What in the World is Biometrics Anyway?

What in the World is Biometrics Anyway?

Posted by Candace

So we arrived back from West Palm Beach last week to letters that our biometrics appointments have been scheduled for July 19th. This is something that the Department of Immigration does to confirm that you really are who you say you are. It involves things like fingerprints, retinal scans, and sometimes even voice recognition and hand writing recognition. I have never in my life been important enough for the government to spend all this time on me, so I am a little overwhelmed at the thought. I think I might feel like I'm in a Mission Impossible movie when I walk into that office on Tuesday.

After the results of these scans tell our government that we are David and Candace Roberts, we should be receiving our CIS approval that we can add to our China dossier. Then once the docs are certified, they will be sent to China and the paperwork trimester will be over!!! I am soooo excited! Because that means in a few short weeks, we may be actually holding a picture of our little girl!

Yes, I said "girl", singular. After much prayer and consideration, we have decided that it will be a better transition and easier for our family if we do one little girl at a time. We are still open to whatever plan God has for us, but we are moving forward with one child. If God changes that, we will happily comply. In a word, I am relieved! One special needs child is a lot to handle. Two special needs toddlers might have been near impossible. I am so glad that God is so gracious to us, even in our zeal. David and I would love to provide every orphan out there with a home, but practically we need to start with one :). So we are waiting on Katherine Hope and if Sydney Grace happens to be her sister, we know God will work that out too.

I ordered a little girl suitcase with butterflies on a purple background for the trip to China. I am so excited to pack it that I almost started today, but I held myself back. Six months in advance is a little psycho for packing. Plus Jordan is attending his first ever summer camp this weekend and I need to help him pack for that. So I will keep patiently waiting. After all, good things come to those who wait! Waiting has been a theme this year...waiting to find out whether I have a new neice or nephew on the way, waiting to see what church we will end up attending in the future, waiting for decisions to be made at Ascend, waiting for Jordan to officially be in middle school (yes, I can certainly wait for that), and waiting for our little girl to come home! Lots of waiting, but they that wait upon the Lord, they renew their strength, and one day they mount up on wings like eagles. It is in the enduring that we find the hope, because after the promise is fulfilled we have no need of it. Right now, we are just enjoying the hoping, because He who started a good work in us will be faithful to complete it!

Pray for us that we will perservere and have wisdom and endurance for every journey that we are taking right now. We need your prayers. Also, please pray for Stasik and Danyk! We will continually be praying that they will find a permanent home. Thank you for following our journey and for uplifting us in your prayers!

God's Amazing Way

God's Amazing Way

Posted by Candace

Whew... what an incredible week. Yes, a hosting experience that was supposed to last 5 weeks actually packed itself into one. It was completely nothing that we expected, but nonetheless we have been forever changed by it.

Two or three months ago I began receiving emails from our adoption agency advertising the hosting program. Something would prick my heart at these emails, but I would delete them all the same. With as crazy as our life is lately, I was not interested in adding to that. So even though there was an inkling that we should step up to the plate, I did not feel we were in a position to do so. David, on the other hand, had no such qualms. He called me up one day and asked if we could host 2 children from the Ukraine. Despite my hesitation, I agreed. If David gets this serious about something, it is usually a God thing. If he actually does all the work to get it set up and ready to go, we call it a miracle...lol.

One week before the children were to arrive, David called again and asked if we could also host one of the chaperones for a week. I really felt like he might be trying to kill me off for the insurance money, but he had basically already volunteered, so once again I agreed. Although I was excited about the opportunity to serve God in this way, I was also scared to death about how in the world I would keep everything together even for 5 weeks. Nevertheless, the time arrived for us to meet these precious people from the Ukraine.

I will never forget that day at the airport. We waited excitedly to see a group of 29 children as they entered the US. I was even more excited for a couple of host families that we met who were actually in the process of adopting some of the children that were coming. One lady was to meet her 2 girls for the first time. At 14 and 16, these girls were about to be let out of the orphanages in the Ukraine and thrust into the society of sex trade and womanizing among other things. They were absolutely gorgeous and they are fitting in well with this family. In the midst of all of these children were Danyk and Stasik. Two little shy, cute boys who hardly hugged us and talked even less. The older one seemed to be a little more comfortable, but the younger one was emotionless. I was completely heartbroken for them. They actually live in one of the better orphanages in the Ukraine. It is a Christian place where the kids live with foster families in apartments. So these boys were being pulled away from the only "family" they know.

