Happy Post-Merry Christmas! We hope everyone had a great Christmas celebrating the birth of our King with your families. We are excited to announce the completion of another important step in our adoption.

On Christmas Eve we received an awesome present in the form of an e-mail letting us know that the Embassy had completed our PAIR investigation and we would be receiving our PAIR letter in 7-10 days! This is the last major hurdle before we get a court date and are able to travel to see our Little Lion Man. We are hoping to travel in January for our first trip. Please pray for our family as we near this trip, as there are still many things that must happen before we travel. Pray for our planning and preparation, protection and to calm anxiety within the girls as we are away, and for LLM's heart as I know the next few months will be challenging for him.

We are completely amazed at God's plan for our family. When we submit to His plan, and abandon our own plan, it is amazing to see just how many things happen beyond our control and belief. As we struggle daily to live our lives according to His Word, it is reassuring to know that we have a loving and saving King, full of grace and mercy.

We cannot express our appreciation enough for the love and support shown by our family and friends and cannot wait to LLM of all the people who helped bring him home!

Also, before I forget our adoption t-shirts are in and ready for delivery or pick-up. Please get with us and we will ensure you get your shirt. If you have not paid, they are $15 for all sizes up to extra-large and $16 for double extra-large and up. Again, we are so thankful for those who have participation in this fundraiser.

We are beginning to take pre-orders for our adoption shirts. This is a fundraiser specifically to help pay for travel expenses to Ethiopia x2. The shirts are $15.00 each, and $16.00 for sizes 2XL and above. Available in all standard youth and adult sizes. We will accept payment up front or you can pay when they arrive. We will be accepting orders over the next few weeks, so please see Laurie or myself if you are interested. Thank you for all the support you have shown to us throughout this entire process! To God be the Glory.

Please remember we are selling puzzle pieces.  This helps us raise money for our adoption!  We have less than 200 remaining.  The information is below.

The cost of each puzzle piece is $10. We will write the name of each person on the back of each puzzle piece and frame both sides in glass when complete. We plan to hang this in his room so he can see all of the people who helped bring him home!

Anyone can help support this. Buy one for yourself, one for each member of your family, one for a friend, one as a memory for someone, or if your broke go halfies with someone else who is broke!

There are a few ways to participate. Cash and check are accepted. Make checks out to Erick and Laurie Lawson.

1. See Laurie or Erick and sign up in person.
2. Mail us your gift. Cash or check. (Message us for our address if you need it.)
3. Donate to our church (see the fundraising tab on our blog), but make sure to label the gift as part of the Lawson puzzle fundraiser so we can get your name on the puzzle piece.

We also have extra participation sheets if anyone would like to sell some of our puzzle pieces for us! All you have to do is have them sign the sheet and collect the money. Please let us know if you would like a sheet.

Thank you so much!

We have such an awesome God!  There are no other words to explain our emotions today.  Before, I tell of our news, let me preface with a short story.

We have been primed through the start of this adoption to be patient, understanding that this process takes a long time to come to fruition.  Through prayer and guidance we had positioned ourselves with a mind frame of not getting overly excited.  We did not want to be let down by the months and months, maybe years, of waiting.  To further dull our excitement we were told Ethiopia would be shutting down for a couple of months and not to expect much movement.  We were okay with that and really content with our position in the adoption process.  Well today that all changed!

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WE HAVE BEEN MATCHED WITH OUR SON!  

Our agency called us this morning and had the most handsome boy for us to consider.  God's plan, not ours...  We thought we would have much more time to prepare, but that is not the case.  We have unofficially decided to proceed in bringing home our Little Lion Man.  We will be reviewing his paperwork, again, and sending in the official acceptance forms.

With this unexpected blessing in our lives, we are scrambling to secure the financial portion required for this stage.  We still have a lot of puzzle pieces for sale, and will need to collect any outstanding commitments as soon as possible.  Please be understanding that we will be expediting this process due to the GREAT news today!

Let me say again he is a handsome fellow and he melts our hearts!  We cannot posted his picture on social media or give out descriptive information about him on here, but we will be happy to share in person.  PLEASE do not post anything descriptive about him or his picture on social media or similar sites without our permission.  This could jeopardize the adoption.

We have been extremely blessed and do not deserve it, but can only say thank you to God, our family, our church, and our friends!

Happy Spring!

It has been a few weeks since our last post, but we have GREAT news to share.  Our dossier is in the process of arriving in Ethiopia and we have received our wait number.  That means we are OFFICIALLY on the waiting list.  The best news is our number was much lower than we anticipated.  We are praying this cuts down on our wait time for a referral.  Come on #1!

We have also received news out of Ethiopia concerning the recent slow down in referrals and placements. Below is an excerpt from the information we received.

"Over the weekend two important meetings were held by Federal MOWCYA in Ethiopia, one with the Orphanages, and the other with all Adoption Agencies.   We know that many of you have been praying for these meetings, and those involved in the adoption process in Ethiopia. The meeting Dove’s attorney attended was called by the Minister of Federal MOWCYA, for all adoption agencies and federal MOWCYA workers. The agenda of this meeting was to review and discuss the results of an investigation, which was ordered by the Minister, of about 142 orphanages across Ethiopia. MOWCYA experts investigated orphanages current status, needs, and dependency upon adoption agency support and international adoption. The reports from this investigation were presented to the Minister and the Adoption Agencies on Sunday, during a full day meeting. The results provided evidence and support that the need for international adoption in Ethiopia is prominent.

