Arnolds Adoption Adventure

Recently, Cameron and I attended a newborn caretaking / parenting class at a local hospital. We were both excited to learn some tips and tricks from a professional. Growing up, I babysat a lot of neighbors’ children and my first college major was even Childhood Education. Cameron, on the other hand, had never even changed a diaper. While we are both firstborns and had been around our younger siblings, we knew taking a class would be beneficial to us one day as new parents. During the class they covered everything from swaddling to feeding to diapering to bathing – oh my! I think Cameron did great for a practice run and I was super proud! From early in our relationship I knew Cameron would be an amazing father. It was fun building a memory together as we take the next steps toward parenthood. I think we are most excited about going through this learning process together. We make a good team and I hope that this quality in our relationship will only be magnified once we are blessed with our little one. I can’t wait to experience parenthood with my favorite person on the planet!

P.S. We are still in need of prayers and funding. If you feel led to give, please click the Donate Today link above.

Always Pray Big,

The Arnolds

Imagine someone has told you are going on a trip. You don’t know when you are leaving or where you are headed, only that you will be going somewhere. So, you pack your bags and wake up the next morning and ask, “Where are we going? Is it time to leave?” You get told, “No. Wait, and ask tomorrow.” The next day you ask again, “Where are we going? Is it time to leave?” You get told, “No. Wait, and ask again tomorrow.”…etc.

This has been our life in the season of waiting. I am sure I am not the only one who gets frustrated or anxious when you have to wait for something, especially when you are excited! That is the season we are in currently…waiting, waiting, praying, and more waiting. Waiting is tough, right?! Every day I have woken up with the feeling of nervous excitement anticipating a call that will change our lives forever. The call telling us a mom has selected us to be the parents of her unborn child. This eminent change is heavy on my mind. It has been tough to share my feelings here publicly after our fundraiser in June (where we were completely overwhelmed by everyone’s generosity) since we have still been in what feels like a stagnant state. I have been keeping a private journal of our adoption ups and downs. I want to be able to share that with our child one day and reflect on how I felt emotionally and how God provided for us every single step of the way.

A few weeks ago I began to read the book In the Wait and it has filled my heart with so much hope and joy. This book is great to read no matter what season of “waiting”  you may be in in your life. I am not always a patient person so this has opened my eyes to a new perspective and how I can prepare my heart during this time of waiting for our child. The good thing is it is not just applicable to mamas-in-wait, so I know I will keep it and re-read it in the future. If you are a mama-in-waiting – know I completely understand where you are coming from and would love to pray for you! If you decide to read In the Wait yourself, let me know your thoughts!

Always Pray Big,

The Arnolds

From the bottom of our hearts, Cameron and I want to say thank you to everyone who donated silent auctions items, attended, prepared food for, or otherwise contributed to our fundraiser last Saturday. Each and every one of you will forever hold a special place in our story. I cannot wait to share the details of this memory with our little once they get older. We are both overwhelmed with everyone’s generosity – it made our very hearts happy to see everyone together! The good news is, we are one step closer to being ready to bring our little love home!

We are currently playing the waiting game – waiting to be matched with the birth mom God has chosen for us. This is harder than some may imagine because it is easy to get in your own head/heart about what the future holds. In the mean time, I am trying to keep busy re-finishing nursery furniture, reading, and seeking encouragement from other fellow adoptive mamas. Cameron and I ask that y’all continue to pray for us, share our story with others and, if you feel led, donate.

Always Pray Big,

The Arnolds

Y’all. We have sold 95 shirts! We are thrilled and cannot thank everyone enough for the support we have received! Every shirt purchased has helped get us closer to bringing baby Arnold home. More shirts have arrived, so please reach out to us or go to the Donate Today tab above to place your order. Once you receive your shirt, we are asking that everyone post a picture on social media of yourself wearing the shirt with the #arnoldsadoptionadventure.

Always Pray Big,

The Arnolds

We received news that our look book has been completed and will be shown soon to birth moms! Oh my goodness – receiving this news made our hearts very happy! It has really began to sink in that we could be parents soon! It truly feels surreal to be in this journey. Adoption is something we discussed and created expectations about in our minds, but it has not been 100% what we imagined. But, let’s be honest, what in life goes 100% as you expected? So far this path has opened our hearts and minds to a whole other world we never had experienced. And, one we may never had gotten the joy to, had it not been for our challenges to conceive. Some days are tough, some are happy and other days, we just wait and pray. While we are very excited (and anxious) for this next step, we are unable to be officially “matched” with a child until we are fully-funded.  As some of you may know, adoption is very expensive. We have a financial goal of $45,000. So far, we have successfully raised $5,000. Praise the Lord! Please take a moment to consider donating to help bring baby Arnold home! If you feel led, simply click the Donate Today tab. Every penny and prayer helps!

“Never get tired of doing little things for others. Sometimes, those little things occupy the biggest part of their hearts.” – Unknown

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