Stepping over the latest hurdle!

Today Baby E is 8 months old. It's one of those sad days....I just wish he were here. His I600 was finally approved- it took the US government 7 weeks and 2 days to process and approve it! Now, the document goes on to the NVC (National Visa Center). Once it is processed, it is wired to Korea for processing over there. The paperwork really never stops moving. It is always somewhere being processed and approved. Of course, there are NO time frames for any of this, so we really have no idea...The Holt web forum mentions 4 weeks wait for baby from I600 approval, but I don't know what that is based on, or if it is wishful thinking :) At least going into Christmas, we know that we have crossed a very big hurdle having the I600 approved.

As for the picture, thought some of you might enjoy my Mom's latest work...Fernando has no idea how his world is about to change!!!

Time keeps ticking away....

Time keeps ticking, ticking, ticking away....We are now waiting for I600 approval from the US government. This is the US Approval form that Baby E can be adopted! It was submitted on 10/31 and should be processed in 6-8 weeks....but, we all know how the government works!

We are also waiting on more paperwork from Korea- which include: Class B Waiver (formal acknowledgement that we are aware of medical conditions), NVC (National Visa Center permission for E to come to the USA with a one-way visa), Packet 3 (Packet 3 is sent out to your agency once your I600 approval arrives in Korea. It is returned by your agency to the Embassy and then the Visa appointment can be scheduled.). VI (Visa appointment in Korea), TC (Travel Certificate, official Korean passport). We have already received notification that his EP (Emmigration Permit, which is the Korean governments permission for him to leave the country) was applied for on 11/23. The "word on the street" is that it roughly takes 8 weeks from the application time to baby......We should get some type of notification when each piece of the puzzle is finished, but sometimes the notification part falls through the cracks.

In the meantime, I had a AMAZING shower...you can see the picture above of me passed out after opening all of the gifts! It was truly everything I had imagined and a confirmation that our son is SO loved.

We have decorated our tree in "baby theme", since this truly is his first Christmas! We have decided to leave the tree up until he comes home :)

Baby E is now weighing in at....drumroll please.....15.4 pounds! Not bad, since he started off at 3.8. He will be 8 months on December 22nd, and believe me, we are celebrating every month!!!

7 months old today!

Today is a good day. Today is Baby E's 7 month Birthday as well as Thanksgiving! He was my first thought when I woke up this morning! Yesterday we went to Baltimore to have another round of Federal fingerprints taken. It was a better experience than last time, when it took Randy an hour & a half to have his completed. This time, it took about 20 minutes and his images looked as good as mine. We said a little prayer at breakfast that they would be acceptable! Today was a very low-key day with my parents and a turkey :)
We hung my mom's cross stitch in the nursery. It was made for my first birthday. Evidently the hippo with his mouth open was the very first stitch she did, while she was in the hospital in labour with me! It is perfect in his room and adds such a personal touch. We absolutely love it!
Baby E's latest health update (on 10/22) says that all is well and that he is being "well cared for"- isn't that the best news?! He is now weighing in at 13.9 pounds and is rolling over! We just found out some information about being able to send a care package to his Foster Family, so that will be a task early next week. Very exciting! So, the wait continues with good news along the way....

Paperwork has been sent to Korea!!!

IT IS OFFICIAL!! As of this past Friday, the paperwork has been sent to Korea and the games can begin...from here the estimated wait time is 3 to 5 months. They have warned us (several times), that it could be longer based on paperwork "process time", which we all know really means, it could sit on someone's desk for a while. We are both trying to be optimistic and hope that it will move along faster. The hardest part so far has been the US Government (go figure!), especially the immigration department. We try not to get outdone, but it is not easy! (Believe it or not, I have to calm RANDY down, I'm the cool & collected one!) It's been a great lesson that if you are polite & nice, people tend to be polite & nice in return. Of course, we want to scream and yell because every issue is a delay in us getting our BABY!!!!!

Since we last wrote, we have got 2 new medical updates. Baby "E" is doing well and has started laughing, cooing & smiling. We will not get any more photos, and will only be given about a week's notice that he is coming home! We will meet him & his escort (who may or may not speak English) at the airport. We will continue to get a monthly medical update which is encouraging. He was seen by a dermatologist on Oct. 17th to get some medicine for a rash- poor little guy. That is a great sign that his foster family is taking really good care of him, which is a blessing, relief & comfort to us.

The nursery is painted, the furniture is set-up and we are working on the final touches! It has become a sanctuary for us. We read in there, or I write in Baby "E's" journal. Fernando even brings his bone in there to sit & chew!

I had a dream come true...Carolynn & Hailey came with me to register at Babies R Us, which was quite the experience! I don't know what I would have done without them. It was a fun time and I am very thankful.

Momo & Pops are getting excited! Momo started knitting an AMAZING baby blanket and Pops picked out the cutest "Future LBI Lifeguard" onezie! I can't wait to see them with our baby boy.

