Well as I mentioned in my last post, it normally takes about 6 months from acceptance of the referral until we can travel to go get him. Time seems to be moving in fast forward and so has this process for the first time in almost two years.
We were pleasantly surprised when his legal documents arrived from the Philippines in about 4 weeks instead of the 6 weeks we were told it would probably take. By the time they arrived we were ready with all of our documents for US Citizenship and Immigration Services and were able to FedEx our I-800, I-864 & I-864A to them the very next day. USCIS received and accepted our application and forwarded them to the National Benefits Center on a Monday...we received the notice that Wednesday and were told that it would take 10-14 business days for NBC to receive our applications for processing. 11 business days later we received our 1-800 Provisional Approval in the mail!! I was not even expecting it so when I went to the mailbox that day I was completed surprised!
From there we were told that it would take 1-2 weeks for our approval and file to be sent to the Department of State's National Visa Center. It is our responsibility to contact NVC and verify that they have received the file and obtain our case number and the date of when they upload the file to the US Embassy in Manila. I called NVC on the 6th day (because I couldn't wait one more day! LOL) and they had just received our file that day! They told me to call back the next day for our case number and to verify that our file had been sent to Manila. So, I called back the next day and got our case number and the official date that our file was sent!!
So now we really do just have to sit back and wait while the Inter-Country Adoption Board prepares all of his travel documents, secures his passport, and contacts the Embassy to get him scheduled for his visa "interview" and medical exam. We are praying that everything continues to move along at a quick pace so that we could get him home in time for Christmas! All that being said, we decided that we better prepare ahead of time for Christmas and his arrival and therefore have already bought a few Christmas presents and one item that we'll need for his room.
We've also been "scarfing"! So far I have 100 scarves ready and 24 more to sew by the craft fair on October 18th. I'm also doing a Noonday Collection Trunk Show Fundraiser on September 23rd. If you haven't ever heard of Noonday you should really look them up. They are an awesome company and they support adoptions. If you'd like to shop the Noonday Collection with 20% of the sale going toward our adoption you can go to www.elizabethperkinson.noondaycollection.com. Please ensure that Elizabeth Perkinson is the Ambassador and include 'Alaina Nielson' as your Trunk Show Hostess at checkout.
Thanks for all your continued support and prayers...we are getting there!!!!
Thursday, September 11, 2014
Wednesday, August 6, 2014
We Have a Referral and It's a...
BOY!
Many of you are probably wondering how we feel about having another boy...we are excited! For one thing, having a boy is easier to us since we already have two. We've been praying since the beginning of our journey that we would receive the perfect match for our family and we truly feel that he is. So, how is this referral different from the last one? This referral came to us from the Inter-Country Adoption Board, so once we accepted, then he is ours...no waiting for approval from ICAB since they picked him for us. Is he DEFINITELY ours this time? They say that they are never yours until you are in country with them in your arms...but we believe this is in God's hands and that he sent us this referral. We will continue to pray daily for this process and would appreciate your prayers as well.
It normally takes about 6 months from acceptance to travel time so we hope to pick him up no later than mid-January 2015. Of course we are hoping to get him before then but know we need to be patient and wait on God's timing and not our own. With all the paperwork and "red tape" only He can move the process along faster...there is nothing that we can do to change it. On that note, for those who might be keeping track, we received a referral in just 11 months and not the estimated 18 months!!
I have been pretty much buried in paperwork since we accepted the referral and am just now starting to see the light again. I have to admit that I love it though because I feel like I'm actually doing something to bring him home. Our Acceptance Packet was mailed to the Philippines on Friday, August 1st and we have 1st drafts for our I-800, I-864, and I-864a completed. I also just put in an order for my fall scarf material! The fall craft fair has by far been my most successful fundraiser. I will soon be busy sewing, and sewing, and sewing, and...sewing. :)
I thought it might be fun to have everyone guess what we are going to name him. I'll give you a hint...it starts with a "C"! You can comment below or on the post on Facebook. The first person to get it correct will win one of my scarves! Sorry family you can't play...if you already know his name, we consider you family so you don't count either!
We won't be posting any pictures of him until we do have him in our arms so if you want to see him you'll have to see a picture in person from us or our family. He was born with a bilateral cleft lip and palate and actually has had both repaired in the Philippines by Smile Train. I've always loved what Smile Train does and I think it is pretty amazing to have a personal connection with them now. They have helped to create one of the cutest smiles you'll ever lay eyes on. He will likely need additional surgeries after we bring him home and once he's done growing. He just turned 18 months old at the end of July and is progressing and hitting milestones.
