Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!!!

We celebrate Christmas this year with  mixed emotions!!!!!! When starting this journey we had hope to have an Ethiopian bundle of joy to celebrate this holiday season with. When you are counting the months at the start of the process you have a time period in mind and when unforseen issues arise and that timeframe comes and goes the emotions rise. So as we put smiles on our faces and celebrate this Christmas season with family and friends we ask for your prayers. We are asking the Lord to lift our discouraged hearts and allow us to enjoy this holiday season....hopefully the last one as a family of two!!!!!
MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!

~Love~  Jason and Megan

Merry Christmas from the DeVinney's!!!!!!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!!!!!!!

I have been an awful blogger over the past few months. I am so sorry. However there has been not much to blog about on the adoption front. We are currently at a stand still until we can raise enough money to proceed to the next step. It has been a little discouraging and I am really trying to trust in the Lord and not get into a funk.  I have my good days and my bad ones but praying for the Lord's guidance  and uplifting has become my daily prayer.  I sit back and thank heaven for a husband that reminds me daily (although I do not always accept it so nicely) that everything will happen in the Lord's timing.

Enough gloom!!!!  Merry Christmas everyone!!!!!! I hope everyone finds themselves in the spirit of this glorious holiday....the glorious birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ!!!!!  I have always held Christmas as my favorite holiday and although have had a slow start this year I believe I have finally arrived to the celebration. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful family and this year we are celebrating Christmas together!!!!! We put up our Christmas tree yesterday and there is just something about those twinkling lights that just makes me smile.

I am very confident and faithful that that they New Year will bring GREAT things for the DeVinney's. First and foremost the money to submit our dossier and Lord-willing a referral of a healthy baby boy. This is our prayer for the New Year and we hope you will join us in praying for these things and the Lord's will in our life. I thank you so much for your continued prayer!!!! God Bless!!!!!!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!!!

JASON and MEGAN

CIS fingerprinting complete!!!!!!

Jason and I traveled to a very rainy Pittsburgh yesterday to have our biometrics interview with the Central Immigration Service office. I am so not a city girl....walking three blocks in the rain does not to me equal a good time, but however neccesary in this situation. The whole process was painless...except the fact that I was super tired (I had worked 12 hours the night before and had only approx. 2 hours of sleep). The staff was super friendly and polite......for some reason this suprised me. Most government offices I have been to everything is very official and very stuffy....so when this was not the case I was pleasantly  suprised. We are now just waiting on the paperwork from the Homeland Security Office in DC that confirms that we are in fact capable of being parents to a baby not born in this country. The whole topic of this last sentence makes my blood curl....not a time or place for a soap box but I have my own issues with this process. I have come to terms that this is the process that the Lord wants us to complete to become parents and endure we will with His help. Patience is not a virtue of mine so I  must remind myself daily that everything happens in His time. Please continue to pray that everything will fall into place as far as the paper work and funding are concerned. Looking a little into the future we have also began to pray for a timely referral. Seeing other waiting familiesgo way passed the estimated 8-10 months for a referral is a little discouraging. I keep telling myself that the Lord knows which little boy is supposed to be our son and we will be matched when the timing is perfect.

So sorry that this blog post was a little weepy but I think that writing down my feelings helps me process.....Thanks so much for the ears, the shoulders and most of all for the PRAYERS!!!!!!

Bourkely, Mommy and Daddy love you and cannot wait to see your beautiful face!!!!

Happy Wednesday!!

Happy Wednesday everyone!!! I have had a new energy toward the whole adoption journey the last few days. I was starting to feel overwhelmed and that Bourkely would never make it home, but the Lord gave me such a peace the last few days. I know that as long as I trust in Him everything will happen (the paperwork will arrive correct, the money will be provided and He will give me the patience to endure the idle time on the waiting list that seems forever long). There will always be dark days, but I know that there is always light at the end of the tunnel. I am so thankful for my family and friends that are there by my side each and every day whether it be a good day or a bad day. Thanks so much for the shoulder to cry on, the words of encouragement, and at time just letting me vent. Love you all!!!!!!!!

MEGAN ~

I-600A Application Sent on 9/10/11

Hallelujah!!!! We  (Jason actually) sent our I-600 application to the Central Immigration Service/Homeland Security  on Saturday. This has been a long time coming but it is finally another step completed.  Once CSI process our application we will be fingerprinted at the federal level and then once we recieve our approval from them we can send our dossier to Ethiopia (via St. Louis for Children's Hope approval). We are so excited and completely blessed to be moving forward. We are praying each day to our Lord and Savior to provide the funds to send with our dossier (We know that He will.) He has provided the funding so far in some very unique ways. We are blessed to have such loving family and friends that loves us and our son unconditionally. Please pray that as we continue this journey that the Lord will grant us patience and understanding. God Bless!!!!!!!!

We need your help!!!!!!!!!!11

The Bourkely Zane Adoption Fund is having a THIRTY-ONE Gifts fundraiser. Thirty-one is a awesome company that sells trendy bags, purses, organizational totes, and accessories that can be personalized by monogramming. Our thirty-one consultant Sharon Hanks has graciously offered to donate her commision- 25% of all the items that we sell to the adoption fund. Please go to the link below and check out the items that they have to offer:

Catalog:
http://fall2011.thirtyonegifts.com/page1.html


If you see something that you like then go to

http://tinyurl.com/MeganDeVinney  (ordering through this link will ensure that the money is donated to the adoption fund)

Each order takes us one step closer to bringing Bourkely home. Thanks so much ahead of time and thanks so much for your prayers. We truly could not do this without the help of our Lord, and loving family and friends. We have faith that the Lord will carry us through.

A little closer.......

Our homestudy is COMPLETED!!!!! PRAISE THE LORD!!!!!. We are one step closer to brining our little one home. Our homestudy has arrived signed and sealed. We will be sending some paperwork to the United States Central Immigration Service and once they clear us of being international criminals. We will then have the go ahead to send our Dossier to St. Louis to be approved by Childrens Hope International. On from there it will head to Ethiopia and we will then be put on the waiting list for a baby boy less than 12 months of age. The estimated time that we will be on the waiting list is 7-10 months. The average time over the past year for waiting families with these specifications is approximately 7.5 months. So that means that Lord willing this time next year we will be heading to Ethiopia to meet our Bourkely!!!!!! Pray that the processing of paperwork goes smoothly and money comes in quickly to prevent delay of the rest of this process. We covet your prayers over the next year for God to give us strength, wisdom and patience while the process unfolds itself. If the Lord is calling you to donate to this journey there is a paypal account on our blog on the right column. We would like to thank you ahead of time for your prayers and donations. We will be having a large rummage sale in September to assist with the large monetary burden if anyone has anything that they would like to donate please message us on this blog, facebook or e-mail. Thanks so much and we appreciate all of the support!!!!!!