Court update

Ethiopian court. What an experience. I can't wait to share it with you all sometime.

Long story short:

We gave our consent to the adoption. The judge told us they are waiting on one more piece of paperwork from Jude's regional government. They will get it soon and the judge told us we will finalize our adoption on November 4. We do not have to stay until then. It can be finalized without us, since we appeared in court and gave our consent in person.

Fun fact: We never dreamed of getting a son for our 11 year wedding anniversary. Can't top that, right?!

Thanks for all the continued prayers and support. We will be leaving tomorrow night. Prayers for safe travels once more, please.

Love,

Wendy

Big day

2 big deals today:

~We went to orientation where we learned how to pass court in a foreign country

~We changed Jude's diaper.

We are well-pleased with our day.

If you think about it before you go to bed tonight, please say a little prayer for our court hearing tomorrow. It will be fine, but there is paperwork that could come together tomorrow and we are praying for just that. Chances are that it won't all be pulled together until a week or two after we go to court, but it's always worth praying for. The sooner we pass court, the sooner he is in his bedroom in Kansas City and my heart can be all in one place at the same time.

Thanks and love to you all~

Wendy

Quick update

Friends and family:

This post will do no justice to the time we've spent so far, but I need to take advantage of the very fickle internet connection and bring you up-to-speed.

Flights were awesome. Thank you for praying.

Evan has just become a little Ethiopian. People here love him. The girls hug him and kiss his cheek anytime they can. I am not kidding. It's hilarious.

The food is different. We have enjoyed the authentic Ethiopian eating experiences we've had, but we do look forward to an iced tea and some fried chicken. Actually, iced anything would be great.

The scenery is different from what I expected. I'm not really even sure what I expected. I don't think I made it that far in my head. It's hard to explain in words. You'll just have to see my pictures when we return home. Just picture a lot of sheet-metal homes that have 9+ kids and only a mom inside.

The sights we've seen and the places we've gone in just a short 3 days have covered such an expansive realm of Ethiopia. It's a lot to take in. We are so thankful to get to be here. We hope to get out into the countryside sometime on this trip, but we're not sure if it's gonna happen.

We have been inspired by the attitudes the Ethiopians have. They are happy, welcoming people. I'm wondering what they think of us.....

We met Jude on Friday. It was a time that will never leave our memory and I will write about it more in detail another day. For now, I will share that he was confused and sad at first, but then warmed up to us and we had an exceedingly joyful time together. He was littler than I expected, but a healthy size. He has a cough, so will you please add that to your prayers? No momma likes her babies to be sick, especially when she has to leave him across the ocean in a few days. To those who've seen pictures of him: I know you think I'm lying. He is cuter in person that he is in a picture. It is just unreal to me how God can create such a beautiful boy. I have to figure out how I want to share our first meeting and write about it later~

We get to go hang out with him again tomorrow for a couple hours and then we have our big day in court on Tuesday.

We love you all and we are ever thankful for your loving words and prayers lifted up in our behalf. They are needed and appreciated. Keep 'em coming.

~Wendy

On our way

The day has finally come.

Rewind back to Dec. 3, 2009, and you see 2 exceedingly joyful people who heard and accepted the call to adopt one or more children from somewhere, anywhere.

Fast forward through the paperwork, the questions, the funds, the seemingly never-ending wait, and you find us here today, with plane tickets and passports in hand and 1,000 emotions swirling.

Friends and family, you will never know the depth of our appreciation of love and support you've so willingly offered over the past 2 years. I've been in awe countless times with people who've showed up at our door with large sums of money and others who've offered such sweet words of encouragement that came unexpected. God is so good. Jason and I have had front row seats in this journey, and how we wish you all could see the affect this little 8-month-old orphan baby boy in a foreign land is having on complete strangers! God makes all things new and He brings life to where there was none.

Some have asked for a list of prayer requests. Here it is:

1. Timeline:

~Flight to DC tonight at 5:30 KC time

~Flight to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Wednesday at 10:15AM KC time

~Arrive in Addis 11:15PM KC time

~Meet Jude Friday, 2:00 AM KC time

~Court hearing Tuesday, 1:15AM KC time (Please pray that we pass this first time. We are ready to hear that judge say "He's all your's!")

~Flight to DC Thursday, the 27th, at 2:30PM KC time

~Flight to KC Friday, the 28th, at 3:57, KC time, arrive home at 6:34PM

2. Strength and general health.

Jason is currently fighting a cold and Evan seems to be on the edge of one as well. Our bodies will be tired and we need all the prayer for Divine strength and wellness.

3. Jude

Please pray that our time together is blessed with peace and joy. I pray that God shows Himself in those meetings we have together over the next week. Please pray for Jude's heart as he is going to be confused about the goings-on. This is only the beginning. Pray that God prepares his little heart to join our family. The heart-break for him will be when we go back in a few months to bring him home. Let's start praying now.

4. Jude's birth family

Please pray for their hearts. God sees their pain and their suffering and we want to lift them up to Him.

5. Jude's nanny

Please pray that she continues to show love to Jude. Pray that her heart, as well, can mend after he comes home in a few months.

6. Evan

Please pray that he will be able to take this trip in and keep it in his heart where he never forgets. We are praying that God uses this trip to impact Evan's life for Him.

7. Claire and Sophie

Please pray for health and general safety as they are away from us. We are praying that they feel comforted when they are confused about the length of this trip and those caring for them can cover them with love and grace.

