We are getting close, really close now; we are hoping to travel around the last week of October.

Our article 5 letter (really, I have NO IDEA what that is, other than the next thing we are waiting for and the last step before travel approval) will be ready to be picked up on Thursday this week, and then we wait for them to tell us to come get our girl!

We are really getting excited as it gets closer, but when that wonderful call comes, it will be time to send our last amount that is needed to complete the adoption.  The estimate is about $10,500.  Yikes!  We have $5000 of that in the bank and ready to go right now.  I know what you are thinking: that means we are still short about $5500.

That amount doesn't include travel to and from China or any of our spending money while there.  We are hoping to save a little by taking rail while in country rather than flying, and we know we can eat really cheap. We are going to try to use air miles for our flights (Darryl has built up quite a few, what with all his trips for work, and some have been donated to us as well.)  We do have $1500 set aside for spending money, but that's probably cutting it a little close.

Do I sound worried? I wouldn't be telling the truth if I said I wasn't.  I KNOW God is totally in control of this whole thing, but I wish He wasn't cutting it so close!

I know that He is the Father of adoption; after all, He came up with the whole concept!  He adopted me and every other soul who has ever chosen to accept His free gift of salvation, and He even placed His only Son in an adoptive family!  How cool is that?  As Christians we are admonished to "remember the orphans", and we have responded to that call the best we know how.

So now we really, really need Him to provide the last bit.

We do have a fundraiser coming up on Saturday the 8th, and I'd love to see lots and lots of people there, but really it's unlikely that we will raise all we need by auctioning 10 cakes, selling coffee drinks, and raffling a quilt.  But who knows?  It was unlikely that a crowd of 5000 could be fed with a few loaves and fish, but God chose to do it anyway!

Thanks for letting me tell you the truth of where we are financially right at this moment.  I'm excited for the day I'll be able to say "we are fully funded!"  Can't wait to share that with you when it comes.