12 DAYS AFTER RECEIPT NOTICE
Our mail typically is not delivered until 2:00 pm but thankfully, the mail arrived early today and guess what??!! OUR FINGERPRINTING APPT NOTICE was received!!!! YEA!!!
Now, we are not happy about the appointment date, as it's not until July 22, (daddy's birthday) which is several weeks out and the fact Earl will be in China on business. BUMMER!! BUT, we are going to try to be fingerprinted early, by walking into the biometric office, hopefully this week! We need to make babysitting arrangements for Sterling and Earl has items to complete before we can attempt the early fingerprinting so if not this week, definitely next!!
We are told that Houston is the one city that will refuse early fingerprinting but, we're going to give it our best shot! We are taking Earl's itinerary for his China trip as proof he will be in China on the scheduled date & proof of our daughter's birthdate and the fact, she will age out within 11 months and we must be in China prior to her birthday or China will not allow her to be adopted. We are praying that with these 2 honest pleas we are successful!!!! Please keep us in your prayers.
Another step closer to bringing our sweet girl home!!!!!
WE LOVE YOU MIAO AND WORKING DELIGENTLY TO GET YOU HOME, WHERE YOU BELONG!!!
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Happy Birthday, Miao!!
Happy birthday, sweet girl!!
Our daughter celebrated her 13th birthday this week, on Wednesday, June 23! We were celebrating with her, 1/2 way around the world. In her honor, we celebrated with a pink cake, pink & white balloons, Hello Kitty napkins & plates and gifts to be opened when she comes home.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SWEET GIRL! NEXT YEAR, WE WILL BE CELEBRATING TOGETHER, AS A FAMILY!!!
Love,
Mom, Dad, Sterling & Justin
Thursday, June 17, 2010
I800A Notice of Receipt
RECEIVED TODAY!!!!!! Thursday, 6/17--exactly one week after our I800A was received
I am thrilled to share we received the receipt notice, TODAY!!! This is from the USCIS office and is the notice that notifies us our I800A form was received. Hey, in the adoption world, any communication received is another step forward....and thus, another step closer to bringing home our daughter!!!
The next step is to receive the Biometric Fingerprinting Appointment notice. I hope it arrives very soon!!! In speaking with the USCIS representative the other day, he said it arrives a few days after the notice of receipt. I sure hope he's right!! I sent an email out to the adoption yahoo groups inquiring how long it took other families to receive their notice.
Another step closer to bringing Miao home!!!!
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
June Care Package For Our Daughter!
We sent the following items to our daughter for the month of June! June 1 is Children's Day a national holiday observed in China. I waited too late for the gifts to be delivered timely but the care package service was very kind and made contact with the SWI to notify them a care package was coming their way for our daughter and wanted our daughter to know we were thinking of her on Children's Day and the care package would arrive soon! The package was shipped within China on June 6.
A beautiful pink pillow with tassels and pictures. This is my favorite gift we've sent yet!
The envelope containing the letter from us to our daughter! I appreciate the sweet sentiment the care package service included. Yes, we do love her!!!!!!
Here are all the gifts in one picture.
A big thank you to Gifts To China With Love!
http://www.giftstochinawithlove.com/.jpg)
Phone Call to the USCIS Office
Thank you Karen, a fellow adoptive parent who is also awaiting a receipt of confirmation &fingerprinting appointment. Her family's I800A was received 2 days before ours at the USCIS office. She kindly provided me the correct phone number to call!! The China adoption community is made up of helpful and kind families!
This afternoon I phoned the USCIS office for a status of our I800A form. I've heard of families going to be fingerprinted before their appointed time and wanted to question this as well as inquire if we have been placed in the system.
Well, when calling the 1-800 number, the nicest man on the other end was most helpful! While our most recent I800A had not been placed in the system, he explained the forms first arrive to a lock box. It is from the lock box that an automatic letter, known as a "Confirmation of Receipt" is sent to the family and a fingerprinting appointment is also generated prior to our form being logged in, or placed in the system.
He said it takes exactly 2 weeks from the day the I800A was received, until it is logged into the system. By the time it's logged in, we should have received our fingerprinting appointment. I hope he's right!!!
