It FINALLY came!!!!

I can hardly believe it!

Charlotte's RA came!

We've been praying and praying over the past few months waiting anxiously for it to arrive.
Some days we felt a peace about waiting and we were able to keep ourselves busy.  Other days were not good days and the wait felt like forever as the months passed and our girls grew older and grew up a little bit more each day...  without their forever family.  It wasn't easy.  Both Sam and I have had to admit that God used this time to make us grow up a little bit, too.  The wait drove us to our knees and caused us to depend on Him and trust in Him in a way we hadn't before.

RA means Referral Acceptance.  It means that China acknowledges that you would like to adopt a particular child and agrees to let you be that child's parents.  Though it is uncommon, China can say no.  Our social worker wasn't optimistic for us.  Doubts crept in.  The wait fed those doubts.
I had to remember what God has always placed on my heart, though, since the very beginning of this process.  There was not one child waiting for us, but TWO!  And now there is!  And now it's on paper!  It's official!!!!  China will let us have them both!

So today, there are shouts of joy and happy tears! 

I am a mama to TWO beautiful girls!

Come and listen, all you who fear God, and I will tell you what He did for me.
For I cried out to Him for help, praising Him as I spoke.  If I had not confessed the sin in my heart, the LORD would not have listened.
But God did listen!
He paid attention to my prayer.
Praise God, who did not ignore my prayer or withdraw His unfailing love from me.

Psalm 66:16-20

I can't tell you exactly what I prayed this afternoon, one hour before Sam called me to tell me it had come, but I can tell you it was one of the most sincere and heartfelt cries of "Please help me - I know you can!" and "I thank you for this experience - all of it and I surrender to you joyfully."

The scripture above is pretty accurate of how I am feeling now! :)

Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us..

- Ephesians 3:20

Praise God!  We are so thankful!