Now What?

A lot of people have been asking us the dreaded question lately....

So, when will you be travelling?

I wish I could give some clear cut answers or even understand the process completely myself. International adoption is NEVER clear-cut!
 
What I can share is what is left in the process for us (as far as I understand it)...

We received written judgment that the judge in the DRC has given us the stamp of approval to adopt Addy.

Right now we are waiting for all the documents to come in WITH NO ERRORS, so we can file our I-600 to the US government and get approval to make Addy a US citizen. Those documents (birth certificate, passport, judgment, etc) are currently being translated from French to English and then they’ll be sent in. Once sent in it typically takes 3-4 weeks to get the I-600 back.
 
After we get the I-600 back from the US gov, it will be sent to the DRC for the LBB staff to make appointments with the DGM (their immigration officers). There are two DGM appointments:

1)     Pre-Approval, visa process (befrore we travel, a rep will be there for us)
Usually 2 weeks after I-600 approval

2)     2. Exit Letter (the appointment we need to attend)
This appointment is usually 1 week after 1st DGM appointment

We are estimating (and praying, praying, praying) to travel
in 10 weeks:

·         1 more week to finalize documents and get I-600 sent

·         4 weeks to get I-600 back

·         2 weeks for DGM appointment #1

·         1 week for DGM appointment #2

·         2 weeks for wiggle room

That still means there is a possibility we COULD travel in August. Keep in mind that these are ESTIMATES and some people end up waiting 6 weeks for their I-600....some wait 4 weeks for their DGM appointments. So again, we are asking you to lift our family up in prayers.

v  Please pray that things go as planned.

v  Pray her documents have no errors.

v  Pray that appointments are made in a timely order.

v  Pray that we travel in AUGUST

v  And ALWAYS be praying for Addy’s health and safety

 So what do I do in the wait?!?!?!??!

GET READY FOR MY SWEET DAUGHTER!

Yesterday mom and I went to Bismarck and did some ADDY SHOPPING!

Formula (EXPENSIVE!)
Diapers
Bottles
Hair/Skin Care
Clothing
Etc, etc

Addy's Loot from Yesterday 

 Addy's closet all ready and waiting...

Have a great weekend all!

YOU ARE OURS!!!!!!!!!!!!

Whining. Complaining. Crying. Comparing. Being jealous.

My last few days have had MORE THAN ENOUGH of those things! And I have to say....

I AM SORRY GOD!!!!

I did not mean to put on such a front to get what you have given. My ranting, raving, and not believing in you fully was unnecessary!

Just yesterday I had such a sad, downcast post about my honest feelings.....and TODAY our God has reminded me that I must be patient and fully trust in Him.

CAN YOU BELIEVE IT....

TODAY I GOT WORD THAT WE HAVE RECEIVED JUDGMENT!!!

AND

TODAY WE GOT MORE NEW PHOTOS OF OUR PRECIOUS ADDY.

 I have so much to say right now but we are headed out the door and there is NO WAY I was not going to share after so many of you gave me encouragement yesterday and have been praying for our family!

Addy, you are PRECIOUS and you are LOVED soooooooooooo very much. We CANNOT wait to have you home. You CRACK ME UP...I can't help but just laugh when I look at your photos...you with your tongue out and your chubby belly (which I pray and believe is from being well cared for, not malnutrition). And you know what sweet baby girl...

 YOU ARE OURS
Addy Rose Williams!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My heart is full.  My God is so great.

Half-Empty Optimism

It's been two weeks since I posted....a lot has happened in our lives over the past two weeks but unfortunately not much on the side of GETTING ADDY HOME. We've celebrated birthdays (Mom's, Owen's 2nd, my cousin Jace's), had VBS, I had new teacher training, AND we've been busy getting our new house going. (adoption updates at the end of this post if that's what you're here for!)

Owen, our clown, celebrated his 2nd birthday on June 1st. I wish everyone in the world would get a full day to spend with this little man. HE IS HILARIOUS, and smart, and loving--definitely a class clown in the making. I can't help but just squish him as he's so stinkin cute and has a way to turn every bad situation into good. 

