Adoption Shirts Around the U.S. : Post #9

We are back with another Shirts Around the U.S. post! Today's post features some lovely ladies in a beautiful place. Meet the Moseley ladies!

 Mary, Sarah and Emily

Not pictured, but still a part of this wild bunch: Dale, Andrew and Kate. 

Sorry about the big white line. I can't make it go away. 

This was the first picture Emily sent me.
Response:
Ummm... I need you to be in the picture. 

I have known the Moseley family a looooooong time. Mary was one of Bible study leaders in high school and is responsible, along with Leslie, for growing my foundation of faith and a LOT of my Scriptural knowledge. She is one of those marvelous people who truly never misses an opportunity to look for God's hand in every detail. In fact, she used to respond to a lot of my middle and high school complaining with, "Well, Baylor, what is God teaching you through this?" That advice has served me well as we have navigated the twists, turns, climbs and drops of the adoption world. 

She is with two of her three lovely daughters here. Sarah and Emily. I did not know these ladies well in high school, mostly because they are young and fabulous and I am a crusty old woman, but I have gotten to know them through our many trips to Honduras over the years, and I can tell you that they are fabulous people.

Thank you, Moseley tribe for all of your love and support not only through this adoption but over so many years! 

Love, 

Baylor 

Melkam Fasika!

If my Googling serves my correctly, today is Easter Sunday in Ethiopia! That means that fellow believers in the country where my children will be born have spent the day celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ! I wanted to get an idea of what Easter looks like in Ethiopia, so I did a quick Google Images search, and here is some of what I found.

 Dressed in white and walking to church

 Beautiful children in their Easter clothes

 Inside a church celebrating our Risen King. 

Seriously, though, how incredible does that look? 

Praying before a cross. 

A large percent of Ethiopia's population is Muslim, but it is amazing to know that there are active churches in Ethiopia, too, which means that truth of the Gospel is being shared. As we look ahead to Mother's Day next week, I have been thinking a lot about the birth mother of our sweet children. Finding these pictures has given me new hope that maybe she has at least heard the Good News of the Gospel. I plan to spend some special time in prayer for her this week, as I cannot imagine the choice she will have to make in order for me to become a mom. I hope to be able to meet her one day to express my deep gratitude for her and her sacrifice. 

But for today, I am hoping that she hears the Gospel with open ears and an open heart. And I am hoping the same for you if you do not yet know the saving grace of Jesus Christ. I pray that you will open your eyes and your heart to Him and accept the gracious gift He has given us in sacrificing His own life in our place. We deserved to die that death and be separated from God for all eternity. But God loved us enough to provide another way, a way for us to be reunited with Him for all eternity. He loves you, yes you, that much. 

"But God demonstrates His own love for us in this; that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." 

Romans 5:8

Love, 

Baylor 

Adoption Shirts Around the U.S. Post #8

Today's adoption t-shirt post takes us to the snowy peaks of Colorado! Meet Pete and Sarah Nell!

 Our adoption shirts are skiing!

These pictures absolutely made my day! 

Adam and I have known the Comptons for a looooong time. Adam and Sarah Nell grew up together and the four of us were at Auburn at the same time. Sarah Nell and I met each other at the very beginning of our sophomore year of college and soon became good friends. She stuck with me through several Bible studies during our college years, and we were even in each other's weddings. When Pete came into the picture we loved him right away, and he and I had a good time plotting to surprise SN by getting him from Europe to our wedding when it looked like he would not be able to make it after a study abroad opportunity. Even though the Comptons live far away right now, we still consider them to be close, close friends of ours, and we can't wait to see them again (hopefully soon!). 

Thank you, Pete and Sarah Nell, for being such incredible and God-fearing people and friends. We appreciate you both so much, and we are profoundly grateful knowing that you love, support and pray for us as we work toward bringing our little one(s) home. 

Love, 

Baylor 

P.S. We are about to wrap up our adoption shirt re-order. We will be selling through the weekend and then getting things together to place the actual order. If you are interested in owning one of our lovely shirts, please let me know! They are $20, and ALL of the profits go DIRECTLY toward our adoption! 

Adoption Tees Around the U.S. Post #7

Here we go with another adoption t-shirt post! Today's entry takes us to the loveliest village on the plains and one of my favorite places to be: Auburn! Meet Josh!

