Life at the Murdock house has been accelerated once again! We are definitely in a zone defense and I can safely say that Holly feels like she is face to face in a full court press during her days.
Kaleb and Lila have made incredible progress these first few months. They are healthy, are sleeping well and are fully integrated into our family. Please continue to pray for our strength, for our patience and for both of newest son and daughter!!
Alexandria has been back and forth from college this semester and jumps in when she can, while Mycah, Conor and Quin have definitely shown up with their game face on. It hasn't always been easy putting aside our own personal comforts and preferences, but Holly and I have been so proud to see how each have stepped up to be the hands and feet of Christ.
We appreciate your ongoing prayers for our family! Hope you each have a wonderful Christmas as we celebrate the birth and life of our Lord and Savior.
So sorry for not being able to post while in Ethiopia. During our stay in Addis Ababa (the capital city of 3.6 million), electricity was only available every other day and when it was available, our internet connection was very slow (56K - 220K) causing simple page loads to take between 15 to 20 minutes at times. Even when I was able to get to the blog site, there was no guarantee of how long I would have a connection. I attempted to write and publish very simple posts, but each time was kicked off. By then 45 minutes had passed and other families were waiting in line. Thanks for understanding.
We left the US on Saturday and arrived back in Charlotte on Friday (yesterday). Both Lila and Kaleb slept all night and are already operating on our East Coast time. We took them to the doctor this morning and both were prescribed antibiotics. In a couple of weeks each will complete a very thorough physical.
Lila and Kaleb are two happy children with big smiles and laughs. It's hard to imagine all they have gone through in such a short time. By God's grace they are now home and we are so blessed to have them as our new children.
Here are a few pictures.
Thanks again for your continued love, support and prayers!
Well it's now one week before we travel to Ethiopia to bring Lila and Kaleb to their new home in North Carolina. Our oldest two daughters, Alexandria (18) and Mycah (15) landed in the Dominican Republic yesterday for a week long mission trip. They will return home just one day before mom and dad travel to Africa.
Grandma and Grandpa Madigan (Holly's parents) will travel in from Illinois to stay with our other children while we are away. Thank you so much Carol and Dave!
We also wanted to give praise to God for a tremendous financial gift that we received this week from someone who asked to remain anonymous. Our family was speechless. It has been so humbling to see God's hand of provision all along our faith journey. I would like to use the word "unbelievable", but then again it shouldn't be surprising to us as we serve a great God!
Today Holly, Conor, Quin and I enjoyed a great morning and afternoon celebration with several Elevation Church families on this the 4th of July. Tonight it's fireworks at Pine Lake Country Club (suppose to be a great show and it's FREE!). Our kind of entertainment.
The finale for the day (and for the next few nights) will be the annual Conor Murdock fireworks extravaganza at the Murdock Home. Conor has been our MC for a number of years and this year he is equipped with more fire power than any other year before. Go Conor! (Grandpa, I'm sure that Conor will have plenty of leftover when you and grandma arrive into Matthews) Have fun!
We are so thankful for the freedom we have in this country, the sacrifices of our forefathers, the courageous service of our military men and women and ultimately the freedom we are blessed with through Christ Jesus.
Hope you and your families have a great weekend! Thank you again for your continued prayers for our family.
While on vacation in Cincinnati last week (visiting the Creation Museum), we learned that Lila and Kaleb's birth certificates had been delayed. These things can happen with any adoption. Especially when adopting through a third world country, even basic services (like electricity) are not always reliable. We have so much to be thankful for in the USA.
Our confirmed travel date is now July 11. We fly from Charlotte, to Washington DC, to Rome and then into Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, landing on July 12. While in Addis, we will be staying at an Ethiopian Guest Home for adopting families.
Holly and I have now received our Typhoid, Polio boost and TDAP vaccines in addition to Hepatitas A and B received a few years ago when we adopted Quin from China.
Praise God for His perfect timing! Thanks again for your continued prayers!!
Twenty three (23) days and counting before we land in Ethiopia! We are so excited to meet our newest children: Lila Asnakech and Kaleb Matthew. Have you ever seen two more precious children in your life?
This week we've arranged for oral typhoid and t-dap shots, started re-childproofing our home, added a new queen size bed for Quin and Lila to share, received three new dressers to hold all of the wonderful children's clothes (thank you so much to so many friends!), lined up a fun-filled weekend of additional paperwork and confirmed plane flights for Holly, Lila, Kaleb and me.
How is the rest of the Murdock clan doing?
Alexandria just graduated from Covenant Day School and will be attending Gardner Webb University this Fall on an academic scholarship, Mycah just finished 10th grade and celebrated her final awards night at Arborbrook Christian Academy, Conor just finished 7th grade and is coming home from New Life Camp in Raleigh and Quin is so excited to be a "big" sister having just turned 5 years old!(how time flies!!)
