WE HAVE VI!!!

I am praising God today!! I called DC this morning to find out the status of Claire's VI (visa interview). Before you jump to any assumptions, she doesn't actually go for an interview, it is just a time when the visa will be issued.

The first words I heard the operator say were, "she is beautiful." Well of course she is, I thought. Then it hit me. That must mean she has her picture and that means her VI must be scheduled. They don't get the child's picture to have on file until that point. The lady on the other line proceeded to tell me that her VI was set for tomorrow in Korea, which is actually tonight here. I didn't know what to say. I was shocked. When I had made the call, I was completely prepared to have them tell me it still wasn't scheduled!

I wanted to call Chad right away, and let him know but of course he was busy in a meeting (it seems to be a pattern that I can't get a hold of him when big news comes- like when we originally got the referral of Claire). I was dying to tell him but had to wait for an hour until he was out of the meeting.

So now, the really hard wait begins! I hope to get a call from Holt tomorrow, Thursday, or Friday letting us know when the day will be that Claire finally arrives here. I am very hopeful that it will be sometime next week so that Chad's grandma will still be here, and my dear friend Lorna will too (if Lorna isn't, it is her own fault for planning a trip to Florida right when Claire would come- just joking Lorna)! It would also be really exciting to have her home before she turns 8 months old (August 13th).

I am so giddy with excitement!!

"Lord it is my prayer that our beautiful Claire arrives very soon and safely. Please allow her lots of sleep and peace on the plane ride! Give her escort a enjoyable flight as well. Help Claire's grieving over her losses to be minimal and help her to attach quickly to Chad and I and feel comforted by our loving arms! Lord, I also want to pray for her foster mother in Korea. I know that these coming days and weeks are going to be hard for her. Wrap your loving arms around her and let her feel the peace that only you can bring. Let her take comfort in knowing how much little Claire is going to be loved, cherished and adored! Amen."

Updated Pictures!

The pictures I had been dreaming about finally arrived in an email today and I am beyond thrilled!! Little Claire is absolutely beautiful and I can't wait to hold her in my arms and gaze into her beautiful eyes! Her bald little head is adorable too. I guess she will be wearing lots of headbands until she gets a little more hair for the bows!

We are still hoping and praying for her to come home in Early August.

Picture Day

We headed to Sears today to get Grant's pictures taken. Needless to say it didn't go so well!

First, he was afraid of the camera and wouldn't go anywhere near the spot on the floor where he was supposed to be. I tried bribery with candy and suckers. Noting worked! So we left and

headed home. I was disappointed because I didn't know when I would get a chance to take him again after Claire got home. Then, I got a great idea. We live right next to a park so I decided to get my own camera out and take a few pictures at the park and see how they turned out.

I thought I would get one of Connor too! He is great at posing for mom!

So I am sending some off to Walgreens to get one of their family portrait packs. Hopefully they will look as good on the screen as they do on paper. We will see!

It was a nice weekend!

We had a fun weekend with family. It was especially nice to spend time with Chad's grandma and hear her stories about her younger days. She is visiting from Texas and on the way to Iowa, broke her pelvis. Though unfortunate, this accident has been a blessing to us, as we will get to spend more time with her before she can return home. We are praying for her healing but are also praying that God would allow her to still be here when are little angel arrives from Korea. It would be so wonderful for Claire to meet her great grandma this year.

The kids had fun at Colo Days as they enjoyed the parade and other activities going on in town. It never fails to amaze me how much candy our children get from the parade in this small town. Each kid had a giant ziplock bag full by the end of the short parade. We will be putting most of that away for awhile.

Hunter performed a little song and skit with his cousins at the talent show and they did a really good job although there was only one mic so you couldn't here what all of them were saying. I was really proud of how Hunter got up on stage in front of lots of people without being afraid. Even though they didn't win, this mom was extremely proud!

I also enjoyed seeing some old friends from my church in Nevada. It was fun to see Naomi (and her family), Sara (and her family) and Luke.

Wow, I feel so blessed. I am blessed with a wonderful hardworking husband, loving and lively children, wonderful parents, in-laws and siblings. But most of all I am so thankful for the life God has given me and for his never changing love!

Now, if we could just get that sweet baby girl of ours home!

EP!!

I am so thrilled to say that I just received the email from Holt saying that we have an approved EP (emigration permit). This essentially means that Korea has given permission for Claire to leave Korea! I can't believe it! So here is the tough part- her actual travel date could be weeks from now, a month or more. I am hopeful for a beginning of August arrival, but we will have to see what happens.

I have to always remember that God's timing is perfect! His plans are perfect and right even we don't see them. So, if August starts rolling through and little Claire isn't with us yet, I will take solace in knowing that God has a reason for it.

I just can't wait to hold her in my arms, to see her little face in front of me, to have her finally as a part of our family forever. It is so amazing how God is blessing us with this little sweet daughter from South Korea!!

Philippians 4:4-7

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Proverbs 16:2

All a man's ways seem innocent to him, but a man's motives are weighed by the Lord.

What a powerful verse! How often do I find myself trying to do the right thing for the wrong reason? I can try and justify it in my own mind but God knows my true motives. Was it to look good? Was it to give myself praise? God knows! He wants me to examine my heart and live my life by making choices for his glory not for my own rewards! So even if I am doing something good, I need to always examine myself and if the good is being done with a pure heart!

Look what I got for $50!

These are most of the things I got at the outlet mall last week! All these things for only $50. I also got a couple pairs of adorable shoes for $2.99 each and two pairs of boys tennis shoes for my little guys for the same price!

Today was a great day! First, the boys and I hit the outlet mall and found bargains galore. Children's Place had crazy amounts of clothes and shoes for only $2.99. I think Claire has just about all she needs after the sales I got today. It was a blast getting such great prices.

Then when I got home we called and found out that we have NVC in and NVC out as of today. This means that our I-600 was logged in in the US and has now been sent to Seoul, South Korea. One more step in the process that we have gotten through. We are VERY excited!!

I am currently adding some new photos to my blog so check back in the coming days. I also going to add some that are sewing project pictures from my www.ItsSewChic.com buisness!