Vacation Bible School was a long but "oh so worth it" week. Debbie and I were the directors of the toddler group... thirty two 3-4 year olds from 5:30-8:30pm all week.....I'm still sleepy;) It was fun having Ayla in my group again and also fun to have Eli join the bigger kids and tell me all about it late at night. One night while tucking Ayla in, I asked her what her favorite part was:
"THE SHOW" (drama) she quickly replied....then added, "oh and the crafts, and the zoo, and the singing, and the yummy snacks, and Reece (the puppet)." Every morning she'd wake and ask if it was PBS (VBS) time yet. Incrediworld sure helped reinforce to them how awesomely incredible our God is and how the Bible's word is always true.

I am beyond thrilled to have a little time off of work this summer!!!!! I am only working two days in June so for the rest of this month, it's mommy time!! I will go back to working 2 days a week for July and August until we head TO AFRICA TO GET ADDY. With all the new literacy initiatives for our school district, there is a lot of work us coaches have to do this summer. AND, whatever I work this summer will offset my 12 weeks maternity leave, so it's all good:)

 The new house is coming along!!!! It's crazy how Bobby builds houses every day and there is so much of it that I did not know or understand! We got our flatwork poured on Saturday, lumber will be delivered this week, and then Bobby will start framing. He gave me a list of assignments to do today: pick out doors, showers, and faucets and get an appointment made to go over cabinets and siding this week.

Pre-Flatwork

Watching the flatwork being poured (after swimming lessonsJ)

And now for what you're really here for......the adoption process;)

If you've been reading you know we were submitted to court on May 11th. On that day we were told we should expect a 3-4 week wait before we received judgment. On May 29th we received an update stating: I've been notified that your case is currently on the docket to be approved and finalized at the end of this week or early next.

Now it is June 11th and we have yet to hear anything about our case (while we get update after update from other families who have received judgment). I'm being honest when I say I am extremely discouraged! And while I'm being honest, I must say I am sick of people saying, "God's timing is perfect" or "it's worth the wait." I am not saying I don't agree with BOTH of those statements...but it's H-A-R-D. I want my baby girl in my arms.

Last week we had a couple of conference calls with our agency. They are changing the process and are no longer going to have families file their I-600 (application to the US to bring Addy here) in the DRC but instead we will be filing it in the US. The reason behind the change is the DRC government is very different than ours and their sense of urgency, practices, etc are so unpredictable. Some families have travelled and ended up staying for 5 weeks. With us filing in the US we may have to wait a little longer to travel to the Congo, but our "homecoming" date will not change. Instead of being in country for 3-5 weeks, we will only be in country for 3-5 DAYS. As hard as the wait is, that timeframe helps us out tremendously. Not only is it VERY expensive to stay in the DRC, but we are also leaving behind our three rugrats...and 3+ weeks is just too long.

I know most are now wondering what that means for our timeframe...and I'm not going there today! I'm having an emotional day and honestly, I HAVE NO CLUE. Once we receive word on our judgment, I will have a few more answers on the steps from here....but for now, it's back to the "TRYING TO BE PATIENT" game. I tend to believe I am a pretty darn optimistic person....but I'll admit today, my optimism is half-empty;) 

It's one of those days in which I can't seem to imagine the end.  It's a day in which I get mad just thinking of how much of the "firsts" I'm missing in Addy's life.  Babies change soooooo much during these months, and I won't be able to write so many things on our calendar (first smile, first rolled over, first laugh, first food, etc).   Does she sleep through the night?  Does she like being rocked (if she's rocked)?  Is she tickleish?  How big is her smile?  How much does she weight?  What size clothes is she wearing? 

We sent another care package to Addy last week. Praying she gets it and that she will learn to love this little star and the voices of her mommy and daddy singing to her....

With my voice I cry out to the Lord;

with my voice I plead for mercy to the Lord.

I pour out my complaint before Him;

I tell my trouble before Him....

I cry to you, O Lord;

I say, "you are my refuge,

my portion in the land of the living."
Attend to my cry.

Psalm 145

P.S. Sorry about this Half-Empty Optimism post....sometimes it feels good to just be honest and not sugar coat things;)

Love From Our Family to YOURS!