We are so blessed to have a full house of some amazing kids, and the fun is just beginning again. From 18 years old to 1 year old, we are so thankful for the richness each of our children add to our lives.
Thanks for your ongoing prayers. Praise God for His faithfulness!
The Murdocks Pat, Holly, Alexandria, Mycah, Conor, Quin, Lila and Kaleb
Today the authorities in Ethiopia approved our adoption paperwork for Lila (2+) and Kaleb (1+), so we can now send pictures!!!
Our tentative court date is June 30, which would have Holly and I travel to Africa during the week of June 22 to bring our children home during the week of June 29.
Now begins the final details of booking airflights, securing needed vaccines, making in-country arrangements, recruiting family to stay with our other children while we travel and a number of other "to do's".
Thank you so much for your ongoing prayers for our family and especially for our new children.
We praise God for His goodness and for those who have supported us along this journey!!!
If we are fortunate to have our case pass during the first hearing (about 50% do), then Holly and I will travel to Africa to bring Kaleb and Lila home 6 - 10 weeks later. (July/August timeframe)
We receive regular medical reports and picture updates of our newest children. Not that we are partial or anything, but we believe that Kaleb and Lila must be the most beautiful children in all of Ethiopia.
They both appear to be receiving lots of love and nutrition at the orphanage and we are so thankful to God for his care and provision.
Can't wait to share pictures with you. Please continue to pray for the protection and care for Kaleb and Lila.
With Love,
The Murdocks
Want to help care for orphans in Ethiopia and pick up a cool shirt?
We have wonderful news! Last night we received a call from our case worker at Christian World Adoption letting us know that they have matched us with a little 1 year old boy and a 2 year old girl.
Because of the cautious nature of referrals and adoptions in Ethiopia, we are unable to post pictures for now...but trust us that they are so precious.
Thank you for continuing to pray for our children's protection, for their health and for their hearts as they prepare for a signficant transition.
We will keep you updated and one day be excited to introduce you to our newest family members.
In December our family was blessed by a Matching Gift award of $3,000 from the James Fund (a Family Christian Store Foundation). We shared this opportunity with our friends and family, and the response was incredible! Not only was the match met, but the total raised to date is over $7,400 (including the match).
Our adoption paperwork (dossier) is now in Africa and we are waiting patiently for "the call" that will tell us our family has been matched with our potential children. This can be some of the most trying time for adopting parents due to the fact that you've completed all that you can, and now you just have to wait. Timeframes can be effected by the caseload of your agency, unforeseen changes in the country's adoption policies and even weather changes (example: Monsoon season) that may close adoption offices for a period of time.
In the meantime, we will plan to get certain shots or vaccinations that are recommended for those traveling into Ethiopia, continue to talk about names (we are considering Lila as a potential girl's name) and stay busy with everyday life stuff.
Alexandria is narrowing her college choices. Mycah is loving her first year at Arborbrook. Conor continues to serve and grow as part of the e-Kidz ministry at Elevation, and Quin keeps us on our toes as our highly inquisitive and high energy four year old!
We are still hoping to travel this Summer to bring our new children home. Thank you again for your continued prayers and support!
As God has blessed our family with compassion for orphans, He has called us to take action.
So how can we as the body of Christ make a difference in the lives of orphans?
Here are a few ideas:
1. PRAY. First and foremost, pray to our Father in Heaven to raise up an army of concerned believers who will unite together each in their way to care for the 143 million orphans throughout the world.
2. EXPLORE. Sites like Cry of the Orphan , 5 for 50 to learn what is already being done and how you and your family can participate.
3. SUPPORT. Challenge your church, family and friends to Re-Think the way they purchase products for everyday use, as well as birthday gifts and Christmas presents. Look for organizations whose profits help support widows, orphans and the "poorest of the poor" in their need. Here are a few to help get you started:
4. START. Consider starting an Orphan Ministry at your church. Here's a helpful site with examples of what other churches have done, and a list of organizations that can help you get started.
5. ADOPT. If you or someone you know is feeling led to explore the possibility of adoption (either domestically or internationally), pray with them, come along side them and introduce them to the community of Christian organizations who are practicing the call made to us all in James 1:27. Our family would be glad to help answer questions or assist in any way we can. Here's an great site that can also help get you started.
After your homestudy and dossier are completed, the next step is the referral. This is where the adoption agency works with the orphanage in the country from where you are adopting to match your request with children that meet your parameters.
Parameters? Yes. When you complete your paperwork, you will be asked a number of questions that define your requested parameters. You will be asked how old of a child or children you would be willing to consider? Would you prefer male and/or female? How many children would you like to adopt? Do you prefer siblings and/or unrelated? Special needs or healthy?
