Leaving the 19th!

Oh my goodness!! I cannot believe how stressful getting ticket to and from China was going to be such an ordeal!! I mean I was on the phone with Delta for AN HOUR AND 24 MINUTES!!!! The person I was talking to obviously had NO idea what she was doing and she never gave me time to say let me talk to  your supervisor because she would say, "Let me check, ok?" and then off the phone!!! UUGHH!! I was so aggravated. THEN she came back and said that she was going to have to charge me for a full ticket (lap seat) for Zoey bc she wouldn't be an American citizen and she would have trouble traveling and some sort of jazz but I KNEW that was wrong bc we did it with Olivia! So, FINALLY she talked to someone and they set her straight!!! I mean really!!!
But after all of that, it's done! We leave at 9:21 on the 19th and return at 4:15 on November 3rd. We will fly out of and return to Memphis!
I do not have the exact agenda but I know that we will be in Beijing from the 20th-morning of the 23rd.
In ZhengZhou from the 23rd to the 28th and then Guangzhou from the 28th to the am of Nov 2nd and then flying out of GZ to Shanghai the am of the 2nd and leaving the am of the 3rd! Once we get it all from our agency I will put it on here!
We will tour Friday and Saturday in Beijing, leave on SUnday and get Zoey on MOnday, unless something strange happens and we get her early, which has happened but not expecting it.
Another good thing...there are personal TV's on the plane so Olivia can watch all her movies on the 11 hour flight!!! YAY!! We have her Mobigo, coloring books and colors, books, an etch-a-sketch (small) and just paper and pens for drawing. If you can think of anything else for her, then please let me know. Well, I'm gone now! Will write more next week when we have more definitive plans!!!! WOOHOO!!! 10 more days!!!

IT'S OFFICIAL!! WE ARE GOING TO CHINA!!!!

THANK THE LORD we got confirmation that we WILL be leaving on the 19th of OCTOBER!!!! We will get Zoey on the 24th (we call it Gotcha Day!) and our CA (Consulate Appointment, when China makes us take an oath to love and take care of her as our own children and they recognize her as "officially" adopted) on HALLOWEEN afternoon. All of Zoey's big milestones have fallen on or close to important/celebrated events!! It's VERY evident that GOD has been in controll of this whole adoption from the beginning, just like He was with Olivia's! How GREAT is our GOD?!?!?!
Just so you know, China is 13 hours ahead of us here. If it's 1:00 pm here, it's 2:00 AM there.
When we get our iteniary, I will post it. This way you know when to pray for things! BUT, you can start praying now for amazing flight deals and continue to pray for us on the flights! STILL not a big fan of flying and this time we will have a 4 yr old and a 20 month old on the LONG flight!!!
So, until I know when we are doing what, this is is!
I can't believe that we are LEAVING in 11days!!! AHHHHHHHH

HUH?

Well, got an email this am from my agency. Funny thing is, it said our CA was for DECEMBER 31st!!! My agency should get another email in the am saying that it was a typo and it's really October 31st which means...WE LEAVE OCTOBER 19th!!! That's 11 days from now!! AHHH!!!
We don't know FOR SURE but are pretty certain that it was a typo and so tomorrow I hope to post with the CORRECT date and I don't know what else, if anything!!! BUT...thinking it will be right! AHHH
I can't even type. I'm so gonna get off here. Just wanted to let all of you know! SO, here's to an amazing post tomorrow!! :)

WE GOT TA!!! AHHHH

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to all that prayed for us! We received our email today around 2 that we got our TA!! AHHH!!! Cannot tell you how excited we are! Possible travel dates are 10-19 or 10-26. We will know for sure as soon as the consulate is back open, so either the end of this week or beginning of next!!! AHHHH

Have alot of ppl to call so I will be back on! Just thank you for the prayers!! I knew they would work! Our God is a BIG GOD!! THANK YOU GOD FOR MY TA!!! I know YOU sent it to me!!!!

Prayers please!

So, this week could be a HUGE week or a disappointing week! If we receive our TA (Travel approval) this week, we could leave as early as the 12th!! If not, I'm not sure if we could leave before Nov! I KNOW God will send us when HE deems it right, but I can't just sit around and not pray and ask for prayer. I have to accept HIS answer, whether yes or no and I will, but I'm still going to pray!
There is a chance for TA all the way to Wednesday, but I'm praying that we get our answer tomorrow. I am going to be cleaning all day and have a new route on Monday and Wednesday, but that's not til 4:30 so I have all day!! I will have my phone right by me at all times!
Really, I know not alot of ppl actually follow me on this blog, but alot read it, so if you read this post...please pray that our TA comes this week! We are ALL ready to go and get Zoey!!! thank you!!