The ride home was fine as the boys were too tired to do anything but sleep. It wasn't until the next day that we found out that these little shy angels were actually incredibly hyperactive little boys. The little one, in particular, had to be watched every second. And then he started having discipline issues. We would tell him to do something and he would do exactly the opposite and laugh about it. We would tell him not to do something and that is exactly what he would do with a smile on his face that said, just try to stop me. We could not control him in timeout and he was biting and hitting and throwing things. Despite my heart for these children, I called the program director and told her that we needed help. Even Olga, the chaperone, was having no luck with him. So we took him to the male chaperone for the night to see if he could get him under control. I also called David and told him to get ready to work from home for the next 5 weeks. We were both at a loss of what in the world God was doing. When Stasik returned he had a run in with David, who could also not control him, so we called again and the director thought it best to look for a backup host home. She said that this was the first time since the inception of the program that they had had these type of issues. Usually children with such behavioral problems were filtered out before they got to the US. Stasik had also only turned 6 in May and almost missed the age cut off for his visa to come here, but had squeezed through. What was God's plan here?

Before these children got here, my only prayer for them was that God would give them a family. Many people said that he would put them in our family. In my haste to figure out what God was up to, I had never considered that He might have only used us to bring these kids over here. The guilt at not being able to manage them was overwhelming. My thoughts ran to the people who would happily tell me, "I told you so", and those that would question our own adoption process in China. All of this on top of the fears of how these boys would handle yet another transition. This was not their fault. I felt that even Stasik's behavior was not entirely his fault. I was running the gamet of emotions while I was working all day long just to keep everyone busy, fed, clothed, safe, and happy.

Stasik's behavior improved slightly the last two days he was with us and we found him to be a smart and funny child, but the plan had already been set in motion. The program director had found a back up host family in NC who were missionaries. These people were considering adopting. Not only were they considering adopting, but they would have participated in the hosting program and probably even picked out Stasik and Danyk if they had not received the paperwork too late. They have 4 children, but there only son had been begging for 2 brothers. I won't even go into all the amazing ways that God showed that this was His direct working, but let's suffice it to say, it was one step removed from writing on the wall.

So yesterday, we met this beautiful family in Augusta to drop off the boys with them for the remaining 4 weeks of the program. My heart was still very heavy as Danyk had cried himself to sleep after we told them. Evidently both boys had been under the impression (not sure from whom) that they would be staying with us forever...that we were their permanent home. They didn't even know that they were going back to the orphanage in 5 weeks. Wouldn't that have been a rude awakening. In one short week they had come to love "their new family" and we had come to love them too. Even "God" transitions are not always easy.

I am so thankful for the way that our Father looks after all of His children. I am overwhelmed with the knowledge that even the smallest and seemingly forgotten orphan is a treasure in His sight. Oh, how we take for granted the amazing love and faithfulness of our God. This experience has changed me forever... it has changed our family forever. We are reevaluating and rethinking a good many things about our own adoption and ways that will change our lives. Now we are able to prepare to be more prepared! Some people might look at this situation as a waste... we look at it as an investment. We just learned more in one week then we probably have in two years. Not only that, but our prayer for these boys may be getting answered and if they go back with a waiting family, it will stand as one of the greatest accomplishments of our lives.

We are in West Palm Beach now, taking the vacation that we had planned to do with the boys. Though I miss them, I am thoroughly enjoying resting and recuperating. The host training manual made it clear that we were to send back with our orphans everything that they came with. It noted not to even keep one small thing to remember your child(ren) by. There was no need for me to keep anything... I will never forget Danyk and Stasik, precious treasures of a huge God!

Ready for Ukraine!

Ready for Ukraine!

Posted by Candace

Today is the day that our sweet summer guests arrive and we are so excited! We have their beds ready with gifts for them. We have fruit ready, in case they don't like American food. We have translators ready on our phones because we know very little Ukrainian. Now if I could just pronounce their names...

Stanislav and Danylo are 8 and 6 years old. We learned yesterday that the 6 year old had just turned 6 a month or so ago and in doing so, secured his trip here. For some reason the Ukraine was turning down the visas of children younger than 6 this time around for the hosting program and so several children could not come. These boys actually have only been in the orphanage since last summer so they are relatively new to the system. They are in one of the better orphanages in the Ukraine that is actually Christian, so they do get to hear about Jesus at home. I don't know any of the background that they came from, but the facilitators of the program said that many of these children come from alcohalic and abusive situations. Whatever the situation, we are super excited to have 5 weeks to love on them and enjoy them and pray that God will send them permanent homes, we hope right here in America.