Grandma & Pap are thrilled too. Grandma picked out a cute sweater set for him and it's already hanging in his armoire! Great Grandma can't wait for the baby to arrive. We are all so excited!!

Meet our little baby boy!

So, our pastor once said, "If you think God doesn't have a sense of humor, tell him your plan!" Ha!!!! We couldn't have said it better ourselves.... Baby Girl from China in 2010, becomes Baby Boy from Korea in 2007! As of yesterday evening, it is official...... he's ours....and now we wait for the Korea group to call us with more detailed info about what to do next... :) :) :)

For those of you that don't know, Randy & I were given a "referral" just under two weeks ago, of a preemie boy from Korea. He was born on April 22, 2007 and has been cared for by a foster family since birth. He could be home in two to four months! He will be brought to us by a sponsor from our agency, so no traveling on our part....Yes, our minds are racing, yes we are going nuts, and yes WE ARE SO EXCITED!!!!!!!! He will still be...."Baby E"....more to come on the name later! Isn't he so adorable?!?!?!?!

Options

OK, so we have reached a new frustration level....China's latest data is that they only processed 4 days worth of referrals in the past month. (Referral=Baby) Believe it or not, China only processed 4 months worth of referrals in the past year. At that rate, we would be receiving our referral in 2010.
Our options are:
1. Change countries, which means the wait time begins from scratch!
2. Go domestic, which means we have to do pretty much everything all over, including all of the agency fees $$$$$.
3. Apply for the "Waiting Child Program" through our current agency- actually we applied for this about a week ago. These children are "special needs", but the severity is a very wide spectrum. The "special need" could be something as simple as a birthmark! We filled out a very detailed medical form of what we would accept or not accept. There are about 200 people in this program, and it can run simultaneously with our current referral. We listed about 8 countries that we would adopt from.
4. Continue the weekly acupuncture & herbs...I truly enjoy the wonderment of it all, but the taste of the herbs is YUCKY!!
5. Go back to Shady Grove and pursue IUI or IVF
6. And of course, wait, wait and wait for a baby girl from China in 2010....that's not a joke, it's really looking like it could be 2010!
I think we are going to go with options 3, 4 & 6.....although at this point, option 3 could be the most promising :)

Work, wait, work, wait

Whew- can we just say that this summer has flown by? So the good news is....We are now through with all our travels, and I am through with all my classes. I finished both courses and look forward to applying all the things I learned once school starts back up, which happens to be next Wednesday. Is that insane or what? The kids don't even come back until after Labor Day!

OK, ready for the bad news?.....the wait time has been raised to 22 months. AND our agency is now writing the phrase "22 months at this time", which indicates that it will go even higher. The times are based on your Log In Date (LID), ours is officially December 13th, 2006. That is the official date that our dossier (home study and formal request for adoption) was logged into China's database. Do the math....that means our referral (photos & medical history) will come in October 2008, and we will be traveling in January 2009. Of course, all those dates are tentative since we KNOW the wait time will only go higher.

I knew it was coming, but it doesn't make it any easier. I've been spending a lot of time thinking about faith, my own faith, and trying to use that to calm my emotions. Most of the time it works and I trust that what is meant to happen will happen. Other times, I let my emotions get the best of me and that just turns into a downward spiral. Sometimes I get all emotional about it for no reason and the smallest things can trigger it. Faith, faith and more faith...For about 9 months now, we've been going to a local church. Attending services every week and becoming involved with the congregation has really helped me. I even started a bell choir, and both of us joined the choir. It feels wonderful to sing again! It's been great to be part of the church community. I am really trying to ground myself, stay positive and of course stay busy.

On that note, Randy has enrolled in post-Graduate school! (Dr. Morgan sounds good!!) He is majoring in counseling and is hoping to be able to publish his dissertation when all is said and done. He will be concentrating on infertility and adoption. He chose Newburgh Theological Seminary in Evansville, Indiana and has eagerly begun the coursework. There's not much out there when it comes to dealing with adoption and the emotional roller coaster so, he has a strong passion for what he is doing and there's a definite need for it. I am really proud of him and will help in any way I can! I'm all about the editing!!

Thanks to everyone for their kind words and prayers. It really means a lot and helps us through this emotional, long waiting time.

Mara Looks Back

WOW! He's good....Randy pretty much nailed everything. It's been a long road and we still have a long way to go. Last night, we found out that the wait time has been extended to 21 months. It takes your breath away when you realize that when we began this journey, (officially on May 9th, 2006), the wait time was 13-14 months. When I look back at the journal that I am writing to our little girl, I even mentioned that maybe we will meet in February 2007. HA! Guess I was a little off. It does make me wonder how much higher that 21 month wait will climb...I always thought this would be the last summer before the fun really begins!

I know that there is a master plan and that I just need to have faith and patience. Sometimes it's easy, other times it's hard. This has been a hard month for me. It was easy to push away the long wait times while I was at school, but now that summer has begun and my schedule and mind are free, it's torture!

