Meet Jack

On Friday, May 23 I received a call at work from our adoption agency about a referral for a potential match for us.  It was a normal Friday like any other.  I was at work just doing my thing, when CCAI popped up on my cell phone.  The lady from the agency went on to tell me all about a child's sex, name, birthday, height, weight, physical development, personality, medical special need, favorite activities, physical abilities, mental development, and so on.  I was in shock because I didn't think we would get any referrals until all our dossier paperwork had been turned in.  Brandy had told me that we could be matched at any time, but neither of us was prepared for this so soon.  As she went on all about the child, I began to fall in love.  After she finished telling me everything, she asked if I was interested and if I wanted her to send an email with all of the info and pictures!  Absolutely!

The email only made me fall in love even more.  As I read all of the documents, I thought, "This feels like the perfect child for us."  We were told that we could take all of the info and consult a pediatrician, but they needed an answer within a week or so.  Brandy and I have been on such a whirlwind of emotions over the last week, but excitement tops them all.  God has been so good to us throughout this whole process.  He has taken all of our fears and anxieties, and shown us a picture of His love in the form of this little child.

For legal purposes at this time, we can't disclose too much information, so no photos that we can share just yet.

Meet Jack

Edited to show what we are allowed to show

Jackson "Jack" James Paul was born September 25, 2010 (estimated), was abandoned on September 28, 2010, outside the Zhengzhou City University.  That same day, he was brought to the Zhengzhou City Children’s Welfare Institute.

After entering the institute, Jack has continuously lived inside the institute.  Below is his most recent development report.

Motor development and adaptability: Jack's thumbs and forefingers are nimble and his fingers can accomplish some meticulous tasks.  His left and right hands can play with toys simultaneously and he can take toys out of the toy box; After he’s finished playing, he will put the toys in the toy box.  His motor movement is normal and the child can sit, crawl, stand steadily and walk freely.  The child can also go up and down stairs.  The child can grab a pen and draw lines and he can imitate drawing circles and straight lines.  He can flip through a book on his own.

Language and social abilities: The child adapts to strange environments very quickly and if he’s interested in something, he will reach out his hands to touch it.  He understands what the nannies say and he listens to what they say.  If the nannies don’t want him doing something, he won’t do it.  The child can use simple words to answer a few questions and he can say 3-5 word sentences.  He can also count from 1-10.  When he hears his given Chinese name called, he will turn his head to look for the origin of the sound.  He can distinguish between strangers and acquaintances and when he sees someone he’s familiar with, he smiles.  He’s not afraid of strangers and he likes to communicate with them.

Personality characteristics: Jack is a lively and active child.  His personality is very extroverted and he really likes to smile.  If someone plays with him, he will smile.  If he’s curious about something, he will go pick it up and research it.  He really likes to play with toys and he’s not picky about the toys he plays with.  He responds quite quickly and when he sees the TV or hears music he will become very happy.  He likes to play in places where there are lots of people and when he sees other little children, he becomes very happy.

Jack is an extremely active and cute child and we all really like him.  We hope that he can quickly find a loving home with a mother and father that will give him a happy childhood as well as a beautiful future.  We are confident that he will bring bundles of joy and good fortune to your home.

By now you must be asking a few questions.  

How long till you can go get him? Unfortunately, it will be eight to nine months before we can bring baby Jack home. There is still a lot of paperwork and rigmarole that must be gone through before we can travel to China. In the meantime, we can request updates and send care packages to him.

We are sorry we can't share more information and pictures of Jack, but this is all we can say for now. We should have authority to do that very soon, though. Brandy and I got all of the paperwork done to officially lock baby Jack for us last night. CCAI is going to translate it and let us know when we can share pictures soon. Maybe you guys can even see the videos of him!

May Yard Sale/Meeting of Grandmother and Chinese Granddaughter

Sorry that I am late posting this update about the yard sale: Yard sale was a huge success thanks to God, people that donated and people that came out to buy/support us. There is one of many stories I would like to share about the yard sale that was such a blessing to me and I KNOW God was part of because I so needed it. The last couple of weeks I have felt defeated and stressed due to getting the paper work finish and having to redo some of it. A Grandmother came with her 6 year old granddaughter that was adopted from China. I got to talk with them both and listen to their story. The Grandmother gave me words of encouragement and the little girl was so happy! I really feel like God sent them to our yard sale just so He could tell me to calm down (Haha) and everything was going to be fine. Because no matter how long it takes or emotions I feel, the end result will be the same. I one day will be able to hold my baby in my arms in God's time and God's time is always perfect!

