Our first home study interview [two days ago] was beyond encouraging. We left feeling refreshed and excited, hopeful and joy-filled. We walked away knowing that we are on the right journey, that we are here for a reason, that this is part of what God has for us right here and right now. We were reminded and confirmed that we did not make this up, this hearing His call to adopt, and that this is where He has us.
Our lovely social worker asked us about so many things. All. The. Things. And it was wonderful. She loves Jesus and was calm and gentle and kind and lovely. She is lovely. Her name is Cathy and she will be walking with us through this until our baby is in our arms and home and our adoption is finalized. Cathy said she has done over 500 home studies and only 5 have failed. She said she has worked with 700+ placements over the last 20 years. She knows what she is doing and her questions, though very invasive, felt very gentle and loving. Loren and I got to share with her what we love about one another...something I love to do. He makes it easy to love him. She encouraged us and said that birth mommas are not looking for wealth or aged, they are looking for steady and stable and healthy and loving...and that we are those things. She said that she would be shocked if we are not chosen in less than a year.
Did I mention that we are encouraged?
She asked me how we plan to pay for this adoption and we have Plan A and Plan B and Plan C and even Plan D. We have all sorts of plans and ideas and when we told her that our first puzzle fundraiser has already raised nearly $7,000 and that my photography has added some, she was joyfully shocked and gave us reason to believe that God is more in this than we can even grasp.
We are in the thick of preparing our home to be studied. I have been scrubbing base boards and doors and cupboards and all of the crevices you can find. Who knew doors could get so dirty? We invested in a rug for our living room to cover up most of the pleasant brown carpet, so that was exciting. Thank you, Ross! We got rid of four more giant boxes filled with junk we don't need, we bought a carbon monoxide alarm and updated our smoke alarms. There is a long check list that our wonderful social worker sent us; she is a gem.
September 16th she comes to inspect and assess our home for a few hours. We are praying and hoping to be "home study approved" by the end of September, applying to agencies and grants in the early weeks of October. But we are confident that ultimately, He will work it out so well and so intimately for our story which is so much bigger than just us.
279 of 700 puzzle pieces have been sponsored! It is so amazing to see the email notifications come in, letting us know that someone has purchased a puzzle piece, someone is supporting our adoption and helping us take steps closer to holding our baby. We have a lady who has decided to donate 10% of her business's profit to us until our baby is in our arms - I want to meet her someday and let her kiss our baby, because what? Talk about tears and moving of my heart.
I knew that God would use this journey to transform us and change us and bless us and teach us and mold us and humble us and all. the. things. But I didn't know the vastness and intensity of all of those things. I didn't know what to expect, and already He has blown my idea of what He would do out of the water.
We have been presented to three different mommas now. Three young mommas have flipped through our family profile book, seen our faces and a little bit of our story. Three young mommas have grown on our hearts, their names possible forever etched. We pray for our birth momma every day but we also pray for those three that we have been presented to. At times it takes a toll on my heart, loving these young women who I may never meet, wondering if they carry the baby that Loren and I will call ours, if their womb holds the life that we have been waiting and praying for. But even though those three did not choose us, I believe in confidence that Jesus is using us to pray for them, covering them with prayers and His grace. Also, He is using them to widen our hearts and knit our marriage tighter and tighter, as we come together, praying over these precious women. He is using so many of these little details to move hearts.
God is so big and so good.
Have you sponsored a puzzle piece?
How it works:
1) Decide how many puzzle pieces you want to purchase to financially support our adoption fund!
1 puzzle piece = $25
2) Click on the donate button below to give securely through PayPal
-OR-
Donate via check. Email us at nataliekbrenner@gmail.com and we will send your our address to mail in a check!
3) Watch the adoption puzzle come together on our blog and see your name be recognized. We will build the puzzle as you donate the pieces. ALSO! We will be framing this beautiful puzzle in a two-sided-clear frame for our nursery, show casing all of the names who helped bring our baby home!
Follow along: Instagram: @nataliekbrenner or #brenneradoptionjourney Facebook: Natalie Brenner THIS BLOG!
Thank you for being on our team! We see this entire world as a team...and we are honored to be on it.
