What I know and what I don't

What I know ...  I know there are 147 million orphans (and some believe that estimate is low).  I know that less than 1% of 1% of them will ever be adopted (that is an extremely low number!).  This number saddens me to no end.  I know ... that 2 of those will join (and already have) joined our family.  I know that there is a little boy on the other side of the planet who has never had the love of a mother, the love of a father or the love of brothers and a sister.  I know that he does not know about us yet and that he wakes up each day surrounded by many other "orphans" and goes through his normal routine each and every day, with many days probably looking a lot like the others.  I know that as I write this, he is probably sleeping and my heart aches to have him here ... to hold him, to love on him and for him to know that he is ours ... forever ... and that he will no longer be motherless, fatherless or without a home and siblings who adore him.  I do know that he has a Heavenly Father that loves him unconditionally and is watching over him each and every day and will for the rest of his life.  I do know that our family has been called to the fatherless and the orphans of this world and we have been blessed beyond measure to see so many orphans find their forever families.  I believe everyone is called to something and this is our something.  Not too shabby, huh?

What I don't know ... I don't know why Eli's birth parents did not feel that they could take care of him.  I don't know what that will be like for him as he gets older.  I don't know the struggles that we may have as a family, but who does?

I know that I am a child of God and one that cannot wait to grab my little guy up in China and shower him with love like he has never known.  Please continue to pray for our family.  This is truly a rollercoaster ride.  We are waiting for our Letter of Acceptance and there is no true prediction of when this might come.  Our prayer is that we will receive it this month so we might have the chance to travel before the end of the year.  This would mean a relatively "quick" LOA, but we know God can move mountains!  The kids keep asking if Eli will be here before Christmas and unless we get that LOA soon, I don't think it will happen (because of all the other steps we need to go through before travel).  But again, God can move mountains, so we will see!

I don't like to write a post without sharing some pics, so here are a few ...

Keenan receiving his new belt

 

 Bella and Addyson

 

Our niece, Ashlynn, in all her gear

 

The boys bithday party ... Keenan is now 7 and Aidan is now 10!!

Bracelets for Eli!!

Orders have been coming in for bracelets and dog collars.  We are thrilled with the response we have been getting with these.  We do have a new color which is an orange and black sawtooth, so if you are a Bengals fan or as my neighbor even pointed out, a Harley Davidson fan, you may like this color.  Let us know if you would like to order a bracelet or 2!!  We can make any size, but the standard sizes are small (5 1/2 inches), medium (6  1/2 inches) or large (8 - 8-1/2 inches).  All colors (other than the orange and black) are found in the picture at the right of the blog page. You can either send us an email or order through ebay (link also at the right on the blog). We can also make dog collars.  We just need the size and color.

Some of the bracelets we made over the weekend

 

 Bracelet making activities :-)

 

 Thanks everyone!!! 



Update and New Pics

We were surprised on Tuesday when we received an update on Eli.  We received some updated measurements and development information as well as 2 pictures (yay!). 

On the home front, the boys started school this week.  Aidan is now a 4th grader (how am I old enough to have a 4th grader?!).  Keenan started 1st grade.  They both had open houses and we got to meet their teachers.  They were all smiles after the first 2 days of school - so thankful!  Bella starts Kindergarten this week.  We also went in and met with her teacher this past week.  We have heard only wonderful things, so we are really excited about her year. She CANNNOT wait to get started!

Soccer is also in full swing.  First games are today and practice between the two happen almost every night.  We are a busy running family right now, but we love it!

The bracelet orders and dog collar orders are starting to come in and we are all very excited about this!!  (Thanks to those you have ordered some!  And thanks to those who have donated to our puzzle!)  Will post pics of the boys making them soon.

Introducing our Eli!!

We are so excited to announce that we have been matched with our Eli!!  We have been waiting to share our news until we received our PA (pre-approval) from China.  (Although, if you have seen us, you probably have seen us oozing with joy and ready to share our pics.)  We sent in our Letter of Intent to adopt Eli on August 4th and his file was locked for us on August 9th.  What can we tell you about Eli??  Well ... he is 17 months old and has the biggest, most adorable eyes.  We are totally in love with him and CANNOT wait to bring him home.  He is in Luoyang Orphanage in the Henan Province.  From what we have learned, this orphanage has around 600 children and the Henan province has 20 orphanages in all.

Eli was born with a unilateral cleft lip and palate and both have been repaired!!  We know there are more surgeries that he will need, but are thrilled that his palate has already been repaired. We are not sure when we are going to get to travel, but we're praying it will be before the end of the year.

Everyone is curious what the kids think of Eli.  Well, let's just say they are soooo excited!  Aidan has already bought him a sock monkey, made him a bracelet, drawn pictures for him, and has decorated a gift bag that says, "Wecome Home Eli!".  He also wants to buy him a little soccer ball so that he has his own.  Keenan wants to get him big blocks since I explained that Legos may not be a good idea yet.  We aren't sure what Bella thinks yet, but she knows Eli is from China just like she is and she asks about him daily.

