The day of our adoption fundraiser I was encouraged as I just happened to read this verse in Isaiah 65:24, "Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear." God had everything in the works before we even asked him and he has totally been providing all that we need through wonderful, caring people. I shared this verse with our friends & family that day. The next day someone who attended our fundraiser was doing her devotions and read this story about a little girl from Africa named Ruth (which just happens to be similar to our little Ruthie). If you need some deeper, stronger, child-like faith (as I'm sure we all could) you must read this encouraging short story.
To read this true story of ten year old Ruth, click here.
May 4, 2011
April 28, 2011
God is Good!
We are happy to say that we got our court date today! Our court date is June 3rd! God has continually answered our prayers! All praise to Him! We appreciate your prayers. Here are some specific things to pray for:
-for our travels
-that we would pass court and everything to go smoothly
-that our girls will be comfortable with us & bond with us while we are there
Malia & Ruthie, we're coming soon! Hang in there... we love you!
-for our travels
-that we would pass court and everything to go smoothly
-that our girls will be comfortable with us & bond with us while we are there
Malia & Ruthie, we're coming soon! Hang in there... we love you!
April 27, 2011
Sending Our Love
This picture is the first set of packages we sent the girls. They each got their own. Our director got it to them on her trip back in March. We included some pictures of us and outfits, socks, baby dolls & other toys. We have since received pictures and video of them getting these packages. It is the first video we have seen! We were thrilled to get this and to see our girls a little better than on photos! What a gift! We are currently waiting to hear our court date. We would really appreciate your continued prayers for all of us. Please pray that we get our court date soon. Trusting in Him...
Names Continued...
I am excited because I just found out the meaning of Malia's Ethiopian name (which I cannot say at this time), but I have been searching and could not find her or Ruthie's Ethiopian names online. So now I am hoping to find out what Ruthie's name means. In Ethiopia it is a tradition to pick their names based on the meaning and hope they will obtain those characteristics.
Malia means calm & peaceful. I definitely pray that our sweet Malia will have peace even though her life has been changed so dramatically and will again soon when we bring her home. Ruthie means companion & friendship. In the Bible Ruth goes with Naomi even though it would have been easier to leave her. Ruth said, "Where you go, there I shall go also." I like that because our girls being orphans could have been split up, but God has kept them together. I am so happy that Ruthie will be a "companion & friend" to her sister. We were only expecting one child, and now that we are getting two I am so happy for them. I know it is going to be harder on me at times. I am just so glad that they have each other and will have a bond since they are biological sisters. It's a good thing God is in control and not me!
Malia means calm & peaceful. I definitely pray that our sweet Malia will have peace even though her life has been changed so dramatically and will again soon when we bring her home. Ruthie means companion & friendship. In the Bible Ruth goes with Naomi even though it would have been easier to leave her. Ruth said, "Where you go, there I shall go also." I like that because our girls being orphans could have been split up, but God has kept them together. I am so happy that Ruthie will be a "companion & friend" to her sister. We were only expecting one child, and now that we are getting two I am so happy for them. I know it is going to be harder on me at times. I am just so glad that they have each other and will have a bond since they are biological sisters. It's a good thing God is in control and not me!
April 21, 2011
Names
At this time we have to keep the birth names of our girls private until they are legally ours (which would be after our first trip to Ethiopia and after we pass court). Some adoptive parents keep the child's birth name, some just change it a bit, some keep their birth name as a middle name, and some give a completely new name. I think a lot of it depends on the child's age on whether they change it or not.
We have decided to give the girls an American name for their first name and keep their name given by their birth parents as their middle name. We want to keep their Ethiopian name because it will probably be the only gift they will have from their birth parents. We also want this to be a way for them to keep their Ethiopian heritage. We can tell you the names we have chosen to add on to their original names. We want you to know so you can be even more specific in your prayers for them. Please continue to pray for Malia (pronounced Ma-leah) & Ruthie. Malia is the older of the two.