God, I pray right now for Your will to be done in this TA matter. You know how much we want to go and get Zoey, bring her here and show her how it will be to have a permanent family. The family she has had has given her MUCH love and they are amazing people, but she will not have their name as her last name. We want her to be home, have our name, play with her siblings, feel safe in her own bed, go to church and hear God's word (which I am praying she heard some of at her home in China), feel all the love we have to offer and be our baby girl! We know this will happen, and we can wait, but God  you KNOW I'm not patient and this has been sooo hard of a wait! Please end the wait soon so that we are safely to and from China with our little girl! I will praise you no matter your answer this week, but I am praying that your answer is a yes! Thank You for all You have done, are doing and will do in our family's lives!! You are amazing and awesome and we LOVE YOU! AMEN!

VISAS ARRIVED!

Okay, so the last step that WE can do is to get our visas!! They came in yesterday!! ALL 5 of them! (and my friend Mary's stuff!!!) SO, all we can do is wait! Our article 5 was picked up on the 20th and so our OFFICIAL wait for TA started then. There is a holiday coming in China the first week of October, so don't know when we will get TA. I have the 11th maked on my calendar so I hope it's no later than that. I am still holding out hope that we will get to leave the last Wednesday of October, but not sure if that can happen, so it will probably be Nov 2nd, but that's only a week difference, so I can handle that..not really but whatcha gonna do??? HAHA
Anyway! All we can do now is wait! Realisically we could be on a plane in like 32 days but even if it's not then, it should be 39 days!!! AHHH!!! that's a little over a month! WOOHOO!!!
I SO hope it's shorter!!! I will keep you updated as we go along. If you haven't already, check out the previous posts..it has pics of my twin nieces on it!!! We are SOOO excited!!!

Aunt to twin girls!

Well, I am home after being gone for 8 days. My brother and his wife blessed our family with TWIN GIRLS on  Sept 15th. Their names are Cortlyn and Caitlyn and they are BEAUTIFUL! Cortlyn weighed 5 lbs 15 oz and was 19 inches long and Caitlyn was 5 lbs 8 oz and 18.5 inches long! We are over the moon! I was blessed to have been asked to go into the nursery with my brother to see the girls for the first time and take pics. THEN I got to stay with them and help take care of them when they came home. I even got to keep them in my room for the first 2 nights while the parents got rest!!! I can't tell you how much that meant to me. They have been trying for 5 unsuccessful years and this is a TREMENDOUS blessing. NATURAL twin girls. We are waiting on test results to find out if they are identical bc they look ALOT alike!

Proud Parents! My brother Cortney and sis in law, Kristi

Caitlyn Dian on Top and Cortlyn Rae on bottom..Coming home

Caitlyn Dian

Cortlyn Rae

Anyway, here are a few pics of them I thought you would enjoy!!!

Visa Apps

Well, after a crazy, messed up time at the hospital, Mrs. Betty has been cleared to travel to China! They said she has the heart of  a teenager!! PRAISE THE LORD! So, tomorrow, they will send their Visa apps off and so will we! That is the VERY last step we have to do until we have to plan our trip!

On September 20, I will be the aunt to TWIN GIRLS!! Cortylyn and Caitlyn will make their entrance, so I will be on the coast for a while so I can spend time with them. The next time I will get to see them will be Christmas and they will be 3 months old, so I'm spending as much time with them as I can!!! I can't wait to see them and hold them!!! AND find out if they are identical or not! :) I know they will be beautiful and take after their Aunt Mysty!! BAHAHAHA! Just can't wait! Making their coming home outfits this week!! :)

So, unless God decides otherwise and our paperwork is done early! (not a big chance of that, but I can dream, huh? :) then I will probably post pics of my nieces next and then maybe the fact that our A5 was picked up and we will officially be waiting on TA!!! WOOHOO!!! Can't wait!

10 years ago today, I was doing clinicals at DeSoto Hospital on floor 3! I saw what happened on the TV's, got scared, and got my phone, went to the bathroom and woke Anthony up to tell him! He had gotten the boys to school and laid back down so he didn't know what was going on ! I BEGGED him to go and get the boys bc I didn't know what was going to happen next and he assured me that they were in no danger in little ole Byhalia!! I got off the phone with him after telling him I loved him, and tried to concentrate the rest of my shift on work! IT was hard and I prayed the whole day for NY, Washington and Pittsburg! For the families, and the cities! It was a horrific day and I will never forget it! God Bless the families of the victims today and all I can say is God Bless America! We MUST bring God back to our country!!!!!

