Breaking news.....

Breaking news from Star Command...... An update from Little B's caretakers states that the villianous Duchene appears to currently only have a slow effect on Little B's muscle strength. He has remained stable during the last 6 months. He is currently still ambulatory and can climb stairs independently albeit it at a much slower pace than his fellow orphans. New pictures seen by Forever Mama and Forever Big Sister show a happy Little B showing a "V" for victory sign. Arriving in the mail today was the coveted USCIS notice of Approval. So the forward march continues. More recruits will be needed as the team marches onward. Little B's first super hero figure Buzz only has 18 more pieces until it is complete and then Captain America will begin. So join Little B's Super Hero Team and help keep the villianous Duchene in slow motion. Click on the Super Hero Fundraiser tab and help finish building Buzz and by doing so joining this courageous group of Super Heroes as they march forward to complete their recue mission.  Star Command out...

Onward!

Well it's been a tough week here at Star Command Central. The villianous Duchene seems to have sent forces here that have stretched Forever Mama's emotions and resolve to their limits. But today is a new day! While sadness and questions remain, Forever Mama is moving forward. NO forces will stop the forward progress of Little B's rescue mission. The sooner he is here with his Forever Family the better. So here is a re-cap of the mission status.
The Rescue Mission File has officially been handed over to WACAP's China Program Team. This team sent in the preliminary application to the US Custom and Immigration Services and Forever Mama received the biometrics appointment letter. Forever Mama was advised to walk-in instead of waiting the 3 weeks until the set appointment time. Walk in was attempted and that initial step of the mission was completed! Now the wait begins for the governmental cogs to turn and send out the USCIS approval for Little B's Rescue Mission.
Forever Mama sent in the packet of contracts, 2 passport size photos(no smiling allowed , so very scary!) and the first round of mission payments. So, the paperwork part of the mission for Forever Mama is complete! All Dossier Paperwork has been sent To WACAP and they will complete the authentication mission after USCIS approval is received.  The only Mission requirements left to send in are the rest of the mission payments (of which there are many!)
So now the waiting game ensues. Will Forever Mama and Forever Big Sister have the patience to wait? Just how long will the USCIS Mission approval take? When can the authentication mission begin? Stay tuned to this Star Command Channel for further bulletins.

Just who are the member of Little B's Super Hero team?
Check them out!

Super Commander Joni is able to craft her way past the villainous naysayers and has the heart of a warrior, so do not stand in the way of her completing her mission!

The Chocolate Avenger also joins the squad.  Don’t let her sweet exterior fool you. She is persistent, will not take “No” for an answer, is able to stand up to Social Workers and International Governments alike and can down a gallon of sweet tea in one gulp! The “L” government has been forewarned, she can and will leap orphanage gates in a single bound to bring her sweet Eli!!!!! home. She is a formidable force on this team and will help ensure the success of our Super Hero Little B Rescue Mission.

Casey the Boy Wonder brings youth and boyish charm to the team. He has been trying to defeat the villainous Duchene for many years. He stays true to his course and knows one day that he will help defeat the villainous Muscular Dystrophy gang.

Wonder Mom Renee brings extra experience to the team. She too has fought the villainous Duchene and his many villainous Muscular Dystrophy mutants. Do not be fooled by her small framed exterior and beauty. Inside beats the heart of a defender of the weak and protector of those being attacked by this villainous gang. Do not mess with this Wonder mom or you will face the wrath of the mother bear protecting her cubs.

Team ONeil  joins the mission! With red and black pulsing through her veins, Bulldawg Mama can negotiate governmental bureaucracy and find fraud with the stroke of a pen and the click of the mouse. She has many frequent flyer miles on Baird airlines. She brings along 2 young members to the Super Hero squad. Wonder Girl Addison brings great creativity to the team (you should see the gingerbread houses she creates!) Running Robbie brings boyish exuberance and an unlimited supply of energy. Wonder Dad Rob has the ability to wrangle kids and critters. When Bulldawg Mama has to travel for her work related missions, the house remains standing and the kids are fed and well cared for. The villainous Duchene had better beware of Team ONeil. Their tenacity will help our Super Hero Team complete our mission.   