For us we are asking for children younger than Quin (our 4 year old from China). Why? In the birth order of our second group of children, we think it would be special for Quin to be the "big sister". We are also requesting two children? Why? Unfortunately our world is not color blind. So because our newest children will have much more melanin than their pale mom, dad and siblings, we felt that it would be an encouragement to each to have another sibling with the same beautiful skin color. We've also asked for healthy children because we don't feel that God has uniquely equipped us for special needs children. And finally, we've told the agency that our preference would be for siblings, but that if siblings are not available, then we would gladly receive unrelated children. Why? Where possible, we would like for siblings to be able to stay together.
We are reminded that as we go through this process, that God has already known and selected the children He has for us...well before we "set" the parameters.
So what does heaven look like? Let me close by sharing a video of a family we found on YouTube, that may give us all a little glimpse.
Some of you know that I am an "over analytical" by nature, and that our first adoption almost didn't happen because I was too concerned about how "I" was going to provide for our expanding family in light of college trending costs, one income and the cost of raising children.
While Holly continued to pray about her desire to adopt, God used my son Conor to change my heart. One Christmas we had just received the Samaritan's Purse catalog that allows you to purchase chickens for a village, a wheelchair for a young child in need or other items in place of or in addition to Christmas presents for others. We told our children that if they would like to use any of their own money to make an SP purchase, that we would match each of their dollars by two. So a $1.00 donation became a $3.00 donation with the help of mom and dad.
After hearing of this, Conor (age 5 at the time) quickly disappeared and came back about 10 minutes later to announce that he had $57.00 saved and wanted to know what he could do to make a difference. God used Conor to teach me about trusting Him to meet all of our family's needs. I realized in a moment that it wasn't me but God who is the great provider.
So how much does an adoption cost? It depends. In general a domestic adoption is less expensive than an international adoption because there are limited travel costs and there is no associated country fee. With an international adoption, each country has their own country fee, which helps them to offset adminstrative costs on their end, and to provide some fee income recovery for the care that has been provided to your child until adoption.
The total costs of our first adoption (China)were approximately $25,000 for our one child. The projected costs of our second adoption (Ethiopia) will be between $32,000 and $37,000 for our two children.
Wow, you might say! That's alot of money. I don't think we could ever afford to adopt with those kinds of expenses. We had the same reaction and the same doubts as you have learned.
But God is faithful, and there are so many great organizations who provide adoption grants, interest free loans and much more in support of your journey. Many corporations provide adoption benefits today (my former company provided $5,000 tax free). The US Government provides a $10,000 tax credit per child. Some churches have even created adoption funds in support of their families.
In addition although many of your friends and family may not feel called to the mission field, or to adopt, some may want to be a part of your adoption. One practical way is through helping with your expenses. In fact, some non-profit adoption agencies will allow others to donate to your family's adoption and receive a tax deduction for their donation.
Bottomline, God is the great provider. He has commanded us to care for orphans, and He will take care of your every need.
Many people who meet our family (either out of curiosity, or because their heart is being moved) want to know "What is the process like for adoption?", "How long does it take?", "Is it expensive?", "What was the adjustment like for your family?", "Were you scared?", "How did you know what steps to take?" Etc.
For those interested, we would like to help answer some of these questions by sharing with you our experience. There are also some great sites worth exploring. One of our favorites is How to Adopt http://www.howtoadopt.org/.
First of all, there are many great adoption agencies who can help address the various questions you may have, and who exist to help walk you through and coordinate all of the steps that you need to take in order to complete your adoption (either domestically or internationally).
For our Chinese adoption, we used Bethany Christian Services http://www.bethany.org/, and for our Ethiopian adoption we are using Christian World Adoption http://www.cwa.org/. In addition to these two organizations, there are many other excellent choices.
These agencies walk with you ever step of the way. Two of the most important steps that you have to complete are 1) The Home Study, and 2) the Dossier.
The Home Study can be scary for some because it involves an adoption specialized social worker coming into your home, gathering information about you and preparing a report for your adoption agency. We completed our Home Study for our Ethiopian adoption this past week. Each time we have learned so much from the social workers who have been assigned to us. We've found in both cases that if you will remember that much of the questions and the paperwork being required are primarily for the protection of the children being adopted, then it doesn't seem so bad.
In addition to the Home Study, you will be required to complete a Dossier, or a packet of necessary documents (many of which will require notarization and in some cases even a state seal). The paperwork can seem overwhelming at times. But again, if you will remember what you are doing all of this for (to unite an orphan with their forever family), it won't seem so bad. Each country has different requirements, so always remember that your adoption agency does not make the rules, but are simply helping you to follow them.
Many adoptive families refer to the Dossier as the Paperwork Pregnancy. It is painful at times, and seems like the wait and details will never end, but it will. And when you are united with your child, all of the work and perseverance will seem like a small price to pay for the blessing being received.
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