Article 5

Well, after worrying sooo much about my agency not getting my PDF on Friday when I sent it, because I thought they had left, I found out today that they DID receive it and emailed it Friday!!! Now, the consulate isn't open on any Monday, so it was actually dropped off today!!! They say that it is picked up exactly 2 weeks later and then the wait for TA begins!! Now, the avg wait time of that is 21 days, although it varies! So...here is what I am thinking:
Article 5 dropped off 9-6
Article 5 picked up 9-20
TA 10-11
Travel possible:
October 26th
November 2nd or
Nov 9th

I am actually leaning toward the Oct date or the 1st week of Nov for some reason!! SO, we will see!
I will be mailing our Visas off tomorrow or Thursday. That takes 5 business days so we should have that back around the 21st! So, it would be awesome to get our Article 5 and our visas on the same day!! Then the only thing left is TA and CA!! WOOHOO!

Can you believe that we are getting this close??? I can/can't! I'm so excited and am so ready to hold that baby girl in my arms!!!! Gonna keep praying that our times are quick but also knowing that it's God's timing!!! He's in control and has been, so I will keep trusing Him!!!!
WOOHOO!!!!

And I am finished!

Well, much GREAT news on the adoption homefront this week!! We received Anthony's passport on Wednesday! So, that's the last in our family we are waiting on. I am sure the Langley's have theirs but they aren't home yet, so we will find out. Unfortunately Mrs. Betty has to have some tests run on her heart, so we will have to wait and see if what is going on is going to prevent her from going with us. So say a prayer for her! Anyway, once we find out what's going on, we will mail our Visa apps and that will FOR SURE be the last thing of paperwork I can do!
THEN...we were cabeled on Thursday (the 1st) and got our PDF yesterday! NOT in time for our agency to send it to China to be dropped off Tuesday, BUT...it should be Wednesday! This is an important step bc it's the FINAL thing I can do! All the rest is up to China! What's left is our Article 5 which is a preliminary approval of our immigration file by the US Consulate and it is required by the CCCWA in order to issue the travel approval! That is said to take basically 2 wks! THEN the last step is TRAVEL APPROVAL!!! So, once our Article 5 is delivered to the CCCWA they will begin the process to issue our approval! They say this takes about 2-4 wks but most have been getting it in about 21 days! It's after THIS part that we will choose a consulate appointment date and know exactly WHEN we will be traveling!!! So, basically, we should know our travel dates in about  4-6 wks!!! Then you normally travel 1-3 wks later! So we are still looking at Nov. My agency said late Oct or early Nov!!!
So, as you can see, my work on this side of this adoption is FINISHED!!! It's been basically 9 months (HMMMM that's how long you  carry a baby!!!!) of me getting paperwork and filling it out..calling and checking on where it is and how long we have to wait for this and that! NOW..there's NOTHING I can do but sit back and wait!! UGGHH!!! THIS is going to be hard for my obsessive self! :) BUT..I do know that God is  in control, and has been from the beginning, of this adoption and knows exactly when we will leave! It would be nice if He could somehow tell me! :) But, I have to be patient. On the grand scheme of things, the time we have left is short! We have ALOT of money that still has to be saved and I have things like gifts for the AYI's, sewing, planning where my children will go while we are gone, getting the room REALLY prepared for Zoey and still spending time with my other China baby while she's only with me by herself for about another 8 wks! So, much to be done in really, a short amount of time!
BTW..got updates on Zoey's size....she weighs 25.6 pds and is 33.5 inches tall! I can't believe that we will have (what I think is the only other ) TALL CHINESE GIRL!! AHAHA Isn't God amazing?!?!?!? Wow!!!

So, until there, there are prayer things!
1. Pray that Mrs. Betty's heart issue is a non-issue.
2. That the timeline is short and nothing prolongs it.
3. That Zoey continue to stay well and that God prepares her heart for us!! (ours is already prepared for her!)
4. The money we need comes and the stress of that goes away!
5. That all the things I have to get done, get done!

I am so blessed/honored to know that I don't have to worry about any of this, but can just take them to my Lord and talk to HIM about them and know, that He's had it all planned out..I just have to sit back and wait for Him to reveal everything. How peaceful that is!!!

Hang on Zoey..we are coming!! We love you more than  you could possibly know!! You will soo have a BIG family and we are ecstatic to make you the last Langley and our last little girl from China! What a blessing it is and you are! WE LOVE YOU!!!!

