We sure hope so. This week has been a very sad and difficult week. On Tuesday we learned that our paperwork was filed incorrectly. We had been told to file the USCIS paperwork under the Pre-Hague guidelines since we had started our adoption before the Hague convention went into effect. However, after several weeks of waiting on approval we were informed that we needed to file the I-800a instead. So we won’t be leaving today as we had hoped.

There was also a tragic accident at the school this week. A student passed away in a terrible car accident. It has been one of those weeks when you have to ask God the hard questions. “Why God?” Please say a prayer this week for the Dauphinee family.

So, we find ourselves in another holding pattern. The steps from this point will be the filing of the I-800a (done, minus another $900 dollars), the filing of the I-800, waiting for approval from the ICBF to travel, getting our visas, heading to Colombia. The miracle will be if it can all happen in the next 4 to 6 weeks. We really need it too.

Right now we are waiting for our I-800a approval to come back. We were able to send everything they need to approve us (home study, fingerprinting, etc), so hopefully we will hear back from them quickly. Once we get that approval we have to file an I-800 which is not supposed to take more than 30 days. We are praying that all of these approvals come back quickly. We don’t want the ICBF (the Colombian Agency who is responsible for Cameron) to give up on us.

Please pray for the following things:

• Pray that our I-800a will come quickly.
• Pray that we don’t have any problems or delays filing the I-800 once our I-800a approval comes back.
• Pray that the ICBF wouldn’t give up on us in the meantime. We waited six years for our referral, pray that they will give us the time we need to get our approvals and travel to them.
• Pray that God will meet every need financially for our travel.
• Pray for our sanity while we wait. It is very hard not to worry that things aren’t going to work out, even though we see God’s hand at every turn. Pray that we will have the faith to trust in a God who knows what is best for us and for Cameron.

Thank you for all of your prayers and support.

Awaiting His Coming,
Patrick & Mary Ann Mulvehill

Please know that your prayers are definitely making a difference! God did another miracle this last week that can only be attributed to His marvelous grace and your prayers!

Our adoption process has one unique twist that is not common to most adoptions, our adoption agency closed in December of 2009. We found out about the closing about a week before we got the news that we had been chosen to adopt Cameron. Because the agency (World Partners Adoption in Atlanta, Georgia) had walked us through the first half of the adoption, everything was good to move forward with the adoption. With the help of the previous director of WPA, we have been moving forward without problem.

Last week we discovered that the ICBF (the Colombian agency we are adopting through) needed a certified adoption agency to complete the post-adoption reporting required by the Colombian government. This newly discovered need sent me (Patrick) into a tail spin trying to find an agency that would handle this requirement. After two days of searching and contacting sixteen different agencies, we finally found a couple of agencies that were willing to help us. After evaluating the requirements of each agency and the additional cost of using a second agency ($1000+), we decided to get Bethany Christian Services, an agency out of Michigan, to help us with the necessary reporting.

We are very thankful that Bethany for their help in this matter. Just one more stressful rollor coaster ride for us. But it is just one more amazing way that God showed His mercy to us and reminded us that He is still in control. Thank you for your continued prayers.

So, where do things stand? Well, we are still waiting for our 171H approval form from the USCIS office in Atlanta. Once we have that we should get our invitation to travel. Then we can get our travel visas which will be from Chicago or Miami. After that, we should be off to Colombia. It is unlikely that we will have everything finished by April 9th, but we are still praying that it might happen.

Here is the updated prayer list:

• Pray that we get our 171H approval from the USCIS office.
• Pray that the approval gets filed at the US Embassy in Colombia quickly.
• Pray that we get our invitation to travel quickly.
• Pray that we can get our travel visas without any problems.
• Pray for Cameron, that he will be with us soon.

Thanks again for your continued support and prayers.

Awaiting His Coming,
Patrick & Mary Ann Mulvehill

Everything is still on track, but we really need your prayers. We found out today that everything is waiting on the I-171H approval form that will come from the US Citizenship and Immigration Services office in Atlanta. According to the lawyer in Bogota, we need this piece of paper before we can travel to Colombia. The good news is, we are almost finished with the administrative portion of the process! They just need that final piece before they can offer the official invitation to travel.

