One Happy Family!

Hello everyone! I wanted to write one last post...with some pictures of Peyton! We have settled in and are doing great! So...this is what has been happening in the last few weeks...

 

          Since we have been home, we have been in contact with Peyton's birth mom. We have been sending picture text messages of Peyton almost every other day. She will write back with joy on how Peyton is doing and just how adorable he is! We have also talked with Mom on the phone after each of Peyton's doctor's appointments...which have also been fine. He is one healthy, perfect boy!! He is eating like a piglet though!! He already eats as much as his 3 month older cousin! His feet and hands are the same size as Riley's already, too! I think he will be taking after his birth mom's side...as she is 5'9"! We have all discussed if Peyton is to be gifted enough to play in tbe NBA, then it is only for the Miami Heat, as it's his birth mom's favorite team! :)

Peyton's birth mom had 60 days to decide and sign to release her legal rights, but was so sure of her decision that she made the appointment prior to discharge from the hospital. On Monday, October 22nd, we got the call from Mom's social worker that she had signed, and more importantly, she is doing good with the decision!  After the phone call, I could feel myself relax. I didn't realize how tense I was waiting for that news. I think I was more guarded than I realized! We then moved into a 10 business day waiting period. This is a period that mom has by law to change her mind...so we weren't completely legal yet...kinda felt like one more hump to get over before truly letting go of my guard.

        Then we moved into deer hunting, of which Jerrod is like a little kid at Christmas. He takes advantage of the once a year 'holiday' and hunts all week! Peyton and I spent most of the week in Staples so we could see Jerrod a lot and so Peyton could meet more family! We had a great week...but the 10 day legal risk period was looming over me. Not Jerrod, by the way...he never gave it a second thought! He was able to let it go and rejoice right away. I never had any worries that Mom would change her mind, but I just couldn't let my guard down 100%. So, on Monday, November 5th at 4:30 p.m. the legal risk period ended and Peyton was legally ours!! I still can't hardly believe it! We got a Reeses Blizzard DQ cake to celebrate that said "Peyton, your ours!" It was so nice to celebrate this long awaited gift from God!

          I think now it's setting in a bit more that we are parents to a beautiful baby boy. He is such a blessing and an answer to many, many prayers. Wow!! We have also been blessed with many friends and family that have come to visit Peyton. And there have been baby showers to help us with the many things we did not have. I am in awe and overwhelmed by everyone's generosity and love. It has brought tears to my eyes on many occasions. So much to celebrate. So much worry to let go of, as God has provided everything and more! Thank you to everyone for your many prayers and to those that have had a hand in helping Peyton with more than we can imagine!

A Beautiful Story...

Hello everyone! The last I wrote, I left you all to be continued with our birth mom dilated at 4cm....are you ready for the ending of the most beautiful story??

