Adoption means a lot in the Christian faith! God adopted us as His own. He blessed us by loving us. In the same way, we can bless a child's life by adopting them into our family. And that is exactly what this family did!
The following is a guest post by Kayla, the author of the Many Sparrows blog.
The following is a guest post by Kayla, the author of the Many Sparrows blog.
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Every morning, I
stumble out of bed, grab my Coke-bottle glasses, and shuffle my way across the
hardwood floors into the kitchen. Our four-year-old waits patiently for his
oatmeal, and his hand always seems to find mine as I make breakfast in the
early morning hours. I pour myself coffee as our two-year-old, his bedhead just
as wild as his little heart, comes hustlin’ out of his room.
Motherhood, you guys.
It’s chaotic and sleep-deprived and sweet and 100 kinds of awesome.
I became a mom in a fashion that only God could create. I
was a young, twenty-something newlywed learning more about the world, and more
about its creator, every day. We were stumbly and we weren’t perfect, but we
couldn’t help but sense that God was leading us both down a path to parenthood
that, in the world’s eyes, was a bit unconventional.
My husband and I both
started to feel the tug on our hearts for children who didn’t have families. We
both grew up in safe and loving two-parent homes, and we couldn’t shake the
idea of little ones not growing up without the structure and nurture a family
provides. We knew we couldn’t do everything, but we could be open to doing
something. We prayed, and asked God to lead.
One billion “only-God” stories later, and we were getting
off a plane, welcoming our incredible one-year-old son into our arms, forever. Joseph
joined our family via adoption from West Africa (you can learn much more about
that here),
and our lives have been so radically blessed by his presence. We grieve for
what he lost with his fist family, but we praise God that he writes beautiful
stories from brokenness.
Fast forward two years, and we welcomed a second son into
our lives, this time the old-fashioned way. Asher fits into our family perfectly, and it’s a joy to see my sons
grow and learn and play and explore life together.
And now, our hearts are open to more. And we continue to believe that God
will form our family once again through adoption.
There are children here and abroad
waiting for safe and loving homes, and it’s at the core of our heart that we
might have the privilege of being a family for another little one (or ones). Due
to logistics, this time our process will happen in the U.S. instead of abroad. We’re not quite sure what this adoption
will look like, though we know we want to be a family for a waiting child.
Over oatmeal and apple juice in sippie cups, we talk about
adding a new brother or sister to the mix. “I know, Mommy!” Joseph says,
scooping in another mouthful of breakfast. “We’re going to have two sisters!
And name them Mommy and Daddy!”
--
So, there’s a tiny
glimpse into the big story God is writing. It’s a humbling, profound
privilege to parent a child or children not born to me, and it’s not something
I take lightly.
As we walk into the unknown and trust God that he will form
our family in the ways only He can, we go through all of the paperwork and
processes to ensure everything is done correctly and ethically.
We have just
completed our home study, the giant 500-billion-page document written by a
social worker who has poured over every detail of our lives to ensure that we
are approved to be an adoptive family.
Adoption, as I’m sure
you’ve probably heard, can be costly. Social workers, attorneys, agencies
-- each are compensated to ensure things are handled the right way. We’re a
young family that has been saving for a second adoption since we completed our
first. Every Christmas gift, every extra bit, has gone into a special account
for “someday.” And someday is here!
My husband is a pastor who took on an extra job as a high
school speech coach this year, and I’m a freelance writer/editor who has taken
on extra projects to make this adoption a reality. We are also trying to think
of creative ways to tackle the fees.
Here’s where the fun
part comes in: We’re hosting a GIANT
shop-our-closets sale this coming Monday, April 27 at 7 p.m.
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I gathered more than 10 of my most stylish friends of all shapes and sizes, and together, we
cleaned out our closets.
●
We have around 200 gently-worn items in quality brands
(think J. Crew, Banana Republic, Gap, Free People, Anthropologie, Sevenly).
Basically, my basement looks like an amazing women’s boutique right now. You’re
going to want this stuff!
●
We’re selling it ALL (think 25+ dresses, 75+ tops,
skirts, ethically-made jewelry, scarves, heels) in a HUGE Instagram auction-style fundraiser to combat adoption fees.
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Each item will have a fairly low starting bid price,
though we hope you have fun and bid generously! The sale will go on for 24
hours.
These shop-my-closet
sales have become so popular on Instagram, and I love them! (I love scoring
thrifted treasures -- you can have on-point style on a budget!)
Think of this sale as
us doing the dirty work for you -- all you have to do is sit back and bid away
-- knowing that 100 percent of all
money is going directly to our adoption account. You’ll get some
crazy-awesome deals, and you’ll be entering into the work God is doing to
provide waiting little ones a permanent, loving family.
We want others to know that
adoption is worth it, because at the end of the journey, there’s a child who is
going to feel a family’s love and there will be a family whose lives are
changed by the love of a child.
Giveaway time:
We’re giving away this gorgeous Santa Fe necklace, ethically handmade from
women in Haiti through Vi Bella ($35 value). Share about
the sale on Instagram with the date/time (Monday, April 27 at 7 p.m.) and tag
us in the status (@craigsadopt) for an entry, and tag friends
for more entries. (We’ll draw a winner Tuesday, April 28 - no purchase
necessary, U.S. residents only.)
Need reminders of the sale? Let’s connect
on Facebook. Questions? Shoot me a message -- I’d love to hear from
you! If you feel led to give, you can make a donation to our adoption here.
Thank you for entering into our story.
--
Kayla is full-time journalist turned work-at-home editor. She lives among the Iowa cornfields, where she’s hitched to a shaggy-haired
pastor and they’re smitten with two wild + free boys: Joseph (4) and Asher (2).
Kayla sips strong coffee, likes pretty things, and believes there's beauty in
the broken. She writes about faith,
motherhood, and style at Many Sparrows, encouraging women
to find worth and live a story worth sharing.
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