We need a miracle. We need to get our approval soon. I have had personal contact with an officer of the USCIS and he has been very responsive to my requests for expedition. We are praying that this is a good sign and that everything will go quickly once they get our FBI clearance (which should arrive this week if all goes well). Please pray that everything goes smoothly and quickly with this process. If there are delays, it could delay our travel dates.

There is no question that this adoption process has been the most emotionally, spiritually, and even physically difficult process that we have every experienced. Both Mary Ann and I have lost family members to disease and death, experienced broken families as children, gone through the spiritual struggles of trying to know God’s will, and dealt with the pain and uncertainty of infertility, but I do not think there is anything like the peaks and valleys of the adoption process. It is like going through all of these things at once. Some days the news is good and you want to celebrate and some days think that maybe it is never going to happen. It is like having this promise from God, but it just never seems to come to pass. We have experienced at least two possible adoption situations that didn’t work out and years of failed infertility treatments. Sometimes the ups and downs of this roller coaster ride just seem like too much to handle.

Abraham had a promise from God, “I will make you a great nation.” But he went for years without seeing how God would fulfill that promise. Then when He did, God commanded him to kill the son that He had given him. I can’t imagine the full extent of the peaks and valleys Abraham experienced, but I am beginning to get the idea. We have prayed for a child for 14 years (as long as we have been married). God is giving us the desire of our hearts, but it is definitely coming in His time and according to His plan. We trust Him. We know He knows what is best for us.

The important thing is, whether Cameron is in our arms on April 13th or a week or two later, he is still going to be there. God provided a sacrifice for Abraham, He will provide our heart’s desire…in His time.

Thank you for your prayers and continued support. Please continue to pray for God to keep Cameron safe until he is in our arms.

Awaiting His Coming,
Patrick & Mary Ann Mulvehill

Well, the news of our travel dates has come with mixed emotions. Of course, we are thrilled to finally know when we will be leaving, but we had hoped to be with Cameron before his first birthday (March 31st). As it stands now, we will be flying to Bogota on April 9th and meeting Cameron for the first time on April 13th (our 14th year anniversary)!

As with every step in this process, this news also came with a few new twists. The first is the need to have our USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services) approval before we travel. This is the document that allows us to bring Cameron back into the United Status and gives him his citizenship. We just overnighted the last piece of paperwork to them on Wednesday and they should be getting our FBI clearance by the end of next week. Our delayed travel date is giving them a little over 3 weeks to approve our application. I am still a little nervous about this process. We have e-mailed the USCIS office in Atlanta and are praying that they will help us by expediting the approval. Please pray with us that this comes quickly.

We knew that we would need visas to travel, however, we weren’t aware of the process that was required to secure the visas needed for adoption. It looks like we will be adding a trip to Miami, Florida to our list of things to do in order to get our travel visas. According to everything we have read, you have to apply for this special visa in person and you have to have already purchased your round trip plane tickets. We are still looking into it, so keep this process in your prayers. The good news is that the Colombian Consulate website says that the visa will only take 4 business days to process.

Our Current Needs:

1. Our USCIS application gets approved in time for us to leave.
2. We are able to find the best flights at the best price.
3. We can get our travel visas without any problems
4. We are able to raise the remaining travel funds (plus the additional Miami trip funds if needed)
5. Prayer for Cameron, that God will bless him and keep him safe.
6. Prayer for his foster family, that God would bless them for their loving care.

Thank you for all of your continued prayer and support.

Awaiting His Coming,
Patrick & Mary Ann Mulvehill

Well, we have done a number of yard sales in our day, but today’s sale tops them all. We began the day with lots and lots of stuff from our own home as well as a ton of things from the donations given by family and friends. We ended the day with $1600 dollars toward our travel expenses to Colombia! We are completely overwhelmed by the generosity of our community who were willing to shop and purchase items from the sale, not to mention the extra amounts that were donated above and beyond the sale prices. We serve a great God and are proud to live in a community where people see the importance of supporting your neighbors. Thank you to everyone who dropped by, shopped, and purchased at the sale.

We want to say a special thanks to everyone that donated items to the sale. We couldn’t have done it without your help.