     After our phone call from the birth mom that she was dilated to 4cm. . . . I got off the phone and spent a few minutes just staring at Jerrod in shock. . . . then I hyperventilated a little thinking "Is this really happening. . . and now???" Then a made a few phone calls trying to spread the word as we were not planning on returning home until our baby boy was with us! I was still in shock that we were having a boy! Can you believe it. . . A Boy!! And now it could happen anytime! Eeeekkk!!
    So when we got to Staples we met up with a lot of our family. We were going to reveal whether it was a boy or girl. . . pre-planned reveal. So everyone was buzzing with their guesses, but little did they all know that we were having this baby SOON!! So it was a pretty awesome experience to tell all of our loved ones what was going on! Their faces were priceless! There are many things that I may never experience with pregnancy, but having this moment with family around us, it meant more than the world to us. There are so many beautiful moments in adoption that are not in pregnancy! Like having a celebratory drink with everyone!! Can't do that when you're pregnant!!  HeHeHe! :)
    Of course, with all the family buzzing with the news of it's a boy AND she's dilated to 4cm. . . . the excitement came with everyone telling me it's going to happen tonight. Although those were already my thoughts, the added nervousness and shock from family made it even more surreal and, frankly, harder not to hyperventilate! But we knew our mom would call us when anything happened...as we were going to be the only people in the delivery room with her! Yep...pretty amazing! We knew that we would be able to experience everything with our baby boy as he entered this world. We were going to be right there, first faces he saw and voices he heard!
     When we got home, we were exhausted. . . after being up since 4 a.m. and then the emotions running around in us from all this news! I thought. . ."I am going to sleep good tonight, I will have my phone next to me and she will call." O.k.  Not really how it went. . . I started with my phone on the floor next to the bed (no nightstand) and then couldn't rest thinking I may not hear it. And yes, the volume was all the way up; I checked 3 times! So then the phone ended up under my pillow - the whole night! As I tried to fall asleep, I have everyone's voices in my head from earlier saying "You better get down there or your going to miss it!" or "It's going to happen tonight. . . no way she will make it through the night!" And, yes, as you can guess. . .no phone call. Jerrod slept great. . .snored even! And I checked the phone from under my pillow every hour starting at 3 a.m.
     The next few nights were the same. . .no phone calls, but the sleeping did get better! We did text our birth mom everyday to see how she was doing. She was getting anxious knowing that if she didn't go into labor on her own, they were going to induce her on Tuesday morning.
     Monday night (October 15th) we were on our way back to St. Cloud to spend the night with Jerrod's mom and Dennis. We set the alarm for 5:00 a.m. so we could meet our mom when she got admitted at 6 a.m. Early morning!!! And I actually slept good that night!! So, of course we would get lost in the hospital! Thankfully we found someone that led us to the right spot! We got to our room and the nurses got Mom all admitted. We had a lot of time to sit and visit with mom. The Dr. came around 9:30 am and then things moved quick. . .epidural by 11:30. . .and beautiful baby boy by 1:31 pm!!
   I was mom's labor coach, of which I didn't do a whole lot because she was amazing! She pushed 3 times and baby was here! I was able to cut his cord when he entered the world! It was truly the most unbelieveable, beautiful, amazing moment in my life! We named him Peyton William Busker. William after Jerrod's dad. Our birth mom also had a part in naming him. We couldn't choose between William and Edward (after my grandpa) and Mom thought William sounded best, also that Edward reminded her of the Twilight series! :) Too funny! I hadn't thought of that, but now I do! And the cool thing about his name now is that his birth mom had a part in naming him! That means a lot to us!
    Baby Peyton was super healthy! He weighed 8 lbs 9 oz and 19 1/2 in long. Big Boy!! We got to hold him and feed him right away! We took pictures with us and with mom. We all had tears in our eyes; Peyton is so incredibly loved by all of us. . .and all of you!
    The hospital gave us our own room and we spent 1 night in the hospital. Most of our time that evening and the next day was spent together with Mom. We really enjoyed that time with her and we are so excited about the realtionship we have already with Mom. We have an open adoption and we have many plans to see her often! She is such a strong, loving, and giving person. She has given us her baby to love, support, and encourage. And we will do just that. . .and more! We are so blessed! The relationship is more perfect than I can even imagine!
    We came home Wednesday night. It felt so good to be home, but a little surreal to be home with Peyton! We have had pretty good nights with him. He is such a good baby! The next step is for Mom to sign legal documents giving up her rights as a parent. I can not imagine how hard that will be. They have 60 days to do so, however, Mom is planning to do that soon. After she signs, there is a 10 business day waiting period in which she can change her mind. Please pray for all of us during this time as it is very emotional.
     I will, as always, keep everyone updated. We are choosing not to post pictures of Peyton until everything is legal. We will wait for the 10 day waiting period to be over. Thank you again for all your support and prayers, this is truly a miracle from God!

Hang on...here we go!!