I hope to have more frequent updates from now until we travel. Thank you all again for continuing to follow our journey and keep us in your thoughts and prayers.
Many of you are probably wondering how we feel about having another boy...we are excited! For one thing, having a boy is easier to us since we already have two. We've been praying since the beginning of our journey that we would receive the perfect match for our family and we truly feel that he is. So, how is this referral different from the last one? This referral came to us from the Inter-Country Adoption Board, so once we accepted, then he is ours...no waiting for approval from ICAB since they picked him for us. Is he DEFINITELY ours this time? They say that they are never yours until you are in country with them in your arms...but we believe this is in God's hands and that he sent us this referral. We will continue to pray daily for this process and would appreciate your prayers as well.
It normally takes about 6 months from acceptance to travel time so we hope to pick him up no later than mid-January 2015. Of course we are hoping to get him before then but know we need to be patient and wait on God's timing and not our own. With all the paperwork and "red tape" only He can move the process along faster...there is nothing that we can do to change it. On that note, for those who might be keeping track, we received a referral in just 11 months and not the estimated 18 months!!
I have been pretty much buried in paperwork since we accepted the referral and am just now starting to see the light again. I have to admit that I love it though because I feel like I'm actually doing something to bring him home. Our Acceptance Packet was mailed to the Philippines on Friday, August 1st and we have 1st drafts for our I-800, I-864, and I-864a completed. I also just put in an order for my fall scarf material! The fall craft fair has by far been my most successful fundraiser. I will soon be busy sewing, and sewing, and sewing, and...sewing. :)
I thought it might be fun to have everyone guess what we are going to name him. I'll give you a hint...it starts with a "C"! You can comment below or on the post on Facebook. The first person to get it correct will win one of my scarves! Sorry family you can't play...if you already know his name, we consider you family so you don't count either!
We won't be posting any pictures of him until we do have him in our arms so if you want to see him you'll have to see a picture in person from us or our family. He was born with a bilateral cleft lip and palate and actually has had both repaired in the Philippines by Smile Train. I've always loved what Smile Train does and I think it is pretty amazing to have a personal connection with them now. They have helped to create one of the cutest smiles you'll ever lay eyes on. He will likely need additional surgeries after we bring him home and once he's done growing. He just turned 18 months old at the end of July and is progressing and hitting milestones.
I hope to have more frequent updates from now until we travel. Thank you all again for continuing to follow our journey and keep us in your thoughts and prayers.
Monday, April 21, 2014
The Big Picture
Well, it's been quite some time since I've updated the blog...I've thought about it many times and haven't really known what to say. Waiting is hard and we thought it would be the hardest part of the adoption process for us but it wasn't...let me go back to December 20th...
It was just 5 days before Christmas and our social worker called and asked us both to get on the phone. She told us she had the file of a little girl for us! It all seemed so perfect...what an amazing Christmas gift this was. The little girl was beautiful, of course! She had a medical condition and would need medical care as soon as we brought her home, no problem. This specific medical condition was already listed in our dossier and our I-800A so no amending was necessary. We were on cloud 9 and falling more in love with her everyday as we looked at her picture and read her file. We accepted the referral and now we just had to wait again for approval from the Inter-Country Adoption Board of the Philippines. We prayed for her daily...hourly many days. I was already considering myself a mom of three! This wait I knew would be the hardest yet...it usually takes 6-8 months till travel.
Fast forward to January 29th...our agency called us and again asked us both to get on the phone. I had a pit in my stomach...I just knew it couldn't be good news this time. ICAB had decided to place this girl, my daughter in my mind, with a medical host instead of us. Our agency had appealed on our behalf, the agency in the Philippines that works with our agency appealed on our behalf but the decision was made. To say we were heartbroken would be an understatement. I felt as though I lost a child...my daughter. We were assured that we were still on the list and would still receive a referral in due time but we felt like we were starting over...with a heavy weight added on top.
How could this happen? Why did this happen? How do you move on from here?
I still don't know all the answers to the questions we have but I just finished reading the book, "The Waiting Child" by Cindy Champnella. (If you've ever thought about adopting or just want to learn more about orphans or adopting, or if you just like a really good book, you should definitely read it!) In the book, she talks about her sister losing a referral of a little girl and how they grieved the loss of this girl. They too didn't know why at the time, but two years (and two adoptions) later they were finally able to see the big picture of what God had planned. She said, "How God must have smiled when we finally understood the plan."
I'm anxiously (and impatiently) awaiting our referral and a view of the big picture! What I do know is that "when you wait on God for something you always receive more than you were waiting for!" (Pastor Les Beauchamp) It will all come in His time and not one minute later!
