Adoption News, #2

So many people ask me about the adoption all the time.  I generally have a standard response, "We're just waiting," which basically means nothing new to report.  BUT...it seems like a lot of wheels have been moving lately, and I wanted to keep you updated.

As you know, about a month ago, we got our Letter Seeking Confirmation from China (LSCA).  We signed and returned it, filled out some paperwork for US Customs, and sent that off as well.  Up until yesterday, we were waiting on the US side.  Last week, we received one of the necessary approvals from the US government, and yesterday we received the second.  Both forms were immediately scanned and emailed to our case worker who in turn emailed them to China.  What does that mean?  It means we only have one waiting period left; now we wait for our travel invitation (TA).  Our case worker has informed us that this generally takes five weeks.  Basically, we could receive a TA as early as June 21.

Needless to say, we are thrilled.  We are praying that this last wait doesn't turn into a long wait.  We're praying that our paperwork will move through the system quickly and efficiently and that there will be no unexpected delays.  Also, today I finished filling out our Chinese Visa applications.  I probably won't get them sent off until next week, but it was still pretty exciting to do that.  We also found out the names of two of the hotels we will be staying at.  One is in the capital city of Liesel's province, Tiayuan, Shanxi.  The other is in Guangzhou, in southern China, where the US consulate is located.  I was able to go to the websites for these hotels and see where we'll be staying.  As you might imagine, it was very exciting!

Things are coming together.  This week I also received a big packet of paperwork from our agency that we'll be taking in our carry-on bag when we go.  Please continue to lift us up in prayer.  We are still a bit short and don't quite have the money to cover our travel expenses without taking a loan.  We know God will provide one way or another, and a couple thousand doesn't seem like anything compared to the $12,000 we were needing last fall.  We've already been so blessed by the body in so many ways, and we are grateful.  Thank you for your continued support and encouragement.  Hopefully, little Liesel will be home in just a few short weeks!