Celebration!

Amazing...that's the only word that can describe the past two weeks. What a blessing it has been to finally be able to bring Jeremiah home ~ home to his forever family.

Our trip to Ethiopia was pretty uneventful and filled with much excitement, curiosity, and anticipation. Upon our arrival on Monday, January 30th, after a full day of travel, we were able to choose if we wanted to pick Jeremiah up that day or wait until Tuesday after we were rested up. Of course, we chose to get him on Monday! We have waited 2+ years for this day and we weren't going to let a little jet lag slow us down.

So, after we got settled into our room, we headed to the orphanage to get Jeremiah. When we arrived at the orphanage, all of the children were seated in a room...ready for the going away party. The nannies had Jeremiah dressed in a traditional outfit and as they brought him out, all of the kids were chanting his name. They then sang a couple of songs. Then they had a coffee ceremony for us, along with popcorn and bread. We were able to take some pictures of the event and also took some of Jeremiah and his nanny. It was a bittersweet moment for all of the workers at the orphanage as they were happy for Jeremiah, but sad knowing that they would miss him terribly.

Once we got back to the guest house, we quickly realized how much work a 10 month old is as we started the repetitive tasks of feeding, burping, changing diapers, bathing, rocking, and playing with Jeremiah. We were also able to confirm what we already knew ~ that Jeremiah has a great personality and has an infectious smile and laugh. That first day, we examined him from head to toe, constantly gazed at him, cuddled him, and kissed every square inch of his body (several times!).

On Wednesday, we had our Embassy appointment. The goal of this meeting is to be approved for a Visa to bring Jeremiah into the United States. They had already reviewed all of our paperwork, investigated the case, and were now ready to interview us. This process should be pretty straightforward, however they could make it complicated if something stood out. In our case, it went perfect! A couple of questions from the agent...and we were approved for his Visa.

We left on Friday night to return home...and after a brutal 29 1/2 hour flight (due to weather, airline, and airport complications) we arrived in Indianapolis to family and friends awaiting their first meeting with Jeremiah. We are so blessed to have such a great family and friends who are very supportive. They all immediately fell in love with Jeremiah as he cooed and grinned at them all.

We have now been home almost a week and it all seems so surreal. A process that took over 2 years to complete is now a reality. Jeremiah is adapting wonderfully. He loves playing with Jaden and Justin and exploring all of the new sights. He is also saying "da da" and "mam ma" which melt our hearts!

All in all the experience has led us through many emotions, but the joy in our hearts that we currently have trumps any past feelings of sorrow, anticipation, worry, or heartache. We continue to pray for the many families that have yet to bring their children home. We pray for comfort and contentment for the new daddies and mommies as they await the completion of their next step. We also pray for the health and safety of all the children that are awaiting their turn to be placed with a family.

As I complete this post, Jeremiah is on the living room floor playing with Justin...a day that just a few months ago seemed so far away. What a blessing!! God is good, all the time!!

Living at Cedar Point

Each time that we reach a milestone, a milestone that one time seemed so far away nonetheless, we have a quick celebratory moment. Then, we come back to reality and realize that we now have another milestone that we are waiting for...and even though the waiting times shorten the farther into the process we get, those shorter wait times cause the most pain!

Let's back up. After our Thanksgiving visit to Ethiopia where we first met Jeremiah and had our court visit, we came home in a daze. We were exhausted, but energized...sad to leave, but happy to know that we were much closer to getting Jeremiah...anxious to complete the final step, but relaxed knowing that God was and has always been in control. The next step in the process once we returned home from Ethiopia was getting Jeremiah's passport and birth certificate and then submitting our case to the U.S. Embassy. From there, the Embassy issues a Visa after they review the paperwork to determine if everything is in order. Our case was submitted to the U.S. Embassy on December 20th ~ 25 days from the last time we saw Jeremiah.

After the first of the year, we learned that the Embassy required a little more information about our case and that they would receive the information on January 19th. So, a few more weeks of waiting was on our agenda. Our anticipation built as we prayed we would receive notification that our case was approved when we woke up this morning...and to our amazement, we did indeed have an email from the U.S. Embassy that our case was approved!

