Adoption Updates!!

For once I have fun and exciting news on the adoption front!!

China is through February, 2006!! This means that China is in MARCH and OUR log in date (LID) is in March! Do you see where I am going with this? Here is what the China Adoption Forecast site says this month:

Our prediction for LID 2006-03-13

China has 13 days of dossiers to be processed before they get to your dossier. China currently processes about 6.1 days of dossiers each month.

Our best guess: 2009-03-07

We are on the home stretch, folks. Our prayer is that this information does not change because we also have Haiti adoption news! We are going to Haiti to meet our kids on March 19th! We would really love to be able to show Patricia and Philippe Olivia's picture in person. They know about her from our letters, but this would be exciting news to be able to share with them ourselves.

The next question people are asking is if we will be bringing them home on this trip. No, we will NOT be bringing them home. It will be a long shot for them to come home anytime in 2009 since Haiti processes paperwork so slowly. Please pray over the kids and over the adoption process. We just want everybody on one continent, in one country, in one house.

One thing I am having a hard time with is that Lee's grandma was so excited about her great-grandkids and she asked about them all the time. We are so sad that she passed before they came home. Ok, here come the tears again...aaagh! This keeps happening! Anyway, let's see what happens with China...they usually do referrals in the first two weeks of the month, so some are hoping that MAYBE they are trying to get extra batches in before Chinese New Year and that MAYBE there will still be one more batch of referrals in January...

Here is what our dear friend, Linda Wilde, wrote to us after reading this blog post:

"I was just reading your adoption update. I had a picture in my mind of you and Lee 'trudging through the wilderness' and I saw God's point of view as well. He was/is taking every step with you, hiking every twist and turn, climbing over every obstacle, dismantling every wall between you and your daughter, encouraging you, stopping for a rest and a drink of water, 'Come on, you guys. Keep going. I know the way, take another step with Me.'

His point of view is a little more complex. While He trudges with you, He is also walking on a straight, smooth, clear road. There's a little girl at the end of the road, and He is walking right to her. There are many other little girls along the way, but they are not Olivia. Olivia is at the end, and He is making a beeline for her. He will reach her and pick her up in His arms, kiss her, and then hand her to you. And it has taken months and months and months--and it will take no time at all."

Remembering My Grandmother

My grandmother, Loraine Shelton, passed away suddenly the morning after Christmas. The last time Dawn and I saw her was the day after Thanksgiving, and we were planning on seeing her again, along with other members of my immediate family, on New Year's Day.

This came as quite a surprise since she seemed to be in relatively good health. She will be buried alongside her husband in Pensacola, Florida.

I was blessed to have had her as a grandmother for nearly 40 years. She was a kind and gentle woman who always put others first. She was always there to care for my grandfather, who battled numerous health problems throughout his life. She was a great example of a loving, faithful wife, and you could tell how much she adored her husband even after 60 years of marriage.

My father (you can read his tribute here) always talked about the three important things he learned from his parents: that they loved God, loved each other, and loved their children. That has been something I have always wanted to pass along to our own kids.

She will be missed. We remain saddened at her departure from this world, but I know that one day we will see her again.

Merry Christmas!

NEW PHOTO!! Yay!

Here is our December update photo of Patricia and Philippe! What a nice present!

Oh, and we FINALLY got USCIS approval to adopt from Haiti!

Superb Sunday!

Lee surprised me with tickets to White Christmas for our anniversary! It was a wonderful show! Thanks, honey!

Sorrowful Sunday...

my


favorite


sock monkey slippers

China Adoption Update

We got an email from our agency that the CCAA has raised the orphanage donation fee (it is called a donation, but it is a requirement) from $3,000 to $5,100. It is supposed to make us feel better that this fee has not been raised for 10 years, but strangely, it doesn't. Anyone traveling to China as of January 1, 2009, will pay the increased fee. I am grateful we had the auction since we would have been $2,100 MORE behind if we hadn't. So....y'all gear up for a pancake breakfast next Spring, ok?

Referrals: the CCAA got through February 23, 2006. The China Adoption Forecast says this for us:

Our prediction for LID 2006-03-13

China has 18 days of dossiers to be processed before they get to your dossier. China currently processes about 5.3 days of dossiers each month.

Our best guess: 2009-03-14

Since China generally sends out referrals in a batch about once per month, your referral date could easily vary +/- one month depending on whether you just get included or just get missed in a particular batch.

Our gut instinct (right now, since for months we thought February, along with the Adoption Forecast website) is April for a referral, but I think part of that is not wanting to be disappointed anymore! The bottom line is we KNOW it will be 2009, and at this point that is all we know, so to speculate only sets us up for sadness.

Today marks the 33rd month to our 6-8 month wait (hahahaha!) And so, we trudge on through the adoption wilderness!!

I can't believe it has been a year already...

Since we first saw this picture and KNEW. She is OUR daughter!

We love you, Patricia!

Thankful Thursday!

I am thankful for the SNOW!! I am dreaming of a WHITE CHRISTMAS!!!

Friends Featured...

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