Subconcious Assumptions

I don't typically try to write deep, philosophical, or overly-emotional posts for this blog.  I'm more into the facts, and keeping things simple.  :-)  But something has been on my mind for several weeks...even months... during this adoption process, and I have been trying to figure out how to put it into words so I can share it with you.  This is for all the ladies out there.

I noticed "it" when we began our adoption process over a year ago and I started coming across blogs of other adoptive families.  I would see professional-looking photographs of them with their beautiful kids, all dressed in matching outfits and smiling, and think to myself, "Wow, what a perfect family!"  Without realizing it, I was placing these families on a pedestal and admiring things about them that I had pretty much just ASSUMED based on their lovely photos.

For example (and this is embarrassing for me to admit) I would subconsciously assume one or more of the following:

1- They must be rich.  They can afford to adopt, even multiple times.  They can afford to buy trendy matching boutique outfits.  They can afford a real photographer.  Wow.

2- They must be so happy all the time!  Look at them- all smiling!  The kids probably get along SO well, and show nothing but love for each other!

3- They must be really good people.  After all, they've adopted a poor helpless orphan.

Funnily enough, I started to get to know some of these adoptive families through Facebook, and soon realized that they are pretty normal...just like me.  Some of them have blogged about how difficult the transition has been for the adoptive child, and how it's not all "sunshine & rainbows" when you meet them and bring them home.  It can be the opposite, and quite exhausting!

As these realities came to light, I was able to dig through my subconscious assumptions and unravel the falsehoods.  

This is probably closer to the TRUTH:

1- We are all rich, in our first-world countries.  Let's put wealth into perspective... sure, some people have higher-paying jobs than others.  Some may have more debt.  BUT if we have a roof over our heads, a vehicle, more than one pair of shoes, food to eat daily, and let's face it, closets and cupboards full of STUFF, we are "rich" compared to most of the world.  Adoption is expensive, but it's not impossible.  When a family is called to adopt, they make it their priority.  They may have to sacrifice other things, or do fundraisers to help with fees and plane tickets, but if you really want to make it happen you will do whatever it takes.  The Lord will provide the means if this is something He has placed on your heart!

2- No family is happy all the time!!  Yes, I am definitely planning to do matching-outfits (from Goodwill) in a photo shoot (with the tripod)!  And I do prefer to post the happy pictures, not because I'm trying to put on a fake front, but because I like to keep things positive.  I like to spread joy, and smiles do that better than frowns.  Everyone's kids fight, probably daily.  (Mine drive me nuts sometimes!!) Parents loose their patience, probably daily.  (yeppp. guilty.)  We say things we regret when we speak out in anger at each other, but at the end of the day we can reconcile with forgiveness and hugs.  If your family IS happy all the time, you are NOT normal!

3- No one is good except God.  (John 18:19, Romans 3:10...) Our hearts are inherently sinful, and it is only by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross, taking the penalty for our sins upon Himself, that we can be forgiven and made righteous.  I do not feel like I am "doing a good deed" by adopting.  I am simply responding to the compassion and desire that God has placed in my heart to adopt from China.  I am so humbled and grateful that God is allowing me to bring her into our home!  Sometimes I'm amazed that he trusts us with another child!  On a side note, I realize that not all adoptive families are Christians, and they also feel compelled by compassion and love for these kids, but neither are they "good" or pure of heart.  (But let's avoid a religious debate here...)

Maybe YOU also have a habit of making assumptions about people (good or bad) based only on appearances or first impressions.  It's NOT a good idea.  Until you get to know them and hear their stories, you have no idea what their past holds or what struggles they are facing.  So let's learn from my mistake!  :-)

We praise God for using the imperfect, so HE, in HIS PERFECTION, can be glorified!

Friends, if any of you are feeling an emptiness and wishing you could understand more about God's love and forgiveness, please do contact me.  I care about you and would love to tell you more!

Introducing...Our Daughter!!

It is with great JOY and EXCITEMENT 

that we present to you... OUR DAUGHTER!