Once again, we were quick to celebrate this huge milestone! In the email, the Embassy requested that we submit three dates for an appointment at the U.S. Embassy in Ethiopia. They would then check their schedule and let us know when our appointment would be so we could schedule our travel and BRING JEREMIAH HOME! Well, we didn't waste any time and submitted three dates by 7:00 a.m. this morning. Since that was only 3:00 p.m. Ethiopian time, we were hopeful that we would have a response by late this morning. Two of the dates that we submitted were for next week and one was for the week of January 30th...so, in our minds, we were quickly forming a plan of attack to be ready to leave and bring Jeremiah home. The notification that we were hoping for never came so our response expectation was pushed out to tomorrow morning. Then, this afternoon we found out that tomorrow is Epiphany day in Ethiopia...which means that all government offices (including the U.S. Embassy) will be closed. UGHHH!! Now, the earliest we will hear anything will be Monday.

Our waiting ~ started out as years as we worked on our dossier and waited for a referral...then went to months as we waited for a court date and Embassy approval...and is now down to days as we wait for an Embassy appointment.

Even though we are only waiting until Monday to learn of the date that we will be reunited with Jeremiah, it seems like an eternity. It has been 55 days since we have held him - 55 days since we have seen his smile - 55 days since we have gazed into his eyes. But soon...and, yes, very soon, we will be bringing him home forever.

If you are not familiar with the amusement park Cedar Point...it is an amusement park made up mostly of roller coasters. Some are small and short in length; some have loops and tunnels; some are extremely fast; but they are all rollercoasters! Well, we pretty much feel that we have been living at Cedar Point over the past couple of years going from rollercoaster to rollercoaster. And right now, we are all in ~ heading down the steepest hill, hands high in the air, stomach in our throats, with huge smiles made of fear!!! Monday's going to come and we will soon learn of our date with the Embassy and make our travel plans. This is so hard...but the prize at the end is so worth the wait! Thank you so much for your continued prayers. We can't wait for you to meet our son. God bless.

No, not yet.

Most all of our conversations here recently have begun with "Have you heard anything?". And, unfortunately, our answer is always "No, not yet.". It has been 5 weeks since the Ethiopian court approved Julie and I to be the parents of Jeremiah. (And boy have these 5 weeks been long!) However, we are still waiting for the US Embassy to issue him a Visa so we can bring him home. Home to a community that is anxiously awaiting his arrival...home to a house that has been prepared especially for him...home to a family that can't wait to care and provide for him.

All along, we didn't really think that we would have him home for Christmas. But, deep down we were praying that we would! The waiting is definitely more intense now that we have met him and know that we are literally days away from heading back to Africa to bring him home. There is an aching in our hearts that something is missing from our lives...and that something is Jeremiah. It has even been a little concerning here recently as we have received word that Jeremiah has been sick. Even though he is our son, we feel so helpless knowing that we can't comfort him and nurture him back to good health.

Understandably so, our life is about to get a spin...however, it is a spin that we are ready for and willing to endure. Hold tight Jeremiah! Mommy and Daddy will be there soon.

He is ours!

Much has happened since our last post! We have traveled to Ethiopia, met Jeremiah, appeared in court, and officially adopted our son. During the week of Thanksgiving, while most Americans were eating turkey, watching football, and shopping, we were making the long trek to Ethiopia and visiting the orphanage that has been Jeremiah's only home for his short life. On Friday, November 25th, we appeared in Ethiopian court to finalize the adoption...and much to our joy, the adoption was approved! This means that Jeremiah is legally our son. Unfortunately, there is still the process of receiving a passport and Visa from the U.S. Embassy, which takes a few weeks. So, we headed back to Indiana to wait in anticipation of the call allowing us to return to Ethiopia to pick Jeremiah up.

In just a few weeks, we will be able to bring Jeremiah home to his forever family! Now that we have met him, it makes the waiting much harder. However, meeting him has also confirmed how blessed we are to have been paired up with this marvelous little boy. He is perfect...with his huge eyes, long eye lashes, and cute smile. In just the short time that we were allowed to spend with him, we have already picked up on his adorable little traits - such as the way that he sticks his tongue out sideways. Our trip could not have been anymore enjoyable or smoother! For this, we thank you for the prayers. Prayers of safety, travel mercies, and for all of our paperwork to be in order and approved. Your prayers were felt throughout the entire trip and for that we are truly grateful. Please continue to pray for Jeremiah and his health, for the other children in the orphanage, for the other families that are in the process of adopting children, and for patience during our last few weeks waiting. God Bless!

One Week From Today!

