Moving right along....

We got word yesterday that our homestudy document was completed by our caseworker and is in the process of review and notarizing at the agency. We are hoping to go pick it up next week and send everything off to the United States Citizenship & Immigration services (USCIS).

On another note, we received some encouraging news from our agency this week. They have now joined hands with another orphanage in Addis! The name of the orphanage is Engida and their children are from Addis Ababa and parts of Eastern Ethiopia. They referred their first baby from that orphanage last week! Their ET contact is also searching for more orphanages to parter with, which we are very excited about. It will speed up that list of those "waiting" and find homes for those orphans more quickly. However, when I read this to Luke we just laughed that we need at least another year to get Becket out of his yelling & "busy" (aka:destructive) stage before we have any more babies(-: God knows best though. Looking forwrd to seeing His perfect plan unfold!

Homestudy Part 3...check!

On Wednesday (4/14), we had our 3rd and final homestudy meeting with our caseworker. This final meeting was at our home and the purpose was to wrap things up with us, examine our living conditions and meet our children. I've been so fly by the seat of my pants with these meetings, which has really helped our caseworker see our true colors and what life is "really" like over here. At least that's my justification(-: I think she was a bit overwhelmed walking into our chaotic house, but she didn't deny us, so that's a good sign(-: We had a sitter come over to entertain the kids after she was able to meet them. Of course, Aria and Becket had just woke up from their nap and were disheveled, clingy, and shy which is so contrary to their personalities. And Kai, yeah, well he was Kai. He eagerly and HONESTLY answered all of her questions making us laugh with each answer. At one point she asked him if he had any concerns with us adopting a baby sister and he goes "yeah. just one" She says, well what? He goes, "We don't have a room for her to sleep in" When we told him we had it all figured out, he insisted we share with him our plan right then and there. After he heard the plan, his "concern" diminished. Guess he's a planner like his Dad. Then she asks Aria if she was excited to have a baby sister and with her head down, snuggled in to daddy's chest, she briefly nods her head. Kai goes, "well at least I'm the only one excited about this adoption!" We quickly shuffled the kids outside with our sitter (ha!) and she took them all to the park while we finished up. It's hard to believe this phase is over already- even though our sessions were long, we really flew through the homestudy process quickly-less than a month! Our caseworker hopes to type our official 8pg homestudy document next week and hopefully by the beginning of May, we'll be able to file our I600A so we can start our wait for approval from Immigration. One thing that really touched our hearts was her comments on our reference letters. She told us how beautiful each and every letter was and how heartfelt they were. Even though she sees these letters often, you could tell she was really blown away. You guys must all be professional writers!(-: Thank you so much. We are truly blessed with wonderful friends (and family) to support us on this journey. Thank you for walking this road with us-it means the world to have you by our sides in whatever life brings.

Homestudy Part 2

On Monday, April 5th, Luke and I had our 2nd homestudy meeting with our caseworker. This time, she was going to meet with each of us individually. I went first and came out of the room an hour and half later. When I asked her how long they typically go,she politely said they can go anywhere from 30 minute to 1hr and 30 min. I guess I was on the far end and thought for a moment that I must be her most "talkative" client. I told her not to worry, that since Luke was next, it was sure to be only a half hour. He IS a guy and I'm sure his answers would more than likely be one or two words. WRONG! He was in there for 1hr 45 minutes and topped her record for longest individual homestudy. Ha! I guess we have lots to share(-: It was an interview with the purpose of really getting to know each of us. We both found it hard to remember things that happened 30+ years ago, but it was very thought provoking. There were many things that came up that explained the way I am today. Much of that I'm thankful for. I was once again reminded how grateful I am to have grown up in a loving, christian home with a Mom that stayed home with me. (even though there were times I wished she would get an outside job so I could get into trouble-sorry mom(-:)

On another note, we were notified this week that the Ethiopian government is now requiring two trips for the adoption process. This was unfortunate news as one of the appealing things about Ethiopia is that it only required a one week trip, which is less time to be leaving our other 3 children behind. But I know God has it all planned out. He will provide a way, and hopefully childcare for an additional week(-: Who knows, by the time it's our time to travel, things could very well change again. I'm trying not to get too phased about each turn in the road. I'm sure there are more significant ones coming up. That's life, right!?