The adoption story: Part 2

Be sure to read Part 1 first!

The sign.

I decided to google Yelka Flower as a generic search (I mean I like flowers, and it was logical to include her name) and see what came up. The first image that came up was a pretty little pink flower that caught my attention right away. I clicked on the link trying to find out what kind of flower it was but it didn’t say. I tried looking up its name or where you could find them, but nothing. . . I couldn’t find anything at all about it. It was a mystery, but oh well, I decided, it’s pretty and I like it. Lord, this pretty little pink flower with five petals and a yellow interior is my sign. So I went about praying. That was July 25, 2013.

August 14 we were graced by another visit from the Director of Adoptions. “So how is your process going?” She asked me. “Have you turned in your paperwork yet?”

“Well,” I had to tell her, “Not yet, I’m still waiting to finish my Nicaraguan residency!” I explained to her.

She was not impressed by my excuse. She went on to explain that she wanted me working on the both of them simultaneously, so that as soon as my residency was approved, the adoption could go through as well.

Oh man. Talk about pressure. I was sure I would have a couple more months before I was even going to begin the adoption process, and here she is telling me no, that I needed to get my papers turned in and as soon as possible! But LORD was all I could think, I need YOUR confirmation!!! I truly wanted to go forward full force in this process, but there was just this huge doubt in the back of my mind that it was something God really wanted.

Later that day we needed bread for dinner. The bakery is maybe a mile or so walk from our house. It’s the same place we go anytime we need a couple loaves of bread. Normally I walk there, and take a motito back (a little miniature taxi guy that takes you anywhere for about 30 cents). It’s a common path along the main street. I may walk it once a week or so. I write all this to explain that I had walked this same path dozens of times over the previous three years. Anyways; Okay, I thought, this trip I will devoted this trip especially to praying for the adoption and my sign. With that, I headed out.

I began walking and as I prayed, I felt the need to express my urgency to the Lord. God, I said, I need this sign TODAY. The director wants me to do this now, and I’ve already got the permission, and the momentum is moving, but I still don’t know if I have Your confirmation, so LORD I pleaded, if this is your will, give me this sign today. I walked a couple minutes more. Up ahead a little ways, I saw a flower fallen on the sidewalk. It was upside down, it was pink and had five petals. . . but no I told myself, it can’t be. Not possible. Cool flower, but not the one I’m looking for. I didn’t even pick it up, I left it there are the sidewalk and kept walking. But as I continued on doubt flooded my mind. What if it actually was my sign and I didn’t even pick it up to look at it! What if this was you speaking to me and I didn’t even stop to pay it a second glance! I made it to the bakery but still with my mind thinking about the flower I had passed by. After I bought the bread, I stood waiting to flag down a motito to take me back when I decided I just had to go back and get a better look at that flower. So I turned around and started the trek back. I came to the place along the way and found the same flower lying face down on the cement. I picked it up and began to examine it. It had an eerie resemblance to the picture I had saved as the background on my phone. I held it, turned it around in my hand, it had started wilting, and I just couldn’t make the confirmation that it was the same flower. No, I concluded, this isn’t my sign. This is a beautiful little pink flower that strongly resembles what I am looking for but this isn’t it. It can’t be. BUT I will bring it back with me as a reminder of your faithfulness. I walked back believing that I my sign was still to come. I got back to the house and casually showed the picture to one of the people who worked at the home. “So do you think this flower looks like this one (showing her the picture)? “Ya, they are the same” she responded very confidently. I was shocked! “WHAT” I asked, “No, they aren’t the same, they only look alike don’t you think?” But she was certain they were the same flower, a sacuanjoche to be exact she said. I thanked her for her input and walked away, my entire body in a state of shock. Sure, I believed that God could and would speak to me, but it was actually happening. . .

I went to find another dear friend seeking her counsel. She yet again confirmed that my flower was the beloved sign that I had chosen several weeks earlier. But what threw me off even more was when she proceeded to tell me that the flower I had chosen; the apparent sacuanjoche just happened to be the national flower of Nicaragua! Instead of excitement, suddenly a wave of concern flooded over me. Did I choose a bad sign? Did I choose a sign that was too simple, I hadn’t known at the time that this flower was the national flower of Nicaragua, but did I pick a biased sign? I just didn’t know what to think. As I talked to my friend she explained the two options I had; 1. Accept the sign as truly divine and from God and go for it, or 2. Doubt the sign and ask God for another one. Her advice, accept the sign; it was obvious that it had come from God. I decided to believe that she was right, and tears filled my eyes as I realized that God had spoken to me in such an amazing way. Do you know what else I found out later on in the process, although the national flower of Nicaragua is the sacuanjoche, it is always represented by the version that is white and yellow (why I hadn’t realized they were the same) because the pink and yellow version is very rare. It also grows on a tree that flowers in May. . . not August.

