I can't believe it's less than three days until we leave and 6 days until we meet Anna!
Here is what we know of our itinerary for the two weeks:
Sunday, March 2: Leave Memphis at 9:57am on Northwest Airlines.
Arrive in Minneapolis/St. Paul at 12:10pm
Leave Minn/StPaul at 1:10pm.
Monday, March 3: Arrive in Tokyo, Japan, at 4:40pm (I think -- 1:40am, CST)
Leave Tokyo at 5:55pm (2:55am, CST).
Arrive in Guangzhou, China, at 10:30pm (8:30am, CST)
Tuesday, March 4: receive Anna!
Wednesday, March 5: adoption registration and notarization and either apply for Anna's Chinese passport today or Thursday
Thursday, March 6: free day except perhaps applying for Anna's passport
Friday, March 7: free day
Saturday, March 8: free day
Sunday, March 9: group tour of Chen Clan Ancestral Hall (This tour was arranged by the adoption agency's contacts. We're hoping it will be an afternoon tour so we can attend church that morning at one of the protestant churches allowed by the government.)
Monday, March 10: free day
Tuesday, March 11: group tour to Yuntai Park at White Cloud Mountain. Receive all Chinese documents.
Wednesday, March 12: Anna's medical exam for US visa in the morning. 1pm meeting to prepare consulate documents.
Thursday, March 13: US visa appointment. We don't actually go as our agency's representative will take our paperwork for us. We do have to stay in our hotel room in case they call us needing something.
Friday, March 14: 3pm, oath swearing at US consulate and pick up Anna's visa to emigrate to the US.
Saturday, March 15: Leave Guangzhou at 8:20am on Northwest. (6:00pm, Friday, March 14, CST)
Arrive in Tokyo at 1:40pm (10:40pm, Friday, March 14, CST)
Leave Tokyo at 3:25pm (12:25am, CST)
Arrive in Minn/StPaul at 12:20pm -- Anna becomes an American citizen as soon as she walks off the plane!!
Leave Minn/StPaul at 3:12pm.
Arrive in Memphis at 5:12pm.
We appreciate your prayers!!
Showing posts with label Adoption. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Adoption. Show all posts
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Friday, February 01, 2008
Travel Dates!
We finally have our official Travel Approval from China and the date of our appointment with the US Consulate in Guangzhou! So we've made our travel arrangements:
Sunday-Monday, March 2-3: We'll leave Memphis on a Northwest flight mid-morning Sunday. We'll have a short layover in Minneapolis and then another short one in Tokyo. The entire travel time including layovers is right around 24 hours, but due to crossing the International Date Line, we won't arrive in Guangzhou until almost 11pm on Monday.
Tuesday, March 4th: We were to be in Guangzhou before noon this day, so we hope this will be when Anna is brought to us!
Wednesday & Thursday, March 5-6: Most likely this will be when we meet with Chinese officials to finalize the adoption. We will also have Anna's physical completed for her USA visa and have her photo taken for it now.
Friday -- Wednesday, March 7-12: We will be waiting on Anna's Chinese passport, so we'll spend the time getting to know one another with a little shopping and kid-friendly sightseeing thrown in.
Thursday, March 13th: Our agency's rep will take our paperwork to the US Consulate to apply for Anna's visa.
Friday, March 14th: We'll pick up Anna's visa and have a "swearing-in" ceremony. I'm not sure yet what the "swearing in" is about. :)
Saturday, March 15th: We'll leave Guangzhou early that morning and fly the same route home. Thanks to the International Date Line again, we should be in Memphis about 6pm that night!
While we are a little disappointed not to be traveling earlier, we do realize that a few extra weeks in which to settle into the new rental house will be beneficial. Plus, Cara will only miss 4 or 5 days of school thanks to Spring Break.
Sunday-Monday, March 2-3: We'll leave Memphis on a Northwest flight mid-morning Sunday. We'll have a short layover in Minneapolis and then another short one in Tokyo. The entire travel time including layovers is right around 24 hours, but due to crossing the International Date Line, we won't arrive in Guangzhou until almost 11pm on Monday.
Tuesday, March 4th: We were to be in Guangzhou before noon this day, so we hope this will be when Anna is brought to us!
Wednesday & Thursday, March 5-6: Most likely this will be when we meet with Chinese officials to finalize the adoption. We will also have Anna's physical completed for her USA visa and have her photo taken for it now.
Friday -- Wednesday, March 7-12: We will be waiting on Anna's Chinese passport, so we'll spend the time getting to know one another with a little shopping and kid-friendly sightseeing thrown in.
Thursday, March 13th: Our agency's rep will take our paperwork to the US Consulate to apply for Anna's visa.
Friday, March 14th: We'll pick up Anna's visa and have a "swearing-in" ceremony. I'm not sure yet what the "swearing in" is about. :)
Saturday, March 15th: We'll leave Guangzhou early that morning and fly the same route home. Thanks to the International Date Line again, we should be in Memphis about 6pm that night!
While we are a little disappointed not to be traveling earlier, we do realize that a few extra weeks in which to settle into the new rental house will be beneficial. Plus, Cara will only miss 4 or 5 days of school thanks to Spring Break.
Saturday, January 05, 2008
More New Pictures!
