Rylyn's Update

It's hard to believe Rylyn will be 1 year old in two weeks. She has learned a bunch. Two weeks ago she conquered the sippy cup. Today she learned how to clap. She is crawling, scooting and babbling all over the place. She can say, "hey, dada and mama." She has slowly gotten a lot more hair. It's turning into a slight mullet in the back. She is very musical. Her favorite toys are any remote control, daddy's guitar, the paper trash she find in the office trash can and anything that makes noise. She is the happiest baby ever as long as you are giving her attention. She will eat just about anything (but it yet to put ANYTHING in her mouth) It's a blessing and a curse. Her favorite things are still swimming, taking a bath, stroller rides, looking at things and getting attention. We are thankful to be parents although it's some HARD work. Less than 90 days and we will have 2! Craziness!!

Rylyn's Favorites

I know it's been a couple of weeks since i updated the blog. I wanted to let everyone know that Rylyn is doing very well. This past week daddy taught her how to wave. She mostly likes waving to herself and cracking herself up but on the rare occasion she will wave to others as well. She loves any and all food (not quite enough to put it in her mouth all by herself) but she is very interested in what everyone is eating. She has tried lasagna, tacos, hamburger, bread, carrots, peas, green beans, peaches, mangos, bananas, pears, oatmeal, tomatoes, cheese, pickles, olives, pasta, mushrooms, watermelon, turkey, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, apples, etc. She actually doesn't like plain yogurt but, who does? She is a little over 10 months old now and weighs about 17lbs. She loves, loves, loves any and all water. Baths and the pool are her favorite. We just got a new pool float that she thinks is great. She is the fastest crawler ever. Every time I look up she is somewhere new. She is pulling herself up on any and everything. She enjoys chasing Poggy around the house and pulling his hair out. Pog tried to avoid her whenever possible. Her favorite things to do besides swimming are smiling, stroller rides, being around others, crawling, standing, looking at books, short car rides and making babbling noises. Her least favorite things are not getting enough attention, getting her diaper changed, putting clothes on and going to bed. We are very blessed that she is progressing so well and have such a happy and healthy daughter!

Rylyn progress

Just a quick update, Rylyn is eating all sorts of things. She loves pickles and sweet potatoes best. She is almost 17 pounds and she's crawling all over the place. She is a very determined child. She wants very much to walk and is on her way. I would say within the month, she will be walking. She is sleeping VERY well. She's the happiest baby I've ever met (excluding putting clothes on, if you don't feed her fast enough, or if she isn't getting quite enough attention.)

Rylyn's Going to be a Big Sister

We have been home about two weeks now and are adjusting well. Rylyn is now off Taiwan time and is sleeping well. We put her down around 9pm and she wakes up around 8am. Yay! We also found out that Rylyn is going to be a big sister. I am due October 14th. We find out in 3 weeks if it's a boy or a girl. The Darley household has turned upside down in the past two weeks. It has been a huge learning experience. Being a parent is wonderful but it's hard work! ; ) We are so glad to have our baby girl home.

We are home!

Just wanted to let you all know we are back HOME!!! Thank you so much for praying! I doubt it would have happened else wise. It is so good to be home! Rylyn did pretty well on the long flight home. She slept about 6 of the 16 hours on the flight from Hong Kong to JFK. After about 30 hours of total travel time she was wide awake by night time. We arrived home the 13th around 11:30pm our time (11:30am her time) and she was ready to play. It was nice having my parents and Greg's dad here to help. Rylyn is adjusting slowly. Her schedule is thrown off but we are working hard on getting her back and the sync of things. She went to the Foothills doctor today and did pretty well. She broke out in a big rash on the long plane ride which we thought was due to food allergies but it turned out to be bad dry skin. Rylyn can't wait to meet you! Bev (the woman who runs the orphanage) says she should be a movie star when she gets older because she is all drama. She is just precious. (Even when she keeps mommy and daddy up from 1-6am because she wants to play). ; )

Thank you all again!!

-betsey, greg and rylyn

No government shut down

God is so good. We received news last night that the American government decided 1 hour before the deadline not to shut down. A HUGE answered prayer! Tomorrow we will drive to Taipei to get Rylyn's physical and hopefully have her AIT appointment as well to get her visa. We are still planning on coming home on the 13th as long as we don't have any more bumps in the road. We are trusting that God will come through as he has so many times already through this process. I will try to post pictures soon if possible. Please continue to pray!

