Our little sweetheart....

'All of God's grace in one sweet little face'.

This is the latest picture of our little baby girl. She is waiting for us in southern China.  We received our official preapproval from China today...so we are just waiting for our last document from immigration to arrive and then we can send off all of the paperwork. Come on...we are ready to leave yesterday!!!! Still no 'American' name. Her Chinese name is Qian En Hui and she was born July 19, 2007. We are in love!

B-L-E-S-S-E-D!

I am overjoyed and extremely excited to share with you the news that our family has been blessed with the referral of a little girl waiting for us in China. I know many of you have shared this journey with us and have been praying for us and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for all of your support. It has meant so much more than you'll ever know!

We are still waiting for an 'official' preapproval so I can't share many details, except that she is absolutely beautiful and about 16 months old. 

We have some more paperwork we are waiting for, but hope to have her home in the spring.

We are especially thankful this Thanksgiving!

So sorry for no news update....but it seems like with adoption you might as well be an elephant, you know, pregnant forever.
So here it goes:
#1 paperwork: yes, with China we had to destroy another small forest for all of the required documents. i think i just signed a form saying that i would donate a kidney if they would approve us...hehe. seriously, we have almost everything authenticated and ready to go. just waiting on our 'change of country' to be approved by the good ole USA gov't....should be any day.

#2 matching. we were told that about 100-200 files are added each month in the middle of the month. have they added any yet this month? no! so we wait to see if we will be matched this month, if not, maybe we'll be looking at a Christmas surprise. after matching, travel in 6 or so months.
So that's the deal.....

I've been tagged

My adoption blogger friend Jennifer tagged me (http://ourlittledumplings.blogspot.com/).



I'm supposed to reveal 7 weird or random facts about myself....let's see, I can't think of weird so let's go with random:

1)when i was in college i worked at a frozen yogurt store(not that weird) and one day the Red Hot Chili Peppers came in to ask for directions(my one brush with fame)

2)my feet look just like my dad's so i have to keep my toenails painted

3)i started wearing a bra in 6th grade and walked in on the first day of school and some boy named david announced that i grew boobs over the summer(i still need therapy for that one)

4)i can't carry a tune at all but love to sing

5)i just received a plaque in the mail yesterday from FSU with my maiden name on it and 'meto conference women's swimming championship' 1990/1991, and a note saying 'sorry this is 17 years late'

6)i love being at the beach at sunset

7)i have 4 sisters, 1 sister-in-law and 13 nieces and nephews....can you say FUN family reunions...



I now have to tag 7 people:

http://www.blogfortheloveofpete.com/

http://hellomynameisdrama.blogspot.com/

http://thewoodard4.blogspot.com/

http://sellersfamily5.blogspot.com/

http://steveandrandel.blogspot.com/

ok, so i only tagged 5....

The updated homestudy is completed so soon I will forward it to immigration and wait for approval:) All of the other 11 documents are already authenticated and have been delivered to our agency's office. So......we are making progress, only 2 documents left and were finished with this part!

Did you notice anything new in the header?....that's right, we've switched our journey to China. I think all along we knew that's where she was, our little girl, so the past year was just part of our story to find her. What have we been up to these past few weeks? Well, since everything in our paperwork blizzard is a year old, we've had to start from square one. We have new birth certificates, marriage certificate, physicals(and China requires bloodwork), police clearances, employment letters, and oh yes, the home study. So at this point, we have 11 documents on their way to be authenticated and we are just waiting for our home study update to be completed and our immigration approval. I'm told we can just apply for a 'change of country' through immigration which would be a shorter approval time then if we have to completely re-apply. Anyway, I'm hoping that by the end of October this mountain of paperwork will be off to China. Oh yeah, and of course, we had to find a new agency, so after a few phone calls it was really clear which one was for us.

I'll keep you all updated....we're hoping to see our little girl's face by the end of the year:)

too early for details, but our journey is continuing....stay tuned!

ps-no, we did not get a referral from Vietnam

11 days left in August + no referral = it's over for us....unless by some miracle the governments agree to continue, but that is very unlikely.....

But these things I plan won't happen right away. Slowly, steadily, surely, the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow, be patient! For it will surely take place. It will not be late by a single day." Habakkuk 2:3


Trust God from the bottom of your heart;
don't try to figure out everything on your own.
Listen for God's voice in everything you do, everywhere you go;
he's the one who will keep you on track. Proverbs 3:5-6

....one of my favorites....

Psalm 103
Praise the LORD, O my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
Praise the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits-
who forgives all your sins,
and heals your diseases,
who redeems your life from the pit
and crowns you with love and compassion,
who satisfies your desires with good things,
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's......

For as high as the heavens are above the earth
so great is his love for those who fear him;
as far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our trangressions from us.
As a father has compassion on his children,
so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him.

this journey is coming to an end....

i was notified today that we have 10 days left to receive a referral from Vietnam in order for there to be enough time to complete the required paperwork before Sept. 1st....10 days.....and it does not look like we will end this part of the journey with a baby. pray for us, it's been an emotional year to say the least.

Thank you for this, friend....

"Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; He rises to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for Him!" (Is. 30:18)

If you are awaiting the fulfillment of a vision in your life, ask the Lord for His grace to sustain you. It will be worth the wait.

