Reaction Time....

Warning, this post is probably going to be very long but I want to be able to look back on it for accurate detail. :)

As you read on the previous post, I was the first one to receive the news that we had been picked! I was having a kind of  blah day and was discussing the worlds (ok maybe not the world's) problems with my dear friend and coworker Lora. After I missed the call from the adoption agency I immediately returned their call and this is what I heard:

My social work Colleen "So, how does March in San Antonio sound??"
But this is what I heard "So, how does Madlfjasflksjf;lskfjslkfjaslfkjas - my stupid phone picked THE worst time to cut out! haha After having her repeat it several times I finally understood and I replied "Does this mean what I think it means???? And, the floodgates opened. For me and my sweet friend Lora. It could not have come on a more perfect day. I asked Colleen as many questions as I could between babbling and bouts of shortness of breath. I then attempted to relay everything to Lora, and call Jeff. But he didn't answer, and I am so glad! Next, I quickly attempted to control myself told my Boss the scoop and asked to leave, I had to get home.....

Shortly after 3pm I arrived home to find Jeff relaxing in front of the TV. He asked why I was home early and if I felt OK. I hid my face to him and just said that I wasn't feeling well. I went into the room and took out the shirt I ordered for Amber "Big Sister Amber". I brought it in to the living room and asked him if he thought she would still be able to wear it in March or if I should buy another one. He said..."Um, you will probably have to buy another one!" He wasn't even really paying attention! Just like a man! haha I then just stood there and said "Babe, we got the call" And the tears and the screaming and shouting and the hugging and jumping up and down ensued. One of the best times in my life and I hope I remember it always. We then started to devise a plan to tell Amber and the folks......

Jeff realized it was his parent's wedding anniversary, HOW PERFECT! He casually called them and asked if we could take them to dinner for their anniversary (they live an hour away).  We invited my Mom to join us and they completely fell for it and were looking forward to seeing us. We then waited for Amber to get home from school.....

When we brought her home from her first school dance I told her I needed to talk to her about something, and I tried to have my serious face on. 

Me: "Amber what have we been praying for?
A: Our baby
Me: what about our baby?
A: That we would get picked soon.

Silence. She kept staring at me. And a smile spread across my face. She started screaming "We got picked???? The tears started flowing and she jumped up and down. I showed her the big sister shirt and that pushed her right over the edge, she grabbed it and started fleeing from the room to put it on. Jeff was trying to video tape so we got her back in the room. Such an amazing time.

So this was the plan: Amber put on the big sister shirt and zipped up a light jacket over it. We hopped in the van, picked up my Mom and drove and hour to meet the in laws at the restaurant. Amber was so great!! She didn't not say a peep! I have no idea how she did not burst wide open with Gma Linda siting next to her! I was grateful that Mom could not see my face cause I thought I was going to lose it!

We FINALLY arrived and we all hugged etc "Happy Anniversary" and went inside to find a seat. I sat Amber at the head of the table so they would get a good view of her and then we waited for our cue from Jeff. Ams was kicking me under the table, I was kicking Jeff and trying to get the blessed camera to work without being seen. Finally he said "Hey Amber did you tell your grandparents about that thing.." She smiled as bright as day and stood up and unzipped her jacket to reveal her new shirt! SILENCE! Then, they started to realize what was going on! "Is this for real....does this mean?...... hahahaha So wonderful!!

Surprisingly we made it through the rest of dinner as I was anxious to get outside and call my brother as he was unable to join us. (I bet he would have if he had known it was gonna be a reveal!) He was really excited too! We then proceeded to call the rest of the family and some closed friends. When I called my Aunt Debbie she was watching Jeopardy. I told her I had a good trivia question for her. "What do you think the weather will be like in San Antonio in March?" :) hahahaha

LOVED LOVED LOVED sharing the goodness of God's love with others, Love sharing our miracle and telling others that while we doubted and resisted relinquishing control, God was telling us to patiently wait. How great is our God?

Amber HAD to wear her shirt to school today and tell everyone, she couldn't hardly wait to tell me about it tonight! Thankful for those teachers and administrators who shared in her joy today.

