LID and Fundraiser Update

We finally received our logged-in date and LID number from China on May 24th.  We actually heard that we had the LID at 10:00 on May 23rd, but it was already the 24th in China, so our LID is 5/24!  It took a little longer than they had expected, but it was likely due to a delay in the translation process, which our agency said happens sometimes.  Whatever happened, we are very thankful it was accepted and we are a waiting family in their system! 

We received word of the LID just as our agency was sitting down to make "matches" for the month of May.  China releases a list of children in our minor special needs program once a month, and agencies have to search through lists (in real-time on a computer) as they are released from China.  It sounds crazy and complicated!  They did attempt to match us, but we were not matched this month.  We didn't expect to be, as other families were ahead of us.  But, the good news is that our agency matched FIVE families, so we are at the top of the list now!  So, June looks like a promising match-making month for us!  Matches are typically made on the last or next to last Monday of each month.  The matching occurs around 10:00 p.m., so families are notified the next day.

We are also thankful to share that our agency received our donation check from our Premier Fundraiser Show - in the amount of $997!  We also have a couple of private donations coming in, so the fundraiser will total over $1,000!  We are very appreciative and blessed by our family and friends.  We can't wait to tell Annabelle how many people loved and supported her - before she was ever here!  Thank you to those who attended or sent in orders in order to help make it a huge success!!

The Waiting Game

Did I mention that I DO NOT like waiting??!?  Not a good character trait for a family adopting!  We are a little disappointed tonight because we are still waiting to hear our LID, or logged-in date in China.  It has been two weeks since our dossier was sent, and our agency is very confident it has already been logged-in, and likely was last week.  China is sometimes slow to update their system.  However, without an official "date" from the CCAA (China Center for Adoption Affairs), we cannot be "matched" with a baby.  American agencies do "matches" for our program once a month (usually the next to last or last Monday of a month).  They are making matches tonight - probably as we speak.  So, we missed out being potentially matched this month.  It wasn't likely, as other families are ahead of us, but there was still a slight chance IF we had that LID.  However, even though we are disappointed, we are trying to look at it positively.  Perhaps the girl we need to be matched with will be on the list next month and there is a reason our agency doesn't have our LID yet.  We do trust God to guide our agency in matching us with the perfect baby for our family, but it is still so hard because it is out of our control!  Now we just have to wait for another month and wait to see.  We could be matched in June, or July or August.....we just don't know. 

Until then, we are going to be excited about the future, but enjoy every minute of summer fun with Miss Alexis!  We have all sorts of fun activities planned for her this summer, and we're really looking forward to the closing of the school year so we can just enjoy some relaxing time with her. 

Please pray for guidance and clarity for our agency, as the match-making process is very tedious and stressful for them as well.  We know little Annabelle is out there and we just hope we "find" her soon! :-)

Fundraiser Party

We had such a great time at our Premier Jewelry Fundraiser Show last night!  Jason and I both greatly appreciate our friends and family who attended or placed orders to support our adoption efforts.  We also deeply appreciate Kim Day and her generosity!   The love and encouragement others have shared regarding Annabelle is overwhelming and only makes this "journey" more special!  We look forward to telling her about how excited everyone was as we awaited her arrival with much anticipation.  Thanks to everyone's generosity, we were able to raise around $800 that will be sent to our adoption agency, and we still have a few orders coming in.  That is amazing and will help us greatly!  Thank you so much!  I know there were others who live far away who wanted, but couldn't attend, and others with too many obligations last night.  We completely understand and just appreciate your prayer support.

I also wanted to include a picture that was on the cover of our dossier packet (copy of the original) that we received in the mail today.  We can't wait to hear that we have a LID (logged in date) from China soon!

DTC!

In the adoption world, many acronyms are used and tossed around to refer to milestones and important dates in the process.  DTC is one of those, and it refers to one of the most monumental milestones (other than receiving a match)....DOSSIER TO CHINA!  Our dossier left with FedEx from Lexington at 4:00 today.  It is on its way to China!  It represents the culmination of all of our preparations, paperwork, documentation, etc.  I have attached pictures our agency took of our dossier before it was packaged for mailing.  Not all of the documents are shown, but each of the certification statements from the U.S. Secretary of State's office represent documents that had to be authenticated at the county and state level.  I especially thought the Chinese authentication from the U.S. Chinese Consulate was neat!

It generally takes two weeks to receive a LID, or "logged in date" from China.  This will verify that we are logged into their system.  As soon as we can receive the LID from China, we can be matched with a baby girl!