Cocoons & Prayers.

Prayers

Tomorrow we leave.  My stomach is filled with butterflies as I type this.

This will be my last post until we’ve arrived in China.

We’re pleading for prayers.  Will you join us in praying for the following things?

*For Logan and his tender heart.  May our time together be well spent. May he come to understand our love and commitment to him.  May God ease his heartache as he transitions away from the only home he’s ever known.

*For travel mercies.

*For health and energy. (We arrive in Beijing at 2:40 p.m. after a 13 hour flight.)

*For Ross and Ella as we are apart.  May the Lord place His protective hand upon them.

*For Lani as she “holds down the fort” while we’re away.

Cocoons

Our family of six will soon be a family of seven and life as we know it will be drastically changed (and we couldn't be more ecstatic).  As we prepare to bring Logan home we want to express our gratitude for your love, support and prayers during the last ten months.  We will be forever thankful for the encouragement of family, friends and strangers, and for the new friendships

 that emerged along the way.

I am one blessed mama.

Life in our household is about to look drastically different.  Logan will call us "Mommy" and "Daddy"....yet, he won’t know what these words mean. He needs to learn that we will be the ones to fulfill his needs.  He needs to know that he can depend on us...and together we will help him learn what it’s like to be a family. 

In order to do that, we have specific things that we will do to help Logan adjust and begin the bonding process.

We will be "cocooning" for a while.  We'll be lying low...with the seven of us. We will be spending our days at home. We will try to decrease the amount of stimulation in our life as the seeds for attachment are planted.  With time we will venture out more and continually assess how our sweet boy is adjusting.

We look forward to you meeting our new son and we want him to meet all of you, once he’s comfortably made this transition.
We are so grateful for each of you.
Thank you for richly blessing our lives and praying us through.

With Love,
Rebecca & Tim

Packing.

Only TWO more days until we leave!

Life has been a whirlwind of activity as we prepare,

but we're ready to go.

Olivia and Julia will be joining us on this next leg of our journey and

Ross and Ella will enjoy a staycation here at home with Aunt Lani.

Thank You Aunt Lani.

I'm completely convinced that packing is a true form of art, 

and I am truly not an artist.

We were told to pack light, yet there were many things 

that were on our "need to take" list.

So everything we needed to pack went into the school room, which quickly became packing central.

 But we were up to the challenge and our packing is now complete.

I'm hoping we have everything the four of us, plus one precious boy, will need.

We've received our itinerary for the final lap of our adoption journey.
Here's a peek at what the next 2 weeks will look like for us:

• Thursday, August 8 - We leave bright and early for the airport!
• Friday, August 9 - Arrive in Beijing at 2:40 p.m. (Beijing time)
• Saturday, August 10 - Recover from jet leg.
• Sunday, August 11 - Explore the Great Wall and Hutong Lane.
• Monday, August 12 - Gotcha Day!
• Tuesday, August 13 - Free Day.  
• Wednesday, August 14 - We pick up Logan's adoption certificate, do the document notarization and apply for his passport.
• Thursday, August 15 - Visit the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square.
• Friday, August 16 - Fly from Beijing to Guangzhou.
• Saturday, August 17 - Visa paperwork check and Logan's medical check.
• Sunday, August 18 - Free day with optional activities.
• Monday, August 19 - Pick up Logan's medical results.
• Tuesday, August 20 - Free day with optional activities.
• Wednesday, August 21 - Free day with optional activities.
• Thursday, August 22 - Visa appointment and Oath taking ceremony.
• Friday, August 23 - Visa pick up.
• Saturday, August 24 - Fly from Guangzhou to Shanghai and then home!

The journey continues...

10 months.

10 months ago we saw the picture

of a little boy that would change our lives forever.

We saw his sweet, little face and we fell in love.

In five short days we’ll be on our way to meet him.

Precious child…

the wait is over.

We’ll soon be there.

Puzzle Results: Finished!

With incredible gratitude we joyfully 

share with you our final puzzle update!

 Just four short months ago we put together the first two pieces of Logan's puzzle, and now, a week before we leave to get our precious new son,

the last two pieces have been put into place.

Logan's puzzle will be framed in double-sided glass and displayed in our home; a constant visual reminder of all who prayed, encouraged and supported us on this journey.

So humbled.

So blessed.

So thankful.

Thank you.

Travel Dates!

We received a rainbow in the midst of all the rain today,

we have our travel dates!

We are leaving the USA on August 8th

and return August 24th!

We leave in 16 days!!!

