Has it really been that long?

Wow! I can't believe our last post was almost a month ago! There has been a lot happening in these past weeks, which is probably why there's been no post. I feel like we've been out of town a lot in the past few weeks and of course the holidays. Ava met her Aunt and Uncle over Thanksgiving as well as her 2 cousins! That was so fun to see her with them.

We were even able to get a 5 generation picture with Chris' great grandmother who is 101!

We just got back from Mall of America in Minnesota with our friends Matt and Rhiannon. That was tons of fun even though they got the worst blizzard they'd seen in 20 years while we were there. The last 2 nights we were there, the wind chill factors were like -16! Ava was all bundled up and probably the warmest one of all of us with her layers of clothes next to our body heat and under our coats as well! She did wonderful in the car up there and learned to really sleep in her stroller while we were there. We couldn't believe how big the MOA really was! 3 floors of shopping and a 4th floor with several restaurants, and a good sized amusement park (25 rides and at least 3 large roller coasters). We had Ava's picture with Santa taken there, she loved Santa and they had a great conversation; although I'm not sure what they talked about.

For Christmas we will be traveling to Tennessee to visit my side of the family. Many of them have not yet met Ava, so that will be very fun and exciting! I can't imagine what runs through her little head as she meets all these new faces!

Ava has great head control now and sits in her bumbo well (not sure how much she likes the bumbo, but nevertheless). She is all smiles in the morning and has begun to giggle every now and again! We love watching her grow and seems that each day brings something new! In the past couple of days she's started sticking out her tongue at us, that's rather funny! Also in the past 4-5 days she's started teething, which I think in the grand scheme of what teething can be, she's doing well. She had her 4 month check up today along with a couple of shots, which she took like a champ! We are continuing to breastfeed 3-4 times a day and she is really beginning to get the hang of things. She is latching on much easier and seems to much quieter during the feed. Of course, Daddy still feeds her a couple times of day and loves to read to her. He loves to come home and hang out with Ava and talk to her quite a bit, they are so cute together!

Seems this month has been full of blessings and firsts! I pray that as we go into this Christmas season, you will reflect on the best blessing of all--our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He is after all the reason for the season which often gets lost in the gift buying and bustle of the holidays. How thankful I am that such great blessings start in little packages! Merry Christmas!

Update with the LC

Well today was my date with the lactation consultant. I actually called last week to set this up, and prior to her latching on. But I decided we should go anyway, because I figured there is room for improvement and I did have a few questions.

She was very nice and easy to talk to. And as odd as I thought it might be to breastfeed in front of a stranger, she made it comfortable. She was quite surprised to see how well Ava was doing and in her words, didn't have any suggestions. She did give me some resources for getting some nursing wear, as I can't find anything in my size at a reasonable price. So looking forward to see what it yields.

At any rate, Ava is improving with her latch day by day and I think she enjoys nursing. I'm beginning to be able to relax once she is latched on, which is making it more enjoyable for me as well. So thanks for the prayers as we continue on our journey!

A New Journey

Now that we're home, we have so many firsts ahead of us. I feel like we have many new journeys to embark on, but there's one in particular I'm going to write about today.

Many of you don't know this, but since we received our referral, I have been preparing to breastfeed Ava. I know that this might seem crazy or even impossible to some. However, it is becoming more and more common. I will say, that usually it is tried with babies adopted domestically at birth. It is, of course, a lot easier to teach a baby to breastfeed if they start right away. It is also possible to start breastfeeding later, best chances for success are if you start before 3 months old. Although, not impossible later on, just harder.

You probably are wondering how you can produce milk if you've never been pregnant. It is possible with a lot of work to induce lactation, which I have been working on. I may never produce enough milk to completely supply Ava's needs, but any is benefical. To supplement what I don't make we use a supplemental nursing system called the Lactaid. It is a bag filled with formula or breast milk that has a small feeding tube that comes out by the nipple of the breast. When she latches on to the breast and sucks, formula comes out the tube. This keeps her breastfeeding, even if I never produce a drop of milk. It's not all about the milk though, it's about bonding. There is a tremendous benefit for the emotional bonding that takes place through breastfeeding, both for mom and baby. Because I may never have a biological child, this may be my only opportunity to breastfeed, but more importantly, I want that chance to bond with Ava. So we have been working on it.

The past 3 days, we have been successfully breastfeeding. Quite to my surprise, after only trying 2-3 times, she latched on and took an entire feeding! This is a huge success for us!!! It usually takes weeks if not months to accomplish this feat. So I'm super excited! So we breastfeed now unless we are in public. Then I use a special bottle called the Breastflow by First Years. This bottle actually helped me teach Ava to latch on. It is the only bottle that requires her to latch on just like the breast and suck just like at the breast--using both compression AND suction.

All that to say, we are celebrating our new journey and success at breastfeeding this week!

Welcome Home Ava

"Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy. How awesome is the Lord Most High, the great King over all the earth! He subdued nations under us, peoples under our feet. He chose our inheritance for us, the pride of Jacob, whom he loved. Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises." Psalm 47:1-4, 6

I found the above scripture interesting as it is Psalm 47, the Psalm that comes after 46. Psalm 46 is the psalm I read over and over during the loss of Lillian. It was so hard, my world did feel like it was falling apart, but Psalm 46 reminded me that the Lord IS in control--no matter what is going on in our lives. Psalm 47 is about rejoicing in the blessing the Lord has given. The Lord does bless! How fitting that after such a great storm comes such great joy! I will sing praises to the Lord for what He has done--richly blessed us!



Ava Mei is finally home! We are so thankful to the Lord that we have our daughter home and are starting to settle in. She is precious and an absolute joy!

