Soooo, I lied : (

Ok so our Article 5 should have been picked up from the US Consulate on Monday, but by Tuesday when they hadn't heard anything our agency checked on it and it turns our that it was never dropped off : (  There was an email that got missed that had our needed paperwork in it, and there was no way for the in China coordinator to know that it had been missed.  It was a mistake.  It happens, and honestly we have had so many setbacks with this adoption that it is almost comical at this point.  God has very special plans for this little guy and is just preparing him and us for our new life together.  They dropped the forms off on Thursday and we should be picked up in two weeks and THEN we will be waiting on travel approval.

On a TOTALLY AWESOME note....our agency visited Owens orphanage last week and were able to get some to cute for words pictures of our little man.  Here is our little man at almost 17 months old.  Enjoy!

Last step!!!!!

Are you guys ready for this?!?!  Our paperwork should have been picked up from the US Consulate in Guangzhou yesterday which means............................WE ARE OFFICIALLY WAITING ON TRAVEL APPROVAL!!!!!!!  Other than applying for Visa's to enter mainland China (which we will work on the next couple days) this is the very last step before we get on a plane.  We will be requesting an update on Owen soon so that we can get to know this little guy a little bit before travel.  We are still planning a May 11 Gotcha date so fingers crossed this TA comes quickly and we can get tickets booked.

Article 5

So last Thursday morning we got an email from the National Visa Center that Owen's information had been forwarded on to the US Consulate in Guangzhou for approval.  This letter went to our agency and they provided the Consulate with all the information needed regarding our case so that Owen could get approved for a Visa to enter the US.  This is currently where our paperwork stands.  This step takes 2 weeks and once we find out that he has been approved we will officially only be waiting on TA=Travel Approval!!!!  Yay!!!  So close.  We are keeping an eye on airline prices so that once we get the official TA we can book flights right away.  We are working on getting the last of the boy's room together.  Swapping carseats and just in general getting excited!!  Konnor keeps asking if it is time to go bring Owen home yet.  He seems to be willing to share everything except the bathtub.  Apparently we are to go buy Owen his own bathtub : )  We compromised on Konnor being able to take baths by himself if he wants to.  Overall things are going great!  I am going to post a few links to some fundraisers below.  Please check them out and spread the word.

Organic Essential Oils: this fundraiser ends 3/31/15
selah-essential-oils.myshopify.com/?ref=54a3408826d23

Our T-shirt Fundraiser ends this Sunday:
https://www.bonfirefunds.com/bringing-home-owen


A friend is hosting a Noonday collection party with proceeds going towards our adoption.  The party is on March 26, but if you purchase through this link we will get credit for the sale.

http://bit.ly/noonday_HendricksAdoption

Thank you so much to everyone who has supported us this far.  We are so close to bringing this precious boy home and making sure there is One Less Orphan in the world.  Please share our fundraisers.  Every dollar helps.

P.S.  Here are some pictures of what our Puzzle Fundraiser looks like completed

Immigrations Approval!!!

Look what came in the mail yesterday!!!  Just a few more steps and we will be booking travel for out little man to come home!!!

He's ours!!

On Monday February 23, 2015 we received in the mail our hard copy LOA.  This piece of paper is what China issues when they have reviewed and approved a family for adoption of a specific child.  On this form is a section that we as the adoptive parents have to check that we either accept or decline this referral.  Of course we accepted!!!  We signed and that beautiful piece of paper is currently winging it's way back to our agency who will forward it to China and they will officially know we are coming for that sweet boy as fast as possible.

We are a week into our immigration wait and it will probably be another week before we hear anything on that front.  This weekend we will go ahead and get his paperwork together so that we can apply for his visa to enter the US.  Things are moving along.  We are getting the boys room ready and sorting clothes.  We still don't know if we will make travel at the beginning of April or if it will be the second week of May, but we are placing it in God's hands b/c He knows the exact right moment to join our family with this precious little boy.  Stay tuned.  Exciting things are happening!

Hard Copy LOA!!!

