We have dates!!!

Our dossier was submitted on May 16. We found out a couple of weeks ago that we have our appointment date... July 24!! Can't believe it is almost a month away! We will meet her on the 26th. We can finally see a light at the end of the tunnel. We can't wait to meet our daughter!!!

USCIS APPROVAL!!!

YAY!!  Good news to share.  We now have our USCIS approval.  We are now only waiting on two documents and then we can submit!  I just can't believe how smoothly things are going.  I am getting a little nervous about funding though.  Besides needing money for in-country we have several things to buy for our little girl as well.  We will need to make her room a special place so she can forget about her time in the orphanage, or at least make it a distant memory.  The time to meet her is getting closer and closer and I can hardly stand the wait. If you feel that you are able to give anything toward our adoption we would be incredibly grateful.  If not, I know that times are tough and your prayers are even more of a blessing.  I am so glad the God has led us in this direction.  It is so reassuring to know that everything is in His hands. 

Homestudy finally finished!!

Well, we have finished our homestudy!!  We submitted it with several other documents to our country a couple of days ago.  Boy oh boy, international mailing fees are crazy expensive.  I'm realizing little by little (sometimes a lot by a lot) how quickly expenses can add up.  I feel so blessed to have some of the funds on hand, but still praying that we will be getting help from others.  I am now in the process of compiling the paperwork for our dossier.  It looks as though it will be a big paper chase, but I am surely up for the challenge.  All I need to do is remain focused on bringing Kaia home and that puts everything into perspective.  She is over there waiting for us to come and bundle her up into our arms and show her what love really is.  Compiling documents is nothing compared to what we are receiving in return.  I appreciate all of you that are reading my blog.  I will try and keep you informed on the process, good and bad (hopefully no bad).  Please pray for us in the coming weeks as we compose our dossier that things go smoothly and that more funds may trickle in for us. 

"I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength". - Philippians 4:13

This is the first blog I have ever done, but of course this is the first adoption we have ever done as well.  I am nervous about both, obviously, the adoption more so. From the first moment we saw Kaia we knew she was the one for us.  Her beautiful green eyes begging us to come and rescue her from that orphanage.  Then to find out that next year she would be sent to an institution with adults-how horrible!!  I am nervous for so many reasons, first and foremost, will I be able to parent a child with special needs?  The answer is yes.  The reason I already know the answer is because with God's help we can do anything.  I believe we were meant to help a child that cannot be helped otherwise.  To think of her not getting the medical attention she deserves is just wrong.  How can it be that a child that has the capability to thrive not be given the opportunity?  Well, that's where we all come in.  We all are here to rescue these children from the terrible circumstances that they were born into.  There are various reason why their parents abandoned them, some of them noble and some of them selfish, but at least they will have a family that can show them the meaning of love.  Our child will have a mother, father and big brother that embrace her whole heartedly.  The next few moths will prove to be some of the most exciting and anticipated that our family has ever experienced!