Happy Happy Weekend

Well, we left town again for a great weekend of camping with our friends. We arrived at the campground Friday night and then spent all day Saturday floating down the river on tubes and enjoying the wonderful weather. On our way home today, we stopped to see my grandma and then went to my mom's for lunch and presents (I'm 28 today). Since I don't have any fun adoption news, I'll share some of the pics of the weekend!

On the road to the campground.
Justyn and Rae...How is this for "city people" camping? Ed got a camping Espresso maker and made himself a little latte this weekend!
Heading for the water!
Here are a few of my birthday presents!


Ed went all Vietnam...These bowls are fair trade/sustainable bamboo...aren't they beautiful? He also got me a fair trade Mother of Pearl necklace from Vietnam. Nice work babe!

My biggest bro JD special ordered these pink m&m's. Can't read them? They say "welcome home" and "Ella". We're going to save them for a shower or post-adoption party...aren't they great?
I am collecting books designed by Robert Sabuda..they are AMAZING pop-up books. I have a couple Christmas ones, but my mom got me two more for my b-day. Here is "America the Beautiful" (these books are too pretty for Ella's little hands...they are on the bookshelves -high).
The Golden Gate Bridge.
Hope you all had a great weekend!

9 months does not always = baby

9 months ago today our application was dropped off at the post office to make it's short little journey to our adoption agency. What we didn't know was what a long journey it would become. I know there are families who have been waiting so much longer than us, so I'm not about to have a pity party, because quite frankly, it will do no good and I know that there are other families out there just as ready as we are to welcome their little one. As hard as this ride gets, I know that things happen for a reason and as much as my heart doesn't always understand that, my head does. So here's to waiting hopefully just a little bit longer.

Ella,

Wherever your little head is resting right now, please know how much we love you and can't wait to see your sweet little face!

Love,

Mom and Dad

What exactly are you waiting for?

I've been asked this a few times. What are you waiting for and why is it taking so long? Let me explain...

When we first signed on with our agency, they were licensed to work in two provinces. We were told that they were also working on getting licensed in a third province, Tay Ninh. Our agency was not happy with the process in the other two provinces, so they decided that once Tay Ninh was up and running, they would make it their primary province/orphanage. By doing this, they had to set up an entirely new office in that province, as well as establish relationships with the new orphanage and staff. All of this was in the works when we became eligible for a referral, however, there weren't any infants in the orphanage at that time. Because there were no adoptions being conducted from that orphanage (or province) prior to our agency getting licensed, they were unable to accept more babies (they already had several toddlers and older children). Since signing with our agency, the orphanage increased their staff and reopened their doors to accept infants. So again, what does this mean??? Well, we've been waiting for a few months for all of the dust to settle and for the babies taken to the orphanage to get their paperwork ready. We feel she could be at the orphanage now, but we aren't sure. Our agency did mention that they expected the first referrals to be ready any day now, but we are unsure if the first few will be girls or boys...we are still sitting at #2 for a girl. As hard as this wait is, I feel good about the procedure and our staff working in Vietnam right now. They seem genuinely excited to be finding homes for these babies and getting the them home while they are still young!

Once we get a referral, we will then be waiting for a call to travel. Some agencies have their families traveling within 4-8 weeks of a referral, others are taking several months. It tends to depend on the amount of paperwork that was processed prior to the referral being given to the family, as well as the province and how fast they can move the paperwork. We don't know what to expect because we will be one of the first two families traveling in the province. We hear that the PDJ is great and they are ready...that's a good sign.

Soooo, we have absolutely NO idea when we will get our phone call of a referral...could be hours, could be weeks. We just aren't sure. I'm trying to stay very positive, as I've finally realized worrying and freaking out do NO good and it isn't going to bring her home any sooner. So while we wait, I'll try to get as much ready for her as I can now. Speaking of, we registered at Baby's R Us last night...WOW, that was fun but a lot of work! I'm also hoping to sew her a few more outfits while I'm off this summer.

Anyway, sorry that long winded explanation! I'll be sure to update when I hear more from the agency! Have a great rest of the weekend.

Even the dog is tired of waiting...

Well, we're still sitting here waitin'. We've been going back and forth with the agency today for updates but we didn't really learn anything new. It seems that they are hopeful it will be very soon, but again, I remind you all that "soon" in adoption lingo could mean anything!

I wanted to say a huge thank you to all of the readers and fellow bloggers who have posted such thoughtful comments of excitement and encouragement on not only our blog, but theirs too. It means SO much to know we have people holding their breath with us and it will make it that much more exciting to share our news when it comes. I hope to update with something more exciting soon!

