It’s hard to believe that it has been two months since were first united with our children. Time has flown by! The experience we had in Florencia was unforgettable. To see the children whom we had been praying for, for years standing right before us was almost unbelievable…more than we ever imagined.When we began the adoption process by mailing the Children’s Hope adoption application on August 31, 2006, our fifth year wedding anniversary, we began praying John 14:18 over our children. During our paper chase, we faced many obstacles and setbacks. In November, we experienced a life-changing event in our family that caused us to contemplate sibling group adoptions. My sister passed away at age 32, leaving two children behind. As we watched the children being shuffled from house to house staying with different relatives, we considered the impact of the separation on the children. We felt God leading us to pursue a sibling adoption. We continued the paper chase despite the despair and grief we were experiencing…throughout the chase Children’s Hope was there to cheer us on! We are so thankful for all the support and encouragement they extended to us through that difficult time.
Once our dossier was completed, we breathed a sigh of relief! However, we still needed about $12,000 to complete the adoption costs. We believe that if it is God’s will, He’ll foot the bill! And in the last month, before we left for Colombia we raised all the necessary money. We received money from complete strangers, from various fundraisers, and our church! God is faithful, and He knows our needs.
Within a month of sending our dossier to Colombia, we received word from Sara we should expect an “official referral” in 2-4 weeks for two boys and one girl. I laughed when I first saw the referral pictures of our sons…they look so much like Ben! Only God could make a match like that!
We were only given limited info about the children at this time. We began to research the area where we were to travel (Florencia). Caqueta, the state in which Florencia lies, was actually named in Voice of the Martyrs as one of the highly volatile areas in Colombia. Colombians and fellow church members began planting seeds of fear cautioning us of the potential danger. We embraced the idea that our Father was going to place us into such an area as they described, refusing to let the seed of fear take root and keep us from our children! It was awesome to see how God opened doors all around us as we traveled to this part of the country near the Amazon. At no time in Colombia did we ever feel unsafe.
We have been home over a month now, and we love being parents! We do have challenging moments confronting difficult behaviors, but those have lessened as our daily schedules have become more structured and routine. Andrew (5), Tatiana (3), and Diego (2) are adjusting well and love their new home and pets! The children have filled our home with love and laughter, and we look forward to growing with them as we plan for the future.Some things we have found they love to do include: play in the water, school work, eat, play outside, go bye-bye & ride in their “special” car seats, climb all over Papi, go to church, and watch the “Raton!” (Stewart Little 2). Already Andrew and Tatiana are learning English and can count to 20! Diego loves his pets best; each day he “slimes” Obba, our cat, with a big sloppy kiss, and chases the dogs down to share kisses with them. The joy and love that these children have brought into our home is immeasurable. We are so eternally grateful to all those who played a part in making this possible for us. Thank you, CHI for being with us every step of the way!
It is so awesome to reflect back on how our story unfolded and how God was all over it! From the beginning when choosing our adoption agency to choosing a sibling group to raising money and so on…God was with us each step of the way! He is faithful to fulfill His word. We will continue to promote adoption and will highly recommend Children's Hope International, as we do believe that adoption is part of the heart of God, and Children's Hope is truly committed to finding homes for the orphaned children.
--Wendi and Benjamin, parents to Diego, Andrew, & Tatiana Wood (Mississippi)
