Copy of 2007 Christmas Letter

Merry Christmas from the Dalkes

November 10, 2007

We have seen the first snow of the year (granted it was in northern Minnesota). However, the first snow is one of the typical indicators to get started on Christmas letters. It seems strange to work on the letter prior to Thanksgiving. However, so much has happened in the last 365, we are anxious to put it on paper.

You may recall our last Christmas letter was sent out about the time we moved to our new house. Additionally, we assisted other couples from our church and Shae’s sister who also had the ambition to move at the end of 2006. Since Shae’s sister moved at the exact time we moved we thought it would be fascinating to see how many people we could pack into our interim two-bedroom apartment while our house was completed. Regardless of the wisdom, I am happy to say that 9 people fit (4 under 3 years old). Though everyone appreciated the spaciousness of the new house, the adults were probably the most grateful. The new house is gradually becoming a home. Although it has received paint in a few rooms; most of the available project time and dollars for the year went into three newly planted trees and a beautiful fence so the kids can have dominion over the back yard.

As Christmas 2006 came to a close, Shae’s foreign exchange student/brother, Sebastian, swung by from Germany for a quick visit. A few days after Sebastian’s visit, we flew to Cancun with the boys and Shae’s parents. We had purchased the airline tickets in the summer of 2006 before we’d ever decided to build a house. We had saved our vacation budget for years to make the trip happen. The pictures from our trip to Mexico included daily sand castles and some good footage of Xcaret (an ecological theme park). Shae and I made little use of the pallapas on the beach or the lounge chairs they shaded. However, Shae’s folks did watch the boys for a day allowing us to travel to the Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza and to swim in the beautiful Il Kil Cenote (underground water filled sink hole) nearby. Additionally, we had the freedom to celebrate our anniversary and Shae’s birthday one evening at a nice restaurant overlooking the lagoon in Cancun. We agreed that it was a wonderfully fun trip, but maybe not the relaxing one we’d envisioned. I wonder if having the boys along had anything to do with that? (Hee hee) Our other trips this year included a great time with Mike’s family in South Dakota this summer. We also made our annual trip to the “Lincoln Log Cabin” near Des Moines.

Our write-up of life change continues with Mike. He accepted a position within his company to manage the Omaha UNIX System Administrators (SAs). The team functions as one with the Denver office thus he will be called on to function as an assistant manager to the Denver UNIX SAs and contribute in a technical capacity as well. Mike took his first trip to the Denver office in October. The trip was packed. However, he was able to meet up with his Dalke Grandparents, aunt, uncle and cousin. Mike was blessed by harvesting a wild turkey this spring. However, fall hunting has not started yet. Since time is at a premium, no doubt, Mike will take filling his tag(s) seriously.

Shae is enjoying the plethora of practices that accompanies our church’s Broadway style musical. She still holds her position as CHO (Chief Home Officer) of Ethan and Eric Industries, LLC. Thankfully she has not had to fight so hard to keep her job this year. The boys have turned their fighting efforts on each other in effort to establish their own pecking order.

Ethan is four and loves attending pre-school at Trinity Christian School. Ethan enjoys reading, playing Candyland and Go-Fish, and outdoor activities with Dad. He has become quite the fisherman and helped his cousins Ben and Andrew lead the charge on their second annual backpacking campout at Indian Caves State Park. Uncle Dave and Mike just tagged along carrying trivial things like food, tents, tools, etc.

As of November 3^rd Eric finally grew into his two-year-old disposition. He is learning many words in addition to the good-old standby “NO.” We were chagrined to note that his latest word is “Why?” I’m sure this is a year earlier than expected. Great! Second child syndrome. Eric too loves camping (in the yard for now). He’s an active and tough little climber and jumper. Leave it to Eric to discover that a 50-pound Samoyed (Dasha, our dog) makes a perfect horse for a boy his size. In typical fashion, his favorite game currently is Hungry Hippos. He really loves his choo-choos and anything his brother is into.

Baby number three we pray is doing fine. Our big announcement for the year is that we are adopting from Vietnam. The adoption world refers to our condition as paper pregnant. If all goes well, we may be traveling to Vietnam to meet our new family member as early as Spring 2008. There is a whole lot more detail on this topic on the enclosure we are sending with our Christmas letter. Please pray fervently that all goes well.

Last of all and in a category of her own, Dasha is still at her post. She is approaching 9 years young and required an emergency surgery last year before she could move to our new home. She is doing much better now that time has passed since the move and the surgery. Although slower now, she still perks right up when you pick up her leash or her toys.

Just over a year after Mike’s Grandpa Sandland received his picturesque autumn funeral we returned to Northern Minnesota the beginning of November. This time we went to honor Mike’s Grandma Sandland. God decorated Grandma Sandland’s farewell with a light dusting of snow. We rejoice that it wasn’t truly farewell, but that we’ll see both Grandpa and Grandma Sandland in heaven someday. This Christmas our prayer would be that we all remember to leave Christ in our Christmas celebrations.

