I-800 A Immigration Approval

February 25, 2014

Finally, after being turned away on our last 2 attempts at completing our I-800 A appointment in Des Moines due to extremely cold temperatures and snow, we have successfully completed this process.  Since we had just received our referral 5 days earlier for our precious baby G we were SUPER excited about this appointment because it felt like we were actually DOING something to move the process along.  We asked some nice girls in the sky walk to snap our picture after our fingerprinting.  

 

Also, it is special that this is also Adam's birthday.  We went to Cheesecake Factory to celebrate Adam's birthday and this step in our process.  Ummm....I have to admit that at the mall we decided to use one of the expectant mothers parking places because, after all, we ARE expecting!  We were so excited about expecting that we decided to take a picture of the parking spot.  You may be thinking all sorts of things about this, but it is the little bits of faith and hope that are getting us through this process. For us, even parking there was an act of faith that we ARE INDEED EXPECTING.  

We walked around in the mall and found the cutest birthday outfit for baby G in Dillard's.  She just had her first birthday, so I broke down in tears in the store and we had to leave.  All I could think about was how sad I was that we missed being with her on her birthday.  I feel that this is the hardest part of international adoption - we miss out on so many important months and even years with our children because the process is too long.  On the way home we decided to stop at another mall and Adam found a cute pair of P.J.'s with princess crowns on them and we bought them for her.  It is the first thing he has actually picked out by himself for her, so someday that will be special for her to know.  Lisa told us we should have her medical information and picture within 1 week of February 20th (when she called us about G) and we are nearing the end of a week of waiting and very anxious for this to come.

 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.  Psalm 32:8