Lots to be Thankful for!

While our family is not complete this holiday with Isabella waiting in China, we have lots to be thankful for. We finally received the clearance from Oklahoma last week. We spoke to our social worker who told us she has finished our homestudy and submitted it for agency review. After the final review of the homestudy, we can then apply for INS approval. Once approved, we can send our dossier to China and then we just wait for the green light to make travel plans. I am still hoping we will be ready to travel in January. We are so thankful for everyone who has given to our adoption fund so far. All of our financial needs up to this point have been met and we are confident that the rest of the process will go smoothly. We have our good health. We have a great support network. We have a great family. And we have a gorgeous little girl waiting for us in china who can't wait to meet all her brothers and sisters. We do indeed have lots to be thankful for!

Happy Birthday!

Today is Isabella's 1st birthday. We picked her out a blanket (ooshie, we call them) to sleep with when she comes home. We took some pictures so that even though we weren't all together, we will have a memory and she will have a first birthday photo to look back on. Next year we can blow out the candles together!

The Paper Chase Is On!

Who knew papers could be so hard to round up? "Dossier" is starting to sound more like, "Do-as-we-say" and is encompassing verifications of things in our life that I'm not sure WE even knew about! I at least have a checklist from the agency to work with, and since I love checking off lists, this process, while rather lengthy, is not without some satisfaction. Marriage License & Birth Certificates--Check. State Police clearance & fingerprints--Check. Certificate of Financial Statement & Employment--Check. Reference letters requested--Check. Application letter and family pics--Check. New passports applied for--Check. Now we are just waiting on Child Abuse clearances from Texas and Oklahoma and we will have everything we need to complete our homestudy. Once we have the homestudy, we can apply for permission from Immigration to adopt a foreign orphan, as well as apply for various adoption grants and loans. Your prayers for speedy processing and an abundance of patience on my behalf are greatly appreciated. Thanks for your support of our growing family! ~Sarah

Poinsettias with Purpose

For all my Arkansas friends, we will be selling poinsettias during the next month as an adoption fundraiser. If you would like to have an order form for taking orders at churches, schools, dr./dentist offices, civic groups, etc. let me know and I'll get you set up with more details. Also, if you want to buy a few for yourself, just let us know and we'll gladly take your order or you can order through our farm website at www.turtlerockfarms.com The poinsettias will be $12 each (discounts for orders of 25 or more) and come in red, white, or pink varieties. We will be selling them through November 2nd and plan to deliver the plants the week after Thanksgiving. We so appreciate everyone pitching in to help us bring Isabella home!

God is Awesome!

God is faithful and I am amazed at the mighty move of His hand of provision! Today we received an anonymous donation of $3100!! This is the exact amount we need to pay our first agency fee and the remainder of our homestudy fee! May the Lord who sees what is done in secret reward your generosity abundantly! Thank you to everyone who has prayed, donated and spread the word.

Incentives for Isabella

We are officially on the adoption track toward adopting Isabella! The CCAA (Chinese Center of Adoption Affairs) has deemed us eligible to adopt and the agency has approved us as adoptive parents. Now we have to come up with the first agency fee ($2500) and the homestudy fee ($1000) within the next two weeks. After our homestudy has been approved, we will be eligible to apply for various adoption grants and no-interest loans, so we really need help meeting these upfront costs to get us to that point. As an incentive to our donors, our oldest daughter, Avery, has offered to make a custom duct tape purse with matching checkbook cover for anyone who contributes $250 and our youngest daughter, Kendall, will make a duct tape wallet for anyone who donates $100. Thank you for your help!

Please Help Us Bring Isabella Home!

Our family takes the biblical mandate to provide for the orphan quite literally. We have adopted 2 children and are trying to adopt a 3rd. Isabella is a 10 month old little girl from China who has special medical needs. She suffers from a type of Spina Bifida and needs an operation to help her grow and function normally. The cost of her adoption will be well over $20,000. We are planning several different fundraisers and coupled with the generosity of you, our family and friends, we hope to be able to raise enough money to cover the costs of bringing Isabella home. Please consider contributing any amount, but keep in mind that 150 people giving only $100, helps us reach our goal. Thank you for doing your part in helping "birth" Isabella into our family.