Take a pinch of hope, add a dash of trust and mix with prayer **Revised- see bottom*

Here is what we know for sure. The Memorandum of Understaning did not get signed by the deadline of March 31st. However, this doesn't mean that negotiations are not taking place and that an agreement will be resigned in the future and there may only be a slight hold on Vietnam adoptions after Sept. 1st. We are hopeful that all dossiers logged in to the country before the cutoff date (be it May 1, but more likely Sept 1) will continue to matched with children and adoptions completed regardless of the resigning of the MOU. We are hopeful that at this time Vietnam has decided to continue working with non-Hague accredited agencies, although our agency is pursuing their accreditation anyway. It is not to say that Vietnam becoming a Hague Convention member would not be a good thing. The Hague Convention works in the interest of the children and ethics for the whole adoption process. There is a very real possibilty that Vietnam sometime in the future will sign with the Hague Convention. The real current issue seems to be the process time of the I-600 form, which is filed once a referral is accepted. This approval process seems to be taking quite a while, meaning that the time between referral to travel seems to be increasing, however, time in country seems to be decreasing by a day or two. Now it seems the Bring Our Children Home website has released a statement that a memo is being released that DNA testing of the orphans will be required before an adoption can be approved. This is going to be an addition expense for the adopting family. How it will work and what delays it will cause has not yet been defined, and our agency has not rendered a comment on this procedure, but I find it quite curious that if a child is abandoned, how are they going to process a DNA test to confirm that the parents indeed are relinquishing their rights? It seems to me that this process could only be used if the child was born and given up when the parent(s) identity is known. I suppose we will see where this process takes us.

Here is what I will say. I trust my God in Heaven to take us through whatever valleys lie before us. There is no reason to get upset at the agency because they don't pass on information as quickly as we would like. Part of the problem is that we spend too much time taking rumors for facts. Rumors spread like a tumor and I am resolved to only listen to the information that my agency forwards to us. As soon as something has validity, they will pass it on. I have never participated in the Yahoo or other chat groups for this very reason. I get an inkling of what is going on through reading and browsing the blogs. I understand that it is hard NOT to take concern of the rumors, but that is exactly what they are. Until Vietnam issues an OFFICIAL statement about anything, I am not going to worry. I won't say that I haven't passed through alot of valleys in this journey, there have definitely been alot. But, I also know that God has a plan for my life, and Dwayne's life, and my heart knows that our Kaylee is waiting in Vietnam. We are just so close to a referral that I have to trust God to bring her to us. There is no other country option for us. There is peace in my heart that this is the path we are to walk, and we will stay focused on the prize. Whatever comes in the meantime, be it ANOTHER set of fingerprints, or a new form, or additional money, there is nothing to do but accept it and go on. In the end, it will all be worth it. The love of my life, my dream come true waits for me at the end of the journey. The Bible tells us to not borrow trouble from tomorrow for today, because today has enough trouble of it's own. One day at a time is all you can do in this journey. Speculation about what the future holds can bring unncecessary worry. More time is spent worrying about something that will never happen anyway. Honestly, how many times have you worried about something and then it never happened? For me, gazillions. So for this, I will trust that God is in control and that He will bring Kaylee to us in the near future and whatever we have to do to get her, we will just have to do. I will keep savoring cheerfull and positive thoughts about my daughter and trust that God will bring her home.

My gracious Father in Heaven, there is so much turmoil right now in the world of Vietnam adoptions. Please, Lord, bring us some good news and hope for a future with our children. For many of us, this is our first child and we want so badly to bring our children home. You are almighty, you are the Prince of Peace. If you can calm the ocean with Your hand, then you can calm the Vietnam waters. I trust You, Lord, in bringing our Kaylee to us. She has been in our hearts for such a long time she is real. You are a gentle and caring God and You have commanded your orphans to be cared for. We are waiting, Lord, and listening for Your instruction. We need hope, we need happiness. Please bring us some referrals, Lord, even just a few. I ask You to calm the hearts of all the waiting families and keep our children safe, many of which we do not even know yet. Thank you for your graciousness and your mercies. We love you so much and we know that You hold our future in Your hands. Thank you for loving us. Amen


*** An update about the DNA testing-- this is in fact true, however only the children whose parents have relinquished them will require the testing. Obviously, children whose parents abandon them or dissert them and the birth parents cannot be found will not undergo this testing for obvious reasons. Actually, this could prove to be a great step as far as ethics are concerned for Vietnam. Yes, it is another fee, but, in the long run there will be no worries that this child is adoptable. I think it is a good thing. You just have to roll with the flow and not look at everything negatively. These new rules are probably a result of trying to work out a new agreement. You could look at it as the new rules means adoptions are hopeful to continue. Not every new regulation means something negative. Just roll with the flow, keep positive, pray for your child and we will be okay!