Labor Pains

Hello everyone! By now you've probably figured out that we are here in Taiwan! The plane ride here I liken to labor pains. It was a long flight, and I got very little sleep (Chris, of course, slept fine). Once we landed in Taipei we started the drive THOGL--I consider this the pushing portion. As we turned down the driveway to the home, I felt the rush of adrenaline and excitement! We were about to meet our little girl, Ava, for the first time!!!!

We got out to the car, opened the door to the orphanage, the workers were all lined up on the couch with the babies and one baby in a walker, and the other on in a bumbo seat on the floor. I start working my way down the line and....no Ava! Where is Ava, where is she?! Almost in unison, they all said she's behind you! I turned around and there she was, sleeping, so precious. Oh how much I wanted to pick her up and love on her!!!! But being the good mommy, knowing sleep is important, I just stared at her--then, everyone said, go ahead pick her up! So I picked her up and she popped open those precious eyes and stared at me! Words cannot describe that feeling! I tear up all over again just thinking about it!!! What a wonderful, precious, unforgetable moment!

Then I handed her to Chris to hold....what a natural Daddy he is! He's great with her, and I love watching them snuggle! She's going to be a little Daddy's girl, I can already tell!

I will post more on our journey later, but for now, know we are loving every minute with precious Ava and she is a wonderful baby!

Leaving on a Jet Plane!!!

Well, I'm late posting this, but it seems it has been a whirlwind since we received the call. What call?! The call to travel to pick up Ava, of course!!!!!!!!!!!

Tuesday morning we received a call from Ted saying that our first court documents had arrived and he was going to call AIT to get an interview date set. Tuesday night we received an email that our AIT interview was set for Thursday October 27th! First thing Wednesday morning we contact our travel agent and started the all day long process to book flights to Taiwan!

We will leave for Taiwan on Saturday night the 23rd and arrive in Taiwan Monday morning the 25th (arrival is Taiwan time, it's Sunday night here in the States). We will be holding our baby girl, Ava, by mid morning Monday!!!! Oh the long awaited bliss of that morning!

Since then we have been packing, calling family, arranging for our dogs to be cared for, setting up someone to take us to the airport, finalizing work schedules, turning in FMLA papers, and a million other things! What a joy and a blessing it is to finally be doing all those activites! I must admit though, that now that it's sinking in that we will have our little one, I'm starting to freak out a little. In a good way of course. How in the world do you begin to prepare for parenthood and the rest of your life with this tiny little miracle?! I just can't wait! I've also been super emotional, I cry just listening to the radio. Man, I feel crazy!

Can't wait for our next post with Ava in our arms! Blessings and praises to the One and Only!

God is Faithful!!!

Well, I know that I'm a little late posting this, but our court date for Ava Mei went great! Both parents showed up and relinquished rights for Ava as well as waived the 10 day waiting period!!! So now, we patiently wait for a phone call from Ted to tell us to travel.

However, there are a couple of steps that have to take place before we can travel. The final court documents have to come in and then Ted has to take them to AIT (Americans in Taiwan, basically like the US embassy) to apply for Ava's visa interview. Once the visa interview date is set then we can travel. We have to be in country for the visa interview. Ava has to have a visa to come to the USA because she is not a US citizen until she touches US soil. In order to get her on US soil, she has to have a visa because she will obviously be staying longer than 30 days :)

We are very excited that we are so close to holding our precious little girl! We cannot begin to express the relief we feel knowing the court date went well. Our Lord is definitely faithful!! We will continue to praise Him for the blessings He has given us and ask that you join with us in thanking Him for Ava!

Hopefully we will travel in the next 3-4 weeks, so stay tuned for the travel announcement! In the meantime, we will slowly be packing our little one's things for the journey home!

Oh Happy Day!!!!

Ted's very fitting verse: "Like cold water to a weary soul is good news from a distant land." Proverbs 25:25

We are just absolutely elated this morning! We woke up to an email from Ted with our court date in it! And the date is...... September 28th at 8:15pm (Sept 29th 9:15 am Taiwan time)!!!! This is wonderful news, it's only 2 weeks away!

Ava's timeline has been much quicker than Lillian's. Last time we waited 3 weeks just to get the court date set, this time it only took 9 days. Last time the court date was still 4 weeks from the time we received word it had been set, this time it is only 2 weeks away. Praise the Lord!!!

Oh happy day, oh happy day! Our little Ava Mei MAY be in our arms by Halloween! I would love to put her in a ladybug costume...it would be so fitting! She would be 2 1/2 months old, so tiny, so precious, so perfect! God is GREAT!!! Oh how He has compassion on us!

"Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him! O people of Zion, who live in Jersulam, you will weep no more. How gracious he will be when you cry for help! As soon as he hears, he will answer you. Although the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, your teachers will be hidden no more; with your own eyes you will see them. Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, 'This is the way; walk in it'." Isaiah 30:18-21

Patiently Waiting for Ava

Hello all....well, not much to report as of right now. We sent the adoption documents back to Taiwan and they arrived on Monday. We are just waiting now to hear when the court date is. The waiting is the hardest part now, because there is absolutely nothing we can do except, of course, wait. There are no documents to work on, no phone calls or emails we need to make, no more trips to get anything done. So just waiting. Hopefully we will hear word of something soon.

We did receive a couple of pics of Ava with her care package that we sent over there. She has her tiger, Yi, and her blankets and outfits. She's just a doll and we can't wait to bring her home!

TECO Done!

Yesterday turned out to be a great day! As you know, Tuesday we got our paperwork from Taiwan for Ava and we took them to the SOS to get authenticated. Yesterday we drove to Kansas City to have TECO authenticate them as well. Normally this takes at least a couple of days for them to do. They have even posted a sign now that says to allow for 48 hours to process documents and they no longer do same day processing. The lady that works there remembered us from last time and asked why we were back. We explained the situation with Lillian and that we now have our new little girl, Ava, that we are working on getting home. She was so excited for us. We asked her if there was any way to get the papers done that day since they had already authenticated them once, the only thing different was Ava's name on them now. She said she would see what she could do. She said she would call us when the papers were ready.

