Hi Friends and Family! We want to start this post by thanking each and every one of you who have reached out with kind words and support as we have navigated international adoption during the time of COVID-19. It’s only been a few months into our adoption process and it’s definitely been a wild ride so far.
We are happy to report our social worker was able to complete our home tour last Monday. We received word today our home study has been approved! This is a huge milestone for adoptive families and we are so thankful to mark this portion as complete. Our caseworker was fantastic at working with us through each hurdle and did an excellent job supporting us along the way.
We also could not have completed this step without your support! Thanks to the generous donations from 18 individuals/families, we were able to pay our second (of four) agency fees as well as the fee associated with our I800A (immigration paperwork – which is also the next step in our process). You will never know the impact that you have made with your contributions!
We would also like to update you all on matching. For those new to adoption, matching is the portion of the adoption process where children and families are “matched” together. It is the part of the process where we will be find out who our daughter will be. China changed the way they match files back in January, and due to this change we will most likely match with a special focus child. This means our child will likely have a more moderate to severe medical/special need and may be a little older than we originally planned. We have spent a lot of time prayerfully considering matching and feel at complete peace about moving forward with the program. In good news, this means we can start reviewing files now instead of having to wait till our dossier is logged in in China.
Many have also asked how COVID-19 and America/China relations have affected adoption. While traveling is currently suspended, it has been communicated to us by our agency (who we deeply trust) that both countries still remain committed to inter-country adoption.
We will be the first to admit, our process so far has had many bumps in the road. COVID-19, unpaid leave, changes in matching, etc. have all had us adjusting our focus and expectations at every turn. It has been hard, but beautiful. In many ways, our life looks crazy right now, but we have never felt more at peace. We have had no choice but to step back and let God work; we know He is working in our waiting!
Our current prayer requests are for our future daughter to find favor among her care takers, that she would be held and nurtured often, and that she is not in any pain due to her medical needs.
We also ask for prayers surrounding the matching process, Laura’s passport to arrive (it’s stuck in the mire of government shutdown), and fundraising. God has been faithful to provide the funds for our journey thus far, but we still have a long way to go. If you feel led, please consider purchasing a tassel for Baby Girl’s blanket. Every donation made goes directly to adoption fees.
We thank you again for your prayers and support!
Blessings,
Andrew and Laura – Ephesians 3:17-21