Just for the Record

We found out today that our paperwork was cabled to the Consulate in Guangzhou so we are that much closer to bringing our little ZiJing home.  I guess Chinese New Year will slow us down a tad, but we'll get through it, remembering that its all in Gods time, not ours...hoping to receive travel approval mid-March and outta here by the end of the month...praying...

Lest we forget what is at the end of this lengthy process... 

May God prepare her heart for this HUGE transition.

The Reality of Racial Differences

Abigail learned all about Martin Luther King, Jr. from a Kindergarten perspective last week.  She came home and told me that people used to have to sit in the back of the bus if they were not white people; then she went on to tell me they had separate drinking fountains for white people and people who were not white.  I just kept nodding...mmmm...then she told me that SHE would have had to drink out of the "other" fountain because she is not white. 

She has such a clear, matter of fact, way about her; I just love this girl.  I only hope life gets easier and easier for her and other people of color, it hurts me to think of my little girl hurting one day because of thoughtless ignorant people like me.  I have so much to learn from her.  Ugh.

What We Did on Christmas Break...

I know I'm behind...I know that's okay.  We've been busy doing a whole lot of nothing, but mental planning!  We had a nice break between Christmas and New Years, I worked a couple of those days but not very hard. 

{Isn't she a beauty!?}

We had a very nice Christmas and a quiet New Year, just the way I like it!  Watched a lot of movies, played in the snow, ate, ate some more...and now, its on to Weight Watchers!  My goal is to lose 20# before we travel (hopefully the end of March) and for once, I'm excited about it.  One week in and I'm down 3 1/2 lbs, so this should be easy (right.)!!!  Here are a few pics from Christmas Day, it was very fun!

 (yes, all the boys got nightshirts, their father insisted)

Lots on the agenda coming up, got one kid moved to the basement lower level, one kid moved into his old room and one room ready to be cleaned out.  Still no dresser or bed, but that's the easy stuff, right.  There's sanding and painting to be done, and oh how I'd love some new carpet, we'll see...

We are currently waiting on our I800 approval so I thought I'd mention it here, since when I do, things seem to happen???  Talked to my officer today, he was actually very nice, said our paperwork is "in the house" and they are snowed in, so it may be a few days...what's a few days now?  And what's a little snow??? So, again, we wait...

Hope to post some good news soon!  Happy New Year!

All I Want for Christmas....

is our LOA...guess what we got today!  Yes!!!!

 I left work at noon today for the holidays, not thinking I would hear from my agency since I had not yet...
well, I opened my home email tonight and there it was! 

 They had sent it to the wrong work email to begin with and no one called. I forgive them!!! 

Now we have to wait until Monday to send in next set of paperwork which is okay, I want it to be right. 

 All in God's time, all in God's time (a wise man told me that). 

Merry Christmas to all!!!

Words of Wisdom

I keep my nose in the goings on in the adoption world, for obvious reasons.  There have been many notices in the last few days about families receiving their LOA's (letter of acceptance), but nothing yet for us.  Our agency says "any day now" but that feels like an eternity.  My wonderful husband lately seems to know just what to say to make me be still.  I received the following email from him at just the right time:

"Just relax. This adoption thing has always been on God’s time table not ours. If you get it in the next day or so then great and if not then God knows what is best. His ways are not our ways. I Love You."

How blessed I am to have this man in my life...guiding us, protecting us, providing for us...and inspired by Him.

Fun picture, huh?

Random Thoughts

As we wait to hear about our LOA, I thought I'd chit chat for a bit.  Can you believe its almost Christmas?  I'm about finished with the shopping, sometimes enough really IS enough.  Abigail has been "home" for three and a half years now, this will be her 4th Christmas with us!  The really cool thing about this year is, she gets it.  She recognizes that this is all for Jesus and his birth.  She also keeps questioning whether Santa Claus is real or not.  We haven't tried to persuade her thought process one way or the other, but its interesting to watch the wheels spin!  We are going to bake cookies this weekend with Grandma and tie up loose ends.  Looking forward to that as it may be the last one that "small grandma" will remember, so we want to make it special.  Darn Alzheimer's...its so not fair.

(No that's not Abigail's bedroom, its a local nursery that does Christmas very well!)

So anyway, here's wishing everyone a Very Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year.  My only wish this year is for a fast process from here on out, so we can bring that little girl home and pray for an easy adjustment.  Amen.

It Hurts So Good

When we decided to enter this crazy world of adoption again, it wasn't a well thought out plan.  It was a "we saw a picture and fell in love"" kind of thing...well I fell in love, Bern fell in shock.  Someone {Cheri} had advocated for a little girl, age 7, who tugged at my heart strings.  After having her file reviewed and praying about it, we decided to move forward.  Through a series of other events going on at the very same time, parallel universes we'll call them, someone else was having the file reviewed and locked it before we could.  I was sad and a little heartbroken, not for this little girl, but more selfishly, for me.  I got over it, picked myself up and moved on to the child God really intended for us to have, Zi Jing.

The coolest thing about this story is, through a mutual bloggy friend, I got to know the woman who would become mommy to this little 7 year old girl.  There are no ill feelings.  So, reading her blog, I am happy to report that this little girl finally has her forever family TODAY and she is so very "right" where she is.

Bittersweet....a  little; happy for them.....you have no idea. 

Congratulations Ma Pei and your forever family!