Shortly after we received our referral for them, we chose their names. We weren't in a hurry, they kinda just came to us. We were talking about names we liked and Mark & I both mentioned how we loved the name Ruthie and it just stuck. When we looked at their pictures, we both agreed that the youngest of the two looks like a Ruthie. She has some animated facial expressions. Then we sat one night searching for the older of the two's name. I was looking in a little baby book that I have had since I was pregnant with Gracie, while Mark was looking at names online. We were sharing different names, none that were sticking, until I came to the name Malia in my book and I really liked it. I hadn't said anything, but as I was pointing to it, Mark, looking at the computer, says, "What about Malia?" I couldn't believe the timing on that. It just seemed too easy. But we love their names. We are talking & praying about Malia & Ruthie on a daily basis here in the Trump home. Brogan even knows their names. When we point to the girls he knows who is who. As things progress and they are officially ours we can tell you more about them as well as post their pictures. They are beautiful! We can't wait to meet & love on them!
We have decided to give the girls an American name for their first name and keep their name given by their birth parents as their middle name. We want to keep their Ethiopian name because it will probably be the only gift they will have from their birth parents. We also want this to be a way for them to keep their Ethiopian heritage. We can tell you the names we have chosen to add on to their original names. We want you to know so you can be even more specific in your prayers for them. Please continue to pray for Malia (pronounced Ma-leah) & Ruthie. Malia is the older of the two.
Shortly after we received our referral for them, we chose their names. We weren't in a hurry, they kinda just came to us. We were talking about names we liked and Mark & I both mentioned how we loved the name Ruthie and it just stuck. When we looked at their pictures, we both agreed that the youngest of the two looks like a Ruthie. She has some animated facial expressions. Then we sat one night searching for the older of the two's name. I was looking in a little baby book that I have had since I was pregnant with Gracie, while Mark was looking at names online. We were sharing different names, none that were sticking, until I came to the name Malia in my book and I really liked it. I hadn't said anything, but as I was pointing to it, Mark, looking at the computer, says, "What about Malia?" I couldn't believe the timing on that. It just seemed too easy. But we love their names. We are talking & praying about Malia & Ruthie on a daily basis here in the Trump home. Brogan even knows their names. When we point to the girls he knows who is who. As things progress and they are officially ours we can tell you more about them as well as post their pictures. They are beautiful! We can't wait to meet & love on them!
April 14, 2011
Thank You Family & Friends!
Our family and friends are unbelievably AWESOME! Both sides of our family teamed up to pull off an amazing fundraiser to help us bring the girls home. We are beyond blessed with such awesome love and support! We want to thank EVERYONE who came or contributed in any way! I have tears in my eyes just thinking about all of you who came out to show your love & support! The love of Christ was truly displayed by everyone's talents, efforts, time, gifts & words of encouragement. We feel so loved. One day our girls will know that it took ALL of you to help bring them home. It is hard to express how we feel. We are definitely humbled and grateful for everything that was done to help us! This verse keeps sticking out to me so I want to share...
Ephesians 3:19-21
"May you experience the love of Christ, though it is so great you will never fully understand it. Then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God. Now glory be to God! By his mighty power at work within us, he is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope."
To be honest, we were not expecting or hoping for a particular amount given, we truly would have been grateful for whatever God had planned for us to receive. The funds that were raised exceeded everyone's expectations. The only explanation is that God used all of you gracious people to pull together to bring home two orphans who need a family. You have given no thought to receiving and have shown what it means to serve others. James 1:27 "Pure and lasting religion in the sight of God our Father means that we must care for orphans and widows in their troubles, and refuse to let the world corrupt us."
So as loudly & as many times as we can say it... THANK YOU & GOD BLESS YOU!
With Love,
Mark & Holly
Ephesians 3:19-21
"May you experience the love of Christ, though it is so great you will never fully understand it. Then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God. Now glory be to God! By his mighty power at work within us, he is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope."
