Tuesday, March 10, 2009

We are so Blessed

Yesterday, my dear friends Denise, Kathleen, and Cindy threw me a shower with friends from so many different parts of my life: students from my spin classes at the gym, boy scout moms, swim team moms, moms in touch prayer partners, neighborhood friends. I was (and still am) completely overwhelmed with their friendship, their generosity, and their desire to celebrate Lilly and support our family. I forgot to take my camera, but I know Denise took some photos so I'll have to post those when I have them. Many pitched in money to go a long way toward a jogging stroller/bike trailer (yay!), and there was so much wonderful healthy food! I didn't even get to open all the presents until last night at home (ANna happily helped me!) and people gave us the cutest clothes, bathing suits, books, etc. It was a really special time for me, and I am truly blessed with the best friends.

Today is our final prep day. I taught my last spin class for awhile this morning, and now it's off to take Tad for a walk and on to packing in earnest. The kids are home with me today to get their own stuff in order, get Jared a haircut, etc. I think it will be a fun and productive day!

Poor Tom still has lots to do at work, so my prayer for him today is that he will have discernment to know what he should delegate, what can be left undone, and what needs his full attention.

Tomorrow morning we're leaving on a jet plane!
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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