Waiting...

I didn't realize it has been so long since I posted an update!  Here's what is new....   After accepting our referral, we starting waiting for our Pre-Approval (PA).  That usually takes several weeks.  During the wait we starting filling out a pack of paperwork.  The paperwork just keeps coming.  We also were hoping to be able to send a care package to our new little one, so we started putting that together.  Four days later, we got a call from our case manager that our PA had come.  Four days!  That is extremely fast!  Once PA comes, we now wait for our LOC (Letter of Seeking Confirmation).  This can take up to three months to arrive.  We are now just over one month into that wait.  It is not easy.  Every day we think about our little boy - our son, my children's brother.  We pray that he is being loved and well cared for.  We are praying that he is learning, growing, and being taught how to love.  We want him here in our arms, in our home.  But we have to wait a little longer.
Once we receive our LOC, it should be about three months until we travel.  So we are hopefully looking at late summer to travel.

For sending our care package, we contacted Lady Bugs and Love  We were told they have had great success in with getting updates and getting care packages accepted.   Unfortunately, we have all the information we will get on our son, but we were very thankful to be able to send some goodies.  Here is a picture of what we packed into a tiny shoe box and sent off to China.  We were able to send a little photo album of our family (not pictured) in hopes that his care takers will show him so he is at least a little familiar with our faces.  We also sent an outfit, toy truck (his file said he likes toy cars/trucks), stickers, a disposable camera, snacks for him and to share, and a little blanket that my second oldest daughter made for him.  We made two photo albums, two blankets, and bought two trucks.  One to send, one to take with us in hopes that it is slightly familiar to him, and in case we don't get the ones we sent back.  We also are very thankful for our neighbors who were able to translate a letter to the care takers into Mandarin for us.  What do you say to someone who has and is caring for your son?  How do you thank them for their hard work and making sure he is healthy every day along with the many other children in their care.  The words didn't come easy.  There are so many things we wanted to say, but we needed to keep it very brief.  We did include in our letter a request that they take some pictures of him in his orphanage and return the camera to us so we have some memory for him of his time there.  

So while we are waiting... this song says it all...