Adoption Puzzle...Putting all the pieces together...

I recently read the quote "Adoption is the hardest thing I ever said Yes to in my Christian walk"

Its so true..its not an easy road, lots of paperwork, emails, phone calls, ups and downs, emotional times... But...when you get THE call and see THE picture and know SHE is YOURS..its so worth the wait! 

Our wait is over...we have been MATCHED with the MOST PRECIOUS little girl.  Now we just have to WAIT to hold her and bring her home...I look at her picture many times a day and she's the wallpaper on my phone/computer...We want to hop on a plane and be with her, but we must be patient...God's timing is perfect and it has been so amazing to watch Him work in this process for us.  We received the call from our social worker last week and in a short time, we knew she was ours!  Chip's first words about her were "She's Precious".  As we showed family and friends her picture all we heard was "She's Precious"...Later that evening I Googled her chinese name meaning...and it was...PRECIOUS 

Now we need your help...we have been so blessed by family and friends through this process in helping us raise the funds to bring this child to their forever family with yard sales, pancakes, ornaments, and generous financial gifts.  For those that are unaware of the cost of adoption, our estimated cost is over $33,000.00.  Forget the cost, what God did for us by saving us by his death on a cross for our sin, is priceless.  And so we are stepping out on faith trusting that God is going to provide the financial means for us to bring our daughter home.
We are beginning the fundraiser we have looked forward to the most since starting the process..

The Puzzle Fundraiser...Putting All the Pieces together...Bringing "Precious" home...Heres how it works:
-We bought a 1,000 piece puzzle that needs to be put together (I think I may ask Grandaddy Elliott to put this puzzle together for his love of puzzles...but don't put your back out!)
-We are selling each
puzzle piece for $10.00 (1,000 pieces times $10 each= $10,000 the estimated remaining funds we need to bring her home)
-You can buy 1 piece or multiple pieces, for each $10 you give your name will go on a piece of the puzzle (Ex: If you are a family of 4 and you donate $40 each family member can have their name on a piece...just make sure to list all members so we know the names to write)
-Ask your friends, family, co-workers, etc to donate $10 for a piece just make sure you give us their names so we can add them to the puzzle- It will be so neat to see how people from all over come together and help out!  Whose ready to challenge themselves to sell more than 20 pieces??
-You can give cash or check preferably, or use our paypal account located on our blog.  Feel free to mail or hand deliver donation money.  Email, text, facebook me a private message if you need our address.
-As the money comes in we will put your name(s) on the puzzle pieces and start to put the puzzle together and hope to have it done before she arrives in January
-When it is complete, we will glue and frame the puzzle together to hang in her room as a reminder of all the people who came together to help bring her home.

Please Pray for our little girl as she awaits us coming to get her...
-Pray for her health-that she will get the nourishment and nutrition she needs to grow strong and healthy
-Pray for her caregivers to give her love and attention as they care for all the orphan children under their care
-Pray that the final paperwork and travel arrangements will go smoothly

The Build A Bear we made with love with our voices recorded for her to get used to our voices

Catching Up

We apologize for not updating the blog more often.  The last few months have flown by and we have been busy finishing up our home study and fundraising to bring our child home.  We celebrated Chip's Birthday this past week and our 9 year Anniversary :) I have to say I fall more and more in love every day!

(Perkins Baby- We love you already and cannot wait to tell you the stories of the people who have loved on us during this journey.  There are so many who can't wait to meet you and love on you.  We pray for you often and can't wait to hold you and bring you home.  You are loved by us and so many...Love, Mom and Dad aka Mama and Papa)

Since our last post, we have completed all the training, paperwork, interviews, and appointments necessary to finalize our home study report.  Chip got a new position at the seminary which was an unexpected blessing on our journey and reminded us that God is faithful and will continue to meet all our needs.  Now that we have all the paperwork completed after updating his job information, our home study report is complete and being reviewed by our agency before we get ready to complete our dossier  (pronounced “doss-e-A”), its really just a collection of papers containing very detailed information that has to be notarized, and then adding various seals from county, state, and the U.S. government.  

We continue to be amazed at the generosity of God's people and their heart for adoption.  We have been incredibly blessed these last few months with financial gifts, encouraging cards, and fundraisers by family, friends, coworkers, etc.  Here are a few highlights/pictures from our pancake breakfasts (both NC and VA), yardsale, ThirtyOne, and Just Love Coffee.


