Do you remember Lucy Joy’s Puzzle Project?
Well, over a year later, we finally have it all together and finished!
I just don’t know what we have been doing with ourselves…
*wink*
Isn’t it beautiful?

All 1,000 pieces safely sandwiched between two pieces of glass in a mat and frame.
I would say Baba is pretty amazing, if you asked me!

(Because of the two pieces of glass,
we can turn it around and see all the names on the back.)

Lucy thinks it is pretty special.
She tells people with a little smile, “It’s about me.”

Yes, sweet girl, it is… and about so many that love you very, very much.

 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
Colossians 1:17

Thank you so much to all who have contributed,
Lucy Joy’s Coming Home Puzzle Project is complete…
and then some!

Here is Spencer’s version!

If you would still like to contribute to help bring
Lucy Joy home from China,
you can continue to use the paypal button in the sidebar.

Also now available, is a tax deductible option by giving to Lifesong for Orphans
and specifying “Rothfuss” as the family name and “4413” as the family account number.
To give online, go here and choose “give to an adoptive family.”
To give by check, send to:
Lifesong for Orphans
PO Box 40
Gridley, IL  61744
(mention “Rothfuss” and account number “4413” in the memo line)

Big progress has been made on
Lucy Joy’s Puzzle Project!
We are so grateful to everyone who has sponsored puzzle pieces.
Thank you so much!

More than half of the puzzle has been completed!

Here is a peek at how the puzzle is looking now:

I think my favorite piece is this one with the little man who
is making his way home…
Just like our Sparrow!

If you would like to help complete Lucy Joy’s Puzzle,
you can use the paypal button in the sidebar and
if you would like to read our original Puzzle Project Post,
you can do that here.

P.S.
We are still nesting!
“building shelves for the girls’ room”

“making room for our new sister”

It may just be too much good news for one day!
*smile*

First, we received a call from our case worker at Lifeline telling us that we are
DTC!!!
(Dossier To China)
This is an important and exciting step in the China adoption process!

Next, we received a letter from Show Hope which began…

“On behalf of Show Hope and the donors who make our grants possible, we rejoice with your family as you step out in faith to experience the miracle of adoption.  Thank you for allowing us to be a small part of your adoption process.  We are pleased to inform you that you have been awarded an adoption assistance grant in the amount of $4000.”

We were already celebrating a year of middle school successfully completed, a year of high school successfully completed, and a semester of college successfully completed by our talented and dedicated students…
so it was a triple celebration as we took the “big kids” out for coffee and dessert tonight!

We continue to Praise God for his provision as we continue to prepare to travel to China and bring Lucy Joy home!

If you would like to join us on this journey and
help make this happen, go here to read more about
Lucy Joy’s Puzzle Project.

Our updated count for Lucy Joy’s Puzzle Project tells a wonderful story
of the generosity of many who have contributed…
We are almost half way there!
Let me share a few more details with you, you will be blessed!

Many young people that we know have sponsored puzzle pieces themselves, by crafting, baking, and babysitting to raise the money.  Perhaps we have not heard all the stories, and we do not have pictures of everyone’s hard work and service, but here are a few that have been shared with us!

“All Proceeds go to the Rothfuss Family Adoption Fund!”

hand made note cards!

rainbow loom keychain charms!

We look forward to the day when we can share these stories with Lucy Joy,
stories of how she was loved and anticipated by so many.

Our Dossier should begin its journey to China tomorrow,
with a few stops along the way!
First, it needs to be sent to the state of Alabama (where Lifeline Children’s Services is located) and Shelby County (the county where their Birmingham office is located).
This should take about 1 week.

Next, it will need to stop off at the Chinese Consulate in Houston, TX.
This will take about 1-2 weeks.

After that, it is off to China,
hopefully by the end of May!
Once we are DTC (Dossier to China), it will take 3-4 weeks to be logged in.
After we have an LID (Log in Date), we should receive our
Letter of Approval (LOA) in 2-3 months.
We should be able to travel 2-3 months after receiving our LOA.
If you have been counting along with me, a conservative estimate
might put us traveling sometime between October and the end of the year.
Will you pray with us that all of this (and more!) will be accomplished in
God’s perfect timing?

Be still before the Lord
and wait patiently for him…
Psalm 37:7a

We are so grateful to all of you who have sponsored pieces in
Lucy Joy’s Coming Home Puzzle Project!
Some of you we have never even met,
and yet you have contributed!
Thank you!

It’s really starting to come together!

We are also piecing together the last few details of our Dossier.  Kirstin’s passport has arrived and Jason is starting a new job.  Thank you to everyone who prayed into that transition with us!  God continues to provide everything we need as we walk through this adoption process, this journey to China to bring Lucy Joy home.

It’s really starting to come together!

To see our original Coming Home Puzzle Project Post…
https://www.rothfuss.us/2014/03/24/coming-home-puzzle-project/

Thank you to everyone who has
contributed to our adoption fund by
sponsoring pieces in
Lucy Joy’s Coming Home Puzzle Project!

To see our original Coming Home Puzzle Project Post…
https://www.rothfuss.us/2014/03/24/coming-home-puzzle-project/

If you would like to see a picture of Lucy Joy,
be sure to go to our “About Us” Page!

Now, just for fun,
We’ll let you watch it coming together!

In many ways, our journey to adopt Lucy Joy has been a puzzle. Are we to adopt again? Where should we adopt from? Is there a particular child for us Lord? Who should share a bedroom? What can we do about those troublesome fingerprints?!?! Many of you reading have also been pieces to this puzzle. You have prayed for us, you have walked with us, you have supported us, you have counseled us, we have learned from you, you have cheered us on. The questions continue… How many of us should travel to China? Who will help those that stay home? Which city should we fly into? How will we fund this whole process?

As you probably already know, all adoptions are a big financial undertaking. Our agency estimates that we will need approximately $30,000 to complete this entire process. Some of the things covered by these funds are background checks, physicals for everyone in the family, the home study, travel expenses and fees to the US, China, and our agency.

So, today we are inviting you to be another piece of this puzzle! In fact, today we are inviting all of you to place some of the actual pieces in the puzzle that is bringing Lucy Joy home!

With the help of our wonderful brother-in-law, Bill Armstrong (who took the photograph below on a recent trip to China), we have had a 1,000 piece jigsaw puzzle created that we titled:

“Coming Home.”

The village pictured is Xizhou (pronounced she-joe) in Yunnan Province near the city of Dali. Believe it or not, that is a field of garlic in the foreground. Amazing!

For each $10 that is donated, we will write the donor’s name on the back of two puzzle pieces and add them to the puzzle.

As the puzzle comes together, we will post updates on our blog.  Completing the puzzle will raise $5,000 of the needed finances. When it is complete, we plan to frame it and display it in our home. We love that this will be a visual reminder that there were so many of our friends and family working with us to
bring Lucy Joy home.

We are already off to a great start! Sixteen pieces have
already been sponsored! 

If you would like to contribute, we have provided a Paypal button in the side bar to the right. You may also contribute funds in person or through the mail.  

Please feel free to share Lucy Joy’s “Coming Home” Puzzle Project with anyone that you think would like to contribute!