A Wonderful Christmas Present

Wow...what a whirlwind the last 2 months have turned out to be. We traveled to Addis to pick up Noah on November 25th and returned home with him on December 1. We were blessed to stay at the Addiskidan Baptist Guest House - what an amazing place run by amazing Christians. Alayu and Kidist and Hannah will forever be in our hearts. Our lives have already been blessed so much by our new little guy. It has been challenging and tested us on every level, but God has proven faithful to His promise to see us through this. While there are struggles, there is joy and peace that is greater than the struggle. Here are a few pictures of Noah. If you scroll down and look at his referral picture, I think you will be amazed to see the difference a month at home can make.

We're Going to Ethiopia

At long last, the day we have waited for is almost here. Our embassy date is Tuesday November 27th, we leave next Saturday the 25th to go pick up Noah. I don't think there are adequate words to describe the absolute chaos and sheer joy that we feel right now. If I can get my head on straight later on to write about it, I will. Just wanted to share with everyone the happy news for now.

He's ours!

Awesome news today, folks! Noah Eyob Wyatt is legally ours! The courts approved the adoption! So now we wait for the U.S. Embassy in Ethiopia to call and let us know when our travel date is. The estimates we got from our adoption agency are 2-4 weeks! And now, what you've all been waiting for: a photo of the newest member of the Wyatt family! Trust me, we'll share more when we get them!

Exciting Times

Well, this has been an eventful last couple of weeks. First and best news is, our caseworker called and gave us our 1st court date of November 1! This is AWESOME considering the courts only opened back up on October 11. This is the hearing where the judge will decide whether or not Eyob is officially our son. Please be in prayer that all will go well. This is the most important date so far.

We were also able to go to the Steven Curtis Chapman concert last night in Aiken, SC and meet him and thank him personally for the grant we received from his organization, Shaohannah's Hope. The whole night was just awesome and the work he is doing on behalf of orphans all over the world is absolutely amazing and inspiring. He signed the back of of Noah "Eyob"'s picture so that we can show him once he gets here.

Thank you all for your prayers and support. Keep them coming - we are getting so much closer.

The Time In Ethiopia

Referral of Child

August 29th, 2007 was quite a day for us. We got a referral of a little boy, a little over one and a half years old. He was beautiful, and from the first click of the mouse that opened his picture, he had my heart. It is the huge brown eyes that really get you. Feels like they are piercing you right through the screen. The only problem was, that we needed more funds to accept this referral. Our caseworker told us we had 10 business days to decide what to do. We prayed about it intently, asking God that if this was the child He had for us, to show us the way to get the extra money. WITHIN ONE DAY THROUGH THREE DIFFERENT DONATIONS, the money was provided. We continue to stand in amazement at miracle after miracle of God's provision in our adoption journey thus far. Although, we should not be amazed. God is always faithful, He knows what we need. Now, we wait for the courts to open back up in Ethiopia, hopefully in 1 1/2 more weeks they will be open. We are praying for a really great Christmas present. Can't wain until everything is "official", and we can show him off on this blog page. Thanks to everyone for their prayers and support. We love you all and you mean so much to us.

Shaohannah's Hope adds to our hope!

We got notice that we have received a grant from Shaohannah's Hope that we have recieved a grant in the amount of $3000! That's a big step closer to being able to send our dossier! We also have a commitment from a church member to donate a substantial amount in August, which we are profoundly grateful for! This leaves us between $3000 and $3500 away from completing the financial obligations of the adoption, which will enable us to send our dossier and begin receiving referrals. Please pray with us that this goal is reached soon, as the Ethiopian courts will be closing soon.