Still nothing

I thought we were seeing the end. No news from Vietnam. No news that anyone from DIA traveled to the province to speak with the leaders. No news from our government. We'll give them more time, of course... time is all we have... patience however, running thin.

We'll post as soon as we hear something. The only news we got this week is that the director of our agency was going out of town for a family birthday party. At least someone can celebrate.

Steppin' In

Last week we took another step in our adoption. We contacted Sen. DeMint's office. We were warned that bringing any outside attention to our case could potentially anger the officials in the Province and they would not complete our adoption. What can you do? In the end, I want to be able to tell our daughter that we did everything we could to bring her home.

I received an email earlier today from our agency. Apparently DIA is upset with the Province Leaders. Their intentions are to send a representative from DIA to the province to help finish these last five adoptions. We don't know their time frame, but we are encouraged. This is a positive step.

Thank you for your continued prayer and support.

Update, anyone?

Our 6 yr old Golden Retriever, Ozzy is recovering at home. He spent last weekend in the Emergency Vet's office and had an emergency surgery on his heart on Monday last week. As you can imagine, we were a wreck. It feels like life has really dealt us a crappy hand. Ozzy had fluid build up on his heart and in his abdomen. When we took him to the vet last weekend he weighed in at 93lbs and when he went this past Friday for a follow up visit he weighed 86lbs. Poor guy! He'll have to have monthly check ups for a little while as he still has a blood clot near his spleen, but he seems to be back to the happy dog that he was before he got sick. Thank you for thinking of us and Ozzy this past week. He is happy to show off his shaved belly for any of his fans!

As far as our adoption goes... no real news to share. The facilitator in Vietnam has been in contact with the US Embassy and Vietnam's DIA. We are still waiting for the officials to sign the Letter of Invitation for the next few families. We do not know if putting this pressure on the officials will slow the cases or speed them up. I can't imagine them becoming any more slower... but whenever we say that... Anyway, as always, we'll keep you updated.

The Cry for Help

If we were in Vegas we'd say the cards are down. Our agency has contacted the US Embassy in Hanoi to intercede on our behalf. They can no longer keep the baby home open and pay monthly expenses as the Leaders sign Letters of Invitations every four months or so. There are still movement in the province and there could be repercussions with contacting another agency. We are hoping that the US Embassy and DIA can convince these officials to allow our children to come home as soon as possible. All five babies are just waiting for their Decision of Adoption to be signed. There is a chance that the Leaders of the province will deny all or some of the adoptions. We do not know what will happen to our children if this happens. Please keep us in your prayers as the US Embassy and DIA contact the Leaders.

On a side note, our Golden Retriever has become very ill. He is currenly in a life saving procedure at a Specialty Vet office. We feel empty and helpless. We pray for mercy Lord.

I barely hear You

We are still waiting on the Leader of the province to sign the next Letter of Invitation. Thuoc, our facilitator, has strongly warned that we cannot pressure, persuade or agitate the officials in the province. Without question, he feels any such maneuvers will continue to delay the process for all cases.

I was sure by now,God, that You would have reached down
and wiped our tears away,
stepped in and saved the day.
But once again, I say amen
and it's still raining
as the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain,
"I'm with you"
and as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise
the God who gives and takes away.

Praise You in this Storm
Casting Crowns

And we continue to celebrate...

So many days of celebration! Saturday May 9 was my dear husband's birthday. He hates when people make a fuss over birthdays, so we quietly let it slip by with a simple card and a teeny tiny present. Sunday was Mother's Day however, and we can't just wave that one away. We were blessed to be able to celebrate it with my dear mother and my sister-in-law. I love that I get to watch my sister-in-law raise her boys. I am so thankful to have her in my life. The one we missed most though was my mother-in-law. Jacqie left us a few years back. I understand why God would have called her to be with Him though, she was an amazing woman who knew how to pray and praise Him in every circumstance. I am so thankful that I was blessed with a wonderful mother-in-law, even if it wasn't as long as we had all hoped.

Still no news on the adoption front. I don't know when and if this nightmare will end. I think we are all about ready to wake up and move on with our lives.

Jealousy

I grew up in south Florida and attended a private Christian school as a kid. Our school was affiliated with the Baptists, however the community that I lived in was Catholic and Jewish majority. I didn't have a lot of friends in the Catholic school, but I secretly wished my parents had chosen to send me to the Catholic school. We weren't Catholic, but we weren't Baptist either. Why? The holidays! Are you kidding? My mom was a public school teacher for most of my life and was off for every Jewish holiday as well as Christian holiday, but even so, I think that the Catholic school had more half days and days off than any public school. I was so jealous!

Well the Vietnamese trump the Catholics. Talk about holidays! No news this past week... another Vietnamese holiday.... Victory Day (April 30) and International Labor Day (May 1).