Rollercoaster Week

It has been a rollercoaster of a week to say the least. 

Tuesday, August 28 -  We were expecting to hear that the signature they had been waiting on had been received and that we were scheduled to leave again!  Instead, we heard that the notary was not available so they couldn’t get the signature and didn’t think they would be able to until next week.

Wednesday, August 29 -  We got a call saying that they thought the notary would be available sooner than they originally thought!  They planned to talk to AIT the next day to request an appointment date of September 12th, which would mean we’d leave on the 5th or 6th!

Thursday, August 30 -  Signature was received!  However, they had not had time to get it to AIT to request a new appointment yet.

Friday, August 31 -  A new appointment at AIT has been scheduled!  However, it’s not for September 12th like we thought it would be.  Instead it was scheduled for September 20th.  Kate, our Taiwan adoption coordinator, was on vacation this week, so she is supposed to call us on Tuesday to confirm what day we will need to depart.

I think we’ve had enough with the false labor and are ready for the actual delivery!

6 Years Ago Today



Maya's Referral Picture 6 Years Ago

 

Six years ago today we traveled to our adoption agency’s office and saw Maya’s face for the first time. At that moment our lives were forever changed. She has brought so much joy to our lives. I don’t even know how I used to occupy my free time, but now I can’t even remember what free time is! She is always keeping me busy. The phrase I hear most often coming out of her mouth is “Mom, can we do gymnastics?” That’s how we spend most of our free time. Even when she’s been at gymnastics practice for 2 hours that’s the first thing she says when we get home. She has grown and matured so much since that day 6 years ago. She is a smart, funny, talented, compassionate and beautiful little girl that is growing into a beautiful young lady on the inside and out. This morning on the way to daycare I told her to look at the sky. The sun was hidden behind a cloud with a small hole in the middle where the sun was shining brightly through. You could also see the sun’s rays shooting out below the cloud. Her response was “Whoa! That’s cool how there’s strokes. It’s like God’s Power is coming out!” I wonder if she would have had the same response if she were being raised in China? It’s possible, but not likely. It was pretty awesome.



Maya Today



   

Delayed Longer!

The typhoons have passed and it sounds like they weren’t as bad as expected and also didn’t hit the area where Ciana is staying like they originally predicted. Also, we heard yesterday that they were supposed to go today to get the additional information requested by AIT. However, we just heard that there has been a delay in getting this done due to the notary not being available. Apparently, now the notary won’t be available until sometime next week! So, I guess we are delayed longer than we thought. I’m not sure yet what this means for timeframe to travel. I was already concerned that we were going to miss Maya’s first gymnastics meet and now it looks like it’s possible we might miss the first two! I’m sure it will be worth it in the end, but it’s still disappointing to not get to see her first meet or meets of her life after all of the training we’ve taken her to over the last few years. Also, I’m sure Ciana is growing and hopefully will still fit in all the clothes I have packed! We are praying that they are able to get the required information without any issues and that our AIT appointment will be issued according to God’s perfect timing!

Maya's Mock Meet

Maya had her first mock meet for gymnastics last weekend.  They are preparing for her first Level 4 season, which starts the middle of September.  They brought in a judge and went through all of their routines like they will at an actual meet.  It was a great learning experience for the girls and the parents.  The judge talked with them after each event to tell them what they could improve upon and how deductions are taken.  Wow, is the scoring complicated.  One of the girls on her team has a family member that's a photographer and she took the attached pictures.  They turned out really awesome!  Hopefully she'll be able to continue taking them throughout the season, because I tried to take some and all I got was a big blur!

Not Leaving!

Well, our journey has been postponed a bit.  Apparently AIT, the US Consulate, is doing their investigation of the adoption and they are requesting more information.  This is exactly what our agency was concerned about when I talked to them last Friday.  However, when we spoke on Monday they assured me that they were pretty confident that it wouldn’t be a problem and we should go ahead and book our tickets.  Now with two typhoons, Typhoons Tembin & Bolaven, expected to hit Hualien and Taitung counties today and continue through the weekend they think that could delay them getting the information to AIT on time so our agency has advised us to postpone our departure.  I believe Ciana’s birth mom is from Hualien and Ciana is in Taitung so you can pray for their safety as the typhoons make landfall.