 

Isn't she the most darling little girl?!!  I bet you can't take your eyes off that sweet little face!  I have her picture with me everywhere I go... on my phone's background, framed in the living room, on the kitchen table, on my bedside table, in my purse... I can't get enough of her!  I do have a couple more photos of her, but I will save them for my next post so we can spread the cuteness out.  Otherwise your heart might melt right into your shoes like mine did.   :-)

Now allow me to put a name to that adorable face!  Her Chinese name (first and middle) is "Yan Tao".  It sounds like "Yen" and if you want to try using the correct tones you would make it fall then rise: Yàn Táo sort of like saying, "Yen! Tao?".  This name was given to her by a nurse or nanny, and it means "Gorgeous Peach."  It makes me smile.  It suits her.  We are keeping it as her middle name, and giving her a new first name.  We will be calling her... VIOLET!  I have loved that name for a long time, and it's one that Curt likes as well (not easy to find one like that!)  Also, her Chinese name "Yan" means "gorgeous", but it also means "colorful", and that is kind of a cool coincidence.  :-)  So she shall be called "Violet Yan Tao" and we couldn't be happier to add her to our family!

Violet is 21 months old right now.  She will be turning two in November and we are hoping and praying that we can celebrate that day with her in person!  So far, according to the timelines of some adoptive friends who are just a few steps ahead of us in the process, it looks like that just might be a possibility!  So pray with us!

As you know, Violet was part of the "Special Needs" program due to a medical condition.  We are perfectly comfortable talking about this, but we will also be sensitive to what we publish online.  But we can tell you that she simply has a skin condition.  It is genetic, and there is no cure.  Basically, her back and torso have dry, flaky, somewhat scaly skin.  (I know, no big deal, right?!)  It is not contagious, and likely will not even spread further on her own body.  We have spoken to a team of Pediatric Dermatologists in the area and they have reviewed her medical file and photos.  We are certain that we will be able to keep this condition manageable through exfoliating baths and special moisturizers.  After learning so much about her condition, I am all the more eager to bring her home and start taking care of her!

I could go on forever... but I will leave you with this parting picture and save the rest for another post.

So proud of their new sister Violet!

We got THE CALL!

I have been waiting for "the call" for months.  The moment when my phone rings and my agency says they have a child's file for us.  I thought it might come shortly after our LID, considering that there would be twice as many children available to us once we had our files logged in with China.  Then I started hearing of people waiting for a little girl, even with minor special needs just like ours, and they were waiting 18 months for their "call".... and I was discouraged because we were only 13 months along, but I settled into another patient waiting period.

Then China made this big announcement about having older children available, and like I mentioned in our last post, our family got very excited about the idea of having a 6-yr old girl who would be the same age as our daughter.  They advertised an "immediate match" and we eagerly signed up, waiting in both lines, and praying God would send us the right child from either program.  :-)  I was constantly making sure my phone was with me and the ringer was turned all the way up, and every time it rang I would hope the screen said "CCAI" for our adoption agency's office.  But it didn't happen...for 6 weeks.

Then, on an evening while I was out and my phone was silenced in my purse, I missed a call.  I didn't know it until 2 hours later, and the missed call was from CCAI.  The voicemail was vague, but I listened to it about 50 times and played it another 5 times for Curt.  It said something like, "Call us back at your earliest convenience."  But the offices had just closed so I had to wait until morning.  THAT WAS TORTURE!

That night I was so antsy I knew I'd have to take a sleep aid (for the 3rd time in my life... and each during this adoption) and it knocked me out for a whole 2 hours.  I spent the rest of the night and morning waiting for 10 am to roll around.  I reached out to my family & friends on Facebook, as well as my new friends in my Facebook adoption groups who are in this same journey with me or have already been through it.  I think I caused quite a stir and had many people waiting in suspense with me.  (THANK YOU, by the way, because by the grace of God and your support I survived the night!)

Pretty much all of my adoptive friends said that when THEY missed a call from CCAI it ended up being "the call" because there aren't many other reasons for them to call you unless there is big news!