Super Scholar Jocelyn also joins our mission. This soon to be teacher of the greatest commands respect as she supports other's.  Little B is grateful to have her join the team!

Camp Director Extraordinaire Extreme(Hailey) adds punch to the team. She can single handedly organize a rag tag group of volunteers and produce a camp of extraordinary proportions. Little B is lucky to have this Super Hero join his team. Forever Mama has known of this one's super powers for a long time :)

So are you the next Super Hero? What are the talents and powers you will bring to this team?

Click on the Super Hero tab at the top of this blog to join in this Resue Mission. Help us save Little B and bring him home to the super galactic Muscular Dystrophy clinic so that we can slow the villianous Duchene's progression on Little B.

 Remember that we are building a Super Hero Buzz and he still needs pieces. The members of Little B's Super Hero team thank you for your support and hope you will join them in this mission! To infinity and beyond!

The bed that almost wasn't.

Once upon a time in a galaxy far, far, away… (Oops! Wrong story!) This is the story of the bed that almost wasn’t. Here in present day, a little boy waits for his forever family, on the other side of the ocean, far, far away (see, I still got that in there!) His forever family is staying busy during the long, long waiting time between lovely governmental forms and a fourth set of fingerprints. The forever family has decided to get a room ready for this little boy who waits far across the ocean. Hmmm, Forever Mama and Forever Big Sister decide on just the perfect theme, a super galactic Toy Story room (Oh, come on! Those of you who really know me knew that something Disney HAD to be coming!) So let the designing begin.

Forever Mama was trying to find a bed that was “just right” (oops! Another wrong story!) Anyway, Forever Mama found a marvelous Toy Story bed that was reminiscent of the current bed that the little boy far across the ocean slept in every night. Forever Mama hoped that this perfect bed would help the little boy feel more comfortable and not so scared when he came across the ocean and slept in his new forever home. So, Forever Mama ordered the bed.

Forever Mama and Forever Big Sister decided on the new colors of this super galactic Toy Story room ( after all it could NOT remain  Princess Pink!) So 3 walls were painted star command blue and one wall was painted sonic boom green. It was a perfect match for the perfect bed that was coming!

The perfect bed arrived! Well, sort of… Forever Mama excitedly tore open the box and saw the awesome headboard and the picturesque footboard. The looked perfect for the room; but…where were the bed rails and guards? Forever Mama and Forever Big Sister decided that there must be another box coming, so no worries! Well, no box came, so Forever Mama sweetly called the company and explained the problem. The ultra-sweet customer service representative said that she would call the vendor and have the rails shipped out immediately! Forever Mama was so happy! Hmmm…… 2 weeks, no box. So, Forever Mama calls the company again and Mr. debonair customer service man says that he will take of that right away! And sure enough a few days later a box arrives! Forever Mama and Forever Big Sister look at the box and it looks just the same as the first box, but surely this one had the bed rails! Nope!!! It was another awesome headboard and picturesque footboard!! Well this was a bit problematic. So…Forever Mama calls the company again, but this time  gives the customer service rep a more thorough definition of the problem (Forever mama was not so happy this time) This time the more subdued customer service representative said she would call Forever Mama back as soon as she spoke to a living person at the vendor. The subdued rep did call back and explained that now the vendor was out of stock and that the company would be refunding Forever Mama the full price of the bed and shipping and that Forever Mama and Forever Sister could keep both headboards and footboards. Her suggestion was to use the refunded money to find a nice carpenter man to build the rest of the bed (??!! Which of course would never match the perfect laminated colors of the awesome headboard and picturesque footboard) So it looked like this would be the perfect bed that wasn’t.

