Introducing Paris Josephine Alexander

Paris Josephine Alexander

November 28, 2014

5:40am 

6 lbs 10 oz

19.2 inches 

Perfect gift from God!!  

Living in the desert with such a blessing...

(Written December 5, 2014 ~ back posted)

I said before, each step of adoption has trials and difficulties, and each feeling harder than the last!  I am just so grateful the birth mom signed her rights away as planned, because for about 24 hours it was iffy and we had to rely on the Lord during that time... praying we would stick with her plan to let us become the parents... But she did sign, and later that day, November 30, we were released from the hospital with our baby girl, and moved into a temporary GA house, with family of friends.

At this point, I am "imprisoned" in the state of Georgia, with a new born who could be ripped from my arms in the next few days,... we have 5 more days and 4 hours until the revocation period is over, and the birth mom has until that time to change her mind and take our baby girl!  How in world would any mom handle this waiting period without the grace and guidance from our Lord?! Seriously... This is hard enough, even knowing He is in control... because each and everyday I fall deeper into her! 
God is good, He will not fail me! 

"just the two of us..."

This sweet hand floors me everyday!!!

The days and nights drag on as I do my best to learn her alone, Steven is back in Alabama working so we can give her the life she deserves.  He comes to visit us on the weekends, but the rest of the time it is just us girls, and in the evenings our host and hostess who have taken in this new momma and newborn.  Angels! Thank you Lauren and Steven, and sweet Evelyn!!!  Thank you Christa and Jeremiah, and beautiful Briee!!

You gave shelter and refuge to a total stranger who was a stranger to this new role of mom...
May God Bless you more than you could every imagine!!:)

(Written December 10, 2014 ~ back posted)

IT'S OFFICIAL!!!! The waiting is over, she is OURS!!!  For better, for worst... she's stuck with us!! Praise the Lord!!  I'm still in Georgia, waiting for Alabama now to approve us to come back home, the state of Georgia has done everything they were suppose to- thank you GA!  I wish we could be with Steven to celebrate this exciting moment, but for now we are apart... only 2.5 hours away but feels like galaxies...

We wait, and we pray, and we wait and we pray.... day in, day out... And we learn each other, one-on-one attention... She's learning me and how I will always be there for her when she needs me, and I 'm learning her like what each of her cries mean, and her body language... And the way she breaths when she's in a deep sleep, and her gentle coos, etc... she's breath-taking!!!  I really wish babies came with individualized owners manuals, that would make these first few weeks so much easier.  Especially during this time of being guests in someone else's house, in a foreign state and away from my beloved husband and new daddy...

She's such a beautiful blessing, and all I want to do is take her home and enjoy her, in our house, show her her room I have worked so hard on and share with her Steven.  We have waited so long for her to come into our lives, I don't understand why we have to endure this additional waiting period, it's so painful... Is it insensitive of me to want to just coast for a little while, and enjoy her after so many years of waiting and praying for her?  I know God has a plan, but like most of His plans, I don't have a clue as to why we have to go through this!!  I just have to hold on to Him and trust Him to continue to lead us!  

The hospital:

(Written at the hospital, the day she was born, November 28, 2014 ~ back posted....)

The call came in the middle of the night, Steven and I bounced out of bed to start our 2 1/2 hour drive to where Baby Girl Alexander was to be born "within the hour". Needless to say we both had to drive as safely as possible but as fast a possible. The feeling that over came us during that LONG drive was unlike anything else... Adrenaline. Nerves. Excitement. Fear. Joy and Panic...

   

How will first contact  be for both of us mamas? Will she fall in love and change her mind? Will the family cause a dramatic scene and make this adoption more complicated than its "planned" to be? Oh man, this is going to be a long 12-ish days till its "official and secure".

I am sitting here with her, I just feed her for the second time and she's now asleep on my chest- I am breathing her in and praying she is breathing me in. I want her I know my scent...to know me... to need me... She is simply breath-taking! Smells and feels incredible and I can easily fall head over heels in love with her once this is official. For now, I love her like all the other beautiful baby who has graced my life. I believe  God has a protective barrier over me I feel until this revocation period is over and we are no longer at risk of her birth mom to want her back and change her mind. Once that day and time comes when she is truly ours, watch out!!!! This volcano of emotion and love will over flow and explode.

"Thank you Jesus for this beautiful baby girl! Thank you for this brave and selfless mom! Thank you for allowing our lives to cross in such a mind-boggling way! Thank you for your provision and your grace over Steven and I as we continue to walk in faith with you! Amen!"