Well, tomorrow I will share about our next steps and the most amazing packet of information that arrived on our doorstep this morning containing our birth mom's profile and picture. I had no idea that I could have so much respect and admiration for someone that I had not even met yet.

Please continue to pray for a healthy pregnancy for BM and baby. Pray for her confidence in her decision. Pray that our journey would touch the lives of others so that they may realize that God is still very much in the miracle business!

What? You have been kicked?? On your anniversary??

Interesting title huh? I will explain that in a minute, but first, let me start at from a few hours ago.

At 2:39pm our lives changed. Forever. At 2:39pm my cell phone rang, and I missed the call. Can you believe that??

But, also at 2:39pm I returned that missed call. And received the news we have been waiting for.

We have been MATCHED!

Praise the LORD.
Praise God in his sanctuary;
Praise him in his mighty heavens.
Praise him for his acts of power;
Praise him for his surpassing greatness.
Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,
Praise him with the harp and lyre,
Praise him with timbrel and dancing,
Praise him with the strings and pipe,
Praise him with the clash of cymbals,
Praise him with resounding cymbals.
Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Psalm 150

WE HAVE BEEN MATCHED!

Thank you Lord for not giving up on us, even when we were weak and doubting. Thank you Lord for your faithfulness. Thank you for surrounding us with friends and family who have loved on us since the begining of this process.

So details you ask??? :)

Our birth mom is a 26 year old women with a fair complexion and green eyes. She chose our profile because she was looking for a family that had a strong religious foundation. :) She loves us. She is very healthy with no history of substance abuse.

We do not know the sex of the baby yet, but we will find out on Halloween after her ultrasound. :) Her due date at this moment is March 28th, just a few months away!

Yes, we realize that it is several months and that she could change her mind. But as my dear sweet husband said earlier "We are in, we are all in" And yes we are. We will be hopelessly excitedly in love for this baby and birthmom.

Please pray for a heatlhy healthy pregnancy and confidence in her decision. Our happiness can not come without her heartbreak. Lord, please hold her.

On a later date I will share how I told Jeff, how we told Amber, and how Amber told our parents!

Oh, and an explaination about the title of this post.... when I called my NC social worker to let her know that we had been matched in TX, we had a bad connection on the phone.

Me "Dawn, we have been picked"
Dawn "What you are sick?"
Me "No we have been picked"
Dawn "You have been kicked"
Me "We are in wilmington, it's my inlaws anniversary, we have been picked"
Dawn "What, you are sick, on your anniversary??"

HAHAHAHA we finally got it straightened out, but this was great!

Love you all,

Karen & Jeff

There's still time.....

So, I'm not sure if anyone else is interested, but I counted weeks the other day. And we have a little less than 11 weeks left in the year. When I counted that I had a internal debate with myself - positive vs. negative.

Negative - "The is only 11 weeks left in the year, that's not enough time, this year is going to be over before we know it, we have been waiting, blah blah blah"

Positive - "There is still 11 weeks left in the year, that's plenty of time for God to work miracles, wow, I could be of for the holidays on maternity leave, aww a Christmas baby would be awesome, I love cold weather, traveling to TX would be great in the Fall" etc.

You see, last Christmas I really truly honestly felt that last Christmas would be our very last without Baby Clayton home with us. So when I counted the weeks and realized we had 11 weeks till Christmas, I got a little panicky. It's coming way too soon. What if Christmas comes and goes and we still are not matched? Maybe my gut would be way off.

What are time lines anyway? I have wanted a baby my whole life, but officially started trying over 10 years ago. Jeff and I have been married for nearly 4 years. (Yes, people I was married before which is where the ten years comes in)   We have been in the adoption process for 15 months.We have been "paper pregnant" on on the official waiting list for 8 months. Still plenty of room of a miracle within 11 weeks! 

So my praying friends.....we thank you for your continued prayer, we covet them. If you would to pray specifically that we receive a miracle before the end of 2011 that would be awesome too! 

If the 11 weeks come and go and we celebrate one more Christmas without Baby Clayton, we will still be thankful for the blessings in our life, thoroughly enjoy every minute of Christmas, and look forward to the next year with eager hearts! 

Love y'all - Jeff & Karen