Caught in the Whirlwind

We had a lovely meeting with our Social Worker on Wednesday. She is very sweet and made every effort to put us at ease. There is a whirlwind of activity around us now. I am making every effort to get every document set into motion that I can before we leave for the SBC. A few short days after returning from Louisville, we will be taking off once again for mission work on the Gulf Coast. Shortly thereafter comes VBS. I know God had a purpose in setting all this in motion at one time, I just hope I can keep up!

It is my goal to have all doctor appointments, inspections and paperwork ready by the end of July. At that time our Social Worker will return for two more interviews and then she will compile everything into a "narrative" about our family. At that point, our homestudy will be complete. If the Lord wills it, we will be there by mid to late September. Of course, during all of this, we will also be working on the documents that are required for our Dossier. I haven't received that list yet :) The homestudy will be one component of that Dossier that will ultimately be translated into Mandarin and sent to China.

That seems so far away right now. But, as I have said before, each step brings us a little closer to meeting our little girl.

Another Step

Another step is taken. We have been assigned a social worker and are hoping to hear from her soon. We have also been given a sea of documents to wade through...or drown in... :)

Doctor appointments are being scheduled for physicals, and paperwork is being notarized. With each signature, each clearance, and each release form we are that much closer to the goal. Please help us pray for a smooth journey through all these things. Also, pray that I will be able to juggle this process with our trip to the SBC, two weeks in Mississippi on mission, and directing VBS. If I can make it through July 31, I will be in good shape. There is absoluetely no way I can pull all of this off in my own strength. I am so thankful that His strength is perfect!

Thank you my friends!

We Have Only Just Begun

We have taken the first few baby steps in a marathon. I think the memories of the endurance needed for the Baltimore half-marathon will come in handy before this is over!

First step...choosing an adoption agency. Check! We have chosen to work with CCAI in Colorado. CCAI was reccomended to us by a nice lady who shared her own adoption experiences with me over the phone. She is three-time adoptive parent of Chinese children. I asked which agency she had used, and she told me that she would not use either of the two she had worked with again. She highly reccomended CCAI. She had seen their staff in action in China early this year and had been extremely impressed.

After more research and reading the testimony of the founder online, we were convinced. So we submitted our application and received approval last week.

Second step...choosing a homestudy agency. Check! We are awaiting a call from our social worker right now. Once we meet this individual, they will give us a stack of documents that will be the framework of our family dossier. This dossier will eventually be sent to China (hopefully by November). Once it arrives, all we have to do is wait for God's timing in revealing our third child to us.

So, that is where we are at this point in the journey. In later posts I will share more about why we are doing this, including the theological foundation for adoption. I will also share our continued steps toward the finish line, when we bring our little girl home.