Valentine Pancake Breakfast-
February 15th- We hosted a Valentine Pancake Breakfast at Imago Dei Church with our good friends, the Thigpens, who are adopting from Ethiopia.  We had a lot of helpers and a great turnout.  Overall we raised over $3,300.00 for Us, the Thigpens, and IDC's Adoption Fund.  

We love our IDC family and are thankful for their generosity and love for adoption! 

The Thigpen's-
Parents to be of an orphan from Ethiopia

 Early morning helpers, making the mix...ready to flip!

Thirty One Party- A Big Shout Out to my coworker and friend Christianne for opening her home to host a dessert and coffee night for friends and coworkers to order Thirty One and fellowship.  Our consultant Stephanie was very generous in donating a percent of her earnings to our fund.  We had one of her biggest parties!  It was great to get free products, many of which will be used for traveling to China and some as gifts to orphanage workers as that is custom to give "American" gifts to workers in China.

 

Pancake Breakfast #2- After seeing the success that our first pancake breakfast had, our parents decided to host one in Richmond for our friends and family at SMRBC.  Again we were overwhelmed with people's generosity in giving to our fund.  We were encouraged by many that weekend that have watched us grow and fall in love together and now watch as we bring a child into our home who would otherwise have no hope.  We can't say Thank You enough for loving on us in this way!

Someone loves Uncle Chip and Chip loves every minute with him! 

Growth Group Yard Sale- The Baileys opened up their driveway for us to host a yardsale in their neighborhood with the Thigpen's.  We woke up early to set up and people came ready to buy...

We got rid of a lot of junk! 

Just Love Coffee- This will be an ongoing fundraiser throughout our adoption.  We received our first check from them a few weeks ago.  If you like coffee, you'll love this company and their coffee!   For more info, click on the link on the right sidebar to watch a video about the company and how they are helping others.  If you order, make sure you use our link so that we get credit for your purchase.

https://justlovecoffee.com/about/beneficiary/perkins/

We are about halfway through our fundraising goal!! PTL!! God is good! We have felt affirmed by the outpouring of others, that this adoption was meant to be as we follow the Lord and are be obedient in His calling to care for the orphan.  We are reminded daily that HE is faithful and will take care of every plan to bring it to completion.  

There will be many other ways to help support financially, if you would like to give a financial gift, feel free to use our paypal link on the right side of the blog.  We look forward to the many more blessings as we continue this journey to our child.

Snowy Days and Just Love Coffee

Beautiful View from our balcony

We are enjoying this quiet restful snow day in Raleigh.  Ginny enjoyed the day off yesterday "waiting" for the snow to fall which didn't start until late evening! Chip is enjoying the benefits of classes cancelled and only having to work to pay staff and then headed home this afternoon to play!

Just a quick update on our process:

We had 2 parts of our home study this past weekend and it went very well.  We enjoyed our time with our social worker and were encouraged by her.  Our next steps are Training, Training, Training and more paperwork to complete.  I am actually excited about the training as it is right up my ally.  I have spent my snow days reading through The Connected Child as one of our requirements and it has been very informative as to behaviors that we will have to deal with as we bring our child home.  Some behaviors are minor but some could be more serious so it is great to have this training.  As I read through this book, it opens my eyes to many of my students needs also, so it has been a good refresher of my classroom and also my soon to be child.

           We also spent some time listening to Aaron Ivey and his story.  This is a great sermon for all people to listen to on orphan care.  Especially those that are close to us so that you may have a better understanding.  He points out that adoption is a glorious sadness, it is full of joy but also marked with strife and heartache.  We are reminded that the gospel is not glamorous, its the unglorious story of a king suffering for ungrateful sheep, but built on grace, truth, and unconditional love.  Our king suffered for us, so that we may become sons and daughters of God.  We are reminded that our story is one that says we have surrendered, given God our life, and said God, have your way with us, we count the cost and embrace it as we spend ourselves risking, loving, serving, and suffering alongside the orphan.

In Romans 8, Paul says "I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us."  We pray that we will remember this as we spend our lives on those joyous moments such as bringing our child home into the airport, first hugs with family and friends,  and then as we go home and the  heartaches and troubles that may come.  Adoption has more of a cost than financial and we need our community to walk this journey with us.

