American Girl Doll Giveaway!!!

We are having a giveaway for TWO WEEKS to help

raise funds for our adoption!

PLEASE blog, email, facebook and tweet this!

If you don't know...we have seen our daughter!!!  It all happened last week!! 

It was very unexpected...but so good!  (You can read the story in previous posts!)

The way it is looking we will travel to meet her in December.
Can you believe it?!?!?

We plan to mail in our dossier in a couple of weeks and fees will be

approximately $5,000.  We have saved $5,000 so we can cover the
cost of the dossier but immediately after that we will sign
acceptance of child forms, which is $5,000.

Soooo.....................

We thought we would have some fun
to celebrate our soon-to-be

*A*M*E*R*I*C*A*N* *G*I*R*L*

WHAT DOLL?
We will be giving away 1 (one) American Girl Doll
OF YOUR CHOICE  (up to $100) to the lucky winner.
She will be shipped directly to the winner -- within the 50 states.


WHEN DOES IT START AND END?
Donations will be accepted October 24th-Nov 7th... ending at midnight.


HOW DO I DONATE?
Donations are accepted using the yellow PAYPAL DONATE button on our blog.
Please indicate your contact information
and reference the American Girl Giveaway.
$10 = 1 entry
$25 = 3 entries

HOW ARE WINNERS SELECTED?
With each entry, you will be given a number.
I will email this to you after your donation posts via PAYPAL.
 After November 7th, we will use a random number generator
to select a number/donor for the giveaway.
I will then contact you via email to determine your doll of choice
and have her shipped directly to you (within 50 states)!


WHO CAN DONATE?
Anyone. If you love orphans, donate.
If you love American Girl dolls or know someone who does, donate.


SHIPPING
We can only ship within the 50 states.


Please email, tweet, facebook, and blog about
the giveaway and help us bring
our soon-to-be AMERICAN GIRL home!

Some of the dolls are listed below
 or you may browse the American Girl site.

So excited...Let the fun begin!!!

(If you don't do paypal but would still like to be
a part of the giveaway...just email me christybrown_5@yahoo.com
 and you can send a check)

God's Fingerprints!!!

To catch the full effect of this post and see the complete picture of how God works and the beauty of his timing you need to read Christy’s post from October 17^th first. http://brownethiopiaadoption.blogspot.com/2011/10/who-says-god-cant-teach-you-something.html

It all started at the David Crowder, Gungor and John Mark McMillan concert. God was moving and so alive in all of us that rode up there together that night. I believe each of us has our own beautiful story to tell. This is what came out of ours!

Sunday night – Moving, mind blowing concert that lasted until 11:30pm! Our heads hit the pillow at 2:30am – God was working, God was preparing (as detailed by Christy’s post).

Monday – 1pm Christy calls me and asks me to read her post. She told me about this moment she had with God and really felt it was the two of them conversing. So she kept it to herself until she shared her heart on this blog. Truly beautiful! She then says to me, “Ty, I really feel her (Zoey) presence right now.”

3:25pm I’m going through emails looking for the time and location of the Cub Scout meeting when I run across an email from LAST THURSDAY and the first sentence in the preview reads,“Dear Ghana families, I have received a referral of a little girl, birth date June 4^th 2006…” The shakes started instantly, because our youngest son Wyatt’s birthday is June 3^rd 2004. Immediately I called our representative at the adoption agency and said,“Jynger, I think you have my daughter!” She says, “Tyson are you serious? You haven’t seen anything on her yet but you’re giving me chills. I have two pictures and her story. I’ll send them right now!!”

3:35pm In a panic I gathered up my things at work to head home and tell Christy. After minutes of searching for my keys I realized I had locked them in my truck, ha, not to be detoured…hidden key! Crap, running out of gas, literally sputtered into gas station and put $2.00 in cause I figured I could get home on that. Pulled out of gas station, in front of oncoming traffic and half way into an intersection. I think to myself, “Huh, when did they put this four lane state highway and stop light in between me and getting home?? The devil is out to stop this adoption!!”

3:40pm One block from home I feel my phone vibrate from an incoming email. I open to see for the first time the beautiful face of my daughter. Crap again, I’m crying so I can’t see to drive!

3:44pm Me: Christy where are you?

Christy: Picking up the boys from school.

Me: Come home now.

Christy: Why what’s wrong?

