This morning our facilitator emailed and said, "Your dossier was successfully submitted today!!! Wow! I am so happy! Finally! So now we have to wait and in 20 business days we'll get your travel date." I am so excited! It looks like we will be traveling the middle of March. We can't wait to see A. Peyton is just so excited to have another girl in the home and mostly to have a sister. I know this is going to be so great for both of them. Thank you God for leading us back to Ukraine. ~Tina
Our submission date has changed to sometime the week of January 25 I think. I won't go into a lot of detail because I don't want to offend anyone. But, our dossier went missing on Friday the 8th for about 5 hours and I decided, if I had to, I would redo all my documents. They were found that night at 7 but too late for our facilitator to take them with her back to Ukraine. So the person I overnighted them to (on Tuesday the 5th) mailed them to Ukraine for me. And we have learned a wonderful lesson from all of this. When something is this important to us, we should handle it ourselves. We can't expect others to see the value in our hard work.
And another lesson from that day, the most important one, God is good all the time; in the midst of our struggles, our worries, our frustrations and our delays. We trust Him completely with this adoption as He brought A to us when we had no plans of returning to Ukraine. She is His first and foremost. We are just the lucky family He chose for her. We will fight the good fight and through it all remember that no one can steal our JOY.
~Tina
Sorry I am late with our January winner from our Adoption Puzzle Fundraiser. The winner is JN and she wins the tablet. Thanks to all who donated. We will continue to draw a name each month on the 15th until we travel.
I went Tuesday to Jefferson City to get all our documents apostilled. Here they are, 42 documents!
I then sent them overnight to where our facilitator is staying in the US. I think I mentioned before that she brought 30 orphans from Ukraine for hosting over the Christmas holiday. And that is so great for us that I can send my documents to her while she is here and not have to send them over to Ukraine.
But, after I sent the documents I got an email that ONE of the documents was not quite right. So....back I go again tomorrow to Jefferson City to get that ONE document apostilled and then sent overnight to her before she leaves the US on Saturday.
Have I ever said that international adoption is not for the faint of heart. Just when we think it's all going smoothly and we've got it, boom, another kick in the shins. We still have things breaking down at our house. Our garbage disposal quit working, no biggy as I don't use it much but when I looked under the sink to check it out, well, there was lots of water everywhere. At this point with all we have been through in the last few months, I have a peace that could only come from God. He has a reason for all of this and we are stronger for it.
Our documents will be submitted to the State Department of Adoption in Ukraine the week of January 18th. Please agree with us in prayer that all the documents will be correct. We should then get an appointment date for early March to get A's file allowing us to go and see her. Looking forward to that day!
It's December 15 and time for two drawings this month. First the winner of the regular monthly drawing is TA.
He will get the KYIV key chain.
Now an update, we will be meeting with the accountant next week and are thinking we can get an employment letter from him with all the details of our income included on that. That will allow us to be able to get everything completed with apostilles and to our facilitator before the SDA opens in January. Please be in prayer with us for that!
And the drawing you all have been waiting months for. Who is the lucky winner of the large Matryoshka?
I was so excited when Peyton drew this name out. The winner is JQ. Congratulations!
We will be drawing January 15 for the following tablet.
Thanks again to all that donated! You are making it possible for us to return and adopt the one we could not forget!
Sooooo, I had all the documents gathered and ready to see the notary on Monday and then the facilitator emails to tell me, oh by the way, the 2014 1040 tax forms you were going to submit, need to be 2015 now. The 2014 ones were only good if we submitted in 2015 and now since we are submitting in 2016, well, you see my predicament.
Not to mention in the last 6 months since committing to adopt A, our refrigerator, freezer and dishwasher have all died. And you know what, I am awesome at washing dishes by hand, no problem. But, wow, devil, A must really be a gem for you to fight so hard to keep her in a place no child wants or deserves to grow up. And, no you are not going to win because we are overcomers and she is worth it all!
Now we are going to be figuring like crazy to get our tax information submitted and get the 1040 form we need. Still believing we will submit when the office in Ukraine opens up for applications in January.
Please be in prayer for A that she will have a covering of protection over her.
We got the approval from USCIS today. Once I get the ok from our facilitator we will get all the documents notarized and apostilled. Then I will send all the documents to her when she arrives in the US. When she returns to Ukraine the first part of January she will submit them to the Ministry of Social Policy. When our documents are approved we will get a travel date.
Our You Caring account has an ending date of 12/15 and we are just going to let it end. We will still be doing the drawings from the Adoption Puzzle Fundraiser on the 15th of each month until we travel. We by no means have raised enough money but we are thankful to those who have stepped out with us. Thank you for believing in what God has called us to do. We are believing He will provide.
We are still waiting patiently on a couple of documents. Which means we will not be able to submit our dossier (paperwork) to the Ministry of Social Policy in Ukraine until January. The cutoff date is December 10. The good news is, our facilitator is bringing a group of children to the USA to be hosted for Christmas and I will be able to send my dossier to her here.
Yes, I have been bumming over the wait and reminding myself daily how God has this. He sees what I can't but it still feels so disheartening to work so hard, to get it all together, to then have to sit and wait. So I have been finding comfort in His word.
In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly. Psalm 5:3
And remembering that sweet girl across the pond who has been waiting much longer than I have. She knows she has a family coming but I wonder if she knows what that means. We are not sure of her background; how old was she when she came to the orphanage; did she get to experience being in a family before the orphanage; did she get to look in to the eyes of a mother who loved her so?
I pray daily for God's protection over her. That her heart and mind will be guarded. That she goes to bed every night knowing that soon we will be there. Hoping someday she will look in this mama's eyes and know that my love for her is a fierce love; a love that is forever; that doesn't give up or let go.
