Fundraising!!!!

We are beginning to fundraise. Please review our Fundraiser Initiatives section on the left to help support. Spread the word please and thank you.

Rainy day outside but Sunshine on the outside

So hurricane Sandy has hit the East coast resulting in the Petway family being home today and tomorrow. A lot was accomplish today. We got the pictures together for the dossier. Updated the layout of our blog. I was able to talk to a good friend who is also going through the adoption process. Cooked dinner for the next 2 days.

Preparing for our next 2 days of Home study visits. Read some different blogs.

Contemplating some things through prayer....Wanting to be led by God and not the thoughts/opinions of others.


Until next time....

Let's Talk Ghana

So we are in the middle of our home study visits. We have 2 more to go. I'm constantly reading up on everything that I can about Ghana. So I decided maybe I should put some facts about Ghana on our blog. So here we go....

Art Ghana has hand woven colorful fabric called Kente. It is worn by chiefs and others for important and special occasions.

Music Folklore and pop music are popular in Ghana. Highlife, a dance with a strong, syncopated beat, is also popular. Instruments used in music are drums, trumpets, flutes and other percussion instruments.

Sports Football (soccer) is a favorite game of most Ghanaians. Volleyball, basketball tennis, ludo, golf and handball are also popular.

I found a recipe...I think I may try it....

Chicken with Chilies
This traditional Ghanaian dish is typically served with yams and fruits such as papaya or mango.

3 or 4 green chilies
1 three-pound chicken cut into eight pieces
3 Tb. butter
1 onion, sliced into rings
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
Salt and pepper to taste

Brown the chicken in melted butter. Add the onion rings and sauté until soft.

Add the broth, nutmeg, salt, pepper and chilies and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 35 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked.

Lastly here is a map of where we will travel in the near future:

The Social Worker is Coming

YAY!!!! We finished all our adoption learning credits!! Yesterday we received a phone call and email from our newly appointed social worker. I'm having some of the same emotions I had when I was pregnant with the girls. Nervous, excited, wondering, impatient, etc!! The timeline that we have been giving is similar to what we thought up in our heads. We are hoping that it will be sooner than later. Tyvon has been very great with getting things that we need and mailing off everything. The key is to stay on top of everything. We as the adopted parents do have some control (a little) over the timing of things based on our response time on things.

So the Social Worker is the same one some good friends of ours had for their adoption from Haiti. I don't even know what to expect from these visits. All I know is that we can't wait to have our handsome little son in our arms....and the girls...yes you know that have many comments and questions. They are waiting patiently....

I have attached a picture of the project the girls did for each of them and their brother. It's a bank that has been divided up into 3 parts: Spend, Tithes (Giving), and Save. Every 2 weeks they get their allowance and decide how much goes where themselves. As for "Lil-brother Petway," his allowance all goes to savings!!

Until next time....

Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring. Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord. Psalms 27:14

Adoption Education

Adoption Education...one of the requirements of adopting is a home study is to complete 10 hours of adoption education. We have started that through Adoption Learning Partners. We completed our first course and have 4 more to go. It was a very thought provoking class with lots of advice and tips on discussing adoption with your adopted child. This class really help me (Jamallia) because I struggle with telling our "son" that he is adopted. I felt like...he will be ours and why do I have to tell him. He's going to be treated just like he was our biological child. However I now understand that knowing he is adopted and him actually being adopted is a part of his self-identity.

Adoption Learning Partners---Here's a link to the company we are using for our adoption education courses.

Another requirement is our parent history documentation.....aka autobiography. This one is very structure and as some tough questions. Ty and I have to complete it separately!

Did I mention more paperwork....yes paperwork, paperwork but it will be worth it in the end!


Until next time....

Initial Steps Taken

Tyvon and I have been busy signing many papers for our upcoming adoption. We have finalized the agencies we are using for both the adoption and home study. Our Ghana adoption agreement has been sent along with our 1st payment. Our home study application will be in the mail by the end of this week. We are filled with so many emotions. The girls think that "the boy" will be here any day. Their concept of time is so different than ours. They have made a bank similar to theirs for their brother and make sure his allowance gets put away every time they get it.

We know that God has led us in this direction and we believe that He has already made provision in the spiritual realm to help us fund this adoption.

Until next time....
Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans. Fight for the rights of widows. Isaiah 1:17