So we walked down to our car, hoping to be able to pick them up that afternoon. We made it to our car and the phone rang! She asked us if we could come back up to the TECO office. We thought we must have forgotten something. Instead she asked us to stamp all the papers so that she could get them to her boss by noon so that there would be a chance they would get done today. I guess she must have been real busy, but really wanted to help us out. So we helped her out and stamped all the papers!

We went shopping around KC for a little while. We bought a glider! I'm so excited!!! It's so cute and comfy...it's a light sage green with swirls in the fabric. Very whimisical. We ate lunch at Oklahoma Joe's. Then we went to the Plaza and walked around for a while. Then we decided to go to Maggie Moos. This is like my most favorite ice cream joint in the world!!!!! So good! I don't get to go there often because there is not one near where we live. So whenever we're in a town that has one, Chris tries to take me there.

We were sitting in the parking lot at Maggie Moos, it was about 4:15pm. I looked at Chris and said she hadn't called yet and that I didn't think it was gonna happen today. Not 2 seconds after I got those words out of my mouth did the phone ring! It was the TECO lady (sorry I keep referring to her as that, but I don't know her name)! OUR PAPERS WERE FINISHED!!!!! So we picked them up and went straight to FedEx! We mailed them back to Ted at THOGL and they should arrive on Monday! What a great day and a blessing!

Next step is we wait for the court date. Once Ted receives the papers back, he applies to get the court date for Ava. So then the waiting begins....again. We can't wait to have our little girl home!!!

Tour of Missouri

Ava's papers arrived from Taiwan today. I don't know if you remember, but there were about 6 documents that we had to have signed, notarized and authenticated after our first referral. Well that is the paperwork that has to be redone. So excited that it is already here!

Today I met Chris in Jefferson City after my class for work was finished. We went to the SOS (Secretary of State) office and had the documents notarized and authenticated. Tomorrow I will get up early in the morning and head to Kansas City to have the documents authenticated by TECO (basically the Taiwan embassy here in the States). We are hoping and praying that they will be able to do this while I'm there in the office tomorrow. If that happens we would be able to mail them back to Taiwan tomorrow! However, last time we had to leave the documents there for 2-3 days and then come back and get them to mail them off. Either way, we are blessed to live so close to both SOS and TECO as the process is several weeks shorter than most people's because we don't have to mail them to each place then wait for them to mail them back. So we are hoping to have the documents back to Taiwan by the middle to end of next week!

Once the documents arrive in Taiwan, Ted will take them and apply for the court date. Then, the waiting begins.....again. We really are blessed and praising God that little Ava was planned for us, and this soon! No matter what, we know and trust that the Lord is in control and His timing is best. (We can hope for sooner rather than later though!)

Birthday Gift....

Well, my birthday was Thursday the 26th. Chris took me to St.Louis, we made a Build-A-Bear for Ava and went to PF Changs. I LOVE PF Changs!!! But the best part was my gift. It definitely ranks up there with one of the best gifts I've ever received.

A little background first.... The year I got saved, my Mom gave me a Study Bible. I loved that Bible! It was my first real study Bible after I got saved. I had written special dates in it, I had my notes in the margins, I had written prayers in it that were very personal to me, I had written my list of characteristics I wanted in a husband in it (along with dates and specific guys I had prayed about). It was just very precious and sentimental to me. Well after we were married, I left it up on the kitchen table one day. I came home and the dogs had somehow gotten it off the table and ripped the cover off of it and the first several pages out of it, along with a whole section in the middle that while was intact, was ripped away from the binding. I was so sad and I was devastated. I couldn't bring myself to throw it away, so it's been sitting in a drawer in my nightstand for these almost 6 years.

After we ordered dinner, he gave me my gift. I opened it and it was a brown leather bound book that snapped together in the front. I unsnapped it to find my precious, sentimental Bible rebound with all but 10 or so original pages from the front that could not be repaired/replaced. All my notes, all my prayers, everything there, rebound. Oh I can't even describe how wonderful it was, it brought me to tears. Great gift!!! (My Christopher has always been a good gift giver!) He had 4 place maker ribbons put in it for me. If you could see my current Bible, I have weird things in it to mark various places in scripture I like to go back to or am reading frequently at the time. So thoughtful! Man! Do I have a catch or what!!!!

Dedicated to my forever love, Christopher!
Love you babe, Amy

Ava Mei

Ava Mei was born 8/9/10 weighing in at 6 lb 2 oz. She is a cutie and we are excited about adding her to our family! We don't know a lot of details as of right now, but we look forward to learning about her, watching her grow, and getting to know her personality.

Our timeline as of now starts over from the referral point. All of the baby specific paperwork has to be redone. So we are looking at probably 4 months before we are able to bring Ava home. What a wonderful Christmas present though!

New News

Well, we received a call this morning from THOGL. Seems God has a new little girl to add to our family! We are excited to annouce Ava Mei Earhart, born August 9,2010. She is 2 weeks old and we are looking forward to getting pictures by morning! Will write more later, but for now this is your teaser of God's plan!

PLEASE DO NOT POST ON FACEBOOK!

Blessings,
Chris and Amy

Love and Support

We want to thank everyone for their prayers and support. We have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love we've experienced from everyone! We have received so many encouraging emails, messages, and phone calls! We are truly blessed and feel the hand of God through this, through you all.

