Post-Orientation Post

Last week we had our first meeting/orientation with our agency.  We learned a lot about the agency, how they run, what services they provide, and their process in general.  It was very informative and nice to meet the people we will be working with (and getting to know REALLY well) throughout this process. 

We really feel we picked the best agency for us after going to orientation.  Just learning about what all they provide to the birthmothers before, during and after is very comforting.  They also do not match adoptive parents with the baby until they are very confident the birthmother is committed to adoption.  That will hopefully prevent more heartache down the road.

We ask that you continue to keep us in your prayers.  We came home with a lot of paperwork to fill out and a long to-do list that is due fairly soon.  We have been setting aside time to get started on it and I am confident we will get it done.  There are a lot of deep, personal questions, so please pray for us not to overthink these and answer them as honestly as we can; that will be best for all parties in the end.

So far this week, we have filled out all of our background check forms, got some notarized and sent off!  Hopefully, once that gets cleared, we can do the fingerprinting and other forms to start this process! 

Puzzle Update

26 pieces down, 974 to go!

Yes, it is sideways, and yes there's keystone from the angled shot, and barrel distortion...argh! Can you tell who's writing this post?

New Year, New Hope

We are very excited about the New Year as we have been invited to orientation from TBH in January!  We are hopeful about actually starting the process and have been busy reading books and brainstorming ways to get ready for the adventure to begin.  Hopefully, our posts from now on will be more informative about the adoption process. 

Having a good support group is very important to us as we start this process.  We are looking into different groups in the area to get advice from people who have been in our shoes and then pass down the advice once we become "experts."  Here are some groups or churches we have found with support groups either for infertility and/or adoption:

RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association

Tapestry: Adoption & Foster Care Ministry at Irving Bible Church

DFW Alliance of Adoption & Orphan Care Ministries

This website has a list of the churches in the area with Adoption/Foster Care Ministries.

Shiloh Infertility Ministry at Watermark

Tapestry at Watermark

There is also a Foster-Adoption Expo on Saturday, February 4th starting at 9am.  Follow the link for more information.

Here's to a New Year filled with New Hopes, Adventures and Beginnings! 

Puzzle Fundraiser

As some of you know either through talking to us or our Christmas letter, we are doing a puzzle fundraiser to help bring Baby Jackson home.  For more information about it, either click the "Puzzle" tab above or click here.  We thank everyone for their love, support and prayers.  Your encouragement really means a lot! 

 MERRY CHRISTMAS and GOD BLESS!

           

2011 Tapestry Conference

You can get the Adoption & Foster Care Conference materials by clicking this link.


The sessions we went to were:

Adoption: Myths and Realities

Keys to Success for Healthy Adoptive & Foster Families - Slideshow & Notes

Opening Up About Open Adoption - Slideshow, Benefits, Identity & Openness and Openness & Development

Making Sense of the Cost of Adoption

We definitely enjoyed and learned a lot from this conference. We are also glad our friends Darren and Jamie came with us! Hopefully we can stay connected to this ministry as we will be needing advice from those who have walked this path before ue!

Blog Post

Blog post from a woman who struggled with IF. Always good to know you are not alone!
http://joannagoddard.blogspot.com/2011/10/motherhood-mondays-what-if-you-cant.html#more

Brick walls...

The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out; the brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. The brick walls are there to stop the people who don't want it badly enough. They are there to stop the other people! - Randy Pausch

So, the agency we have been on the waiting list to go to orientation for the last 5 months is moving back its enrollment until January. This means even more waiting, or a change of game plan. We have decided to keep them in our back pocket, but to attack this adventure more head on. So, we created a website and are going to look into Private Party Adoption - where you try it without an agency. If you know of anyone, please pass on our webpage:
https://sites.google.com/site/jamjacksonfamily

We are also opening up to international adoption if we can find one that is not too expensive and doesn't require too much time off; we've got to keep our jobs to pay for the adoption, right?

So, we are asking for prayers and support through this time. I know God can see the end and it is for His glory!