Tenative travel dates!!!

We should be holding our sweet boy on April 18th!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Just 2 days after he turns one! We should actually be on the plane to Ethiopia ON his birthday. Looks like he will get his first birthday party in Ethiopia!
AMAZING!

I want to write more but am too tired! Will have to do more later!!

Mini-Micah update

My sweet friend Cristie (who was #1 when we were #2 waiting for a referral, and ended up sharing the same referral day) is in Ethiopia right now and got to see our little Micah!
Here is the little bit of info we got today from her (she knows I will need a 5 page report when she returns) but this is wonderful for now!


"Micah was the first child we saw when we entered the gate! He was in Almaz arms. He played outside with all the toddlers with soccer balls. What a doll! Very affectionate, loves all the kids. He's tiny too! What an awesome day! What a special place! Can't wait to share EVERYTHING with you! xxoo"

Awesome huh!? Though we weren't able to travel together like we'd hoped to, God made CERTAIN that she met our little man and would be able to bless us with an update! :) How precious that he, out of so many children, was the ONE child that the director Almaz chose to pack around for a little while! :) God has smiled on us once again! I am so thankful for Cristie and now she will be able to prepare me VERY well for that wild/amazing week we have ahead of us!
Hopefully we will hear this week when we will be traveling!

In case you haven't heard....

WE PASSED COURT!!! MICAH IS LEGALLY/OFFICIALLY OURS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's been a long journey to this moment, but all worth it and out of love from our Heavenly Father!

We don't know about travel yet but would love to be holding him soon....very soon!

There is said to be an embassy appointment on April 5th, meaning we'd be holding him on Easter sunday, should we get to go that week, though that would be quick and unlikely, I know our God is ABLE! :)

On another note, Cristie (#1) is heading to Ethiopia tomorrow! Or today by now I guess :) And she will be holding her sweet Evan on Sunday!! Praise God!

The sweet cherry on top is she will get to see Micah, hug him and tell him that his PARENTS are coming!!!

Thank you Lord!!!!!!!

And thank you to ALL of those who are continuing to follow our journey and pray along with us!

ALMOST OFFICIAL

Ok so hears what we heard today from our agency....

the MOWA letter we have been desperately waiting for had still not arrived but MOWA said that it had been sent....SO they are not rescheduling us for another week or 2 (Praise God for the mercy he poured out on us through that judge) because the staff over there apparently feels good about it arriving tomorrow.
Once that letter is there, the judge can make it official and say Micah is ours!!!!
We also heard we won't fall under the new laws where families must travel twice before bringing their child home!!!
We are almost official now! Praying that the letter IS THERE TOMORROW and we are OFFICIAL and we will be bringing sweet Micah home next month!!!!

Also my sweet new BFF Cristie (#1 www.contagiouscristie.blogspot.com) made me a book of many wonderful principals/characteristics of our God with verses to back them up and I will finish this post with the one that stuck out the most to me last night and today

*I must not view His love through my circumstances, but instead view my circumstances through the lens of His unconditional love.*
"Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!"
Psalms 66:20

Round 3!

Our 3rd court date is tomorrow! Well actually tonight while we sleep since Ethiopia is 7 or 8 hours ahead of us!
We are praying, along with 2 other AGCI families who are having the same hold up as us, that the MOWA letter is there, we are approved, and will be traveling soon with no further delays!
I will post as soon as I hear somthing...the first court date we heard that day, the second court date we heard news the next day, but hopefully tomorrow we will hear news and it will be amazing news!!!
Trusting in the God who works out everything for our good and His glory!

Devastated

We did not pass court again today...the same reason as last time, the MOWA letter did not make it. Other families with this same court date are having the same problem, I do not understand and we weren't given any answers as to why...it plain stinks and stinks bad!
Our new court date is in just a week though, the 15th, so I am asking for prayers all day everyday! Each day without him is a day too long!
On top of that bad news, the US embassy in Ethiopia are implementing more changes to how they will investigate every adoption case further after the court appointment, which could lead to another delay....pure devastation.
Micah turns 1 on the 16th of April and we wanted so bad to be holding him before then, plus Tyler is 2 on the 29th of April so we wanted to all be together for those events, but it just may not happen now....Oh I am so sad.
BUT I do KNOW that God acts only out of LOVE, He is LOVE so he can only act in LOVE, so while it doesn't feel like it now, He is loving us and He loves Micah and one day we will all be together. PLease pray for peace and strength for us as we continue on this bumpy road....and for this next court date to be a success
Third times a charm right!? RIGHT??!!!! RIGHT???!!!! :)

No news yet!

Well...still no news from our agency!
I am taking that to mean that they haven't recieved any news from Ethiopia, our case worker has been with us the whole way and I know she would have called already if she knew anything.
I am at total peace though, beyond peace really, kind of like a little excitment for somthing I can't explain!
All I can do is hope that the delay is working in our favor (I have seen God turn so many delays and detours into glorious outcomes!)....like perhaps they are waiting until the official court decree is done and sent to the US embassy, which would mean we'd be ready to travel and SOON I hope! :)
Only God knows and for now that's all I know! :)
I will keep everyone updated! Thanks for all your prayers and please keep them up!

ROUND 2!

Well I am asking any who read this to pray for our second court date, this Sunday night! We are longing for good news on Monday that Micah is officially ours!!
We wanted to get to travel for the March 22nd embassy appointment but it is very unlikely now, I am not limiting my God, just letting you know what we have been told by our agency. While you're praying, you coud pray that we bust any deadlines in paperwork and that all our documents are sent to where they need to be very quickly and we actually are holding our Micah on March 21st....I am living moment by moment in the peace that my God is bigger than any deadline, bigger than anything my heart throws at me, and that HE ULTIMATELY KNOWS EVERYTHING AND ACTS ONLY OUT OF HIS LOVE FOR US!
He loves Micah MORE than we do (though it seems impossible!) and wants him home with us as much as we do, I take rest in this!
Thank you for joining us in prayer as we fight any delays Satan throws our way to keep us from glorifying God through this adoption, a real life testimony to the adoption of US by our HEAVENLY FATHER!
To HIM be the GLORY!