We have these new pictures that were taken on December 28th, by a family visiting the orphanage. It is so good to see our little Anna. I can't wait to hold her and see her smile! The children had been put to bed for their naps when Anna was brought out for these pictures, so she is very unhappy! The lady holding Anna is one of the ladies who care for the children.
The children in their beds:
Different shots of the baby and toddler building:
Thursday, January 03, 2008
Anna's Birthday
We were able to send Anna a birthday cake and present through www.redthreadchina.com. We were very excited to receive 7 pictures of her party! Notice all the cookies, fruit, and bags of candy. We didn't send those, so perhaps the orphanage has parties for the kids even without the waiting adoptive parents sending a cake. I like to hope so.
In the third picture, you can see the blankie I made for Anna, in the bottom right corner under a bag of candy. (John's picture and some of the ribbons on the blankie are showing). I'm so glad to have confirmation that the package we mailed from here made it to Anna!
Cara and Rhodes wanted to have a party for Anna at home yesterday. We made cupcakes and the kids made her cards.
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
Three Years
The 2nd of January, 2008. Three years. Three years since we started our adoption journey. Three years since a precious little girl was born in faraway China.
It has been a long journey to this point. As I look back over the last three years, the hand of God is evident over everything. I cannot praise Him enough for bringing us through the valleys and over the hills to this point of knowing that precious Dongxing will soon be our little Anna. We received our "Letter of Seeking Confirmation from the Adopter" from the China Center of Adoption Affairs on the 28th, and returned it signed that day. From what we understand, once that form is back in the hands of the officials in China, it is officially official that Dongxing will be ours. Now we wait for our Travel Invitation from China and for our visas from the Chinese consulate in Washington, D.C. Once we have those, the appointments that we will have to attend in China will be set, leaving the airline and hotel reservations to be made.
Today, Dongxing, Anna, turned three. She spent her third birthday without a family; three birthdays in an orphanage. Hopefully, this birthday was a good day for her. Through www.redthreadchina.com, we were able to send her a cake and a stuffed animal, along with candy and a letter to the orphanage director. I hope someone made the effort and were successful at explaining that they were celebrating the day she was born because her forever family was loving her from afar. Her package that we sent from here with her blanket and the pictures of us was supposed to arrive by the 31st. Hopefully, she has been given those by now as well.
The lady, Ann, from www.redthreadchina.com lives in Guangzhou. She talked to someone at the orphanage to let them know about the cake and birthday package. The package included a disposable camera (as did the package I mailed from here). The orphanage worker said that they would take plenty of pictures of Anna with their digital camera! I hope this means that Anna does have one of the journals with pictures from her life at the orphanage.
Wishing a Very, Very Happy Birthday to Our Dear Anna!
It has been a long journey to this point. As I look back over the last three years, the hand of God is evident over everything. I cannot praise Him enough for bringing us through the valleys and over the hills to this point of knowing that precious Dongxing will soon be our little Anna. We received our "Letter of Seeking Confirmation from the Adopter" from the China Center of Adoption Affairs on the 28th, and returned it signed that day. From what we understand, once that form is back in the hands of the officials in China, it is officially official that Dongxing will be ours. Now we wait for our Travel Invitation from China and for our visas from the Chinese consulate in Washington, D.C. Once we have those, the appointments that we will have to attend in China will be set, leaving the airline and hotel reservations to be made.
Today, Dongxing, Anna, turned three. She spent her third birthday without a family; three birthdays in an orphanage. Hopefully, this birthday was a good day for her. Through www.redthreadchina.com, we were able to send her a cake and a stuffed animal, along with candy and a letter to the orphanage director. I hope someone made the effort and were successful at explaining that they were celebrating the day she was born because her forever family was loving her from afar. Her package that we sent from here with her blanket and the pictures of us was supposed to arrive by the 31st. Hopefully, she has been given those by now as well.
The lady, Ann, from www.redthreadchina.com lives in Guangzhou. She talked to someone at the orphanage to let them know about the cake and birthday package. The package included a disposable camera (as did the package I mailed from here). The orphanage worker said that they would take plenty of pictures of Anna with their digital camera! I hope this means that Anna does have one of the journals with pictures from her life at the orphanage.
Wishing a Very, Very Happy Birthday to Our Dear Anna!
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Connecting with Anna
We can send a package to Anna while we wait to travel. Our agency suggests sending something small and plush after sleeping with it for awhile. That way our smells will be on it to help ease her transition to our family. Funny and a little gross, I know. :) But there's also the fact that while she has it in the orphanage, it will absorb smells there further helping her transition. Soo... I decided to make her a flannal tag blankie with our pictures on it. And yes, we are sleeping with it. I'm planning to mail it the end of this week, along with a disposable camera, more pictures of us, and a list of questions in Chinese that I hope someone in the orphanage will answer. Hopefully, we'll get it all back when Anna is given to us. But as long as the blankie and other pictures get to her, I'll be satisfied.
