The rest of the story...

As I said in the previous post, we were matched with Hannah Ryan on Wednesday, January 9.  That morning I had flown to Las Vegas for the Usborne Books & More Advanced Leadership Retreat.  That evening the president of our company was treating the President's Club members to Cirque de Soleil at the MGM Grand.  It was in the lobby of Cirque de Soleil that I got a text from Ryan that said we have been matched!  I called him immediately and hung on every word as he told me about our daughter.  My sweet friend, Katie Meyerpeter, was off to the side literally jumping up and down.  While Katie was jumping & squeeling, one of our Directors with Usborne, Nancy Ann Wartman (who has also adopted from China) was circling around me taking pictures of me on the phone like the paparazzi!  I am sure that there were plenty of people around us wondering what in the world was going on!  :)

We got the referral on Wednesday and my training in Las Vegas lasted until Sunday.  So, poor Ryan had to sit on the news until I got back 5 days later!  For me, word spread fast about my exciting news among the consultants at the training.  It was such a reminder of the Lord's faithfulness.  When I started my Usborne business 5 1/2 years ago, I never would have dreamed that it would be something that the Lord would use to provide for us to adopt from China.  Yet, he has poured out his graces on my business and has allowed me to save all of my income from the past year...half of our adoption expenses He graciously provided through my business!  And, the rest He supplied through our Show Hope grant and the generosity of our sweet friends & family!

I got Ryan to print HR's picture, put it in a frame, and wrap it up for the boys.  So, Sunday night they picked me up from the airport and we went out to dinner.  At dinner we gave them the gift to open...

 

I think it took a few minutes for Hudson to completely understand.  He asked if it was a picture of a boy because her hair is so short!  Hahaha!  We had to explain that she is just a baby and her hair will grow.  :)  After we stopped recording and it had completely sunk in, Hudson got a little emotional...he has such a tender heart!!!

Here are a few more pics of the proud big brothers...

Meet Hannah Ryan!!!

We have been matched with our little girl!!!  We were actually matched on January 9 but needed to wait until we had our PA (pre-approval) from China to tell the world.  To say we are smitten would be an understatement.  There is no doubt that this little cutie is our daughter!  The Lord was so sweet in how He worked out all the details...

One week before we were matched, the last of the money that we needed to pay for the adoption came in. The Lord provided every penny that we needed before we were even matched!

We were matched with Hannah Ryan on her 19-month-old birthday.

She is at Love Manor, an orphanage in ChongQing (CQ)...the city that both Ryan & I have spent time in together.  Not only that, but friends of ours who live in China actually visited this orphanage with the group from Lifeline this past fall!  As far as orphanages go, it is a really good one.

We have had her name, Hannah Ryan, picked out for months.  Her Chinese name is Qian Anna.  Anna is part of the name we had chosen for her!

She is just 8 days younger than our niece, Savannah...they are going to be the best of friends.

But, my absolute favorite thing the Lord did was a picture that was included in Hannah Ryan's file.  She has a Mongolian spot on her hand.  These are birthmarks that are very common in Asian children.  However, they are not as common on the hand...they are usually found on a child's back or ankles.  Because of this, they included a picture of her hand in her file.  Here is the picture...

For those that know our family well, I am sure you have already picked up on what sign her hand is making.  Her hand is laying on the table in the sign for "I love you."  When I saw this the first time, my breath caught in my throat.  Because of our sweet Hudson this sign is a daily occurrence in our family...at carpool in the morning as the boys are entering school, at bedtime, and all throughout the day.  If our family had a gang sign, this would be it!  When I showed this picture to Hudson, I told him, "That was for you, buddy."  I prayed that the Lord would make it crystal clear when we were matched that the child was our Hannah Ryan.  He went a step further...He gave us a sign.

So, now we ask for your prayers for our little girl...

Please pray that her needs are being met and pray for the sweet woman in this picture who is caring for her daily.

Pray that we will be able to travel to get her in April.  That is pretty much the soonest that the paperwork trail will allow us to travel.  Now that we have her picture, we are ready to hop on a plane!!!

Pray that she will bond and attach with us quickly!

I will post more this week...I can't wait to share the reactions of her sweet big brothers when they heard the news and saw their baby sister for the first time!  :)