Adoption Update 5.31.12

Just a quick note to pass along the amazing progress of our adoption.  Yesterday, I met with our local adoption agency (International Guardian Angels Outreach) and received our completed Home Study.  This was a MAJOR MILESTONE in our path to bringing Marina home.  It is common for most home studies to take 6 weeks to several months to complete. Ours was complete in 9 days! Our social worker along with George and Alexandra Goode from IGAA were amazing in this process. Our study has already been received by USCIS (Citizenship and Immigration Services) and we are now simply awaiting approval on the US side of the adoption.  We have already compiled our full Ukrainian dossier (many, many, many, many, documents) and will send that to Kiev once our US approval is received!  I'll post more information as it is received.  


I leave you with a new (date unknown) photo of Marina.
Love,
The Greens

Miche Fund Raiser

Would you like the opportunity to win a new Miche Bundle? 

Whether you haven’t taken the plunge to get your own Miche or if you have a Miche but have been eyeing another size, here is your chance to win one… while supporting our adoption at the same time!!!

As you know, we are trying to raise money so that we can bring Marina home from the Ukraine. This is a great way to raise that money AND give away MICHE!!!  (For those of you who don't know what Miche is - it is an awesome purse I sell.  Find out more about it at http://karingreen.miche.com)  

You may purchase a ticket for $20.  For every 25 tickets I sell, I will give away one Miche Bundle... a base plus 2 shells (this could be a $110 value depending on what size you choose!!!)  

The more tickets I sell, the more bundles I will give away!

You may purchase as many tickets as you would like!  

• Send me an email letting me know how many tickets you would like to purchase (karingreen@verizon.net).
• I will put them in a numbered spreadsheet.
• Send me a check made out to Karin Green to secure your spots – 1817 Trail Ridge Lane, Flower Mound, TX 75028 
• Drawing will be held on Saturday, June 16th  

Please send this opportunity to friends and family who you think might be interested in a chance to win.

Thank you so much for your support!!!

Good Luck and God Bless!!! 

Karin

Sweet Marina Responds...

When writing a blog and sharing our story, I always have to be aware of what I say.  I don't ever want to step over my bounds and share something that Marina would not want me to.  Her feeling safe is my first priority!  At the same time, I don't think she would mind if I share with you her first contact with me.  I woke up yesterday morning and grabbed my phone secretly hoping she had already received my message on FB... just a simple message letting her know how excited we are to see her this summer.  Nothing intimate... nothing scary... nothing that stepped over a line.  I simply signed the message "Love, Karin."
To my delight I saw the following FB message... her very first words to me...

hi mom i want to see you too this summer i love you too)))))


Can you imagine what I was feeling???  Now just to be clear, the term "mom" is used very loosely over there.  It does not represent the same intimacy that we share with our children when using that term.  But that didn't matter.  Tears weld up in my eyes and my heart was over flowing.  Lord - thank you for that precious gift.  Thank you for filling my heart.  Thank you for allowing me a moment with Marina that I would not have otherwise gotten without FB.  Lord - you always know just exactly what I need at the very moment I need it.  Thank you for leading us on this amazing journey!

Contact!!!

If you are new to the blog, please take a moment to read the post "When God Calls, How do you Respond?"  It will explain how we got here!!!

I can't tell you the emotions that flooded through my body when I found out that Marina accepted my FaceBook friend request!!!  She even "liked" a picture of the girls!!!  I then wrote to her that we are all very excited about her upcoming visit.  Our very first correspondence!!!  I couldn't take my eyes off the message I wrote to her.  I am not sure if I was hoping that she would somehow still be on FB (4 hours later... she rarely even gets access) or if I was just amazed that these were my first words to a young lady who would soon be my daughter.  Why wouldn't I be amazed???  Why wouldn't I be frozen still???  Wasn't I flooded with emotion when I first made contact with Marbella and Milana (outside of the womb!  :o))  It didn't even occur to me that she won't be able to understand my message because I typed it in English.  Thank goodness for Google Translate!!!

We are currently waiting for our Home Study Report to be completed so we can submit it.  Once that occurs, we will be in our first "holding pattern."  We have taken care of everything else we can do up to this point.  That feels good!  I feel like I am in a different "holding pattern" wondering when she will see my message and respond.

