Let me know if you want a 6 AM wake-up call!

I wish I had more to tell you, but I really don't. Trust me. The no news thing does nothing for the adoption induced anxiety. (Should I be medicated??) It's even leaking into my dreams. I had a dream they called and told us to come pick up the boys. I woke with my cell phone in my hand. Guess I was just gonna call and let some people know the good news! At 6 am. On a holiday-sleeping-late-kind-of-morning. Probably would have lost some friends over that one.

Several of you have asked how you can specifically pray. You ask, and you shall receive...

1. Wisdom. Some reports have led us to believe the boys (especially Charlie) may be older than first thought. This changes NOTHING for us, because they are still our boys. BUT...what it does do, is throw us into parenting a possible elementary-aged kid, when our minds are prepared for a 5 year old (We are just skipping that whole dirty diaper/spit-up stage). Our biggest hurdle is school. And if he is of school age, what to do and when? Please just pray that God gives us wisdom to give the boys what they need (educationally speaking) and at the right time.

2. Patience and persistence. Without boring you with lots of details about new rules and regulations from the government funded organization that I work for, let me just tell you that if I had some idea of what was going to happen with the boys by (or before) July 1st, it would make many, many people's jobs much easier. In case you didn't know, I'm planning on a career change to Mommy, CEO when the boys come home. And my current full time position is going through major changes...In a nutshell, it would be awfully nice if a transition could be made by July 1st. (Could someone please write a transition goal into my IFSP?? Ha...I crack myself up!) But I need patience because (unfortunately) I'm WAY over the current job and just ready to be at home with my boys. Yes, my supervisor knows this.

3. Remedy of conflict. The current situation in Ethiopia is a very real problem and is cause for very real delays for MANY families, not just us. Conflicting information is flying around, left and right, from this blog to another Internet group, between agencies and their families, etc, etc. All I know, is that many kids are just hanging out in Ethiopia while the courts continue to suspend abandonment cases while they complete their investigation. I know it's for the good of both current and future adoptions in Ethiopia. Please just pray for ALL the kids affected, the families affected, the judges and the court systems, the other officials that are conducting the investigations, and the adoption agencies/orphanages and their staff. Pray the ban is lifting SOON! This week would be great.

You guys have blown me away with the prayers...from East Asia to Mississippi...Keep it up!

Put in my place...by God & a 3-year old

So, God has put me in my place once again. We have some of our best talks while I'm mowing the yard--which I did Monday. I know the neighbors are wondering why I get so emotional when I cut the grass. On the plus side, though...I have a renewed sense of peace, a better outlook and know that this whole mess in Ethiopia is totally in God's hands (not to mention, the yard looks way better). I knew this already, but sometimes I just need a good smackin' around to be reminded. He knows when will be the most perfect time to add Charlie & Sam to our family. And it won't be a second before He is ready. Obviously.

And God's always gonna put people, no matter their size or age, in your path to keep you grounded...The Jolly girls hung out with us some last week and had big plans to spend the night--plans that dissolved as soon as their sweet little heads hit the pillow. But none the less, as we discussed where they would sleep and I told Emma they could sleep in the boy's room, she looked at me matter-of-factly and stated, "You know Charlie & Sam aren't here, right?" Yeah, Em--I do. I have to smile at her... :)

...along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them. Isaiah 42:16

A most unexpected year...

One year ago today...

Charlie & Sam became a glimmer in our eye! We decided to jump head first into adoption without looking back. Last night was our Adoption Sunday at our church's Combined Worship Service...turning me into an emotional mush. Big surprise. I didn't take pictures, but if you go HERE you can see all the kids that have been adopted on stage singing "Jesus Loves Me". It gives me chills to think about how many countries and families were represented on that stage. We are so blessed to go to a church that cares so much for orphans and adoption. What an awesome, awesome testimony all these kids will have!

