A Journal to Our Daughter

Wed. Aug. 23, 2006
We made our decision in January 2005 to adopt from China. The endless paperwork was completed, translated and sent to China 10 months later.

It has almost been a year since our paperwork was logged in China 10/31/05. The time has gone by quickly at this point in our process. I’ve spent time reading books on adoption and China and learned a lot during the wait. Today I feel is the beginning of the end of our wait. We may be within the last 120 days before we can bring you home. It has been such a long wait, full of frustration and anxiety. What would God’s reason be for keeping you from our love and care? Only He knows and has His perfect plan in place for us all. If you would have came sooner while your great-grandmother was recovering from her broken hip, the family might have felt more overwhelmed than we already were feeling. As I said, we don’t know the reason , but one day we will. The fact is we want you to be a part of all of our lives and begin that process as soon as possible.

I hope that we can make others more aware of the circumstances in your homeland. You are one of many who need a mommy and daddy. We have loved you from the moment we decided to adopt. We thought long about a name. We threw around names of grandmother’s we have loved and names we have always liked, but the one name that we all agreed upon is Abby. It just seems to be a fit. I know you will be beautiful and full of life just like your name. When we get the paperwork with your Chinese name you’ll have your complete new name with a new beginning.

Your room is ready for you. Your sister Brooke and I wanted you to have a magical room with lots of color and fun. We decided on a outdoor theme with the clouds, flowers, bugs, animals, tree, and tree-swing. It’s just waiting for you to come and play.

You are being prayed for by many, each night at the table we all pray for your quick arrival and that until then you through our heavenly father will know that you are loved. You have not only your immediate family, daddy, momma, Brooke and Blaine anxious for you, but a whole lot of grandmothers, grandfathers, aunts, uncles and cousins wishing you were here with us.


Love and kisses,
Mom and Dad



Sept. 25, 2006
Abby,
More bad news for us concerning delays. We are told there is now a fourteen month wait for a referral from login date. We were originally told 9-12 month so worst case scenario would be getting our referral around Oct. 31st, the one year anniversary of our login date and then traveling in December to meet you and bring you home. Now it will be end of December or longer until we get our referral and probably March until we can travel. We are very disappointed to say the least and again my heart is heavy. I have full faith in God’s timing and I cling to that. Your grandmother on your dad side has decided to semi-retire after January and will be able to keep you some when we have to go back to work. That’s a blessing to know that has been worked out and God is already making plans for your extended care. The weather in China will be better in March and we can go outside and show you a whole new world to explore.
Another year of holidays without you. We will count down the time until we can bring you home.

Love
Mom and Dad



Sept. 28, 2006
Abby,
One day you may want to understand some of the events surrounding your adoption and the issues the government in China dealing with. China’s overpopulation has become an economical strain on the country. The government has enforced a one child per family law on it’s people. In some rare cases some families are given the right to have two children. Those who are not given permission and have more than one child would loose preferential treatment for food, housing, health care, and education.

China’s long standing traditions of prejudice against females has persisted generation after generation despite the many other advances in their society. Boys are of great importance in carrying on the family lineage and taking care of the elderly parents.

These factors have led to the slayings and abandonment of hundreds of thousands of infant girls. There is over-crowded orphanages with 2-3 to a crib in a rooms of wall to wall baby-beds with only a couple of workers to providing the bare minimum care for survival of these orphans.

There are so many children in China waiting for homes and willing parents waiting for children, but a wall of bureaucracy lies between the two. Some of these children in the orphanages are desperately in need of more medical help than the orphanages provide. These same children could be adopted into families with healthcare benefits and given the proper medical attention.

Many Chinese families try to avoid the stern laws and keep more children by moving frequently from rural area to another rural area. Concealing pregnancy and keeping births quiet. Others struggle with decisions to abandon a child for possibly a better way of life. The mothers of these daughters will never be the same.

Because of the restrictions imposed by the government, there will be a huge shortage of women when the Chinese men become of age to marry. This will lead to girls being kidnaped, raped, victims of incest, or auctioned off like livestock. How can this be happening in today’s world?



November 14, 2006
A few more weeks have passed and the only news we’ve had is that we should get some word in December and maybe travel in March. That seems to be enough information to give us the hope to get excited about the end to this wait finally might be getting close. We wish so much you would be here for the holidays this year. We will be thinking about you though and praying for the day we can share the true meaning of this wonderful season with you. Mark is speaking in church this Sunday in honor of you and National Adoption Month. I am so anxious to here him talk about his excitement about you being part of our family and encourage others to look into adoption as a part of their family. All of our family will be there to hear him. It will be an emotional day for us all sharing how adoption has touched our family through Wesley, Kaden and now you Abby. We will get a copy of his sermon so one day he can share it with you. Again
there is not a day that goes by that I don’t think of you and pray you will be with us soon.