Home Study - Interview Complete

Our Home Study was this morning!!!  It was such a wonderful experience.  I honestly believe every husband and wife should have to fill out a questionnaire like we had to fill out to prepare for the study.  Simply put, it made me realize once again how in love I am with my sweet husband... how much we are on the same page in life.  As many of you know, I am 7 years older then Andy... which means I had to wait a long time before God revealed to me that He made me wait because He was preparing an amazing man for me!
I know you are probably wondering what this has to do with adopting Marina - well, nothing really.  Except for the fact that through this process I get to fall more and more in love with my precious husband.  Just another benefit of saying "YES" and not "yes, but"!
Anyway - the Home Study interviews are complete and it looks like the 6 week process of writing it up will be shortened significantly.  Of course it will... it is amazing what happens when God is leading the way.  Our initial application to the USCIS (citizen and immigration services) has also been submitted. We are now in a holding pattern until the Home Study is complete.  Once it is complete, we will send it to the USCIS and pray for a quick approval.

In the meantime, I am going to start looking at different fund raising opportunities.  I will be hosting a CAbi party mid June in which the representative is going to donate all of her commissions... YAY.  I will send out more information as we finalize the details.  If anyone has any additional ideas, please send them to me in the comments section!  Thank you again for all of your prayers... we felt them this morning!  Keep them coming!!!

Excitement

I am so excited!  As Andy indicated, the Home Study is scheduled for Saturday morning.  This is HUGE!  This is one of the steps that takes the longest to complete but God has placed us with some amazing people who have made it happen in record time. George and Alexandra - you are AMAZING!  I have been asked on several occasions if I am nervous or scared.  Honestly, I am not... how could I be when people like you are praying for us?  The amount of prayers that are being lifted up for our family and this process has given us a peace that can only be described as divine.  


I am so excited!  Marina is on Facebook and because Andy and our friend Jon (Julianna's daddy) are friends, Marina came up as a possible friend request.  Oh my goodness!  I got to see a little bit more into who my sweet Marina is!  She is beautiful... she is artistic... she is God's sweet child who deserves so much love!  And we can't wait to lavish it on her.  


I am so excited!  God is so faithful.  We are receiving donations at the same rate as what we are spending.  WOW!  It is like the manna God provided the Israelites while in the desert.  He is teaching me that He will provide what we need when we need it. That is not my nature.  I like to have my ducks in a row and always be ahead of the game.  But that doesn't give me the room to really rely and lean on God to provide.  He is teaching me and even though it isn't my nature, He is making it an amazing lesson for me.


I am so excited!  Marina will be here soon and Marbella and Milana are thrilled.  Thank you God for that small but significant fact.  I am in love with my girls... all 3 of them!  

Home Study is Scheduled!

Fantastic news!  Our home study has been scheduled for this Saturday morning (5/19).  This is a HUGE step forward in the process of getting USCIS approval and finalizing our documents to send to the Ukraine! Keep up the prayers! 

A Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother’s Day!!! It was a wonderful day for me... I woke up to a couple blonde headed girls wishing me a great day! On top of that, I received an email from our Ukraine facilitator letting us know that Marina would in fact be coming to the USA for her hosting period and not Italy. What? I get a message on Mother's Day that my soon to be 3rd daughter will be coming to stay with us for almost 8 weeks (June 30th - August 20th) over the summer... of course I did - isn't that how God works! He makes me smile!!!

When God Calls...How Do You Respond?

In my case, I like to say “yes, but”… yes, but don’t ask me to give too much of my money… yes, but don’t ask me to make my family uncomfortable… yes, but don’t ask me to take anything away from my two gifts that you gave me… yes, but…

Because of this response, I never felt what people talked about in terms of being TOTALLY filled with the Holy Spirit.  Oh, I prayed, I studied, I had quiet time in which I felt His holy presence, I asked for His will for my life to be revealed but I didn’t understand the peace that comes with total submission.  Obedience.  Now I know what that feels like and I don’t think I want to be without it ever again.

This is an amazing story of how God works in the details… of His amazing power to totally change hearts and turn them inside out… of His love for EVERYONE, even those who don’t know or worship Him. 

Spring of 2011, I met Lisa Hendrickson – a new Miche customer for my new business.  She and I hit it off immediately and planned several wine and cheese get togethers to discuss the problems of the world, the problems in politics, the problems with church… you name it, we discussed it.  Then she told me that she is going to adopt a 15 year old from the Ukraine.  What?  Did I hear you right?  Once she got things rolling, it was time to raise some funds to help in the process.  I received a mass email from her asking for money… I was the first to respond with a donation.  That is the way I like to help!  I support you… I love what you are doing… here is some money… call me if you need me.  Oh, I will also pray for you.  That is the Karin Green response and I felt it was filled with the Spirit. 

