Never have I been so excited to have a court date....

We were registered in court on March 26th, so the SAA (orphanage) filed a petition to transfer custody of S**** to Brandon and I. We now know the Judge has our paperwork and is reviewing our file, which a massive stack of every document ever attached to Brandon or myself and our girls. She ( yes, we have a female judge #girlboss) will then accept us as S**** parents or schedule an other date. We have been told in our district it is mostly one court date then you are done. So, on April 11th in India we would appreciate your prayers for us to pass court. Then, I will be able to show you his sweet face and post his name. This is called "Verbals" in adoption slang. Which means the judge agreed in court, but has not typed and signed the documents yet.

I. AM. SO. EXCITED.


So, then what?

Well, like all parts of this our next steps are laced with red tape and waiting. After court we will need our SAA and agency in the states to receive the written report from the judge with the official seal on it. Translated into adoption slang "Writtens". This is a big deal, because then the ball can start rolling for us to get our boy in our arms.

Next, Certificate of Conformity of Intercountry Adoption (Article 23) with CARA. This is a document that CARA will issue back to the orphanage stating that the adoption court case conforms to all of the adoption regulations set forth by the CARA guidelines. 

Then, the orphanage can file for the child’s Birth Certificate/Birth Affidavit. Which will be a birth certificate with our names and his new full name on it. 

Which will allow the SAA to file for the child’s passport. This can take a while because the SAA must drive the child to the nearest passport office in person. In a place were people are already stretched thin this can be a trail in it's self. However, we have heard and seen the prompt responses of our SAA and the director so we have faith he will work quickly for us. The documents will be sent to our agency here. 

THEN, at long last we will get the call to book our flights to meet your son that we have loved for almost a year from half the world away. 

Yikes, it feels like we are so close yet so far. However one of the many things I have learned in this process is that you celebrate the small steps, because progress is progress. We continue to ask for your prayers that we are able to be with our son on his birthday at the end of May. It's pushing it but not impossible. God is sovereign and reigns over all things.

We love and adore our tribe that has love us and our son through this process.

Prayer requests:
Court date on 4-11 that we pass and receive writtens quickly that are correctly spelled.
Fast approvals and documents for S****
Us to be with our son on his 4th birthday.

Agency Switch Update

        In the beginning of 2019 we felt like we were finally on the road to wrapping up our adoption that has been two years in the making. Well, we quickly found out our story wasn’t done with the twists and turns just yet. We received and email that our agency was merging with an other agency that lost accreditation with India in 2017. We were informed we needed to find a new agency before April 1st and we would only be recieving a small portion of our fees we had paid. We were overwhelmed with a mixture of emotions. I was not able to understand why this was happening. We were so close!

     So, I started the frantic race of calling every agency I could find to accept us and not charge us an arm and a leg. We were paid completely at our previous agency and now were looking at $5,000 or more in repeat fees. With God’s grace we were able to speak with several very wonderful agencies and picked the one we felt best matched our needs and our non-existent budget. We decided on Children of the World located in Alabama. The first time I spoke with our social worker she just felt like a friend. We are still unsure of how the fees will transfer, but we know that God is sovereign.

     Shortly after we received news that we were in need of a new agency, we received some of the most exciting news in India adoptions; NOC!! These beautiful letters shared that CARA approved us as S**** family. It is equivalent to guardianship in domestic/foster care placement. We could go to India and live with him, but could not leave the state with him. To be able to leave the country with him, we must get a court approval for our adoption and then his birth certificate with our names listed as parents (I am glowing with excitement as I type this). Then we can get his passport for him to travel to the USA with us. This process is so long and full of red tape, but we know that they work to insure that children who are adopted are kept safe by these steps. Our timeline for travel can vary still but we are praying to be there on his birthday in May.
   
    Please pray for us to be registered in court and to receive written approval quickly. This will allow us to be able to share his name and sweet face with you all, as he will be legally our son.
Also, please pray for S***** to be with his family for his fourth birthday and his first birthday party.

    The love we have for our amazing tribe is truly overwhelming. We treasure our church family, friends, and family who allow us to share with them our triumphs and the lows of this process. We treasure each one of you dearly!

In the waiting....