What?!? I have a baby mama?!?:)

(Written November 20, 2014 ~ past posted)

The crossing of two lives:

    It's an interesting and terrifying emotion, to meet the woman who is willing to give birth to (your) child and give her to you, AFTER creating and carrying her within her body for 9 months!!!  What do you say to her??? Thank you just doesn't feel like enough!!! Bringing her whoopie pies that my mum and I baked just days before definitely doesn't feel like enough... especially for all that she is giving to us!
 Really, is there any way to actually thank her?? Nothing feels like it's enough!

    Meeting our baby mama couldn't have gone better, I think... We were all extremely nervous, which is normal and appropriate. But it's a lot of mental work, because you're always questioning what to say and going over something in your head to make sure it sounds right before you say it out loud. You want nothing to "ruin" this connection and endanger the adoption. You have to approach the days ahead with a guarded heart "just in case" and be respectful of words you use or how you say something. Adoption has many stages of difficulties, and just when I think we're in the hardest part of it, another harder part comes up... BUT we have flown through and are nearly to the end and yet the beginning. The beginning of a new
and exciting journey with sweet baby girl Alexander. And I can't wait to start this new journey!!:)

   I want so much for our birth mama.  She is delightful, pretty, well prepared and shows so much more bravery and courage than I could ever have shown at the age of 21!!! I am bubbling over right now thinking of her, I am so extremely proud of her!! She's making such profound choices, showing such maturity and acting so selfless!

"Lord Jesus, I ask that you bless her with a fruitful and abundant life; with many blessings and a bright future! In the months to come, give her a peace that transcends all understanding and a confidence in her brave decision that she made out of love! Give her the resources and opportunities to go to school and get her degree that she desires and is able to build the life that she dreams of having! Comfort her on hard days by wrapping your arms around her, reminding her that she picked a devoted couple who will love this sweet baby girl with all their hearts and who will move mountains for her! And on good days, may she bask in your glory and all the blessings that you have for her! I thank you for her and how
our lives are forever crossed and I am so grateful to her! Amen."

"The Call"

Written November 23, 2014.... (back posting now that the news is out)

It was somewhat of a normal Thursday morning, I was just starting a load of laundry when I received "the call"... Our social worked called and told me a birth mom had picked our profile out of a whole pile, she was drawn to us immediately because of our dark hair.  Later she "fell in love with us" more after reading all about our "fun lives", our close knit families, our travels, my Child Development degree and our plans for the future. We later found out she likes us so much she wishes we could adopt her!:)

     After recovering from the shock that this was finally happening, I received more details. Like the fact that she was due within two weeks of this call- this baby girl is coming and coming fast!!! Please believe me when I say that this is and always was a God thing!!  Only He could work out the details of this situation and birth mom for us, so perfectly, we could see from the beginning, from this first call the finger prints of God all over it!!!:) He is so good!!

    Another wonderful blessing at that moment was that my mum was here with us visiting so she was the first person to know that Baby Alexander was to be a girl and she was coming very soon!!  She and I danced around the living room to the "Happy" song and cried and prayed. It was a beautiful moment between mum and daughter and soon to be mom and daughter.

    The days that followed were a made dash to finish the nursery and prepare the house. The timing was perfect with my parents visiting, we were able to knock out the remaining big projects that needed to be done so then Steven and I could focus on the smaller details. Fixing up the nursery has always been important to me because for 9 months I haven't "housed and protected" baby Alexander, that was out of my control. But what was in my control was the home and bedroom, household security - so I have put a lot of time and love into her room. Even on a budget, she has a nice space to call her own!:) Needless to say I have been "nesting" since we started the adoption process in February so it didn't need too much. And much thanks to my amazing parents who have helped so much on her nursery!

    So now we are, nearly a week and a half later from when we received "the call" - the nursery is ready for a sweet girl to come home to, my luggage is packed and several bags are packed for baby girl Alexander. She is due tomorrow- time has flown by since the call, we are ready!!!!!

Feeling so blessed!!!

Today, I am taken back by the true blessing it is to be faithfully walking with 

our Lord, He is so good and is SO worthy to be praised!  We are extremely

blessed and it's because of Him!  Thank you Lord for everything 

we have and everything we will!!  So grateful!

Last week I had a Mary Kay Fundraiser and in one night of pampering

and thoughtful online orders, we raised just over $200!!!  

Thank you to everyone who came and supported us and who bought online!  