Red Threads and Ladybugs
"An invisible red thread connects those who are destined to meet, regardless of time, place, or circumstance. The thread may stretch or tangle but will never break." --Ancient Chinese Proverb
We are still amazed by how God is working out our adoption. When John and I sent in our preliminary application by internet to our agency on the evening of January 2, 2005, we never could have guessed that our daughter had been born earlier that very day. (We will most likely never know what time she was born; we just know that China is 14 hours ahead of us and that she was found with a note that listed her date of birth.) We had started the process at that time because we wanted a baby who would be close in age to Rhodes and Cara. Little did we know that our baby, our daughter-to-be Anna, would live with her birth family for several months, thereby delaying her readiness for adoption until the fall of 2007. When delay after delay held up our paperwork to the point of it taking 16 months before our file was forwarded to China, although difficult we knew that God was in control, that He had some reason for the delays. Then in January of this year, we were unexpectantly sent our agency's latest waiting child list. We had already discussed checking these lists for toddlers but had decided that we were afraid of trying to "take matters into our own hands" and wanted to be sure we were waiting on God's timing. When we received that first list last January, John and I felt it was right to begin checking the waiting child lists for our Anna, ...just in time to have us ready and able to request Dongxing when she was on the November list.
When I saw Dongxing's information and pictures, I felt somewhere deep inside that there was a good chance we would be matched with her if we requested to be since she was almost 3 years old. And yet, I knew that there were about 200 families with our agency that were eligible to request children on the waiting child lists. Most of those families were ahead of us in line. Therefore, I did not let myself look at Dongxing's info or pictures once we made our decision to request her. I did not want to let myself get to the point that I would be too heartbroken if we were not matched with her. I never even made the connection with her birth date! We had a week to wait before we knew our agency's decision. On the 15th, the day we would find out, I felt weak and sick to my stomach all morning. The agency would let the different social workers know by 11am central time the families who were not matched with a child. Cara stays at school until 2:30 on Thursdays and Rhodes spends at least part of those days with his grandma. By myself, I spent the morning trying to pray and relax to calm down my nerves and stomach. As 11:00 slipped by, then 11:30, 12 noon, 1:00, I began to feel myself calm down. The thought came to me, "They want the families who were not chosen to hear from their social workers first so they won't see another family post a match with the same child on an internet group. So that means that the families who were matched would not hear from their social workers until later in the day." I was beginning to expect a match! When I heard from our social worker, about 1:30 that afternoon, in some ways I wasn't surprised. But in other ways, I was shocked! I had to completely change my mindset -- I had been mentally preparing for a "baby" 24 months or younger; now I have to get ready for a 3 y.o.! And I'm thrilled! She'll be close in age to Rhodes and Cara after all!
When we received a copy of Anna's Chinese name written in the Chinese characters and were able to have it translated, we were amazed that it meant "Blessing (Happiness) from the East." Such a beautiful, true statement of what she is to us! It meant even more to me because of a Bible verse that I came back across in January of '06, right before I found out we were having to get back at the end of the line at US immigration after 3 months of waiting. Isaiah tells us "Fear not, for I am with you; I will bring your descendants from the east, and gather you from the west". This verse brought a lot of comfort to me at that time, as if it were a promise from God that He would bring us together with Anna. Anna Kathryn Dongxing Scott is a blessing from the east!
Ladybugs are a symbol of good luck or prosperity in China. Families adopting from China often say that a "ladybug sighting" means that referrals are on their way. While not a believer in "luck", ladybugs are a fun, cute symbol of China adoption journeys. And the weekend before we were matched with our Anna, while sitting outside at my grandmother's house 2 1/2 hours from ours, we were surrounded by a literal swarm of ladybugs. They were everywhere, flying all around us. I had never seen anything like it! It was pretty special, especially now looking back at it.
We have found out that, thanks to the Half the Sky Foundation, the children at Anna's orphanage have had journals with pictures kept for them. They started these back in November of '05. We are praying fervently that we receive a book for Anna when we meet her. For her to have a journal and pictures of (most of) her life at the orphanage will be wonderful!
Saturday, November 17, 2007
More Information about our Precious Anna!
I've been trying to do 100 things at once with a mind not able to concentrate on ONE thing well enough to get it done! :)
Anna is in a Social Welfare Institue (orphanage that often has a wing for the elderly as well) in Guangzhou City, Guangdong Province. That is in southern China and is the city where the US Consulate is located.
We have some paperwork to do now to update our file in order to adopt an older child. (Our initial paperwork already in China has our request for an infant "as young as possible". In order to be "matched" with an older child, we only had to let our adoption agency know that we were willing to take a child Anna's age.) Once China reviews our request for Anna, we will have a little more paperwork to do. Then we will wait for our "Travel Approval" from China. Once we have that, we will wait again for our visas and for an appointment with the US Consulate in Guangzhou. Once all of that is done, we travel as quickly as we can get airline tickets! With all of that to do, it will most likely be between two and four months before we are able to travel to Guangzhou to be given Anna.
Please check back from time to time, as I will try to update this blog often!
And please keep praying for us as wait again and pray for Anna as this will be a confusing and scary change for her! Thank you!
Anna is in a Social Welfare Institue (orphanage that often has a wing for the elderly as well) in Guangzhou City, Guangdong Province. That is in southern China and is the city where the US Consulate is located.