Again...we have been quiet for a reason, although the reason didn't come until a week ago!! Hang on, because we are in for a crazy ride.....

    On Tuesday, Oct 2nd at 9:30 p.m. we got a phone call from an unknown number on our landline. We just let it go to our voicemail...and then we heard our social worker start talking...and it was a mad dash to the phone!! She had great news...there was a mom that wanted to meet us! In the conversation, Vicki (SW) had mentioned that this birthmom had written us an email on our adoption email...but since that has been quiet for a year, I hadn't checked it! So...first thing I did was go to my email and send her a reply letting her know that we were excited to meet her on the coming Fri...to think that if mom hadn't stayed vigilant with us, we would have missed an opportunity of a lifetime! Mom had been looking at LSS's online profiles and found us...emailed us Saturday morning, and when she didn't hear back...she took it upon herself to go into LSS and find us...and to get the process going....because she is due in 3 weeks!!! Yep...that's right, 3 weeks! I wonder if you are feeling the goose bumps or the shock that we did when we first heard!!!
      So we had 3 days to roll this timeline around in our heads...let me tell you that we did not get much sleep those days! On Thursday (prior to meeting mom) we went to St. Cloud to stay with Jerrod's mom and Dennis. We were nervous about meeting mom...we were the only family she had picked to meet! But after getting to LSS and the meeting began with mom and her social worker, it felt so comfortable. Jerrod and I both felt it was right...we have found our perfect match!! Now...we could only hope that she felt the same way..... After we all met together and visited about how we grew up, our families together, her life in a nut shell...LSS separates you so that you have a moment to talk or think about it. So Jerrod and I looked at each other...and we both said at the same time "This is it!" The SW checked in with us to see where we were at first...then she left to check with mom...we sat in suspense wondering if mom would walk through that door again...and she did!! I truly can't tell you how relieved I was to see mom come through that door...and then she asked us to be the parents of her baby. Wow...  Yep...it's really happening!!!
     We did communicate a little through texting with mom during the week...she had updated us on her appt with the doctor, and said all looked good.  She said that baby was head-down and that she wasn't dilated yet....phew...thank goodness...hoping to get all the time we can so we can get ready! Jerrod and I had nothing...no crib, pack-n-play, bassinet, diapers, and all other essentials. And to tell you the truth...I never really worried about any of that. Of course, that's the first thing people asked us when we shared what was going on...but I had such a peace about it all! We focused on our projects around the house...spreading rock, painting our bedroom, etc. And let me tell you...I knew my peace was coming from God because everytime I turned around...someone was offering something we needed before we even knew we needed it. A HUGE thank you to all of you that helped us get ready for this baby!
    Before we know it, it's Friday 5 am and we are on our way to meet mom and sign some papers! These papers are non-legal papers that discuss how we see the delivery going and what the relationship will be like after baby is born. It was a big meeting. So many questions and scenarios to talk about. I am so thankful for that time though...it really allowed all of us to be open and honest so that we all knew what was expected. Mom had invited us to go to her ultrasound later that day...so we ran some errands and waited anxiously for 3:30 pm.....however, even though we now know the sex of our baby, there are family and friends that don't....so before I pause the story here, I just want to give you one last update...as of Friday at 4:30 pm, mom is dilated to 4 and we are just waiting for the phone call that she is in active labor...........................................................

    To be continued.....soon.....

Hello everyone!! Boy, has summer flown by!! I apologize for neglecting my blog for so long. We have purposefully been quiet on the blog because we had some activity that we felt we needed to keep amongst ourselves and our family until we saw where it all led. We met a birth family (mom and dad) 2 weeks after we got into the book!!! It was exciting...and shocking...that we were chosen to meet a family so soon after getting in! It really felt good to get picked so fast. It said a lot about our profile and how it portrayed us. We met the birth parents in St. Cloud and saying that we were nervous was an understatement!! Mom and dad were no longer together and had over 7 meetings with the counselors about the choice of adoption. We were the only family they were meeting....talk about pressure! When we got to St. Cloud, we met with their social worker (SW) first and she gave us the low-down on how these meetings went. It was relieving to meet with her first. We also had a background history on both parents prior to meeting so we knew what we wanted to ask and what concerns we had. Mom (21y) and dad (22y) were no longer together and pretty healthy, so there wasn't too many concerns.  Mom was due in November...so we had time to possibly wrap our minds around this!