So I fully expected to find out we had been matched with a 6 year old girl, because the estimated wait for our Special Needs line was still about 5 more months.

Imagine my surprise when 10 am FINALLY came around and I was  able to return "the call", and she said they had a little girl's file for me to review, and she was under 2 years old!  She told me about her medical need then asked if I was still interested.  YES!YES!YES!  So she e-mailed me the little girl's file.

When I saw her sweet face, my eyes welled up with joy.  What a darling!!  The pale, round face.  The dark hair and eyes.  The slight smile of amusement.  She was beautiful and my heart melted.

BUT, I knew that meeting this girl's medical needs were very important for her future and well-being, and I knew that Curt & I needed to do some research before we committed.  For her sake even more than ours.  We spent pretty much the entire day examining her photos and medical file, and reading up about her condition online.  We learned a lot, and both of us felt very comfortable about providing the care she would need.  (I can share more about this when everything is official).

I had been praying throughout the day... and another 2 hour night... that God would make it very clear to Curt & I whether OUR family was in His plan for this little girl.  I am not claiming I heard an audible voice, but I felt God speak to my heart and say, "Do you CHOOSE to love this girl?" and I immediately knew that YES, I did love her and was choosing to love her unconditionally.  And I felt His response in my heart... "Then she is yours."  (Then I cried.  While I was doing dishes.)

Nevertheless, our agency highly encourages everyone to have the child's file reviewed by a medical professional, so the next day we made some calls and sent some e-mails and (miraculously!) got a reply later the same day!  We got a very helpful response from a Pediatric Dermatologist in our area.  We had already discussed it enough to know that we were both fully onboard to move ahead with her adoption, but felt even more at ease after hearing that the doctor agreed with the diagnosis from China and mentioned the same type of care that we had been reading about and felt comfortable with.

So at dinner time tonight, when I received the doctor's e-mail, I gleefully ran to my phone to tell CCAI that we were ready to move forward with our adoption!  Then I got the voice-system, reminding me that they close 30 min early on Friday... and now I have to wait the entire weekend.  Are you KIDDING me?!  LOL  So I e-mailed them, and get to spend the weekend awaiting my instructions for the next round of paperwork.  :-)

I am not permitted to post many details or photos online yet, but I'm sure I will have lots to share over the next few days & weeks, so stay tuned! 

Thank you A MILLION TIMES for all of your prayers, support, and encouragement!!!  We are thrilled to be able to share this news with you!!

One Year Down! (and a NEWSFLASH!)

This week we will hit the ONE YEAR mark for our adoption process.  Although the journey started in my heart much longer ago, this ONE YEAR anniversary means that we should be at least half-way to bringing our daughter home!  Hopefully the second half will actually be shorter than this.  And I have good reason to believe it might be MUCH shorter....

This week we received an e-mail from our adoption agency that China has just made a new window of opportunity for those who have a LID (remember what that means?  If not read my last post) but are not yet matched with a child.  That would be us.

Before I explain this opportunity, you need to understand this: with a China adoption, your file is in a LONG line in China to be matched with a NON-SPECIAL NEEDS (NSN) healthy child.  You can ALSO, SIMULTANEOUSLY choose to sign up for the Waiting Child (WC) program, which is for SPECIAL NEEDS (SN) kids, which is a short line inside the US adoption agencies.  Because the wait for the NSN is 7 years, and the wait for the SN is under 2 years, you'll likely be matched with an SN kid first.

The interesting news: China has just recently announced that anyone interested in a healthy, NSN, "older child" ages 6yrs-13yrs old, can essentially JUMP THE LINE.  This is  likely due to the fact that a vast majority of adoptive parents have requested a child under the age of 2, and the number of older kids available is becoming overwhelming.  (Maybe they were abandoned at or after age 2 and missed the chance to be adopted as a baby?).  It made me very sad to hear about these perfectly healthy kids waiting for a family!

