GREAT NEWS!

Okay, first, Trenton is not sick. They are just giving him a yearly physical. Nothing out of the ordinary. Because of his mother's sickness he has to be monitored at different stages in his life up until he is 18 months old. But it is nothing to worry about.

SECOND and MOST IMPORTANT!!!!!!! His mom has contacted our attorneys and wants them to come to the jail and talk to her about us!!!!!!!!!!! This is such GREAT news! It doesn't really mean anything as far as a decision but at least she is being fair to allow them in there to explain who we are and what we want for her son!

I am going to write another letter to send to the attorney for translation over to the jail for his mom. The first two letters as so generic like what is written for your Letter of Intent for adoption in China. This one is going to really tell her who we are, what our goals are in life and what we want for our child. I guess I could include what we have already achieved for our children as we have two that are adults... and there are days that I think they are still my little kids but the two of them turned out to be pretty good adults!!

Grapevine Update

I heard tonight that the birth mom has gotten our letters and we are just waiting on our invite to the jail.
Also there is some concern as to Trenton's health.. wonder if this is just another one of those ploys by Mercy to try to stop me from adopting him.

I AM NOT GIVING UP! I hope they understand this! I see his face and my heart pounds. I can not wait to hug and hold him. What I find to be so sad is the fact that they would rather play with this child's life and hold him in a situation that is not healthy for a child then to let us adopt him because of a divorce.

I wish I had more to tell you but that is all at this time.


We continue to clean the house, paint and get ready for our "daughter for a year!"
She said, "love you mom" on the chat this morning and my heart melted!! We are so looking forward to her arrival! I hope the airport doesn't call security on our noisy family!! LOL

We also found out that her good friend was picked by a family in Northern Florida so she is very happy about that!! And we have another family in our town that is getting a student from Taiwan! If I don't learn some Chinese this year.. I will never learn Chinese!!

Happy Weekend everyone!!

Again a change

Sorry it has been so long since I updated this. I just couldn't. Again.. a change.
It has been a long hard month with me trying again to understand how there are 143 MILLION orphans in the world and here we are one family just wanting to bring home one child.. and people who say they are involved for the "good" of the children are making it hard!

Yep. So the day after I did my last post.. I must have had some sort of sense that something was up. I get an email from Wendy at Mercy, saying that they didn't make a right decision and that they should have given this child's mother more families to choose from. And I also got an email from Ted at Home of God's Love that he felt Mercy had decided not to work with us, "I believe God can and does forgive our past when we bring it before Him in repentance and surrender, but again, I don’t feel I can do this case myself." Why did Ted say this? Because Jay and I had been divorced and Ted does not work with divorced couples. Yet, in my bible God said that it is a SIN not to forgive and if you do not forgive you are sinning against God. But Ted would not do our papers or help us.
Both parties keep pointing fingers at each other, Ted blames Mercy, Mercy blames Ted.
It is a circus.
So I have hired an attorney. They have contacted Trenton's mom and have gone to her with our want to adopt her son. But at the same time Mercy, the Christian organization that is to help woman and children went in at the same time and slammed Jay and I to the birth mom.
So we again wait. The attorney has been a great help. It is so hard to try to take care of things when you are so many miles away and don't speak the language. I had to put my trust in someone. The attorney has followed through with everything and has made more progress in this few weeks than I have made in a year.
So we are just waiting.
I have to tell this part of the story also. I didn't make it up that Mercy and Ted had told me we were getting this child, I have emails to prove it. Ted, himself, sent me an emails stating I needed to pick an American name for him so that they could do the paperwork.
Also Mercy sent me the address to them and to the social worker who was taking Trenton to his birth mom for visits and then back to the foster mom so that I could mail gifts. Jay and I filled two boxes full of gifts so that the foster mom had everything she would need for a few months to care for him. With shipping it was into the hundreds of dollars for these boxes.
Mercy offered to send the box back. Total would have been $80.00 round trip.. for a box of socks, blankets and clothes for the other babies at Mercy. I told them to keep the box.
But what I really got steamed up about is that I was told Ted offered to pay us back for the two boxes that went to the social worker. There was a few hundred dollars worth of clothes and toys for him... where was Ted going to get this money.. from the money that is donated for the kids in his care? Does that clear up their consciences to mail me back the boxes or to pay for them?
And tell me this.. each item in those boxes to Trenton was pick FOR Trenton, our son, from us. We laughed and planned as we picked out each item, we made dreams and plans for the future.. please Ted, how were you going to pay us back for our dreams and plans?
Sorry my post is so nasty. It has taken me an entire month to not be even worse. And yes, I have to ask God every day for forgiveness because I get so upset with these people!
I have also found out that I have been lied to by these people as they keep saying Mercy has custody of Trenton.. but the attorney's found out that the birth mom never signed her rights away. So it is the birth mom that has the rights.
So all I can do now is pray that she reads my letter to her along with the letter the attorney sent her and that she sees that we are a good family that wants to love her son!

DEEP BREATHS! There is some sunshine at the end of this cloud.
I signed us up for an exchange student. Call me a glutton for punishment .. but we qualify for a student, with divorces, short length of marriage, too many children.. and not being "Christian" enough for Home of God's Love.. we do qualify for an exchange student!
She is a beautiful girl that will be in 12th grade and have her birthday two weeks after she gets here. We are planning a BBQ for her! LOL One of the students wrote that they wanted to come to America to see how the neighbors have parties... they had watched American TV! So I figured a BBQ would be the way to go!
We have been chatting with her on the yahoo and she is so excited to come here also!
So even though I don't get to keep her.. she will call me mom and be my child for a year!!
I will post more about her down the road!!!

Please say a prayer that Trenton's mom comes to a decision and please pray that we are that decision!

Waiting!

I talked to Wendy in Taiwan, or actually I emailed with Wendy in Taiwan, last Wednesday or Thursday... asking what I should be doing next. I feel like I should have a job but she was in contact with the home that is helping us with our paperwork and the man in charge is working on many cases right now, so he said we just had to have patience! LOL YEAH RIGHT!
She said she would try to get hold of him on Monday, which is it now Monday, just past midnight here, so that makes it past noon over there! And I am "patiently" waiting! LOL
I just want the adoption contract in my hand. Then I will know that Bao-Sheng's mom signed it and that it is all really happening. So many heartbreaks in the last year and this would be the finally break if something happened. I am not thinking that way, but I really would like to see the contract in my hand!! or on my computer screen!
I am going to see if my boxes have even made it close to Taiwan. I mailed them last Monday but I didn't put a rush on them as it is so expensive to send and I sent three boxes!!
Angie leaves in a few weeks for her daughter, my girlfriend Cindy leaves for her two boys, Don and Be leave around the same time as Angie for their little girl.. it is so exciting all these new kids in our lives!! Adoption is a wonderful blessing!

