Hoping for a referral! :)

This past Tuesday Steve & I had the scheduled conference call with our adoption case worker. This was the final requirement before our family could qualify to receive a referral for a waiting child.....for our son!

We are SO thrilled to be at this stage. We still have a few final documents we are waiting on before our dossier can be sent to China. (Praying the I800 will process swiftly!)

Our wonderful case worker went over the various ways that we could get matched with a child.
Every month (usually the last Monday of the month) China sends a new batch of referrals . These are shared referrals which means that many adoption agencies all over the world have access to them. If one of these referral's would match what our family is requesting in gender, age and special need, our agency is allowed to lock this child's referral for 72 hrs while we view the referral which will include photos of the child, medical records  and description of the child. We are required to review his medical record with a Doctor so we can be given a more clear idea of what medical care he may need before me make a decision. ( We have "Jadrian's cardiology Dr's all lined up to help when the time comes!) It is comforting to work with skilled Doctors that we know and trust.

They would like us to make a decision within 48 hrs because of the paperwork we would quickly need to process before the 72 hr time line is up. If we would say "YES" the file would be permanently locked but if we say "NO" the referral will be put back on the shared list so another family can be matched.

Another way to be matched with your child is what they call "Agency Specific". Our agency has partnered with around 10 orphanages in China. These orphanages will send referrals only to the agencies they have partnered with. If we receive a referral this way we have 10 days to review the file and talk to a doctor. It will allow our Dr to submit any questions he or we might have back to China. Or we could request additional photos, videos etc.

Unlike the shared referrals that are guaranteed to come at a certain time every month, agency specific referrals are completely unpredictable. They never know when or if they will get the next batch of referral's. Some months they may get a bunch and the next month none.

We could also find a child on a waiting list. Again,whether that child would even be a possibility for us depends on what agency he is with, if its a shared referral or agency specific. And also what stage we are at with our paperwork.

Another thing we needed to know is that because our dossier isn't logged in China yet we can only receive a referral that is classed as a shared or special focus. Once we are given our LID (log in Date) we will be eligible for reviewing any file.

Kind of complicated, right?! We were told we could get matched soon, in a couple weeks or it could be months.  We know God will direct our hearts with HIS peace to the child HE intends to be part of our family.
We were disappointed to hear that from the time of being matched till travel time is usually around 5 months! Will I ever get used to HOW LOOONG everything takes!  Our DREAM would be that we could get matched SOON and bring him home by the end of this year....but that will take a miracle :) I'm still praying for it though!!

In God's time! He makes ALL things beautiful in His time! We pray a lot that God would be preparing sweet China boy to receive the love of a family. To receive a love he may never have known before.
As we wait, God continues to prepare us too. We've been thinking a lot about the new name we will be giving him. I thought we had it all decided, but it seems like God might be giving us a new name for him, and I'm excited about that too because it will be a name that speaks of God's destiny and plans for His life.  A name that confirms who he is ment to be.

Little treasure, we cant wait to speak life over your sad hurting soul. What the devil intended for evil God intends for good! Your life will be, and is, a testimony of God's loving redemption.

Home Study APPROVED!!

 These important documents arrived in the mail today!!! Yay! This is so exciting! Not only is it proof of reaching a big mile stone in the adoption process, but it allows us to move on to one of the final stages of paperwork....

Applying for our I-800 from the U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS)

These words put a huge smile on my face!

The I-800 application is us asking permission to bring an immigrant into the country. We could not apply for this until we had a finalized home study to send along. We intent to mail it out tomorrow!

The processing time frame is roughly 1 1/2 - 2 month so we are anxious to get the ticker started! (Pray for a speedy process!) After mailing our I-800 application they will send us a receipt to notify us that our documents have arrived and logged into the system.

Then we will receive a notice by mail that will give us the appointment time and location of where we  get finger printed.
After that they will issue our approval. That form is one of the most important documents because it is what allows international children to be brought back to the United States.

One paper at a time sweet boy!

And after we receive that approval our dossier is ready to be sent to China!

Next up in the adoption process......one we've been waiting on for a long time. The very thing we've been doing all this paperwork for....
                   
......................Receiving a referral! We will be having a conference call with our agency to discuss the details of how this next phase works. But now that our home study is finalized our family is eligible to be matched with a child! (happy dance!) But how that works will be an update for next time!

So long my friends!