Was it giant moles?

Something has been digging in our yard.

  

Those bushes aren't where they used to be, and yonder fountain is certainly out of place!

  

So what happened to this once nicely landscaped area just off our front porch?  The crew dug the holes to begin the ramp today!  We chose the second option to have it go out and across the front porch, out the middle, and double back to the sidewalk.  Thank you for your prayers concerning this decision.

 

Which Ramp?

What is bugging you?  Some of us wear glasses or hearing aids.  Perhaps it is an ulcer or one is prone to heartburn.  Maybe you have allergies or acne. Some might walk with a limp or suffer from something that isn't visibly apparent to the rest of the world like fibromyalgia or arthritis or another auto immune disorder.  Let's face it, as humans we all have things about us that aren't perfect. 

Did you know that Isaac is a paraplegic?  He seems like a really wonderful boy in every way, but in China if your legs don't work it is devastating.  Usually you aren't allowed to go to school, and forget about finding a job. Just navigating through the streets is impossible in some areas.  In the states his future is so promising.  He can pretty much be anything he wants to be as long as it can be done in a sitting down position.

 Funny thing, sometimes we are called to things outside of our comfort zone.  Like a child who is a paraplegic.  We don't love him any less because his legs don't work.  It is a non-issue to us from that angle.  The uncomfortable feeling comes from attempting to figure out how to make things easier for him.  We've never had a child who can't walk at all, so it is new territory.

The "ramp man" Jim, (a wonderful guy with a great big heart for orphans) was here again today.  This is the third time he has come to help us try to figure out how to install the ramp so Isaac can be independent and participate fully in family life.  We have three plans, none of which are ideal, and we need to make a decision.  While the eeny, meeny, miney, moe approach is tempting at this point, we really do need to weigh the options (along with their pros and cons) and make a deliberate decision. We'd appreciate your prayers over the next couple of days as we sort it all out.

First Snow!

 

November 12 brought the first snow of the season to the Cincinnati area, and the Little Princesses were all about it!  They stared in amazement!  Being from a sub-tropical climate, I'm sure they had never seen any before.

A couple of months ago they began asking for boots.  I believe they may have seen someone else wearing them, and they were totally smitten.  I bought them boots in anticipation of snow, but hadn't expected it this particular morning.  There wasn't really enough snow to merit the hassle of wearing boots, but since I had promised them "When it snows you can wear your boots." what else could I do?

You have not experienced true boot hassle until you've attempted to wrestle inserts and little braces into them!  All I can say is that it was a good thing we were running early that day (which rarely happens!).  The effort proved worthwhile though as they pranced through the snow, and then told their therapists all about their boots, hats, coats, etc.  So, bring on winter.  The Little Princesses are READY!

DTC for Isaac!

There are no words to describe how happy I am to have at last received confirmation that our dossier for Isaac is on its way to China!  We were DTC yesterday, November 14!  While perhaps not long in terms of the wait some have in the adoption world, it was nearly a month longer than it took for our girls.  Combine that with the assurances we'd had that the second time always goes faster, and it made for a really long wait.  We didn't have so many papers to do this time and we had our part done in a little over a week.  The rest was just waiting.  Why so long?  I won't go into all the details lest it sound like one big whinefest, but it was primarily delays with homestudy processing and USCIS. 

A week or two after our dossier arrives in China, it will be logged into the CCCWA. (China Center for Children’s Welfare and Adoption)  The day our paperwork is logged into the system is when we acquire our next set of acronyms, known as LID meaning Log In Date.  Then comes OOT (Out of Translation) and in review.

Our big deal wait is for our LOA (Letter of Acceptance) also called the LSC (Letter Seeking Confirmation). This is our official approval  to adopt Isaac.  It can take anywhere from 1-5 months after our LID,  and the current average is around 60 days.

If you are new here and not certain what all goes into a dossier, I made a list a year ago when ours went out for the girls.  You'll find it here http://lanzadoptionadventure.blogspot.com/2012/11/we-have-dtc.html

So now we wait again.  As I recall, the wait for LOA was the most agonizing of all.  There is no rhyme or reason as to why some get their letter in three days and for others it is over a hundred days!   But, at least we are into the second half of the wait now.  Hang in there Isaac!  We're coming!