More craziness

Wow...this has been one of the most emotionally draining experiences of our lives. Up and down, up and down. We were told yesterday that the clerk who needed to do the final paper, her husband died yesterday so she wouldn't be working for the next few days. We prayed hard... and found that she had a replacement clerk coming and he was very understanding. Ted spoke with him and he said he would try to get Rylyn's papers ready asap. We were able to get her final papers tonight from the court house. This means Rylyn is officially ours! Yay! We are very thankful for that. The thing that is up in the air now is the American government is talking about having parts/offices close down this coming Monday. If this happens we won't be able to bring Rylyn home until the government reopens. The reason we wouldn't be able to bring her into the US. Is because we wouldn't be able to complete her AIT appointment scheduled on the 12th. The AIT appointment allows us to get her visa to bring her back to the us. If the US government does decide to close down as it has done 5 times in the past...it usually doesn't reopen for 6 weeks. The government does this to save money. The last time this happened was when Clinton was president. Please, please, please, pray that the government will NOT close down on Monday. We are continuing to pray hard but very much need your prayers so we can bring our baby girl home. A lot has to happen for things to work out and for us to bring her home on the 13th. Thank you for praying so much for us.

betsey and greg

Arriving in Taiwan

After 28 plus hours we made it to the orphanage. We arrived to the home around 1:00am. We got to see our daughter and she is as beautiful as ever! We got some good news. We still haven't heard about the final paper that the birth mom said she sign so be praying for that but, Ted got an early approval to get Rylyn's passport done. He should be working on that today. We got to meet two of the birth parents of the babies here today because they are having their court dates. We have got to play with the babies all day. We took Rylyn and two other babies to the doctor today to get their shots. They all did very well. We woke up early today and met Rylyn. It was amazing. She has taken to us very well. She has been very smiley and hasn't cried really at all. It's crazy that this day is finally here!!! Please keep praying for us to be able to bring her home on the 13th. Love you!

Update...

Whew...lots of information to soak in such a short amount of time. Yesterday we were very discouraged after finding out the news that Rylyn's birth mom had not yet signed the final paper that the court needs and the orphanage needs to get Rylyn's passport and physical done. We were told that the post office tried delivering the paper three times and left a notice on her door to pick up the papers from the post office and we were told she had not yet gone to pick up the papers. The orphanage told us since legally the were unable to go to the birth mom's house, they couldn't do much. Ted called us this morning and told us that they did get in contact with the birth mom and she said she HAD just signed the papers. They have a holiday in Taiwan on Monday and Tuesday so they are hoping to get the papers by the end of the week. We may have to change our return flight by a day or two but PRAISE JESUS that everything seems to be coming together. We are leaving on Sunday night to fly to Charlotte and on Monday morning we fly out to go see our baby girl. We cannot thank you enough for the hundreds of family and friends praying for us and our journey. This has been a very trying time and we are learning more and more that God is good no matter what.

Another bump in the road

We are scheduled to leave for Taiwan this coming Monday morning. We have booked our flights and everything. I just received the email from the orphanage saying the following:

"Rylyn's birthmother has not signed the paper and sent it back to the court. Now she refuses to answer our telephone calls. Withouth this second paper your adoption cannot be finished. We received the first paper giving the ok, then it is sent to the birthmom and she has to sign a paper, she does this when the postman delivers it and he sends it back through the post office to the court system. When that paper is received at the court then the judge can make the final decree. This is a time when all of your praying friends should be praying. What the issue is we do not know but when she will not answer our phone calls our hands are tied. God's hands are not tied. Please pray and ask everyone else to pray. We need that paper returned so the judge can make the final decree. Hope this is understadable. Ted does more of the court stuff. Just want you know what is happening so you can pray more intelligently. Without the final decree the case cannot be finished, cannot do the passport or physical or the Ait appointment. God is our refuge and strength, a very pressent help in time of trouble. Ps. 46:1"
Please pray for us!!


-betsey and greg

Oh so close!

