We get to keep her!!!

We officially have a new baby Gilchrist!  The cousins stayed up until midnight last night to welcome in the arrival of Baby girl into our family!  After much discussion we have decided not to use the name the birth mother chose, Alina.  We have considered it, and have used it since she was born, but have chosen to go back to our original name.  Our new baby is Tessa Danielle Gilchrist!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!!

Leaving the hotel

We got the okay from our agency here to leave Georgia as soon as ICPC goes through today. ICPC is the interstate laws that allow us to take our baby out of state before the adoption is finalized. Finalization will take place in 6 -12 months from now, after home visits are completed with our case worker in Colorado.  On Wednesday night at midnight the 10 day wait period will be up and we will officially be able to call Alina our baby.  The case worker who keeps up with the birth mother told us that there are still no red flags and things look good.  Our plan is to leave tomorrow and go back to Tennessee and stay with our family there.  We are eager to introduce them to Alina and celebrate Thanksgiving with them!

Little Tree Frog

We heard from our case worker and she said the birth mother is still good with the adoption.  We have 5 days to go, so keep praying, but things look very good!  The birth mother still needs so much prayer for comfort and that God would work on her heart in the months ahead.  Our case worker gave her a devotional that is only scripture and she is hopeful that it will be an encouragement.  The birth mother's mom is in the hospital again so this continues to be a sad season for her.

This stay has brought about some humorous hotel experiences for us.  We had ear piercing fire alarms go off for 30 minutes yesterday while we were on the 4th floor and we had to hurry down the stairs, one of us in socks.  There is a lot of work going on below us so we can hear the loud banging of jack hammers off and on during the day.  The power went out one evening for a while.  The cable was out for a day. At one hotel, the phones did not work in either room, neither did the remotes,the heater was broken in the pool, and in another the handle kept falling off in one of our doors.  Today we found out the laundry room has been gutted so Gary is getting ready to take our mound of clothes to a laundromat (Blake's only clean pair of pants are his Christmas elf stripped pajama pants that he wore downstairs to breakfast this morning).  The children are now afraid of the elevator breaking with us inside and their concerns brought a great deal of humor to the man who had the privilege of sharing the elevator with us this morning.  Our family has probably brought a great deal of amusement wherever we go. We are very thankful for health and no serious issues on our travels, although we have had some rather funny challenges!

Sleepy Girl

Alina is a cutie!

Things have been crazy, but lots of fun!  The official name at this point is Alina Danielle.  The birth mother's middle name was Daniella, and we both were teary when we realized that we had almost exactly the same middle name and wanted to give it to the baby.  Alina (pronounced with the short u sound for the a), is a night owl and has kept mommy in a state of extreme sleepy brain each day.  Alina had a check up yesterday and looks very good.  We changed hotels yesterday and have now decided to move back to our other one tomorrow.  Hotels are filling up quickly with the holiday weekend next week.  We are thankful to have a place to sleep.  All of us are loving this precious little one so much!  She is a delight!  Alina loves sounds.  She enjoys it when we talk or sing to her and will often quit fussing to stare and listen.  We may have yet another extrovert in the family.  We are sending daily pictures and updates to the birth mother and are praying that God is giving her comfort and peace.  Last we heard, she is telling the case worker she is staying with the adoption.  We continue to pray and are thankful for every minute with this incredible baby girl!

Baby Alina!

She is such a beautiful baby!  Last night I found out that she is a night owl, but not at all a fussy baby.  To get Alina to eat I usually have to change her and get her really awake  She weighed in at 6 lbs 2 oz last night so she is quite a little bit.

Yesterday it did not look like we would even have a chance to hold baby Alina, but God has miraculously allowed placement papers to be signed today and we are snuggling at the hotel!  We still need to wait the 10 days out and there is a risk, but we are enjoying each day God gives us with little Alina!

Update from Gary

Just a quick note to update everyone on where things stand.  We went to the hospital yesterday and met with the birthmother for a while.  The meeting went really well!  After we left, the birthmother signed the adoption "surrender" paperwork, and checked out of the hospital.  This means that we are officially in the 10-day "revocation" period - Georgia state law allows the birthmother 10 days to change her mind.  So, we will see what God will do.  There has been a fair amount of, shall we say, "unexpectedness" associated with everything lately, so anything can still happen.  But, God is good, and we are working to trust with patience.

