@ bruce
desktop has an item receipt which allows you to receive the item and then the bill days later, for some reason when they programmed QBO they did not include that function - you can not receive an item and not affect the total inventory value (even using an item receipt - items purchased have a value)
So in QBO you have to make a decision, do not receive the items until the bill arrives,
or
enter a "best guess" bill to stock the items that came in, then when the bill does come in, edit the best guess version and pay it when ready.