When we started this process a year ago it was recommended that we keep the "Birth Order" of our children, especially when it came to Evie.  We still believe that it is important that she remain the "first born", for the sake of maintaining peace in our house! LOL.  So we had signed up for a child under age 2.  But when this opportunity came up we decided to discuss it as a family.  Surprisingly, we ALL found ourselves VERY excited about the idea of adopting a child the SAME age as Evie... who is now 6.  The more we thought about it, the more it seemed to just... fit!

Our agency needs to know by this Thursday if we want to sign up for this option, and we plan to pursue it.  We just have to work out the details with our home study agency, who will need to make an amendment to approve us for an older child.  We will also need to file a change with the US Immigration (a lovely $405 piece of paper!) for this approval, but I believe that it just needs to be done before we bring her home, not before we could get a match. 

I have NO idea how quickly a match would come.  It certainly sounds like it could be fast, since China is giving it top priority, but we are requesting one very specific age, and even though we are moving to the front of the line we will still be behind others who take this older-child opportunity and have had a LID longer than us.  We will still remain in the second line as well, for a Special Needs child, so I guess we will see from which direction God brings us OUR GIRL!  :-)

Until then, I'm having a really hard time sleeping!  All this excitement has my brain working overtime!  So I figured since the effort to sleep is futile, I might as well give you all an update so you can join us in prayer on this new unexpected turn in our adoption journey!

You should have seen Evie's eyes light up when she realized she could have a sister the same age as her.  But she understands that we are waiting to see what God will do. Last night she prayed, "Lord, help us to find our China sister, big or small."  Amen!  (Yes, she brought tears to my eyes. So thankful God is preparing her heart for this journey as well).

We have a LID!!!

If I were to name the Top 3 most important moments in the adoption process, it would be:
3- The "Log-in-Date" :when all of your files are into the system in China!
2- Your "Child Match" :when you see their picture for the first time and claim them as YOURS!
1- "Gotcha Day" :the day your child is placed into your arms in China!  Hallelujah! :-)

On April 9th we received word that our Dossier (huge paper packet for the adoption) had arrived in China, and that we should expect to wait about 3 WEEKS for it to be filed with the CCCWA (China's Center for Children's Welfare and Adoption).

Today, just FIVE DAYS later, I got the e-mail that is was done and we are now officially Logged-In to their system!!  Praising God for this quick turnaround!

This is a big deal!!  It means that we now have a Log-In Date (LID), which means that there are twice as many children available to us on the waiting list!  It will make our wait for a match much shorter.  It is super exciting; I was dancing all around the kitchen tonight when I got the e-mail... but it's also torturing me a bit to really have no idea when the phone call with the match might come!  I've heard of families getting it 3 days after their LID, and I've heard of families waiting another 3 months.  It all depends on your place in line (we are 9 months in, which is pretty far, I think) and which medical needs you are open to (we have checked several of the most common ones) so it really could happen any day but I'm trying not to get my hopes up! **update: I talked to our agency and they are estimating it could still take up to 6 months for a child match... kinda bummed, but we are still on track to keep this whole adoption process under 2 years, which is what we knew was likely.  :-)

I know you all are rejoicing with me.  Thank you for your encouragement and prayers!  I love sharing all this news with you! 

A Moment of Epic Proportions

A very significant moment has arrived.  Today I finally received our LAST of 13 documents back from Chicago's Chinese Embassy, and now they each have a lovely little holographic seal of approval!  It is beautiful, and shiny, and reminds me of a happy little mandarin rainbow.  :-)

