Happy Birthday, Charlie!

On Thursday, my husband's birthday, we received a special donor grant for $10,000!!  That makes a total of $14,500 in grants in the past week or so!  This pays for our 2 girl's country fees.  Those needed to be paid in full before we could travel.  So now, we can schedule our Embassy appointment.  We should be traveling the week of March 11th to go pick up our girls!!!

We still need about $6,800 for travel and visas for the girls and about $8500 for Gezaw's adoption fees, travel and visas before we pick him up late April.

At this point I know that I know, the Lord will provide everything we need.  But I am still knocking, asking, and reminding Him that we are still in need. 

We are having our Benefit Concert this Friday night.  Please pray for 1000 people to come!  So far our pre-concert ticket sales have been very slow. But, our God is able to do more than we can imagine or think!

Thanks for your continued prayers!

Received a Grant from Lydia Fund!

Praise God.  We had an over the phone interview tonight with the folks from The Lydia Fund and they decided to give us a grant!  One more step closer to picking up our girls.  But it's not over yet.  Keep prayin'!  If we get all the money we need soon, we can travel for our embassy date the week of March 11th!

Ready for Travel!

We got word today, that if we had all the money we needed, right now, we would be ready to make travel arrangements to pick up our girls.  All of their paperwork, birth certificates, passports, etc. are ready.  Please pray that the Lord would send us the finances we need to bring our girls home! 

Grants Pending

Right now we are being considered for 3 different grants!   Please pray that the Lord will release the much needed funds to us. 

Good news!

Gezaw's case has been submitted to Ethiopian court today.  If all goes well he could be home in 12 weeks! Pray!

The Lord found us our boy!

As you may know, we have been in the process of adopting 3 kids. 2 little girls, Zakeya & Dibora who passed court on Jan 21st. and Godeza, who did not pass court, in fact his Dad came and took him home.

We immediately asked Sue to put us on the waiting list for another infant boy. But God has His own plans. All we have to do is listen and when we hear His voice, we need to drop all of our own plans and agendas and embrace what He wants.

"I know the plans I have for you says the Lord. Plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future."

So after much wrestling with the Lord, :) we have laid our own plans down and we have joyfully decided to adopt Gezaw from the Waiting Boys list. He is 7 years old, has a sweet and gentle smile. In fact he is smiling in every picture. Even on his medicals, the Dr. noted that when he was there getting his exam, he was smiling.

Sue says he is paper ready and will be submitted to court next week. Praise God from whom all blessings flow!

Grant Money Awarded!

Praise God!
We got a call today from CARI and we have been awarded a grant!  This gets us one step closer to bringing our kids home!  Thank you Lord!  Keep Praying....

Upcoming Benefit Concert

We are having a Benefit Christian Concert, Friday, February 19th at 7 pm at East Middle School in Butte, Montana. 

The concert will feature local Worship Pastor and Contemporary Christian Artist, Leon Young, from Missoula, MT.  Leon just recently opened for Sanctus Real and Brandon Heath at the Ravalli County Fair in Hamilton, MT and for Big Daddy Weave in Missoula. 

Tickets are a $10 donation in advance and $12 at the door.  Tickets can be purchase online at www.wildprairiefarms.net/tickets.htm
All proceeds will go to the Schilling Family Adoption Fund. 

Tell your friends!

Joy & Hope

OK ... Weeping may last for a night, but joy comes in the morning.  Praise God!  We have 2 more little girls in our family!  So happy and excited to bring them home. 

Sarah Zakeya Joy
Rachel Dibora Hope

We are still waiting for mega funds to miraculously appear from heaven to pay our remaining fees.  We still have not heard from 8 of our grant agencies that we applied for.  We will not be able to travel until we pay our account in full.  Our embassy date could be as early as February 25th, 4 weeks from now!

Please pray for a miracle!  Please, Lord, hear our cries!

Good news and Bittersweet News

Today we received both, although unfortunately, the latter seems to overshadow the first right now.  Today our cases went to court in Ethiopia.

Our girls passed and are now legally ours.  Praise God.  I will post pictures when I regain my bearings.

Our little guy, Gadeza did not pass.  In fact his father came and instead of relinquishing him, he took him home.  This is really very good news. He gets to stay with his daddy.  So why am I so sad?  It feels as though I have had another miscarraige, I guess.  I have had to remind myself today, that he did not die.

So, we Praise God who is very much present in our lives.  He has a plan.  It is not our plan.  We want what he wants.  So we surrender to His will. 

This morning, we got on the waiting list for an infant boy.  We are only #3, but I believe we will have to have our money up front, before we can accept a referral this time, since we are still waiting on the rest of our financing for this adoption.

I am tired ... this has been a very lonnnnnng journey. Just when I thought we were at the top of the mountain almost ready to start on the downhill, we are at the bottom of another mountain, looking up. Our family will not be completed until our little boy is home.... whoever and wherever he is... please keep us in your prayers.

Today I grieve.  Tomorrow I will rejoice that I have 2 new little girls.