No Words.

Yesterday I received an email with new pictures and a video of my son.  Normally, I would immediately stop doing whatever I was doing to devour these images.  That’s what happens when you only get to see your child via media, once a month tops.  However, yesterday when I saw the email pop up, I quickly closed it and really didn’t think about it again until later in the evening. 

It’s not that I don’t care. Or that I don’t want to see how my child is developing.  Or that I was too busy. 

It just hurt too much.

You see for a brief, sweet week I held my son in my arms.  I fed him. I rocked him to sleep. I woke up to his chattering.  I tickled him. I soothed his cries.  I was his mom. Not just in a legal sense or a theoretical sense.  In a real, tangible way I was able to parent him – a privilege that has been out my grasp this entire year. 

And one week ago, I let someone take him out of my arms. I kissed his cheeks, whispered that I loved him, and walked away.  Not because I wanted to but because I had no choice. 

There are no words for this situation.

Get Your Kids to Read AND Support Our Adoption

How is that not a Win Win situation?  I have this amazing, incredibly talented, life-long friend by the name of Annie Tipton.  In addition to her many notable attributes, she is the author of a series of kids' books called Diary of a Real Payne.  I have read books 1 and 2 and they are awesome with a great message.  Book 3 just released this week.

Here is what Amazon has to say about the series:
"Old Schoolhouse Magazine's Best Children’s Book for 2013.  True Story! . . . These pages from EJ Payne’s diary will have you ROTFL as you witness her spunky personality and well-meant-but-often-misunderstood antics. You’ll fall in love with this first release in the Diary of a Real Payne series as EJ records her thoughts and feelings about living in little old Spooner, Wisconsin (snooze!), eventually leaving her hometown to do big things when she’s all grown up (oh glorious day!), and having to star in the role of lead angel in the Vine Street Christmas pageant (are you kidding me?). This colossal-fun series is overflowing with humor and memorable life lessons." 


Annie has oh so generously donated copies of her first two books to our family to help us fund raise for our adoption.  Did I mention she's awesome?   


These books are geared for readers age 8-12.  They make a great gift as well!  

If you are interested, I am offering each book for $6 or the set of 2 for $10.  Buyer covers shipping if needed.  This is the ONE item I don't want you to get on Amazon because if you purchase directly through me, we receive ALL of the proceeds.  Please call, email, FB, text or leave a comment here if you are interested.  

Mrs. Long Goes to Washington

My fellow DRC Families and I are headed to Washington, D.C. to advocate for our kids who need to be home with their families.   

Here's what this boils down to:  

These are kids who don't have permanent, stable families who have been legally adopted into a willing forever family and those families are being denied the ability to parent those children. 

Virtually all of these families are pouring every penny they have into completing their families. If you are able, please consider making even a small donation to help cover the cost of this trip. I know folks that could use airline miles and hotel points as well. I've watched people squeeze blood from turnips to make this trip and fight for their kids. Please consider blessing their efforts  

http://www.gofundme.com/a6cl5k

There's a whole lot going on in the world of international adoptions right now. I can't share most of it and don't want to talk about the rest of it, but please just keep praying for this process. Hopefully I can share more soon.

In the mean time, we really need to get back to fundraising. We have been sooooo incredibly blessed by some amazing friends who are sharing their gifts in some way with us.

My dear friend and kindred spirit, Stephanie, is hosting a garage sale for us in Iowa this weekend, which is just awesome.  If any of our nonIndiana friends feel compelled to follow suit, we won't stop you :)  Praying for a big turnout! 

Also, our very crafty friend Allison is donating proceeds from some of her wares for our adoption as well! 

This is how I know Allison is awesome - she sews rice bags that you can microwave and use as muscle relaxing, warming, snuggly objects. (And when my dog ate the rice bag, she happily made me another. Twice.) That's not a great description, but trust me, they're lovely.  

She also sells these very pretty candles that she swears by and is donating any proceeds from those as well.