But wait! Don’t underestimate Forever Mama. You see all she could think of was the little boy waiting across the ocean far, far away (see got it in again!)  and that his new room in his forever home just had to be perfect. So Forever Mama went surfing (no, not across the ocean, on the web!) She found the company that actually manufactured the bed. Surely they would have the bed rails and guards!  A very helpful customer representative answered Forever Mama’s call. She could not find the information on her computer so she said that she would call Forever Mama back (here we go again!) Well, she did call back in just a few minutes with a plethora of information. The bed is sold as a kit. It comes in 2 boxes and they do not sell either box on its own. She suggested that Forever Mama call the vendor and tell them that they had another box in their warehouse for this bed (yeah, like that vendor is going to actually look?) The representative asked if Forever Mama had received the directions and parts pages for the bed and when told no she did email the booklet to Forever Mama. So again it looked like the perfect bed that wasn’t.

Well, Forever Mama was not ready to give up yet. That little boy was very important, so more surfing. Hmm, the Cars version of this bed did have just a bed rails set on sale on amazon. Forever Mama contemplated putting black bed rails on the blue bed, but then it wouldn’t be the perfect bed. Hmmm, Forever Mama searched amazon for Toy story bed rails and no luck (boo! hiss!) Wait, how about blue bed rails? Eureka!!! Amazon had 1 set of blue bed rails (“that go with the Toy Story headboard and footboard set”) So Forever Mama ordered it and hoped that it was what they needed. Finally the box arrived. Forever Sister noted that the box was different from the other boxes and the manufacturer was the same. They opened the box and….. it was the perfect bed and guard rails, bed slats and hardware for the perfect Toy Story bed!!!

So, Forever Mama put the bed together very easily (Yeah, right!) and the result was the perfect Toy Story bed for the little boy who waits on the other side of the ocean, far, far away! This perfect bed is low enough to allow him to be independent in getting in and out of bed even as the vilianous Duchene slowly takes away his strength, that is why Forever Mama fought so hard to get this perfect bed!

One Step at a Time!

So I paid the 2nd half of the home study fee. Hopefully the notarized final report will be on it's way to WACAP tomorrow. In turn, I hope that WACAP has a speedy turn around and sends one copy of the final homestudy and my I-800 application and sizable check (yikes!) off to US Customs and Immigration. so as a recap, we have finished the following steps:
Inquiry about Little B- done
Received Little B's file- done
Sent in completed agency application- done
BMI waiver paperwork completed- done
Additional information requested from country and info sent- done
Waiver granted- done
Little B put on hold for us with agency- done
Pre-Approval paperwork- done
Pre-approval granted- done
Homestudy agency secured and $900 paid- done
FBI prints done and fee paid- done
GBI fingerprints done and fee paid- done
Local police clearance- done (only after I took my own notary and cried at the police station due to their not wanting to complete the form correctly)
Adoption training courses completed ($179)- done
Homestudy completed and second $900 paid- done
1-800 USCIS application and $805 check sent to USCIS- this is our current step
USCIS biometrics appointment notice received- next step
USCIS appointment completed- future step
USCIS approval received- future step
Dossier complete- future step
Dossier sent to country- future step
LID- Dossier received and logged in country-future step
LOA- Letter of Acceptance/Approval recived- Future step
TA- Travel Appointment- future step
CA- Consulate Appointment- future step
Gotcha day- Future step

I still have the entire agency fee to pay to WACAP. Because Little B is part of their Journey of Hope program, WACAP has waived the $275 application fee and $500 child deposit fee. I have applied for a $4200 grant from WACAP that Little is eligible for. My dad is also checking into transfering his Marriott rewards points to me and that may cover most or all of our in country lodging. Airline tickets will also be costly, but how costly depends on the time of year we are given for our TA and CA.
Between Agancy fees, CCWA fees, Visa's orphanage "donation", and other in country paperwork expenses, I figure the total still owed is a little over $17,000. If I, infact, get the $4200 grant then the total is $12,800. Then airline tickets will be on top of that. Hoping that the Marriott points come through or else that cost will also need to be added. Then food costs will also need to be added for an approximately 2 week stay.

All of this at times seems insurmountable, so I will just take it One Step at a Time. Thanks for folowing along on this journey. The end result will be worth the wait, the "ransom" and the anxiety.

Please remember to check out our Super Hero Fundraiser and if so led, consider joining Little B's Super Hero Team. We have a rescue mission to complete and can use all the Supoer Heroes that we can get! Thanks!