When mom and dad came in, we all stumbled on what to do and what to say. Jerrod and I were suppose to start talking about ourselves and our story first...Jerrod couldn't stop talking and I think I summed my life up in 5 sentences....how very opposite for us!!! But after the first 30 seconds, conversations were flowing! It really felt right...that they were the ones. After our meeting, there was some time to talk things over alone. They decided to meet another family...which we totally supported. We felt that they should be sure about their choice, which would only make it easier on us if they chose us. We had a wait due to July 4th...then they wanted time to think about the 2 families they met. About 4 weeks after our first meeting, our SW told us that mom was having second thoughts about adoption. But, IF she chose adoption, they had chose us.  So another waiting game as mom wavered on the biggest decision of her life. After another 2 weeks or so, mom decided to keep the baby.  There were a mixture of feelings for us...mostly we were grateful that the birth parents were honest in the way they were feeling and didn't drag us along until November, only to switch their minds then. We also felt that they were both pretty mature and would do just fine parenting this baby.

All in all, things happen as they are suppose to. We take away a few positives from the experience. We both were so nervous for the meeting...right down to what to wear...and now I think we will be more at ease having already been through a meeting. We also had such positive feedback from the SW at how well we did in the meeting. It helped us to know what questions we wanted to ask and what questions the birth parents may be asking us. It also made us feel like when it happens and works out in the end, what a blessing it truly is! Adoption is the greatest gift of love that there is!!

We thank you for all of your continued support and prayers. We are staying positive and patient! God has something really special in store for us!!

Time flies....

Can you believe that we are towards the end of July already?! Wow!! Time sure does fly! We have had some very exciting news on my brother's behalf....baby Riley Scott Odden was born to Josh and Inga on July 20th at 12:05. He weighed 6 lbs 15 oz and was 20 inches long! A healthy baby boy!! He has already blessed our family with so much joy! I am so proud of my brother and Inga! They are going to be AMAZING parents!! Congrats!!

On the adoption front...we are in the book and patiently waiting to be matched. We continue to hear stories from friends/family on possibilities. There are still adoption cards being handed out to these potentials...so we will continue to keep our fingers crossed and leave it all in God's hands! We are so blessed with such good fortune already...our relationship and health, immediate family, and awesome friends! We continue to feel so much support from everyone and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for keeping us in your prayers and lifting us up when we are down! This journey is going to bring us amazing things...we wait in anticipation!!

We're in the book!!

We have finally made it into the book!! My heart was pounding last Thursday when I checked the email & saw that we were being invited into the book! Seems as though this has taken forever, but it has actually gone quick in some respects. This was the big marker to reach for us, and now that we are here, I'm kind of shell shocked & excited at the same time! I was teasing my brother, Josh, that we could actually have a child before him! Inga & Josh are due July 27th...it is so exciting that my soon-to-be nephew will hopefully grow up with a cousin that's the same age! Now that we are invited into the book, we are also invited to have online profiles. This is something that we could not get into until we made the book! This is just another avenue that LSS offers to help with attaching families! Now, we wait for a phone call. The phone call can be news that we are 1 of 3 families that a mom wants to meet to a mom has picked us. Situations can vary so much too...can be a mom that is 4 months along to a mom who's baby is already 6 months old! It can all happen so quick too...only the Big Man above knows what He has planned for us!

LSS facebook feature!!