Every single penny is appreciated more than words as each gets up

that much closer to our dream of Baby Alexander! 

So that places us at $14,916!!!  Yeah!!! 

Which means, we only have roughly $5000 to go!!!! 

We are so close, please continue to pray that we are able to 

fund the rest of this amount (because if it came down to it, we would

not be able to bring home Baby Alexander until "paid in full".)

This is amazing! To think of everything God has done for us just since January 6th

when we decided to adopt,... and February when we started the paperwork....

We are extremely blessed to have such amazing people on our side, 

believing with us in our dream and supporting us in many ways!  

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

We only have 14 puzzle pieces left, out of 1000!!! Whoo hoo!!!:) 

Thank you from the bottoms of our hearts....

Only $10/piece.... *wink-wink* :)

On the Market and waiting.... & Tea Time!!!

It's time for an update!!! Yeah, we are still "on the market", our profile is out there and being shown to Expectant Parents right now. We were told last month that they have a bunch of birth mom's were due at the beginning of the year so they will be showing them profiles soon, they wait until they are at a certain 

point in their pregnancy's to make sure this is what they want to do. So hopefully any day now we 

could get the word. So for now we are just waiting and praying for this woman, to like our 

profile and want to meet us and be adoptive parents. 

 We are still fundraising to finish our Puzzle, we are at 953 pieces sold and only 47 to go and it's done so we are really trying to finish that! And we are at roughly $12,000 out of $20,000 for the adoption in general.

Tea Time!!!

And this Sunday November 9th at 4pm we are having a 

Mary Kay Adoption Fundraiser 

at our house, it's going to be "afternoon tea", so if you're in the area, 

PLEASE come and help suppport Baby Alexander. 

OR you can shop online at:

www.marykay.com/kirsteng

(make sure you mention in your order that it's in support of Baby Alexander) 

And check visit the party information on Facebook 

Bari & Alex's Adoption fundraiser Facial Party!

(And please let me know if you plan to come, so I can make sure I have enough tea cups!!:) 

 

Expectant momma without a baby bump?!?!

       I was told recently that I was lucky to be missing out on the "discomforts" of pregnancy and delivery, by a woman I met in passing with whom we chatted about our up coming adoption. I am absolutely thrilled to be adopting with my amazing husband, but I definitely do not consider myself "lucky" to be missing out on those "discomforts"... Especially since adoption has "discomforts" of its own.
     Instead of a growing belly and having to negotiate with my wardrobe on a daily basis, buying bigger clothes and feeling like (what woman have described it to me as) a blimp. I have tiresome paperwork and forms to fill out, home study info, applications, and grants that take a lot of time and energy. Instead of morning sickness and feeling yucky and "puffy", I have agonizing nights waiting and wondering if our profile is being looked and and if anyone will like us. And instead of labor pains, I could have nervous days of praying that a birth mom will not change her mind and rip a baby out of our needy arms.
    When adopting, a person misses out on feeling a baby move inside and feel him or her kick. They miss out on other people walking by and knowing a baby is on the way, and offer a sweet "congratulations". I am, at this very moment an "expectant momma" but where are the adoring eyes? Where is the joy that comes with this kind of expectancy?? We could very easily be within weeks or months of having a baby, but... Where is the blissful acknowledgment that I always dreamt came along with having a baby.  So no, I do not feel lucky to be missing the "joys"of pregnancy and labor.  I do however feel incredibly lucky to be a momma-to-be and be able to change the life of a sweet baby who otherwise wouldn't have been given a chance.
     I feel so blessed that God opened this door for us and chose us to play such an important roll in Baby Alexander's life. And to bring her or him home (hopefully soon) and be the very best momma I can be to her/him!! God could have called anyone to step forward and He chose us, I am so humbled!!! I cannot wait to see who He has planned for us!! All I know is he or she is going to be absolutely amazing and do such profound things because the devil has tried so hard, for far too many years to keep us from having our children. And the simple fact that God is saving this child- wow, she/he will be a world changer!!! That is humbling!! That is intimidating!! That is amazing!! Thank you Jesus, we pray that we live up to your expectations of us as parents and raise him/her in the light of the Lord!  And be good role models and leaders for not only this child to-be but for other children you have planned for us!! For this, we feel so lucky!! Amen!
       Thank you for letting me ramble a bit and I pray you have a Jesus filled week! God bless!!

Chipping away... Making headway...

Good Evening!  May I say, God is good!! His mercy endures forever!!!

