Quick update

For anyone who is checking out my blog.....Dave and I have a fingerprint appointment next week.  I'm not sure how long it will take between fingerprints and USCIS approval, but hopefully it will be quick. Once the approval comes we get a few last pieces of paper through the notary/authentication steps and we have everything ready for our dossier!  We are ready to get that piece out in the mail to our agency and then off to China.  Our hope was to have it well on its way by December.  Knowing that both American and Chinese holidays will complicate the speed at which this is all processed, we'd like for things to be logged in asap.  Once that dossier is in China we await a LID - Log in Date.  After the dossier is reviewed they will send us an RA (referral approval) as we are already PreApproved.  After the RA, we await our TA (travel approval).  Once the travel approval arrives we are quickly planning flights and our two weeks in China- depending upon our agency's next travel group, once we get the TA it could be a month, or a week, until travel.  I am wishing and hoping and praying that we can be in China by March/April - but am preparing for a possibility that it may be May.  As I wrote this I glanced at the spring calendar and see that there is a spring recess for the schools.  It would be PERFECT if things fell into place where our two weeks in China coincide with that week.  Instead of missing two weeks of school the girls would only miss one.  I don't mind taking them out - but I think Ballerina might sorely miss being there!
Anyway - we are another step closer to a big journey across the ocean!
Heather