Birth Mom

There are so many factors and so many walls to hit in international adoption that your head spins. One thing about China that you don't fear is the birth mother. The children are left, with no contact as it is illegal in China to abandon your baby. But in Taiwan, it is different, there is a birth mom and she in many cases has to do that final letting go.
Trenton's birth mom did her final letting go today. I had wrote a letter last week begging for her to understand that we would be the parents she would want for her son and that we would love him as much as she would and that we would never let him forget her... I had to dig down in my soul to make sure when I said those words I really did mean them because I love my children and I want my children to love only me as their mom... but then I have never had to wear these shoes.
So after sitting her for a few hours and making sure that I was able to put into words on a peice of paper who I was, who we were as a family and how important having Trenton as MY son... I also had to feel for her and know that I would never take him away from her, completely.
So today the social worker took Trenton over to the jail to see him mom and to give her the letter that I wrote (Wendy translated it for me and made sure that the English to Chinese was done completely right)
And the birth mom said she was very happy that I wanted to love her son and that she wanted me to be his mom.
I opened this email first thing this morning and have been flying on cloud nine all day!
She asked the social worker to ask me to send her pictures of him and letters to her about him. And I have fully agreed to this as I want him to know her and I want to know her. I want Trenton to know that he wasn't given up because he wasn't loved but because of situations in his mom life.
I can not wait to get that baby in my arms!

Chase just got home from a two week trip with Grandma yesteday. We haven't told them yet as we wanted to make 100% sure this was happening...
You should see him and Ali together! I know siblings fight but they REALLY missed each other!! Ali will not let Chase (or Chasey as she calls him) out of her sight.
This is what life is all about!

I will make it through this!!

I got an email from our contact in Taiwan who is actually handling the paperwork... he said DO NOT get the translation. Actually what it is is that the judges are very tough on everything being so right.. so what he wants is to have someone that has done this for him many times translate for us. This puts so much relief on me because of my messy translation from earlier!

And all we are waiting on is to get Mercy to send over their translation of his English name.. I guess the characters can be different so they want to make sure they are both doing it exactly the same and then he will send out our Power of Attorney and our adoption contract!

Every day.. I just sit there and think.. I am the luckiest person ever! I am so blessed to have all the kids I do and now I am finally getting to complete this family...

And I promise everyone.. this is the last!

Have a great evening!

Learning the Ropes for Taiwan

I am really having to learn a lot with this adoption. I am glad I have a new friend that has gone threw the Taiwan ropes along with a great support group for Independent Adoptions.
I have to have my eight page home study all translated. Very scary after what I have already been thought with one translation. But I am on my own for this one!
Sarah and Deana with Morning Light have told me to contact a woman that will do it for a fee. When she sent the bill it was $7072.. FOR EIGHT PAGES!?? LOL
But that was NT money.. so it was only around $235.00.. big relief!
I have sent the HS and I am waiting for her to tell me how to pay her. I should have it back by next Friday!

I didn't make it to the post office today as I have to repack my packages to Trenton.
I am sending two boxes full of fun stuff to the social worker where he is and then I am going to get another box with stuff for the children at The Garden of Mercy for the children there.

If anyone wants to jump into my challenge over on the right side of my blog PLEASE DO.
Deana with Morning Light is a wonderful woman, about to give birth any day now, that has been helping families find their children. On top of that she has applied to the government to be allowed to be a placing agency with the US. So they are building a children area so they will be able to house some of the orphans instead of moving them out to other facilities!

I know in adoption there is always a cause. And I know that my heart wishes I could win the lottery so I could fix all the causes.. but this is a small one.. they only need $1200 for the AC. And after putting out my ten dollar challenge today we are up to $245!!

And some other good news!! I finally after all these years got to call my mom to say I was accepted into college!! Yep, I got my letter.. I will be starting nursing school in two months!! Life is good!

HERE HE IS!!!

I figured that I have the social worker on my side along with the wonderful young woman that took care of him for about eight months of his life...
and when I asked if I could send a care package they told me YES.
So as of right now, I don't see any turning back!!

Jay and I went to the mall tonight and bought a box full of things for him, bibs, shirts, shorts, socks, shoes, pj's, toys and a stuffed animal! And I squeezed it into two Priority Mail boxes.. so it will only be $80.00 to ship both boxes!!

So now I feel I can post the photos! So here he is
Trenton Bao-Sheng Elliott!
And Jay is so excited that he is getting a boy!!
5 Months Old

7 Months Old

8 Months Old

9 Months Old

10 Months Old

Happy Birthday to Trenton

13 Months Old

More Good News!

Well here is the whole scoop!!
He is ours!! It is four in the morning here and four in the afternoon over in Taiwan. I have been emailing back and forth with the children's home, the social worker for Trenton and the best young woman ever, Wendy!

Wendy was taking care of Trenton when he first was seperated from his birth mom. From August 9, 2007 until March 31, 2008.. this was just after his first birthday.
Then he went to a foster home. Wendy is going to find out if I can have the address to the foster mom so that I can send our first package over.

It is all sinking in slowly. They have asked for our names as we don't have the same last name.. and they want to make sure we are married. They have asked for our Home Study for which our social worker has made all the corrections and will be sending it off to me with in a day or so. They have asked us to send in the required letter for the home that is helping with the paper work on that end.
So not counting the courts, the people we are having contact with is all in favor of our adopting Trenton.

I am not sure how all this works from this point on. I know I was asked for a translated home study... by one party.. but told to send the English home study for translation by the other party!! It is all so confusing!! But exciting and the best news I have had in almost a year!!!

The best part of this story is the fact that we wanted a girl.. and Chase kept saying he wanted a boy. Chase loves the little brothers to Polly one of the babies that came home from China in our travel group that doesn't live far from here.. so he thinks having a little brother like that would be the greatest thing since Sponge Bob! And at first Mallory was upset saying she wanted a girl.. but now!! Everyone is beside themselves with JOY!! And Chase is away on vacation with Grandma.. so it will be a HUGE surprise!!

My heart is pounding

There is a process to go through with Taiwan when you don't do the whole agency thing and you go independent. First you must find a child, the child must be declared an orphan by law, then you must send papers and hope your contact is taking care of things on their end.

Well this little boy that we found is an orphan, by the rules. His birth mother is very sick and she was sentence to jail for a very long time. She finally broke down and decided to allow him to go to a family... if she would not have signed these papers he would have sat in the orphanage for at least 12 years.. maybe longer if her sickness won.

But she made the right decision. And the nice thing about Taiwan is that we can keep the birthmother in his life by sending updated pictures of him each year and letting her know how he is.

