DOSSIER....In the Mail!

Our dossier is in the mail! Kenneth took it to the FedEx store this morning. We paid for a courier service, Assistant Stork, to hand deliver our dossier to the US Department of State. The courier service takes our dossier to the Department of State and waits while they authenticate it. They then check to make sure the people at the Department of State have authenticated each page correctly. Then they walk it down to the Embassy of Ethiopia for authentication. Sometimes this takes 1-2 days. The courier will visit the embassy each day until the authentication is completed. Once the dossier has been authenticated at the embassy, the courier will mail our dossier to our adoption agency.

Although having the courier service was a little more costly than just mailing the dossier to the Department of State, I feel much better knowing that a person will have our documents and will personally care for them until all is completed. It also takes weeks off the processing time when someone hand delivers the documents. Money well spent in my mind.

We have our appointment to get fingerprinted at the FBI field office on January 6. At that time we will also be taking copies of our birth certificates and wedding certificate. This will complete the paperwork we need to turn in to USCIS. It could then take as long as 6 weeks for us to be approved to bring an orphan home from Ethiopia to the US.

In the meantime we will be waiting for a specific referral. Kenneth and I have a peace about adopting two children. Thank you for everyone who prayed for us in that specific way. We are trusting that God will find two little boys for us to adopt, if that is His will. If we only get one referral, we feel that it will be a way that God is telling us that one is enough for now. We are also trusting, and praying, that God will provide for us if we are to adopt two children both emotionally and financially. In addition to the extra money it will require to adopt a second child, we will now be thinking of regular expenses such as another bed, more diapers, etc. I am also thinking of having 3 children under the age of 3...a scary and blessed thought all at the same time!

Noah continues to pray for his "brudder" and ask when he is coming home. Yesterday he was looking out his window and told me that he was waiting for "brudder" to come home. I said we would be waiting a little while longer. To which he said, "Brudder live here now!"

We covet your prayers as we continue in this process. Here is how you can be praying:
Please be in prayer over the next week or so that our dossier will meet approval and go through the correct authentication process. Also pray that God would bring the right child or children to us through the referral process. Pray for me as I am getting really anxious to get a referral, I think I am starting to get knots in my stomach because I am soo not patient and want to see our children NOW. Also pray as we have a few grant and loan agencies looking over our applications right now. Pray for God's provision!