When questioning the possibility of walking in for our fingerprints, prior to the appt. he said, "I can't make that suggestion but if you decide to do this, please do the following: bring your fingerprinting appointment letter with us AND tell them we are a Hague Family. He said when they know we are a Hague Family, they most often will allow early fingerprinting. (Maybe because it's adoption related as oppose to Green Card or Permanent Residency...I don't know, only guessing) The only downer is that I've heard Houston is one city that will NOT allow early fingerprinting. We shall see!!! Oh yea, he also suggested we arrive very early to better our chances. What a great USCIS representative!! :-)
Well....I'll keep you all posted on the USCIS process.
For those not familiar, the I800A is a form required with international adoption. It's requesting permission from the US government to adopt and return home with our daughter.
This afternoon I phoned the USCIS office for a status of our I800A form. I've heard of families going to be fingerprinted before their appointed time and wanted to question this as well as inquire if we have been placed in the system.
Well, when calling the 1-800 number, the nicest man on the other end was most helpful! While our most recent I800A had not been placed in the system, he explained the forms first arrive to a lock box. It is from the lock box that an automatic letter, known as a "Confirmation of Receipt" is sent to the family and a fingerprinting appointment is also generated prior to our form being logged in, or placed in the system.
He said it takes exactly 2 weeks from the day the I800A was received, until it is logged into the system. By the time it's logged in, we should have received our fingerprinting appointment. I hope he's right!!!
When questioning the possibility of walking in for our fingerprints, prior to the appt. he said, "I can't make that suggestion but if you decide to do this, please do the following: bring your fingerprinting appointment letter with us AND tell them we are a Hague Family. He said when they know we are a Hague Family, they most often will allow early fingerprinting. (Maybe because it's adoption related as oppose to Green Card or Permanent Residency...I don't know, only guessing) The only downer is that I've heard Houston is one city that will NOT allow early fingerprinting. We shall see!!! Oh yea, he also suggested we arrive very early to better our chances. What a great USCIS representative!! :-)
Well....I'll keep you all posted on the USCIS process.
For those not familiar, the I800A is a form required with international adoption. It's requesting permission from the US government to adopt and return home with our daughter.
Monday, June 14, 2010
Contact With Our Daughter!
FIRST CARE PACKAGE SENT IN APRIL!
We sent our first care package in April and was sent as a way for our daughter to celebrate that she now has a Forever Family! We received our first response from the SWI director on April 18, Sunday evening. It was such a joy to receive updated information!
We learned that our daughter has always dreamed of being adopted and the director wanted to know, when are we coming??!! That alone was promising news to receive. As other adoptive parents of older children will understand, one is never sure if the child will be receptive in the beginning, to being adoptive. One must understand, while a family is better than an orphanage, it's the only life these children know and understand, it's been their life for years and most of them, all of their life. It's very scary for a young person to move 1/2 way around the world with total strangers. So....we were thrilled to learn she has dreams of being adopted.
We learned that our daughter has always dreamed of being adopted and the director wanted to know, when are we coming??!! That alone was promising news to receive. As other adoptive parents of older children will understand, one is never sure if the child will be receptive in the beginning, to being adoptive. One must understand, while a family is better than an orphanage, it's the only life these children know and understand, it's been their life for years and most of them, all of their life. It's very scary for a young person to move 1/2 way around the world with total strangers. So....we were thrilled to learn she has dreams of being adopted.
The first set of gifts we sent to our daughter were due to arrive at the orphanage on Friday or Saturday, of April 23 or 24. Our daughter lives at a boarding school and returns to the orphanage on national holidays. The next National Holiday is May 1. So....the director said she is sending a nannie to the boarding school to deliver the gifts and SHARE WITH MIAO THAT SHE HAS A FAMILY IN THE USA!!!!!! Wish I could hve been a fly on the wall during that conversation. It is obvious the director at this SWI is a caring lady toward the children at her orphanage.
The first care package we sent:
1. A letter from us to our daughter and one to the SWI director
2. A large stuffed Bear
3. Money for a party and to purchase items for our daughter (the orphanage used our money to purchase the items for our daughter and the orphanage paid for the cake & snacks, to celebrate her Forever Family!)