So the next part is to have all your paperwork sent to the courts. But with this little boy we have to make sure that the people in charge of finding him a home will accept us- larger family, married only three years- not that this is not allowed but like everything in life there is a stigma about the "perfect" family.

Our contact person in Taiwan has contacted a wonderful children's home called The Home of God's Love that will help with our paperwork. She has also contacted a social worker in Taiwan that is in charge of the little boy's life and together everything must come together and make it through the courts!

But I was asked tonight for the name I would like to call him.... and that was my sign that God had stepped in. His given name was sent to me and though I can't post it tonight I will say this.. he was given as part of his name WEI.
I am not making this up.. I sat here and cried for a few minutes trying to take it in. It has to be the sign that I am to let go of our girl in China and know that this is why we did not get her.

I also got three new pictures of him tonight. HE IS SO CUTE! He is a tough looking boy with a bit of mischief in his eyes. I can not wait to post for all of you!
Please pray hard for us in the next few weeks that all of this falls into place and that we finally get to finish Our Adoption Story!

Some Exciting News

It is not written in stone as of yet.. we have to get through the whole homestudy thing.. and I need to speak to my social worker about redoign a few things in the homestudy to make it right.. but we might have found a child!!

I don't know if I have had so much disappointment in the last year that I can't and won't get my hopes up.. but today I got word that a young girl that was a disrupted adoption here in the US was going to another family- we had asked for her, even though she was older. I didn't feel upset today.. just another one that was not meant for us.. but then I get a message from an orphanage in Taiwan that they have a little boy whose mom just signed off on him about two weeks ago.. he is SOOO healthy and soooo cute and they are asking us for our home study to see if we can adopt him...

I know, I know.. it is a BOY... not what we started out wanting.. but maybe that is why it has taken us so long.. we were waiting on him....

PLEASE PRAY FOR US THAT THIS ALL WORKS OUT because it just seems so right!!

Even Mallory was saying.. NO BOYS.. and after taking a peek at his picture she was saying.. I hope we get him mom!!

Summer Begins

The kids have five fun filled days left of school and then we have them home for the summer. I am glad. I would rather the kids never go to school but then when they do stay home it is one fight after another and I am glad they have to go to school!
Chase will be running off with Grandma to tour the southeast US. They have a two week fun filled trip planned with theme parks, water parks, camping, jem stone searching... on and on. The girls and I will just be home here keeping up the house and swimming.

Also, my Alexis is potty training herself! She is such a smart cookie. We put her potty chair in the master bath and she has been taking her diapers off for about two weeks now.. well the other day she just went in and used her pot. She came out to tell grandma "Ali a good girl" as she was patting herself.. so grandma went to investigate and sure enough.. she had used the potty chair! We have now put her in big girl pants for which she things is great... and hopefully she will be fully trained within the next few weeks!!

I went this week and tested for enterance to the nursing school just down the road. Amanda will go there on Monday to take the first test. I am hoping the government will be so kind as to give us a student loan to help out but either way we will be going. I wasn't exactly excited about blood and the rest but I look at it this way.. if it gets my daughter into a job that will take her into old age so she doesn't follow my foot steps.. then all of it will be worth it!

Now down to the nitty gritty.. Adoption. We are still in limbo. I did talk to our attorney this week in Taiwan. He had gotten a few leads on birth moms that might be looking for an American family... this is like finding a needle in a haystack... but at least he is trying.
I have sent many letters out to doctors and clinics in Taiwan about two weeks ago but I haven't gotten anything back yet on these. So we will just keep waiting!

I get so jealous when I see all these families getting their referrals or the travel but I know our day will come!

Well I am off to have a six year old birthday party today!!
Happy Summer to all!!!!!

Happy Mother's Day! 2008

Happy Mom's Day to all the mom's with kids, the mom's expecting a kid and the best, the adopted moms of the world!!!

Well I sent our package out yesterday to another agency. Yep, one more try. Call it punishment for such a perfect life- at least I thought is was perfect- just these crazy countries don't find my life to be so perfect!! We found a wonderful agency that is not going to take ANY money from us until they are sure that we can be matched with a child. They have been working with Taiwan for a long time and know who to have do the translations on the home studies, how to ask the social worker to write the home study so that it is correct but not to add useless details that can be badly translated, and other things that just might help.
We are not out anything if it doesn't work.. so that is a great thing.

I also got to talk with a woman that has adopted from Taiwan and now works with Independent adoptions in Taiwan. She gave me some great pointers on a few things to try... so that is also in my plans.

And of course.. I am going to keep praying that China changes the rules and that I can go get Wei. It never hurts to have a plan and a dream in life!

Happy Mom's Day!!

Also if you haven't bought a ticket for the fund raiser.. PLEASE DO!! If you are the winner you can book a cruise, a family vacation, air line tickets.. any thing a travel agent can book and it is a FREE $500!!
The drawing is on the 24th of this month so not much time.. and it can be used anywhere in the world.. you just have to go on line to the agency that is offering the $500 voucher to book. I checked out their prices and they are the same as booking direct!! So it is a good deal!
My sales pitch for the evening.

Happy News for Angie and Mike

A week before Jay and I left last year to go get Ali from China we started to finally buy her some clothes.. we finally knew a size to buy.
Chase was with us in the store and he really wanted to help but he continued to pick out really UGLY clothes and I continued to tell him he was picking the wrong sizes!LOL
Well there were these two ladies in the store also going through the little girl clothes listening and watching this go on with Chase. Finally one of the women asked me what we were buying all the clothes for and I told her we were going to China to get our daughter. She then said her daughter, the other lady shopping was also going to China to get a daughter.
Come to find out Angie only lives about eight minutes from my front door to hers and that we were both using GWCA.. except we logged in Sept 05 and she logged in Oct 06... so you know where this is going.. Angie and her husband Mike were in for the LONG wait for a referral!!
But yesterday, my cool and calm friend came over to the house, unannounced, to tell me she wanted to show me something... I was a bit puzzled because she always calls and I knew she had to work in a short while...
She asked me if she could pull something up on my computer.. and then said she wanted to show me an email.. I was still puzzled....
GWCA had called her yesterday with a REFERRAL on a BEAUTIFUL little girl!!!
Mallory was standing here and we were all three jumping and crying!!!
Angie is over at the doctor's office as I write having the babies chart looked over.. but she is a healthy little girl with a clept lip/palate and she is just beautiful! So I am sure the doctor is going to give an okay on this end!!
And Angie wants Jay and I to go to China with them!! Which really makes me feel loved!!!
Angie's little girl if from the province just north of Ali's province in the center of China.. and the two girls are about 11 months apart... PERFECT PLAYMATES!!!
CONGRATS TO ANGIE AND MIKE!! You are going to be wonderful parents!