We met several couples yesterday at the training that have been called by God to be involved with orphans. Several of them had adopted more than once. One family was hosting 4 girls through this program, already having 2 children of their own. Another family had 5 children and were hosting 2 other little ones. There were also 2 couples that were grandparents that are hosting children. The sacrifice of these people was motivating! I am excited to see all of them with their host children at the airport this afternoon at 4pm.

On the long road to adoption, full of uncertainty and waiting, this time will be not only good practice for us, but also a small amount of reprieve as we get to care for orphans directly and not just look forward to the day when we welcome our girls. We have no idea what to expect, but we know that God will be with us every step of the way. He has already been working to make this an easier transition. My dad and his wife came for an unexpected visit and she has been cooking, cleaning, and doing laundry while my dad has helped get and build furniture. I would have been crazy this week if they were not here. Also, we have the privilege of hosting one of the chaperones from the program who is bringing the children here and she knows English and will be able to translate and help the boys adjust to US craziness. We will have her here with us for a week, so even though at first the idea overwhelmed me, I am gratefully seeing it now as the hand of God. We could be bringing home two very homesick, tired, and scared little boys, so to have her here will lessen the strain a bit.

So off to the airport we go at 4pm! We will have our welcome signs and our smiles on (though we were told yesterday that all our smiling makes us look like "stupid Americans" to the children...lol. Being blonde, I am used to that anyway ;)). We are ready for the challenge that the next 5 weeks will bring. We have no doubt it will be life changing! And bottom line is that we only have this one life to live and it is passing us by fast, so no matter the sacrifice or the uncertainty involved, we are determined to make it count. These are some of God's children that will not be overlooked or unloved. We have the privilege of being a part of their lives and we are embracing that. And I am praying with all my heart that God picks parents out for them while they are here :).

This hosting program from the Ukraine is done every summer and winter. There are over 200 children selected for the program, but only 29 had available homes this time, so if you are all at interested in this program, even to present it as an option for ministry at your church, please let me know and I can get you the information. The Homes of Hope website is www.hohinternational.com .

One last little note, we sent off our first phase of immigration forms to the government last week as I finally received our approved home study. Once we get US approval back, we can finally send our docs to China and I am hearing that once they get there in two weeks we will know who our girls are! Thrilled!! Please pray that the beauracracy hurries our paperwork through as sometimes this can take 2-3 months to get back (which throws our whole timeline off).

I will post pictures on Facebook later of the boys' arrival! Yay!

Summer Daze!!

Summer Daze!!

Posted by Candace

Hot, hot, hot... words that describe just about every day lately! We need some rain to wash away all this dryness! Funny, how David and I feel that way even about our lives lately. The days lately have been a little dry for us. But not without cool drops of refreshing rain here and there. We find that rain in our friends and family. So many of you supporting us through this season in our lives. So many of you thoroughly interested in what God is doing in our family. So many of you faithful to help in as many ways as you can. Some of you supporting us even in spite of your own trials, pain, and busyness. We don't take it for granted... it doesn't go unnoticed! We pray every day that Christ will bless you beyond measure for the blessing you are to us.

Summer is definitely here, and we definitely feel a bit dazed! We are waiting on our approved home study to come in the mail, so that we can send off our I-800A immigration form. I check the mailbox eagerly once again. I thought it had come one day last week, but alas, it was just my boss sending me some more checks, so I could pay his bills...lol. Thankfully we are also waiting on the boys from Ukraine to join us and help our summer to go a bit quicker...not that I really want it to, but I also do, ya know what I mean? The boys should be here on June 24th and we hope to throw them a party in July as we are pretty sure they have never had their own party! So hopefully many of you will get to meet them!


We are still searching for a church, which is a bit difficult during a time when we could use that kind of a support system. But we are also excited about what God has in store for our family in the ministry of His Kingdom. We have visited the Orchard a couple times now and really like it, but we are taking our time in prayer and trying to make sure that wherever we settle will be where we are supposed to be for a while. We feel that God has some plans in the works right now, so we are just trying not to short cut the process. Impulsive me is starting to feel like my dog probably feels when I chain her up in the front yard...lol.


