One Reason to Look Forward to 30

I was going to title this post "The Top Ten Reasons to Look Forward to 30", but then I realized I couldn't think of ten reasons, however I CAN think of one really GOOD reason to anticipate my 30th birthday.  Aside from all of the paperwork, reading, learning, etc. that you must to do adopt from China there are also certain qualifications you have to meet...a minimum income level, a minimum number of years married and a minimum age...and, you guessed it, that age is 30!  We can't officially be "DTC" until my 30th birthday.  So, if you are approaching the big 3-0 and need a reason to look forward to it, may I recommend adopting a child from China.  I'm joking, you know, but this small caveat to our adoption has proven to make me look forward to an age many dread.

With that said, here is an official update on our whereabouts in this lengthy process.  We received our immigration approval today (which is ironically exactly one month before my birthday).  For those of you who don't know, that means that US immigration has approved our application to make our future daughter a citizen.  This is a big step in the process.  Next, we will complete our Dossier (a Dossier consists of your home study, birth certificates, marriage license, child desired form, and a lot of other paperwork).  Once complete, our Dossier will be authenticated and then sent to China.  Once it is received by the Chinese government, we will be "logged-in" and once we are "logged-in" we will be officially waiting on our referral. 

It won't be too much longer until we see the face of our precious daughter.  We have such a peace that God will bring her to us at His appointed time and we just can't wait to see how He will continue to knit our family together over time and distance.  Thanks for sharing in this special journey with us.

Welcome Home Karlye

The first of our moms group's daughters is finally home!  Our sweet friends, the Bercks, returned home from China with their precious daughter Karlye yesterday.  It was such a joy to greet them at the airport and see her sweet, smiling face.  Isn't she just adorable?

While the Bercks were away, our moms group made t-shirts for these special occasions and surprised Stacie and Nathan by wearing them to the airport.  The front says, "One less orphan in China..." and the back says, "...one more child of God in Birmingham."

 Red Thread Moms: Mallory, Tiffany, Stacie and Karlye, me, Kim and Rushton

Many of our families joined us at the airport to greet Karlye, too!

Red Thread Moms Group

For months I have been meaning to share this incredible blessing and I really regret that it has taken me so long to write this post!

When we first decided to pursue the adoption of a little girl from China and began telling our friends and family, a dear friend from church, Dana, insisted that I contact her sister, Robyn, who was also in the early stages of adopting from China.  Little did I know that one email to a friend's sister would lead to one of the most incredible blessings God could have provided in this process.  Robyn had connected with several other adoptive moms (all adopting from China) and they had started meeting every other week for coffee, she invited me to join them and I immediately said "yes"!  It was almost five months ago that I met Robyn, Rushton, Mallory, Stacie, and Kim, but I feel like I have known these ladies for much longer.

I could not have asked for a more Godly group of women to walk with on this long road to our daughters.  I have been blessed by them in more ways than I could have ever dreamt possible.  We share successes and praises and sympathize over delays and difficulties.  Our little group of six continues to grow and we have deemed ourselves the Red Thread Moms Group based on the Chinese legend of the red thread and the following poem.  I think this really speaks to where our hearts are.

A red thread to China was cast today
From us to a child so far away.
This thread symbolizes an attachment of hearts
That distance alone can't keep us apart.

Her mother and I are caught in a chase
That time alone will bring us to face
This loving young child we want so much to greet
With love in our hearts before we did meet.

This tiny, thin thread may stretch, tangle or fray
But our love for her grows stronger each day.
Through the test of time it won't break or sever
She'll be part of us forever and ever.

With oceans between us, the distance is spanned
By a love that is greater than man could have planned.
For God in His mercy loved her and us
And decided our family would be a great plus.

So for now we'll just love her and pray every day
That God keeps her and loves her for us till we may
Travel to China, that land of great past,
To the side of our daughter, to hold her at last.