Hello!  I hope everyone had a good weekend.  Wanted to let everyone know we are officialy number 2 on the list to enter the profile.   It sure feels like things have started to move alot quicker for us on the adoption front.  Hopefully it continues on that path.  This wednesday LSS is featuring us on their facebook page at noon!  If  you get a chance,  check it out and "like" and/or "share" our profile to help us spread the word!  Have a good night!

Jerrod 

Adoption Profile Scrapbook Pictures

Almost there!!

     We just got another email today saying that we have moved up to #2!! We are getting so close that time is starting to go more slowly...and the anticipation is building! We are very excited to get into the LSS book! We have been doing our part with the adoption cards, and although we have received a decent amount of activity, nothing concrete has happened yet. So, getting into the book is a major step!  We will be viewed by mom's considering adoption for their baby. We have always known that it may come to using the book, although we hoped that we wouldn't need to do that. Whatever God's will may be, is what it will be!
     Also wanted to thank my dearest friend, Becky, for all her hard work and time she put in to creating our profile scrapbook pages! They turned out amazing!! I will try to post some pictures on this site so you can all see what they look like! We were allowed for pages to display pictures and text so that the birth families would get an idea of who we are. That is not much space for everything you want to say about yourself. But, Becky did an awesome job with little help from me...although I wish I could have helped her more...I was never blessed with the creative bones!
     These pages are the first thing a mom/family will see...so it is really important that we stick out in some way. We needed to create a flare and yet stick to who we are! The words are just a bonus, as it is the pictures that will attract someone to us right away!
      Please keep your prayers coming!! :)
    

Another leap forward...

Great news again! We have already jumped up a few more spots! We are already #5!! I must say that it is both exciting and overwhelming! It's great to know that we are getting a lot closer to our chance in the profile book, but for us, the flip side is we need to be ready! Eeeek! As I've mentioned before, the profile book consists of 4 pages with pictures and text regarding who we are. Because there is such limited space in the book, we have to be creative with keeping our writing condensed and the few pictures that we can fit on there must convey who we are. So, there is A LOT of pressure to pick the right photos and use the right wording. We need to stand out so that moms' want to pick us. We need to keep their attention and get ourselves into their top 3 choices. After they narrow their choices down, they will meet us...then choose the family that best suits them. It all seems so crazy when you think of everything that goes into this process!
Becoming #5 is a big deal. LSS will now email us every time we move up a spot. For us, it has become more real. The day will be here before we know it. LSS recommends making 17 copies. Every LSS site has a book, so the 4 pages will go to each site, plus extras for families that pick us. That's a lot of scrapbooking!!! When we looked at previous profiles for examples, many of them were printed copies of websites like Shutterfly. There was only 1 family that handmade their profile. But that one really stood out against the rest! Thankfully, we have some really awesome friends that have offered to help us create handmade profiles...Becky, Tracy, and the rest of the crew...THANK YOU!!! We are almost done and a huge weight is lifted off our shoulders!! I will try to post the pictures of the profile when it is completed!
We are getting there!!!

Time is flying by...

     Happy belated Easter to all of you! I hope that you found time to enjoy the company of family and/or friends last Sunday! I can't believe that Easter has come and gone already! We had a wonderful Easter with Jerrod's family! We were missing a few key people, but most everyone was able to come to our house and enjoy each other's company and lots of good food!!
       I mentioned in the last blog that we had moved up to #11 on the waiting list...well, we have jumped to #8 already!! Before we know it, we will get the call that we are less than 5 spots away...and that means we need to be ready! I am super overwhelmed with preparing our profile book! How do you convey who you are in four pages with writing and a few pictures?! In our classes, LSS made sure we understood the importance of choosing the right pictures to describe who we are, and most of all to catch and keep their attention...in other words, our pictures are everything! Which, is what makes it so daunting!
     There are 60 profiles in the book...so mom/dad are trying to narrow down who they want to consider for the adoption of their baby from 60 to 2 or 3 families...whew! That's a lot of stress on them too! Please pray for these mom's and dad's as they look to follow their heart in choosing a family that's right for them! And also, please pray for Jerrod and I as we tackle another part of this journey in creating our profile book!