...six LONG weeks left....

to receive a referral before the close of adoptions between the US and Vietnam. Please pray for peace and patience and, of course, for some great news.
I'm wavering between peace and throwing a temper tantrum (which I'm sure would look really funny to my kids:).

Summer Fun!

nothing new, but....

after talking with our agency through email today, it is very possible that we will not have a referral by the cut off date of 9/1. possible, but not positive. so we'll continue to wait and see.

...yes, still waiting.....

i wish i had some really great news to post, but nothing yet. yesterday was 8 months 'DTV' and we still wait...and hope....i feel like i could get a call any day with news of a referral or news that it just isn't going to happen in time. But I'm still praying!

tick...tick...tick

good news-A few more families from our agency received referrals this week.

our news-We are still waiting....

...it's been awhile...

So it's been a month since my last update, but really, no new news. We've been told that so far the agreement to continue adoptions has not yet been resigned, so as of now, we still need a referral by Sept. 1st to be able to continue. We are 'cautiously hopeful' at this point...and still praying! Monday will be 7 months since our paperwork was sent over, at the start of this crazy adventure referral time was estimated to be 4-6 months, now it is 7-9 months. Let's hope so!

HOPE

A few of the families at our agency received their referrals and one even got approval to travel!

Psalm 27:14 Wait for the LORD;be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.

More Press

This article was on the front page of the Chicago Tribune today. A little different perspective....

Proverbs 16:9...

In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps.

There is an official statement out today from the US government stating that the agreement to continue adoptions between the US and Vietnam will not be resigned. This means that official referrals for children will need to be made by September 1st or paperwork will be returned. We do not know the length of time adoptions from this country will be suspended, nor does anyone. Please pray that if this is the Lord's plan for our family, HE will see it through to completion. At this point, it is all we can do....

MSNBC story
US Embassy statement

5 months DTV

Our paperwork has been in Vietnam for 5 months today....which means we are 5 months closer to meeting our little girl, but still no news when that may be!

Every child is a gift from God......some just take a little longer to get home!

No News Yet

Trust in God....Trust in God.....Trust in God.....i keep repeating this in my head when i start to get anxious about WHEN we will hear news about our little girl. my head understands, my heart is having a harder time.

Great Week

It's been a week of great news from families at our agency. Many families received their approval to travel to get their little ones and will be leaving soon.... and a few families even received their referrals! Things seem to be moving in a positive direction...yay!!

Prayers Needed

There is a virus going through the orphanages right now causing many babies to be hospitalized. Some of these babies have lost their lives due to complications from the virus....some had already been matched with a family who was working to get them home. Please pray health for the babies and love over the families who had already welcomed these little ones into their hearts. Click here to read more about the virus.

HMMM

Just to let you know that my kids are thinking about the adoption....the latest question was from Jacob: Are we going to keep it a secret that she was adopted?
Well, of course, I was cracking up on the inside but thought it was really great that he is thinking through all of the issues. I answered that we were never thinking of keeping it a secret, but she will not look like us, so it will be very obvious that she is adopted. So even before she realizes it, other people will start to ask us about her. It DID open up a great conversation about what our answers will be....i just love my kids!

I've been tagged

My friend Karen tagged me for a meme. I think I'm supposed to answer a bunch of questions about myself......

The Four Things MEME

4 jobs I have had:
swim instructor
frozen yogurt squirter(remember, it was all the rage in college)
speech pathologist
Mom(eg. maid, taxi driver, nurse, teacher...i fill in as i go)

4 places i've been
Sweden
Italy
China
NYC

4 movies i've watched over and over
Grease
Singles
The Notebook(yes, i cry every time)
Rocky

4 shows i watch:
Lost
24(is it coming back?)
House
Friday Night Lights

4 places i'd rather be right now:
Hello...i'm adopting, so Vietnam:)
sunning at the beach
vacation with my husband
vacation with my family

4 favorite things to eat:
chocolate anything
a really fabulous slice of cheese pizza
chips and queso
lettuce wraps at pf chang

4 places i've lived:
Brandon, FL
Tallahassee, FL
Amarillo, TX
Yakima, WA

4 things to look forward to this year:
Again, this IS an adoption blog...so seeing my litte girl for the first time
Jacob turning double digits
Camdyn's first communion
SUMMER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy New Year!

Today is a big celebration in Vietnam....Tet. It is the beginning of the new year, the year of the rat/mouse. I've been told that children born in the year of the rat love to be cuddled, love to eat, love to sleep, and are eager to learn. Sounds great to me:) And Tet actually spans over several weeks in February, it is a time when families travel to be together and special festivals are held. In 2009, we will have a new holiday to celebrate!

it's been way too long

I know it's been 2 1/2 months since my last post about adoption, but no news in the world of international adoption means...well, means no news. I am hoping that by May we will have a referral(a picture and medical records)and then travel 3-4 months later. JUST WAITING is much, much harder than completing paperwork. The good news is that other families in our agency continue to get referrals and travel to Vietnam. In the meantime, we continue to pray and get excited to meet our little girl.

True Love.....

Today, Joe and I celebrate 13 years of marriage!! It's been one wonderful ride...and the best is yet to come!