Adoption Tax Credit

Did you know that there is an adoption tax credit?  The credit has been a huge help to adoptive families, considering not only the high costs of the adoption process, but also the added cost of bringing another child into a family.  The adoption tax credit began in 1997, but it is set to expire in January.  This credit is far from insignificant, and it would be a major loss if it expires.  You can read more about it here.  There is a petition at the end of the article that I encourage you to sign.  Would you also consider contacting your representatives?  Take a few minutes to ask them to vote to extend this credit!  You can find your house representative here and your senator here.

Finally, another shameless plug for the amazon link on the right sidebar -- I know many of you will be doing a ton of Christmas shopping there in the next few days and weeks!  Please take a few seconds to click to the site through our blog.  We are so grateful for those who have already been doing this.  We don't know who all of you are, but thank you!

Quick Update: First Home Study Meeting

We had our first in-person meeting with our social worker this morning, and it went very well!  Our home study is officially underway.  Every adoptive family must complete a home study to be sure they have a suitable home for their new child, and so that the best possible matches can be made between children and families.  The home study involves a series of about 4-5 meetings with our social worker.  She will be working with us throughout the adoption, so she will learn a LOT about us!  We will meet with her together as a couple, individually, and in our home.  She will also educate us about what to expect throughout the adoption process and the years afterward.  And that mountain of paperwork we have to gather, complete, and send to China?  She will help guide us through all of that.  

In other family news, tonight is movie night at our house.  Peter finished the second Harry Potter book, so he has earned the right to watch the movie.   He is pumped!  We are also looking forward to visiting with family next week for Thanksgiving.  We get to see Granny & Gramps (my parents), Uncle Tim and Aunt Lauren (my brother and sister-in-law), and Gran (my grandma)! 

A few recent pictures:

Delicious Coffee!

We posted earlier about how you can help us by buying coffee and using our amazon link.  Thanks to those of you who have already done some of those things!  (To clarify the amazon link: you have to click to amazon through the link on the right side of the page, and then load your cart and place your order all in one session.)

We placed an order through Just Love Coffee last week, because we wanted to be sure that what we are asking folks to buy is actually a good product.  I like dark coffee, so we ordered the Sumatra roast, already ground.  It took our order about five days to arrive, but I have heard from others that their orders came even faster.

Greg says that when he opened the mailbox, he could immediately smell the coffee through the sealed box.  It smelled so good I couldn't wait to make some!  And I was not disappointed...the coffee is strong, flavorful, and delicious!

Please consider purchasing some coffee through the Just Love Coffee link on the right side of our webpage.  The store has a large selection of roasts from many areas of the world.  You can choose to have the beans ground for you, or you can buy whole beans if you prefer to grind them yourself.  So treat yourself to some coffee or buy a few bags as Christmas presents!  Five dollars from every bag will go to our adoption fund.  That adds up, folks!  In addition to our adoption, you can also know that you are supporting a great company.  From Just Love Coffee's website:

And as passionate as we are about creating outstanding artisan coffees, we are equally passionate about helping those in need.  Every delectable cup of Just Love Coffee you drink has a portion of its proceeds go to someone who could use a helping hand.  In our first two years of business we have given over $200,000 to adopting families, non-profit organizations, and the arts. 

This cutie wants you to buy some coffee - how can you resist?!

Misconceptions, Part 1

One thing that concerns us most about making our journey public on a blog is that readers will have some misconceptions about what we are doing or what we believe.  Believe us when we say that at times, we have struggled with some of these misconceptions ourselves (and in many ways still struggle with them).  We both came from backgrounds where we were not exposed to adoption in any real way; not in a way that forced us to actually consider what it meant to adopt or what it was like to be an adopted child or an adoptive family.  However, when we truly started to consider adoption and what it would mean for our family, we found that what we had believed about adoption and how it fits into our faith was seriously challenged and changed.  In light of that, we're going to do a series of posts addressing some of these issues.

Misconception: Everyone should adopt.
We heartily agree that not everyone or every family is called to adoption.  We are all given gifts by God for work in His kingdom, and they are different gifts.  And that is a wonderful thing!  We did not consider that our gifts may be suited for adoption until recently (in fact, sometimes we are still not sure, but praise God, for He is in control!).

However...
It is very important for us to reflect on the fact that as Christians, we are by definition adopted children of God.  How beautiful this picture was to us when we truly considered it!  We have nothing to offer God to qualify for His love and salvation.  As much as we like to think otherwise, we have nothing to stand on and say to God, "I am worthy of being your child."  Yet He freely and lovingly chose us, pursued us, and brought us into His adoptive family.  How can we not turn our eyes toward those who, in this world, are in the same position: fatherless, without any merit to claim adoption into a loving family?

So while not all Christians are called to adopt, all Christians are called to care for orphans and the poor.  We encourage you to consider the poor and others who have no voice.  No really, consider them for a few days and don't look away.  It is frighteningly easy to look away.  Pray for them.  And then pray that God would show you how you are called to care for them.

Need ideas?  Here are a few suggestions:

• Sponsor a child through an organization like Compassion International.
• Help a family adopt by assisting them with fundraising (obviously, we love this idea!).
• Look into starting an orphan care ministry at your church.  Your church could even adopt an orphanage! (Information here)
• Volunteer your time at a local adoption agency or children's home.
• Look into becoming a foster parent.

Stay tuned for more posts in this series.  And if there are specific misconceptions or questions you would like us to address, please let us know!

Halloween fun

As promised, here are some pictures from our Halloween festivities.  Every year, our church has a Reformation Celebration in honor of the Protestant Reformation.  The kids dress up and get candy, but there are also carnival games designed to teach them about the Reformation.  It is a great time where church members of all ages come together to celebrate a major turning point in church history!

 

Thomas burns the papal bulls!

 Even Ruthie gets in on the fun

 Peter takes aim at a turkey

Of course we had to carve a jack-o-lantern:

 Ewwwwwwwww!

 Peter digs in to the pumpkin guts

 Watching Daddy carve

 The masterpiece!

 The boys are proud of their work

This is the first year we have lived in a neighborhood that really got into trick-or-treating.  We ran out of candy to hand out (and made a mental note to get more next year!).  The kiddos had a blast going door-to-door.

Ruthie checks out the pumpkin

Our Thomas the Train, Harry Potter, and Alabama cheerleader!

A Couple Recent Videos

Here's Thomas belting out the University of Alabama fight song.  Roll Tide!

Translation:

Yea, Alabama! Drown 'em Tide!
Every 'Bama man's behind you;
Hit your stride!
Go teach the Bulldogs to behave,
Send the Yellow Jackets to a watery grave!
And if a man starts to weaken,
That's a shame!
For 'Bama's pluck and grit
Have writ her name in crimson flame!
Fight on, fight on, fight on, men!
Remember the Rose Bowl we'll win then!
Go, roll to victory,
Hit your stride,
You're Dixie's football pride, Crimson Tide!

And, here is a video of Ruthie walking.  We are very proud of her because it took her until 19 months old to finally decide to walk!

Halloween was a major success last night.  Our new neighborhood really gets into trick-or-treating, and the kiddos had a blast!  Stay tuned for pictures...