We left Friday evening and went to St.Louis for an overnight gettaway. I lost some money playing Texas Holdem--my once a year random casino fun. But in the words of Chris, that's why you go there isn't it?! We sat in the hot tub. We rode gokarts, ate some food, and did a quick walk through a couple of stores at the mall. Overall, it was nice just to enjoy being together and doing something just plain fun!

We know the Lord has something up His sleeve and we will wait patiently for it, although maybe waiting a little cautiously as well. It is hard to see why He chooses the path that He does for us sometimes, but ultimately, it is not for us to understand. One of my many issues is control--I love to know what's going on, what the plan is, and generally feel some simbliance of control. The Lord has been slowly teaching me how to let go of control and be okay with it. I'm not there yet, but baby steps right (no punn intended).

So that is where we stand for now. Continue to pray with us for Lillian and her family, as well as for THOGL and all the babies there.

Love in Christ,
The Earharts

Court Date

Lillian's birthmother decided to take her back. We will pray for both Lillian and her birthmother. We wish her the best and pray that they both know and love the Lord.

We are hurting, but are learning to accept the Lord's will, as hard as it might be. Thank you for all of your prayers, support, and encouragement.

Praying Scripture

Here is a list of verses I have really honed in on this week. I am praying them diligently and praying that the Lord fulfills the desire of our hearts.

"It does not, therefore, depend on man's desire or effort, but on God's mercy." Romans 9:16

"Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, 'The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.' The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord. ...Let him sit alone in silence, for the Lord has laid it on him. Let him bury his face in the dust--there may yet be hope. ...For men are not cast off by the Lord forever. Though he brings grief, he will show his compassion, so great is his unfailing love."
Lamentations 3:21-24,25-26, 28-29, 31-32

"For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit interedes for the saints in accordance with God's will." Romans 8:24-27

"God is our refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble. Therefore I will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, thought its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging. ....Come and see the works of the Lord, the desolation he has brought on the earth. He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear, he burns the shields with fire. Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress." Psalm 46: 1-3, 8-11

Thank you to those of you who have shared some of these verses with me. I have been so thankful for all the encouragement and support we are receiving. I look forward to seeing how the Lord unfolds His story. In the meantime, join with us praying these scriptures.

Blessings,
Amy

And the Date is.....

Well, an answer to prayer finally arrived today! We are super excited to announce that Lillian's court date is set for August 19th at 11am Taiwan time (August 18th 10pm our time)!!! We are another step closer to bringing precious Lillian home! This also helps us gage when we get to travel to pick her up. It looks like it will be mid to late September. Possibly even the week of our anniversary--Happy Anniversary to us! Could it possibly even get better than getting a baby for your anniversary?!

So here are a couple of prayer requests...
1) Pray that the birthmother shows up to the court date
2) Pray that the birthmother's heart would be prepared for signing the papers to forfeit parental rights (that has to be so hard)
3) Pray for our peace in the process
4) Pray that we get the "fast" judge, so our paperwork comes quickly
5) Pray for the AIT interview to be set quickly after the last set of paperwork arrives from the court. (The AIT interview must be set before we can travel--it is the interview that allows Lillian to obtain her visa to come to the US.)
6) Pray for the health of Lillian and the workers at THOGL

As always, your prayers are precious and coveted. We are so thankful for everyone who is walking this journey with us and the encouragement you give! Blessings!

Baby Shower in Joplin

We went to Joplin, MO this weekend for two events! Saturday was a THOGL picnic where multiple families who have adopted from THOGL get together for fellowship. Sunday was Lillian's baby shower. Both were so much fun! It was wonderful to connect with everyone and to meet some very special people as well!

We we able to met Russell and Kristi Ball who were instrumental in our adoption journey. They followed God's leading and shared with David and Vicki about THOGL, which in turn was relayed to us. Thus our journey to bringing Lillian home begins! What a blessing they are to us, and in so many ways, we will not be able to repay them! It was such an encouraging time for us! During the shower there was a prayer time for Lillian, THOGL, and other adoptive families and their process.

It was a good weekend! My best friend, Audra, also came in and surprised me for the shower! We were driving to Joplin Friday night after I got off work. We stopped at a gas station in Kansas City and out she pops with a flashlight in my window! Scared me to death, I thought it was the police, but was so excited when I realized it was her! She stayed all weekend and then went back to Charleston yesterday. She painted a picture for Lillian's room too!

Patiently Awaiting Lil' Sis'

So today I was on Ebay looking at decorations for Lillian's room. I found the cutest rug and wall art. So I was trying to figure out what size rug would be best based on the options given me. So I taped up the floor in the 2 sizes of the rug options. When I was done I looked up and saw Linus laying under the window. It was sooooo cute! I thought, he's just sitting there patiently waiting for his little sister to come home! I wish I could be that laid back about it! LOL!

So here's a little teaser of what I'm looking at on Ebay....

Not sure yet about whether or not we will get it, but it sure is cute and too perfect!

Cutest Smile Ever

This is the most recent picture of Lillian. We received it this morning. Apparently since we sent a care package, we get 2 pictures this month. They forgot to sent the second one to us, so they sent it to us today! She really has the cutest smile ever!!!!

I can't wait to meet her and see that smile in person! I just stare at her in awe! How amazing is our God!!!! In some ways I just can't believe she's ours! Here's hoping and praying we see her soon!

Love that Smile!

This is my precious baby girl's July picture! She got her care package 2 days ago and this is one of the outfits we sent her and Wu! Man, I just love that smile!!!!! She is just the cutest!!! I can't wait to love on her!!!! Can you tell I'm super excited?!!