Also we want to say a special thanks to the Fahning’s for their help during the day of the sale, and for helping with the clean up.

And we really couldn’t have made it through the day had it not been for the Maner family. They showed up to help me at 5 AM in the morning and stayed all through the day and for the clean up process! There is no question that Billy was our “yard sale diva” (for you Clean House watchers, you know this is a good thing)! He could sell just about anything at a great price! It was amazing to watch him work. The way he talked about some of the stuff, he had me wanting to buy it! We appreciate their help very much!

The proceeds from the sale have put us closer to raising the complete budget for the finalization of the adoption. We are looking forward to posting our travel date soon. We will never be able to say thank you enough to all of those that have had a part in this process.

Awaiting His Coming,
Patrick & Mary Ann Mulvehill

It has been four weeks since we received our referral and the days are slowly going by. Yesterday we received our appointments to be fingerprinted as part of our FBI background checks. We have to be cleared by the FBI in order to have Cameron’s I-600A approved. This is really good news as this is the only piece that needed to be done before we could travel! So, next Monday we will have to travel to Charleston, SC to take care of this last detail.

We are still waiting for the finalized home study, but should be receiving it any day. They have already sent us a copy to preview and everything looked great! A special thank you to the Families First staff and to our social worker for making this happen so quickly.

We still don’t know exactly when we will need to travel, but we hope to know something this week. If all goes well, I hope that we be traveling by the end of next week (the week of March 8th)! We did find out this week that there will probably be some additional in country travel that we weren’t really planning for, but hopefully it want be much. Though we will be flying into Bogota, Colombia, we will have to travel to another city where Cameron is living.

The big focus right now is working toward the Bring Cameron Home Garage Sale on Saturday, March 6th! We have been cleaning out every nook and cranny of the house looking for things to sell in order to raise some additional cash for the trip and final adoption expenses. So many of you have responded with items for the sale and we really appreciate the donations. I know that these pictures don’t look like much, but the garage is almost full and we are working on filling up the den. If you have anything that we could sell to raise money, please let us know. We are praying for good weather next Saturday and the strength to make it through the week (there is a lot going on this week).

Also, we (mostly Mary Ann) has been working hard on the nursery. We still need to get some things on the wall and the rug on the floor (of course, I probably should finish the top to that dresser too). Mary Ann has done an incredible job with the room. I am sure that Cameron is going to love it.

Here some things that we are asking everyone to pray for:

• For the preparations for the garage sale and the weather on Saturday.
• For the completion and translation of our home study.
• For our travel dates and preparations for the trip and stay in Colombia.
• For Cameron to be safe and healthy.
• For God to provide all of the finances that we need to complete the adoption.

We are so grateful to everyone who has been and continues to pray for and support us. We pray that God will richly bless you for your love and generosity.

We look forward to sharing more good news with you soon! God Bless!

Patrick & Mary Ann (and soon to be Cameron)

We have been waiting to post another update until we had something to share. It has been a little over two weeks since we received the referral and began the whirlwind process to get everything ready to finalize the adoption. At our last update we were waiting on two pieces, the completed home study and the first confirmation that our INS paperwork was in process. We received notification that our INS paperwork has begun its several week journey and we were able to get the last piece of our home study documentation today thanks to a very special nurse practitioner in our doctor’s office named Jill Beckworth. We learned today that our doctor’s office needed physicals done before they could complete the paperwork needed for the home study (long story), but thanks to Jill, who is an adoptive mother herself, we were able to slip into the office today and she filled out the paperwork while we were there. We left the doctor’s office, stopped by our good friend Dr. Odom’s office for some final documentation for Mary Ann, and off the fax went to Atlanta. We have to follow it up tomorrow with hard copies and hopefully our updated home study will be on its way to be translated, apostilled, and overnighted to Colombia.

Once we get a final copy of the home study, we will send a copy to the Citizen and Immigration Services office in Atlanta to go along with our I-600A. We should be hearing from them soon regarding our FBI fingerprinting which will either be done in Atlanta or Charleston, SC. Once we know which, we will take a quick trip to one or the other and get that taken care of too. Then it is just a matter of the travel date which we hope to find out soon. Our adoption coordinator says that we could hear something as early as this week or possibly as late as next week (we are hoping sooner). It will just be nice to know when we need to travel in order to make final preparations for the trip. Not to mention the longing that is growing in our hearts to be with Cameron.

