Sweet "Zachy"

Look what arrived in our email yesterday.

Isn't he so cute?  Look at him standing!

It was a total surprise, but our agency asked for an update when our Article 5 was dropped off.  They didn't tell us, but surprised us with these 2 new pictures and updated measurements.

According to his measurements he is technically in 24m or maybe 2T clothing. He is 3.5 and weighs less and is also shorter than Laurel.

The subject line of the email said: here is your FINAL update.

Final one, guys.  Because the next time we see him we will be holding him in our arms!

We love you sweet Zachary, keep smiling, we're coming soon.

Nesting

I am officially nesting.

The house can not be clean enough.  There is SO much to do!  Our two children make it impossible for things to be orderly, but I have a compulsion to make sure that we come home to a clean house with Zachary, because...

The jet lag will be killer.  Two to three weeks until we are normal again is what everyone says.

It will be chaotic.  Introducing a new child into our family is one thing.  Bringing one home who is 3.5 years old, can't speak our language, has never seen a house, has no idea what a family is, doesn't eat our food, and has medical issues and appointments...well you get the idea, pure chaos.

So I have a drive to get everything in place to try and prepare for the difficult transition home that is ahead of us.

- clean, organized house

-meal prep/saving up gift cards so we don't have to worry too much about cooking

- setting up insurance/medical appointments

- reading all we can about attachment and parenting children from "hard places"

- talking to Asher and Laurel a lot, and prepping them for us being gone for 2 weeks :( :(

After we get our TA (maybe 3-4ish weeks from now) it will be full on packing, flight/hotel booking, securing the plans for the kids here in the US, panic mode!!  So this is our lull time to get things set up for success.

So far we have:

- bought bunk beds and bedding on craiglist for a steal!

- found our pediatric neurologist, opthamologist, and general pediatrician who specializes in internationally adoptioned children

- prayed, prayed, and prayed for attachment and open hearts, low expectations, and strength for the reality of Zachary's health and emotional state

- been researching how to use donated frequent flyer miles

- cleaned and organized the attic

Each day brings us closer and we are buzzing with excitement.  Come on Article 5 and Travel Approval- we are ready to book some flights!

More Abundantly

I've tried to write this post for many weeks now and could never find the right words to express our gratitude and awe. But here goes. I want to get it out there because the news is just too great to not share. Our God deserves all the praise and glory for his abundant love and provision.

We are fully funded. 

We are fully funded!!

Every penny of the $32,000 that we needed to fund Zachary's adoption has been provided.  It blows us away and we cannot even begin to describe how thankful we are.

When we started this journey over a year ago, finances loomed in front of us in such a way that we had no idea how this adoption would be paid for.

We sold our van.  We stopped going out to eat except for on special occasions and usually with gift cards or coupons earned through surveys I take at home. We have seriously bought practically nothing except food, gas, birthday/christmas presents, and a few essentials for Zachary (at sale prices and significantly reduced!). It's been a test, and we've saved quite a bit, but not nearly enough to begin to scale the mountain of finances that this adoption required.

So we asked God to move the mountain.

When we committed to Zachary back in November of last year, we got on our knees and asked God to move the mountain of finances if he wanted us to do this.  

And our God, who is able to do anundanty more than we could ever ask or imagine, did.

God moved those mountains- he threw them into the sea and said nothing is impossible for him!  Silly to doubt it now... that the God of the universe, who supplies all our needs according to his riches, could take care of a few tens of thousands of dollars...just a drop in his bucket.

People gave.  Our friends and families emptied their pockets and gave sacrificially, out of love.  It was so extravagant it brought us to our knees.  I want you to know that we don't take this for granted.  Josh and I have praised and thanked God, through tears of gratefulness, for the extravagance of your giving and love.

Some amounts were so large it was pretty much incomprehensible.

Some amounts were given from hearts and pockets that were already struggling and nearly empty.

Some were provided by complete strangers.

Some items were generously donated and provided when we needed them most.

All were given out of love for our family, for our sweet son in China who desperately needs his family, and for a God who is good and faithful and holy.

Thank you.  We are thankful for every one of you.

Our yard sale was incredible.  Such hard work, but we've never felt more loved by our church and friends. God's hand was clearly guiding it, and we raised an incredible amount of money that helped us get closer to our goal.

Our family matched our Lifesong grant before I could even ask people to help give.

And then the news that Foundation and (Steven Curtis Chapman's organization) were blessing us with adoption assistance grants.  In total, all of these grants combined to over $13,000.  We can never thank these organizations enough.  Their heart for orphans has changed our lives and Zachary's life.

Incredible God, you have blown us away every step of this journey.  Thank you, thank you for your provision.

We are fully funded guys!  All of our agency, government, and travel expenses are covered.  We are even going to be traveling during Trade Fair- the most expensive time for travel and hotels in China (~2,-3k more expensive), and we think we will have just enough to cover it all.  We'll know for sure in 3-4 weeks when we hopefully have travel approval!!

So, this is our fantastic news.  We want to say thank you for all your financial and prayer support.  We are completely humbled and honored to be stewards of your gifts to us, and we can't wait to bring this little boy home.

Please, if you've ever considered adoption, felt the tug of the Holy Spirit on your heart for the life of an orphan or child in foster care, take a step forward.  The finances will not stop you.  God is bigger!  I hope our story is a testimony to the unfailing love and resources of God.  Trust in Him and ask him to move mountains.