We have some paperwork to do now to update our file in order to adopt an older child. (Our initial paperwork already in China has our request for an infant "as young as possible". In order to be "matched" with an older child, we only had to let our adoption agency know that we were willing to take a child Anna's age.) Once China reviews our request for Anna, we will have a little more paperwork to do. Then we will wait for our "Travel Approval" from China. Once we have that, we will wait again for our visas and for an appointment with the US Consulate in Guangzhou. Once all of that is done, we travel as quickly as we can get airline tickets! With all of that to do, it will most likely be between two and four months before we are able to travel to Guangzhou to be given Anna.
Please check back from time to time, as I will try to update this blog often!
And please keep praying for us as wait again and pray for Anna as this will be a confusing and scary change for her! Thank you!
Friday, November 16, 2007
Praise the Lord!!
Anna was born on January 2, 2005, the very day we sent our preliminary application by internet to Bethany Christian Services!!!More news to follow as time allows!!
Thursday, September 20, 2007
The (Flat) Ladybug Journals
March 14, 2007
After traveling around the United States visiting families who are waiting for daughters from China, I ended up in a small place called Etta, Mississippi. There I met John and Kathryn Scott and their children Cara and Rhodes. Today was relaxing; spent time playing in the yard with the children.
After traveling around the United States visiting families who are waiting for daughters from China, I ended up in a small place called Etta, Mississippi. There I met John and Kathryn Scott and their children Cara and Rhodes. Today was relaxing; spent time playing in the yard with the children.
March 15, 2007
Flew to Grand Bahama Island on an airplane! First trip where I had a window to see out of, instead of being stuffed in an envelope. It was a lot of fun, and the ocean was gorgeous around the island.
Flew to Grand Bahama Island on an airplane! First trip where I had a window to see out of, instead of being stuffed in an envelope. It was a lot of fun, and the ocean was gorgeous around the island.
March 16, 2007
Enjoying relaxing on the beach! It's incredible here! I really like having the hotel restaurant as a hut on the beach. I think it was a good idea to stay in a local-owned, 10-room hotel right on the beach like this. Doris and her family have treated me like royalty!
Enjoying relaxing on the beach! It's incredible here! I really like having the hotel restaurant as a hut on the beach. I think it was a good idea to stay in a local-owned, 10-room hotel right on the beach like this. Doris and her family have treated me like royalty!
March 18, 2007
Yesterday, we went exploring, kayaking, swimming (brr -- it's cold). Today, the guys went deep sea fishing. I hung out on the beach with the other ladies.
Friday, May 11, 2007
1st Anniversary
The first anniversary of our Log-in Date (LID) in China is today. When I stop to think that we had originally thought that this would be the time of our first anniversary of bringing Anna home, I feel a heavy sense of loss. Yet, I really cannot imagine having three little ones right now. Just as life before Cara and Rhodes seems somewhat unreal, so does life beyond now. I hope this means I am learning to live in the present!
God is certainly using this time to teach me so many things...about Him and about myself, parenting, marriage, life, etc:
Living as a "victim", always blaming others in order to make myself feel better and/or appear better to others, is not something I want to do. I could spend my time blaming the USA governmental agencies for the delays in our paperwork stateside, but then I might miss out on a chance to give Jesus the glory for His providential planning.
Trusting Jesus, that He knows details beyond my capability to know and that He is bringing His will to pass in His own perfect timing, brings a blessed peace to life.
Caring for those who are close to the heart of God is an important part of the Christian life. This unexpected time that I have had with only two toddlers-now-preschoolers has given me a chance to find ways to support ministries to the fatherless, as well as ways to encourage others to do the same. My "business" that allows me to give to Bethany’s international orphan and foster care ministries and to the Sav-A-Life pregnancy test center here in Oxford has begun to produce. Plus, three other ladies involved in adoption/orphan care have been able to sell some items through association with the site. I am so grateful that God is blessing this effort to help not only the fatherless but also other crafters/artists. The past few months have also given me a chance to be involved in helping to start a ministry to the fatherless at our church. Focused initially on education and encouragement of the church body, we are helping the unborn fatherless and their young mothers at Sav-A-Life, children and people involved with foster care, local children’s homes, local and international orphans, and potential adoptive parents. Did you know that the Bible has over 40 verses that either give a directive to care for the fatherless or define God in relation to the fatherless?! James 1:27 puts it this way: "Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble and to keep oneself unspotted from the world."
Having this extra time to devote to John, Cara, and Rhodes has been a gift that I did not expect to view that way. I do long for my daughter Anna; thoughts of her are never far from my mind. However, I am continuing to learn to accept God’s plan. I will have my chance to enjoy Anna, too.
Praise be to God, the Father of the fatherless – we are another year closer to Anna!
God is certainly using this time to teach me so many things...about Him and about myself, parenting, marriage, life, etc:
Living as a "victim", always blaming others in order to make myself feel better and/or appear better to others, is not something I want to do. I could spend my time blaming the USA governmental agencies for the delays in our paperwork stateside, but then I might miss out on a chance to give Jesus the glory for His providential planning.
Trusting Jesus, that He knows details beyond my capability to know and that He is bringing His will to pass in His own perfect timing, brings a blessed peace to life.
