Packing our suitcases
Melissa Fischer
I can’t believe this week has come! Over the course of the last 10 months, and especially the last two, there have been moments that I have felt like we would never get here. I didn’t think I could do it. It was too hard. But over the course of this entire process God has been so faithful to me. Whenever I have felt like it was just too much, He was there. He gave me just the right dose of encouragement. A random note or text from a friend, an unexpected donation to our fundraising page, a worship song that put into words what I could not, a lesson through my BSF study that was exactly what I needed to read. Every time, He was there.
I could not be more thankful for what I have learned on this journey so far. I believe that when things and circumstances are beyond our control and what we can “do” for ourselves, we experience God in an entirely new way. That has been this journey for us. He has taken our “Yes, Lord” and done all of the rest. Every question and obstacle we have faced, He has answered and overcome. Every time I have said, “Lord, I can’t… we can’t…” He has said, “But my Melissa, I can.” His love, care, faithfulness and tenderness with me throughout this entire process has been one of the sweetest seasons of knowing and experiencing my God that I have had in my entire life.
And now we are here. Tomorrow is December 1st. Tomorrow starts the month in which we will meet our newest daughter. All of the worry, the fear, the exhaustion, the work, the fundraising, the tears, the frustration, and the rest of the hard parts of this journey to get to her will wash away with the first look at her sweet face. And that moment is so close. I really can’t believe it.
I am not naive enough to think that when we meet this precious girl for the first time it will be all rainbows and butterflies. That is another difficult part of adoption. This little life, whom is the greatest blessing to us, will be the greatest loss to another mama. My heart breaks thinking about it, and I really cannot fathom or imagine how we will possibly make it through or process that experience.
So while our house buzzes with excitement, and we share with our kids the countdown to FL this week, my heart is full of sadness. My pleading prayer with the Lord is that He will allow me and show me many many opportunities to love our sweet birth mom, S, well. There is nothing I can do to take away the sadness in this situation. All I can do is hope to be who my Lord would want me to be, and pray S sees and knows the depth that she is loved, cherished, and respected. Oh, I pray she does.
Beyond spending a lot of time emotionally processing and preparing for our trip, I have spent a ton of time mentally and physically preparing. I have a four page packing list and piles upon piles of stuff. Taking a family of 5 on the road is no joke.
Our plan is to take off for Florida this coming Saturday. If S goes into labor before Saturday, we will change our flights and take off asap. Once we get to Florida, we will be staying with some friends while we wait for baby to arrive. I am so grateful to our friends for so graciously opening up their home to us for an undetermined length of time. I am also grateful that Travis has a profession where he is able to work remotely. Both of these things are allowing us to, hopefully, be in Florida and nearby when S goes into labor. This means that, if S doesn't go into labor early, we will get to be in the hospital when baby girl is born. Because of the distance and time zone differences between California and Florida, it was looking like it would be 24-48 hours before we could get to Florida once we got the call S was in labor. That amount of time pretty much guarantees we would not make it to the hospital in time for the birth. So, this opportunity is such a sweet and amazing gift.
Another sweet gift is that my mother-in-law, Kaye, will be coming to Florida with us. When we first found out we were matched and would be traveling for Florida for an indefinite amount of time in December, we had a very hard time figuring out what would be the best plan for our kids. We don’t know how long we will be in Florida, and we didn’t want to be away from them for several weeks. Travis’s family has been very sweet as they have all rallied together to take care of the house, Travis’s 10 year old sister, Blessing, and all of the Christmas preparations so that Kaye could come be with us in Florida. We are now able to bring Kingston and Raena with us, and experience this special time all together because Kaye will be there to help care for them while we are busy at the hospital and with a newborn. My heart is so full knowing that they will be with us, and I can’t wait for them to meet their new little sister.
We don’t know how long we will be in Florida. After the baby is born, we have to wait for the paperwork to be processed and to get a call that we can take the baby out of the state. They say to plan for it to take 1-2 weeks to get that call. I have heard of some people getting the call quicker than that and I have heard of some it has taken longer. We don’t know what to expect, especially with December being such a huge holiday month. They could expedite our process so they can get us out of there so people can go on their Holiday vacations or it could take longer because people are on vacation for the holidays and paperwork gets backed up. Either way, we are trusting that God has the perfect plan for our trip and our Christmas holiday this year. No matter where we are on December 25th, it will be the most special Christmas ever.