Things are starting to look up!!!!

I am sorry to everyone reading my blog that I took a month off. I just didn't have anything nice to say and I didn't want to say anything nasty.. and I was hurt and upset about the way all of this was handled.
I am still in contact with the agency about this whole thing. What a mess.

But on the brighter side!!! There is a brighter side when you have been bumped and bruised and slammed against the wall in International Adoption!

I have decided not to give up. Which those of you who know me, know I will not give up until I feel it was done to the best of every one's ability...
And for this part, the best of MY ability is to try to find our last child myself.

I have a great new friend that has been giving me a lot of information on Taiwan. Because even though our Agency isn't helping us, we do qualify for Taiwan by all LAWS..and we can adopt if we can find a child.

So I have contacted an attorney in Taiwan who will help me once a child is found and my great new friend told me about a private run home that helps the children.

I can't get into details right now.. because I want to make sure this is all going to happen but the woman and her husband that work with these pregnant moms is talking to our attorney about a young girl that will give birth in June.. to a girl!!

That is all I am saying!! I just need all the prayers out there that this is the child we will have!!!

Updating

I wanted to post tonight, not that I have any news.. just some thoughts.

Well our agency has sent an email stating some figures... I will not accept these figures. I understand that the world needs to be paid for a job, but what if you did not finish that job. My feelings in this is that when we began we were headed to China and they wanted a small amount of money, with the first reject and the turn to Taiwan they asked for a very large amount of money. We did not hesitate to provide them with what they asked for as they assured us that we wouldn't have any problems in Taiwan... but now we are told that we are completely rejected from Taiwan and it is going to cost in the thousands of dollars? I am really praying that they do the right thing.

Second is I went to the "rules" for China, I know I am punishing myself, but it seems Jay's and my "problem" is just that we haven't been married for five years. We would have to wait two more years to apply to China again. We qualify really under every other reason.

I have been on the phone with another agency in Taiwan.. Taiwan works different than China.. through individual orphanages instead of a central government agency.. and we are going to look into one more Taiwan orphanage. A final hope.

And lastly, something we can not act on until after the big date in September- more to this story- but there is Vietnam. Were we qualify 100%!
Vietnam has some sort of a deadline with the US. A few years back the US closed the doors to Vietnam and would not let parents adopt from that country. They had to clean up their acts or something.. so in September either they program will remain open and we can apply or close and we have no hope!
The "more to this story" is I should have just gone there in the first place. I started all this last August. I could be home with my child now. But I was so afraid of spending the extra money as Vietnam because it is more expensive.. yet now with what is happeneing to our adoption money from this first agency.. what was the difference!
I am getting upset!

Well I put two boxes of Chocolates, clothes, toys etc together today and I am mailing it to China and to our daughter of heart. I just pray each night that a family comes along for her or China's rules change and God lets us have her!
I have been told "through the grapevine" we are not to send gifts.. why???? I send boxes of stuff to the orphanage that Ali came from and I have no child there.. so I am sending this stuff to my child that the GOVERNMENT will not let me have!

Thank you all for your love and support!

News from CCAA

Well ASIA sent me over an email today to say that CCAA again turned us down for Wei.
That is it.. it is over. No more hoping or praying or waiting by the computer each day. Done.

I cried. Then I became angry. And now I am numb... or maybe just tired from crying. I am still angry though.

I want to understand why the agency got a PRE APPROVAL from both China and Taiwan and then we were rejected by both. Is it a bait and switch? Get our money and then let us wait for eight months.. YEP EIGHT MONTHS from start to finish and no kid and not sure how much money we will be out of.

I appreciate the girls I worked with at ASIA. I told them that today. They were GREAT about communication... but how do we go from Pre approvals to rejected? I know that they can only communicate what they are learning also but then should it cost the adopted family?

Then I called another agency that said they could get us approved for Taiwan... how is that possible? And I emailed with a woman who is in the same boat as us with another agency.. only her agency is promising her a child.... ????? I am going to watch her blog... because there would be no possible way that China turns us down twice and then gives other families children... would there?

I don't need any more kids. I have a houseful.. but I wanted another child. And there are MILLIONS of Children in this world that need a family.. yet I feel like we have hit a brick wall with these countries. We don't qualify because of STUPID things that wouldn't affect a child's love for a mom and dad.

I am sorry Wei. You will always have a spot in our hearts.

My girlfriend is predicting that we will find Wei's file on the shared children's list next.. we will see.. I just think each day a child grows older in an institution will will one more day of life long problems that child will take with them. I hope God will see you to a family very soon.

No news on Wei.. but some other good news!

Okay, we can start this off by saying NOTHING YET! I can't understand why this is taking so long. I really thought yesterday about the time CCAA would have been at work, they had my file on the desk and were stamping a great big APPROVAL on it.. but as it is past two in the afternoon my time, I know my agency hasn't gotten any news yet!

I did get a cool call today.. this is for those of you who admired my work on cleaning out my son's closet (see past blog entry)... I WON!! She called me today to tell me that I won and I won FIRST PLACE!!!! $500.00 Gift Card from Ikea!!!!
That is so great!! I called Jay right away and ran down my list of things I wanted to do to the house that I could apply that money to!!!! He said "Slow down girl!!" LOL
I wanted to run over there last week to put my name in on their contest for a free year of mortgage payments but just blew it off thinking how unlucky I am with stuff like this!! And then I win!!! YEAH!
I still need to post a picture of his whole room.. as you didn't get to see his cool bed!

No news yet

Today I was going to throw in the towel. I have been hearing bad news from families that applied to CCAA that don't qualify under the new guidelines.. we are one of them and CCAA sticks to their guns. I know they have to make rules, they have to stick by the rules or there is no system in place... but what is that old saying?... Rules are made to be broken or There is always an exception to every rule?
Scroll down and look at this child face, does she not just look like she should call me mom and Jay, dad. But I got up on the ugly side of my bed today (on top of the fact that I am cramming on my license and waited till the last minute to get my hours in) and said, "enough is enough.." I have a box of fun stuff that I have been waiting and waiting to mail to her.. I want to make plans.. whether it be going to get her or not.. I need to know what my life and where my life is going.
As those of you in this adoption circle know, it is hard to get on with your life when you are waiting. You can't sell your house, you hate to start a new job that you will have to say, "oh, by the way sometime in the near future I need about six months off." Do you buy new furniture or stick it in your adoption fund, are we going or are we staying.. the head is spinning!
But I got upset. And I emailed my agency... Thank you God for hooking me up with Marci. She is so patience with me! I emailed her and said that I am done, what is our next plan of action because waiting on China is not going good... and she calmed me down...
And our social worker came over today for Ali's one year post placement and we talked and she said the same thing.. You have to hold on! Your agency is doing a great job for you and CCAA is looking over your file again.. This is GREAT NEWS!
So we are waiting, still. They are going to send a fax to CCAA tonight to find out if we are any closer to an answer.
Maybe this is my brick wall talking.. because last time it took CCAA so long, I got my hopes really really high that they were going to say YES.. so this time, I am not finding "time on my side" or the "longer we wait the better" the outcome!
LOOK AT THAT CHILD'S FACE!! She should have been out eating pizza with us tonight instead of being put to bed by a nannie!
Sorry, I am having a pity party!
Just a little while longer and we should have an answer.