Here is the link to Aaron Ivey if you would like to listen:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTpS8ij06M8&feature=share&list=PLnn3qlkV1eYwWN-uGToxmBtf0l7_3iPsz&index=3

Do you love Coffee?? Will you pray??

You can help support our adoption by drinking coffee and praying for us! We would challenge you, if you purchase JustLoveCoffee, that every time you have a cup, to please pray for us.  

Pray for our process to run smoothly without delays/problems in paperwork

·         Pray for patience as we await what the future holds (child, jobs, homebuying, and many unanswered…)

      Pray that we will be faithful to follow Christ wherever he leads.

·         Pray for diligence with time-filling out paperwork and completing training

·         Pray for the financial needs; that we will continue to trust God as he provides

·         Pray for our agency as they prepare documents and the social workers on our case

·         Pray for our child, waiting for their forever home; pray for protection and health

Make sure you click this link and click the Shop and Support button for us to get the credit.

https://justlovecoffee.com/about/beneficiary/perkins/   

The Mission of Just Love Coffee

At Just Love Coffee Roasters, our mission is to bring out the unique qualities inherent in each coffee bean. We do this by taking a small-batch artisan approach to all of our specialty coffees. We don’t use automation or computers during the roast process, but instead carefully roast every batch to perfection using smell, sight, sound, touch, and taste. We’re always searching for the best Fair Trade, organic, and shade-grown coffee beans available.

And as passionate as we are about creating outstanding artisan coffees, we are equally passionate about helping those in need. Every delectable cup of Just Love Coffee you drink has a portion of its proceeds go to someone who could use a helping hand. In our first two years of business we have given over $200,000 to adopting families, non-profit organizations, and the arts. 

Make sure you click this link and click the Shop and Support button for us to get the credit.

https://justlovecoffee.com/about/beneficiary/perkins/    

The link is also on the right side of our blog.  Please share with other coffee lovers you know!

A Very Merry Christmas!

 Well we are  a couple of days into 2014 and I am catching up from being out of town and going back to work.  We had a wonderful week in Richmond spending time with family and friends.  It was so good to catch up with many we don't always have time to see when in town.  As always, its hard to say goodbye to family but we are happy to be home in Raleigh.

While we were in Richmond we had a phone conference with our homestudy social worker and China Social worker.  Its always a joy and an encouraging time to talk to these two ladies who love the Lord and adoption.  We answered many questions from why we were adopting, our pasts, our courtship and marriage today.  It was amazing to see God work through our conversation and answer some unknown.  We then spent time in prayer with them.  We continue to feel love and support from Lifeline Children Services

We have felt very blessed this Christmas with some very generous financial gifts that were given by loved ones.  We cannot say Thank You enough and the part that you play in this adoption by living out James 1:27.  We were not at IDC to hear Brian's message, but after returning and spending time with our growth group, we were reminded of Matthew 6 and God's provision in our lives.
 ²⁵ “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?²⁶ Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? ²⁷ And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?^[g] 28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, ²⁹ yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. ³⁰ But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? ³¹ Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. ³³ But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
³⁴ “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Just when we began to worry and ask God how this was going to work, he shows how He can work through others and will always take care of us.  We continue to be reminded in many ways that we are answering His call in our life.  We can't wait to know more about the child God has picked for us.

Just a few highlights from our holidays:

Christmas Lights at the Garden with The Perkins Family

Duck Dynasty Family Christmas Party

Playing with Uncle Chip

Bringing in 2014 with dear friends

Shout Out to my GHE Family

Wow! This past week we were OVERWHELMED with the love and support shown to us by the staff at my school.  My team member and dear friend, Christianne decided to take on an Ornament Fundraiser and we began making custom ornaments to sell.  I thought we would make around 100 bucks, but little did I know, they collected $715 as of today.  If they donated $20 they got to come to a mini concert by our own Mrs. Mangus who has an amazing voice!     The generosity and support of the GHE staff is amazing.  I am so blessed to work with these people and call them family.  We continue to be amazed at how God is providing in mighty ways for this process.

So for those of you who are not kindergarten teachers, each class calls themselves an animal that begins with their letter of their last name.  Little did I know 3 years ago when I chose Perkins Pandas, that I would be soon bringing home a little panda from China.  So the theme "Baby Panda" is what we are calling our soon to be child at GHE.

