Finding Joy

Thank you so much to everyone who contributed to our fundraiser in June.  With the final total in we made just over $500 from the vendors and the bake sale!  I have another fundraiser in the works and will be posting it in the next few days.  This would not be possible for us without your help so thank you for every financial contribution, the prayers and lending an ear along the way. 

I have to say the last month has be pretty discouraging.  We have gone for several weeks without a single profile coming through.  I know God's timing is perfect but wow it has been hard not to receive anything.  Patience and releasing control to Him is not an easy task for me but one I am growing in.  

I was doing my reading this morning and decided to start Philippians.  This was part of the introduction...

A great reminder that although I have happiness with our family I have this hole waiting to be filled but I can take joy in the assurance of God's love for my family.  Today I'm choosing to focus on Joy.

As a family we have been super busy the last month with summer activities.  It's been so much fun having Maryssa home all day.  The house is messy and I'm not getting a lot done but I love having my girl around.  We just got back from a 5 day camping trip with the Wiedeman side of the family.  It was wonderful being disconnected and being in God's beautiful creation.  We saw an otter while rafting down the river, lots of fish and birds and tons of butterflies.  The butterflies would cluster on the ground...eating something.  We could get so close to them.  It was beautiful to watch.

Please continue to pray for God to prepare our family for another child to enter our home, that I will be able to be patient and wait on His perfect timing and for the finances for the adoption will be in place.

Hope everyone is having a good summer!

Online Shopping

Thank you so much to everyone who was able to come out this weekend to our fundraiser event.  We are so grateful you took the time to come by and take a look at everything.  If you were not able to attend, the vendors have graciously set up online links for you to order from.  ALL ORDERS ARE DUE ON FRIDAY, JUNE  10th!!  Please let me know if you have any questions!

Beachbody

Consultant: Cheryl Lawrence

It's not too late! Beachbody offers an enormous selection of fitness DVDs, amazing benefits from the shakes, and of course support from your coach!!

http://www.beachbodycoach.com/esuite/home/CherylL2014

Click the blue "shop" link

Let me know if you have questions!

Jamberry

Consultant: Lee Fuhr

 If anyone wanted to make a purchase but either didn't get a chance or couldn't stop by today, I'll extend my 20% donation through this coming Friday. You can PM me so I know to tag the purchase in my system. 

https://leefuhr.jamberry.com/us/en/shop/party/home/3517b05c-c323-4a69-8c5c-b6ba97b3101e

Also, all parties booked for June and July through Brandie, I'll donate 10% of my commissions to Brandie and her family. 

Don't forget we have Disney wraps now, including Frozen!! Most wraps qualify for Buy 3 Get 1 Free!

Lulu Roe 

Consultant: Cari Wolf

Pictures of products will be posted soon for you to comment on for purchase.  In the mean time, here is Cari’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/lularoecariwolf/

Pampered Chef

Consultant: Heather Burke (301-401-7100)

I would also like to extend my 20% donation through Friday. Visit https://www.pamperedchef.com to browse the catalog and then contact me for any orders. With any parties booked through August I will extend my donation of 10% of sales to Brandie! Happy shopping!!  Heather Burke’s can be reached at 301-401-7100 to place your order.

Premier Jewelry

Consultant: Kendra McDonald (Kendra@livingforhim.us or 301-514-9967)

My website is http://kendramcdonald.mypremierdesigns.com .  It’s just a catalog--people can't actually order online, just browse. So if people want to order for the fundraiser, they can email, call or text me: Kendra@livingforhim.us or 301-514-9967

Tupperware 

Consultant: Megan McQuillan

Shop the exclusive fundraiser tupperware catalog here:

 http://www.tupperware.com/?fundraiser=574df8554865d0022bded936

Younique (Natural Makeup)

Consultant: Bekah Lawall

Here is the link for anyone else that would like to place an order (Lash Virtual Party)...25% goes to the Couch Family! 

https://www.youniqueproducts.com/BekahLawall/party/4326279/view

Thirty One

Consultant: Brandie Couch

25% of your purchase will go directly toward our adoption.  Also, for every $35 you spend you can get a medium tote or medium stand tall insert for $12. https://www.mythirtyone.com/178190/shop/Party/EventDetail/9226573

Come shopping!

Fundraiser #1-- Shopping Event

I am still working on the details, but we are going to host a shopping event!  Please mark your calendars we would love to have you come out.  Each vendor has graciously agreed to donate back a percentage of sales to us and there will be a basket of goodies from that will be raffled off.  All you have to do is show up to be entered.  Bring a friend, your church congregation, your neighborhood or the lady behind you at the grocery store :)  Also Maryssa has been asking to sell something...not sure what yet but she wants to be involved so 6 year old creativity unknown will be on sale too!

June 5th--12-3pm
Eastview Community Center
7502 Oakmont Dr Frederick MD 21702

Vendors:
Beachbody
Jamberry
Lula Roe
Pampered Chef
Premier Jewelry
Tupperware
Thirty One
Young Living Essential Oils
Younique

Where we are going...

