Thank you all

Thank you all for the birthday wishes. I'm hoping I only have one more to go without my son. I hope you all had a great day. Here's a picture of my pumkins.

SURPRISE

To all who know me, you know that my birthday is tomorrow and every (I mean every) year I get an ice cream cake for my birthday. Well my parents are leaving town this weekend and weren't going to be around so we are celebrating it on Monday which is great. However this evening, just after Chris got home from work, my mom and dad showed up at my door with a surprise birthday cake for me, and of course it was my ice cream cake. They said it just wouldn't be the same if I get it next week. Here's a pic of the cake and of me with it. They sang me "Happy Birthday" we watched my TV interview I had this week and it was great. I just thought I would share it with you all as it really lifted my spirits. Thank you Mom and Dad. xoxox

6 Week mark

Tomorrow will be 6 wks that our dossier is in Ministry hands awaiting approval. I know I was told 6-8 wks but have seen many families receive their approval in 6 wks so I was hoping we would be in the 6 wk area as well. I worry that the dossier isn't even there, that for some reason it didn't make it there and we won't know until 8 wks as that is when my Case Worker will call for an update. I worry that it's taking that long due to issues the gov't may have about us. This approval will at least put my mind at ease that we "according to gov't standards" will be allowed to have a family. I know that the wait for the referral will be much harder and the wait for travel even worse but at this point i'm sitting here waiting for a gov't official to decide if we will be good parents. What will I do if they say no. The odds of that are rare I understand and there is nothing in the home study to suggest that we would be not approved but what if, what if, what if, is always in my mind. An approval will mean that, yes, I will still have to wait to expand our family with a little one, but at least I will know that the "out of our hands" decisions are done with.

I hope i'm not being selfish in this next statement, but I ask you all to please pray that we will receive our approval soon and that I can officially wear my "Expecting from Ethiopia" tshirt. I really don't mean to sound so discouraged I just want this hurdle over and done with. My birthday is this Friday and i've been wishing all month for that as a birthday gift, so maybe Friday will be the day.

thanks for listening.

Referrals

I would like to take a moment to congratulate all the new mommy and daddy's that received their referrals today. It's been a long time coming and here's hoping many more referrals come soon. My day seems so far away at this point it almost feel unattainable but I know someday it will be my day and today is their day, congrats again to all.

Help Support Breast Cancer

It's a simple and easy wait to help the fight against Breast Cancer. All you have to do is go to www.lookpink.com and use this site as your search engine for 30 days, you can use it forever but 30 days is all they ask. Everytime you do a search you will raise a penny towards Breast Cancer, it may not seem like much but if you think of all the searchs you can do in a day imagine the amount that can be raised by all of us. It's simply and free, however, remember to log in to your account before doing the searches as it won't count.

One more down, Hopefully only a few to go

Another week of waiting for the approval has come and gone. I know to some this waiting is nothing compared to the wait they have waited to see their childs face but I feel this wait is horrible, I feel like this wait is putting my adoption on hold. I'm not saying the wait in Ethiopia will be easier, but at least the end result will be a baby, it won't be a simple letter saying that the gov. of Ont. feels we are good enough people to be parents. I just want the red tape part to be over so that I can as well be officially expecting. How will I deal with the long wait for a referral, if I can't deal with the short wait, you may ask? Well i'm not sure but hopefully somewhat better than I'm dealing with this wait. The days and weeks are so sloooooowwwww. I just want Kaysen home. I know some have been waiting much longer, I just feel like i've been waiting 4 years to have a family and now I have to wait at least 1-2 more, it's just hard. I'm also turning 32 in 2 weeks and feel like i'm getting old and still don't have my family.....why? why? why? I know to most 32 is not old, but to me it's old to not have my family started. Sorry just a quick vent this morning to allow me to go on and wait the next few weeks.

Kaysen bedding set

My parents bought me the bedding and all accessories for Kaysen's nursery. Our theme is a baseball theme, we are both baseball fans and figured this is the only chance we may get to decorate his room with baseball as we can't guarantee he'll like sports later on, who knows what he'll be into when he gets bigger, he may prefer science or music or sponge bob...right? Anyways, here are some pictures. Thank you Mom and Dad Chris and I both love it. His quilt style bedding
The Hamper
Decortive wall hangings

We also have a valance, wall paper border, and a baseball mobile. We also bought some new flooring and a closet organizer for his closet. He will have the nicest room in the house. I can't wait to get started.

Chris Shopping

Chris has been keeping busy shopping for Kaysen lately. He says his part of the wardrobe is to buy sports stuff but he did manage one item to support africa. Here are some pictures. As also realized that I have yet to show you all some of my shopping items. I couldn't show you everything as it would take days but you can get the idea.

Congrats

I just wanted to say congratulations to the two families who received referrals yesterday. These two families have been waiting over a year for the referral of their child, which I think is a ridiculous waiting time. But they now have their referral and have renewed hope. Congratulations to the both of you.

Jake's injury

Hi All, i've been asked about the cone on Jakes head and because it was wordless wednesday I had to wait to explain. According to the vet it's a hot spot that wouldn't heal. A hot spot is a sore that dogs get if an area doesn't dry properly and then it gets aggrivated and the more the scratch the worse it gets. He has the wear the cone to allow it to heal, but he will be fine.
Thanks for your concerns,

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

6 Random facts about me.

I was tagged today by Rana to write 6 random facts about me on my blog. So here goes.