Caring for those who are close to the heart of God is an important part of the Christian life. This unexpected time that I have had with only two toddlers-now-preschoolers has given me a chance to find ways to support ministries to the fatherless, as well as ways to encourage others to do the same. My "business" that allows me to give to Bethany’s international orphan and foster care ministries and to the Sav-A-Life pregnancy test center here in Oxford has begun to produce. Plus, three other ladies involved in adoption/orphan care have been able to sell some items through association with the site. I am so grateful that God is blessing this effort to help not only the fatherless but also other crafters/artists. The past few months have also given me a chance to be involved in helping to start a ministry to the fatherless at our church. Focused initially on education and encouragement of the church body, we are helping the unborn fatherless and their young mothers at Sav-A-Life, children and people involved with foster care, local children’s homes, local and international orphans, and potential adoptive parents. Did you know that the Bible has over 40 verses that either give a directive to care for the fatherless or define God in relation to the fatherless?! James 1:27 puts it this way: "Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble and to keep oneself unspotted from the world."
Having this extra time to devote to John, Cara, and Rhodes has been a gift that I did not expect to view that way. I do long for my daughter Anna; thoughts of her are never far from my mind. However, I am continuing to learn to accept God’s plan. I will have my chance to enjoy Anna, too.
Praise be to God, the Father of the fatherless – we are another year closer to Anna!
Monday, February 12, 2007
Re-fingerprinting
Well, the re-doing has begun! Our fingerprints that were checked against the FBI's files in October of '05 were thrown out after Jan. 14, '06. Last Thursday, the 8th of Feb., John and I returned to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) office in Memphis to re-do the fingerprints for $140. Most likely this coming summer we will begin re-doing our Family Assessment for our agency in order to reapply to USCIS for approval for bringing our adopted child to the states ($$$$). Currently, fingerprints are only good for 15 months and USCIS approval is only good for 18 months. With the wait once your file is in China continuing to increase, most everyone is having to reapply. At least the fingerprinting process is easy! :)
Thursday, January 04, 2007
2nd Anniversary
It has been two years and two days since John and I officially began the process of adopting a daughter from China. The current wait from LID (our Log-In Date is 5/11/06) to referral (name and picture of child) is 16-17 months; this wait period is expected to increase to possibly over two years. We have gone from thinking we would travel to China in April-June 2006 to hoping for summer of 2007, then fall of 2007. Now it looks like it might be mid to late 2008. We have been told that if the referral does not come before the summer of 2008, we can expect more delays due to the summer Olympics in Beijing. We are hanging in there, trying not to be upset by the delays. We trust in God's timing, truly believing that He will give us our Anna from China. Our plans are not His, but that is a matter for thanksgiving, truthfully; we just have to remind ourselves of that truth! :) We thank everyone who continues to pray for us and Anna in our wait.
One new issue to consider is whether or not to take Cara and Rhodes with us to China. It looks like they will be either 5 and 4 years old or 6 and 5 by the time we travel. (It is hard to believe they were only 2 and 1 when we started this process!) Therefore, it might be doable to take them with us. I would like to have them with us very much. I hate for them not to be there; 14 days is a long time! Plus, Cara talks about going to China almost everyday now, despite the fact that we have been telling her she and Rhodes were staying with Grandma/Grandpa and Sissy. They do say other children help the adopted child adjust faster. We will just have to wait and see -- and pray.
One new issue to consider is whether or not to take Cara and Rhodes with us to China. It looks like they will be either 5 and 4 years old or 6 and 5 by the time we travel. (It is hard to believe they were only 2 and 1 when we started this process!) Therefore, it might be doable to take them with us. I would like to have them with us very much. I hate for them not to be there; 14 days is a long time! Plus, Cara talks about going to China almost everyday now, despite the fact that we have been telling her she and Rhodes were staying with Grandma/Grandpa and Sissy. They do say other children help the adopted child adjust faster. We will just have to wait and see -- and pray.
Friday, December 01, 2006
Gifts for Anna
As we wait for Anna, I tend to buy little gifts for her occasionally. :) It's fun! I've been eyeing this soft Asian doll for months, planning to get it shortly before we travel to China. But then it went on sale including all the outfits for cheaper than it was by itself initially!
John and I found these 3 animal ornaments in Chinatown (NYC) this summer. We got one for each child, assuming that Anna would be born this year which is the year of the dog in the Asian world. I just loved the Panda Bear with the quilt and ladybugs: the Panda is of course China's most famous animal, the quilt is for the OHGWQ that I am making Anna, and the ladybugs are important in China as well. The charm bracelet is actually mine, but I have already purchased a baby shoe for Anna (along with ones for Cara and Rhodes), as well as a ladybug and a map of China. I have a bracelet for Anna with a ladybug charm and I will probably give her my China map one day. (We have a bracelet, ballet charm, and school charm for Cara's Christmas gift this year.)
A friend's mother sent us the Crazy Cakes book; the others are ones I found. All three deal with adoption.
These are journals for Anna: adopted baby book, a journal for the wait, an empty album for her Lifebook, and a travel journal for our trip to China. I have begun the waiting journal. 
