So here's the story

We sent off for our visas the minute we had tickets to travel. Our travel agent kept having to change our flights due to limited seat availability at the missionary rate. Our flights were changed back and forth several times and when it looked like we were pretty set we mailed off our visa applications with our original passports, which is required to process the applications. There is a rule that you cannot apply for a visa prior to 2 weeks from your travel date. We sent it "overnight delivery" and it was due to arrive in Washington DC on Monday. We also sent a return "overnight delivery" envelope for our visas and passports to be delivered back to us by Wednesday. Along with all of this we paid the additional $100 to have our visas expedited within a 24 hour period. I kept calling the Liberian Embassy in Washington, DC to make sure that all of this was okay and was assured that it was. Wednesday came and went and we received no package. Thursday we had to be out of town (you know, to find house) and the mail came and no package. At this point the Embassy was closed and we had no way of knowing the tracking number for our return package. We began our numerous calls on Friday and the woman at the Liberian Embassy was extremely difficult, but finally gave me the tracking number. When we entered that number on the USPS site, it was an "unknown number". She refused to help us and hung up on Clint three different times. She swore that she put it in the mail and that we should have received it on Wednesday. We couldn't ever get past her to talk to someone else. At this point we had Monahans, Midland and Washington, DC looking all over their mailrooms for our package. At 4:00 our time Clint was finally able to talk to the exact postman that picks up mail from the Embassy. He looked over his records and reported back that he had never (NEVER!) picked up a package from the Embassy for our zip code the entire week. This told us that what we had suspected had happened and our package had never left someone's desk.

I had to cancel our flights by 5:00 or lose every last penny. That was the hardest call to make! We spent the rest of the evening being very sad and very angry that everyone was leaving without us and it was all due to someone not doing their job. At 10:30pm I searched the USPS site once more, and low and behold our tracking number was now good. The report showed that our package had been received and scanned at 8:48 pm in MARYLAND!!! What??? Apparently someone had our package and had failed to mail it like they claimed. It was dropped in a BOX in MARYLAND and has now begun it's way to us.

We are praying that we receive our package Monday and we can book a flight for Tuesday. John is trying to get us an Embassy appt for Thursday. IF all of this goes just right we can still be in Liberia to get our children and join the group for the last leg of their journey. We would have to stay a few days past the rest of our friends, but oh well. At least we would have our kids and be on our way back home soon! I will keep everyone updated. I want you all to know that I appreciate your sweet emails and prayers on our behalf. Don't stop now!