After we get the call that we can leave Florida, we will be heading to Wisconsin to spend some time with family, and celebrate the holidays + the newest addition to our family. I can’t wait. Ever since we found out we would have a December baby, I have dreamt of snuggling up on the couch with our newborn, drinking hot coffee, and being with family in our winter wonderland. Magic.
Warm fleece jammies from Auntie Tiff, so our Coffee doesn't get cold in Wisconsin weather.
This warm seat cover will be perfect for keeping our girl protected from the WI temps.
This is going to be a pretty epic trip for our little {can I call us little anymore if we are 5?} family. Hence the 4 page packing list {and that doesn’t include Trav’s stuff, he’s on his own}. We are packing for 60/70 degree temps in Florida which is very similar to weather here, so that’s pretty simple. But then we also have to pack for sub-zero temps in Wisconsin. Yikes. I’ve been calling on all my friends and family there to collect winter gear for us to borrow. My kids don’t even own winter gear haha. We are pretty much throwing every item of clothing we own into our suitcases and we will be layering up.
So far, baby coffee** is the only member of the family that is packed. It has been so sweet preparing and packing her things. I can’t wait to get to use them.
**In case you missed it, "Coffee Ice Cream Fischer" is the name Kingston gave our new baby girl, so that's the code name we are using until we announce her actual name. :)
Moby wrap and sling to carry our girl around. The question is who will wear these in Florida most? Me, Travis, or Nama Kaye? :)
Pump and milk producing herbal supplements. I am trying to re-lactate in order to breastfeed. Prayers for this process appreciated!!
Now that we are 6 days from departure, I can start packing the rest of us. We did laundry last night, and pulled out our suitcases. We ordered THREE car seat travel bags on amazon. Things are getting real. I can only imagine the circus we are going to be at the airport. The four {then five} of us, a stroller, several large suitcases, three car seats, and carry-ons.
We covet your prayers this week. It’s going to be a very busy week full of a lot of emotions. Here are some of our immediate prayer requests:
- Please pray for peace. This week and month are HUGE. So many emotions.
- Pray for our birth mom, S, that she would feel good and rested as her body prepares for delivery. Pray for a healthy and safe delivery of baby coffee. Pray for S’s heart and the process she is going through. Pray she feels peace about and confidence in her choice to create an adoption plan for her baby.
- Pray that we would continue to trust God’s plan for us each step of the way. He has been nothing but faithful and we have no reason to doubt Him, but that does not mean that satan will stop his attempts to attack our faith.
- Pray that God would be preparing our hearts to walk this process with S how He would want us to walk it. Pray that we will know how to love and serve her well, and that we would not miss even a single opportunity to do that.
- Pray for safety as we travel and for God’s favor as we have to purchase last minute plane tickets, and travel during one of the most expensive times of the year.
- Pray for Kingston and Raena as their lives are completely uprooted this month. Pray that we would go above and beyond to love them well through this transition. Pray that they would feel loved, secure, and well rested as we are away from home.
- Pray for Travis's dad and sister as they are without Kaye while she is with us in Florida this month. Their lives and routine will be thrown for a loop. We are so appreciative of their willingness to sacrifice and share Kaye with us.
- Pray for our health. Travis was hit with the flu earlier this month {thankfully none of the rest of us got it} and Kingston and Raena have colds right now. Pray that we would all be in good health as we are around S and baby coffee. We would hate for either of them to get sick.
- Pray for baby coffee, that she would be strong and healthy when she arrives. Pray that she bonds with us, and we are able to care for her fully the way we desire to.
Thank you all for being a part of our journey. Every prayer, donation, and message of encouragement has blessed us beyond what we could explain to you. We could not have gotten this far in the process without the amazing community of support that you have all given to us. You have affected our lives greatly and you are affecting the life of our sweet little coffee girl and her first mama, S. Thank you.
We cannot wait to share the news of our Florida adventures with you. Please keep an eye on the blog and my Instagram account for updates and pictures!