I don't know that life has ever been so unknown, but neither has is ever had so much potential. We are definitely learning patience, definitely finding ourselves continually on our knees, and definitely cannot say that we are in charge right now. Trusting in our big God to lead us through this summer daze :)!

New Day, New Opportunities...

New Day, New Opportunities...

Posted by Candace

2011 seems to be flying! The boys have one more week of school left and then they are out for the summer! Crazy... Even more crazy is the fact that Jordan will be in 6th grade next year...middle school! We're going to have a middle schooler and a football player. I am taking a deep breath even as I write this. I guess I just never quite thought it would happen. Kids grow up soooo fast. It seems like just yesterday I was helping my middle school brother with his homework, and playing Monopoly with my middle school brother-in-law, so I'm not quite sure how my son is now at this stage of life.

Admist this bittersweet time, we are more ready than ever to have our little girls here. Finishing our home study last week was a great feeling. One more step closer to having our children all under the same roof once more :). We are so excited! I am beginning work this week on our I-800 immigration form and as soon as we have our home study back, we will be mailing this out. The paperwork portion of this journey is just about over...for now!

We have had a new opportunity come our way through our adoption agency. Open Door works with a program called Homes of Hope International. This program brings over orphans from the Ukraine for 5 weeks in the summer and winter to host families, some who are interested in adopting them and some who just feel called to give them hope. David and I feel like we are the latter, so this summer we will be hosting 2 brothers, ages 5 and 8. In order to do this, we will need money for their travel and also to provide items for them to take back to the orphanage when they go home. We are planning some fundraisers right now to recoup these costs that we are paying out of our adoption fund. We are going to do a yard sale on June 3rd and 4th and maybe a car wash soon. We need donations for the yard sale, so if you have anything you are interested in giving, please let me know as soon as possible. I can come pick it up or it can be dropped at my house. I will be sending an email out this week that will give more info about giving monetary gifts. We are so thankful for everyone who is already supporting us through all of this and we ask desperately for your prayers in the days, months, and weeks ahead.

Our lives are quickly changing and sometimes it is overwhelming, but both David and I and, I think, even our children realize that this is not our doing, it is God's. The mission He has given us on this earth is not about us or how comfortable we can be... it is about building His kingdom and being His hands and feet to those around us. We have been prepared to walk this road, but we still have moments when it is very scary, so please pray that we will have courage, wisdom, and endurance for everything that God is asking of us. Not only with the orphans that our lives will touch, but in every area of our lives that He is changing right now. We know that the support of our friends and family is crucial to our ability to move forward...so thank you with all our hearts!

God's Timing is Perfect!

God's Timing is Perfect!

Posted by Candace

Wow! This process is just moving right along right now. We have had 2 meetings with our social worker and we have another one Friday and then the last one on Wednesday. They are going very well and we have connected with Charlotte (our social worker) on a personal level, so it has not even been uncomfortable. Once we finish the last visit next week, she will write up her report and turn it in to Open Door. I received great news this week in that the home study doesn't get sent off to the State of GA for approval... it only has to be approved by the adoption agency! This means a little less beaucracy and less wait time!! Yay! So here is the timeline that we are hoping for right now, and asking you all to pray for, according to God's will, of course...

1. Home Study Approved by the end of May


2. Dossier document gathering and CIS application approved (immigration) by the end of June (this is sooner than average, so please pray)


3. Dossier certified by the state and US government by the end of July


4. Dossier sent to China by the 1st of August


5. Referrals of our girls (when we get the pics and make a decision on accepting them) by mid August/ Acceptance of referrals by the end of August


6. Travel to pick up the girls in December (What a Christmas present this would be!!!)

Of course, these dates are on the "hopeful" side of things, so please, please pray that God will grant us favor. Our coordinator says that right now immigration approval is taking anywhere from 4 days to 6 weeks, so we would really like to be on the 4 day side of things. The other time frame that has leeway is the certification of our docs by the US. Pray that we won't get caught in any red tape!

We are thrilled to think that we may have our girls by the end of the year, but also a little overwhelmed with the thought. Need lots of prayer in this area as well. This will be a huge change for our family...the best one ever, but the most challenging as well. We need the support of our family and friends like never before as God fulfills His purpose in us. Thank you so much for all you do to be a part of that. So thankful that we are not walking alone.

