LOA, I800 Approval & Cabled!!!!

Well, it has been a bit once again since I have posted.  We have been in the LOA ----Letter of Acceptance phase plus all that follows this step!!!!!  We received our LOA which is our approval to adopt Piper on June 13th.  They agree that we would make wonderful parents for Piper!!  My friend Betsy had come over and I told her when she got there that the last time I was with her we received the call that Piper's file had been released.  I joked with her and said who knows maybe we will get our LOA today!!!  An hour or so later the phone rang and it was our agency informing us that we received our LOA!!!  I was in shock and could not believe it.  We had waited 63 days.  I was so excited!!  I also then thought of some others who have been waiting 100+ days.  I had prayed that God would help us get back the three weeks that it seemed we had lost while waiting for her file to be released.  I truly believe that he gave this to us!!!  Since we received our LOA we have been working on some more paperwork.  I cannot believe that there are only a few steps left.  Soon I will be holding my baby girl!!!!!  This past month I have been looking over packing lists and gathering things gradually and figuring out what we need to get.  I think my mother in law hit it on the head the other day----I am 7-8 months pregnant and truly NESTING!!!! I have been organizing, purging and getting things ready.  I am so ready to bring our little girl home. 

During our LOA wait God gave me these verses: 

Matthew 7:8  "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who ask receives; he who seeks finds and to him who knocks the door will be opened."

Proverbs 25:25  "Like cold water to a weary soul is good news from a distant land."

Isiah 45:2-3 "I will go before you and will level the mountains.  I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars or iron.  I will give you the treasures of darkness riches stored in secret places so that you may know that I am the Lord the God of Israel who summons you by name."

Philippians 4:6  "Do not be anxious about anything but in everything by prayer and petition with thanksgiving present your requests to God." 

We also had received a video update on Piper.  She is ADORABLE!!!  I had also prayed that I would get to see her take some of her first steps.  The video was just that!!  Her taking her first steps.  She is so happy!!  Smiley!!!  and seems like she is attached to her nanny!!! 

We filed our paperwork for our I800.  We received our approval on 6/29/12.  The next step is that they take our paperwork and send it to the NVC--National Visa Center.  Our paperwork has been cabled as of 7/6/12.  We are now waiting for our article 5 drop off which takes about 2 weeks.  Once we get our article 5 we will officially be waiting for our Travel Approval (TA).  It won't be long now!!!!!  I cannot believe that it is here.  It is hard to believe that it has been a year in August that we started our journey.  We stepped out in faith and continue to trust God through the rest of our journey.

Please pray for Piper as we will be bringing her home sometime in the August/September time frame.  Please pray for her heart as I know that it will be extremely difficult as she leaves all that she has known.  Please pray for us as we prepare and pray for our girls who will be staying behind!!!  I am praying that we travel in mid August which would be right before the girls start school.  Trusting in his perfect timing!!!