Just checking in...

I am almost done with my first week of summer school and it's been smooth sailing so far! The kids are great and I'm having so much fun with the 3 and 4 year olds who are Deaf...I'm quickly picking up my signing skills!

I heard from a little birdie today that things are sounding really positive for upcoming infant referrals. Not sure of a timeline, but we think pretty darn soon! (interpret that term as you want...I never know what that means).

We are planning my baby shower too...that's exciting. It's not until the end of August...We hope to have the referral by then but we decided we just had the bite the bullet and get a date on the calendar before life got even busier! I'll do a post soon about the invitations...they are my favorite part!

Finally, I'll close with a few cute pictures from last weekend (finally downloaded them).

These are my "big" brothers Justyn and Jonathan (unfortunately we were dressed up for funeral).

The family...

We tried so hard to have Alicyn hold up Gracyn...didn't quite work!

Playing at the beach!

Back to reality...

Had a few picnics, watched fireworks, took a trip to IKEA, enjoyed a few days off with Ed...but it all dwindles away tomorrow. I've enjoyed my three weeks off of work but I got a call from my supervisor and was asked to work summer school. I had a sneaking suspicion that they didn't hire enough speech therapists, so I wasn't surprised to get the call! I can't complain too much, I'll only be working half days for the next four weeks. I'll also be at a school for the Deaf and hard of hearing so I'll get to use sign language! I don't get to do it too much, most of my students during the school year (although hard of hearing) don't sign, but a big portion of the summer school kiddos do...it's always fun to brush up on my skills.

Ed is also starting a new position tomorrow with his company! He will soon be heading the solar division for his company (he's an electrician). Best news...he gets a company vehicle tomorrow too!

No adoption updates, with the holiday in the middle of the week, I wasn't expecting anything. Hopefully within the next few days we'll hear something. Our agency is expecting infant referrals within the next 2 or so weeks! We're hoping Lovely and Ella show their little faces!

Don't forget...look at my previous post called "Faces of Hope". Let me know if you are interested in the calendar!

Faces of Hope

Since the time we decided to adopt, I've been chatting online with Sen, an amazing Vietnamese Sister living in Colorado. I got into contact with her through her online store Provide-N-ce. Provide-N-ce seeks to provide jobs and trade skills to Vietnamese orphans and disabled persons by exporting their handicrafts abroad. All profits are returned to the orphanages themselves in order to improve quality of life and further self-sufficiency. *I would encourage you to check out the site. I've already bought several purses and most recently, a pink and white polka-dot dress for Ella (I know, more dots)!*

She is now starting a new non-profit organization called Bridging Hope. As a fund raiser, they are going to be selling a calendar called "Faces of Hope" (click to see the draft of the calendar). I have attached an abridged version of the mission statement of Bridging Hope below. *This calendar has a special place in my heart. A few months ago, my mom and I were able to send Sen a box of handmade blankets and hats for her to take to the very poor villages around Hanoi. She was kind enough to photograph the kids and one of them is in the calendar with the hat! It's "Novemember".*

Please help Sen with such an amazing and worthy cause! If you think you may like to help Sen out, just leave me a comment that you are intersted within the next week an I will contact Sen giving her a total. This is ONLY so she can get a rough estimate of how many to have printed...you are not obligated to buy one if you indicate your interest. I am not selling them, just helping her get some better numbers. I'll update when the calendars are printed and available to actual purchase via her website.

Bridging Hope, Inc.

"The objectives of Bridging Hope, Inc. include:

Help underprivileged people in Vietnam, especially physically disabled or disadvantaged women and children, including orphans and children with HIV

Help fight illiteracy in Vietnam caused by poverty and ignorance by promoting jobs and education.

Provide nutrition and meals to underprivileged children in Vietnam by funding meals at orphanages and through other means.

Provide shelter and housing for elderly people in Vietnam.

Promote Vietnamese art and culture by fostering opportunities for art and cultural development.

The by laws of Bridging Hope, Inc. provide that it will have a minimum of four board members. The board members will oversee the activities of the corporation, and help formulate and achieve corporate objectives, such as fundraising to achieve the goals of the corporation.

Sister Sen would like to accomplish more through Bridging Hope, Inc. to improve the lives of women and children in Vietnam than she has been able to accomplish through Providence, LLC. The board may appoint Sister Sen as an officer of the corporation. It is likely that the board will advise Sister Sen on how best to achieve the corporate objectives."