21 more days.....

"An Orphan's Prayer"
author unknown

Each night before I go to bed
I fold my hands and bow my head
Praying for a family and the day she will come for me
I ask God to watch over my friends at the orphanage,
The place that I call home
Wishing we find families and rooms of our very own.
I finish my prayers and climb into bed
Hoping that God heard what I said.
My prayers usually turn out to be my dreams at night
Hoping she will be standing there when I wake to the morning light.
One very special morning, I will hear their call,
I jump out of bed and run down the hall!
Is it her, Is it her, is that why they’ve called my name?
Running I hear them shout “It’s her, it’s her, she finally came!”
Have all my prayers been answered, have all my dreams come true
There she is in front of me, Oh Mama! Oh Mama!! Is it really you?

“Yes, it is my darling, I’ve come to take you home,”
“I will love, protect and cherish and you will never be alone.“
Mama looks at me so differently a look so new to me,
She touches me so gently, just as I dreamed it would be.
As I look into her eyes I watch them fill with water,
She embraces me and whispers, “I love you so my daughter”.
She takes my hand and I hold it tight,
I will never let it go, I hold with all my might.
Hand in hand we walk together,
No one needs to speak; we know this is forever.
And through our journey when we finally meet each other,
She will have found her dream and I will have found my mother.

First Baby Shower

Cancer Care of WNC gave Mike and I our first ever baby shower yesterday. We were so overwhelmed by the outpouring of gifts for Autumn. We now have a carseat, a high chair, stoller, blankets, clothes, socks, hairbows, shoes, carrier, diapers, pull ups, potty chair, toys- you name it, she's got it. The nursery is complete I'd say.
The food was incredible, the cake was awesome. Then, off to Sylva today- another cake and more gifts. We are just so blessed. I can't wait to introduce Autumn to all of the folks at work who have been such a huge support throughout this journey. To her extended family at Cancer Care- we just can't thank you enough! 26 more days to China!

CHINA BOUND!

So we are now working on confirming our flights. It is looking like we will be leaving on September 15th, and returning on September 30th. We will be meeting her for the first time on September 20th!! WOW! I cannot believe we are this close!
Once we get our confirmed itinerary, I will post here. Mike and I are planning to take a laptop with us, so that our family and friends can see pictures and posts of our time in China while we are there. Theoretically, this should work, however, China does not offer google- so I am trying to figure out how we will do this. But anyway- stay tuned. Lots of excitement now in the Sheron house!

September 27, 2010.

So we heard today that we did not get the consulate appointment we wanted. Which means that we will not travel to China this month. I am very sad, but I guess that gives me a little more time to prepare. Ironically, our consulate appointment will likely be September 27, 2010 which is also our anniversary! Our social worker says that you take the consulate appointment and count backwards about 9-10 days, and that will give us the round about time we will travel. I am guessing that this will be sometime the week of the 17th. So now we have to go through another homestudy. This part is not a big deal, but another wait for immigration is what I am most worried about. Hopefully knowing that we have a consulate appointment will rush things up. We have also asked for more updates on Autumn. I am crossing fingers and toes for new pictures. And again- if anybody has any ideas on inexpensive gifts to take to China- please speak up! We are having a REALLY hard time finding things not made in China! Unbelievable. I am almost ready to start crafting.

YEAH!! IMMIGRATION APPROVAL!!

We FINALLY got our immigration approval today!! Our agency submitted a request for our daughter's US consulate appointment to secure her visa status. This very important date is what our travel dates depend on. So, I was told that tomorrow, we should hear something! I am on pins and needles - the earliest we could travel is in 2 weeks. WOW- 2 weeks! This is what my agency is hoping for- because our home study will expire next month. That means, you guessed it, ANOTHER immigration approval!! This could throw us into late September or even later. Then, China celebrates a major holiday around September 22. There is a trade show early October that goes over several days, and then there is the in country games happening between October and November. While I think that travel during this time would be acceptable, the costs may go up significantly because of all the events taking place. While I feel like I have no time now to prepare, I am crossing my fingers and saying my prayers for travel in August. But whenever we go, I know it is in God's hands and timing will be perfect.

Greetings from Folly Beach!

Mike and I are spending a short weekend vacation at Folly Beach. I have never been to Folly Beach. I know this is very odd, because Mike and I come to the Charleston area to vacation so often. It is so beautiful!! I love it here! The weather could be a little better, but oh well- we are still having a good time. I think we may check out the aquarium later today. Mike had a great idea that we may could find some cute things for gifts to take to China there. Since we are getting so far along now in this process, I thought I'd also share this photo we have. Enjoy!

Care Package

Here is a picture of what we sent Autumn this week. The candy is for her caregivers. To the right is a bag to keep it all together, and it is labeled with her name and a picture of her. To the left, a set of PJ's with a lady bug on them; the middle is a photo album with picures of us, and her new home- all labled in Chinese for her caregivers to explain who we are. I did not expect that. Ann at Redthread has been amazing to work with! Ann will also go shopping with us in China, if we want her to! Families before us have commented that she knows the best places to buy gifts in China and is an expert at negotiating prices! I am not sure if we will use her service, but we'll see. We also sent our Visa applications to Washington today. And the paperwork continues. Hopefully next week, we will know exact travel dates. So, stay tuned. (But again, that is assuming that immigration comes through for us in the next couple of days.)

Totally Amazing!

Guess what we got today - 10 days earlier than expected - That's right! TRAVEL APPROVAL!! It is amazing to think that right now we are just weeks away from meeting our daughter!!!! The exact travel date still is pending because we are waiting on, you guessed it, IMMIGRATION! The Chinese government has blown me away with how quickly they have been in advancing us through this process. Now my OWN government is holding us up!!!! I have to admit though, I have a really nice and sweet officer that has been more than eager to help me. The process is undergoing some changes, so in their defense, it really has not been a cake walk I am sure. I have waited over four years, so what is a few more days, right? We have lots more paperwork to do, and I am getting ready to mail our visa applications in the morning. We also have some minor details to take care of- it is customary in China to give lots of gifts. Since I don't know exact counts on males and females- I would love some suggestions on nice -not so expensive gifts, for either gender, that will travel lightly, and preferably not made in China. OK- off to do more paperwork! We are dizzy with excitement and anticipation!