Step number 999

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step" -Confucius

Our journey began 7 years ago. We were an "old married couple" (or so we thought), working on our 3rd year of marriage. We were both teachers in Texas (Billy at a middle school and me at a high school). I was in grad school and we had just bought our first house. The next step, we decided, parenthood! We threw away the little pill container in my bathroom drawer that we had so cherished in our first 2 years of marriage, and with that we took our "single step". Little did we know the journey that lay ahead.

All of you that follow our blog know pieces of the journey that has taken place over the past 7 years, some of you might know it all. The 7 years that have followed that single step have been filled with procedures, near-death ailments, medical jargon, and legal language that we didn't even know existed when we made that next step decision that seemed so easy all those years ago. TIA, IUI, IVF, FSH, HSG, LH, ART, and PAP were acronyms that we never dreamed we would understand, let alone be experts on. We've lost 4 babies, countless embryos, thousands of dollars, almost my own life, and at one time, even our faith along the way.

Standing where we are, looking back, I see it. I see the thousand mile journey that has led us to this place. We're in Asia- traveling and seeing/experiencing things that we never would have if our single step would have led to the easy journey we expected. We've grown as people- loving God and each other in a way that could only be the result of endurance through trails and faithful perseverance. We've built relationships, both new and old, with amazing people who have forever changed our lives. And we've become parents- maybe we don't have a child to show for it, but we've grown in ways that will make us a better mother, father, and role model of God's amazing love.

Where is all this coming from, you ask. Well, this week our journey to parenthood finally turned an important corner. The finish line is finally in view. For those of you that don't know, Billy and I signed up with an adoption agency while we were home in Texas over the summer. We found an amazing place that allowed us to do something we never thought possible- adopt while living overseas. We've been active PAPs (prospective adoptive parents) for nearly 3 months. And this week, we were chosen! We've got a little boy, due January 18, 2012. On Thursday, we were blessed to get to meet his birth parents via skype- they are an amazing young couple making a mature and difficult decision for their child. And the crazy part about it- they love us! They chose us from a book that we had made and then after chatting with us for over an hour, they decided that we were the couple that they would place their hopes and dreams in for their sweet baby boy. We are humbled and thrilled beyond belief!

So, we'll be home in Texas in mid-December. We'll get to celebrate our first Christmas home in 3 years, and then we'll get to stick around to get the greatest gift ever- our son. We'll get to be there, at the hospital when he is born, and take him home from there. Then, we'll have to stick around the USA for a few weeks to take care of some court requirements, get a passport, and show baby Thomas off to all of our amazing Texas friends and family. After that, at just a few weeks old- he'll be off to get the first stamp (of many) in his passport.

As followers of our blog (although seeing as though we have not updated it in over a year- "follower" may not be the appropriate term) and consequentially our friends, we are thrilled to share this with you. We just ask that over these next few months you keep us in your prayers. We've essentially got a 3 month pregnancy ahead and there sure is a lot to be done. Please don't just pray for us. Pray for our sweet little boy- for his health, his life, and the questions/feelings he may have as he grows up. And pray for his amazing birth parents (for confidentiality we'll call them J & P). We get the awesome joy of getting to know them over these next few months, so please pray for that relationship as it builds. Also- pray for them and the decision that they have made- one that is certainly not easy.

I promise to try and do a little better about keeping this blog a little more updated, especially considering this awesome news and all the subsequent blogs that I am sure will come through it. Until then, we just want to say thanks for loving us, supporting us, and being a part, large or small, of this amazing journey. Although we know that our thousand mile journey to becoming parents is nearing it's end, a new one will begin- with a single step being taken in January, the second we hold our sweet little boy. It is our prayer that you will all be there to watch that journey- his life.