I just got back from night one of our weekend long, women's conference at our church,
 wow, it was a powerful night in the presence of the Lord!
Those women, sure know how to praise the Lord!!!

Thank you ladies for always being an encouragement to me and my walk!!  

Now, let me give a little update of how we are doing with our adoption process... 

We met with our adoption specialist a few weeks, got a lot of information and left feeling
really excited and ready to bring a new baby home!  All 5 of our Adoption Profiles
are in the agency's hands and are now waiting for expectant parents and birth mom's
to take a look and consider us to raise our future child.
Sitting back and waiting, is now the hardest part... so please 

pray that the Lord shows our profile favor and gets us connected with a momma. 

And always pray for a smooth adoption and complete peace over her as she 

proceeds through the process ahead. Thank you!:)

Also, our fundraising is still going strong!  We have just a small amount of 

puzzle pieces left to sell for our puzzle, so if you haven't bought one yet 

(or want to buy another one), please do!!  Also, please continue to share our blog

and fundraiser information with anyone who may be willing to partner with 

us in prayer and/or support our adoption by buying a puzzle piece.  

And I'm excited to say we raised a little over $450 just last Saturday morning

at our Adoption Fundraiser Garage Sale at our house.  (Thank you to 

all our friends who helped by donating items for us to sell!!!  You all are amazing!!:)

Not too bad for a few hours of work on an early Saturday morning, and there wasn't 

very much left to take for donation, just a car full... 95% of it sold that day!:) 

So we continue to chip away at our adoption fees, making good headway... 

We still have a bit to go, but God is good and He will provide, for all that ask or need.

And remember, there's still time to buy some puzzle pieces!!!! 

May God bless you all this evening, and thank you again for 

all your support thus far with prayers, support and encouragement!!  

We are so blessed to have you all in our lives and with us on this journey! 

God Bless!!!:)

Moving Forward!!

Hi y'all!!! It's been a while since I have been able to sit down and give an update, thank you for being patient, yet again... I am so excited to give this update!!!

First, our profile is COMPLETE!!!  And being processed right now... well, actually according to Shutterfly it's being shipped and should be delivered within the next few days!!!  Thank you Jesus!!!  The profile was a long and educational process... fun because I was able to look back over the past 7 years of marriage and 12 years together with my husband and reflect on all the wonderful memories we have created and the life we are building together... It was incredible... But hard because I had to fit 12 years into a single book and not make it overwhelming for a birth mom.  I want her to know everything about us, but to narrow it down, make it simple and give her the "best picture" of us, well, took a lot of time and emotion.  But, like all good things, it's complete and will very soon be placed (physically) in the Lord's hands.  To show it to that very special woman, who has that very blessed baby, who is intended for us!!! Thank you Lord!!!:)

Secondly, our puzzle fundraiser is nearly done, we have only 80 pieces left!!!  It's so close, exciting to see it progress and take form, thank you all for helping us get this far!!  Keep spreading the news, let's finish as strong as we started!! Once our profile is turned in, we have to pay $9,000 to Bethany to move forward, so these last few pieces mean so much for that movement.

And thirdly, we are planning another fundraiser for those in the Huntsville area, we are planning a "Pack the House Night".  This simply will be: a give day in September (date to be determined soon), we will be asking all of our friends to come support us and collect as many others they know, to eat at a specific restaurant (location to be announced soon).  That's it, come, eat, and enjoy... the restaurant will then donate a specific amount of all proceeds from that day, to our adoption.  More information to come... stay tuned!!

So blessed for all our supporters, we are doing well and want to continue with the same momentum we started with... Please continue to share our blog, our information and story as we continue along this wonderful path.  Prayers for y'all daily, God Bless!! 

Profile nearly ready to turn in!!!:)

Good evening!!! At this point, we are working on our Profile which is what birth moms will be handed when considering families for their child.  There is a lot of pressure on this book (which is a Shutterfly picture book with lots of information to back up the photos of us and our lives). This is the first and sometimes the only impression we get to impress upon a birth mom/parents... a lot is riding on our book...  Picking the best photos, writing our lives,..our hopes, our dreams... our promises to her about the life we will give our beautiful blessing...

I am so excited, but nervous at the same time.  Will a birth mom like our book... our photos, our information, our story enough to want to know more about us...? I know we have the favor of the Lord, but I also trust that others who are walking similar paths as us and whose hearts also lead them to adopt, are also abiding under the blessings of the Lord.  We pray everyday for the birth parents and baby, to bring us together, to raise our profile to the top of the list and to show us favor.  And on that prayer we stand! 