Jamie stayed last night at the hospital with the baby.  Which means I stayed at the hotel with the 4 kiddos.  We're good... um... yeah... we're good.  I handled it somewhere in between these 2 guys...

Seriously, we really appreciate everyone's prayers.  Please keep praying for us and this whole process.  And, don't worry, Jamie will no doubt put a "real" post up soon, complete with all the emotional descriptions that, well, aren't really me.   :^)

On our way back to the hospital to sign more paperwork.

Gary

Prayer

Please pray for our time at the hospital.  There are big red flags now and our case worker is concerned.  We really want to be a light and gracious no matter how this plays out.  We know that God is good!

The Baby Has Arrived!

Baby girl was born today early afternoon as we were driving to Georgia.  She and birth mother are healthy and well.  There are a few concerns from our case worker, so this is not set until paperwork is signed and the 10 days are up.  There is now a desire for possible future visits and we are praying for wisdom and peace in this whole situation. The birth mother wants today with the baby but has said she wants us to come before surrender paperwork signed tomorrow so she can meet us.  We should be going to the hospital early afternoon. The case worker sent pictures of the baby and she is perfectly, perfect!  I have decided to wait to peek at her again until after we are back from the hospital and then I can have my fill of the real thing! Thank you for all your prayers, we are trusting God and resting in His goodness.

Plans for the weekend

Still no news on the birth mother so we are assuming the baby will come Sunday night or Monday when they start inducing.  We will leave tomorrow and head to a hotel in Georgia near the hospital. This will give us a little time to get settled in before the baby comes.

After breakfast this morning we saw one of the cats curled up under the bird feeders.  I thought is was a funny picture.

Tuesday

Gary is right now with Lisa picking up our now repaired van.  We are so thankful the part we needed was replaced this morning.  It would have been challenging to get the van fixed in Georgia and could have been hazardous on the road.  God is so kind to give us a quick repair and safety!  Thank you for your prayers!

We heard from Victoria this afternoon and she said that the birth mother is not in labor yet.  She is progressing some and the doctor did a procedure that may help speed things up.  The doctor scheduled her for induction on Sunday if the baby does not come before.  I am guessing that between the contractions and procedure today the birth mother is probably in a lot pain again today.  It sounds like the birth mom's mother was released from the hospital.  Her mother may be able to be with the birth mother for the birth which would be a huge blessing.  We are praying she will not have to be induced and the baby comes soon.

Monday update

We just heard from Victoria that the birth mother is in quite a lot of pain and will be checking in with her doctor.  It sounds like she is unsure if this is labor or something else.  We should know more after her talk with the doctor.

Our van is making a noise and Gary is going to spend the morning trying to figure it out.  We are praying that this will not keep us from getting to the hospital in Georgia if we need to leave today.  If we take the van to a mechanic it could take a day or two before we can pick it up.  Please pray that God would work this out and give wisdom, thank you.

Waiting

We are still waiting for things to pick up with the baby.  As we wait we are thankful that the birth mother has had this extra time with her mother in the hospital.  We are praying that the baby would come in the next few days because the last day of the 10 day period cannot end on a weekend.  This means that if the baby is born Wednesday then the birth mother has 12 days to take back the baby, 11 on Thursday.  Because of the doctor's report last Tuesday we should have a baby any day now.

Birth Mother Update

We had an update from our case worker on the birth mother today.  The birth mother has been going through a very difficult time as she visits her dying mother at the hospital.  We ask prayer for comfort for the birth mother and wisdom for us as we try to love on her in whatever ways we can.  During our talk Tuesday we were unsure how to encourage her and we really want her to know that we care.

Baby Update

We arrived here safely in Tennessee and are having a wonderful time with Lisa, Steve, and their children.  The cousins always have such a fun time together!


Today the birth mother asked to talk with us again.  She is still very supportive of the adoption, but she is suffering from some significant family loss at this time.  There was also more emotion about the adoption as well.  As I said, she is verbally committed to the adoption because she believes it is best for the baby, but this is also a very difficult time for her emotionally.  Please pray for her, that God would give her comfort and strength for this season.


