Yes, after the hurry up, rush and go-go-go of the first stage of an international adoption, we get to rejoice that we are logged in with China and will now wait until we receive our LOA (Letter of Acceptance). These usually arrive 3 months later but I am told they are coming a little sooner right now. I'm sure the Chinese New Year will slow it down a bit but our goal was to be logged in during the month of January and boy did we just meet that. Praise God!

This is the where I start to get a little excited about meeting our new daughter. Okay, a lot excited about meeting Chaning. No, we haven't received any updated pictures but that's okay. I have to pray that she did get our care package that was sent in November and that the foster family is beginning to talk to her about the transition as well as showing her our pictures.

Fundraising is in full swing right now so there is really no time to relax. We have been very thankful to the family and friends that have surrounded us with their support this second time around. Still waiting for the day to be able to endulge in some c-h-o-c-o-l-a-t-e (pictures come on) but will be even more content when Chaning is home with us.

Meet J.J.
J.J. is a hungry little bloke

Julia's new pet

Note: J.J. eats superworms - equivalent to a regular mealworm on steriods.

For those of you that have followed our lizard journey, well..you probably think that we are not fit for another lizard. Ms. Jennifer was kind enough to bring us another lizard after trading for their ferocious snake that they needed to get rid of. I am happy to say that J.J. is very friendly
and very active. Yes, this is our 4th attempt at keeping a lizard alive (RIP Rex the 1st and 3rd). Rex the 2nd is still misbehaving himself in a little petshop being fed from a distance while awaiting his new family.

No new news on Chaning. We are still waiting for the measurement updates as well as photos. All I can say is, someone out there eat a Reese's for me. We should be receiving our LID next week.

Today is a great day. One that we can sit back and take a little breather. You know, it's so easy to get caught up in the moment when you are stressed, tired, aggravated and running around trying to obtain all the required documentation to get to this point. Not to mention, if you are a perfectionist, like I try to not be, this process can make you a little nutty. At the end of the day, those three little letters make it a distant memory and so rewarding. If you are in the "paper chase stage", please hang in there.

Now, we will move on to the next stage of our journey, fundraising. This is the part I so do not enjoy. I think I would rather have all my teeth extracted one by one without novacaine versus asking someone for assistance. I think there is a five letter word for that, P-R-I-D-E. This is something I struggle with daily but just like I pray for God to condition Chaning's heart to accept us, He asks us to strengthen ourselves and make our needs known to others. It's a growing process for all of us.

I've lost count on how many days it has been without sweets. I have gotten past the cranky stage and have moved on to the preparation stage. When these updated pictures arrive, and I know they eventually will, I have hidden in my pantry not one but two boxes of molten chocolate cakes. So, to those of you who are fasting with me - you know who you are - what's in your pantry waiting on you?