Now ... for the not so fun part.  As most know, adoptions can be very costly and China adoptions range from $25,000 to $30,000.  Michael and I are blessed that we both work for companies who provide some adoption assistance, but it is not enough to cover all of the adoption costs.  One cost is the orphanage donation that is around $5500 and normally has to be made in cash.  To be honest, this is one expense we are not ready for.  We are starting a couple of fundraisers and if you would like to give to help bring Eli home, we would love your support!!

We are creating a puzzle for our first fund.  The puzzle is being made with a picture of Eli.  We are asking for a donation of $10 per puzzle piece.  Once you donate through PayPal (link on the right of the page), we will add your name to the back of the puzzle piece(s) and we will put the piece or pieces together.  We think this is one way that Eli will be able to one day see who helped bring him home.

The second fundraiser is that Aidan and Keenan are making bracelets and dog collars out of paracord and selling them through ebay.  They have been working hard on these.  Essentially, you can choose your color, size (small, medium and large) and style (regular or king cobra).  They can also make dog collars if they are given the length that you need.  The bracelets are $5 or $10 (for king cobra bracelets).  The dog collars are $15.  The paracord makes them very sturdy and they really are pretty neat!!  Click on the links below the pictures to take you to ebay for details on the bracelets or send us an email.  We can either send you the products or can deliver them if you live close to us.

Paracord Adoption Bracelet

http://myworld.ebay.com/michaelgarlandsf

Paracord King Cobra Adoption Bracelet

http://myworld.ebay.com/michaelgarlandsf

We do appreciate your prayers throughout this entire adoption process.  We could not do this without all of the support and encouragement that we are given.  We give all the glory to God for matching us with Eli.  We know he is our son and can't wait to get him in our arms. 

Blessings,
The Garland's

3 years ago today ...

We met our little girl for the first time!!  Happy family day sweet girl!

Then

Now

We have our LID!!

We found out on Thursday that we have our LID (Log In Date)!!  Our LID is 7/24/12, which is the same day our dossier was delivered to the agency in China.  This is the date that our documents are logged into China.  This LID is very important in that it means we can now be matched at any time with Eli.  I have thought all along that we would be matched immediately since we are open to little boys with various special needs.  All of the files that our agency has that currently would be a match for us have either been matched with other families or other familes are still reviewing the files.  So we wait and now I am beginning to realize that it may be awhile before we are matched. 
In church today, I was reminded to wait and trust in the Lord.  And so I will open my hands and release the control that I want to have and return it to Him.  Appreciate prayers in the meantime.

"Be still and know that I am God."   

Adoption Update

So far this journey has been more of a roller coaster ride that the last time (or maybe it is because we are in this now and just like childbirth, you sometimes forget how heart wrenching it can be once it has passed).  We ARE moving forward and we are excited about that, but we are sooooo anxious to see our sweet little guy's face for the first time, to know that he is ours and to prepare for our next journey to China.  We have reviewed a couple of files, but each time we have known pretty quickly that the little boy is not "our Eli".  That's the hard part ... saying no.  But we have been comforted to know that the first little guy we reviewed has now been matched with his forever family, which is a prayer answered for sure! 
Our dossier left for China last Friday, the 20th ("DTC") and it was delivered by our agency yesterday, the 24th.  We now wait for the all important Log In Date ("LID").  With this date, we can then be matched either from the shared list that China puts out once a month for agencies (this is the list where Bella's file came from) or from an agency specific file that is designated "LID only".  There are essentially 3 ways we can be matched ... LID only agency specific files, shared list that all agencies see once a month or from a Special Focus child file that is sent to our agency.  Typically these kiddos have multiple or more severe special needs. 
It is a lot of hurry up and wait with adoption and PATIENCE (which I don't have)!  :-)  Our prayer currently is that we will receive our LID, we will be matched quickly with Eli and then will get a speedy Letter of Acceptance ("LOA")  Of course, this is coming from the not-so-patient momma sitting here waiting.  Michael does much better with the wait, but is also very anxious to know who Eli is.  We also pray that whereever he is that he is getting wonderful care, lots of hugs and attention.

In the meantime, we have continued to have a great summer.  The boys just back from visiting their cousins in Texas.  Mamaw and Papaw braved the 16 hours of  driving each way to take them and they had a blast!  I haven't seen all of the pics yet, but I am sure they are great.  They visited Fossil Rim and Lego Discovery; went to play Laser Tag and also got to swim a lot.  We missed them so much while they were gone, but really got to enjoy a lot of one-on-one time with Bella.  And let me tell ya, she ate it up!  Here are a couple of pics of a trip we took to see Clifton Mill and then to Young's Jersey Dairy Farm.

Clifton Mill

Bella

Bella feeding the goats