The waiting is challenging, so many things outside of our control, but somehow I am learning to like it. If I can't control it, it does no good to waste energy on it, so I have to consciously place it in God's Hands and utilize that saved energy on other things. Faith and Trust and Patience are all difficult lessons, but as we learn them, our lives become stable and healthy. If God is on our side, what have we to fear? His timing is always perfect!

Never Too Late to Get Back Up

Never Too Late to Get Back Up

Posted by Candace

Well, I talked to our social worker today and we set up an appointment for Saturday afternoon at 1pm for her to come do a walk through of our house. Do you think I will be cleaning this week? Unfortunately so... I am sure David will insist we pass the "white glove" test, even though I will do my best to try to convince him that they would like our house to look "lived in", not like the cover of Better Homes and Gardens. I mean do children really live in those magazine houses? Really? But anyway, I am very excited to start this last part of the home study process. Charlotte says we will have 4 visits with her as that is what China requires. I hope David and I can fake a happy marriage that long! hahaha...completely kidding!!! :). During this first visit, Charlotte will walk the house and make sure it meets with certain standards and guidelines. No idea what they are, so we shall see. But I am excited nonetheless.

Waiting has become the norm in life right now, and I am finding it a little bit easier. Though I want with all my heart to find our girls and bring them home as soon as possible, I also realize that God is preparing me for this while I wait. He is already changing my view of structure and my schedule and you wouldn't believe the practice He is giving us with chaos. Every time I think I get it all straight, He digs a little deeper and I find myself floundering again. Hopefully soon, I will be perfect and won't need all this work any more ;). Again, completely kidding, I am afraid He will be working on me for the rest of my living, breathing life. One minute I totally get it and the next I feel like I am in the middle of a forest with no marks on the trees. I thought it was only me, until I was reminded at a recent church service of the story of Peter.

Peter was Jesus' loud mouth, speak-before-you-think disciple. I love most stories of him in the Bible because I can completely relate. Peter followed Christ without fail for the full 3 years of His earthly ministry. He was one of the disciples who got to see the Transfiguration, most of Christ's miracles, and even walked on water with Him for a few minutes. When other disciples turned back because they couldn't handle Christ's declarations, Peter stood strong with one of my favorite verses in the Bible "Where would we go, Lord? Only You have the words of eternal life. We know that You are the Messiah." And yet after Jesus was arrested and was well on His way to being convicted, Peter denied that He even knew Jesus. Not only did he deny Him, but he actually cursed Him. You would think that this would seal his fate as much as it did Judas'. But Peter's heart was soft. His rashness and his mouth (wow, that sounds so familiar) got him into trouble many times, but his heart was for the Lord. Peter realized his sin and repented from the depths of his heart. He was a broken man... He had failed his Master and his Lord... I bet that he thought his relationship with Jesus was forever ruined. Christ, however, rose from the grave and I find it very interesting that one of his first appearances was to Peter. Peter was fishing and wasn't catching anything... Jesus appeared on the shore and told him to cast his nets to the other side of the boat. When Peter obeyed and pulled up his nets, they were full to the brim. It was then his heart probably sank. It was Jesus on shore. How on earth would he face Him after completely betraying Him? Gosh, I can't imagine the shame that must have engulfed him...to stand before the One he had called "Messiah" and then cursed as soon as life got rough. You would expect that Jesus might should give him at least a very good chewing out. But Jesus doesn't... He simply asks him 3 times how much Peter loves Him "You know that I love you, Lord." Peter replies 3 times. And then Jesus gives him something to live for... He says "Feed my sheep". Or in other words "Peter, accept my forgiveness, forget about yourself, and move forward in my plan." Jesus reinstated Peter in a way that Peter never could have reinstated himself. Jesus still trusted him with His church! He didn't take back what He said about "Upon this rock (Peter) I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it." He still wanted Peter to be a crucial part of what He had done on the cross. WoW!

I love that story primarily because, I , like Peter, fail my Lord so many times... and I, like Peter, need Jesus personally to sometimes reinstate me, remind me, and motivate me to get back up and continue forward with the mission He has created me for. And He still does what He did back then... I may not be able to see Him, but I hear His voice in His Word or through another person or in my heart telling me that His grace is sufficient for me. He's a pretty amazing best friend!

Please pray for us, particularly on Saturday, that all will go well and we will mesh with our social worker. Hopefully soon, step 1 will be completely complete :).