Olivia's passport/Approval in mail

Well, Olivia's passport came in the mail on the 25th! That's 20 days after we mailed it! I cannot believe the passports have come in so quickly! Just waiting on Anthony's now (and then the Langley's) and we will be mailing them off for our visa's to be added!!! YAY! So glad they are coming in so fast!!

On the 26th, we received our I800 Approval in the mail. That was pretty fast. They just mailed them out Wednesday afternoon! Now, we wait for about a week for our NVC notification. Then, 2-2.5 weeks for our Article 5..the 2-4 weeks for travel approval and then we leave anywhere from 1-3 wks later! So...that should put us about the beginning of Nov leaving!! YAY!!!! Can't believe we are this close now! THANK GOODNESS!!! Thank You God! Please let the remainder of our journey go as You want, but with speed, too! :) Keep our Zoey well!!! Please put it in her heart that she is about to have a family. Please let her look at that pillowcase and know that we are her family. I pray that when she sees us that it's like she's been with us forever and the transition is perfect!! Tell her we love her. Hold her in Your arms til we get there and then hold all of us in Your arms as a family of 7! Only YOU can give that comfort! AMEN!

SO, hopefully by next Wednesday, we will have more news!

I800 APPROVED!!!!

After a VERY difficult morning...my officer told me he had 19 cases in front of mine and he hoped to get to me SOMETIME this week...I called around 3:30, just to check and he had approved it about 5 minutes earlier! See...God DOES talk because I wasn't going to call and that still small voice told me to!! I am SO glad I did.
Now, the next wait is our NVC number. That is supposed to take about  a week. My agency told me to call them 5 days after approval, so of course, I will be doing that! I just pray that the rest of our times go quickly! God has been SOOO good to us through this whole wait time. We have been above the average wait everytime...even if just by days, we have been. He is an amazing God and although I get discouraged and even upset with the whole proess, I KNOW that HE is the one controlling this and it's in His timing...although that's very hard to be okay with sometimes when your baby is half way across the world, just sitting there getting older! We do have comfort in knowing that she is in an amazing home and being loved and taken care of, so that helps...but I'm a mommy and I want my little girl home! Thank you God for the comfort of knowing YOU control this!!! AND forgive my inpatient self!!
So...unless Olivia and Anthony's passport come in, this will be the last post for a few days!! But NOT many!!! Please pray with me for things to go smoothly (and fast!) and for Zoey to stay well!!!
WOOHOO!!! SOO excited to have approval!!!!

Nothing today!

I have called USCIS 2 times today. First call the lady was TERRIBLY RUDE and didn't want to help me out in any way! So, I went to the church and worked outside all day to get my mind off being upset! Then I called about 3:30 and talked to a VERY nice officer and she said she is pretty sure that we will get approved tomorrow! She said that it was at the VERY last stage (but they told me that Friday AND Monday) and that it should go to my officer tomorrow! I'm not holding my breath and I'm going to work more tomorrow at the chuch to finish there and get my mind off of this waiting. People who have the same dates as us, but 4 days later on LOA, have been approved so I don't understand...but again..all in God's timing! SO, I will just be upset, still knowing that God has this under control, and wait for tomorrow! About to go watch Chase play at his first game. He plays the drums in the band! SO...until tomorrow....Oh and Happy 30th bday to my best friend, Lana! Love you!

Praying for good news tomorrow!

Someone with the same Notice dates as us, got their approval today! SO...I am really praying that tomorrow (my bf's bday) we will get really good news, too!! Travel is usually about 1.5-2 mths later and I cannot wait to be at that point!!!
So, pray with us that we get our approval tomorrow and that the rest of our journey goes by FAST so that we can hold our baby girl!!!!
Hopefully, another update tomorrow!!!!

This video is the prayer of so many..like us!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Omj8BMxl9a0
Verse 1:
From sun’s rising to its setting
Orphans call upon your name
Crying Abba, Saying Father
We trust you to make a way
For us, for love

Chorus:
Bring our children home
Bring our children home
We sing Abba, Father
You are able to bring our children home

Verse 2:
In the morning through the evening
Families pray and praise your name
Asking Abba, to be Father
Rescuing the one’s He’s claimed
For us to love

Chorus:
Bring our children home
Bring our children home
We sing Abba, Father
You are able to bring our children home

Bridge:
When we cannot see you moving
And it seems the dark has won
May you find us still believing
That you want this more than us
You will finish what you started
And your plans for us are good
Help us cling to what you’ve promised
You are faithful. You are sure…
(back to chorus)

I found this on another adoptive family's website. They, like us, are praying for not only our children to come home soon, but also for the finances to be there. We can't help it that God calls us to STEP OUT ON FAITH and Bring Our Children Home. Some He's chosen to bring orphans home, some he has not. We are the lucky ones He's chosen and we wait, oh not so paitienly, but with FAITH and ASSURANCE that HE will not only bring our children home quickly, but to provide a way for what He's told us to do! So, enjoy the video. Pray with us that the $$$ is there when it's need. God is never early and He's never late..He's always RIGHT ON TIME! Help ME Lord to remember this!!!