To be honest, we were not expecting or hoping for a particular amount given, we truly would have been grateful for whatever God had planned for us to receive. The funds that were raised exceeded everyone's expectations. The only explanation is that God used all of you gracious people to pull together to bring home two orphans who need a family. You have given no thought to receiving and have shown what it means to serve others. James 1:27 "Pure and lasting religion in the sight of God our Father means that we must care for orphans and widows in their troubles, and refuse to let the world corrupt us."
So as loudly & as many times as we can say it... THANK YOU & GOD BLESS YOU!
With Love,
Mark & Holly
March 28, 2011
Doing Our Homework
The next step in our adoption process is to receive a court date, which will be when we take our first trip to Ethiopia. There we will go to court and once we pass (sometimes it takes awhile if they need more documentation etc.) then the girls will be legally ours. We will be able to post pictures and give names after that. We are waiting to hear when our court date will be. While we are waiting we have a lot of learning to do. Our agency sent us a box of adoption books to complete our ten hours of educational requirements. The picture below shows all of the books that were included. Some of the books and other items are gifts. There are some children's picture books and an Ethiopian coloring book too. Thanks again for all of your continued prayers and support.
March 10, 2011
Children of God
This is one of our favorite songs lately. Our kids love it too! We didn't know what the video was about, but after seeing it, we love the song even more! Mark & I were able to see Third Day in concert last night with Tenth Avenue North. They were AWESOME! We volunteered the World Vision booth to help people sign up to sponsor children, so the concert was FREE! Mark's highlight was shaking hands with Jeff Saturday and the lead singer of Third Day, Mac Powell!
3All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. 6So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. 7He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. 8He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.
~Ephesians 1: 3-8
3All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. 6So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. 7He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. 8He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.
~Ephesians 1: 3-8
March 4, 2011
We have our referral!!!
I want to start off by saying that God is sooooooo good!!! His timing is so perfect! We got the call we have been waiting for on Monday, February 28th. We are excited to continue to see God's plan unfold. We prayed and we committed that whatever referral we received first was God's will so that is what we would accept. I received the call from Mark. He told me that is was not a boy! And it was not just one girl... but two (did I mention that we were open to siblings?)! As my sister-in-law put it, "double the blessing!" We do not want to give any other details on the blog at this time, but in due time we will share ages, pics, and names when the time is acceptable. Please continue to pray for our family to prepare for additional members and for the girls joining our family.
February 20, 2011
Check this out!
My friend has a unique gift & decorative idea. She is creating custom made plaques. If you have adopted, in the process of adopting, or want to give a unique gift for someone, you need to check out my friends blog. She is in the process of adopting a baby girl, Nyah, from the Congo. So all of the proceeds will go toward the adoption. She thought of the idea when she was thinking of how she would decorate Nyah's room. Click here to check it out: www.madewithpurpose.blogspot.com
All plaques are custom made for your child per your request (country, name, colors). Plaques measure approximately 24"x21" on wood backing.
All plaques are custom made for your child per your request (country, name, colors). Plaques measure approximately 24"x21" on wood backing.
February 1, 2011
Updates
We wanted to give an update since we haven't blogged for some time. First, we just got our approval letter from the United States Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS)! This is permission from our country to internationally adopt. This gets us another step closer. Yeah!
The next and most anticipating thing we are doing is waiting on the referral for our child. We are #2 on the boy list and a lot further down the list for a girl. So the probability is that we will be getting a boy!
We are also waiting to hear that our dossier is completely translated into the Ethiopian language at this time.
We would like to ask that you pray for us and for all of the families adopting from Ethiopia. There have been many delays lately, which makes the process more difficult for all involved. There are delays on the Ethiopian side and the US embassy side. So for our family this means a more extended time frame on waiting for a referral than in the past. Please keep the Ethiopian children, orphanages, and those working at the embassy in your prayers. We have an awesome agency (CCI- Celebrate Children International)! They are working tireless hours to bring children to their forever families...prayers for them would be appreciated as well! Thank you for praying for our family too! Prayer is the one thing we can ALWAYS do & is the most POWERFUL!