We got the word that all the papers were in and the go ahead to look for flights this weekend. We ended up booking our flight last night. We decided not to travel through Japan due to all the craziness going on at the moment. We didn't want to be exposed to the radiation...even though it was hard to pass up the $800 flights that went through Japan. After looking forever for flights and not finding much, we used a recommended travel agent named Todd. He was super helpful. We have a bassinet for Rylyn reserved on the long flight back. Hopefully she will be able to sleep some. We have been working on packing up all her stuff. I can't believe we are leaving so soon. We are SO thrilled. We are excited that my sister Laura will be coming with us. It will be nice to have some help as we dive into parenthood. Wahoo!!

A little more news

I found out that the judge now has all the paperwork in her hands. We are praying for her to approve the adoption and send the final papers back to the orphanage. Please pray hard.

Progress in paperwork

A few updates...We are all very thankful that the recent earthquake in Japan had little effect on Taiwan. Other than some big waves, the orphanage said everything was okay there. As far as Rylyn's final paperwork, we did find out that the case worker had been to visit Rylyn's birth mom. Yay! She was supposed to get the report written up and sent last week. After that is written up, it will be sent to the court in Luo-Dong. They might have received it Friday. If not, it should be there in the next week. Next, the judge has to pass on the case, then the clerk has to send the paperwork to I-lan for processing. After that is done and then they will sent it back the clerk who will then send it back to the orphanage. The final papers have to come by mail so everything will be signed and sealed properly. We were told it will be about 2 to 3 weeks. We are very much hoping to fly around spring break time. please continue to pray for speedy paperwork. Thank you!!

Just one more paper...

Were were emailed a few days ago and told the social worker responsible for contacting Rylyn’s birth mother and getting her report back to the judge here in Luo-Dong, did call the orphanage back today. She said she had been trying to get a hold of Rylyn’s birth mother to do the final report (the one that is holding up moving forward on the adoption) and each time the birth mother said she was working. The orphanage was able to get ahold of Rylyn's birth mom on her cell phone and and she said that the social worker had not yet made arrangements with her as to the time she would do the report for the judge. They strongly encouraged the birth mother to please try and get with the social worker to get the report done for the judge, otherwise we cannot move ahead with the adoption proceedings. It is frustrating for the orphanage to have to track down folks after the court date to get these reports in for the judge. If they don’t cooperate, then it just makes the paperwork drag out longer. Please pray that the birth mother makes arrangements with the social worker in the next few days so the judge can get the final papers. It is the only thing we are waiting for before we can start looking at flights! Thanks for your prayers.

-Two emotionally exhausted parents to be.

March Update

In Rylyn's March update we were told that she is doing great and now weighs 15.4 lbs and is 25.5 inches long. They said she still feels pretty light when they pick her up, but they can tell in her little thighs that she's putting on a little bit of weight! About a week ago during play time, she pushed herself up to a crawl position and they thought she might start going. She was defniitely excited to get to that new position and made a little move but then went back down to her tummy. They think she's going to start soon! We are hoping that she waits until we get there to show off her skills. They also said she's been chewing on her hands a lot lately, and they can feel bumps where more teeth might start coming in. With her solid food, some days she opens her mouth up wide and scarfs it down and other days she couldn't care less about eating it. But she'll still do her little Rylyn giggle either way! The last thing we were told is the other night when she was sitting in her chair, if anyone said her name she laughed hysterically. They said she has provided much entertainment and laugher within the orphanage.

Not Much News

Well we have been praying LOTS for the case worker who had been assigned to Rylyn's case to go visit the birth mom and send in the final paperwork to the judge. The orphanage called the case worker last week and we were were told the case had been assigned and that they were hoping for it to be completed last week. When we called the orphanage tonight we were told that they have tried getting ahold of the case worker again yesterday and had not heard back. They left a message for her. We know that the judge has still not received the needed paperwork that can only come from the case worker. Please pray that the case worker will do her job and the judge will process the papers quickly. Once these final papers are in, we can start looking at flights. We may only have a week's notice for when we can fly. We did hear that the twins who had the same court date as Rylyn, did get their final paperwork back from the case worker this past week. We are very happy for them. We are praying for good news and hoping to hear some soon.

Please pray for Ted, who helps run the orphanage that his back will feel better.