Spring of 2011, I also joined an existing Girls Night Out group in which they did a variety of different activities once a month.  This particular month we were doing a book club.  The book is “Priceless” by Tom Davis. It is a fiction story about the sex slave trade in Russia but based on true facts.  It was disgusting.  It was terrifying.  And thankfully, it was far away from my home.  Out of sight, out of mind… right?  However, this book did make an impact on me for a time.  It made me wonder if Andy and I should be helping an orphan… isn’t that what we are supposed to do?  But surely God wouldn’t ask me to do something crazy like that.  I love adoption… for other people.  And I will be the first to donate money for the cause!  But it isn’t for me… it isn’t for my family.  But still, I felt the nagging so I decided to call an acquaintance of mine who had adopted a 12 year old girl from Russia a year or so earlier.  Surely she would have some advice on what I am feeling.  So, I called her in tears and asked what I am supposed to make of this… that adoption is not something I have ever considered or had any desire to be a part of.  She gave me the wisdom I was looking for.  She told me it was the most difficult thing she ever did in her life but that it was also the most amazing thing… she has experienced an intimacy with her Savior that she would have never experienced otherwise… something she would NEVER give up.  She also said that I didn’t need to rush into anything… that if God were truly calling our family to do this then He would continue to speak to me.  She said He would not give up on nudging me.  That was exactly what I wanted to hear.  I got off the phone and felt released.  Whew… I was so glad I didn’t have to walk down that crazy road.  About 4 months later when our GNO girls got together one of the ladies asked me if I was still feeling the need to adopt.  I quickly responded “No, thankfully that was just a phase!”  And honestly, if I was ever going to adopt, it would have to be a baby – someone I could raise without the horrible history that comes with adopting older children.  I mean, surely God knows I couldn’t handle that challenge!  I was released from that burden and was relieved!

God is funny.  He has a sense of humor like no other.  I mean, we are made in His image and most of us do have some sort of sense of humor so why in the world would we think God wouldn’t.  He was not only laughing hysterically at me and my behavior… He was planning on making me laugh too.  The most beautiful laughter I could imagine. 

Summer of 2011 some friends got a divorce.  They had a 15 year old girl and a 4 year old girl.  The family did not have a relationship with Jesus.  I asked if I could speak to the 15 year old to see where her head was… to make sure she was okay.  During our discussion I asked if she wanted to start a weekly Bible Study with another one of her friends.  She agreed and we began our study in September 2011.  This was a little out of character for me too.  I enjoy Women’s Bible Study’s… and what in the world do I know about 15 year old girls anyway.  It has been a long time since I was that age.  Was God really preparing me for when my girls turn 15?  Seeing that my oldest is 5, aren’t we getting a little ahead of ourselves God?  Do you really think I am going to be able to remember all the lessons you are teaching me now about how to parent a 15 year old?  He must think that the lesson will stick if we are starting this early… or that I will need lots of lessons along the way since I don’t pick up on things very fast.  Whatever the case may be… I said yes to the Bible Study… a 12 week study meeting weekly that started in September and will finish mid May if we don’t get off topic too much! 

Fast forward to April 20, 2012.  Marbella and I were cuddling in my bed one afternoon playing the “name game” as we sometimes do.  If we had another girl in the family, what would we name her?  It would have to go with Marbella and Milana so it would have to start with an M, end with an A, and be unique.  She liked the name Mariah.  She is too young to know who Mariah Carey is and too young to explain.  So, I said “well, I like it but it isn’t my favorite.  I really like Marina… what do you think?”  She liked it… after all, Marina is on Fresh Beat Band so how could it not be cool!  J  We giggled and went on to something else. 

Two days later, I get a mass email from Lisa trying to raise more money… to host Julianna’s friend (the 15 year old Lisa adopted last summer from the Ukraine) for a visit to the USA with hopes of getting adopted… her 16^th birthday is October 14^th and that is when they are released from the orphanage.  The urgency to make something happen before then is paramount.  Lisa included a picture of this young lady… by the way, her name is Marina!!!  The email from Lisa is below…

Greetings to you all,

Hope this emails finds you all well. This is an email that should basically be short and sweet - unlike the others. Everyone should recall that we were able to host Julianna last summer through a hosting program and that three and half weeks was just fantastic. Well we have a chance to host Marina, one of Julianna'a friends from Pantivika; however, the catch is that it will cost $3200 and we have to tell them 'yes' or 'no' on Mat 1st. The cost covers Marina's flight, visa, transportation and accommodations while traveling to and from Dallas. Our hope is to help Marina find a family while she is here. Marina is 15, turning 16 later this year so time is of the essence. We have been advised by the hosting company that Marina will be able to stay with us for almost 7 weeks - which would be fantastic and of course while she is here with us we will be taking her shopping, and on as many family trips as we can possibly fit into her time here. If you can help please let us know. Until the $3100 is reached all checks/donations will not be deposited because basically if we do not have all the fund necessary Marina cannot come.