Me: I think I have Zoey!

Christy: No! How?? No you don’t!! HOW?? Don’t kid me like that??

Me: CHRISTY, I’m home from work, CAN YOU HEAR ME CRYING?! JUST COME HOME AND DON’T HAVE A WRECK!

Christy: [Sound of uncontrollable crying.]

Winston:“Momma, what’s wrong? Did Nana die?”

Christy get’s home and sees the picture of this beautiful 5 year old girl sitting on a stool kicking her foot up grinning from ear to ear in her little white skirt and says,“That’s her! That’s her! See I told you she’d be full of energy. Call Jynger now, CALL HER, CALL HER!”

3:57 Upon my third call to the receptionist at the adoption agency, “Ma’am I’m not being rude, but I’ll letting you know now that I’ll be calling every 30 seconds until I get hold of Jynger.” Receptionist, “I understand sir.”

3:59 “Jynger it’s her! You have our daughter!!”

Friends and family that have been following us, it’s her, it’s really her! Amazing the symphony that God orchestrates and when He opens the window of heaven He opens it all the way!

Christy said to me, “If you would have opened up that email last Thursday, we would have still got Zoey, but that was not the way God wanted the story to be told.” It’s now Wednesday and each day has been a new surprise of blessing. I can’t detail them all because I’ll be typing forever…I’m not really even going to do much grammar check and editing because I want to get his news out (so English teacher friends and fam don’t judge me)! Stories of blessing come in later days but quickly I can say, she (Zoey) found out about us and she smiled and she wanted to see pictures!

I’ll close with a scripture that our friend T.A. sent right after she heard the news.

Psalm 139

¹³ For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
¹⁴ I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
¹⁵ My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place,
when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
¹⁶ Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be

Who Says God Can't Teach You Something At A Bar?

Last night I went to a David Crowder concert, at Cains Ballroom.  Now for those of you who don’t know…Cains is an old ballroom/bar.  Legends have played there…Patsy Cline, Bob Wills…I mean legends.  It is a really old place and I believe it’s listed as a historical landmark or building.  It was so awesome to be praising God in a packed bar…such a neat night.  BUT during this super night God brought me to my knees. (not literally…wasn’t enough room but if their would have been room I would have been on them) One of DC’s opening bands was Gungor… this man is a musical genius.  He started playing one of my favorite songs, “You Make Beautiful Things” Every time I hear this song I start crying…I love it so.  But last night God spoke to me through this song like never before.   For nine months God has changed me.  If you were to ask people who were close to me…they would probably say that I’m not the same.  I’m sure they would say that I’ve become withdrawn, serious, heartbroken…almost like a sadness has taken over me.  I have felt this…I have felt very alone and wondered what was going on.  Most mornings I get up and my heart hurts…it aches.  It’s very hard to describe to others so I keep it to myself and take it to God.  Through this I have drawn so close to our Heavenly Father and I love that so.  But I still didn’t know what was going on with me till last night…God told me!!!  As I type this now, I am crying. God is so beautiful and He shows His glory in such Awesome ways.  Last night while singing that song He said to me, “I have taken you through these months of pain and abandonment so that you, Zoey’s earthly mom, will empathize with her.  So you will know her pain…of being left alone…abandoned…lost…hurt…sad. You know I only make beautiful things and I have allowed you to be a part of her beautiful story!!!”  Oh, it was so profound.  He has been preparing me to really relate to my daughter.  Isn’t He Amazing!!!!  He knows her heartbreaking pain and how can I help her if I can’t feel some of that pain myself?It just takes my breath away…He is the conductor of a beautiful orchestra. 

Listen to this song...let it penetrate you soul!! While listening to the words...think of our Zoey Love...He is making her new...He is taking away her pain...He making her beautiful!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OR7VOKQ0xJY

Oh, How I Love Him!!!

Home Study Fun!!