We had a major glitch with ONE document that kept it at the Embassy for 3 weeks, and if you don't care to hear the boring details just skip this paragraph (I promise I don't mind).  Of all things, it was our marriage certificate!  I "knew" that they required a newly certified copy, which I had obtained a few months ago in preparation, but I didn't realize it had already been 8 months since I got the new copy made... and they insist that your marriage certificate copy is no more than 6 months old.  So, to prove that Curt & I ARE in fact still legally wed, I had to go to the courthouse in the county in which we we married to get a new copy (3 hour drive round trip).  Then we had to take it back to the Sec of State for state certification- the gold seal- again, and send it back to our courier in Chicago.  Unfortunately, the Sec of State had made a mistake on the certification page and it got sent back to us, again.  At this point I was in tears, and had to call Lansing to figure out what was going on.  It seemed like everyone was telling me something different... but we got it sorted out, went back to Sec of State for yet another gold seal, and sent it a third time.  (Keep in mind, every time we overnight documents Express Mail, it costs us $20, and we have to include another $20 in postage for the return.  Therefore, mistakes get expensive!) It still wasn't exactly right, because the Sec of State had put the gold seal on the back of the document this time, not the front where it is supposed to be, but they were able to work around it and get the thing sealed.   I hope it passes all the future inspections now too!

Buried in paperwork!!

After countless hours of preparation, the entire dossier (a.k.a. huge packet of adoption documents) is now complete and ready to be mailed!!  While this is a HUGE milestone, and a tremendous relief, I know there is still a lot of work & a lot of waiting ahead.  But I know I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength!  He has been so good and so faithful, and we know everything is in His hands!!

Tomorrow I will mail this whole packet to our adoption agency in Colorado.  It will go through a triple-review process then get translated, and if there are NO more glitches (please pray for that!) it will be sent to China in 2 weeks!! 

Best case scenario: our file is sent to China in 2 weeks, we get "matched" with a child quickly, do a "short" round of paperwork, then can travel to bring her home about 4-7 months after that.  So, the earliest possible time would probably be this fall.   
Worst case scenario: ....never mind.  Let's just stay positive.  :-) But I'd be thrilled to have her home by Christmas!!

Chinese Visitor & Wedding Excitement

We have had so many exciting things happening over the past few weeks.  It has made time fly by, which is nice when you are counting down the unknown months until the adoption is complete.  :-)

First, we had a temporary daughter from China for 12 days!  The elementary school was running a program for a group of students from China.  They were looking for host families, and I was probably the first to email an emphatic "YES!! SIGN ME UP!"  Several weeks later, the group consisting of 8 students (3rd-5th graders) and 2 teachers arrived in our town.  I met my girl and she told me that she is 8 years old and her English name is "Smile".

 

The kids really enjoyed playing with her, and it was obvious that language barriers are almost non-existent when it comes to having fun!  She spoke minimal English, just basic words and phrases that she had learned in school, but we were able to communicate well enough through my Google translate app and a lot of hand charades.  :-)  I was happy to be able to pick up a few more Chinese words, and she seemed to like hearing me practice my Mandarin.  Evie & I sang our one Chinese song several nights in a row, which happens to be John 3:16, and although I don't think she had ever heard it before she clapped enthusiastically and said "very good!"  I was able to show her the verse in the Chinese Bible so she could read what we were singing.  What a neat opportunity!!

The school had many events planned during their visit, including: bowling & pizza night, open gymnastics time at a studio, an afternoon at a trampoline center, open gym at the school (snowday activities), an inflatables party, a weekend at an indoor water park and snow tubing resort, and a Chinese New Year dinner and celebration.  We also managed to squeeze in a trip to Chuck-E-Cheese and visit the local library for story time.  

 

Overall it was a wonderful time with great memories.  Smile was homesick pretty much every night & morning, and was on the phone with her parents during those times (not surprising...she was only 8 and this was her first time away from home!) but she was also having a lot of fun and enjoyed being a part of our family.  I was able to talk to her parents a few times, and we are keeping in touch with her family through a chat app.  They have invited us, her "American Parents", to visit them in China any time. :-)

My favorite memories aren't from the events, but from the random little things... like the surprised "Oooooh!" sound she made when she saw or heard something new or different.  Or the way she had scrambled eggs with toast and loved my home made peach jam, and ended up making a sandwich with those things every morning for breakfast.  And how she made the "peace" sign whenever someone was taking her picture!  And how she had no interest in shopping for anything but books.  But my all-time favorite was when she let me blow-dry her hair.  It sounds silly, but seriously, I was so happy I almost cried because I know that someday soon I will have my own daughter with shiny, jet black hair to take care of, and I could just imagine it so vividly with her standing in front of my mirror.  It was such a blessing to meet and get to know this girl!