Please continue to pray for our journey, for creativity as I finish the profile and for the Lord's favor to be upon our profile and for His timing!  It's already been along wait to get us to this point, now that we are coming up on the finish-line, we don't want to rush the Lord.  Our baby is out there, and I know when he/she is ready, we will come together.  Thank you everyone for your unending support and prayers!!

Please continue to spread our information and fundraising, we are only $8000 away from the total amount needed to adopt our baby!!  And we are only 86 puzzle pieces away from finishing our puzzle!  Please continue to be patient as we piece it together, it truly is a very difficult puzzle... but totally worth it when it's all put together and displayed in the nursery! God Bless you all!!! 

88 to go....

For those who have been checking in on the blog for updates, I am SOO sorry for the prolonged silence... It's been a really busy month, FULL of wonderful blessings and answered prayers...but to get us there, there were some stressful moments... Oh, and a completed home study!!!!:)

To catch everyone up, our AC failed us for the last and final time, including a time while my parents were here in town, helping us put together our nursery (yeah!!!:) Nearly a full month of no air drama during a heat wave our AC finally was REPLACED!! No more "bandaides" for us, it's brand-spanken-new!!!  All thanks to our good Lord!!  Perfect timing as we are preparing our home for our new baby!!!

Then came my dad's (semi) retirement party, which meant a long drive... with a happy ending- my family!!!  So grateful for this timing too, because grammy and grampy will need to come down more often to help with the new grand baby!!!:)  Yeah! Dad's party was amazing, nearly 140 people piled into their backyard to show him how much he's loved and to enjoy the delicious BBQ- yummo!!!  Dad also asked for no gifts, but for people to donate instead to Baby Alexander, and helping them become Grandparents!!!  In one day alone, thanks to my dad's generous heart, caring friends and the grace of God, we sold 250 puzzle pieces!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! But the blessings didn't stop there, there was an anonymous donor (who ended up being my parents- "thank you so much mum and daddy!!!:) who had planned to match the donations that day... Which brought our puzzle sales to an astonishing 910 pieces sold!! Praise God!!!!!!

The following weekend we have a large family reunion, it was an amazing weekend...despite flight issues and delays... but even then God never failed to amaze us- He had our plane held and a shuttle waiting for us to pick us up from our delayed plane to take us straight across to our waiting plane!!  God is so good!:)  It was  a wonderful weekend, I just love our reunions, Habeckers, I love you dearly!!!:) Two more puzzle pieces sold and now we have 912 sold with only 88 to go...

Only 88 to go... so I encourage you all, if you have wanted to donate and have your names on our puzzle that we and our baby will treasure and see everyday, don't wait any longer!!!:) I love this tangible memento of our supporters to display in our home forever and it means so much to us if you would help us start our family!!:)  Every dollar, every prayer means so much, I can't tell you how much your support means to us!!! To think, we can have a family because of the Lord blessing us with so many people who believe in us and helping us do something that is simply a financial burden!! Thank you Thank you Thank you!!!  I pray many blessings over you all who are reading this and praying for our family!!

God Bless you All!!:)

Home Study is COMPLETE!!!!

Not much to say this evening except, OUR HOME STUDY IS COMPLETE!!!!:)  WHOO-HOO!!!  Praise Jesus!!  All our background checks, reports and such, all done!!!  Load off our backs!!!:)

He is praise worthy, Worthy of our praise

As we sit here, two days away from our 7 year wedding anniversary, 

we reflect over the years filled with blessing and challenges that only

made us stronger.  Grateful for every moment with each other, and happy to announce 

this special day, that WE HAVE MET OUR HALFWAY PUZZLE GOAL!!

We have sold 505 puzzle pieces!!  He, indeed is worthy of our praise!!! 

Without our Lord, who has brought us to this moment of adoption

and through 7 years so far of happily married life, we never would be going 

through this wonderful experience.  

Just so that everyone understands, we are needing to raise 20,000 dollars for our 

domestic infant adoption.  So far we have raised roughly over 8,000 dollars 

leaving 12,000 left. We have provided a new financial thermostat on the 

right side of the blog showing our progress. Our home study paperwork is being sent 

through finalization for approval at this moment due to all of our background checks, 

state checks, and various criteria we had to meet all being met, Praise the Lord.  

We are working now on our Profiles, which are the books that the birth mothers 

will be looking at.  We have to create five of these books all with information about us, 

our friends, our hobbies and interests, and how we will bring our child up in Christ.

We continue to pray for our donors, praying blessings over your household.  