                    Being on hold with government agencies, being lost in the bureaucracy, hearing scary words like shut downs, increased time lines, having more time stolen from us as a family, and powerlessness to create progress. That is how on the bad days I feel while walking through this process. I wanted my son home for Christmas. I wanted to take the picture of all my kiddos in matching PJ's while we watch Home Alone. I wanted him to have sticky fingers at his grandma's house while baking cookies.  I wanted S**** to get to see the lights and the wonder of the season with us.

                 My heart broke to see yet an other document that was required right before the holiday mail slow down. I called to pour my heart out to friends who I know love this little boy as much as I do. I think to myself how can this be part of the plan. Well, to honest it is not! I have shared with many people of the last 2 years in this process but we are not the best match for S****. The best place would have been with his biological mother and father in his home country. This idea took me a much longer than it should have to understand. Children belong in families and the best family is their biological one. Since that is not possible for many reasons we are able to have our son join our family. Sin has allowed the world to be a broken place and has created the need for adoption. 




                 S**** is not saying yes to being adopted. He has not clue. He most likely will not be happy at the idea of losing everything he knows and loves. He will feel lost, stolen, and powerless. We are being given the chance to feel a small piece of the emotions our son will soon face as he joins a family for the first time. God is sovereign. He uses all things to bring us closer to him. I know he is in control and the hard stuff is given to me for my good. I have been a struggling with the stress of everyday life, our girls growing, and facing new trials that have all been perfectly designed to help us grow closer to God. Which is what we want, but that wicked heart of mine falls into selfishness so quickly. I want a record fast adoption, I want my picture prefect Christmas, I want to eat fudge while not gaining weight, and I want it all right now! That is not what God wants for his children. He knows what we need. For we have been seen as worthy to walk this path and for that we cry out in praise that our God is Sovereign and we will praise him in the waiting and thank him for loving us even when we fall so many times. 

Prayer request: i800 and Article 5 which is the last US approval needed to come in quickly. 

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Romans 8:28

We Found Him!!

      October has just started and it has already brought big things in to the Woolard family. Last week we hit 17 weeks of waiting for CARA to approve us to adopt from India. This process normally task 4-6 weeks, but with Woolard luck, we applied right as CARA had a massive exodus of employees. This caused wait times to skyrocket. I would love to say I was so patient and calm during this but that would be a lie. I emailed my amazing caseworker about every week, or more, begging for progress. She would shoot back an email each time sharing how sorry she was, and that our little man was still on the wait list. Needless to say it was a long 17 weeks. 

      Then on 10/9 Brandon joined several men in a mission trip to Mexico. The first full day he was gone we got the approval!! The we got matched with our little man!!! Glory to God!! The words still seem so foreign. We have a son. This little guy even though he doesn't know it yet is not an orphan any longer, he is a Woolard. He has a Daddy who cannot wait to teach him about Jesus, fishing, and how to throw a baseball. A Mommy who cannot wait to tuck him in at night, to read him bed time stories, and to snuggle him. He has three sister who pray for him everyday and adore him already. He has family and friends that cannot wait to spoil him. He has a church family who has been praying for him since before we knew his face or even what country he was in. He has a community that has rallied behind us and will welcome him in with open arms. He is loved beyond measure and we all cannot wait to show him just how much. 

      

     We are so proud to introduce our little man, Isaiah S*** Allen Woolard.  (India does not allow for children's full photographs or Indian names to be shared online to protect their privacy.) He is 3 years old and just one month younger than our Charlotte. (So any of my friends with twin want to shoot me some pointers I would owe you one for sure!) 

  

     With all the excitement we still have a ways before we are able to travel and nothing in India happens overnight. :( We have written to our agency and confirming that we accept our little Isaiah as our child we wish to adopt. Now we are awaiting information from the orphanage that he is in to send over his original documents in his file. This is always a scary task, because in this step you find out how prompt the orphanage is in returning information and completing things on their end. He is located in India. In an orphanage that we have heard nothing but wonderful things about. There are so many wonderful adoptive momma who have reached out to me and shared what a positive experience they have had with this orphanage. This soothes my mom heart that my little man is being well cared for while he is waiting for us. 

