One Year Ago Today

I wrote my first "One Day Closer" blog post. I can't believe it has been over a year since we started our adoption journey and one year since I wrote this. We had a family blog for years before I started this one, but I abandoned it when we started this blog. I just couldn't keep up with more than one.

One day when I was talking to my sister-in-law, Kelsey, about how long it was taking to even get started with the adoption, she said, "just remember, every day is one day closer to your child." That was the inspiration behind the title of our blog. With all of the ups and downs with this adoption I have many times thought how humerus the title of our blog is.

I have not done a very good job of keeping an adoption timeline, so I will give a little recap here of our past year.

April 2010: Decided we wanted to adopt from Rwanda with AGCI. We really wanted to use Louisiana Baptist Children's Home for our home study agency, but they were not one of the approved agencies with AGCI. We had to wait for our social workers to get things together, so they would be added to the list of approved agencies.

We started our photography fundraiser, One Smile Closer!

We started our blog!

May 2010: Waited some more for LBCH to become an approved home study agency.

June 2010: We received clearance to work with LBCH.

We filled out our application and mailed it in.

We were officially accepted into the Rwanda adoption program with AGCI!

July 2010: We had our first Orientation Call with AGCI.

We started our Home Study Meetings.

We decided we would adopt a girl and that her name would be Mia. Our parameters were (0-12 months) at this point.

August 2010: We had our Rwanda Dossier Run Through Call

Started our Adoption Education

Completed our Home Study Meetings

Started working on Dossier

At the end of August we found out that Rwanda would no longer receive dossiers after August 30.

We had no idea what this meant for our adoption, lots of prayers and trusting in God at this point.

September 2010: Found out for sure that we would not be able to adopt from Rwanda at this time.

Made the decision to apply for the Ethiopia program with AGCI.

9/17 We mailed our 2nd application to AGCI

9/20 Officially accepted into the Ethiopia program!

9/27 Had our 2nd Orientation Call

Completed our on-line adoption courses

October 2010: Had our Ethiopia Dossier Run Through Call (were relieved to find out it was less intensive than the one for Rwanda, also relieved that we most of what we had already done could transfer over).

Completed the Eyes Wide Open Adoption Training Workbook!

Physicals for the whole family

Worked like crazy on the dossier

Kept taking lots of pictures

Started t-shirt fundraiser

November 2010: My friend Mia hosted a One Smile Closer photography fundraiser in her neighborhood (we raised about $2000) that weekend.

Our friends hosted the One Day Closer Silent Auction and Lunch (raised over $6000) that day

With pictures, benefit, t-shirts, and generous donations we raised about $11,000 in the month on November. Wow!

11/17 Our Home Study was complete and sent to ACGI for approval.

December 2010: December 7 we found out that our dossier was approved. Oh, Happy Day!

Our first wait list numbers were 97 for a girl(0-20 months) and 41 for sibling girls( 0-24 months).

My husband took lots of pictures and edited about 25 photo sessions

January 2011: Numbers were 91 for girl and 36 for siblings.

Not many referrals in the month of January, tried not to be too sad.

February 2011: Girls number, 89 and stayed at 36 for siblings

Attended the Created for Care Retreat and got to meet many of the wonderful moms I met through this blog!

Sold out of our T-shirts!!!

March 2011: Found out that Ethiopian adoptions could be reduced by 90%. (Lots of prayers!!!)

Numbers were 76 for girl and 32 for siblings

Found out that Ethiopia is working to make sure every adoption is ethical. Things may slow down, but we don't know how much just yet.

April 2011: We have been officially waiting for 4 months, but on this journey for a little over a year.

Our numbers are 70 for girl and 29 for siblings.

It is so crazy to look back and see what all we have gone through this year. One thing I know for sure is that I am glad we said Yes! to God when he placed adoption on our hearts. It has not been easy and we still have a long wait ahead of us, but I am so glad to be on this awesome journey to the child or children God has chosen for our family.