I am adopted

Not trying to throw anyone off- I am not adopted in the way we typically think.  I was raised by my biological parents- sorry to scare you mom and dad! However, I am adopted into Gods family along with my fellow believers!

I am hoping to explain one of the reasons our family is choosing to adopt a child.  God is our father and adopted us into his family.  Our family adopting a child who doesn't have love, a father, a mother is a perfect example of the gospel of Jesus Christ.  All who are in Christ are adopted in Christ and when we adopt and love children that are not our biological children and treat them with the same love, blessing and inheritance, that is showing something of the heart of our father Father God and the heart of the gospel by welcoming them into the family- and through Jesus we have also inherited all the blessing! How awesome?!?! We all can't wait to go bring our child home and love on them, just as Christ has loved us!!

Quick update:
We have completed the home study!! AND...it was approved! YAY!! So another step to check off our list. Now we compile all the documents we need for our dossier, and send them to the state and Chinese consulate for certification and authetification, THEN to China!! So exciting and yet can be so drawn out, as lots of you know! Pray that everything would happen smoothly and quickly so we can get logged into China's system! Thank you al for your support and prayers already! We have seen God's hand at work through every stage. And the puzzle project is coming along and a huge success so far! THANK YOU SO MUCH to all who have sponsered a puzzle piece already, we are so blessed and so thankful for the overwhelming response!!! ox

Ephesians 1:3-14
Blessed be  the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing  in the heavenly places,  even as he  chose us in him  before the foundation of the world, that we should be  holy and blameless before him. In love  he predestined us  for  adoption as sons through Jesus Christ,  according to the purpose of his will,  to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in  the Beloved.  In him we have  redemption  through his blood,  the forgiveness of our trespasses,  according to the riches of his grace,  which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight  making known  to us the mystery of his will,  according to his purpose, which he  set forth in Christ  as a plan for  the fullness of time,  to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.  In him we have obtained  an inheritance,  having been predestined  according to the purpose of him who works all things according to  the counsel of his will,  so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be  to the praise of his glory.  In him you also, when you heard  the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him,  were sealed with the  promised Holy Spirit,  who is  the guarantee  of our  inheritance until  we acquire  possession of it,    to the praise of his glory. (Ephesians 1:3-14 ESV)

Piece by piece...

Through this process of adoption we are trying to teach our children (and future child) about God's faithfulness, blessing and provision for our family.  One of our exciting ways to do this involves a puzzle.  We have had a puzzle made of this awesome design (thanks to Echoes of Mercy-Etsy):

Our hope for this puzzle is to get sponsors for each piece! We will put the sponsor's name/s on the back of each individual piece so that eventually we will be able to put it together and frame the puzzle for the new baby's room! It doesn't sound like much, but when we get 550 pieces that have an important names on the back- it will be a reminder of God's fathfulness to provide for this calling! This is such a special way that you can be a "piece" of helping us bring this precious child home.

If you are interested in sponsoring a piece($10) just use our PayPal donate button to the right and be sure to include the name or names you would like on the back of the puzzle peice. I will update with pictures once we start this project with the kids!

Thank you all so much for the overhwelming support in this adventure! We couldnt do it without each one of you- and we are excited to see all your names as a part of our journey!

Please don't hesitate to share on your facebook page or tell others about it!

Much love and God bless,
The VanDerPloog family

"Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow."  Isaiah 1:17

"Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies."  Psalm 36:5

A not so normal New Years...

Well I don't know about your plans for New Years Eve but in the past we have gotten together with friends, played games and had a great time! This year we didn't have any plans, which we were perfectly fine with; we had a relaxing night being together as a family.  What we also did, was fill out an application for international adoption.  Lucas and I have talked for the past few years about the desire to adopt, but never felt like the timing was right.  But this past fall we agreed that now was the time! it took a while however to research agencies and more about the whole process.  So in the comfort of our VanDerPloog home on New Years Eve, we filled out the application to adopt! We are so excited for this new chapter in our lives and thankful for God's provision for us already!

We have already had to jump a few hurdles but would like to announce that our family has been approved to adopt from China.  There are many factors that helped us arrive at this decision. God definately opened and closed several doors for this to happen!

We would appreciate your prayers as move forward with our homestudy, financially providing for this huge expense (God has proven so faithful), preparing the dossier, and ultimately matched with our precious child. Also if there are any families who have adopted or are currently in the process and you have resources/books that were helpful please pass this information along- it will be greatly appreciated. There is lots to be done!! And if anyone has further questions for us you can message me privately or email me: katevdp@hotmail.com. And we would be happy to answer them!

So i wanted to give an update on our doctoring at CHOP.  We went back in beginning of Decemeber and the blood work was ok, but definately not where we wanted it for Walker. Lincoln's looked positive, however we were waiting to check his titers, as he approached 1.