Please continue to share our blog and information with those who have a heart for adoption and others.  Have a blessed Memorial day and God bless you all.

Mother's Day

This has been a rough blog to sit down to write. For many years, Mother’s Day has been a hard day for me to face. Of course, I celebrate my own wonderful mom, whom I love dearly, but the day is painful because it reminds me that I’m still not a mother myself. Honestly, for the past four years, I have tried to hide from Mother’s Day. Church is the hardest because no matter what church we're at or what pastor is preaching, the service is a tribute to women who have children and it's a painful reminder of what I don’t have. 

Some years, it has felt easier to avoid the day and stay home in bed.
            God is good and I am so extremely grateful for what the Lord is doing in our family and marriage. This adoption journey is so exciting and I look forward to motherhood! But as we head into Mother’s Day tomorrow, I still am not a mother. While I am happy for our adoption, I still struggle with not getting to experience pregnancy and giving birth, and I mourn that loss in my life.  I know some people won't understand this, and I don’t mean to sound whiny or ungrateful. But, tomorrow, part of me still wants to 

stay hidden under the covers of my bed and not face another childless Mother’s Day.

            For now, I ask you—our prayer warriors, partners and supporters—to pray for strength for me. I also ask you to please share our blog and dreams of parenthood, especially for Mother’s Day, in honor of your mother. Our puzzle total is so close to half-way; we have sold 488 pieces!!! In honor of your mother, please consider buying a puzzle piece. Every piece helps us reach our goal and brings us closer to our baby!!

Home Study

First of all I am so sorry this update is coming a week late...

As you know, our social worker came to our house last Saturday to conduct our home study visit. The previous day I spent the day DEEP cleaning and taking care of my sweet husband who just had oral surgery on a shattered tooth. Needless to say he was knocked out all day. So I cleaned!!!:)

Our visit went exceedingly well, better than expected!!! I have tried to remain organized over the last month while working on the paperwork. This paid off, when our social worker sat down to go over our paperwork he was extremely impressed and we breezed through. The interviewing went great and we all had a nice time together. The last to do was physical evaluation of the house. I have to brag here as he said the house was so clean he felt he could eat off the floor. (No joke, you probably could). We baby proofed everything that was expected, all safely item were in place and even extras. Our house tour was impressive to him! Yeah! He was also surprised to learn we have a cat, seeing how he is highly allergic to cats...normally he knows immediately when entering a house because he's so sensitive. More bragging rights to the cleanliness of the house.

So, the overall experience was awesome! All the paperwork has been turned in, and we are now in a final waiting period as we wait on one more background check to come through. Once that's collected, our home study will be submitted with APPROVAL!!:) I'll let you all know the moment that happens!!

Thank you to everyone who has and continues to pray for this journey! Thank you for all the financial support!! Thank you for continually believing in our dreams with us.

As you know, we were hoping to reach our half way point and reach 500 puzzle pieces sold by today, which is my birthday. We are at 469/500!!! We're so close!! Please keep spreading our info! Once our home study is approved then the real fees begin so these sales are extremely important!!

Thank you all, we cherish you all so dearly!!! God bless!!

 

(P.S. Many puzzle sales have come in just today, so puzzle does not reflect most recent sales... give us time to update puzzle to reflect appropriately.)

Our Prayers for You

  We are happy to say we finally have our home study visit scheduled, it will be next Saturday, April 19th! We are diligently filling out papers, knocking down our  pile and collecting  proper forms, all to turn in on next Saturday for review. Our social worker will be going over the paper work and reviewing our house to make sure we are prepared environmentally for our new baby!! Then we wait for approval, and then we move onto the next phase!!  Whoo hoo!! Prayers that the visit goes well!!:)
    We are also happy to mention we have sold 415 puzzle pieces!! It's slowed down a little but we are so grateful that we have sold so many in just two months. My goal is to be over 500 (half way) by the end of the month for my birthday!!:) So keep spreading the word.  Thank you so much!!!
     We also want you all to know, every morning during our prayer time together, we are lifting you all up, praying for you and thanking the Lord for the blessing of so many people believing with us in our dream!!!! We don't take a single dollar for granted!! We ask The Lord to bless you all for your generosity and caring hearts! We pray that you receive back sevenfold (see Matthew 13:8,23) what you donated in blessings!!! Hope you see these blessings soon!!!:)

Let us know what The Lord is doing in your life!!:)
      "A Blessed Life" by Robert Morris says, "Is there any question that those who give for the right reason and with the right heart do often gain or received a return? No question about it. The problem is the focus of the heart. We put our treasure where our heart is... see Matthew 6:20–21."  We are so thankful your hearts in the right place and are united with our hearts and dream... Be blessed!!

