The latest...

We received the English translation of the Hungarian approval and reports on our soon-to-be-son last Wednesday evening. Today (one week later) we received the paperwork from our adoption agency that I need to send along with all the papers to USCIS (the immigration dept.). Tomorrow I will send all of those out via FedEx and pray it will only take a few weeks to hear back from them.

In the meantime, we've read over the translated reports that were sent to us, and we've made a big decision. We've decided NOT to change our son's name to Christopher. We feel that changing his given name (Marcell) would be too much for him to bear at this time in his life. His name is about the only thing that will stay the same for him as we take him away from his foster parents (we found out he's been with them for 8 months), his home, his country, and all he feels comfortable with. So, although we love the name Christopher, we've decided to stick with Marcell. We may shorten it to Marc at some point, but for now we'll keep it the full length version.

Also, we're a bit concerned about the foster parents he's been living with. They are a young couple who do not have any children of their own yet. Both are teachers and both seem to love Marcell very much. And Marcell has taken to both of them quite well. We are praying for God's grace as we go to meet Marcell and this couple. We're asking for the Holy Spirit to work everything out for everyone involved. We know it will be difficult for the couple to let Marcell go, and it will be very hard for him to say good-bye to them.

Please pray with us for this young couple, and for Marcell to adjust quickly and easily to the two of us. Please pray for wisdom for us as we get to know him and help him adjust to the changes in his life.

One more thing...it looks like we could be traveling to Hungary within the next four or five weeks! Please pray for us to find the best rate on tickets, and for all the final details to work out for us to travel in early April. 

Woohoo! I feel like the train has left the station and is starting to pick up speed! Full steam ahead! : )