Getting Closer

We received I-800 approval on January 2 and have been logged into the system with the National Visa Center (NVC).  Within just a few days the NVC will "cable" or email our file to the US Embassy in Guangzhou, China.  This is approval of our visa petition for Emalyn.

Once this step is complete we will receive a letter that will then begin the generation of our Article 5 letter.  Article 5 is a letter issued by the US Consulate in China stating that Emalyn's immigrant visa and all other paperwork is in order to finalize our adoption of her.  It takes exactly two weeks for them to issue this letter, however, in our case, Chinese New Year will fall during our two weeks, so we will likely wait 2 1/2 to 3 weeks for ours.  BUT, once Article 5 is complete and delivered to the CCCWA (China's Center for Children's Welfare and Adoption) we begin the wait for TRAVEL APPROVAL (TA)!  This is the long awaited final step before booking our flights to China, jumping on a plane and bringing our sweet daughter home!

TA is also the step that could potentially be expedited in our case.  My doctor has requested that I be back home by March 3 or not travel, so please pray that, if it is God's will for me to travel to bring Emalyn home, He would move these mountains that stand in our way.  In order for there to even be a chance that I can travel, TA has to be expedited, so please pray that the person who receives the petition to expedite is sympathetic to our situation and sees pregnancy as a valid reason to grant TA quickly.

God is all over this and I know that He is soverign, so I have no doubt that however it works out is exactly how He always intended it to be.  With that said, I still want to be the first one to hold Emalyn and I don't want to give up those two weeks with her when I've already missed her first 20 months.  So, with that said, we covet your prayers as we enter this final phase and inch closer and closer to having Emalyn home!