It's here, It's here!!

 Finally! The packet arrived today!  Now I know what will completely consume my thoughts the next week or so.  I say week because I won't rest until it is all filled out, in an envelope, and on it's way back to the agency!  We really haven't got a moment to spare.  We are planning a trip to Uganda in August with friends who have started a new organization called Reclaim/Orphans.  Our hope is to be able to have our first court date scheduled while we are there and then I can stay and complete the process at the next court date.  Of course, this is out of my hands and I don't want to stress about it, so I'm putting everything in God's hands right now.  Besides, as I have learned, His plans are always much bigger and more beautiful than our own.
 An interesting thing happened today that I'd like to share as well.  Thom ran into an old friend at the grocery store.  (to give a little background necessary for the story..she is a friend whom we haven't seen in atleast a year...maybe more and she is a physician who has worked in Infectious disease.)  While discussing our plans to adopt from Uganda, she asked about the HIV situation there and Thom filled her in on the statistics that of the 2.5 million orphans, 1 million are HIV positive.  After discussing the advancements in HIV/Aids treatments in this country she left him with this thought....Do we give a healthy child a family or do we give a child with HIV a life....Yes, adopting any child is beautiful, but a child with HIV in a third world country, basically has a death sentence. Here, especially in this area, he could get the treatment needed to live a long, healthy life where HIV just becomes a chronic disease, manageable with drugs that could literally make the virus undetectable in his system.
 We are completely fine with bringing a child with HIV into our family.  I know that it is not spread through casual contact and has never been spread from one family member to another in a family setting.  Although, I try to not base decisions on what others think, I am already defensive of a little child whom I have never met or seen.  I know there is still a stigma about HIV in this country and I would hate for someone to ever pass judgement or be prejudiced to this child because he was born with a disease that he did not ask for.  It already breaks my heart!
 So this is where we are right now....filling out forms, gathering documents, making Dr's appointments, taking adoption courses, reading, researching everything I can about HIV, and above all praying! I am praying for wisdom and guidance in all of the decisions we make.  I'm so thankful to put my trust in God, who has humbled me and changed my heart to be open to something that a year ago I wasn't even thinking about. 

Thank you all for your prayers and encouragement.