Welcome to our adoption website!

See updated pictures of Rachael on our Back Home page!

Chinese folklore says that there are invisible red threads that connect a newborn child's spirit to all the people who will be important in the child's life. As the child grows, the threads shorten, drawing closer those people who are destined to be together.

Our adoption story began in January 2005. We felt something was missing in our hearts and lives, a child,  we decided it was time to start a family.  Adoption seemed like a natural choice. A friend had a wonderful experience adopting a daughter from China which led us to investigating Chinese adoption.  Due to China's one child policy there are so many children, mainly girls, living in orphanages never to have a family of their own. China seemed like the perfect choice. We sent in our application to CCAI (Chinese Children Adoption International) and it was accepted within a week. On February 12, 2005 we attended an orientation meeting at CCAI.  We were on our way and now the fun begins, the "paper chase".

What is the paper chase? Glad you asked. A dossier needs to be compiled then sent to China. A dossier contains a police report, birth certificates, marriage certificate, financial statement, FBI finger print clearance, home study report from a social worker (which included several visits from the social worker at our home), a health report from your Doctor.   All the papers collected for the dossier have to be notarized then certified by the State of Colorado. Then these certified papers are sent to the Chinese Consulate that is designated for the state in which the document originated, for example our marriage license came from Maui so we had to send that document to Chinese Consulate in California. The other two Chinese Consulates we used were in Chicago and New York. The Chinese Consulate verifies all the signatures on the documents are legitimate.  It seems like a lot of hoops but it is important that people be screened after all they are adopting a very precious child with whom she or he deserves a forever family to love them. Once all this paperwork is compiled our adoption agency translates the complete dossier into Chinese and sends it to CCAA (China Center of Adoption Affairs) in China. The date CCAA logs your dossier into their system becomes your official LID (log in date). Our LID is June 15, 2005.  This becomes the most important date of your life.

When we first began the adoption process it took 6 months from the time you received a LID to the time you received a referral picture of your daughter. So we had anticipated a referral picture of Rachael around Christmas or January time frame. Well in October of 2005 CCAA slowed their matching a child to a family way downnnnnnnn, almost in half. So now our projected time for a referral is in May of 2006. This wait has been unbearable but we know the perfect little girl is waiting for us. After we get a referral picture along with a medical report it generally is another 6 - 8 weeks before you travel.