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Two Years Later

7/9/2016

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​Back in January I shared “A Letter to Baby.”  In it was the letter I had originally written on July 9th, 2014 to our unknown future child.  At the time it was written Craig and I had no answers to the who, when, or how of this future little one.  When I shared it with you on the blog in January, Craig and I were six months into our adoption journey and waiting to be matched.  There were still so many unknowns, but we felt convicted that God had placed it on our hearts to grow our family.   
 
The letter was intended as a love note, but it was also a reminder to me that, even back then, God was providing.  Two years have passed since that letter was first written.  You may remember that I started my letter “Dear Isaac” and today, I write to you with Baby Isaac nestled up to me and a message of encouragement for you for what God has placed on your heart to do! 

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An Adoption Snapshot

3/3/2016

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It’s been longer than I’d like since I’ve written or updated you on our adoption journey.  I can’t say much has changed on our status, but I wanted to share a snapshot of what’s taken place.  Last Monday, we received another “not yet” after sharing our family profile.  The rest of last week was well, quite interesting for both good and disappointing reasons.  It’s been overwhelming at times to watch God move the mountains and put together the images of an intricate collage.  I hope to share more on this soon.  

We are preparing to share our profile again this coming Monday.  Of course we are excited that it could be a match, but we are also preparing for other news and realize there is more at work than Craig or myself.  One big lesson I’ve learned in this journey is that I can only do so much.  Like nearly everything in life, you can try to do everything right, but that’s not a guarantee of results or that it’s going to be any easier.  The second piece to this lesson is that God’s got this.  We’ve already seen Him at work throughout this whole journey. There is no denying that He has generously blessed, protected, provided, and then some.  Receiving this lesson has meant that I can give God this situation and any other for that matter, and He’s got it!

At the end of this journey, I imagine a flip book of all the snapshots in our adoption journey.  Each snapshot individually is motionless, but when turned quickly they demonstrate the God’s movement.  He is at work!
​
In love,
Beth
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For Such a Time as This

2/13/2016

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​For such a time as this.
 
The line kept popping into my head. 
 
I was struggling to even know how to write this week.  It’s been another challenging one in the journey of adoption.  Craig and I received another “not yet” on Thursday.  I had imagined this journey differently- easier, simpler, less painful. 
 
For such a time as this.
 
I didn’t really want to write.  Craig told me to take this week off, but I knew I couldn’t.  There was a story here to be told.  And that line.  It lingered.
 
For such a time as this. 
 
I couldn’t place it.  So, I Googled it.  It’s from Esther 4:14.  I can’t tell you the last time I was in the Book of Esther.  But I can tell you that I needed that verse.

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Stretch Bethstrong

2/7/2016

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It’s been a week of perseverance. No, make that a season of perseverance.  
 
As Paul reminds me in Romans 5:4, “perseverance develops character; and character, hope.”  Well, I can tell you that I have more character than the Disney Channel and Cartoon Network combined. :)  It was a tough week and it’s been a challenging season.  We’ve been stretched and pushed in such uncomfortable ways that we’d give Stretch Armstrong competition.  Still, with all the discomfort, we have been developing perseverance and we end this week full of hope!
 
Let me give you the three-day ssstretchhh:

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January’s Joys & Junctures

1/31/2016

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January has been a busy month!  I look back at it and don’t understand how everything fit into 31 days.  I’ll catch you up on all the joy-filled moments and crossroads in our adoption journey:
 
January 10, We put together a gift for a special lady!  It’s for our future birthmother!!!  It’s a gift that will hopefully help communicate how much we care about her, how thankful we are for her, and that she is someone we will always treasure.  I could go on and on about birthmoms!  I have learned so much about these special women through our adoption journey and have grown in my understanding of these individuals.  I wasn’t always in this state of mind though, and I realize that they’re not always respected or valued like they deserve.  To that I say: Phooey! (Though I want to say more!)  A birthmom is the reason we’ll one day be called “Mommy” and “Daddy!”
 