Guz-zerriffic Day!

Got our guz# and RTF!!  The 260 is done!  Our article 5 is on the way to China.  Please pray that it can be dropped off tomorrow.  There is a bit of a time crunch and if we don't make it our drop off will be pushed back until next week. So, if you get a chance, say a quick prayer that it can be taken tomorrow morning!

It will take two weeks or so for this to get processed properly and picked back up. Once article 5 is picked up it will be sent to the China Adoption Center to be processed.

Then we wait for travel approval!!!  

So here is where we are:

- 2 weeks for Article 5

- 2 to 3 weeks for Travel Approval

- Off to China! (But because of the holidays we will most likely have to wait 2-4 weeks after TA to get a consulate appointment and be able leave.  Pray for an early consulate appointment to be available to us.)

Thank you for praying for us, lots going on right now and we so appreciate your love and prayers!  A friend told me that once they started the adoption process it was like spiritual warfare- Satan started attacking!  We've seen similar things in our journey, things just keep coming, but our God is for us.  He is for adoption and Zachary and he is paving the way.  Thank you Lord for guiding each step of this journey.  Continue to surround us with your prayers for protection and strength as we prepare to fly to China and our lives change in such a huge way.  

Travel Visas

Josh and I just overnighted our visa applications to the Chinese consulate requesting permission to travel to China in the next 60 days - Ahhhh!

So while Zachary's visa paperwork to come to the US is getting processed, we are also waiting to get our Chinese travel Visas.  We should have them back in about 2 weeks- and hopefully Zachary will have his in about 3 weeks.

After that we're just waiting for the call to come get him and schedule our travel dates.  I can already hardly sleep at night because of the anticipation/nesting that is starting to occur- don't know how we will survive the 2-4 weeks it will take to get that call.  We are praying to get travel approval before the Chinese National Holiday that lasts an entire week (oct 1-7).  This will ensure that we travel in Oct. and not Nov.

Here's a peek at our adoption paperwork binder.  This is just half of what we've filled out- the other half is at our agency and government offices around the world ;)   

So close, it hardly seems real!

The final stretch

We found out on Monday that our 800 petition for Zachary's visa was approved! This means that the US has assigned him as our immediate relative and he can officially request a visa to enter our country. So exciting!

The next steps are kind of confusing and only adoptive families probably care what they're called or even understand them.  But I'll still try to explain ;)

1.  We are waiting for something called a guz# and RTF, which means Zachary's visa approval has been forwarded to the US consulate in Guangzhou, China, where all adoptions are finalized.  Once this happens we move on to the next step..

2. We fill out our 260 form with our guz#  and send it to our agency, who forwards it to their contact in china.

3. Our contact in China puts our 260 with the rest of our waiting paperwork (LOA, ect) which officially becomes our Article 5

4. The article 5 is dropped off at the consulate in Guangzhou to be officially reviewed and stamped/signed.  This takes exactly 10 business days and is the final step required by the US to prove that we are allowed to request a visa for Zachary.

5. The article 5 is picked up after 10 days and sent to the China center for Adoptions to await travel approval.  This can take 1-4 weeks.  Once approved they will send our TA (travel approval) to our agency and we are officially invited to come get Zachary!

6. When we get TA we have to call the US Consulate in Guangzhou to set up an appointment for our final interview to get Zachary's visa.  This CA (consulate appointment) determines when we can travel.

7. We get our official CA date and book flights for about 10 days before that date.  (During those 10 days in China we will do a lot of paperwork and have our "gotcha day", the day we get Zachary in our arms.)

8. Leave for China! Praise!

If you read through all that, bless you.  Anyway, we are 8 weeks out from meeting our boy.  Thanks for your prayers!

Anticipation

Just like the third trimesters of my pregnancies were the most awkward and uncomfortable periods, I feel like I'm lacking grace in this "third trimester" of our adoption. 

I'm just ready for it to be over, honestly.  I'm ready to travel to China, meet our sweet Zachary, and get on with all the craziness, joy, and change that will occur.  

I'm also kind of over the paperwork.  As I sit here filling out pages and pages of visa applications, I really can't believe how much paperwork we've done.  It's incredible all that goes into two governments giving you permission to adopt a child.  

This process has been no walk in the park, but then again, I am overwhelmed with how God has met us in every circumstance and moved mountains for this adoption to occur.  He is faithful and every word of promise is true.  What an amazing God we serve...there is no one like Him!!

Right now we are waiting to hear if the US will approve our request for an immigrant visa for Zachary.  We should probably know within a week or two...please pray that this paperwork is processed without delay and with a positive outcome.

Once we receive our approval it will be sent to the consulate in China to get their stamp of approval.

Then we wait for travel approval!!

It is looking like a mid Ocober travel date might be possible.   We know that God will allow us to travel at the exact right time...but it would be pretty cool if we could get back in time for Halloween like Asher's been hoping.  As Christians it seems silly to want to be back for a secular holiday...but there is something wonderfully sweet about the anticipation of seeing all three of our children together, dressed up in costumes, and Zachary experiencing the love of a family and siblings in such a fun and silly way.

But if not Halloween, then Thanksgiving and Christmas and all the days in between for the rest of his life.  He will have a forever family, what a blessing for us!