We have BIG news!
The Shenker family is growing!
[Note: All updates stack below this post]
Wesley is so excited to be a big brother, and we are so eager to add to our little family. You all have been unbelievably supportive during our IVF journey and Wesley's adoption, and we are beyond excited to welcome a second beautiful new life into our home.
We have renewed our home study and paid the initial funds to join the waiting list in the infant adoption program. We could be matched at any time, yet the expected wait time could be as long as ~ 3 years.
We once again invite you to join in on our journey. We could not have gotten Wesley into our arms without many of you. Here’s how you can help.
First, please pray for not only us, but our future son/daughter and whoever our baby’s birth parents are. Join us in praying for protection for mom/baby, health for mom/baby, and peace for the parents.
Could you please like/follow [“Baby Shenker” on Facebook] and give it a share? Maybe share our profile from our agency's website? [Link here] Self-matching is by far the fastest and most affordable way to match. You never know if someone following your social channels is considering an adoption plan or is looking for a loving family to raise their child.
It may surprise you to hear that we are expecting our adoption and related costs to reach $28,000. This is why we have set a fundraising goal on this page of $25,000 to help ease the financial burden that often overwhelms adoptive parents. We will be fundraising and applying for grants to cover the remaining balance. If you choose to donate financially, your gift is tax-deductible. We also plan to apply for a grant that would match whatever we've been able to crowd-source on this platform.
We hope that by inviting you into this process once again, you will see yourself as part of the village we hope to build around our children as they grow up.
Thank you for your prayers as we begin this process all over again! Your support - of any kind - truly means the world to us.
Love,
Scott, Amanda & Wesley
While Wesley is napping, I thought I'd share an update. I guess we don't have anything really huge to share, but here's what's on my mind...
We were initially told it could take up to 3 years to be matched, but we've been getting so many opportunities presented to us. The nationwide trends seem to finally be changing, and we are realizing we need to be ready sooner than later!
We never sit here and cheer that more babies are getting adopted - it's honestly gut wrenching to see mothers, parents have to make adoption plans for their babies, but on the other hand, it's beautiful to see new stories of redemption, many at-risk babies being placed in safe homes where they've been prayed for, yearned for.
This is, as most things in adoption are, both good and bad.
I think it's easy to think of adoption as a beautiful thing, but please know it is not always beautiful, even though we have savored every moment of Wesley's life. We've seen the pain it's caused to his birth mother and have yet to determine what kind of trauma he may have in his life as he grows and understands. On the other note, it's also been amazing and humbling to hear how grateful his birth mother is to us, how happy she is to watch him grow up thriving and always smiling. To have her blessing and gratitude upon us as we raise this boy, once her boy, is profound.
And on the other hand, many of you have seen first hand, how adoption been the greatest privilege of our lives. People have told us Wesley's lucky he has us, but Scott and I have said it's definitely the other way around. So many years of infertility behind us, the pain and grief of such loss... we think we're the lucky ones to have such a wonderful kiddo! Every time I wake up in the night with him, I thank God I have a baby to wake up to. And pray to the one who chose Scott and I to hold this baby in the first place.
Wesley will proudly tell you he's a "rainbow," and if you ask him "Who gave you to Mama & Daddy?" He proudly proclaims, "God!" Last night, I told him he was our Christmas gift one year, and he immediately thought of Santa... I guess still working on that one. ;) We've introduced the concept of adoption to him and as he gains understanding with age, we will share more of his story, where he came from, and even what we know about the other family who loves him and thinks of him every day. I'm going to make a little scrapbook for him so he has photos to go with names, as I'm sure he will be curious soon.
We are almost 2.5 and I do not exaggerate when I say that every day, Wesley has so much energy - far beyond what I have - and I can't help but think of all the things looming on my to-do list - but then I stop for a second and thank God that I have an active, healthy toddler to chase. When he asks "Watch a show, watch TV in Mama's bed??" literally 20+ times in a row, I thank God I have a child to ask me that, not to mention a child so verbally advanced. And when he lays on me, oh I love how he snuggles me; it always takes me back to the very first time I held all 5lbs of him in my arms, breathed him in, and knew my life would never ever be the same.
And so we are starting to ache for this next baby. It's almost time, and we are getting ready. Wesley is begging for a "baby sister." (We are a little unsure how he knows what a baby "sister" even is? Ha!) Either way, we have no idea if we'll have months to plan this time or 3 hours' notice as we did that one cold January day.
Thank to all of you for joining us on this journey, and as always, please PRAY for us and SHARE this or our Facebook page as often as you can. Not only have many families matched over social media, but the $10,000 savings off of our total adoption cost would be wonderful. :) If you feel led, please donate a tax-deductible amount of your choosing, perhaps skipping your coffee run tomorrow or a dinner out this week to help us bring this baby HOME.
I 100% know that just as God provided for Wesley's adoption/lawyer costs, God will provide for this little one. Please help us pray for God's provision.
With love,
Amanda
Adopt Together does take a 5% fee off of all donations to run the website/cover credit card fees. If you'd like to donate off-site, you have a few options. Please do what you're most comfortable with. 1) You can donate cash/check to Scott and I or 2) make a check out to our agency. Please reach out to us for details on the agency information. I don't believe either donation method would count toward the fundraising-matching grants, should we receive one, and I also don't believe either is tax-deductible as Scott and I ourselves aren't a tax deductible organization. I can look into donating to our agency in our name and whether or not that is tax-deductible, if anyone would like to know. You can always comment with your contact information here or privately reach out to me at http://www.facebook.com/babyshenker
