Thursday, March 19, 2009

Celebrating small victories

No photos to post right now, but wanted to just say we are seeing little bits of progress this morning. We are encouraging Lilly to use words (Chinese , English or sign) rather than whines or grunts when she wants or needs something, and she is starting to catch on. She is really taken with her handsome gege (big brother) and he has been a huge help when she wants to go roam the hallways. She had a really rough night last night, up almost every hour with terrible diarrhea, but seems a bit better today and is now napping after a windy morning at the park and a bowl of noodles for lunch in the room. Little glimmers of opening up to and trusting us are apparent, which warms my heart and gives me hope. She even referred to me as "mama" once today. Thank You Lord for little victories and progress!
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6 comments:

Unknown said...

Amy, I feel so blessed to be here with you and share in all that is happening! You have such a calming wonderful way with your Lilly and with my LuLu!! Thank you for your help!

March 19, 2009 at 2:51 AM
Unknown said...

I don't know why it said Regina its me Kristine I'm sure you realize that though!!

March 19, 2009 at 2:53 AM
Justin said...

Wow you guys must be so exhausted! I hope that in the midst of all that is happening, each of you gets good times of rest and refreshment. Do they have a starbucks where you are? :)

March 19, 2009 at 6:30 AM
The Callender Family said...

Great to hear of the little victories (the 'Mom' was must have been wonderful!), I hope she feels better today and that for the rest of your journey everybody stays healthy!

March 19, 2009 at 8:23 AM
Traci Brunner said...

That is wonderful that things are improving and especially the fact that she called you mama!!! Here's hoping and praying that her little belly adjusts to everything real soon! :0)

March 19, 2009 at 8:27 AM
G. Alan Groop said...

Jarred is the Man, wait to help out!
Good thing you have a doctor "in the house",and one with lots of patience. It appears more than the amount of total patients he has probably ever seen!
Small victories still bring in trophy's. Your prayers are being heard. Amy keep up the amazing work you are accomplishing in such a short time. Anna so glad you are back to you. Virtual hugs from Florida. Cindy

March 19, 2009 at 2:55 PM

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Why Adoption? Why China?

I'm sure that many of you, when you learned that Tom and I were pursuing adoption of a little girl from China, wondered "why?!" We may have taken some of you by surprise, and we thought it might be nice to share some of our thinking about this journey we are undertaking.

Adoption is something that, even from the earliest years of our marriage, we talked about as "maybe someday." The idea of adoption is appealing to us for many reasons. As Christians, we are adopted by God as his children through faith in Jesus. Adoption allows us to provide a child with the needed love, warmth, and financial resources we have been blessed with as a family. Finally, adoption allows us to add to our family at a time when our biological children are old enough to be more self-sufficient, and we are in a position financially to be able to welcome a child into our family in this way. What we hope to gain is an additional family member to love and learn from, and an opportunity to share the joy and love of our family.

We recognize that an adoption will bring unique parenting challenges to our family--especially since we are considering a child with special needs--and it is likely to put unique stresses on our family in a variety of ways. We are grateful for Tom's medical knowledge and for the great medical coverage we get through Tom's Air Force career, and we look forward to providing a forever family for a child whose medical needs might make it more difficult for another family to take on.

Finally, why China? My love for China, the Chinese language, and the Chinese people made China the natural choice. It was never really even a consideration whether to go with a domestic adoption or international; China was simply the natural choice that we immediately pursued, especially since there are so many children in China that need a forever family.

Chinese Word of the Day

The Time in China

When Love Takes You In

Our Adoption Timeline

  • Travel Dates--11-26 March
  • Swearing In Ceremony at Consulate--25 March (Lilly's 3rd Birthday!)
  • Consulate Appointment (CA)--24 March
  • Travel Approval (TA)--19 February 2009
  • Received Letter of Approval (LOA)--22 January 2009
  • Received Pre-Approval (PA)--25 November
  • Submitted Letter of Intent (LOI) to adopt An Xiao Xue, soon to be named Lillian Joy Xiao Xue, 1 November (logged in at CCAA 21 November)
  • Referral Call from CCAI asking us to consider An Xiao Xue's profile--31 October
  • Dossier Log-in-Date (LID) 3 July 2008
  • Dossier to China (DTC)--June 27 2008
  • Dossier Submitted to CCAI--June 2008
  • Fingerprinted at USCIS Jacksonville--April 2008
  • Application Approval ("We're Pregnant!") January 2008
  • Submitted Adoption Application and 3 References--December 2007
  • Requested Application from Chinese Children Adoption International (CCAI) --November 2007
  • Decided to Investigate Agencies--October 2007