We Are Home Study Approved!!!

Yes, we have finished our home study and are now approved for two children 2 years old and younger!!!  I kept dreaming last night about Africa and children in general :o)  Have any of you been on an international flight where they occasionally show a picture on the movie screen with the airplane progressing from start to finish? Well, I found this adoption ticker application and had to make one for our adoption journey too.

We started the process in February and are about 1/3rd of the way through the estimated time it takes for an Ethiopian adoption. The social worker thought we would probably receive our referral, be matched with our children, sometime next spring!  And that the adoption would be completed sometime in 2012.  She also said she was envisioning ALL FIVE of our little ones playing in the yard as I walked her out to her car :o) 

Here is a picture of one kiddo playing in the yard :o)

We are ALL very excited to move onto the next stage of this adoption which is sending our USCIS Approval and power of attorney to Salem.  After that we will wait a couple of months to get our I-171H back from Salem. THEN, we get to submit our dossier!!!  The dossier is a bundle of documents containing detailed records with just about EVERYTHING there is to know about our family.  The dossier will ultimately be sent to the orphanage in Ethiopia.  Here is the link to the orphanage our children are or will be living at until we can bring them home http://www.sosenfantsethiopie.org/orphanages.php

I can't help but think about the drought that people living in the Horn of Africa are suffering from right now.  This drought may be the tragedy that results in our two babies (and countless others) becoming orphans in Ethiopia... I am praying hard for this situation and would love company as there is GREAT power in prayer. I'm also send up great praise for bring us to this step in our journey!

♥ Katie       

Elijah was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops. James 5:17-18

 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. John 14:18

Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise.  James 5:13