Brandy

Shirt Sale for Baby Paul

We are getting closer with each prayer and paperwork that we check off the list!! However we are still needing your help! We are selling Paul Companies t-shirts to raise money for our adoption. Please help us by ordering a shirt or two. It would really help get our child home plus you will get an awesome looking shirt! Below are the details of how to order and pay. Thank you so much for your help and support!

The shirts will be available in dark colors, no red or white. They have a vintage distressed look to them with a Paul Companies logo. Shirts are $15.00. They can be ordered by sending a message to T.J. Paul on Facebook or by emailing tjpaul117@gmail.com You can also pre-paid for your shirt with Pay-Pal if you like. The sale will end on May 7, 2014. So get your orders in soon! 


Please leave a message with your name, contact info, quantity, size, and color (address if you need them to be shipped). Once they are ready, we will contact you so you can pick them up at Paul's Body Shop, or we can ship them to you. Thank you again for all you support! 

Home Study Update

We have received our Home Study and everything looks good. We now can send off for our Immigration Approval and Dossier. YAY! We also can start applying for some grants. Please pray with us as we get everything sent off and we send it off correctly. I am feeling a little overwhelmed because I want everything to be done. Also, lately, time as been on my mind. It is hard to explain but thinking that we are running behind "schedule" is driving me crazy. When we started this journey we knew that this was God's will for us and that the Devil would be doing his best to derail us. Using anything and everything. I feel like now that we are getting closer, he is pushing more and more on some issues. So I ask for my brothers and sisters in Christ to pray for me to stay strong in Christ and trust in His timing. And for me to take it one day at a time and stay focus on our sweet baby coming home! Thank you all for everything! Love you!

Brandy

Spring Cleaning 2014

I just wanted to share a few updates by Brandy that were posted on our FB page https://www.facebook.com/pauladoption , but not here.

January 31st 

We had our soup supper fundraiser that we blogged about earlier.

http://pauladoption.blogspot.com/2014/01/my-cup-runneth-over-soup-supper.html

Brandy posted this about it:

We cannot express the joy we feel because of the amount of support that you all have shown us during this adoption. When we sat down to discuss our next fund raiser and decided to do the Soup Supper we had an amount that we would like to make (God willing) to make the hard work "worth it". God and you guys shown up BIG TIME! We almost doubled what our goal was for the Soup Supper!! God is awesome! And we give Him all the glory and want to thank you all that supported us through prayers, donating and/or stopping by on Friday! Each day God is showing us that this is what His will is for us!

T.J. and Brandy

February 1st

We had photos taken for our dossier.

You can see some of them here - https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.663240687067010.1073741831.516369861754094&type=1

February 7th

We are turning in our last paperwork for the Home Study TONIGHT!!! Then we are done with this HUGE step! This is such a relief for us! We still have our Dossier to finish however that is a lot of repetitive info that we have already filled out for the Home Study and getting that info notarized by the state. So we should, hopefully, be able to finish that quickly. Also we now can start applying for grants. So please pray with us for God to open doors. We are def feeling the excitement of the next stage. Even though we still have a lot of waiting time ahead of us, we are getting our home and hearts ready for our little addition. Love you all and thank you again for being there for us through this journey!

T.J. and Brandy

February 18th

Asking you all to lift us up a little higher right now. Home Study has been approve (YAY) however our agency is wanting us to change some things that are very important to us about our child. We are getting in touch with our agency to dig a little deeper on why. However in the meantime we need our prayer warriors to get to praying that this will be an easy fix. We will update you all as soon as we know something! Thanks!

T.J. and Brandy

Talked to our agency and everything worked out! Thanks for the prayers! One step closer! 

T.J. and Brandy

March 17th

Sorry it has been a minute since we last updated however we have been crazy busy. We are done with our Home Study however when we received it last week we notice while reading it over that there were some information that were written wrong. This is upsetting news because what we have to do next (Dossier and Immigration approval) are needing this Home Study. When you adopt international ALL paper HAS to match up or China will kick it out. We called our social worker and she is rewriting it right away. Hopefully we should have it back in a week or two. On a brighter note we are done painting our child's room this past weekend. I know it might be early however we were painting other parts of the house so we decided to get that room done also. It's a pretty light grey color that will go with any color depending on the sex of our child. I walked in that room and saw the bare walls waiting for picture, drapes etc I couldn't help to think that one day it will be filled with toys, laughter and a very special child that God picked to be our baby! This journey has its up and downs however the day I get to hold my sweet child I know this will all be worth it! Love you all. Thank you again and again for all your support!