WE RECEIVED UPDATED PICTURES!!!!

These pictures were taken on today!! She is 18 mths old (as of Tuesday!) No measurements yet, but might get them later! I can't tell you how grateful I am that the Healing Home took all these pictures and how they did them. My day was horrible yesterday, I just needed to see her face and God sent me MANY of her face! How amazing is HE??? Thank you God! You are, and always have been, amazing!!! OH and we should have our I800 approval by the first of next week! It's moving along now!!!! WOOHOO!! She is also wearing one of the outfits we sent her, her shoes, and the picture is her pillowcase we sent her! So, 2 months after mailing it, she finally gets to see her family!!! I love these pictures!!!! AHHHH!!!

Enjoy the pictures!! We sure are!!

The wait is killing me!

I am NOT a patient person and this wait is killing me. I don't know why bc we still have alot of money to come up with, but I know that God told us to do this adoption, so I know HE will help us!
It's day 13 since LOA. The USCIS says it takes 12-15 days for approval, so we are praying that approval is right around the corner. I haven't gotten any new pictures of Zoey in a long time and I'm just really wanting to hurry this up and get to her and get home! She's been over there LONG ENOUGH!!!
We are supposed to be getting an update sometime soon and they are supposed to be letting us know if they have given Zoey her carepackage that was mailed on my birthday (JUNE  8th) and I just pray they did!
I am just very discouraged right now. I Know I shouldn't be and it's all God's timing, but it's hard as a momma to sit here and not be with my child. I know that I have never met her, but she's my daughter and I want her home! I want to be able to hug her, kiss her, give her a bath, get her dressed, put bows in her hair, teach her things, watch her play with her sister and her brothers, see how Anthony is going to do with TWO girls and all that important stuff! I know my time will come and I am at peace with it, although it doesn't sound like it, but I am. I am just praying for alot of things to happen right now and it's not on my schedule and that's frustrating! BUT..I know WHO holds tomorrow and I know WHO holds this whole process in HIS hands...so, I will wait!
PLEASE God...You know me! We need to make sure we have all this money, we need to make sure we have the situation with the boys school done! We need to get all this paperwork to go through fast and we need to get to our little girl! I am trusting YOU because I know YOU had this planned from the beginning of the world. But God, I am also asking for guidance, security, speed and comfort that only YOU can give me! You are an amazing God and I know that You have this under control! Just take over my spirit, Lord! I love YOU!! AMEN!

Lovey bear

The month we saw Olivia's picture, we went to Build-A-Bear and got her a bear. We put a message in it saying we loved her and were glad that she was in our family now! We went and got her 6 wks later. Well, of course we have to carry on that tradition, so today (August 13) we got Zoey her bear! Olivia and Chase helped pick it out and Olivia picked out the clothes. We are hoping that this will make time go by fast and that we will be with Zoey in just a few short months. We are also hoping that on Gotcha Day she will see us holding Lovey and feel love (hence the hearts! :) So...introducing....LOVEY BEAR!!!

Zackery!

Well, my oldest is on his way to college today! It's an exciting, but kinda sad day! He's never been away from me for more than 2 wks and that was when we went to China in 2007! Other than that, not longer than a week! I'm excited to see what God has in store for his life and how he handles being an adult, but I'm also scared! He will be taking 16 hours, he's the head of the band (One Way) for the BSU and he will be getting a job soon. He will have a full plate. Please pray for him. He needs all of the prayers! I always woke him up for school...that will be new for him. I hope Hannah's phone calls will wake him up! :) Hope he eats enough, studies enough and sleeps enough!! Oh the worries of a mother!
I love my boy and expect great things from him! He loves God and lives like he does, so I pray others can see that in him. I look forward to seeing how he does! He's a good boy and I will miss his face around here all the time! Hope he visits alot! :) Love you Zackery!

On it's way!

Well, our paperwork is on it's way to Texas as of 7:33 tonight! PLEASE pray that all is there and correct! I wouldn't think that my agency would send it if it wasn't so I'm pretty confident, but there is always that fear! Also, pray for a fast turn around!!
We aren't that far away!!! WOOHOO!!!! Can't wait to hold our Zoey in our arms!!!!