The other HUGE excitement we've had recently was the wedding of my brother Eric and his beautiful bride Elizabeth!  We are so happy for them, and it was such a joy for our whole family to share in this wonderful occasion!  Curt was the most handsome groomsmen ever (I know I'm biased, but it's true), and I loved being a bridesmaid and spending time with my favorite group of girls.  Evie felt like a princess standing up there with the flower girls, and Corbin was a cute little ring bearer who was the center of attention on the dance floor all night.  That kid has moves!  :-)  My grandma Marilyn was able to fly up from GA and stay with us for the week, so that was an added blessing for us and the kids to spend time with her!  

(I can't post the professional wedding photos here, but you can look for them on my Facebook page!)

Now life is getting back to it's normal pace.  We have gotten all 9 of our necessary documents notarized (praying it was done right and will be acceptable...there were some questions about it) and now we have 13 documents to get certified and sealed.  Our work is cut out for us, and hopefully won't take more than a few weeks to get it sent to China!  Your prayers are appreciated!

Official "Request for Evidence"

It was mid-November when we sent the I-800a form to the USCIS, mid-December when we were ordered to be fingerprinted at their facilities in Detroit, then in mid-January we received a pink slip in the mail.  Not sure why they use that color...but the form is called the "Request for Evidence" letter.  This means that after looking over our entire home study report they had some questions or things that needed clarification/proof.  Our letter contained two requests: 1) A paragraph added to our home study explaining HOW we are preparing to adopt a child with the various special needs we are considering, and 2) an explanation as to WHERE we were living during the 2 years we both traveled overseas, because each place we lived would require a Child Abuse Registries check.

The first was easy enough, I send our case worker a list of some of the practical things we've been doing to prepare.  For example, researching the hospitals in our area and their specializations, as well as watching several online workshops focused on various special needs and how the children are treated medically after international adoptions.

The second request made me nervous because Curt and I both traveled, separately, to over 30 countries each during the 2 years after high school.  We were doing volunteer work with a missions organization.  I couldn't imagine even TRYING to get background checks for all of those places!  So I sent an explanation and prayed they would accept the fact that we were never in one place for more than a week or two.

Today, 3 weeks later, my breath caught in my chest when I saw the USCIS envelope in the mail.  I was afraid to open it.  It felt like our entire adoption was hinging on ONE small detail.  I finally gathered up the courage and tore into that thing....and much to my delight I read the words "APPROVAL NOTICE".  I was so happy I started jumping and yelling, which made Curt come running because he thought the house was on fire or someone was hurt.  :-)  Nope, just great news!

That means ALL of our papers are ready for the notarization, state certification, and Chinese consulate seal, then we can send them off to China!  Those steps may take several weeks still, but this is one HUGE step in the right direction!!

Celebrate with us and do a happy dance!  :-)

P.S. For the past 10 days we have had a visitor from China!!  I can't wait to share about this experience in my next post.  But first, I get to enjoy her for one more day!

Fingerprinted!

Merry Christmas!  The holidays sure have made this month fly by!  Our entire area was hit by the ice storm and we lost power for 4 days, but thankfully we were able to stay with my parents and got to enjoy spending Christmas with my family. 

Here is an update on our adoption:

About 2 weeks after sending our I-800a form we received notices in the mail from the United States Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS).  We had been happily anticipating our fingerprint notifications (yes, getting fingerprinted by the Feds is exciting... when it means your adoption is moving along!) and the form we got basically stated, "be at THIS location at THIS date and time, or your documents will be ABANDONED."  Yikes!  Thankfully, we were able to be at the USCIS in Detroit on the date they requested.  It was done quickly and efficiently, and was rather interesting to see our fingerprints being scanned and showing up on the screen in front of us. 

