Update on no update

Many people have asked recently how the adoption course is going. Here is a brief update: When we entered the China program we had REALLY high hopes and expectations. We were told the possibility of seeing a sweet face by the end of the year was “really good”. We hurried the paperwork process, delivered all of our documents faster than we had before. We received our I-800 approval in no time. Our dossier was sent off to Washington and within a few short weeks, off to China. I read a variety of books on toddler adoption, attachment, obtained our first China travel book, started a list of things to pack and a list of necessities for our first few weeks home. I felt a sense of nesting occurring, and my excitement was palpable. There have been over 250 children abandoned at the orphanage our agency partners with since January and unfortunately far fewer families waiting for a referral. The need is SO great and we were feeling our call to this place, at this time, to be united with our next family member. Of course, we anticipated the best, and kept the thought of further waiting and delays far on the back burner of our minds. I don’t want to say we got our hopes up, but we did. We were told we would hear from China within 3-4 weeks regarding our LID (log in date). Once China approves your family (essentially your paperwork) you are “logged in” to their database. This is where you are matched with a child. Our paperwork was sent in August. We still do not have an LID, nor has our agency heard one word regarding our paperwork. Every night our family, including our sweet boy, prays earnestly for some word, but instead every day goes by without notice. While it is frustrating to someone who is waiting, what is really aggravating is the fact that so many children are sitting and waiting. We started reading a book every night with Jayden about a young boy who is waiting with his parents for the adoption of his sister from China. In the book, the little boy wonders about his sisters wait asking, “Do you think it is harder to wait if you don’t know your waiting?” The truth is children, our child, is growing up without anyone holding them, kissing them, telling them how important they are. Instead they are growing up neglected and lonely. No one is celebrating their first smile, encouraging them to stand, crawl, walk, and run. No one is rocking them to sleep or there when they awake from a nightmare. No one is taking pictures of their milestones. Instead workers who are understaffed and underpaid care them for. Every day that children are kept out of families, they are deteriorating. They fall behind their age peers in every category. There is no way for them to flourish in this environment because the only way a child thrives is within the safe security and love of a family. God designed us all to thrive in family.

While I am anxious I have to remain steadfast in my assertion that God called us to this. He is orchestrating this perfectly.

So, for those that have asked, we have made no progress. We continue to wait. The likelihood of seeing our child’s face by the end of the year appears impossible, but we know that God is God of impossibilities. Believe me when we hear word, we will be singing it from the rooftops. Until then, we continue our wait.