Sincerely,

Michael, Shae, Ethan, & Eric Dalke

Frustrating

I've been pretty busy so I hadn't posted about this yet, but we've hit a delay with USCIS. We sent our app and check November 2nd. We just received it back December 7th--rejected. We mailed it again on the 8th. This time with a Cashier's check.

I was so excited when I saw the envelope in the mailbox. I thought we'd received our invitation for fingerprints, but nope instead USCIS rejected our paperwork because we'd sent a personal check when they wanted a Cashier's check. Here's where I do a little ranting and raving. The local website said nothing about it. The national site with the instructions stated the process of how they'd cash your personal check. A cashiers check wasn't mentioned anywhere. USCIS gets up to 4 months to process your app. Some states take a week. Omaha is known for taking up to the max 4 months. Now they've bought themselves another 6 weeks. I'll admit I was pretty upset that day. I've been trying to tell myself that God's in control and either He's going to work a miracle on our behalf or the timing wasn't quite right. We're very close to the top of the waiting list with our agency. Maybe we needed this delay to slow our paperwork down so that we'll be ready precisely when the daughter God has chosen for us is ready to be matched.

Honestly though, I'm not thrilled with the idea of being in Vietnam during the summer. 100+ degrees and 90% humidity...oooh sounds like paradise. As well as the girl clothes I've gotten are for a Spring travel time.

Please pray that either God will work a miracle in our paperwork or one in us & He'll give us the grace to wait.

Copy of Our Support Letter

Dear family and friends,

This is just your typical missions trip support letter but at the same time it’s also very different. Our family is preparing to embark on our most challenging and longest term Missions project yet. We are becoming long-term missionaries. Our chosen mission field is . . . our home. The vehicle taking us to the edge of our faith and abilities is ADOPTION. In a few short months we (Mike and Shae) will be traveling to Vietnam. At the end of an approximate three-week stay, we will return home with the newest member of our family. Our third child, not by birth, but ordained and chosen by God to be ours just the same. Come along and journey with us on this life-altering course of hope God has set before us.

Why adoption? Why Vietnam you may ask? Our answer is simple. God is leading and calling us to a place and child very close to his heart. We are answering His call and trusting Him to provide. Did you know that Vietnam is a closed communist country? Missionaries are not allowed to enter its borders. The Vietnamese children will most likely never hear of the Gospel and the Love of Christ. The orphans will never hear that even though they are fatherless here on Earth, they have a Father in Heaven that loves them and cares for them.

UNICEF estimates that there are as many as 210 million orphans worldwide. This number though staggering doesn’t even include all the homeless or street children. There are more than 40 scriptures in the OT showing God’s heart for the orphan. We don’t have nearly the time or space to quote them all, but we’ll share a few. Ps. 68:5-6a says about God, “A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in His holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families.” (NIV) Ps. 139:16b says, “All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.” (NIV) “It’s amazing to think that God has already ordained each detail of a child’s life before that child is born, whether that child be a child by adoption or a child by birth. Our position as the parents to children by adoption had been sealed by God before time began. Every detail of our life now is evidence of God working to redeem the broken things of this world to fulfill His plans and not ours.” (Excerpts taken from AWAA’s adoption packet in an article written by Brian Luwis) The NT also has a lot to say about orphans. James 1:27 “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress…” (NIV) We have amassed quite a lot of literature on God’s position on adoption and how it relates to us as Christians. If you’d like more scriptural basis and info on topics like why Christians should adopt or fund adoption, here’s a couple of websites to get you started. http://www.cafadopt.org/adopt_why.html and http://www.cafadopt.org/funding.html. Go to http://awaa.org/stories/spiritofadoption.aspx to read more of Brian Luwis’s detailed reasoning for adoption. He even discusses infertility and how adoption is not necessarily God’s Plan B.

I’d like to share a little background of what our church has been up to and how it’s affected us. Last year our church (it’s large) raised $1.1 million dollars to build, equip, and staff a hospital for women and children in Mali, West Africa. In addition, 117,000 meals were sent to provide adequate nutrition so that vaccines would “take”. This year’s project was titled “Year of the Child”. Our church has three local and three global iniatives--all helping children. One of the iniatives is on-going support for Mali. We’ve collected clothing and have sent 220,000 meals. The benefits are already being seen in that the child and maternal mortality rates have drastically dropped in the area surrounding the hospital. Our family has been blessed to participate. Even Eric got to help package meals before he turned 2. We also were able to sample one of the meals and use it as a teaching tool to help our children understand that not everyone is born to the wealth of the USA. It’s been so exciting to see Ethan’s eagerness to want to help “the hungry kids” that he prays for each and every day. He also prays for his soon to be baby sister each day and can show you where Vietnam is on a globe.

Although we considered International Adoption in the past and knew that someday it would be part of our future, multiple life events prompted us to step out now. International Adoption has surrounded us this year. Eric’s Pediatric Specialist for his four day stay in the Pediatric ICU was not only a substitute (from outside the hospital) for just the weekend, but also the areas International Adoption doctor. He’s also personally adopted several times. Several of our church friends and coworkers have started their own adoption journeys all at the same time. Shae’s Aunt and Uncle just returned from China having adopted a little boy. Also, another of our church’s global iniatives is supporting an orphanage in China and encouraging adopting from there. We weren’t old enough to consider China, but this was one of the last “promptings” we needed before answering God’s call. We spent a long time seeking God’s assurance that this was indeed the time. We’d wanted more time to prepare and save the finances required. In the end we felt His peace that this was the time and to trust Him for the details.