We should be hearing back from them in about 4-6 weeks or so.  The I-800a approval is the FINAL document needed for our collection!  Then we just have to get everything notarized, state certified, and sealed by the Chinese Embassy, and our dossier will be complete and we can send it to China!  

When will we be bringing our daughter home?

This has been a very common question lately, and the answer is... we don't know.  We have been told that the entire process can take roughly 2 years.  Some as little as 12 months (not so common) and averaging perhaps around 24 months or so.  The reason the estimation is so hard is because there are so many variables, making each adoption case a little different.  Also, each step of the process seems to have a broad time frame ranging from 3-6 months for each step.  It could all add up to the short end or the long end, but each step we complete helps us narrow it down.  Currently, we are 6 months into the adoption.  If the rest of our paperwork takes about 3 months, we will be logged in with China around Feb-March.  We are hoping to be matched with a child shortly after that, which will bring on another short round of paperwork.  China will have to give us "travel approval" once the adoption is ready to be completed, and we are told to expect only about a 2 week notice of our travel time.  We will make sure to have our packing list ready!  At this point, the earliest we could see being approved to bring our daughter home is fall of 2014.  That's being VERY optimistic...I'm just hoping to have her home by next Christmas!  :-)

We are all content and have peace about the time frame, knowing it's in God's hands.  We pray for our new daughter every day. 

Evie's Christmas present, something to help pass the time until her new little sister arrives!

The 3-Month Form

We received our official home study approval packet in the mail last weekend!!  This is what we were waiting on to be able to mail the next form... our I-800A.  This is sent to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) for "Determination of Suitability of a Child from a Convention Country" (basically, to be sure we are qualified to adopt internationally).  Once we receive approval from the USCIS, our entire dossier will be complete and we can notarize each document, state certify them, and have them sealed by the Chinese consulate in Chicago... and then SEND IT ALL TO CHINA!!

I was under the impression we could have the paperwork in China by Christmas... but unfortunately when I looked further into it I found that the USCIS typically takes around 3 months to approve your form.  It could be anywhere from 10-20 weeks!  So that's putting us closer to Feb/March for approval, and then a couple weeks to finish the dossier and mail it.  We could still be "Matched" with a child during that time, but we have a higher chance of a match after our papers are logged into China's system.  It sort of feels like a set-back to me, just because my expectations were a little off.  But then again, even in the beginning I knew this process could easily take 2 years, so we aren't doing too bad in the long run!

As always, I have to remind myself that everything will happen in God's perfect timing!

This week's round of paperwork!

Many Blessings

I've been holding off on my next blog entry, hoping to have some "real" news to share as we wait for the next step.  We are finished with our four home study interviews; they went really well (praise God!) and our case worker completed the 11-page report.  It is currently being reviewed by our adoption agency, and then will be sent to our home study agency's director for official approval.  We aren't worried about being approved... that's pretty much a shoe-in.  What they are really looking for is the right wording so that all the details will match up with our other paperwork, and so that it fits exactly with what China requires.  It's more of a "fill-in-the-blanks" kind of thing, and if something isn't worded right or some numbers don't match up perfectly they will need to make some adjustments before we send our dossier to China.  It's best to catch any errors now; once we send it overseas it will be complicated to make changes to our paperwork.  We expect to be officially approved by next week, and then can finish the rest of our forms!

We enjoyed working with our case worker. 
One of the kids took this pic with their "toy" digital camera- didn't even know until I saw it!

We have had some answers to prayer recently that have been such blessings, I have to share them!

First, I had started watching Craigslist for a second bed for Evie's room.  Although we have several months before it will be needed, I figured I might as well keep an eye out for a good deal.  I was looking for a white wooden twin bed to match Evie's.  I remember thinking, "Wouldn't it be AWESOME if I could find the exact same bed?  That would be a long shot...but if anyone could make it happen God could... dare I ask Him for something so trivial and so specific?"  So I prayed over it, simply asking God to provide what we needed, and sharing my desire for a matching bed, but my willingness to be content with whatever He brought my way. 

