A phrase that has been on repeat in the Allen house this past week is "divine details." My goodness y'all, He really does care about the details, and it has just been amazing to see everything come together so beautifully!
So to back up just a bit, my precious sister, and her family were devastated by hurricane Harvey. They lost their home, and all their possessions, and while we are praising God for their safety, we are also really grieving for all they have lost. Jason and I wanted to get down to help as soon as we could so we planned to head down last Wednesday. Yet, in the back of my mind I was thinking about our adoption process. We were waiting to receive our travel approval from China, but it was supposed to be up to two weeks before we got that. At that point we knew we would have to drive back to Houston to go to the Chinese consulate to get our visas. So there was a worry that we would make the 8 hour drive to Houston, help my sister, come home, and then have to head back to Houston a week later. So I started praying for a miracle. I asked that somehow we would be able to get our visas while we were in Houston helping out. Well the Tuesday before we headed to Houston, we got an email from our agency that said they got word that they were about to receive our travel approval, and asked if we could have our gotcha day on September 18th! You guys, this came as a shock, because we had gotten an email a few weeks before saying that China's big holiday, the moon festival, was going to be when we originally thought we were going to be able to go pick up Penelope. This meant that hotels would be twice as expensive and the consulate would be closed for over a week, and so we thought we were going to have to postpone things, and maybe not be able to go get her till mid to late October. So my goodness we are just SO excited, and we really do feel like God has been performing miracles on behalf of our Penelope Joy. Things that were supposed to take up to 2 weeks took less that 24 hours, and long story short we were able to get our visas this past weekend when we were in Houston helping my sister and brother-in-law! The song lyrics "He gives and takes away, my heart will choose to say, Lord blessed be your name" have taken on a whole new meaning for our family! So we leave THIS Friday!!!!!! Well. . . that is what we are praying and hoping for!Things have been a bit of an emotional roller coster, and yesterday my mom went to pick up our visas, and they would not give them to her. They said they had to interview Jason in person. We were just there in person on Thursday, and gave them every piece of documentation required so this was frustrating. But we were going to do whatever we could to get to our girl, so Jason got a flight to Houston yesterday, had an interview with the consulate this morning, and they said we SHOULD have our visas Friday morning. IF they do have them ready for us, my mom will pick them up, take them to my dad, and he will fly a plane to bring them to us so we will still be able to make our Friday evening flights! Whoa. Our dear Penelope, so many people are doing so much to make sure you are in our arms as soon as possible!!! It is hard to pack my suitcase, and know there is still a chance that we may not be able to go, but completely trusting that whatever the outcome, God sees the bigger picture! He has weaved Penelope's precious life with ours so beautifully, and we know He will finish out the story in His perfect timing! But goodness knows we are praying that timing is Monday, September 18th ;) We would really appreciate your prayers about a few specific things in the weeks to come! 1) For health, and protection for our kiddos back home! They are 1 and 3, and definitely a hand full and a little unpredictable so we also want to pray for the PRECIOUS people that are taking care of them for us!!!! 2) For Health and protection for Jason and I! 3) That God would ease Penelope's fears, and that she would feel comfort in our arms! . . .We know the end of the story. We are going to be able to provide a better life for her than she has now, but she doesn't know that. She doesn't understand the concept of mommy and daddy, and her nanny at the orphanage is the only "mommy" she knows, and this woman is going to hand her to us (strangers) and walk away. She doesn't know us, understand us, and we don't look like anyone she has ever seen. She has no way to understand what is going on, and it can be emotionally overwhelming for her heart. So again, we ask that the Holy Spirit would be near, and give peace that passes her understanding! Thank you, thank you, thank you for all of your love, support and encouragement! I hope the next blog I post will be pictures of us holding our Penelope Joy!!!!!!!
1 Comment
Kelly Brown
9/14/2017 09:34:15 am
I'm overwhelmingly excited for all of you! I feel God's great grace pouring out over your family I fully trust Penelope will quickly adjust and feel your love for her.
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorI am a proud stay at home momma who unashamedly instagrams way too many pictures of her kids, loves decorating, Christmas, and coffee, and has a small obsession with Gilmore Girls. Archives
May 2017
Categories |