I gave my mom, MIL, SIL, and sis a rice bag last year for Christmas and everybody likes candles.  These are clearly items you need AND you can gift.  And you could put them together and make a nice therapeutic, relacing combo...just sayin'.

So you can check her out here :http://www.evesemporium.net/long-family.hatml

Happy Mother's Day to my own amazing mama and all the incredible mothers I am surrounded by.

This Mother's Day is a little different for me.  This is the first year where I have really felt this:

And for all the stupid, ignorant comments that I field on why sometimes kids need a permanent family...or maybe why MY specific kids need a permanent family: 

http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/mothers-day-2014-congo-worst-place-be-mother-1442176

Yes.

You never know the day your life is going to change.  You wake up thinking it's just a normal Saturday and you are going to do normal Saturday things. And life is going to carry on like normal as it always does.  On this particular Saturday, we were slated to attend an annual gathering of many of our adoption friends.  I love this party and love getting to see so many people that I typically only interact with through cyberspace.  This would also be the first time I would see two families that were with me in Africa.  The first time that I finally got to take my own African princess to the party instead of staring enviously at the families around me whose kids were home.

On this particular Saturday my world was going to be flipped upside down.  All the things that I had accepted regarding Harper's past life were shattered.  Instead I found myself hearing some of the most astonishing news I could ever fathom.  Things that are far too personal to be blogging about.  Most of which I really haven't processed fully yet.

Fast Forward 6 weeks.

Six weeks filled with gut wrenching decisions, sleepless nights, jam packed days, tears, questions, piles of paperwork, unfathomable joy, flickers of hope and a sense of wonderment about how life just makes sense sometimes.

So it is with great pleasure that the Long family is announcing that 

we will be expanding one more time.  

Because our family wasn't quite complete, we just didn't know it yet.

Apparently Madeline knew.  About 3 days before this all happened, she spent dinner one night asking us when we would be getting a baby brother.  We chuckled and informed her that our family was wonderful just the way it was.  As she has a strong argumentative streak, she continued to press about why we needed a baby brother.  Silly child....

As it turns out, Harper has a biological brother. Over there of course.  And he is also in need of a forever family.  And like I said, it turns out our family wasn't quite complete yet.  So Long, party of 5 is in the works. 

Honestly, this is going to be hard. 

WAY harder than last time. 

WAY longer than last time.

We weren't thinking about it. Or talking about it.  We were making other plans. Big life plans.  

We weren't ready.  We weren't prepared.  

But when God calls your name, you answer.  You change your plans. You change your heart.  And you say yes.   

STUCK

Over 6 months ago, a particular government office in the home country of our youngest daughter (don't you love the vagueness of all of this?), suspended issuing exit permits for adopted children.  Many families who were told they would still get an exit permit are still waiting.  Families I traveled with.. In July.  It's DEVASTATING to see the number of kids that are being impacted by this.  The number of kids who have been legally adopted but are unable to unite with their forever families.  The number of parents that are unable to effectively parent their children because of this situation.  While I absolutely respect this country, this decision is putting families in a very very sticky situation to the detriment of already delicate children.

Both Ends Burning is an organization dedicated to helping children who are STUCK in sticky political situations in international adoption unite with their forever families.  Both Ends Burning is working probono with the families of this country to resolve the situation.  The sad reality is that the U.S. government and State Department have done little to nothing to resolve this situation, which includes even having a clue about just how many families are impacted by this.  In conjunction with Both Ends Burning, I am working with a small army of families with a vested interest in seeing this resolved.

Please take a few minutes to sign this petition, which will go to your respective representatives.  For $3 you can have a paper copy sent.  Let your reps know that this matters to ALL of us.

http://www.petition2congress.com/14960/please-help-resolve-pending-adoptions-from-democratic-republic-co/

Feel free to share as well.  In 3 hours we have sent over 10,000 letters!