How we got here

As most everyone who knows us knows, our journey to China to bring home Lucy (our first daughter) was amazing. We kept a blog on ladybugjournals.com and really enjoyed sharing our experience. It has since become a very precious document that we cherish and share with Lucy.

1 year after we brought Lucy home we were able to start "paperchasing" for our 2nd daughter. We had a strong desire to go back to China because it was such a great experinece and we wanted to give Lucy a sister with her same heritage. At the time I began the paperwork I was expecting (and okay with ) a two year wait.

The paperwork did not go smoothly and took over a year to complete. By this time the wait for a baby girl from China was expected to be 18 months, which was fine with us. We waited only 7 months for Lucy, but were comfortable with a 18 - 24 month for Rita. As time went by, the wait time continued to grow. There is no telling what the wait for a "healthy" baby girl will actually be. The families who are traveling now have waited over 3 years, and the wait time continutes to grow.

I never expected that I would be open to a "special needs" child. I am not medically inclined. I chose not to give birth for a reason! Besides, I work full time and expect that I always will. But God began working on my heart and softening me to the possibilities. Through FCC (Families with Children from China) Chris and I began to meet other families with children who had been labeled "special needs." Most often we did not see a special need, but rather a beautiful child.

After meeting with our pediatrician, speaking to other parents, looking at lots of special needs websites (check out www.nohandsbutours.com ) and lots of prayer, we were accepted into the Waiting Child program with our agency in March 2009. It is called Waiting Child because these are children who will not be matched with families via the regular referral process. These are children who are waiting for someone to choose them. Some are older, some have severe special needs, some have minor needs or medical situations that have been corrected. There are SO MANY beautiful children waiting for homes! (check out www.rainbowkids.com.)

Our agency called us that same week with the file of an adorable girl with a cleft palate. But due to some continued immigration issues we were having, we were unable to accept. While I was sad about this, I knew in my heart that God had other plans for us and that this was not our daughter. We still had some hoops to jump through, and Chris still needed time to fully ready his heart. Our daughter came to us not via our agency, but through some very, very special friends. Sometimes God puts people in your life but you are not sure why. Other times it is amazingly clear and you just want to praise Him for letting you see Him work so clearly.

We met Nick and Ana at church 2 years ago. For no reason, Lucy would not leave Nick alone. She was crawling all over this man whom we had never met. Little did I know that his beautiful wife Ana had it in her heart to adopt internationally but Nick was not open to it. Over the next few months we all became great friends and Lucy worked her magic on Nick. We cheered and cried along with Nick and Ana on their path to adopting from Vietnam. Their beautiful little princess, Jasmine, is now 2 years old. It was through Ana, and the people who processed their adoption that we found Rita.

We first saw Rita's file on June 2nd. Rita was born with a sacroiliac tumor, a large tumor near the base of her spine. When she was 8 months old she had surgery to remove the tumor. As far as we can tell from her medical records, it does not appear that this tumor affected her spine or any of her organs. The tumor did disfigure her bottom a bit, and the surgery to remove it has left a substantial scar. She will likely need reconstructive/cosmetic surgery at some point. More importantly, she has the smile of an angel! Her paperwork describes her a quiet and gentle, with a ready smile. She will be 2 years old on August 20. We asked to lock in her file for 48 hours so we could consult with our pediatrician and discuss it as a family. On Sunday, June 7, we filled out all the paperwork needed to let China know that we want to make this little girl our daughter.

The next steps look like this:
1. Wait for pre-approval. We got this on Wednesday. June 24. This basically means "so far, so good."
2. Wait for Referral Acceptance. This could take 3 - 5 months. Because our dossier has only been in China for a year and a half, it hasn't even been reviewed yet. The CCAI needs to review our dossier before giving the offical acceptance. Once this happens, we will be able to post Rita's photos.
3. Wait for Travel Approval. This generally takes 6 - 8 weeks from the Referral Acceptance. Once we get TA, we can expect to be on a plane in 10 - 14 days!

While we hate the wait, we are thankful for this time to prepare our home and do the fundraising necessary to pay the orphange donation and travel fees. I will post soon about the fundraising efforts because I will need the support, participation and prayers of many to be successful. I am confident and encouraged that God will provide.