February 6,2007
Thanksgiving and Christmas have come and gone and still we find ourselves waiting and praying for the call that will change our life and yours. Never have I felt such a heavy heart, but at the same time an anticipation of a wonderful joy about to happen. This month I am really feeling we are closer than ever to finding out about you. I want to be more excited than I am, but I won’t let myself be disappointed again by unanticipated delays. God is at work in this and he knows our yearning hearts. There are so many people praying for you. We pray for loving families for all the orphans in China. Our prayer for you is that God will watch over you and keep you safe and give you a peace that you are loved and cherished. HUGS AND KISSES FROM MOM AND DAD!!!!!



March 2,2007
We got word a couple of weeks ago our paperwork with information about you would be in the next batch of referrals Bethany would receive. I thought we would hear something by today and no word has come yet. I’ve had tears in my eyes all day with anticipation of any word. Why is it taking so long for us to meet? Every night and every morning you are in my thoughts and prayers. This has been one of the hardest things I have ever been through. The promise God has given us that it will eventually happen keeps me certain that our day will come when it will His time. I hope while you are waiting you are a happy baby. I hope you are a favorite of your care takers. As soon as we know where we can send something to you, to let you know we are you forever family. I just can’t express how much we as a family love you already. I know you are already doing things we are missing, learning to smile, laugh, babble, maybe even crawling or walking and we can’t experience those special moments, but there will be many more firsts of which we will be a part. I’m lifting up many prayers today, most of which I’m pleading with God to put our wait to an end soon. I’m holding on to my faith, but my heart is with you. Love to you and those who are taking care of you until we can.

Mom

P.S. Your daddy’s birthday is Monday, March 5th and it would be such a blessing to get a picture and our referral then.!!!!



April 3,2007,
A new month is here and our hopes of a referral are at an all time high! We have so many people wrapping us in prayers, I believe this is the only thing sustaining me. I am growing so angry and disappointed. I am fighting the constant thought of disappointment each day. God give me peace in knowing your plan is at work and your love is sufficient to get me through this difficult time.

Abby, we know you are somewhere in China waiting for us. I pray that all your needs as an infant are being met. Wait till you get to your new family, you will be smothered in love! Your cousin, Kaden has big plans for the both of you. He has so many fun toys to share with you. We are also trying to plan a vacation for our family to go to Florida where we can all be together without other distractions. That is to be determined by what we find out this week about you and when you might be coming home.

Brooke is sitting on go to buy you clothes for our trip to get you. When we find out your size, she has so many cute things picked out that you will look like a princess.

Bye for now. Know that we adore you already. May Jesus be with you always as we cannot. Hugs and kisses in the wind.

Love,
Mom



Tuesday May 1, 2007
Hallelujah! What a surprise! Today has been so unexpected and joyful. All I want to say is praise God for sustaining us and honoring his promise that a very special child would be ours. He has chosen you especially for us at just the right time. All we have been told today is that you are approximately 12 months old and your name is Caiyu. We are so excited, tomorrow we are going to Bethany to see your picture and learn more about you. It has been so long of a wait. We’re so happy we just want to tell everyone our good news! When your daddy got the call I had just
left the office and when I returned he had Blaine, Papaw, Corbin, Beth, Debbie all surprise me with a “welcome baby” balloon with your name and age tied to it. Beth took pictures to scrapbook the event. Now I can hardly wait till tomorrow, I will get to finally see you.

May God bless you and keep you safe till we can be with you,
Mom and Dad



May 2, 2007
We went to the adoption agency today. Our appointment was at 2:00. I could hardly sleep last night I was so excited. We stopped and ate Chinese food for lunch before our appt. and I could hardly eat because I had such butterflies in my stomach. When we got there we met with Chrissy and she gave us your pictures and the information they received about you. We both
thought you are the most precious China doll we’ve ever seen! We didn’t receive the English translation of your document because China is behind in paperwork and it will come later so we stopped off at our favorite Chinese restaurant and our friend Annie was so sweet to translate everything for us. It sounds as though you are being cared for by a foster mom and we are
grateful for that . Now we wait 10 weeks until we travel to bring you home. We can hardly wait! I’m not praying for patience anymore, I’ve learned that lesson well.

“Thank you Lord for Abby and what she means to us. Thank you for her foster mom who is taking care of her. Let her parents who felt they had to give her up have the peace she will be loved and cherished. Thank you for this opportunity as parents to mold her into a someone you call your child and servant. Keep them safe from all harm. Prepare Abby’s heart
for the major changes she soon will experience. Amen.”



June 5, 2007
We got our travel date and itinerary for China! That’s another answered prayer, we will be able to leave July 18th, a day earlier than expected. With our travel invitation we received a brief update on your current size. We were hoping for a current picture to see how you a growing, but it won’t be long and we can see that for ourselves. We don’t know if your foster mom has told you about a new mom and dad coming to take you home with us forever. All we can do is pray God will prepare your heart for us and all the love we will pile on you. Our neighbors Trish, you will be calling her “T” like her grandchildren refer to her, and Paulette are having us a baby shower to help get some of the things you will be needing. I plan on buying you many things in China so you will always be aware of your birthplace and heritage. We are counting down the days until we fly to meet you. May the Lord keep us all safe and in good health.
Love, hugs and kisses all the way to Jiangxi.

Momma and Daddy