We Found Our GIRL!!! { Secret Posts Revealed }

Get ready, this is a LOOONG one. The following is the series of posts I wrote while we were keeping our match under wraps! :)

February 25, 2014 - Secret Post #1

Just a couple of hours ago, we got the call I was convincing myself wouldn't be coming. The thought of going another day without knowing who our daughter was was so tough. I had the blessing of a team of friends praying, most of all for me to handle it if the call didn't come.

But.
It.
Did.

AHHHHHH!!!!!

I spent the morning texting Kate, doing usually Mommy things, and watching Chuck - trying to keep my mind busy, and off of the fact that a shared list update just came out. 

Then, at exactly 1:49pm, I heard the special ring I had specially assigned on my phone for our agency! 

I ran upstairs for some quiet space to hear very clearly all about this sweet little girl. It was clear in the matter of a minute that this was our baby. I told Masha how excited I was, and she replied, "Just wait until you see her photos!". She was so right!

After the call ended, I had to wait a bit before the email came through with her file and photos. I quickly called BJ at work, and thankfully he was on a break, so at the same time we were able to open the file and see her sweet face for the first time, at the same time. I'm pretty sure that the first words out of both our mouths were, "Oh my goodness!". We couldn't help but laugh at how unexpected her photos were, because they were so professional looking and she was so adorably posed. I've never seen any referral photos like them before!

Everything about her is just so perfect, and there is absolutely no question that this is sweet baby girl was always the one meant to be our daughter.

The biggest sign is that this sweet little one, who we were naming in part after BJ's beautiful late Grandma, was born on the SAME DAY that Grandma passed away last year. This fact had me so stunned. God couldn't have planned a more beautiful story for our family and our journey to find our baby girl. Every heartache, every tough bit of paperwork, every excruciating wait up to this point, has been worth it. She is so worth it all. I can't even wrap my head around the fact that she is an orphan in need of a family. :)

I'm so at peace, so in love, and so blissfully happy.


February 26, 2013 - Secret Post #2

"Hey Jess, what's up?"
"Oh, not much. Just FOUND. MY. BABY!!!!! You know, the usual."

Instant love. INSTANT.

Just hours ago, we submitted our firm (very very, firm!) YES! to our agency. The chat with our International Adoption doctor (I highly recommend Dr. Dibs at Johns Hopkins) went awesome this morning and we feel so at peace and so insanely blessed. I am still in shock that this has all happened. It just seems like every. single. prayer I have prayed for in this process and for my girl has been answered.

1. We have tremendous peace. 
2. She lives in her province capital (how's that for specific), which means we have a good chance of getting to visit her orphanage when the time comes.
3. She lives in one of the nicest orphanages in China (which is still, an orphanage, but at least her conditions are not as poor as they might be in a different institution). 
4. Our local hospital just happens to be #1 in the US for treating the medical condition that she has.
5. It is clear how very loved and wanted she was by her birth family. This is equal parts joy and heartache, but it means we have a beautiful story to tell our baby girl about her tough beginning.

I just want to reach into her photo and squeeze her! I can. not. WAIT to get my arms around this girl. She's mine, she's mine, she's mine. I am in awe of God and SO SO thankful and honored to be able to be her Mommy. In case anyone is gearing up to say what a lucky little girl she is, I'll stop you. WE are the lucky ones! She is a treasure!


February 27, 2013 - Secret Post #3

Imagine for a moment that you find out that you are pregnant. And you're already 3 months along, so you know that in just 6 short months you'll have a new baby. YEA! YEA! YEA! You are overjoyed, and still in a little shock that this is all really happening.

No imagine that two days later, while you're head is still spinning at this amazing news, you find out that you are not 3 months along, you are actually 6-7 months along. And your baby is coming in 2 - 3 months.

Shock. and. AWE!

Tonight, just TWO days after seeing our baby girl's face for the first time, we received our LOA (or our "Letter of Acceptance" from China). The fact that this is INSANE cannot be overstated. Most people are waiting 60 days, even some as long as 100+ days to get this. We got it in 2. TWO DAYS. This means that instead of traveling in August, as we had expected, we could be in China in as little as two months from now.

We are stunned! Stunned at all we have to DO (on top of normal life, we are getting ready for our new baby, completing all the required steps to get her home, and planning a trip to China)! AHHHH!!! But mostly, stunned at all God had planned JUST around the corner. Just three days ago we didn't even know who our baby girl was, or if we would find her ANYTIME soon. We had NO idea how close we were to her. :)


February 28, 2013 - Secret Post #4

Let the paperwork begin again! I am so excited to get this show on the road! On Monday we should receive our I-800 packet (to make things all clear with Immigration for our match). This is INTIMIDATING paperwork, folks. Scary stuff.

Question like this one, "Does the child's background information include a statement concerning whether, from any examination (as described in 22 CFR Part 96.49(e)) or for any other reason, there is reason to believe that the child has any medical condition that makes the child inadmissible under section 212(a)(1) of the INA?"

But, our agency is so awesome they are making it almost seem easy! They tell us what boxes to check and not check. Whew!