Well we thought it was time we update you on our babies! Y'all know I'm not talking about those cute little things with 10 tiny fingers and toes. However. I am talking about our adoption and our business. If you're reading this, we consider YOU are #JPFFamily. And we love to share what is going on here at the farm with you.
Our Adoption
We started our adoption process last July. It's been a long road. The hurricane here delayed us by a month because our classes got off track. Then the holidays shut down things for a week or 3 at a time. So to say we've been waiting... is an understatement. We are so happy to announce that we are officially in the matching stage of our journey.
It's funny because they don't tell you much about this phase in classes. They want you to focus on understanding children from trauma, the things you will encounter- worst case scenario so you don't get your hopes up expecting super-young, crystal-clean slate children, and how to prepare for your life to change as a parent. I always thought this "matching" stage was more of a point we would reach in the journey where we were or were not a match for a kid or set of siblings. I never imagined this stage would be an actual process. I guess it just doesn't set in til you are there.
So matching. Basically, when your homestudy is complete, it is sent to the adoption department for the county. This is not an agency. Though, the agencies all work for this department. They have their kids spread over several agencies. The recruiters (at least here that's how it works) seek to find families for their kids. They don't search for kids for families. Let that sink in. They work for the kids. So it is ALL about the kids. This is important. Your preferences come last and the kids come first. And the more I've come to know about this process, the more I am so thankful they do it this way.
Now that your homestudy is complete and in the hands of the recruiters who know each of the kids personally, their back story, and their needs, they get to know you. Sometimes they hold monthly events with the kids, sometimes it's just a pop in for people to see a full list of the kids that are ready for adoption. And just because they are available to adopt, does NOT mean that they are ready for adoption. This too plays a key part in the process. If the kids are struggling emotionally and having a hard time in therapy, they may not be in a place to be matched and this is heart breaking for so many reasons.
As those recruiters get to know you and your family, they start getting ideas of which kids would thrive in your home. The more you connect with the recruiters and get yourself to those events, the better. They know you're ready. They find out more about you and they can determine more quickly, which kids would be a good match.
For us, things happened a little out of order. We had a thanksgiving event at the farm to take photos of the kids in care. This was an opportunity for us to love and serve them, but it was also an opportunity to meet the kids who might become part of our family. We got to see how they fit in our home. This was a big deal. And something we most certainly cherish about our journey that is unlike any other.
We met some amazing kids that day. We certainly inquired about several of them at the appropriate time. I won't tell you that we got a "yes" on them all initially. One group was well on their way to being matched. Another wasn't ready to be adopted. And then.... well I can't tell you anything else... for now.
Right now we are in the process of matching. This doesn't mean we are matched. It is a REALLY long process at this point. But I can tell you we are at least close, if it all works out with our current inquiry. That sounds so formal. So basically we ask the recruiters to send us possible matches. They sent us several faces and a short bio on each kid/kids. We get their age, a few sentences about them, and decide if we are interested in any of them. If we are interested in one we are able to obtain more info on that child. This is where you get a larger amount of info, basically a summary of their story. After that, if you're interested, you can tell them you'd like a full disclosure on the child/children. This is exhaustive paperwork- anything that has ever been filed related to the child- court documents, abuse and neglect records, behavior notes, psych reviews, etc. Some can be more like a book with 300+ pages. And really, the more info the better. This info doesn't contain any fluff. They are instances and occurrences of events and less about what the kid's favorite food or past time is and more about the dark past they've endured and the things that resulted because of it. This entire process can take a while. For us, it's been about a month, just to say "yes" we are interested in this or these kid(s).
After saying "yes", you're given a time to meet with several members of their adoption team to ask any further questions, for them to talk with you and get to know you outside your paperwork. This is called a full disclosure meeting. The team of pros include, but are not limited to a recruiter, a therapist, a caseworker, supervisors of any of those, an adoption therapist, and the list can go on. It is about whoever has a hand in that child's life. They collectively answer any questions from the book of paperwork on the kid(s) and also analyze you to make certain you're the right fit.
Matching doesn't end there, as you might think. After that meeting, the adoption therapist puts together a plan to tell the kid(s) about your family. I get asked a million times if our kid(s) know about our interest in them. The quick answer is no. It is in the best interest of the kiddo(s) to keep them at bay until after the meeting. Anything can go wrong in that time frame. The family could change their mind, the team could decide you aren't a good fit, or the kid(s) could just not be in a good place to approach them about adoption at the moment.