Refining

     These past several years of trying to start our family, believing God has a plan for us and for our children, has brought us through a lot of growth and "refining," developing our faith and trust in the Lord, so that now we simply respond to His voice and walk faithfully with Him.  And no matter what we face, as long as we walk it out with Him, we will make it through.

     1 Peter 1: 5-7 says, "You are being kept by the power of God because you put your trust in Him and you will be saved from the punishment of sin at the end of the world. With this hope you can be happy even if you need to have sorrow and all kinds of tests for awhile. These tests have come to prove your faith and to show that it is good. Gold, which can be destroyed, is tested by fire. Your faith is worth much more than gold and it must be tested also. Then your faith will bring thanks and shining-greatness and honor to Jesus Christ when He comes again."

    Trials and tests come in many forms; some would call them attacks. I've heard many times over the 20-something years I have been walking with the Lord that if you're not feeling the pressure from the Enemy, then you pose him no threat and you're not worth his time. But the moment you stand against him and follow Christ, he is threatened and will "attack" you... So here we are, following Christ and doing what He has called us to do, faithfully, and we are being attacked: delays with getting our home study started due to fingerprinting complications, my car breaking down, and numerous other repairs needed. (By the way if anyone has a reliable, affordable vehicle for sale, please let us know!) And it's all financial attacks, at this significant time when our finances will be scrutinized by adoption agencies. As many of you already know, we are Dave Ramsey followers and believe if we don't have the cash for something then we can't have it, so nothing is bought on credit. FYI, this is why we plan to fundraise and apply for grants to help fund our adoption.

    God is good and we know He will supply all our needs. And with the help of faithful friends we will get through this moment of "trials" and be stronger after. We are soooo very grateful for everyone who has bought (and continues to buy) puzzle pieces, for those who have donated on the side straight to our adoption and all the support we have received!!!  We are so close to saying we are half way through our puzzle fundraiser—we have sold 379 pieces!  Please continue to share our blog and Facebook (Bari-Alex Alexander), buy puzzle pieces, and cover our journey in prayer!!

    We will soon have a website also that will allow us to reach out to more people on the web and be found more easily by web searches—this should help us in many ways. Stay tuned!!:) Love you all and God Bless!!:)

"Paper Pregnant"

 

    It is official, we are on this exciting road of "home study" and we are "paper pregnant". The pile of papers keeps getting bigger and bigger yet we are chipping away at it... The physical home study of the home - to make sure we have the space for the baby, appropriate environment, safety, cleanliness, etc. And don't forget finger printing, background checks, physicals, pet vaccinations, etc. It's amazing to us how much a family has to go through to adopt a child but if anyone is able to get pregnant naturally they don't have to get finger printed or checked out to make sure you're providing a safe home. The hoops we have to jump through seem a little excessive when there is such a need... But, I/we will do whatever we must to be obedient to our Lord and bring home our baby boy or baby girl. Giving him/her a happy home, safe, clean home...a future.

    Thanks again for all the donations!!! Our hearts are so overwhelmed with the outpouring we have received, you all are amazing!!! We have sold 329 puzzle pieces!!!!! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Please continue to spread our information, our fundraiser and cover this with prayer!!!

     Just a reminder, puzzle pieces are $10 each, we are then writing names of the donors (or sponsors) on the back.  Then when the puzzle is complete we will display the puzzle in our house in a two-way frame so we can see the meaningful picture and the names of all those who supported us and helped our dream come true!!! 329 out of 1000!!!! Every piece counts and means so much!!!:)

Hand to hand... Heart to heart

We have enough money raised for our first phase of this adoption!!! Praise the Lord!!! We have sold 259 puzzle pieces, which means we have 1/4 of the puzzle sponsored. We have raised 1/10 the total cost of this adoption. :) Thank you to everyone!!

The money we’ve raised so far goes to first phase of the adoption process, which is our home study. That costs $1800.  The next step pretty much requires the rest of the puzzle being purchased. So please continue to share our info!!!

We also finally have our puzzle created with the photograph our friend Cristie Kase, www.cristiekase.com took for us. Now we can all watch as grows! I like to say that I'm "puzzle pregnant;” instead of watching a pregnant belly grow, I get to watch our puzzle grow. We’re assembling it now, and writing donor names on the back of the 259 pieces already sold. We’ll post photos soon!