Psalm 3:1-8

When your phone rings at 8:30 on a Friday night and it's your adoption agency, you know either something really good has happened...or something really bad. Fortunately, it wasn't the worst possible news, but certainly very discouraging news.

For about a week now there have been rumors flying around about corruption within the Ethiopian adoption system, specifically with abandonment cases. Without getting into the details, basically children were being "orphaned" in ways that weren't exactly ethical. Part of the rumors were also that abandonment cases were not being seen in court...That's where we fall in all of this...

Charlie & Sam are from a part of Ethiopia called Shashemene and to our knowledge, have been abandoned and have no living relatives. The police department in Shashemene, as well as the orphanage they currently call home in Addis Ababa have both been investigated and passed with flying colors! Praise the Lord! To my understanding, all orphanages, adoption agencies and many of the police departments are being investigated. And until all this is done and the powers that be in Ethiopia are happy with their findings, ALL ABANDONMENT CASES ARE BEING SUSPENDED. (See HERE for the official explanation.)

We are so close, yet so far away. They have all our corrected paperwork, just waiting to be reviewed. There is some hope that since we are just so close, they might still review the paperwork, but it sounds like at this point we have come to a screeching halt...

I really don't know what to say. I'm just numb. In some ways I feel like this can't possibly be real, and on the other hand, it's so real it physically hurts. More than anything, I want to be able to tell the boys we are coming as fast as we can. This is very real for them, too, and they know they have a family waiting for them. But how can their little minds wrap around the concept of time and waiting?

I said a mere 15 hours ago that I'm glad God always gets His way. This doesn't change that, just gives me more ammo to pray with. On the other hand, does it totally suck?? I answer with a resounding "YES!" (I'm only human.)

We covet your prayers. Please continue to pray for a miracle. A Charlie & Sam shaped miracle...

Not my way, but His.

In case there's anyone out there keeping up, we are coming dangerously close to the one-year mark of our decision to begin the process of adopting Charlie & Sam. If I remember correctly...and I know my memory of THIS doesn't fail me...Kenny & I had just rolled back into Louisville from a week at the beach. We came straight to church for Combined Worship Service and were pumped about spending time with our church family.

Kenny wanders up to me and says, "I signed us up to get some info about International Adoption." ..........Well, that wasn't on my current radar...read as: We have talked about this and know we want to do this, but now let's REALLY talk about it.

Next comes Tera, adoption extraordinaire..."Your husband just put y'alls name down to get some information about adoption", said with a knowing smile. How knowing...

May 18, 2008. The focus for the service was Highview's Adoption Ministry. A prompt from God via a video and my mind was made up...

An email from a friend who reminded me that I knew "it was time to start a family" and encouraged me that we had the love needed for any child that God placed in our home, whether biological or adopted.

We tried for 3 years to start a family Kenny & Jana's way. All it took was one day a year ago for God to get enough of our attention for us to realize it was time to start a family His way.

Prayers here. Brothers in an orphanage there. A decision was made in Kentucky. Charlie & Sam were waiting for a family in Ethiopia.

Not plan B, just simply God's plan. Not my way, but His. I can't imagine another way...

Many, O LORD my God, are the wonders you have done. The things you planned for us no one can recount to you; were I to speak and tell of them, they would be too many to declare. Psalm 40:5

I'm glad God always gets His way!

Today is already Wednesday...in Ethiopia...

This is your friendly reminder that tomorrow is Wednesday. And in case you didn't know, today is Tuesday. Which means that on Wednesday in Ethiopia, which started around 4:00 pm today--confused yet?... the judges will once again be flipping through all the "open cases", hopefully approving the boy's paperwork. I'm gonna pray that someone knocks the papers off the desk and when they pick them up, that Charlie and Sam end up on the top. How's that for intervention?

And just for no other reason than my general merriment, a short list of my top 3 favorite moments from the weekend...

1. Pictures of our sons (that's fun to say!) graced the big screen at church on Sunday, promptly throwing me into a weeping fit of tears and snot. How exactly can a picture evoke such strong emotions?