Saturday, November 04, 2006
Cyber Shower Gifts for Anna
To help make waiting for Anna a little more fun, the children and I have been participating in "Cyber Shower" gift exchanges with other families from our May 2006 DTC/LID internet group. These pictures are from our first three exchanges. Shelley and Bill from Florida, sent Anna the great gifts in the first picture for "A day at the zoo" (except the cute sherpa boots that I bought for Anna -- I just couldn't resist them!). The Margalas in California sent the Chinese newspaper box and the clothes in the second picture for "Red Threads". The blocks and books were from Mindy in Illinois, for "Learning Fun". We have had a great time buying and wrapping gifts for their babies-to-be; and the kids have had a great time unwrapping these for Anna! Soon I'll post pictures of our October and November swaps. Thanks everyone!
Thursday, October 12, 2006
OHGWQ Pictures
Periodically, I'll be posting pictures of some of the things that we've collected for Anna as we wait to adopt her. One of the projects I've started is commonly referred to as the "One Hundred Good Wishes Quilt" (OHGWQ). This quilt is based on a tradition from certain areas of China; family and friends give fabric squares and "good wish" notes to the mother of a new baby. The mother then makes a quilt from the fabric squares. John and I asked our family and friends for fabric squares and notes of welcome and love for Anna. We wanted the fabric and notes to represent something about the givers. Here are a few pictures of the ones we've received so far from our friends and family members. They are, left to right and top to bottom, from my principal in Africa, Mary Marbaugh; my roommate in Africa, Laurel Banman Holland from Canada; and fellow teachers in Africa, Clive and Karen Burrows from England; from Mark and Debra Dye (my SIL's sister); my brother and sister-in-law, Stephen and Dianne Bond (some are squares from quilts that Dianne has made); Jack and Annie McCallum and their grandson Corey; David and Mary Ann Albin (my uncle and aunt); and Charles (my dad) and Betty Bond. (We'd be really short of the 100 squares for the quilt, but I've also exchanged with other couples who are adopting from China. Some pictures of those squares and wishes will be posted soon!)
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
What I Have Learned Through Adoption
This past January, as I worried and struggled over the wait on US immigration, I realized something about myself through personal Bible study, sermons at our church, and books by Elizabeth Elliot. I felt so helpless and out of control because even the areas of the adoption process I could have controlled were under the hand of my husband. The first lesson I learned – that I wanted to be IN control. It was about what I wanted when I wanted it.
I know and believe that God has called John and I to adopt a daughter from China. But I had to learn that a large part of that calling was leaning on God, His will and direction, His perfect timing.
The first verse that kept surfacing in my mind, in my study, and in sermons at church was the classic: Romans 8:28 "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." I knew it, and I knew it was true and would bring me comfort soon, but it took some time for my heart to accept it. Yes, God’s timing includes preparing John and myself and our children for our new child, as well as matching us with the very child God has for us. But, God’s overall purposes will not be known by any of us until heaven.
As these truths played over and over in my heart, I remembered a passage that our pastor had preached on a year or two ago: James 4:13-15 "Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit’; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.’ But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil." I had to use the concordance to find this passage, but once I did, I read and re-read it. Did it ever apply to my situation! Not only had I said that we would be traveling to adopt our daughter Anna in 2006, I was saying in my heart that we would be going in March or April of ‘06, two to three months earlier than John thought we would be ready for a third child. My arrogance of doing it my way was so obvious as I read James’ admonition!
The Lord then brought me to the truths in the following passages:
Proverbs 16:1 "The preparations of the heart belong to man, But the answer of the tongue is from the Lord."
Prov. 16:3 "Commit your works to the Lord, And your thoughts will be established."
Prov. 16:9 "A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps."
Prov. 19:21 "There are many plans in a man’s heart, Nevertheless the Lord’s counsel–that will stand."
Prov. 20:24 "A man’s steps are of the Lord; How then can a man understand his own way?"
Slowly, I began to truly give this adoption into the hands of the Lord.
Then our pastor preached a series of sermons on the following passages:
Philippians 4:4-7 "Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."
I Thessalonians 5:16-18 "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."
Rejoice always. Pray continually. Give thanks. Let your requests be made known to God. This is God’s will for us. He promises us His peace in the midst of trials.
My trials are so minor in the large scheme of things. I have a wonderful, supportive, loving husband. I have two beautiful, imaginative children who are precious, precious gifts from God. I am being given another of these gifts from our Lord; when? When He purposes to give her to us. I have a Savior who chose to love me, even me, as undeserving as I am! What amazing prompts for rejoicing!
I try to remember to pray continually. To give praise and thanks. To bring my requests, my fears, my disappointments and hurts to my heavenly Father. This is still an area that needs work! But it is also an area of babysteps of growth in my life.
Amazingly, I have lately sensed God’s peace in my heart about this adoption. I do know He is working this out for His glory and our good. I do know His plans will take precedence and will succeed. As the waiting times increase for those families before us in line for a baby from China, I do pray that those wait times will level off or even shorten again, if it be God’s will. I do pray that we can receive our referral of a child and be able to travel before we have to redo our immigration approval, if it be His will. I do pray for Anna’s safety and development, for someone to love her while she is in China, as God may will.