It was just 5 days before Christmas and our social worker called and asked us both to get on the phone. She told us she had the file of a little girl for us! It all seemed so perfect...what an amazing Christmas gift this was. The little girl was beautiful, of course! She had a medical condition and would need medical care as soon as we brought her home, no problem. This specific medical condition was already listed in our dossier and our I-800A so no amending was necessary. We were on cloud 9 and falling more in love with her everyday as we looked at her picture and read her file. We accepted the referral and now we just had to wait again for approval from the Inter-Country Adoption Board of the Philippines. We prayed for her daily...hourly many days. I was already considering myself a mom of three! This wait I knew would be the hardest yet...it usually takes 6-8 months till travel.
Fast forward to January 29th...our agency called us and again asked us both to get on the phone. I had a pit in my stomach...I just knew it couldn't be good news this time. ICAB had decided to place this girl, my daughter in my mind, with a medical host instead of us. Our agency had appealed on our behalf, the agency in the Philippines that works with our agency appealed on our behalf but the decision was made. To say we were heartbroken would be an understatement. I felt as though I lost a child...my daughter. We were assured that we were still on the list and would still receive a referral in due time but we felt like we were starting over...with a heavy weight added on top.
How could this happen? Why did this happen? How do you move on from here?
I still don't know all the answers to the questions we have but I just finished reading the book, "The Waiting Child" by Cindy Champnella. (If you've ever thought about adopting or just want to learn more about orphans or adopting, or if you just like a really good book, you should definitely read it!) In the book, she talks about her sister losing a referral of a little girl and how they grieved the loss of this girl. They too didn't know why at the time, but two years (and two adoptions) later they were finally able to see the big picture of what God had planned. She said, "How God must have smiled when we finally understood the plan."
I'm anxiously (and impatiently) awaiting our referral and a view of the big picture! What I do know is that "when you wait on God for something you always receive more than you were waiting for!" (Pastor Les Beauchamp) It will all come in His time and not one minute later!
Sunday, November 3, 2013
No News is Good News?
I did a Google search to see where the quote "No news is good news" came from...it's thought to have originated in 1616 when King James I said, "No news is better than evil news". I have to agree with him but I can say, with quite a bit of confidence, that I doubt anyone in the adoption process has ever used the quote as it's said today! We want news and waiting for it can be so difficult!
We did however, receive an additional document that the Philippines has just added to their dossier requirements. It was simple...just some signatures and notarization. I almost wanted it to be more difficult so that I had something to work on! Hahahaha! I know I'm crazy seeing as I've been so busy sewing scarves over the past month or so. But anything that keeps me working on something towards bringing our little girl home makes the time pass a bit easier.
Speaking of scarves...yesterday I did a big craft fair here in Omaha, with the help of my friend Courtney. We sold 90 of my scarves in 7 hours!! I wanted to sell at least 75 and my goal was definitely exceeded! God is so good! So far, with the help of our family and friends, we've sold 316 of my scarves and Courtney has sold 50 of her scarves! 366 scarves in less than a year! I would have never dreamed that these scarves would be such a huge fundraiser for us. I give God all the credit for the idea and the ability to make them.
Other than scarf sales, well, no news is good news, right? ;) Thanks for your continued prayers and support!
We did however, receive an additional document that the Philippines has just added to their dossier requirements. It was simple...just some signatures and notarization. I almost wanted it to be more difficult so that I had something to work on! Hahahaha! I know I'm crazy seeing as I've been so busy sewing scarves over the past month or so. But anything that keeps me working on something towards bringing our little girl home makes the time pass a bit easier.
Speaking of scarves...yesterday I did a big craft fair here in Omaha, with the help of my friend Courtney. We sold 90 of my scarves in 7 hours!! I wanted to sell at least 75 and my goal was definitely exceeded! God is so good! So far, with the help of our family and friends, we've sold 316 of my scarves and Courtney has sold 50 of her scarves! 366 scarves in less than a year! I would have never dreamed that these scarves would be such a huge fundraiser for us. I give God all the credit for the idea and the ability to make them.
Other than scarf sales, well, no news is good news, right? ;) Thanks for your continued prayers and support!
Monday, August 5, 2013
We Are On The Roster!!!!