Brandy

March 20th

I have been trying to write Thank You notes to you all that have helped in some way and I am sure I have missed some! This is not because we are not thankful. Just the opposite, we are overwhelm with thankfulness and humbled by the kindness you each have shown us! I am still busy writing thank you notes, I just wanted you all to know that I know God is HUGE and thank Him everyday for softening each one of your hearts towards us! Thank you each for your prayers, donations, and encouragement! 

Brandy

March 22nd

Update on the Home Study that we had to send back because it was written wrong. We got the proof last night and everything looks correct. Now we are waiting on the copies to be mailed to us so we can send our Dossier and Immigration forms. After that it is a waiting game until we are match with our child.  We just hope and pray that everything goes smoothly! Taking it one day at a time and trusting in God's timing!

There's a Reason They Call It PaperWORK

From T.J.,

First, I want to apologize for it being so long since my last blog post.  I know you have all been agonizing over the lack of my witty, informative rantings.  A lot has happened since I posted about us being accepted by CCAI for adoption.  I have been entrenched with loads of responsibilities at work.  I have devoted what little free time I have to working on adoption paperwork with my beautiful wife, and treating her to the most romantic date nights imaginable.  The look on Brandy's face is indicative of our emotions when this paperwork process began.  We were concerned and overwhelmed.  "How much paperwork is there?", you ask.  We are required by our Home Study agency and our Adoption agency to compile an extensive list of documents, photos, and training; some of which overlap with each other.  



A few items are:

Home Study - This one deserves a blog all it's own, but it went very well
12 Hours of Adoption Education
Autobiographies
Child Safety Agreements
Background Checks
Sex Offender Registry Checks
Rankin County Sheriff's Office Checks
Mississippi State Background Checks
Police Reports
FBI Fingerprinting
Medical Health Evaluations
Professional Photos of Family and Friends
Passport Photos
Firearm Statement
Swimming Pool Statement
Petition to Adopt
Employer Letters
Form I-800 Homeland Security Travel Document
Financial Statements
Copies of every personal document imaginable

....and I'm sure I left a few out.

I bought Brandy a Christmas ornament that became our mantra for this entire part of the adoption process. It had an angel standing on the words "One Day at A Time". Once we got started, things really started to click away. We are still hard at work, but we see the light at the end of the tunnel. However, I feel like Punxsutawney Phil. Once we get to the end of the tunnel, I wonder if I will see my shadow and have six more weeks of paperwork.  Nevertheless, we know that what we are doing is driving us toward the goal of bringing home our child.  We hope and believe that will happen in 2014. Today, we actually completed our twelve hours of adoption training.  Here is what Brandy posted on her Facebook:
T.j. Paul and I are done with our adoption training! Yay! It was a lot to take in however we did learn a great deal about what to expect when we get our child home! Feeling a little overwhelmed and excited at the same time. With all the support that you all have shown by praying, donating and encouraging we feel truly blessed beyond words! This journey has taught us that God love is still shining through His people! You guys keep His light shining no matter what because, I promise you, it is making a difference! We have to give a shout out to Ramey's in Florence who donated ALL the paper goods for the soup supper next Friday! Thank you everyone and we love you all!

We are still working and raising money, and being blessed with so many kind words and donations.  This week, we are gearing up for our soup supper fundraiser that Brandy and co. have dubbed "My Cup Runneth Over."   Please see our previous blog post for more information and join us and invite your friends this Friday the 31st.  We have already received pre-orders and donations for the event. Now, here comes the part where we thank our sponsors.  We would like to thank all our friends and family for their personal donations of money, soups, deserts, and time to My Cup Runneth Over.  Also, Ramey's of Florence provided us with a gift card that we used to purchase all of our supplies for the soup supper.  We would also like to thank Wrapro Graphics in Florence for providing the venue where we will host the supper.

Again, thank you all for taking time out of your busy lives to support us in this endeavor.  We are truly touched by your support.  We are constantly reminded and become more and more confident in the generosity of all people.

My Cup Runneth Over: Soup Supper Fundraiser

A lot of people have asked how they can help with the adoption.  This would be a great opportunity!  We're having a soup supper to help raise money for the adoption. Please come by for take-out for you or your family, or stay and enjoy a delicious meal with us to help our child come home! 

Date:   Friday, January 31st
Time:  5-7 p.m. (stay and eat or get it to-go)
Place:  WRAPRO, 2990 Highway 49 South, Suite N, Florence (by the Mexican restaurant)
Cost:   $7 per person
Meal:  Your choice of one of our delicious homemade soups, roll or cornbread, and sweet or unsweet tea.

*We will also have a dessert table and will accept donations for the dessert(s) of your choice.

We want to encourage you to pre-pay through our Paypal account so that we make sure to have plenty of soup available.  Just put a note that the money is for the soup fundraiser.

Thanks in advance for your support and prayers!