Our story actually begins on Jan. 11,1999.  Our son Lucas was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis.  That's the day when my heart was broken into too many pieces to count.  I knew that day that our chances of having another child was slim to none.  CF is a genetic disease.  Terry and I both carry the CF gene.  We obviously had no idea of this since we already had one healthy child.  We could not take the chance of having another child with CF.  Even though Lucas is fairly healthy, he still has a strict regimen of daily breathing treatments, chest physical therapy and a boat load of medications he will take forever.  

     We have always planned to have three children.  We now feel that adoption is the best means to fulfill that dream. We feel that we can provide a child a home and a loving environment who otherwise would have no hope of having a family.

     We started our paper chase for the adoption in March 2001.  We chose international adoption because we truly feel China is where our daughter is.  We asked God for guidance and prayed that he would provide us with the resources for this adoption.  Our dossier was logged in at the CCAA in Beijing on Nov.6, 2001.  We have been told that we may be waiting twelve to fourteen months for a referral for our daughter.  We will be traveling to China hopefully before Christmas 2002.  Please pray for early referrals!!  We requested a healthy baby girl six to nine months of age. We can not wait for our little China Doll to join our family.

    WE HAVE A REFERRAL!!!!  We received The Call on December 16th around 4:45 p.m.  Our agency told us we would get pictures and all of her information in the mail the next day.  Well, needless to say, we were ecstatic waiting for the FedEx man to arrive Tuesday morning.  He actually allowed us to take pictures of him holding the envelope in front of the FedEx truck.  I know he thought we were crazy!  We finally opened the envelope and we laid eyes on the most beautiful little baby.  I cried and cried. It was so wonderful to finally see our daughters sweet face.  Her name is Gui Xiao Yue which means "dawn moon".  We have decided to name her Olivia Brooke Xiaoyue Allen.  She is 8 months old and will probably be 10 months when we finally bring her home. Her medical report says that she is quiet and shy.  She has a ready smile and gets along well with the other babies. She weighs 13 lbs and is 24 inches in length.  She is now residing at The First Social Welfare Institute of Changsha, Hunan Province, China.  She can stand with assistance and enjoys sucking her fingers before going to sleep. Yea!  Won't have to take pacifiers to China! We will update the site when we hear more on the travel arrangements.

    WE ARE FINALLY GOING TO CHINA!  We leave on 2/12 out of Richmond and on to Chicago where we will meet up with the other 3 families that are also adopting from our agency, Living Hope.  We then travel about 18 hours and end up in Beijing, China.  We are touring Beijing for 3 days and then fly to Changsha, Hunan, which is the province that Olivia is from.  We should receive  the babies 2/17 and remain in Changsha for the Chinese part of the adoption process.  Then we fly again to Guangzhou, China to get all the necessary documents signed by the U.S. Consulate and to get Olivia's visa and medical examination. We will be freezing in Beijing at the Great Wall and enjoying warm temperatures in Guangzhou (southern China).  After everything is signed and all documents in order, Olivia is officially our daughter!  We return 2/28.  Shanghai to San Francisco to Chicago to Richmond.  Please keep our family in your prayers as we take this journey of a lifetime.