We Have a LID

We finally got the email a few days ago that our dossier has been logged in by the Chinese government. Our LID (logged in date) is March 15, 2010. This is the date by which we can measure, as time passes, approximately when we would be matched. This is assuming that we are never matched with a waiting child (one with additional physical needs), which is unlikely.

Effectively, we are on two waiting lists. One is in China for a healthy child. According to time lines in place now (which are subject to lengthen or shorten), we will be matched in 3 1/2 years. (I know, that is a very long time.)

We are also on the waiting list with our adoption agency for a "waiting child". These are children who have been deemed either unadoptable or unlikely to be adopted by China. They have different needs ranging from severe disabilities to being over the age of 9. We prayerfully considered a list of possible needs, and selected the ones that we felt equipped to handle. So, when and if a little girl with one of these needs becomes available, we will be matched by our agency. Since there are fewer families seeking waiting children, we expect to be matched via this avenue first. There is absolutely no way to gauge when this might happen.

So, if you are wondering WHEN we will get a call...so are we :) It could literally be Monday morning, or 2013, or anywhere in between. What we do know is that God is in control of it all, including the timing. So, when our little girl is ready to meet us, He will introduce us.

Surreal....

We began this journey in earnest 7 months ago. I still remember looking at the pile of documents that came from our adoption agency and thinking, "How will I ever get through this?" It was all so mind-boggling at the time. But, step by step, piece by piece, I've muddled through it all. It almost seems surreal that our dossier is complete. (The photo shows the result of 7 months of literal blood, sweat and tears.) I handed it all over to my friend at FedEx...we are on a first-name basis now...a couple of hours ago. It should be in Denver by 10:30 tomorrow morning (that is amazing to me).

After critical review (not once, not twice, but three times over), binding and translation into Mandarin, our dossier will be on its way to our daughter's homeland. Assuming I did everything correctly, This should happen by mid-February.

Once it arrives in China it will be reviewed by the CCAA and Logged In. The day this takes place will be our LID date (logged in date). LIDs are important because they signify when a family is queued up in line to wait for a child. People who were matched with a child in December all had a LID date from 3 1/2 years ago. Because we are on the waiting child list, it is quite possible (we are hopeful) that our LID date will be irrelevant because our adoption agency will do the matching instead of the CCAA in China. This often goes more quickly because most waiting children are considered unadoptable.

Regardless, we know that we are on God's timeline here. We know that He is in charge of revealing Grace to us. So, until His time is perfect we will wait...and update paperwork.

I began this blog with a running analogy, comparing adoption to a marathon. The first leg of this race is now complete. I can't see the finish line yet, but I know it exists and that is enough for now.