Embassy Submission

We were finally submitted to the embassy yesterday.  It was such a relief after all of the emotions and stress over the past month.  At dinner every night, we go around the table and everyone says what their favorite part of the day was.  Last night Tay said that hers was "seeing Mommy happier than she's been in a long time."  

We're still apprehensive about this next part.  Most people seem to be getting embassy approval in about a week.  Every case is different, though, so we're still just in wait and see mode.  Can't wait to have this boy in my arms again!  Our agency asks that we still not post pictures until the entire adoption process is final, but here's another sneak peek! 

Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; His love endures forever.  

~ 1 Chronicles 16:34

Whew!

We got a call from Holt this morning.  Our MOWA letter is finally in their hands!  We were, however, missing a different one than the staff here originally thought.  Bummer.  So now we're waiting on Little E's birth certificate and passport.  If all goes smoothly, we will be submitted for embassy on February 21.  We are cautiously optimistic.  Please continue to pray for this part of the process to move rapidly, with no more hold ups, and for the embassy to approve us to travel quickly after submission.

We are so grateful to everyone who has come alongside us and supported us during the last three weeks.  It's been difficult, but we've clearly seen the power of prayer getting us through some crazy emotional days.

In other exciting news, tonight and tomorrow night Cade is performing in a dinner theater at church.  I'm hearing buzz that his part is hilarious.  He takes after his father, with his habit of making a clown out of himself goofy acting ability.  I can't wait to see it tonight!

Like cold water to a weary soul is good news from a distant land.  Proverbs 25:25

Punching Bag

I keep putting off posting, because I feel that all that is coming from me right now is negativity.  I feel like a punching bag.  The bad news just keeps coming, one thing after another, after another.  As far as we know, our MOWA letter is still not in place.  As of Monday, it was not and the US end of our agency has been unable to verify that it is still missing, because they have a lot of other drama going on right now with people traveling to get their kids.  Then we heard yesterday that MOWA is closed indefinitely while they move offices.  And the U.S. embassy is scrutinizing cases much more closely, sometimes taking weeks instead of days.  I know these are both good things, but I'm very unhappy that we've been caught in the middle of every single dang change or missing license or slow paperwork that has happened in the past year.  Everyone who went to court before and with us and several that went after, are ready for embassy.  We're stuck.  No reason why.  No end in sight.  Meanwhile, Little E is in a new care center and is having night terrors and I don't know how much more we can take at this point.  I know it will happen in God's timing.  I know.  But, I can't understand the why's of it.  Why E has had to sit in an orphanage for a year and a half now.  He's had a family waiting for ten months.  Tomorrow is ten weeks since we left him and we still have no idea when we'll return to bring him home.  Please continue to pray for us, for the MOWA offices to reopen soon, for the letter to be issued quickly after that, so that we can be submitted to the embassy.  


We truly appreciate everyone's prayers, support, and concern.  Justin and I have often referenced the movie Finding Nemo this week, the part where Dori says, "Just keep swimming.  Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming.  What do we do?  We swim, swim."  Yesterday it felt like we were sinking, but really we have no choice but to keep swimming.  C'mon MOWA. C'mon embassy.  We miss our boy.