Please also pray for the orphanage that they will be able to raise enough money to make the necessary changes that they need to make. There is a big meeting in April coming up where the government is meeting with them to make updates and changes in the orphanage. This will cost a great deal of money, over $2 million US dollars. The orphanage never asks or requests money from anyone, they just trust that God will provide. If you would like to help support this amazing orphanage, please let me know. Thank you for your prayers!

A little more clarification

After being somewhat discouraged yesterday with the news of having to wait another 2 to 3 months, today I am doing a little better. I called the orphanage again last night to actually speak with Ted and find out a little more information about Rylyn. We did find out that she is in fact the only child. Rylyn's mom had her and her alone when she was 24. At the court date last Tuesday the birth mom filled out that Rylyn was her one and only child. After speaking with Ted he emailed to say that his secretary did a little investigation and was able to locate the government office in Tainan responsible for doing Rylyn’s birth mother’s social welfare report that has to be turned into our judge here before she will pass on the adoption. The good news is that he spoke with someone in charge who said they had just received the court notice to go to Rylyn’s birth mother’s home and do the investigative report. They promised to assign someone to the case this week and try to get it done this week. It would be so great if the judge could receive both reports by the end of next week at least! We are praying for this to happen but know that every adoption case is different so we're trying hard not to get our hopes up too much and just trusting in God's timing.

We did find out for sure that we will need to get our passports certified by the clerk of court, SOS and TECO in order for Rylyn to be able to receive a passport when that time comes. We are going to try and start working on that tomorrow. As far as the birth mother changing her mind and taking Rylyn back...it is still possible but not very likely. Even though she signed the paperwork saying she couldn't contest the adoption, if she changes her mind, the judge leaves it up to the orphanage to make the final decision. The orphanage is there to help the mothers and not make them feel like they are stealing their babies so if that does happen (we are praying that is doesn't) The orphanage would most likely give her back to the birth mother.

We keep hearing about what a happy and giggly baby Rylyn is and how her laugh is infectious. We just can't wait...even though we have to. ; )

Up and Down and all Around...

Man...every time we call to check on Rylyn we never know what we will find out. We were super excited on Tuesday because we were told that Rylyn's mom showed up to the court date, signed all the papers and even signed the papers given up her right to contest the adoption. However, due to Chinese New Year, neither the orphanage or the birth mom had received a visit from the government social worker who has to file a report for the judge before the judge will pass on the adoption.

When we called this morning to check on Rylyn we found out that she is in size 2 diapers, she is wearing 6 to 9 month clothing, She was given shots at her 1 month, 2 month, 4 month and 6 month check ups. We were told last time we called that she had been spitting up a lot. They switched her formula to lactose free and she is doing much better with eating, not much spitting up at all. As far as her baby food eating, she has now tried pears, apples, bananas, spinach, carrots and mashed potatoes mixes with rice cereal and a little water and blended together. I asked about if she likes a pacifier and they told us that she really would rather play with it than suck on it. We found out that she is sleeping through the night. She sleeps from 8pm-5am. Yay! Her bedtime is about 8pm but it takes her a bit to fall asleep. She is like Greg in that area. They also told us that she doesn't care for toys too much. She throws rattles on the ground but she likes to hold and look at books a lot and she also likes to look at herself in the mirror. Greg was excited about the book part. (Like her daddy again)

We found out this morning that because of a new law that we need to get our passports certified. now we will need to go to the Clerk of Court, SOS and TECO to get our passports certified. We are hoping to work on that this week and have it done by early next week. We have to have that done to apply for Rylyn's passport when that time comes.

This part we are a little confused about... Last time we called we heard that Rylyn's had three other sisters and brothers. Now we are not so sure. We were told this time that Rylyn’s birth mother has never been married before and does not have any other children. Rylyn is her first and only child. Her birth mother was 24 years old when Rylyn was born and she said the man was 47, which is probably 46 the way we count time. He is also a married man with 3 children of his own. We do not know his name which is actually better because they don’t have to track him down and get notarized papers. They orphanage does have the birth mother’s notarized papers stating she doesn’t think the birth father will ever take any responsibility for Rylyn. That releases us, AIT (the American Institute in Taiwan) and us from any further liability or responsibility toward the birth father.