8. Reflection

Please pray that others will see the reflection of this worldly adoption as a metaphor for God's adoption of us.

9. Gratitude

We are carrying a spirit of thankfulness in the way God has been sovereign over this adoption. It doesn't look now what it looked like at the beginning, and we are thankful that He has brought it to this place.

We are going to do our best to keep you informed via facebook and/or the blog. Thank you for continuing to pray and email with support.

~Wendy

The Lost Sheep

When the decision to adopt from Ethiopia was made, we accepted all the challenges, or the cost, it would bring.

I remember watching a sermon about how only MANLY men, superman-type men, adopt. One of the points made during the sermon was that most men would not hesitate to run into a burning building to save a child. It's that same super-hero testosterone needed to go the ends of the earth to the metaphoric burning building to give a child a family.

If you would like to hear this sermon and read more yourself, click here.

We have known from the start that leaving our children here in the US to go across the ocean would be hard. As our trip gets closer, today only 39 days away, I am preparing my to-do lists to ensure all will be well with the girls we'll leave here in others' care.

I am also preparing my heart.

The focus of my morning reading today was Luke 15:1-10. As I read verse 4-7, images of Jude flash in my mind. This parable is about salvation through Jesus, not adoption. Don't get the wrong message here. I just want to share with you the redemptive power behind the picture of adoption. We want more than anything to be instruments of God's sovereign plan, and to bring Him glory through this process.

We believe adoption is a great metaphor to salvation. Imagine with me for a moment:

~the anxiety and the tears as we leave our girls in the KC airport, bound for Ethiopia

~the anticipation and expectation of seeing and holding Jude for the first time

~sitting him on our lap and holding him close to our chest

~our first family picture after we hear the judge say "He's all your's!"

~the walk off the plan into an airport full of family and friends who've loved Jude unconditionally since the beginning

Now, read Luke 15:4-7. Then pray and consider who we can reach today for the kingdom and God's glory.

Luke 15:4-7 (emphasis mine) "What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?

And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing,

And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!'

I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine upright persons who need no repentance."

What's in a name?

We have been on a blogging hiatus. The only reason I can come up with is that my words fail to deliver the magnitude of emotion wrapped up in our sweet boy.

Many decisions about our adoption have not been easy to make. One of those decisions has been whether or not to rename our son. There are solid reasons supporting both renaming and keeping the given birth name. In our opinion, there is no right or wrong choice; however, the decision has not been easy. When you consider the sizable loss any adopted child suffers, it changes the name game.

A name is really just a label for this earthly shell we navigate for a very short while. There is value in a name, though, because it gives us some degree of self-worth in that our parents chose our name.

After many months of considering both options, we have decided to give our son a new first name and keep his given birth name as his middle name. His birth mother likely chose his name for a reason, and we want to honor her choice. We never want our son or the world to forget this precious gift of life his birth mother gave.

The meaning behind the name we will give him sums up our feelings toward God and toward our son. His name will be Jude. The meaning is "praise" and "thanks." I can think of no better response to this blessing on our lives. Praise and thanks fills our heart when we study his little face. Our cup overflows!

On October 25, 2011, we will stand in front of a judge in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and plead our case to become Jude's forever family. Please pray with me that our case passes court this first time, and that we can have a speedy appointment soon thereafter with the US Embassy to bring him home!

Psalm 148. I love it. Go read it. Then, praise our Maker, the Creator and Sustainer for his very special creation in Jude Rust. That's what we're doing.

A decision and a phone call

We are rejoicing today in the Rust house.

About a week ago, on Tuesday, May 31, we reached a difficult decision. After many emails and talks with our case manager at CWA, we came to the conclusion that it would be best for us to reduce our adoption preferences to one child. There are several reasons for this, and all of them have to do with what's best for the children in Ethiopia. I know it sounds crazy to think that by adopting only one child that we are helping out more than adopting a sibling set, but just trust me, God has a plan!

We believe it was the right decision, because things have moved along rather quickly since then.

Yesterday, Wednesday, June 8, I was at the pool with the kids around 5:00. I called Jason and told him to just meet us there when he was done with work. He showed up around 5:45 with a camera in his hands. He started taking pictures of the kids in the pool and then he pointed the camera at me. I'm not sure how much you ladies like being photographed while at the pool, but this lady doesn't love it. I told him to turn the camera off and he just kept saying, "Look at me. I love you. Do you love me?" I should've known something was up.

He proceeded to tell me, "Wendy, Sue called me today." This was when time stood still and I totally understood what was going on.....

At that point, I couldn't get the information out of him fast enough.

Here's our news:

IT'S A BOY!!!!!

Right now, we have a baby boy living across the ocean!!!! I'm a mommy again!!!! Sophie is officially a big sister!!!!

Words cannot really express the excitement of this news. My heart has not stopped pounding yet.

I can't tell you much about him for now, until we pass court. What I can tell you is that he is absolutely beautiful. He is healthy. He is very young. He is the light of our life.

Friends, please pray for a speedy court hearing and US Embassy appointment. He is so special to us already.

The best way to wrap this up is to cite the scripture I happened to read yesterday as part of my reading routine. It is just before Jesus blesses the little children who came to Him.

Mark 9:37 "Whoever welcomes one of these little children in My name welcomes Me; and whoever welcomes Me does not welcome Me but the One who sent Me."

Welcome home, precious little Rust baby boy, and welcome, Father!