Movin' on up!!

We are getting closer on the list to get into the LSS profile book! The profile book is a scrapbook that we put together showing prospective mom's who we are! We officially got on the list when we completed our home study last November...we were 21 on the list. It was kinda disappointing to us that we were so far down the list...with no idea when we would be getting in the book! After talking to some friends that are going through this with us, we have found out we are now 11 on the list!!! We are movin' on up!! We still have some time to wait...so we are praying that our cards and this blog are doing what we need them to do...reaching anyone that may know someone who is considering adoption for their child! Thank you to all of you that have been helping us spread the word! We have heard many stories of potential matches and believe that one of these times it will work out!!
Keep those prayers coming!!

Busy in life!

As usual, time has gotten away from us and we haven't had much of a chance to update all of you! My mom has had a big surgery recently, but is home and recovering well! We appreciate all of your prayers concerning my mom's health! Praise God that all has gone well for her!

On the adoption front, not too much has changed. We have heard of a few stories from different people that have given out our cards...but nothing has materialized yet! It is all in God's timing, and we are ok with that! One story that we heard recently is about 2 different infants that are in foster care. We have been in contact with social services and are hoping that we can open up another door! However, there are risks that come with that avenue...usually mom/dad still have their parental rights. They have hoops to jump through to get their children back before their rights are legally taken away. So, our worst nightmare is taking in and loving a child; only to have mom/dad take that baby back. I think it is a gift that some have when they take child into their homes and their lives through foster care! God surely blesses them! However, for us, that is a heartache that adds to previous heartaches. We are trying to find that balance of putting ourselves out there, but the guard that we have up steers us away from certain avenues.

Please keep spreading the word, and let us know if you need more cards! We also love hearing stories from you regarding our cards and who you have handed them too! Thank you so much for all of your support...one day we will have exciting news to share with you all!

Kate

It's a boy!!!

My brother, Josh, and his wife, Inga, are expecting their first baby....and we just found out it's a BOY!! Yay!! My friends made a special 'baby reveal' cake where the only people to know what they are having is the cake makers...they made a blue cake and frosted it so you could not tell what they were expecting until you cut into it!! It is one way to still keep the excitement of a surprise in finding out what you are having without waiting until baby is born...and we all got to find out together! Plus, you then get to celebrate with cake...double bonus!! :) Congratulations Josh and Inga!!

On the adoption front, there has been a little activity with the cards going out to a few people...we are praying and keeping our fingers crossed that one day we will get a phone call! There is a couple in our LSS group that have made a connection and after meeting, have decided it was right for everyone involved...a good match through outreach! I am hopeful that will be us one day!! We will keep you all posted! Prayers for my brother and Inga on a healthy pregnancy too!! :)

Another Outreach Opportunity

Our social worker has let us know that LSS (Lutheran Social Services) is offering another way to reach families considering adoption! We have deicded to take advantage of it! LSS will be featuring a family that is waiting to adopt through their facebook site! We have sent in a picture and a paragraph about us...they will let us know when our profile will be posted on facebook...we will then let all of you know so you can "like" or "share" it on your facebook or blog! Just another way to spread the word! They also said the posted families will be put on their site for 1 week and in order that they receive them...so we have no idea when we will be posted...but you will all be the first to know! Other than that...not much is new! We are staying busy with work and with the puppies! Jerrod is really enjoying his job as an EMT and is still praying for more snow so he can snowmobile before spring comes! I, on the other hand, am hoping for spring...let's see that green grass again!! :) I hope you all are doing well and are thinking thoughts of spring like me! ;)

Happy Valentine's Day!