Many Thanks

I wanted to say thank you to those of you leaving comments and prayers. I just don't know how to answer through the blog as it doesn't seem to give an email back.

I read my last weeks posts...and forgot to explain how I came to get new pictures of Wei. I was bored and wanted to look at the agencies SN kids.. just to look. I emailed and asked if I could have the current password.. JUST TO LOOK!
I was oohing and ahhing over the kids when I came to a face, that looked familiar but ..??? Then I saw one of the older pictures of her and realized it was Wei ONLY OLDER...
So I emailed the agency to say, "wow you have updated photos!!" and she emailed me back and said yes.. we weren't going to send until we had an approval.. but I begged!
I am so glad to see her face!! It was a bit of a shock at first, only because I wasn't expecting her to grow so much... but it was almost two years between photos from what I can tell!!
She is not a baby anymore!!
I won't post again this week.. unless we hear some good news!!
Thank you again everyone for your thoughts and prayers!

A bit down

I have been in bed very ill for the last few days... if nothing else I dropped a few pounds...but the depression has set in. I can handle waiting.. if that is what it is- waiting. But when the hope comes that an answer will soon come and then doesn't come day after day, I can't handle waiting. When adopting Ali we had a timeline. Parents waiting Non special needs children are all logged in by dates, and you sit back and wait for your date and your referral. With the special needs children you just don't know. I have seen families get a pre approval in three days and some three months... or in our case, we waited three months to be told no. Now we wait again.
I know that our agency will open around noon our time (different coasts) so I check my email from noon to one.. if there is nothing from Marci, I know it will be another long 24 hours before I can get the hope up again.
I have decided that I am going to post Wei's photos. I know we don't have an official yes.. but, if God decides, we are not the family for her, maybe by me posting her face another family will come sooner and she will get to find her family.
So here she is.... hopefully our new daughter!!!!



About 14 months old- she had just had her surgery.



Recent update photos that we got last week!

Another Week Gone By

I know I am just tired today as I worked late the last two nights and I am very blue.. but I had my mind set I was going to hear something on Ali's Gotcha Day, then that came and went I figured it would be by today..the end of the second week... but that has now come and gone so we wait again till next week.

I did get an email from Marci at our agency, she is so encouraging, but stated because the person who is trying to help us was out last week, then they asked for the letter from our agency to add strength to our side, then they couldn't find our LOI and needed to have that sent again...etc.. one thing after another. But I am now understanding that the woman who is advocating for us is not the new director of special needs.. so I am not sure who, why, how or what is going on! Everything is just rumors and speculation in this adoption game.

I must just set in myself the fact that I can't change other people, I can't make them make a decision, I have to wait and because of the Olympics we won't be bringing this child home until September at the earliest if CCAA can understand how much we want to bring her home... it just stinks because I could have her here with us now.

And maybe I need to stop thinking so hard about all of this and just get on with things.. if it is meant to be it will be. If not then God has another plan for Wei and for our family. And maybe the disappointment won't hurt so bad.

Happy Gotcha Day!! One year!!

It is amazing what adoption can do for a person's soul. Many people look at me like I am crazy when I tell them how many bio children I have and that we have adopted and that we want to adopt another but there is always a reason for everything in life and Ali is our reason for life!

I stayed up late last night looking over pictures of the trip to China, the people we met because of adoption and the last year in general...WOW, what a year!! And the best part is there is more to come!
I think the other parents were also looking over photos last night as I got a few emails from some of them with pictures of our adoption day (yep, took us all a year to exchange pictures!) The Chinese Red Thread connecting us together!

I was looking at photos of the girls at the government center when we first walked in, all dressed exactly the same, with their dark hair and olive skin... I just remember how fast it went with eleven babies running around and eleven families trying to get their camera snapping... my mom kept saying, "there she is!!" What a day, what an adventure, what a great kid!!!

She was so fun last night at the Steak House... I didn't feed her a big lunch so the poor thing was starving by the time the food came and she kept up with daddy, bite for bite! Chase even eats good when we go there! Not that Chase doesn't eat good all the time but he loves the steak! Jay said he wishes we could cook the food to taste the same at home!! Me too!

Now for the update on our Wei!... I made her a photo album last night... I am putting it into a box today with her gifts because I KNOW today is going to be our acceptance day!! Marci emailed me late yesterday after I had posted yesterday's blog to say that CCAA has requested a recommendation letter from our agency's director. ASIA was going to email it over to them before closing time yesterday, which would be early morning in China. So that means that while everyone here, except me, slept... our lives were being changed! Marci, said it was good news that they were asking for this!... I know I shouldn't get my hopes up until I am standing in China with her in my arms but this was meant to be!!

I did a page in her photo album with the whole family, then I did a page with the girls bedroom... and I pasted a picture of her and Ali on that page with her new name.. we had originally picked Riley, hence the blog page title.. but we met a girl name Kiley about two weeks ago.. and decided we like Kiley better as a girls name and it sounds nice with Wei's name... so Kiley Wei. And she looks like a Kiley Wei!! As soon as we get our approval I will post her picture for the world to see!!

Please keep praying! We are at the top of the hurdle and we need to make it over!!

Ali and I are off to lunch with Mallory at school!! Mallory didn't want to miss Ali's gotcha day so we promised to come eat yummy school lunch!

Still Waiting

Monday: It is hard to make a blog that wants to talk about the excitement of your weekend...Ali's birthday that was a ton of fun while also trying to hide the disappointment of not hearing anything today. It is far to late in the day for CCAA to contact ASIA... so we won't hear anything. Tomorrow would be our Gotcha Day for Ali except that it is leap year so we have to "have" her one extra day to official hit our Gotcha Day... so now what I am praying is that Marci calls me Wednesday to say Wei is ours... that would be the icing on the cake!!!!
Ali's official Gotcha Day 03/05/07 and our official approval day for Wei's adoption the same date one year later... tell me that wouldn't be the best!!!

