We’re adopting!
We are excited to announce that we have been accepted into the domestic adoption program with Christian Adoption Services! Since 2019, we have longed to grow our family. We tried for years to get pregnant biologically, eventually seeking medical assistance, but with no success or explanation. Then, in 2022, the Lord opened our hearts to the potential for adoption, and we began moving out of a place of grief and hopelessness to one of excitement and anticipation. We believe that God has given us this opportunity to trust in Him and in His plan for our lives, the baby’s life, and the birth parents’ lives. While we are excited about growing our family through adoption, we are also thankful for the opportunity to serve the birth parents who are making an incredibly brave and difficult decision. To help serve the birth family and child, domestic adoption costs can total up to $35,000. As part of our adoption process, we have started a fundraising campaign, which we are asking you to be a partner with us on this journey!
We've always known we wanted a family and children, and we were patient waiting for the right season to begin trying to get pregnant. When we began trying in 2019, it proved to be more difficult than we anticipated. Month after month turned into year after year. As we sought answers from the Lord and from doctors, there was no explanation for our infertility. Celebrating our 7th wedding anniversary, we asked each other what we'd like to be true of our marriage by the same time next year. We both agreed that we wanted to be taking active steps toward building our family. From there, we reached out to some families in our church who have adopted to hear about their experience and learn more about the adoption process. Through these conversations, God brought hope and excitement for what it would look like for us to adopt and what it means for us to be adopted children of the Father.
Ultimately, we decided to adopt domestically (in the US) for our first child because we wanted to experience the newborn phase with our child. We chose Christian Adoption Services as our adoption agency. We were drawn to them because of the care and love the provide to birth mothers and adoptive families. It was clear throughout our conversations with them that their heart is to support and provide healing to everyone involved. We began our adoption process in May by attending an initial orientation, and then we officially applied into the CAS program on June 24th. By August, we were accepted into the program and began the rigorous paperwork phase. After background checks, CPR training, financial disclosures, and reference letters, we moved on into the Home Study phase in December 2022!
From here, the next steps include: - Home Study (roughly 2-4 months) - In-person adoptive parents training (Feb 2023) - Waiting to be matched with a birth mother (6-12 months)
Zoe is officially a Golden! The legal paperwork for her adoption was finalized last week. Ten months ago, we got a call to meet our new baby girl, and it has been a beautiful, exciting adventure. She is a precious baby girl and such a blessing to our lives. We continue to be grateful for all of your love and support the past year.
Join us in celebrating Zoe's adoption finalization!
BIG NEWS! Our family has grown in the past week. Zoe Noelle was born July 19th, 5lbs 7oz and came home with us on Friday 7/21! She is absolutely precious and already brings us so much joy.
The wait and anticipation are over. Thank you so much for your prayers and support over these past few months. As a result, we've officially brought sweet Zoe into our family as of today! We are overwhelmed with excitement and gratitude for the journey through which God has led, and we can't wait to love on Zoe as much as possible!
Craig & Stefanie
We officially became a waiting family as of today! That means that we are eligible to be matched with a potential birth family over the next several months. We are incredibly excited! We've started preparing our nursery and all the things to love our baby well.
Thank you all for your support and encouragement along the journey so far. We have entered the final stage of our adoption process and are blown away with how God has provided for us. Please continue to pray for patience as we wait and trust in God's timing.
Our Home Study has been approved! We expect to be an official waiting family by early April. The waiting process could take 9-12 months until we are matched.
Thank you for your support along the way. It has been a true source of encouragement for us throughout the journey. We can't wait to see what God has in store over the coming months!
This week we attended an in-person adoption training conference in Charlotte. We are incredibly thankful to Christian Adoption Services for creating an opportunity to connect with other adopting families, learn more about the adoption process from here, and receive training about open adoption!
We are nearing the end of our home study and expect it to be finalized by end of March. From then, we will be officially on the waiting list!
