So Much Has Changed ...

Wow...it has been just over a year since our last post. We would like to blame it on Facebook for convincing us that blogging was "so 2009", but honestly, it has simply been laziness. But here we are, back for a quick update on our journey to China. As most of you are aware, we followed God's guidance in switching last Spring to the special needs program for China. This program includes those children that have various medical issues or are simply older or otherwise considered "not readily adoptable" (that sounds too horrible to even type...insert shuddering here). The process wasn't without heartache as we reviewed a few files earlier in the year and just knew they were not our daughter. But on September 27, a referral was emailed early one morning and Marcie happened to catch it right away. She called me at work and told me to check my emails and let her know what I thought. We could barely speak to one another as we both came to the realization that we were staring at a picture of the newest member of our family. She had been born in our hearts years before, but now she had a name and a face, beautifully crafted by the One who knew her story long before He created each of us. Since that day, we have been in a whirlwind of paperwork updates, new paperwork, more governmental approvals and fundraising. We are relatively worn out as I type this, but things have slowed slightly as we await some of the final approvals from Immigration and get appointments set for our eventual travel early next year. We know her name...we know her address...we know what she looked like sometime after 7 months of age (14 months old now)...and it is absolutely ripping our hearts out to not be with her. We pray for and think of Maggie Jane daily...and her big brothers are beside themselves in anticipation of her homecoming. Hopefully, some exciting news is forthcoming, but for now we rest in the knowledge that God has her in His hands. No matter her medical condition or her living conditions or her caregiver situation, we know that God has this...as He does everything in our lives (even thought we sometimes forget). And most importantly . . . . . we're coming baby girl . . . . and this time we really mean it. Love you all and thanks for your continued prayers.