Occasionally, I have to pray about a renewed sense of impatience. For instance, when I heard that requesting a special needs child would cut the wait time by about five months, I was tempted to check in to that. I was even hurt when John reminded me that he felt that the extra time was good, as it meant that Cara and Rhodes would be a year older (5 and 3 ½) before having a third child. Then I realized that I was trying to find a way to take back control of the timing. I had a little trouble trusting my motives for taking either path: waiting or switching to special needs. But the bottom line is that I need to trust God to lead us through my husband. I do not need to try to take back control. The peace about this issue that has been in my heart since that time is truly amazing!
I have a long, long way to go in learning to totally trust in and depend on God. I also have a long way to go in learning to joyfully submit to my husband! :) But I have learned some, grown a little, struggled some more, grown a tiny bit more. Please pray for John and I both to make Bible study and prayer a priority in our daily lives so we can continue to grow in our faith and trust. Also, we would love to have you pray for the salvation of all of our children, present and future, and for the salvation of Anna’s birth parents that they may be reunited one day, in heaven if not before. And please let us know how we can pray for you and yours!
Thank you! We thank God for friends like you.
I know and believe that God has called John and I to adopt a daughter from China. But I had to learn that a large part of that calling was leaning on God, His will and direction, His perfect timing.
The first verse that kept surfacing in my mind, in my study, and in sermons at church was the classic: Romans 8:28 "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." I knew it, and I knew it was true and would bring me comfort soon, but it took some time for my heart to accept it. Yes, God’s timing includes preparing John and myself and our children for our new child, as well as matching us with the very child God has for us. But, God’s overall purposes will not be known by any of us until heaven.
As these truths played over and over in my heart, I remembered a passage that our pastor had preached on a year or two ago: James 4:13-15 "Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit’; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.’ But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil." I had to use the concordance to find this passage, but once I did, I read and re-read it. Did it ever apply to my situation! Not only had I said that we would be traveling to adopt our daughter Anna in 2006, I was saying in my heart that we would be going in March or April of ‘06, two to three months earlier than John thought we would be ready for a third child. My arrogance of doing it my way was so obvious as I read James’ admonition!
The Lord then brought me to the truths in the following passages:
Proverbs 16:1 "The preparations of the heart belong to man, But the answer of the tongue is from the Lord."
Prov. 16:3 "Commit your works to the Lord, And your thoughts will be established."
Prov. 16:9 "A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps."
Prov. 19:21 "There are many plans in a man’s heart, Nevertheless the Lord’s counsel–that will stand."
Prov. 20:24 "A man’s steps are of the Lord; How then can a man understand his own way?"
Slowly, I began to truly give this adoption into the hands of the Lord.
Then our pastor preached a series of sermons on the following passages:
Philippians 4:4-7 "Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."
I Thessalonians 5:16-18 "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."
Rejoice always. Pray continually. Give thanks. Let your requests be made known to God. This is God’s will for us. He promises us His peace in the midst of trials.
My trials are so minor in the large scheme of things. I have a wonderful, supportive, loving husband. I have two beautiful, imaginative children who are precious, precious gifts from God. I am being given another of these gifts from our Lord; when? When He purposes to give her to us. I have a Savior who chose to love me, even me, as undeserving as I am! What amazing prompts for rejoicing!
I try to remember to pray continually. To give praise and thanks. To bring my requests, my fears, my disappointments and hurts to my heavenly Father. This is still an area that needs work! But it is also an area of babysteps of growth in my life.
Amazingly, I have lately sensed God’s peace in my heart about this adoption. I do know He is working this out for His glory and our good. I do know His plans will take precedence and will succeed. As the waiting times increase for those families before us in line for a baby from China, I do pray that those wait times will level off or even shorten again, if it be God’s will. I do pray that we can receive our referral of a child and be able to travel before we have to redo our immigration approval, if it be His will. I do pray for Anna’s safety and development, for someone to love her while she is in China, as God may will.
Occasionally, I have to pray about a renewed sense of impatience. For instance, when I heard that requesting a special needs child would cut the wait time by about five months, I was tempted to check in to that. I was even hurt when John reminded me that he felt that the extra time was good, as it meant that Cara and Rhodes would be a year older (5 and 3 ½) before having a third child. Then I realized that I was trying to find a way to take back control of the timing. I had a little trouble trusting my motives for taking either path: waiting or switching to special needs. But the bottom line is that I need to trust God to lead us through my husband. I do not need to try to take back control. The peace about this issue that has been in my heart since that time is truly amazing!
I have a long, long way to go in learning to totally trust in and depend on God. I also have a long way to go in learning to joyfully submit to my husband! :) But I have learned some, grown a little, struggled some more, grown a tiny bit more. Please pray for John and I both to make Bible study and prayer a priority in our daily lives so we can continue to grow in our faith and trust. Also, we would love to have you pray for the salvation of all of our children, present and future, and for the salvation of Anna’s birth parents that they may be reunited one day, in heaven if not before. And please let us know how we can pray for you and yours!
Thank you! We thank God for friends like you.
Adoption Timeline...to Sept. ‘06
This timeline is being posted not only for those who have asked about it, but also so we can remember when Anna is curious one day.