This past Saturday we finished up our home study visit. WooHoo...we are getting closer!! We met with our assigned social worker in September, on neutral ground, and then she came to our home last Saturday. The boys were excited to meet her...I believe it made them feel they were doing their part. They loved showing her around the house and visiting with her. During one part of the visit...she was asking if anyone smoked, in the home, and of course Ty and I replied no. Well, Wyatt had a different answer...he went on to say, "Mom, remember Uncle Tommy did last thanksgiving." Oh my word, Wyatt!!! So I had to kindly remind him that yes, Uncle Tommy smokes...but it wasn't in our house...he smoked outside and he doesn't live here, anyway. Then right after that under his breath he asked, "Don't you want to know if anyone drinks?" LUCKILY, she didn't hear him. You never know what ol' Wyatt will say...gotta love that boy. He is all about the shock and awe...I guess I'm paying for my childhood behavior...I was the same way...still am, sometimes!! It was a great day and felt so good to check it off the list. She emailed us last night with some questions because she was working on the write up...yay!!!! Once we have the complete home study, we will then send in our paperwork for the I-600A. This form is the key to processing the international adoption and for processing the immigration of the adopted child. Basically, more red tape...but so worth it!!! So today, CeLeBrAtE with Us...we are one step closer to our baby girl!!!

Adoption Update!!!

I know it's been some time since we updated the blog.  It seems we where at a slow moving stand still...if that is even possible.  BUT I am happy to announce that we are not just creeping along anymore. The one thing (of many) that adoption has taught me is that time is something I have no control over.  I have heard the expression "it's all in God's time" and have even said it to others...but I don't know if I really understood what it meant till we started this process.  At times during this process, it has felt like this adoption wasn't even real...like we were just in a foggy dream.  It takes so much faith...and I love God and His patience with me.  He is so incredibly amazing!!!  So with all that being said...I want to catch you up to date.  Today I'll start with a post that Ty wrote for his blog, Ordinary Man, this summer.  Enjoy, and I will post soon because we have more to share!

Man, man, man...

Monday’s email read, “Wanted to let you know that I received your application 2 and everything looks great! Waiting on one more document and then moving you on to the home study! Sincerely, J” This was from the awesome Program Director for Ghana at our adoption agency!

Not that it wasn’t real before but with that email it all became very validating or maybe it’s better to say “she feels closer.” Honestly, I got teary eyed when I read it.

I know this isn’t the “manly” thing to admit, but really I’m past trying to be manly at this stage in my life (come on, I’m 35 years old, 6’2” & 156lbs soaking wet, and if I didn’t shave for a week you wouldn’t notice), I get a lot more emotional the farther Jesus leads down his path. I mean we all cry when Hickory wins the state championship in the movie Hoosiers, but this is ridiculous! You all do cry during that part right?

Seriously I was sharing with a friend last night what a big baby I’ve turned into. We started reading through the Bible at the same time and I was telling him how I was finishing up Genesis and I got really moved when Joseph finally revealed himself to his brothers who sold him into slavery so many years before.

Genesis 45:1-5

Joseph could stand it no longer. There were many people in the room, and he said to his attendants, “Out, all of you!” So he was alone with his brothers when he told them who he was. ² Then he broke down and wept. He wept so loudly the Egyptians could hear him, and word of it quickly carried to Pharaoh’s palace.

³ “I am Joseph!” he said to his brothers. “Is my father still alive?” But his brothers were speechless! They were stunned to realize that Joseph was standing there in front of them. ⁴ “Please, come closer,” he said to them. So they came closer. And he said again, “I am Joseph, your brother, whom you sold into slavery in Egypt. ⁵ But don’t be upset, and don’t be angry with yourselves for selling me to this place. It was God who sent me here ahead of you to preserve your lives.


That was really powerful for me! Then I thought about this adoption and our little girl I’ve yet to lay eyes on and a slew of things crossed my mind that I know are gonna tear me up!

I’m gonna cry…at the first sight of her face.

when we have to leave without her on our first visit.

at the sight of Christy seeing her face for the first time.

at the sight of my boys seeing her face for the first time.

at her living conditions.

when she cries.

when we get to share our first bowl of Ramen noodles together.

if she doesn’t want me at first b/c I’m still a strange man to her.

when she misses her friends.

when she makes new ones.

at hearing her story of abandonment.

when she is very confused by our culture.

because I can’t take them all home.

when she freaks over a dog in the house.

when I can’t get her hair right even though I’ve been practicing.

when she gets excited about flushing toilets and bathtubs full of water.

when she asks about going back.

when she falls asleep in our bed.

I’m starting to think that maybe this has nothing to do with being "manly" at all. Maybe this has to do with I’m finally seeing the world through His eyes and it either breaks my heart or gives me great joy.