Hey Friends!
We just found out that our agency has received all the paperwork and money they need to begin compiling our dossier for shipment to China! The last of our checks and documents arrived in Alabama this week.
So what happens now? Our agency in Alabama will go through all our documents, check them for accuracy and authenticity, organize them into the proper format, and then mail them to the government in China for approval and review. They tell us that authentication will take 2 or 3 weeks. Friends who have adopted before tell us to expect a wait of 2 to 6 months once the dossier is sent over to China. Sooo...we could be headed to pick up our boy either really soon...or it could still be a while. In either case it will probably feel like forever. BUT, God is pretty good at dealing with 'forever' type stuff and He knows the exact moment in time when Phillip's eyes will first perceive, in person, up close and larger than life, the faces of his new family beaming with excitement to take their new son home.
Speaking of 'forever' type stuff, this really is kind of a 'forever' type thing. We want to be Phillip's forever family, not his instant family. So I guess it kinda makes sense that adoption isn't an instant process. It's taking a while, but all this time just makes us more determined and committed to getting him home. When God decides the time is right and he needs to be home at last, Phillip will find himself in a forever home, and even if it takes 'forever' for him to get there it will be well worth the wait. Please join us in praying that God will continue to provide for our needs. Pray that He will make us patient, and humble, and totally reliant on Him. Pray that we won't try to take on the burdens of adopting ourselves and that we won't forget to praise Him for the joy it brings us.
With EAGER anticipation,
The Crofts