So, I channel my energy in other ways. I am taking 2 courses this summer, just for the fun of it. Now that I have completed my Master's Degree, the idea of taking another course should seem crazy, but I can't wait! I have been reading tons....Somehow it feels therapeutic to be immersed in anything Asian and related to adoption. Here are some of my latest reads:

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See
The Bonesetter's Daughter by Amy Tan
Mao's Last Dancer by Li Cunxin (thank you Shelly!)
The Teahouse Fire by Ellis Avery (I only enjoyed the 1st half)
From China with Love by Emily Buchanan
A Passage to the Heart-writings from families with children from China by Amy Klatzkin Wanting a Daughter, Needing a Son by Kay Ann Johnson

Lauren, my college roommate and our daughter's future Godmother, and I have reestablished our phone book club and we are re-reading The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver. It is neat to read it chapter by chapter and then discuss our thoughts. She is an amazing friend!

A co-worker of mine is leaving for China later this month to meet her daughter, Caitlin. I have become addicted to their blog to see their daily progression towards becoming parents. It's amazing how long you wait and then BAM! They have spent the past month since receiving their referral, running around getting prepped for the trip. How exciting!!!

Wouldn't it be great if we could fast forward our journey just like TIVO????

Randy Looks Back

Our journey pretty much started like everyone else's. We came to that point in our marriage when we both had this longing for a child. We went the traditional route, but as the months (and now years) passed by with no results, we thought maybe we should speak with a fertility specialist. My part was easy...one test and everything was fine. Then came Mara's part...not so easy. Our schedules were completely turned over to Shady Grove and the unending tests. Mara had appointments sometimes at 7:00 a.m. on our way to school, appointments several days in a row, appointments on Sunday mornings in Rockville, MD. It was so unpredictable, impersonal, and scientific. Then, Mara began taking fertility medications that gave her hot flashes and made her nauseous. After six months, they stopped prescribing the medication. Added to this was the invasive treatments and examinations. After seeing my wife's tears on our last visit to the fertility center, I knew this was taking a toll on Mara's well-being.

We had discussed adoption long before. We had always said we would birth our first baby but adopt our second. So, the adoption discussion came naturally. We are friends with a family who adopted a little girl from China about 8 years ago. Sharing with this family, learning about Chinese culture and history, and the opportunity to visit China were all factors in our decision to choose international adoption. I'll spare you the details of what life is like in China for little girls. However, I do suggest you do some research. I'm sure you will be as heart-broken as we were when you do. We contacted Holt International Children's Services. Mr. and Mrs. Holt were the founders of international adoption. (Read Bring My Sons From Afar by Bertha Holt.) I highly recommend the agency. We quickly completed our application, and we were accepted on May 9th, 2006.

Then, the real work began. We had multitudes of paperwork to complete, to have notarized, certified, and authenticated. This means we not only went through our local government with each form, but also to our state capitol and various federal agencies. Although tedious to gather, some of the data collection was easier than others, (i.e original birth certificates and marriage certificate with numerous notarized copies, photos of the exterior and interior of our home, medical exams, blood work, references, our biographies and biographies of our families and upbringing). Then came the fingerprints taken locally followed by another round of fingerprints through the Department of Homeland Security. The DHS unfortunately sent us to Charleston, WV which was an 11 hour round-trip. Our appointment was 8 a.m. We had to drive down a day early and stay in a hotel in order to be there on time. Two weeks later, we received a letter saying my fingerprints "didn't take" and we would have to return to Charleston the following Wednesday at 8:00 a.m. Unfortunately, the fingerprints at the local police department "didn't take" either. (My wife and I decided that since my fingers leave unintelligible marks....I should have been a professional thief. I would have made much more money than from teaching!) Then, we arranged our "home study" which was actually a pleasant experience. Our social worker was so supportive and friendly. We met with her several times during the summer of 2006.

As things normally do, everything worked out. Holt sent our finalized dossier to China on November 10th, 2006. Since then, the waiting time for a referral has changed every time we have received an update. We were first told that it would be a 13-14 month wait. Then, it was 15 months. Then, it was 16-18. Next, it was 19-20. The next update that came was 20 months. As of the update we received today, it is now 21 months. This means that all of the paperwork that we did in the past will expire and we will have to go through the paperwork process again. We'll also have to have our "home study" updated.

I know that as I look back on all of this, it could all sound so overwhelming and stressful. It was and still is. However, I know that Mara and I have made the right choice. I believe with all my heart that God lead us to do this. We'll save a child from a life in an orphanage and in return...she'll save us with her smile.

Welcome To Our Journey

In the coming months, we invite you to go on this journey with us to adopt our daughter, Elisa. We affectionately call her "Baby E". We will be as candid and open as we possibly can in sharing not only the future obstacles and emotions, but also some of the hurdles we have crossed to get to this point.

Our hope is that we can share these experiences with not only our friends and family members, but those individuals who are either considering the adoption process or who already are immersed in it.

We thank you for visiting, and we invite you to contact us via our email address listed in our profile or by clicking on the "comments" icon. We are happy to read your reflections and answer your questions.