Sorry for the Absence ...

Gosh, it's been a little while since I've written anything. I have no viable excuses -- discipline has been lacking a bit in my life lately, and my unintentional writing sabbatical is the sour fruit of my unmotivated spirit.

But here I am again.

There are two adoption classes (the last two) that you haven't heard about.

On 8/6, Bethany's lawyer came to talk us through the legal facet of adoption. Honestly, I haven't posted about it because (a) I largely didn't understand it and (b) because there isn't much worth sharing. We just got a window into the typical process, and we left with a packet to help us wade through adoption terminology (like the difference between a legal father and biological father).
Long story short, you can just pray for the most uncomplicated process possible -- ideally, both the birthmother and father (or fatherS, depending on the situation) surrender their rights by the time the baby ends up in our home, streamlining both the termination of rights and the legal adoption itself.

That night, we also talked about our profile books. We have to make a book that essentially markets our family to potential birthmothers -- illustrating who we are, what we like to do, what is important to us, etc. This is exciting, terrifying and overwhelming to me. Exciting because I love our little family, and I think it will be fun to get to share who we are. Terrifying because it will play a vital role in getting chosen by a birthmother. Overwhelming because I know it will take a considerable amount of time and effort, and I can already feel my inner perfectionist rearing her ugly head. I am starting to compare album-making websites (Mixbook, blurb, mpix, etc), and making mental notes of things to include in our book. Let me know if you have had good experiences with a specific company!
Here is a very tangible way you can help us ... send us any pictures that you have of our family (even if it's not all three of us)! Birthmommies love pictures ... understandably. It would be tedious to wade through several books that were primarily text, so the more pictures we have, the better! Just email them to me at emily.cash@live.com. And, if you think something about our family is especially worth mentioning, let me know. I don't want to miss out on something that other people appreciate about us. You are welcome to send me things you don't like about us too ... just to even the scales (just know that it probably won't make an appearance in the book).
As inconsequential as it seems, please pray over the process of making this book. We want to accurately and authentically represent our family, while simultaneously showcasing the gifts that God has given us in parenting and life. And pray that I don't throw my computer at the wall -- most of the experimenting I have done with formatting has left me inordinately frustrated.

And last week's class? Well, nothing to tell. We showed up, and no one else was there. The class was cancelled and moved to this coming Monday, and I just hadn't seen the email. Story of my life. So expect to hear more after our make-up class!

Thanks for walking with us!