We just went for our check up last week at CHOP which went basically fine and we were just awaiting the blood results. I had the boys' wellness appointments with my pediatrician on wednesday morning and that same morning I was waiting for a call from our Dr. at CHOP with the results. I thought how cool if she calls while I'm in this office and I could tell our peditatician the latest! Well she called 2 hours after i left the office. ;) Anyway, the good -was Lincoln's blood work looked great, right where he should be for his age.  The bad news- Walker's did not look great.  He is making good immunoglobulins (IgG, IgA, etc.) however his titers from Hib, DPT, and pnuemoccocal looked horrible. He is basically not protective against any of those. 

So...back to the pediatrician the next morning to get more vaccinces! He was so brave! I asked him after the appointment if it hurt, he said, "yes!"  Then I asked him, "why didnt you cry then?,"  he replied, " because I'm NOT a baby!" He is too cute!
So now we will recheck his blood work 4 weeks after the booster vaccines, and decide on a plan for the future. He still remains on prophylactic antibiotics. We could end up playing this game for two more years until he is 5, and at that point he will have grown out of it, or it will remain an issue and we will put him on an antibody replacement therapy program which would include monthly infusions of the antibodies he doesn't produce.

So half of me wants to freak out when I hear this news! What!? He's not protective against Hib (not to mention that's what Brady died of), Pnuemococcal (so prevalent in society), and diphteria and tetanus?!
And the other half wants to say, we are doing everything we can do, God is in control and His plan is best.  So I am here staying strong and whenever my mind wants to go crazy I lift the situation up in prayer and surrender it to the only One who can take these problems and worries away.  And believe me I feel so much better when I give my cares to Jesus, the only true one who can take them away and give me an indescribable peace!

Happy Birthday Brady Boy!

As we get ready to celebrate Brady's 5th birthday tomorrow, it makes me think about how we know this is God's plan, but it doesn't take away the fact that we still miss him on earth.  Which then leads me to think about God's love for us, His children.  I know how much I love and miss my Brady boy but God loves us even more?  Yep. Wow. I can't even fathom how much it greives Him when we stray from His side, distance ourselves or disobey His commands (every day!).  He desires to be near to us and for us to want to spend time with Him.  After all, He created us to bring Him glory.  I hope and pray that as I think of Brady and the joy he brought to us the short time he was here, I can remember God's grace and mercy towards me and try to love Him more, and bring Him glory. 

One of the fun memories of Brady that i think of, especially as spring approaches (or shall i say is here!), is when we had a TON of caterpillars in our yard (and i mean millions!).  He would constanly pick them up and play with them, and maybe even try to eat them.  Wonder if there are caterpillars in heaven that he is playing with now?! Love it! Miss you buddy, Happy birthday, hope your partying it up!! Save your mama a place....

This is the worst I will ever know... :) yeehaw

So as Christmas approaches I always feel like something is missing, which it is...but I try to make the most of the family I do have now, and the circumstances from which God has brought me. It makes me think about all the things in life that happen, that stink. Even the little things of everyday to the bigger things that have made us who we are....and I realize that THIS is the worst (hell) I will ever know. I hope and pray for everyone around me and reading this that this is the worst hell you will know too (because I would hate for it to get worse for anyone), and that you know Jesus as your Savior.
It wont get worse than this life here on earth because I have a Savior who will take me to paradise someday, and that makes me realize how silly my bad days are here and to be thankful that this is as bad as its going to be. It makes me excited and hopeful as I think of a day with no more tears, pain, sadness, sickness, fighting, loss, anger, biterness, materialism, gossip, financial stress, etc. And just the thought of this makes me get through those hard times...in perspective they are petty, because I serve an awesome and huge God that will wipe all those things away. I gotta keep focused on the prize...

I'm thankful...

A verse that I have been meditating on recently is found in 2 Samuel 7:18, "Who am I, Sovereign lord, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far?"


And this is truely how I have felt even before studying this verse in our David Bible study, by Beth Moore. I feel so humbled and honored that God decided to bring us this far, given our circumstances.  Luke and I say to eachother ALL the time, "We would never be at this place with the Lord had it not been for the death of our sweet Brady." I would never want to go back to that time, but am so thankful that we have come so far, only by the grace of God.  So as hard as that is to go through, it produces perseverance and character that would not have come about.  Who am I... that He would show so much peace and grace to me? I don't deserve that, but He loves me so much to carry us through hard times, in no other way possible.

"Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;  perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. " Romans 5:3-5

I have been reading through Mary Beth Chapman's book the past few weeks, about their story of loosing their daughter, and it brings back so many real thoughts and feelings. And even though all of our stories are different, they are all quite similar. I guess that is the process of grief.  And also the way God carries us through our trials...because he is  God of love, peace, strength, grace, and healing. 

So in light of thanksgiving, right around the corner, I wanted to say I am thankful for the circumstances I have gone through, because I have a deeper love for Christ than ever before! God is good!