So what have we been doing in the meantime? Well, we haven’t been sitting still, that is for sure! Several projects have been filling our time including preparations for the big garage sale, preparing the nursery for Cameron, and swinging by Babies-R-Us to setup a registry.

We are planning to have the garage sale on Saturday, March 6th to raise some additional funds for our trip. We are kind of hoping we will have to travel before then, but we are going to plan for it anyway since we really have no idea and could use the extra money for the trip. We are getting rid of a lot of stuff and many of you have offered to donate things for the sale. If you have items that you have been wanting to get rid of, we would be glad to put them in the sale. Mary Ann and Kim Maner have been working to organize the donations for the sale. If you have something you would like to donate, just send one of them an e-mail and let them know. Everyone is welcome to drop by for the sale! You never know what you might find and the proceeds are going toward a great cause! =)

Mary Ann and I have also been making preparations around the house for our new little boy. The office has now become the guest room/office and the guest room is going to be Cameron’s new room. Mary Ann has been painting for the past couple of days and we have been looking for rugs and light fixtures as well as making additions to the closet for Cameron’s things. Poor Bama (our dog) has been trying to figure out what in the world is going on. Boy, is she in for a surprise! =)

In addition to our home improvement adventures, we also took a few minutes to swing by Babies-R-Us to put together a registry for Cameron. Several of our friends have asked about throwing a baby shower for Cameron and asked that we put together a registry. That was an adventure in itself. So many “firsts” that I had really begun to wonder if they would ever come. I had to fight off some tears as Mary Ann sat down to have everything explained. I was able to keep it together enough to snap a quick picture to remember the moment. The young lady that was explaining everything told us that we should be sure to scan 100 to 150 items. My first thought was, “Is that all!” Of course, about an hour and a half into the process I was thinking, “We only have 75 items scanned, what are we going to do!” As it turns out, a lot of items they recommend you put on your registry for a new born don’t really apply to a 1 year old. So, I headed to the electronics department to get Cameron his first game system! (Not really =) Anyway, after a couple of hours we finally covered the whole store and reached the 150 mark on our little scanner. All of the weird stuff on the list is my fault (Mary Ann said that I could scan whatever I wanted =). The plan is to have Cameron’s baby shower once we get back so that everyone can see him. Kim Maner is working on the planning of the shower and will set the date once we know better when we will be getting back home from Colombia. If you have questions about the shower, feel free to send her an e-mail.

Well, that is were things stand right now. I always plan to make these updates short, but they always seem to end up going on and on. Guess I am a little excited about all that is happening. I have to admit that I am also a bit humbled by all of the folks that have come forward wanting to help us bring Cameron home. We are so grateful to have friends and family that love us this way. Please continue to pray that God will provide everything that we need to bring Cameron home. We know that the days ahead will not only require a lot of patience and emotional strength, but wisdom to make wise choices. We are praying that when the time comes we will be able to find the best deals on plane tickets and lodging, and that there won’t be any hidden expenses come up during the trip. And if there are, we know that we serve as awesome God who will have prepared us for anything that comes our way.

We love you all and thank you for your prayers. We will let you know as things begin to unfold.

Awaiting His Coming,
Patrick & Mary Ann Mulvehill

Well, it has been one week since we got the exciting news from Colombia, but it feels like a month. There were so many things to do and so much to think about that it has been really hard to stay focused on anything else (like work, but don’t tell my boss…grinning sheepishly). We have managed to get our immigration paper work and our home study update both started in a very short period of time. We are very thankful to the folks that have help us with that including our doctor’s office, the Families First ladies, and our adoption coordinator just to name a few. We are also very grateful for the family and friends that have expressed their support and prayers over the last week. We love you all and are looking forward to the role that you will play in Cameron’s life (…tearing up again as I read this, thank you, thank you, thank you!).

Growing up I remember singing that song, “I’ve got peace like a river, I’ve peace like a river, I’ve got peace like a river in my soul.” I always envisioned a quiet peaceful stream lined with trees ordained with the leaves of fall.

