Happy Father's Day!

We are blessed to have dads who love and encourage us and have done that our entire lives. They are both men who we respect, enjoy spending time with, and are excited to see as grandfathers. We know they will love our children deeply, because they have taken such good care of us.

We thank God that He blessed us with these men as our dads. Happy Father's Day! We love you both so very much.

Book Giveaway: "Adopted For Life"

As Mackenzie and I shared, Russell Moore's book, Adopted For Life has been a tremendous resource for us as we've started pursuing adoption. So much so that we wanted to give you all an opportunity to win a free copy.

To enter to win:

• Visit the Antioch Adoptions website.
• Find the Scripture reference on their homepage. (While you're there, you can also check out some of the amazing stories from this ministry and learn how you can help support them.)
• Email that Scripture reference to me at cliffe@marshillchurch.org and include "Book Giveaway" in the subject. One entry per person.
  

I'll announce the winner on Wednesday, July 7th.

Time Flies

Six years ago today, all the preparations came to an end and Cliff and I were married in Naperville, Illinois, with treasured family and friends in attendance. It was a wonderful day, a point of great celebration in our lives.

These six years that have followed have been full of many highlights, as well as difficult moments that God used and continues to use to teach us to rely on Him. I am so thankful that God brought us together years ago and my prayer is that we can enjoy many decades of marriage to come.

Last night we had the opportunity to celebrate together. Cliff planned a wonderful evening. We started by heading to dinner at Spring Hill in West Seattle. The restaurant opened a few years years ago to great acclaim, has been noted in many national culinary magazines, and has been on my list to try for awhile. It certainly lived up to its reputation.

As we looked over the menus, our server brought us complimentary glasses of sparkling wine to help us celebrate. Before our entrees arrived, we enjoyed homemade bread and a crab cake that melted in our mouths. For dinner, Cliff ordered the halibut which he described as the best piece of fish he's eaten-not even a hint of "fishiness". I had a hangar steak smothered in caramelized onions and served with homemade french fries. Delicious and particularly enjoyable as all of the food is homemade and/or local.

We absolutely loved the delicious food, but the unassuming and unpretentious atmosphere really made us feel at home. We could not have enjoyed our dinner more.

We then headed out to the Washington Dance Club for a Tango lesson. We arrived to a somewhat empty ballroom, where we signed in and got ready for our lesson. There were about ten other people there for the hour long class. The instructor did a good job of walking us through each step, but doing so with patience and a sense of humor. Even though I have dance experience, I don't know a thing about ballroom dancing and was certainly out of my element. We did our best to keep it lighthearted and had a great time together.

After the lesson, many other people began showing up for the social dance that followed. There were some very skilled and serious dancers that arrived. Cliff and I took one Tango tour of the dance floor and then left the rest of the evening to the professionals. We had a great time laughing and learning together, but that will likely be a once in a lifetime experience for us!

Our evening echoed what the last six years have been like:

• full of new experiences
• moments of uncertainty and challenge
• me learning to look to Cliff as the leader
• accidentally stepping on each others' toes, then asking for forgiveness
• laughing together

I look forward to many more! Happy 6th Anniversary, Cliff! I love you.

Where are we in the adoption process?

We get this question a lot. The truth - the very beginning. I guess for me it will always feel like the beginning until that sweet baby is placed in our arms.

A couple of weeks ago, we took an important step in the process having our pre-screening interview at Antioch Adoptions. We met with Michele, the Executive Director, and answered a number of questions ranging from why we wanted to adopt, to our family backgrounds, to our marriage, and certainly much more. We expected to share all of this information, but I appreciated how conversational and practical it was. Michele shared her experiences as an adoptive mom with us and honestly and openly answered our questions. We also met with a pastor at Antioch Bible Church for a pastoral interview to confirm that we are in fact Christians, as that is one of the criteria of them placing a child into our family. We feel very blessed to have such skilled, compassionate, and God-fearing people surrounding us in this process.

Our next steps are to attend a number of trainings, which we hope to do this summer and fall. Specifically:

• Equip 101, which is Antioch Adoptions' pre-PRIDE training for families planning to adopt.
• PRIDE training through the state.
• Equip 201, which is Antioch Adoptions' post-PRIDE training.

I appreciated Michele's honesty in laying out our timeline, which could range from 1-3 years. Certainly according to God's perfect plan, things could go much more quickly, but could also go more slowly. Our prayer is that we wait humbly and patiently for God's timing and not be overcome by our desire to be parents.

We are so excited about how God will use this amazing ministry to impact our family and others. We would ask that you pray with us for the staff of Antioch Adoptions, financial provision for this ministry, and for us as we await the arrival of our children.

"Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!"
Psalm 27:14

Goodreads: Social Media For Readers

I enjoy Facebook and Twitter as much as the next social media fanatic, but in many ways my favorite social media site is Goodreads. This is a great site for bookworms like myself, who enjoy keeping track of what they read, reading and sharing reviews and ratings, seeing what friends are reading, and discovering new books.

There are many other features that I haven't even explored yet, but one of my favorite organizational options is the customizable bookshelves. The site allows you to create different bookshelves to arrange your books anyway you like. I try to keep mine simple: currently reading, to-read, and read. My "to-read" list is a bit daunting, but it's good to know there's never a shortage of books to read and things to learn--keeps me humble.

Teresa, my best "Goodreads friend" (and a great friend in real life, too), pointed out recently that my "read" list has been heavily weighted with theological books. That's not a bad thing, of course, but she encouraged me to throw in a piece of fiction every now and then, which I definitely plan to do after finishing the Re:Train program next month.

If you haven't already, I'd encourage you to join Goodreads, add your books, and add me as a friend, so I can keep up with what you're reading.