Tuesday: It has taken me all night to get this posted so it is now actually Tuesday.. and it is now noon... my stomach is in knots... I am not sure if I want the phone to ring or not to ring... no news is still hope!....and all I can do is hope that humanity is out there somewhere! I promised Marci yesterday that I wouldn't bother her again until she called me, she thought that maybe with the woman being out a few days last week at CCAA that she was just overly busy. I know that there are a million babies needing a home...but she just needs to pull on the file of one Zhang Wei and mark APPROVED on it!!

We are going out to the Japanese Steak house tonight to celebrate Ali's one year with our family-HER FAMILY!... it has flown by! She is the same kid but not... her personality on the Gotcha Day one year ago is still there... she loves to look at herself in the mirror, very demanding, loves to smile at the camera but she is now very lovable, touchable and will give and receive kisses! She rules the house and loves popcorn and pizza!... well food in general!! LOL
It has been a great year with this child. I still feel that Ali was meant to be my child and that God just put her in the wrong mom's belly!

Now let's get Wei home and call this family COMPLETE!!!

Trying to make time Fly!

I just wanted to update those of you who are waiting with me... no news yet. Marci sent me a message yesterday saying the woman in charge at CCAA was going to be out until next week so we won't hear anything until maybe Monday.

So much is running through my head. I had my homestudy changed to Taiwan, I had my 171 H issued to Taiwan.. I will have to change everything... on top of the expense it is more time that Wei will be away from our family. (That is my positive thinking!...she is IS COMING HOME!)

So please, we have a few extra days to call in our prays to get this baby home! Pray harder than you ever have before!

I stayed away from this computer yesterday... to keep myself busy and try not to think so I started a project in Chase's room. Started out just wanting to clean his room, bu that was impossible with what was in his closet.. so I took Jay to Ikea to get some closet organizers. That was a lot of work! Especially as I bought the stuff too big and we had to load it all back and return it to the store to get the right size. Jay said he doesn't need to go to the Gym, he does the Ikea workout...load, unload, load, unload... and believe me when I say those shelves were HEAVY!

I took some before and after shots as Ikea is having a contest... I am bringing my pictures there this afternoon.. hopefully we will win the $500!!!

Mallory wants her closets to look like this... so that will be my next project. My home will be an Ikea showroom... but the stuff is such a good price and it is neat stuff!!

FROM THIS...





TO THIS....

No news... is that really good news?

Nothing today. I kept very busy and tried to stay away from this computer. I am fighting back the tears as I type. They just can't say no twice! She was meant for our family!

Good news today is that Mallory has been working on a project with her favorite teacher at school. Mallory wanted to do some fund raisers for the kids in China or anywhere in the world for that matter... and her teacher made an appointment with the principle to ask permission for Mallory to start her organization through school.. it is called Kids for Kids.

They will be going to the elementary school and reading to the five year olds, doing car washes and t shirt sales to raise money to do bigger projects.. etc.. it is all in the works...

Well one of the teachers came up to her today and told her congratulations... that she was being nominated for the Doers and Dreamers through Disney!! We haven't confirmed it yet but she is so excited and I am just proud of her for wanting to help people!! Most of the time she is my GOOD KID!! (Mallory get that room cleaned!)

Sad News/ Happy News...my head is spinning!

I called Angie.... I had to tell someone. Sometimes keeping things in creates bad vibes and today I need the good ones. But Angie said I couldn't tell everyone that I had to keep it low key until we find out...as to not "stir the pot" And I also emailed three women that I love to talk to about adoption Patty, Vanessa and April. All mom's with China Children like me so they totally understand all of this craziness!! So that all four of my friends that understand me and international adoption could say a deep prayer for me tonight!

Yep, I knew last week what was happening but I didn't want to stir that pot either and I was keeping quiet... but when I started seeing families from my Taiwan groups dropping out because they were told their families were too large I knew what was coming... Marci at ASIA did not say my family was too large she said that 22 years ago, when a jerk guy that my girlfriend was dating started a fight with her and called his roommate for "backup" and I called the police, and he came at me and went to swing at me and I caught his hand in my teeth...and I was arrested and taken to jail and went in front of a judge who was almost laughing about the whole thing... and he fined me $200 dollars and it was over- that THAT is why Taiwan turned my family down for a child!! That was 22 YEARS AGO!! But because of that Taiwan felt we weren't a good family. But...

YEP THERE IS A BUT TO THIS STORY!!... because all weekend long I knew this was coming and all weekend long I searched the Internet for a country that wanted a 40 something woman who had an arrest record 22 years ago for biting a guy with five kids and a great husband ... and there aren't many countries that would take a woman in my position.... but......

In the first breath before Marci told me about Taiwan she also told me that Wei's file was going back to CCAA... that no family had come forth for her and that ASIA's woman in China actually went to CCAA and spoke to the woman in charge and told her that they didn't find a family that fit all the new rules but they did have a family that wanted Wei and that the England/Elliott family still wants Wei... and the director said she was going to review our file again... and that we still have a chance for the child we always felt was the right child for us!! I couldn't breath when Marci told me this.. I am still not breathing!!
Every day for the last three months I would tell Jay that it was so unfair that we wanted her and that she was meant for us and he would tell me there was nothing I could do about it that CCAA said no. And every day I would tell Jay that I will never give up hope that China would change their rules and that Wei would still be there for us when the rules changed and I was going to get her.

Now can I make it through the next 48 hours waiting on the call.. will CCAA make the one exception for a family that loves with all their hearts a little child we have never met but fell in love with because of her beautiful eyes??
Now I know God is watching over me!

I am not sure who reads my blog as I don't really push it on people, it is just there for me to vent and brag and pour my heart out... but tonight and tomorrow night if you are out there and you read this... please put my family in your prayers, please put Wei in your prayers that CCAA finds it in their hearts to let her join our family!!

Ali's Day

It was a very nice day yesterday... well at least after I got back from the doctor... long story and not here!! But I will live!
Amanda watched Ali for me so I could go.. the two girls went and had their nails done. Ali had a pattern on her big toe that matched Amanda's. Amanda must have told her her nails were wet because three hours later I tried to touch her nail and she gave me a scolding!! LOL
Mallory made a cake for Ali.. for which she couln't wait for a fork and ate like a dog! We all laughted and laughted.






I had picked Chase up from school early and in the car I kept singing "Let's go Outback tonight" so when Jay got home Chase said, "Dad, mom keeps singing that we are going to the Outback!" So that is where we went and all the servers sang to HB to her!
And the best part is before bed, because she hates to go so bad, she convinced Jay and I that she needed a bowl of popcorn in our bed while she watched her cartoons! And she got her bowl of popcorn!



I can't wait for her party next weekend!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ALEXIS!!!