      Now, in a little while we will be able to send a photo book for him to have explaining who we are, and where he will be moving. I have to say I am beyond excited for this step. Lori my amazing bonus momma makes each one of her grand kids a photo book every year for their birthday. These books are treasured so highly in mine and my siblings families. Each year the are completely unique for each kid detailing their adventures throughout the past year. To get to complete Isaiah's first book with Lori will be such a special memory to have in this process. I cannot wait for him to be home and get to read it together with Nana and Papa Allen.  

   

Here is Maddison with her collection of books this past year on her birthday. Each year we read all of them together as we get the new book. She is holding her first book and her newest. 

Praise Report!

         Yesterday came and went with no CARA approval due to offices being closed. We did find out that my birthday is a national holiday in India (this year at least the date moves similar to Easter). The holiday that happened was Eld al-Adha "The Feast of Sacrifice" during which Muslims pay respect to Ibrahim "Abraham" and his willingness to sacrifice his son Isaac in the view of Christians, however in Islam Ishmael is believed to be the son that was spared by God. They kill a cow or a ram and eat 1/3 of the meat, 1/3 of the meat goes to neighbors, and 1/3 to the poor.

Praise Report:    

      We shared how we had a friend who had offered a matching grant up to $500. We have been so blessed to have reached this $500 and got 100% of the matching. That is an other $1,000 in our adoption account. Praise to God above!! We have been blessed with so many people coming along side us in prayer and monetary support for this sweet little man that we pray to be matched with. Adoption is hard, expensive, and time consuming. We could not do this with out our tribe! 

 Prayer Requests:

•  Current estimated need to completing adoption is $20,747. 
• CARA approval
• To be matched with our sweet boy
• "Isaiah's" health and wellness while in the orphanage

We have fallen in love.

        So, this past week we received a file for  a little boy who is 3 years old. He has some delays and medical needs, but the moment I was reading his information I know I needed to be this little man's momma.

         I am not the love at first sight kinda gal. I really am more the over think, stress, and then call 3 friends and have them analyze my every thought kinda gal. However this was something that seemed so right from the start. To remain true to who I am I did need to call my gals and have them help me think it through. Then one text message to a friend who has a child with a similar health concern. She was so kind and helpful in sharing what her family deals with and what the projected needs may be. That sealed the deal. We are all smitten. I wish I could share his picture on here for you all to see his sweet face but I cannot until we are farther along, but rest assured he has the sweetest little face and soon enough you will all be so tired of seeing our posts about our SON!!

       There is one problem.... a big one...... we are have to wait till we become CARA approved before we can ask to make this little guy ours forever. CARA is the Indian agency that states we are able to adopt from India. They are approving us to be Potential Adoptive Parents (PAP's). This agency has had major delays due to many things outside of their control and now they are swamped with paperwork. They have prioritized cases that are closest to completion (Rational me understands this, momma who is at the start of process is crying inside as I type this. ) We should be coming close to the top of the list ti be approved.

      My birthday is Wednesday and all I want is to have CARA say we are approved and we can be matched with our little man. Brandon's birthday is coming in a week or so also and I claiming this is what he wants also, lol.

    God has been so good to us in the process, sometimes we didn't see His grace until the storm had pasted ( cough......lightening hitting house.....cough). We know our family, church family, and friends are our prayer partners in this process and for that we are eternally grateful. So many of you all have rallied behind us in hard times, and partnered with us in prayer. #tribegoals


   While We Wait: 
The big girls started school. Maddison is in 4th grade and moved into middle school. I still have not accepted this completely yet. Jacquelyn is now in 1st grade. They have loved it, minus getting up early.

We recently wrapped up Puxico Homecoming. For my friends who have never experienced this it is a fair in the small town of Puxico,MO where the whole town is centered around coming back to town and visiting friends. There are rides, carnival games, square dancing, class reunions, goat burgers, amazing fair food. It is our girls favorite time of year. Yes they openly admit they like it more than Christmas presents.

Working hard at waiting.