Thank you for all the prayers, you guys are good (and fast)! God is definitely answering prayers (not that that was in question,lol)! She got her care package, that was one request on the list. Next, we got our I600A approval today as well!!!!! Such wonderful news all the way around! I can hardly contain myself. Other good news, I think we will get our court date soon. Another couple who requested their court date 2 days before us, received their date today. I think ours will follow soon! My guess is the court date will be August 2, Chris thinks it will be July 30. We'll see, only time will tell.

In other news, I painted Lillian's room this past weekend. It is a pale yellow. And while it is by no means done, it's a start. As you might remember, my aunt is making the bedding. Chris asked me one day about the curtains.... I forgot about the curtains?! So I went back to the fabric store and bought the last of the main fabric I picked out. I embarked on an educational journey and made the valance and curtains myself. I did have to rip a few seams out and do some things twice, but you live you learn! So you can enjoy my work in progress!

Thanks for all the prayers, and keep praying!!! Pray for Lillian, the court date to arrive soon and the birth mother to be present, pray for the workers, pray for the other families picking up their children and those waiting like us, and of course pray for us! You guys are doing such an awesome job! We feel your prayers and it is evident each step of the way! We are soooooo thankful for all of you and the support you've shown us!!! Blessings and Praise the Lord!!!

Papers Arrived in Taiwan

Our papers (translated and authenticated POA, adoption contract, Lillian's visa application, homestudy) were received by THOGL in Taiwan yesterday! They have already taken them to the court to apply for a court date!!! This is wonderful news!

The next steps are to receive the court date, have court date (with birth mother present), and get the court decree back saying Lillian is ours. After those steps happen, provided we have our I600A approval, we can travel in about a month. The court date will take 2-4 weeks to get set, then the actual court date is usually about a month later. There is then a 2 week period after the court date where anyone can contest the adoption. Sometimes the birth mother can waive this waiting period. We are hoping that we will be able to travel by the beginning of September! We'll see, it all just depends on the timing of the next few steps.

Prayer requests:
1. Pray for our Lillian to continue to grow and develop healthy
2. Pray for the workers, adequate rest and health
3. Pray that our court date would be set and received soon
4. Pray that the birth mother would show up to court, for her heart to be prepared, and that God would bless her for her decision
5. Pray for our I600A approval to come through soon.
6. Pray for us during this wait, it is extremely difficult to know she is there and we can't hold her and love on her
7. Pray for the other families picking up their children this week, and those waiting to pick their children up just like us.

How great is our God!!! I tell you what, just processing our adoption process it makes me think of what our Lord has gone through to bring us home. Not only did He have to die for me, He waited 19 years for me to join His family! I can't possibly imagine loving Lillian from a distance for 19 years, wondering if she knew who I am, wondering if she would love me and choose me. I can't imagine waiting 19 years for her to come home! How much I would miss! And yet our Lord waits patiently for us, longing to hold us and love us! Amazing, it really is amazing! How thankful I am that I have Him to lean on and trust in this wait, He has been there! Praise the Lord!

TECO DONE

"He settles the barren woman in her home as a happy mother of children. Praise the Lord!" Psalm 113:9

This morning Chris went to Kansas City praying that our TECO papers were signed! He left on faith that they would be done, not having heard from the office yet. He had lots to accomplish back here with work so he had to leave early. I also worked today, so I could not go. He was 20 minutes from the TECO office when they called to let us know our documents were done!!! He picked them up and then went straight to FedEx and mailed them to Taiwan. Yeah, one more step closer to bringing Lillian home!!!!!!

Well, I think I'm finally done registering..... I really have no idea, so if you notice I'm missing something I really need let me know! We are officially registered at Babies R Us, Target, and Walmart. (Walmart is primarily just diapers and wipes and things of the like.)

I guess next is trying to pick the color for the walls. Oh the paint swatches! Anyone who knows my history with paint knows I'll have like 50 swatches painted on the wall to try and figure out which one I like. Oh yeah, then I'll stare at them for weeks on end, lol!

Happy Father's Day!!!

I told Chris this evening that I don't think I'll ever get tired of telling him Happy Father's Day! Finally having our Lillian (although not home yet) makes saying that phrase sooooo sweet! So to celebrate Father's Day, Chris got his first Father's Day card. (He is going to be an AMAZING Dad!) We finished registering at Target. We also spent it working on Lillian's room!

Last night Chris put the crib together.

I also washed the Lillian's clothes. I cleaned out the closet in her room, bought a few hangers, and hung the clothes up!

Starting to put the room together makes it truly feel like we will be bringing our precious Lillian home for real soon! It's just amazing! I would add, though, that it also makes the wait all the harder! I want to hold her and love on her NOW! How can you miss someone so much that you've never met?! In the meantime I will stare at my current favorite picture of her and pray!

Maybe Monday....

Well we went to drop off our niece and nephew in Kansas City yesterday. I miss them already. The house is so quiet without them. And despite what most think, I miss hearing: "Aunt Amy, Aunt Amy"! They are with Nana and Papa now, having a blast I might add!

Our next stop, with only 1 nephew in tow, was the TECO office. We had expected to be able to pick up all our authenticated documents, but alas they were not ready. We were bummed but understand the lady at the TECO office had done everything she could to get them ready for us. Her boss that needed to sign them did not come back to the office to sign them that day. So she told us maybe Monday and that she would call us when they are ready. So we wait. That's okay, though, all in God's timing. Although we ARE eager to hold our Lillian, so the sooner the better!

So we returned home last night, only to awake this morning and drive the other direction to meet my Dad and brother to drop off our other nephew, Michael, to go home. Sad to have our last one leave. Some great memories this week though! What fun to watch them grow and to love on them! We got to spoil them and send them home, just like good aunt and uncles should!

Getting Closer!

