WE'RE GETTING VERY CLOSE & VERY ANXIOUS!!!
Wow, what a great day it's been!!!
First, I spoke with my administrator today to share with her our anticipated travel plans. Something about speaking with her makes it all seem so real......yes, we've been planning for Miao's homecoming for over a year now but something about notifying your work that you'll be out for an extended amount of time is the realization that it's coming, very soon!!!
All the endless hours of time and effort vested into the paperwork involved with an international adoption, sending care packages to Miao, exchanging letters with her and waiting for over a year, viewing her picture, day-after-day, it begins to seem surreal and that it's never going to happen and when it does finally "happen" it sort of takes your breath away! By the grace of God--it's happening and very soon!!!!!
Once I drove away from the school, I immediately phoned Earl to share with him our conversation and the joy that Miao is welcome to finish out the school year, at my school!!! This will be great mother-daughter time each day driving back-and-forth from home to school. My commute is over 2 hours, each day so this will allow lots of time together. Guess I best start searching out music DVD's in Mandarin. :-)
Okay, the good news today, continues. We decided to have dinner out tonight and when returning home and jumping on the computer for any signs of a status on our adoption--THERE IT WAS---CONFIRMATION THAT OUR ARTICLE 5 WAS PROCESSED AND THE COURIER FROM OUR AGENCY PICKED IT UP, YESTERDAY--10/13!!!!!!!
Okay, just maybe...just maybe, we will be able to travel at Thanksgiving..that's our dream/best case scenario but if not, we are happy with the opportunity to travel by end of year!!!!! We want our beautiful daughter home for Christmas!!!
Miao wrote in her last letter to us, that she was counting the days until we bring her home....we are thrilled to share with her that we will be traveling very soon and she will no longer need to count the days!!!!
Blessings to all,
Sharee
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Cooler Temps + Fall= Holiday Season
Sterling and Pumpkins
The weather this weekend is BEAUTIFUL!! When summer temps remain in the 100's, day-after-day, the low 80's is consider, cooler weather!! We have clear blue skies, low 80 degree weather and pumpkin patches are starting to pop up everywhere!
We took advantage of the great weather and spent time at a pumpkin patch, clicking pictures of Sterling.
The weather this weekend is BEAUTIFUL!! When summer temps remain in the 100's, day-after-day, the low 80's is consider, cooler weather!! We have clear blue skies, low 80 degree weather and pumpkin patches are starting to pop up everywhere!
We took advantage of the great weather and spent time at a pumpkin patch, clicking pictures of Sterling.
NVC Cable to US Consulate in China
Another step closer to travel!!!
The NVC office cabled Miao's information to the US consulate in China on 9/25!!!! Only 6 days after our I800 approval, which was 9/16. Another stop closer to Miao's homecoming!!!
We faxed the confirmation letter the NVC mailed us to our agency's office on Friday afternoon, which is Friday evening in China. So, the earliest anything can happed is on Monday.
What happens next? Our agency's courier will pick up the cabled document from the US consulate and hand-carry it to the CCAA. We are experiencing trouble getting answers from our agency in regard to timing, when the carrier will pick up the paperwork, if the CCAA is closed for any holiday etc. We plan to contact them again on Monday for the details.
Exactly how close are we to travel.....let's see:
Hand-carry NVC cable to the CCAA
CCAA to prepare the Article 5
CCAA to release the Travel Approval (our agency will notify us when TA arrives)
CA scheduled by our agency (American Consulate Appt.)
Book travel
We are still hoping to travel by end of year.....it will all depend upon the available CA appointments...there are a limited amount of appointments and a lot of major events occuring in Guangzhou that can greatly affect travel. Please be in prayer with us that we may be united with Miao by end of year.
Blessings,
Earl & Sharee
The NVC office cabled Miao's information to the US consulate in China on 9/25!!!! Only 6 days after our I800 approval, which was 9/16. Another stop closer to Miao's homecoming!!!
We faxed the confirmation letter the NVC mailed us to our agency's office on Friday afternoon, which is Friday evening in China. So, the earliest anything can happed is on Monday.
What happens next? Our agency's courier will pick up the cabled document from the US consulate and hand-carry it to the CCAA. We are experiencing trouble getting answers from our agency in regard to timing, when the carrier will pick up the paperwork, if the CCAA is closed for any holiday etc. We plan to contact them again on Monday for the details.
Exactly how close are we to travel.....let's see:
Hand-carry NVC cable to the CCAA
CCAA to prepare the Article 5
CCAA to release the Travel Approval (our agency will notify us when TA arrives)
CA scheduled by our agency (American Consulate Appt.)
Book travel
We are still hoping to travel by end of year.....it will all depend upon the available CA appointments...there are a limited amount of appointments and a lot of major events occuring in Guangzhou that can greatly affect travel. Please be in prayer with us that we may be united with Miao by end of year.
Blessings,
Earl & Sharee
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Moon Festival
HAPPY MOON FESTIVAL!!
