We mailed out some documents and forms to US Immigration and now we are waiting for their approval.  Once we get their approval (later this week or possibly next week) we will wait for approval from the US Consulate in Guangzhou, China.  That will take a few more weeks.  Once we get that approval, then we wait for our travel approval from China, after which we leave 3-4 weeks later.  This whole thing has gone so quickly. Technically, we could be there by mid-March, but April travel dates are also a possibility. 

What are we doing in the meantime?  We are cleaning & organizing the house in order to make room for a third child.  Evan and my dad are building a loft bed for Isaiah.  We were originally going to move Isaiah into his own room (he & Josiah share a room right now), but he is saying that he wants to be with his brothers.  So if you have never been to our house, it is fairly small.  We have three small bedrooms, one of which is about to feel a LOT smaller.  Isaiah is such a people person, and we figure that if he changes his mind later, we can move him then. 

As of right now, my sister, bro-in-law & niece are coming to stay at our house with our boys while we are gone.  We are really praying that this works out.  Josiah has a dairy allergy and gluten intolerance.  Because of his dietary restrictions, I am doing my best to plan the meals, have all of the groceries, & have meals in the freezer for while we are gone.  My mind is constantly  racing as I think through how I can label all of the food items so that it is clear what he can and cannot have.  I'm putting together a little notebook of how to take care of my kids.  We're also planning to make a paper chain for them to countdown the days to our return.  In addition to that, we thought it would be fun for them to have a little gift to open for each day we are gone, so I'm picking little things up here and there. 

A lot to think about and prepare for. We'd appreciate your prayers!