Well, our nieces and nephews have been out this week for Cousin Camp! It's been great fun! This is the reason for our delay in posting. We have been a touch preoccupied with 3 kids here this week, ages 6, 5, and 2 1/2. We've been going to the playground, at Bonkers, playing Wii, going swimming, painting photo frames, playing games, reading bedtime stories, and many other activities!

During all the chaos of going from none to 3 for the week, we did receive our adoption contract, POA, and translated home study! So we took an afternoon trip to Jeff City to get our papers authenticated by the Secretary of State with the kids in tow. The following day, Chris took the papers to TECO while I took the kids swimming at a friend's house. Soooo....tomorrow we are taking all 3 kids with us back to KC to pick up the papers from TECO and FedEx them to Taiwan! The documents should be ready around 3pm! We are also meeting Chris' parents while we're there and they are taking 2 of the kids for the next week. Larkin and Sheldon will spend a week with Nana and Papa before they drive them back out to North Carolina to be with Mommy and Daddy again.

So we will be down to just our nephew in the house. We meet back up with his Daddy (my brother) on Saturday for him to go home. The house will seem so quiet without them all here. Cousin Camp is a treasure and such a great time to get to know our little niece and nephews! It's not often that we get to spend this kind of time with them since they live so far away from us. I will miss them tons!! It's bittersweet for me. I will miss them, but at the same time I can get back to focusing on our Lillian and preparing for her to come home!

Upcoming Tour of Missouri, LOL

Well we just got word this morning that our homestudy is done being translated as well as our POA (Power of Attorney). They will be sending it to us tomorrow!!!! Yeah! After we receive it, we get to make a couple of trips around MO. We have to go to Jefferson City to have them notarized and then authenticated by the Secretary of State. After that's done, then it's off to Kansas City to TECO (Taiwan Economic and Cultural Office) for them to authenticate it as well. They will then send it back to us or we can pick it up a few days later.

We're getting closer and closer each day to our little girl coming home! Oh how I wish it could be tomorrow! In the end it will be worth it! And besides, if it were tomorrow, I would have no where for her to sleep, lol!

Pray that the papers do NOT get lost in the mail. Pray that we can get them to Jeff City and KC all in one day and that they return to us quickly. The sooner we get this paperwork back to Taiwan, the sooner they can get our first court date! Also pray that our I600A will be approved soon. It must be approved and sent to Taiwan before we can travel. Also, pray for decision making on some things already scheduled (nothing to do with adoption) and wisdom on if and when to do them. As always, pray for Lillian and THOGL!

Blessings,
Amy (and Chris)

Lillian's Room

We are so excited about getting Lillian's room together! Unfortunately we can't start that yet as we have no furniture, no bedding etc. All in due time though! I have been looking at bedding but have not found anything that I particularly like. Everything is SO pink. I have nothing against pink, I actually like pink, but I don't really want a room full of it. That is really hard when it comes to baby bedding for girls. Soooooo.... I went fabric shopping. My aunt agreed to make Lillian's baby bedding, and I just can't wait! What a wonderful gift Aunt Carolyn has with sewing and how much more special will her room be because of it! Below are pictures of the fabric I picked out.

Top: Dust Ruffle, Crib Sheets.

Bottom: Quilt Fabrics, Inside/Outside Bumpers

Now before you write me any notes telling me about the controversy about crib bumpers, I am aware of it. I have read about both sides. I have no objection to the crib bumper. Disagree if you will, that's okay.

Anyway, I can't wait to see it all put together! I'm calling the theme "Love Grows"!

Praise the Lord!

It's a girl!!! We named her Lillian Mei Earhart! She is absolutely gorgeous and adorable! We can't wait to meet her! Below are the 2 pictures we have of her. The one in the pink blanket is the most recent, the one in white is when she was 10 days old and her first day at THOGL.

We found out yesterday morning that she is ours! She is 7 weeks old tomorrow, born on April 17, 2010. We spent all of yesterday calling family and friends! The first picture(at the top) of us we sent to my Mom, Dad, and brother which was immediately followed by phone calls! Chris's parent found out by a return from their little man.... He had been traveling and came back home with a letter that told them they have a granddaughter waiting in Taiwan!

We had April at Shon and Michelle's church give them this onesie to anounce that they were going to be an Aunt and Uncle.

The timing couldn't have been more perfect! It's amazing to see just how God cares for us! I had been praying that we would find out before our fingerprinting appt in St.Louis. I really wanted to be able to register while we were in St.Louis as well as make a Build-A-Bear to send to Lillian (we did not get our registry finished, but started). Well, yesterday we went to St.Louis to get our fingerprinting done! That is also another praise! The system that sets up the appts for fingerprinting is all automated, so I had an appt yesterday, but Chris' wasn't for another 2 weeks. It's a 2 hour drive to St.Louis so we had been praying that they would allow us to do both at the same time. So we took our letters and had no problem getting both of our fingerprints done! God is amazing! It was the best government experience we have ever had. It took a total of maybe 15 minutes for both of us to be done, the staff was extremely friendly, and they even had us fill out a comment card at the end!

Our next stop was Build-A-Bear! We made a tiger to send to Lillian and in it's left arm we were able to record our voices for her to hear until we get to go pick her up! Her Chinese last name is Wu (we cannot pronounce her given name in chinese, and for privacy sake we'll leave that off here). So we named the tiger Wu!

We also picked up two outfits, a couple blankets, a rattle, and a photo book we can put our family pictures in, and then of course Wu is in the picture. All of this we are going to mail on Monday to her.

As of now, there is still a ton of paperwork to be done and more of the great paper chase has begun! Bev said to plan emotionally for about 5 more months until we get to go pick her up. That is going to be a long 5 months, but it will be totally worth it!

