First off we want to thank everyone who supported Rick’s
race which helped fund our adoption. Rick did amazing and finished the whole thing in just over 3 hours. What an accomplishment!!
Together we raised a total of $ 8,475!!!! The great thing is that the
checks keep coming in even after the race is over. We are so grateful to have
people in our lives that have such giving hearts. The most amazing part of this
fundraising journey has been watching
God bring people in our lives that otherwise we may have never met. We have
been writing ‘thank you’ cards to people we don’t even know and THAT is
amazing, and God gets all the glory! Friendships have grown stronger, new
friendships have formed, and we are so much closer to bringing our son home. A huge thank you to our amazing friends, Rick
and Jocelyn- your support and love behind us leaves us speechless daily. It has
been a blessing to be on the receiving end. We have had to humble ourselves. A
simple ‘thank you’ does not seem enough, but we pray that you know our hearts
and know how much we appreciate everyone who has had a part in this journey.
Since we wrote last, we were waiting for our last 2 documents
to come back from The Embassy of China to complete our dossier. Well, about 2
weeks ago we got it back from the 3rd party carrier we used. They helped
us make sure the documents went to the right place and have the necessary
signatures needed. It was a precautionary measure that we felt we needed to
have to ensure that no hiccups happened this far into our journey. We sent off
our Dossier (13 documents) to our adoption agency on 6/19 and they received it
on 6/22. From there it was under critical review to ensure we had everything
done correctly. Every document needed to be notarized, certified by The
Secretary of State, sealed by The U.S. Department of State, and sealed by The Embassy
of China. We want to write separate blog entries for all the paperwork we had
to do to give our insight, so look for that soon! On 7/1 we were told the critical
review process of our dossier was complete and was sent over to the translation
and mailing department. Today, on 7/2 we received an email stating our dossier
was sent to China! This is exciting news!
Here’s what we expect
for the next month-
*the CCCWA (China Center for
Children’s Welfare and Adoption) will receive our dossier in 3-5 days.
*we
will receive our dossier log in date (LID) within 3 weeks
Once we get our log in date, we are able to look at Waiting
Children with “LID only” files. Although, our Waiting Child Department will continue
to monitor incoming children’s files that may match our Medical Conditions
Checklist. So basically in short- THINGS ARE GETTING REAL!! J We still do not know a
timeline. We are told that the matching process can take up to 8 months, although
people in our shoes have waited only 2-3 months for a match.
Writing that gives me
goosebumps. Emotions are at an all-time high over in our household. We have had to talk about some really hard
things, some emotions we never thought we would have to confront, ever.
Sometimes God calls you to do things that are really hard. Painful is a better
word. But beautiful at the same time. Adoption isn’t easy…we are only in the
beginning- but we are preparing ourselves the best we can with what we have.
One thing we have had to discuss is what will happen when we get the call with
our match. We obviously pray that God would match us with a child that is meant
for our family. So when we see this child’s picture, when we read his name, and
when we look through his file- we would just know that this little boy was
meant for us, and that we were meant for him. But what if he’s not?!?! I hate ‘What
If’s’. But honestly, I don’t believe God
would bring us this far to have us shut down the first profile match we receive.
The reality of our feelings and emotions is still something we have to talk about
though. This is just one of many conversations we have had, and we would love
to update you on more in the near future.
We want everyone to know that although the race for our
fundraiser is over, they are still taking donations for the next couple of
weeks. We have had a lot of people ask us if they can still contribute, and the
answer is yes. Please let us know if you have any questions on how to donate to
our adoption.
Prayer requests:
1. That our paperwork
would continue to go smoothly in China.
2. That our hearts
would be prepared for what is to come.
3. For our son, his
parents/family, his caregivers, and his health.
4. That or financial
needs are met for the rest of the adoption.
Thank you for your prayers and support. Love you all!
The La Family
