I-171H has arrived

Hooray! The I-171H has arrived. This simply means that we have been approved for immigration of an orphan. More importantly, it means that we can now receive a referral of a child. That, of course, could take several months... but we know that and are prepared to wait for that good news.

So, here's the story that those who know me will not find surprising:

As Sam and I pulled up to the house, I sidled up to the mailbox and hit the garage door opener. I remember hearing Sam asking to play with his friends because he could see them outside. For some reason, my heart was beating loudly, knowing on some level that the news we were awaiting was in that box! Well, anyway, it was. I can't explain how happy I was. (Imagine when we get the actual referral?!?) Seeing my own friends in the neighboring driveway, I drove past our own car and toward them. I rolled the window down and began to wave the form in the air for all to see... at which point it FLEW OUT OF THE WINDOW AND DOWN THE ROAD!!! Honestly. I threw the car in park, ran after it and did a jig right here on our little road! My sweet friends cheered and laughed... it was a great moment. Well, there you have it.

Our agency was very happy to hear our news, we faxed it over right away (thanks tom and leslie) and now we have entered a new kind of waiting.

In the months to come, I promise the updates will be more interesting than the "paper trail".

Much love.