After the adoption therapist sits and tells them, this is specific to the kid(s) about your family- ours is done in the form of a "welcome home" book that will be given to them to tell them about our home, our family and things we love to do together, then when the kid(s) are ready, a time will be scheduled for a supervised visit. You could go eat a meal, go to the arcade, grab some ice cream, go to the zoo, whatever the kid wants to do. This is usually the first time you meet your kid. Our family advocate said it resembles a very odd and awkward blind date, one you've never talked to the kid before and the ice is often hard to break. And- no one really prepares you for this! haha
So we are somewhere in the midst of this process called "matching". Again, the kid(s) could even look at our book and the reaction be awful and they decide they don't want to meet us or have some set back, so it is hard to tell you anything solid at this point. All I can say is... we are waiting, we are matching, we are adopting!
Our Business
Now for our second baby! It has been a lifelong dream of mine to conjure up some one-stop-shop, market extravaganza! While, when I began daydreaming of this idea about the age of 20, it looked a little different. Now social media and shopping online has certainly changed the way we are able to reach people. And for that, I'm so so thankful! We certainly don't have to have a brick and mortar and I can work from home, which is such a God thing for our family!
If you've been on our site the past few months, you know that I've been cooking something up here and it ain't just food. I love a few important things- Faith, Family, and Farm. So I decided to combine them all here in something we call the JPF (Jackson Pine Farm) Market. The market-oh my oh my! What a dream come true! So the greatest thing about the market is that it doesn't just involve Joel and me. It is a place to feature and collaborate with other small businesses, other families who are EXPERTS in their niches, and I LOVE this!!!! Over the rest of the year, we will be adding these shopping categories (and more, maybe) to our market. We will have exclusive products from vendors that are only offered in our market, but also reflect that vendor's product and style and also introduce them to you collectively, in a way you might not otherwise find them. They are from all over the country. Some items are handmade and some are inventors. Y'all these vendors are one thing- CREATIVE. And two- the very best at loving and serving their customers.
Our market will feature the following categories:
home
Home decor
Kitchen
Lighting
Textiles (Rugs and drapes)
Pillows and Throws
Furniture
Organization
Floral
Art
Office
Frames
lifestyle
Clothing (women, men, and kids)
Jewelry
Bath and Body (essential oil products)
Totes and wallets
Hats
Joel’s corner (man stuff)
Pets (treats, collars, etc.)
farm + food
Seeds
Garden tools
Vessels (pots)
Garden Decor (chimes, stained glass)
In a jar (cookie mixes, etc.)
Baked items (bakery)
Brewing (ground coffees and teas)
Alright... so how do these things, part one and part two relate? Let me tell you! Today we start a series of contests that will end on our GRAND OPENING day.... March 1, 2018. YAY!!!
The contest will be held on facebook and it will feature 9 giveaways. When one ends, a new one will begin. The first one will run from today until March 1. You can win multiple times. So don't be afraid to enter each one, because the prizes are AH-MAZING! These contests will give you a glimpse of some of the things that are important to us and what you're going to be seeing on our site and in our market from now on- from blogs to products.
So let's get started! To enter, you must be a member of our Exclusive Community for JPF Family The rules for the contest are there. Each day I'll add a new photo of the prize and entry details to win that particular contest.
So here's the first contest:
For this contest you must guess:
The number of kids we are adopting, their age, and gender, correctly. We may choose to keep this winner a secret just for purposes of this matching process and the safety and privacy of our kid(s). A winner will be chosen on March 1. If you know the answer already, feel free to throw people off by putting in random info, but you're not allowed to play and win if you already know- sorry! There's 8 other contest! ;)
And here is the grand prize:
Grand prize includes:
Mini 8" home Spring Wreath
Kid's Personalized Apron
Adult T-shirt (of your choice from our Market)
Market Bag
Turban Style Gingham Headband
Farm sweet Farm Striped Tea Towels
Whisper Pink Eyeshadow
Set of 2 Brushes (dual ends)
Eye Creme
Happy Winning!!!
Love,
the Jacksons
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