great and sounding great. It was such a sad Easter last year, but for the first time in probably a long time, all the Chaffee's were together. One of Kyle's uncle and aunt live in Florida, and I actually had never met them, so they came up of course. It was a blessing being together as a family, even though a key component was missing, Grandma. But I know with everything in my heart Grandma was looking down from heaven and was smiling so big to see all of her kids, their spouses, her grandchildren, and her great grandchildren together again. It is still hard for many of us at times, but the Chaffee's still get together and I know that's something Grandma instilled in all of her children.  Blessed.
With Grandma Ramseyer ( my step dad's mom) we sadly knew the end was coming. It was hard, but we were able to say our goodbyes and spend our last moments with her. She was such a giving person, with such a big heart. She and her husband knew so many people and they were all touched by their gratitude and their selflessness. Something we all need more of. What great role models to their families. We all have so many fond memories of Grandma and she will be missed everyday, but we are all better people because of her. Blessed.

In 2011 we really wanted to expand our family and get pregnant like everyone else does. It seemed easy, but as time went on I knew something wasn't right. After many people telling me I just needed to relax, and I know I did need to, I went to the Dr. There were lots of visits, and I ended up with 2 surgeries and news that I would probably never be able to conceive. Talk about a rough year... but, if those doors weren't shut like that we wouldn't have started our process of adopting so soon. We always knew we wanted to adopt, but wanted to wait a little while. I couldn't be more excited about going down this path, and I think of our children every single day. Some days are hard, I lose patience, and I get sad that we don't know them yet, but in God's timing we will and we cannot wait!!! BLESSED.

Kyle and I both have great jobs. He works with some absolutely amazing role models. They are all upstanding men who work hard, have strong families, and a lot of them are Christians. What a blessing that is, to work in such an environment when most places and people are the opposite. He gets treated well and has good relationships with many people in his office. I am loving my job too, the kiddos are wonderful. They keep me laughing all the time, they are quirky, funny, and so loving. It is a very tiring job and sometimes frustrating, but my goodness I couldn't imagine not knowing those kiddos. Blessed.

We absolutely love our house. We have been so blessed to be able to keep up with everything that goes on with it, dream up new ideas for our home, and just be content. It's a quaint little cottage looking home, but we couldn't ask for a better place to call home. We also have thee best neighbors. It's amazing how God works that out even if we aren't thinking about it. They are actually going through a lot of the same stuff we are, so we have cried together, had serious conversations, but most of all we laugh together. Blessed.

Lastly, we have the most wonderful supportive family we could have ever dreamed of. I really struggled with the thought of letting down my parents, and Kyle's by not being able to give them a blood related grandchild. I'm sure they all dreamed of it, and I know I did, but no one has said anything about being disappointed. They all say the opposite actually, which is such a freeing feeling. We are so glad that they are all on board, they are just as excited as we are, and that they pray for our future children. Thank you so much! Blessed.

We are blessed in so many other ways, but I don't want to bore you or make this book much longer. Friends, we have rough days, months, and even years, but try to look between the lines and see those blessings. Sometimes looking for those things is harder than getting out of bed in the morning, but when you look for them God will reveal them to you. I have to remind myself of this everyday, because it's not easy and I am by no means great at this. Looking back at 2011 though, I am able to find those blessings, because God has brought me to a new place. :) BLESSED.