Chinese New Year

On Saturday March 3, we went to the FBC in Midland for a gathering of some other families that have adopted from China. Amy, who is doing our home-study, and has adopted two girls herself, makes these gatherings happen. We were so glad she included us. We spent a few hours in the presence of many loving, Chinese little girls who are full of so much joy. It was a real encouragement to hear from so many families, and their success stories. We also met some families who are in the process as we are. I am sure we met some new friends. Check out the pictures. How can we not be excited.

Where are we in the process?

First we must say thanks to our family, church family and friends. We have been overwhelmed by your words of encouragement, prayers and financial support. You have all been a blessing to us. Just so you all know, we have been approved for a child 0-12 months.
If any of you are familiar with the adoption process, then you would be familiar with the phrase"the paper chase." We find ourselves in the middle of the paper chase. It is a daunting and at times frustrating task of gathering all kinds of paperwork( immigration paperwork, passports, fingerprinting, background checks, employment verification, family photos etc.), all of which must be notarized, certified, and authenticated. These papers then make up your Dossier. A fancy term for profile. Once these are gathered, they go through a critical review stage by the agency and are then sent to China. This is the hardest part of the entire process.
At the same time we are gathering the paperwork, we find ourselves starting the home-study. Yep, you guessed it, more paperwork. It takes about 2-3 months to complete these two things. After those are complete, you take a deep breath and celebrate. Some days it seems impossible, but we know that over 7,200 other people have successfully adopted from China through our agency alone. It can be done. This will likely be the only progress update for awhile.
Again, we appreciate your continued prayers, specifically for patience in the next couple months. Take care and many blessings to you all till the next time.

Why Adoption?

For most of our 11 years of marriage, we have been trying to expand our family naturally. After years of testing, treatments and hundreds of suggestions from doctors, family and friends, we have felt lead by God to expand our family by way of adoption.
God has made it clear in his word that he loves all the children from every race, country, and culture. We know that we too can love a child from a different race, country or culture. Throughout the course of our lives, God has brought many young people into our lives to love, mentor and disciple, but never one that we can call our own. We are very excited that he has chosen us to participate in the miracle called adoption.