          It is August, this summer has flown by. In our last post we shared that we finally completed our home study! Praise the Lord! With completing our home study we were able to move to the next step in the process. We were officially accepted into the India program with WACAP, which has a very reputable India program. This seemed like a dream. We were finally in the process officially. So we signed our contracts with them and paid the first agency fee. (that one stung the old bank account for sure.)  We then completed our documents needed to get registered with the Central Adoption Resource Authority, CARA. This is a major approval where India states you are eligible to adopt from their country. The normal timeline for CARA approval ranges from 4-6 weeks, however there have been major transitions in CARA and now the timelines have increased. We were registered for CARA on June 13th and now we wait every day to receive notification that we have been approved.  
After the approval we can begin looking at referral files for children, and then when we find the boy God designed our family for we will begin pursuing our son to bring him home. Here is a wonderful infographic one of my fellow adoptive mammas shared. It is the most gratifying feeling, being able to mark off boxes in this chart. 

We've been asked many questions along the way, especially how long till you get to go to bring him home? In short we have no idea. We pray it will be soon. We also know that many amazing prayer warriors are along side us, we know God calls us to help the orphan and for now that is what we rest in. 

An other question we receive quit frequently is the cost of our adoption. We have had some added expenses with having to complete several parts of our home study a second time due to the lightening damage to our home, and the number required to bring each kiddo home is different. Currently, to complete all foreseeable expenses, we need about $22,000. We have been applying for grants, selling assets and saving like crazy to meet this goal. 
This number is the line that many Christians pull out when adoption is raised. The amount needed to bring these kiddos home often seems unattainable. We totally understand. I have cried and worried over this number more times that I'd like to admit in this process. With every step of progress we make there are fees and its scary. Stepping out in faith is scary at times and when we started this process we thought we would be able to cover all expenses. But God has humbled us to show his glory through this process. I share this to encourage others by showing God provides and we will trust him to provide while serving him through the wait. 


On one night, while crying out in prayer for the next phase of funding needed once we are matched, a beautiful friend text randomly and offered a generous match fund for us. I could not believe this. She could not have known the timing of her text to me was an answer to prayer. This is just one example of how blessed we are to be surrounded by brothers and sister in Christ who understand the power of the Gospel and been such a help and encouragement in our journey.  

For our ongoing fundraising efforts, we currently have a GoFundme established for anyone who would be willing to pair with us in fundraising to bring Isaiah home, and are in the planning stages of several fundraisers that we will be holding over the next several months.  We are so grateful for all of you who have stood behind us through this journey so far.  We still have a long way to go, but we wouldn't be near as far as we are if it weren't for your help and support.  We ask that you please continue to pray for us, that God will be glorified through this process and others will be encouraged to reflect the Gospel through adoption.  

The World's Longest Home Study

Wow! The Woolard family has had a lot of changes since our last post.

If you'll remember from previous posts, in May 2017 our home was directly hit by lightening, causing $100,000+ worth of damage (pictures are available in previous posts). During that time, we were on hold with our adoption process until we could finish the repairs, which ended up taking 5 months. We could not move forward at all! So there we were, stuck in what felt like the world's longest home study (13 months)!  Our amazing social worker, Nichole, was such a blessing to us in this mess (if you ever need a referral, she's amazing)!

Now, we are finally done! We have the home study approved and are moving forward once again. We have officially been accepted into the India Adoption program through our agency. We have prayed for this day for so long, and it is finally here! We are now completing the I-800 documents, and praying that we get matched soon! We cannot wait to see a little face to focus our prayers on.

We are currently applying for grants like crazy and would really appreciate your prayers. We know God is in this and we feel blessed for him allowing us to walk this path.  Although it has been difficult at times, we know that he is sovereign and in control of all things. 

We are also thankful for Grandma Rozetta's pool. Check out our little on-duty lifeguard! 

Down But Not Out.....

We are in our 3rd week since lighting hit our home. We are still waiting for answers on how the insurance agency is going to aid us in repairing the damage. Our home is located in a rural part of Missouri that was recently hit by massive flooding. This has resulted in many claims that must be processed. We are unable to live in our home due to the massive amount of damage.





Every room in the house has major damage, except the one we were in waiting for the storm to pass. The room we were in has only minor damage. This awful situation could have been so much worse. We see God shining through this in so many ways. We knew that when we decided to step out in faith to adopt our son that the path may be hard. God never promises an easy life he promises that he will be our rest in the storm.

