Legals have arrived... and left!!!

Things are moving along. We received our legals on Friday and they are off to the USCIS office in Louisville. Our acceptance paperwork should be in Korea by now as well. Little Emma is one step closer to coming home to her forever family.

This weekend has been busy. I spent Friday evening with some girlfriends from church. We had a wonderful time eating and talking. After dinner, we went to the movies. It was a much needed girls night out.

This afternoon we went furniture shopping. I am happy to report that we have finally found furniture. I will post pictures as soon as I get the room finished... We registered at Toys R Us tonight as well. Things should be all set for miss Emma to come. Please pray that she arrives before Thanksgiving. Oh, how thankful we are to know she is our little girl.

Our Little Girl's Name...

After much thought and consideration, we have decided to name our little girl

Emma Yeirin Johnson

We thought we would have several more months to finalize a name for her. Emma is such a beautiful and classic name. We know a couple of other Emmas, but they are adorable and sweet just like our Emma! When I saw her face, I knew she looked like an Emma, at least to me. So, Emma Yeirin Johnson, we hope you love your new name as much as we do! How amazing to be a mother of two: Chase and Emma. Thank you God for the wonderful way in which you bless our family. I am in awe at Your grace and immeasurable love. Please watch over Emma as we wait for her arrival. Be with her foster mother and help her to nurture Emma. In Your name, Amen.

Happy 6 months Yeirin!

We wanted to wish our sweet girl happy six months today! We hope you had a wonderful day sweetie and we can't wait to share many more special moments with you. Oh, how we wish we could hold you and kiss your sweet cheeks! May you be happy and may your foster mother take great care of you until you are united with your forever family. We love you so much!

~Hugs and Kisses from Daddy, Mommy, and Big Brother~

Introducing Yeirin Kang

We are excited to announce we will be the forever parents of beautiful Yeirin Kang. Her name means bright and pure. She will be 6 months old tomorrow. As you can tell from the pictures she is growing and eating well! Chase is so excited and loves his little sister. Since the referral came earlier than expected, we haven't fully decided on a name. We will let you know when we do!

This week has been indescribable. Words can't begin to express the amazing way God has worked this week. Our journey, which we initially thought would take much longer will be complete much sooner than expected. Yeirin should be here by the middle of November! What an awesome Christmas preset!

There are so many ways in which God has worked this week. Let me explain: On Thursday of last week, I found out about a teaching position that had been posted just that day. Due to traveling requirements of my current position, I pursued the teaching opening in hopes of being able to be back into the classroom. I have missed the kiddos. This position would also give me more time to spend with our family and great hours for when a baby comes, which we were expecting in January-April. On Monday, we get a referral for a little girl (about 5 months earlier than expected!). God's timing is perfect! Since Yeirin will be here in November, a teaching position would give me a chance to take time off and spend with her. I officially accepted the position on Wednesday.

On another note, we received conflicting information about the spot on Yeirin's right shoulder. Two different doctors were confident they knew what it was and they gave two different answers! We were torn because we knew one of diagnosis would cause Yeirin to have surgery and possibly multiple surgeries. Ryan and I talked during the two hour drive to Danville and just were torn about what it would mean for her. After arriving at the Adoption agency, the director felt that the place in question would not be something as serious as one of the doctors suggested because she felt the doctors in Korea would have disclosed that information. Before Yeirin leaves Korea, she will be seen by an American doctor and if the Korean doctors do not disclose information, she would not be able to travel. In ten years, this has never happened with the agency we are working with. So, we left with intentions to have the Adoption agency seek additional information from the Korean welfare society about this spot. Here's how good God is: On the way home I began to look over the child study again. In Korea, they use A4 paper which is longer than a normal sheet of paper. When we received Yeirin's orginal documents, they were faxed on regular paper. At the bottom of one of her medical documents, which was cut off during the fax to us, the doctors had conducted a ultrasound of the location on her back and determined it was a birthmark, which is what our pediatrician suggested as well. I was overcome with excitement and emotion. It was as if God knew we needed that information in order to make a strong decision to make His little girl part of our family. Oh, God is good! Needless to say, that was the confirmation we needed!

Another Good Report

It's been a busy day. I accepted a new teaching position and officially started today. With open house tomorrow, needless to say, I have lots to do. Kim graciously helped me all day and at midnight, the room is in pretty good shape. I am still working on the paperwork and planning component!

More importantly, Ryan received a call from the Adoption physician this morning. She was very optimistic about the treatment of her under active thyroid and concurred that all the other medical information shows she is growing and meeting the developmental milestones. She had somewhat of a different opinion about the place on her shoulder which we originally were told was a type of birthmark. The specialistic thinks it is a lymphangioma. If this is the case, she would need to have it removed when she gets here. The doctor didn't think it was anything to be too concerned about and said she has seen it before with international adoptions. Further testing would determine to what extent treatment would be needed. We are going to inquire more about this and see if any further treatment has been done in Korea. The doctor went on to say that there is no reason she wouldn't live a happy healthy normal life.

Please continue to pray for us as we meet with the adoption agency and seek God's will in finding the little girl He has chosen for our family.