Best picture ever. 

And with his puppy, Danger. 

The Knotts love Josh Adams! He was one of our good friends in college, and then we were next door neighbors for two years after college. He is such a good friend and makes a mean "homemade" lasagna and a fabulous groomsman (in fact, he is the star of our wedding video!). While we were neighbors, he adopted his sweet dog, Danger. Adam and I have many fond memories of hearing Josh yell, "Danger!" through the shared wall of our apartments. 

We are so very grateful to be friends with such a wonderful person. I am especially thankful for Josh, because he never grew tired of me asking him to check our apartment for murderers during the six long months that Adam and I had to live apart. One night he even volunteered to sleep on the doormat outside our apartment if it would make me feel better. Don't worry, I did not take him up on it. 

Thank you, Josh, for being such a great friend to us! We cannot wait for our little one (or two) to meet you!

Love, 

Baylor  

Adoption Tees Around the U.S. Post #6 + Some Other Things

Today's adoption t-shirt post takes us to the Windy City!

 Say hello to Amy! You might remember her from some earlier posts. She and her husband reside in Chicago and through the adoption process, we have become good friends. Even though we have never met. Amy has been such a blessing and encouragement to me over the last several months, and it has beem incredible to see how sovereign God truly is, bringing people into our lives when He knows we need them most. Thank you, Amy, for being such a good friend! It is so, so, SO good to know that you are right there when I need a bit of encouragement from someone who understands right where I am. Thank you for being an instrument of God in my life!

On a related note, we are STILL selling these super fancy t-shirts. If you want one, please leave a comment below or email me. They are $20, and ALL of the profits go DIRECTLY toward bring the little one(s) home.

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Second thing for today: You guys are some serious prayer warriors! A few days ago, I posted asking for some serious prayer for movement in the way of referrals. And THREE have gone out in the last TWO days! Now that's what I'm talking about!! Thank you all so much for praying with us. Please keep praying that God will continue to move in this way.

 

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Last thing for today: I am going on a blogging hiatus until Easter Sunday. We are going to be out of town with my family, and I will be without access to a computer. I shall miss writing on a regular basis, but I am so very much looking forward to time away with my family. Yay for relaxing! Hopefully, I will have an exciting new number to share with you as soon as we get back.

 

"Truly, my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from Him. Truly, He is my rock and my salvation; I will never be shaken."

Psalm 62:1-2

 

Love,

Baylor 

Adoption Tees Around the U.S. : Post #5

Today's adoption t-shirt post comes to you all the way from Colorado! A few weekends ago my parents made a trip out West to visit some of their oldest (not in age, but in length of time) friends. Allow me to introduce Mr. And Mrs. Lofton!

Dad, Mom, Mrs. and Mr. Lofton

My mom and Mrs. Lofton knew each others growing up and were actually in each other's weddings. So basically, I have never not known the Loftons. They used to live pretty close to my family down in Florida but moved out to Colorado several years ago. Way back in the day, I would watch their kiddos, Alex and Jillian, both of whom are now grown, which totally makes me feel like an old lady. The whole family has traveled to Honduras with us on different occasions, and we love it when the opportunity comes along for us to spend time together. I am hoping that someday soon we will be able to take them up on that offer to head out to Colorado for some skiing! Maybe once the babe gets here. They are such great people, and we are so happy to have them on our side during this adoption process. 

Thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Lofton! We love and appreciate you! 

Love, 

Baylor

P.S. Random aside: This is our 100th blog post! Woot woot! That is pretty crazy, right?

P.P.S. We are still selling the lovely adoption t-shirts pictured above. Please let me know if you are interested! 

Adoption Tees Around the U.S. Post #4

I am becoming aware of my level of slackerdom as it pertains to the blog this week. I have not shared an adoption t-shirt post in forever!! But this realization comes at an opportune time, as one of the people in the following pictures just got MARRIED this past weekend!! Woot woot! Allow me to introduce John and Abby...

From the front! 

From the back! 