We have been getting lots of questions about where we are in the process and how it will work.  There are lots of decisions to make, but here is a quick run down of what we are looking for.  A domestic adoption, age range from 0-12 months, any ethnicity, twins/siblings and open to consider drug use.  While we are open to an age range, it is likely we will be matched with a newborn because of the agencies we are working with.  We have chosen to work with a consulting agency called Christian Adoption Consultants (CAC).   Our consultant’s name is Dawn and I have to say she has been so helpful answering so many questions and guiding us along the way.  By using CAC, instead of going directly to an agency or lawyer, we have some great perks.  One is we have someone who is there to answer questions honestly. She is there to advocate for us and is not directly connected to the birth parents; no conflict of interest.  She is experienced at her job and can help explain “warning flags” to us that others may not catch or be able to talk about.  It also helps that she has adopted 9 children and knows the process well :)  We also love CAC because they work only with agencies and lawyers who are ethical and treat everyone in the process with respect and operate at a high standard.  They truly want the adoption to work.  Several of the agencies/lawyers provide counseling and support for the birth parents before and after the adoption. These agencies/lawyers work in adoption friendly states.  This means that 24-72 hours after birth, the paperwork to sign the child over to us can be signed and the child can not be taken back.  We will still have followup visits  from the social worker and then see a judge for everything to be finalized, but the birth mother can not change her mind once the paperwork has been signed.  CAC also gives us access to work with several agencies at once without the crazy fees.  We have sent in paperwork and profile books to 5 different agencies and lawyers.  

The process of matching….We are starting to read through the profiles and decide who we would like them to present our family’s profile to.  The birth mother will then take a look at the family profiles she receives, and pick who she would like to be her child’s forever home.  The profile books are a scrapbook of your family to show them what your life looks like; work, hobbies, values, extracurriculars, etc.  There really isn’t a timeline on how long this will take.  It could be next week or (hopefully not) years from now.  By working with multiple agencies and lawyers we are hoping our timeline will be shorter, but we are trusting that God will make it very clear who He has waiting to be a part of our family. 

In the mean time we are planning fundraisers to help with the costs associated with bringing our baby home.  I am working on organizing these and will post them on Facebook.  Our first fundraiser will be a Shopping Event June 5th in the afternoon.  I will put details up soon.  Hope you can make it and bring a friend or two with you!!!

We would also love your prayers.  Here are specific needs. 

1. That God will make it clear who it is that He has planned for our family.  That we wouldn’t just jump at the first family, but that He will guide the process.
2. For the birth parents.  I can’t imagine the journey they must go on in order to love their child enough to allow someone else to take them in their family. 
3. That all the details will be worked out.  There are so many things that could happen that trying to plan for them all is impossible.
4. This verse was part of my devotional today and it is perfect for where we are right now. " Do not worry.  Learn to pray about EVERYTHING.  Give THANKS to God as you ASK HIM for what you need.  The PEACE of God is much greater than the human mind can understand.  This peace will keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7  

Where we have been...

First, let me say how overwhelmed we are from all of the love and support we have received from so many of you.  It has been a journey, but God is in control. We are trusting in His love and goodness as we head down a path with a lot of unknowns.  At the same time we are so excited for this opportunity to grow our family with another sweet child.

The journey so far has been very different than we had expected.  Maryssa was conceived with a twin through IUI treatment.  We had a scare that the other baby was ectopic early on and having to make the decision to terminate that baby was one of the most devastating days in our lives.  By God’s grace, they did not have to remove that baby, but we did miscarry him or her last in the first trimester.  Maryssa was born 6 weeks early, but we were so thankful she was healthy and just spent a couple weeks in the NICU.  Since her birth, we have undergone 6 rounds of IUI and two rounds of IVF treatment.  During that process, we lost 9 babies.  I remember after our last embryo transfer being so overwhelmed with grief knowing the babies they transferred were already starting to die.  We have no known reason for infertility, and the IUI  just took two tries for our pregnancy with Maryssa. Now, we had done 6 rounds and had even gotten pregnant naturally once between rounds.  IVF had to work….but it didn’t.  Through many months of struggling through the emotions and grief, God never took away the desire to grow our family - that feeling that there is still more for us to do. I believe He affirmed this while reading His word. Maryssa, who had never asked about a sibling, started expressing her want for a brother or sister.   Eric and I were both allied and open to learning more about what adoption would look like, and, despite the many obstacles, it was something we were both willing to pursue.  A group of ladies I love dearly say “Lord, Bless it or Block it.”  This was my prayer for many months, and we believe it’s “Bless it.”

It has been a roller coaster ride so far, and we are ready to see where it goes.

Thanks for joining us on our journey!

Brandie and I are creating this blog to share our adoption journey with our friends, family, and anyone who might benefit from it. We will be posting updates on the “what” of our adoption. But first we should start with the why of it:

Poverty, persecution, war … presidential primaries. We’ve all heard the question, if we haven’t asked it ourselves. Why would anyone want to bring a child into this upside down world? Like many people, Brandie and I had aspired to one day take on the responsibility of parenthood, even before we had met. Why is that?  Maybe we have a primordial drive to pass on our DNA before our brief spark of life is extinguished forever. Or maybe our tendency for self preservation motivates us to produce offspring that will provide a labor force in our prime and then will care for us when we are old and feeble.

Well, after thoroughly considering the financial prospects of child rearing, I’m pretty sure we are not driven to raise children for our own personal gain. As for passing on our DNA, it’s true – Brandie and I know we are not long for this world, but we also believe that humans are created by an eternal being, in the image of an eternal being. So, at least on a conscious level, we’re not overly concerned about what happens to our DNA after we finish this leg of the journey.

I think we each wanted children because Brandie and I were both happy as children in our families. Our parents gave us love, a sense of belonging, and self worth.  They were an example to us for how people should treat others. As the beneficiaries of unconditional love, we desire to show that same love to our own children. And we have been blessed to have a child of our own to show unconditional love. 

We desired to have another child to shower with love, while throwing the unique dynamic of love amongst siblings into the mix. But, as we’ll explain later in this blog, it seems it is not in God’s plan that we would have that other child. Why wouldn’t God give us another child deserving of our unconditional love, a dim reflection of the same unconditional love He extends to us?

Enter adoption.

All humans are created by God, loved by God, and are of infinite worth. God wants us to love each other, and, if you are a follower of Jesus, He commands it. Brandie and I have chosen adoption because a child doesn’t need our DNA to deserve our love.