Mathew 18:5 In whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me!

     I want to start off by saying how sorry I am for not updating the blog in awhile.  Not a lot has changed in our adoption process until this last week.  If any of you have been through the adoption process, there is a lot of waiting.  We have waited every step of the way.  You turn in a little bit of paper work then you wait until you turn in more just to wait.  We are getting closer and closer!

     We went to Naperville this last Monday and got fingerprinted for the last time.  The paperwork is now in the hands of immigration.  This is the last stop our paperwork has to take before we send it to our friends in Taiwan.  We are praying that the paperwork gets through in a very timely manner. 

     We just found out a couple of weeks ago that they are changing adoption in Taiwan quite a bit.  We are adopting independently through a Christian organization in Taiwan.  They have been allowed to give referrals for families adopting.  As of June 1st they will no longer be able to do that.  We are hoping and praying that God stays in the lead on this journey and that he helps our paperwork to get through and in their hands in time.  If not then we wait until this Organization partners with an agency and then we could get a referral. 

     We have learned that the adoption process can definitely be very hard because laws change all of the time.  We also know that getting all stressed out will not do anybody any good.  God has had this whole journey planned out from the beginning and he knows how it will work out all the way to the very end.  We are so thankful that we know and trust in him and he has it all under control.

     We are waiting to hear back from LifeSong an organization here in Illinois that helps financially with adoptions.  We should be hearing back from them any day now.  They help match donations up to a certain amount.  We are planning on having another garage sale/bake sale as soon as we find out.  I still have a ton of stuff from our last garage sale in the basement just waiting to find a new home.  If you would like to donate or help out with the garage sale/bake sale just let me know.

     All together the cost of the adoption is between $26,000 - $28,000.  We still have a long way to go financially but we are getting closer and closer everyday to getting our pictures of our soon to be little one.  I can not wait to see our new family member.  Our hearts are so full of love for this little child that we have not even seen yet.  We know that they are waiting on us right now and my heart aches to hold him or her and let them know how long we have waited and how much we love them. 

     Thank you all for being an incredible support system for us while we have been on this journey.  We know that God has so much more in store for our family.  This is about so much more than adoption.  It is about listening to his prompting and following him to places we never thought we could go.  I really feel that God has a calling for our family and I can't wait to share it with all of you after we bring our little one home. 

     I am sorry once again that it has taken so long for me to update our journey.  As many of you know months fly by really fast sometimes. We love you all and we appreciate your prayers!