But Not From Ghana

When we began our first adoption in 2009, I found myself clinging to blogs of other families who had adopted or were adopting from around the world.  I gleaned anything I could from their experiences - good and bad.  I tried to prepare myself for what lye ahead, including "worst case scenarios" of RAD, ODD and even disruption.  Because of the tremendous blessing many of these blogs were to me, I felt led to blog about our journey as well...in part to help others coming after us, but mostly just to have written record of our journey.  I'm amazed by how often I reflect back on that 2 year adventure now with those children home.  (You can read all about it HERE.)  When we began our second adoption, I wanted to continue recording our journey, but created a new blog simply because I liked the formatting better through this particular publisher.

When I started this page, I was creatively playing on words when I named it "Ghana Keep Growing" since our adoption plans included returning to Ghana to continue adding to our family.  Unfortunately, as you've read through the last several posts, that is not God's plan for us.  In fact, the new Minister of Gender & Family in Ghana has suspended adoptions, and is pushing toward a full closure of Ghana to international adoption.  There is talk of Ghana signing on to the Hague Convention in the future, but implementation could take several years, if it's ever fully achieved.  For now I pray that the families already "matched" with their children won't be STUCK like the families adopting from Russia & Vietnam, and I pray that the orphans of Ghana will be well cared for even after international adoption is no longer a hope for them.

For us, God has given us complete peace with where He is leading.  We certainly still mourn the loss of R & A, and we will again seek to add to our family through the miracle of adoption...but not from Ghana.  No, the road laid out before us is not from Africa at all.  We have seen the faces of the children being added to our family, and they are beautiful!!!

I can't wait for the day we can show you their smiles...but for now I can only tell you that we are adopting another sibling pair - 1 girl [Ana] & 1 boy [Ezra].  They are "older" children who have some individual needs and we are confident that God has called our family to step out in faith for them...to give them hope...to be their forever family.

Today we embrace this new hope for our family.  We are trusting in God's promise to arise beauty for ashes in our grief.  We know that had we not suffered the loss of our girls, we would not have the opportunity to bring these children into our lives...and we are filled with hopeful anticipation of the day Ana & Ezra will enter our family forever!

To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He might be glorified.  ~ Isaiah 61:3 ~