4. Photo Album containing 21 pictures of our home, family, neighborhood and areas around town
Response to questions we asked about our daughter, received by the SWI director:
WE WERE THRILLED TO BEGIN LEARNING ABOUT OUR DAUGHTER!!
1. She "loves" receiving the photo book and loves the pictures of her family
2. She is dreaming of Gotcha Day coming soon!
3. Her school studies and health are both good
4. She loves skateboarding, roller skating and swimming. She longs to ski
5. She loves chocolate, sweets, western food, ice cream and dislikes pork and celery.
6. She is about 5 feet 2 inches and weighs about 96 lbs.
7. She speaks Madarin, Cantonese and "simple" English
The updated pictures we received from the care package......isn't she beautiful...such an angel!!!
Below are pictures of the care package we sent to her, via Gifts To China With Love
The 21 page photo album. Pictures included her new family, home, bedroom and neighborhood!
All of the items we sent in one picture. We're sure she will enjoy the large stuffed bear! I think the love of stuffed animals, is universal! :-) Also you'll see the interpreted letter, we wrote to her.
The Post Office that shipped our gifts
Last but not least, the ones who made it all possible!
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Here she is with the gifts we sent her, via Gifts To China With Love!!
Miao with the stuffed bear, our letter & the photo album!
Enjoying a drink!
Here she is with the multitude of snacks!
Here she is with the clothing, shoes & cake!
I hope she enjoyed the gifts and was able to feel the love and care we have for her!
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Sending Care Packages
We have the very blessed fortune of making contact with our daughter through a wonderful care package service, "Gifts to China With Love." (http://www.giftstochinawithlove.com/) They are a fabulous service and have gone above and beyond to help us make contact with our daughter and her SWI!!!! (Social Welfare Institute) We can't sing enough praises for it is very obvious, "they have a big heart for these children in China!"
For those who may not be familiar with adoption talk, a care package service is a way to keep families in touch with their soon-to-be adoptive child....they are like angels! When working through the long, agonizing process of international adoption and simply wanting to just hop a plane and fly over to China to be with your child but you can't...this is one way to connect with your child during the wait.
To date, we've sent 2 care packages to our daughter. The first in May, to introduce ourselves and the 2nd in June, in honor of a national holiday celebrated in China, "Children's Day." We've had the blessed fortune to receive updated measurements of our daughter, updated pictures, including pictures of her with the items we purchased through the care package service. We also were extremely blessed with a letter written by our daughter!!!!! Yes, that was a complete surprise...a very welcomed surprise!!!!
The orphanage (or SWI-Social Welfare Institute) didn't realize she has a forever family in the USA that is working fervishly to bring her home until the care package service placed a call to the orphanage. (this was the same situation with our son's SWI.) IT WAS WONDERFUL THAT WE WERE ABLE TO NOTIFY THE SWI THAT SHE NOW HAS A FOREVER FAMILY!!!!!
I look forward to sharing the result of our care packages in the next post.....but for now, it's late on Sunday evening and I'd like to spend time with my dear husband before the evening is over. Details and pictures to come................
For those who may not be familiar with adoption talk, a care package service is a way to keep families in touch with their soon-to-be adoptive child....they are like angels! When working through the long, agonizing process of international adoption and simply wanting to just hop a plane and fly over to China to be with your child but you can't...this is one way to connect with your child during the wait.
To date, we've sent 2 care packages to our daughter. The first in May, to introduce ourselves and the 2nd in June, in honor of a national holiday celebrated in China, "Children's Day." We've had the blessed fortune to receive updated measurements of our daughter, updated pictures, including pictures of her with the items we purchased through the care package service. We also were extremely blessed with a letter written by our daughter!!!!! Yes, that was a complete surprise...a very welcomed surprise!!!!
The orphanage (or SWI-Social Welfare Institute) didn't realize she has a forever family in the USA that is working fervishly to bring her home until the care package service placed a call to the orphanage. (this was the same situation with our son's SWI.) IT WAS WONDERFUL THAT WE WERE ABLE TO NOTIFY THE SWI THAT SHE NOW HAS A FOREVER FAMILY!!!!!
I look forward to sharing the result of our care packages in the next post.....but for now, it's late on Sunday evening and I'd like to spend time with my dear husband before the evening is over. Details and pictures to come................
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