Over the past 14 years Mary Ann and I have had several experiences on rivers when I was a youth pastor and more recently as kayaking enthusiast. Sometime the water is exactly like this, quiet and peaceful. You can sit back in your boat and enjoy the creation around you without a care in the world. Peace almost comes natural in a setting like this. It is easy to trust God because there doesn’t seem to be any danger or risk.

Well, right now my river feels more like this! Fast moving, lots of danger, lots of risk, lots of uncertainty. The weird part is that I am just as at peace as if I were floating down the quiet, peaceful stream. It is such a strange sensation when you have that kind of peace. You begin to think that maybe you have slipped into some sort of shock. You think that maybe you are trapped inside your own numb body that is being tossed to and fro in the boat. The class five rapids are straight ahead, but you don’t feel the fear, your not anxious about the outcome. You hear what could be a huge waterfall in the distance, but you are okay with it, because you know Jesus is piloting the boat. I am thankful to God for that kind of peace. I know that He is going to work out all the details. I just need to trust in Him.

Boy, did I just start preaching? Sorry about that (not really). Back to the update.

Right now we are waiting on two things:

First, we are waiting for the completed update to our home study. For those of you not familiar with adoption, the home study is a document that basically lays out your whole life. It tells the state or country that you are adopting from all about you and whether or not you would be good adoptive parents. This is our third round with the home study (the original and two updates), so we are hoping that it will just be a matter of changing a few lines with updated data and we will be good to go. Once complete, the document has to be translated and certified before being sent to Colombia.

The second item is the immigration document that says we are cleared to bring Cameron back into the United States. This application was sent to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service and could take several weeks to process. We are hoping that it gets processed quickly as we will need it to get the necessary clearance in Colombia to come home.

Other than that, we are just waiting on an estimated travel time. We completed our referral acceptance letter this week and it has been received by the adoption agency. They will be translating and overnighting it on Monday of next week. Once received, that should really get things moving.

We have begun planning a little garage sale for the first weekend in March (assuming we are still here) to help raise some money for the trip and final expenses. It is amazing what you are willing to give up when your children are concerned. I am ready to sale all kinds of things that I wouldn’t have considered before (Mary Ann is still waiting to see if I will really get rid of all my books…we’ll see).

Thanks for you continued prayers and support.

Patrick & Mary Ann

Mary Ann and I have been in an adoption process for a VERY long time, around five years. During that time we have had lots of emotional ups and downs, searching and asking for God to show us His will in the area of our family. It has been a long, and sometimes painful, road that may soon be coming to an end.

Over the weekend we received and confirmed an adoption referral from the Colombian government. Allow me to introduce Cameron.

Cameron (pictures will be posted soon), which will be his adopted name. He is currently living in an orphanage near Bogota, Colombia awaiting adoption. The Colombian adoption agency has chosen us to be his new adoptive parents.

There are lots of things that need to come together in the next couple of months in order for this adoption to be finalized and we are asking our friends and family to pray with us that it will happen. There are a number of official items that have expired that are needing to be renewed quickly, lots of preparations to be made, and financing to be secured. But we know it will all be worth it once he is home.

If you are interested in keeping up with all the latest information regarding the process, including a daily blog of the trip once we are there, visit the home page and sign up for the E-News & Updates. Doing so will allow you to receive updates anytime we post something about the adoption. You can always get the latest news by going to the Adoption News section.

We wanted to let you know what was happening so that you understand why we might seem a little spacey and preoccupied. Truth is, we are overwhelmed. We had almost given up on this process, but God had a plan. We don’t always understand His timeline, but we can trust in His results.

Thank you for your prayers.

Awaiting His Coming,
Patrick & Mary Ann Mulvehill

This has got to be the hardest part!! Each day I go to my e-mail box hoping that today will be the day that we hear something more. We still await the finally word from the Colombian government as to the status of our adoption application. Time is beginning to run out on our home study so we are hoping that we will get word soon. Meanwhile, we just keep praying that God will give us the patience we need and that He will prepare us for the adventure that is ahead. To those that continue to pray for us, thanks! Your prayers are felt. God Bless!