In the meantime, please pray for a smooth process and that the court date in Taiwan will be set soon! Pray for Bev and THOGL staff as there have been some major events there and lots of babies waiting for their Forever Families to pick them up! Pray for us as we prepare to be parents for our little Lillian and that we will be able to get our side of the paperwork done without any problems. Pray for Lillian in her time left at THOGL and that she will attach to us once we get to meet her! Most of all, praise the Lord for our new blessing and just how much our Lord cares about us right down to the little details!

Blessings,
Amy and Chris

PS--Please don't post anything on Facebook as of yet, as this is a request of Bev!

Patient in Waiting

"Be joyful in hope, patient in [waiting], faithful in prayer." Romans 12:12

Okay, I did change one word, I exchanged waiting for affliction. I think is is applicable. My affliction right now is waiting! We certainly are joyful right now. Anytime anyone asks me about how our adoption process is going and tells us how excited they are for us, I just beam! I know I do. I'm so excited I can't hardly stand it!

I'm also praying hard!! We're praying for Ted and Bev as they are caring for so many babies and making life changing decisions for parents and kids! We are praying for our little one that God will bless us with soon. We are praying for us in this process. Oh the prayers never stop!

The hard one is being patient. Patience has never been my strong suit. I'm persistent though, so does that count? Don't ever tell me I can't do something, cause I WILL prove you wrong. I tried out for colorguard 3 years in a row before I made it. My academic advisor in college told me I'd never get into nursing school at Auburn; 2 years later I was accepted. Trust me I've got others. Anyway, we're trying to be patient now--we've been persistant.

Good news though....We got word from Ted and Bev yesterday that they are having our home study translated into Chinese. They also told us that we definitely need to be working on our I600A. (We have already sent that in 2 weeks ago and have our fingerprinting appts now.) While that's not a referral, it sure sounds like steps in the right direction and certainly good news!

Blessings,
The Earharts

Are we there yet?

We are far from there yet....but still, I keep hoping. We sent our I-600A form off last week. I know, I know, what's that?! It's the petition you file for advance placement of a child. Basically it's the visa and a form that when it's approved makes the child a US citizen once he/she is on US soil. It takes a little while for that to be processed, probably upwards of at least 8 weeks. Good thing is you can file it before you get your referral (the call stating there is a child for us). But for now, we wait.

I must say it is very hard to concentrate knowing that any time we could get a call. Everytime the phone rings, I wonder (and quickly check the caller ID) "Is this the call?" Somehow I need to find a diversion. I pray a lot....but I still think about it. I read adoption books, I look at baby stuff online, I think about what Taiwan will be like, what it will be like when he/she is home. Anway, for now, I'll just have to wait and imagine.....

Patience Dear One

Hello all! As you can see from Chris's post, our home study is done!!!! Praise the Lord!!! Now it's just hurry up and wait. The hard part. But we know that the Lord is good and has been with us every step of this journey. We are trusting in his perfect timing! Oh how I long for the day we get our hands on that little one!!!! In the meantime I keep thinking of Aslan's quote from the movie Chronicals of Narnia, "Patience Dear One".

Pray for our peace and contentment in this time of waiting. Pray for our little one's peace as well until he/she gets to come home with us. Pray also, even now, for our little one's attachment and transition to our Forever Family. Pray for Ted and Bev as they are not only making big decisions but taking care of all those little babies! We have heard through THOGL's facebook page that several families have gotten their referrals and are in process of court dates in Taiwain, preparing to travel, etc. Pray for those families and that their final steps would go smoothly. And lastly, praise, praise, praise the Lord for all his blessings!

Love and Blessings,
Amy

Home Study is Done!!

Our Home Study is finally done, signed, and emailed to Ted and Bev. They emailed that they received it and said we should go ahead and send in our I600A paperwork. This goes to the government to approve us to adopt, to adopt from Taiwan, and to travel to Taiwan. We will also have to have our finger printing done a second time. We have everything put together to send our paperwork off, so we should be able to send it Monday.

We have no referral at this time and no indication how long the wait will be. Please pray that it will be soon.

God bless,
Chris

The Passover Lamb

As you might have caught a couple of posts ago, I'm in a Beth Moore Bible study at church, Jesus the One and Only. I highly recommend it for any of you who may not have done it. She has a real knack for making you think of things in a different light. Anyway, I was reading back over some of my older posts and realized the same verse keeps coming up, and guess what...it is back again this week.

"Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done."
Luke 22:42

It is, of course, listed in Matthew's gospel and in Hebrews as well. Still, it is basically the same verse. I guess God is trying to tell me something. Being that today is Easter and I find myself reflecting on this verse quite a bit. I was amazed to listen to Beth's extrapalation on the meaning of "this cup". God sure is in the details! I have always known that Jesus was the Lamb, the Passover. That is just something you come to know and hear as you grow in your walk and learn at church. I did not fully grasp this until going back and rereading the passages in Exodus dealing with the Passover and listening to the traditions of the Jews celebrating the Passover. It was amazing!!! Apparently there are 4 cups during the Passover Feast and 4 "I will" promises represented in those cups, found in Exodus. Christ is the cup of redemption from the Passover. Of course I've known for quite some time now that He is the Redeemer. Processing that He planned that long before it ever took place, long before the disciples could understand exactly what He meant. To imagine him standing up in that room telling the disciples that is just overwhelming! I cannot fully express all my thoughts on this because I'm still trying to wrap my head around the very specific meaning it carried the moment He said it. I never connected the details. I knew the symbolism, I understand the impact, but I missed the very specific details. God is so deliberate, so perfect, and so concerned with us, with me. Amazing to process!

I pray that in this Easter, you have found God even in the details. If you don't know him personally, I pray that you find Him. He is precious and cares for us more that we can imagine! Thank the Lord that He made the decision to be our cup, our Lamb! He is risen!