More on Lance from his advocate

I've featured Lance on the blog before.  He seems like such a great kid!  Where is his Mama???  Here is more about him from his advocate:

Just heard that Lance has a private grant available! Would be a really helpful amount for a family! Read here a cool story from when he was at camp in the summer:

Lance! A boy known for a huge smile on his face and who has captured the love of all the volunteers at Taiyuan Camp. Although he is diagnosed with CP and doesn’t have capabilities such as running, this hasn’t stopped him from having the time of his life at camp. He loves singing at the top of his lungs and like all other boys, squirting everyone in the pool with water guns.

While we were sitting outside of our apartment wondering how to transport Lance to the assembly hall (his legs were tired), a man who owns a business living in our camp apartments offered to give Lance and his friends a ride in a big van. Lance couldn’t believe we got to ride in this van and kept telling the business man “Thank You!” As we started to drive off, he exclaimed real loud with a big smile on his face, “Wow! It’s like we’re a real family!”

More here!! defendfoundation.org/lance with photos and videos!! :)

and even more here on his Reece's Rainbow fundraiser http://reecesrainbow.org/66346/laurence

UPDATE!  Jan 2014 - Lance has a family!!!!

Will the Fingerprints Count?

Ethan and I received written notice of appointments to have biometrics done (fingerprinting) shortly afterI contacted USCIS to tell them that Ruth had married and moved out of our home.  Both our China case manager and our USCIS agent were surprised at this notice, and said we shouldn't go to the appointment.  We have to file ANOTHER Supplement 3 to our i800a, this time requesting an extension (our prints from the girls expire in January) AND including an addendum to our homestudy to show that Ruth has moved.  They said we will get our fingerprint appointment after that Supp3 is filed.

Well....the problem is that the written notice said in bold letters that our petition would be considered abandoned (and our case closed) if we didn't appear for the biometric appointment.  I honestly have no idea why they sent the notice when they did, but we were simply unwilling to risk it and ignore it.

So, today is my birthday.  It is also Isaac's birthday.  Did you know we share a birthday?  I spent the morning at the USCIS office being fingerprinted.  I have to say it seems a unique way to spend a birthday!  Will they count for anything?  Will we have to repeat them once our next form is approved?  Who knows?  But I will sleep better tonight knowing I didn't just ignore the letter that they mailed to our home!

I had so hoped to have our LOA by now so we could at least send Isaac our well wishes.  It is so hard to not be allowed to communicate with him, especially on his birthday.  He is eleven years old today. Will you help me wish him a happy birthday? I would totally love to see his puzzle (that will fund his plane ticket home) completed for his birthday! We're requesting a $5 donation for each piece of the puzzle. Sponsor one or a whole bunch! We'll put your name on the back of each sponsored piece then double glass frame it when completed. I think it will be very special to him to see all those names and know that the people behind them were wishing him well and hoping for his homecoming. 

Donations are tax deductible when sent through our family sponsorship link here http://reecesrainbow.org/63623/sponsorlanz-2

-- We aren't automatically notified when someone donates to it, so please comment below with how many pieces you sponsored and the name you'd like on it/them. Thank you! And Happy Birthday Isaac! Next year we will party in person!

Ramp News!

Today the guys came to begin work on the ramp.  There wasn't much actual work accomplished on it, but they did rethink the entire plan at our request.  The original plan had the ramp beginning at the door and going straight out ten feet to a five foot by five foot deck. It would then turn and go out another six feet to the driveway.  It was going to be a big deal noticeable thing and a huge change to the layout of the front yard.

My biggest concern about this plan was the potential of cutting off activities on the front porch.  We use it a lot.  Not only do the girls and I really enjoy swinging out there, but we've even had a couple of parties on the front porch.  I really want Isaac to be able to be a part of it all.

They have an alternative plan that I'm very excited about.  The way I understand it, the ramp will come out the front door onto a platform that goes down towards the swing.  Isaac would then be able to wheel about on the front porch.  There will be a section taken out of our porch railing to allow the platform to go out to a deck where his chair can turn.  The ramp will then run parallel to the front porch and down to the sidewalk.  It upsets the layout of the front yard less - well except for having to move all the bushes and the hostas in front of the house out a few feet.

They are hoping to get the posts set by next week.  I'm so excited!