What's in a name?

From the very beginning of our decision to adopt, we were sold on the name Sarah Grace. While we tossed around other names as a family, we always came back to Sarah Grace. When we saw her picture on the waiting child website, we knew, she was our Sarah.

When we received the information about her we were told her Vietnamese name was Phoung. We were initially told she had probably been named by hospital or orphanage workers. We searched Vietnamese dictionaries and websites to try to determine what her name meant but were unsuccessful.

It wasn't until meeting Clint and Vaughn and their family did we discover that Phoung is actually a beautiful flower that blooms in the late summer in Vietnam. She had been born in the late summer. She was our beautiful summer flower!

The plot thickened when we were given her official documents. We discovered that her birth mother had given birth to her outside the hospital. She then brought her to the hospital and registered her giving her the name Phoung. It was settled! We had to incorporate her Vietnamese name with her American name. She is our Sarah Grace Phoung Martin!

Paper Pregnancy

On September 3, 2006, we were told officially that Sarah would be ours! Now began the mounds of paperwork and the seemingly endless wait to be able to bring her home. The initial time frame we were told was that we would "probably" travel in the spring of 2007. (March or April) were the months we held in our head. And thus began the first trimester of our Paper Pregnancy. Like biological pregnancies this trimester had it's share of ups and downs. And yes I had my share of nausea at times. We were told we would get quarterly updates with pictures and health status. It is like an ultrasound across the globe. (Fortunately for me, unlike a biological pregnancy in the first trimester, my clothes still fit.)

The second trimester - We worked hard and fast to get all the paperwork done as quickly as possible. After all our daughter was waiting for us. Our goal was to turn our paperwork around fast so that we were not a hold up to the process. Our Dossier was completed in record time and sent to Vietnam. We received a call that on January 15th our paperwork was received and approved and was being sent to the Ministry of Justice for approval within the Dong Nai province. Unfortunately, as part of this update we were also told that it would be a longer wait than we initially were told. Dong Nai, the province she is in was taking longer to approve Dossiers. We now expected to go in June or July. Our due date had been pushed back. Expectant mothers and fathers hate to get news like that! (I am bummed to report that my clothes are tight and I can't blame it on this pregnancy.) :(

The second trimester drags on! We were told that the previous family to complete the process took 8 months from the time their Dossier was sent to Vietnam until they received approval through the Ministry of Justice and then an additional 2 months to travel. We hope and pray our wait will be shorter but now we really have no idea when we will be able to bring Sarah home. We now do not have a due date for this paper pregnancy! :(

The third trimester - The final phase of this paper pregnancy should consist of the following:
1. Ministry of Justice approval through Dong Nai.
2. Travel approval
3. Travel within 2-3 weeks of getting travel approval.
4. Meet Sarah and bring her home! (This is about a 3 week process that we will outline in more detail later.)

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7

Sarah Grace

Things happened quickly after our decision to adopt. We talked with Kris, the Holt International Social worker and got the ball rolling with submitting applications, Home study interviews and picking the brains of friends who had recently adopted or were currently in the adoption process.





We initially leaned toward adopting through the China program because we knew we wanted a little girl. Okay, that was the ONE stipulation our daughter Marelise put on the adoption. She wanted a sister! We also didn't want a baby necessarily. We had been there, done that. So a toddler seemed like the perfect fit for our family. We registered in the "Waiting Child" program also, so that we would be informed of children from any country that "fit" the specifications we had noted. A very short time later, our Social Worker Kris, called and suggested that we take a look at a little girl on the "Waiting child" website. (I had intentionally not looked at the website or fear of falling in love with a child and not being complete enough in our paperwork to be eligible to adopt them.) But, at Kris' request, we had a look. And there she was! A beautiful 2 year old girl. Dave and the kids were convinced she was our Sarah Grace. I felt an instant connection too, but refused to get too attached. We requested a packet of information about her. She had been born prematurely, weighing only 3lbs 3ounces. She was considered mal-nourished and at 2 years old was not yet walking. We had our pediatrician review her file and he felt she did not have any issues that could not be overcome. But, as with our biological children, he noted, there are no guarantees. We had to be comfortable with the worst case scenario. Which, surprisingly enough we were. It is an odd reality. When you are pregnant you hope and pray that your child will be healthy. That is your biggest concern. But, here we were choosing a child that had some known medical issues and a lot of unknowns.



We proceeded! We told Holt we wanted to adopt her. They contacted the other families that had requested information about her and 2 additional families said they too were interested in adopting her. Now it would go to committee. One family, withdrew after requesting additional information. We then had to complete a written application discussing why we would be the best parents for her and how we were equipped to deal with her special needs. With lots of prayer we completed that application and a phone interview. It was in the Lord's hands. It was good to know another family wanted her too and that God's will would be done.



On September 3rd, on our way home from our Labor Day camping trip we got a voicemail from our Social Worker Kris to call her right away. We called her back to discover the other family had withdrawn their application. She was ours! She was our Sarah Grace!



Behold, children are a gift of the Lord; Psalm 127:3

God's Plans

A friend recently told me if you want to make GOD laugh, just tell him YOUR plans. I couldn't agree more. I am quite convinced that God has had many laughs at my feeble attempts to "plan" my life.

God works in mysterious ways, and I am sure He has an incredible sense of humor. In His own remarkable ways, He lets us know that He is in control. He has let me know that in very real ways throughout my life, but never more directly than with the births of our three biological children and the adoption of Sarah Grace.

If you would have told me a year ago that we would be adopting a little girl from Vietnam, I would have told you, you were crazy. Our lives were full. We had three healthy, active children that kept us on our toes and very busy. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't at all opposed to the idea of adoption. It has always intrigued me. I was very excited for our friends when they chose to adopt. And, for a brief time after our oldest son was born when we were told our chances of having any more children were slim, we had looked into adoption ourselves. But, we were blessed with yet another unplanned pregnancy, so we figured adoption wasn't for us.

It wasn't until last July when a few families from our church that were in the throws of the adoption process, hosted an informational meeting open to anyone interested in learning more about the process. Interested I was, but not for myself. I had ulterior motives and besides, I was quite sure that although he agreed to attend with me, that there would be no way my husband would agree to the idea. No! I was there for Teresa! Teresa is a dear, longtime friend. She had two children the ages of my oldest two and had remarried a wonderful man with no biological children of his own. They had wanted to have a child together but had been unable to so far. I felt strongly that adoption was for them! Teresa's husband had to work the evening of the meeting, so David and I attended with her, for "moral" support.

What happened in our hearts that evening, was nothing short of a miracle. It was as though God was sitting over my shoulder giving me a deliberate nudge. I remember praying to myself on the way home "God, if these feelings are from you, you need to speak to David too." I knew as a couple we had talking about adoption quite often throughout our 16 year marriage but never as a reality for us.

Then, no sooner had I finished my silent prayer did David ask "So, what to you think?" Well, to make a long blog short we prayed and talked about this decision together and with our older children. And as a family, we decided to proceed with the process.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And do not lean on you own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes;... Proverbs 3:5-7