hi's, bye's and letting go of the pen.

So, Brian got to skype with Juliana yesterday, on Mother's Day. The connection was a little rough, but he was able to articulate our baby girl saying "hi" and "bye". Amazing! I have to admit that it saddens me to have so many of the "firsts" happening without us. But I am grateful that God is allowing Brian and Debbie to share in so many special moments with Julie. Her life was so fragile and their were times when even Debbie thought she might not make it. I believe God is blessing their desire to see Julie thrive and grow. He is such a gracious Father!

Julie is doing very well while we wait. We received our I600 Approval early last week. This document was necessary to prove that Julie is indeed an orphan. That paperwork has now been forwarded on to the Consular in Ghana for our last and final step! The Consular will assign us a Visa Appointment for Juliana's Passport. Once we receive a date for this appointment and the visa stamp is in her passport to enter the United States, we will be able to book our travel dates to go and bring babygirl home! Wow. So many friends and family ask the "when" question. I think one of the things that God has been working on with me in adopting Juliana has been about letting go of the pen! As I look back in our process of adopting Ayantu and even in the beginning phase with Julie, I worked so hard at getting all of the paperwork done quickly so "I could push it through". And there were always hiccups along the way that "I tried to fix as best I could." God is teaching me more and more that this is His story to write and in His perfect timing-not mine. There are so many things that He has wanted me to see and be available to and I am grateful that my focus is changing so I that I can be. It's truly incomprehensible to figure out the ways in which God will allow things to happen just to get our attention. Over Spring Break, He used my passport stuck in Washington, D.C. to get me to slow down and let go. And now, He is using the unknown of the Visa appointment to have us live today and be available today to the encounters He wants us to be a part of.

So Julie...keep finding new words and trying with all your might to let go of Debbie's hands to take your first step. Regardless of wether we are there to see it happen, Mommy and Daddy and your sisters are cheering you on with so much love and adoration for you!

Unil soon...