2. Regardless of the fact that the children we have are on another continent and have never actually met us, Kenny remembered that Sunday was Mother's Day. Can I just say I have the best husband ever?

3. Nicole made a caramel cake for my delayed birthday celebration this past weekend. (FYI: I celebrate all month, so feel free to continue to celebrate with me.) It was super good. I think I might have a piece right now...

Welcome Home!

We welcomed home the two newest Maynard's last night...now a family of SEVEN!! They are too cute and were totally overwhelmed by the group that was at the airport to greet them! As happy and excited as I am for them, it was still bittersweet knowing they had gotten to see the boys! We can't wait to hear more about their trip and to see new pictures of the boys.

I will worship while I'm waiting...

"We don't always like God's tactics, but we can NOT ignore His results."
--Rick Burgess

I'm waiting on You, Lord
And I am peaceful
I'm waiting on You, Lord
Though it's not easy
But faithfully, I will wait
Yes, I will wait
I will serve You while I'm waiting
I will worship while I'm waiting
--John Waller

May 2nd is NOT Derby Day at the Cook house!

The family came to visit for the Derby this past weekend…oh, wait…they came to celebrate the glorious birth of their first born child! (That’s me.) Well, honestly they came to help us get some work done on the downstairs playroom and it just happen to fall on my birthday. Coincidence? I think not.

We all worked hard on Saturday…okay, so Dad and Kenny worked hard and I wandered around the house in my PJ's, being generally unproductive, taking phone calls from my admirers wishing me a Happy Birthday. We had cake and ice cream on Saturday night and Ty made a new friend in Emma, although it looks as though Emma wasn’t exactly thrilled with the idea…


The girls from work dressed up the office on Friday to celebrate "Jana's 28th Run for the Roses"...that's Derby talk for you Alabamians (I didn't know either). And our church family showered me with birthday wishes on Sunday, making me feel super special and we finished off the weekend at one of my favorite places to eat in Louisville...Buca di Beppo!

And a few random cute Ty shots just for the heck of it (with my new birthday present!)…

Today could be THE day...

We had our roof replaced last week, but our cable and internet satellites were replaced backwards, making it most difficult in obtaining a signal to get online. Needless to say, we’ve been disconnected from the World Wide Web for several days. Which seems like an eternity when people you know are potentially spending time with your children on another continent.

Got an email yesterday from the Maynard’s who got to spend a little bit of time with the boys on Monday…

The worker said the older one is VERY smart and he can write, read, add, subtract…etc. They were all grins when I told them they were the only children in the house! They smiled about your involvement in church and I told them you were preparing a room for them…when asked if he wanted to tell you anything, the older one said “I love you” (yes, I cried!!).

Pretend that your child has spent the first years of his life far, far away from you and try to imagine what it might feel like to have him say “I love you” or to be excited to know that you are waiting on him, and only him, to arrive and are preparing a special place for him. The tears are returning and I’m shaking just writing about it…I don’t have words to explain that feeling because it’s a new feeling for me. But I like this feeling… The only thing that would make it better would be hearing Charlie’s sweet little voice with his Amharic accent tell me those precious words himself.

I’ll give you a break to go get a tissue…

But keep reading, the good news is coming up…

We found out yesterday that while our case will continue to be considered an “open case” the Ethiopian government has come to a realization that they have too many open cases (about time!) and they will begin TODAY sorting and sifting through the paperwork of the many open cases. Each Wednesday beginning today, they are devoting time to looking at the current open cases. What does that mean for Charlie & Sam? Hopefully it means that on a Wednesday in the very near future (maybe today…) a judge will review their paperwork, declare us cleared and grant us an embassy date to travel to pick them up. It also means that you will be getting a reminder every Tuesday from here on out to PRAY, PRAY, PRAY that this is the GOLDEN WEDNESDAY for us and the boys!!