Well she is finally two! Not that I wanted time to fly but it is just nice to say we made it to this special day! We have a crazy day today because it is also Jay's and my third wedding anniversary... he says with each new kid he goes farther and farther down the line for attention... now even his "anniversary" is no longer his!! LOL
We are going to do a small Happy Birthday with just us today and then next weekend have a big fun party for the girl!! She is really something! I am told by my family that she is spoiled (pot calling the kettle black)... she is not spoiled just attached...to ME!! She loves her mom!! And she is very determined... like her big sister. The whole family was here for the last five days and it was so crazy... Ali had to put her two cents in also when the big kids were giving her a hard time!

Also I got news today from one of the other families that was in line for Taiwan through our agency... this has me very concerned. She had gotten two referrals and they turned both of them down... now Taiwan told them they only qualified for an older child...which they didn't want, because they had too big of a family. We have one more child then them plus Jay's two kids so that makes us in a not so good position with the orphanage in Taiwan.

The woman did say that maybe Taiwan was just upset with them because they kept turning down the referrals...but then if that isn't going to work for a family isn't it better to turn the referral down then to take a child that won't "fit in"

With this family pulling out of the program that just moved us up one spot... making us Family Number 2. It is all so confusing as I just read an email from a family that put in their Home Study to Taiwan in January of 2008 that already has a referral yet there are families in Taiwan that have been waiting for 28 months! It just doesn't make any sense!!

So to wrap up three good things today... we are family number 2 and it is Ali's Birthday and my husband still loves me after three years of calling me his wife!!

Chinese New Year Party in Tampa

I am posting this not in order but will make it jump into my blog on the right date.. we have had company all week and it was hard to keep up!
The CNY Celebration with our agency Great Wall China Agency is held in Tampa each year... but this was the best! First because we have been going for the last few years and only got to admire the other families kids... this year we had our Ali!! and second because over the last year I have been blessed to meet a few families that are dear to my heart!! and they were all there!! So we had a great time.

We had planned on going down on Sunday just for the CNY but then Christine, Gene with Connor and Lily said they were doing the Busch Gardens thing on Saturday... so we decided to join them. After this fact my sister called to say she and her family were coming down from Georgia so we invited my brother with his family and my mom. It was a huge group. The park was busy but we were able to do a lot! and the weather was GREAT!

We had a wonderful, tiring day! Then Deb took our kids back to the hotel and mom, Kevin, Jay and I hit the one big casino in Florida... we didn't win! LOL

On Sunday we did the CNY celebration and it was a lot of fun. The food is never good but the company was wonderful!! And the kids were so cute in their silk, dancing around, taking pictures on the Red Couch!

Fund Raisers To Begin

Moya, the moderator and woman that runs Dianjiang Kids International, www.dianjiangkids.org has asked me to help with the website. I have no idea what I am doing computer wise but flyers, banners anything like that is my cup of tea... so with the help of my brother I am learning a new project, writing web pages! This should be fun. So I am emailing Moya till she is blue in the face with "give me more to do, give me more to do!!" and she asks me if I am bored. HECK YEA I AM... I have finished yet another paper chasing Dossier period in my life and EVERYTHING has come to a halt... I am driving myself up walls!

So I decided tonight it is time for the all mighty fundraising and grant search for this adoption. I never thought I would need help but as we all know the real estate market is sooooo bad right now and everything in my world of making money has come to the same halt as my paper chasing dossier days!

So with my girlfriend, Angie, who is also waiting on her referral from China- logged in October 2006 and has a long wait ahead we are going to do some fundraisers to help offset a second adoption in 18 months.

For those of you who know me, I did a huge fundraiser for Dianjiang Kids International at Christmas called The Santa Bus... those who went LOVED it and those who didn't go realized, they missed the best night out ever! So to take this to the next step, Angie and I are arranging A Bunny Hop. Yes, that is what I said!! LOL
We are going to hold this event on May 8, 2008 starting at 5:00 PM at Sun on the Beach, in Kissimmee, Florida.

Now that I am learning to write websites, I am hoping to get my HOP on line in the next few weeks... so please watch for this website!!

We are also going to do a huge Neighborhood Garage Sale, ALL DONATIONS ARE WELCOME, on March 11 and 12, 2008.. starting at 7 AM... yep that is right... Angie says 7 AM!!

And then we have two car washes planned in the next few months.. hoping to use the A&W on 192 in Kissimmee... more to come on that one!

If nothing else, we are going to have a good time, and that is what family and adoption is all about!!

Paper Chase Officially Done!!

I sent Mallory out to the mailbox tonight... it is Sunday but I have been so sick all weekend that I didn't care what was in the mail yesterday...and it is official... we have a 171-H!! This time it came with Jay as my husband and we are approved to adopt from TAIWAN!! I am so excited. Now we just have to sit back and wait for a match on the other end!

Earlier tonight Jay was watching the video of our Gotcha Day with Ali... and he cried. It is so emotional, this whole experience. Christopher, number one son, came over today and started in on me again about why are we adopting another child (he has the first child, most spoiled syndrome) and he stared talking like my mother "Jay is only doing this because you want him to mom"... thank goodness Jay stepped in and told Christopher what I have been telling my mom all along... Jay is adopting because Jay wants to adopt and Jay and Ginnie are a team and the decision was made as a team.
I hear this from so many couples that are in the process of adopting that they get tired of the opinions from their families. We all tip toe on egg shells for our parents.

I called my dad the day we sent our request off for the adoption in China and because I wanted to scream from the roof tops of every building in the world with my excitement I felt I just had to tell someone! My conversation started as this, "Dad, you know I have done things in my life that you don't approve of but always in the end it works out and everything is wonderful, right?" and he says, "Yes?" and I say, "I want to say something and I want a positive response from you, okay?" and he says, "Okay"... "Jay and I just applied to adopt another baby!!!" I won't write what he said...but it wasn't positive or reinforcing....why?
Sitting there that night I cried and though I have the most un-supportive family ever... but I talk to other families and other woman and I am not alone.
Mallory told me she is adopting five kids and guess what.. I am going to be there as the best, most supportive grandma in the world when the time comes!! At least my daughters understand this!

Watch out Taiwan here we come!! Now it is time for the fund raiser!!

CIS I-171H

I just got a call from Immigrations for Jay... they lost his finger prints we had taken on November 3, 2007. Jay has that kind of luck! When we got our 171-h back for Ali in July 2005.. it was issued to ME and some guy with the last name Warlick??
I called Jay laughing at him saying the government feels my new husband Mr. Warlick and I are acceptable to adopt a child from China! It took us about ten days to finally get straight and have a new paper issued with Jay's name on it!

The guy at CIS was very nice and he checked a few places and finally found Jay's fingerprints! I am so glad as Jay said he hated going to get them and we have done it three times now because of the long wait for Ali our first set expired... we have 15 months from November to bring our new little one home or he is going to have to go take the prints again! Sorry Jay!!