We found out that the social worker did come Friday to the orphanage to do the report on us for the judge. She said she would try to get the report in this week. However, they have no idea who the social worker is for Tainan or who will go to the birth mother’s home to do a report about her for the judge. Until both of these reports are in to the judge, a verdict on the adoption will not be forth coming. It is because of this that we were aren't supposed to post anything on face book or tell people that everything is okay. We were just told that. Tainan is infamously slow at getting their reports done, so it could still be 2 months from now before the judge even hears from them, to say nothing of how much longer it will take to get the civil court decree and final civil court decree. They still don't know what to expect.

We were also told when Rylyn's mom visited she asked a lot of questions about us and wanted our address. They did not give it to her. It will however be in the civil decree when it comes. When Rylyn's mom visted Rylyn at the orphanage she took lots of pictures of Rylyn. It was close to nap time were we told that Rylyn never seemed to connect with her that day. A gentleman brought the birth mom to the orphanage. They asked is he was the birth father and he denied he was. The birth mom said the man was her boss at work and he encouraged Rylyn’s birth mother that she had made the correct decision to give Rylyn for adoption to us. We were also told that Rylyn's birth mom is beautiful and we should hopefully get a picture of her. We are still waiting and praying.

The Best New Yet!

So...the court date was last night for us at 9:00pm and this morning at 10am in Taiwan and it went GREAT! We have been thanking Jesus all day long! Greg could barely sleep last night. I wish I could say the seem but...I can always sleep no matter what. ; ) One of my gifts Greg is jealous of. Anyway, Ted emailed me around 2am saying that Rylyn’s birth mother came to court today and gave her consent for Rylyn to be adopted by us! She also gave up her right to contest the adoption so that will make the paperwork go faster once the judge passes on the adoption. The only sad news was, due to the Chinese New Year, neither she nor we have received a visit from the government social worker who has to file a report for the judge before the judge will pass on the adoption. We haven't gotten word on an exact date yet but we've heard a ball park range of 3 to 7 weeks from now. Wahoo!! I'm wanting time to fly!

Court Date

Well...the court date is just two days away. I was mixed up on the timing. The court date will take place in Taiwan on February 8th at 10am. That means it will be February 9th at 10pm for us in the US. I think that is right. ; ) We will say we were super bummed to find out that after the court date is completed...it could still take 2-3 more months until all the paperwork is processed and the AIT appointment is set. However, we were warned by some friends who have already adopted that the orphanage tends to give you the worst case scenario. We are very much hoping this is the case.

I know Greg and I will feel much more at peace once the court date is completed. We are trying to get one step over with at a time. The wait is getting harder and harder though. Once the court date is completed it will be nice to know that Rylyn is 100% ours! This has been an emotional roller coaster but I know it will be worth every minute of it...

I think i have lost count of how many times I have gone into Babies R Us and Buy Buy Baby just to look around because it reminds me of Rylyn. Greg has been sweet to come with me most of these visits. I'm pretty sure he is getting tired of going to baby stores on every date night. ; )

My awesome teacher friends are throwing us a teacher shower late Tuesday afternoon. I don't know how people can afford all this baby stuff without the help of sweet and generous family and friends! We are SO thankful that we aren't in this alone.

February Update

We got an update on Rylyn a few minutes ago. They said she weighs 15 pounds. She started eating solid food when she turned 6 months old on January 26th. We were told that she likes fruits and veggies very much. She went to the doctor last Friday and got her shots. Since then she has been sick with a runny nose and low grade temperature. They said her fever has gone away but she still has a snotty nose. Greg and I are sad (I know Rylyn is too) because one of her favorite people Miss Jennifer who helps take care of her, is going home soon. We are very thankful for her all all the people at HOGL who are loving her and caring for her so well. We were told that she is rolling over in her bed a little but not on the ground. They haven't put the babies on the ground much since it has been so cold there. As you can see, Rylyn is bundled up in layers since there is no heat or air there. We also found out that Rylyn has other half isters and brothers. I can't wait to find out more about them. Please continue to pray that the court date on Feb. 9th will go smoothly and everything will come together. I can't believe we are going to be parents in just a month or so! We can't wait.

WE HAVE A COURT DATE!!!

