WE HAVE A MATCH!!

Could it possibly be that I have something to write about?!?!?!  Ok so I could have written at least two blogs since the last one but I was so disappointed I didn't. 

First thing I could have written about is that Chris came home from his deployment safe and sound! He came home December 24, 2011.

that's not red eye from the camera, I was crying...

Not long after he came home we got right to work on updating our home study.  It had expired in November and we had a new social worker so of course Chris needed to be there for the update.  That update included an interview and the re-taking of our fingerprints for the Missouri State Highway Patrol...ugh.  After the home study was updated, we had to renew our USCIS I-600A form (yeah just trust me on that one).  THAT included getting our fingerprints re-taken as well but at least that was free. ;)

The second thing I could have written about is that we've moved!! Chris needed a command position so we had to get out of Dodge for that to happen.  So we've moved to the beautiful Leavenworth, Kansas.  The post looks like a park! So pretty, I cannot wait for fall colors!  I don't have a picture of our house but it's quite cute, a two story brick colonial with a HUGE fenced in back yard.

So what am I writing about now? Well if you haven't been able to tell by the title of this blog, we have been referred (assigned) a child!!!  I know what you're thinking, "wait, they wanted two?!"  Well the agency hasn't seen siblings in over a year. We knew that a single child was a possibility and we are not disappointed in the least. 

So now that it's not so painful, I can vent a little about how hard it's been lately. We were very close to our breaking point. Right after we moved, we got a letter from Holt (that was sent to all in Ethiopia program) updating us on how things were moving. They were still working on matching families who had their dossier in January 2011, ours was in April 2011. They had been working on January for over four months. They said how many children they were able to place the previous month (single digit) and a little on why things were so slow. Then there was another page in there explaining how you can switch to either the China or the Korea program. Chris and I were not in the least tempted, as frustrated and worn down as we were, we knew God had us choose Ethiopia for a reason. There were other things that made us angry or sad but we won't get into that. ;)
I was finally starting to get out of the mind set that "it" would be happening soon. I feel like my life has been on hold for seven years. I've always had the mind set that "I'll be pregnant soon" then that became "we'll get a call soon" so I hesitated to make long term plans or get a serious job.

Well Friday, September 14, 2012 at 3pm, I get a phone call from Eugene, OR. I saw where the call was from and I thought that maybe it had to do with updating our home study (because of the move). NOPE! It was the program director calling with the news of Ephraim. Even though they are still working on January dossiers, we are the first ones on the list wanting a child as old as 5, (we actually had 6 down!). I instantly called Chris and said "get home now, get home now, get home now!!" He was a little confused but I explained and he came home as fast as he could! We looked at his pictures together and read what little information they gave us and instantly knew he was ours.


So is it a boy or a girl? How old? When will you see him/her?

So many questions, just hang on geesh!

We have been matched with a five year old boy named Ephraim.  He is beautiful! Due to the rules of the Ethiopian program, I cannot post any pictures until he is home with us.  Some of you I've been able to email or text a photo so if you would like to see him, just let me know. ;)  

We are unsure when we will get to see him but given the history of time lines, it should be January, December at the earliest.  Our first visit will be for an Ethiopian court date where we will be granted permission to adopt Ephraim. 

Our second visit should be about 2-3 months later.  In the mean time, his visa and passport will be processing.  On our second visit, we will have an appointment with the US Embassy to get their permission to bring Ephraim back to the US with us as a citizen.  (or something like that)


We know that this next six months or so will be difficult to wait but he will be worth it. :)

Today we mailed off our acceptance packet along with the country fee payment (that's the super big one). We took a little photo before, since my dossier one was so messed up!

I promise to keep y'all more updated on things as we go along.  At least now when someone asks "how's the adoption going?" I don't have to hold back tears of sadness, I can say "GREAT!"