USCIS

As I type this, I am sitting with the phone to my ear waiting for a representative from USCIS. Adoption is so much fun......grrr...

I realize that we started this process six months ago. Since then we have switched agencies twice, completed our homestudy, raised most of the money needed to complete the adoption, been fingerprinted, examined under a microscope (in some cases, literally), answered a million questions from friends and family--and, at times, strangers, begun homeschooling, started potty-training Josh, and found our daughter. Since we found our little girl the waiting has become so much harder. I find that I think about what she is doing throughout the day; I wonder if she is sick, sad, happy, angry. I think about a little girl who has never known a life outside of an orphanage. She has no idea what a mommy or daddy are, she shares her crib with another baby and gets attention when she absolutely needs it. She is likely nobody's "favorite" and probably doesn't have anyone to just cuddle her, or tickle her until she turns red. She doesn't know what a "pet" is, or even a dog for that matter.

Hey! I got a live person...and he keeps saying, "one moment, Ma'am..."--Darn! I'm on hold again! At least he has a nice deep bass-ey voice. If I could just get the FDL in the mail, I would stop bugging these nice people! I just need to know how long it will take to get my dossier to China and then how long to travel....I'm so ready to go!

Christmas and Fingerprints

It's amazing how this waiting is flying by, and dragging along at the same time. Last week we received notice that our fingerprints had been scheduled for the first week of January! What a huge blessing. The adoption journey is long, but it's not so bad if you break it down into bite-size pieces. We wait to get our prints done, and then wait until CIS sends us our FDL, then send it to ASIA for translation, then wait for it to be logged-in to the CCAA, then wait for confirmation, then wait for travel dates. Crazy!

In the meantime we celebrate the blessings God has given us--our family, our home, our health. God is so good! Here are some pics of Christmas:

Even with a little snow, the kids were out sliding.

David, our oldest son, gave the kids a Buzz Lightyear rocket tent. This is a view from the top looking into the rocket.

Sam wanted a volcano, or other natural disaster for Christmas--he cracks me up!

A good friend came over to babysit so Mike and I could have a date. She gave them shaving cream to play with--she's the best!

Waiting

I'm so happy to be in this process again. God is good and has blessed us abundantly throughout this process. We are now waiting to receive an appointment for our fingerprinting. After that we wait for our FDL to send to ASIA and then we wait for China to invite us to pick up LilyBeth.

China is very cautious about their children and prohibits us from placing identifyably photos of our children on the internet prior to the adoption being granted. So, I decided to edit our little girl's picture a bit so I could show her off. What do you think?

God's Amazing Provision!

I am amazed at how good God is! Yes, I know God is good--all the time--but to see Him in action when I know I don't deserve His blessing is humbling.

About a month ago Mike and I were struggling to figure out how we would pay for this third/fourth adoption. I know God can provide as much money as we need, but will he do it? If I look at myself and think of how selfish I am, I know that I don't deserve any blessing, but thankfully God doesn't look at whether or not I deserve it--He does what He wants to glorify His name.

So imagine my surprise when we got a letter from Mike's company offering to purchase back stock options that were never exercised because the company didn't go public. The offer was for several thousand dollars--Yup, thousands! We were shocked at God's goodness! That meant that we were more than 2/3 of the way to our goal. So we continued to pray for the money we would need to finish the adoption.

Our kids pray every night for LilyBeth--for her health, safety, and the money to bring her home. On Monday Mike returned to work after his hunting trip. He called in afternoon to ask how much money we needed to finish the adoption--and when I told him he told me that he was getting a bonus from his employer this year. The amount was enough to fully fund our adoption. God truly amazes me.

Paperwork is DONE!

I just got back from mailing our DOSSIER and our I-800A application!!! I'm so happy I could jump up and down--I think I will: Be right back......


OK, I'm back. I can't believe it's in the mail! Wahoo!

Now What?

That's what everyone keeps asking. Now what happens? We have PA, and now the work intensifies. We have six months to get our completed dossier--including immigration approval--to China for a full review. Here's what I have to do for paperwork:

• birth certificates--ordered and waiting on delivery
• marriage certificate--ordered and waiting on delivery
• divorce certificates--ordered and waiting on delivery
• financial worksheet--done, just need notarization
• employment letters--waiting on Mike's
• medical clearances--done, and will be notarizing tomorrow
• criminal history clearances--done
• other state clearances--ordered, waiting on Mike's
• Homestudy--waiting on the final records above and then a final draft will be issued
• CIS--waiting on Homestudy to apply.

It's just a waiting game now. I wait for the documents to arrive, send them to the homestudy agency, and then apply to CIS once the homestudy is finalized. After CIS mails us our approval letter, we load it all up and mail it to ASIA. They translate and authenticate it and send it to China. Once China receives it they review it and issue a confirmation letter and then travel approval. That's the TA you'll be reading about in a few short months.

While China is reviewing our dossier, I will be applying for my travel Visa to China, and getting the house ready for a little girl. God is so good!

PA!!!

PA! PA! PA! I can't believe it! China approved us for LilyBeth! I'm so excited! We are going to be parents again.