Timelines are Made to be Broken...

We have been telling everyone that we are in the "hurry up and wait" stage. Well, today our wait may have come to an end...

I thought it would be at least 4 to 6 months before I could write to say that we have received a referral. But God's timing is perfect and although we have prayed for the wait to be short and for our little girl to come quickly, we of little faith, never thought today would be the day. Here is how it happened:

There was a message on the home phone on Friday from our home study agency. I didn't think much about. I actually told a friend at church on Sunday when she asked how things were going that our agency called on Friday and probably wanted the rest of our parenting certificates. This morning I was on my way to Bowling Green and my phone rang, it was our adoption agency. I answered the phone and Julie greeted me with a friendly hello. She began to explain that they received a referral for a little girl in the Waiting Child program and wanted to send the information to see if we would be interested. I inquired about why she was considered a waiting child and she explained that she has hypothyroidism (under active thyroid). I wasn't for sure what that meant, but I knew that we were open to learning more. Julie faxed the medical information and sent me two precious pictures of her. Let's just say she has the most adorable face and her hair puts a smile on your face! :o) Ryan says her hair defies gravity!

After reading her case study and medical information, we decided to take the information to our pediatrician for review. She met with us this afternoon and said that her condition was minor and would simply require medicine for treatment. She has met all of her developmental milestones and is growing well.

We requested the full referral information and will be reviewing it in the next couple of days. Needless to say, we can't begin to describe how excited and overwhelmed we are! We want to share her picture with you but are going to wait until we officially accept the referral. An adoption blog friend gave me the name of a well known adoption pediatrician and we are going to follow up with her just to make sure. Please pray that God will continue to guide and direct us as we determine if this adorable little girl is meant to be part of our family. We appreciate all the friends and family that have prayed today.

It is amazing how easy it is to fall in love simply by looking at a picture of one of God's children. God, if this little girl is meant to be ours, please continue to open our hearts and guide us to the right people who will confirm our natural instincts to make her part of our family. Help us to be objective but also open to the wonderful way in which you work. God, I give You the glory for all you continue to do in our lives and the way in which you bless us daily. May we honor You in our actions and may we follow Your will if this little girl is meant to be ours.

Home Study-Report Drafted

We are so excited to share that we received the draft of our home study Saturday to look over. Ryan and I have been revising the pages and just sent it back to our social worker for final touches. We are one step closer to our little girl! We also received our formal application in the mail on Saturday. After compiling pictures and completing paperwork, we are ready to send it in as well. We will update when we know more as we continue the journey. Please pray for our little girl, chosen by God to be part of our family.

Home Study 2: Completed

We are excited to have our second home study finished!!!  (and to hand in all the paperwork)  Meredith came to our house to meet Chase and interview us.  Chase was a little nervous about the interview which didn't take long.  Meredith asked him if he was excited about getting a baby sister and he of course said yes.  He also told her that he was going to teach her how to play baseball.  Ryan and I were each interviewed as well.  We were able to discuss our families and the values that were instilled in us growing up.  The home study will be compiled and sent to Korea so we can get our referral.  I am still waiting on the formal application from AIAA so I am going to track that down on Monday.  

Please continue to pray for our little girl.  Our estimations suggest that she is about to be born or could even be a newborn!!!  I pray that God will watch over her, be with her birth mother and foster mother.  I also pray that her needs will be met and that she will know the love that not only we have for her but the unmeasurable love God has for her!!!

I purchased a picture frame this week that is waiting for her referral picture.  It says:

"You don't choose your family.  They are God's gift to you, as you are to them."  -Desmond Tutu

I can't wait to meet the little girl God has picked for us long before we even knew what His plan was...

Home study, TB test, Blood work, Fingerprints, and Shopping!

It's been busy couple of weeks!  Here's the update:

We met our caseworker Meredith on Friday May 29th at Starbucks.  She was wonderful.  It is amazing how God puts certain people in your path.  She is a social worker too and is starting her masters in social work at Western this fall.  What a small world!  (I tried to prepare her for the millions of discussion board posts she would be doing over the next year!!!)  The meeting went well and was very informal.  We enjoyed sharing with her our reason for adopting.  We have our second home study visit Friday. . .  One step closer to our little girl.  

Ryan and I also had blood work and TB tests for the process.  I told him I was a little excited about the fact that he had to endure the blood work, TB test, and urinalysis this time whereas with Chase I had the joy.  He chuckled and said she's worth it!

We went to Louisville Monday afternoon to turn in our I600A form and get fingerprinted.  The I600A is a petition to adopt.  The fingerprints are for federal background checks.  Hopefully those will be processed soon.  

We have been doing some shopping for our little sweetheart.  I want to make sure we have everything in place before she gets here.  Ryan and I have been looking at strollers and furniture.  We were amazed at how much things have changed since Chase was a baby.  

It's hard to fathom that our little girl could be born already.  I know God has a wonderful plan for her life.  Please keep us in your prayers as we finish up getting the paperwork together.  We pray that our home study Friday goes well and is typed up and processed quickly!