We couldn't be more excited!! This weekend was awesome. We had such a great great baby shower. It was amazing to have so many family and friends there. I felt very loved. We found out Saturday night when we called the orphanage that we have a already have the court date set!! We prayed specifically for this miracle. The HOGL got our papers on Monday. We were told that we wouldn't hear anything until Feb.6th-Feb 11th because the Chinese New Year just started. During the Chinese New Year everything shuts down...all businesses, postal services, etc. But guess what...the paperwork all passed through so super, duper fast!! We are also very thankful because the government is allowing the orphanage to contact the birth mother through a phone call to tell her when and where the court date will be held. This is also awesome since the postal service is shut down during the New Year she may not have found out about the court date until it was too late. So...on February 9th at 10am our time....is when the court date will be held. We are praying that all the papers will arrive to the court in time and the birth mother will show up. After the court date is over. We will know more information about when we can book our flights!!!

Got Paperwork back from TECO

We got our paperwork back from TECO. The HOGL should get our paperwork on Monday. Now we are praying for a quick court date! Once the court date is set and completed we can fly to go get Rylyn!! We are hoping for February but it may be March depending on how fast everything moves. ; )

Waiting for TECO papers

My awesome husband took care of all Rylyn's paperwork. He got everything done at the SOS office in Columbia this past Friday and overnighted the rest of the paperwork to the TECO office in Atlanta. We assumed TECO is closed since it is MLK day but we paid for overnight shipping for when TECO finishes the paperwork. Then we will send all the paperwork back to the orphanage and wait for a court date to be set. We are hoping and praying the court date will be sometime in February. After the court date is complete.....we will go get our baby girl! The wait is getting harder and harder. It is especially hard since there is nothing we can do but pray and wait. Please pray that Greg and I will use this time to connect better and God will teach us how to trust him more during this time. Optimistically thinking, we could have our baby girl by February?!!

Paperwork is here!

Wahoo!! Thank you FedEx for battling the wintery storm and delivering our paperwork. The paperwork arrived today around 4:30pm. Greg has been working hard to make sure he has everything ready to take to the Secretary of State tomorrow in Columbia. Next step, drive (or overnight the rest of the paperwork to the TECO office in Atlanta). From there it's another waiting game for Rylyn's court date to be set. We are so thankful that the paperwork has come though!! Thanks for your prayers. We are doing everything we can. We can't wait to bring you home Rylyn!!

Another Update

We got an email last night saying the hard copies of the paperwork we need have been Fedexed to us. If all goes well, the paperwork should arrive tomorrow morning around 10:30am. We had a crazy snow storm though and school was canceled and no mail came today so a day or two delay in mail may be possible. Come on papers!!!


We only have a few more little things to do and Rylyn's room will be complete. Here is a picture.

A little update...

We did get some good news saying the orphanage had received an emailed copy of Rylyn's translated home study on Wednesday. We are waiting for the HOGL to get the hard copy of it mailed to them and then they will mail it to us. Then it will be: drive to Columbia to get it notarized by the Secretary of State, drive to Atlanta to get the paperwork to TECO, wait for TECO to send it to Taiwan, wait for a court date to be set and followed through with and THEN....we will be so close to getting our baby girl!!

I just got back from Florida a few hours ago. Some of my mom's sweet book club friends wanted to throw Rylyn her 1st baby shower this weekend. It was great, despite the fact that I have been sick for over a week now. I didn't want to miss it. I flew down on one of those cheap Allegiant flights to Tampa and Christy and I rode to Orange Park together. Some of my best buds from high school got to come to the shower too, which was WONDERFUL!

We love you Rylyn and can't wait for you to come home!

January Update

We called Taiwan last night to check on Rylyn. Skype is only 2.2 cents a minute to call so we signed up for that. ; ) We got Rylyn's January update from the orphanage. They told us that Rylyn is doing much better playing by herself. She can sit in a Bumbo, facing the toy box, and play with the toys for quite a while. She also has her 4th tooth coming in! Most babies don't have teeth at all until a little later on. I can't believe she will already be 6 months old this month! We were told that some colds have been going through the house again and Rylyn has a bit of a runny nose. (which may be partially due to teething) So she, like others, are on medicine and they're all improving. We heard it has been cold this week and the babies all have extra layers of clothes and blankets on.
We were told that Rylyn is a very smily baby and she loves to squeal this high pitch squeal and break out into a huge smile when you talk to her. We are waiting for the home study translation paperwork to get done and are praying that it goes quickly.