Beautiful Dream - Our Kaelynn Rose

We're home!!!!! I will 'blog' the whole crazy trip in a few days - but we are completely exhausted, elated, and so thrilled to finally have her in our arms and to be parents after such a long wait! For now I just wanted to post the update and upload a few photos for everyone to see. Isn't she just the most gorgeous little thing you have ever seen!!!

When we all wake up in a few days - I will chronicle the trip.
For now, we are keeping things very low key - due to her SEVERE stranger anxiety. But we hope that you will all be able to meet her very soon!

Love as Always,

Chandra, Paul, and Kaelynn Rose Soo Jin

We FINALLY received Kaelynn's travel approval - she's really coming home!!!! We leave for Korea on Saturday and will arrive there on Sunday. We will meet her for the first time on Monday and come home on Tuesday. It will be a total whirlwind, and unfortunately we won't be able to see much of Korea, but the most important thing is that she will FINALLY be home with us!!! Wish us luck that the trip is easy for all of us, and that she adjusts to her new home easily!!

Much love to all,

Chandra

WOOOOO-HOOOOO!!! We got our I600 Approval today! This is the Orphan Visa Petition. We have been waiting 3 months for this - it usually takes less than 6 weeks, but no matter - we have the I600 and now all we need is our travel approval and we can bring her home!

Our placement agency says to expect Travel Approval to take anywhere from 2-4 weeks - so while she won't be home in time for Halloween - she should be here in time for Thanksgiving - and boy will we be thankful to finally have her in our arms!!!

We will keep you updated as to when we get the travel approval.

Thanks for checking in!

Much Love,

Chandra, Paul, and Kaelynn Rose SooJin

Well - we got the ICPC straightened out, and then they decided that our 6 month old homestudy had to be updated - remember that the homestudy is supposedly valid for 12 months - unless you move or change jobs - which we haven't.

So we had to contact Adopt. Int. and ask them to do an update to the HS - which they did - basically a short paragraph and new signatures, plus a $200 check. They sent it overnight Fed-Ex to the USCIS Orphan Unit. It's now been almost 3 weeks since that happened - the contact as USCIS said they didnt receive the first one sent - even though the HS agency has a verification of signature from Fed-Ex, so she overnighted a second copy to them and this time I also received a verification of delivery with signature. So, now we are waiting - yet again - for the Orphan Petition - they claim they will expedite it, they even have her picture - to let them put a face with our beautiful waiting baby.

But - I am so frustrated right now. It seems like every time we take a step forward, or feel like we are getting close to bringing Kaelynn home, something happens and we end up taking 5 steps back - that's a deficit of 4 steps - in case you're counting!

The last few weeks have been one issue after another, all having to do with our orphan petition. We have to get approval on our orphan petition so that the gov't. in Korea can issue her exit visa and our travel approval.

Meanwhile she is in Korea, getting bigger and bigger everyday - she is already crawling, and pulling up on furniture - that was a couple of months ago - she might be walking by now - we are missing so very much, and it is breaking my heart.

My baby is growing up without me. We are missing it all.

I know that we will have her for the rest of her life once she is home, but that doesn't stop the pain of missing so many of her "firsts"

I know it will happen, that she will eventually be here with us - but that day seems so, so far away at the point.

Please keep the good thought that our Orphan Petition is approved and arrives in the next couple of days, and that we get our travel approval in the next week or so!!

Thanks for reading my rant!!!

Still no news - I am getting so very frustrated and depressed. It feels as if we are never going to be able to go and get our beautiful little girl! I called AAC the other day and have not heard back from them. She was going to call USCIS to ask if they had received the ICPC = she got no answer, left a message. So I assume she has not yet heard back. I will be calling today to ask, if I don't hear from her. We'll keep you posted - thanks for checking in!

Love to all!

Chandra, Paul, and Miss Kaelynn Rose SooJin

Nothing new yet - We are still waiting on the approvval from USCIS. They sent us a letter that they needed the ICPC for approval - but both the honestudy agency & the placing agency have theirs - so HOPEFULLY USCIS has theirs as well and we will get the approval on our I600 any day now - then it will be just a coouple of weeks until we can go and bring Kaelynn home! We'll keep you posted! Thanks for checking in and PLEASE leave us a comment!!! We love to hear from everyone!

Love,

Chandra, Paul, and Kaelynn Rose

We are still waiting for the TA (travel approval) so that we can go and bring Kaelynn home. It has now been over 1 month since the USCIS received our 2nd filing of the orphan petition and they have not yet sent notice of approval. This is the last step before Korea will issue her exit visa and passport.

Our agnecy keeps telling us that we will be able to travel to Korea in September, but I am beginning to doubt that. I just want oour baby home!!!!