Do you remember your childhood dream of being a Super Hero? What super powers did you want to have? Well guess what?! You can still grow up to be a Super Hero! Your super powers could help save a child! Little B needs your help! He just turned 6 years old and has lived in an orphanage in Asia since he was 2 months old. He is diagnosed with Progressive Muscular Dystrophy (most likely Duchenne.) Every day the evil villain Duchenne eats away at Little B’s strength. Can your superpowers save him? Your super thinking powers tell you that this boy cannot survive long term without medical care and therapies. Your super strength reminds you that Little B’s strength is weakening every day. Your lightning speed reminds you that Little B can move fairly quickly now, but is slowly losing speed day by day. I know that you would love to use your flying super power to go over and just scoop him up and bring him home, but the villainous paperwork process stands in the way. However, do not despair! You can help and be Little B’s super hero! Help us build a Super Hero (or 2) for Little B. We are starting with Buzz Lightyear as that is Little B’s new bedroom theme. Buzz is made of Lego and has 211 pieces. Your donation can help build Buzz. When we finish Buzz, we will build Captain America! So here is how it works, your donation will add piece(s) of Lego to our super hero build and you become part of Little B’s Super Hero wall. I have a booklet that lists each piece and where it goes. You name will be listed next to the piece(s) you sponsor. Little B will forever know the names of all of the Super Heroes that helped bring him home. You are welcome to sponsor as many pieces as you wish.

Here are the sponsorship levels:

$5= 1 Lego Piece

$10= 3 Lego pieces

$15= 5 Lego pieces

$20= 8 Lego pieces

$25= 10 Lego pieces

$50= 25 Lego pieces

$75= 40 Lego pieces

$100= 75 Lego pieces

To become one of Little B's Super Heroes, donate to our RR donate button (even Super Heroes can use a tax deduction!) After you donate, please leave me a comment as to your number of sponsored pieces and the names you want in the oficial Super Hero Book! Also, let me know if you do not want your comment published. Thank you in advance to all the Super Heroes among us!

To become a Super Hero please click on the silouhette of the little boy under Reeces' Rainbow Family Service plan. That will take you to our fund and you can click the donate button.

Home study.....

     3rd and final home study visit is done!!! All forms have been completed and turned in!! We reviewed the draft of my HS report and I am pleased to say that I am being recommended to adopt a child from China! My wonderful Social Worker June is hoping to have the final HS report done ASAP and sent into Families First where their HS co-ordinator will go over it and then it will be sent to WACAP and myself to proof read.
     So next step is USCIS. I have already sent the 1-800A form and check to WACAP. They will send it to USCIS when they receive the finalized homestudy report. So now the wait begins to get my biometrics appointment.
    I have also been steadily working on sending in all the required forms and paperwork for our Dossier. I am having to wait an extra week for my certified copy of my Birth Certificate as the county office I sent the request to did not have a legible copy and had to send off to the state (Illinois) office to get one. (Of course I have 3 copies of my certified BC, but must have one that was done within 6 months of the Dossier being sent) I had sent in my Police clearance form, but the police department did not do an appropriate notarization, so I will have to redo it. I also have to get a certfied/notarized copy (within the 6 month guideline- the one I have is from 1999) of my divorce decree. I have the guardian form to send in as of today :) and I am trying to come up with 6 photos that reflect our family life (it is harder than you think!) All the other paperwork due is not in my hands (1-797c-USCIS approval, 3 notarized reference letters(these were done for the home study, but not notarized so will be sent back out for notary) and the final notarized home study report) Once WACAP gets all of these, they will get authentications and compile the Dossier and then send it off. Not sure on our timeline, but it can't move quick enough!
    I will be starting a fundraiser soon for those who would like to help bring our little guy home. I will be selling puzzle pieces in order to build his "Circle of Friends" puzzle (Disney themed of course!! :) So please stay tuned!
   I will also be braving the IKEA maze again either tomorrow or Friday, so pray for me!! I hope I don't get lost in there, although those swedish meatballs at their food court sure looked good!
    So now it is onward we go! Thanks for coming along with us on our journey to add this precious child to our family. I look forward to the time I can share his full picture with everyone!