January 14, 2011
AMAZING Hero!
I just read an amazing story on another blog called Ordinary Hero! It is a MUST read for everyone! Just click on the link or on the logo on the side of my blog and scroll down and read this amazing story (called The Little Hero) about an 8 year old brother taking care of his 11 month old sister.
It never fails...when I am having a so called "bad day" and I ask God for a better attitude or help... he always directs me to someone who really is having a BAD day (or life in some cases)! It just puts everything back into perspective for me. I am so selfish and clueless sometimes! I just want to encourage whoever may be reading this, (including myself) to pay attention and think about the things we really complain or get upset about. They are usually just ridiculous and petty things. We can change the way we think... I know it may take practice and habit, but it IS possible. That is exactly what God wants us to do...take every thought captive and give it to Him... and trust me He will get you thinking clearly!
Be the change you wish to see in the world.
-Gandhi
~Holly (is trying/praying to be the change!)
It never fails...when I am having a so called "bad day" and I ask God for a better attitude or help... he always directs me to someone who really is having a BAD day (or life in some cases)! It just puts everything back into perspective for me. I am so selfish and clueless sometimes! I just want to encourage whoever may be reading this, (including myself) to pay attention and think about the things we really complain or get upset about. They are usually just ridiculous and petty things. We can change the way we think... I know it may take practice and habit, but it IS possible. That is exactly what God wants us to do...take every thought captive and give it to Him... and trust me He will get you thinking clearly!
Be the change you wish to see in the world.
-Gandhi
~Holly (is trying/praying to be the change!)
January 8, 2011
Melkam Genna!
Melkam Genna! That means Merry Christmas in Amharic. January 7 is Christmas in Ethiopia. Their calendar is different than ours. Mark and I were invited to an authentic Ethiopian restaurant (Yes, in Indy!) to join a bunch of families that have adopted from Ethiopia. The restaurant is called The Major, I highly recommend it...service & food were great. I loved getting a taste (figuratively & literally) of the Ethiopian culture. We were so glad that we were able to join such a great group of people. It was so encouraging and exciting to speak with families that have adopted from the same country as we are, as well as seeing their beautiful children (bio & adopted)! Thank you to all of our new friends ;)!
This past month has been a whirlwind! Here's our latest news...
~ We have prayerfully decided to be on the "either list" for a BOY or a GIRL! We have explained this to our kids & they are excited for whatever God has in store for our family.
~On Wednesday (Jan 5th) we sent in our dossier!!! This is a huge step in the process and is the major thing that we have physically done ourselves.
A dossier is a compilation of paperwork that shows that we are ready and approved to adopt. Each document had to be notarized, then we had to get the official "state seal." Our homestudy report was included in the dossier. The homestudy is a written report from a social worker who interviewed our family, digging deep into our history, our motivation to adopt, and the emotional/physical health of our family. This involved LOTS of forms ahead of time, then an interview in our home. Our complete dossier is off to Washington D.C. then Ethiopia! Here is a photo of all of the papers lined up on the table.
We will be doing a lot of waiting now... Waiting on these important documents to be approved and translated... Waiting for a referral for our future child! We would appreciate your prayers as always and we really appreciate you checking out our blog and checking in on us!
This past month has been a whirlwind! Here's our latest news...
~ We have prayerfully decided to be on the "either list" for a BOY or a GIRL! We have explained this to our kids & they are excited for whatever God has in store for our family.
~On Wednesday (Jan 5th) we sent in our dossier!!! This is a huge step in the process and is the major thing that we have physically done ourselves.
A dossier is a compilation of paperwork that shows that we are ready and approved to adopt. Each document had to be notarized, then we had to get the official "state seal." Our homestudy report was included in the dossier. The homestudy is a written report from a social worker who interviewed our family, digging deep into our history, our motivation to adopt, and the emotional/physical health of our family. This involved LOTS of forms ahead of time, then an interview in our home. Our complete dossier is off to Washington D.C. then Ethiopia! Here is a photo of all of the papers lined up on the table.