I know it has been way too long since I've written an update and well, we have felt that its been way too long since we've GOTTEN an update! Today that all changed...we received a call from our adoption agency that they received the official letter from ICAB that our dossier has been APPROVED and we have been added to the Philippine roster as of July 19th!!! (It only took two weeks for us to find out! LOL) This news is so amazing to us and just made everything feel so official!! We are on top of the world!! We knew this day would come but as the days turned into weeks and weeks into months it's hard to not have some doubts. We did a lot of praying and are slowly learning patience as our prayer is that every step will happen in God's timing and not our own.
A lot has been going on while we were waiting for this news. I now only work 6 hours a day instead of 9! It's been amazing how just 3 hours a day can make such a huge difference for our family! I LOVE the extra time I have with the boys and being able to get more done at home. It has been so much less stress for everyone!
So what happens now? Well, more of the same...waiting! But this time we are waiting for the match of our child! We know the excitement won't last forever as we wait to receive our referral but every day that passes is one day closer to bringing her home! Thank you as always for all the prayers for us, this process, and our little girl! I'll try to do better about posting updates even if I don't have much to say! :)
A lot has been going on while we were waiting for this news. I now only work 6 hours a day instead of 9! It's been amazing how just 3 hours a day can make such a huge difference for our family! I LOVE the extra time I have with the boys and being able to get more done at home. It has been so much less stress for everyone!
So what happens now? Well, more of the same...waiting! But this time we are waiting for the match of our child! We know the excitement won't last forever as we wait to receive our referral but every day that passes is one day closer to bringing her home! Thank you as always for all the prayers for us, this process, and our little girl! I'll try to do better about posting updates even if I don't have much to say! :)
Monday, May 20, 2013
Fundraising Results!
I just wanted to give a quick update on the Thirty-One fundraiser results! We put in quite a bit of work organizing and planning the open houses in Lebanon, PA and Omaha, NE but God multiplied our efforts. We had established a goal to sell $2,500 worth of product so that $500 would go toward our adoption cost...well, all of you supported us above and beyond what we ever dreamed! Drum roll please....
Together with the two open houses and the online event there was $5,098 worth of Thirty-One product sold!!! That more than doubled our goal! On top of that, we received a few donations and my mom and sister did a raffle that raised another $300 for a GRAND TOTAL of $1,399.70!!! How amazing is our support system? The very best one out there, in my opinion!
I simply cannot thank everyone enough for the support...we are totally blown away by the generosity of our friends and family! We love you all and know that God will multiply blessing back to each of you!
Also, as I mentioned in my last update we need a bigger vehicle that will fit 3 car seats (well 2 and a booster). So here is a picture of our mini-van!
Together with the two open houses and the online event there was $5,098 worth of Thirty-One product sold!!! That more than doubled our goal! On top of that, we received a few donations and my mom and sister did a raffle that raised another $300 for a GRAND TOTAL of $1,399.70!!! How amazing is our support system? The very best one out there, in my opinion!
I simply cannot thank everyone enough for the support...we are totally blown away by the generosity of our friends and family! We love you all and know that God will multiply blessing back to each of you!
Also, as I mentioned in my last update we need a bigger vehicle that will fit 3 car seats (well 2 and a booster). So here is a picture of our mini-van!
It's a great vehicle with lots of space and in the couple of days that we've had it, it has already made life easier with our two boys. We consider it to be progress as there is nothing left we need except for the referral of our little girl! And of course we could see God's hand in our purchase as He made everything go so smoothly and the price come in lower than we originally budgeted! All glory and praise to Him!
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
I-800A Approval!
Time has continued moving right along at a fast pace...for that I am grateful! This process takes time, so the faster time goes, the faster we get to bringing our Filipino Princess home!
Just 10 days after my previous update, we received our appointment time to get fingerprinted at the USCIS office...which is part of the approval process to get our I-800A approval. I was surprised at how quickly we received our appointment times. I had read online that if you don't receive an appointment time 6-8 weeks after they accepted the application, you should call them...I wasn't thinking that just 10 days later we'd have our notice! The appointment was for last Thursday, May 9th and lucky for us USCIS has a facility here in Omaha...which was still a 30 minute drive from work! LOL! We also received notice that our dossier was received by the Inter Country Adoption Board in the Philippines and is being reviewed as of April 30th. We are believing God that we will receive notice of approval very soon!
Some of the most exciting news is that today when I got home from work we had our I-800A approval in the mail! It hasn't even been a week since we had our fingerprints taken and they have already approved us! Favor from God? I sure think so! It's all about God's timing and not our own...even though we want it to go FAST! I have to admit that it's super exciting and somewhat surprising when things move quickly. I know I shouldn't be surprised because nothing is impossible through Him and He is guiding this entire journey but He still never ceases to amaze me!