Low and behold, an exact match came up and it was nearby.  I actually waited a week because the price was a little high.  The price came down.  So I contacted the seller and offered him even less.  He accepted my offer and Curt picked up the bed.  When Evie saw it, she squealed with excitement and jumped up and down.  (Then jumped on the bed).  For the first time she said, "I am soooo excited about getting my 'baby China sister'!  I can't wait for her to come!!"  I think seeing the second bed made it feel more real to her, and gave her visions of staying up late talking to her new best friend.  :-)

God does care about the little things, and sometimes likes to surprise us.  (Check out Matt 7:7-11) "...how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!" 
But here's the real kicker... Curt's been working a second job, just something seasonal for a small business owned by a family from church, and had no idea how much his pay would be.  He got his first paycheck the day after he picked the bed up, and -I'm not kidding- it was for the EXACT amount as the bed!!  That is NOT a coincidence, my friends!  I love it when the Lord makes us laugh with his goodness.

Twin beds!  We will have to get the matching quilt soon too!

As if that was not enough, here is the other huge answer to prayer:
We were a little worried about how our paperwork would line up with some changes taking place with Curt's employer.  His job is secure, but his company is changing.  (Henry Ford Hospital Systems will now be directly employing their I.T. workers, rather than using Siemens/Unify as the contract company).  I wasn't sure what effect this would have on our adoption process.  I thought at the very least we would have to re-do some of the paperwork regarding his employment, and at the very worst we would be set back several months to wait for the changes to take effect at work and to get new papers.  BUT... our social worker didn't see any reason to make ANY changes to our paperwork or process because she said that by the time the transition at work takes effect we should already have all of our paperwork in China and already be approved for adoption!!  Plus it's such a small change that it's pretty much insignificant as far as his employment goes.  YAY!!  

And another kicker.... as an official employee of Henry Ford Hospitals, Curt is eligible for Adoption Assistance!  It sounds like they are going to give us $2,000 to use towards our fees!!  (And to think, I was worried! LOL)

Thank you for sharing in this journey with us, and for your prayers and encouragement in both the joys and the struggles!  We will keep you all updated, and let you know when we hear back from our agency about our home study approval!

Home Study Update

It has been over a month since we were assigned our Case Worker, and I'm happy to report that we have now completed THREE of the four home study interviews!  The visits are not at all what I expected; they are actually a lot easier!  We basically sit at the table talking the whole time, answering questions about ourselves.  At first it drove me crazy because ALL of the questions are ones that we have already answered on paper for our home study agency, which took hours to write, and our case worker has them in her file.  But I suppose that was mainly for us to think about the topics and be prepared to answer them with her.  (And if that's all it takes to complete this home study it's fine by me!)  She did take a quick tour of the house and met our kids, but she didn't seem to be inspecting the place and didn't mention or point out anything that we need to change.  So overall, things are moving along great!!  Thank you all for your prayers!

Our most recent visit ended with our case worker telling us that she will spend the next week typing up the report and making sure she has all of the necessary information, and then she'll give us a call to schedule our final interview and sign some papers.  Our home study packet will need to go through several levels of review before it's officially approved, but she was optimistic that we could get our entire paper-chase done and sent to China by Christmas!  SO EXCITED!!

The best part is that once we are "Logged-In" with China (which means they have received our dossier file and approved us for adoption) we will have about 47% more children available to us on the waiting list.  These kids are still labeled "Special Needs" but they are more minor cases, so China figures they should be easier to quickly to match with a family, and requires that it be a "Logged-In" family so that the rest of the adoption can happen swiftly.  This means that our Child Match could come quite soon after that.... maybe even Christmas or New Year's time! 

Ok...I'm getting way ahead of myself, as usual.  :-)   I am so thankful to the Lord for giving me peace in my heart during this time of waiting.  I know that everything will happen in HIS time, which is the BEST time!

A lovely autumn sunset, driving home from my parents' house