Tomorrow!!!

Tomorrow is the final big step in our adoption journey: the visa exit interview. It will be at 7:30am Ghana time (2:30am in Ohio) and our POA will attend with our children and their birth family. I know I will not sleep until I get the news from our POA. If everything goes well, he will know what day our children's visas are printed. That is the day we can bring them home, or any day after that.

Would you please pray:

- that our POA and children are able to be on time
- all paperwork is in order
- our children will be able to endure the long day (after traveling 6 hours from their village)
- we will get a speedy visa print date
- clarity on our travel dates and length of stay

I know that isn a lot, but we are on the home stretch!!!!

Faith of a Child

Jake (now 7) is beyond excited to have his "twin from Africa" as he refers to Kofi in our family. Both children are part of his every day life and he will talk about them in a same way he talks about his big sister. His teachers tell me he shares with everyone how he will teach them English "but not the bad words" and how he will show them the computer or whatever he is doing.

Tonight, his prayer was the sweetest. I sense the same ache in his heart as I have had for the past 8 months.

"Dear Jesus. Thank you for helping me behave today. All I want is my brother and sister to be in our family, so they don't have to be hungry or thirsty. Please get their passports ready soon. Amen"

Sweet boy, he knows who to go to. I love his heart.

We Are Grafted In

I was honored to learn that one of my blog posts was featured on We Are Grafted In  this past Thursday. I love to read articles written by adoptive families and this blog is a beautiful place for sharing experiences.

If you haven't discovered this site, please stop by. At least leave a comment on my post to make me feel like a "real contributor", LOL!!!

And please keep us in your prayers. Our visa interview is on January 31st and we should know that day when we can travel to Ghana. Praying I will be with my little loves on Valentine's Day <3

Happy Birthday Jake

Today, my second born Jake turns 7. To say he made an entrance into this world, is an accurate description of that day. I won't bore anyone with details, but it was scary and by the grace of God we both survived.

Emmi and Jake

Now he is 7, such a cool kid who is full of energy and curiosity. He is excited to meet his "twin from Africa" and finally have a brother. And teach his new little sister "all words in English except the bad ones". 

Happy Birthday my sweet boy!

Pictures from Ghana

Since Eric left Ghana in October, we did not receive any new pictures of our children. We knew if something was wrong, we would certainly hear about it, so no news was good news :) But I really longed to see their faces and get just a glimpse into their life.

I finally lucked out when someone traveled to our children's orphanage and was so kind to send us pictures. It means so much during the difficult wait and I can endure a bit more waiting again...

As always, Agyeiwaa is serious as soon as she sees someone holding a camera. And Kofi flashes a smile. I can't wait to have them in my arms, possibly next month!!! And then there are no more goodbyes!

And the good news just keep coming!!!

This morning, we received an email stating our visa interview is scheduled for January 31st!!! Just knowing the date is a huge relief, as sometimes it takes a while to hear back from the Emb@ssy. We sent a request for an appointment on Wednesday after our visa packet was picked up and it only took 2 days for a response! Praise God!

And other families are receiving good news from Ghana. More approvals, visas are being printed, families are traveling to bring their children home. And the best news of all: courts may be open again next week. Orphans will once again become sons and daughters!!! I feel so blessed to be a part of such supportive group of adoptive families. we continue to pray for orphans to be cleared for adoption, referrals for waiting families, smooth court process and smooth immigration process. This week has been full of good news as families pray around the clock.

What happens next?

On January 31st our representative will attend a visa exit interview on our behalf. As long as everything is in order (as it should be), we should receive a visa print date. Once our visas are printed for Kofi and Agyeiwaa, we can bring them home.

We plan to travel the week of visa printing or shortly thereafter. We will spend a week in Ghana and the travel home. It's hard to even wrap my mind around it that we are this close.

Another step completed

Wednesday, our visa packet was picked up. It contains all the forms (I think) needed for our visa interview. We sent an email and requested a visa interview and are anxiously waiting a reply. My hope is that we will get an interview date this month. But once again, relying on God's timing is the better plan.

Last few days has been truly amazing in the Ghana adoption community. All the frustration over road blocks, delays and lack of communication has turned into a round the clock prayer vigil. Literally. For several days straight, every hour there has been a family up and praying for families, judges, social workers, consulars and the general process of adoptions in Ghana. I believe it has been pleasing to God for families with a passion for orphans to reach out to Him in prayer. Each day has brought unexpected good news for families and we have supported each other in an amazing way. There are still families waiting for courts to open again and I pray these families will be comforted during their wait and receive good news of passing court!

It has now been over 7 months since I held my children. I never thought I would be waiting still, but in some way I wouldn't want to change the journey as it is carefully and thoughtfully crafted by God. What a mixed bag of feelings that is....

We are getting there though. Visa interview and then our visas are printed. Everything else is already done!!!!