WE GOT OUR TRAVEL DATES, FLIGHTS ARE BOOKED!

We got our official Travel Approval (TA) from China yesterday!!  And just like we had prayed, were told that we could travel the week of Feb. 13th.  Yea God!  We had to wait until today for our Consulate appointment time to be accepted before being allowed to book our flights.  Our consulate appt is the final thing that has to happen in Guangzhou, China before heading back home.  Thankfully we got our first choice & it is set for Wednesday, Feb. 27th.  We will pick up Lexi Marie's visa the next day, drive to Hong Kong that evening for an early morning flight back home that Friday (March 1st).

As for when we will be heading to China, our flight leaves early Wednesday morning, Feb. 13th which is my Mom's birthday!  Yep, that's only 2 weeks from this Wednesday!  Crazy!!!  But we are beyond excited!  We found amazing flight schedules too (after hours of looking), & the kids are only going to miss a total of 7 days of school which is flat out amazing.  

Thanks for caring & following along on our journey.  We will post more details about travel soon!  Can't wait to meet our little Lexi!

Love to you all!

Jodi & Bart

Holla, We got new pics & an update!

You can only imagine how excited I was late last night when I popped open my laptop to see that we had gotten a much hoped for update on our Lexi Marie.  My heart literally skipped a beat.   So without further ado, here are the two new pics of our Lex (some of you may have already seen on Bart's Facebook).  And I also included below the actual update they sent on what she's "up to" these days.  It sais "she can say mama"......oh my heart can hardly take it.  In case you didn't know "mama" is one of the few words that is the same in the Chinese language.  And how funny they noted that "she knows red".  Too bad she's not potty-trained....haha.  Kind of hoping for a free pass on that one.  We did get some updated weight & size measurements but you never really know how accurate they are.  According to what they sent she would still be in 6-12 month clothes.  Of course it's really hard to tell with all those layers on.....and what's up with that outfit, haha.  Glad they are letting her hair grow out though.  Headbands here we come.

Medical/Development:

Her current health is good.

She can take several steps by herself, walk holding onto something.

She can say mama.

She is not potty trained.

She knows red.

Personality:

They call her Xiao Cao.

She is active.

General:

Her sleeping and diet schedule:      

Sleeping time: 8:00pm-6:00am

Nap time: 12:00-2:00pm

Eating time: 6:00am, 10:00am, 3:00pm, 7:00pm

Her main foods are formula, noodle, congee.

She is in the orphanage now.

ON THE HOMESTRETCH

We are one big step closer to getting our Lexi Marie!  Our Article 5 was picked up at the US Consulate yesterday which means China can now officially issue us our TRAVEL APPROVAL.  This is the final step & what every family waits for in order to book our flights to China.  We should be receiving our TA (adoption lingo for Travel Approval) in 2-3 weeks & will leave for China 10-21 days later.  YIPPEE!!  Our agency determines our actual travel dates based around our consulate appointment in Guangzhou which is the last thing that happens before we head back to the US.  One kink is that the Chinese New Year celebration is February 9-15 which means all government offices are closed that entire week & they won't have us flying in the week before since it would mean us staying in China a whole extra week waiting for offices to open.  So here's the deal.....If you want something BIG to pray about, we are hoping & praying that if it is God's will we could leave for China the week of Feb. 13th which is actually during Chinese New Year so that we could be IN China finalizing the adoption during our kids Winter Break off school Feb. 18-22.  Our agency has said that this is possible & still within our expected travel time line but of course a lot of things have to fall into place for this to work out ever so perfectly.  Our trip will last about 16 days so being there during Winter Break would mean that our kids don't have to miss so much school & that's kind of a big deal now that Keaton is a middle-schooler (which still blows my mind).  Ultimately, we know God's timing is perfect & whatever He wills is what we also desire & we will rest peacefully in that.  We have seen His amazing provision throughout this entire adoption journey & know He will continue to guide & provide.