 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

We have spoken to our social worker about what the future of our adoption looks like. She informed us that she is not able to process the adoption home study due to the information about the home not being accurate. We don't currently have a home. She will complete everything that she can. Then when we are in our home after the repairs she will come back for an additional home visit to inspect the new home and submit the paperwork for approval.

Which make perfect sense, but that statement almost broke me. It was not our social worker or the frustration of our life being put on hold, but the fact that I don't currently have a home.  I have been homeless before in my life. I never knew this would happen in my adult life. I know that this is completely different, but as many children who have survived abuse know the wounds run deep. The emotions of past hurt will show up at unexpected moments. This was one of those moments. We are homeless. We have no control over this process. I felt myself spiraling in to fear. We are able to live with my mother in law. All of our basic needs are meet. God is providing.

 We cannot see the daylight in this storm yet. We are in one of the hardest trials of our marriage. We have so much stress. We all still have to live life as we did before. We are out of our home and unsure when we will be back in it. All the work we have put in over the past year seems to be gone. We have amazing friends and family by our side, and we are forever grateful for that. We know that this will pass. God is putting the test in our testimony. Our adoption is not over. We will still be pushing to move forward toward bringing our son home as soon as possible.

With this we are praying. We are praying to receive guidance on our house. We are praying that the insurance agency provides answers. We are praying that our adoption continues. We are praying for our children at home are understanding our the current situation.

When it rains it pours...

   So much has happened in the last month. We completed our last home visit for the home study. It went great. I felt so much more at ease this visit. Now we are waiting for the document that our social worker types up to be drafted, fingers crossed that this goes well.
  School came to an end, which is always bittersweet. As a teacher you truly grow to love each kiddo. I'm blown away each year at the amount of sadness I feel every year sending my freshman off to high school. Maddie completed 2nd grade with fling colors. Jacquie completed her last day at Broseley Preschool and Daycare. This brought tears to my eyes. My middle baby is off to kindergarten. Charlotte is working towards being potty trained!!!!
    We were off to a great start, then our lives were flipped up side down. Our home was hit by lightning. The damage is unreal. It will have to have all electrical parts and wiring  will need to be replaced. We are currently unable to live in our home and our staying with my mother in law. We do are praying that insurance will cover all damages. We are blessed with a great contractor and a strong faith that God will deliver us. We are unsure how long we will be out of our home, the Amount of damage is pointing toward 3-6 months before we can move back in.
    Then, to add to my pity party I got bit by a spider, and Maddie needs some dental work. Life is hitting us hard. We are praying that God provides the funds to keep pushing ahead with the adoption and complete our home repairs. We truly appreciate all prayers. We are trusting in God to provide.

Home Study First Home Visit....

The flood of 2017 has been devastating for so many families in our area. Our thoughts and prayers are with them and their families.

So far we had completed our first visit with our social worker in St. Louis. Now we were ready to move on to the next step. THE HOME INTERVIEW!!!

In a home study you write a biography about your self answering very personal questions. Then, a social worker comes into your home on two separate visits.  During the first visit she asks you in more detail about the questions in your biography both individually and together as a couple. Then on the second visit she will revisit any issues she needs cleared up, look at our home, and talk with our children. Many of you all know my children and know I am praying about this also. :)

On the day of the first home visit, I was sweating bullets. I have cleaned and re-cleaned my home about 3 times. Debating on what to wear. Looked on Pintrest to see what to wear.  I made sweet tea, tasted it, dumped it out and then Googled how to make sweet tea correctly. Made coffee......, drank it......., made an other pot. Googled home study tips.  Ran to town to get my finger prints done/ keep me busy and not drinking coffee. While I was out I saw my beautiful friend Emma at a local store. She gave me the best hug and told me she would pray for me today to have peace.  This was exactly what I needed to hear. God placed this wonderful friend in my path. As soon as she said she would pray for me I was stopped in my tracks. I had not prayed today. I had done quick one liners with God throughout the day, but I had not stopped and truly pour my emotions out to God. I walked around the store praying and thanking God for friends that lead me toward my heavenly father. Thank you Emma. You never stop inspiring me.