Adam and I met John and Abby in college at Auburn. Abby and I are sorority sisters, so that is how we first met. She came down to the chapter room the night of bid day with one other Pi Phi sister and they informed me that they would be taking me to church the following morning. So glad they did! That was the avenue through which I met virtually all of my college friends (including my man) and how I found my church home in Auburn. Abby also introduced me to her brother, John. We were friends all through college, and then Adam and I ended up doing Tigerettes and Tiger Hosts with John for our last two years at Auburn. We were blessed enough to be able to attend John's wedding last Saturday to watch him marry his beautiful bride, Whitney. Congratulations to the new Mr. and Mrs. Schenk!

Thank you, John and Abby, for your love, prayers and support! War Eagle!

Love,
Baylor

P.S. If you bought a shirt, send me your picture so that I can brag to the world about how awesome you are!

Adoption Tees Around the U.S.: Post #3

We haven't had a t-shirt post lately, so here we go! Today I get to give a shout out to some of my very people. Meet the Collins Family! As a side note, you will notice the prominently displayed University of Florida plate and Nicole's (although adorable) Gator orange shoes. They just couldn't bear to leave it out...even though our beloved Auburn Tigers have crushed the Gators for the last few years. Fortunately, we love them enough to post the pictures anyway! :)

Scott, Nicole and Leslie 

And from the back!

I cannot begin to tell you how much this wonderful family means to us. Leslie was my Bible study leader from 7th grade through 11th grade and has been an endless source of love, support and encouragement over the years. So much of who I am as a Christian can be attributed to this incredible woman of faith. Love you, Les! Her son, Scott, and his wife, Nicole, are dear friends of ours, as well. They have been to Honduras with us, celebrated weddings and holidays with us and supported us through our adoption in so many ways. We are so very excited to be able to tell our little bebecito that these incredible, God-fearing people had a hand in making our family complete. Thank you for being a part of our life! 

As the month of October begins to draw to a close, we are starting to look toward getting our next waiting list number. I have not heard much in the way of referrals other than the two last week. Still, we are praying that the Lord will continue to move. Above all, we know that all of this is in His beautiful and capable hands. 

For Scott, Nicole and Leslie (and Tim and Julie, too!!!!): 

"I thank my God every time I remember you." Philippians 1:3

Love, 

Baylor 

Adoption Tees Around the U.S: Post #2

Today we continue our adoption t-shirt journey around the U.S. I am super excited about this post, because it involves some of the people I love the most in the whole wide world! Meet my beautiful family!

                                                     Grandparents-to-be! Aren't they cute? 

                                                        Auntie Brookie and Uncle Josh

                                                               Brooke and Christina

                                                                   The whole family! 

I cannot begin to explain how grateful I am for each of these incredible people. They have loved and supported us every step of the way. Mom and Dad, thank you for being so encouraging and a constant source of love, advice and all kinds of support. Brooke and Josh, thank you for being excited right alongside us. We are SO happy that our sweet little one will have you in his/her life to look up to. Christina, thank you for your sweet spirit and love for this family (and extra thanks for staying up till midnight with me to watch gymnastics during the Olympics!). 

God has blessed my life in many ways over the years, but few of His blessings equal that of my family. Adam and I are so grateful to God that our child will be surrounded by family members (on both sides!) who love the Lord and each other. 

On a random silly side note, all of these pictures were taken in the restaurant where Adam asked my dad if he could marry me. Glad my Pop said yes! 

Love, 

Baylor 

Adoption Tees Around the U.S.: Post #1

Our t-shirt fundraiser over the summer was a HUGE success! We cannot give enough thanks to all of you who supported us through purchasing an adoption shirt to help bring Baby Knott home. As we are entering the real waiting phase (super excited to be a "waiting family" by the way), there will not be as much going on for me to write about. SO I had this idea that as you send us pictures of you wearing your t-shirts (please, please do this if you ordered one), we are going to post them on our blog as a shout out to you and your awesomeness. Up first, we have some of the grandparents-to-be!

                                                          Adoption tees at the beach!

                                                                   At Tyndall AFB

                                                              At Auburn! War Eagle!!

Thank you JoAnne and Mike for your unconditional love and support as we seek to expand our family in this way. You have been rocks for us to lean on and sources of sound and Godly advice all along the way. We cannot wait for you to meet your grandbaby!

Love,
Baylor

P.S. If you ordered during the second go-round, we are currently working on getting your shirt(s) to you! We hope to have this done by next week.