Misc. Thoughts

I came across this picture in a website.  This artist makes jewelry, specifically jewelry for adoptive families.  Notice the verse? :-) God is cool like that.  If you have no idea what I'm talking about, just read the last blog post.   

When we started this adventure, I had no idea.  I had no idea the amount of work it would take.  I had no idea the amount of stress it would create (time lines, mistakes, etc.) I had no idea that life... regular old life would go buck-wild-crazy in the middle of it.  Would it have changed anything? NO WAY!  I figure all the craziness is just God's way of distracting me from the wait.  Between my step-dad's health, fighting cancer for the last year and now being in the hospital one month, My mom's broken knee/ surgery/ slow recovery and having to drive her back and forth to Lubbock, trying to sell our rent house, having it under contract, and that contract falling through, our house in disarray trying to get all the little things fixed and ready for two toddlers to come barreling in! :-) Lets not forget WORK...When you work at a domestic violence shelter, there's always something stressful going on. It's enough to make the most laid back person snap.  

Honestly.... when the craziness of life builds and I'm being pulled in 10 different directions, I can close my eyes, see the precious faces of these beautiful little girls that God had placed in my life and....there is PEACE.  I'm so hyper sensitive to God's presence lately.  He's here.  There's no denying it.  We are SO incredibly blessed.  Beyond anything I've ever known. 

Today I put our final two documents in the mail to the courier that will walk them in to the Chinese Consulate in Houston.  It's really stressful to let these precious documents out of your hands.  To trust them to the postal service, UPS, FEDEX, which ever the case.  I'd been waiting for 2 weeks for our final 2 documents to get back from the Texas Secretary of State.  In the previous 11 documents, they took no more than 3 days (i think i sent 2 batches).  When they arrived yesterday, I double checked them only to discover that only ONE of the TWO had been "Certified".  I was just about to lose it when they admitted fault and agreed to overnight me the necessary paperwork. I used UPS for this batch b/c the USPS doesn't offer overnight to Houston from Snyder, but UPS does.  While I'm arranging the shipment the worker at the UPS store is trying to discourage me from overnighting the documents b/c of the "cost" (if she only knew...) After explaining that every day longer it takes to get there is one day longer my children sit in an orphanage... she let me proceed with the "expensive" shipping charges.  They are on their way.  Praying all goes smoothly and next week we can get those same documents to our agency and complete our Dossier.  

When you're planning out your timeline in your mind, you really don't allow for mistakes.  When one happens it really throws you for a loop.  You start recalculating how it might affect your timeline, how much longer it might be until you hold your children. So much rides on EVERY. LITTLE.  STEP.  Yet, we really have to trust in God's timing.  That's the challenge of the decade for me! :-)

So... while we wait... we just keep trying to get things in order while helping care for our family.  Once our Dossier is complete, we have our final "wait" It could be 120 days it could be 30 days.. but will most likely fall in the 90 day range.  I really have no idea.  After that wait... we're looking at about 10 weeks until Travel approval.  After TA, 2 weeks or so until travel.  EEEEKKK! Amazing!

I'm pretty much on the brink of tears every single day.  We fall more in love with each moment and are so honored to get to have these two little lives come into ours. 

We covet your prayers through this crazy, wonderful, stressful time.

With Love and Peace,

Jenn & Rob