1. I am a Days of our Lives addict. I record it on a daily basis on my PVR and discuss it with my sister like it's our own life gossip. In fact, i'm watching it right now.

2. I am deadly afraid of heights and spiders. I'm good with spiders if they don't move but the second they start moving they turn into a giant monster and my heart races and I can't do anything to help myself. As for the height part, I'm lucky I can stand on my own two feet without being scared...lol

3. I had plastic surgery...i'll let you all guess on that one.

4. I love all musicals, and wish I could see plays more often. If you see a commercial about a musical movie coming out you can be sure i'll be in the theatres watching it and then it will be in my DVD library.

5. Chris and I are both the babies of the family with two older siblings, how two people who were always the babies can get along so well and have good balance i'm not sure but so far its worked amazingly.

6. I am the type of person that goes 110% when I get my mind on something. Whether it be the adoption, my career, a new hobby, moving out of town, whatever it is, once i've made a decision to do something I don't look back I just do it. For example, one week Chris and I were saying we would never move back, the next week, we decided it may be a good idea, the next week our house was sold and we had bought another in our home town the next we were getting jobs back home. I just don't like to dwell on something and second guess our decisions.


I must tag others so here it is, Jaclyn, Alicia, Tammy, Sebrina.

Have fun.

Please VOTE - Support Ethiopia Reads!

Ethiopia Reads founder Yohannes Gebregeorgis is one of the 10 finalists for CNN's Hero of the Year. You can vote for your choice of 'hero of the year' here: http://heroes.cnn.com/default.asp

The winner will receive $100,000 for their program!

Ethiopia Reads is a grassroots non profit/non government organization geared toward bringing literacy and literacy related resources to Ethiopia. Yohannes has started a lot of different projects including a mobile donkey library to get books to kids in poor rural areas- very cool!

Thanksgiving

What a great day. Yesterday we had a nice big turkey dinner at my mom's house. My brother and sister in law came home and we had a great day. At night it was so nice we got to sit outside by the fire. One of the few we had a chance to sit by this summer. and this morning we all went to out and took family pictures with a photographer, the weather was perfect and the colors were perfect. I will post some pics once I get them but for now i'll show you a few my mom took with her camera.

I hope you all had as nice a weekend as I did.

Dad and Chris by the fire.

6 month mark

Today marks the 6 month mark since we began this wonderful journey. Okay, at times not so wonderful but most days wonderful and the end result will be priceless. I received our translated marriage certificate today so that officially marks the last paper work we need...for now i'm sure.

Not much else going on here, the weather is amazing, we are having thanksgiving dinner this weekend, my brother and sister in law are coming down and we are doing a large family photo shoot on Sunday. Can't wait to show you all the great pics.

Have a great thanksgiving all.

Bracelet fraying

Not sure if you all remember but at the beginning of my blog I showed you all a picture of my "red ribbon bracelet" and explained how over time the red ribbon with start to fray and eventually disappear and become an invisible thread from my heart to my son's. Well it just started fraying, I have not taken this bracelet off since I got it, so it's done pretty good so far.

Scrapbooking

To keep busy I have begun to scrapbook, I have attached below a few of my pages. So far I really enjoy it and think it's a great way to use pictures, I can't wait to have pics of Kaysen to add to the mix, however I'm sure that once Kaysen arrives I won't have time for this kind of stuff anymore.

POEM ON ADOPTION

I read this poem today on another adoptive mother's blog and felt I needed to share it with you to help you understand what I've been feeling from day one.

Song of the Waiting Mother

I'm pregnant, but my tummy isn't growing.
And no one ever calls me "Little Mom."
The public simply isn't overflowing
With questions that I'd handle with aplomb..
There are no special clothes to mark my waiting.
Nobody stops and smiles as I pass by.
The absence of a due-date is frustrating
And looking at the nursery makes me cry.
When I'm overdue no one will worry.
The phone won't ring and ring as friends check in.
I can't induce my labor in a hurry,
My new life as a parent to begin..
Adoption is a worrisome endeavor
,And waiting all alone is not much fun.
To be "with child" a year seems like forever.
Dear God, we're ready! Please send us our little one!

A HOPE FOR CHILDREN

Here I am wearing my "A Hope for Children" tshirt, I got Chris and Kaysen one as well.

here a small blur of what "A Hope for Children" is all about.

AHOPE for Children is a non-profit organization whose mission is to serve the children of Ethiopia, with a primary emphasis on caring for orphans infected with HIV.

In Addis Ababa, AHOPE's two pleasant, well-staffed Children's Homes care exclusively for orphans who are HIV+ and have no extended family to care for them. Many of these children are now finding their forever families through adoption.

AHOPE's Community Outreach Program enables orphaned children to remain within their extended families and culture, while receiving medical care, education, food, and other services.

If you would like to support this charity feel free to click on the link on the right side of my blog.


Here is a picture of Maddux with his favorite toy. It only last a few weeks as it gets ripped but my mom always buys him a replacement every few months and every time it's like it was always there, it makes the noise of a duck and he loves it. Thanks MOm

Boys playing at the park,

Here are some pics of my boys playing in the park.