Adoption Update

Hello friends,

We realize it has been a long time since the last blog update.  Here is why:

Two weeks after the adoption garage sale, we found out I was pregnant.  Then at seven weeks, two days after hearing our baby's heartbeat, I miscarried.  During that time, we were thankful for the thoughts and prayers of our friends and family.  After the first few days, I found surprising peace, and took comfort in the following verse:  "The Lord is near the brokenhearted; He saves those crushed in spirit" (Psalm 34:18).  We know that God's plan is good and perfect, but it is not easy.

The worst part of all of this is the waiting.  When we found out I was pregnant, I personally found it bittersweet.  I would have to set my dream of my future adopted baby aside for a while.  (Once the baby was born, we would be ineligible to adopt for six months.  We would also have to complete and pay for an update to the home study.  Therefore, it seemed best to not finish our home study at the moment.)  Then, after the miscarriage, we delayed continuing the home study paperwork in case I became pregnant again quickly.  Well, it's January, and I'm not pregnant.  We have decided to finish our home study and pursue the adoption now, whether I get pregnant or not.  If we do happen to have a biological child before adopting, we will just pay for and complete the home study update.  :)

To those of you who have indicated a desire to help us with the adoption, we will be starting a new fundraiser soon!  It will be super easy for those of you in town and out of town.

To those of you considering adoption, remember to check the "Information Resources" page!  Also, if you live in the Knoxville, TN, area, consider visiting KAFCAM's (the Knox Area Foster Care & Adoption Ministry's) website:  http://kafcam.org/

Thank you for your prayers and support.  Together, we can obey God's command "to look after orphans" (James 1:27).

~Ashley and Jared

For our future baby from Ashley's grandmother :)

Home Study Part II: The Homework

Hello Everyone,

The home study is definitely a loooong process.  In addition to paperwork and fees, we are required to educate ourselves (a good thing).  We had to select three books/documentaries from a list, and I thought I would share those with you in case you are interested in learning more about adoption on your own!  :)  Click on the title for a link to the resource on Amazon.

Closure - A documentary about a young woman with a strong desire to find her birth parents.  We watched her journey of discovery and learned more about why an adopted child would long to know who s/he looks like and from where s/he came.

Adopted for Life: The Priority of Adoption for Christian Families and Churches by Russell Moore - This book is just wonderful!  Read it.

The Connected Child: Bring Hope and Healing to Your Adoptive Family by Karyn Purvis - We have not started this book yet, but it comes highly recommended by friends and our adoption agency.  It discusses how to address the needs of adopted children with troubled pasts, including a troubled time in the womb.

Hope you find these interesting and helpful!

~Ashley and Jared

Thank You! (Garage Sale SUCCESS)

Hello everyone,

We were AMAZED at the success of the garage sale!  So many individuals and families donated items and came to shop, and on the day of the sale, some donated extra money.  The final total was approximately $1000!  That's enough to cover the next $500 payment and to start paying on the $5000 due at the end of the home study.  We are so blessed!  God has provided through the goodness of others willing to follow His command to help the fatherless.  We are trusting Him to continue His provision.  As Paul said to the Philippians:

For even in Thessalonica you sent gifts for my need several times.  Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the profit that is increasing to your account.  But I have received everything in full, and I have an abundance.  I am fully supplied, having received from Epaphroditus what you provided--a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God.  And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.  Now to our God and Father be glory forever and ever.  Amen.  (Philippians 4:16-20)

Also, we are especially thankful to our parents who helped with the logistics of the sale.  We could not have done it without them.  Finally, we are thankful for those shoppers who gave us support verbally.  We heard statements like, "We make sure to attend all adoption garage sales" and "I have my family, and I want you to have yours."

Thank you dear friends,

Jared and Ashley

Garage Sale Time!

Hello again,

Our adoption garage sale will be THIS SATURDAY, August 8th, from 7:30-2:00.  (Click on the photo to zoom in on the address.)  So many wonderful people have donated items to help us with our adoption fees, and for that we are very grateful!  If you live in the area, please come out to browse and say hi!  We will even have a few baked goods for sale.  :)

Some of the items include:  refrigerator, various armchairs, bookshelves, several art prints, numerous books, home decor, women and men's clothing, women's scrubs, bedding, curtains, craft supplies, air hockey table, kitchen items, outdoor sink (food prep), and much more!

