7 Weeks Ago...

I can't believe that it has been 7 weeks tomorrow since we saw her face.   We are still hoping to have some progress this week.  To be REVIEWED would be AWESOME this week!

Dear China,

We are ready whenever you are!

Love,

Baba and Mama 

 

That being said, there is still a lot to do and get, but we are trying to take one day at a time.  After throwing my back out and really doing nothing but kickball and Discovery Education training prep this weekend, I feel like my HUGE accomplishment is getting the package sent off.  Today (well it will go out tomorrow) we sent off our little care package to Izzie. In it includes:

A photo album-we will share with you when we get our LOA because it has a few pictures of Izzie in it and we aren't allowed to post that yet.

Enya CD-anyone who has ever been in my classroom when I was a preschool teacher knows that I love Enya!  When Bob and I first started dating, he stopped in during nap time one day and said "Hey that's Enya"!

Stickers- you are allowed to include stickers because they are small enough to go in the photo album. Everyone KNOWS I LOVE stickers!  When I was an admin, students would stop by my desk to get stickers.  We told her those where something she could share with her friends ;).

Letter- We had notes within the photo album, but wrote out a separate note to her as well.  We are not sure how many letters we are allowed to send her so this one included everything we could think of.

Here it all is!

Izzie's First Gift

Our First Time Signing Baba and Mama

LOA wait Day 42...

44 days ago we first saw our picture of our little girl...

42 days ago we started our wait for China to accept us as her parents...

28 days ago we saw her move, giggle, and had confirmation that she in fact was our girl...

17 days (or later) since Out of Translation...

We have always anticipated a 60 day wait or so.  Many have had way longer and some very quick, but either way not easy. 

Operation: More Paperwork

First off, I would like to apologize on behalf of the adoption community for our contribution in the depletion of the rainforest.  Seriously, WAY TOO MUCH PAPERWORK!  Luckily some of the recent things we are able to feel out online and send to our agency via email.  As of date, we have not heard an official word from China that we are accepted as Izzie's parents, but we are well underway with the next sets of papers that our agency has requested.

We started the paperwork today on our visas.  This cost for the 2 of us will be right around $400 with courier fees and shipping costs.  We have a few things that we were looking at selling that people either have donated to us, or we have been meaning to put on ebay.

We figured before we tried craigslist, ebay, or something similar that we'd mention it here first.  Only the things on Etsy have set prices (I can delete shipping and do without using etsy if local though).  So please feel free to message me and name your price!

First off, please share our Etsy page if you can...https://www.etsy.com/shop/OperationChinaAdopt

Etsy shop has new items! Check them out!

Also, if you are interested in learning more about Advocare.  Please message me and I can walk you through it. 

UPDATE: We have sold the necklace, wristlet, and Nintendo Game Cube!!!!! 

Thanks all for the prayers and good wishes,
Jen and Bob

2 Iphone 4 cases

 2 sets of Harley Davidson's playing cards in tins, cards still in seal.  (Donated Items)

 Below is a Dooney and Bourke purse (Donated item)

inside view of purse

Game Systems:  

Playstation 2:  Includes system, power cord, 3 corded controllers, 1 extension cord for corded controller, 1 remote to make a dvd player, 1 set of 4 controllers for Game up, 2 cordless controls (with transmitters already in system), several memory cards, SVideo cable, 13 PS2 games, 1 PS game, and original instructions.  You will need to get the cord that plugs from PS2 to TV (on ebay that is around $9).

 

Ashley Cooper Limited Doll--  Original cost $80 (Donated item) In original box

Oh, by the way did we mention....

For Christmas, we decorated our tree with pink ribbon (rather than my usual purple one).  I even went a step farther and added a streak of red in my hair for good luck (red is lucky in China).  I always told Bob that I expected to be matched by the end of the year.  Well, we had some hang ups that we didn't plan on.  Things took longer than anticipated.  When you are working with different agencies, social workers, and governments, things don't always go as smoothly as you plan.

On Christmas Eve, we opened Baby Smith's FIRST Christmas gift from my Mom and Dad.  It goes perfect in the room:

Being off, really is hard when you are waiting for things.  The business had a good year, and I had all the Quickbooks up-to-date.  What to do? What to do? Just wait, worry and worry/wait some more.  

On December 31, 2013, we said a quick prayer "Come on now God...I think we've waited long enough.  We just want a family".  Also, we were waiting to hear if we were #9 (Dossier translated into Mandarin).  We emailed our contact that morning to see if we could check something else off our list (little celebrations).

Off to do something else, I went on the computer checking my email and realized that we had some donations to our adoption.  HUGE help!  Then, as I was talking to a friend online about my other business adventure...Advocare,  my cell phone rings.  It's our agency (which plays suspense music when they call).  Wow I think...I figured that they would email me back about the #9 question.  Hmmmm.  I answer the phone expecting it to be our main contact.  NOPE, it was the DIRECTOR!  My hands started to shake.  She introduces herself.  She asks if we are ready for a referral.  I said "we've been anxiously waiting".  She explains that it is a girl, 3 years old, birthday August 1st, 2010 (my bday is Aug 3rd, Bob's is the 15th)....as I'm listening I'm shaking...oh shoot I should probably tell Bob (after 5 minutes had passed).  As I stand in the door way, the moment Bob sees my face he knows who's on the phone.  I ask the director if I can put her on speaker phone so Bob could hear.  Bob guides me to sit down because I'm shaking so bad that he was afraid I'd pass out.  After she explains about her, an update comes (her original file is a year old) with wonderful news.  We ask to review the file.  She explains that we have to fill out a Letter of Intent tonight to give us time to have a doctor to review her file.  EEEEEEEEEEKKKKK 911!!!