Home Study Madness

Well we've had 2 home study visits now. The first was last Thursday with the both of us. Robin, our social worker, asked mostly basic questions to the both of us. How did we meet? What do we like about each other? When and where did we get married? Etc. It lasted about an hour and a half.

Today, I had my individual interview. It wasn't bad. She asked a lot of background questions and some questions about adoption. I think it went fine. I do find myself wondering if I sound crazy or not though! Overall I think the process is going well. The next visit will be Chris's individual interview. That will happen after spring break. Robin is going on vacation for spring break with her family.

I do find myself more and more wishing and hoping that we are able to pick up our child soon! I'm doing all kinds of crazy things like shopping online for cribs and bedding. Thinking about onesies, carseats, and strollers. I keep trying to figure out just what exactly is appropriate for me to be doing right now. I even bought a book, What to Expect in the First Year, to read about what stages and milestones our little one will be approaching when we bring them home. Man, I feel like a nut. Is this the equivalent of "nesting" that a lot of pregnant women go through? Am I crazy? How is it possible to maintain this kind of excitement? I'm trying to keep myself in check though. I haven't bought anything....yet. I just can't wait to get my hands on that precious one! Oh patience, Lord, patience....for me that is!

Divine Purposes

Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will." Matthew 26:39

During the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him... Hebrews 5:7 (emphasis mine)


The question of "why".... I would definitely say that I have struggled with "why" over the past 3 years. Some of those struggles you have witnessed on our blog. Why did we not get pregnant? Why does God choose to give children to those not following Him or who can't handle the responsiblity? Why is there suffering? There are a million whys out there. Now I'm not going to claim that I have the answer to the "why" question, but I will say that I have been given a peace recently about the "why" question. Let me explain....

I recently found the above verses while doing a Beth Moore study through the women's ministry at our church. They couldn't have come to me at a more appropriate time! As I looked more closely at the verses, and myself, I realized that sometimes I just don't feel heard, especially if I don't get my way. Case in point, our fertility struggles. I felt, to some extent, that God was just ignoring all the prayer for children and all the scripture we'd been praying. Knowing that God is good is the only thing that kept me going when I just didn't understand. The truth is I may never understand this side of heaven. Does that mean God doesn't hear us? Absolutely not. I was really put in my place after reading those scriptures (oh, the sweet discipline of our Lord)! Jesus Christ, God's only son pled not to have to endure death on a cross. Take this cup from me he asked. Our Lord was saying, please, please let there be another way! And he was heard. Let me say that again, he was heard. Did that mean that God changed His plan? No, thank goodness! Sometimes our very valid requests, even our scripturally based requests, are outside God's plan. Sometimes divine purposes take precedence. Imagine if God had said to Jesus, "Okay, you are my Son, since you desperately want this, I'll grant your request. I'll take this cup from you." I would be in some sort of desperate, alone, guiltridden mess. I would be eternally separated from our Lord! How thankful I am that God does what is best, not what we want!

Now it is still a tough pill to swallow. The implications of all this is something I will be working out for a long time to come. But it is a comfort to me that there are divine purposes at work here. I may never understand them, but they are there. I know they are because God is good. I know they are because He chose salvation over His Son. I know they are because it is only due to the work God is doing on my heart that I can walk through this trial. I know that they are because right now our child is being prepared for us half way around the world! God is good!

Getting Up to Speed

Okay, so again, I'm a slacker about posting. But we have BIG news! We are amazed at how God works and how He answers prayers! There is a lot of background to this story, but to save you some suspense I will tell you the news first and then explain. The news is........We have started the adoption process!!!!

As many of you know, our journey to starting a family has not been an easy one. We have been on a long break from fertility treatments since our last IVF cycle. This is where the story begins. We have always felt that we would adopt even prior to getting married. Both of us feel particularly inclined to adopt internationally, and even more specifically, from an asian country. Our fertility journey actually spawned from our initial inquiries into international adoption. I will spare you the details on that starting journey, and of course, you know the fertility journey.

Back in January, we began feeling led to start looking at the next steps for starting a family. We have 2 frozen embryos from our last IVF cycle and felt it was only logical to pursue implanting them. However, we knew we wanted to seek a second opinion and we did that with a doctor in St.Louis. That visit did NOT go well. We left confused, discouraged, and frustrated. After a couple days to process we figured out why. The physician's view of our embryos and our view of our embryos did not line up. And yet we did not feel led to seek another opinion just yet, or who that would be.

At the end of that week we were headed to Joplin to meet with our financial planner and were planning on staying with Chris's parents the night before. We went to dinner with them that evening. After explaining our doctor's visit, they had this news to share with us. There is a couple at their church who has been praying for us throughout our fertility process and had themselves struggled with infertility. Chris's parents spoke with them the Sunday before our visit and they asked how we were doing. Then they suggested to his parents that when and if we were ready to adopt, they would love to talk with us about their adoption through a missionary couple running an orphanage in Taiwan. Some details were shared about cost and how they knew the missionary couple, etc. At dinner, his parents relayed the info and Chris and I just looked at each other..... If all of this was true, it was exactly what we had been praying for! We felt that if adoption was our next step that God wanted us to pursue, it would have to be something that basically found us. Our international adoption dreams, specifically asian, had just been placed in our laps!

Since then, we have been emailing the couple in Taiwan at the orphanage and felt led to pursue adoption through them. We started our home study process on this past Thursday and mailed a ton of application stuff off today! We are excited and looking forward to seeing the unfolding of our family! Everything so far seems to just be falling into place. It is impossible to imagine how this could possibly have happened without the hand of God. So we will follow!

We will try to do our best at updating the blog as more info and news comes in. Please pray for our process and the child God is preparing for us right now!

Blessings,
Amy and Chris