Home Study Part I: The Packet and Fee Schedule

Hello everyone!

Today, we met with the domestic infant adoption specialist at our local Bethany branch to begin the home study process, which consists of paperwork, interviews, a home visit, and more.  Step one is the packet.

The home study packet

This packet includes many forms and even requires us to submit additional documents like copies of our driver's licenses and recent tax returns.  Over the next several weeks, we will be writing detailed information about our families, completing a statement of faith, providing several referrals, getting health physicals, confirming health insurance coverage for an adopted child, undergoing background checks, getting fingerprinted, and more.  As I type this, I am reminded that this long, inconvenient process is nothing compared to what God did to adopt us Christians as His children:  "In love He predestined us to be adopted through Jesus Christ for Himself, according to his favor and will..." (Ephesians 1:5).

When we return this packet, we will pay a second installment of $500.  (The first was paid with our preliminary application.)  However, when we have the home visit, $5,000 is due.  Then, at placement we must pay the remaining balance, which will be anywhere from $10,000-$17,000, depending on whether we are eligible for a subsidy from Bethany.  Unfortunately, most adoption grants cannot even be applied for until after completion of the home study.  Therefore, we need your prayers for faith in God's provision.  Also, if you feel led to participate in our journey, I will be sharing some giving opportunities soon!  Mark your calendars for our adoption garage sale on August 8th.  People are already donating some good stuff!

Finally and most importantly, we ask for your prayers about the decisions we must make.  Some forms ask us about our openness regarding the birth parents' characteristics (birthparent contact/involvement, medical history, prenatal care) and the child (age, multiple births, drug exposure, special needs).  To be honest this is probably the most intimidating part.  Pray that we seek God's will concerning this future child of ours.

~ Ashley and Jared

How We Got Here

Dear Family and Friends,

I have created this blog because my husband, Jared, and I are beginning our Anderson Adoption Adventure!  (Today, we were notified that our preliminary application was approved!)  It will be a long, grueling journey, but we both believe that God is leading us to grow our family at least in part through adoption.  In this initial post, I feel I should tell you how we came to this milestone.

First, we have been trying to have a biological child for two years, now.  After a year and a half of medications, procedures, and a surgery, no pregnancies have occurred yet.  This trial has brought us closer together, and has opened our hearts to God's call to care for the fatherless.  (James 1:27)  We have not given up on having a biological child; we want biological and adopted children.  At the moment we have reason to believe the surgery may have helped so the next few months will still involve some remaining fertility treatment.

Second, God has recently placed us smack in the middle of a wonderful network of resources regarding adoption: the people in our church group.  Roughly a year ago, we decided to visit a church closer to our home and found a class of young married couples, some with kids and some without.  How is this related to adoption?  Well, four of the couples are/were foster parents (two couples just adopted multiple children and the other two hope to adopt soon), and one couple has adopted internationally!  What are the odds?!

Now that we have agreed to embark on this adventure, I expect God will use the next few years to test us and grow us spiritually as he has already been doing through our infertility struggles (James 1:2-4, Romans 5:3-5).  There are many hurtles to be faced in this adoption process, but we believe that if we are following God's will, he will make a way.

In future weeks, months, and years, I hope to share with you about our progress and about bringing our children home!  This way we can keep friends and family updated, share giving opportunities and prayer requests, and hopefully be useful to others who are considering adoption or who are already on that journey.

~ Ashley and Jared

Bible verses referenced above:

James 1:27 ♥ Pure and undefiled religion before our God and Father is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

James 1:2-4 ♥ Consider it a great joy, my brothers, whenever you experience various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.  But endurance must do its complete work, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing.

Romans 5:3-5 ♥ And not only that, but we also rejoice in our afflictions, because we know that affliction produces endurance, endurance produces proven character, and proven character produces hope.  This hope will not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

Mailing the preliminary application (taken two days ago)