That has to have been the longest hour plus of our lives!  The moment my phone bings that the email is here...Bob says that he has to take a shower.  Really? Really?  I say...NOW?  He says that he wants to have a clear head.  Now 30 plus minutes later, refreshed and with our Adoption shirts on...we open the email.  The first file we look at has this little black and white picture of her.  She's beautiful...with her short little hair.  We review all parts of the file.  The medical blood work is foreign to us, but the other parts look great.  We don't get too excited because we want a doctor to review it plus this file is a year old and we will need an update.

2 days later (with only 4 people outside the adoption world knowing what was going on) we get the call from the international adoption doctor that reviewed all the information we had.  She is super positive.  With Bob being the medical person, he breaths a sigh of relief.  We knew that this part in the process Bob would be the person of reason and I'd be the emotional wreck.  The cutest part is when he sees her little picture on my phone and gives the phone a hug.

January 16th (over 2 weeks weeks later), we get the update!  Everything we prayed for and more.  3 new pictures and 2 videos!

So for those who are counting we are #10 (and have been for almost a month) and hope to move to step #11 (Letter of Seeking Confirmation from Adopter Acceptance) in late Feb/early March (when we're allowed to post pics).  It still appears that May/June travel is still in the works as long as no hang ups.  We are translated now and have 2 more little steps before #11.  We will be getting a rather big bill in the next few days. 

We are happy to say that we are OVER THE MOON in love with our little girl.

It is now Operation Bring Home ISABELLA CHEN SMITH!    

Love, 

Izzie's Mama and Baba

Top 10 things...

Top 10 things we can't wait to do with our daughter....just because....

1.  See Kids' movies in the theater.  WE Love all those movies and wait for them to come out on Redbox.

2.  Go to the fountains in downtown Pcola on a hot summer day...Just imagine Bob and I out there splashing in the water by ourselves...LOL LOL

3.  Rent a bounce house/water slide for the backyard...I love those things at school, but man to have several hours to just bounce and slide....ahhhh summer.

4.  Turn on the sprinklers in the backyard:  Yep I've done it before after mowing the grass...but Bob won't laugh at me if I do it with her.

5.  Easter basket/eggs

6.  Christmas morning-  Bob and I still talk about the excitement we had waking up christmas morning as kids.

7.  Watching Bob teach her piano/ us playing catch in the backyard

8.  Beach...I'm there A LOT in the summer!

9.  Disney World...Cinderella's castle, enough said

10. Parks, nature walks...

Operation: A Year Later

We are in the waiting period now (still #8), which is a little strange that we have nothing to fill out or work on right now.  Our next step is either get a match.  Dossier (pronounced:  Doe/ce/ay) is a French word meaning collection of papers...What went into this Dossier that is waiting to be translated as we speak?

Here's a list of all the things we had to do for the Home Study (done locally) and the Dossier:
References:  2 from family members, 2 from friends, 2 from co-workers.
Medicals:  2 medical checks (for home study and dossier) on each of us which consisted of 5 vials of blood, TB tests, eye exam, quick hearing check, & urine samples.
Police Background checks:  Locally (2x with notary) and in several counties in Ohio.
Fingerprints:  Locally AND Federally (for USCIS...New Orleans)
Vital Records- Birth Certificates, Marriage License
Application Letter- A letter to the Republic of China asking permission to adopt.
Financial Statement- Lists all of our assets/liabilities and net worth
Passports:  I needed a new one (it had expired), and Bob needed one.
Home Study: This alone took 5 months.  It is a 16 page document that lists everything about us and our families.
Life Study:  50 questions about each of us
i797-  Approval by the US immigration saying yes we can adopt and details about age, etc.
Photographs:  Passport Photos, Inside of house, outside of house, her room, pictures of us together
Adoption Parenting Classes:  12 hours of classes where we learned about the culture/history of China, attachment, etc.  These classes even taught us what to say when we get asked strange questions.  This is the part I wish I'd remember better (took classes in May).  That's why I have Bob-gle (Google for Jen's).

Now most of this stuff had to be notarized, then sent off to the state to make sure the notarization was legit.  THEN, we had to sent it off to our China Consulate in Houston (NY for Ohio paperwork) to get it authenticated.  They checked to make sure it wasn't too old and no staples were removed, etc.

I tell this story just to have a little history for our child.  Many of these papers were needed regardless of adopting domestically or internationally.

Sometimes God's plan is a little different than what you originally had, but China is where our daughter is.  We just are overjoyed and eager to see her face.  As Bob said, this is an exciting part...how will we get the call, what we be doing, etc.  It is our journey/Operation of how we became a family of 3.  Now we know it will happen in HIS time, but we've been very patient...it's been a year...we are READY to see our little girl's face. 

LID #8---Next Step Match!

 #8

Last week was so exciting!  Not only was our Dossier sent off to China on Monday 12/9/13, but we also had a log in date (LID) of 12/13/13.  Yes Friday the 13th!  I have been telling Bob for over a month that I thought that would be our LID date.  It's Grandma D's LUCKY day!!!!  Woo hoo!

So for those counting, we are in step #8.  We are now eligible to be matched any way that our agency can find!  We are eagerly waiting for this next step.