April 2004 – attended an informational meeting about Bethany Christian Services
January 2, 2005 – Emailed Pre-Application to Bethany
January 28 – meeting with caseworker at Bethany’s office in Jackson, Miss.; turned in Formal Application with application fee and many signed releases/agreements
February, March, April – worked on "Self Study": app. 60 questions each on our personal beliefs, goals, history individually and together, etc.; worked to correct our marriage license which had the month of my birthdate and my age wrong (obviously, we didn’t have to take so long on this part :) )
May – mailed in Self Studies; criminal background checks done
June – failed septic tank inspection; passed individual and joint interviews with caseworker
July – mailed in application to US Immigration (USCIS)
August – septic tank worked on
September – Hurricane Katrina; Home Visit (caseworker checks out our home and conducts one last interview/meeting)
October – caseworker sends completed, approved Family Assessment to MS Dept. of Human Services; Human Services mails our Fed Ex envelope to USCIS in Memphis (delivered Oct. 25); fingerprinted by FBI; compile rest of dossier (file of documents required by China) while waiting for I-171H (approval from USCIS)
January 2006 – tried to convince Rep. Wicker’s and Sen. Lott’s offices that there really was something odd about how long it was taking to get I-171H; finally, found someone at USCIS to look for our file – approved Family Assessment not found, no record of us at all was found at MS Dept. of Human Services, Human Services re-approves us in one day, we start at end of line at USCIS because we have no proof of earlier approval by Human Services
March 30, 2006 – I-171H approval date (We’re approved for TWO children although we only asked China for one. :) )
April – Dossier reviewed by caseworker and Bethany’s China division to be sure all is there; dossier authenticated by Chinese consulate for our region
May 4, 2006 – DTC!!! (Dossier to China)
May 11, 2006 – LID!!! (Log-in Date with Chinese adoption agency)
August – received "Big Brown Envelope" from US Consulate in Guangzhou, China (documents that we will need when we are in China to get our daughter’s visa, American citizenship?, etc.)
We’ll have to be re-fingerprinted by the FBI in January 2007. We should receive a referral (name and picture of our baby) in May or June 2007. If we are not able to travel before September 30, 2007, we will have to redo approval by USCIS (I-171H) which, I believe, will include redoing a lot of other documents/certifications. This is a HUGE prayer request, more because of the extra expense of paying for all of that than for any other reason, to be completely honest. A bill is in committee in the US House of Representatives to extend the time that a I-171H is considered valid. Please pray for this bill to pass and for it to grandfather in those of us who are currently waiting. It may seem like a small thing to the Congressmen with all that is going on right now. THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR PRAYERS BOTH IN THE PAST YEAR AND A HALF AND IN THE FUTURE!
April 2004 – attended an informational meeting about Bethany Christian Services
January 2, 2005 – Emailed Pre-Application to Bethany
January 28 – meeting with caseworker at Bethany’s office in Jackson, Miss.; turned in Formal Application with application fee and many signed releases/agreements
February, March, April – worked on "Self Study": app. 60 questions each on our personal beliefs, goals, history individually and together, etc.; worked to correct our marriage license which had the month of my birthdate and my age wrong (obviously, we didn’t have to take so long on this part :) )
May – mailed in Self Studies; criminal background checks done
June – failed septic tank inspection; passed individual and joint interviews with caseworker
July – mailed in application to US Immigration (USCIS)
August – septic tank worked on
September – Hurricane Katrina; Home Visit (caseworker checks out our home and conducts one last interview/meeting)
October – caseworker sends completed, approved Family Assessment to MS Dept. of Human Services; Human Services mails our Fed Ex envelope to USCIS in Memphis (delivered Oct. 25); fingerprinted by FBI; compile rest of dossier (file of documents required by China) while waiting for I-171H (approval from USCIS)
January 2006 – tried to convince Rep. Wicker’s and Sen. Lott’s offices that there really was something odd about how long it was taking to get I-171H; finally, found someone at USCIS to look for our file – approved Family Assessment not found, no record of us at all was found at MS Dept. of Human Services, Human Services re-approves us in one day, we start at end of line at USCIS because we have no proof of earlier approval by Human Services
March 30, 2006 – I-171H approval date (We’re approved for TWO children although we only asked China for one. :) )
April – Dossier reviewed by caseworker and Bethany’s China division to be sure all is there; dossier authenticated by Chinese consulate for our region
May 4, 2006 – DTC!!! (Dossier to China)
May 11, 2006 – LID!!! (Log-in Date with Chinese adoption agency)
August – received "Big Brown Envelope" from US Consulate in Guangzhou, China (documents that we will need when we are in China to get our daughter’s visa, American citizenship?, etc.)
We’ll have to be re-fingerprinted by the FBI in January 2007. We should receive a referral (name and picture of our baby) in May or June 2007. If we are not able to travel before September 30, 2007, we will have to redo approval by USCIS (I-171H) which, I believe, will include redoing a lot of other documents/certifications. This is a HUGE prayer request, more because of the extra expense of paying for all of that than for any other reason, to be completely honest. A bill is in committee in the US House of Representatives to extend the time that a I-171H is considered valid. Please pray for this bill to pass and for it to grandfather in those of us who are currently waiting. It may seem like a small thing to the Congressmen with all that is going on right now. THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR PRAYERS BOTH IN THE PAST YEAR AND A HALF AND IN THE FUTURE!
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