Created for a place I've never known... This is home.

Friday, July 22, 2011

The Lost Updates

June 29
Process Updates:
Okay, so I totally missed the Monday update this week, but I have posted four blogs in the last two days so I haven’t been completely uncommunicative.  Please check them out if you have not as one of them includes the Jack video we received last week.  Yeah!   http://foraplace.blogspot.com
On the home front, here’s where we are…
We received our I-800 Approval letter in the mail last Thursday.  Yeah!  I quickly had my neighbor scan it into her computer so I could email it over to CCAI.  The directions we were given from CCAI were then to wait a day or two and call the National Visa Center and find out exactly when our I-800 information had been forwarded by them (via computer) to Guangzhou.  Being who I am I really didn’t feel the need to wait that long so I, of course, called the NVC late Friday morning.  The woman I spoke with was very nice, told me that our paperwork had arrived at the NVC on Thursday and should be inputted into the “shared computer” sometime Friday or Monday.
On Monday I once again contacted the NVC and was informed that our paperwork had been inputted earlier in the day and our notification would be forthcoming.  This is GREAT news!  It would be even better news if I had been able to convince the NVC to email me this confirmation information, but I was unable to do that so we are now waiting on the NVC letter to arrive in the mail.  It did not come today, so we will hope for tomorrow.  =)
For those trying to keep all of this straight, here is the final rundown:
- Once we receive the NVC letter we forward it to CCAI.
-Once CCAI receives the letter they will forward it to their staff in Guangzhou .
-The Guangzhou CCAI office will then deliver our documents to the US Consulate so we can receive “Article 5.”  (Typically a 2-2.5 week processing window) 
-Once we receive Article 5 status we begin the final wait… for Travel Approval.
And that is about it.  =)  My passport, with Chinese visa intact, arrived in the mail on Tuesday so that is one more thing off my list to do.  I also received updated measurements for Jack today so that will help me with planning for him.  Although these numbers are at best slightly inaccurate, and quite possibly grossly inaccurate, they at least give me a starting point for clothing size, etc., and that is more than I had before. 
Finally, please continue to pray for Katie and her childcare needs.  Although we are confident the Lord will provide in His time, I know that it would give all of her family great peace of mind to know the issue was taken care of and plans had made.  Thanks!

July 5
Process Updates:
Just a quick update for the week…  We received our NVC letter last Thursday and I faxed it to CCAI that evening so that it could be forwarded to China and delivered at the US Consulate on Friday.  From the other adoptive families I have polled it seems that Article 5, the paperwork we are now waiting on, typically comes in at exactly 2 weeks meaning next Friday we should see something.  And then it will be on to waiting for Travel Approval.  Yeah!  Can you believe we are finally down to such a short list?  Crazy, huh?!
On the prayer front, we are still in need of a childcare plan in order for Katie to be able to travel, so please continue to pray that things will fall into place soon.   Also, the chances of us beating the August 1 deadline are incredible slim at this point (our TA would have to arrive much sooner than the last few batches), but it is not completely off the table yet so we continue to ask for quick processing.  And just as a fun note, if everything continues to move forward as it has for recently traveled families, Katie and I should be heading to the airport in just about 6-7 weeks.  Hurray!  Hurray!

 July 11
Process Updates:
37 days!!  37 days!!  That is, 37 days until I plan to leave for China.  Hurray!  Please, feel free to count down with me.  40, 39, 38, 37…
For those of you who haven’t read my blog lately (http://foraplace.blogspot.com), don’t worry, you really haven’t missed anything – other than the fact that I have decided that Katie and I will be leaving for China on August 17.  This, of course, is my decision not China’s, but given all of the timelines my recently traveled friends have followed it should be a fairly decent estimate and my life has been much more manageable since I’ve had a date to work with.  So as I said… feel free to count down with me.  37 days!!  =)
On the paperwork front, I really have nothing new to share.  We are still waiting on Article 5 which should hopefully be picked up from the U.S. Consulate on Friday so I am very much hoping next Monday’s update will bear a great announcement regarding that.  Then it will be the final wait for Travel Approval.  Yeah!
On the prayer front, please just keep it up.  Katie has some good leads on childcare so we pray that as we get past this next paperwork hurdle some concrete plans will fall into place for her.  The chances of that pre-August 1 Travel Approval still exist so we continue to pray for fast processing.   And don’t forget…   mark those calendars for August 17.  =)

July 19
Process Updates:
29 days!  29 days!  That’s a 2 and a 9, mind you.  Do you know what that means?  That means I am officially less than a month from my official un-official departure date.  29 days!  Whoo Hoo!
Okay, now that I’ve gotten that out of my system, let me just say that I have apparently lost all ability to send out my Monday updates on Monday.  Perhaps I should start referring to them as Tuesday updates.  Or better yet, maybe I should just call them weekly updates and admit that I will surely run behind again.  But that’s okay.  Does it really matter if I’m running behind when I only have 29 days left until I travel?  Nope, didn’t think so.  =)
Well, in case you missed my big announcement on Friday, we now have our Article 5 paperwork from the U.S. Consulate.  That letter should have arrived at the CCCWA in Beijing on Monday so we are now waiting on that most coveted Travel Approval.  The estimated time for this is 2-4 weeks so it looks like our chances of beating the August 1 regulations change are pretty much shot.  Even if our paperwork was processed in exactly two weeks it would arrive on August 1 rather than before it, but that is okay.  We will simply be in the first group of families that falls under the new regulations – and everybody wants to be first, right?  Anyway, it’s not that we mind do the extra reports, we were really hoping to the beat the date more for our own selfish convenience as the Army will undoubtedly move us a few times over the next five years and to file reports we will have to track down a new Hague-approved agency/social worker to complete those reports for us wherever we end up.  (Under the old regulations we would have been able to complete all the necessary reports before leaving Fort Meade.)  It would seem at this time, as if I have any insight into the plans of God, that perhaps He simply wanted us to be under these new rules – especially since all of the crazy delays we have experience have literally put us just days past the cut-off.  And who are we to question Him?  I’m sure His plan is WAY better than any I could dream up.  =)
So there you are.  All caught up.  I’ll most likely be pretty calm for the next few days – until August 1 that is.  Once we hit the first day of that estimated TA window I’m sure I will start chomping at the bit again.  But for now I will wait.  Oh!  And start PACKING!!  Did I mention that we’re only 29 days away?!!  August 17, here we come!

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