For our gift, we put together a special bag full of items that we hope will help bring comfort to her healing body and heart.  I’ve included a list, put together with the help of Pinterest and girlfriends who shared their favorite post-delivery items, in case there’s someone out there gathering ideas for their own birthmom gift:
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A Letter to Baby

1/24/2016

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Some time ago, though it feels like forever, I wrote a letter to Baby Burge.  In it, I called our baby “Isaac.”  I’ve written before about Isaac and his parents, Abraham and Sarah from the Bible (Read Baby Names and Mountains).  Their story, which begins in Genesis 12, is a record of God’s work displayed in their lives.  His perfect love, provision, and timing are demonstrated throughout.  Early on in our journey of growing our family, I have held on to their story and these truths about God.
Today, I share the letter I wrote to our future baby on July 9, 2014.  My intentions of sharing this in our journey of growing our family are so that others might be blessed by it and see God's  work displayed in our own lives. 
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Status: Available

1/16/2016

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This week a family grew through adoption.
 
It was not ours, no.  But we rejoice knowing that a baby girl has a loving adoptive family and birth family.  And, Craig and I can feel confident that we did the right thing by making ourselves available.
 
In this adoption journey, we want to be available to respond.  Craig and I have had many recent discussions about this together and with God.  The challenging (and rewarding) part of making ourselves available is that we make ourselves vulnerable too.  We have to prepared for a “yes” and a “not yet” from God.
 
On Tuesday, I got a call.  A birthmom had come into an adoption agency in Florida and wanted to place her baby up for adoption.  A C-section was already scheduled the following morning. Wow!?  At that moment, we had to ask ourselves: Are we really available

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Every [Second] I Need You

1/9/2016

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​Sometimes I feel like this…
Or this…
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(Images are from the Disney Pixar’s movie “Inside Out” from which I discovered I have some similarities to the character Sadness.)
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​And sometimes this happens…
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Life.  It gets me sometimes.  It has a long history of being challenging to folks and in these past couple weeks, I’ve been feeling especially challenged by it.

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A Look Back at 2015

1/1/2016

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It’s been a year of growth for us, both through adoption and in our faith.  We wanted to take some time to reflect back on 2015 to capture our growth and one day share this with Baby Burge.   
 
1. If you had to describe your 2015 in 3 words or phrases, what would they be?
Craig: Busy, Challenging, Growth.
Beth: Yea God!, Confirming, Blessed. 
 
2. What was your most common mental state this year?
Craig: Brain dead (from being in school).
Beth: Eager.
 
3. Which worries turned out to be unnecessary?
Craig: All of them.
Beth: What he said.  But I’m a slower learner.
 
4. What was your favorite compliment that you received this year?
Craig & Beth: That we’re going to be great parents!

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Update

12/20/2015

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​I mailed the last “In love” ornament this week!
 
Several months ago I never would’ve imagined the response to our adoption journey from our friends, family, coworkers, and strangers.  At the time, I was just tossing around an idea for Christmas ornaments and working on some prototypes.  There were many obstacles to the ornaments at first: charred clay (I kept one of these just for fun), our oven catching fire (while preheating to bake the ornaments of all things), and a broken arm (which makes rolling out clay next to impossible).  Finally, we took the chance and shared the “In love” ornaments with the world. 
 
Craig thought we’d have some interest and maybe make a couple dozen.  I thought it would be a miracle if they brought in close to $2,000 in donations.  The actual response was incredible!


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    An Ephesians 1:5 Blog

    "In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will." -Eph. 1:5 (NIV)
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    I am an adopted daughter of Christ sharing how God is at work as we grow our family through adoption.

    I pray that I can begin to express in words how God's been at work in our lives.  I pray that He will be glorified as we share with others.  I pray for you! I pray that as you read this you will see God at work in your own life and that  your relationship with Him will be blessed.  

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