The Minister assured all at this meeting that her position is in favor of international adoption as a child's last means of support, and that adoption from Ethiopia has not, and will not stop.  The Minister also indicated that the reason for this slow-down in referrals is to improve the integrity of the adoption process. The Minister is meeting in the Southern Region of Ethiopia next Friday, to see that Southern Ethiopia opens up again for adoption.  These are all great indications of furthered support to the orphaned children in Ethiopia."

So as you can see we can expect a pick-up in referrals.  We are already seeing this in action as (3) referrals were made just last week through our agency.  That is more in one week then in the last few months.  We know the the Lord has a plan for us and we are excited to follow His path us in His own time.
Please continue to pray for our family during this process.  We are still continuing to fund raise, planning for a few payments at the time of referral.  Our puzzle piece fundraiser has stalled out with about 190 pieces remaining.  This is a large fundraiser for us, so it is critical for us to get all the pieces sold.  The pieces are $10 per piece.  If you would like to purchase a pieces, or two, or ten please see myself or Laurie.  The goal is to have a name on the back of each puzzle piece so our Little Lion Man can see all the people the helped bring him home to his family. 

In closing, I just would like to share some pictures from Easter this past weekend.  We were honored to help support another family adopting from Ethiopia by purchasing their adoption shirts as part of the Forget the Frock fundraiser.

 

Looking at the calendar, spring is approaching, softball and baseball season is beginning and we have officially began waiting for our son to come home!  Our dossier has begun it's journey to Ethiopia with a short layover in Oregon.

I was able to take this quick picture as the UPS guy took it away.  He was kind of puzzled when I told him to be extra careful and to make sure it gets there, because that is my son in that box.  Once I explained he understood!

Don't get your hopes up too much, this is only the top of the 1st inning, there is a lot of game left. (Since it is softball season).  Please keep praying us and this journey.  We anticipate the wait, but pray it does not go into extra innings.

Just a reminder we are still selling puzzle pieces to help raise money for our adoption.  They are $10 a piece and we still have about 200 pieces left.  Please let us know if you would like to purchase 1, 2, 10, or all of them!

Playing the waiting game...

Hello all!  Not much has been happening with the adoption.  We are waiting on US immigration to approve our paperwork.  Once they approve our paperwork we can send our dossier to Ethiopia and begin the wait to be matched with our son.  So far we have been very patient, but it gets harder each day.  Saturday night we ate at a local Ethiopian restaurant with family.  It was an awesome fellowship, however it was bittersweet for our family.  As we waited for our table we saw the cutest little Ethiopian boy with his new family.  Oh how we prayed to bring our son home.  It was a bit awkward for the other family as we all stared, maybe we should get t-shirts that say , "It is ok we're adopting too!"

Many people have asked how the can continue to support our family and adoption journey.  First, PRAY, this never hurts and we need all of them.  Second, we still have puzzle pieces to sell for our adoption.  Look at our previous post for the information. Third, encourage us, we sometimes get bogged down in the paperwork and red tape and lose focus on the final outcome, our SON!  Please take a minute to read the article below.  It provides some good information on how to support adopting families.  As always, we are very thankful for the many wonderful people who have blessed our family with support.

http://www.bpnews.net/BPFirstPerson.asp?id=41956

FIRST-PERSON: Encouragement for adoptive parents
Lynette Ezell

ALPHARETTA, Ga. (BP) -- I remember the first time I realized the love and grace of Psalm 68:6: "God sets the lonely in families." God is a builder, the master of arranging and connecting the pieces of our lives together. And this truth is clearly fleshed out in adoption. 

Growing up in a small town did not lend me the model of adoption or multiracial families. In other words, I didn't bring the "know-how" to the table. God alone built our family, just as He's building yours. And if God is the foundation layer and contractor, which I know He is, then He will see our families to completion. 

We believe the Lord sees these little ones in this vast, fallen world and knows their every need. He created each of them in His image, for His glory and has a purpose for each of their lives. 

Although many seasons of adoption can be difficult and challenging, the mission is undeniable for those of us called to broaden our tents and surrender our families for the sake of the Gospel. 

The adoption journey can prove to be long and treacherous. I understand that the road ahead can usher in discouraging days with "What have we gotten into?" moments. When I find myself along that path, I step back and mentally simplify. 

OK, so I have a child who may never grasp math or the periodic table of elements. But what I have been entrusted with is a live wire who loves to laugh and sing, who came to our family starving because of parasites, who had a mouth full of rotten teeth and fears so deep that I laid on the floor beside her bed while she slept and begged the Lord to erase the painful memories. 

It all became simple the morning she sat beside me and, with passionate tears in her chocolate eyes, asked Jesus to be her forever Savior and Lord. Isn't that the goal, that we take all our children to heaven with us? God is building families for eternity, and He's equipping the weakest of us to do it. 

Persistence and patience are tools every adoptive family needs as we navigate the often-frustrating path of adoption. In essence, we've been called to break the mold of the typical family and confidently trust that the Lord sets children in our lives as He so desires. 

As we raise our children who we did not birth or maybe even did not meet until they were older, we are a picture to the world of a loving, all-powerful Savior who truly sets the lonely in families. He alone is the master builder of our homes. 

Let's keep moving forward together.
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Lynette Ezell is volunteer director of the SBC Adoption Fund. She and her husband Kevin have six children, three of whom are adopted, each from a different nation. For more information on the adoption fund, visit namb.net/adoption. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress) and in your email (baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp).