Heart Shaped Sprinkle Pancakes

As I laid out 3 little hearts with my kid's names on them and a small treat for them to open Valentines morning, and as I plated up heart shaped pancakes with sprinkles, I felt an ache. I wondered how many more Valentines will pass before our 4th child will be at the table, smiling and laughing with his siblings as syrup makes a sticky mess across his face. When will I get to write his name on a little foam heart? I am cherishing the moments that I have with my kids now, watching them grow right before my eyes, each moment precious and passing. I know that God has us as a family of 5 for this season for a reason. I especially remember that when my littlest is screaming for me to hold her ALL DAY and the big two are fighting. But there is an evident ache, a void, a piece of my heart that is waiting for our 4th child.

Dixie asks me "When are we going to Ethiopia to get brother?", Knox points it out on the globe. They pray over brother at night. I look around sometimes and I count my kids because someone is clearly missing,  1...2...3... They are all here. I am not going crazy...maybe I am! Then I realize, it is him, my heart already considers him one of my kids. 

While this adoption is not about me or Evan or how long we have to WAIT for a child, some days it is hard. Hard to think where he is, what he is going through, how much I want to show him unconditional love and security. It's hard because as a mom, you naturally just want to give those things to your child and right now, I just can't.

Despite the wait, I am glad that God continues to put this compassion, desire and love in my heart for our boy now. That with time, the ache grows deeper and deeper as I become closer to becoming his mother and him my son. All I have to offer at this point are my prayers to God on behalf of our child and on behalf of my aching heart. I can offer my willingness to lay aside my expectations on what this adoption should look like and just trust God's timing. He has a plan, he has a purpose. He sees our boy and he knows. He knows right where he is, exactly what he is facing and he loves him more than I ever could. He continues to grow this mama's heart, to make me realize that even though I ache, he can fill my ache, even though I cry, he can dry my tears, even when I love, he can make me love deeper. Now that is something worth celebrating...perhaps with some heart shaped sprinkle pancakes:)


Ecclesiastes 3:1 "There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under the heavens."

Isaiah 55:9 "For my thoughts are not your thoughts. neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts."

Where in the World is our Adoption Tee at? Post #21

I realized I never posted this picture that I received via text after Thanksgiving. This precious family, the Robins, went on a cruise and made sure to wear our shirts all on the same day and take a family picture. Here they are in Cozumel, Mexico representing. How cute are they? I love this so much! Every time I see someone wearing our shirts, it reminds me how loved and supported we are and how the message of the orphan crisis is getting out to people.

The Robins attend our church, Bridge Church,  and are so sweet and always willing to help anyone out. Melissa is gorgeous and hysterical. I love hanging out with her. She is super crafty and makes BEAUTIFUL jewelry (she donated some to our auction). She also cuts hair, so she is Knox's fro tamer. In fact the fro is getting tamed this week. Thank you Melissa, I was about to bust out the clippers and shave that boys head. Lucky for him, the curls will be saved.

Eugene is an awesome mechanic and has his own business in Slidell for just that and selling pre-owned cars. In fact this man is responsible for finding me my mini van, and if you know me, that means he made me the happiest momma in the world..no seriously...I LOVE my van! It represents things I hold dear to me: family, obnoxious amounts of cheerios and animal crackers crushed into the floorboard (ok maybe not that), 3 car seats (still room for 1 more) and empty pj's chai cups. On that note, I probably need to go clean it out. Anyway, if you need your car repaired or are in the market to get a pre-owned one, check out Slidell Autoplex.

We cannot forget about those beautiful children either. They are sweethearts and adorable. This family is just AWESOME! We love you Robin Family! Thank you for supporting our adoption and our family. 

****We still have plenty of kid's shirts left for $15 each if anyone wants one. If you bought one for you, don't forget to get your little one a shirt to match. It is a great chance to be able to talk to them about orphan care and how they can make a difference. My kids LOVE wearing Brother's shirt. Just send me a message through our FB page or an email at angiemcginty@gmail.com for size info.

A New Year of Waiting

Happy New Year everyone! Last month I shared that we had officially made it onto the long wait list for a referral. Also, that each month, as referrals were given, we would inch closer and closer to the bottom of the list, which meant closer and closer to a referral for a child.  Oh what joy it was to be on that list FINALLY! I also said that I would update you all each month as we got a new wait list number (I was so excited to share a cute little number with you all each month).

Unfortunately, we are longer going to be able to do that. Our placing agency has recently requested that families in process no longer share case specific information on social media. I apologize for the false advertising. I will say that the wait is long guys! LOOOOOONG! With  many new policies being put into place in Ethiopia, it seems as though our wait may even increase from what we were originally told. There is nothing that we can do about this, but wait and pray!

This past week, there were rumors that Ethiopia was attempting to shut down international adoption. While that does not seem to be the case as of now, we just never know what the future holds with a foreign government. There have not been many referrals recently due to a slow down in processing paperwork on the Ethiopia end.  For now, during this period of waiting, we ask that you pray for Ethiopia, pray that they stay opened to International adoption, pray that referrals pick up, pray for the families who are waiting, pray for the children who need loving families, pray for the birth parents of these children. Pray for our son.

We look forward to all of the ways that God will move in this adoption process in the new year. We know he will continue to grow and stretch us, even during this long season of "waiting." Thanks for waiting alongside of us.



While I'm Waiting from John Waller on Myspace.

Haiti Mission Trip 2013

 Evan and I got back from Haiti about a week ago. We went for a short 6 day trip to serve with an amazing organization in Gressier, Haiti called Respire Haiti. I had gone to Haiti last year around this time and came back with an entirely new perspective. The trip rocked my world and right at the time that it needed to be rocked. God challenged me with so many things and I was able to share those things with Evan. A month later, we decided to start the adoption process.

This year, although it was not easy with 3 littles to leave behind, Evan came on the trip too ( A big thank you to those that pitched in to watch our kids). I was excited for him to see all that I had seen the year before and for God to work in him in his own unique way. I was excited to go back and see the amazing progress that has happened over there in just a year. It was a testament to God's faithfulness and provision over this organization.

We had an amazing time serving in various ways and bonding with our fellow team members. I would love to share some of the things that we did while we were there. Here is a picture of our awesome team on top of Belvue Mountain, where the school is located.

 1) We threw a teacher appreciation lunch for the teachers at the school and gave them handmade bags and journals (that some of our amazing church members worked on) along with some other goodies. I was so super excited that I got to plan a party (one of my passions) while in Haiti. They were so excited to be recognized and it was a joy to do that for them. We also put Evan's balloon animal skills to use by making centerpieces and photo props. Evan even taught an impromptu ballon animal class to some of the teachers in the corner of the room. They were so interested in learning how to make them. Who would have thought balloon animals would be such a hit?

2) We got to help some of the children from the school practice their Haitian creole by reading with them and listening to them read. I do not speak a lick of Creole, so not sure how much help I was, but it was fun listening to Green Eggs and Ham in Creole. Plus, this little guy was adorable.

3)We helped with the Saturday feeding up on the mountain, where many of the kids that come, get their one meal of the day.  We sang songs beforehand. The view on top of the mountain is amazing. I even saw the little boy that I fed last year. He had grown so much! I also got my braids worked on as you can see

4) We did a field day with the first grade class and taught them a cute little french song. They were so cute running around getting excited.

5)We worked with the adult English classes. We were able to teach them English through doing devotionals with them. It was an amazing time of sharing the gospel and them asking lots of deep spiritual questions. Unfortunately I have no pictures of this:( But I can assure you that God was moving in cool ways during this time. The English classes are one of my favorite activities.

6) We were able to bless the cooks of the school with goodie bags and give them an encouraging word.

7) The guys built a bench for a missionary family that will be working with Respire and needed a table to homeschool their 5 kids. I'd say they are going to have PLENTY of space:)

8)We attended the local church on Sunday and worshipped with the Haitian people. Later that day we took a walk to the not so nice beach, but I pretended it was nice despite the smell of trash. It was nice to have a day of down time. Later that night, we worshipped on top of the mountain. It was beautiful!

9)We were also able to bring down lots of supplies and Bibles for Respire to distribute to families and children. I am always amazed at how much we manage to get down there. Excuse this picture. My camera did something whacky.

We had great intimate time doing worship and devotions as a team and growing in our own personal walks with the Lord. I feel so close to each of my fellow team members. We now share inside jokes and memories that will last a lifetime. One of our teammates, Matt, is an amazing videographer with Harmonic Films and put together the following video to give a glimpse into our trip. If you have the time, check it out.




It was a wonderful trip that I am so thankful we were able to be a part of. If you have never been on an International mission trip, I think everyone should do it at least once. Here are a few lagniappe shots from the trip as well:

Our first wait list #

Finally! We are FINALLY on the wait list officially! After 11 months, I have been itching to type those words. Our official wait list number as we enter the list is:

What does this mean? Well, it means we have a LONG road ahead, but all of our paperwork is completed and approved (although we will have to update it throughout the wait). Technically there are 163 families ahead of us who are waiting for a referral from the agencies that we work with (Lifeline and West Sands). Now, each family has different specifications such as gender, age, health status, siblings, etc. So we would not necessarily have to be at #1 before we get a referral.