There I had it. My sign had been fulfilled. I had been praying about the sign for a few weeks but it wasn’t until I truly brought my request before the Lord pleading with him in urgency that He granted my desire. He could have given it to me at any time during those previous weeks (I had been looking) but He didn’t. He waited for me to be at a point where my desperation created an extreme faith and extreme desire to hear His voice.

I still moved forward with caution, careful not to tell many people what I was doing only because there were so many other hurdles than had to be crossed, I knew it couldn’t be just that simple. I was sure it was God’s will but I wasn’t ready to make it public knowledge yet. 

The adoption story: Part 1

So if you are reading this, you may be thinking, WHAT? Since when did she decide to adopt! I had no idea this was in the works?! And let me be the first to tell you, that if you thought that, you are not the only one! But fortunately our God is big and is able to weave and fabricate incredible stories and events without us even realizing it. What I’m about to tell you is nothing but pure divine intervention. The story may have to be told in a couple parts, but we will see how far I get. But regardless, let me start from the beginning.

One day in August, 2010 I made a huge life choice (although I didn’t even realize its magnitude at the time) and flew down to Nicaragua to stay in a town I had never heard of with people who I had never met before. That very week I fell in love with a country, a culture, a people group, a dozen children and even more so with one in particular. Her name was Yelka; she was just over a year and a half old. She was tiny. She couldn’t walk, and was the shyest one in the house. We formed an almost instant bond and even after knowing her for just a few weeks I couldn’t imagine ever having to leave her. At the same time though, I knew that I was a single young girl, recently graduated from college and with no means nor reason to adopt. So I said, oh God, I would love to adopt her, but left it at that and assumed that it was something that could never happen.

So jump forward about a year. My family came to visit in Nicaragua!!! Woohoo what a great time it was to have them here to see me and what I was doing. But what does that have to do with anything? It doesn’t really except that they also saw the connection that was forming between me and this little munchkin and from that point on never ceased to question when I was going to adopt her and bring her to visit them in the US. So from that point I began to pray really asking God to reveal whether or not it was in His plans for me to adopt. (But again, still assuming that I would be married before it ever if it did, go through)

Now moving to the more recent past, the Director of Adoptions for the country of Nicaragua happened to be at our ministry June or early July of 2013 and upon meeting Yelka asked about her story. We explained that her father had already passed away and that her mom was sick. When the director heard that, she expressed her desire to have her put up for adoption. In that moment it was communicated (I doubt by me, but one of us sitting there) that I had it on my heart to adopt her. I expected her to grimace and give me all the reasons that it would be better to find someone else, but wouldn’t you know it, she was excited and told me to go for it and to get moving quickly!! That comment obviously created an explosion of emotions all at once. I was excited and nervous and anxious and even doubtful all at the same time. While I knew that this was something that I had desired for years, I still wasn’t convinced that it was actually God’s will and that it was actually going to happen. So I began to pray a little more intensely. I relaxed a little knowing that before the adoption would be able to go through I had to have Nicaraguan residency (something that I had been planning on getting for a while anyways) and that could take some time.

It happened to be that I had already planned a trip over to Waspam area (the region of the country Yelka comes from) for mid-July. Although I had met Yelka’s birth mom a number of times, this time we decided to take advantage of the trip to talk to her about giving consent for me to adopt. Conversation between the two of us is rocky. Me speaking my broken fragments of Miskito and her trying to get by with the little Spanish she knows, creates for an interesting relationship! But fortunately we were able to have this important conversation with a translator. And wouldn’t you believe that she said yes! She said she would be willing to give up this little girl and let me be her forever mommy. I was stunned and taken aback. . . Could this actually be happening? I will say thought, there was still that thought in the back of my mind of God is this really YOUR will?! I made it a point to pray more about this topic.

About this time I also decided to send out an email to a handful of close friends and family asking for their prayer as well. My aunt responded encouraging me to choose a sign. Pick something clear and ask it to come from God as proof that He is in support of this adoption. 

First day of school!

All my babies are getting soooo big! This year even the littlest ones have started first grade. 

Here is everyone ready bright and early for the first day of school.

Graduation

Graduation! So I know it was a few months ago, but I'm trying to catch up a little bit :)

The set up:

The trophies!

From the stage:

Some pretty cute kids celebrating afterwards

We didn't have any kids from the home graduating and I was up on stage during the ceremony therefore there aren't really any pictures from the actual activity, but you get the idea :)