The Journey Begins

The two year plus long journey that this adoption process has taken so far now comes to fruition with a journey across the ocean.  Our travel dates have been confirmed, our tickets are booked and we are scheduled to depart this Friday morning.  The last few days have been a whirlwind.  We found out on Friday that our requested Consulate appointment date of August 31 was accepted, but changed to August 30th.  There was some question about whether they would be ready for that date or not, so we had to wait until Monday to get the official word that yes, they thought we would be okay to accept that date.  So, I spent the weekend packing what I could.  Then when we got the word yesterday we frantically searched for flights.  With the short time frame our travel agent was having trouble finding anything.  After much stress, we finally settled on a plan and we are all booked to go.  The first leg of our journey takes us from Des Moines through Detroit and then directly into Taipei with a 17 hour flight.  We will have a free day in Taipei before flying to Taitung on Monday to receive Ciana.  We’ll spend two days in Taitung and then fly back to Taipei for three days before returning to the United States.  While this is an exciting time, it is also very stressful, anxious, etc.  Please pray for our health, for smooth flights and easy connections, for an easy attachment and anything else you can think of!  All in all we’d like prayer for, as I've heard it said, a smooth delivery!

Waiting Again!

I guess we should be used to waiting by now, but here we are waiting again. This time we’re waiting on AIT to confirm our appointment date. Our request of an August 31st appointment date was sent to them on Tuesday, August 14th and we heard yesterday that they’re beginning their appointment procedure for our case. So, we’re told we should hear something soon. If we don’t, it is likely they will push the date out a little further. If they accept our proposed date we could be leaving in one week!

Meanwhile, Ciana turned 4 months old on Friday, so we got an update and some new photos! She is now 13 lbs 8 oz and 24.4” long. She has so much hair that they are able to put in a piggy tail! She had a friend go home to be with her forever family recently and we were told she has been refusing her bottle because her friend left.  On the bright side, they said she is rolling over and she feels very good about herself after each time she rolls over. She is smiley and playful!

It's Official!!!

It was 9:46 this morning when the call came in.  I was upstairs at work talking to the girls about the status of the adoption and how I have been waiting patiently by my phone expecting to hear something any day.  It was now 20 days into the 30 day maximum wait until our final decree would be issued.  I got back to my desk and checked my cell phone, like I have many times over the recent days, just to see if by chance I had received a call from our adoption agency.  I was totally expecting to see a blank screen like I had many times before, but instead it said I had a new voice mail message.  I thought it could be the call I had been waiting for, but didn’t want to get too excited until I heard for sure.  So, I listened to it and it was Kate on the other end saying she had good news, that she had received our final decree!  That’s it, the Taiwan court has made it official and Ciana is now our daughter!  I knew I was scrambling to get everything done and ready for some reason and just in time it seems.   Our documents have been sent to the translator and should be forwarded to AIT (American Consulate in Taiwan) yet this week.  Once they receive them we can request an appointment date which will determine when we travel.  Kate suggested that she might request an appointment on August 31, which would mean if AIT accepts that date we would leave here on August 24th or 25th.  That’s only 2 weeks away!  Tomorrow she will be 4 months old, so it will be different for us to have one that young.  That date is exactly what I had been thinking and hoping for, since it couldn’t be more perfect for Maya’s schedule, but I guess God’s timing is always perfect!

Ciana's Room

Well, Ciana's room is finally done.  I spent most of the month of July painting and decorating her room in preparation for her arrival.  Maya helped out a little too.  When I wasn't sure how to paint the white dots, she even suggested I use a different type of brush, which as it turns out is exactly the one I needed!  I debated a lot about how to decorate it and what color to use as the background.  In fact, I even went back this last Sunday and painted over one entire area that I didn't like after I had put all of that hard work into it.  One day I had the idea in my head to get letters with her name and put them above her crib.  I walked into Hobby Lobby that afternoon and there they were in the exact color that I needed.  I am happy with the finished product now and hopefully Ciana will enjoy it too!