The Kindergarten Team Rocks!  Couldn't be the teacher I am today without them!
I love that we can laugh, cry, and keep each other from stressing as much s possible...

K team...this explains our week this week:

Your love and support

A few of you said you were unable to locate the you caring.com link on the mobile site of the blog.  I wanted to add the link here to forward you to that if you feel led to give.
http://www.youcaring.com/adoption-fundraiser/the-perkins-adoption-fund/104989?utm_source=widget

At this beginning point, every penny helps! We are still in the very early stages of LOTS of paperwork and background information.  We are sending a big payment in this week with a pile of papers we had to sign and fill out.  This past week we have been shown so much love and support from texts, Voxes, emails, messages, hugs, etc.  It is that and the one step closer to our child that gets us through the mounds of work to be done.  We are reminded that "Every good and perfect gift is from above".

We will then begin the process of the home study with interviews and setting up times to meet with our social worker in our home.  We are blessed to have met her last spring and fell in love with her spirit and love for adoption.  We were thrilled when we heard that she had agreed to do our home study.  We are still in awe that God chose us and put adoption on our heart.  We can't wait to see the end product, but have also been encouraged to see how this process is working in our lives and the people around us.

Our journey...Following God

We're Adopting!! 

We're excited to announce that it is our hope and prayer to add to our family through adoption.

The process can be long and the timeframe is unsure,

But we are officially a waiting family!

We appreciate your love, prayers,and support as we begin this exciting journey!

Our Story:

It all began actually many years ago, but has now become a reality.  At the beginning of our marriage almost 9 years ago, we had a plan as to what we "wanted" our life to be like, but yet God had better plans in store.  We quickly learned our plan was not God's plan and He began to show us things that we could have never expected.   Early in our marriage, God put on Ginny's heart a desire to adopt children, especially after seeing the conditions and circumstances of her inner city students she taught in Richmond.  Ginny would mention bringing children home jokingly to Chip, but he was not at that point yet.  Yet she hoped that one day down the road his heart would be open to adoption.  Fast forward a few years to where we are today...

Chip is nearing the end of his seminary career, these past couple of years have flown by and we are just amazed at the grace God has shown us here in Raleigh.  Through strong discipleship and community at Imago Dei Church, we have seen great growth in our understanding of the Gospel.  Not just in knowledge, but understanding how to live it out practically as well.

Our first few months in Raleigh, we were studying the book of Galatians at Imago Dei and the passage from Galatians 4:4-5 that states, "But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons." On the ride home, we began to discuss the sermon and began to process that we were once without a father and God who is rich in mercy and loved us despite our sin, adopted us into his family through faith in Christ.  It was then that Chip made the connection through the sermon that adoption was an awesome display of the Gospel. Yet during the next 5 to 6 months, he was processing that in his heart.  Mentioning it over and and over again to Ginny who could see God's hand at work in Chip's heart...

We have come to understand that our Adoption journey is not because of a biological issue, but a theological one.  It is a command that God gives "to care for the orphan" whether that is physically, prayerfully, or financially.  Since we are to bear His image and be imitators of Him, the One who cares for the fatherless, we have been convicted to uphold this truth and bring God glory through a real life illustration of the Gospel.  It shows us how God transforms spiritual orphans into family members.  He changes our names, identities, and families by His grace. It is our desire to be obedient to him and to physically do for a child who has no hope and give them the hope that has been given to us. 

⁴ even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love ⁵ he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will.  

                                               Ephesians 1:4-5

After much prayer, we said let's quit talking about it, and "DO something."  We were ready to make the step... 
 Not knowing our circumstances for our future after Chip graduates made it difficult for us to commit to certain countries as the length of stay ranges from 40 days to months at a time.  We recently have felt the call to China, but there are many hurdles we must pass, the biggest, the financial.  We are totally stepping out on faith and trusting God to provide.  We know we can not do this alone, so therefore we are asking our friends and family to prayerfully consider how they can help.  Whether it is committing to pray for us or finding financial ways to give.

If you would like to help out financially, please use the youcaring.com link on the right side of this page.  The paypal account is linked directly to our checking account we will be using for the adoption fees.  We look forward to see how God blesses us through this journey.