The Fingerprints of David and Candace

The Fingerprints of David and Candace

Posted by Candace

And the fun begins... We got our agency contracts on Saturday, so I thought I would work on those a little today. I spent the morning with David at the bank with a notary public and at the police station with a very nice officer. It was kinda surreal being fingerprinted for the first time. But I think David and I were both glad that we were not there under different circumstances. Even the feel of the place makes you feel a little like a criminal. So turns out, by the end of the day, impatient me had our fingerprints mailed to the FBI and our contracts signed and notarized and sent back to the agency. So more waiting...

The next step is the home study. This will be one of the most grueling parts as we will have a pile of documents to obtain and have notarized and even more to fill out and complete. There will also be 3 visits with a social worker while the state determines the fitness of our home for new babies. I have decided that adoption is more similar to pregnancy then I ever thought. The first trimester in pregnancy often brings nausea, heartburn, soreness, and all kinds of other bodily changes, whereas the first trimester of adoption brings forms, documents, notaries, social workers, and all kinds of breaches of privacy :). The second trimester of pregnancy brings lots of waiting, but also usually the discovery of the sex of your baby. The second trimester of adoption brings waiting as well, waiting to be approved by the state of GA and by the Chinese government, but also the referral and picture of the baby(ies) who will one day be coming home with you. The third trimester of pregnancy brings impatience and more impatience (at least that was every third trimester that I have experienced). Something about being ready makes you impatient, as I'm sure will be the same with adoption. After seeing our child(ren), somehow I don't think it will be easy to wait the 4 months between the referral and the travel to China.

Eerily similar these two ways that God brings children into our lives. One grows in your belly, the other grows in your heart.

Tonight as I think of my girls so far away, my heart is heavy. Not for my girls, but for a 7 year old girl named Kate McRae and her family who sit and wait to see if cancer has returned to her brain and, if it has, how aggressive it will be the second time around. This family is losing their daughter right before their eyes and are powerless to stop it. Kate went through a year of very aggressive treatment before her brain tumor seemed to recede. She spent weeks and months in the cancer ward of a children's hospital throwing up, losing her hair, and watching her childhood pass before her very eyes. They finally received good news about 3 months ago, only to be recently hit with the newest CT scan results that picked up brand new spots that may be cancer. Today my prayers are not for me or my children near or far, but they are for dear, sweet Kate...her mother, Holly... her father, Aaron...her brother and sister, Will and Olivia. I do not even want to allow myself to imagine being in their shoes. I pray with all my soul for Kate's complete healing and for the comfort and peace that only Christ can bring to be upon every decision, every bit of news, and every step before that happens. For Your glory, God.

Please join me in prayers for Kate and also, for our church as we are in the midst of making some important decisions and need the wisdom of Christ. And of course, please continue to pray for 2 little girls that we have yet to meet and a process that is rarely "smooth sailing". Love you...