Fingerprints Again

We went to Indy to get our fingerprints redone today. They expire after 15 months, so we had to go back to keep our paperwork up to date. It's frustrating to have to go all the way to have the fingerprints taken again (digitally, I might add), but we took advantage of the trip by spending some time at the Children's Museum. It's just hard to believe that we started this process about 18 months ago. Still no updates. We're just keeping everything current so that once we decide on the right country for us we can go ahead with the process.

The Chapmans on Good Morning America

If you missed seeing the Chapman interview on GMA this morning, you can watch it here. My heart continues to break for this family. They have been through so much, but their faith has not faltered.

The Hunger Site

I found this awesome website that allows you to donate food with a simple click. Go here to check it out. All you have to do is click on a box and it donates over a cup of food to the hungry. So easy to do! You can have an email sent to your inbox to remind you to click daily. That's what I'm doing so I don't forget to do it every day. Just a small way to make a difference.

Waiting

If you're wondering what's going on with our adoption, we're in a period of waiting right now-waiting on God's direction and leading. With Vietnam closing and some other things we've been through lately, we're trying to get a sense of where God is guiding us. We feel a peace about this time of waiting, and we know that God will direct us in the future. We'll update you on any decisions we make.

Please Call Your Legislators!

We have contacted many of you regarding the campaign going on for Vietnam adoptions. I just got done calling and emailing my legislators. For some reason I've always been intimidated by this sort of thing, but it really was simple. After talking to a live person, I emailed them with the same message as well. When I talked our local representative's office, they actually gave me the email of the right person to contact, which I thought was really cool that they are listening! If you have no idea what I'm talking about, here's the email we sent that explains the details:

Please join us in a campaign that's going on to encourage our government to come up with an interim agreement in order for adoptions in Vietnam to continue when the current agreement expires on September 1. You can find out more about it here . Please call your legislators today, Tuesday, or Wednesday (June 2, 3, or 4th) asking them to them to support A Child's Right Campaign for Vietnam. Please call both of your U.S. Senators and your representative in the U.S. House of Representatives. You can find your Senators' phone numbers and email address at www.senate.gov and your Representatives' phone numbers and email address at www.house.gov. I've included Illinois senator's information: Richard Durbin (202)224-2152, Barack Obama (202-224-2854).

Include the following in your calls and emails.

· "I/we urge the Senator/Congressperson to join the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Co-Chairs and sign their letter to Secretary Condoleezza Rice in support of the recommendations found in Joint Council's A Child's Right Campaign for Vietnam."

If they have not heard about the Campaign, ask them to contact the Congressional Coalition for Adoption Institute at 202-544-8500 or Joint Council on International Children's Services at 703-535-8045.

The Door Closes

We learned some very sad news yesterday. I have alluded to the possibility of a closure in Vietnam, but we had hope that it may still work out in the end. However, the US Embassy in Hanoi posted an announcement on Friday that they will accept dossiers through July 1, but you must have a referral by September 1 in order to adopt from Vietnam. The closure is not a surprise, but I thought they would grandfather in those who had dossiers over there. It is really hard knowing that our daughter won't be from Vietnam. We have fallen in love with the country and culture, and we've made some wonderful Vietnamese friends in the community in the process. It is good to finally have some answers, but there are still so many unknowns. We aren't sure yet where we will go from here. Please keep the many families affected by this news in your prayers. Many have been on waiting lists for many, many months and don't know if they will get a referral before the September 1st deadline. If you're interested in reading more, check out the Voices for Vietnam Integrity blog.

March has come and gone

The future of adoptions in Vietnam is still uncertain. If the MOU was going to be resigned, both countries had to sign a letter of intent by the end of March. Since that hasn't happened, it looks like the program will close at least for some time after September 1 when the current agreement expires. There's no way of knowing how long it will be before a new agreement is reached. There still has been no formal announcement about what will happen to those in process. Please be praying for us during this time of uncertainty.