Amazing!

I'm not even sure where to begin. I'm quite certain that I haven't fully wrapped my brain around what has happened in the last 48 hours. This has been and continues to be an amazing journey. On Wednesday afternoon around 3:00, I received a call from our case manager, Julie. I was a bit surprised to see her name on the caller ID, but hopeful that she was calling with a court date. We were, of course, waiting to hear about our court date. We were expecting to receive a call sometime in the next week or so to hear that we had received a court date in mid-June. She began by telling me that she did indeed have a court date for us. And that court date was.....May 15th. WHAT? She meant June 15th, right? No, she said MAY 15th! Mind you, I was talking with her on May 13th! Yes. I. freaked. out. We have only had our referral of Will "T" for 24 days! This is not the time-frame that we had been told to expect! (Of course a wait time of two months on the waiting list was not what we were expecting either!) I'm not really sure what all I asked her, although I know that none of it made any sense! I asked her how this had happened and she wasn't sure. She said that the court appointments are always quite random, but she had not seen anything like this before. She even went back over paper work and made a few calls before she called us just to make sure that this date was not a mistake. We were thrilled and couldn't believe that this was happening! We got on the phone and sent out emails asking family and friends to pray. There were many prayers throughout the night on Thursday night/early Friday morning as Addis Ababa (capitol of Ethiopia) is 7 hours ahead of us. This morning, we talked about how strange it was knowing that our case had been heard and that a decision had been made, and yet we would have to wait through the weekend to find out what had happened. Wrong again. At about 1:00 this afternoon, Julie called to tell us that we had passed! Will "T" is ours! (I don't know if I can officially tell his Ethiopian name, so I'll keep it at "T" for now.) Will "T" Harper! AMAZING!

Julie also let us know that Will "T" is currently in the hospital. This, of course, is quite a concern for us. He has pneumonia and was taken to the hospital so that they could keep an eye on him while he is given antibiotics. Evidently, this is standard procedure when one of the little ones at HH gets sick. He had been having some difficulty breathing and they wanted him to be at the hospital. Just typing this makes me feel sick. It is hard to explain how my heart has been so drawn to this little one who I have never even held in my own arms, but it is truly love. Thinking of him there in a hospital room without a loved one to hold him is breaking my heart. Almaz was with him this morning and told Julie to assure us that he is doing well. Still. Hard.

One final surprise was the travel date. When I spoke with Julie on Wednesday, I remember telling her that we didn't know much about the travel aspect of the adoption process. Although I wanted to get him as quickly as possible, I wondered if, given how quickly this had come together, would we have a little extra time to make travel arrangements. She had said maybe three weeks. Well, today she said that our embassy date is June 1st. They need us to arrive in Addis Ababa on May 31st. Again, just typing this has made my stomach a little queasy. There is so much to do and not a lot of time to do it! HOWEVER. I am trusting in the One who has led us this far and who has placed this sweet child in our family forever, to help us in the details of the next two weeks. He is the God of order and I know that He is with us.

We went out to eat dinner at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants tonight to celebrate. Here is a picture of my THREE children! Beckett (7), Helen (4) and Will (6 months)! We are truly blessed!
I must end this post with a special prayer request for our friend Elyse. She is the daughter of my good friend Marilyn and she is very special to our family. Elyse's boyfriend Joe passed away unexpectedly this morning. It has been a day of roller-coaster emotions for us as we have been shocked and saddened for Elyse and we are so grieved for her loss. Please remember this wonderful young lady as she begins the process of grieving and then of healing. They were a special couple and Joe was such a great guy. Please pray for Elyse and for the family and friends of her boyfriend Joe.

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. John 14:27

I find great comfort in these words that Jesus spoke to his disciples and I hope that Elyse will too. I am praying for her inner peace in the midst of this unthinkable storm. I am also finding comfort in this verse, as I have a bit of un-easiness about Will "T"s health as well as all that must be done in the next two weeks. I am confident that God is faithful to carry us and that He will give us peace in uncertain times!