Today, 9/22/10 is the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival in China. This is a national holiday, celebrated throughout China. We've been praying and thinking of Miao today, as she celebrates this national holiday. We pray she had a great day, enjoyed time with her friends and enjoyed the care package we sent in honor of this holiday.
This holiday is time for friends and family throughout China to gather and give thanks....similiar to the western holiday, Thanksgiving. In China, friends and family gather in the evening, under the Harvest Moon to eat together and give thanks. Today, we are giving thanks for the blessing of being chosen to be Miao's parents.
Blessings,
Earl & Sharee
Today, 9/22/10 is the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival in China. This is a national holiday, celebrated throughout China. We've been praying and thinking of Miao today, as she celebrates this national holiday. We pray she had a great day, enjoyed time with her friends and enjoyed the care package we sent in honor of this holiday.
This holiday is time for friends and family throughout China to gather and give thanks....similiar to the western holiday, Thanksgiving. In China, friends and family gather in the evening, under the Harvest Moon to eat together and give thanks. Today, we are giving thanks for the blessing of being chosen to be Miao's parents.
Blessings,
Earl & Sharee
I800 Approval
YEA! ANOTHER STEP CLOSER!!
We're another step closer to Miao's homecoming!!! When calling the USCIS office today for a status on the approval, to our surprise, approval was granted on September 16!!!! AMAZING...amazing because we were told the paperwork would take 10-14 business to ship from the Texas lock-box to Missouri. Today was day 13 but approval was granted on business day 9!!!!
We anticipate recieving the hard copy in the mail, very soon. Tomorrow will be the one week mark and for some reason all of our USCIS paperwork has been received on a Thursday....so, perhaps we'll have the hard copy tomorrow!!!!!
Receiving the I800 approval is a big step in our thoughts....we now feel receiving the TA is "just around the corner." In reality, it's probably another 6 weeks or so......recently, TA's have been processed rather quickly but with the Moon Festival holiday in China, things may slow.
I'll post again when we receive the I800 approval in the mail. Let's hope you hear from us again, tomorrow.
Blessings,
Earl & Sharee
We're another step closer to Miao's homecoming!!! When calling the USCIS office today for a status on the approval, to our surprise, approval was granted on September 16!!!! AMAZING...amazing because we were told the paperwork would take 10-14 business to ship from the Texas lock-box to Missouri. Today was day 13 but approval was granted on business day 9!!!!
We anticipate recieving the hard copy in the mail, very soon. Tomorrow will be the one week mark and for some reason all of our USCIS paperwork has been received on a Thursday....so, perhaps we'll have the hard copy tomorrow!!!!!
Receiving the I800 approval is a big step in our thoughts....we now feel receiving the TA is "just around the corner." In reality, it's probably another 6 weeks or so......recently, TA's have been processed rather quickly but with the Moon Festival holiday in China, things may slow.
I'll post again when we receive the I800 approval in the mail. Let's hope you hear from us again, tomorrow.
Blessings,
Earl & Sharee
Sunday, September 19, 2010
I800 Status-10th Business Day Has Come
We finally hit business day #10 of waiting for our I800 to arrive the Missouri office!!! As you may recall from an earlier post, when calling for a status, we were instructed the I800 application had not reached Missouri...it was still at the lock-box in Texas and will take 10-14 business days to arrive the processing office, in Missouri.
Day 10 was on Friday, 9/17--mom's birthday! We are praying our I800 did in fact, reach the office and this upcoming week, we'll receive word it's been approved. We are trying very hard to wait until Tuesday, 9/21, business day 12, before calling the USCIS office for a status.
It will be music to our ears if when calling we are told it's been approved! Please pray with us the I800 is processed swiftly and without request for further information. We are hoping to receive the hard copy of the approval, no later than the last week in September.
Day 10 was on Friday, 9/17--mom's birthday! We are praying our I800 did in fact, reach the office and this upcoming week, we'll receive word it's been approved. We are trying very hard to wait until Tuesday, 9/21, business day 12, before calling the USCIS office for a status.
It will be music to our ears if when calling we are told it's been approved! Please pray with us the I800 is processed swiftly and without request for further information. We are hoping to receive the hard copy of the approval, no later than the last week in September.
Little Brother's First Holiday Season-The Fun of Halloween!
The weekend was spent searching out the right Halloween costume for Sterling. This will be his first holiday season and to start it off, is Halloween!
We are thrilled to be sharing the holiday season with Sterling and look forward to next year when Miao is home to share with us in the fun of Halloween, the gratitude of Thanksgiving and the blessing of Christmas!
Here are a pictures of Sterling in his Chef Costume:
We are thrilled to be sharing the holiday season with Sterling and look forward to next year when Miao is home to share with us in the fun of Halloween, the gratitude of Thanksgiving and the blessing of Christmas!
Here are a pictures of Sterling in his Chef Costume:
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