Travel Approval

Big news today! We got our Travel Invitation from the CCCWA to come to China also known as Travel Approval or TA. That means we are going to China in about 6 weeks! eek!  We are hoping to be in China by the 1st week of September or maybe a few days earlier because of the flight arrangements - you have to allow 2 days coming and going.

Great Wall

After months of filling out paperwork and waiting this is finally happening! And I don't feel ready at all LOL!  We still have a lot to do and arrangements to make (and plane tickets and hotels to pay for). But eventually we are going to get Anna.  It doesn't seem real now after we waited so long!

We may be flying into Shanghai or Hong Kong instead of Beijing- it depends how things work out.  But we will be there for about 15 days.

At this point besides paying for our flights and hotel, we also have to pay the orphanage fee to China- this is for Anna's "room and board" with the foster family plus money to help the orphanage run day-to-day.  We are glad to pay it but it is about $5000.  Thankfully we can wire the money to China because in the past you had to hand carry the money in cash to China!  We have applied for 4 different adoption grants and we hope we get at least one to help offset the fees we owe.

Anna Marie

You can still help us with our fundraiser.  We are asking for sponsors for our 300 piece panda puzzle.  For a donation of $10 your name will be entered in a drawing for a $50 Best Buy gift card when we get to 100.  We are at about 84 pieces right now so hurry and get yours in.  You can use PayPal steuart.adoption @ gmail.com (take out the spaces) or mail a check to Lee Steuart P.O. Box 1375 Stow OH 44224.  Please include your name and address or email so we can contact you if you win!  If we can keep going and get to 200 pieces we will giveaway a $50 Amazon gift card. And if we don't run out of time and we can get to 300 pieces we will give away a $100 Amazon gift card.

Thank you for your prayers and support!