From your heart to ours, piece by piece, our puzzle will grow. Only 741 pieces to go. Please keep spreading the word for us, sharing our blog with friends, family, church groups, and anyone who has a heart for adoption.   Every puzzle piece purchased means so much to us!!!:).

Thank you to all!!:)

Thank you!

Our hearts are overwhelmed with all the support and donations we have already received!!  The support is incredibly generous and thoughtful, and means so much to us, more than we can express.  It touches our hearts to see all the love from family, friend and even strangers who want to help us fulfill our dreams of becoming parents.  All these years of waiting have been hard, but now we can take action, and with your help, our dream of parenthood can become a reality for us!  Thank you, thank you, thank you!!

As of now, we have sold 186 puzzle pieces! Pictures of the progressing puzzle will be coming soon. Watch the image take form, just like our dreams!!  We have 814 pieces left, so please continue to share our fundraiser and blog with friends and family. The more exposure we get, the easier the fundraising will be, and the more prayer support we’ll have to surround our dreams. Thank you again for supporting us.

Note: The image for our puzzle is a photograph taken of us by our dear friend, Cristie Kase. We thought a heart was a good symbol for the love we both desire to give a child. A child of our own is truly our heart’s desire, and this heart is formed by our own hands. You can check out more of Cristie’s work at www.Cristiekase.com. Or, if you live near Huntsville, AL, consider Cristie as a photographer for your family’s precious moments. 

Piece by Piece: Help Us Piece Our Heart's Dream Together

Adoption is expensive, but we take heart in this promise:  ”And my God will meet all our needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus”  -Philippians 4:19

To that end, we have a 1,000 piece puzzle with a picture of a heart. We’re asking people to donate money toward our adoption fees and help us piece together our heart.

For $10, you can purchase 1 piece of the heart puzzle. You can purchase as many puzzle pieces as you wish!

$10 = 1 piece

$50 = 5 pieces

$100 = 10 pieces

We will write the name of the donor on the back of the piece(s) purchased.

When all the pieces have been purchased we will frame the puzzle to display it in our home as a reminder of the support and love shown to us during the adoption process.

This puzzle will be framed in a 2-sided frame to show not only our full heart, but the names of each and every person who played a role in completing our heart and bringing our baby home!! 

As the puzzle pieces are purchased, we will take pictures to show the progress. We’ll post those pictures here. It won’t be until all 1,000 pieces are purchased that we will be able to see the whole picture (much like this journey has been for us, putting it together piece by piece until God displays the final picture).

I am so excited about the idea behind this fundraiser. I absolutely LOVE the idea of showing Baby Alexander how many people loved him/her enough to purchase a puzzle piece and help us put together our heart. Just imagine seeing ALL of those names of the people who wanted to help grow our heart and our family!

You can purchase a puzzle piece(s) or donate to our adoption by:

1) Using the PayPal “donate” link here.  

2) Sending cash or check directly to: Steven and Bari Alexander 887 Pine Grove Road, Harvest AL 35749.  

100% of funds donated will go directly to adoption fees.

Ready….Set…Go!

Who is going to be our FIRST puzzle piece? I can’t wait! 

Bari's Story

Bari says: 

“Adoption has always been on my heart, even as a child. Even if we didn't have fertility issues, I have always wanted to adopt. Initially it wasn’t on the table for Steven, but I was patient and diligent in prayer. And then God moved us to Alabama, where most of our closest family-friends are either adoptive parents or are foster parents. I believe God placed us in this environment to change Steven's heart, and his heart has changed! It has been beautiful to watch!!! It's an amazing thing to physically/spiritually/emotionally see the hand of God move and mold!!! It makes me tear up to think about all that He has done in us over the past 4 years and all He will do through us in years to come.

"Our hearts are in sync, and we are both ready to adopt! We are very excited!! We've known we wanted to do this since Jan 6th, which was an important day (besides, it's my beloved gram's birthday). Since then we have been praying hard for wisdom to know where to go from here, shopping around agencies to find the right fit for us, and other such details.

"It's astonishing for me to see how excited Steven is, especially since 4 years ago he said he "would never adopt"... Lol, God is sooo big!! Steven also said he "would never go to Africa" and he did that last year!! He should learn to not say "never" to God...:) because that's exactly what He will tell him to do! I am so grateful that my husband has become so sensitive to voice of God and is so obedient to follow and do what He asks of him!!:) Praise The Lord!!!:)”