We are hoping that you all have had a great Valentine's Day! I am on call today, but we enjoyed date night last night with a movie and a huge bag of popcorn! We don't have much to update on the adoption process, but we do know that people have been spreading our cards out and for that we are thankful! It just may happen through you...or through Lutheran Social Services...however it happens, we are not concerned...we are ultimately excited to grow our family and love a precious child! Thank you for all you have done in spreading the word...please keep praying and thinking of us! You just may be our connection in growing our family! Happy Valentine's Day!

Another Busker Family Photo!

This was during the holidays! Rudy was only 5 months here,
 he has already grown so much! And Gunner
continues to be a  great big brother!

Our facebook link

Good morning everyone! It is so beautiful outside with freshly frosted trees!! I wanted to update everyone that I have figured out how to create a URL for our facebook page...which means you can type in this address and it will take you directly to our page! There are some of the same updates, but maybe a few more pictures. Just another way to spread the word!! The address is  http://www.facebook.com/jerrodandkate.  I also had a friend that is a follower try to post...she did have luck...I am not sure why others can not. It might be best to have a google account which is also used as a link to post comments. Wish I knew more about this stuff!! :) Wishing you all a fantastic weekend!!

Outreach update!

Wow!! I truly can not explain the overwhelming support and gracious feedback we have recieved regarding our adoption cards! Everyone has been so receptive and understanding...we are truly awstruck! So, a big THANK YOU goes out to everyone who has been willing to take some cards in hopes of helping us achieve our dream of becoming parents! We ordered 1000 cards and in 2 weeks, 500 cards have gone out! Wow!!! We have also worked to set up a specific phone number that would allow potential moms considering adoption to get ahold of us. It is a private number set up through an internet site called google voice. This was another outreach tool that our LSS class taught us to use...although it took a bit of trialing for us to get it figured out...we hope that it will allow us another avenue of contact! Our next step is to start working on our scrapbook pages for the profile book. I am not very creative....so scrapbooking is an overwhelming task for me to think about...but in the next month or so we hope to have made some progress with that as well! Again, we thank everyone for all their support and prayers!

Adoption Cards!

Well, after 5 LONG hours of working on the computer...we finally got our adoption cards ordered. They arrived a couple of days ago! I must say that I am a little impressed with ourselves! We are not by any means computer savvy! I may have mentioned these cards in a previous post, but they are the #1 tool that LSS (Lutheran Social Services) has suggested we utilize in spreading the word. We have a couple of pictures with us and the dogs along with our contact information. We are planning on sending them to OB doctors, colleges, pregnancy centers, and anywhere else that may pose the opportunity to reach out to the right people! You just never know where or how it will all come together! One story we heard through our outreach class was a couple that found their birth mom through posting Craig's list...although Jerrod and I are not looking at going through that avenue, it does show you that you can never predict how you could get matched! If you have any other ideas for us regarding placement of our cards, or if you would like some yourself, please email us with your address at jerrodandkate@yahoo.com . Thank you everyone for your continued support and prayers!
Kate

The Next Step

Kate and I are number 21 on the waiting list to get into the profile.  Meaning that once we are in the profile or {BOOK}, we can at anytime get the possible phone call and may be blessed with a placement!!  There are a total of 60 couples or singles in the book that are available to adopt.  Birth parents or mothers that are affiliated with LSS, look through the book and choose the prospective new parents for their child.  Each person in the book submits an autobiography of them or their families, that consists of up to four pages of whatever each person wants to tell about themselves, including lots of pictures so expectant mothers can see who these possible parents are and what there lifestyles and personalities are.  If and when you get chosen, you then arrange a meeting with both parties to get to know each other and informaly interview each other.  Probably one of the most stressful yet exciting time for both parties.  If meeting goes well, a possible contract can then be written up, or arrange for another meeting.  It's alot to process, but in the end a wonderful outcome.  Hopefully you were able to understand a little bit of the adoption process, that I explained.  Thanks for reading.  Jerrod!!