We will be doing a lot of waiting now... Waiting on these important documents to be approved and translated... Waiting for a referral for our future child! We would appreciate your prayers as always and we really appreciate you checking out our blog and checking in on us!
January 6, 2011
A Christmas to Remember
Christmas at my Papaw and Mamaw's house (my mom's side of the family) is never lacking in fun for the adults. The past few years we have all picked another's name and bought them a gift. But this year my sister proposed a different idea for our Christmas. We usually buy gifts that we really don't need (not that there is anything wrong with getting someone a gift), so why not chip our money in together and do some good for people who really need it. Everyone decided that was a great idea and that we were going to do it. We chose to have everyone pick a charity of their choice and then whoever got their charity drawn out of a bag would be the one we would donate to and we would all give that person our money/check (choosing from a bag made it a fun twist to just picking one).
Our family Christmas came and the kids had just tore into their gifts. My sister, Amy, announced that we were getting ready to draw for our charities and passed out some paper. Mark and I filled ours out and stuck them in the bag. Quickly after that, Amy handed the bag to my Papaw so he could pick one out. He grabbed one and opened it, he was trying to read it, when I decided to sit by him and look too. I knew it wasn't our charity because it was in blue marker. As I got closer I saw, "Holly and Mark's." As it actually sank into my head I finally comprehended what it said, "Holly and Mark's Adoption!" Immediately the tears came to my eyes and I looked up and saw that everyone was looking at me. WOW! I was shocked! We just weren't expecting that at ALL! Now that I look back, it's kind of funny how quickly we drew it out and no one even talked about the charity they were choosing (we had no clue at the time). So now I know why. Everyone wrote our name on their paper and they took Mark's and mine out...Sneaky...Sneaky!!!
This is definitely one of my top Christmas memories! We are obviously putting that money toward our adoption. For that we are excited and extremely grateful! But more importantly for us, is the tremendous support our family has displayed to us! Papaw, Mamaw, Mom, Dad, Buzz, Julie, Brittany, Derek, Alivia, Colton, Bob, Amy, Stephanie, & Shannon THANK YOU & we LOVE YOU SO MUCH! We are grateful that you are a HUGE part of bringing our future child home to us (your great-grandchild, grandchild, great-niece/nephew, cousin, & niece/nephew)!!!
Our family Christmas came and the kids had just tore into their gifts. My sister, Amy, announced that we were getting ready to draw for our charities and passed out some paper. Mark and I filled ours out and stuck them in the bag. Quickly after that, Amy handed the bag to my Papaw so he could pick one out. He grabbed one and opened it, he was trying to read it, when I decided to sit by him and look too. I knew it wasn't our charity because it was in blue marker. As I got closer I saw, "Holly and Mark's." As it actually sank into my head I finally comprehended what it said, "Holly and Mark's Adoption!" Immediately the tears came to my eyes and I looked up and saw that everyone was looking at me. WOW! I was shocked! We just weren't expecting that at ALL! Now that I look back, it's kind of funny how quickly we drew it out and no one even talked about the charity they were choosing (we had no clue at the time). So now I know why. Everyone wrote our name on their paper and they took Mark's and mine out...Sneaky...Sneaky!!!
This is definitely one of my top Christmas memories! We are obviously putting that money toward our adoption. For that we are excited and extremely grateful! But more importantly for us, is the tremendous support our family has displayed to us! Papaw, Mamaw, Mom, Dad, Buzz, Julie, Brittany, Derek, Alivia, Colton, Bob, Amy, Stephanie, & Shannon THANK YOU & we LOVE YOU SO MUCH! We are grateful that you are a HUGE part of bringing our future child home to us (your great-grandchild, grandchild, great-niece/nephew, cousin, & niece/nephew)!!!
January 5, 2011
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