I'll post more details soon, but wanted to share the good news with everyone.

Travel Approval!

We received Travel Approval from China!

 We were thrilled when we received the call from our agency letting us know that one of the last pieces of the puzzle had been put into place.

The next step is for our agency to make our visa appointment with the 

US Consulate in Guangzhou and then we can schedule travel. 

We assumed we would be part of either the August 16th or 30th travel group.  Being part of either group would still give us plenty of time to finish up our long to do list before we traveled.

However, along with the wonderful news of travel approval, our agency also let us know that they are hoping to schedule our travel date for August 9th, 

if not sooner.

If not sooner?

Click. Click. Click.
I felt myself slowly moving up the first hill 

of an emotional roller coaster.

As I reached the top, I teetered on the hill for just a moment

before I plunged into a rush of adrenaline.

 Thrilled, exhilarated, excited.

We may be getting our sweet, little guy sooner than we anticipated!

 Nervous, anxious, uncertain.

There's so much to do and I'm not sure where to start!

On my knees.
Pray first.
A perfect place to start.

"God, you are my God
and I will trust in you and not be shaken..."
The lyrics from the song "Still, My Soul Be Still" are now running through my head.  Moving me from the fast curves of the roller coaster to a smooth, calmer ride through the pre-travel phase of our journey.  

"Lord, of peace renew
a steadfast spirit within me, to rest in you alone..."

  It's so easy to fall into a state of frenzied uncertainty,
jumping past the certainty of prayer.
Getting wrapped up in the varied details that don't really matter.
Losing site of the One who does.
How faithful He is to reign me back in each and every time.
I'm so thankful for His faithfulness.

And I'm so thankful for the beautiful lyrics of Keith and Kristyn Getty's amazing song...

Article 5!

We received wonderful news this morning!

The US Consulate in Guangzhou has issued our Article 5!

Receiving our Article 5 means the US Consulate has reviewed Logan's visa application, made sure it met the qualifications for an immigrant visa and

has signed off that everything is in order for our adoption to be completed!

It was really important that we received our Article 5 today because the US Consulate in Guangzhou will be closed between July 15 and July 23 as they move their offices to a new location.

We needed to have our paperwork submitted and processed by today, otherwise we would have been caught in the delay of the move and our adoption process would be on hold.

But God is good and our journey continues!

Next stop, Travel Approval!

We now wait for our adoption agency to schedule Logan's visa appointment and for the agency to receive our travel approval from China!

This last step was a real nail-biter.  

But a curve ball every now and then helps draw us closer

to the One who is truly in control of this journey.

The One whispering that constant reminder 

that we so desperately need, "trust".

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart

and lean not on your own understanding;

In all your ways acknowledge him,

and he will make your paths straight."

 Proverbs 3:5-6

Adoption 101.

When I was pregnant with Olivia, our first child, I read through every baby book I could get my hands on.  By my eighth month of pregnancy I was re-reading many of them, studying them as if preparing for a final exam.

However, there was nothing that could have fully prepared me for the incredible responsibility a beautiful new baby brings.

When we brought her home the books were a wonderful reference, but the maternal instinct that God so generously implants in a mother's heart, became the foundation of my parenting style.

And now, here I am again...

 

 ...reading through as many books about adoption as I can. 

Hoping they will hold the key to making this transition easier for Logan, as he leaves the only home he's ever known. 

 Hoping to glean enough from each book to help him learn to love and trust a family he's never met before. 

And praying that the gift of maternal instinct will shine through...

You Are Here.

I'm a planner.

I love organization, lists, outlines and Excel sheets.

On this journey there have been plenty of lists and outlines,

but there's also been plenty of unknowns, estimated and varying timeframes and lots of waiting.

I also like "you are here" signs,

those helpful little signs on amusement park maps or mall directories.

I like to know exactly where I am, so I can plan exactly where I'm going.

But on this journey, sometimes I'm not sure where we are.  There are times when I don't completely understand the paperwork or the next step.

But it's okay.

This journey has strengthened my trust in Him.

I only need to remember that this is God's plan and we just need to do our part.

  

And look how far He's brought us:

  We received our cable (approval letter) from the National Visa Center (NVC)!

This means that the NVC has "cabled" our file to the US Embassy in Guangzhou, China.  This is approval of our visa petition for Logan!

Now we wait for our Article 5.

The Article 5 letter lets the CCCWA know that our immigration file is complete for the adoption.

After that, travel approval!

Because God is in control,

I don't have to be.

But I'm so thankful for the "you are here" signs He leaves along the way.