Continuing the Journey With Calvin Jack

It has been 3 months since we had the sudden arrival of Calvin Jack. I thought it was about time to give a brief update on the little man and where we are in the adoption world!

Our little Calvin Jack came to us as an 8lb bundle of joy and now 3 months later he weighs in at a mere 17lb and just keeps growing. Our pediatrician tells us that he is in the 90^th percentile for his height and weight – and he just keeps on growing and growing. He has a sweet personality that shows itself in the numerous chuckles and smiles we get every day. He is sleeping like a rock star – rocking out 12 hours a night! We are simply in love with this little boy and are often still amazed how he came into our lives.

         

We have had so many people ask about Lesotho and where we are at so we thought it was about time to fill you all in on what we are currently thinking. As many of you know we were originally setting out to adopt two little ones from Lesotho.  Many of you helped us to raise all of the money for this. One of the reasons why we were able to receive Calvin Jack so quickly was because we had all the funds needed for his adoption already sitting in various accounts designated for adoption. This, of course, now affects the adoption of two children from Lesotho. Currently, we do not have the money for the adoption of two little ones from Lesotho.  We are still planning on pursuing the Lesotho adoption; however, we will request to adopt one child instead of the original two.

What does this mean? Well, quite frankly it puts us back on the fundraising path. We have around $8,000 remaining in our adoption account which we will put toward the Lesotho adoption. Firstly, we need to update our Home Study and request an extension from the U.S government, and yes, this all requires money. We think we will need around another $25,000 for adoption #2 to happen (been there before, right? ;-)). I am planning to jump back into grant writing mode and see if we are able to receive most of the money that way. Many grants allow you to re-apply up to three times so I will push the pen as much as I can.

What about another domestic adoption? Sure. We are happy to be included in the domestic program; however, the issue we have with the domestic program is that you need the $30,000 available as soon as you get the phone call. We are simply not in a financial position to do that (strange, huh?). We think the best plan is to remain in the Lesotho program and if we are still waiting when we reach the financial goal we will request to join in the domestic program. The ease of the Lesotho program is that you are able to pay as you go for different documents that are needed along the way. We are reminded that in both of these programs the timing is out of our hands and thus we trust that God is working perfectly in this situation and in our family.

So, here we are! Here we are on a very different path to the one we set out on over a year ago. We would have never dreamed that our travels would now include a new little Clausing born here in Tennessee! So, now the three of us bumble ahead with the hope for a little brother or sister for Calvin Jack.  

And again, thank you for reading. We are so thankful for so many, near and far, who have walked with us since the beginning, those walking with us now and those who will continue to walk with us in the future. We have been so encouraged by many notes and gifts in the mail that have shared in the excitement of Calvin Jack. As we jump back on the road again, knowing that we have no idea how long we will be walking on this particular journey for but as we look across and see little Calvin’s smile, we know that we have been here before and God did more than we could ever imagine. This, my friends, comforts and guides us as we go forward. 

We very well may get another rockin’ t-shirt for a fundraiser in the future. Bare with us as we navigate new territory. If you so wish to donate to our adoption account, you can go to www.smallworldadoption.com and click on ‘Make a Payment’ and when completing information be sure to write that the payment is for ‘the child to be adopted by the Clausing family’.

…and thus the journey continues.

So Thankful.

Taryn (&Cam)