Further than we've ever been

This? This is our (now enormous) adoption paperwork binder with a Completed Homestudy Update on top!

Progress!!  Actual progress!  Today, we put our i800a application in the mail.  This is officially the furthest we have been in the adoption process, with all our delays and restarts.  Basically, it's an application requesting pre-approval for our child to become a US citizen upon our adoption of her.  It's required to submit to China when we ask to be considered as Prospective Adoptive Parents.  Just another step of paperwork to be completed, but it's a new one for us.  Here's a picture of the precious thing in the mailbox: 

These Mailbox Updates are like Baby Bump pictures. Thank goodness I'm not pregnant with this child. I'd be 29 months along!!

We may wait up to 3 months to hear back from this application, but we are praying for it to move quickly.  We are getting impatient to meet this precious person.  My favorite line from our homestudy update is this: "Samuel is too young to interview, but joined the discussions about the adoption, asking 'Do we still have to wait more?'"  Amen, son!

The number one question we get asked is "When will you be matched with a child?"  Unfortunately, we don't really know. There are too many steps between here and there to really know for sure, and a lot of the wait time doesn't depend on us.  We (read: Emily, the planner/predictor/controller) learned over the last few years not to get attached to any timelines.  But we promise, you will hear (loudly!) from us as soon as we know!

In the meantime, some summer shenanigans: 

This is just as scary as it looks.

We have more than one kind of chicken around here.

Anna set up a FREE lemonade and cookie stand at Grammas today and MADE $37! She is donating this round of "profit" to the VBS mission project, but we may put her in charge of fundraising this summer! 

Thank you so much for loving on us and caring about this long, long road we are on.   We love you so much!