The birth mother saw the doctor today and is progressing more.  She is in a lot of pain and is watching her contractions closely.  The doctor told her she could have the baby in a few days or a few hours, but things look really good. 


We are very hopeful and asking for God to keep our hearts resting in His perfect plan, remembering that He is good!


Psalm 9:10

And those who know your name put their trust in you,

for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.

We are leaving!

We have the okay from our case workers in Georgia to go ahead and leave.  Our plan is to leave this weekend.  The case worker who cares for the birth mother and baby is named Victoria and we had an update from her. She let us know that everything looks really good.  She does not have any 'red flags'.  The agency defines 'red flags' as seeing something that could indicate a greater likelihood of the birth mother backing out of the adoption.  Both our other matches had 'red flags' from the case workers.  We are so thankful that this looks like a probable placement!  During the birth mother's appointment earlier this week the doctor said she could start labor in the next week. This is also great news and confirms our plan to leave soon.  We will stay with Gary's sister and her family in Tennessee. They are only a 3 hour drive from the hospital in Georgia.  The kids are very excited to see their Tennessee cousins and it will be a special time for all of us!  We are so thankful for family willing to host us indefinitely while we wait for the birth of baby girl!  My hope is to update here as soon as we are settled.

Getting Closer!

It looks like the birth mother is having some early contractions and getting closer to progressing.  We are planning to leave at the end of next week, unless things progress more quickly.  Right now we are waiting on the okay from our case worker in Georgia before we make official plans on when we leave.  Our home study update was completed and signed off this week, so everything is falling into place.  I will keep up more in the days ahead as we find out more.  Very exciting!

Preparing to Travel

We had a wonderful talk with the new birth mother and she really wants us to be at the hospital when the baby is born.  She wants us holding and loving on the baby right after birth.  Because it looks probable that the baby will come early we are already planning to try to be there no later than a week and half before the due date.  Her appointment next week should give us an idea of if we should be leaving even earlier.

A little information on this baby girl.  Her mother is from India and her father is African American. Judging by the picture of the mother, this will be a very lovely little baby.  The case worker says the baby looks healthy.

Because of Georgia law the mother will have a 10 day waiting period after signing surrendering paperwork in the hospital and during those days she can take back the baby.  Please pray for our family, it would be really difficult to have the baby taken away and drive home without a new addition.  We know the risks and we are ready to take them for the sake of this sweet baby and the desires of the birth mother.  This looks like a low risk situation, but as our case worker said this morning there are no guarantees as to what the birth mother will feel after the baby is born.  We are praying that the birth mother will follow through on the adoption plan she has made.  We are also praying peace for our family during this entire process. The children are thrilled to have a road trip coming up and we are hoping to do some fun sight seeing during our time away.  We are very excited by this wonderful opportunity!

We are matched with a girl!!!

With so much joy we are able to share that we are matched again!!  Right after a fun day at a Pumpkin Festival we heard the news.  We have seen God give us so much grace in this waiting season even though it has been difficult.  The baby girl is due November 11th.  The birth mother has had some minor health issues and some drug exposure in early pregnancy. She wants us at the hospital and seems very likely to follow through with her adoption plan.  Thank you for your prayers and please continue to pray that this will be the final match and we can hold our baby in a few weeks!

Quick update

Our update is that we are still not matched.  We are unsure why we were matched two times very quickly with this agency and now it has been almost 6 weeks and we are still waiting to be matched again.  Ultimately, we are working in God's timing and not our own.  He knows why we need to wait longer and He has a good plan for us in this.  We continue to be prepared in case we could have a sudden situation, but we are also seeking a place of peaceful rest as we wait.  There have been some recent changes in the program we are in and we are praying for wisdom if we should speak out or continue to be patient.  Because of the delays, we are updating our home study this month and have already started the process.  This was an extra expense and takes more time, but God has a reason for us having an updated home study for this next year.  God is good and we are learning good things during this season!

Not the baby for us

We were called yesterday morning and told that the baby boy was born Saturday and he was healthy. The birth mother said she decided to keep him and I believe she is stable enough to offer him a good home.  We are saddened by our loss of the baby we thought was for us, but this is not a tragedy, this baby will be loved and cared for by it's mother.  We are back on the waiting list.  The last two matches happened very quickly; this match was only a day after the agency received our photo books. We are praying that God would allow us to be matched and placed quickly so we do not need to update our entire home study, which is time consuming and expensive.  We have until mid September before we will need to start the process of updating since we completed it early October last year.  We trust that God has a specific baby for us that really needs a family and we will see what He brings to us in the weeks ahead.