We knew we were being led to International Adoption, but we didn’t want our personal preferences and feelings to determine the direction we chose. So we considered and were open to other countries facilitating adoptions, which are mostly located in Eastern Europe, South and Central America as well as Asia. We wanted to go where the Lord led. We didn’t choose Vietnam. It chose us. Of the Asian countries currently open to adoptions, we could only meet Vietnam’s requirements (our ages, number of children in home, income levels, etc.).

God has revealed His own promises to us. June 6, we stepped out in faith and obedience and mailed the applications to our agency and social worker. The next morning, June 7, Ethan our oldest at not quite 4 years old, put his trust in Jesus Christ as his personal Lord and Savior. As one can imagine this was a direct answer to his parents’ most heartfelt prayer. One that we pray for each of our children; both the ones living under our roof today and the ones not yet born in a foreign land. Please pray and consider partnering with us to bring the love of Christ to a little girl that would otherwise never hear or experience it. Help us to share the love of a forever family and a permanent home both here on Earth and for all eternity.

The facts are though that adoption is expensive, really expensive ($25,000 to $30,000 expensive). Using all of our assets we’d still not have nearly enough. The task before us seems insurmountable, but we also know that “with God all things are possible”. Originally we thought we’d travel early 2009, which would give us time to prepare, save the extra money needed, and our boys would be older and more self sufficient since they won’t be going with us. However, things have been moving much quicker in Vietnam and with our agency. Currently, it looks like we could travel as early, as late next spring. This in itself is quite a puzzler. Adoption, especially International Adoption and its timeframes are quite volatile. We have several close friends from church also adopting. All of their waiting timeframes have increased, almost doubled to staggering numbers of up to four years. It’s kind of understood that you don’t mess around when you’re up for referral (being matched with a child). You accept it. Lots can happen. Countries close their doors to adoption all the time for many reasons. Again we’ve been seeking the Lords direction and wisdom on how to proceed. Each step of the way we’ve been directed by God’s peace and by circumstance. There’s been one choice to make for each issue presented. So here we are. Would you please consider partnering with us on this lifelong journey of hope? It will be one of the most challenging, rewarding ministries you’ll ever take part in, that I’ll promise you.

As we have talked to people about International Adoption we are finding almost everyone is moved and disturbed by the need. Additionally, regardless of age, people seem to briefly consider if International Adoption would be for them. However, there is a season of life paradigm that can prematurely shutdown personal involvement. Many of the people who may have the personal funds to support an International Adoption are older than they feel is appropriate to bring a child into their home. Some countries have age ceiling restrictions in addition to age minimums. On a different note some of the younger couples living just beneath their means don’t see how an adoption with such a high price will ever be feasible. To date every young couple we’ve talked to, who has the kinetic energy available, has voiced concern that the finances would be a struggle. Life seems to issue certain types of energy and ambition at alternative seasons in life when compared to resources and connections.

Above, you were promised an opportunity to be involved in our journey. Your involvement opportunity is to pray. Please pray for how the Lord would want you to be involved on this faith journey. Is He calling you to pray for us through all the paperwork, the travel, a new baby, and the unknowns we have yet to face? Is He calling you to help with the large financial barrier between us and our daughter? If He is calling you to help in this way, please ask His guidance for the amount. We have already sent a sizable amount to our adoption agency, but there is a long way to go. Tax-deductible receipts will be available to any assistance sent directly to our adoption agency. We are asking those who volunteer to pray for us to stay involved for the months and years after the adoption. Our family will continue to need your prayers even after we’re home. You can keep informed on our paperwork progress, see pictures when we receive our referral of our daughter, experience our journey overseas, and follow our family as we experience life together once we’re home. Please, see our blog (internet journal) at the following web address.

http://faithjourneytovietnam.blogspot.com/

We firmly believe God will help us complete the work He has set before us. However, one of our prayers is that our story will also serve as a catalyst to others--matching up resources with opportunities. At a minimum we would like to encourage those who want to step out in faith through adoption. If you feel you’re being led to personally explore the adoption journey, we’d love to chat with you about our experience. Additionally we want to provide a way to get involved for those anxiously watching on the sideline due to age or circumstance.

Blessings,

Michael, Shae, Ethan and Eric Dalke

Our international adoption agency:

Ventures for Children International

Marvin Harlan—Exec. Director

1621 Starr Drive

Fayetteville, AR 72701

Make checks payable to “Ventures for Children”. Please make sure you put “Michael and Shae Dalke” on the memo line of your check if a check is sent to the adoption agency. Again, a tax-deductible receipt will be sent to you so please include your return address.

Getting Started

On the huge list of things to do for international adoption, starting a blog is almost a must. So here we go. . .