So, what's next? Well, more waiting...waiting for the official word of approval from ICAB on our dossier and then just waiting to get matched with our child! Once we get matched we'll have more paperwork, of course but for now, we wait. I'm not so good at waiting, so I meditate on Habakkuk 2:3 and keep busy with fundraising and our boys. We have now sold over 215 scarves! Can you believe it? There are scarves in 3 countries...U.S., Philippines, and England...and 8 different states...Nebraska, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Florida, Oklahoma, Texas, Vermont, and Wisconsin!
Our great friend Kerstyn has been selling scarves for us as well (and buying them for herself!). She has sold about 15 scarves for us! Jonathan's Aunt Paula has been buying scarves for her sisters and herself and his Aunt Janet is the one who took one to England for her daughter! We are so very blessed!
This Saturday I'm having a Thirty-One Open House fundraiser so I've been prepping for that as well. My amazing sister is a consultant and is giving us 20% of all sales straight to our adoption fund. Her and my mother have pretty much sold Thirty-One and/or a scarf to every person in our family, and every one of their friends and coworkers. People who have never met us before are helping support our adoption. I've always thought I had a pretty awesome family but I'm amazed at their hard work on our behalf. I'll give an update next week on how much we were able to raise through the Thirty-One sales.
I also hope to be updating everyone soon that we will be getting a mini-van...that's right, a mini-van! Our current vehicle is not big enough for 3 kids so we will be adding another vehicle out of necessity. It's pretty exciting as it's really the last thing we need to bring her home (besides all the fun girl clothes shopping I'll get to do.) As always, thank you for your support and prayers! This journey has been so amazing and just keeps getting better! Also, please keep Cooper in your prayers as he will be having hernia surgery on May 31st. Thanks and lots of love!!
Just 10 days after my previous update, we received our appointment time to get fingerprinted at the USCIS office...which is part of the approval process to get our I-800A approval. I was surprised at how quickly we received our appointment times. I had read online that if you don't receive an appointment time 6-8 weeks after they accepted the application, you should call them...I wasn't thinking that just 10 days later we'd have our notice! The appointment was for last Thursday, May 9th and lucky for us USCIS has a facility here in Omaha...which was still a 30 minute drive from work! LOL! We also received notice that our dossier was received by the Inter Country Adoption Board in the Philippines and is being reviewed as of April 30th. We are believing God that we will receive notice of approval very soon!
Some of the most exciting news is that today when I got home from work we had our I-800A approval in the mail! It hasn't even been a week since we had our fingerprints taken and they have already approved us! Favor from God? I sure think so! It's all about God's timing and not our own...even though we want it to go FAST! I have to admit that it's super exciting and somewhat surprising when things move quickly. I know I shouldn't be surprised because nothing is impossible through Him and He is guiding this entire journey but He still never ceases to amaze me!
So, what's next? Well, more waiting...waiting for the official word of approval from ICAB on our dossier and then just waiting to get matched with our child! Once we get matched we'll have more paperwork, of course but for now, we wait. I'm not so good at waiting, so I meditate on Habakkuk 2:3 and keep busy with fundraising and our boys. We have now sold over 215 scarves! Can you believe it? There are scarves in 3 countries...U.S., Philippines, and England...and 8 different states...Nebraska, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Florida, Oklahoma, Texas, Vermont, and Wisconsin!
Our great friend Kerstyn has been selling scarves for us as well (and buying them for herself!). She has sold about 15 scarves for us! Jonathan's Aunt Paula has been buying scarves for her sisters and herself and his Aunt Janet is the one who took one to England for her daughter! We are so very blessed!
This Saturday I'm having a Thirty-One Open House fundraiser so I've been prepping for that as well. My amazing sister is a consultant and is giving us 20% of all sales straight to our adoption fund. Her and my mother have pretty much sold Thirty-One and/or a scarf to every person in our family, and every one of their friends and coworkers. People who have never met us before are helping support our adoption. I've always thought I had a pretty awesome family but I'm amazed at their hard work on our behalf. I'll give an update next week on how much we were able to raise through the Thirty-One sales.
I also hope to be updating everyone soon that we will be getting a mini-van...that's right, a mini-van! Our current vehicle is not big enough for 3 kids so we will be adding another vehicle out of necessity. It's pretty exciting as it's really the last thing we need to bring her home (besides all the fun girl clothes shopping I'll get to do.) As always, thank you for your support and prayers! This journey has been so amazing and just keeps getting better! Also, please keep Cooper in your prayers as he will be having hernia surgery on May 31st. Thanks and lots of love!!
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