The man also said they were trying to expedite our papers and they had everything so I should see my 171 in no time!! Thanks CIS Orlando!!!

Dossier to Agency

Well my dossier was Fed Ex'd to the agency today (minus the 171-H which should follow in a short bit) The CIS office in Orlando is so great and they get things done quick!! I just had to get these papers over to ASIA today so that I could forget about them. Actually I was getting myself so confused between the China adoption and the Taiwan adoption I have no clue if I did anything right... so I am praying the girls will once again babysit me and make sure I have the correct paperwork!
Now let's pray for a quick referral. I just don't want Ali to be years older than this little one... which is what happened between Chase and Ali.

And the agency said that the errors were so small in the HS that it didn't matter. It was not something that would stop the adoption! That was good news!

Happy ....Sad

I know I can get upset over the little things and I shouldn't, but all the silly paperwork that has to be done for an adoption is crazy. I told my social worker in August that I needed a home study for adoption number two. We finally got together in November... yep November. She had sent me the papers for our child abuse clearance that I mailed back right away in October but the last page wasn't there so when she came to the house I was able to give her this page, which meant the paper didn't go out to the DCF until mid November... at this time we were still waiting on our approval from China so there wasn't a huge rush... I just wanted it all done so that when the approval came I could have my dossier totally done and out the door to our agency.
Well as you know, we got turned down from China on December 4th so after the few days of crying our agency said, "let's move you over to our new Taiwan program"... this is a whole different game... you start out by having your Home Study submitted and then go from there on the paperwork.. the only way we could get in line was to have this HS.
So now I became a maniac!! I called the SW and told her I needed it TODAY.. but we needed the clearance and she said, "it should be here this Thursday if not for sure next Thursday" So I waited. But neither Thursday did it show up and I think she went out of town for a few days and I was going INSANE!! My agency said they didn't think another family was ready to submit their HS but they would let me know.. and THERE WAS ONLY TWO SPOTS LEFT!!
I finally could not take it any longer and started calling a woman I know at the Dept of Child Services who gave me a number to call. I upset my "person"... my social worker but I could not just sit and wait!!! I don't want her upset but I was upset and had to do something!
Then the agency told me that another family sent their HS... so now there was only ONE spot left!
Finally the woman from DCF called to my agency and said if I gave permission she would run our backgrounds right then and there and give us a clearance... and I said YES OF COURSE YOU CAN.
We had a clearance in 15 minutes and the next morning I had a HS! I felt a HUGE ton fell from my shoulders! Our SW got it signed and sent and we then were logged in...
BUT THERE IS MORE!
SW needed a letter from me to attach to HS to send to CIS for the 171-H clearance for bringing a baby through immigrations.. and I forgot.. I really forgot!... but I did finally get it to her and today I recieved my signed original HOME STUDY!
and please don't tell her.. but there are a few errors in there and I have to call her tomorrow and have her correct and resend!!.. SHE IS GOING TO KILL ME!
There has to be an easier way to get these babies to a loving home! There just has to be!

We are going to try again!

Well sometime into the summer after having Alexis home for about five months, my husband and I decided that we would really like to do the adoption thing again. So I started researching our options.. knowing that China has changed their "rules" I looked into the other countries. I am stubborn, (wonder where my kids get it from) but decided that I wanted another child from China. I did my homework on all the options and countries but really felt that was where Jay's and my heart was! So we started calling the agencies to see if we could find one that would work with us, to advocate for us and maybe, just maybe, we could convince CCAA that we were a good family for another child from their country.
There were many, many disappointments along the way. We started gathering our dossier paperwork again in August, spoke to an agency that works with Taiwan that said we would not qualify for a program called Birth Mothers for Taiwan, applied through an agency for a special needs girl in China that no other family had asked for- but got turned down at the last minute because another family turned up that fit the CCAA's rules, we checked out Vietnam but just didn't think we could swing that amount of money... tears, tears and more tears...until we call our new agency, ASIA, out of Portland, Oregon that said they would advocate for us and they had a little girl they wanted us to take a look at.
When we got her file we sent it to our doctor, who looked everything over and said this was a "special need" we could handle. So we jumped with joy and rushed to get our letter of intent sent to China. This little girl was even more special and more perfect than we could imagine, her birth date was the day after Alexis' but she was one year older and that made her born the day after Jay and I got married. God sent us this kid! So the paper chase began. Along with the wait.
After not hearing from CCAA for weeks and weeks my hopes started to rise that they were going to approve us.. why turn someone down after keeping them on edge for so long??!!
And we waited and we waited and we waited for CCAA to give us our pre approval for this little girl, saying they would accept us even though we didn't meet the new rules,and we waited and we waited until one terrible email day in December when we got a message from our agency saying that CCAA turned us down for our Martial Situation (we hadn't been married long enough under the new rules) The only thing to do was to cry. It really felt like we had loss our child.

After a few days I decided that I was being selfish. If I couldn't have her I needed to find her a family, so I started sending emails out on the special needs yahoo groups to find her a family. A few have called, but here is it six weeks later and not one family has sent another letter of intent for her. She sits in an orphanage in China waiting for a family.

What was our next option to complete our family? Our agency had just opened a program with an orphanage in Taiwan called Chung Yi and they felt we were qualified under the rules of Taiwan to adopt a non special needs baby from Taiwan. So I pushed my poor social worker and the agency to get my papers done and sent to Taiwan to get in line. The agency would only take four families at a time and at that moment only had two. A few days before our Home Study was complete a third family got in line. We were waiting on the child abuse clearance for the state to get back to our social worker so she could give us a good report. I was getting upset and frustrated that I was waiting and waiting again, so I stirred the pot and started making phone calls and emails.

Well thank the good Lord we found a wonderful woman that worked with Child Services that could complete our clearance and send it over to Marci at our agency. (Marci was helping and pushing for us and she did a GREAT job in getting that clearance to our social worker!) and then the next day we got our HOME STUDY and off to Taiwan it went on December 21, 2007!!! So we are now in line as family number four!!

What the future brings we don't know. We could still be rejected. Taiwan wants families that don't have kids.. .we have many kids. Taiwan has a different system then China, there is a Judge you have to go through and we just pray we get past that point. How long it will take we don't know. Family #1 got their referral on December 28, 2007 just five weeks after sending in their Home Study but we could wait for a year before getting ours (but we are now family #3!!!!) So I wanted to continue with this blog of our life with Alexis and our other children and think how lucky I am today to have the children I have.

And in my heart I pray that China changes the rules back and we can still apply for the child we fell in love with. Maybe that is why another family hasn't come along because she is being saved for us!