But, I am updating now with wonderful news!! We just received our referral this last Wednesday, November 7th, at about 10:30 AM!
We got a call from our adoption agency this last Wednesday morning asking us if we would want to consider a little boy who was 4 years old, about to turn 5 in January? We were told that if we wanted to accept his referral that this would mean switching to our agency's new partner agency in Ethiopia, called Dove Adoptions. This would mean that we would have to pay a $12,000 referral fee instead of $9,200. And we would also have to redo our dossier paperwork, which would require more fees and work on our part.
In God's kind providence, Adam was home on Wednesday morning preparing for/studying for a Hebrew exam the next day (which he is normally at work on Wednesday mornings...) It was so kind of The Lord to give us our referral call on the morning when Adam was home, because we were able to talk about our decision in person and get to see his information together instead of trying to talk about it over the phone.
So, once we get the call, Adam and I talked it over for about 5 minutes, and then decided that we felt that this was God's doing and provision for us, and that we wanted to call back to accept the referral! Seeing how God has sustained us and provided for us during the process so far has given us much hope in thinking about the additional finances and effort that is now required with accepting our soon-to-be son's referral.
Adam and I called back to our agency and said that we would like to accept his referral, and then we were sent a picture of him and some additional information (we aren't allowed to share his picture now, but can after our first court date and trip to Ethiopia).
We are so thankful and are praising God for His goodness to provide us with another son!!!
We are now in full-throttle :-) trying to get our dossier put together again and trying to stay on top of any other paperwork that we need to do in preparation for our court date. We have been told that, if things go smoothly, we could possibly travel in February. But, we have to hold that loosely, knowing that there can be hang-ups along the way.
We are so excited to share this news with you, and hope that you will praise God along with us! We also ask you to keep us in your prayers!
1. Please pray that paperwork will go smoothly and that we will be able to travel for our first trip and get our court date sooner rather than later. Also, pray that God would continue to provide for us financially.
2. Also, please pray for our soon-to-be son, James Paul Sete Grusy! Pray that God would be sustaining him in the orphanage and that God would be preparing his little heart and mind to enter his new family.
3. Pray for Adam and I, Ethan, Emma, and Lydia, as we all prepare to welcome him as one of the Grusys. It's been precious to see Ethan, Emma, and Lydia all very excited about the news! Lydia has been saying almost everyday, multiple times a day since the referral, "When is my friend coming out? I'm so excited!" And Ethan has been talking about looking forward to sharing a room with him and getting to play with him. And Emma has been excited about throwing him a "welcome home" party! So sweet and such a blessing to see our kiddos excited about their new brother! Please pray that God would continue to make them excited and that they would welcome their brother and love him well during this upcoming transition. Also pray that God would give Adam and I grace, wisdom, and strength as we prepare for and anticipate meeting James for the first time. Pray that God would give us the grace we need to welcome James into our family well, and to care for and love him in a way that is sensitive toward what he has been through in the past.
Thank you for all your loving support and prayers!!
