Meet the crew pt.1
In the month of October 20222 we finalized our adoption of two of our sons. Our journey to this point has been an absolute adventure, in every sense of the word. Before we unpack the road that led us here. There are some snapshots that will give insight to this moment becoming a possibility.
Mr and Mrs Alker
Dustin and I met in the year 2009, we were just a couple kids out of high school when our mutual family friend thought to set us up (more on that later). Dustin was raised in sunny Santa Barbara, and I called Auburn, Ca home. Once we began to date, I packed up and began my life in Santa Barbara. We got engaged in September 2010 and were Married January 7th, 2011 at the very wedding venue we met at.
We welcomed Samuel, our fist son in 2013, and his brother Elliott in 2015. During my pregnancy with Elliott, I began to feel the burden for the orphan grow out of nowhere. The process to become a foster family began with prayer all those years ago. It should be noted that I felt the burden first. When I brought it to my husband we were in an especially challenging season. His response was so full of wisdom and grace. He carefully shared that he knew it was biblical, but that he absolutely was not ready. He said, “ Yes, but give me time for my heart to catch up to my head.” At some point along the way we felt our desire grow and we began the process of certification. We knew a larger home with space would be necessary and began to pray about moving. The steps that resulted in us moving to Bend were an amazing journey I hope to share. We found that upon arriving in Oregon, our hearts were still burdened and we finished our certification. We waited and waited for a call to foster. During the wait, we were surprised by our 3rd pregnancy. Rye joined our crew in November of 2018. During the pregnancy we fostered a few times in cases that resulted in family reunification. An amazing experience!
We were now the proud parents of three biological boys.
Our road to having a grand total of 6 will take some more unpacking. So I’ll leave you with part one for now. If you are reading this and you are in a season of waiting. It may be for your own adoption plan to materialize, or for certification to take place. I want you to know that this road of foster care and adoption is post marked by that very action waiting. While you may be tempted to feel like the wait means sitting idle, there is nothing further from the truth. Our seasons of waiting greatly shaped us. It was purposeful for Dustin and I, but also for our boys. Foster care deeply impacts your children, there is going to be some bitter mixed in with the sweet. My encouragement is to take the moments of waiting as a GIFT. A time to take some breaths, draw from your resources. Connect with your community, your spouse, God. The days ahead will hold more tension of challenge and joy than you can ever imagine. The wait is an intentional season grafted into the journey. I pray you take it. Surrender your will, your heart to the process and the forming days of waiting.