It's official, today (day 103 since submitting LOI), our agency received out hard copy LOA from China.  It was issued on 2/11/15.  They emailed us a copy so we were able to submit our immigration paperwork today!  This step will take about 2 weeks.  It's about to get crazy, b/c everything will start to go really fast now.  We should be traveling in 6-10 weeks!!!!!  It is so real now.  It seems like an eternity to us, but I know the next few weeks are going to go very quickly.  We are working on getting the boys room together and doing some toddler proofing around the house.  Hold on everyone, here we go!!!

LOA! LOA! LOA! LOA!

Ok so it has been a long crazy week!  Let's start with the best news ever....we got our LOA on Wed.(day 96)!!!!!  At least the computer system is showing that our LOA has been issued and it should be winging it's way to the good ol USA as I type.  I was starting to worry that it wouldn't get here before the Chinese government shuts down for Chinese New Year so this is a huge blessing.  My other concern, since it was taking so long, was that with Owen's new injury they were going to get picky about our paperwork since the original LOI (letter of intent to adopt) did not mention burns.  Thankfully that does not seem be the case and we should be getting that beautiful piece of paper in hand early next week.  The LOA is the official approval to adopt.  It means our paperwork has been translated, reviewed and we meet all the criteria to adopt this very special little boy.  I just can't even tell you the relief we felt getting this particular call.  I could physically feel the tension leave my body.  Up until you get LOA there is still a chance they will say "No, sorry you don't qualify."  I mean, we knew we met criteria, but anything could happen.  Next we have to apply to immigration to have Owen classified as an immediate relative (this takes 2-3 weeks), then our paperwork will go to the US Embassy in China to have a Visa issued for him, then everything goes back to China and they say "come get your boy!!"   We are hoping to squeak in for travel at the beginning of April, but realistically we are looking at the beginning of May for travel.  We can't travel the last two week of April b/c there is a Trade Fair in Guangzhou (that is where we will be the entire trip) and all hotels, food, etc....skyrocket in price and frankly we just can't afford the added expense.  For now though things are progressing and we are moving along to the next step.

There has been some discussion as to if we are going to be able to medically expedite Owen's adoption due to his new burns.  When we first found out and saw the pictures we absolutely were pushing for an expedite.  However, the newest information we have shows that his Foster Family truly is doing everything they can for him, he is healing well and honestly there is no medical need to expedite his adoption.  The Mama in me wants him home this very minute so I can be the one in charge of his care and make sure he has absolutely every advantage for a good outcome.  The Nurse in me realizes that his Foster Family truly cares for him and is doing everything they can to ensure his health.  The video we received showed that he is moving his arm freely with no apparent pain.  The massage and therapy regimen they have him on are appropriate and truly there is no urgent medical need to expedite his adoption.  Another aspect to consider is that when you ask to expedite an adoption they are moving your paperwork to the front of the pile.  That means other children are still waiting b/c of your expedite.  Deciding to expedite means you have to be absolutely certain that your child's health will greatly suffer without immediate intervention and in Owen's case there is just nothing to support the idea that his health is compromised.  In fact he has gained height (29 inches) and weight (17 lbs) and appears to be healthy otherwise.  The long and short is that we have decided not to push for an expedite.  We have talked to several families whose children have fostered with this family and they all comment about the wonderful care their child received.  We are continuing to pray for Owen daily.  Prayers for health and healing and preparation for his little heart as we get closer to bringing him home.

The other amazing news we received on Tuesday was that we were chosen to receive a matching grant from the Brittney's Hope Foundation!!!!!  This is such a huge blessing for our family.  The way it works is that we fundraise half of the grant amount and they match dollar for dollar up to the allotted amount.   WAIT, it gets better......between our online auction that closed last week and our puzzle fundraiser (that is now closed thanks to some truly amazing friends) our matching grant is FULLY FUNDED!!!!!  I will tell you that when this moment happened Mark found me just crying at the computer.  It is obvious how much we want this little guy home right now, but it is truly humbling to see the sheer number of people that are praying this little boy home.  If you ever doubt the work of God just watch an adoption story unfold.  It's not always pretty, but it is truly a thing of beauty to watch how God touches the hearts and minds of people near and far.  There will never be enough words, but Thank You to everyone who is following our journey.  We appreciate every single one of you.