How did this all start...Part 2

So in August of 2008 on a date I told Brian what had been on my heart. He, of course, already knew something was up. He asked me what I was thinking about. I had prayed that Brian wouldn't think I was crazy and I told him what had been on my heart. I told him how adoption and orphans just kept popping up everywhere. On the radio, in conversations, in emails, and mostly in my heart. Well, God is so good when He wants something to happen. Brian smiled and said that he had thought about it sorta in the back of his mind. He said he was excited about the idea. He said he knew that there was a clear call in the Bible to care for orphans. He also, like me, loved that adoption is such a beautiful picture of what God does for us. That He sent Jesus for us so that we could be adopted as sons and daughters into the family of God. We are helpless, broken, and alone. He rescues us, restores us, and calls us His very own children! So, as you can see...God had worked it all out. I didn't need to worry what Brian would think. He had already prepared Brian's heart.

From that point we started doing research into different agencies and programs. At the beginning we considered adopting from a Spanish-speaking country because I speak Spanish. So we started looking into programs in Mexico, El Salvador, Colombia but we realized quickly that none of them really fit what our family was seeking. We wanted to keep the same birth order with Isabel as the oldest. We also didn't want there to be a huge age difference and wait 2-3 years in a program. We attended several adoption events and met some really great people. God used all of those things to grow the passion in our hearts to care for orphans. Also, we had several friends that were either adopting or had adopted. It was all around us. We also explored domestic adoption for a season. Around the time we were feeling stuck is when our life turned upside down with job change, church change, way of life change. At that time, we knew we should put adoption on hold. So we did...but we knew in our hearts that it was only for a season.

Come back and I'll fill you in on the rest!