Preparing for baby

Things still look really good with our match and we are preparing for baby boy to be born!  It looks like he may come a little early since he is on the big side and the due date is a rough estimate.  We are very excited!  To clarify what I said below, I did not mean that we would stop searching for a baby if this situation fell through, but rather that we really think this is the baby God has been preparing us for.

Here are some pictures from our July 4th party.

Matched!!!

We have been chosen by another birth mother who is due with a baby boy on August 23rd.  We are very excited, this birth mother is so sweet and sounds committed to this adoption.  She wanted to visit with us over the phone and it was such a wonderful experience.  A recent ultrasound told us that this sweet baby is healthy and a big boy.  With this news we realize he may be born sooner since the due date was an estimate by the doctor.  We truly believe this is probably the end of our adoption journey. Our prayer during this time is that if for any reason this adoption is not to happen for our family that God would make it clear soon.  Our hearts are very eager, but I think saying we are a little bruised from all the ups and downs we have faced this year would be accurate.  All of us have been excited about many possible situations we have heard about this year and none of them were the baby for us. We are very hopeful that this truly is our baby boy and we will be united with him soon!

Waiting again

We are sad to say the birth mother that chose our family has backed out of the adoption.  We do not have any details, she simply ended contact with the agency.  Our hearts are disappointed, but we continue to pray that God would watch over this baby and bless his mother.

Our profile will be shown to new birth mothers and the agency expects we will be chosen again soon. We are praying for the right baby/right timing, working to be open handed, and trusting God knows
what is best.

I found this picture from last summer and thought it was funny.

We are matched!!!!

This adoption has been a journey full of unexpected twists and turns and has led us to where we are today.  We are now working with an agency called An Open Door, located in Georgia.  We received a phone call yesterday from our Georgia case worker telling us that we had been chosen by a young birth mother who is expecting a baby boy.  The baby is due to be born this Monday, Memorial Day, by C section.  We are incredibly excited and also needing to hold this situation with an open hand. The birth mother has 10 days to take back the baby after the baby is born.  Although this birth mother sounds committed to adoption at this point, we have been cautioned that she could change her mind any time during the 10 day wait.  An Open Door has designated local families who will care for babies who are at higher risk of birth parents taking them back.  We are assuming that our situation will have this take place so we probably will not travel until next week.  Thank you for all your prayers!  I imagine the fact that Tessa is now possibly a boy seems strange, but God has led our hearts to be more open to whatever He may have for us and we are thrilled to be having another sweet baby boy!

Christmas Day

My new Christmas colors for 2015.  Thank you Kellie for helping me figure out new colors, that was a holiday highlight for me!

Hope Box Ministry Update

Today I was able to talk with one of the women who runs The Hope Box.  She gave me some great information about upcoming changes and plans for the future of their ministry.  We love all the amazing things they are working toward in rescuing babies.  They are looking to partner with another ministry called 'Out of Darkness' that is also located in Atlanta.  This outreach is helping women and girls that are in desperate situations (sex trafficking) - these women need help and our prayers.  For more information on this ministry you can check on their website http://outofdarkness.org/.



Here are some prayer requests and needs that were shared today.

Apparently, one of Georgia's safe haven laws allows hospitals to refuse woman who want to abandon their babies legally and The Hope Box has been getting calls from women who were turned away. This is a law they want to change - that all medical facilities would have to accept abandoned babies. There are a number of aspects of the safe haven laws in Georgia that would need to change for all of these babies to be available for adoption.  The mothers forced into the sex trade cannot find a safe place for their newborns and their babies are often sold on the black market.  Please pray that laws would change so that all needy babies in Georgia would be allowed to be adopted.



Another need is that The Hope Box is looking for increased connections and visibility.  The more awareness people on hospital boards and government officials have of the issues surrounding the abandonment problem in Georgia the more quickly changes can be made.



There are horrible things being done in our country to women and children and it is wonderful to see groups of people fighting against it in the name of Christ.  I hope that we will find more ways to be involved and help those less fortunate!

Christmas Party