As of now, we are being told the wait is around 24 months before we get a referral and then another 9 months after that till we can bring him home...sigh! Yes, that is a long time! There is no firm time frame, they just give you an estimate based on what they know as of now. Lately there really have not been many referrals with our agency due to paperwork slowing down with the Ethiopian government. There are so many factors that go into this. We are hoping the referrals pick up soon. Each month we will receive a new number, as long as referrals are coming in. Some months, there are no referrals, so your number may not change. As we receive a new number, I will be sure to update you all each month.

While this wait ahead is going to be tough, I am just thankful that we made it on the list before the end of 2013. It was a great surprise to open my email and see that number. We will be taking a rest for a while from paperwork and fundraising since we have been going hard at both of those for almost a year. We are whooped! In the mean time we will be continuing to pray for our son, educate ourselves on adoption and Ethiopian culture, spend some good quality time with our kids, and continue to follow God's calling in this area.

Thank you to all of you who have been so supportive during this first part of the process. We have raised half of the money we need. I still cannot believe that! All of you have been so wonderful this year and we truly feel supported and encouraged. Thank you for sticking with us through this journey so far. Please continue to pray for us and our son as we WAIT.

"The Lord is good to those who WAIT for him, to the soul who seeks him." -Lamentations 3:25

"Wait for the Lord;  be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord." -Psalm 27:14

Win an amazon.com gift card!

We are so excited to announce our next fundraiser! We know that most of you have already started your Christmas shopping and if you haven't you are stressing as you think about all the Christmas shopping you need to do. So much time and money! So, we want to help make it a little easier and more exciting for you. You ready for this?

You have the chance to win a $500 AMAZON Gift Card. Oh yes, you just read that right... a $500 gift card. Do I have your attention now? Good!

Here is how it will work. We bought a deck of cards. As you know there are 52 cards in a deck. For $25, we will write your name on one of those cards and enter it into the drawing. You have a 1 in 52 chance to win $500, those are pretty good odds my friends!

On December 1st or when all cards are sold (whichever comes first), we will draw one card at  random. If your name is on that card, you win $500 to spend on Amazon! Amazon is our go to shopping spot. You can pretty much find ANYTHING you need on there and with a click of a button, have it delivered to your door. If you have a prime account, you can get most stuff within 2 days and with no shipping cost!

So, here are 2 things we are asking you to do:

1) If you would like to purchase a card for a chance to win, please click on our paypal button (at the top left of the blog) and donate $25. Include the name you would like on the card.

2) SHARE this blog post with your friends through Facebook or email. We want to sell all 52 cards as quickly as possible so that the winner can get to shopping. Amazon always has GREAT black Friday deals, so if we can sell them fast, the winner will get more bang for their buck.

 Remember your donation is helping us to reach our fundraising goal to get our little guy home from Ethiopia. Let's see how fast we can sell these cards. One lucky person is going to be a very happy shopper!

Where in the World is Our Adoption Tee at? Post # 20

It has been a while since we have done a blog post because I tend to do most of our updates via FB, since it is quick and easy. I forgot that I had received a picture of a precious family wearing our adoption tees a while back and I wanted to make sure to give them a shout out because they are just AWESOME!

Meet Andy Wayne and Krista Chance along with their 7 totally adorable kiddos. I cannot tell you how much I love this family! When I was in college and attended a church in Hammond, Andy Wayne came on as the associate pastor. Through church, small group, game nights and just hanging out we came to know and love this family.

I look up to these guys so much! Andy Wayne is a pastor at The Vine Church in Hammond (If you live in Hammond, you should totally check them out). He is also a teacher at Northlake Christian School. He is insanely smart and loves to pass down his knowledge to his kiddos.  I remember hearing from someone in a conversation once, "I know this guy in Hammond who is teaching his 5 year olds Hebrew." I knew immediately it was AW...haha!

Krista is the essence of everything that I want to be when I grow up. She is insanely beautiful on the inside and out, loves the Lord with her whole being, is always joyful and positive (How does she do that?), home schools her kids, teaches workout classes, bakes incredible cakes and sweets, etc. I could go on and on about her. Plain and simple, I love this lady and she inspires me! As for the kids, they are all precious cotton tops with fun and unique personalities who are always so polite when we see them.

We love hanging out with Chance Crew any chance we get. We are so thankful that they bought adoption tees for the whole family and sported them proudly to church. Thank you Chance family for your love, support, and friendship. We love you guys so much!

Had to add in the one with Esther Kate's silly face. Makes me giggle!