As you can imagine, my heart sank.  What?  Who?  Are you serious?  What is more amazing is that we find out later that Lisa had this information for several weeks before sending this email out.  It was as if she were waiting (or should I say God was waiting) for Marbella and I to have the conversation about names.  Well, I immediately went to Andy asking him his thoughts.  Is this a sign we should try to raise the money for Jon and Lisa to host her?  Is this a sign that we should seriously consider adoption?  So, what is Karin Green’s typical first reaction?  I sent Lisa an email letting her know that I can donate some money to help with expenses and will forward the email out to my home group… and that is what I did.  Every other day for almost one week I would send Lisa an email asking how much money she had collected… how close was she to getting Marina here for the summer?  On Saturday, April 28^th she told me that she was still around $2000 shy of what she needed.  Andy and I prayed and we talked.  We prayed some more and we talked some more.  Is God asking us to adopt this young lady?  Is He serious?  Oh, by the way, I have been reading “Kisses From Katy”… about a 22 year old young lady that has given her life to follow Jesus and whatever He asks, she obeys… which included moving to Uganda and as of right now she has adopted 14 little girls.  He kept whispering to me to “Let go… Let God!”  He once again started nudging me ever so gently but clearly.  Andy and I decided that God may be just telling us that He wants us to help Jon and Lisa raise the money to get her here for the summer and He would find a family for her once she got here.  As we talked about the possibility of us being that family, Andy felt neutral… not being led but not against the idea either.  He prayed for emotion one way or another… much like he felt when we decided to have another child.  He was content with Marbella but was open to having another.  This time he wanted some sort of emotion… some sort of confirmation as to what God was calling us to do.  So, we went to home group prepared to ask for $2000 and prayers as to what God wants from us.  We had discussed that we were ready to say YES to God no matter what that meant.  We wanted to be obedient and stop putting stipulations as to what we would do and what we wouldn’t do.  We didn’t want to say “yes, but…” anymore.  We simply decided to say YES.  If that meant selling our house and giving our money away, then that is what we would do.  If that meant, adopting a child from the Ukraine, then that is what we would do.  If that simply meant to help a young lady have an opportunity to come to America with the hopes of finding an adoptive family, then that is what we would do.  So, we went to home group and told them the story… and let them know that we had 2 days to come up with $2000.  We received promises of over $1000 and Andy got a bonus of $800 so I immediately left Lisa a voice message to start the process… we have the money.  As we were telling our sweet home group our story, our leader prayed… he prayed for us… for clarity… for protection… for wisdom… etc.  Then his wife asked to pray specifically for Marina.  She prayed for her by name… asking the Lord to wrap her in His arms and protect her… feel His awesome presence!  It was an answered prayer for Andy.  At that moment Andy was filled with emotion and clarity of what God was asking of the Green family.  We knew we did not need to meet Marina… we did not need to talk to Marina… what we did know was that God wanted us to adopt her into our family just as He adopted us into His family.

Tuesday, May 1^st – Lisa brought Julianna over.  This is the first time I had met her since she came home last October.  It was a blessing to meet her and see how she interacted with Marbella and Milana.  It was amazing.  We got to ask Lisa a million questions about the orphanage, the process, the transition, etc.  It was a blessing.  Julianna left that evening asking her mom if she could call Marina.  She spoke to Marina on Wednesday, May 2^nd.  Marina wasn’t in when Julianna called but walked in while still on the phone.  Of course she did.  God is in the details… let us not ever forget that!  Julianna told Marina about us, about the girls, about our house and Marina told Julianna she was so happy she could scream!  She asked what our last names were… so cute!  And that is the last we have heard or spoken to Marina.  We have contacted our facilitator and he is staying on top of everything.  First step is getting our Home Study. We can’t move forward on anything until that is done.  This is where we wait.  This is where we lean on our Savior.  This is where we trust that Jesus is in control of everything including the timing of it all.  But doesn’t He realize that I am anxious… that I just want to know if she is as excited as we are?  Is she thinking about us?  Does she have a new found hope?  Does she want a family or just out of the orphanage?  The answers to any of these questions don’t really matter.  We are obeying God and His call for us to adopt this precious child of His… regardless of the answers.  And if He can change this old heart as radically as He did regarding adoption, then He can certainly take on any adoption process!!!  The silence is deafening.  The waiting is stale.  But our powerful Savior is in control and He has instructed us to be anxious for nothing… to trust in Him completely.  And that is where we are… trusting in Him to bring Marina into our family.  We already have 2 little girls eager to welcome her in…