Drumroll Please....

we are now certified to adopt!!!  Our case study has been approved and we can now enter the matchbook!  We are still working on the finishing touches of our matchbook letter, but hope to be available to birth families by the end of July!

Dear Baby,

Right now I don't know who you are, what you look like or where you are coming from but I know you will be mine one day and that I love you!  I've wanted to have you in my arms for over 3 years and now that we've started this journey it feels like it's actually going to happen one day soon!  I've been reading all sorts of books in order to be the best Mommy possible.  Sometimes they make me feel more prepared--other days they just make me feel even more overwhelmed!  Your room is slowly coming together.  I even have a car seat and a stroller ready for you!  I can't wait to meet you one day soon little one. 

Love,
Mommy

Cute Advertisement!

So the other day I saw this ad for google chrome and fell in love!  I thought it was the cutest thing ever!  I wanted to share the ad here so you could see it for yourselves!  This ad has also given me inspiration for future blog posts that I plan to entitle (for now) "Dear Baby".  Enjoy!

A New Way to Donate

First off let me start this post by saying that Ben and I have been overwhelmed with your financial support for our adoption!  We know we aren't living in the best economy right now, but so many of you have graciously chosen to support us by collecting change, buying t-shirts, or simply mailing us a check.  Thank you so much! 

As the time draws closer for us recieving placement of a baby our fundraising efforts still are continuing.  Ben and I are in the process of filling out loan and grant applications as we prepare to become certified to adopt and be placed in the matchbook.  Once we receive placement the balance of our adoption fees are due.  Since placement can happen anytime once we are in the matchbook we are starting to feel more anxious in regards to having our finances in order.  However as my best friend often reminds me: If it's God's will, He will pay the bill! 

We have created a pay pal account for our adoption fund that you can utilize by simply clicking on the "donate" button directly below our fundraising thermometer.  If you would like to pay for your t-shirts in this way, feel free to do so and then let us know what sizes we can send you. 

Thanks so much for your support!  We know not everyone is able to support us financially but we are grateful to you as well for we know you are praying for us often! 

With Love,
Alisha & Ben

Exciting, but Scary?!

I just got off the phone with our caseworker from the adoption agency.  She has been finalizing our home study paperwork in preparation for the certification meeting coming up in a few weeks.  If everyone else agrees at the adoption agency, then we should be certified to adopt on Thursday, June 23rd!  She also shared that currently our agency's matchbook only has 13 adoptive families in it--an all time low for the agency.  Recently there have been quite a few placements thus the reason for the low numbers.  The average wait for a baby is 12 months, but since the matchbook has so few adoptive couples we could end up being placed with a baby long before that.  It's hard to believe that Ben and I could be parents in just a few months.  I'm excited.  I'm elated.  And I'm freaking out!!!!  Please specifically be in prayer for the following:

-Trust in God's timing

-Wisdom for when we get a call and how to proceed

-Financial Provision (The final adoption fees are due when we receive placement)

-A good long term sub to teach in my absence

-Faith in God's plan for our future as parents

Thanks everyone!  Also if you're not a friend of mine on facebook we'll be having an open house celebration to commemorate going into the matchbook on July 16th from 5:30-8:30.  Please e-mail me at alishalikestoteach@yahoo.com if you plan on stopping by and didn't receive an evite.

Change is Good Update

We've already had 2 change jars turned in!  Thanks goes to Amy and Andy and The Reed Family!  Each jar had over $20 in it so that change really adds up! We appreciate your support and prayers everyone!

Shirt Fundraiser!

Help us raise money for our adoption, and look good while doing it! Our good friend, Bobby Dean, has designed shirts for us to wear and sell to help raise funds for our adoption. If you read our support letter you'll recognize the following verse from Isaiah 41:9-10:

I have chosen you and have not rejected you. So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Now you can wear this verse on a shirt, wherever you go!

This is the Women's Shirt (Smaller & Fitted)
Click HERE for sizing info!

This is the Men's Shirt!
Click HERE for sizing info!

If you're interested in ordering please contact us at: alishalikestoteach@yahoo.com with sizes and quantities! All shirts are $20.  We do have a small sampling of sizes in stock if you are anxious to get one right away. First come, first serve! Thanks for supporting us!

If you'd like to pay for your shirt now instead of sending us a check just click on the donate button below our adoption fundraising thermometer.

Something better?

A close friend of mine posted this quote today on facebook:

The ache and emptiness we sometimes experience is proof that we were made for something better.

This quote really spoke to me today and where I am in life right now.  Although I am excited to be moving forward with our adoption journey there are times that I still ache and feel empty.  I am going to have a baby--but it's not going to look or feel the same as everyone else at times.  Everything I have been doing in the adoption has been purposeful and intentional.  Sometimes it's hard not to be resentful over that fact.  I have to tell everyone I am having a baby--since it's not obvious by looking at my belly.  I have to raise money and ask for funds, instead of accumulating gifts for my baby.  I have to remind people when my baby is coming since I don't have a due date that I'm working towards.  I don't get to use my short term disability while on leave like all other soon to be mommies since I'm not actually "having" a baby.  I have to be "ready at any moment" for up to a year instead of waiting for labor pains to set in during my last month of pregnancy.  These are the things that sometimes remind me that I'm not going about becoming a mother like everyone else is and thus lead me to feeling empty.

However if I end this post now I won't be addressing the latter part of the quote.  The "something better" part!  God has something in store that I can't even imagine or fathom.  He knows "the plans he has for me". The "plans to prosper me and not to harm me".  The plans to "give me a hope and a future".  All I can say is thank you Jesus!  When I grow resentful and bitter that I'm not like everyone else remind me that there is "something better" waiting! 

The Next Step

It's June 1st and school is officially over for the summer!  Now that I have a ton more time on my hands (for only a short while) I can focus on our next step in the adoption process: our Matchbook Letter!  The Matchbook is what potential birth parents are shown when they are making an adoption plan.  If they see a letter they like (it's more like a four page scrapbook layout) then they make plans to contact us (through their pregnancy worker) and possibly set up a match meeting.

Assuming all goes well we should be certified to adopt sometime the third week in June.  Which means we should be going into the Matchbook shortly thereafter!

This is an exciting (and a little nerve-racking!) of a time.  Please continue to pray for us!