Care Package to Ashlyn

We sent another care package to Ashlyn to let her know it is getting closer to when we will be coming up to get her. We wrote her a letter and Ann at Red Threads will translate it and send it with her care package. We bought her a ladybug and pearl children's bracelet, a Chinese Passport doll, some candies, and a disposable camera. She should get it in 1-3 days. I will add the picture of the care package when Ann sends it to us. Here's the letter we wrote her!

Our dearest daughter Xiang Ling,

We are so excited about you joining our family. We can’t wait to meet you, get to know you, and become your Mommy & Daddy. We are expecting to be able to come to China to meet you in early November hopefully. We got the pictures of you in your yellow Hello Kitty dress and thought you looked so beautiful, especially with your wonderful smile. We had pictures printed of you in this dress and carry them with us everywhere. Kaylyn is so excited about getting a younger sister. She has been telling everyone about you and can’t wait for you to meet her. She will also be coming with us to meet you in China along with your new grandmother. We hope you are doing well and hope you are just as excited to meet us as we are to meet you. We hope you’ll enjoy this care package with a ladybug bracelet, passport doll, camera, and candies. Give your foster family and orphanage our love.

We love you and can’t wait to see you soon,

Mommy & Daddy

I800 Approved

Our I800 was approved from NBC and now has to be sent over to China to get approval of Article 5 so that we can get our TA. Still best guess travel is starting at the end of October or early November.

By the way, the little girl I posted on earlier this month that had to be left behind by the parents due to TB, is finally home with her family in the US. The CDC finally overturned their decision...I guess better late than never! I'm so happy for their family. Praise God!

Nothing New

There is nothing new to post, just wanted to update everyone on what I know as of right now. The paperwork has not been received by the USCIS officer yet, but she'll look on Monday. The Visa paperwork should get to GWCA on Monday for them to go get our visas. Looked further into when the trade fair is in China and it looks like it doesn't end until November 4th, so we probably won't get to go to Guangzhou until then, but maybe go to Beijing a few days before this. We decided to go ahead and do the Beijing stop first since this might be a once in a lifetime journey. It will also help us transition to the time change before going to Guangzhou and getting Ashlyn. Hopefully I'll have a little more to tell next week.

Visas

Filling out paperwork for visas. Have to get one for each of us that's going over to China (4 total). I feel like I've gotten a hundred passport photos taken over the last year ;-)

On a cooler note, we got Ashlyn's finding ad! There's a guy, Brian Stuy, out of Utah that collects the newspapers dating back and can find your child's finding ad and sometimes even video of certain orphanages. So now we have a baby picture of Ashlyn!

Paperwork

Once we got our LSC in the mail to us yesterday, I started another paperwork adventure. Have to get the Travel Information Sheet and Parent Information Sheet along with the officially signed acceptance letter for the LSC, copy of the approval I-797C, and a DS-230 Application all filled out and sent over to the agency along with the DS-230 fee to send over to China by Friday. Also filled out the I800 application and I864W application along with copies of all the file documents that were given to us about Ashlyn and the other necessary papers to go to USCIS for the approval of Ashlyn. Hopefully, I can get that out in the mail tomorrow! This only took us (I mean me) four hours to complete :-)

Once all the paperwork is submitted it becomes another waiting game. The next step that we are waiting on is the TA (Travel Approval). This should give us the estimated time frame for travel. They won't send anyone over to China between ~ September 10th to the middle of October I believe. So our best guess right now is travel near the end of October.

Ashlyn, hang on baby...Mommy, Daddy, and Kaylyn will get to you as soon as we can. We love you very much and can't wait for you to join our family forever!

Day 59 - We Got LSC

Ashlyn has been officially referred to us! We should be getting the actual letter in the mail tomorrow (the agency is sending it over night to us). Now more paperwork begins, but I don't care...paperwork has always been my strong suit. It's the waiting after the paperwork is turned in that has proven to be the most difficult. Still looks like November will be the month for travel. I've already bought Ashlyn lots of clothes and shoes...I even bought her and Kaylyn matching shirts and dresses for when we're in China so they can feel close to each other. I'm so excited!

The Scruggs Family

Please read this article "The Scruggs Family". This is a very sad journey of adoption from China for one small girl. Please watch the you tube videos in the article at the bottom to see how the child reacts when her parents are forced to abandon her for an undetermined amount of time due to new US CDC regulations that children adopted abroad must endure if testing positive for TB. The little girl is not contagious and should be allowed to enter the US. Please use the links at the end of the article to sign a petition for this. Please pray for this family and their little girl as they need all the prayer they can get right now.

Day 55

Ashlyn's smiling picture went to the old posts, so I must post the picture again so I can see it when I go to my blog.

Day 54

It's now day 54 in waiting for LSC. I got a little impatient and asked the agency what the current wait has been. They told me between 35 and 90 days, but have seen up to 100+ days (original answer had been 30-75 days). Ughhh! Hopefully we will get it soon.

On a positive note, Ann at Red Thread, emailed and said she got confirmation from SWI of Guangzou City that Ashlyn got her care package. Thank you Ann, you are an angel!

Also, I worked a long day yesterday and when I got back to my desk, I had a pleasant surprise waiting. One of my coworker's wife had made me the cutest Asian themed mini scrapbook! Thanks Kelcey and Joe, this made my day.

Long Weekend

This has been a very long weekend. It was Kaylyn's birthday weekend. Friday after Art Camp was done, we went to a birthday dinner at Carrabbas and then to see a Magic Show at church from an Illusionist Christian couple. She really enjoyed that and kept asking, "Mommy, how'd they do that?" Saturday morning we had Kaylyn's last basketball game. Then we had the birthday party at the Bear Factory in the mall with 19 kids. They all had a blast! Then we went to church Saturday night. Today we went grocery shopping, went to Toys 'R Us to spend the gift cards and money from her birthday, went to Target to return a duplicate and get something else, went to Old Navy to use the 30% off coupon for a good cause (got Kaylyn & Ashlyn some matching outfits for when we go to China), went to Famous Footwear to get new running shoes for me (and got Kaylyn another pair since it was buy one get one 1/2 off), and then to the mall to see if we saw anything at the Children's Gap to use the 30% off coupon there also. But alas, there was nothing in the Gap we liked. Now Kaylyn is in bed early not feeling too good from all the shopping today. I think she's just really exhausted. Hopefully she feels better to start zoo art camp tomorrow :-)