Updates on Tabitha!

We just received some updated information about our little Tabitha! We got recent pictures, updated medical info, and answers to some of our questions about her daily life! It's very exciting!

There are some changes in what we were expecting medically. She has had surgery to correct the imperforate anus, and it has healed, so she can use the toilet normally. We were very excited to hear that! However (perhaps because of the surgery), she now has a bladder problem for which she has a catheter and urine bag. They have said this is "not correctable," but we're not sure who said that, so perhaps her doctor here will have more encouraging news on that. Our next step is to take all this medical information and consult with a specialist. The orphange workers also said that her extra finger is right next to her thumb, and it doesn't affect her hand function at all.

According to the orphanage workers, she can walk, jump, and even dance. =) She says many simple words like "MaMa" (so we're assuming she has a certain primary caretaker that she's closest to), AYi (aunt, nanny), HeHe (drink), Bu (no)etc.

She's about 34 inches tall, and weighs 22 pounds. The biggest shock is seeing her "big girl" pictures! I mean, we knew she wasn't the little baby in the pictures we got before, but somehow in my mind I didn't expect her to have grown up so much. It makes me kind of sad to think of all we've missed. But soon she'll be here with us, and we'll have the rest of our lives to get to know her.

The same organization that got this info for us (Ladybugs-n-Love) will deliver care packages, birthday cakes, and other things. So, we're going to send her some things for her birthday next month, along with pictures of our family.

As far as travel time, we're still waiting for our LOA, which should probably come mid-July, putting travel in late August or September. And Heath's cousin Amy is now planning to come with us too. So that'll be 4 adults to 2 or 3 kids--not a bad ratio!

Quote of the Day

I think sometimes people get wrapped up in having "enough" faith. I liked this analogy I read in "The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus" by John Cross.

Some people add a spiritual aura to faith. It becomes quantified. You either have a lot of faith or just a little. But that thinking confuses the issue. Putting faith in what Jesus did on the cross for us is similar to a drowning man nodding vigorously to his rescuer when the lifesaver says, "Will you trust me to save you?" The size of the nod is immaterial. The point is not the nod at all. The point is that the drowning man is acknowledging and trusting in the lifeguard to rescue him. For the drowning man to later claim that his big nod saved his life would be ludicrous. So it is with us. We are to trust in Jesus to save us from our sin, but the size of our trust is not what saves us; it is what Jesus did for us by dying on the cross.

Woo hoo!

This is me trying to re-create the excited look I had when UPS delivered a package to me on Monday. =) For years, I've been wanting to buy the Rosetta Stone software for learning Chinese. Finally we could afford it, and I took the plunge and ordered it! I love learning languages, and this is one I'll actually use! I got the homeschool version, so it has lesson plans and tracking for each student. It'll definitely be a required course in our homeschool! I'm very excited to learn as much as I can before we go to get our daughter--hopefully we'll at least be able to communicate some basics with her. Ethan and Jesse have even tried it out already, and I'm sure it will benefit our whole family. It may seem like a silly thing to be so excited about a computer program, but I'm thrilled and very thankful for such a special treat!

China said "Yes!"

We have just received our Application Approval Letter (or Pre-Approval or "PA")! Even though our agency already told us it was a sure thing, it feels great to have something in writing from China! Now our dossier will be reviewed and processed by the China Centre of Adoption Affairs. Then they will officially approve us and give us permission to come and adopt our little girl! This next step usually takes about 3 months. Then it should be another 6-7 weeks from that point until we travel.

Our next step here is going to be to try to get some more updated and detailed information about Tabitha. We're going to use "Ladybugs-n-Love", who will try to contact our daughter's orphanage and see if they can get information for us. Please pray that the right people can be contacted and are cooperative. Then we're planning to have her medical information reviewed by an adoption specialist, so we can start finding doctors and services that she may need. So, I guess we do have some things to keep us busy while we wait!

Deep Thoughts

Deep Thought #1--My birthday is May 9th. Tabitha's is May 10th. China is 12 hours later than our time zone here. So, if she was born in the morning of May 10th, she was actually born on my birthday! There's a 50% chance we actually have the same birthday!! Cool, huh? And, it would've been on my 29th birthday, which wasn't one of my better ones. I remember feeling sorry for myself that night . . . maybe even at the exact time that my precious daughter was being born. If I had only known what was happening on the other side of the world. What an awesome birthday present . . . even if I didn't realize it at the time.

Deep Thought #2--I've been thinking about how adoption is similar to pregnancy. For one thing, I've been quite scatter-brained lately. (This has actually been happening ever since I was expecting Ethan, but I'll go ahead and blame it on this "pregnancy.")

Here's how my analogy works:

The last 15 months of preparation were like hoping to conceive. Now that we have a little girl in our hearts, we've gotten the "+" on the pregnancy test. But we're still waiting for our "application approval"--that first doctor visit that confirms the pregnancy. Then of course there's the waiting for more information . . . in pregnancy that's finding out the gender with an ultrasound; for us, we already know her gender but are eagerly awaiting those precious updated photos. Then, of course, there's that nagging worry that something will go wrong. Mostly we're at peace that everything will go as planned, but every now and then I have a flash of anxiety that this little girl will never be in our arms. When we receive the LOA in a few months--the OFFICIAL "YES"--it'll be like that 38-week check-up when the doctor says, "Everything's ready; you can go into labor at any time now." And of course, Heath will say that the labor pains are the torturous flight half way around the world. Well, at least this time, he'll be taking most of the labor pains, since I don't hate flying as much as he does! Then there will be that first moment of seeing our baby . . . probably lots of crying, just like in birth, but soon that sweet, amazing feeling of a new life in the family, of realizing what a miracle this is, and the assurance that it's been worth it all.

I can't wait for that awesome day!

Now. If I can just keep off that "baby weight" . . .

Welcome home, Michael!

It seems that living near BWI Airport has its perks. Many of the military go through BWI when going to/from their deployments, and we've gotten to see a couple friends on their way to the middle east during layovers there. Today we had the privilege of visiting my brother Michael, who is just returning from Iraq! We spent a couple hours with him, having lunch and seeing his pictures, and hearing a couple stories. Now he's continuing his very long voyage, with several more hours of flying until he reaches Alaska where he's stationed. It was really nice to see him, and we're praising the Lord for his safe return and the chance to visit with him. Thank you Michael (and any other military people reading this) for the work you do. You are appreciated!

Travel Preparations

On Saturday we got some fun stuff in the mail from Living Hope! It's some forms to fill out about travelling to China!!! We have to send in our passports and visa applications, and a list of who's travelling with us. We're bringing the boys, and Heath's mom is coming too. We also have to choose which kind of seats we want on the airplane. (In case you're wondering, first class seats to China run between $3,000 and $6,000. . . . I don't think that will be happening.)

A lady I met online who has been through the process is convinced that we'll be travelling by July. I'm trying not to get my hopes up, but of course if it does work out that way, that'd be great! Carrie's wedding is on the 3rd, so anytime after that we'll make sure we're packed and ready to go. But we'll try to keep September in our minds, and stay patient.

We have received so many emails and congratulations from so many people. Friends, family, and even several people we've never even met! Thank you all so much for your support and encouragement during this exciting time!