It's hard to believe that after 24 months, we are finally going to meet the little person that has been in our prayers for so long. A little boy that we were praying for long before he was born. Prayers of protection, love, and comfort. In just 7 days, all of our waiting and anticipation will be over as we are introduced to Jeremiah for the first time. Although our meetings will be short lived and we will have to return home from this trip without Jeremiah, the reality of our dream is coming to fruition and he will be with his forever family very soon.

Currently, Jeremiah lives at Help For The Needy, an orphanage in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. He has spent his entire 7 1/2 months of life in the care of the workers that dedicate their time to caring for orphaned children. The majority of his life has been spent inside the walls of the orphanage, unable to see (and too young to understand) what lies beyond those walls.

Then here we are...clear across the world. Blessed beyond imagination with more than we need. Able to see the world and experience all that this physical life has to offer. However, sometimes these blessings create blinders...preventing us from seeing inside the walls of the orphanage; unable to see and experience the physical life that abandoned and orphaned children are living.

As I think about our physical life and the many blessings and challenges that we all experience throughout our existence, I can't not think about the temporariness of our time on Earth. How one simple decision to allow Jesus into our heart can open up blessings beyond our imagination for an Eternal Life. One that will provide more than we need and one that will not allow sorrow and despair.

Soon and very soon...Jeremiah will get to see what lies outside of his current home. The increased opportunities, blessings, and challenges that he will encounter by leaving his surroundings are unknown at this time. However, one thing that we do know is that Jeremiah will be loved, protected, and most importantly he will be introduced to a Savior that will offer him a life that he never would have imagined.

Black Friday

Much to our suprise, we received a court date yesterday! This was about 2-3 weeks before we were expecting to hear this news. (Notice that I said we were expecting to hear. All along we have learned that we don't know much and are not in control.) So...now it looks like instead of going to Florida for Thanksgiving and eating turkey and dressing we will be traveling to Ethiopia to meet Jeremiah and eating injera and wot. Our actual court date is November 25th. We are so excited!!

In everything that we have completed for the adoption to date and all of the milestones that we have put behind us, this is the first time that it feels real. Not only do we know what Jeremiah looks like, we now have an actual date that we are going to be able to hold him in our arms. It doesn't get much more real than that! I'm not saying that all of the past experience hasn't meant anything, it's just that nothing can compare to seeing him in the flesh and counting all of his toes and fingers, kissing on his cheeks, and looking into his eyes and knowing that he will soon be with his forever family.

We now have about 7 weeks to make travel arrangements, complete more paperwork, and prepare for the long trip 20+ hour trip to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Please continue to pray for Jeremiah and that he is receiving loving care, pray for Jaden and Justin and a smooth transistion from a family of 4 to a family of 5, and for our preparations to meet our son for the first time. Black Friday will never have the same meaning in the Sutliff household!

Just the Opposite

Well, we continue to wait for October 10th...which is when the courts re-open so the judge can assign us a court date. We are getting pretty excited as we anticipate our court date, our first trip to Ethiopia, and most importantly meeting Jeremiah for the first time. We continue to get monthly updates on Jeremiah's progress. He just turned 6 months old on September 28th and weighs almost 13 lbs. Every update shows progress and his photos portray him as a very happy and healthy young man!

During conversations with people about the adoption, a constant comment from people is that Jeremiah is one lucky kid. They always mention the opportunities that he will now have, the fact that he will be a part of a loving God-centered household, and being part of a family that will embrace him. However, Julie was recently having a conversation with someone about Jeremiah and they stated how we are so lucky. Lucky that God is entrusting us with Jeremiah, and the many blessings that he is sure to bring to our family.

Throughout this entire process, I have never felt that we were not supposed to be adopting. From the point that a decision was made, it has become part of our life. Almost a normancy of sort...a calling of faithfulness and obedience. There have also been thoughts of changing the life of a child by bringing him into our home. It's the least that we can do! Right? Or is it? I believe that our mindset should not be to change Jeremiah's life...but to change our life. We should be learning that God is changing us through this process as He shows us how to live a more Christ-centered life. A life that involves listening to, following, and obeying God's word. This is just another step in God's plan for us and we should understand that there may be many more to come.

This looks great in writing, but application is difficult. Sometimes, we have to go into things with our eyes wide opened, our ears fully listening and our mouths closed...and just let God direct us. Personally, there are many times that I forget this and have patches over my eyes, cotton in my ears and all the while my tongue is just a flappin'. Just remember - this isn't about what you are doing for someone else, it's about what God is doing for you. Blessings are abundant and we don't ever want to loose sight of that!