I came back home still praying. Saw the coffee....., drank it......, made an other pot. Then, she pulled up. She greeted me with a hug and shared about her drive. I offered her coffee and warned her away from the tea. Then we got started. I was full on stress sweating! My glasses fogged at one time. I had been calling this my very expensive blind date and it was happening. I knew she was going to ask me about my past. I knew I would have to talk about it. She eased in to it. Starting with hobbies and my job. Then, BOMB! Tell me about your childhood and teen years. I had planned to gloss over everything answering only what needed to be said. This is not how it happened. I straight up word vomited on her. I spilled it all. It felt good to just get it all out, but instantly came to fear of sharing to much. She was very kind and understanding. I still felt the shame of letting out all my biggest regrets and hardships on this woman I had only meet once. I started to withdraw, I could see myself shutting down. The sweet, amazing Emma popped in my head. I quickly prayed and God calmed my heart. I am not my sins. I am new in Christ. God gave me the strength to stay in the moment and share how this past build my testimony.

Then, as quickly as it started my time was over. My mountain was conquered. Brandon pulled in and we did a brief interview together, with more to come next time.  I left to get our girls and it was Brandon's turn in the hot seat. When I got back with the kids we compared battle stories and agreed that it was not as bad as we thought it would be. It was invasive, personal, and exposing. I did cry once or twice but it was done. We are one step closer to finally bring Isaiah home.

In our lives before the home study my team went on a field trip to a local summer camp. My amazing team of teachers took one hundred 8th grade students in to a place where there was no cell phone service!! They were scared. They were confused. Then, they loved it. They talked to their class mates. They ran and played on slides. They fished! It was one of those memories I will treasure so many years.

Proud momma moment!! Maddie and one of the other teachers son was able to come with us that day. They both caught a fish, and then were helping out other students to learn to fish.

Yours in Christ, 
The Woolard Family

Moving Forward.....

Paper Work, Paper Work, Paper Work!

I feel as if this has been our lives for the past month. The term "Paper Pregnant" is used in adoption and it could not be more true.You go through the emotions of pregnancy. As a mother, my mom heart is pushing myself to get everything done and organized as fast as possible. Brandon is more patient, and although he is just as excited as I am, he does not feel the sense of urgency that I do. This was mirrored while we were excepting our other children. I wanted to have the bedrooms decorated and bags packed in month 4. Brandon, however, on all things balances me, and knew we should be patient and pace ourselves.

To lay out where we are and explain the process over all. (Jo Dawn Miller, I completely stole the steps from your blog.  Thank you so much for being such a good friend through this.)

https://jodawnmiller.wordpress.com/2015/10/24/learning-about-the-indian-culture/

STEP 1: Apply for Adoption (Done)

This was a hard step for us. Many agencies want you to commit to a country prior to submitting an application.  We filed out a pre-application to see what countries we could adopt from. All countries have different requirements. We found that my age was our biggest hurdle. Most countries want you to be at least 30. Uuugghhh.... for all those who know me, I am like the oldest 26 year old ever. My hobbies include reading, crocheting, and grading papers.

So, the pre-application said we were able to adopt from India and Burgundy. We were instantly drawn to India. We have friends who have successfully adopted from India. The amazing woman whose blog I stole these steps from!

 

STEP 2: Home Study ( We are here.)

This has been an emotional rollercoaster.

The home study is where a social worker must recommend you and your family to adopt. This involves 3 meetings total and mounds of paperwork. The autobiography covered everything you can think of. It asked about from trauma in our past to how we plan to sustain our child's culture. This, as you can image, caused a great deal of reliving the past. As I finished, my biography totaled close to 20 pages.  For the first meeting, we will travel to St. Louis. We will be completing this on this coming Friday!! Then the next 2 will be at our home (taking applications for babysitters now, lol).

In all this should take 2-3 months. The poor woman has to read all of our documents and then write a report about our family.

STEP 3:File an adoption petition with the U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services

Fingerprints and background checks are needed to ensure we are who we say we are.

STEP 4: Our adoption agency will register us on India’s government website.

Once we have all of our paperwork in, the Indian government will submit our paperwork to a database. This database will find a child that fits the requests we have made. We have asked for a male child, age birth to 3 years. This also took a great deal of prayer, to find where our family is being led at this time in our lives.

STEP 5:Begin preparing documents for our adoption dossier.

Once we find the child that God has lead us to, we will start completing paperwork to send to India. This compilation is our lives, in a nut shell. We will submit family pictures, marriage license, birth certificates, a kidney....JK. The list feels endless. Not only does everything have to notarized, but also originals and then approved. At this stage this feels like a mountain that I may never reach the top of.       

STEP 6:Receive child information.

We will receive at least one photo, medical reports, and social status. We will take the documents to a pediatrician to have everything explained to us prior to accepting the child.

STEP 7:File form I-800 with the U.S.

This is a form that is used to complete the immigration status of the child.

STEP 8:SARA/ARC Review, No Objection Certificate, Court Order, Passport.

This step is the one I am currently praying hardest to move swiftly. All of our adoption paperwork and information must go through several levels of approval in India. This step can take anywhere from 8 months to 2+ years. (sigh.... we will know our child, love our child, but not able to have our child.) Luckily, this is the last step prior to traveling to India to be with our child.

STEP 9:Travel to India!!! Visa Appointment.

We will get to travel to India for approximately 2 weeks. Although it could be longer depending on which state our child lives.

STEP 10: Post placement reports

India, like most other countries, requires that families complete post placement reports. This means that our social worker will come back for follow up visits to ensure all family members are doing well. We are also encouraged to re-adopt our child in the U.S. to aid in the paper trail of the child here.

In the midst of all the paperwork, we are still trying to keep up our everyday lives. Brandon and I both work full time, I am completing my Masters degree, starting work at a college, and raising 3 wonderful girls.  

WOW!! Yikes. We know that life happens and this will have speed bumps and be full of spiritual warfare, but we are trusting in God to show us His way and timing, not our own.

One truly amazing event we were blessed enough to be a apart of was my bonus mother's retirement party. I have shared before that my high school counselor allowed me to be part of her family, baggage and all. Her career choice made me who I am. Talk about the ripple effect.

Thank you all so much for your time. We are blessed to have people who love us enough to read through all of these blog posts and offer encouragement.

We ask for your prayers for our son and his care givers.

Yours in Christ,

The Woolard Family

Getting Started

We are the Woolard's and we are adopting from India! This is our story, with the major players and our motivation for completing our family through adoption.

We are a family of five. Our three daughters are all vastly different. Maddison is our oldest and completely fits the bill. She is a gymnastics loving, little sister bossing, and Jesus spreading 7 year old.

 

Jacquie is our middle daughter. She loves everyone and everything. I have never meet a person with as big of a heart and Christ-like love as Jacquie. She never lets us leave the house in the mornings without taking our vitamins, and just cares deeply for everyone she comes into contact with. She is 5 going on 30.



Charlotte is our family clown. She is almost 2 and has an amazing sense of humor, despite the early onset of the "terrible two's". She loves to sing, dance, chase her sisters, and EAT.


Then there is Brandon and I. Brandon works as a business banker in our community. He loves fishing, spending time with our girls, and studying deeper into the Bible. I (Ashley) am an 8th grade science teacher. Teaching and helping kids is my biggest passion in life. I love spending time with our amazing family, crocheting, and going to concerts.



Our motivation for adopting is multifaceted and stems from the passion to be a witness for the love and hope of Jesus.  The Bible shares, so many times, the importance for caring for all people. With this knowledge, we knew that to be a true witness of the love we are blessed with, we need to show others this same act of becoming part of a family.

James 1:27 
Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

Matthew 18:5
“Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me,”

Acts 7:21
“And when he was exposed, Pharaoh’s daughter adopted him and brought him up as her own son.” 

Also, I have my own story of being a lost young person in need of a family. I was raised in a difficult home. My parents struggled with parenting my sister and I. At 18 I was introduced in to my high school counselors family. They have been the family I never knew I could have. They taught me how to admit when I failed and how unconditional love with help cover many wounds. Without them I know that I would not be the person I am today.


We cannot wait to see how this journey will unfold. I am looking forward to sharing each step with you all through this blog. Thank you all so much for all the support and prayers. You love and cherish each of you.